FEMININITY PERSONIFIED

Celebrating the House of Creed’s new fragrance Wind Flowers

Though her demands were many, Queen Victoria’s one and only fragrance command was Creed. The ultimate luxury fragrance house counts some of history’s most inspirational women as loyal fans. Now the journey continues, fuelled by an endless passion to create the most captivating female scents

As one of the most iconic fragrance houses of our time, Creed conjures up images of luxury and beauty. Those images are tied with a history so long and rich that nothing quite compares. Most intriguing are its origins as a royal tailoring house from which, one day, Henry Creed delivered to

King George III a pair of scented gloves. The king later commissioned Royal English Leather, which captured the hearts of some of Europe’s most influential women. Queen Victoria – George III’s granddaughter – appointed Creed official supplier to the royal household.

And in 1854, under the patronage of Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie, Creed moved its headquarters to

Paris, with a client list of socially elite women. For more than 260 years, it has inspired and attracted powerful women from royals and socialites to artists and visionaries. As current heir and perfumer Erwin Creed puts it, ‘Our creations are a journey through time, like a bridge between generations, because the past is the strength of our future.’ Over the centuries, seven generations of the

Creed family have produced more than two hundred fragrances. Many believe a rare creative sprit to be the secret of its success. Erwin and his perfumier father

Olivier travel far and wide to source and research materials worthy of the alluring concepts that come to life in their Fontainebleau factory. When Aventus for Her – the feminine counterpart to the acclaimed Aventus – was launched in 2016, its success was spectacular. Stores sold out and it became ubiquitous at fashionable parties. For that scent, Olivier

Creed took inspiration from the famous women who had worn Creed and who had bespoke fragrances designed for them. Aventus for Her was created for the modernday bold and sensual woman who, like those historic figures, is destined to leave a mark. The spirited top notes of green apple, pink pepper and lemon lead to grounding lilac, rose, and blackcurrant, while base notes of patchouli, musk and sandalwood envelop you. The woody and floral scent Royal Princess Oud – launched the year before – was a seductive and feminine take on a classic. The striking bottle nods to the red riding habits that Creed made for royal women, while rare and luxurious ingredients invoke strength and glamour. Raspberry, bergamot, grapefruit and pineapple are among the top notes. Soft orris butter, pretty jasmine, powdery iris and rose flow into the solar notes and base notes of warm oud vanilla, patchouli, musk and cedarwood.

For the woman looking for something more whimsical, Love in White is deeply romantic. A testament to Creed’s skilled craftsmanship, it blends ingredients from the four corners of the world. The result is a scent that is soft, floral and carefree, yet sophisticated. Reminiscent of the blossoming trees of Provence on the first days of spring, it blends orange zest, apple, apricot, narcissus and magnolia with base notes of musk and cedarwood.

And now, Creed presents us with Wind Flowers, which Olivier Creed has dubbed the new ‘queen’ of the house’s female fragrance portfolio. More than five years in the making, this bright and brilliant scent is inspired by the strength and grace of a dancer’s flowing movements.

It opens with sweet jasmine, wrapped around zesty Tunisian orange blossom and fruity peach. At its heart, captivating jasmine and tuberose petals add depth and texture. Warm sandalwood, creamy praline, hazy iris and musk are the final touches that bring this dusky floral scent to life and make it the illustrious fragrance house’s latest success story – but assuredly not its last.

Below, from top Aventus for Her, Royal Princess Oud, Love in White and Wind Flowers

Creed Boutique, 99 Mount Street, London W1K 2TF, 020 7495 1795 www.creedfragrances.co.uk