Maison Francis Kurkdjian

While I don’t completely overhaul everything in my beauty arsenal each season, I do like to make small changes here and there. Heavier moisturizer (currently testing this), more face oils (love this one), darker/bolder lips (this in Blood Roses will forever be a classic) and warmer, spicier and richer fragrances. I did just do a fragrance collection video (see that here), but I was still testing these so I chose not to include. And shortly after I shot the pictures for this post, I had a few more fragrances arrive that I have been testing and love them all so I will be sharing those soon. Here are three that will definitely be in rotation this coming fall and winter season:

1. Laura Mercier Ambre Vanille – In the summer I was wearing this one from Laura Mercier, but this Ambre Vanille is exactly what fall should smell like. I love vanilla based fragrances, but they can either be warm and inviting or sickeningly sweet. Thankfully, this one falls in the former category mixing notes of amber and vanilla with tangerine, coconut, almond and sandalwood. The sweetness is balanced nicely with a touch of citrus and woodsy notes. I have always been a fan of Laura Mercier’s makeup line, but her fragrances never made it onto my radar. Welp, that won’t ever be the case again – these are too good to overlook!

2. Maison Francis Kurkdjian Feminin Pluriel – I am already a HUGE fan of Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s delicate floral scent A la Rose and have recently been wearing Aqua Vitae Forte which is crisp and fresh, so it was nice to try something from the opposite end of the spectrum. While the Feminin Pluriel still has strong notes of iris, violet and jasmine, the vetiver and patchouli create a much deeper finish to this bold floral. A little goes a long way, so I only need one spray to last me all day long.

3. Jimmy Choo Illicit – I was having a spa date with a friend that works in PR and she gave me a bag of goodies to try from brands that she represents as I was leaving. Now let me be perfectly honest, I get very nervous when brands, publicists or even friends give me fragrances without me having any knowledge of what they smell like. I am VERY fussy when it comes to fragrance and sadly I have been in situations where I try something at an event or from a friend and am politely trying not to gag because I hate it so much. I pulled this out of the bag, crossed my fingers in my head and hoped I would like it. (Now of course she would understand if I didn’t – but I always hate having to be the bearer of bad news LOL) I put the bottle up to my nose and immediately remarked “I LOVE THIS!” and meant it. Ha! In fact, I wore it every day for a week straight after receiving it and it’s still on rotation at least once a week. It’s a spicy oriental with notes of ginger, rose, jasmine and honey-amber. While it ultimately feels like a fall/winter fragrance to me, it is light enough to wear in the spring/summer. Highly recommend giving this a try for a new fall scent!

The weather is finally warming up, and so the changing of the scents begin. Out with the rich, warm and woodsy fragrances, and in with the light, fresh and floral – though sometimes I still like to sneak in a deeper scent here and there, especially for evening. Here is a look at the fragrances I’ll be wearing this spring:

1. Nest Fragrances in Verde –White Sandalwood is one of my holy grails. Midnight Fleur is the most unique fragrance I’ve ever worn. Paradise and Indigo were staples in my summer scent line-up last year, so clearly I love my Nest Fragrances. Recently a new one was launched called Verde, and it is an instant hit for me. It’s definitely more herbaceous than I typically prefer, so I was surprised when I loved the way it wore on me. I think it’s the notes of verbena leaves and vetiver that definitely drew me in and gives it the most delightful fresh and light scent. And as always with Nest Fragrances, the bottle is exquisite and looks like a piece of art sitting on my dresser.

2. Fresh Sugar Lychee Eau de Parfum -It’s been YEARS since I have had this fragrance in my collection and missed it so much. That mix of sweet and citrus is always a constant favorite in my scent choices, and this Fresh Sugar Lychee Eau de Parfum embodies both of those in a strong way. One of the things that I love about the Fresh fragrances is that they always smell simple and uncomplicated.  It’s easy to decipher the notes immediately, in this case lychee, citrus and mango, and it smells on the skin the way it does in the bottle. What you smell is what you get. I wish more fragrances were this easy.

3. Tocca Isabel – I’m just about on my last drop of Margaux, another Tocca fragrance I adore, so I was excited to try this new release for spring.  While it has notes of Spanish rose, it mixes that with leather accord, vetiver and vanilla which creates for a deeper, more complex floral scent. I prefer to wear this more for evening because it has a stronger finish than my typical spring fresh scents, but I like not wearing the same type of fragrances all season long. Throwing in a bolder fragrance even in the warmer weather can be a bit refreshing.

4. Maison Francis Kurkdjian Paris A la rose Eau de Parfum -This is not your grandmother’s rose perfume. I say that because I have always shied from traditional rose scents because it can often smell too dated or too mature for my taste. Thankfully, the rose fragrances of today are steering away from that and are more modern and complex. After falling in love with this rose fragrance from Aerin, I was open to trying more. When I had the chance to test this new one from Maison Francis Kurkdjian a few months ago at a press event, I knew this would be a definite must have for me this spring/summer. Two varieties of roses are used to create A la rose, and then it’s blended with violet, magnolia blossom and musk accord. I figured with the musk accord it may be deep, but once I got it on my skin, it was light, refreshing and delicate. And lonnnnnnng wearing. I get compliments on this fragrance after it’s been on my skin for 10-12 hours, which is rare in my experience. I anticipate this bottle will probably last me for many summers to come since only 1-2 spritzes will be all I need.