I Tried Sol de Janeiro’s New Cheirosa 48 Body Mist

Summer—the season itself and the more abstract idea of summer—is Sol de Janeiro’s thing. The brand was built on the feeling of the sun on your skin as you relax on the Brazilian sand. Even its name, Sol de Janeiro, is a reference to the sun; the sun is at its highest in Brazil in January, so even if it’s cold and snowy where you live, you can slather on some of their Brazilian Bum Bum Cream and pretend you’re on the beach.

The Sol de Janeiro product lineup keeps expanding, and while the original Cheirosa 62 fragrance of the Brazilian Bum Bum Cream is definitely most synonymous with the brand—it reigns supreme at Sephora for sun seekers of all ages—the other scents in the line are also worth a sniff. This summer, Sol de Janeiro wants us to take a luxurious vacation to Rio with their latest launch, the Cheirosa 48 Body Mist. Ahead, everything you need to know, plus our honest review.

The Scent

Cheirosa 48 is named after one very special year: 1948, when the very first bikini made its debut on the Ipanema beach. The scent is meant to convey the feeling of the first day of a sunny vacation: you’ve unpacked your bags, put on your swimsuit, and now you’re ready for the pool and a fruity frozen cocktail.

Cheirosa 48 Perfume Mist comes housed in a hot pink translucent plastic bottle, which makes a lot of sense given that this fragrance smells pink—but this is Malibu Barbie, not President Barbie. At the top, juicy guava notes sparkle on a river of light, sweet coconut water before quickly fading into a warm, plush heart of orchid and musk swirled with rich vanilla. Like all Sol de Janeiro scents, the gourmand vibes are strong; Cheirosa 48 feels lickable in the best sense of the word. ”Cheirosa” does mean “to smell incredibly delicious,” after all.

“To capture the vacation aesthetic, I turned to uplifting top notes like lemon zest and pink pepper, then added bold florals with a very gourmand back: cotton candy, vanilla, and musks,” perfumer Jérôme Epinette said of his inspo. “This bottles up the truly joyful, feel-good spirit of a getaway.” 

My Review

My favorite scent in the SDJ lineup is Cheirosa 68, with 87 Rio Radiance coming in hot as a runner-up. While I don’t reach for them every day, there are some cravings that only a Sol de Janeiro scent can scratch, especially after a long day (safely) soaking up the sun. (Did you know SDJ also makes sunscreen?)

Because this is a body mist and not an eau de toilette or perfume, it doesn’t last forever, but when it’s 90 degrees and sticky humid, you don’t necessarily want a fragrance that’s going to linger on your skin for hours. Like I said above, Cheirosa 48 smells like the color pink, as if the Crayola Magenta crayon had her own special fragrance. On my skin, the guava top notes and vanilla drydown are most prominent and last about two hours, but longer when layered over a thick body cream.

Sol de Janeiro recommends layering Cheirosa 48 Perfume Mist with their signature Brazilian Bum Bum Cream or the Bom Dia Bright Body Cream, so I gave that a spin too. Brazilian Bum Bum Cream intensifies the gourmand notes of Cheirosa 48, while Bom Dia Bright Body Cream enhances the florals. When I’m in the mood for SDJ, I’m really in the mood, so I preferred the combo of Cheirosa 48 and Brazilian Bum Bum Cream. It’s the party girl who makes friends with everyone at the resort, not the wallflower who prefers to hang out poolside with a book. And sometimes we all wanna be that girl!

Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 48 Body Mist