Olfactif is a monthly perfume sampling subscription. Every month, you'll receive a curated collection of three niche fragrances each month (2.25 ml sprays of each) from perfume artists around the world. You will also receive an $18 credit toward the full-bottle purchase of a featured fragrance.
This box was sent to us for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).
The Subscription Box: Olfactif
The Cost: $18/month
The Products: Three 2.25 ml sample spray bottles of 3 niche fragrances from perfume artists around the world.
Ships to: US
Olfactif also currently has a promotion going on that gives you a $20 gift card towards your purchase of ANY full-sized bottle from their store when you sign up through the end of June. (This, plus the fact that the $18 cost of the box gets added to your purchase of one of the 3 featured fragrances means that you can get $38 towards a new perfume discovery!)
Olfactif’s packaging has always impressed me. This is the box that ships inside the white one, and you pull on the ribbon for the lower panel to slide up and reveal the perfume samples and info card.
Every Olfactif box contains an informational card detailing the fragrances and theme for the month. This month’s theme is all about featuring winners from the Art and Olfaction Awards this year.
There are a couple things that are important to keep in mind when sampling perfumes: First, perfumes literally smell different on every person due to the way the fragrance oils play with an individual’s body chemistry. Secondly, there are many notes in each fragrance and perfumes are designed with a story and progression of notes in mind. The top notes are what you smell right away, the middle notes are what you smell about 10 minutes after spraying, and then the base note is what you smell about 30 minutes of wearing it and what stays with you throughout the day. Just because you might now love the initial scent doesn’t mean the fragrance won’t settle into something that you may really like.
Black Pepper and Sandalwood by Acca Kappa – This is described as “spicy, creamy, and comforting.” Notes in this fragrance include bergamot, elemi, artemisia, saffron, cloves, nutmeg, balsam fir, damask rose, black pepper, cinnamon, agarwood, patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood, cedar, black musk. The “black pepper” listed in the title had me thinking that I wouldn’t like this fragrance, but it’s actually really nice! I think the description is dead on – it’s definitely a “comforting” and cozy fragrance. Personally, it’s not one I’d wear myself, but I would love it in a candle to burn in my home.
Eau de Céleri by Monsillage – Described as “vibrant, crisp, green, and elegant,” this perfume was actually inspired by celery! Olfactif’s site says to think less “smells like celery” and more “smells like the color of celery.” This is a great perfume for people who don’t like their perfumes to be sweet – it definitely smells like a fresh herb garden with a grounding base of cedar and patchouli.
Woodcut by Olympic Orchids – I was surprised to find that this is actually my favorite scent in this month’s box! It was inspired by a building site where old trees had been newly cut. Its notes include cedar, pine, oak, tolu balsam, olibanum (frankincense), caramel, burnt sugar, and vanilla, and it’s an intricately interesting combination of smoky woods and sugar/caramel.
The Verdict: This was a very interesting and surprisingly great box from Olfactif! This month definitely featured perfumes I never would have picked up and smelled myself, and I’m really happy with how much I was surprised to like all of them. I think Olfactif does a great job with their subscription: the packaging is really nice and I like that the cost of the box gets attributed to your account as a credit towards a full-size fragrance each month (the credits don’t stack up or carry over each month, though).
After trying a few months of Olfactif, I can say that Olfactif is great for exposing yourself to lots of different scents and it pushes you out of your fragrance comfort zone. Most of their featured perfumes so far haven’t been super sweet, so if you tend to strictly prefer sugary-sweet fragrances, this sub may not be for you. If you like learning more about perfumes, their creators, and the world of fragrance, this is a great box for that.
What do you think about Olfactif?
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