Fig perfumes might just be your new favourite unisex scent for spring
Citrus has no shortage of charms. But when it comes to fresh, warm-weather scents, fig perfumes are now a similar beauty talking point. And with good reason: they smell bright without the acidic bite and effervescent fizz of a freshly squeezed orange or lemon.
The funny thing is fig perfumes aren't new, but they are proving popular on TikTok right now, with the search term garnering 9.6 million views to date. One reason is their unisex whiff. “Fig perfumes are not too sweet or sticky, which appeals to both men and women," says iconic perfumer Jo Malone, founder of Jo Loves, who admits that fig features in her main palette.
Given the data, company Trendanalytics reports that the search for unisex fragrances has increased by 216% year over year (up to August 2023); a perfume that perfectly balances a crisp green aroma with a hint of sweetness and warmth is undoubtedly appealing.
Fig's shape-shifting quality also makes it magical. The scent differs depending on whether the perfumer has placed the fruit or the leaves at the centre of their creations. “The leaf has a wonderful greenness and freshness to it," Jo notes. "I tend to use less of the fruit itself, but the skin is one of those beautifully addictive notes,” she adds, referring to its sweet, honeyed scent.
In other words, the leaves will be catnip for those who love floral scents that smell of freshly snipped stems, while the fruit is for fans of gourmand fragrances.
Spray your five a day.
As perfumers, Jo continues, we “look at certain elements of the fig and build them out. I love to experiment with the dryness of the fig and often blend things like vetiver, patchouli, oak moss, and beautiful green notes like the smell of shrubbery and eucalyptus to make it quite masculine. But you can take it into a more feminine genre by using it with gardenia or a beautiful jasmine and make it very fresh.” Some perfumers even pursue its milkiness to create a sexy almost-bare skin scent.
If you're not a fan of fig jam and you're wondering if, by extension, you'll like a perfume based on the fruit, fear not; fig fragrances will never be hyper-literal because the smell can't be extracted from the plant itself. “Other elements that mimic the earthiness of the fig scent are used,” says Jo. “Guaiac wood is a note often used by perfumers. When combined with vetiver or patchouli, this creates a wonderful lingering note resembling fig.”
When you consider how its milky undertones, exuberant freshness and honeyed elements are connected to images of childhood, sun-soaked orchards and holidays on the Med, it's unsurprising that figs are such a nostalgic scent. For Jo, it reminds her of being in Italy when her son was young.
“We used to venture out and pick fresh figs, carrying them back for our morning breakfast," she recalls. "Cracking them open to serve with coffee and fresh juice was the highlight for me. I was obsessed by the smell of the fig itself and, at the time, had never seen fig in a fragrance. Now it's one of my most used notes. I can make fig dance like a ballerina or combine it with darker notes to resemble the deepness of a cello in an orchestra.” Didn't we say fig was magical?
For more from Fiona Embleton, GLAMOUR's Associate Beauty Director, follow her on @fiembleton.
Ahead, see the best fig perfumes we'll be spritzing on the sunny days to come.
Prada Les Infusions de Prada Infusion de Figue, 100ml EDT
All Les Infusions de Prada have a common baseline of musk, iris and citrus to mimic the scent of skin. Delicate wisps of incense, glossy fig leaf, green mandarin and lentisque hover close by, ensuring this fragrance simultaneously leans into fresh, woody and second-skin vibes. It's vivid and seductive, and practically begs you to come closer for another sniff.
Diptyque Philosykos, 75ml EDP £153
Meet the OG of fig fragrances – largely because it uses every part of the fig tree (the freshness of the leaves, the milkiness of the sap, the ripe fleshy fruit and peppery bark). All of this is to say, you'll be transported to a grassy spot underneath a fig tree in Greece with a single spritz.
Perfume and music aren't dissimilar when you consider both rely on high and low notes that can be light or brooding. Radio Child plays on this idea of a rousing melody, pairing juicy fig, with tingly black pepper and crisp pear before landing on the deep, creamy comfort of cashmere woods.
