If you haven’t been to the Tom Ford counter inside Rustan’s Makati (the full TF line will also be available at Adora mid-June), you are missing out on a fragrance-hunting experience. It goes a little something like this: you select a scent from the Tom Ford Private Blend collection, most probably based on its name and your existing knowledge on notes. The Tom Ford fragrance adviser sprays the scent on a sheet, and does an almost-curtsy — it’s what they do at Tom Ford counters around the world, mandated by Tom Ford himself. You take a whiff, decide if you want it on your body to test, and try another one. If you like it, they’ll advise you to smell the dried-down version on the metal sampler.
Testing the fragrances is worth the trip in itself. As Carissa Daez, Estée Lauder marketing coordinator for Tom Ford Beauty, says, it will change your nose for notes. I certainly had a noseful of Tom Ford that day (they don’t have coffee grinds for you to sniff — it’s not on-brand, you see), as I sampled every perfume under the Private Blend collection. Here are some suggestions:
If you are a Drake fan, try Tuscan Leather, a scent that Tom Ford named after the Drake song. It captures the scent of leather and all its smooth qualities. Mixed with jasmine and black suede, the leather scent becomes modern and wearable. The dry down is surprisingly sweet.
If you love private islands, Soleil Blanc is for you. The endless pursuit of sun and luxury defines Tom Ford Soleil, the summer collection. This scent is described as an “addictive solar floral amber.” I must say, when you spray it on, you’re going to smell like you own a private island.
If you’re a classic, Tom Ford’s Neroli Portofino is your thing. This universally loved, gender-less scent will remind you of your college cologne — citrusy, floral and aquatic all at once, but definitely more refined. The blue bottle alone is a giveaway: there’s nothing simple or understated about it at all.
If you like the idea of a floral scent but hate floral scents, give Café Rose a chance. It’s rose done right; a dark, mysterious floral with peppery aspects. The bright coffee note and precious woods make it bold and modern — definitely not your grandmother’s rose perfume.
If you want to smell like you can buy everything at an auction, go for Champaca Absolute. Right off the bat, it is sophisticated thanks to its floral-oriental composition. And as though the thousands of Champaca blooms needed to produce a single bottle of the scent are not major enough, TF added cognac to the mix, to elevate it even more.
If you’re old school and like Hemingway, you’ll love Tobacco Vanille. For some reason, it reminds me of the scent of old books and libraries, but it’s really inspired by English gentlemen’s clubs filled with rich spices and cognacs.
If all your clothes are black, you’ll definitely embrace Noir de Noir, which is a rich oriental scent mixed with feminine florals, vanilla, patchouli, oud wood and black truffle. It’s both masculine and feminine, bright and dark. Kind of like your soul.
If you’re all about selfies, Tom Ford’s new Private Blend fragrance, Fucking Fabulous, is obviously your scent. A decadent oriental leather scent, it’s the fragrance of insiders. It’s just effing fabulous.
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Tom Ford is available at Rustan’s and, starting June 14, at Adora Greebelt 5.