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Ah, Valentine’s Day.
Either you love it, or you hate it. There’s Cupid, flowers, hearts, chocolate. Each year I oscillate between the love and the hate- some years, I love what it represents. Love in Action. The beauty and affirmation of love.
And some years, I’ll admit I’m in a spiral of deep eye rolls and sighs at the commercial aspect of showing someone you love, that you do in fact, love them.
Valentine’s Day can be an affirmation of love to your spouse, partner, your love interest.
But as a single woman, I do have a ritual of a “self love day” on V-Day: I draw a milk bath, with rose petals, and a hot cup of tea and a poetry book, and I relax. I will sit in the bathtub for an hour- sometimes more, and listen to the sounds of Ella Fitzgerald For Lover’s record. And I remind myself that I am worthy of being adored.
Whether you’re in love with someone or in love with yourself (and hopefully both!); in a relationship with someone or single and looking (or not looking), Valentine’s Day should always be a reminder to savor and appreciate the power of love. Love is eternal and it’s one of the most beautiful aspects of being humans in the world: LOVE.
As a double Scorpio, I treat my date nights and my self love days like the rituals I can’t live without. As with any occasion in my life, I also can’t imagine a life without a scent or fragrance. Scents have been an age old experience since the origins of humans, and the philosophy of scent being attached to our memories, emotions, and psychological wellbeing continue to be explored. Who doesn’t want to explore a world of scents and fragrance that quele the human senses? A perfume can evoke memories, nostalgia, and the fervor of life. It’s my opinion that no outfit is complete without a sumptuous perfume that projects your mood, your sensibilities.
Desire. Romance. Spice. It’s a love language you can’t see, but is understood universally. No matter where we come from or what languages we speak, scent translates universally. Hence my obsession with lush fragrances.
It’s my first fragrance edit as a contributing writer for The Curvy Fashionista, and I hope you explore. Some will be iconic mainstays in our fragrance collections and some perhaps will be new to your palette. The scent profiles and fragrances I selected are ones that I felt feel special for Valentine’s Day, Date Night, A night out with the girls. But each of these fragrances for Valentine’s Day also feel timeless, and I hope you explore. Try them on, ask for samples, consider a discovery set, and indulge your olfactory nerves.
While the fragrances featured are centered around date night or Valentine’s Day, I often wear them everyday. You may decide to reserve some for special occasions or an era of your life, and that’s the magic of fragrances. I love when you can smell a perfume that transports you to a previous time in your life. Depending on your mood, a few of the perfumes selected can be worn for the remainder of the season (it’s still winter out there!) but some can be worn year round.
Here are my favorite fragrances for Valentine’s Day:
Baccarat Rouge 540, Maison Francis Kurkdjian
You’re going to eye roll with this one, and perhaps for good reason. Baccarat Rouge 540 grew in popularity on social media so much so that there have been many a meme saying to “Leave Baccarat Rouge in 2024”.
But hear me out: it’s popular for a reason. It resonates with so many of us because the Eau de Parfum edition is a beautifully layered warm oriental floral fragrance. It’s sweet- almost edible. It’s a sensual experience, but I believe people love it because it’s light and soft. The perfume features base notes of sugar, oak moss and cedar which gives it the woodsy appeal and helps its staying power (it will last all day).
But there’s also saffron, jasmine and ambergris rounding out the perfume. I think what makes it feel a bit more unique is how it blends and adapts with your body chemistry. I find that it smells different on different people. I gifted Baccarat Rouge 540 to my mother for Christmas and it smells more moody and mysterious on her, whereas on me, it smells extremely sweet and sugary.
You may hate it or love it- that’s part of the fun of this fragrance in particular. But I love this perfume so much and it’s been in my fragrance collection since I purchased it in Parîs a few years ago. Over the years, I continue to reach for it, and fall back in love with it each time.
