We’re at the end of August already, can you believe it? Those pumpkins and reindeer are right around the corner! But for now, we’re still in the throes of one of the hottest summers ever and I’m definitely still craving the summer fragrances so today I’m sharing the best strawberry perfumes (and where to find them!) with you.
I love berry-scented perfumes for the summer! And there’s so many different varieties, some are more gourmand, some are very fresh, and some have deep base notes that make them perfect for an evening date night on the patio. I plan to make this part of a whole berry series with future posts that will feature raspberry, blueberry, and blackberry fragrances.
Now, on to the strawberry fragrances!
Kate Spade New York
- Top Notes: citrus, bergamot, wild strawberry
- Middle Notes: rose essence, freesia
- Base Notes: ambroxan, cashmeran
- Other note perceived: pepper
I’m kicking my strawberry list off with this likable and affordable fragrance from Kate Spade. The citrus notes and wild strawberry combine beautifully here to give an impression of a strawberry lemonade! It’s tart and sweet at the same time and imparts a refreshing vibe that’s perfect for a warm day. I also get a light touch of pepper. The pepper combined with the sweet strawberry reminds me a bit of Floral Street’s fabulous Wonderland Peony. There’s also lovely floral touches of rose and dusty freesia. The ambroxan and cashmeran in the dry down give this fragrance a clean and cozy vibe.
I find the projection to be noticeable but not overbearing and the longevity is respectable, at least 4-5 hours. This fragrance is overall bright, fruity, rosy, and pretty. Definitely an addictive scent that I want to keep smelling on myself!
Find it here:
Kate Spade New York 9ml travel-spray (at Ulta)
Kate Spade New York 40ml, 60ml, 100ml (at Ulta)
Kate Spade New York 40ml, 60ml, 100ml (at Macy’s)
Kate Spade New York 5oz perfumes body lotion (at Macy’s)
Kate Spade New York 40ml, 60ml, 100ml, 100ml testers (at FragranceNet)
Ajmal Shine
- Top Notes: strawberry, pomegranate
- Middle Notes: peony, lily of the valley
- Base Notes: ‘powdery notes,’ ‘woody notes’
If you love Lancôme’s La Nuit Trésor, Miss Dior Absolutely Blooming, and the beloved (but, sadly, discontinued) Miss Dior Chérie, please allow me to introduce you to your new favorite ‘cheapie!’ This yummy fragrance is chock full of sweet, cozy, strawberry goodness. There’s also a powdery vanilla sugar vibe here and light touches of floral and woods in the background. The opening reminds me a lot of La Nuit Trésor but the dry down is very similar to Absolutely Blooming and Chérie. If you love any of those fragrances, this should be a pretty safe buy for you. Bonus: it’s super affordable!
I find the projection and longevity to be decent and definitely acceptable for this price point. If you’re a fan of sweet, girly, designer berry fragrances, you really can’t go wrong with this great ‘cheap & cheerful’ pick.
Find it here:
Yves Saint Laurent Mon Paris
- Notes: red berries, datura flower, white musk, patchouli
- Other Notes Perceived: Calabria bergamot, strawberry, raspberry, peach, pear, peony, Chinese jasmine, jasmine sambac, orange blossom, ambroxan
I like to refer to Mon Paris as a ‘sophisticated fruit bowl,” haha! I love the yummy, sun-ripened berry accord here. I always get a bit of a peachy feel from this fragrance, as well, though it is not an ‘official’ note. It reminds me a bit of peachy gummy rings! The fruitiness is definitely the most prominent impression for me along with some pretty, white florals and a mellow patchouli base. The fruitiness is sweet but not overly so and definitely not sickly to my nose.
The performance for this fragrance is outstanding. I get a VERY long-lasting scent bubble around me all day. Signature scent-worthy, it is easy to wear in any weather and for any occasion. In my opinion, Mon Paris is a classic and should be in every woman’s perfume collection.
Find it here:
Mon Paris 10ml travel-spray (at Ulta)
Mon Paris 30ml, 50ml, 90ml (at Ulta)
Mon Paris 50ml, 90ml (at Bergdorf)
Mon Paris 50ml, 90ml (at Bloomingdale’s)
Burberry Her Elixir de Parfum
- Notes: dark red berries, jasmine, vanilla, amber
- Other Notes Perceived: blackberry, sandalwood
This latest flanker from the extremely popular Burberry Her collection is a winner in my book! It’s very sweet and chock full of sun-ripened strawberries with a syrupy nectar vibe. I have seen some describe it as smelling a bit like a strawberry milkshake and I can see that! I get a lot of sweet jasmine sambac and it’s a touch more more floral to my nose, compared to the original Her. There’s a prominent sandalwood note in the base and to me, it dries down to be almost 50/50 with the strawberry and the sandalwood.
