SPRING’S FRESH TAKES

The scents of the season inspire a sense of the past but with a look to the future.

BY AMANDA ROSS

RAGRANCE HAS the power to evoke such intense memories that the experience bears a name: a Proustian moment. Whether it’s the aroma of a tea-doused madeleine, Chanel No5 or the interior of a new car, scent can transport you to another time and place with just one whiff. Whether it’s tea with your grandmother or the first day of high school, memories are forever locked in rose and jasmine, and even the volatile organic compounds of a newly minted Mazda.

As babies, it’s our sense of smell that’s the first to develop, which works to help us feel safe and secure from the outside world. The scent of a mother’s milk sends a signal to our limbic system, the part of the brain that controls emotion and memory. And science shows that, at any age, scent can lower stress and improve mental clarity – keys to our ongoing happiness and wellbeing.

In the digital age, however, sights and sounds have taken centre stage, which threaten to supplant the nose and the key role it plays in that happiness and wellbeing. What’s more, like any muscle that doesn’t get used, our olfactory senses become dull as we age so it’s important to take the time to stop and smell the roses –literally.

To help with that task, here’s a bevy of fresh spring fragrances – some with rose, others with spice – but all are designed to delight and deliver a whole new set of meaningful memories in one fell sniff.

1. NINA NATURE BY NINA RICCI

In 1932, former Italian-born seamstress, Maria Nielli, opened her Nina Ricci-labelled fashion and perfume house in Paris and, almost 100 years later, that feminine legacy lives on in the new limited-edition Nina Nature eau de toilette. Made with Granny Smith apple extract and upcycled lemons from the food industry (their zests still alive with citrus oil), this clean, vegan fragrance hits all the right notes when layered with jasmine, vanilla and white musk. 50 ml, $92, thebay.com

2. MISS DIOR BLOOMING BOUQUET

First launched in 2014, Miss Dior’s Blooming Bouquet in hits of orange, rose and musk relaunches this season in a more lightweight glass bottle adorned with a couture jacquard bow handcrafted in the workshop of one of France’s most renowned ribbon makers, Maison Faure. 100 ml, $180, holtrenfrew.com

3. GUERLAIN AQUA ALLEGORIA FORTE NEROLI VETIVER

One of the world’s oldest beauty companies also happens to be one of its greenest. Guerlain ships product by boat, not air, to keep its carbon footprint down and works to protect bees. This spring, Neroli Vetiver joins the Aqua Allegoria Forte opus with a floral and spiced eau de parfum offering made with fig, pettigrain distilled from orange tree leaves and French beetroot alcohol – all housed in the iconic beeadorned bottle. 75 ml, $156, sephora.ca

4. PACO RABANNE INVICTUS VICTORY ELIXIR

This year saw the passing of Franco-Spanish designer Paco Rabanne, a veritable renaissance man who dabbled in everything from fashion sketches for Dior to costume design for the movie Barbarella. In 1968, Rabanne launched his inaugural fragrance, Calandre, while this spring’s launch of Invictus Victory Elixir marks his creation of a heady new men’s scent in notes of amber, wood and spice. 100 ml, $145, beautyboutique.ca

5. CHANEL ALLURE HOMME ALL-OVER SPRAY

For men on the move, there’s Chanel’s new sensuous Allure Homme, a fresh and woody eau de toilette body spray redolent of bergamot, black pepper from Madagascar and Japanese green citrus extract. 100 ml, $99, holtrenfrew.com

6. MAISON FRANCIS KURKDJIAN 724 EAU DE PARFUM TRAVEL SET

Slip these tiny vials of Maison Francis Kurkdjian 724 eau de parfum in the custom Globe Trotter spray case for a sophisticated scent wardrobe wherever you go. Inspired by the smell and feel of big city energy, fragrances like bergamot from Italy and jasmine absolute from Egypt are as well travelled as you. Five 11-ml refills with a Gold Edition Globe Trotter case/$355, franciskurkdjian.com