About Me
Growing up in Kent, the ‘Garden of England’, Karen was always aware that she could smell things in a way that no one else could.
She first noticed how keen her sense of smell was when she began detecting illness in her siblings . This skill was invaluable in her later nursing career as she instinctively knew when one of her patients had an undiagnosed infection, or uncontrolled diabetes.
Karen’s childhood memories are a patchwork of olfactory experiences. From the green earthy smells of dens made in the woods to the ‘fortresses’ elaborately constructed from newly baled, sweet, peppery hay. She draws upon these formative experiences to inform her work, fusing memory with fantasy to create scents which are ethereal and otherworldly.
Karen’s love of luxury fragrance was nurtured by her father who was a collector and connoisseur for many years, introducing her to some of the finest scents in the world. Karen cites him as one of her greatest inspirations and indeed, when she sold her first bottle following the launch of her business, it was to her dad – he knew a great fragrance when he smelled one!
Following many years of study, working with fragrance and materials, and undertaking accredited formal training in perfumery, Karen set up her own perfume lab and launched Karen Timson Fragrance.
Karen’s fragrance style has a delicate, watercolour-feel. The scents are detailed and subtle yet offer great character and staying power. Drawing inspiration from a variety of sources including myth and legend, her travels around the world and her own, fertile imagination, Karen’s fragrances combine balance with wearability, modernity with old-fashioned quality and a clear vision with technical skill and expertise.
Karen explains, “What makes every perfume I create stand out from the crowd is the story telling. Within every fragrance nestles a tale, whether it is for someone or about someone, real or mythical; as the layers of fragrance unfold so the story begins… ”
Love Karen X