Lattafa Angham and the Fruity, Musky, Vanilla Perfumes I Pair With It

Lattafa Angham and the Fruity, Musky, Vanilla Perfumes I Pair With It

Lattafa Angham is a ginger, praline and vanilla eau de parfum the Dubai house says was inspired by the rhythm of music. Here it sits with fruity florals, skin close musks and vanilla florals that share its sweetness.

Lattafa is a Dubai based fragrance house, and its own site introduces Angham as a fragrance inspired by the rhythm of music. That is the only story I need, because Lattafa Angham reads like a song in three parts. Lattafa lists the top as mandarin, ginger and pink pepper, the middle as praline, lavender and cacao, and the base as musk, amber and vanilla. The brand's copy adds jasmine to the mix and describes each note coming together like a composed melody. Lattafa files it under women's fragrance, in a 100 ml size.

Its partner on the shelf is Lattafa Yara, which the brand says launched in 2020. Yara is an amber vanilla with tangerine, heliotrope and orchid on top, tropical and gourmand notes in the middle and vanilla, sandalwood and musk underneath. Around them I put fruit. Gucci Flora Gorgeous Magnolia has a dewberries accord, magnolia and patchouli. Miu Miu Miutine mixes wild strawberry, gardenia and brown sugar. Henry Rose Rhu Berry is tart rhubarb with strawberry peach jam, and Flora Carnivora is jasmine, tuberose and orange blossom. Marc Jacobs Just Perfect is strawberry, jasmine sambac and vanilla, and LoveShackFancy Berry Kiss is a hair and body mist with wild berries and marshmallow.

A quick test: spray Angham on one wrist and Yara on the other. Wait twenty minutes and see which sweetness you keep sniffing.

Big numbers collage for Lattafa Angham: six products from Lattafa, Gucci, Miu Miu, By Rosie Jane, Henry Rose and Kilian Paris, each set beside a large numeral
Lattafa Angham

Fruity floral perfumes

Skin scents that stay close

Sweet perfumes need a quiet friend, and grid 2 is full of them. By Rosie Jane ROSIE is rose, nude musk and vanilla, described by the brand as a barely there skin scent. Salt & Stone Ambrette & Pear is a clean, warm skin scent with pear, white musk and jasmine. CYKLAR Sex Musk is an alcohol free roll-on with musk, orris and vanilla infusion. FUGAZZI Angel Dust uses cashmeran, bergamot, black pepper and white amber crystals, and the brand behind it is a Dutch company founded in 2018 by Bram Niessink. Henry Rose London 1983 is fig, musk and blonde woods with black pepper. KAYALI Freedom Musk Santal moves from bergamot and mandarin through white florals and frankincense to sandalwood, vanilla and ambery musk. CLEAN RESERVE Skin is fresh musk with Madagascar vanilla, and BORNTOSTANDOUT Sugar Addict has sugar, cocoa absolute and rum.

Pairing tip: wear a musk first, then one spray of Angham over the top. The musk softens the spice and makes the sweetness read closer to skin.

What I would skip: Sugar Addict layered over Angham. Both carry cacao or cocoa, and together they turn into dessert with no edges. Save that one for its own night.

Musky sweet perfumes

Vanilla with a floral heart

Grid 3 is where vanilla meets flowers, and it gives Angham some company. KILIAN Love, Don't Be Shy is orange blossom, rose and a marshmallow accord, based on the perfumer's own marshmallow recipe, in a bottle the brand says can be refilled. Viktor&Rolf Flowerbomb has peony, centifolia rose and freesia accords, and Viktor&Rolf Good Fortune has bright fennel and gentian, jasmine and bourbon vanilla. Chloe L'Eau de Parfum Lumineuse is luminous rose with jasmine sambac and Madagascan vanilla. YSL Libre Intense combines French lavender and Moroccan orange blossom with warm vanilla, and it is the closest to Angham because of that lavender. Mugler Alien Goddess pairs Indian jasmine with bourbon vanilla and Italian bergamot. TOM FORD Vanilla Sex is vanilla tincture, vanilla absolute and sandalwood. Maison Louis Marie No. 14 Icila is an oil, with jasmine, Bulgarian rose and vanilla flower.

How to wear them: dab the Icila oil on pulse points, and keep the spray bottles for the neck and clothes.

What I would skip: a vanilla floral on top of Flowerbomb. Both are dense, and I would rather let one of them speak. Try Libre Intense on its own if lavender appeals.

Vanilla florals

Finding your sweet spot

To find your sweet spot, decide first what kind of sweet you like. Angham and Yara are for people who enjoy warm gourmand notes, while the berry perfumes are lighter and the musks stay close to skin. If you love vanilla but not sugar, try the floral vanillas in grid 3. Test each on your wrist and let it dry down for a couple of hours, because the base is what you will actually smell all day. Keep one for evenings and one for errands. If you are gifting, choose a mist or a roll-on first, since they are easy to like.