This fragrance is eau de parfum intense concentration so the performance is really solid. I get a great little scent bubble around me for several hours. I can still smell it really well on my clothes the next day, too. I have also tested this side by side with Her Intense (which is, unfortunately, now discontinued) and they’re both great! Both are sweet, Elixir might be a tiny tad sweeter and Intense a bit ‘cleaner’ but they’re similar to each other – and the original – and all are so great.
Find it here:
Her Elixir de Parfum 10ml travel-spray (at Ulta)
Her Elixir de Parfum 30ml, 100ml (at Ulta)
Her Elixir de Parfum 50ml, 100ml (at Nordstrom)
Soki London Empress
- Top Notes: wild strawberry, popcorn, toffee
- Middle Notes: peony, Moroccan rose, pear
- Base Notes: patchouli, woods, musks, green vines
Empress, the first offering from popular YouTube perfume reviewer Sophie King, is a fun ‘fruitchouli’ that prominently features wild strawberry and patchouli notes. The fragrance opens with a super fun popcorn note that’s photorealistic and smells delicious, especially combined with the toffee. The toffee popcorn impression is quickly followed by the wild strawberry and patchouli. For me, personally, the florals are not strong players here. The powerful patchouli plays its role well, giving the perfume a great longevity and depth.
This eau de parfum intense has outstanding lasting power and the projection is quite good, you can expect to have a pleasant and noticeable scent bubble around yourself for several hours. To me, this fragrance is a bit like a lovechild of two of Sophie’s favorites, the aforementioned Miss Dior Chérie and Jimmy Choo Eau de Parfum. If you love a a good patchouli fragrance with lots of sweet berries, this is an excellent one to try. Plus, you’ll be supporting a small, woman-owned business, always a plus. I think this is a job well done by Sophie for her debut perfume!
Find it here:
Empress 1.5ml sample, 15ml refillable travel-spray, 50ml (at Soki London)
Dolce & Gabbana L’Imperatrice (2020 formulation)
- Top Notes: watermelon, strawberry
- Middle Notes: Damasc rose, pink peony, magnolia, cyclamen
- Base Notes: blondwood, sandalwood, musk, ‘smoky woody notes’
Speaking of empresses, this re-release of L’Imperatrice (originally #3 in Dolce & Gabbana’s Anthology line) literally translates to ‘The Empress.’ This limited edition version with an added strawberry note is such a refreshing summer classic! I get tons of clean, watery peony and fresh watermelon mingling with the strawberry. The florals are so pretty and fresh. In the dry down, I get an addictive musky-woodsy accord. To me, the dry down seems pretty much identical to the original formulation from the Anthology line.
The projection and trail are pretty and noticeable. The staying power is decent, at least a good 4-5 hours before really fading, which is great for an EDT. This is a really versatile fragrance that works well anytime. For years, this was a ‘going out’ fragrance for me but with its pretty, watery florals, it’s probably even better suited to daytime wear. A beautiful, feminine fragrance with an affordable price-tag, you can’t go wrong with this one.
Find it here:
L’Imperatrice 50ml, 100ml (at FragranceNet)
Imaginary Authors Cape Heartache
- Notes: Douglas fir, pine resin, Western hemlock, vanilla leaf, strawberry, old growth, ‘mountain fog’
Cape Heartache might appropriately be referred to as ‘the guy’s strawberry fragrance.’ Chock full of woodsy notes but with an added surprise: wild strawberries! This fragrance paints a picture to me of being on a hike in a magical Pacific Northwest forest, perhaps in the Olympics. You suddenly notice a patch of wild strawberries growing along the path and pick a few; they taste delicious and sweeter than candy. If you’re into the idea of a piney woods fragrance with some added strawberry, you should definitely check this out!
This fragrance leans decidedly masculine but anyone who loves a pine fragrance could certainly pull this off. Out of all the fragrances listed here, this one definitely has a more wintry, cooler weather vibe. The projection is on the lighter side and the longevity is good. This scent is also available as a candle and makes a fabulous home fragrance. Read more of my Imaginary Authors reviews here.
Find it here:
Cape Heartache 1ml, 2ml, 5ml, 9ml decants & 50ml full bottle (at Scent Split)
Cape Heartache 50ml (at Imaginary Authors’ Amazon store)
Clinique My Happy Peony Picnic
- Notes: black currant buds, strawberry, passion fruit, peony, rose, plum, cedar, amberwood, vanilla
In a similar peony-forward vein with D&G’s L’Imperatrice mentioned above, is this fresh, pretty floral from Clinique. A flanker line inspired by their longtime best seller, Happy, the ‘My Happy’ range has several pleasant and affordable fragrances to choose from. Peony Picnic is aptly named, with peony as the unmistakable star of the show. The fragrance also features rose and some fruity touches of passionfruit, strawberry and plum. The dry down continues with the floral-fruity vibe and adds in some cozy woods and vanilla.
