If you have been reading our journal for a while now you’ll know we love fragrance but are not fans of the synthetic perfumes that dominate the fragrance industry.  The hidden toxins contained in these perfumes can cause a lot of damage.  A little known story we’ve heard is that Chanel have had to revise their famous Chanel No. 5 formulation numerous times over time due to the damage to the skin on ladies’ necks it was causing.

And the world is starting to wake up to these toxic formulations with Gwyneth Paltrow just releasing a natural scent via her online store goop.  As Gwyneth herself says:

This gorgeous, lovely word, ‘fragrance’ has become this bucket for the beauty industry, where beauty companies can hide pretty much any ingredient—including phthalates, parabens, known endocrine disruptors, anything toxic they don’t want to list on the label. What started as perfumers wanting to preserve their secret formulas has become this chemical dumping ground

Gwyneth Paltrow in goop newsletter Nov 16 2016

But where do you start when it comes to finding a natural scent you like?  Unfortunately natural fragrances can be hard to find.  Department stores have not yet embraced them and many available in health food stores can be a little too ‘hippy dippy’ for our liking.

So here are our suggestions for quality natural scent and places to shop for natural scent:

1. Samuel Gravan – a passionate young Sydney perfumer with his own range of natural perfumes, Samuel hand makes his fragrances so there can be limited supply
2. Wyalba - Formulated by Samuel Gravan in collaboration with BONDI WASH, Wyalba is handmade in Sydney using only natural ingredients, designed to transport you to distinctive places on this wide brown land. 
3. Lab Organics – the finest selection of international brands available from their store in North Carlton Melbourne or online
4. Nourished Life – another fine collection of very natural products with a wide range of natural fragrances to suit different budgets
5. Bondi Wash Mist Sprays can also be used as natural perfumes. We keep a mini Mist Spray in our bags for freshening up during the day – our favourite scents being Fragonia & Sandalwood and Buddhawood & Blackcurrant

If you have a favourite natural fragrance brand or natural way of introducing fragrance into your life we’d love to hear from you (hello@bondiwash.com.au).