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Sun-warmed mandarin steps into the spotlight and dares the room to look away.

Red shiso adds a sharp green edge, while ginseng brings a rooted, herbal warmth that feels calm and certain. Then fire camellia unfolds in full bloom, tangled with tart omija tea, elegant and electric at once. Underneath, Jeju volcanic ash lends a cool mineral strength, the steady ground beneath all that shine. Later, bokbunja wine pours out its dark berry sweetness, and cherry lipgloss gives everything a glossy, playful gleam. Hanji paper settles last, soft as a handwritten page kept safe for years.

It wears like beauty turned into armor and glamour worn as courage, made for anyone who has ever decided to be seen on their own terms.

KST Scent is a Korean-American fragrance house based in the United States, crafting perfumes that weave Korean culture, queer identity, and personal memories into scent-driven stories.

As part of LV1 Studio, its fragrances reinterpret Vietnamese and Korean heritage through a queer, contemporary lens, translating New Year traditions, modern Korean queer culture, and nightlife into olfactive experiences.

The brand is LGBT-owned, created by Vietnamese American perfumer James Nguyen and his partner, Korean creative director Kael Jeong, whose shared backgrounds ground KST Scent’s lineup in emotionally vivid, culturally rooted perfumes rather than conventional luxury tropes.