Nutty, earthy truffle adds depth, while fresh fig joins the unorthodox lineup of crisp pine and woody juniper. It has a masculine edge and is guaranteed to make you smell like the most interesting person in the room.
Dries Van Noten Santal Greenery, 100ml EDP
Dries Van Noten's offbeat approach to fashion is also reflected in his fragrances. The premise for each scent is the union of two opposites – from the two-toned bottles to the scent inside. Santal Greenery is no different, balancing the hazy creaminess of sandalwood and musk with the searing freshness of grapefruit and green fig leaves.
Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Forte Nerolia Vetiver, 75ml EDP
This fragrance could easily have been a citrusy-green confection with bergamot, fig leaf and neroli, were it not for the warmth of tonka beans. These soften any sharp edges while basil lends a surprising herbal twist.
Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterraneo Fico di Amalfi, 150ml EDT
There's no denying its bright, punchy freshness. Bergamot, lemon, and grapefruit are wrapped in honeyed fig nectar, sun-dappled jasmine petals and warm cedar wood.
Frank Voekl, the nose behind Le Labo Santal 33, has created another fragrance hit. It is cool and refreshing on top with waterlily and cassis buds, before milky fig and warm powdery ingredients – including iris, vanilla and sandalwood – push through. Imagine the lush greenness of a garden meets the intimacy of a skin scent, and you get the picture.
Armani Beauty Prive Figuier Eden, 100ml EDT
Cool fact: Figuier Eden explores the scent of the fig tree, which is said to have filled the Garden of Eden. In reality, it smells like an Italian sunset with sunny citrus zest and a velvety green fig accord that soften into Moroccan iris and a warm amber scent trail.
Jo Malone London Fig & Lotus Flower, 100ml Cologne
You'll feel every inch the water nymph when you splash this dewy fig scent across your skin. It doesn't shout but quietly whispers with a light, bright blend of lotus flower petals, neroli and plump fig that is the perfect accessory for your spring and summer 2024 wardrobes.
D.S. & Durga Debaser, 50ml EDP
Proof that a fig perfume can also be edgy and quirky. Green, woody, a touch musky (both iris and musk hover in the background), with a splash of coconut milk for just the right amount of sweetness, it's a deeply sexy scent.
An initial rush of Italian lemon mellows down to sweet fig and wafts of woody vetiver. Think bright but not bracing – like sunbathing in the gardens of a palazzo on the Amalfi Coast.
Vilhelm Parfumerie Purple Fig, 50ml EDP
According to the history books, Johann Friedrich Struensee, the doomed royal physician to King Christian VII of Denmark, ate a last meal of champagne and figs before his execution. On a lighter note, this lemon, blackcurrant and jasmine-laced confection is like a fig dropped in a champagne flute: fizzy, sweet and utterly delicious.
Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium Illicit Green, 75ml EDP
You can always rely on Yves Saint Laurent to bend the fragrance rules. In this case, not only do coffee beans play a starring role but they're wrapped in green mandarin and creamy fig for the same energising jolt as an espresso when the 3pm slump hits.
Granado Rio De Janeiro Figo Eau de Cologne, £52
Rather than conjure up the ripe sweetness of fig, this intense green scent, which is made from 92% natural origin ingredients, has a liberal helping of the fresh leaves. Orange and violet temper the woody notes for an aromatic spritz.
Never has there been a more appropriate name for a fragrance. Imagine if someone took a sledgehammer to a fruit bowl. Pulp is what you'd be left with mashed-up ripe fruit – fig, blackcurrant and red apple – the sweet, sticky juice combined with vanilla-sweet praline and woody ingredients. If you're a fruit fragrance lover sit with it for a while; it's a disruptive interpretation but it's guaranteed to make you stand out from the saccharine, peachy crowd.
I wore this figgy offering nonstop last summer when it launched. It's the epitome of a sun-filled, joyous fruity floral that rips you from the present to the French Riviera, baskets overflowing with ripe fig and rose petals fluttering in the warm breeze.
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