Top Picks for Best Perfumes of Winter 2010

Top Picks for Best Perfumes of Winter 2010

Winter seems to be doing that Guest Fish thing – and it even brought its mother in law!  So..if you can’t beat it (no matter how much you want to.  With a stick.  Covered in barbed wire..and a couple of nails for good measure….)….thenlet’s talk about Top Picks for Best Perfumes of Winter 2010.  We have alllll the time in the world…Winter will be on the fold-out sofa for a few eons more…

Anita/Musette sez:

1Feb2011 – 30mph gusts. I can’t see the house across the street for the blowing snow. The Weather Channel is nearly incoherent with glee at the coming Snowpocalypse – their ratings must be through the roof!!!     Anybody who thinks I’m not going to list Cartier Les Heures Fougueuse as mine own is out of their mind.  It may have debuted in the chill of the last quarter but it’s all about heat, since the lifestyle this conjures means you can hop in the G6 and be in Belize for afternoon tea.  If you are wearing this and you are in snow, you are in Gstaad.  Because you wanna be.

The other one is Bruno Acampora Blu. There’s not a marine note in there but…It smells like
this looks.  Trust me.

Tom weighs in from sunny LA:

I know it seems whiny that I’m typing that I need a breath of spring when I’m spending another winter in Los Angeles, the one place in the US that isn’t under ten feet of snow.  But after 20-odd years in the beautiful Hills of Beverly, 40 seems darned cold.  What’s the answer?  Sometimes it’s Andy Tauer’s Carillon pur un ange, the lovely lily with the shockingly sensual Tauerade drydown.  Sometimes it’s L’Artisan Coeur de Vetiver Sacre with it’s balance of cool vetiver and warm black tea.  One of the main ones I’ve been reaching for however is Etat Libre’s Like This.  Designed for (and by) Tilda Swinton, The mandarin, rose and neroli are uplifting and the ginger, immortelle and pumpkin are immensely comforting.  It’s like fuzzy slippers and a warm hearth in a spray bottle.

Nava, reporting from Toronto, in Canada, where all the snow is supposed to fall: Once again, my peeps in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions are getting hammered. And by the way, Musette, that was quite a party you guys had in Chicago the other day.

For me, it’s been slim pickins’ this winter, but I’ve more than gotten by: Serge’s Bois et Fruits has kept me warm. So has Barbara Bui Le Parfum and my old standby, Donna Karan Chaos. Thanks, cousin Simon.

Patty, frozen stiff in Denver, is thumbing her nose at Musette darling and putting Fougueuse on her list, along with Kilian Pure OudBaccarat Les Larmes Sacree du ThebesCaron Parfum Sacre in all of its lovely iterations and Fendi Theorema, which warms the cockles of my black little heart.

So…those are our picks –we’re throwing it open to you now. Let us know what warmed (or is still warming, since it’s still winter) the cockles of YOUR heart!

For more Top Picks for Best Perfumes of Winter 2010, please see Bois de Jasmin, Grain de Musc, Now Smell This, and Perfume-Smellin’ Things.

That gorgeous winter photo is US 61, Minnesota, 2010., courtesy of our own Catherine.  www.catherinemicheleadams.com

That gorgeous NOT WINTER photo is Costa Careyes.

  • Vintage Lady says:

    This is so great… lovely post.

    my winter scents. hasu -no -hana., flapper, eau d’epices, some arabian nights, and a bit of cartier de lune, which i think, just think that probably it will be much better for summer days and nights.

  • Vasily says:

    I find myself reaching for Ayala Moriel’s Rebellious (for its spicy honeyed leather), and Frapin’s Terre de Sarment (for its warm, earthy woods) during these brutal winter days. I’ve been craving Creed Orange Spice these days, too.

  • Becky says:

    From what has been the very foggy central valley of CA, I am loving DSH’s Piment et Chocolat and Vintage Patchouly and, as always, Bvlgari Black. They all make me feel toasty!

