One thing that signals the start of spring to me is the scents that you'll experience throughout the day, with flowers and plants adding a fresher note to fragrances throughout the season.
As well as natural scents you encounter on a day to day basis, spring also means you'll probably change some of the beauty and home products you use in order to make the most of the crisp smells that are associated with the season. I have a number of fragrances that I love at this time of year and start to use instead of the deep, spicy scents that I love for winter.
Here are my top scents for spring this year:
I'm a big fan of solid soaps for a number of reasons, including the reduced packaging, and one of my favourite producers of solid soap is Heyland and Whittle. I have been lucky enough to try my hand at making their traditional soap so can honestly say that they only include natural ingredients and no unnecessary ingredients - you can find out how their soap is made here.
While I love all of the H&W solid soaps - especially as they can be used on hands, body and face - right now I am loving their Citrus Grove soap as it is so fresh. It contains a number of citrus oils, including bergamot, lemongrass, Grapefruit, mandarin and lemon, which results in a really zingy scent that is ideal for waking you up in the morning.
In fact, the fragrance hangs in the air for a while after use, even if you only wash your hands with it, making it one of my top choices for spring.
While I do love solid soaps, you can't beat a good liquid shower gel. For spring and summer there is only really one shower gel you need, which is Lush's Happy Hippy shower gel.
This is one of the first Lush products I ever used and is one that I come back to time and again because it is so great. The clear yellow gel is packed full of the fragrance of pink grapefruit and bergamot, which packs a punch and leaves you feeling amazingly fresh.
As well as being a great cleansing shower gel - I actually use it for some housework as it is so effective - it leaves you skin soft and lightly fragranced, which is just what you want for spring when the weather starts to get warmer. You can use it on your body and hair, although I don't recommend it if you have dry hair as the citrus ingredients can be too strong.
I love floral perfumes, especially at this time of year, but I also like floral scents to be a bit difference. Perfumes that use rose or jasmine as primary notes often end up smelling the same and so can get lost in the background. This is why I love Flower by Kenzo as it is a totally different floral perfume.
The poppy fragrances is instantly recognisable and can easily pick it out of a crowd. It also isn't a traditional floral scent and so many people who don't like flowery perfumes will find that they really like this one.
I will say that it is worth spending more on the eau de parfum over the eau de toilette, not only because it lasts longer on the skin but also because it has a better depth of fragrance. It also wears really nicely so fades down to lovely warm notes, whereas the edt is much lighter and misses out on this.
Another Heyland and Whittle fragrance that I love - although I really do like all their scents - is their Earl Grey scent from the Home range. The husband also really likes this fragrance, which is a big plus as I can get away with using the reed diffuser in my living room.
The fragrance is a really delicate combination of citrus and tea notes that smells exactly like a fresh pot of Earl Grey complete with lemon slices. Even though it is quite a subtle fragrance, it is still really recognisable and provides a lovely background scent that keeps your home smelling fresh and bright.
I also love it in candle form, which I'll often use alongside the reed diffuser to create a stronger fragrance in the room. They've recently released Earl Grey as a soap, which I definitely want to try this season too.
Being brought up beside the sea, the scent of the beach is the perfect signal that spring is here and is something I miss so much living up north. Luckily, there are fragrances available that allow me to add a touch of the seaside to my home, even if Leeds is miles away from the ocean.
One such product is Yankee Candle's Turquoise Sky candle, which has a beautiful fragrance of sea salt on the air with fresh citrus notes. It really does smell like you've just pulled up at Gyllyngvase Beach in Falmouth on a sunny day, which makes me happy and nostalgic all at once.
Even if I can't get to the beach on a daily basis, at least I can enjoy spring evenings in a house that smells like the sea.