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
COUPON: Receive 15% off your first collection by joining their mailing list (it was a pop-up when I went to the site).
The Products: Three 2.25 mL sample spray bottles from three fragrance artists from around the world.
Ships to: US
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Each Olfactif collection comes with a card offering instructions on how to try out the fragrances.
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.
The collection also included an information card about this month’s theme and the notes in the individual fragrances that were sent. This month’s theme was “Master Class: How to Smell Amazing and Like Nobody Else.”
Each Olfactif collection comes in a custom black case.
Figue by Molinard
When I saw “figue,” I expected something a bit sweeter, but this was not particularly sweet. This has notes including green fig leaf, fig fruit, and woody fig tree. It is not a super woody fragrance on me and I do notice the greenness to the scent. This was interesting to try but probably not my favorite.
Mad Madame by Juliette Has a Gun
I think in the end, this was my favorite. Notes included rose, amber, freesia, peony, patchouli, tuberose, moss, jasmine, blackcurrant, vanilla, and castoreum. It was not a flower explosion like you might expect, though. I think the non-floral notes balanced out the floral notes nicely. Plus I am usually happy when vanilla and patchouli are in the same fragrance.
Tabac Tabou by Parfum d’Empire
At first I thought this one was my favorite, but as I wore it for awhile, it dried down to something quite powdery, which is not really my thing. (I guess I liked the top and mid notes more.) Notes include immortelle, tobacco, narcissus, honey, grass, and musk. I am not noticing the grass at all (which is good, as “green” fragrances are really not my thing). I do like musk and honey and actually tobacco is one of my favorite notes in fragrances.
Verdict: This was a pretty good month for me from Olfactif. One thing I like about this subscription is that you get fragrances from niche perfumers that you don’t often see as samples otherwise (occasionally Juliette Has a Gun turns up from Sephora or Birchbox). So you are able to get more expensive, unusual fragrances to try (essential before spending $60-100+ for a full-size bottle). If you tend to purchase a lot of perfume, too, the box is basically free since you get an $18 credit with your subscription to be used on one of the month’s fragrances. These fragrances were all new to me and while I could pick a definite favorite, I didn’t hate any of them.
What do you think of the November 2016 Olfactif collection? What was your favorite fragrance this month?
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