  • Olfacta says:

    I’m spraying madly lately. Right now FKK Absolute Pour le Matin (sample from NY) which is complicated and fabulous. Last night Bond No. 9 West Broadway, which morphs through citrus and grassiness and ends up at a nice muskiness — I didn’t know it was a men’s scent until I looked it up. MH Fleur Oriental, whose powdery sweet drydown on a ratty, but warm, acrylic sweater I’ve been wearing all this frigid winter just made me swoon, which hardly even happens. La Perla EDP. Ambre Sultan. L’Artisan’s Patchouli Patch. Love & Tears Surrender. All from samples/decants/splits. I guess perfume spraying with abandon is helping me cope with this ridiculous winter!

  • ScentRed says:

    Go-to scents for me this frosty winter: OJ Woman, OJ Champaca, Coromandel, 31 Rue de Cambon, Bois D`Iris and Donna Karan Gold. But today – I`m throwing snow in Jack Frost`s face and goin` Bigarade Concentree baybee!

    p.s. I`m still not sure if I like Like This, but also can`t stop wearing it and thinking about it…odd but true.

  • Ruanne says:

    Eau d’ Epices, Chinatown, Wazamba, and Youth Dew have been my comforts this yucky Winter. I’ve also been really grooving on vanilla- I get in bed with PdN Vanile Tonka almost every night. But when things get really bad, and the power is out, and we’ve resorted to amusing ourselves by bickering (pellets of freezing rain vs. Hail: Is there a difference? Discuss.) I put on some CB 1966 At the Beach.

  • Winifreida says:

    Well Downunder we are having intermittent scorchers interspersed with blasts from the oven…whilst cyclone Yasi has hammered poor ole Queensland and is actually still spinning over Alice Springs, the red centre and in the middle of the desert. Clearly the opposite of the Northern hemisphere!!!
    Strangely, while I just have to wear my vanillas, OTT fruities like Pulp, and tropical florals (and am having a sniff-off between my brand new tiny bottle of Rubj extrait and the EDP post-shower…extrait is definitely a little ‘brighter’, and the gorgeous bubblegum note is replaced by the dirty passionfruit in EDP…), I have been looking forward to winter, worrying and sampling more ambers in case I miss the best one, trying to decide if I love Epic enough to get it for winter, casing old Etros on ebay, you know, just the usual obsessive stuff!
    With the slight shift of my personal perfume zietgeist under the influence of the new generation bright and ‘clean’ fumes, I am also finding most of my collection of vintage, even florals like Capucci, are nicely fuggy and winterised.

  • rosarita says:

    I love reading everyone’s lists and wintery comments! This is one of those winters that feels relentless; makes me want to burrow in a warm cozy nest and hibernate. I’ve been snuggling up with my beloved Les Nereides Patchouli Antique and Imperial Opoponax, my two warmest scents (they smell great together, too.) And I got a decant of Nahema in a swap, thinking there was no way I’d like it – not being a Guerlain fangirl – and I’m in AWE of this gorgeous creature. It’s just so very beautiful, it gives me happy shivers when I wear it. :x

  • Olga says:

    What warms my heart in Winter?..
    Mahjoun by DSH
    OJ Tolu
    Yvresse

    and the fact that I can spray my La Collection Climat to my heart’s content without risk of getting choked! (as is the case in the Summer)

  • Flora says:

    Another Parfum Sacre fan here, plus Rosine’s Rose Kahhmirie, both perfect rose perfumes for snuggling into hibernation with. I am also loving my decant of Memo Manoa, it’s just perfect for winter with its big dark wallop of opoponax. It’s kind of like Bal a Versailles but with the skank (mostly) replaced by woody/resinous notes, so I can wear it where I dare not take the Bal.

  • tammy says:

    Speaking of Very Dear Posseites, I am currently having a very passionate affair with vintage Scandal(extrait!)and Nina Ricci Fille D’ Eve. Scandal took the early lead, but Eve’s Daughter has got me completely spellbound.

