It is the first week of Winter down here in the Southern Hemisphere. Autumn has gracefully bowed out, with its remnants of warm afternoons and sunshine, making way for dark, chilly nights and blankets on the couch. With summer tans long faded, and the flippant, floaty dress wardrobe packed away, it’s time to have a look at what fragrances best befit this season.
My Place or Yours Gina by Benefit
An irresistably cute fragrance, the sweet-toothed flirt of Benefit’s series of scents released last year. Its notes of raspberry and vanilla are balanced by tangy tangerine and bold patchouli. Spicy pink pepper and peony help slide this fragrance closer towards the Angel by Thierry Mugler end of the Sweetness Scale, away from the Fantasy by Britney Spears side of things.
Top – pink pepper, bergamot, tangerine
Middle – peony, wild raspberry, white lily
Base – patchouli, tonka bean, vanilla bean.
RRP $59
Jasmin Noir by Bvlgari
Darkly sultry, this is a fragrance that whispers its arrival. It’s a fragrance for grown ups, based on the presumption adults would know what to do with its sensuality. The creaminess of white florals in the top note is offset by green sap and then edged out of the way by the smooth, slight bitterness of almond. But it’s the dark base that makes me wonder if anyone, adult or otherwise, could handle the sensuality.
Top – black jasmine petals, gardenia petals, green sap
Middle – almond
Base – licorice, tonka bean
RRP
EDT: 50mL / 100mL, $115 / $165
EDP: 50mL/100mL, $129 / $189
Sohum Apricot and Cocoa
Creamed honey, milk chocolate and caramel with the freshness of apricot and orange – you will be licking your skin. Sohum scents are bottled treats – big bouquets, beach swims or, in this case, a home-made dessert.
Notes – creamed honey, navel orange, vanilla Pods, milk chocolate, apricots, caramel
RRP $42
Narcisso Rodriguez For Her by Narcisso Rodriguez
The fragrance that largely inspired Sarah Jessica Parker’s Lovely is classically feminine. In turns sweet and clean, it opens on a note of the former, musk and orange blossom tempering each other. As it develops, the sweetness of vanilla and amber kicks in and then the musk reappears in the base, alongside the greenness of vetiver. Richer than Lovely and more obvious in its sensuality.
Top – orange blossoms, osmanthus, musk
Middle – amberlyn, vanilla
Base – musk, vetiver
RRP Price: 50mL EDT/ 100mL EDT, $119 / $170
Courage by One Seed
After a little while, this potent, botanical potion smells like a garden in full bloom. The rosewood is a delicate base for the ylang ylang and jasmine heart to sit atop, and is ably supported by the warmth of vanilla and amber. This is a fragrance that keeps on giving; don’t be fooled by the heady opening, Courage develops beautifully and lasts for hours.
Top: sweet orange, magnolia
Heart: ylang ylang, jasmine
Base: rosewood, vanilla, amber
RRP $82 for 50ml
Gucci by Gucci
For a fragrance with such fruity/floral top and heart notes, Gucci by Gucci is really very warm. Opening with a burst of fruit, this quickly gives way to the orange blossom and Tahitian tiare flower at the heart of the scent. But it is after the fragrance has settled, when the patchouli and honey in the base truly steal the show, that the fragrance comes into its own.
Top – guava, raspberry, pear
Middle – Tahitian tiare flower, spider lily, orange blossom
Base – musk, honey resin, patchouli
RRP $120/$155; EDP 50mL/75mL
Aerin Lauder Private Collection Amber and Ylang Ylang
Sophisticated, warm and elegant, this fragrance blends some beautiful notes and top quality ingredients, and reaps the olfactory benefits. Oils and absolutes lend the scent a long life, as does classic layering of a full top note, pared back heart and classic base. Geranium oil, Bulgarian rose absolute, cinnamon and amber ensure a lasting radiance.
Top – Italian bergamot, geranium oil, ylang ylang absolute
Middle – Bulgarian rose absolute, cinnamon.
Base – amber, sandalwood, vanilla bean
RRP 30mL/75mL, $150 / $250
Iris d’ Bois by Van Cleef & Arpels
I’ve got a crush on this fragrance and I want it to like me as much as I like it. Consequently, when I sprayed it for the first time, I hoped and prayed the stripped back, powdery iris would sit well, and the exotic woods wouldn’t be too deep for my skin. I shouldn’t have worried – a stunning unisex fragrance and an old fashioned, classic take on the iris.
Notes – Iris, exotic wood, and ambergris
Reader Question
How do I select a perfume that suits my skin type/tone? And how does I know which scents to choose based on what will suit me?
Basically what does and doesn’t suit us depends on the types of oil and acids our skin naturally produces. This is why a fragrance that might smell great on your best friend, smells terrible on you. I wrote a guest blog for Primped a while back on this exact topic; it should answer all your questions.
Oh, ‘Sohum Apricot and Cocoa’ sounds amazing! I can practically smell it now.
Sohum fragrances are DELIGHTFUL. If you are EVER in Melbourne, make sure you check out one of their stores, you won’t leave. You can also buy Sohum online – I am tempted to buy about ten at any given time.
Mmmmm.. these posts are so dangerous. Dangerous for my bank account. Great winter-birthday gift ideas though
Hi there, great to hear about winter fragrances even though i’m thinking about summer at the moment. I’ve just provided a link from my blog, MyPerfumeLife.com You can see it by following this short link http://bit.ly/bBnjVi