If there’s one thing the internet goes crazy over…it’s a good scent. PerfumeTok is constantly buzzing about which perfume smells the best. Whether you’re a Black Opium gal or Good Girl devotee is up to you.
The obsession with smelling good comes at a high price, however. Perfumes go for upwards of $50, and their dupes don’t last that long. And what about the days when you don’t want to smell as pungent?
Yep, you’re expected to have a perfume for the weekends and a less intense scent for weekdays. They want you to seem like you have it together during the week with a light mist of fragrance that contrasts the sultry perfume of the weekend. It’s criminal.
I don’t see why I should have to switch up my perfume depending on the day of the week. I spent a great amount of money on this small bottle of scented water…what’s wrong with wearing it every day?
But, unfortunately, TikTok found a certain product that makes you smell divine sans perfume: Sol de Janeiro’s Brazilian Bum Bum Cream. It’s a tropical vacation in a bottle, with a thick, buttery texture that feels luxurious on your skin. Notes of vanilla, pistachio, and salted caramel create the lushest scent ever.
And while I’ve become a Bum Bum devotee, I’m finding it hard to spend $48 on some lotion every few weeks. What’s even more difficult is finding a dupe that I can get my hands on. Apparently, it’s tough to create an inexpensive thick lotion that smells like a dream. Because once people discover it, they buy out all of them.
I’ve been searching high and low for the next best Bum Bum and here’s what I could find…
If you want the same texture as Sol de Janeiro, then body butter is your best bet. It’s creamier than a regular lotion, so people are hailing this as a dupe for Brazilian Bum Bum Cream
It contains Guarana and Cupuaçu Butter – key ingredients in Bum Bum – that help enhance firmness and elasticity and visibly improve the appearance of your skin.
I follow a bunch of Trader Joe’s accounts that post new products. And I always see this Brazil Nut Body Butter listed as an exact dupe…but it flies right off the store shelves, so it’s tough to get your hands on it.
If you can, it’s a fraction of the price and will save your wallet a lotta grief.
While Brazilian Bum Bum Cream may be expensive and only lasts a few weeks, this hair and body mist may be worth your notice. It’s the same scent as the lotion, but a full size is $20 and can last you half a year.
The mist is the more economical option that can travel with you at all times so you smell amazing.
With coconut, caramel, and vanilla bean as supporting characters in this candle, you can guarantee that this baby smells exactly like the lotion. At $11.25, you can’t beat the price.
Colourpop has an SOL collection that may give Sol de Janeiro a run for their money.
While shopping at Sephora one day, I fell in love with Voluspa’s coconut-based candles. I came across this coconut-vanilla dream.
I’ve had it for over a year now and it’s still going strong.
Any whipped lotion will give you that Bum Bum Cream feel. It’s the almond essential oil that gives the same nutty notes, and it’s only $10.
If you can afford Brazilian Bum Bum Cream, there’s nothing like the real deal. However, there’s no shame in chasing the scent always.
