Solstice Sillage: My 3-Day Holiday Perfume Lineup

The shortest day of the year isn’t asking for timid perfume. It’s begging for firelight, pine sap and aldehydes that crackle like ice. If your holiday scent wardrobe is one long cupcake, consider this your permission slip to get interesting.

What I’m wearing across the long weekend:

• Saturday, International Human Solidarity Day + Hanukkah night 7 I want a blue flame, not a sugar rush. Le Labo Benjoin 19 folds smoky benzoin into city-night chill. If I need more incense, I reach for Naomi Goodsir Bois d’Ascese. It’s a match strike in a velvet room.

• Sunday, Winter Solstice Forest therapy, bottled. Serge Lutens Fille en Aiguilles is pine needles, resin, dried fruit and candle smoke. If you crave a crackling hearth, D.S. & Durga Portable Fireplace does exactly what it says and then some.

• Wednesday, Christmas Eve Aldehydes or bust. Chanel No. 5 L’Eau gives me chilled champagne sparkle without the museum hush. For glam with a side-eye, Frédéric Malle Superstitious (by Dominique Ropion) drapes satin over storms.

• Thursday, Christmas Day Comfort must still have bones. Guerlain Shalimar Millésime Tonka warms the classic with a toasted almond glow, while Guerlain Spiritueuse Double Vanille is the vanilla that grew up, put on heels and learned to edit.

• Friday, Boxing Day + Kwanzaa day 1 Reset the palate with tailored citrus like Acqua di Parma Colonia Essenza. When the evening calls for community and warmth, I switch to Amouage Jubilation 25. It’s fruitcake rewritten in frankincense and golden resin.

Tiny wish list for 2026 counters:

• More incense and pine done with texture, less laundry musk fatigue. Give me a modern mossy chypre from Hermès under Christine Nagel and I’ll happily stand in line.
• Smarter concentrations and fewer copycat gourmands. If you’re still leaning on compliments, fine, wear Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540. If you’re chasing memories, try smoke, citrus and resin.
• Indie brilliance deserves the big lights. I’d love wider distribution for houses like Hiram Green and Zoologist without sanding off the weirdness.

December is loud enough on its own. Your scent can be the quiet ember or the spark that starts the evening. Either way, make it intentional.