Penhaligon's Potions & Remedies - The Forgotten Formulas
Luxferity, 17.03.2025
Downstairs, beneath the shop front, away from daylight and distractions, William Penhaligon submerges himself in what feels like another world. A world in which all the ills of the day have a remedy. He has at his fingertips the possibility to brew potions so powerful and remedies so revealing…
The laboratory is lit by candlelight. Behind him, rare books on botany fill the shelves. Encyclopaedic classifications of herbs, plants, flowers, offering all manner of recipes and prescriptions to cure – or procure – altered states. Aphrodisiacs. Hallucinogens. Their natural powers were mesmerising. Seeking the Divine through the Mysteries of Nature is open at his desk. This, dear reader, is William Penhaligon’s secret workshop.
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The transformative power of his fragrant concoctions was yet to be correctly dosed, yet to be perfectly understood. And so he endeavoured, privately but with devotion. Once perfected there was no going back – the world would be changed once and for all. A force for good? (Or, if incorrectly applied, something more menacing?) William Penhaligon laboured for his legacy to be delightful, one to cure all ills, one that he and future generations would be rightly proud!
One is about to discover the result of his travails…
- EAU THE AUDACITY
Side effects: you may discover your true self.
A caution to all those who were of the persuasion that pleasures are best delayed, rules, there to be respected, convention, followed. You may find your world turned upside down!
You may be on a one-way path to the discovery of new sensations, to intense delights, to new horizons of unimagined pleasure. How would it feel to dare greatly – with a little fear-not formula?
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THE FORMULA
Bold incense and confident orange absolute. A daring twist spiced with saffron and Turkish rose. Leather and vanilla for a soft suede base, reassuringly seductive and strong. For when Doctor Dare prescribes a little fear-not formula.
THE NOTES
Incense, Leather, Vanilla, Elemi Leaves
- VRA VRA VROOM
A word of warning: you may find that everything feels possible.
As if inhabited by a dose of blooming Spring and a spoonful of the invigorating Enthusiasms, your energy is in abundance. This is a Nation without borders, (the possibilities are limitless), and a state where all feel free will. The re-dynamism of your daydreams, a quest fulfilled. Impatience replaces hesitancy. Nothing can stop you now.
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THE FORMULA
Energetic osmanthus mixed with citrus unveils a succulent invigorating vitality. Apricot notes ricochet with woodiness. Magnolia blooms by the spoonful. Nothing can stop you now. Abundant enthusiasm and energy sign the day.
THE NOTES
Osmanthus, Magnolia, Apricots, Leather
- LIQUID LOVE
Be careful, you might fall in love.
Proceed with caution… and wear with care. At first a gentle spritz of confusion, an enveloping sea of sensation, an absence of appetite, a tendency to day-dream, and at night, sleep that is deep and peaceful – or interrupted with dreams of desire! Soon however, one will be visited by an abundance of generosity and joy, unfaltering kindness, you want for nothing, your heart is open… you feel like you have wings, inexplicably confident and strong, and yet soft. Paradise is *sigh* all around. Suddenly and all at once. Nothing will ever quite be the same.
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THE FORMULA
Love and desire distilled. Fresh, sparkling notes gently caresse, before the spicy, fruity head turns into something with more bite. Helplessly, passionately addictive.
THE NOTES
Rose, Ginger, Chilli, Green Hazelnut
- A BALM OF CALM
Be advised, you may find your problems vanish.
As if by some mysterious conflagration of the planets, suddenly the impossible seems unimportant, the most terrible seems inconsequential, and the dramatically disastrous, insignificant. Breathe in. Breathe out. It’s time for a spray of serenity delivered in a cloud of peace-of-mind.
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THE FORMULA
Lavender, an instant serenity remedy. Float in a cloud of geranium, rum and soft woods for instant peace-of-mind. Breathe in a dose of composure with Penhaligon’s tranquility blend.
THE NOTES
Lavender, Sandalwood, Geraniums, Clary Sage
