Archive Guaiac Wood
Base note · Woody
Guaiac Wood.
Smoky, tarry wood with a sweet rose edge underneath.
Our read on the material, not a measurement.
What it smells like.
Guaiac wood is wood with smoke in it. There is tar and charred timber at the front and, oddly, a sweet, almost rosy softness behind, which is what keeps it from smelling like an ashtray. It is one of the more distinctive materials on the bench.
Reach for it when you want a blend to feel warm and slightly wild. It is very good under rose and it does something interesting to sweet fruit by giving it a dark edge. It is also persistent and quite loud, so it is a poor choice if you need a fragrance that stays discreet indoors.
Guaiac oil is distilled from the wood of a slow-growing South American tree. It smells unlike any other wood in the palette: smoky and tarry at first, then unexpectedly soft, with a rose-like sweetness perfumers have leaned on for decades when a composition needs smoke without harshness.
In a blend.
The smoky wood. Guaiac gives a blend a campfire quality that cedarwood cannot. It is assertive and it lingers.
Woody. Warm, grounded scents built around woods, resins and depth. Shop the woody scents.
Pairs beautifully with.
Questions about guaiac wood.
What does guaiac wood smell like?
Smoky, tarry wood with a sweet rose edge underneath. Guaiac wood is wood with smoke in it. There is tar and charred timber at the front and, oddly, a sweet, almost rosy softness behind, which is what keeps it from smelling like an ashtray. It is one of the more distinctive materials on the bench.
Is guaiac wood a top, heart or base note?
It is a base note, so it appears last and stays longest. The smoky wood. Guaiac gives a blend a campfire quality that cedarwood cannot. It is assertive and it lingers.
What does guaiac wood pair well with?
The studio would start with bulgarian rose, cherry, vetiver and leather. Reach for it when you want a blend to feel warm and slightly wild. It is very good under rose and it does something interesting to sweet fruit by giving it a dark edge. It is also persistent and quite loud, so it is a poor choice if you need a fragrance that stays discreet indoors.
What fragrance family is guaiac wood in?
Woody. Warm, grounded scents built around woods, resins and depth.
Can I use guaiac wood in a custom blend?
Yes. It is one of the 42 notes you can choose at the Bench, where you build across the three tiers and we blend it by hand in Adelaide.
Blend with guaiac wood.
Pick it at the bench, choose up to four notes per tier, and we blend it by hand in Adelaide.
Open the bench
