H&S Weddings: Love in a Bottle

The Best of Equestrian-Inspired Wedding Perfumes

You’ve planned every detail, orchestrated every moment, assembled your team of exceptional wedding professionals, loving friends, and family for assistance. You’ve selected the ideal locale and the most delectable of menus. And you’ve acquired what very well could be the most stunning wedding gown or the most handsome of suits in all the land. Everything is set up to create the event of your dreams and memories that will last a lifetime. These memories will be a combination of the experience, the photography and videography, the sounds, the tastes – and the scents. The power of scent is one of the strongest memory-based senses we possess. We associate, sometimes unconsciously, specific scents with specific memories and experiences. And for each individual, that experience differs.

As equestrians, consciously or unconsciously, we associate a combination of scents with a sport we are undoubtedly passionate about. We associate it with love. The combination of leather and dust as you walk into a tack room, the sweet and musty smells of the feed room, the soothing aroma of fresh, dewey grass, and the most intoxicating of them all – pony breath. There is nothing better in the world than the sweet, soft scent of pony breath.

The fragrance one chooses for that special day is a personal undertaking. It will be a scent that will be filed in the memory bank of everyone around you the day you say ‘I do.’ The right fragrance reveals so much about the person wearing it – sheer, romantic, spicy, daring. However, the perfume landscape is vast. And while the concept of finding and having a signature scent is certainly attainable, it does often take time, if not a lifetime, to discover. So here you are, faced with yet another decision to be made in a sea of wedding decisions. From the soft and romantic to the dark and bold, we have rounded up the best fragrances with an equestrian flare ideal for your big day.

Galop d’Hermès

1.6 fl.oz. | $210 | hermes.com

Gucci is no stranger to the iconic and elegant world of equestrian sport. And their collection of fragrances melds beautifully into equestrian culture. Aromatic facets of citrus, peony, rose, pink pepper and sandalwood notes combine to create a subtle and sophisticated fragrance. The perfume is both soft and warm. There is seductive depth to Flora, making it wonderfully appropriate for fall and winter weddings. “Inspired by princesses from the past, present and future,” the Flora legacy was conceived in 1966 for Princess Grace of Monaco in the form of the iconic Gucci-designed Flora scarf. This scent is an expression of that legacy.

Flora By Gucci

Eau de Parfum | 1 fl.oz. | $72.00 | sephora.com

Having spent her adolescence riding hunter-jumpers, it comes as little surprise that season after season Tory Burch continues to draw upon the bold and classic details inherent in the sport. “Growing up, I used to ride horses every summer and always loved the details,” says Tory Burch. In 2016, the fashion house even introduced a new handbag collection named after Burch’s first mount, Alastair. The first, and now signature, fragrance from Tory Burch combines these same classic elements – equal parts easy and polished, feminine and a bit tomboy. Neroli, grapefruit, cassis, bergamot, peony, tuberose, jasmine sambac, vetiver and sandalwood notes create a bright, floral and crisp fragrance.

Tory Burch

Signature Eau de Parfum | 1.7 fl.oz. | $95.00 |
sephora.com

Chloè

Eau de Parfum | 1.7 fl.oz. | $105.00 | sephora.com

Chic, fresh, feminine, effortless and free spirited is the Chloè woman. And the fashion house’s signature scent embodies this. Creative Director Clare Waight Keller has continued to infuse the equestrian aesthetic into the house’s classic and effortless collections and multiple campaigns. The Maison’s signature fragrance is an intimate and sensual combination of rose, magnolia, peony, honey and cedar wood. It is iconically bohemian and reminiscent of a relaxed, boho affair.

Equipage Géranium by Hermès

3.3 fl.oz. | $130.00 | hermes.com

It was in 1970 that the house of Hermès created its first men’s fragrance Equipage, designed to “evoke a refined spirit of sharing and teamwork, characterized by a mood that is restrained yet masculine.” Nearly 50 years later, the original Equipage has been re-envisioned. A fresh combination of spicy geranium and warming sandalwood that is equally complex and sumptuous “gives this new thoroughbred creation a sensual feel.”

Romance by Ralph Lauren

1.7 fl.oz. | $74.00 | sephora.com

Nobody does classic equestrian elegance better than Ralph Lauren. The sport has been so deeply infused in the brand’s manifesto that the name Ralph Lauren has nearly become synonymous with equestrian culture. And for the ultimate in wedding day fragrances, their iconic Romance fragrance “evokes the timeless essence of falling in love.” A sensual olfactory combination of velvety woods, extravagant florals such as rose, marigold, freesia and day lily, and seductive musk make this a timeless scent for brides.

This article was originally published in Horse & Style Weddings 2017. Read the full issue online here!