I'm confident I'm not alone in thinking that one of the best compliments you can receive is "You smell so good." Every time I get asked what fragrance I'm wearing, I wear the sentiment like a badge of honor for the rest of the day (I'm looking at you, Glossier You Eau de Parfum). While individual fragrance aesthetics vary greatly from person to person, wanting to smell luxurious and expensive is a fairly universal desire.
While many of us want to smell expensive, that doesn't mean we want to break the bank on our fragrance purchases. And, after all, what does "expensive" even smell like? To help guide you on your expensive-smelling fragrance journey, we tapped the experts to get the tea on all things expensive smells. Get ready to channel your inner rich girl!
Featured Experts
- Roger Schmid is the fragrance expert at Bluemercury
- Jonnie Swarbick is the creative director of Fragrance du Bois
- Yvan Jacqueline is the President of the Americas at Parfums de Marly and Initio Parfums Privés
What makes something smell expensive?
"Expensive-smelling fragrances often feature rare and high-quality ingredients, meticulously crafted to create layers of depth and complexity," says Swarbick. "At Fragrance Du Bois, we focus on natural, sustainably sourced ingredients like pure oud, which lies at the heart of our Prive Collection. Oud is known for its rich, woody and slightly sweet aroma, instantly adding an air of luxury."
According to Schmid, expensive-smelling fragrances are an inside-out experience. "It is complex to define what is luxurious in fragrance, but the combination of the fragrance’s story, the behind-the-scenes information and the creator or its heritage each play a role in creating a luxury scent. Additionally, the package design, product positioning, and of course, the scent are also factors. Culture also has a stake in what makes a scent luxurious. For example, citrus scents can have a cleaning connotation in the United States, whereas a great citrus combination will be very appealing in Italy where the variety of citruses available is enormous and recognized. Similarly, jasmine may have too much of a mass connotation in the Middle East, but is loved in other countries."
"High-quality floral bouquets, mysterious woody scents, decadent amber blends, and warm spices are all associated with expensive, luxurious fragrances," adds Jacqueline, "A perfect example is Parfums de Marly’s latest creation, Palatine ($375). It epitomizes the "expensive-smelling" floral scent family with its sophisticated, gourmand, and audacious composition. Palatine reinvents the iconic violet petal note, captured through Firmenich's exclusive Natureprint technology, which preserves the flower’s ecosystem while reproducing its subtle freshness. This signature violet note is beautifully blended with noble natural ingredients such as lavandin from Provence and Italian bergamot."
What fragrance notes are associated with expensive-smelling perfumes?
While Schmid notes that it's impossible to completely nail down what makes a fragrance smell luxurious and expensive, there are some fragrance notes more commonly associated with expensive scents.
"Scents associated with luxury often have warm, deep and complex compositions," says Swarbick. "Notes like oud, amber and saffron are often seen as luxurious due to their rarity and the skill required to balance them in a fragrance. In our Prive Collection, Sahraa stands out with its blend of oud, rose absolute and saffron. Saffron, also known as Red Gold, is one of the most expensive ingredients in perfumery, contributing a leathery, spicy and slightly floral note. This, combined with the richness of oud and the deep aroma of rose absolute, creates an enigmatic and sophisticated fragrance that embodies luxury."
Adding to Swarbick's note about rare ingredients, Schmid adds that "certain natural materials that may come from a specific area and are harvested and processed in a complex way can also add to this element of rarity, even if used in very small dosages—think tuberose, iris and mimosa."
7 Fragrances That Smell Expensive
7 Expensive-Smelling Fragrances to Channel Your Inner Rich Girl
