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Olfactif Perfume Subscription Box Review – May 2015

Haley Faye
ByHaley FayeMay 18, 2015 | 5 comments

OLFACTIF MAY 2015 - BOX

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).

OLFACTIF MAY 2015 - all items

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

Check out all of our Olfactif reviews!

OLFACTIF MAY 2015 - info 1

Every Olfactif box contains an informational card detailing the fragrances and theme for the month. This month’s theme is “In Bloom.”

OLFACTIF MAY 2015 - info 2

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.

OLFACTIF MAY 2015 - info 3

Lime, Gardenia & Benzoin – I didn’t like this fragrance initially – it smelled like a generic shampoo to me when I sprayed it on paper. However, after spraying it on my skin and letting it settle into its middle body, I liked it much better. It’s a very fresh and clean floral scent, and I can actually see myself wearing this in the summer. This perfume is pretty straightforward: the predominant notes are lime, gardenia, and benzoin, along with a supporting group of notes including bergamot, grapefruit, black pepper, marigold, white pepper, honeysuckle, jasmine, orange flower, muguet, carnation, tuberose, ylang-ylang, hyacinth, rose, tolu, and musk.

Scarlet Larkspur – Notes of this fragrance include claret wine, red currant, morello cherry, scarlet larkspur, saffron, amyris wood, tonka bean, and Bourbon vanilla. Despite the heavy-sounding notes, though, it’s actually a very light perfume. It’s not too strong and the initial sniff definitely reminded me of a glass of wine.

Dirty Flower Factory – This perfume includes notes of jasmine, rose, orange blossom, peppercorn, chili pepper, sandalwood, ambergris, and musk. I really don’t care for it upon first spray – the peppercorn and chili pepper hit me pretty hard initially, but once it settled it turned to a really nice, complex floral. It’s not too sweet and the more subtly it settles, the more I like it.

OLFACTIF MAY 2015 - verdict photo

The Verdict: This was a pretty nice month of Olfactif for me. Florals can be a hit or miss with my tastes, but I think they did a good job at providing a varied selection of florals that aren’t too strong and wear well. 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?

Haley Faye
Haley Faye
Haley Faye first discovered the wonderful world of subscription boxes in 2012 and began writing for MSA in 2014. Over the years, she has found many subscriptions to love. Now a mom of three, her favorite boxes are ones that dress her kids, help her get organized, feed her family, send her snacks, and offer educational fun for her children.

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5 comments

Jen C.

The reason this sub is so great for me is, I don’t live in a good retail area. I don’t have a lot of spare time to drive to get to the good shopping a couple of hours away, but also, I’m sensitive to some chemicals. The quality of the perfumes I’ve tried through Olfactif are so high, I rarely have any trouble with them. Compared to, say, having to run past any kind of mall bath and body shop, or any display of Yankee Candles. I’ve been able to find out about higher-end brands than I have brick and mortar access to, and it’s been really fun trying things I’d never expect that I’d go for. Plus, I’ve got a nice stash of perfume laid up against the day I want to smell incredible. Try this one, it’s a great experience. They are killin’ it, every month.

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Shannon P.

I tried Dirty Flower Factory first. Love! I went immediately to the site, left a very, ahem, colorful review, and sprayed it again. When the full size bottle showed up in the mail a few days later, well, suffice it to say that my fiance loved it, too.

On a side note, I was wearing it a few days later when he proposed, so that smell was made even more magnificant. I am a perfume glutton, but this gal has finally found her signature scent!

As a perfume junkie, I thought I had smelled all there was. That’s why I really enjoy Olfactif. I get unique, niche fragrances that I normally would never have encountered.

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Pao

If only they shipped outside of the USA (though I understand shipping perfume outside of one’s country is pretty difficult for whatever reason). This looks like an amazing subscription, though I admit I don’t wear perfume all that often. But I like smelling things and smelling nice so…

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amy

this is my new favorite subscription! I have to be honest though, I was a little shocked at the sticker price for the Dirty Flower Factory fragrance- I might just get it for a special occasion though

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CreativelySwank

http://www.olfactif.com/products/golden-chypre
This one was so expensive!!! Luckily it smells awful on me 😉 I do love this subscription. I have my staple perfumes but like to change it up and this is a fun way to find new scents I never would have heard of otherwise. I ordered a bottle and the service was top notch with a handwritten letter. I can’t recommend them enough. 🙂

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