Scents of Occasion with 4160 Tuesdays and Odette Toilette at Fenwick of Bond Street

Last evening, Thursday 7th May, Fenwick of Bond Street hosted Sarah McCartney of 4160 Tuesdays and Odette Toilette’s Scents of Occasion fragrance event for London Craft Week, a new annual event supported by founding partners, watchmakers Vacheron Constantin and Arts Council England, as well as the Crafts Council, The Heritage Crafts Association, and Mayor of London and Walpole. This new addition to the London cultural calendar of events celebrates an across-the-board spectrum of creative talent the capital has to offer through a series of events and workshops at a variety of London venues.

Odette and Ms McCartney lead a very engaged and inquisitive audience of 35 through an all-in, all-out style of perfume making, treating the audience to samples of fragrant ingredients to consider before voting which note to add to the perfume. Samples of the developing fragrance were distributed throughout the audience, allowing us the opportunity to experience the effect as each note was added.  We were then given the option to take a vial of the perfume as it was, or to hedge our bets and hold out until all of the ingredients were included.

The final result was a charming spin on the English spring. A four-seasons-in-one-day, Union Jack bunting-strung picnic in the park with lively citrus notes, a cool twist of cucumber and mint, and a dash of deep roses on a hazy vetiver base.

A super enjoyable evening thanks Fenwick’s wonderfully attentive staff and Odette and Ms McCartney’s usual fantastic mix of humor and olfactory guidance. At one point reference was made to Coco Chanel’s famous quote instructing “a woman to put perfume wherever she wants to be kissed”, to which Ms McCartney quipped, “That’s just silly. Perfume tastes rubbish”.

London Craft Week runs from 6th – 10th May. 4160 Tuesdays programme of interactive workshops at their Acton Studio can be found here. Please visit Odette Toilette’s web site to find a schedule of events she hosts, including her famous Vintage Scent Sessions. I’ve personally attended events hosted by both ladies, and can thoroughly recommend them as a fun, super chill but very informative way to spend an afternoon.