Perfume making workshop in Florence… create your own fragrance!

If you want to experience a different side of Florence and take home a special reminder of your trip to Tuscany, try our Perfume Workshop in Florence at the Antica Spezieria San Simone. As Victor Hugo said, 'nothing awakens memories as much as perfume’. This is precisely why, after having juggled ampoules and essences, you will be able to create your personal, unique and unforgettable perfume: every time you scent it, you will picture fantastic memories of your stay in Florence! Among other things, this wonderful sensory experience will take place in Firenze, Santa Croce district, one of the most characteristic in Florence and famous, in fact, for the many craft workshops that overlook its ancient streets.

These small Florence perfume shops are exactly where the ancient art of the essences and perfumes was born. It is wrong to think that France is the cradle of perfumery: French perfumers have certainly become some of the most renowned in the world, yet only after a Florentine taught them the magic art of the essences. It was Renato Bianco who, on French soil, took the name of René le Florentine. He was the perfumer trusted by Caterina De Medici's, and when in 1533 the noblewoman married the very young Duke of Orleans, the future King of France, he followed her with the large crowd of ladies-in-waiting, pages and friars. In Florence, perfumes were already widely used by nobles, as in other courts across Italy. Unfortunately the situation was quite different in France, and what’s more, 'logistics' difficulties such as elevated house temperatures made it difficult for people to wash often. As one can well imagine, this made social interaction a bit 'difficult'! So it comes as no surprise that Italian perfume spread to the courts of France, contributing undeniably to making the relations between people much more pleasant. It is no coincidence that it was a Florentine who spread the use of essences outside of Italy, since perfume making in Florence was an art of great importance, so much so that apothecaries and alchemists were one of Florence's most important corporations. These characters, whose craftsmanship was surrounded by an aura of magic and mystery, worked in the ateliers in Florence. In their interior, jars, ampoules and bottles contained precious dried herbs with which, in addition to cosmetics and perfumes, potions, pomades, ointments and pills were made.

So if you want an experience that will plunge you into Florence Renaissance – beyond its façade of monuments and inside everyday life - a perfumery Florence workshop is a wonderful opportunity. The location is truly fascinating: it is Antica Spezieria San Simone, a typical workshop in the picturesque Santa Croce Firenze, which started back in the 1700s. At that time, perfumery in Florence was mixed with medicine and herbal medicine in recipes that every apothecary kept rigorously secret. Such is the case of the friar, friend of the family who for centuries ran this old shop and still owns it, and whose recipes have been handed down for centuries. Just by admiring the herbalist shop you will understand that throughout the past centuries the passion for tradition and especially for natural ingredients has never abandoned. The Florence atelier is packed with bottles, flasks, jars, boxes. The drawers that open behind the long wooden counters unveil the presence of infinite and precious essences!

And here, under the expert guidance of the staff, you can enjoy the exciting art of making perfume. Among the activities in Florence we have to suggest, learning how to make perfume is definitely one of the most intriguing ones! Not only will you learn how to make perfume, but you will also be able to bring it home in a beautiful 50ml bottle along with the secret formula you will not reveal to anyone! So to speak, you will create your personal and unique essence of perfume, your own 'essence of Florence'. And once you have learned how to create your own fragrance, you can always continue your experiments at home. This Florence perfume masterclass will teach you all the secrets about how to make your own perfume following the fundamental rules of this art. You will learn how to use your sense of smell to choose the right mix and create that magical combination of essences that emanate from each fragrance: choose the head notes, the ones that immediately reach your nose but disappear quickly, the middle notes that make up the heart of the fragrance, giving consistency and warmth to the perfume since they last longer, and finally the base notes that evolve over time, difficult to perceive at first, but also present when others are less obvious. Interesting, isn’t it? Don’t miss your chance to create your own perfume in one of the oldest Florence ateliers. Book our Perfume Workshop to live an unforgettable sensory experience: you will carry Florence fragrances in your heart and in your precious bottle, and preserve the memory of this city in all its fascination and uniqueness, just like the fragrance you have created.