And whilst I adore the perfume, it’s the Shimmering Body Oil I want people to bookmark. The body oil is truly opulent and I don’t see enough people talking about it. I like to layer the body oil with more gourmand perfumes in my scent library. The body oil is perfect if you are more sensitive to perfumes and want a softer and more subtle scenting experience.
In my LTK edit, I’ve also linked some noteworthy dupes- fragrances that are quite similar to Baccarat Rouge 540. They still have their own unique appeal such as Ariana Grande’s Cloud or Burberry’s HER. They are not replicas, but you can’t deny that they take some inspiration from this iconic fragrance, but the fragrance masters certainly put their own spin on it.
Jo Malone Velvet Rose & Oud
Billed as a “night time” fragrance, I discovered Jo Malone and their Cologne Intense edit in my mid 20’s and wore this particular perfume almost daily for a solid two years. I smelled it again whilst doing Christmas holiday shopping and fell back in love with the perfume all over again.
There’s an androgynous element to Velvet Rose & Oud– but it’s layered in rose. It’s decadent, but the Oud gives it more of an edge. It’s unexpected, yet intensely romantic. It’s not heavy either- at first spritz you’d think it’s heavy and overwhelming, but 10 minutes later, it dries down to be a lot more soft and subtle.
If you don’t like a fragrance that is overpowering, I highly recommend exploring Jo Malone because their fragrance offerings are typically light, and easy to layer.
Does it last the entire night? Yes and no. It’s a soft perfume so it doesn’t hold a ton of projection. It’s the subtle sexy- your partner will lean in to kiss you on your neck and this fragrance profile will reach their nose instantly. It’s intimate. It’s not meant to be loud- this is a perfume for lovers. There’s an exclusivity to this perfume I’ve always loved.
Do Son by Diptyque
Another crowd favorite that I wish more people had on their radar is Do Son, by Diptyque.
Diptyque is one of my favorite fragrance houses, and I felt lucky to discover the fragrance house during my frequent travels to Paris. A storied luxury French fragrance house, they’re known for also creating more complex fragrance profiles that add interest to the nose.
Do Son is a perfume that is almost “seasonless”. Diptyque released it in Summer a few years ago, but you can pretty much wear it year round if you want to, and somehow blends in with the season you’re in. In the winter, I smell the Amberwood more- but in Spring and Summer, the orange blossom and jasmine jump out at me. I’ve worn this fragrance in Boston and New England in the winter, and during a hot summer vacation in New Orleans and the Virgin Island, and it’s a perfume that I think evokes mystery and elegance.
It carries well throughout the day, and even when I don’t smell it anymore, I am overloaded with compliments when I wear it. It’s for the Tuberose lovers who want a more unique layer of scents, and I think Do Son does that beautifully.
Good Girl Blush by Carolina Herrera
There are few versions of “Good Girl” by Carolina Herrera but it’s the Good Girl Blush that I keep going back to.
Funny enough, I haven’t actually purchased the full bottle. which is stored in a beautiful stiletto. I travel 50% of the year for my work, and when I stumble into Sephora, I stock up on the travel size roller ball. One day I’ll commit to the full size I’m sure- I keep coming back to it and it keeps calling to me.
It’s a warm floral with mandarin, ylang-ylang and a vanilla base. Two spritz on my wrists and it projects throughout- so if you prefer a perfume that does a lot of bravada and if you desire something more subtle, this one isn’t for you.
I put this one on when I want to be the center of attention– when I’m in my Diva element. It’s one of those fragrances that despite it being extremely popular when it was released- most people can’t put a name to it when I wear it, which I like.
Sometimes I’ll layer it with another Vanilla family perfume (Kayali Vanilla, specifically) when I want more drama, or I want to be even more edible.
Kayali Pistachio Yum + Vanilla 28
I’m going to finally share a secret: I’m obsessed with KAYALI fragrances.
