If You Want to Smell Like a Rich French Girl, This Perfume Will Do the Job

Key notes: orange blossom, Egyptian jasmine, white rose
Unlike so many other orange blossom perfumes out there, this scent isn't sweet. It's floral, uplifting and a little bit citrusy, for sure, but it has a deep woodiness to it that steers clear of sickly stickiness. Think of it like spritzing your go-to citrus scent on to your neck before stepping foot into an expensive bar filled with cocktails, leather furniture, wooden floors and people in sharp suits—Fleurs d'Oranger is what the collar of your shirt smells like the next day. 

Key notes: rose, pepper
If I had to associate only one perfume note with French women, it would be rose, of course. This scent possesses all of the French-ness of rose without any of the old-fashioned, English-garden powderiness we so often associate it with. This stuff is notably powdery and rose-like, but it also has an uplifting, spicy zing to it that keeps it lightweight and moreish, rather than all-encompassing and headache-inducing.

Key notes: black vanilla absolute, coconut milk, beeswax, caramelised benzoin, liquorice, bitter almond paste, gaïac wood, tonka bean, sandalwood
My favourite Serge Lutens perfume, Un Bois Vanille, is also probably the scent the brand is most known for. Let me first say that I am not a vanilla kind of girl. I like it in my ice cream but not my fragrances. This one, however, is an exception. Rather than being heady, warm and suffocating, it melts into the skin like a warm milk. It's like coconut, driftwood, balmy sunshine, lapping waves and exotic plants—total paradise.

Key notes: Chinese osmanthus flower, mandarin, jasmine
I'll admit when it comes to describing the beauty of Nuit de Cellophane, I'm a bit stumped. It's fresh and floral, like breathing in a lung-full of freshly cut bouquets. But if you're not a lover of floral scents, fear not. It marries flowers with a hint of zest that proves almost impossibly mind-clearing.

Key notes: immortal flower, Russian leather, hay
Chergui, to me, is deeply nostalgic. Smoky, woody, fresh, and floral all at once, it's a delight on the senses. It's reminiscent of exotic holidays and evenings spent in beachside bars hidden under towering, tropical trees. With a lingering aroma of lavender, it almost puts me into a dream-like daze.

Key notes: cedar, cinnamon, plum, peach, clove, ylang-ylang, violet, orange flower, ginger, rose, vanilla, musk
This perfume means business in the best kind of way. The spicy warmth of clove and ginger shine through to make it one of the most deeply uplifting scents I've ever smelled—like honied treacle pouring over the skin, leaving a subtle waft of smoky woodiness in its tracks.

Key notes: incense, castoreum, musk
If you like androgynous musks, you'll fall head over heels for L'Orpheline. It's dark and deep thanks to incense but beautifully skin-like thanks to musk. One of the brand's more typically masculine scents, it risks teetering on the edge of overbearing, but it never quite gets there. Instead, it merges with the skin in a way that says, "I've always been here."

Key notes: amber, vanilla, patchouli
If you're a fan of power scents, listen up. Ambre Sultan is the deep, warm and kind of dark perfume you've been waiting for your whole life. It's the sort of perfume that shouts out from the rooftops and lets everyone know you're there. If you like to hide away in the corner of the room, this one isn't for you.

Key notes: aldehydes, citrus, magnolia and white mint
I have never in my entire career encountered a perfume that nails the aroma of luxury soap quite like this. Imagine pressing your nose into a bar of hotel soap, and you get L'Eau Serge Lutens. And the best bit? While so many skin-like, soapy scents out there fade away in a matter of minutes, this stuff lingers playfully on the skin all day long.