Sophia’s Perfume Diary – Hot on the Scent of the Olfactory Holy Grail

To follow is an excerpt from PlayFirst's new blog series for Passport to Perfume. The diary is written from the perspective of Sophia, the central character and owner of a perfume store.

London, 1947

Something stinks – actually a lot of things stink right now.

It’s kind of ironic since I’m currently grinding one of my favorite raw ingredients for a new perfume. Tiger lily. What a sweet, bright, floral scent this is! There’s nothing like the scent of freshly cut lilies. Just beautiful! The memories this scent evokes for me always make me happy then sad – sort of like the flower itself. They say the flowers of the tiger lily only last for a short period of time before they wither and are replaced by newer flowers. Somehow that seems to reflect my feelings today – good memories eclipsed by bad memories only to be replaced by good memories again. And so it goes…

The last time I saw my father was in Brazil over ten years ago. I miss him. I often think back fondly to the days we spent adventuring on our dual quest to uncover the secrets of one of history’s most fascinating regal figures - Marie Antoinette.

Our relentless quest was - and still is - to uncover the elusive recipe for her perfume. Revered and ultimately reviled for her luxurious lifestyle, Marie Antoinette possessed the most decadent olfactory potions of her time, having her own court perfumer deliver exotic combinations of her favorite scents in elaborately decorative perfume pots. Being able to recreate this scent for my most prized customers today is my biggest ambition.

My father and I were so close to finding the recipe on our last expedition back in 1936 but my father tragically fell prey to a rockslide in Brazil and was dragged down a pit taking his notepad with him – the notepad that held priceless information leading to the prized recipe.

Sophia's Perfume Shop

My personal ambitions and love of perfume is not surprising when you consider my genetics. My father is English which is why my perfume shop is based here in London but my mother is descended from a long line of Romanian gypsies.

Coming from such a nomadic culture, she has an amazing knowledge of natural botanics and instinctively knows which scents, flavors and ingredients work best together whether she’s cooking or choosing a perfume for the right occasion. I suppose I’m a perfect combination of my parents when I think of it – I have a little bit of the classic English conservatism which you’ll notice from the décor in my perfume shop but I also have an adventurous streak which brings out the wanderer in me and frequently leads me to exotic locales.

Sophia Concept Art

Right now my raw materials are getting low and I need to get packed for my next trip to source new perfume ingredients and perfume bottles. I’m very proud of the unique and exotic perfumes I sell - I personally research and sample every new ingredient for my perfumes.

World Map

I’ll write from my new location next time with more news and hopefully some updates on my quest!