    Thank you, L! :x

  • Ann says:

    Great choices from everyone! I’m trying to stay toasty with Diptyque Eau Duelle, Defendue, Fumerie Turque and Parfum Sacre that I got from several lovely perfumistas.

  • sweetlife says:

    Lovely lists, all! Patty you have reminded me I need to put some Parfum Sacre on before it warms up again down here. We had SNOW on the ground this morning! In Austin. Everyone was out in their front yards taking pictures of it and trying to sled. It will be 60 degrees tomorrow.

    P.S. I assume Ms. March is on well deserved holiday, but just wanted to say I’m missing her voice and wishing her well.

    • Musette says:

      We won’t see 60F until August – at least it feels like it right now.

      The only place snow is NOT is inside.

      Yep, March is fine, just taking a well deserved holiday, as you said. What I wanna know is: Where the hockey sticks is MY Holiday!!!? :-w

      xo >-)

  • jen says:

    It’s chilly in AZ; we are burning little fires to keep our orange trees from freezing; I wore Jolie Madame to my ankle surgery yesterday–helped when dealing with a snotty anesthesiologist for some reason. Now that it’s over, I’m back to my winter home scent, Parfum Sacre. All you freezing people keep warm!

    • Musette says:

      😮

      SAVE THE ORANGES!!!

      Hope your ankle is on the mend. Since you’re here posting, I can assume the surgery went well? And JM is the bomb for dealing with tricky situations without mayhem. Mitsouko is for when all else fails.

      xo >-)

      • jen says:

        Surgery was fine-outpatient and now Ive got great drugs and no pain. You’re right-Mitsouko is good for dealing with a&&* also!

  • (Ms.) Christian says:

    No snow and ice here, not even much rain.

    My go to scents have been DSH Minuit and Oude Arabique, AA Winter Delice, Etro Messe de Minuit, SSS Incense Pure, Montale Patchouli Leaves and when I am tired of the ambery, resiny stuff, the wonderfully arid L’Artisan Dzongkha fills the bill.

  • maggiecat says:

    Dallas – have not been out of the house (ice, snow today) since Monday…lots of time to read about perfume though! Loving the coziness of Eau Duelle, the floral extravaganza of Badgley Mischka’s Fleurs de Nuit. Sprayed JM’s Vetiver on the bed we’ve been so reluctant to get out of this morning and liked it a lot. May have to co-opt this one from DH. Love to all!

    • Musette says:

      You guys really are getting the weirdest weather down there! Cut it out!

      xo >-)

    • Olfacta says:

      You know you’re snowbound crazy when you start to wonder why your house is making so much noise. My sympathies to anyone in Dallas — we had it here (Atlanta) not too long ago!

  • Victoria says:

    I love every single fragrance from all of these lists (apart from Tauer and Baccarat Les Larmes Sacree du Thebes, which I have not tried.) Nava reminded me of DK Chaos, which I have ignored for far far too long! :)

  • Sweet Sue says:

    I’m still deciding if my heart has cockles…does it need sea shells, too? ;)

    Well, the heart is a mussel.

  • Musette says:

    A Very Dear Posseite sent me some L’Arte de Gucci (“it’s spelled like Gukkie” – 10 pts for whoever knows where that line came from ;))

    anyway – it’s the PERFECT scent for this horrible weather we’re having, warm and bright with flowers that aren’t so ‘flowery’ that they seem absurd in -F temps and 4′ snowdrifts.

    xo >-)

  • Didn’t join in the early love-fests for L’Heure Fougueuse, but then most of you know how I feel about it.
    Lots of very tempting ideas in everyone’s winter favorites: Furriner’s just reminded me how smitten I was with Idole when it first came out (weren’t we all?). Nava’s Bois et Fruits is one I keep telling myself I need to try seriously, to see whether it’s different enough from Féminité du Bois and Bois de Violette to justify going for a bottle… some day.

