12 Days of Perfume: The Best Winter Fragrances for Every Hard-to-Shop-For Friend Inline
Photographed by Willy Vanderperre, Vogue, March 20161/13
Photo: Courtesy of Dover Street Market2/13Gosha Rubchinskiy Eau de Toilette, $88, shop.doverstreetmarket.com
Is that the smell of skateboard wheels grinding against asphalt or sneaker treads burning rubber to Dover Street Market for Rubchinskiy’s early-release Spring collectsion? Either way, it’s a refreshing distillation of summer heat (vetiver, mandarin, patchouli) and irrepressible cool.
Photo: Courtesy of Barneys New York3/13Vilhelm Parfumerie Dirty Velvet, $246, barneys.com
Inspired by a Left Bank hotel, this perfume—a heady blend of sandalwood, ripe fig, and tobacco leaf—paints a picture by name alone: Those heavy plush curtains have seen an eyeful, and the night is still young.
Photo: Courtesy of Saks Fifth Avenue4/13Serge Lutens Baptème du Feu, $150, saksfifthavenue.com
Religiosity takes many forms, and this latest scent from the French visionaire is bound to draw converts with its seductive blend of osmanthus flower and woody notes and—apropos of the season—a piquant nod to gingerbread.
Photo: Courtesy of Byredo5/13Byredo Unnamed, $230, byredo.com
It is only fitting that it’s hard to pin down the elements in this delicately earthy perfume (those who look up the answer will find pink pepper, violet, and tree moss). Even better, it’s designed to be personalized, offering a novel twist on the gift tag.
Photo: Courtesy of Bergdorf Goodman6/13Yves Saint Laurent Vinyle, $250, bergdorfgoodman.com
If the aforementioned velvet has its allure, so does vinyl—a slick material that reflects as much as it attracts. Immortelle flower lends a lively, shimmering note, offset with bergamot, simmering vanilla, and myrrh, an unintentional echo of another storied gift.
Photo: Courtesy of Neiman Marcus7/13Maison Francis Kurkdjian, $215, neimanmarcus.com
Winter isn’t just about brooding scents for long nights in. An evocation of a cloudless morning—leavened with Calabrian citrus and lavender alongside a thread of musk—is just as welcome, as proved by this energizing eau by the Parisian perfumer.
Photo: Courtesy of Tom Ford8/13Tom Ford Vert des Bois, $225, tomford.com
When Tom Ford leads you into the woods, you follow. As the name suggests, the muse here is not ancient forests but the tender buds of the poplar tree, shot through with an airy stillness and a dose of ouzo—festive indeed.
Photo: Courtesy of Diptyque9/13Diptyque Kimonanthe, $200, diptyqueparis.com
Reading like a winding Marco Polo description of a bustling bazaar, this perfume weaves together whispers of Japanese incense, sandalwood, and osmanthus blossoms, conjuring up faraway lands no matter your winter travel plans.
Photo: Courtesy of Saks Fifth Avenue10/13Annick Goutal Tenue de Soirée, $190, saksfifthavenue.com
It’s no surprise this perfume self-identifies as audacious: With such an outsize pouf adorning the bottle, one can only imagine what come-hither elixir lies within. An iris accord grounds this iteration of a chypre scent with a soupçon of sweetness.
Photo: Courtesy of MAC Cosmetics11/13MAC Cosmetics Shadescents in Ruby Woo, $57, maccosmetics.com
Lipstick usually delivers a hit of color alone, but here MAC takes its much-beloved shade Ruby Woo as a point of inspiration. The resulting scent suggests a woody floral crossed with a red leather corner banquette.
Photo: Courtesy of Aedes12/13Altaia Ombú, $210, aedes.com
Argentine grasslands inspired this clean, botanical-leaning scent, which features notes of sage and cedar overlaid with crushed pink pepper. It’s the sort of thing you want lingering on a well-worn leather jacket.
Photo: Courtesy of penhaligons.com13/13Penhaligon’s Alizarin, $210, penhaligons.com
An oud-based perfume inspired by a desert voyage seems fitting this time of year, but the result veers from the well-traveled path with a splash of mandarin and a flush of tuberose set against earthy resins.
