When we went to London in October, we took the tube to Camden Market on a warm, sunny day. Getting off at the Camden Town station and hitting the main street, I thought I had been returned to the 1960s-70s because the shops looked like Hippie Haven with brightly colored storefronts selling inexpensive merchandise and vaping pens, CBD and maybe marijuana, if it is legal there?
Immediately, I ducked into a shop on Camden High Street selling Indian merchandise (on the left in the photo above), and I found an embroidered, glittery throw pillowcase for my bed to replace the one I bought years ago in Tampa. This one cost about 7 pounds, about $8 at the time. The price was right.
Jeff and I continued on to Camden Market, a large semi-indoor/outdoor market that features independent shops and stalls, street food and restaurants, young fashion and accessories.
The market is located next to Regent’s Canal (but the boat rides had ended for the season), known for its locks (the kind that lift boats up and down to adjust to height changes in the canal).
Camden Market is crowded with young people and tourists. Open 7 days a week, it’s a fun activity on a nice day to be mostly outdoors.
After we entered the market and got some freshly squeezed orange juice, my eye fell upon a small shop, Solid Cologne UK, that I remember as selling solid perfumes and colognes as well as hats.
The young salesman who worked there went right to work selling me a solid perfume. It came in a white metal sliding tray measuring 1″ wide by 2.25″ long containing solid perfume.
He asked me what kind of fragrances I liked, and I mumbled something about spicy, sweet, amber scents. He immediately pulled out a sample of DUAA #6 (I have no idea what that stands for) described on the tin as “Rich, Warm, Woody”.
He went on to say how perfect solid perfume was for traveling because it’s not a liquid, you don’t need to check it in your luggage during a flight, and it won’t spill. Made sense to me!
I put on some of the sample, and the beeswax, shea butter and jojoba oil (the key ingredients) melted right into my skin leaving behind a deep but sweet floral fragrance. I was surprised that I really liked the scent. At that point, Jeff and I had spent about 20 minutes talking to the guy and trying on hats, so I decided I must buy the solid perfume. I didn’t even try any of the others, I just went for it. He said the price was 15 pounds, at the time about $16.50. He tried to talk me into buying two tins for 25 pounds and getting a third one free. Jeff was getting antsy, and I wasn’t sure how the solid perfume would last one me, so I declined the offer and just bought one.
Since then, I have found that I really love this fragrance. It’s more feminine than many of the scents I often wear, and it seems perfect to wear during all seasons. I brought it with me when we went to L.A. in February, and again over the last two weeks for our trip south. He was right, it’s easy to travel with!
Now I truly wish I had taken advantage of the B2G1 offer since London is not exactly next door. The brand name of the indie company is “Solid Cologne U.K.” or SCUK. They have a website where they sell solid perfumes and colognes for women and men, and I went on to see what their shipping policy is. First, the price is significantly higher on the website, $33 for a tin. There’s free shipping in the UK, and they do ship internationally but I’m not sure I’m ready for that. They have a long list of their Stockists, not only in Great Britain but all over the world including the U.S. I thought it would be less expensive to buy from a U.S. retailer, but clicking on each of the 6 American retailers, three of them seemed to be out of business and the other three were men’s beard and shaving retailers, two of which sold solid cologne but not SCUK. I even tried the one Canadian retailer, but they didn’t carry this brand of solid scent either.
I may try writing to SCUK and asking them if they have any current U.S. retailers, and if not, how much shipping a couple of small tins to me in MA would cost. Fortunately, I still have some left that will last me at least a little while. So, if you find yourself in London and make a visit to Camden Market, think of me and SCUK!
Another day, I will write about the rest of our day at Camden and share some more pictures.
Have you been to Camden Market?
I hope you can find this treasure locally considering the price of postage. Sounds like a winner for you.
You know me, I love my perfumes!