5 Scent Specialists to Create Your Signature Fragrance

We won’t be so trite to say that you can’t dress up without a handpicked fragrance. Instead, let us put it this way: your chosen scent is your aromatic personality, and in representing yourself, you would want a perfume or cologne that is, for lack of a better word, you. The right bottle can do that, as well as the other obvious benefits of making you smell spectacular.

Once you get to picking a perfume or cologne, you’ll probably be inundated with brands with which you have a lot of familiarity. This is when you need to step back and put your wallet away. A wrong decision means you’re stuck with a scent that doesn’t last long and with notes that become less pleasing as time passes for months. It’s a good thing, then, that there are five scent specialists that get the science of fragrance down to the smallest detail.

Here are five brands that offer a great variety and the margin of picking the wrong scent is small.

diptyque Paris

There’s probably no other fragrance brand that can be so intimidating as diptyque, a Parisian parfumerie house that produces scented candles and the most memorable bottles of perfume. One of their best-selling bottles, the “Orphéon,” is very much a going-out scent with woody, floral, and spicy notes. It takes inspiration from a night club in the French capital, and the cacophony of smells emanating from tobacco, makeup powder, and painted wood surfaces.

Recommended:

• Orphéon
• Do Son
• Philosykos

Where to buy: Rustan’s The Beauty Source | TRUNC | Adora

Jo Malone London

Jo Malone distils the class of the British ruling class into its products. The brand is most well-known for its Classic Cologne line that has roots in the kingdom’s landscape. The Earl Grey and Cucumber is as memorable as it is strange, and the scent is challenging: top note of bergamot, cucumber as middle note, and beeswax as the base. Nonetheless, it’s an essential Jo Malone bottle and the perfect example of their Anglicized approach.

Recommended:

• Earl Grey and Cucumber
• Wild Bluebell
• Wood Sage and Sea Salt

Where to buy: Jo Malone | Rustan’s The Beauty Source | Rustan’s | Lazada

Acca Kappa

As opposed to anything Italian in popular culture, Acca Kappa downplays. Their passion is in scent and brushmaking, although you’re probably more likely to buy their Mediterranean-inspired fragrances. Muschio Bianco, or White Musk, is an often-replicated scent but Acca Kappa’s own is undeniably the best kind. Made with the utmost care, this is an ideal all-year fragrance.

Recommended:

• Muschio Bianco
• Calycanthus
• Fior d’Aqua

Where to buy: Rustan’s | Rustan’s The Beauty Source | TRUNC

Tom Ford

Tom Ford Beauty, the arm that handles beauty products and fragrances, is notorious for having a small collection of scents. But, it’s for a good reason. They don’t stretch their expertise and what they have on offer is some of the best in the market. And on top of their selection is the timeless Neroli Portofino. This is the Italian riviera in a bottle, reminiscent of the lush flora, cool breezes and the clear water of the region.

Recommended:

• Neroli Portofino
• Fucking Fabolous
• Ébène Fumé

Where to buy: Lazada | Rustan’s | Rustan’s The Beauty Source

Clean

Clean has built a cult following in the fragrance world in dabbling in ideas that induce cleanliness. The bottles that contain their perfume even has that philosophy: clear glass and either a plastic or wooden cap. It has the allure of the sterile, of being pure. The “Rain” Reserve Blend is one scent that stands out, and while the company didn’t actually harvest raindrops, the fragrance captures the essence. Miraculous it is not, but it is arresting.

Recommended:

• Rain
• Fresh Laundry
• Smoked Vetiver

Where to buy: Rustan’s | Rustan’s The Beauty Source