Was invited to attend a Nordstrom Byredo event and left with a couple things and a ton of samples. When I got home, I had a box waiting for me from the awesome @Erick Tai Excited to test out some new and exciting scents tonight. Thanks again Erick and still love the community

Based out of Southern Louisiana, is Natif Parfums and the owner, Jarion Clayton, is making bangers right now! If you haven't heard of or tried Swamp Water (his #1 seller), you NEED to get your nose on this! Swamp Water is a true 4-season unisex fragrance that opens with a bright blast of citrus, neroli, bergamot, mandarin, apple, and juicy watermelon. As it settles, the vanilla, amber, patchouli, sandalwood, cedarwood, and aquatic notes come together to create a smooth, fresh, slightly sweet scent that is incredibly addictive. Performance on my skin is outstanding — easily 12+ hours — and the compliments keep coming every time I wear it. Check out Natif Parfums on Facebook when you can and check out his other frags for sure!

KIERIN NYC is an independent New York niche fragrance house built around modern, genderless fragrances with a big focus on individuality, street culture, art, and sustainability. The brand pushes the idea of “gender-all” scents instead of traditional men’s or women’s marketing. They’re also known for being vegan, cruelty-free, recyclable, toxin-free, and USA-made. Their whole vibe feels very NYC — artistic, expressive, youthful, urban, and unapologetically modern. A lot of their fragrances lean easy-to-wear niche rather than ultra challenging avant-garde perfumery. They usually focus on clean compositions with strong themes, colorful branding, and accessible pricing compared to many niche houses. Their style reminds me of niche made for people who want creativity without smelling completely unwearable. “ScentXme feels like a celebration fragrance without smelling overly sweet or juvenile. Right from the opening you get this fizzy champagne and grapefruit effect that almost sparkles off the skin. It has that uplifting, energetic vibe like walking into a rooftop party in a big city at night. The passion fruit gives it a juicy tropical edge while the rum and cinnamon add warmth and depth underneath so it never turns into just another fruity fresh scent. What I like most is how unique it smells without becoming difficult to wear. A lot of fragrances try to do the ‘boozy sparkling’ thing and end up messy, but this stays smooth, modern, and attention grabbing. It smells artistic while still being easy to pull off casually or dressed up. The champagne accord is what really makes it stand out because it gives the fragrance this fizzy, effervescent texture that keeps it feeling alive the whole wear. Performance is solid too. I’d say around 7-9 hours on skin with moderate projection for the first few hours. It leaves a noticeable scent trail without becoming overwhelming. The dry down gets warmer, smoother, and slightly woody while still keeping some of that sparkling fruity character in the background.