If powdery florals and sweet scents don't do it for you, Sarah Jessica Parker's vintage-y 'suede' perfume definitely warrants a spritz - especially as autumn approaches.
When it comes to investing in a new long-lasting perfume, discovering which olfactory families you gravitate towards and, perhaps more importantly, the ones you don't, is key to finding a true forever-favourite. In Sarah Jessica Parker's case, her scent match did not lie in the popular floral fragrances on the market, nor the gourmands, but amongst the softer, spicier genre. And more specifically still, in a certain French maison's collection.
In an interview with British Vogue, the actress shared that her signature is actually one of the best Diptyque perfumes. A blend inspired by sand dunes and infused with smooth, leathery notes that really linger. A point this beauty writer can also attest to, as it's part of my scent collection too.
Notes: leather, iris, cedar core and raspberry
Warm, smoky and ever-so-soft, Diptyque's Eau Rihla is a celebration of woods and spices. It marries pink peppercorn with saffron, leather and delicate iris, layering them over a woody base of cedar to envelop its wearer in both luxury and closeness. It does open with quite a strong punch of leather, but it really softens on the skin, revealing those sophisticated spices.
In the Vogue Asks column of the September 2026 issue, Parker was quizzed about her signature scent, which she revealed to be Diptyque's Eau Rihla. She said, "It smells like really good suede that's soft and thin - like a coin purse from 1971 with a snap closure."
She added that it's not a conventionally 'feminine' scent, noting that it's not a floral fragrance or a sweet vanilla-y blend, which is what she prefers in her fragrances. Instead, it opens with a spicy trail of pink peppercorn and saffron, before softening into notes of iris, leather and warming cedarwood.
Parker has actually spoken about preferring more woodier, unisex perfumes before. She told Who What Wear in 2023 that she is also a fan of Guerlain Vétiver: "It's a men's fragrance that has now been around for, what, 15-plus years?"
As for her Diptyque go-to, its name 'Rihla' means journey in Arabic, with the blend having been inspired by travels through deserts and explorations of ancient cities. And as someone who actually owns this very scent, I would recommend it to those who gravitate towards oud, musk and spicy perfumes. I can definitely see what Parker means by it smelling like suede; there's a smooth, textural quality to it, as well as this alluring closeness and warmth.
I find it to be a very familiar sort of fragrance - the smell reminds me of vintage leather jackets, wooden furniture and spiced, smoking candles. It therefore makes for such a chic autumn perfume, or wintery blend, though, like the Sex And The City star, you can wear it year-round too - such is its timeless appeal.
