If there’s anything I’ve learned in my fledgling beauty career, it’s that fragrance does so much more than just smell good. Not to pull a Miranda Priestly, but that oud perfume you selected because it “smells like fall” contains a hero ingredient that predates the Roman Empire by more than 1000 years—a good-as-gold liquid that enhanced religious rituals and evidenced royalty. 

You see, fragrance has depth that other beauty categories can barely wade in—with roots in ancient medicinal practices that tangle with folklore and witchcraft. To put it plainly, it goes so much further than chic packaging. When fragrance is done right, it’s designed with intention: to enhance your aura, your outfit, and, in the best-case scenario, your innermost sense of well-being. At least, that’s the philosophy that Australian fashion industry maven-turned-fragrance connoisseur Yasmin Sewell, founder of the neuroscience-backed fragrance brand, Vyrao, abides by.

“It’s all about energy and intention,” Sewell tells Who What Wear. “Vyrao blends time-honoured ingredients and healing traditions with modern neuroscience, harnessing the power of plants and flowers.” The brand’s motto is to create beautiful things that don’t just look and smell gorgeous, but deliver on something deeper. “Neuroscents,” they’re called. “Each fragrance is a multisensory experience. … They feel transformative, thoughtful, and deeply personal,” she adds. Sewell balanced a career in fashion with her interests in holistic health and spirituality, which later inspired a professional overhaul after 25 years. “I left my last job in fashion in 2018, went through some personal life changes, and decided it was time to channel everything I love and know into one thing, which became Vyrao.”

If you’re anything like me, some of your favorite acts of self-care are whispered prayers over lit candles, tarot readings with friends, and crystals charging in the moonlight that washes over your windowsill. These fragrances, charged by a “white witch” of the perfume world, were made for people like us. Oh, and they smell really good, too.

What is Vyrao?

Fragrance has, quite noticeably, become one of the most profitable beauty categories over the last few years. According to a June 2025 article published on a consumer insights website, Circana, perfume sales have shot up 31% since 2024—with potent formulas like eau de parfums leading the charge. Perfumery is no doubt an act of chemistry, but what on earth constitutes a fragrance as neuroscience-backed?

Vyrao’s lead perfumer, Meabh McCurtin, is referred to endearingly as a “white witch” in her industry for her scent synaesthesia. She aids Sewell in selecting which accords are used to create these wellness-inspired elixirs, but even with her PhD in molecular science, there is a larger game of intelligence at play. These neuroscents are created via a specialized program with the IFF Science of Wellness, a bioscience solutions and innovation company that puts the arithmetic behind the aroma.

“These neuroscientific methods are used to objectively and scientifically measure brain activities associated with different emotional states coming from experiencing certain fragrance ingredients or the fragrance itself,” explains Céline Manetta, IFF’s global human and consumer insights innovation group lead. “In this program, we solicit consumers’ 'conscious’ perception of the emotions, measure brain activities from scent experience, and use an IFF proprietary AI-based tool to identify the best ingredients or combination of ingredients driving a specific emotion, like energy or relaxation,” she explains. Afterwards, these ingredients are then edited down by selected by McCurtin “according to her creative intention.”

It helps that each full-sized bottle of Vyrao fragrances has a small, supercharged Herkimer diamond crystal swimming around in the elixir, which amplifies the energy of your perfume. Ahead, the three neuroscents I favored for creativity, mindfulness, and joy—and of course, the compliments they earned."

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