Two Express reporters sampled celebrity fragrances to see if any stand out in today's market, with one scent described as 'disgusting'.
One reporter recalled buying Britney Spears' Curious perfume in 2004, noting that celebrity scents have since 'lost their sparkle'. Determined to find if any good options remain, they tested several offerings.
BEST: Donna Preston's Mind Games Queening
Celebrity Big Brother star Donna Preston revealed her favourite perfumes are from chess-inspired brand Mind Games. She shared: 'I'm obsessed with a good fragrance and Mind Games has become one of my favourites. Life's too short to smell boring! I want a perfume that walks into the room before I do and makes people ask, "What are you wearing?" These do exactly that.'
'Queening makes me feel like I've got my life together… even when I absolutely haven't! Lionora is warm, luxurious and the kind of scent that makes me keep sniffing my own wrist all day. They're both completely different, but they're both proper confidence boosters and I honestly love wearing them.'
BEST: Ariana Grande's Cloud
The reporter admitted being drawn to Cloud's bottle set on a puffy white plastic cloud base. The scent blends lavender blossom, juicy pear, bergamot, Crème de Coconut, praline, vanilla orchid, 'sensual musks and creamy woods'.
WORST: Kylie Jenner's Cosmic
The beauty mogul expanded her makeup range to fragrance two years ago. Kylie told Glamour the scent is 'sweet, warm, delicious, and completely intoxicating'. The reporter agreed it is comforting, with a hint of peonies reminding them of home, but found the opening 'slightly too sweet'.
BEST: Rihanna's Fenty Eau de Parfum
Rihanna is known for smelling divine, with Lil Nas X and Nicole Kidman reportedly saying she 'smells like heaven'. The Fenty fragrance offers warm floral scents of magnolia, Bulgarian rose and musk.
Kudzi Chikumbu, known as Sir Candle Man, said on YouTube: 'I think blueberries are gorgeous. I think it has a great kind of patchouli, musk together. They say Rihanna spent a long time developing it. She went to Grasse to learn about the ingredients and the manufacturing, and it's one of those fragrances that when she launched it, I'm like "it's cool, it's unique, one of a kind".'
The reporter found the dark brown packaging elegant and the fragrance 'lovely and long-lasting'.
OKAY: Khloe Kardashian's XO Blue
Khloe launched her first solo fragrance in 2024 and now introduces XO Blue for summer. The scent includes tropical notes of bergamot, frangipani, magnolia and woody coconut. The reporter described it as 'lighter than the original XO perfume, perfect for a summer scent', with magnolia lingering 'like wearing a light veil on a hot summer day'.
WORST: Sabrina Carpenter's Lemon Pie
The reporter noted that gourmand perfumes are often avoided in summer, and Lemon Pie is overpowering, leaving the wearer smelling like lemon cake all day. The scent opens with citrus notes of lemon, Italian bergamot, Neroli, Limoncello, jasmine, orange blossom and violet, with base notes of vanilla bean, liquid sugar and a Graham Cracker crust. The reporter admitted not trying Carpenter's other offerings and concluded the fragrance is 'simply not very nice'.
BEST: Floral Street's Bridgerton Enchanted Masquerade
Though not strictly a celebrity scent, this perfume ties in with the Netflix show. Top notes of fresh pear, hazelnut and gardenia, heart notes of honeyed Centifolia rose, and base notes of musk and sweet cedarwood create a perfect spring and summer scent.
