It is that time of year again where I bring you a few of 'Must Have' fragrances of the season, and in this Winter Guide I will be covering the key aspects of all fragrances, and telling you why you these are serious contenders this Winter!

The key aspects I will be covering are;

Notes featured within the fragrance
Longevity
Sillage
& my overall experience and thoughts on the fragrance itself!

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BYKILIAN - SINGLE MALT

Top Notes: Plum
Middle Notes: Wheat
Base Notes: Cedar, Vanilla, Tolu Balsam

I had the pleasure of visiting the ByKilian Boutique earlier this year in London and I vividly remember 'Single Malt' being my favourite due to its powerful sillage and how the fragrance really did capture the essence of Malt Whisky!

Single Malt begins with a strong and fruity opening which then dries down into a deeper, rich scent which for me begins to fade slightly but seems to be powerful to others around me due to many compliments even hours after wearing this with the sillage being heavy and the projection being loud!

I would recommend wearing Single Malt in the evening/nighttime as it is bold and sensual, and will definitely get you noticed.

You can purchase ByKilian - Single Malt here.

EMPORIO ARMANI - STRONGER WITH YOU

Top Notes: Cardamom, Pink Pepper, Violet Leaf, Mint
Middle Notes: Sage, Melon, Pineapple
Base Notes: Vanilla, Chestnut, Cedar, Amberwood

Armani's newest fragrant pairing offers two different scents designed for those which are equal in strength and come in the form of Stronger With You (Men's) and Because It's You (Women's).

For my Winter Guide I will be talking about the Stronger With You fragrance! The fragrance opens up with a sweet burst of the Vanilla note. Whilst I found the fragrance to be a clean, well rounded fragrance, I did find it to be a little synthetic and the fragrance quickly faded from my skin.

I would recommend wearing this during the daytime and I found that the sillage was medium and its projection medium.

You can purchase Emporio Armani - Stronger With You here.

ACQUA DI PARMA - EBANO

Top Notes: Petitgrain, Bergamot, Resins, Red Pepper
Middle Notes: Ebony, Honey
Base Notes: Patchouli, Vetiver

A woody and smokey fragrance that feels like an old classic! Ideal for the colder, Winter periods.

The opening of Ebano opens with the strong note of Honey which becomes more spicy with the Red Pepper note kicking in and the dry down feels woody and rich.

The longevity lasted for up to 5 hours on my skin and its sillage was medium to heavy. Not too overpowering and is best suited for the evening.

You can purchase Acqua Di Parma - Ebano here.

PACO RABANNE - PURE XS

Top Notes: Ginger, Green Accord, Thyme
Middle Notes: Vanilla, Cinnamon, Leather, Liquor
Base Notes: Cedar, Myrrh, Sugar

Pure XS by Paco Rabanne opens up with the sweetness of the Vanilla note which quickly fades down into a smokey and spicy fragrance.

The longevity of Pure XS was slightly disappointing as it only lasted for up to 3/4 hours upon my skin, however, I gained a few compliments from having worn this! I would recommend wearing Pure XS during the nighttime and its sillage was light-medium.

A little side note, the packaging of Pure XS comes in a divine suede effect box making it the ultimate luxury present!

You can purchase Paco Rabanne - Pure XS here.

CALVIN KLEIN - OBSESSED

Top Notes: Grapefruit, Sichuan Pepper, Cardamom
Middle Notes: Cedar, Labdanum, Leather
Base Notes: Black Vanilla Husk, Patchouli, Ambroxan

One of my personal favourites! Fronted by the iconic Kate Moss shot by Mario Sorrenti, Obsessed is rather similar to the Armani Campaign in that there are two versions of Calvin Klein; Obsessed. One for the men, and the other for women.

Obsessed is one of my personal favourites as I love how sweet and sensual the scent is! The fragrance opens up with the Grapefruit note which remains prominent throughout and during the dry-down, the scent becomes musky and spicy.

In terms of the longevity, Obsessed lasted on my skin for up to 5/6 hours and the sillage was light-medium. I would recommend wearing this during the daytime leading into the early evening.

You can purchase Calvin Klein - Obsessed here.

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I hope you have enjoyed my Winter Fragrances Guide and I would be very interested to know if any of your favourites have made it into this Guide! I do hope that is has helped and informed you on making some choices when it comes to updating and refreshing your fragrance choices, and perhaps it's given you some thoughts on a potential Christmas Gift?

Have you tried any of these fragrances that I have featured within my Winter Guide? If so, which ones have you tried? Which is your favourite? Least favourite? Which worked for you, and didn't work so much? Do let me know, as I would love to hear from you and don't forget to click that 'like' button down below!

The ByKilian Boutique is situated in the luxurious Burlington Arcade in London, and despite going to the wrong Burlington Arcade.. (Yes that actually happened, and yes I was and still am, absolutely mortified.) I had a fragrance consultation, and I gained a better insight to the relatively new brand to the fragrance world; ByKilian.

Each of the ByKilian fragrances are all classed as unisex, and each offer a different experience. We began with their best-selling fragrance, 'Straight To Heaven' which is a beautiful masterpiece, and certainly lives up to its name! I was lucky enough to have gotten a little sample of this, and Straight To Heaven begins as a woody, fruity fragrance, which then turns and settles into a sweet and spicy fragrance.

ByKilian has 7 fragrance categories which collates different fragrances within them. The categories are -

L'ŒUVRE NOIRE
ARABIAN NIGHTS
ASIAN TALES
IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL
ADDICTIVE STATE OF MIND
BOUTIQUE EXCLUSIVES
MIDDLE EAST EXCLUSIVE

Whilst I couldn't sample each and every fragrance in each set, I explained that my preference to fragrances were those which were powerful, in your face, and lasted a long time upon my skin. To cater to my preferences, I was then able to sample those which may have appealed to me best. Out of L'Œurve Noire: I sampled 'Straight To Heaven' and 'Back To Black'. The fragrance from Arabian Nights: I sampled 'Musk Oud,' which I must say became an instant favourite! In The Garden Of Evil: I sampled the best-selling fragrance which appealed more to the women than men, which was the 'Good Girl Gone Bad'. From the set Addictive State Of Mind: came the 'Vodka On Rocks' which was a rather apt choice for my kind of fragrance given the name... To finish off, I sampled the 'Single Malt' which is part of the Burlington Arcade, London Exclusive set.

Alongside the fragrances such as the perfumes and aftershaves, ByKilian also produces Home Scents and Jewellery. One particular item which caught my eye was what I thought was a decorative piece of artwork as part of the store's decor, which was in fact their Scented Tassels! Designed with the home scent as a unique gift, these can also be hung between each item of clothing within your wardrobe, allowing the fragrance to linger onto your clothes.

What I most enjoyed about my experience with ByKilian, was the quirky and unique names of each fragrance which have all been inspired by Kilian's love for Poetry. Each ByKilian bottle is designed black, creating a sleek and sophisticated look, and rather than throw away your empty bottle after its use, each bottle can be refilled!

I am hoping to sample the 'Single Malt' fragrance which was my favourite out of the ones that I smelt, and once I do so, a full fragrance review will be posted here, so be sure to check back for that! You can view the full list of ByKilian fragrances here.

Have you sampled any of the ByKilian fragrances before? If so, which one? Are there any from ByKilian you feel that I need to try out which I haven't mentioned yet? Do let me know your thoughts, and don't forget to click the 'like' button down below!

WINTER FRAGRANCES 2017

BYKILIAN FRAGRANCE CONSULTATION