Layering or mixing makeup products isn't the only way to have a unique, DNA-distinct style beyond clothing. You can layer scents — perfumes with body wash, lotions with cologne— in order to craft a custom scent that is distinctly "you." Or you can have Scent Trunk custom blend a personal fragrance for you, based on your olfactory preferences.
Here's how it works.
The brand scent, er, sent me a compact, fragrance-making test kit, which included six tiny vials that I had to sniff and then rate whether I loved, liked, or hated the aroma. I sent back my responses via quick 'n' easy digital form.
Approximately a week later, my own personal spritzer —it's teal and looks like Scentbird packaging— arrived. It was nestled in a white box and announced that it was "Your Fragrance." The box included an insert about the personality of the perfume and listed the notes.
Scent Trunk also touts its custom blends as being gender neutral. Co-founder Will told me via email that, "We're trying to break the gender stereotypes in fragrance. Who cares what traditional brands define as a 'masculine' or 'feminine' scent? It's all about what you, as the consumer, prefers, right?"
Plus, if you end up disliking the scent the brand creates for you, you can send it back and they'll replace it for free.
At this point, I loved every single thing about this process and product.
Here's how I feel about "my fragrance" and the end result.
While I was sniffing the vials, which consist of six core scent types like citrus, woods, aromatic, floral, amber, and chypre, I found myself only really and truly liking two of them in this form.
It's important for me to mention that I am super particular about perfume. I like vanilla, grapefruit, citrus, and soap-scented auras. I also really love any of Drybar's products because of their aroma; I almost don't even care what function they perform for my follicles as long as I can catch a whiff.
I like to layer scents on different parts of my body so that they are memorable and unable to be replicated.
I also spray my clothes every morning with Victoria's Secret or Bath & Body Works splashes or Clean Eau Fraiche after I lay them out on my bed before getting dressed. I like my personal aroma to be light and lingering.
That said, my Scent Trunk has top notes of Lemon Myrtle and Frankincense, with middle notes of Patchouli and Musk. Its base notes are Labdanum resin and Vanilla, the former being something I never even heard of. I actually like that, since it's different. The lemon and vanilla notes felt like "me," but I am notoriously not a fan of Patchouli or musks.
So, what does the Amy scent actually smell like? It's strong and it's heady. It reminded me of my father's cologne and of hugging my dad as a kid. Scent is tied to memory, so... That said, it didn't smell overly like scents I have associated with being masculine. It's just bold, like cologne usually is. Still, I one billion percent could see me, my dad, or my boyfriend sharing this scent. It is certainly unisex and assertive. It's a tad strong and a bit dramatic for me personally, since I tend to like a softer scent.
But I find it perfect as a clothes spritz. Overall, the process is fun and the end result is your own scent. Who wants to smell like everyone else anyway? I am all for bespoke beauty products when and where able.
So give Scent Trunk a try. Take the test, get the fragrance for $11.99 a month, love it, or return it!
