Cedar and Sandalwood Perfume: A Guide to Woody Scents
Living in the Pacific Northwest, we spend a lot of time surrounded by wood: rain-dark cedar on the trail, old-growth fir, the warm, clean smell of a freshly split log. It is no surprise that woods sit at the heart of so many of our perfumes.
Cedar and sandalwood are the two woods people ask about most. They are also the easiest place to start if you are new to woody fragrance.
How Cedar Smells
Cedarwood is dry, clean and slightly sharp, a little like pencil shavings and a cedar closet. It gives a perfume structure and makes it feel crisp and composed. It also blends with almost everything, which is why it shows up in so many fragrances, from bright citrus to dark leather.
How Sandalwood Smells
Sandalwood is the opposite in texture: soft, creamy and gently sweet, with a smoothness that feels almost like skin. It lingers, and it gives a perfume its warm, quiet finish.
Why They Work Together
Cedar brings the clarity, sandalwood brings the comfort. Together they make a scent that feels calm and clean but never cold. It is the woody pairing we come back to most, and it works for almost anyone, which makes it a natural unisex perfume or cologne.
Bois Précieux
Cedar · Sandalwood · Soft woods
Polished cedar and creamy sandalwood, nothing more and nothing less. Calm, clean and quietly expensive-smelling. If you only try one woody perfume, start here.
Shop Bois Précieux · Discovery vial $10 · 50 ml extrait $115
If You Want More Depth
The Unseen
Dry cedar · Bitter coffee · Dark rum · Labdanum + tobacco
Dry cedar after dark: bitter coffee, dark rum, labdanum and tobacco. A woody perfume with a nightlife.
Shop The Unseen · Discovery vial $10 · 50 ml extrait $115
L'Éternel
Saffron · Jasmine · Cedarwood · Amberwood
Golden saffron and jasmine over polished cedar and amber. Woody, but glowing, for evenings and occasions.
Shop L'Éternel · From $16
Loup Sauvage
Forest air · Ancient cedar · Woodland spice · Soft amber
Moonlit forest air and ancient cedars with a warm trace of amber. The closest we have come to bottling a walk through the trees.
Shop Loup Sauvage · From $16
How to Choose Your Woody Scent
- For everyday and the office: Bois Précieux.
- For evenings: L'Éternel or The Unseen.
- For the outdoors at heart: Loup Sauvage.
- Not sure yet: start with discovery vials and wear each one for a full day. Woods change the most between the first spray and the dry-down.
For the Home
The same woods translate beautifully to candles. These are our favorites for a calm, cedar-and-sandalwood room.
Margaret the Oracle Candle
Cashmere · Cedarwood · Sandalwood · Cypress
Cashmere and cedar, with sandalwood and cypress, a quiet and grounding hush.
Shop Margaret the Oracle Candle · 4 oz candle $18 · 16 oz $52 · wax melts $14
Figgy Stardust Candle
Mission fig · Jasmine · Sandalwood
Mission fig and jasmine over creamy sandalwood, for a softer, sunlit woody room.
Shop Figgy Stardust Candle · 4 oz candle $18 · 16 oz $58 · wax melts $14
Hoh Rainforest Candle
Cedar · Wet moss · Rain · Fern
Rain dripping from moss-draped cedars. Green, fresh and very Pacific Northwest.
Shop Hoh Rainforest Candle · 4 oz candle $18 · 16 oz $58 · wax melts $14
Small-batch perfume and home fragrance, made in our Portland, Oregon studio since 2015. Vegan, cruelty-free and phthalate-free.