We knew that if the label Boudicca were going to release a perfume, it sure as hell would not come in a curvy delicate crystal bottle with a powder pink atomiser.  However, we probably didn't expect a scent that gets its origins from Queen Boudicca (Boadicea)'s legend; that her and her tribe wore a cobalt blue war paint that was supposed to give them a ferocious look as they advanced into battle. The trickery of Boudicca's perfume Wode (derived from "Woad" a deep blue plant extract used in tribal marking paste) is that despite its appearance in a classic spray paint can, when sprayed, a vibrant cobalt blue mist appears and automatically begins to fade and within seconds, all that is left is the scent. The mysticism of scent is well and truly injected with this sort of perfume wizardry and it's a scent that is certainly not meant to be delicately dabbed on the wrists of Keira Knightley types. The scent of Wode is heady and powerful what with elements like hemlock extract (supposedly Boudicea's suicide poision of choice) and raw opium when is meant to settle into something more subtle. Zowie Broach and Brian Kirkby of Boudicca could not have produced Wode by themselves and they enlisted the help of Geza Shoen of cult fragrance company Escentric Molecules, which Kirkby and Broach are big fans of and International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) and fragrance consultant Sarah Aurora Irvine. Broach and Kirkby are naturally pleased with the results: "“Wode has been a magnificent journey for us. We have not only learnt so much about the science and technology around creating an idea to its conclusions, but to have had the education of olfactory with beauty and meaning from both Geza Schoen and Susan Aurora Irvine has been amazingly inspiring.”

Available to buy online.