There’s nothing quite like fragrance shopping. Even as a beauty editor, the thrill of entering a fragrance shop will never tire. Ever. There’s something incredibly exciting about finding a new fragrance. Whether you love a fruity fragrance or prefer a musk-based scent (one of the most popular fragrances of 2022) there are so many to discover. But with so many to choose from, it can be overwhelming–and not just for your nose. You might want to consider your scent for the time of year or occasion, perhaps.You might be on the scent for a summer perfume for your holiday, a maybe a cosy winter perfume to see you through the colder months that lingers beautifully on a jumper. Then there are the trusty daytime fragrances that you can reach for work, or expensive smelling perfumes for a special occasion. And if you’re getting married, wedding fragrances are a whole other category to consider.
However, there’s nothing like a personal recommendation to inspire your next fragrance pick, or discover a niche fragrance brand that you might have not discovered yet. So, I called upon some of the best-smelling people I know to share their favourite perfumes of 2022. Some are new this year and others are dependable favourites that they go back to, time and time again. From beauty editors to fashion insiders, these are set to be the most popular fragrances this year.
“When I find a good scent, I tend to wear it everyday without fail, over the last couple of months , I’ve been wearing Hermès Twilly d’Hermès Eau de Parfum Natural Spray. It’s the perfect combination of spicy and sweet, with notes of ginger, sandalwood and tuberose. It feels and smell interesting, I really enjoy how each notes develops as the day goes on. Definitely one, I’ll be wearing all summer long.”
“Now this is special. When luxury London-based jeweller Graff create fragrance, you know you’re going to be dazzled. Unlike anything I’ve smelt before, this has become my go-to scent for any evening out. A wild mix of; Bulgarian lavender, Italian lemon and white rose have been beautifully blended with a rich base of sweet manuka honey, creamy toasted almond and earthy Brazilian coffee. Sounds edible right? It is a true escapist fragrance that transports me back to humid island life, wondering freely with sun-drenched skin. Deliciously warm and addictive, it’s like golden hour bottled–completely memorable!”
“This is my everyday fragrance because it has all of the uplifting notes of a holiday in a bottle. Fresh coconut, pinepple and fig remind me of all of the best bits of unwinding on a beach, even when im stuck on the tube at rush hour.”
“Maison Francis Kurkdjian Gentle Fluidity is also beautiful.”
“Without word of a lie, every time I wear Jo Malone London’s Fig & Lotus Flower perfume I receive lots of compliments on it. Inaugurated into the Jo Malone fragrance library in 2020, unlike other floral scents, which I find to be borderline musty, this fragrance is incredibly fresh and airy, cut with fig, coconut, and what I think is apple. It’s hard to place, but that’s precisely why I like it. As it progresses, the feminine fruity tones start to drift away, and it becomes greener and more aquatic overall, evolving into a unisex scent in the dry down. This is why I think it’s so widely appealing; like the smell of nature after a heady summer downpour, this perfume lingers on the skin and feels transportive. I wore it in the winter, too, where the woody accords really come into their own. I’m at the end of a bottle I was gifted, and I’m considering buying another to replace it—something unheard of for someone as fickle with fragrance as I am.”
“This is such a beautiful scent to me. The notes of black currant rose, and musk, make it a little fruity and floral in the best way possible. It makes a gorgeous everyday scent but still works perfectly for a date night or night out in general. I tend to gravitate toward fruity and floral scents that aren’t overtly so if that makes sense and I think this one strikes the perfect balance – it has a bit of mystery to it that makes me feel like a total * it * girl (even if temporarily).”
“I love trying new perfumes, but I often go crawling back to this Byredo number. Velvet Haze and Mojave Ghost get a lot of air time, but this unsung hero is a really wearable, woody scent that works both alone or layered with others. Giving strong (but not overpowering) cedar and wearing down to a creamy musk, it’s subtle but very addictive, and I love how it smells on my skin. There are punchier fragrances out there for sure, but I’m hooked on this one.”
Old favourites aside, a newer (and more affordable) fragrance that I’ve been rinsing recently is Caudalie’s Thé des Vignes. Being totally honest, I wasn’t expecting to like this anywhere near as much as I do. More often than not neroli is a turn off for me, but it’s perfectly balanced in this perfume along with jasmine, orange blossom and musk. It’s lovely and fresh, reminding me a little bit of Le Labo’s Thé Noir 29, and I’m already over halfway through the bottle. Definitely my summer 2022 spritzer.
“All of my go-to perfumes from this year have had a very set theme: they’re all inspired by Paris. I’m not sure what that is saying, but I’m sure if I were to see some sort of olfactory psychic they’d have something to say about wanderlust and nostalgia. And although both inspired by Paris, my two most-worn fragrances of 2022 are wildly different.”
