Best Perfumes for Summer

Hi, everybody!  It’s Musette, here, hosting our Annual  Best Perfumes for Summer post.  Although it certainly isn’t summer here anymore.  We went from stunning 90+F heat to wearing hoodies in the chilly rain.  Great for my garden (I keep moving things around and, yes, BUYING MORE PLANTS (so what!  Gardening keeps me from biting people)…but it’s been fun trying to figure out what will work in this chameleon climate.

First up, for warmish rain:  Delrae Mythique.  This is one of those rooty irises that teeters right on the edge of the flower.  Impossible to wear in stultifying heat – it will bring your lunch right the heck up – it’s perfect on a cool, wet day that’s …not really cool?  You know what I mean?  It’ll be back up to mid-80s in a day or so and you can feel that – the ground has already warmed up and it’s not going to cool down anytime soon.   Lovely as it is, Mythique is a Goldilocks scent – and this weather is Just Right for it.

The hotter weather found me wearing Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling because I was in a gin mood (when am I not?).  I like Penhaligon’s scents – this is not faint praise, I promise – but there’s something very ‘safe’ about them; they’re pretty, occasionally interesting but never startling.  I gotta tell you: these days that means a lot to this po’ thang.  Juniper Sling, Malabah, Iris Prima…they all will find a place in my Summer rotation.  Juniper Sling has that martini vibe that I so love in Cartier Brillante, without the hefty price tag (always painful in a light Summer scent)..and with a tad more gin-zing!

Portia’s Best for Summer 2014

Hermessence Epice Marine by Hermès: Excellent heat wearing, a strong, salty blast of cool spices to col you down any time day or night. It’s like plunging into an unheated pool at the end of spring, before thew water really heats up. Delicious.
Lavande de Haute Provence by L’Occitane: This EdC is the perfect summer bath accompaniment. A teaspoon in the bath will sooth, relax and calm you, even in a hot bath I promise you that it will cool your frayed temper. No better way to affordably scent your bath and the lavender is a lovely muted and cool wash for spritzing after the bath, work or exercise.
Black Rosette by Strange Invisible Perfumes: The ultra modern metallic rose, zinging with tea, pepper and mint. This will create an aura of cool, calm and collected no matter how hot and hectic the world around you may seem. Be the eye of the storm and breathe.
Jardins d’Armide by Oriza L. Legrand: This beautiful, powdery, crisp and waxy fragrance is 100% magic for me in the warmth. Cool iris, violet and carnation battle it out with wet & waxy wisteria and the sweet animalics of honey. The sum of it’s parts is so much more than the list of notes. Jardins d’Armide is polarising though so do buy a sample and test it.

Ann’s Best for Summer 2014

Clinique Calyx (formerly of Prescriptives): This old favorite (from 1986) is a lively, juicy, jump-for-the-sheer-joy-of-living fragrance if there ever was one. Its vibrant personality simply won’t stand for the blues. And if you put it on when you’re already happy, it might just make you positively buoyant, even in thick-as-soup heat and humidity. I never want to be without some of this in my perfume wardrobe.

Serge Lutens’ Bas de Soie: This blend of iris, hyacinth, galbanum and musk exudes chic, classy sophistication to my nose and I always feel well-heeled when wearing it, even if I’m in jeans and a gauze top. A bit off-putting for me at first try, I came to see its icy-cool, not-quite aloof aura as an acquired taste. Kind of like that girl in high school or college you thought was conceited, but turns out she’s just reserved, and perhaps a little shy. And once you got to know her, you found her quiet elegance rather refreshing. Speaking of refreshing, I’ve found this scent to be a nice antidote to muggy summer weather.

Tom’s Choices:  As we roll into e summer I’m finding that I am going back to my roots and wearing a lot of classics, line Annick Goutal Eau de Hadrien and Eau de Sud. Christian Dior’s Eau Sauvage is another winner, even if it’s been reformulated. One that I’m using sparingly is my decant (from Surrender to Chance) of Miller Harris Fleurs de Sel, sadly unavailable in the USA.

For more great Summer picks please check out Now Smell This, Grain de Musc, Bois de Jasmin & The Non Blonde