KAYALI is the sister brand to Huda Beauty– with Huda Kattan being the big sister to Mona Kattan, who launched her fragrance house in 2018. Mona is also a star of Netflix reality show, Dubai Bling and is also a fellow curvy woman who has shared her experiences and challenges being curvy in a thin-centered industry.
Here’s my secret sauce: I adore both of these perfumes solo, but I especially love to combine them. This is for the lovers of gourmand, the women who want to be the dessert of the evening (or the daytime!).
Pistschio Yum is very sweet- it’s cotton candy, whipped cream and pistachio gelato all folded into one. This version is the Eau De Parfum Intense, so there’s more rich, hazelenut and marshmallow layers in the profile. It’s ultra sweet solo- but paired with Kayali Vanilla 28 which is chock full of Amber Woods and Vanilla Orchids; the two fused together make a match made in heaven.
If you love gourmands, but want more complexity, mix the two. I’m not always drawn to gourmand perfumes as I have to be in a mood to be the “dessert to be desired”– but I love this combination and have sworn by it for years now. It’s a combination that never gets old, and it’s sugar, spice and everything nice with an unexpected throw of drama and daring.
There’s something about both perfumes that makes a woman feel irresistible in an unexpected way.
Red Roses, by Jo Malone
I’m going to be radically honest- this perfume does not last long.
You’ll need to carry the bottle with you and top up later in the day, and again in the evening.
But it’s so pure- it’s just, quite simply, roses. That’s pretty much it. And i don’t understand why I love this so much but I go back to it over and over again.
When I’m not traveling for work, I do work primarily from my home office. And I wear this perfume for my work from home days. I’ve also used this as a room spray to freshen my home before a dinner party (i know, soooo bougie). But i wanted to recommend this one for those of you who adore florals, are impatient for spring- and for those looking for a layerable perfume to add into their collection.
Red Roses by Jo Malone is a perfume you can easily layer to your favorite perfume for an added interest. It’s light, ultra soft. If this were an outfit, it’d be champagne colored momme silk pajamas. It evokes Spring and Summer but there something about it that also brings to mind a rainy day in Spring, when the roses are filled with dew from a long stretch of rainy days.
Jo Malone is a British brand, and much of their profiles center the romance of the English countryside- of the rose gardens of King Charles’ Highgrove Palace. I’d say this perfume is perfect for the woman who wants to be soft, delicate but regal.
Discovery Sets: Shopping Fragrances Online, Like a Professional
I highly advise my fellow shoppers to consider purchasing a travel size version and/or discovery set before you commit to a full bottle.
Should you be interested in purchasing a full size- I recommend purchasing the travel size AND the full size. That way, if you have the travel size and do a wear test of the perfume for a day or two and you don’t love it- you can pass it on, and return the unopened full size version for a full refund. Once opened, most fragrances are not returnable due to hygiene concerns. You can only return fragrance products that have not been open.
I have also linked an array of discovery sets, which allow you to sample a curated edit of fragrance offerings from a fragrance house. This allows you to see which ones you can live with, and the ones you’d rather live without. It’s also a fun way to see how you can mix and match if you like more of a unique flair to your perfumes. And of course, the body products are linked as well. The body creams and body oils help perfumes last all day and night and they are luxuries in and of themselves. Who doesn’t want to bath and be enveloped in exquisite scents?
I do confess it is my ultimate splurge that I treat myself to- luxurious body care and lipsticks.
A Scented Valentine
This lovers holiday, consider trying one of these fragrances for Valentine’s Day to set the mood or revisit your own collection of perfumes to revisit a scent you haven’t worn in a while. Be the woman you know, but with a twist. Whether you are looking forward to a Valentine’s Day dinner date for two or Valentine’s Day spa date like I am, every day is an occasion worth celebrating. No matter where you are, whether you’re partnered or single- you are worthy of being adored and adorned.
Happy Valentine’s Day friends!
If you are looking for more inspiration for Valentine’s Day, we have more! From V-Day Nail Art to Self Love to a fabulous Valentine’s Day Gift Guide.
