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Oriental Fragrances for Women — Sensuality and Warmth

The oriental fragrance family is one of the richest, most complex and most seductive in perfumery — it groups fragrances built around resinous, balsamic, spiced, vanillated or musky materials that create an enveloping warmth and deep sensuality. Born from the influence of Middle Eastern, Asian and Oriental perfuming traditions, Western oriental perfumery has created its own codes since the early 20th century with monuments such as Guerlain's Shalimar (1925), one of the first and greatest interpretations of the orient for women. YSL Opium upended conventions in 1977 with its spiced-floral-patchouli accord that defined a decade. MFK Baccarat Rouge 540 represents the contemporary interpretation of the feminine oriental — lighter, more ambered than the ancients, but of incomparable persistence and sophistication. Tom Ford Velvet Orchid explores the dark-floral dimension of orientals with an almost cinematic sensuality.