Winter Favorites & Best of 2009

PST is taking stock of seasonal and year-long favorites, please join us and list the scents that you have been enjoying the most this winter and in 2009. When we say, "best", we mean, "the ones that brought us the most delight". Can there be a bigger compliment? Alyssa Favorite Winter Perfume: Feminite du Bois by Shiseido. My fall love affair continues—boring for all of you but very satisfying for me. My apologies. Best of 2009: Mythique by Parfums DelRae. I don’t understand how this happened. I don’t usually do subtle understatement and iris often escapes me altogether, but somehow Mythique—with it’s sunny opening citrus, it’s supple drydown so warm and close to the skin, and that bare hint of patch at the end of the orris—has become necessary to my present and future life. Beth Favorite Winter Perfume: Roxana Villa’s adorable set of solid chocolate perfumes are my favorite choices this winter. I adore the delicious La Foret...The sweet combination of pine and chocolate reminds me of all of the afternoons spent hiking through forests with my son and a steaming thermos of cocoa when he was still so very young! Best of 2009: Juliet, by Juliet Stewart is THE perfume that I’ve fallen head over heels in love with this last year as It’s luscious, sexy nature is just so provocative and easy to wear whether I’m dressed for a black tie night or happily undressed for a romantic evening in...... Donna Favorite Winter Perfume: My favorite winter comfort perfume has been Serge Lutens Fumerie Turque - its delicious blend of tobacco, leather and spices dries down to a sueded skin scent that smells like a warm horse on me; nothing is better for a cold night. Best of 2009: A difficult decision, but my vote has to go to Histoires de Parfums Vert Pivoine, the best perfume rendition of my beloved peony blossoms I have ever smelled and an exquisite reminder of the gardens of my childhood. Kelley Favorite Winter Perfume: Cartier Déclaration (1998) . It is a wonderful spicy scent with orange and cardamom mixed with cedar (it has a lot in common with Bigarade Concentrée which was also created by Jean Claude Ellena). Best of 2009: Erik Kormann's 7 (Feige & Vetiver) which is a citrusy green vetiver that dries down to the most delicious vetiver/cedar accords I have ever smelled. Linda Favorite Winter Perfume: Winter cold arrives late-or-never where I live; despite the California rainstorm, the Japanese maples outside are still clinging to their flame-colored leaves, and the hummingbirds have decided it's spring and are nesting. I wanted a cozy winter scent but not a heavy one, and Prada's Infusion d'Iris has been the one to keep me coming back. It's as "between" seasons as our weather: earthy and otherworldly, cuddly and aloof, and just rooty enough to promise that spring is on its way. Best of 2009: L'Artisan Perfumer's Havana Vanille. Here's why: this gorgeous scent made it completely socially acceptable for serious perfumistas to love deep, dark vanilla again. (I never stopped!) Marian Favorite Winter Perfume: This season's favorite was Areej Al-Ameerat's Syoufi Amber - cuddly enough to warm and soothe, but laced with enough frisky spiciness to get me to don my mukluks and brave winter's chill. Best of 2009: AgarAura’s Areej Malaki has ushered me into dreamland for many moons- its glorious damascene sweetening my reveries, its mellow sandalwood soothing my restless soul, and Father Oud’s primal force opening forgotten doors to Layla’s enchanted court. Marina Favorite Winter Perfume: Natori. Warm, spicy, sweet aldehydes, an incredibly attractive contrast of darkness and light, of fire and ice. Or in one word, ssssexy! Best of 2009: Vanille Galante by Hermes. An unexpected love (and isn't it always?), an I-don't-know-how-to-explain-it craving... vanilla and water... it couldn't have been any more unlikely for me to fall in love with this pastel, understated creation of Ellena's, and yet I did. The most easy-to-wear, invariably pleasing and pleasant fragrance in my collection. Marla Favorite Winter Perfume: My top pick for winter is Caron's Parfum Sacre; rosy incense, who could ask for more on a gloomy, frigid day? Best of 2009: My top pick for 2009 is Amouage Epic; this house stands out for consistent high quality and outstanding perfumes, and Epic may be their most gorgeous feminine yet. Tom Favorite Winter Perfume & Best of 2009: The scent I've been enjoying most this year personally is Serge Lutens Fille en Aiguilles, his delicious ode to pine. But I'm giving my nod for Best of 2009 to Smell Bent Commando (indeed the whole line). Nothing has debuted this year that has made me happier and at $20 for 1/4oz you indulge without guilt. To check other lists, please visit: Bois de Jasmin, Grain de Musc, Now Smell This and Perfume Posse. Image original source, Robert Hoppe.