Perfume to take you higher

I always say that smell is a spell you cast on yourself. As with any witchcraft, no one can agree on how it really works, only that it’s a conduit for magic. We do know that odour is processed by the emotional centre of our brain — the limbic system — which is why we can be traumatised forever by the remembered stench of a hated teacher, or comforted by a lover’s scent on a shirt. Since mood is manipulated via those two little holes above our mouth, fragrance firms have seized on science to produce products that promise to bring the happy. The Nue Co offers ‘fragrance supplements’ in the form of aromatic sprays that aim to de-fog and refocus, while Neom Organics melds neroli, mimosa and lemon in its Happiness Essential Oil Blend. Edeniste enlisted actual neuroscientists to devise the mood-stabilising accord in its perfume line, along with the six accompanying ‘Lifeboost active essences’. And flavours and fragrance maker Givaudan can get you to ‘Happy & Blissful’ courtesy of AI tech MoodScentz+, a tool used by perfumers to create smile-inducing ‘functional fragrances’. But science, schmience… here are six analogue perfumes to make you glad you have a nose:

BESO BEACH Bendito Beso

Luxury sun lotion.

£85 for 30ml, at thefragranceshop.co.uk

THE LIBRARY OF FRAGRANCE Kitten Fur

Kitty tummy.

£30 for 30ml, at sephora.co.uk

PIERRE GUILLAUME Métal Hurlant

Petrol and leather.

£99 for 50ml, at bloomperfume.co.uk

BEAUFORT Fathom V

Fresh cut leaves.

£115 for 50ml, at bloomperfume.co.uk

THE PERFUMER’S STORY Ditch

Rain on earth.

£98 for 30ml (theperfumersstory.com)