[Review] Cult Fragrance perfume oils

 

 

• Name: Cult Fragrance 
• Location: Concord, North Carolina 
• Known for: Handmade, vegan, and cruelty-free perfumes with unique and macabre themes; black- and veteran-owned

 

TL;DR I enjoyed trying a new shop but didn't end up loving any of these scents. I've since heard of multiple people having fulfillment issues with this shop, though I did not experience any of that back in 2020 when it had recently opened. Here are some (more recent) customer experiences from other users. Proceed with caution!

 

As always, you can read more about how I review scents here.

Scents

🖤Baby Bat

(Clove, Musk, & a melange of Fruits; Melon, Kiwi, Citrus & Peaches)

Initially, this smells INCREDIBLE, so sour and juicy and fruity. Love it. After 30 minutes or so, it smells like a candle. Not a "this smells generic and it reminds me of a candle I've smelled" but a literal candle. There is a waxy note along with something hot and smoky that smells like embers that are slowly dying. Weird! That ember note does stay in the background, but it goes back to a fruity kiwi smell as it fades.

Longevity: 10+ hours

 

 

🖤Blue Jawbreaker

(A buttery fragrance with notes consisting of tart Blueberries, rich Buttercream, melted Butter, and Vanilla Bean. The base is creamy Vanilla Cake.)

 

This smells like blueberry muffins - warm and soft, with slightly-sour blueberries and a little bit of sugar. It's a pretty good blueberry muffin scent. There is the most minuscule edge of something that makes it seem a little artificial, but it's very faint. I have multiple similar scents but had to try this one!

 

Longevity: 8.5+ hours

 

  

🖤Lheure Verte

 

(Citrus, 'Devonshire' Cream, Lemongrass, swirled in quality Absinthe: Anise, Melissa Leaves, Cassia, Nutmeg and Fennel)

 

Really interesting. It's herbal and sugary in a way that combines to smell like bubble gum. That's all I can smell now. I feel like I can start to separate the components, but it really is mostly bubble gum. After an hour or so, there is a little bit of a different herbal note that comes out in the tiniest amount. Maybe that's the absinthe.

 

Longevity: 11+ hours

 

 

🖤Pink Jawbreaker

 

(A fresh and sweet fragrance with notes consisting of rich Pound Cake topped with tart Raspberries, baked 'Pink' Apples and Pear slices. Rich Buttercream, toasted Coconut Flakes and Madagascar Vanilla.)

 

Very candied pink strawberry and cotton candy - it's verging on plastic, though that goes away (along with a lot of the sweetness) by morning. I can tell what it's supposed to be, and I think it's nice, but I don't love what I'm actually smelling. Seeing the notes - jk, no cotton candy. It is just toastiness and fruit.

 

Longevity: 8+ hours

🖤Rottweiler

(The scent of rich Carob, with warm Peanut Butter Cookies: The merriment of decadence & warmth.)

This initially smells like chocolate-scented Play-Doh. It eventually becomes a really nice and balanced chocolate and smooth peanut butter. It is warm and has a cookie feel that is hard to explain. I don't know what carob smells like, so no comments there, but I love how unique this one is.

Longevity: 10+ hours

 

 

🖤Sugared Absinthe

 

(A feminine blend of Sugar Cubes, Vanilla Musk, swirled in quality Absinthe: Anise, Melissa Leaves, Cassia, Nutmeg & Fennel) 

 

This smells like you'd expect - white sugar and absinthe, a little bit like black licorice. There is an astringent note that comes out in the first 20 minutes that I find unpleasant. I took it off.

 

Longevity: not recorded

 

 

🖤Trick & Treat

 

(Candy Corn, Dark Chocolate, Butter, Star Anise)

 

This smells soft and chocolatey but not just that - it smells like a calcium vitamin chew, lol. After hours of wear, there is a creamy vanilla note. It's pretty nice! I wish I got the candy corn.

 

Longevity: 8+ hours

🖤White Jawbreaker

(A sweet and exotic fragrance with notes consisting of Blonde Sugar Cane, Madagascar Vanilla, creamed Butter, old-fashioned Butterscotch Candy, and White Cake.)

 

Unfortunately, this smelled like absolutely nothing at all.

 

Longevity: n/a                     

Thoughts

I remember seeing this shop mentioned in someone's IMAM post and ran to make an order! My eye surely noticed the possibility of expanding my blueberry muffin collection and went based on that 😅 The shop had recently opened back in 2020 when I purchased, and my order shipped the same day. The presentation was really cute, and I always appreciate a handwritten note! Two of the samples were freebies, which was very nice (and makes sense why there were two non-gourmands, lol). Performance was solid, with a mixture of hits and misses, as I'd expect from any house. I didn't fall in love with anything, though, and I'm trying to keep only scents that I adore. The style in general is a bit more experimental than I prefer, so I didn't end up making another purchase. I do know that some people have ordered somewhat recently and had issues with longer-than-promised wait times. I have linked above to experienced that are more recent than mine. I hope the owner gets things together, because the shop feels unique and definitely has a cool aesthetic I don't see often! I think she really nailed the themed collections and haunted carnival feel.

Success rate: 0/8 = 0%