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Welcome to The Sniff Test, a column about smelling good.
Getty Images/Illustration by Channing Smith
For each edition, we speak to interesting people about what they and their spaces smell like.
But hear me out: If we’re talking in terms of beauty influencers,Jackie Ainafits the bill.
At the time, she was one of the few prominent darker-skinned Black women in the space.
Brandon Lundby
Those were the days, huh?
Fast forward to 2022 and the 34-year-old has blossomed into a bonafide lifestyle empress.
To her 1.3 million followerson TikTok, she proclaims, “self care isn’t selfish.”
You’d be hard-pressed to find a makeup brush in the short clips she produces for the platform.
Instead, you’ll see tours of herspacious home, where nearly everything is a crisp linen white.
She’s sitting in her office, which, like the rest of her home, is mostly stark-white.
“As a perfume lover, I love all the categories, though.
I really do some more than others.”
lifestyle goddess and the internet’s favorite candle lady.
It has a scent, but it’s light and calm.
When Ireallywant to layer scents, I love Guerlain body washes.
They are incredible and I love how much they lather.
My favorites are the Acqua Allegoria Ginger Picante andBergamote Calabria.
I also really like Byredo’s body washes.
They feel good on the skin and the perfume that’s formulated in them is very present.
You really feel you’re actually putting the perfume on your skin the scent doesn’t rinse off.
I often reach forLa Tulipe.
Bibliotheque andTulipmaniaare my faves.
Parfums de Marly has really good lotions as well.
They’re awesome for layering, very bold, and last a long time.
Plus they actually do hydrate the skin.Delinais their hero scent and a staple.
Philosophy also has great options.
On the days I’m wanting to wear gourmands, I wear theFresh Cream Body Lotion.
Hair is actually one of my favorite parts of fragrance and it’s overlooked a lot.
I love a lot of nuttier, creamier shea and almond types of scents for my hair.
I really like the brand Curls.
It has aBlueberry Blissline that smellsinsane.
I want people chasing me down the block, like, “What the hell are you wearing?”
Curls makes everything smell really edible.
I also like itsCaviar and Cashmereline.
I also love theKayali Deja Vu White Flower Hair Mist.
I also love the smell of Gisou products, particularly thehair perfume.
It’s a gourmand scent for people who think gourmands are polarizing.
They can be very sticky-sweet bakery, you know, like cupcakes.
Gisou’s has a great balance that’s not too cloying.
It’s quite nice.
I bought it in Dubai.
It’s sort of a fresh vanilla linen meets sweet.
It’s very beautiful, and again, it’s not too polarizing.
It’s more of an amber, but it’s kind of gourmand-y.
It has a little rose, so it’s got a floral element in there.
I’m loving theFenty perfumeright now.
It grew on me it was a moment, it was a learning curve.
But here’s the thing:it’s the blueberrythat really pulled out for me.
I’ve been putting it on my fiance, it smells amazing on him.
The sillage is great, and it’s long-lasting.
That is actually one of my all-time favorite perfumes in general.
It just smells like a really edible, addicting dessert.
I also likeMontale Sweet VanillaI love to layer this over an oud, too.
Byredo has a good oud Oud Immortel.
It’s very nicotine-ish though, definitely some tobacco there, but it smells really good.
It’s dark, intense, and bold not for everybody.
I love florals now.
I didn’t always.
I thought, they don’t smell like vanilla, so why would I care?
Now, we have so many options which are better, more complex, and elevated.
They’re less predictable.
You’ll smell the rose, but is itjustrose?
What else is there?
It’s not so literal.
Florals, back in the day, felt too literal.
Now they’re so much better and so much more intense.
Some of my favorite florals areMon GuerlainandMontale Roses Musk.
That’s why I wanted to start my brandFORVR Mood.
The candles I use depend on the season, sometimes the time of day.
I also only use certain scents in certain parts of the home.
We have four scents inspired by earth, wind, fire, and water.
It’s more appropriate for spring, very floral and very fresh.
And our customer loves our fresh scents.
I’m still burning some from our last spring season too.The Butterfly Effectis one of my favorite rose scents.
It’s a little on the powdery side, but that’s why I like it.
It makes me feel I’m productive, like I’m in a coffee shop.
I’m burningMatcha Businessright now.
In the kitchen, I go fresh, and I almost always put gourmands in the common area.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.
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