A Leather Card Case That Smells Like Your Favorite Fragrance? Introducing Perfumer Francis Kurkdjian’s Scented Accessories

No matter how fine the make, the inside of a handbag can be an unruly place, overrun with pens, receipts, bobby pins, and tickets from the coat check. That doesn’t, however, mean it can’t smell absolutely heavenly. Perfumer Francis Kurkdjian has recently developed a line of scented leather accessories for his French maison—business and ID card holders, as well as made-to-order iPhone and iPad cases—that aromatize any pocket or purse. The innovation is an old one: In the eighteenth century, glove-makers (like those that served at the court of Marie Antoinette) were also perfumers. “I was always so fascinated by the idea of scented leather,” says Kurkdjian, who first experimented with an incarnation of the concept a few years back in the form of a fragranced bracelet he developed for his own label. More recently, he began dreaming of expanding things on a larger scale, but he explains, “Scented leather gloves aren’t part of life today because our hygiene is better—so that idea was obsolete. The goal was to make something out of leather that is relevant.”

The labor behind scenting a piece of leather for his latest project is meticulous and patient—Kurkdjian’s team finds the best calf and crocodile on the market and then, working with Paris-based L’Atelier Renard (the only leather house that incorporates fragrance), soaks the material in a perfume bath for several weeks. Once removed, the leather can be left to dry for up to a year. “Everything is state of the art,” says Kurkdjian. Crocodile pieces have wood and berry notes, while the calf and matte smell a bit like vanilla with berries. Bright and structured, they come in a range of rich colors. “I use the business card holder as a wallet for my credit cards,” says Kurkdjian, whose own intuitive reaction to them may drive the point home best. “Every time I pay with one, I bring the card to my nose.”

Francis Kurkdjian crocodile and calf card holders will be available exclusively at Bergdorf Goodman starting September 9.

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