Fall's Coziest Fragrance: Fille En Aiguilles by Serge Lutens

The air has turned crisp. Without warning Toronto has gone from a mild-weathered haven to a chilly icebox. I’m certainly not complaining though — this is when my wardrobe shines. Out come my chunky knits, turtlenecks and scarves. I love it! This is also the perfect season to start thinking about trading in those summery coconut body sprays and light spritzy fragrances for something darker and more dramatic... a fragrance that can compete with your emerging wardrobe and the dropping temperatures. And I have the perfect suggestion: Fille En Aiguilles by Serge Lutens.

This new fragrance has been getting some heavy spray action around my place lately. Even my roommate — a person who doesn’t usually wear fragrance of any sort — can’t get enough. It’s very daring and unlike anything I’ve ever tried, but at the same time it’s extremely wearable and even addictive. The “juice” is a deep brown that promises to deliver an equally deeply scented vapour. As always, the slender rectangular Serge Lutens bottle is neither overtly feminine or masculine and begs to be displayed on a dressing table. The best way to describe Fille En Aiguilles, though, is to paint a picture:

Imagine Banff National Park on a crisp autumn afternoon. You take a walk into the forrest and light a bonfire (can you do that there?). The air is biting and fresh, and lets you to distill the fragrances around you: pine trees, sap, smoke, burning wood and the sweet smell of rotting leaves and earth. Now bottle it up and spritz that sense memory onto your wrists and there you'll have Fille En Aiguilles. Downtown Toronto will seem a little more like Muskoka; Calgary, a bit more like Banff; Edmonton, Jasper. You get the idea.

Translated literally (in Google Tranlate), Fille En Aiguilles means “girl with needles.” How perfect and whimsical! While this fragrance is quite masculine and works well for men, it would also be a very chic choice for a woman. I think it would suit a woman who is affectionately called a man’s name like Billie, or George or Freddy. Isn’t that so elegant? To be a really feminine, but have a man’s name? I, on the other hand, am a man with a feminine name. Not as alluring.

It is no secret that I’m a fragrance lover, and I find merit in many scents, even if I wouldn’t wear them. This is one fragrance that I will wear all winter. It just seems right. What are your fall/winter fragrances?


Fille En Aiguilles, 50mL, $110
Available at Andrew's in Toronto www.andrewsco.com
For more information about this an other Serge Lutens fragrances go to www.salons-shiseido.com