For such a light and refreshing scent, I get great longevity with at least 5 hours before it fades into more of a skin scent. The strawberry is admittedly subtle here; it’s definitely not ‘in your face’ fruity. But if you’re a lover of fresh, springy peony scents with a touch of strawberry, this could be the perfect match for you. Very girly and perfect for spring/summer wear.
Watch my Reel about this fragrance here or check out the YouTube version below:
Find it here:
Peony Picnic 15ml travel-spray (at Ulta)
Peony Picnic 15ml travel-spray (at Macy’s)
Honorable Mention: Profumum Roma Vanitas
- Notes: myrrh, orange flowers, sandalwood, vanilla
- Other Notes Perceived: strawberry, ‘lip gloss’
This yummy-smelling perfume does not actually list strawberry as a note but it smells exactly like strawberry cotton candy to me! It also gives vibes of a sweet strawberry lip gloss from my childhood days and maybe even a Strawberry Shortcake doll? Yes, this definitely has a bit of that ‘dollhead’/plasticky/synthetic vibe to it that some perfumes have. The longer the scent dries down, the more the myrrh becomes a player and the overall impression for me is one of thick, ambery vanilla.
The projection for this fragrance is great and the longevity is above average. Overall, this is a very delicious-smelling, high quality perfume from the wonderful Italian house of Profumum Roma but it is pricey as all get out, even the 18ml travel-spray retails for $100! Personally, I would go with more reasonably-priced decants for this one. Start small, see if you like it, and if you do, then consider the larger sizes. Especially with this fragrance having that ‘lip gloss/dollhead’ vibe; it doesn’t bother me personally (I even like it!) but it might be a turn-off to some and makes me think this is not a totally safe blind buy.
Find it here:
Vanitas 1ml, 2ml, 5ml, 9ml, 100ml full bottle (at Scent Split)
And there you have my picks for the best strawberry perfumes! What do you think of berry fragrances? Are they a favorite genre for you or do you think of them as too sickly sweet? Is there a fragrance here that has caught your attention as something that might be fun to try? Let me know in the comments section below!
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It is such a cool list! I love strawberries and I’m looking for new perfume now. I truly want to try Yves Saint Laurent Mon Paris because I love this brand. Thank you for ideas!
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoyed the list 💖 Mon Paris is really so good! If you love fruity fragrances and are ok with patchouli as a note, it should be a pretty safe buy for you. You can always try an affordable decant sample first to see if it works for you: https://decantboutique.com/product/ysl-mon-paris-edp/?ref=twiggyhall
Let me know if you end up trying it! 😊
Fun! One of the perfumes I got when I was getting back into fragrances heavily about 10 years ago was Kate Spade Twirl. It reminded me of grape soda, or a grape lollipop and was well made. I like the idea of wild strawberry scent!
Shine sounds interesting. The Mon Paris bottle is so cute and classic. Sounds like it really fits the scent. I don’t recall if I’ve tried this one skin? I should do it sometime. Empress sounds interesting, maybe too sugary for me but also maybe just right?
Popcorn in fragrance always reminds me of L’Artisan Parfumeur Dzing! which smells like a circus. There’s leather, musk, caramel, woods, toffee, tonka, saffron, cotton candy, apple, ginger. It’s very unusual, an absolute literal trip. Someone on Fragrantica says “…leather and expensive flowers, maybe saddled horses and very slightly trees and circus peanuts.” and the only thing I would add is a bit of a barn smell. It’s weird and cozy and discontinued. Not for summer!
Oooh, I have not tried Twirl but it sounds so good! I looked it up and the notes look amazing and SO in my wheelhouse! I love a good ‘grape-ish’ fragrance. The current-day L’Interdit has those fun grape bubblegum vibes that you sometimes get from tuberose. 🍇
You should definitely try Mon Paris on your skin and see how it goes. It’s really beautifully blended and the performance is sooo good. Empress is definitely a fruitchouli, which I know can be a tricky genre for you, but also worth trying, for sure. The popcorn note is so fun and the wild strawberry is very realistic, it reminds me of these tiny wild strawberries on the path to the beach at my Grandma’s house when I was little.
I have heard of Dzing! I had heard it was polarizing, haha! But I love the concept of it containing all of the smells of a circus, so fascinating! 🎪 I wish L’Artisan wouldn’t discontinue such interesting scents. I’m still pining for Jour de Fête! Almond fragrances are life! lol 🥰