143 episodes

On The Scent is the podcast destination for anyone fascinated by fragrance (or keen to learn more) – a place where perfume snobbery is stripped away, and fragrance is accessible to all.

What began as a monthly sniff-in on the Outspoken Beauty Podcast soon became so popular in its own right (and with so many listeners sending in questions and asking for more) that On the Scent just had to go weekly - this time on its own perfumed platform!

Encompassing everything from icons and all-time classics to what’s new on the high street to the more ‘niche’ indie brands; Beauty broadcaster and columnist Nicola Bonn and award-winning fragrance journalist and expert Suzy Nightingale give personalised perfume prescriptions, describe fragrances in such an intoxicating way you can almost smell them and help navigate the thousands of scents out there to find the truly incredible ones. Also expect interviews with well-known figures, delving into their favourite scents of all time and opportunities to get to know some of the most exciting perfumers in the world.

Whether you’ve a collection of 500+ or are just starting on your scent journey, olfactory obsessives Nicola & Suzy are on a mission to find you fragrances that don’t simply smell good, but will re-connect you to long forgotten memories, engage your emotions and very likely blow your mind.

On The Scent Nicola Bonn

    • Arts
    • 5.0 • 52 Ratings

On The Scent is the podcast destination for anyone fascinated by fragrance (or keen to learn more) – a place where perfume snobbery is stripped away, and fragrance is accessible to all.

What began as a monthly sniff-in on the Outspoken Beauty Podcast soon became so popular in its own right (and with so many listeners sending in questions and asking for more) that On the Scent just had to go weekly - this time on its own perfumed platform!

Encompassing everything from icons and all-time classics to what’s new on the high street to the more ‘niche’ indie brands; Beauty broadcaster and columnist Nicola Bonn and award-winning fragrance journalist and expert Suzy Nightingale give personalised perfume prescriptions, describe fragrances in such an intoxicating way you can almost smell them and help navigate the thousands of scents out there to find the truly incredible ones. Also expect interviews with well-known figures, delving into their favourite scents of all time and opportunities to get to know some of the most exciting perfumers in the world.

Whether you’ve a collection of 500+ or are just starting on your scent journey, olfactory obsessives Nicola & Suzy are on a mission to find you fragrances that don’t simply smell good, but will re-connect you to long forgotten memories, engage your emotions and very likely blow your mind.

    NEW Charlotte Tilbury & Maison Crivelli, Chloe’s flower shop scents + violet tendencies

    NEW Charlotte Tilbury & Maison Crivelli, Chloe’s flower shop scents + violet tendencies

    There’s a whole new Charlotte Tilbury collection of SIX mood-boosting scents and a new Maison Crivelli to get excited about, plus Chloe’s beautiful flower shop inspired fragrances and our suggestions for a listener who’s craving violet

    We discuss…

    @charlottetilbury Fragrance Collection of Emotions 
    Available from 30th April on the Charlotte Tilbury app or from 2nd May online and instore. 100ml £130 / 10ml £20

    More Sex Black pepper, leather, ambroxan, musk, sandalwood

    JoyphoriaCoconut water, jasmin sambac, vanilla bean extract, powdery musk

    Magic EnergyBergamot oil, cashmere wood, palo santo accord, cypress

    Love FrequencyPink pepper, saffron, rose, musk, cashmere woods, patchouli

    Cosmic PowerAmber, cinnamon bark oil, vanilla bean, clove, frankincense

    Calm BlissBergamot oil, neroli oil, orange flower absolute, tonka bean

    @chloe Atelier des Fleurs collection - 
    Ateliers des Fleurs Magnolia Alba
    Chloe Ateliers des Fleurs Vanilla Planifolia
    @cloonkeen Baínín (pronounced ‘bawneen’)
    @maisoncrivelli Cuir InfraRouge 
    #perfumeprescription 
    @lush Kerbside Violet
    Guerlain Apres L’Ondee
    @goutalparis La Violette 

    @lejardinretrouve Violette Kew 
    @molinardparfums Violette 
    @isseymiyakeparfums L'Eau d'Issey Solar Violet

