Picking the perfect fragrance can be challenging and overwhelming. There are hundreds upon hundreds of options and combinations that can be layered to help you to craft your perfect scent. Often knowing where to start is the most challenging part of all though. Do you want something fresh, fruity, feminine? Would you rather something woody with a more masculine twist or a combination of all the above? Fragrance should be fun and another way for you to express yourself, encapsulate your mood and leave you feeling like you are fully dressed and ready to take on the day. Perfumes can evoke memory like nothing else. It's fun to experiment with different fragrances, letting the scents reflect your mood and preferences of that time. Whilst it is of course perfectly acceptable to wear sweet & floral scents all year round, personally as the weather is colder and winter takes grip I find myself reaching for the deeper scents, bringing in notes of sandalwood, vanilla and various spices.  I want something more unisex, verging on the edge of masculine, to layer throughout the winter and take me perfectly from daytime wear to evening.

Jo Malone Mimosa and Cardamon

If you're a fan of floral scents but want something deeper and warmer for the winter this is a wonderful place to start. It's a unisex scent and would suit both men and women very well. The mimosa gives a fresh and uplifting scent whilst the cardamon adds warmth and spiciness making it the perfect scent for the winter. This is definitely one that can be worn all year round, particularly layered with lighter scents for late summer evenings, but something about the warmth that this carries makes it a dreamy winter companion.

Zarko Perfumes Molecule 234.38

If you want a truly unique scent, something that is unlike anything else that you have tried before then Zarko have an incredibly crafted collection of scents. Molecule 234.38 is an addictive scent that reacts with your body's pheromones to give a unique twist on the fragrance as it develops on your skin over a 10 hour period. It's fresh, light and not at all over-powering but always prompts people to ask what you're wearing.  A truly unisex scent that is stunning alone or can be layered over your favourite scent to give a slightly different, sexier and unique twist to the scent.

Elizabeth and Jame Nirvana Black

This is your traditional winter scent, deep musky, woody with a hint of vanilla that settles beautifully on the skin for a warm and sexy scent. However, the violet notes help to lend a softness to the scent, which makes it slightly fresher and the perfect scent for day or night. It isn't a million miles from the likes of Tom Ford Black Orchid, however this isn't quite as fruity. The Elizabeth and James Nirvana collection is still relatively new to the UK, with only a select number of stockist available. Their scents are unique and still relatively undiscovered so perfect if you love your scent to be something slightly different to the rest of the crowd.

All of the fragrance listed above encapsulate the warm, spicy & sexy notes that I love at this time of year, all with their unique twist and different edge making them stand out in the crowd just a little more. Worn aloned, layered or combined with other scents in my collection, all of them sit beautifully on the skin, last all day and last on my clothing meaning that I carry the scent around all day long. They're luxurious, beautiful and the perfect way to break yourself into January a little more gently.