No Joke, Claudia Sulewski's $24 Perfume Smells More Expensive Than My Designer Faves

I'm meeting Claudia Sulewski for the first time, but we've been BFFs for years—at least from my POV. The YouTube creator turned actress, model, and style muse has graced my computer screen since the early 2010s, where I absorbed her beauty, fashion, travel, and interior design advice like it was gospel. In a way, we grew up together. She just doesn't know it yet.

I meet Sulewski for tea on a particularly glacial afternoon in NYC to gab over beauty products just like I would with any other friend. Specifically, she's showing me her new Cyklar Perfume Oils, which are officially up for grabs starting today. (She says I'm the first person in the entire world to test the final bottles.) To avoid burying the lede, let me just say this: These fragrances smell wildly more expensive than their $24 price tags, and I audibly gasped when Sulewski revealed how much they actually cost. Below, discover exactly what makes them so swoon-worthy, plus the picks Sulewski and her longtime partner Finneas layer daily.

Cyklar's Perfume Oils come in eight gorgeous scents: Bergamot Bond, a zesty citrus; Vanilla Verve, a warm, slightly spicy gourmand; Sacred Santal, a creamy sandalwood- and amber-infused elixir; Flora Veil, a floral that's anything but basic; Sex Musk, a grounding skin scent; Cedar Supreme, a crisp, woody solution; Lover's Leather, a seductive, earthy scent; and Modern Patchouli, an earthy classic with a sophisticated twist. Honestly, I'm out of breath just typing that sentence, so I can only imagine the effort Sulewski put into perfecting each high-quality blend.

Launching a large cluster of scents was very intentional, Sulewski tells me. They're collectibles, she says, meant to be paired, shared, and displayed. (They look painfully chic all lined up on the vanity, if I do say so myself.) This model also allows you to try multiple scents before committing to your signature blend. Purchasing fragrance online can be difficult despite what the thriving #PerfumeTok community might have you believe, so it was important for Sulewski to offer hers at $24 a pop. That way, you can test as many as you please without breaking the bank.

I do suggest giving them an IRL whiff—not just because it's hard to pick just one but also because each scent is delightfully unexpected. Flora Veil, for instance, is not your average floral. It has warm, powdery, and fresh notes and is unlike any petal-infused potion I've ever smelled. Lover's Leather is not too smoky and tobacco-like, but to me, it actually smells a little sweet like fruit leather. Modern Patchouli flips the herby note on its head entirely. "Someone told me it smelled like summer in a bottle," Sulewski shares. I was genuinely surprised by each galaxy of notes, and I was definitely floored when Sulewski finally mentioned the price. I mean, even the minimalistic gold-embossed bottles look way more expensive!

Despite the complex scent profiles, all of the fragrances mix quite beautifully. Sulewski's current favorite combo? "Cedar Supreme and Lover's Leather," she shares after careful consideration. Finneas, she adds, has been loving Modern Patchouli. Perfume oils are perfect for layering, in general, as you can physically blend the highly concentrated formulas together on your pulse points. Not for nothing, the tactile nature of oil also forces you to slow down and (literally) smell the roses.

"I fell in love with the format through this process," she says regarding oils. Rather than a quick spritz before dashing out the door, applying perfume naturally becomes more of a ritual, and for a bodycare brand like Cyklar, creating this intimate moment with your skin feels fitting. The Cyklar formula has a base of meadowfoam-seed oil, which is especially nourishing for the skin and known for its quick absorption.

Since testing the range, I find myself looking forward to my own perfume ritual more than I already did as a beauty editor. I love deciding which concoction to wear each day, as the layering possibilities are truly endless. It's difficult to choose a favorite duo, but I have to shout-out Flora Veil and Vanilla Verve, a pair Sulewski suggested for me herself. Now, I consider us true fragrancehead friends. Scroll ahead to shop them all.

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