It’s that time of the month when I join Gail @Is This Mutton , Penny @ Frugal Fashion Shopper, Deb @ debs -world and MaryKatherine @ mksadventures for the monthly writing challenge. Our topic this month is scent , nominated by yours truly.
The dictionary definition of scent is – ” a distinctive smell , especially one that is pleasant”
I decided to look at scents that evoke pleasant memories.
I knew when I started thinking about this topic I had to include a mention of the scent memories associated with the wearing of our favourite perfumes . L’ Heure Bleau has been mine for over 35 years now. It is a classic by Guerlain released in 1912 and described as a mysterious, elegant and timeless and classified as an oriental floral.
The scent of various flowers always reminds me of my mother’s garden and I know this had a strong bearing on my choice of plants when the time came to create my own garden.
Roses feature heavily in my garden but they must have a good fragrance hence most of my roses are either old roses or David Austin varieties . I see no point whatsoever in roses that look good but have no scent , the type favoured in overpriced florist shops.
Every new season brings with it a return of our favourite flowers and their special scents. I am thinking of the return of the fragrant harbingers of Spring, the jonquils , daffodils , hyacinths, wisterias, freesias, magnolias and lily of the valley that fill the air with their delightful perfumes . They are followed by the return of the roses in all their glory, then all the different varieties of lilies and then at the height of Summer the return of the lavenders.
Winter can be a bit lean on the fragrant plants in my garden but I do have an old Calicanthus bush that can be relied on every year to add some much-needed fragrance.
As I sit here typing on a cool, blustery Autumn day except for a few late flowering roses nothing comes to mind as an Autumn scented plant , must rectify this. Any suggestions from my gardening friends most welcome.
There really is nothing more evocative than the special smell of a newborn baby . I was reminded of this when I held my newborn grandson Hamish . Memories came flooding of the arrival of my own children and that beautiful distinctive smell . Unfortunately I missed this when Hamish’s big brother Harry arrived as we were overseas at the time.
There are so many other memories associated with scent from our travels , the aroma of certain foods served on special occasions , the smell of a French bakery, the distinctive smell of kerosene while boarding an overseas bound jet, my husbands aftershave (chosen by me), just to name a few.
I’m sure we have our own special memories related to scents- these are just a few of mine.
Lovely post Jill. It was good to see your beautiful garden! It is hard to think of fragrant autumn flowers. They’re usually very brightly coloured and showy rather than scented. I love the smell of witch hazel and Daphne in the winter too, though don’t have room for them in the garden. Great prompt!
Author
Thank you Gail, glad you liked the prompt. I still haven’t come across any scented Autumn plants . I do love daphne but haven’t had much success with it in my garden.
Indeed, scents can bring you to a place or back in time. For me the smell of the sea makes me relaxed. And for perfume my favourite smell is Poison, has been since my 20s.
Author
Thank you Nancy, those scent memories take you back so often. I also wore Poison a while back.
These are all wonderful scents! It’s amazing how scents can so powerfully evoke a memory. Your grandson is a beautiful baby. Although I didn’t mention it in my own post, I do love the smell of a bakery.
Also? Your flower garden is gorgeous!
Michelle
https://followingmymuse.space
Author
Thank you so much Michelle. Baby Hamish is now 16 months old and very much a busy little boy . I agree a bakery smell is hard to ignore.
A beautifully written post, Jill.
Scent can evoke memories better than any of the other senses.
I’ve got strong associations with the perfumes I wore at various stage of my life and the scent of freshly mown grass and flowering privet hedges effortlessly take me back to my childhood home and garden. xxx
Author
Thank you so very much Ann. I’m the same Ann and the scent of various perfumes evokes those memories.
That’s a beautiful photo of you and Hamish and seeing your garden is always a joy.
I’ve only ever worn patchouli oil, I’m not a fan of perfume but love the description of the evocative smells that bring you pleasure. Hope all’s well with you. xxx
Author
Thank you so much Vix, things are progressing well.
Patouchli oil certainly brings back memories of my teenage years. xx
I agree with you…there is nothing like the smell of a newborn! And, like you, I love roses. In fact, I included that in my post! We are having some roses planted this spring…the landscaper said they definitely smell like roses! I really hope so!
Visiting from the Scent link up!
https://marshainthemiddle.com/
Author
Thank you Marsha , that special smell of a newborn is one you never forget. Enjoy those new roses in your Summer , hope they smell wonderful.
Scent…so evocative and powerful, able to take me back to childhood and beyond, to the absolute moment of something.
Sending hugs to you, Jill,
Elizabeth.
Author
Thank you so much Elizabeth. Oh yes , those scent memories that take us back in time. xxx
I agree Jill, a newborn baby’s smell is distinctive and delightful, especially when it’s a grandchild! Your garden is lovely and I prefer roses that have a scent over the ones that simply look good. Lovely post and a nice prompt for us all to enjoy!
Author
So glad you enjoyed the scent prompt Debbie.
Precious grandson. You are right, nothing smells as dear as the soft little head of a new baby. Funny how our mothers played into our sense of smell. My mother is celebrating her birthday in heaven for the first time. She would be 96 today. God bless our mothers and our grandbabies.
Author
Thank you so much Leslie. I agree so many of my scent memories are of either my mothers garden or her cooking.
Commenting rather late in the day but what a lovely post and thank you for the prompt which was so good – mine is very much about memories. But yes, the smell of a newborn, we’ve just got a new granddaughter born 9 days ago – it’s so lovely. Thanks again for the prompt.
Author
So glad you enjoyed the scent prompt Penny and it evoked memories for you too. Congratulations on the arrival of your little granddaughter.