Nostalgia is a very seductive and inviting state in which to immerse yourself but it can have a sting in its tail. The idea of vintage as style I like – you can step into it – consciously enjoy its wry ironic smile and then step out again into another era or even into the future. Nostalgia as cul-de-sac is a trap to be avoided at all costs. We don’t want to get stuck in an era unable to find a way out.
Spencer Hart walks that tightrope with a sure and graceful footing. Nick Hart, the man behind the brand channels certain cultural periods or even the style of iconic individuals into savvy menswear and lifestyle products. This is not s slavish copy though more an exciting reinvention or re-imagining of a bygone style, a love of something fleeting yet timeless.
This Spencer Hart Palm Springs Fragrance aims to capture the very essence of Palm Springs. It is an appropriation, and reconstruction of a classic Floris fragrance from the 1950s. An aromatic equivalent of entering a very special vintage store where you can sample styles and eras. You’re standing in a classic gentlemen’s boutique, maybe 1954 maybe 2011 – the aromas – leather and wood even smokeyness with a sharper essential oil edge smoothed with hints of fruit, flowers & old talcum powder. A remix of masculinity. The comforting warmth of a bygone style reformulated for now. It is clean and modern but an older imagined modern that never really existed except in our imaginations.
After reading this fragrance review you can visit Spencer Hart’s flagship store at 62-64 Brook Street, London W1K 5DX; Store Open 11am – 6pm / +44 207 494 0000 / www.spencerhart.com