    • 44 min
    SO Many New Launches, Our Award Nomination & Your Prescriptions

    SO Many New Launches, Our Award Nomination & Your Prescriptions

    We are practically bursting with new fragrance launch news (there are several million so far this year it seems, and we’re going our best to catch-up with some of our faves here), and we are both glowing from our Jasmine AWARD nomination! Plus, we’ve got the perfect scented suggestions for your perfume prescription questions…

    We could not be more thrilled to have been shortlisted for the Creativity category of @fragrancefoundationuk Jasmine Awards for our week-long Halloween Instagram story. This unfurled in daily updates - which Suzy & Nicola took turns to write, using the story, photographs and music to evoke various fragrance’s characters. The entire story culminated in a podcast episode which went out on Halloween last year, and you can view the entire story by clicking on our Scented Story highlight circle - underneath our bio @onthescentpodcast. The podcast episode is linked there at the end of the story, too. 

    Anyway. Suffice to say we are THRILLED to have been nominated and made the shortlist. And we will be celebrating will all the other finalists at the ceremony on May 9th! 

    We discuss…
    @bdkparfumsparis 312 Saint Honoré
    @maisoncrivelli Tubéreuse Astrale
    @nancymeilandparfums Lupin Meadow 
    @champagneandsmoke Filthy Rose candle 
    @ormondejayne Vanille Afrique Intensivo
    @kayali Oudgasm Smoky Oud | 07
    @eliesaabworld Elie Saab Bridal
    @dsanddurga Black Magenta 
    @dsanddurga Wear at Maximum Volume 
    @bibbi.parfum Rainbow Rose 
    @bibbi.parfum Swimming Pool 
    @bibbi.parfum Santal Beauty
    Suzy also thinks Nicola would like: @bibbi.parfums Radio Child
    @marcantoinebarrois TILIA Perfume Prescriptions:
    @diptyque Philosykos
    @manosgerakinisperfume 
    Manos Gerakinis Immortelle 
    Manos Gerakinis Rose Poetique
    all £50 for 10ml @shymimosaperfumery in Bristol (and online, if you create an account you get 10% off your first order.)
    @mirrorwater.earth Smooth Body Oil 
    @sanctuaryspa Golden Sandalwood Mousse 
    @tothefairestlondon Cécile Satin Body Oil
    @refeelnaturals Lost Alhambra Dry Oil (from @sainte.cellier) 

    • 1 hr 1 min
    On the Scent with Olfactory Artist & Historian Tasha Marks

    On the Scent with Olfactory Artist & Historian Tasha Marks

    Award-winning artist and historian Tasha Marks has been exploring the relationship between art and the senses with @avmcuriousities through extraordinary scented artworks, installations and events since 2011.

    From recreating the scent of ancient Roman rituals, enhancing the experiences of the visually impaired on an architectural tour, evoking the smells of Queen Victoria’s dinners and making ‘strike and sniff wallpaper’, patrons include the Royal Academy of Arts, Victoria & Albert Museum, The National Gallery, The British Museum and most recently, creating the @libertylondon ‘Noseum’. 

    We’re delighted to have Tasha as a guest this week - and we’ll be taking a deep dive into her life, how she makes artistic inspirations a sniffable reality, and the fragrances she likes to wear outside of an exhibition setting…

    On Tasha’s website, there are brilliant descriptions photographs, and sound files of her work; plus you can sign up for her newsletter to hear about forthcoming artworks, installations and events: 

    https://www.avmcuriosities.com

    During the episode we mention:
    @perfumerh - Lyn Harris’ fragrance house, which Tasha got to know @libertylondon and has fallen madly for!
    (Suzy also mentions Perfumer H Ink, which she was finally paired with at a recent consultation in Liberty’s Fragrance Lounge)
    The Forest Bathing Institute @tfb_institute
    @calvinklein CK ONE
    @valentino.beauty V by Valentino 
    @versace Blue Jeans
    @laboratoryperfumes Samphire 

    Don’t forget, you can meet Tasha and hear much more about her career, ask her your own questions, and get to experience the Liberty Noseum first hand (or nose!) on the evening of April 11, when Suzy @fragrantmaven is hosting an Art & Fragrance conversation with Tasha! 
    Tickets available here: https://www.libertylondon.com/uk/events/Fragrance-Fine-Art-Event.html
    Tickets also linked in our bio, and in our Events highlights on Instagram @onthescentpodcast 

