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Beyond iconic 00s nostalgia fragrances that still serve today
It's time to smell Y2K and complete your aesthetic
I would just like to start by saying that writing this has brought me more joy than you can imagine. The world of 00s fragrance was a magical time. Yes, the classics were there, and the cool understated 90s offering too, but the defining y2k launches were OTT, playful, unapologetically pink and with endless character. I love the complex, mature and quiet-luxury offering we have today, I thank the change makers that said; "We are not your grandma's 'grown up' fragrance." I love unisex fragrance, mould-breaking fragrance, fragrance that centres on what smells good to women rather than what's deemed sexy to men. I love the perfume industry now. But the intoxicating era of y2k fragrance will always have a place in my heart. So when I saw how many beyond iconic Y2K fragrances were getting their flowers, I pitched this instantly with my whole heart (note).
What better time for a walk down memory lane than when you can get 100ml of Britney Spears Fantasy for £15 BRITISH POUNDS, with a huge *squeals in 2005* 52% off. At the time of writing these are all at least 50% off on Amazon. Wanna bag some other serious bargains? See all the live deals Amazon’s Spring Spring Sale has in store right here.
Everyone is dressing Y2K, home decor is going Y2K, we're rewatching the tv shows (hello, Big Brother is back!), the makeup is back; so if you aren't already smelling Y2K? Why not hun?
Studded with Swarovski crystals and boxed in a print we'd recognise anywhere. Notes like lychee, kiwi, chocolate and 'yummy cupcake', are so Y2K, but the sweetness is grounded with its musk base and fresh jasmine.
Launched in 2006 this perfume was more than a fragrance, it was a coming together of souls. Fantasy girls were fun but grown up, sweet but cool. On some level we thought we'd grow out of the perfume, graduate to some intimidating golden bottle once we were old and like, 25. But do you know how many people never stopped wearing this scent? It's still a consistent bestseller nearly 20 years on and is widely respected as a quality scent.
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lopez Glow Eau De Toilette Spray, (100ml)
Launched in 2005 we could not care less if this smelt awful (though it's actually really delish). This bottle is ART for your bedroom shelf. Was then, is now. The ease with which the bottle is so unquestionably a body, without even trying, JPG is shaking.
JLo's signature scent is meant to be 'fresh out the shower' skin smell, and really leans in to classic time-tested notes, with fruity top notes of orange flower, grapefruit and citrus, confidence-boosting heart notes of rose, sandalwood and amber, and sensual base notes of jasmine, vanilla, musk, and orris. She grown.
Juicy Couture Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy Eau de Parfum (100ml)
She's a little more rebellious than her Fantasy sister, growing up this girl ditched Barbie's for Bratz the minute she saw them in the Argos catalogue. And though this was a pricier young fragrance option when it launched in 2008, she's used to getting her own way.
Naturally it's Juicy... duh. The flirty fragrance is 'gourmet floral' and you're first taken by notes of wild berries and juicy mandarin. A good girl at heart – literally – the heart notes encompass a floral blend of honeysuckle, gardenia and jasmine. While she tells you who she is with the warm and rich base notes described as; "A gourmet rhapsody of amber, caramel, vanilla, sandalwood and pralines." Which basically translates as... 'Bite me'
Another 2006 offering, this fragrance was for those 00s girls that were a little more timeless. The girly girls, the dreamers, and the girls who never tried to be popular but were automatically in that gang because they were so pretty and smelt damn good. I don't make the rules.
Magical, mystical and fearless, this reclaimed princess as a power move. We would never usually do this but honestly you need to read the brand's own description of the fragrance. I really hope this poet laureate was handsomely remunerated.
"The scent sparkles with the captivating, sweet, tart aroma of delicate lady apples and dreamy water lily kissed lightly by golden apricot and mandarin meringue. This sweeps into a heart of ripe pink guava and the rare, coveted tahitian tiare flower, wild tuberose and dark chocolate. In the base, tempting vanilla chiffon and pink frosting are combined with precious amber and forbidden woods to wrap the fragrance in a mysterious air."
Literature.
Launched in 2005, my best friend got a job on the perfume counter in a fancy independent department store in 2009 (I called her the spritzer girl), where they had a blanket ban on celeb fragrances... except Sarah Jessica Parker. This was enough to forever denote this as classy AF to me, and spectacular enough to overcome scent prejudice.
Charming and glamorous with notes of white amber, citrus, lavender and musk, the wearer of this took their fashion cues from SATC and post-makeover Andy Saks in The Devil Wears Prada. The 00s wasn't all bimbo-fabulous.
Elena Chabo is Cosmopolitan UK's former beauty writer, working on everything from buzzy celeb news and trending beauty, to sincere first-person reviews and engaging video content for social media. She also creates meatier features and expert-led how-to guides, for print and online. Her passion for Black beauty, textured hair, and the ways beauty interacts with culture, society, identity and relationships, quickly took over her writing career and led her into beauty journalism. Following an MA in Magazine Journalism in 2017, she cut her teeth across various roles at Stylist Magazine, before taking on a Digital Writer role at Good Housekeeping. It was here that beauty took centre stage and she launched and ran the site's first stand-alone beauty section. Remaining at Hearst, she joined the Cosmo beauty team in 2022. Find her on LinkedIn.
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