My Experience With A Year Of Ffern Perfume

There is so much to say about Ffern perfume. Online you will see brilliant marketing and bad reviews. Perhaps you have tried Ffern before and loved it (or completely disliked it) or have been wondering if you should get on “the ledger.” I have had good experiences and bad experiences with the brand so I thought I would share my perspective for those who are curious about trying it out, have wondered if it is worth it, or who have tried and felt on the fence themselves. I have been on the ledger now for a full year and have received the autumn 24, winter 25, spring 25 and summer 25 perfumes. Just recently, I received the Autumn 25 perfume. This is not a sponsored post, but my honest thoughts after trying Ffern for a full year.

So what is the ledger?

It is their fancy waitlist. And no, I do not believe it really is a waitlist. You sign up and a couple weeks later you’re in. It is a marketing strategy to make you feel like what you’re signing up for is exclusive. Still, I admire the strategy. It is important to note that this is a subscription service. You will be sent a perfume each season unless you remove yourself from the ledger. And it can be expensive at about $129 per bottle.

I debated trying this perfume for well over a year before I jumped in. I saw ads with my favorite artists and wondered if it was worth the hype. I don’t usually buy expensive things. As far as perfumes go, this one is pricey, but not astronomical. The only perfume I owned before trying this was L’Occitane’s Rose perfume, which cost me $70 per bottle and lasts me about a year. I rarely buy things like this. I don’t go out and get my nails done or spend money pampering myself (although perhaps I should indulge more every once in a while!), so this felt like a big purchase for me. Extravagant even. And with their marketing strategy, that is exactly they feeling they want you to have.

The perfume is organic and is mailed out at the beginning of every season, so there are four bottles per year. Both the shipping and the returns are free. It arrived in a box with two boxes inside; one is the perfume in a sealed box. Once the seal is broken the perfume cannot be returned, which is why you open the sample box first.

The sample box comes with a sample size perfume; test strips and a clay or terracotta diffuser you can spray the perfume on and use as an ornament later. There are usually treats along with it like a pouch of tea and a print from an artist. You will also find a ticket with a QR code to see a short cinematic film that connects with the season’s scent. The films are lovely. The packaging is an experience, and they collaborate with other artists making their branding multi-dimensional. The brand itself feels like an art. One season they paired with photographer Jamie Beck, a personal favorite of mine.

My first experience

The first perfume I received was the Autumn 2024 scent. I did not like that perfume. It was strong and dare I say, stinky. It smelled even worse on me. After airing out, it did make the room smell of a nice autumnal spice, but it reeked on me. Perhaps it was my body chemistry, but my husband was also repulsed. I know that is a strong word, but that’s exactly how he reacted to smelling the perfume on me. I returned the perfume but stayed on the ledger to see if perhaps it was a fluke. I had the money go to my next purchase instead of requesting a full return. I was going to share a review but felt that sharing after one bad experience was hardly fair. Then Winter 2025 came.

I loved it. Still spicy and very different from any perfume I have tried before. I tend to lean towards the sweet and flowery scents like those of L’Occitane. I liked that it was out of my comfort zone and something different from what I would typically reach for. I tested the perfume on my wrist for about a week before making the decision to open the box and keep the perfume. You have about ten days to mail it beak to get your money returned. The perfume is in a cylinder bottle and came with a cardboard cylinder case to protect it from sunlight, which can damage perfumes.

I would consider this scent to be gender neutral. Scents have no gender, of course, but many perfumes marketing to women tend to be sweet and colognes marketed for men tend to be muskier or spiced. This falls somewhere in the middle.

Spritzing it on my wrist each morning became a favorite part of my morning routine. I even spritzed it on my wrist before bed to use like aromatherapy. The Ffern perfumes are very layered, meaning that different scents seem to be released as the perfume is warmed by your skin. It smells strong at first then changes thorough the day. I will share that the scent does evaporate quickly and doesn’t have all-day staying power like some other perfumes, but maybe that is because it is made of natural ingredients. I know that it’s lack of staying power is something many people dislike about Ffern. I reapply in the afternoon or evening as needed.

