Aromatic Grasse

Grasse, Côte d’Azur

A place for the sweet scent seeker with a touch of romance… To the north of Nice inland from the Mediterranean lies a little cute town called Grasse that is dedicated to perfume dating from the 16th century. It is known as the perfume capital of the world since the microclimate is ideal for growing flowers, such as jasmine, roses and lavender. Nothing less expected, of course the flowers used for making the Chanel N°5 perfume are grown and harvested in Grasse. If you are around for May, it is the season of roses where pickers go every morning to harvest the open blossoms from the amazing fields.

As Grasse is so popular, the town fills with many tourists, so the earlier you arrive there, the more enjoyable it is to walk around and admire the beautiful historic buildings and explore little boutiques. This way, you can enjoy the beauty it deserves. I was in the hunt for the perfect antique glass perfume bottle, but ended up finding it in Nice actually. I loved the little lavender shops as the smell in them was just divine and I found some amazing souvenirs to bring back home. Grasse is home to the factories of Fragonard, Galimard (oldest perfumery in Grasse since 1747) and Molinard, which Mr. N uses the rosemary cologne as his signature scent. The hand crafted bottles of home fragrances, soaps and perfumes are amazing to look at and I ended up purchasing a lemon verveine infused diffuser hand-made by Le parfumoir. It smells of pure lemon ♥ I think I need to visit Grasse in the spring time, when all the flowers come alive and burst into lingering delights. There is something romantic and peaceful about this place, the soft colours around the old town and the magic of the old perfumes just does it for me.