As an avid fragrance collector (I have upwards of 40 bottles), I couldn’t wait to spritz Charlotte Tilbury’s brand new line of perfumes, the Fragrance Collection of Emotions. After all, founder Charlotte Tilbury is one of the mavens of the beauty industry, with a knack for creating viral, bestselling makeup and skin care beloved by beauty enthusiasts and pros alike. So when I heard about her first full fragrance line (she had launched a limited-edition fragrance, Scent of a Dream, in 2016), I knew it would be special.
More than just a perfume launch, the six-scent lineup was created with a transformative goal in mind: Each fragrance has the ability to unlock specific emotions. While this is a big claim to deliver on, Tilbury and the brand worked with master perfumers and researchers to carefully develop the fragrances. If anything, it’s proof that science is beautiful and beauty is full of science.
Ahead, learn about each of the mood-altering scents, the research that went into creating them and whether they actually work.
Smoky and sultry, this musky leather perfume is ideal for date night. As its notes of sandalwood, black pepper and leather caress the skin, it'll have you feeling seductive in no time.
Love Frequency is a floral, woody fragrance featuring rose, musk and patchouli, but it's the sharp and spicy pink peppercorn that comes through the strongest for me. A little exotic and alluring, it aims to elicit feelings of love.
Ylang ylang has been studied for its relaxation-inducing properties, which combines with neroli and vanilla for an overall mood boost in Joyphoria. The fragrance has a creamy quality that makes it stand out from other warm floral perfumes.
A balanced woody scent, Magic Energy features purifying palo santo, vibrant bergamot and earthy cypress. It'll help you feel grounded, which is the foundation for boosting your energy.
Clean and aquatic, Calm Bliss reminds me of freshly laundered linens that have been drying in the sun. It's light, aquatic and floral, with sweet neroli oil and a fresh watery accord to induce feelings of tranquility.
Black pepper, cinnamon and clove create an invigorating and spicy blend in Cosmic Power, juxtaposed with a powdery quality that comes through on my skin.
What I liked about it
The packaging
Usually I wouldn’t pause on a perfume’s outer packaging, but with the Collection of Emotions’ mood-shifting promises, there’s some explaining to do on the brand’s part — and it does so beautifully on each of the fragrance’s boxes. When you open the front panel, you’ll see the same tag line on each: “Choose your frequency. The power of scent to unlock emotions.” Then, it gives a description of the scent and the corresponding feelings that the fragrance is supposed to evoke. Sure, it sounds a bit woo-woo and abstract, but it gives you an idea of what you’re getting into. It shows that the fragrance is made not only to smell great, but also have an effect on your mood.
As for the bottles, the rainbow of colored glass reminds me of apothecary bottles, which fits the vibe of the collection perfectly. Each one is given a significant color, number, symbol and crystal to further highlight the mystical properties. For example, Joyphoria is engraved with a sun on the front to symbolize radiance (along with a gold bottle and the number three for happiness and optimism), and Love Frequency has a sacred heart to signify passion and love (with a pink bottle for romance and the number nine for depth and human connection). Each one is like a magic potion of fragrance notes and emotions, and you can mix them for your own olfactory concoction (more on this later).
The concept
We make intentional choices around the specific scents we surround ourselves with on the daily, and this certainly has a psychology behind it. From lighting a coconut-scented candle that reminds you of your favorite vacation to applying lavender essential oil to relax, experts say that scent actually does have the power to affect your mood. Even with perfume, we choose different scents for different occasions, because the specific notes speak to us. For date night, you’re looking for something sultry, but for work you want something fresh and clean.
Charlotte Tilbury isn’t the first brand to acknowledge this, but I think it’s clever to create a whole collection around the idea that we can manifest and mood-shift with perfume. The brand executes the concept in a playful way, with the names of the fragrances clearly labeling what you’re looking for. But there’s also a lot of science that went into each scent — Charlotte Tilbury worked with renowned perfumers Anne Flipo,Juliette KaragueuzoglouandDominique Ropion, with support from International Flavors and Fragrance (IFF), to create the collection. Utilizing the IFF’s Scentcube Algorithm, which identifies which fragrance notes have the capability of enhancing emotions, they leveraged this data to blend the fragrances to target specific moods.
Layerable scents
When I first tried all of the scents, I sprayed them one after another on individual testing papers. After spraying all six, I realized that my room actually smelled really good and not like a weird mishmash of scents. This inspired me to layer some of the scents when I tried them on my own skin. I found that the spicy notes of Love Frequency complement the leather and musk of More Sex nicely, while the vanilla and neroli of Joyphoria actually lighten the powdery scent of Cosmic Power.
I like being able to create a custom blend of fragrances, and with the Collection of Emotions, I suppose that means I can also combine the mood-boosting benefits of each mix too. Why not manifest happiness and energy together?
What I didn’t like about it
There were definitely some scents that I favored more than others, but that’s natural, and everyone will have their own preferences. When it comes to critiquing the fragrances, I’m looking at the collection as a whole — and across the board, I found that the longevity of the fragrances was lacking. Most of them faded after four or so hours, with the exception of More Sex, which wears very close to the skin so you can still pick up some of those musky notes at the end of the day. For the rest, however, I’d recommend reapplying at least once during the day. I’ve found this is the case with many alcohol-based perfumes, though. They’ll have amazing projection and sillage (the trail of the scent that follows the wearer) after the initial application, but this fades quite fast as the top notes fade and the middle notes settle in. It’s not a deal breaker, but something to factor in, especially if you prioritize longevity in your fragrances.
Bottom line
Can I say that the Charlotte Tilbury fragrances actually brought sex, love, happiness, energy, calm and empowerment in my life? Not quite — but manifesting is all about the mindset anyways. Like my favorite highlighter wand and Pillow Talk lipstick from the brand, the perfume gives me a boost of confidence.
Joyphoria and More Sex ended up being my favorites out of the lineup, but I’m also looking forward to wearing refreshing Calm Bliss more as the weather warms up. At the very least, I know I smell great, and each time I spritz the perfumes I’m reminded to set a little intention for the day.
