If you know my sister, Morgan, you know she just smells good. It's a funny thing to say, but she's just someone whose body chemistry mixes with fragrances so well, and she gets compliments no matter what she's wearing, be it a luxury perfume or a drugstore deodorant. Until recently, I hadn't experienced any perfumes that gave me such gush-worthy results — in fact, I used to just buy the ones she swore by, disappointed every time when they just didn't smell as good on me. As a teen, my "signature scent" was Fantasy by Brittany Spears (just like everyone else!), followed by Princess by Vera Wang, and then for a while I stopped spritzing on fragrance altogether, content to let my hair products serve as a signature scent of sorts. Lately, though, I've been loving a variety of scents, and many are perfect picks with which to ring in spring. In honor of National Fragrance Day earlier this week, read on to check out some of my faves.
I went to the launch event for this perfume completely unaware of what it would smell like, and TBH, I'm not sure I would've purchased it on the first whiff, as it's definitely not the kind of scent I typically gravitate to, given that it's a fairly heavy floral with notes of violet, lily, hyacinth, ylang-ylang, narcissus, honeysuckle, and tulips. However, I fell in love with how it wears on the skin, and I receive compliments on it all the time, so now that I've worn it quite a bit, I'm thrilled to have it in my collection. At the event, the brand kindly personalized my bottle, so it's one of my favorites on my shelf. I reach for this when I'm dressed up for a fancy dinner or formal event, or pretty much whenever I want to look (and smell) my best. This is definitely a perfume I'd recommend anyone wanting to gift or get something special.
When Krigler gifted me a perfume, I was floored. They're super expensive ($385!) and very much out of my typical price range, but some of my literary and artistic heroes — Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Picasso, et cetera — wore their scents back in the day, so to have an iconic bottle for myself is such a treat. This fragrance in particular has notes of jasmine, vanilla, mimosa, gardenia, and musk, and I consider it my daytime version of the Cartier, given that it still has some floral moments, but the vanilla and musk change it up. A super special bottle in my growing collection!
This is my daily go-to, which makes sense, given that my hair products used to double as fragrance, and all the Ouai perfumes are inspired by the scents from their haircare line. Mercer Street has notes of Italian lemon, Turkish rose, jasmine sambac, iris, lily, and white musk, according to the brand, and to me it gives off a laid-back, refreshing vibe that compliments jeans and a tee thrown on after an AM shower. It's currently sold out everywhere, but at $56 a bottle, it's a major steal, so I highly recommend snagging this one next time it comes back in stock.
I sniffed this bottle all winter while patiently waiting for warm weather to arrive! This is the dreamiest vacation scent, with notes of Tunisian neroli, Italian bergamot, Sicilian lemon, winter yellow mandarin, orange flower, and lavender. To me, it just screams summer! Nothing would thrill me more than a sunscreen loaded with this scent, and if you're listening, Tom Ford, I can guarantee bougie beachgoers would buy it in bulk.
To be honest, my real fave Replica scent is Lazy Sunday Morning, but right now I've got a bottle of Under The Lemon Trees, and I actually use it both as a perfume and a room spray. I love a multitasker! This bottle is so stunning in its simplicity, and the scent is fresh and citrusy, so I love putting it on to wake myself up in the morning or spritzing it around my room after a good cleaning sesh. It has notes of Kalmansi accord, coriander, and musk, and like the Cartier Carat, I prefer this scent as it wears on my skin more than at first spritz.
Do you have a signature scent? Ever splurged and been glad you did, or realized it wasn't worth it? Let me know so I can keep in mind what to consider or what to avoid! I'm definitely still on my signature scent journey, but for now, I'm thrilled to have all of the above in my rotation.
