<p>"I wanted to create a perfume that smells of happiness; my happiness. My main inspiration was my happy memories, and I wanted the scent to reflect my personality today"</p>

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      <p><strong>Together with your husband, tennis icon Rafael Nadal, you imagined two perfumes for men and one for women with the Haute Parfumerie Maison Henry Jacques. How did you get to know the brand? </strong></p>
      <p><span>We were first introduced to Henry Jacques and Anne-Lise, daughter of the founder and CEO, by a mutual contact. Rafael and I both love and appreciate perfume, and there was an instant connection, which made us want to learn more about the brand and the world of Haute Parfumerie. </span></p>
      <p><span>What I really like about Henry Jacques is the brand&rsquo;s exclusivity and discretion. They make the choice to only work with the finest ingredients and materials, and to only be available through their own boutiques to preserve their brand values. They never compromise to maintain the highest level of quality in terms of their perfumes, and also in terms of the care and attention they give to their clients. These are all things I can relate to and that spoke to me from the beginning. </span></p>
      <p><span><strong>What are the inspirations behind these three perfumes and what are they called?</strong></span></p>
      <p><span></span><span>My perfume is simply called Maria Perello. I wanted to create a perfume that smells of happiness; my happiness. My main inspiration was my happy memories, and I wanted the scent to reflect my personality today. It is light but memorable, fresh yet sophisticated, and soft but strong enough to last the entire day without being too overpowering. Delicate, yet mighty. I also wanted it to give a sense of elegance and youthfulness. I really had high expectations of this perfume and love the idea of being recognised and remembered by it. </span></p>
      <p><span>Rafael initially wanted one bespoke perfume, but as he started the process, it led him down two different paths, and he realised that two scents were needed to adequately reflect his personality. Both fragrances perfectly correspond to his lifestyle. Rafael Nadal No. 1 is fresh, light and ideal for when he is playing. No. 2 is slightly bolder and zestier; he likes to wear in his time off the court. </span></p>
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      <p><span><strong>Could you give us the notes of each of these perfumes and what they evoke for you?</strong><br /></span><span></span></p>
      <p><span>The main notes in my perfume are orange flower, violet, bergamot, and jasmine, completed with sandalwood and white musk. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">Rafael Nadal No. 1 has lemon, lavender, and artemisia in the opening, followed by coriander, thyme, and violet, and hints of leather, cedarwood, and sandalwood in the trail. Rafael Nadal No. 2 has hesperidia notes, bergamot, and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">freesia, then jasmine, lilac and rose at the heart, and white musk and sandalwood as base notes.</span></p>
      <p><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">All three perfumes certainly draw inspiration from the Mediterranean and Mallorca, the place that Rafael and I both call our home and is close to our hearts. We both went through our own separate journeys to achieve our perfumes. It&rsquo;s a funny and beautiful coincidence that our perfumes ended up having common notes, but it also makes sense, as we both grew up with precious olfactive memories of our island. We love the fresh and warm notes that surround us back home.</span></p>
      <p><strong style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Initially, you imagined these three perfumes for yourself, but the Maison evoked the idea of being able to offer them to its clients. This is also the first collaboration that Henry Jacques offers its clients. What made this idea appealing to you?</strong></p>
      <p><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">Indeed, it all happened quite organically. We went through the interesting process of creating our own scents, an experience that we both very much enjoyed. In the end, and as an appreciation of the experience, we decided together with Anne-Lise to share our perfumes with Henry Jacques&rsquo; clients via their boutiques. I&rsquo;ve always been a very private person and never wanted to be in the spotlight. Therefore, I really liked the idea of getting to speak and share a little bit more about myself, my life, and my personality through my bespoke perfume.</span></p>
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      <p><strong>How has your relationship with perfume evolved throughout the years?</strong></p>
      <p><span>Perfume has always been important to me. It&rsquo;s a part of my daily life and routine; I never leave the house without </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">wearing perfume on my skin or clothes, and I feel like something is amiss when I don&rsquo;t. I understand and believe in the confidence that wearing the right perfume can give you.</span></p>
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            <p><span>To me, scent is almost like an unspoken language. It stays with people even after you&rsquo;ve left the room and can say a lot about a person. I&rsquo;ve always been very particular when it comes to my fragrances and have tried and been gifted many different ones over the years. </span></p>
            <p><span>I usually tend to wear a certain perfume over a long period of time, but to be honest, I was never completely satisfied with the ones I wore in the past as I feel like they didn&rsquo;t fully reflect me and my personality. This is why I am very happy to now have my own bespoke Henry Jacques perfume. I feel extremely comfortable wearing it; it makes me feel elegant, and most importantly, brings me joy. </span></p>
            <p><strong>How did the development of these perfumes go and what advice did Henry Jacques give you?</strong></p>
            <p><span></span><span>It&rsquo;s the first time that I had the opportunity to go through this kind of experience, and it&rsquo;s been very enjoyable and enriching overall. Creating your own perfume is also embarking on a journey of introspection and self-discovery; you need to dive deeper into your personality, memories, and emotions. I felt at ease with Anne-Lise and her team from day one, and this is also what made me want to take the time to go through the process. They are true experts in their field and have a real bespoke culture. </span></p>
            <p><span>We had several sessions talking, sampling, and discussing scents. I was then presented with different options until we </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">narrowed it down to the final perfume. I felt very involved in the process; my thoughts and opinions were always heard and respected. In the end, we created a beautiful perfume together, which I am proud of and I feel represents me perfectly. I also learned a lot about the fascinating world of Haute Parfumerie along the way and the infinite creative possibilities that it brings with it.</span></p>
            <p><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0px;">In terms of advice from Henry Jacques, I would say that going through this bespoke process showed me once again how important it is to take all the time necessary to create something beautiful.</span></p>
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      <p><strong>Do you change perfumes depending on the occasion? </strong></p>
      <p><span>I like having a signature scent &mdash; a unique one, that people associate with me. However, the concept of having a perfume wardrobe is also interesting. It&rsquo;s nice to have different scents to choose from, that can take you through the day and suit different occasions and moods. I would be happy to have a second bespoke one day, to reflect another facet of my personality. For the moment, I like to wear various other Henry Jacques creations along with my own. </span></p>
      <p><strong>What is your vision of beauty? </strong></p>
      <p><span>To me, beauty is completely linked to expressing one&rsquo;s individual personality. I believe that staying true to yourself and doing things that work for you is the most important, rather than simply following trends or striving to look like someone else. I prefer to focus on rituals and products that make me feel comfortable, suit my lifestyle, and allow me to be the best version of myself. That&rsquo;s when I feel the most natural and beautiful. </span></p>
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Maria Perello on her Partnership with Bespoke Perfumery Master Henry Jacques

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