Jo Levin spills the secrets on her first fragrance, OdeJo

Modelled after her exclusive signature scent, the debut perfume from the stylist is enticing, enigmatic and eminently wearable

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The story behind OdeJo happened about 30 years ago. I came across an oil in the US and I would combine it with my rose-scented shower gel. People would come up to me and say: "God, you smell so good," and I would reply: "It's me – it's eau de Jo." The thing about perfume is it's your secret, so you almost don't want to tell anyone what it is.

Tom Ford, after every show, would tell me I smelled divine and even taxi drivers would ask what it was. Then I was at one of Sir Elton John's parties and fashion writer Tim Blanks turned up with Jeff Lounds, who is now his husband. At the time, I had no idea Jeff had a background in perfume – he was one of the original partners behind Escentric Molecules, which has been a huge success. He chased me around the garden trying to figure out what the scent was and over the following period of 16 years, he was constantly saying: "You're driving me crazy, Jo. What is it?" He told me to call him when I was ready. It was 18 months ago that I finally knew it was time and he immediately said: "Fantastic, let's do it."

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