First Friday of Fall: Apples, Ink, And A Power Serve

I woke up to that crisp bite in the air and thought of apples first. Not the mall-candy kind. Real fruit skin, cider steam, spice. If you want autumn without a pumpkin latte hangover, try these apple-adjacent beauties: Hermès Ambre Narguilé for warm pastry and pipe tobacco swirl, CB I Hate Perfume Gathering Apples for literal orchard realism, and Nina Ricci Nina for that glossy toffee-apple wink that somehow reads flirty rather than twee. If you need an easy grab, Zara Applejuice is shockingly charming for the price.

But fall is also paper and pencil shavings and quiet rooms. T. S. Eliot has a birthday today, which feels like permission to go bookish and a bit somber. Byredo Bibliothèque does peachy leather and dust-jacket suede, Commodity Book leans cedar and dry paper, and L’Artisan Tea For Two gives smoke and tea leaves if you want your stanza with a curl of lapsang.

On the other end of the spectrum, I want some spotlight. Olivia Newton-John’s sunshine spirit calls for something bright with legwarmers energy and a wink. Chanel Cristalle (EDT) is my clean-green stage light, Gucci Rush is the glossy red cassette tape of perfumes, and Dior Dune is beach-warm serenity that still glows under a cardigan.

And because it is also Serena season in my head, I’ll counterbalance with unapologetic power. Frederic Malle Portrait of a Lady is a sillage backhand. Amouage Epic Woman strides without asking permission. Narciso Rodriguez For Her Musc Noir Rose softens the edges but keeps the spine.

My scent of the day started coy and got louder. Morning was two sprays of Ambre Narguilé under a wool sweater, just enough cinnamon halo to make the grocery store feel like a bakery. Tonight I am layering a whisper of Byredo Bibliothèque over the scarf, then one clean hit of Portrait of a Lady on the back of my neck. Orchard, library, arena.

If your fall rotation is still stuck on safe vanilla, we need to talk. Swap your shelf. Decant ruthlessly. Wear what matches the season you actually feel. So, tell me in the comments: are you team orchard, library, or spotlight today? What is your Friday scent of the day, and does it taste like autumn on your skin?