(Image credit: The Vault Stock)

Spiritual wellness is a huge trend in fragrance right now—some of the best perfumes for women contain ingredients designed to enhance and complement practices like yoga and meditation. And one brand in particular is leading the charge—with one of my biggest style crushes at the helm.

Since my early 20s, I’ve followed the career of fashion mogul Yasmin Sewell, admiring her from afar like she was the popular girl in the school playground I would never be cool enough to hang out with. Originally hailing from Australia (following in the footsteps of other stylish Antipodean exports such as performance artist Leigh Bowery and “Lipstick Queen” Poppy King) Sewell caused a stir in the 90s fashion scene with her boutique Yasmin Cho in London’s Soho, being the first to stock labels like Rick Owens in the UK (Courtney Love regularly popped in), before leading the buying teams at Brown’s and Liberty, which saw her frequently snapped during Fashion Month. While I’ve always been drawn to beauty over fashion, I would regularly devour street style snaps of her outfits—think sharp silhouettes, killer heels and lots of colour. So naturally my ears pricked up to hear she was pivoting to perfume back in 2021—and just like her style, her scents are a delight to behold.

The brand is Vyrao—described as meaning “I am verdant; I am vigorous; I sprout new green growth”—and the gender-neutral perfumes, candles and incense aren’t just bloody lovely smells, but the whole concept offers a new way of wearing and experiencing scent. It’s less about smelling like a celebrity or sending passers-by wild with lust, but complementing one’s spiritual wellness rituals, with rich grounding ingredients associated with healing and energising qualities.

Spiritual wellness scent brands like Vyrao are designed to “amplify the wearer’s cosmic energy” (which sounds very Edina Monsoon, but bear with me…). Each 50ml bottle of Vyrao has its own supercharged Herkimer diamond (Sewell herself is a trained Reiki practitioner), as well as an affirmation card in the box for you to say as you spray. If this all seems very woo woo, there’s actually some scientific backing behind it. The brand has worked in partnership with renowned global formulators International Flavours & Fragrances Inc (IFF), whose Science of Wellness Program involves years of solid research on renewable plant-based ingredients and how they affect the mind. Thanks to this, Vyrao isn't just making nice-sounding claims—they've got the actual solid stats to back them up. The vegan brand is also playful and fun, with tongue-in-cheek names for its perfumes like 'Witchy Woo’. The range also got Gwyneth Paltrow’s stamp of approval, with the goop founder choosing their ‘Sun Rae’ eau de parfum as her signature scent.

With the growing popularity of manifesting, astrology, energy healing and practices like Reiki, Vyrao has emerged as part of a wave of fragrance brands leading this movement. Other fragrant contenders in this space include renowned energy healer Estelle Bingham's "Mystical Scents for Soul and Space" (another one to get the nod from Gwyneth) and Bella Hadid's "aura-elevating" fragrance range Orebella. But with Sewell’s stylish credentials, Vyrao has helped bring spiritual wellness out of the hippie “New Age” health food shops and place it firmly on the fashion (and fragrance) map.

Vyrao’s bottles are gorgeous too, chubby round vessels made from coloured glass with a chunky black stopper (I love a perfume bottle just as much as I love its contents, as my groaning bathroom shelves will attest.) The packaging ticks quite a few green beauty boxes, made from bespoke moulded pulp comprising 100% recycled post-industrial fibres, plus the brand is completely vegan with sustainably-sourced ingredients.

I recently tried their latest offering Mamajuju, £165 for 50ml EDP, which was created for ‘grounding and awareness’ (which we could all do with a hefty dose of right now). It stars balancing sandalwood from Yasmin’s native Oz, warming nutmeg, rum absolute and living red clay—the latter also inspired by the landscape down under—underscored with a peppery pinch of cumin. It might not necessarily be one that you reach for in the heat, but then again, who says we can’t enjoy a bit of comfort all year round? (Personally, I adore pepper in fragrance the same way I do cracked black pepper on a Bloody Mary—the way it cuts through the sweetness like a sharp surprise.) If you’re after something more fresh and summery, you can always opt for Gwyneth’s favourite Sun Rae (£135 for 50ml), a cheery blend of lemon and bergamot to promote clarity and positivity (group hugs optional), with a sensual side-serving of amber and cardamom. Whether you’re “into all that stuff” or not, you’ll smell gorgeous, so it’s a win-win.

Viola is a freelance beauty journalist and copywriter, as well as resident beauty columnist for The Jewish Chronicle—having written for Vogue UK, Glamour UK, Refinery29, Stylist and ES Magazine. She previously won the Fragrance Foundation Jasmine Award for Best Short Piece, reporting on how urban life is damaging our sense of smell. She has consulted for a number of brands such as Aromatherapy Associates, led a nationwide campaign highlighting female hair loss and written global trend reports for WGSN. She was also Editor-in-Chief of Cult Beauty’s commemorative magazine celebrating their 10th anniversary. Her passions include getting her hair done and championing age and body positivity within the industry.