Olfactif is a monthly perfume sampling subscription. Every month, you’ll receive a curated collection of three niche fragrances (2.25 mL for most, occasionally 1.75 mL) by perfume artists from around the world. You will also receive an $18 credit towards a full-sized purchase of one of the month’s featured fragrances. Olfactif offers a unisex collection and recently began offering a men’s collection as well.
My Subscription Addiction paid for this subscription box. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
This review is of the Unisex Collection, $18 a month, box.
The Subscription Box: Olfactif
The Cost: $18 a month + free shipping. Save with 3, 6, and 12-month subscriptions.
The Products: Three 2.25 mL sample spray bottles from three fragrance artists from around the world.
Ships to: U.S.
Check out all of our Olfactif reviews and other great fragrance boxes in the Perfume Subscription Box Directory.
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
Each Olfactif collection comes with little cards detailing the month’s theme and providing a little more information about the monthly selections. This month’s theme is “Refresh.” There are also little testers now (a touch I definitely appreciate).
It’s important to note that fragrances may smell different when you wear them than when you spray them on a card or piece of paper. They may also smell different on different people due to individual body chemistries.
Also, the fragrances develop and change over time, with different notes becoming prominent. “Top” notes form your initial impression but evaporate within a few minutes, so you may still love a fragrance even if you are not fond of the top notes. “Middle” or “heart” notes emerge after you’ve been wearing the fragrance for a few minutes up to an hour. “Base” notes are large, heavy molecules that persist for a long time. They are often richer than the top or middle notes, although they may contribute to how you perceive the top and middle notes due to their interactions with the other fragrance components.
Saint Julep from Imaginary Authors – Buy a 50 mL Bottle for $95
This has notes of sweet mint, tangerine, southern magnolia, bourbon, grisalva, sugarcube, and crushed ice. I didn’t catch the mint at all when I tested this out (that’s body chemistry for you, I guess), but I found this actually somewhat light and clean and really think that, on me, the tangerine and magnolia (and maybe a little sugar) were most obvious. This, to me, is a daytime (and work appropriate) fragrance for summer. It’s not super strong.
Notes of Rosé from Kelly & Jones – Buy a 50 mL Bottle for $75
Kelly & Jones is a new perfumer for me. This is supposed to capture the essence of a glass of rosé wine. I am not a wine drinker, but I can kind of see what they were going for here, and I think it worked. This has notes of pink currant, osmanthus, herbes de provence, and white woods. I think this was my favorite for the month; the white woods and pink currant stood out most to me. The sillage for this one was a little more intense than the Saint Julep.
Babylon Sunset by 4160 Tuesdays – Buy a 50 mL Bottle for $90
I totally think this captured the essence of something called “Babylon Sunset” but it ended up being a bit cloying for me after an initial good impression. Notes included grapefruit, tangerine, peach, rose, jasmine, honey, red berries, vanilla, and musk. I normally love anything with vanilla and musk, but I think having both florals and fruits together with the vanilla and musk was just a bit much for me. (The description says “it’s a voluptuous throwback to the ‘90s, when perfumes were not shy announcing themselves when they walked into a room.” Yeah. That totally fits for this fragrance. It is not shy at all.) This is a warm fragrance and more suited to the evening or nighttime, I think.
Verdict: This was, overall, a good month for me from Olfactif. I learned about a new perfumer (Kelly & Jones), which is always fun. I definitely thought every fragrance was summery and warm, but each in a different way. Every fragrance had some element I enjoyed, though I would suggest using a light hand when applying Babylon Sunset as too much of that one can be overwhelming.
What do you think of the July 2017 Olfactif collection? What was your favorite fragrance this month?
Please do not enter your email address in the Name field or in the comment content. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *. Remember to post with kindness and respect. Comments with offensive language, cruelness to others, etc will not be approved. See our full comment policy here.