Drift Air Freshener Review

This Drift air freshener review is one I’m surprised I’m even doing – I usually loathe air fresheners and scents.  I dislike about 98% of them, with the exception of plain vanilla and the Christmasy pine tree ones.  I’m just super particular about smells, and would rather just smell a musty car interior than those awful gas station air freshener scents that are akin to cleaning solution.

But I got a bit drawn in by the marketing from Drift, a new company (well, rebranded – they used to be Gent Scents but I hadn’t heard of them until they were Drift) that makes very hipster-esque air fresheners geared towards the out and about millenial crowd.  For some reason the description of their January scent of the month “Lodge”–Cedar and Teak with a dash of tobacco and vanilla–made me eager to try it out.

So I made a late night impulse buy purchase and waited for it to arrive in the mail.  I really couldn’t believe I had purchased an air freshener without smelling it first, but at $8 and free shipping it wasn’t a huge commitment.

What’s The Deal With Drift?

First, a bit about what Drift does.  They are a subscription box service and every month (or two months, depending on how often you want them) you will receive a new air freshener in the mail.  You can either get their new scents of the month, or order from their tried and true selection that’s always available.  The air fresheners come in either a wood block infused with the scent, or a little plastic container that clips to your air vents.

I chose the wood block because I really liked how it looked vs the vent clip.  It comes with a metal clip that you can attach to your sun visor, and the wood block magnetically sticks to that clip.

It seems that they are out to please a more masculine leaning crowd, but with their rebranding to a more gender neutral name means they are trying to expand their scope without seeming like a product just for the boys.  But I like this – I’m not a fan of girly air freshener scents like roses or berries or anything like that.  Give me wood and pine and leather, thanks.

Drift also makes room sprays, although I have not tried these out just yet.  Stay tuned.

Update April 2020: Drift noticed I had written this review and sent me a care package with two room sprays!  I was super happy, first of all because I love the Mill scent, and second of all getting mail and packages during this quarantine has been super nice.

The sprays come in nice glass bottles and look very attractive on a shelf.  I wasn’t a huge fan of the grove scent, but I personally tend not to like citrus based scenes.  My roommates, however, did like the grove scent.  Apologies for the cheesy Instagram photo, I didn’t take a good photo of the care package like I should have.

Natural

Drift claims that their fragrances are all phthalate free.  Most commercial air fresheners contain phthalates that are linked with numerous health issues.  But Drift only uses all natural fragrances and essential oils.  What you’re breathing is safe and free of cancer causing ingredients.

So How Is It?

It took about a week to arrive, and as soon as I opened my mailbox I could smell it.  It was pretty strong at first, I have to admit.  I wasn’t sure I was going to like it.  But I unwrapped it and stuck it in my car.  The first day or two it was pretty strong, but I liked it.  It smelled wintry, which was kind of nice on the crisp nights we’ve been getting here in Encinitas lately.

Once the smell mellowed out a bit in a day or two I found I really liked it!  It’s actually super nice to get in the car in the morning to go get coffee, my car seems more festive.  Plus, the wood block just looks cool.

According to Drift, the scent blocks should last around 30 days.  So, I guess we will see if that holds true.  I like it so much that I might even change my shipments from every two months to every one month because I want to get my hands on their pine scent.

Update April 2020: I have noticed that the scent blocks do start losing their power around week 4.  The “Lodge” scene that I first got lasted almost 2 months, but February’s scent “Iris” only lasted about a month, as did “Pine” which I got in March.

Should You Try It?

If you’re curious, it’s really not a huge commitment.  They kind of force you into a subscription when you order, but you can cancel it at any time.  I knew if I didn’t like the smell I’d probably cancel.  But honestly I’m going to stick around for next month – I’m not sure what the February scent of the month will be yet.  If I don’t think I’ll like it, I will probably go for their Pine scent next.

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