Issue 002 | Scented Serenity

Scent has always been an intrinsic part of my daily routine—so much so that I can’t sleep without spritzing particular perfumes that help me unwind after a long day. I’ve curated my fragrance wardrobe to match different activities and outfits, and incense burns in my room at least once a day (though my doctor warns me to be mindful for the sake of my lungs). Unconsciously, I’ve come to associate places and people with the scents I’ve encountered. It’s an experience that, while verging on cliché, is deeply personal, calming, and rich with meaning.

For this issue, I wanted to tap into that deeper connection with scent. I spoke to those who understand fragrance as more than just a luxury but as an integral part of everyday life. Haisam Mohammed, the visionary behind the fragrance brand Unifrom™, shares his self-care rituals. Fragrance creative Rawya Catto offers a guide to understanding how scent interacts with our bodies on a chemical level. We’ve also highlighted a few local events where you can experiment with creating your own fragrance, exploring the joy that comes with it.

So I hope you find this as insightful and enjoyable as we did.

Happy reading, and until next week,

Rand Al Hadethi

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Haisam Mohammed, the man behind the Swedish fragrance brand, Unifrom™, founded his brand to challenge conventional views of perfume by breaking away from traditional botanical fragrances.The fragrance brand focuses on perfume oils, which are a concentrated, alcohol-free alternative to traditional sprays. Unlike sprays, which can dry out the skin and leave a strong scent trail, perfume oils have a moisturising effect and release scent gradually with body heat. This allows the fragrance to last longer and be more subtle, while giving you better control over its intensity.

Since its launch in 2020, Unifrom™ has been transforming the way consumers perceive scent, moving beyond conventional fragrance notes, and has quickly gained international recognition.

The 27-year-old fragrance designer sits with HABAYTAT to share his his favourite self-care practices and wellness routine.

• What is your relationship with the concept of self-care?

I used to think that self-care was something I would start 'doing' when I got older, not something I deserved while I was still young. However, my mindset has changed as I've noticed my energy and health aren't what they used to be. Now, I take self-care more seriously and practice it regularly.

• Any self-care advice you can offer readers?

Haha, I think I could use some advice from the readers instead! Since I'm just beginning to focus on taking care of myself outside of work, my best advice would be to start practicing self-care as soon as it crosses your mind. Don’t dismiss it or feel like you don’t deserve it right now.

• How do you create a work-life balance, especially when deeply involved in a project?

I'm happy that I've found a life project with Unifrom™ that I'm passionate about and that allows me to live my best life. What works best for me is to separate work and personal life. When I'm deeply involved in a project, I let it take up all of my time. After completing a project, I return to a healthier balance, spending more time with family and friends.

• What is your ideal/favourite way of starting your day?

Tea, tea, tea! I'm the biggest tea drinker and would choose it over anything else in the world.

• Hobbies or interests that help you recharge?

I had the ambition to become really skilled at horseback riding. I took a few lessons and felt that I had the potential, but a combination of my allergies and time constraints kept me from continuing. Still, I would love to own a horse one day.

• What are your go-to activities or rituals for unwinding after a long work day?

Our office is in the center of Stockholm, and I live on the outskirts. I love to unwind by walking through the city as far as I can towards home. I enjoy seeing how far I can go before getting too tired and needing to hop on the metro. Stockholm is amazing in the summer, and it's always nice to bump into friends along the way, chat for a minute, and then continue my walk.

• Any fitness-related activities that keep you energised?

I have many friends who became obsessed with working out and felt the need to go to the gym every morning to feel good and be productive. Because of this, I developed a theory that I shouldn't start working out because I didn't want to become addicted to it, especially since I currently function fine without regular exercise. Of course, this is a bit of a strange thought, and I realize that I would probably feel even better if I incorporated training into my routine.

• What are you reading/watching/listening to these days?

I just listen to Jazz and RnB all day. 

• Do you have a skin-care routine? If so, what are your top 3 favourite products and why? 

I usually go with whatever my wife recommends, but one skincare brand I discovered on my own is Melyon. It's a brand that specifically addresses the unique conditions often associated with darker complexions.

• Are there any beauty or self-care products that help you combat fatigue?

Is tea considered a self-care product yet?

• Do you ever use candles or incense to relax? If so, what are your favourites?

Yes, I use both candles and incense to relax. In fact, that's why some of the first products I developed were incense and candles. My favorite incense is 'The Sweetest Taboo' from Unifrom™, which I light for 30 minutes a day. It’s not a heavy incense but rather a modern take on the traditional scent.

How to choose, layer, and make it last - even during long Middle Eastern summers.

HABAYTAT speaks with Rawya Catto, a creative with extensive experience in fragrance design and currently the General Manager CPL Aromas. Catto works behind the scenes at the fragrance design house that creates the scents for different brands—from perfumes to home fragrances like candles, reed diffusers, and air fresheners.

Here’s a break down with everything you need to know when it comes to building your personal fragrance palette.

• On creating a fragrance personality:

I love the idea of a fragrance personality. Especially in this part of the world, you see dress codes of traditional wear in the GCC: women tend to wear abayas and shaylas, albeit in different colors with a distinct look and feel, while men wear white kandoras. In a region with a codified society, fragrance helps you tell the world who you are. I think it's important to realise your fragrance personality and fragrance wardrobe evolve with you. So whether your perfume is for daytime or evening, playful or moody, we tend to match the scents we wear to our emotions or occasions.

