BackSummer 2017 Trends: Wild at Heart
Fragrance trends evolve in the most delightful of ways, perpetually freshening offerings and yielding new inspiration for fashion, home, and soul. While one season may offer up formal fragrances with classic roots, from time to time we see the swing to a much more unrestrained exuberance, as we do in Summer 2017.
While floral notes in fragrance are ever-present, the Wild at Heart trend goes further afield, leaving urban flower shops behind in favor of adventure – seeking out flowers where they grow, with a profusion of other botanicals. We discover complex and unexpected layers of aromas, intertwining to evoke a joyous riot of nature in all its forms.
Environmental Ethos
Rather than celebrating conspicuous consumption, we find an appreciation of eco-chic. The trend isn’t a formal garden requiring vast amounts of water and an army of workers. Instead, it’s a deliberate immersion in the pleasure of found beauty, delicate flowers coupled with wild herbs, leaves, and damp forest floor.
Instead of hothouse flowers that are out of season, Summer 2017 celebrates what’s blooming right now, even visibly incorporating dried herbs and flowers in products you wouldn’t ordinarily expect – from teas to skincare.
Delicious Botanicals
Food and drink reveal the Wild at Heart trend in clean, minimalist packaging and reliance on natural flavors and colors. Consumers are willing to sacrifice preservative-laden products with preposterously long shelf lives in favor of flavors that are best served fresh.
Glendalough Gin is the perfect example of the drinkable aspect of this trend. Made in Ireland, every single botanical component of this extraordinary beverage is foraged by hand by one woman, Geraldine Kavanagh. Herbs, leaves, berries, fruits, and flowers are infused while fresh, sometimes only minutes after harvest. The result: a one-of-a-kind gin that’s redolent with natural goodness.
Emotional Allure
The “rootsy,” earthy trend plays out in home décor as well, producing rooms that feel like they’re transformed into an enchanted wonderland akin to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Botanical prints of flowers and herbs in their natural settings, often with scribbled scientific observations reflect a focus on florals as both artwork and a subject of research.
And flower arrangements will reflect an affinity for inclusivity, blending tailored bouquets with wild foliage for a feel that’s unfussy and refined at the same time.
Fertile Fragrance
In fragrances, we discover unexpected blends, with mossy, earthy scents layered with verdant herbs, bright citrus and red fruit aromas, and warm vanilla, amber, and musk notes. Like the ecosystem in which we find natural beauty, fragrances are complex and interdependent.
DayNa Decker’s new Maja Essence Body Lotion is a stellar example, weaving together lush, rich florals like wild hyacinth, jonquil, and sweet pea with modest, clean herbal notes from licorice and parsley, freshened with green mandarin.
Likewise, Crabtree & Evelyn adds to its popular Gardeners line with a fresh fragrance for a new exfoliating soap. A bevy of fresh-grown herbs like lavender, rosemary, sage, and thyme are blended with ordinary but refreshing green clover for an unassuming aroma that smells like a walk through the garden.
Wild at Heart reflects an appreciation for found beauty and an ability to revel in the ordinary pleasures of a walk through the woods. Fresh, fun, and resolutely exhilarating, this fusion of flowers, earth, and herbs creates inviting, inclusive aromas.
