Something in the air

Turning his nose up at a career in the secret service, scent designer Raymond Matts has created some of the most instantly recognisable fragrances including Clinique Happy and White Diamonds. Now, a partnership with interior landscapers Ambius has brought his creative blends wafting through the rooms of some of Ireland’s most luxurious hotels.

A walk under Parisian linden trees serves as inspiration for the light, floral notes found in hotel lobbies while snacking on soy nuts and watching American football inspired Raymond to blend a stronger sense of texture and coarseness into the scent he uses in his own bathroom.

Over cookies and jelly beans in Dublin’s Westbury Hotel (a demonstration in the power of the sense of smell, we promise), Raymond describes his New York apartment as an experimental space where his wife’s facial expressions quickly reveal whether a scent might require further tinkering.

He’s not interested in fly-by-night trends in scenting a home, but rather, likens choosing a home scent to choosing a lover. ?It may need to be lived with for a while before you begin to understand how it fills up a space!?

Classic scents flavoured with fig or vanilla tend to be cosy home favourites, and, while a fan of simplicity, Raymond advocates doing something a little different with classic tools. ?People tend to like classic notes as that is what they know,? he explains. ?You could say I’m on a quest to open their minds.?

Throughout his own home, saffron reigns supreme giving fragrance “a touch of brightness, of citrus, but without the heavier spice of something like cloves”.

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