    • 57 min
    On the Scent with Melissa Leong - (Part 2)

    On the Scent with Melissa Leong - (Part 2)

    WHAT a way to end #nationalfragranceweek! If you’ve already listened to Part One, you’ll know our special guest this week, Mellissa Leong @fooderati is a HUGE fragrance fan, and that her list was so extensive, we had to split our interview with into *two full-length episodes* to accommodate them all. 
    Quite frankly, we were all having such a great time, it could quite easily have gone into five parts, were it not for the fact that Melissa is an incredibly busy woman (and that it was gone 11pm our time when we’d finished recording!) 

    Well I mean, when you look at that list, there’s no way we could cut any out, is there?!

    As you’ll discover, quite apart from her many broadcasting, writing, and editing accomplishments; Melissa is an erudite woman of incredible taste and style (as was her mother, we learned in the first half). We so enjoyed hearing the reasons behind her perfume choices, the development of her personal taste, and indeed, the link between her tastebuds and her sense of smell. 

    From food and fragrance, to the emotional resonance and how to build a wardrobe of perfumes that arm you against anything life may throw in your path, we know you’re going to enjoy this journey as much as we did.

    No matter if you’re a #foodie or a #fragrancelover - and there are a LOT of ties between our two tribes - you’ll find so much to love, here…

    We discuss:

    @diptyque Eau Duelle@atelierdesors Lune Feline 
    @bdkparfumsparis Gris Charnel
    @montale Intense Cafe
    @ormondejayne Woman
    @escentricmolecules 01 + Iris today
    @fragonardparfumeurofficiel Santal Cardamome
    When working on @masterchefau Melissa wore @fentybeauty layered with @naomigoodsir Bois D’Ascese
    @santamarianivella1221 Aqua della Regina + Parle Moi Milky Musk was “the combo I wore most days” (when working in Florence)
    [Suzy @fragrantmaven recommended Melissa tries @januaryscentproject Selperniku to feed her love of lactonic (milky) scents!]
    @jomalonelondon Myrrh and Tonka
    @parlemoideparfum Milky Musk
    @lelabofragrances Another 13
    @giardiniditoscana Bianco Latte
    @initioparfumsprives Oud for Greatness
    @lataffaperfumes Mood for Oud Komorebi (purchased at Fueguia Patagonia, Tokyo)
    @demeterceo Earthworm / Mushroom
    Melissa’s favourite indie fragrance boutiques to shop in Australia: 
    @loreperfumery
    @peonymelbourne
    @le_salon_aux_fleurs_armadale
    @libertineparfumerie

    • 1 hr 18 min
    On the Scent with Melissa Leong (Part 1)

    On the Scent with Melissa Leong (Part 1)

    As part of #nationalfragranceweek, we could not have been more thrilled to discover that today’s guest is an avid listener to our podcast - and that she has time to fit us in. Because, to say the least, Melissa Leong @fooderati is a BUSY woman! 

    Currently hosting Dessert Masters in Australia, former host of MasterChef Australia; in November last year Melissa was asked to moderate an ‘In Conversation With @jamieoliver’ evening at a PACKED Sydney Opera House. And when emailing us her notes for this episode, Melissa revealed she was “…still recovering from a week of racing cars (I did a Top Gear hot lap!) and speaking at IWD lunches.”
    Reading from her talent management bio: “Few in Australia can boast the culinary credentials of Melissa Leong. An accomplished food and travel writer, food media consultant, radio broadcaster, television presenter, MC and cookbook editor, this first-generation Singaporean Australian isn’t afraid to eat anything at least once.” 

    We can now add to that by saying she isn’t afraid to SMELL anything at least once, either, and we have a mega list of her favourite fragrances to discuss in depth.  

