Thomson Carter LONDON Fragrances

A few weeks ago, I decided to take a chance and try ordering from London-based fragrance brand, Thomson Carter. In addition to perfumes/colognes, they sell body wash, body lotion, and reed diffusers for the home.

Thomson Carter sells a variety of women’s, men’s and gender-neutral scents in different sizes and different product sets to try. All are EDPs (eaux de parfums). Because I didn’t want to get stuck with a full size bottle of perfume that I might end up not liking, I chose their Trio Box that comes with three 10 ml spray bottles, priced at $49.

When you order, they include two sample size vials to try as well. My order was for 10 ml each of the following:

• Rouge Avenue
• Postcards From
• Cashmere Court

My two sample spray vials, 2ml each were:

• Shelby Lane
• Rouge Avenue (I thought this was going to be the one I liked the most, and I don’t! I should have gotten Lillium Blume, their new spring scent. Oh well.)

Rouge Avenue

Rouge Avenue is listed by Thomson Carter as a women’s scent, though I certainly think that men could wear it as well. It’s key notes are:

• pink pepper
• jasmine
• cedar

Thomson Carter describes the emotional part of Rouge Avenue as:

“first date flutters, the moment just before you lock eyes, the thrill of anticipation. Rouge Avenue is a fragrance made for candlelit corners and midnight rendezous. Spicy notes of pink pepper effortlessly entwine with delicate jasmine and warm cedar to create this seductive scent.”

I don’t know, to me Rouge Avenue smells heavily fruity, though it is supposed to create “an aura of sophistication and sensuality”. It doesn’t suit me, but it appears to be Thomson Carter’s users’ favorite fragrance.

Postcards From

A unisex scent, Postcards From has key notes of:

• cedar
• saffron
• amber.

As you may remember, I adore amber scents, so I thought that this might be a sure bet for me. And I do like this one!

The perfumer’s inspiration for this fragrance was:

“the warmth as you step off the plane, golden hour, venturing out into the night.”

More descriptors include: warm, aromatic, exotic, and captivating. Definitely sensations that I love when it comes to fragrance. 

Some people might say that Postcards From is a scent for autumn/winter and for the evening. I wouldn’t be limited, however, in wearing it.

Cashmere Court

Also a unisex scent, Cashmere Court has key notes that I gravitate toward:

• cashmere
• vanilla
• bergamot.

The perfumer’s inspiration for Cashmere Court was:

“the glow of street lamps in the cool evening air, cashmere brushing against your skin, and creamy vanilla warmth under bright bergamot, soft, luminous, impossibly comforting.”

This scent does seem to fit the description and descriptors: it opens with the bright sharpness of bergamot followed by the cozy comfort of cashmere and vanilla underneath. Cashmere Court does suit me. I wear it during the day and at night. I think it’s a close to the skin, year round type of scent.

Shelby Lane

A masculine scent, Shelby Lane contains the following key notes:

• vetiver
• sandalwood
• dark musk.

It smells like:

“a woodland stroll in autumn, twigs snapping under foot, a flash of coffee.”

As a hiker, I can relate to that inspiration, and I like the scent’s notes. Shelby Lane opens with vetiver, and sandalwood and dark musk come through as it dries down. Frankly, I would love to smell it on a man. In fact, I will try to talk Jeff (who never wears scent) into trying it.

Giftability and Packaging

While Thomson Carter’s round glass, silver-topped spray vials with their black labels are simple and gender-neutral. The full-size bottles are also gender-neutral and simple and come in heavy glass round bottles with black caps and labels. To me, they are not luxurious or elegant, but their simplicity can be appealing.

Nevertheless, the outer packaging is quite impressive. Even though the Trio Box with the three 10 ml spray containers that I ordered is a relatively small purchase, it arrived in a white, heavy cotton, drawstring logo dustbag.

Inside was a black cardboard sleeve with a sturdy black flip-top presentation box with a magnetic closure inside. There was also a logo-embossed envelope with a thank you note inside that looked almost like an invitation to a fancy event.

Definitely an impressive first look at Thomson Carter, and perfect for gifting to anyone on any occasion.

BTW, although Thomson Carter is a British brand, I had no trouble ordering and receiving my package, and there were no extra tariffs to pay. Yay!

On A Slightly Different Note

Over the past year, I have noticed that, after the initial fragrant cloud after applying scent, I can no longer smell whichever fragrance I have applied. That includes even the beasts (i.e. strong perfumes) that I own as well as the closer to the skin fragrances like Hellenist Parfums Les Bras de Morphée.

In fact, fragrance is indeed not lasting on my skin the way it used to when I was younger, like even two years ago! I looked up “does perfume fade more quickly on older people”, and the answer was undoubtedly yes. Boo, what a real bummer. I learned that drier skin of course produces less sebum or oil and the scent has nothing to grab onto. For me, even applying body butter first doesn’t seem to make an appreciable difference. I guess I may save money since it doesn’t make sense to buy more perfume!