For Strange Women is an all-female artisan perfume house in the US Midwest. We source plant-derived aromatics from around the world to create 100% botanical perfume. Our collection is designed to create an experience that is beyond sensory aesthetics; conjuring memories from natural landscapes, objects, and atmospheres remembered deep within the subconscious.
While mainstream culture presents fragrance as a cosmetic to conceal other scents or to make us more attractive, our perfume is intended to serve as a connection to nature and sensory ritual. We find perfume to be gender-less and feel that the scent signature of our skin should be complemented, not hidden. Their design is to be worn as a mood-enhancing indulgence and source of inspiration.
Our perfume does not contain harmful phthalates or propellants to artificially extend the longevity and silage. As a result, these scents meld with the skin and evolve as each layer reveals itself throughout the 4+ hours of wear. The experience is more subtle than synthetic perfumes but with fuller nuance and complexity. The FSW perfume style is unapologetically earthy and full-bodied, comprised of exquisite materials that larger perfume brands rarely use due to their expense and limited availability. The quality of these raw materials is essential to Jill’s process of designing rare and opulent compositions.
We find distilled essential oils, resins, and plant extracts to be more satisfying to the senses and artful in their manufacture. Our physiology has evolved to understand the messages contained in these plant molecules on an intuitive level and our emotions respond to this language. These perfumes are beyond "clean" and natural -- they are the wild and sublime spirits of the earth.

The Crew

Jill - Owner and Perfumer
I created For Strange Women in 2009 while working as a designer and photographer. These disciplines were self-taught (and with great mentors), and all borrowed insight from my previous work and degree in music and video production. My perfume style can be described as earthy, moody, and comforting. I specialize in natural materials and concepts that strike strange and nostalgic chords. I continue to own, formulate, and direct the brand while working with this inspiring crew of women.
Cats: Onyx and Ruby. Sun: Cancer.

Tara - Production Manager and Customer Service
Tara has been with FSW since 2012. She assembles packaging, mixes batches of perfume and lip balm, processes orders and manages customer service. She is unmatched in her eye for detail and her aesthetic influence is intricately woven into each bottle. She's also an exquisite jewelry maker.
Cat: Nicholas. Sun: Capricorn.

Ash - Designer and Illustrator
Ash joined FSW in 2016 upon finishing her Illustration degree at the Kansas City Art Institute. Her dark and delicate aesthetic has a following of its own as it interprets the magic elements of nature. Based in Chicago, she works at a design firm while illustrating coloring books, studying Ikebana, and of course, keeping FSW sexy.
Cats: Fig and Jasper. Sun: Capricorn.

Jenn - Order Fulfillment and Production
Jenn was the first to join FSW in 2010 to assist in production and order fulfillment. She left to travel, grow her work as a photographer, and to become a mother, eventually finding her way back to the new perfume studio in 2021. Jenn "the machine" is known to be able to pack 200 orders before lunch. She also keeps us organized.
Cats: Frida, Clove. Sun: Cancer