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Gap is rereleasing its '90s fragrances in 2026, but don’t expect them to smell exactly like the original eaux de toilettes. Before we get into our first impressions of the new scents, we need to talk about what the original scents meant to fragrance lovers in the ’90s.
Here’s some background for Gen Z: The pop culture moments of that decade had many of us defining and redefining who we were. We took quizzes in magazines to find out which hair color best matched our personalities. (I typically landed on brunette.) We were all trying to decide which Spice Girl we’d be (I was Sporty, sometimes Posh). And the starter Pokémon we chose in the new Game Boy Color games spoke volumes about who we were in 2D and IRL. (With Aries rising, I always picked Charmander.)
In beauty, it was Gap’s fragrances. The apparel brand launched its first four scents in 1994, which formally introduced us to Heaven and Grass. Dream followed in 1995, and Om arrived a year later. A leisurely walk through the mall revealed Dream girls, Heaven fans, the extra-cool Om crowd, and the nature-loving Grass group. My mother wore Grass, and because I often raided her beauty stash, I wore it too. These scents slowly disappeared off Gap shelves, but could still be found in Gap Factory Outlets.
Now, more than three decades after we first met Grass and Heaven, they’re back, along with Dream and a new addition to the lineup, Harmony. Deb Redmond, head of beauty at Gap Inc., recognizes how nostalgic this collection is for so many people, and that it couldn’t be reimagined lightly: “There is definitely an emotional foundation there,” she says. “You'll recognize that emotional connection in the new eaux de parfums, but the scents definitely have a new modernity to them that I feel is more of what the beauty customer today is really looking for.”
Tasked with bringing these fragrances to 2026 were DSM-Firminich master perfumer Honorine Blanc, who worked on the 1996 Om, and principal perfumer Nicole Mancini. Blanc brought the new Om, plus Dream and newcomer Harmony, to life, while Mancini is behind today’s Heaven and Grass.
The idea of bringing these scents back from the ’90s was years in the making, says Redmond, but once Gap had these perfumers on board, the formulations took about two years. “We didn't rush this at all,” she says, adding that the team really prioritized consumer testing. “We put [the fragrances] in front of individuals who were familiar with the scents that we had in the '90s, as well as the customers of today.” The goal, says Redmond, was to determine whether someone was an original fan or not: “Was there still that emotional connection?”
While working on these new fragrances, Blanc was very tuned into the notion of nostalgia: “It’s very important today,” she says. “Since 1996, we had COVID, a different war, we now have [better] technology, AI, a smarter consumer, huge changes. This new generation is looking for what was in the ‘90s because there was this comfort. The '90s is becoming today like the comfort, the safety,” both for people who lived the ’90s and those who were born years later.
Bringing a beloved line of fragrances from the ’90s to 2026 isn’t all warm, fuzzy feelings and rainbows, though. Of course, “Some of the original raw materials and methods from the '90s aren't used the same way now,” says Blanc. The OG Heaven, for example, used polycyclic musk, the same note behind the clean laundry smells of CKOne and The Body Shop's White Musk.
Today, “Gap isn’t using it at all,” Mancini says. “More and more, the fashion is that they're not being used in a lot of brands anymore.” Since the ’90s, multiple studies have found that polycyclic musks can be resistant to biodegradation. Stephen Nilsen, master perfumer at Givaudan, explains it’s an ingredient that’s “not being used as much due to the advent of newer musk structures with better safety, performance, and biodegradability.” Mancini’s immediate inclination was to replace it with more modern, simpler musks, ones that don’t have the same structure, “are clean, new, and perform really well,” she says.
To review the new collection, we tapped friends of Allure who are longtime fans of Gap fragrances. Most of us own eau de toilettes that are still available in Factory stores. (These will be phased out of storefronts and replaced with the new assortment.)
Courtesy of Dave Austria
As millennials who look back fondly at the ‘90s and early aughts, our instinct was to hold them up against the originals we remember. After all, is that not what people who lived during that time want from a nostalgic collection? But, while some comparison is inevitable, we made a point of experiencing each scent as the brand presents it to new customers, what Redmond describes as a “rebirth.… It’s not a revival.” Read on for our thoughts.
