‘I reach for this £25 summer body mist over my pricey perfumes'
I've got a dressing table filled with perfumes from some of my favourite fragrance brands – including Jo Malone London, Maison Margiela Replica and Glossier – which probably totals hundreds of pounds, but recently I've been skipping all of these and reaching for one particular brand of body mist instead – and they're a fraction of the price.
I've had my head turned away from expensive eau de parfums by PHLUR's Hair & Body Fragrance Mists – viral, Instagrammable bottles of mostly gourmand or skin scents – and they're now one of my favourite ways to wear scent, with prices starting from £25 for 88.7ml bottles. My current favourite is the new Beach Skin, with Vanilla Nectar coming in at a close second – and if you're looking for an irresistible new scent for summer, I think these are well worth sniffing out.
First – and most importantly – they smell really lovely. Beach Skin falls under one of my favourite types of perfume: a little bit sweet, a little bit salty, a little bit musky, reminiscent of warm sea-sprayed skin, sun cream and sand between your toes. If you're familiar with Maison Margiela Replica Beach Walk (currently reduced to £52.70 for a 30ml bottle), which I also love, it's very similar – but costs a lot less. PHLUR's Beach Skin even got a couple of "you smell nice" compliments from my boyfriend, which rarely happens.
Smaller bottles of Beach Skin are currently unavailable online, but the supersized 236.5ml bottle, which I have, are priced at £38.
PHLUR's Vanilla Nectar, meanwhile, is much fruitier, with notes of papaya, apricot, peach blossom and honeyed amber, yet still with the 'skin-like' base notes that the brand does so well.
Another plus of using these PHLUR body mists is that you don't have to be especially precious about them. The bottles are plastic and so can be easily flung into a handbag or beach bag, and because they're cheaper then traditional EDTs or EDPs, I don't feel like I need to 'save them for best'. I currently have Beach Skin on my desk and spritz it on multiple times a day, whenever I need a perfume pick-me-up.
The down side to using body mists over 'traditional' perfumes, however, is that the scent is much lighter, and therefore won't last as long on the skin, hair or clothes. More regular top-ups will be necessary, so you might find that you get through your big bottle quicker than expected – but for the price, the fragrance and the mini moment of joy it brings me, I think it's worth it. If you like a lightweight, beachy summer scent, this totally gets my vote.
For something similar to PHLUR Beach Skin but with a bit more staying power, you could try Jo Malone London's new Beach Blossom Cologne, £86, or the cult classic Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess Eau Fraîche Skinscent, which currently has 25% and is down to £43.50.
Sol de Janeiro's body mists are also super-popular; you can try four of them for £26.60 in this Limited Edition Cheirosa Hair & Body Perfume Mist Discovery Set.
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