The Winter 2025 perfume reminded me of winter in New England. It felt like the 1995 Little Women film or what I imagine the air would have smelled like in the Nutcracker when Clara is brought to the land of the sugar plum fairies. It smells spicy and warm. Very different from the floral scents I tend to favor.

When Spring 2025 arrived I was excited, but after trying the sample I was unsure. Again, I wore it for about a week before deciding. It smelled similar to Winter, but also very different. At first I didn’t like it, but it grew on me and surprising myself, I kept it. The same happened with Summer 2025. Out of the three I kept, Winter is still my favorite and a few times I regretting keeping Summer 2025. But it too had grown on me. My Aunt Sharon really loves the spiciness of it and asks me about it when I wear it.

I stayed on the ledger for the Autumn 2025 scent because I wanted to see if I will like this one after the disaster that was last Autumn’s perfume. I might pause the subscription soon for a while because I already have a few bottles. Overall, I enjoy the experience. It is clever marketing, but it is done well, and I have had good experience with customer service. I’m glad after my first bottle that I stayed to try it out. Another positive to share is that the perfume really goes a long way. My bottles, after using them every day of the season are still mostly full. The bottles were smaller than I pictured for the price, but have actually been a good value. A little goes a long way.

So would I recommend Ffern?

I would say yes. If it’s in your budget and you want to try something new and pretty just for you, yes. Try it. If you don’t like it, return it and give it one more chance. You’re not obligated to keep it, and you can get your money back. Plus, you get to keep the sample and gifts when you return the perfume. One of the complaints I have read is that they all tend to smell exactly alike, which is somewhat true. The perfumes are similar, but after sitting with it you will notice the differences and notice how distinct they are. Like me, you may be surprised how much you like it, especially if it’s unlike what you usually wear.

If you’re on a tight budget or very particular about scents and know that a spicy scent won’t work for you, I would skip it. Stick with what you know and love. Save your money.

I have noticed that people have very strong opinions of the Ffern perfume from the branding and the “gimmicks” to the scents. This is just another opinion of many, but I love the experience and the beauty of the marketing. I love the care that goes into the brand and how they support artists by hiring them for their art for prints, teas, ornaments and films. They’re not just selling a perfume, but an experience and a feeling. It feels a little old world and smelling it on my wrist makes me feel like I’m in a Jane Austen novel, or Little Women. And that is a little joy that I am happy to gift myself a few times a year.

They’re not just selling a perfume, but an experience and a feeling. It feels a little old world and smelling it on my wrist makes me feel like I’m in a Jane Austen novel, or Little Women. And that is a little joy that I am happy to gift myself a few times a year.

The Autumn 25 Scent

After starting this blog post, my Autumn 25 perfume arrived early in the mail. I opened the sample box to find another sweet diffuser, art print and also a pop-up piece of art. I read the list of ingredients and was surprised to see that crab apple was a main ingredient. Coincidental because I had just picked a basketful of crab apples behind our cottage and was experimenting with crab apple recipes. I spritzed the sample perfume on the sample stick before testing it on my wrist, worried that it would be as overpowering as Autumn 24.

It was delightful. Still, with that spiciness I’ve come to expect from Ffern perfumes. I do not recommend smelling the perfume right away. It comes out so strong each time and the scent changes so quickly from the overwhelming first impression. The spiciness of this season comes from ginger root, pink peppercorn and lemon rind. As the scent softened, I detected the underlying sweetness and tart of crab apples, softened with the scent of blue chamomile, bergamot rind and jasmine. The scent changes throughout the hour.

I knew pretty much from the first test that I was keeping this one. I might pause my ledger now that I have more than enough perfume to last me another year, but I have enjoyed this experience and would certainly try it again. I’m glad that my first impression of Ffern was altered by a second chance.