Not every woman wants to smell like a bouquet of flowers. Some of us do not want rose, peony or a cloud of something sweet that enters the room three seconds before we do. Sometimes, you want a fragrance with a little more bite to it; something woody, smoky, spicy, maybe even a touch leathery. Woody, smoky women’s fragrances offer exactly that: the feel of a well-cut blazer or the adventure of a dimly lit bar and a very good bad decision rather than a vase of fresh flowers.
When I spoke to David Benedek, founder of BDK Parfums about this, he was not especially interested in dividing fragrance into neat masculine and feminine camps in the first place. “For me, all the aromas in perfumery are genderless,” he says. “You can be a man and like florals, you can be a woman and like woody scents.”
Part of the appeal lies in what these notes actually do on the skin. Woody notes like sandalwood, cedarwood and vetiver tend to feel grounded and expensive without trying too hard. Smokier notes, whether incense, tobacco, guaiac wood or darker amber accords, bring intensity and depth. Even oud, a note many still associate with something old-fashioned or overpowering, has gained such a fan-base in recent times. “It depends on the way you associate oud,” Benedek says. “It can be very animalic. It can be very leathery. It can be more soft.” In other words, the note itself is not the problem; it is what the formula of the perfume does with it.
These notes are also more versatile than people assume. A clean sandalwood or soft cedar can work beautifully during the day if you want to smell pulled together without smelling sugary or overtly floral. Smokier, darker compositions come into their own at night: dinners, dates, weddings, gallery openings or any occasion where you want your perfume to feel like part of the outfit rather than an afterthought. And if you have spent years politely tolerating traditional florals while secretly wishing your scent had a little more backbone, these are the fragrances that will finally quench your thirst. As Benedek puts it, “You really just have to choose the perfume that you feel comfortable with and that resonates with your personality, your values and how you want to feel.”
So if your taste runs warmer, moodier and a touch more intense, these seven woody, smoky women’s fragrances offer a far more compelling alternative to the usual floral script:
Guerlain Tabac Sahara
