TANAÏS Handcrafted Perfumes & Beauty -Inspired by Heritage, Storytelling, and Nature

Handcrafted Perfumes and Beauty Rooted in Heritage and Storytelling

TANAÏS is a Brooklyn-based indie perfume house founded by Tanwi Nandini, a South Asian American artist and writer whose work sits at the intersection of scent, memory, and cultural identity. Every fragrance is handcrafted in small batches, formulated as extrait de parfum or perfume oil for maximum concentration and longevity, and inspired by specific places, rituals, and ancestral stories. TANAÏS is not a lifestyle brand. It is a literary one, and the difference is felt from the first spray.

Signature Extrait de Parfums and Perfume Oils

Nåmaka is the brand's best-selling tropical floral, built around tiare flowers, coconut milk, jasmine sambac, and oceanic notes, inspired by the Hawaiian goddess of the sea. Matí is an ode to ancestral Bengal, centered on rare Ganges mitti attar (the scent of monsoon-soaked clay), rose, betel leaf, and cocoa. Heart Chakra blends tuberose, jasmine, ginger, neroli, and ruh kewda in a cannabis-inspired composition drawn from a Hawaiian wedding ceremony. Cosmic is a narcotic white floral dreamscape of jasmine, patchouli, benzoin, and fossilized amber. Lovers Rock is a warm gourmand of tonka bean, bourbon vanilla, sandalwood, and spiced tobacco. Mojave captures the high desert with palo santo, wild white sage, eucalyptus, leather, and oud. Sándalo centers rare Royal Hawaiian and Mysore sandalwood with silver cedar and volcanic ash. Mala evokes a sacred temple garland: rose, carnation, marigold, incense, saffron, and henna. Pilgrimage traces the Ganges River from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal through temple flowers, mitti attar, and saffron. Nymphaea is a minimalist aquatic meditation on water lotus, lily, sandalwood, and saltwater. Ancients is a coastal forest fougere of redwood, cypress, fir, fog, soil, and fern.

All extraits are available in 30ml and 50ml concentrations. Select fragrances are also available as perfume oils for a softer, skin-close application.

Beauty and Candles

TANAÏS extends its storytelling into beauty with a range of high-pigment lipsticks in embossed gold vessels, including the Heart Chakra Mood Change Lip Stain, a green-to-pink color-shifting formula, and a healing Vitamin E Lip Balm. The candle collection brings the same fragrance compositions into the home, with the Heart Chakra, Mojave, Ancients, Lovers Rock, Nåmaka, and Bay of Bengal candles each offering a 50-hour burn time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is extrait de parfum?
Extrait de parfum is the most concentrated form of fragrance, typically containing 20 to 40 percent aromatic compounds compared to 15 to 20 percent in eau de parfum. TANAÏS extraits are designed to last all day with a single application and evolve significantly on the skin over time.

What makes TANAÏS different from other indie perfume brands?
TANAÏS fragrances are rooted in specific cultural narratives, places, and ancestral memory rather than generic mood or lifestyle concepts. The founder's background as a writer and South Asian American artist shapes every composition, making each scent a form of storytelling as much as perfumery.

How do I choose a TANAÏS fragrance?
Start with the story. Each TANAÏS scent is named and described around a specific place, ritual, or memory. If you are drawn to tropical florals, begin with Nåmaka. For earthy, grounding scents, Matí or Pilgrimage. For warm gourmands, Lovers Rock. For desert and smoke, Mojave. For aquatic minimalism, Nymphaea.

Explore our full Perfumes and Essential Oils collection, browse our Into the Mystic collection, or discover more Clean Beauty at Nanaka.