Whatever your decade, relive it with the help of these nostalgic scents.

1980s

The last few years have seen the return of velour and voluminous shoulder pads to the catwalks; upbeat synthpop tracks are once again taking over music charts, and nostalgia-fuelled TV shows like Stranger Things are a hit with Millennials and Gen Z alike. Following suit,’80s fragrances have also made a big comeback — causing us to sub our subtle floral spritzes for something a little more bodacious. “Fragrance was loud and strong in the ’80s,” says Thierry Wasser, master perfumer at Guerlain. “I guess it was a way to let one’s freak flag fly. And I’m not ashamed to say the ’80s were fun.” The decade’s first ode to excess, Yves Saint Laurent Opium, was almost banned as some claimed it glamourised drug use (which, of course, made it all the more popular). And  although its modern interpretation YSL Black Opium bears little resemblance to the fruity-spicy original, it brings the same audacious punch that keeps it consistently among the UK’s top 10 bestsellers. It’s a douser, too: spray big or go home.

1990s

The ’90s bore witness to some weird and wonderful aesthetics: keyhole cut-outs and oversized cargo pants were the look du jour, while having bleach highlights in your hair determined where you stood on the ‘cool’ scale. And yet, the top mementos of the decade — including its most iconic scents, like CK One by Calvin Klein — are once again the focus of our Instagram and TikTok feeds, taking us back to the era of Spice Girls, Furbies and the Macarena. Launched in 1994 at the height of the supermodel mania (yep, we all remember that black and white Kate Moss ad) it was the first fragrance made for everyone — men and women, suit-sporting grown-ups and denim-clad under-30s. And sure enough, everyone wore it: to the point that a single spray of this sexy citrus floral today is enough to remind us of our high school prom or first crush. As ’90s trends return, what better time to channel Kylie and ‘step back in time’ with the CK One and CK Everyone Duo for the ultimate nostalgia trip? ‘Cool’ status guaranteed.

2000s

As the post-Y2K era made way for social media, smart phones and the Kardashians, we never thought we’d ever see Ugg boots, low-cut jeans and baby blue eyeshadow again. But as Justin Timberlake predicted, ‘what goes around always comes back around’ — and today, we’re right in the midst of an all-out Noughties obsession spanning our playlists, wardrobes and scent collections alike. If you owned at least one celebrity fragrance or remember when Alien by Thierry Mugler first hit the counters, now’s the time to bring back those sweet-scented elixirs. According to Jonny Webber from perfumedirect.com, “many of the most popular fragrances from this decade really epitomise the fun, carefree and opulence of the era — from celebrity scents, fashion brands-turned-perfumers and  sweet, playful fruity fragrances that take us back to a more innocent time.” A time before Facebook and iPads; imagine. Marc Jacobs Daisy, Versace Pour Homme and Rabanne 1 Million capture the spirit of the decade with playfully unique concoctions housed in even more eye-grabbing flacons — but for a true ’00s celeb fragrance revival, go straight for the Sarah Jessica Parker Lovely Collection containing four iterations of the best-selling 2005 ‘Lovely’ scent.

2010s

In a decade defined by Beyonce’s Lemonade, Lady Gaga’s eccentric outfits and the early days of Instagram, it’s not surprising that our olfactory tastes took an individualistic turn. Gone were the days where one blockbuster scent could steal all the spotlight, or where a celebrity name was enough to give it mass appeal. Bigger budgets, louder campaigns and the prestige of luxury fashion houses meant fragrances could make a statement — giving us endless ways to express our personality with bolder, more adventurous spritzes. Whether it’s the perfectly tailored Tom Ford Neroli Portofino, the show-stopping Carolina Herrera Good Girl or the forever free-spirited notes of Chloé Eau de Parfum, the way to wear these 2010s scents is to style them like a designer accessory. As Christian Dior often said, “perfume is the finishing touch to a dress”; and the sheer choice of mixes born out of this era means that whatever your age, style or music taste you can wear your fragrance your way. And if you’re on your 20th bottle of a 1979 oldie like Ralph Lauren Polo Green? That’s also perfectly okay.