“People are always telling me that floral perfumes are tragically uncool and my gosh do I feel sorry for the sorts that feel that way. It is absolutely imperative that when shopping for perfume you put aside any sort of prejudices you may have about certain notes (it’s all about the blend). If you have decided you don’t like floral perfumes, for instance, you might read the description of Les Eaux de Chanel Paris-Paris and turned your nose up—and for that you’d be missing out. The latest addition to Chanel’s Les Eaux collection, Paris-Paris is a zingy, rosy delight with a zestiness to it that makes your nose tingle. I’ve described it before as walking through a Parisian market on a warm spring day, popping a bunch of roses into the basket of your bike and cycling through the city’s streets, lapping up the sunshine. I’ve never owned a bike with a basket or even spent the morning perusing a Parisian flower market, but this perfume makes me feel otherwise.”
“From the moment Diptyque launched Orphéon in 2021 I knew it was destined to be one of my all-time favourite perfumes. When you’re a beauty editor, it’s all too easy to fall out of love with a perfume the minute something different comes along, but it’s been a year since Orphéon came into my life and not a week has gone by that I haven’t worn it. It’s powdery and intensely inviting. Diptyque describe it as capturing the ‘warm atmosphere of an iconic night club bar in the Saint Germain quarter of Paris’. And while I can’t attest to that, for me it’s like taking a deep whiff of a brand-new bronzer ahead of your first balmy night out of spring/summer. It’s perfection.”
“Gabar is a fairly new fragrance brand in the market but it’s sure made a splash. Gabar is an all women-founded brand that is rooted in Myanmar heritage; and the entire line is centred around sustainable practices and giving back to the local community. Out of the brand’s three scents, ‘Float’ is my favourite. With lemongrass, bergamot, jasmine and musk (among many others), “Float finds its notes in traditional Myanmar cooking, the lush, tropical flora from its North and South, and the country’s untouched environments.” The notes create a sophisticated freshness that a beautiful lake or river brings, coupled with uplifting floral notes of nature all around. In a way that only fragrance can, you might just find Float giving you a sense of calm and stillness in the chaos of your every day — I know I do.”
“Under the lemon tree sums up summer for me. As soon as it’s warm enough to leave the house without a jacket, I’m dousing myself with this number. No one makes memories quite like Margiela and this is no different. The occasion to wear this is simple: the sunshine — whether I’m sitting on Clapham Common with a tin of Pimms or on a side street in Italy with an Aperol Spritz. Its notes of green tea, lime, coriander, and hint of cedar make it my go-to relaxed and happy perfume choice.”
“Mango Skin by Vilhelm Parfumerie is such a feel-good fragrance that literally smells like Summer! It’s described as ‘evoking the many pleasures brought to life by the sun’, and it’s spot on. I always envision myself laying around in the sun near the sea, sipping on a cocktail every item I wear it.”
“I either want to smell like your grandma planting a rose bush or a spice merchant from the Silk Road. For the latter, this year I find myself reaching for Penhaligon’s Halfeti Cedar. Think rum, peach but also the trailing tendrils of smoke. It’s the perfect fragrance for those balmy nights, with tingles of perspiration on the skin and the promise of great food, great company and great memories.”
I come back to this floral summer fragrance each year. It falls into a favourite fragrance category of mine: expensive sun cream scents. Both creamy and salty, it reminds me of days spent under the sun with sun kissed skin that is slightly salty from a dip in the sea.
If Tom Ford Eau De Soleil is my summer go-to, this is my winter favourite. It plays on the scent of skin with a musk base, and combined with amber, vetiver and patchouli I absolutely adore it and will never be without a bottle on my dressing table. It’s the type of scent that clings onto your scarf and the opening notes of bergamot, African orange flower and osmanthus dry down beautifully into a long-lasting scent. A bottle will last you ages, too.
“This fragrance holds so many amazing memories for me. I first bought it in 2014 while in my first year of university. I had just been paid after the Christmas period in my retail job, so this felt like one of my first proper adult purchases. I was on a mission to find a fresh and florally scent that I could wear daily to feel more confident and sexy. I’m not someone who carries around fragrances in their bag, so I knew this fragrance needed to be super long-lasting so that it could easily take me from day to night. Believe me, when I say, the lasting power certainly doesn’t disappoint. This fragrance features a unique top note of cactus blossom and heart notes of a pink floral bouquet with rosebud to create the ultimate sweet but memorable scent. Eight years later and I still reach for this fragrance on a weekly basis and each spritz still gives me the warm and fuzzy feeling that it gave me all those years ago.”