  • Debbie R. says:

    Ambre Sultan, Fumerie Turque, L’Artisan Aedes de Venusta

  • pam says:

    I’ve been lovin’ YSL Nu edp–has a warm vibe. Loulou is a big wool sweater. Almost any Guerlain will do it for me. We got ice yesterday and we weren’t even expecting it. Enough already.

  • maidenbliss says:

    Catherine, thank you for the wintry memory of my old home town favorite Bob Dylan highway, dressed in winter white. I’d rather be in Costa.

    The CdG incense series has taken me through these long winter months along with Tom Ford’s Japon Noir & Oud Wood, Musc Ravageur, vintage Guerlains, CdRussie, Theorema, Parfum Sacre, Dior Eau Noire and Ambra Nobile 1942, Coze.

    • Musette says:

      I’m with you, mbliss! Careyes is absolutely gorgeous right about now. Alas, it will be a little while before I can revisit…. :-< xo >-)

      • maidenbliss says:

        In your Betsey Johnson string bikini, fb of Fougueuse in your Chanel beach bag, Armani beach cover-up & Versace diamond studded shades you’ll be the Careyes diva! hehe
        I’ll tote that bag for you.

        • Musette says:

          You are =))

          Have you seen any pictures of me lately? I don’t think Betsey Johnson has enough fabric in her entire warehouse to make a bikini for my huge-assed self – and Giorgio would faint dead away before he would allow a coverup to be made for this frame…then again, he might do it just to save the world additional visual pain…:-?

          but you are welcome to come along to Careyes anytime!!! I promise to NOT wear a bikini! ;))

          xo >-)

          • maidenbliss says:

            Bikini would be a scent memory for me. Salt surf sun sweat s*x …. to the tune of Bruce
            Springsteen’s Glory Days!
            Do you personally have any memories of Lawrence Welk? Me too.

          • Musette says:

            Yeppers! :”> I absolutely was in thrall to those little bubbles…and the ladies in those great gowns.

            xo >-)

  • Shelley says:

    I’m still deciding if my heart has cockles…does it need sea shells, too? ;)

    Y’all make it hard to move around here without being in danger of being trampled by a horse. Guess I’m going to have to yee-hah myself to the barn. Heaven knows I’m a sucker for hay. I DO know that I’m with Tom on the Coeur de Vetiver Sacre; a bit peculiar on the opening, and just fall comfortably back into what happens after.

    Having spent yesterday with L’Ombre Fauve, I have to mention that one as a happy cozy spot for cold weather. But I’ve also been contrary to convention grooving on iris in the cold, with L’Heure Exquise rewarding my patience with a lovely bloom in the arctic cold. Seriously. :)

    • Kim says:

      Iris in the cold? Hmmm – since I like L’Huere Blueu in the heat, why not iris in the cold? ……
      And you are right! Just tried 28 La Pausa and it blooms beautifully, woodier, even slightly spicy, in the cold here in ‘below 0 F’ land – cold that I actually like, even the wind – that blue sky and the wonderful crisp air. Sigh.

      • Musette says:

        I, too, like (and ‘get’) iris in the cold.

        I just don’t like the cold.

        xo >-)

        • Shelley says:

          I know. You want the tanned count on the Riviera, with some horses. And a bag.

          Spring WILL get here. Eventually.

      • Shelley says:

        Yay, Kim! It does behave interestingly, doesn’t it? Next time I put on 28 La Pausa in woolen weather, I’ll tip me cap at you.

  • waftbyCarol says:

    well , it was 75 degrees here in Florida the other day…
    *ducks to avoid flying debris*
    But I have been wearing Acampora Iranzol , green and resinous and addictive . Or Aftelier Pink Lotus , dark and earthy .
    At night , everynight for over a year ?
    Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Vintage Patchouly.
    If y’all get too tired of winter , my spare bedroon is available , and I store my perfume collection in there…
    *warm Florida hugs*

  • DJ says:

    continuing my obsession with SL Boxeuse…that is all.