• Matchmaking scents & skin:

You have to try the perfumes when it comes to scents that match your skin. Often, the salesperson will give you a perfume sprayed on a smelling strip/paper blotter in a store. So, something that smells nice in the store will never smell the same on you! So many things will affect how it smells, from your skin to temperature and hormones. As a rule of thumb, never buy a fragrance you have only tried in a store; try it on your skin, see how it performs, and really live with it. Also, see what compliments you get because often you can no longer smell a fragrance on yourself, but others will.

Understanding that all fragrances are composed of a fragrance triangle, a fragrance evolves based on the ingredients, and the triangle breaks this down. The top notes are the top of the triangle; these are what hook you; they're the identity of the scent, usually light or citrusy. The top then develops into the heart, usually florals or spices and more lasting notes. Then, after a few hours, what is left is the dry down, which are usually resins and heavier, long-lasting ingredients. So always wait a few hours to go on the whole fragrance journey with a scent to decide whether you like each level.

• Signature scent vs building a scent profile:

A younger me would have said I am not loyal to any scent; I like to have the freedom to explore and try anything and everything. Yet, with time, I think we all discover what we want and hone into fragrance types that we feel resonate with us a little more – like we all find our own fragrance frequency. Historically, I loved white florals like jasmine and orange blossom, which have big feminine floral scents. With time, I no longer find them to resonate with who I am today because we grow with life experiences that change us a little. So, I think our scent profile spontaneously gets created for us.

Daytime, nighttime, and seasons—just go with your gut and how you feel in the moment. It's like the last step of getting dressed in the morning: choosing your clothes according to how you feel or want to feel; it's how we choose a fragrance, too.

For me, there's nothing worse than being a one-fragrance person. Generationally, our parents used to be into one signature. Now, we're multi-faceted, multi-cultural, multi-lifestyle, so it feels like a waste to stick to just one.

• Adjusting scent routine based on seasons:

We all have an adjustment to our fragrance choices based on the season, whether we're aware of it or not. Instinctively, in this part of the world, people will talk about a winter or summer scent, which would be considered very different from the summer scent in the West. In winter here, with slightly cooler weather, people opt for heavier ouds, woodier scents, and more intense ambers. Whereas in summer, we still need that hint of freshness so citrusy; it's 45 degrees, so we still have something long-lasting. That's where layering and creating a scent routine that works for you comes in.

• On scent layering:

I don't like the idea of saying how to do things, especially regarding fragrance; it's extremely difficult. Whether it's a shower gel, body oil, lotion, body mist, glitter, or spray, it's about what makes you feel good. Having said that, it makes sense to try not to have scents that clash, like lavender that's aromatic and fresh wouldn't compliment a sweet, fruity, candy scent. I prefer to think in textures when it comes to layering, so hydrating skin after a shower with a body lotion, then with an oil or hair mist, or even bakhoor, becomes a sensory experience where you find what works for you.

When using heavier notes that have a lot of character, like Oud and Amber, it's important to bring in accents and facets when layering. For example, using a powerful oud oil with a fresh scent is a good option, as the oud lasts all day, and you can refresh throughout the day with the lighter fragrance.  

• Layering with body lotions or oils:

Layering body lotions, oils, and even scented waters are definitely part of the scented routine of Middle Eastern consumers. When you talk about body lotions and oils, they act like a primer to your makeup; they help the scent stick a little longer and have more depth and dimension – it's a fun way to modify your fragrance a little. There's a TikTok trend that my daughter has been doing now, which is to apply Vaseline to the skin and apply fragrance on top. It's good, but it can be done in other ways. Experiment and have fun with scented body lotions and oils to enhance or modify your perfumes.

• Scent layering myth: 

I know it's a myth in the Arab world, but skin doesn't influence layering. Oily, combination and dry skin are normally linked to the face, where of course we shouldn't apply perfume. What influences layering is the smell of your skin, temperature and your overall state of being.

• On mood-boosting fragrance:

Fragrance can boost your mood! For centuries, people have been tapping into aromatherapy, but now science is catching up with intuition. Here at CPL, we love innovation, and we've been looking into how fragrance can influence your mood and emotions. So, we have created a fragrance technology called AromaWellness. Amazingly, it understands the effect fragrance has on moods, feelings, and even the correlation between nostalgic childhood scents and how they create a physiological happy response in the body.

The research for this is in the early stages. It's proven that perfume is intrinsically linked to the emotional part of the brain, which can conjure up a specific moment in time, so why not particular emotions? Now, there is research into the neuroscience elements of this, too. What was once a sensorial and holistic experience reserved for things like massages to promote relaxation is now being taken to new levels, and it's so exciting to know we have AromaWellness to see how far this can go!

• Making a scent last:

By default, people in the region tend to use more fragrance per capita, with seven to eight scents bought per person per year. Consumers here use a lot of fragrance, often with higher concentrations and longer-lasting ingredients like amber.

• Where to apply:

I'd say the well-known pulse points first. For longevity, apply on the clothes or the hair too, as with movement, this creates a beautiful scent trail.

• Any last words?

Don't be afraid to experiment – there are no rules. Play and have fun!

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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Newsletter Design: Desirée Barreto

Editorial Coordinator: Hajir Zaidan