Why Hair Perfume Is The New Fragrance Category To Watch
But there’s also been a new wave of hair perfumes emerging, in the form of hair and body mists. Affordable, desirable and perfect for those who want to personalise their scent through layering, trend-forecasting agency, WGSN are calling out hair perfume as the next category to watch, predicting that most brands who sell scent will launch one in the next 12-18 months (if they don’t have one already).
You only have to look at your love for Phlur Vanilla Skin Body & Hair Mist or Sol de Janeiro’s Hair & Fragrance Body Mists which consistently fly off shelves and it’s clear there’s a thirst for these strand-scenting spritzers.
“Brands are massively going after mists in general at the moment with Sol de Janeiro and Phlur leading the category for us and they’re a great acquisition driver for customers who are keen to try the brand or a new scent. Ouai’s St Bart’s Hair and Body Mist is another bestseller and they’ve recently launched a jumbo size; Rare Beauty’s Find Comfort Body & Hair Mist follows this ranking #2. We already know that collaborations from big players are in the works so I’d say this is a trend we’re more likely to see come through for hair specifically,” says Abi Gwyther, Space NK’s Assistant Buyer for Fragrance.
Why we love hair perfume
They’re designed specifically for your hair
It might sound obvious, but we bet you’ve sprayed your favourite perfume up into the air and let it settle on your hair or even sprayed it directly onto your hair. But this is a big no-no.
“Traditional perfumes designed for skin typically contain alcohol which is drying for hair. Hair perfumes are formulated with less drying and more nourishing ingredients, like oils, so you can spritz safely with these. They also have great staying power as the tiny scent molecules don’t evaporate as quickly. Instead, they stick to your hair and create a soft fragrant aroma that lingers with you all day and releases when you move or swish your hair,” explains Siobhan Haug, hairdresser and co-founder of Haug London Haus.
They’re great for layering
Fragrance has become an expression of personal identity and fragrance wearers are both more playful, experimental and confident when it comes to layering and creating their own fragrance wardrobe. While body mists and body creams are a big part of this, hair perfumes are another layer that can be added into the mix.
“Hair perfumes are actually often designed to be used as a base layer of fragrance, so they’ll complement your perfume rather than clash, and you don’t need to worry about matching them as they’ll work in harmony,” continues Siobhan.
They’re considered an affordable way to fragrance
Yes, if you’re treating yourself to a hair perfume from a premium brand, the price tag won’t shift too much, but in some cases, a hair mist can be significantly cheaper than an eau de parfum. Much of this is down to the formulation and ingredients. On average a hair perfume uses between 3 and 5% fragrance oil, but an eau de parfum contains around 20%. That, coupled with the fact that hair mists are more diluted as they have less alcohol than perfume and the addition of water (or even other styling ingredients) means that in general, they cost less.
They’re great all year round, but especially summer
Lightweight and easy to wear, hair mists will smell the same all year round whereas some perfumes react on the skin differently in hot weather when your skin warms up. It’s also believed that some fragrances can disrupt your sun protection as SPF is affected by alcohol so if you’re concerned, opt for a hair perfume and don’t scrimp or sacrifice your sun cream.
How to apply hair perfume
Leave a few inches between the bottle and your hair, just like you would a hair styling product, then spritz. Flip your head upside down so you don’t miss the back and the roots too. Another option is to spray the perfume onto your brush and sweep it through your hair for a light and even coverage.
Read More
• The Biggest Fragrance Trends of 2025• The Best Frédéric Malle Perfumes • The Best Mood Boosting Perfumes
• We Review all the Sol de Janeiro Perfumes • How to Fragrance your Home