    I love catching wafts of other people’s Chanel Coco in shops and outdoors during cold weather.

    it is blasting wind here, but we are snow free on the South East coast of England…

  • marina says:

    What is everyone getting in Fougueuse that I do not? :((:(( I know I’m not getting horses, that’s for sure.:d

    • Musette says:

      I think this one either REALLY gets you – or it doesn’t. It’s almost as if, well if it doesn’t, it seems to almost not even exist! Like I said in my review, I don’t get ‘horse’ I get Horse Money.

      xo >-)

  • SilviaFunkly says:

    Intermittent cold spells here in the UK but fortunately nothing compared to the other side of the pond.

    My 2010 Winter Warmers are: Le Labo Poivre23, SDV, Traversee du Bosphore, Daim Blond, Bois d’Armenie, Knize10. I also have a firm favourite for skiing, which is Vanille Galante, something in its consistency is like pure rarefied mountain air, just perfect.

  • Suzy Q says:

    Since the beginning of January I’ve zeroed in on:
    Musc Ravageur
    and
    Coromandel.
    I can smell them through layers of winter clothes, which gives them a big advantage over my other favorites.

  • FragrantWitch says:

    Chergui, Shalimar EdP ( the edt is strange on ‘me
    since I fell pregnant with my oldest daughter) and vintage Emeraude. Ooh and Bulgari Black as well. And Ambre Gris….ok I am done for now!

  • Sherri M. says:

    Absolue Pour Le Soir, SDV, Cuir Beluga, BdA, Gourmand Coquin, Alessandro. Also New Look 1947, not that it’s particularly great in cold weather, but I’m totally smitten by it!

  • Madea says:

    Chergui and Habanita. All that warm, comforting powder is just the thing in the cold.

  • Furriner says:

    Warming the cockles of my heart? Hmmmmmmmm. I guess Idole de Lubin warms me up in the cold. I also, for some reason, like to wear Mandragore to bed in the winter….. go figure.

  • Meg says:

    Prada Amber gets me out of bed and into the cold world in the morning. If a pile of money was under my pillow tomorrow, I am sure Vetiver Ambrato and the Infidels would do the job too.

  • lulllull says:

    I have used Chanel cuir de russie and Guerlain Tonka Imperiale. They have managed to keep the mood and the temperature up.

  • Catherine says:

    Right now, Serge Noire is my favorite winter scent–the incense and cumin calm me. Next are Mona di Orio Nuit Noire and Baccarat Les Larmes Sacrées de Thebes.

    I’ll be so excited once winter ends. I’m tired of coats!

  • Shari says:

    L’AP Piment Brulant!

  • Kim says:

    I have been loving my bottle of Diptyque Eau Duelle – the cool vetiver and incense beside warm, smokey vanilla. Marvellous!!
    I can’t get enough of Chanel Cuir de Russie in parfum strength – when it is so cold and snowy outside, Cuir de Russie seems warm and cuddly in comparison!! I have been playing with Chergui and Cuir de Mauresque and layering them with other Lutens – Un Bois Vanille is my favourite. They both cut the sweetness of Un Bois Vanille and give it an edge that somehow suits winter – kind of cools the warmth enough to remind you it is winter but the smokey warm vanilla is still there. keeping you warm as the wind howls around (seems like that is my favourite for winter this year !!).

  • nozknoz says:

    I’ve been enjoying Dior New Look 1947, vintage Jean Patou Chaldee, LezNez Manoumalia, BK Rose Oud, SSS Tabac Aurea and Teo Cabanel Alahine. My approach to winter this year is sheer denial overlaid with a huge down sleeping bag coat.

    I’m warily eying the Xerjoff sample pack that lies throbbing in my sample basket. I know it’s out to get me! >:)

  • Alice C says:

    I’ve fallen head over heels for Ambre Sultan. It really warms me up!

  • hongkongmom says:

    attrape, champagne de bois, ombre rose l’original(ouch don’t kick me out), shalimar vintage eau de toilette, one time usage of profumum roma, dambrosia(if that counts)ormande woman