As inclusive beauty continues to progress, we’re finding many perfume houses are creating scents that leave traditional binary notions of masculine and feminine behind.
This selection of scents embraces unique combinations of notes, from fresh and zesty to warm and woody, letting you lean in to shareable, unisex aromas.
Diptyque
Created to honour the atmosphere of the mythical bar Orphéon in Paris’ Saint-Germain quarter, this nod to the halcyon days of the City of Light in the 60s is warm and comforting. Juniper berry, tonka bean, cedarwood and jasmine combine to evoke the aroma of trailing perfumes, burnished wood and gin-and-tonic cocktails. Available here.
Walk into any Karen Walker store, and this is what you’ll smell — a single-ingredient fragrance designed to enhance your body’s natural pheromones and leave a scent trail unique to every wearer. It’s soft and musky, inoffensive and the perfect fragrance for scent connoisseurs to add to their collection.
Although all Jo Malone fragrances are unisex — and designed to be paired together and layered — this cologne is a favourite thanks to the zesty citrus notes balanced with peppery and herbaceous basil. It’s a summertime scent that also works in winter for a bit of escapism.
The citrus base gives this fragrance a youthful edge while remaining unapologetically bold. The feminine-masculine dynamic is balanced by refreshing notes of green tea, papaya and bergamot, with accents of nutmeg, violet, cardamom and rose underpinned by creamy musk and amber.
Reportedly Harry Styles’ signature scent, this iconic fragrance mixes woody notes with dried fruits, vanilla, cocoa and tonka bean. It’s a heady perfume that, while said to be reminiscent of an English gentlemen’s club, is equally intoxicating when worn by a woman.
Transport yourself to the mountains of Chamonix with this warm scent that combines notes of spicy pepper, clove oil, sweet chestnut, vanilla and smoky wood.
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This modern genderless fragrance brand boasts a variety of scents for everybody; their six-sample tin of 3ml vials is the best way to find your favourite scent without the commitment. In the range you’ll also find air fresheners, detergent, candles and poop drops.
The newest scent in Aesop’s fragrance collection is floral, woody and green, containing notes of mimosa, saffron and iris. If you like Aesop’s A Rose By Any Other Name Body Cleanser or Resurrection Aromatique Hand Balm, it’s a safe bet you’ll be into this scent, too.
Inspired by the ocean, this sweet and salty scent is for anyone drawn to sand and sea spray. Opening notes of summery tangerine and peach dry down to a salty, deep-sea scent, with hints of warm, plant-derived musk coming through the base.
The original Kiehl’s Musk scent is believed to have been created in the 1920s, and this modern interpretation for men and women intertwines the signature musk with a floral bouquet of rose, lily, ylang-ylang and neroli. The dry down brings together tonka nut, white patchouli and, of course, musk.
Described as “animalic”, this earthy, spicy and floral scent is beguiling, especially as an intense parfum extrait. Ngutu Pā translates as “lips that touch”, which aptly describes the sensual scent profile of cinnamon, cedarwood, cacao, rose absolute, oud and vanilla.
