This fall, don’t settle for just one scent. “A perfume should show a certain part of your personality depending on how you feel,” says Mylène Alran, perfumer for Bottega Veneta. This season, romance abounds in fragrance. They say opposites attract, which is why Alran added a woody base to the rose in Parco Palladiano VI and why vetiver was added to the gourmand hazelnut in Mugler’s Angel Muse. Flowers, the ultimate seduction tool, are in fragrant heaps in Issey Miyake L’Eau D’Issey Pure (freesia, peony and white lily) and Tom Ford Orchid Soleil (black orchid and tuberose). Looking to escape? Dior’s La Colle Noire transports you to a private garden in France (where its flowers are harvested), while the bergamot and jasmine in YSL’s Mon Paris takes you to Calabria, India and China. Sensuality comes through in the gingerbread and “warm woods” in Serge Lutens’ Baptême du Feu and the heliotrope and raspberry in Paco Rabanne’s Lady Million Privé. 

 

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Givenchy Dahlia Divin Le Nectar de Parfum Intense Spray ($112 for 50 mL), at thebay.com.

 

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Tom Ford Orchid Soleil Eau de Parfum Spray ($140 for 50 mL), at sephora.com.

 

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Issey Miyake L’Eau D’Issey Pure Eau de Parfum Spray ($108 for 50 mL), at sephora.com.

 

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YSL Beauté Mon Paris Eau de Parfum Spray ($108 for 50 mL), at sephora.com.

 

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Serge Lutens Baptême du Feu Eau de Parfum Spray ($155 for 50 mL), at ogilvycanada.com.

 

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Dior La Colle Noire Eau de Parfum Spray ($245 for 125 mL), at dior.com..

 

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Christian Louboutin Trouble in Heaven Eau de Parfum Spray ($375 for 80mL), at christianlouboutin.com.

 
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Bottega Veneta Parco Palladiano VI Eau de Parfum Spray ($330 for 100 mL), at bergdorfgoodman.com.

 
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Paco Rabanne Lady Million Privé Eau de Parfum Spray ($98 for 50mL), at thebay.com.

 

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Angel Muse Eau de Parfum Spray ($78 for 30 mL), at sephora.com.

 
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Perfumer Armand Petitjean, who founded the house of Lancôme in 1935, was a huge proponent of living life “à la français.” This year, the house pays homage to Petitjean with a collection of six new fragrances, a mix of floral and oud scents, each blended by a different nose. Maison Lancôme Les Parfums Grands Crus (prices vary, starting at $215 for 100 mL), at lancome.ca.

 

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Inspired by the affair between Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel and Arthur “Boy” Capel, Olivier Polge, master perfumer for Chanel, expressed Capel’s sense of style and virility through a rose geranium and fougere accord (a mix of coumarin, musk, geranium and lavender often used in men’s colognes). He then used lemon grass, orange blossom, sandalwood and vanilla to bring in a feminine energy. The result is an olfactory combination of fire and ice, strength and creativity – and the passion that exists somewhere in between. Chanel Boy Eau de Parfum Spray ($420 for 200mL), at chanel.com.

 

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“Fundamentally, fragrance is about being sexy and attractive,” says Michel Germain, the founder of Séxual Paris perfumes. He should know: Germain was drawn to the world of fragrance when he met his wife and was mystified by her refusal to wear scent. “She said, ‘I’d wear perfume if I could find one that made me feel sexual,’” he says. “That got my attention!” His new creation, Séxual Paris Tendre, is a blend of warm amber, rose and “champagne” mandarin meant to evoke a French romance. Séxual Paris Tendre ($107 for 125 mL), at thebay.com.