    There were SO many amazing fragrances on Melissa’s list, we had to make this a two-part series (Part 2 will be released as a bonus episode on Sunday), but here are the scents discussed in this episode…

    @isseymiyakeparfums L’Eau D’Issey
    @calvinklein CK One
    @clinique Aromatics Elixir / Happy
    @chloe Chloe@commes.des.garcon 2 / Lucky Scent (discontinued)
    @tomfordbeauty Black Orchid
    @officialbyredo Gypsy Water
    @aesopskincare Marrakech
    @lelabofragrances Santal 33
    @rpparfums Oud Delice
    @carnerbarcelona Black Calamus
    @trudon Mortel Noir
    @nassomatto Baraonda/Black Afgano
    @matierepremiereparfums Encense Suave


    Don’t miss PART TWO - coming out as a *bonus* episode this Sunday! 

    • 51 min
    Scents to Sleep – fragrances for wearing to bed

    Scents to Sleep – fragrances for wearing to bed

    It being National Sleep Week, in this episode we’re focussing on fragrances that we like to wear to bed. From scents to soothe and help us unwind, to those that make us feel we’re drifting off in a posh hotel surrounded by sumptuous bedlinen – we’ll be discussing ‘your skin but better’ scents, texturally pleasing perfumes that remind us of crisp cotton and luxurious sheets and even silk pyjamas. But are there certain fragrances that *you* only wear at bedtime, or do you think the whole idea of wearing a perfume to sleep in is a bit weird? 

     Whatever your preference, we hope you find this one suitably relaxing to listen to whenever you feel a bit frazzled, and discover something that at least helps you get some rest, even if it’s not a full night’s sleep (we also talk about how much pressure there is for that on social media! – and we’d love to hear your scent suggestions, too...

    [This episode isn’t sponsored, but @sleep.8uk are very kindly sending us #gifted pillows to try, they also do everything from mattresses, massage chairs, beds & sofa beds]. 

    We talk about...

    Body Care & Pillow Sprays: @aromatherapyassociates Deep Relax / Light Relax collections sleep8.uk will be stocking the ZEMK Care London collection (Suzy mentions the Goodnight Pillow Mist) @rarebeauty Find Comfort collection (body lotion / spray / aromatherapy pen / hand cream) @neom Perfect Night’s Sleep Hand Balm  Re.Feel Lost Alhambra Dry Oil (from @sainte.cellier) @featheranddownsleep Pillow Spray Nicola’s kids love the @childsfarm SlumberTime Lavender & Moon Milk range   

    Skin Scents: @dsanddurga I Don’t Know What @ellisbrooklyn Myth @olfactiveo Skin @aimeskincare Parfum de Peau perfume oil @narcisorodriguez Musc Nude  

    Crisp Cotton / Posh Bedlinen Scents: @dsanddurga Steamed Rainbow @durance_uk Cotton Musc eau de Parfum @lelabo Ambrette 9 @bastille_parfums Paradis Nuit  

    Nicola also mentions loving the calming @mysensate device

    • 53 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
52 Ratings

52 Ratings

mm77990 ,

High Marks

I discovered this podcast a little over a year ago, and it has opened a door to a world that I hadn’t known existed. Aside from being a true pleasure in my life, listening to the podcast inspired me, as an English and Composition instructor at a nearby university, to open the same door for my students. I re-conceptualized an entire course to focus on scent and fragrance. The results and response have thus far been absolutely astounding. I am witnessing an uncommon level of creativity, engagement, and enthusiasm in my students’ writing. Thank you Nicola and Suzy for being MY teachers and for helping me to find something beautiful and worth considering.

clobbisbobis ,

Listening but wish there were changes

Editing thus review after listening to more episodes—— I discovered this podcast recently and was generally enjoying it considering there are not many fragrance podcasts out there. Suzy is excellent to listen to - knowledgeable, funny, intelligent. Nicola is a bit insufferable - silly commentary, tendency to derail, simplistic take (generally jumping to sexualizing nearly every scent). Nicola also has a tendency to say comments steeped in stereotyping of other countries and cultures. Her comments on the episode covering Penhaligons Cairo are especially embarrassing and cringey for her as it indicates her small world view. Suzy on the other hand is great to listen to.

gotta make them understand ,

Fabulous Podcast!

Talking about fragrance, learning and laughter! Who could ask for more!?!

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