I get sent a new perfume every week, but I still reach for this £70 cult classic that's almost a decade old

There’s no casual way to say it - I get sent a lot of free perfume. As a senior beauty editor, a big part of my job is testing out new fragrance launches, so every week boxes pile up on my desk with bottles of the best perfume for women. From the newest, most luxurious buys to the more humble (but no less lovely-smelling) affordable options.

It is - obviously - an enormous perk. I get to spritz and sniff to my heart’s content, and I can curate one of those unrealistic beauty tropes - a ‘wardrobe’ of scents. I take a small selection home, usually solar perfume or mood-boosting perfumes to use on those mornings when I wake up in a grump.

Lately, though, I’ve been reaching for the same scent. Day after day, I shun the glitziest, poshest bottles and pick up this understated cult classic.

Ah, Glossier You. The perfume-that’s-not-really-a-perfume. This was really an ‘it’ scent when it launched in 2017, loved for its warm, subtle fragrance and the USP of smelling different on every wearer.

Allow a slightly cynical eyebrow raise from me - all perfumes generally smell different on everyone. With Glossier You, though, I can see why it’s a feature. It’s a really soft, understated smell that your natural scent blends with, rather than fighting against. Hence, ‘You’.

It stands out to me as a favourite because I feel that a lot of new launches smell a bit…perfumey. When the beauty team are testing scents, we have a common phrase for this - ‘it smells like a perfume’. Meaning, it smells like a generic, run-of-the-mill scent. They feel like walking through an airport duty-free. Floral, fragrant, spicy - yes, lovely - but not that distinctive. Dare I say, old-fashioned. I’m also not a fan of the Gen Z boom in gourmand scents - I don’t want to smell like a frappuccino.

There’s a beautiful simplicity to Glossier You. It’s unassuming, easy to wear, and stylish - it’s the white T-shirt of the perfume world. That’s not to say that it doesn’t smell like anything. The notes of pink pepper and iris with warm amber elements do make an impression. It just whispers instead of shouting.

I love smelling scents on other people, but I never want to smell overly perfumed. I definitely had a phase of spraying myself top-to-toe with the strongest floral fragrances I could find, wanting to smell nice. It just takes hugging someone and being overpowered by their aroma to put you off that habit. Skin scents have become a huge trend over the last few years, for those occasions when you want to smell good, but not obviously from a perfume.

I can see Glossier You being my signature scent for years to come. There’s no occasion it’s not suitable for - It’s a gorgeous autumn fragrance but also one of my favourite scents for summer. It’s lovely in the evenings as a cosy, inviting option, and it’s a lovely pick-me-up on gloomy winter mornings.

I always feel like myself when I’m wearing it, and that’s the beauty of it. Like the best understated makeup - it makes me feel like me - but better.