Courtesy of Jesa Marie Calaor
The Collection: Product Breakdown
Gap Dream Eau de Parfum
What It Is: A warm musk with notes of bergamot, jasmine, and cedarwood. To retain the original’s vibe of “a clean, white T-shirt,” perfumer Blanc added orange blossoms and more vibrant wood. “When I came to the US in 1994, Gap fragrance [had just] come to the market, and everybody was talking about the iconic Gap Dream,” Blanc says. “Gap Dream is optimism, freshness, and clean.”
Courtesy of Sable Yong
Courtesy of Jesa Marie Calaor
Sophia Panych, content director: “Dream at first spritz takes me right back to sitting on the floor in eighth grade, spritzing the last drops of my travel-size spray. I haven’t smelled the original Dream in decades, but the first time I smelled this new version on me, I was like, that's it! That’s Dream.”
Jesa Marie Calaor, senior editor: “If I were in an anime, I’d have hearts around my eyes. This iteration of Dream is deeply nostalgic and brings me back to when I was running around a Gap Outlet spraying Dream testers, trying to convince my mom to buy me one. (She did.) At first sniff, I immediately thought, That’s my Dream! But it is slightly different when put up against the EDT I have on my vanity. It’s more rounded (less sharp and metallic-y) and still feels very in-line with what I’d wear today.”
Sable Yong, contributor: “I’m surprised at how different it is from the original! I miss the metallic- aquatic kind of facet of the original that to me makes it unique, but the new version is more robust, more floral. If I am comparing it to the one from the ’90s, it almost feels like the full-fat version of the original, made a bit more dense to last.”
Gap Heaven Eau de Parfum
What It Is: “When we went back to the original and smelled it again, it was really built on a musk, but this musk had this really strong aldehyde on top, and the floral seed that I felt was very dated,” says Mancini. To update it, she added new, simple musks along with a new amber—Amberever—by DSM-Firmenich. “It's an amber that hits you on the top and stays throughout the fragrance, especially on skin.”
Mancini describes the feeling she wanted to capture as looking up at the sky in awe and wonder. (The memory it brings her back to personally was “that moment when my son was born and smelling the top of his head.”) It’s a solar vanilla with a musky feel “that’s cocooning and comforting,” but with hints of juniper for brightness and cardamom for a slight coolness. “It’s like looking at a dark sky with a few twinkling stars. It gives that vibration.”
Courtesy of Sable Yong
Courtesy of Jesa Marie Calaor
Courtesy of Marianne Mychaskiw
Calaor: “I’m not a gourmand girl, so I don’t see myself reaching for this fragrance. My nose quickly picks up the sweet note, even among the brighter ones. That said, if I smelled it on someone else, I’d find it pleasant.
“As someone who fondly remembers Heaven, which smelled like a freshly washed cotton pillowcase and a bouquet of florals, this fragrance is completely new to me. I’ll still be reaching for my original Heaven EDT, but I might leave this one to my vanilla-loving friends.”
Yong: “This is a whole new Heaven! The original Heaven was my favorite. It was a transparent turquoise in feel and color, sparklingly aquatic and misty, like a cloud, and very fresh. This new version reads very grown-up. That's not a bad thing, but it ain’t my Heaven. If you didn't tell me what this was, I would've thought, This is a pleasant floral that's more ambery, slightly powdery, even. It's a nice textural floral.
“It’s a new kinda Heaven. They should’ve named it like, Heaven 2, or Heaven INTENSE, or something.”
Marianne Mychaskiw, contributor: “I was a Heaven girl growing up and loved that white floral blend, so it’s hard not to compare the new iteration to the original, but if I were smelling this as a totally new scent, I do understand how the interpretation of the word Heaven was achieved through light, powdery notes and skin-like musks.
“It’s different, but objectively, it’s a very pretty scent. There is actually a nostalgic element that reminds me of another scent I was obsessed with back in ’99 and the early ‘00s (shoutout to [Victoria’s Secret] Dream Angels Heavenly, you classy gal). If you’re looking for a biblically accurate recreation of Heaven, the eau de toilette version is very close, and features that iconic white floral bouquet that instantly transports me back to the mall circa ’97. The 2026 version veers more fancy ’90s bombshell who is the newest neighbor at Melrose Place, clad in a white satin robe with a mean blowout.”
