5 marvellous musks to cocoon yourself in
What’s your perception of a ‘musk’ fragrance? Because musk is possibly one of the most-misunderstood materials in modern perfumery. Preconceptions about musk as an ingredient span extremes – ranging from ‘It’s definitely going to be heavy and animalic’, to ‘aren’t they all just “your skin but better?”’ In fact, it’s completely understandable that sometimes confusion reigns – because this ingredient can be sensual, or super-clean. Let’s break it down, then suggest some modern musks we think you’ll love getting to know....
WORDS: SUZY NIGHTINGALE
PHOTO: JO FAIRLEY (iPhone and natural light, not AI)
Musk is one of perfumery’s most storied – and controversial – materials. Originally, it was derived from the glandular secretion of the Tibetan musk deer, an animal hunted to near-endangerment for its intensely powerful scent. (It required around 140 deer to produce just a kilo of musk.) Thankfully, since 1979 the species has been protected under CITES [the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora], and natural musk is no longer used in modern perfumery.
Its legend endures, though. Natural musk was famously tenacious – dab a drop onto a handkerchief, and it was said to linger not just for days but for decades. Today’s perfumers instead work with a vast palette of synthetic musks, developed through decades of research. These range in character from soft, powdery and skin-like to clean, almost metallic. Names like Galaxolide, Helvetolide, Celestolide, Andoxal, Nirvanolide and Velvione each bring their own nuance, whether that’s a freshly laundered glow or something more intimate and quietly sensual.
Musk can behave like a whisper or a spotlight. Sometimes it sits in the background, smoothing and rounding a composition; other times it takes centre stage, shaping the entire fragrance. It’s also a brilliant fixer, helping other notes last longer – no surprise that many musk molecules are so robust they’re used in laundry detergents, surviving even boil washes.
Interestingly, muskiness isn’t confined to synthetics. Natural materials like ambrette seed, galbanum and angelica root can all lend that same softly diffusive, skin-warmed effect.
And if you’ve ever struggled to smell musk, you’re in good company. Partial or total anosmia to certain musk molecules is surprisingly common, which is why perfumers rarely rely on just one in isolation, instead weaving it into their compositions either as a background scene-smoothing mistiness, or placing it more centrally as the bone structure of a scent’s overall character.
So, here are some musk-forward fragrances we feel deserve exploring further – suggestions to lead you on your own marvellous musk journey…
Evoking the dewy tranquillity of dawn, this softly swelling musk imagines the gentle first light of day, bergamot’s brightness tempered by a cool drift of incense. As translucent rose rises through misty, tonka-infused musk, serenity reigns.
£205 for 50ml eau de parfum harveynichols.com
THE iconic modern musk is back - more radiant and long-lasting than ever in this Eau de Parfum Intense version. There’s so much ‘push and pull’ going on here: on the one hand a light-filled, almost soapy cleanliness, while simultaneously projecting far and suffusing your entire day with its beautiful, bold simplicity.
£108 for 50ml eau de parfum boots.com
Perfumer-creator Aurélien Guichard says he loves ‘the universal, contemporary feel of musks’, centreing this ultra-refined version around ambrette seed (one of a handful of plant-based musk materials) for a sense of warm, clean skin. Fluid minimalism buoyed by fig leaf, emboldened by cedar, effortlessly chic, endearingly cool. And oh my, it’s a compliment-getter, for sure.
£170 for 50ml eau de parfum libertylondon.com
Inspired by Rodin’s marble sculpture, ‘The Kiss’, Guerlain’s Delphine Jelk uses a trio of white musks and ambrette seed to create a suffused glow, with neroli adding a cool, luminous halo. Orange blossom and Bulgarian rose emerge as gently blushed petals, dusted in buttery, vanilla-flecked iris. The musks here hug the skin like bias-cut white silk, subtly creamy rather than ‘laundry clean’, while white amber and sandalwood smooth and warm. Wonderful!
From £215 for 50ml eau de parfum guerlain.com
Perfumer and founder Sonia Constant adores using musks – and fascinatingly also describes composing with them as like the way a sculptor works: beginning with a mass, then discovering the shape beneath. Working from the outside, in. Here, the signature Narciso musk evolves to a whiter-than-white intensity, grounded in cedar. Think of a perfectly pressed white linen suit that stays immaculate looking but slowly takes the shape of the body beneath.
£245 for 100ml eau parfum harveynichols.com
NB Always written by humans, never AI.