Some airports are well equipped for this wait. Personally when I leave the country, I usually fly from Heathrow. Even though I am from Bristol, that initial trip to London acts as part of my holiday and helps to build my excitement, flying from Bristol airport isn't quite the same. Plus Heathrow has an incredible duty free selection. They have some of my favourite stores: Ted Baker, Kurt Gieger, there is a massive Jo Malone London counter and there is even a Chanel. Although even with duty free I couldn't afford anything from Chanel, a girl can dream. With Heathrow I know I am going to be able to kill time browsing shops and eating. When I had to fly from Bristol for the first time I had no idea what to expect. In no way was I expecting a Heathrow style duty free section. I was actually expecting an airport wasteland filled with a cheap burger place and a tiny bar. I was pleasantly surprised by the duty free stores and I was exceedingly surprised to see a Superdrug. If you read my series all about holiday packing you will know I had a massive list of toiletries to buy at the airport. I didn't realise you could take more than 10 liquid items so I decided not to take things I could get at the airport like: shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, shower gel, toothpaste and sunscreen. I managed to get all of this in the Superdrug which was very handy and it meant it wasn't overly expensive.
Other than Superdrug, the stores were rather lacking and as we were travelling over a bank holiday it was full of stag dos and hen parties who were all getting on it! Literally everyone was drinking which is fine but other people were wasted already and it was only 10 in the morning. This meant the two bars were completely packed and it took ages to get served. As we were also on a hen party, we also started our holiday at the airport and we got the bubbles in. As we sat drinking, my friend and I decided we wanted to check out what the Duty Free had to offer in terms of beauty products. We used to work together on a beauty counter so we both have a interest in it. I had taken a perfume with me but I wasn't completely sold on it. As we were travelling using hand luggage only, I could only take a small bottle of perfume with me. I don't have many 30ml perfumes, as I don't tend to buy them, and I didn't want to take something that someone else would have away with me. In the end I took Nectarine Blossom and Honey by Jo Malone London with me. I do really like it as a Summer scent but it wasn't really the sort of vibe I was going for. It is a very peachy, nectarine scent which makes me think of Summer but it is very sweet and I have to be in the mood to wear it. I wanted something a bit deeper and a bit more floral.
I have spoken about perfume quite a lot on my blog and about the connection scent has with memories. I can smell something and it will take me back to a time in my life that I associate with it. For special occasions I always like to wear a new scent as from then on, whenever I smell that scent, I am transported back to that occasion. Despite my love for Nectarine Blossom and Honey, it just didn't feel right so I took a look at duty free.
My biggest problem wasn't the range, it was the sizes of the bottles. Any perfume I bought had to be below 100ml. The largest perfume bottles tend to be 100ml but I have heard of people having that size bottle taken off of them and I never want to take that risk, as lets face it, no perfume is cheap. Plus realistically I didn't want to start my holiday by spending lots of money on something I didn't really need. I was looking at Duty Free before I had left the country so I was yet to tackle the expense of Nice. I must say they had some amazing fragrances I didn't expect to see in Bristol: Tom Ford, Gucci, Burberry and I must say they had a good make up selection as well. In the end I actually felt overwhelmed by the choice and a little light-headed from the bubbles. I had a good look around and in the end I struck gold at Dior.
Fun Fact, Dior Pure Poison was my first ever fragrance. For some reason I always forget this but it was and I still love it to this day. It reminds me of being young and carefree which is not how I feel at the moment. I always loved J'Adore but after a while I realised it was giving me really strong headaches so I couldn't use it. After that I stayed away from Dior perfumes, until they launched Blooming Bouquet a few years ago. From the first time I smelt it, I completely loved it and whenever I am walking through a store that sells it, I always spray it on myself but I have never bought it. I know why I haven't parted with my hard earned cash, it is because it smells similar to Jo Malone London Peony and Blush Suede which I already have lots of. They are both Peony scents and in my eyes I don't need both.
When I was at the airport it seemed like the perfect time to invest and luckily for me they had an amazing size option. Not too long ago Dior launched the roller ball for Blooming Bouquet and Absolutely Blooming. When I saw that they were being launched I was thinking about buying one but when the price was revealed I changed my mind, a causal £32.50 for a 20ml roller ball? Think again! Some 30ml perfume retail for that. It seemed rather steep so I dismissed it. However when I saw they had the roller ball at the airport, I knew that it had to be fragrance for the trip. Before I could stop myself I had asked for a bottle of the roller ball and the sales assistant declared it was the last one. That was it, it was fate, it had to be mine and it is. I didn't find out the price until I was at the till but I knew it had to be cheaper than in an actual store and it was. This perfume was £27 which I didn't mind spending, it is still a lot for a roller ball but I knew I would get the use out of it.
Blooming Bouquet encompasses everything I love within a scent. Most importantly the heart note is made up of Peony which is always in all of my favourite scents, plus it is my favourite flower. Take note in case you would like to buy me some in the future (anyone reading this who knows me.) Peony is surrounded by a very citrus top note, Sicilian Mandarin, which gives it a very sweet note but also a freshness to open the scent with. The perfume is deepened by White Musk which doesn't have a strong scent, it has more of an effect on a scent. The White Musk amplifies the Peony and allows it to be the star of the scent. there is also a little bit of peach so I did carry through one of the notes from my original scent, Nectarine Blossom and Honey.
I also liked that I had managed to get a perfume from a French brand to symbolise my holiday in France. I have to say it wasn't something I was aiming to do, it just happened but when I realised I loved the idea of the symmetry. Not only that but even though this is only a roller ball, it is very luxurious. The scent is heavenly and so is the packaging. Dior have taken elements of the traditional Blooming Bouquet bottle and translated it into this roller ball. It has the hounds tooth patterning down each side of the bottle and it has the traditional Miss Dior bow lid, just without the bow, which is good because without the bow it is more travel friendly. The lid is a screw cap which means you do not have to worry about it coming off in your bag. Dior say it is a 'Pearl' roller ball but I just think it is a normal roller ball. I was expecting a traditional pearl in the top of the bottle but it is clear. I have no idea what they mean by a 'pearl' in the top. One thing to note is that this is definitely a different consistency to the perfume. This looks like and comes out on the skin more like a thin gel. I have no problem with this but it does mean that it doesn't come across as strong as the perfume. This is possibly designed more to be a top up rather than to be a main fragrance but I love that it is a little bit lighter as anything too strong does give me a headache.
In the end I was so pleased to have bought a new perfume as it does exactly what I wanted it to do. Whenever I smell this I am transported back to the French Rivera with a Aperol Spritz in my hand. Basically I am taken to my happy place. I love how delicately feminine this scent is but it isn't as sugary sweet as Nectarine Blossom and Honey. The packaging is stunning and it was the perfect scent to take away with me. Plus looking for a new perfume killed a bit of time whilst I was in my airport purgatory.
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