Gap Om Eau de Parfum
What It Is: Om has notes of ginger, incense, sandalwood, musk, and resin. “It’s mysterious and luminous at the same time,” says Blanc. Of all the fragrances in the collection, this is probably the closest to the original, she says, and she would know since she created the original. “We stayed closer to Om because it was ahead of its time,” she says, explaining that the original scent, which might have been seen as edgy in the past, would likely trend today. If Om had a moodboard, she says, it would have the Chelsea Hotel, a great bag, jeans, and a leather jacket.
Courtesy of Sable Yong
Courtesy of Jesa Marie Calaor
Calaor: “I think Om might be my new favorite. It’s a skin-scent that feels cool, clean, and ever-so-slightly sensual. Also worth noting: My partner picked up a shirt I’d spritzed this fragrance onto the other day, and told me it smelled so good.”
Yong: “I remember the original being quite polarizing: the “boy” scent, in that it was devoid of any obvious feminine details like flowers or fruits. This is a kind of nice, warm musk and a little less spicy than its predecessor. It feels more balanced. I remember the original feeling ‘cold,’ and this has a resinous, nectar-y quality to me that makes it more golden and warm. I like it.”
Mychaskiw: “If you’re a fan of the original Om, you’d probably be into this version. And while it’s different from the original, I guess I’d consider it more of an evolution, like if the cool ’90s grunge kid grew up, got a 401k, and expanded their fragrance palate, but still plays the same Nirvana vinyls that they’ve held onto for decades, albeit on a very nice record player. It has a sweeter note at the base, whereas the previously released eau de toilette veered more spicy with a little incense once it totally developed.”
Gap Grass Eau de Parfum
What It Is: Grass is perhaps the most different from its original scent. “The first one was more about being outdoors, a fresh-cut lawn,” says Mancini. “For this scent, I wanted to convey wellness and well-being, like nature as therapy.”
She kept some fresh greens, but toned them down: “I tried to use the mandarin essence as the feeling of sunshine on top; if you're outside and feeling that glow and you're basking in it. But I also wanted to have a moment where I could explore green notes, not just the ones that are fresh and leafy.” Mancini also highlights the addition of matcha, which she says “feels meditative and feels like a moment for yourself.”
Courtesy of Sable Yong
Courtesy of Jesa Marie Calaor
Calaor: “I love matcha scents and how they can be fresh but also full-bodied. That’s the first thing I smell in this fragrance. It’s definitely a very green scent and is more dynamic than the original, which smelled just like a freshly cut lawn. Still, it evokes the feeling of being outside in nature.
“It is very different from the Grass of yore. It doesn’t make me think of my mom spritzing on the scent in front of her vanity. It’s a new scent, one that's still very fresh and pretty.”
Yong: “I didn't really wear [’90s] Grass, but I appreciated the artistry of it smelling like the thing that it’s called. Give me grass with dirt, wet grass, morning grass with dew on it. But to change it to green tea is like, whoa, that's a completely different concept.
“This has a very zesty, green tea freshness, which is very nice. I just feel like they should have called it green tea and that would've been more satisfying.”
Gap Harmony Eau de Parfum
What It Is: Harmony is an effervescent, fruity floral and a completely new addition to the collection, though it smells like the early aughts. “I wanted to create a fragrance that is an explosion of happiness,” says Blanc, who combined a juicy apricot note with mandarin and three floral notes: gardenia, jasmine (one that leans cleaner and less animalic), and tuberose (to anchor the bouquet).
Courtesy of Sable Yong
Courtesy of Jesa Marie Calaor
Courtesy of Marianne Mychaskiw
Calaor: “This is so bright and juicy. It’s a smack in the face with fruity notes. It’s giving early 2000s MTV Spring Break. All I want to do is head to the mall and shop for a trip to the beach.”
Yong: “Oh my gosh, [Gap's] So Pink walked so Harmony could run! It's very juicy. It reads kind of like a mall scent to me; very now through the lens of nostalgia for the Y2K fruity-floral era. It's peppy, effervescent. Clinique Happy is shaking in its boots.”
Mychaskiw: “Harmony is a very happy, fun scent. I think it fits into the 2026 collection, while also being nostalgic to me in the way that smelling Bath and Body Works’s Sun Ripened Raspberry is nostalgic. I was very much a Dream and Heaven girl growing up, but this was my favorite of the 2026 run, and I could see myself liking this back in the ‘90s as well as today. It’s a fruit-forward blend that's easy to wear, especially in the summer, and would smell good on just about everyone.”
