Penhaligon's: A Closer Look

Last week, I headed over to Penhaligon's again. This time I was armed with the Canon 7D. That was the first time I was using the camera on manual mode, so apologies if the pictures look a bit 'out of place' - I am still learning! I have to say, photography is not easy, at least when starting off, it can be quite tricky.

I blogged about Penhaligon before here. They're absolutely amazing and their scents are one of a kind. The last time I took pictures of the store, it was closed, so I could not venture in. So this time I took the opportunity to snap away with permission. The staff were lovely and welcoming and the place smells divine.







Some candles in fragrances which are available as an Eau de Toilette.




This has to be one of my favourite display/decor in the store.






I smelt almost every one of these again. Gardenia remains my favourite. Ellenisia was another scent which surprised me. One of Penhaligon's staff described it as peachy and less floral compared to Gardenia, which I agree with. Surprisingly though, as much as I'm not a fan of florals on most occasions, Gardenia still manages to have that twist which keeps me captivated. Ellenisia is more simple and light.

I have been told that one of the services Penhaligon's offer in testing scents involves blindfoling the customer and allowing them to smell each perfume. I'm assuming this is one of the traditional ways of doing it. What an awesome way to trial every perfume!


The store's wall is decorated with the names of their perfumes over the years.


Walking inside really does feel like being in a different era. I feel like I'm at an apothecary.



To the left is Gardenia.



A few months ago, I also noticed a distinctive taxi bearing all the perfume names of Penhaligon's. After looking up on it, I found out that a few of these taxis still exist (apparently! Although there are very few of them so I rarely notice one). The taxi driver would know all about Penhaligon and their fragrances and would be more than happy to talk scents on the journey. The taxi would be scented in one of their perfumes. And upon paying for the fare, you get a discount on your next Penhaligon's purchase. Cool or what?! ^.^

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Penhaligon's Gardenia - My New Favourite Perfume

I don't know where to begin with this post. I feel like I have SO much to say about Penhaligon & their amazing Gardenia perfume, but I'll try not to ramble on ^.^

From the first time I saw a Penhaligon's store, I was captivated by just about everything in the store; from its beautiful displays, its traditional perfumes, the originality... I was entranced.

Founded in 1870 in Mayfair, Penhaligon still sells original compositions from that date. It has other compositions on future dates such as 1872, 1902, 1927, 1930, 1949 all the way to (currently) 2009 !
I like the fact that the interior of the store and the design of its bottles stayed old fashioned, as they were. Preserved through time.

I knew that one day I definitely will be getting a Penhaligon perfume. I smelt so many of their perfumes. Most of them are mature, some are very strong and all of them are completely unique in their own way.
But when I tried Gardenia, it was like magic created - like a genie appearing from a lamp; almost like I was transported to a mystical surreal garden.
It caught me by that big of a surprise that the first time I sprayed it on two years ago, I kept bugging a friend of mine to smell it continuously and couldn't stop talking about how wonderful and unique it smells.
It's absolutely spell-bounding...
With a price tag of £98, this was way out of my range. As much as I wanted it, I couldn't allow myself to spend that much!

So I was so excited when I got this as a present. I immediately pushed all my collection of perfumes further back on my shelf and put Gardenia right at the front in its box.

It has become my favourite perfume.
The more I smell it, the more I discover something about it and I like it more and more.

Gardenia was launched in 1976. This is one perfume that I have a hard time describing (I tried to think about exactly how to describe it before this post, but couldn't come up with suitable descriptions), so I have taken most of its descriptions from Penhaligon's site. It's very unique, complex...truly one of a kind.

Its composition is the following:

Head Notes
Violet, Rhubarb, Bergamot, Hyacinth, Magnolia, Green Leaves

Heart Notes
Gardenia, Rose, Ylang, Orange Blossom, Tuberose, Jasmine, Clove, Cinnamon, Lily of the Valley

Base Notes
Benzoin, Sandalwood, Musk, Vanilla

One of the most striking and amazing thing is that you can make out each and every one of these notes when you smell Gardenia. They're all distinguisable, something that, I think, is very rare. I also like the high composition of Jasmine in it.

Penhaligon notes:

Our fine fragrances are made in England using the finest rare ingredients; from hand-squeezed bergamot, to jasmine at twice the price of gold. Our signature Penhaligon’s fragrance bottle is to William Penhaligon's original design: clear glass with a distinctive ribbon-wrapped top.

Inside Penhaligon. I captured these pictures to show you how one of their stores look like. I admire the timeless designs and bottles of perfumes...

Even their wrapping paper is amazing (yes. I kept it haha!)