Mary Delany was born in 1700 and began her paper mosaics in 1771 or 1772, when most people would have put the scissors down. She made 985 botanical collages, and they now live in the British Museum as the Flora Delanica. Keep that picture in mind, because the bottles in this edit are dressed in her spirit.

NEST's first fine fragrance collection took its inspiration from Delany's botanical artworks, and you can still see it in the flowers drawn on the glass. I find that a nice clue to the house. Laura Slatkin and her husband Harry founded Slatkin & Co. in 1992 and introduced luxury scented candles to the American market, on the idea that home fragrance is the final touch on a decorated home. She started NEST in 2008 as what she has called a backup plan, and she made it, in her own words, around a simple question: why can't every scent be a Bamboo, the candle that became her number one.

That is why nest perfume behaves the way it does. It is scent designed by someone who thinks about rooms, so it is warm, friendly and rarely shy. The trick is to start with the food-and-flower names on the first grid. Creme de Clementine with vanilla is the citrus-cream one, and Cardamom Latte with jasmine and coconut is the coffee-shop one. Vanilla Bourbon and Madagascar Vanilla are the two for a cold evening. Lychee Rose and Santa Barbara Strawberry lean fruity, Balinese Coconut is the beach, and Indigo is the one I would try if the rest sound too sweet.

Here is how I would choose: start with an oil, not the full spray. Slatkin herself talks about layering perfume oils, and a rollerball is the least committal way to find out whether a scent works on your skin. Roll it on the wrists, wait an hour, decide.

This grid repeats the eau de parfum names in gentler formats. Watermelon Peony arrives as a rollerball, the small one for a bag. Lychee Rose, Santa Barbara Strawberry, Balinese Coconut and Madagascar Vanilla are all here as oils, which stay close to the skin and read as a soft scented shimmer, not a cloud. Balinese Coconut, Maui Mango and Madagascar Vanilla Body Mists are the easy option for anyone who wants the mood without the weight.

A pairing I like: the Madagascar Vanilla oil on the pulse points and the Balinese Coconut mist over your hair and shoulders. Two textures of one warm idea make a scent that feels lived-in, not sprayed on.

What I would skip: applying an oil over a scented lotion in a warm room. Oil holds fragrance close, so two sweet layers will get loud fast. Use an unscented moisturizer underneath instead.

A rule for candles: burn the first one until the wax pool reaches the edges, and keep the wick trimmed. It lets the scent throw evenly, and you will smell what the brand actually made.

This is where NEST began, and the fresher scents suit it. Wild Mint & Eucalyptus and Bamboo Classic are the clean, green pair for a bathroom or a desk. Grapefruit and Sunlit Yuzu & Neroli are the brightest, good for a kitchen on a Saturday morning. Himalayan Salt & Rosewater comes as a classic candle and as a diffuser, and it is the calm one for a bedroom. Pumpkin Chai is the seasonal outlier, the one for an October living room. The Moroccan Amber reed diffuser is the low-effort choice for a hallway, because you just remove the cap and walk away.

A pairing I like: a candle in the room you cook in, the diffuser in the room you walk past, and the same family on your wrists. That way a home smells like the person who lives in it.

What I would skip: lighting a strong candle next to a bowl of fruit or a fresh flower arrangement. They compete, and the flowers lose.

Start with the vanilla you already own. If you love a vanilla note, note what it is: cream, wood, spice or sugar. That tells you which of these to try before you touch a bottle.

The neighbours on this shelf are good ones. PHLUR's Vanilla Skin is the quiet, skin-close option. Prada's Infusion de Vanille is the polished, dressed-up vanilla, and Kilian Paris's Pina Paraiso brings coconut in a more grown-up register. Guerlain's Aqua Allegoria Bosca Vanilla Forte is the one to try if you want vanilla with a little more air around it, while Beach Blossom pairs coconut water and vanilla for summer. Nette's Lemon Puff, The 7 Virtues' Clementine Dream and By Rosie Jane's Dulce are the sweeter, friendlier ones, and Clementine Dream is the natural companion to NEST's Creme de Clementine.

A pairing I like: a citrus vanilla during the day and a smoky one on top after dark. You get two moods from two bottles that suit each other.

What I would skip: wearing a heavy vanilla in a small, warm office. It fills the room quickly and the people around you did not choose it.

I think nest perfume works best as a series of small experiments. Buy one oil or rollerball, wear it for a week, and only then decide if the eau de parfum is worth a bottle. Vanilla Bourbon is my pick if you want a first spray.

Then pick one candle for the room you spend the most time in, and let it be the first thing people smell when they walk in. A perfume oil in your bag and a candle at home is a small, sensible way to begin. Mary Delany began her paper flowers in her seventies. You are not late to anything. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Reading the Bleu de Chanel Parfum Bottle and Oakcha Perfume, Explained.