I came across a very interesting fragrance brand during my search for bizarre perfumes. In all honesty, what caught my eye at first was the brick note in the heart of one particular perfume. I was even more in awe when I saw the pebble and industrial glue notes accompanying it. Then, I took a closer look at the bottle and saw what were, interestingly enough, coordinates.
Haeckels originated in Margate, Kent, in the United Kingdom. The brand was founded in 2012 by Dom Bridges, a former volunteer beach warden who started experimenting with hand-harvested local seaweed in his family kitchen. As it turns out, Haeckels’ perfumes and candles are famous for their GPS system, where every scent is tied to exact geographical coordinates and inspired by the landscapes surrounding Margate.
The fragrance we are looking at today is Queen Street.
PS: The brand officially changed its name to Dulcie to distance itself from its original namesake, German biologist Ernst Haeckel, whose abhorrent eugenicist beliefs were deemed completely opposed to the company’s values.
Haeckels Queen Street
| Highlights | Details |
|---|---|
| Brand | Haeckels |
| Best for | Women |
| Fragrance Family | Leather |
| Notes | Top: Herbal Notes Middle: Brick, Pebbles, Woody Notes, and Amber Base: Industrial glue, Leather, and Cork |
| Release year | 2017 |
| Perfumer | In-house Perfumer |
I’ve never been to Queen Street. In fact, I haven’t been to the UK at all, so I cannot tell you whether this fragrance actually resembles the coordinates it leads to. I can, however, tell you what it smells like.
The fragrance opens with fresh, herbal notes that draw you in, before revealing warmer notes of wood, amber, pebble and brick. I would imagine this is exactly what it smells like to walk down a street in the UK, specifically Queen Street. As the fragrance dries down, you get a hint of leather alongside cork and industrial glue. While this scent is categorised as a leather perfume, the note isn’t very prominent, not even in the dry down.
This fragrance is surprisingly wearable, a bit daring, perhaps, but still highly wearable. The projection isn’t the strongest, but the longevity doesn’t disappoint. If you’re willing to try an earthy, avant-garde fragrance that beautifully mirrors the raw essence of a damp English urban street, give Queen Street a try.
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