The Monday Mail is about to take its annual summer vacation, but first here is an open thread for past participants to share their experiences, and hopefully let us know if they found what they were looking for (or went bankrupt trying). I've sent out emails requesting feedback from everyone who took part between January and April of this year, so check back over the next few days to see what we can find out.
Here are links to the articles for each participant:
Jenny, Peggy, Amy, May, Elise, Edward, Lauren, Denise, Jonathan, Lilian, Alisha, Susan, Jessamy & Robert, Paolo, Michaella, Mylene
Note: image "Letter box in a house-wall of San Giorgio in the community Resia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy" by Johann Jaritz, via Wikimedia.
Good day to all. This is Edward.
It’s been five months since I asked for some expert advice from all of you, the very helpful perfumistas here at NST! Thanks to all those who recommended some bottles to try. Anyway, here’s an update.
I fell in love with two Armani: Rose Alexandrie and Pierre De Lune. The latter got a lot of compliments and am so happy with my purchase. From the Prive line I also tried Cedre but it’s a bit strong for my taste. Vetiver Babylone, well, no offense to those who like/love this, but to my skin it smells like a lemon-scented wood polisher. Not for me. I also went to a store with limited bottles from the Hermessence collection and tried Eau De Gentiane Blanche and Eau de Pamplemousse Rose, both of which I find dull. I have learned Dubai Mall has a more complete line as far as Hermessence is concerned so I will pay a visit and check the others.
Here in Saudi Arabia where I am based, I have learned that Frederic Malle is available but exclusively to a female-only shop. With the help of my female friend, I am now arranging her visit to the shop and I might probably take the risk of buying 2 perfumes, unsniffed: Musc Ravageur and L Eau D Hiver, which I am planning to purchase based on reviews alone (**crossing my fingers**). I know most will not recommend this but there is no other way I will have a FM bottle so I have conditioned my mind, whether I like it or don’t, at least I got 2 FMs. Is that crazy? =)
Purchased other fragrances: Mandragore, Satin Rose De Mai, and Aqua Allegoria Povoine Magnifica. Also, since I am more into using female perfumes, I never thought I’d purchase and love some fragrances for men (I love Guerlain Homme L Eau as well as Police Pure). Recently, I noticed I’ve been changing my direction from the ethereal, light perfume type to that which has more character and depth. I remember Angela replying to a comment that such is the nature of one’s taste; it changes. In my case, that is so true.
Regards to all!
Hi Edward! Glad you’ve found some scents you love. As to the Frederic Malles, they offer free samples on their website – only charge for shipping. The samples are large, too – 2 ml. Great way to try out their fragrances first without having to purchase unsniffed! And if you don’t know what you may like, there’s a quiz that matches you with fragrances based on your answers. Looks like they send to Saudi Arabia, too…
Thanks for this info, Karin. Will try that! =)
Gentiane Blanche and Pamplemousse Rose are not part of the Hermessence line. You’ve made some other good choices tho.
My bad. Thanks for the correction.
Update, update.
I finally bought my 2 Frederic Malle but instead of Musc Ravageur, I ended up buying Cologne Bigarade and L Eau De Hiver. I ended up with the cologne given the scorching heat in Riyadh. The verdict? I love them both! Cologne Bigarade was a bitter orange peel and has a sophisticated drydown. The L Eau D Hiver was– as I read somewhere– like milk. I got a lot of samples too and those which caught my interest and lemmings are Musc Ravageur, Noir Espices, Lipstick Rose, and Dans Tes Bras.
Excuse me as I start saving every halala (one hundreth of a Saudi Riyal) NOW!
Thanks to all and regards!
Here’s Paolo, travelling as usual, at the moment located somewhere in the lovely Ceylon island with good internet connection and little more, wearing Eau de Rochas pour Homme. Too bad I’m working here, it’s really worth a more relaxed visit!
I got some great suggestions from the thread, and I almost tried them all… Here some of the tips I got and what I discovered thanks to all the lovely NSTers:
– NY Patricia Nicolai: hmmm, no. Nothing fresh about it, to my nose it is a powerful chypre, very elegant but a bit too intense;
– Montale Oud perfumes: hmmm, no. Very smoky, not really versatile, plus they all have a sort of gothic and unforgiving traits that make me feel like dr. Faustus;
– Diptyque Philosykos: hmmm, well. I don’t really like the fig note… but that gave me the chance to sample the very nice Vetyverio, which is a formidable summer scent; like it, wish list it, I can see a bottle coming soon;
– Hermes line: hmmm, maybe. I’m not a fan of Terres D’Hermes, I find the pepper note a bit annoying, and I find Voyages generic. Unfortunately I fell head over feet for Vetiver Tonka. The price is just hilarious, but I’m saving up for a bottle;
– L’Air Du Desert Marocain, highest score in the thread. Hmmm, no. There’s a smoky note that I don’t really like, a bit too harsh and dry. I find it a very evocative perfume, but not easy to wear;
– Musc Nomade: hmmm not quite, but love at first sniff with its cousin Mhyrre Ardente.
I’m now happily settled with APOM Francis Kurkdjian, which was not included in the suggestions I got, but inspired by Angela’s travelogue in Paris (which was really fun to read!). Wonderful scent, gentle sillage and monster longevity, the neroli top note is fresh and the cedarwood base is deep and sensual.
Thanks to the fellows NSTers who dropped suggestions!
Oops, Paolo, see comment below. I failed to link it to your comment. Sorry I spelled your name wrong.
Hey’all! I finally decided (after many years of devoted passive dedication to your site) to register as a member!
Am absolutely a fan of perfume (I can’t stop myself going to random perfume shops/department stores/perfume warehouses just to smell them!) but unfortunately I live in Singapore where the selection of perfumes is extremely limited and we only get fragrances from designer brands, which is SUCH a shame because the way you guys describe the stuff out there makes me wanna try them all!
There are lots of places to acquire decants, including The Perfumed Court, and treasures abound on ebay. Buyer beware.
Yep have visited their site before but they don’t ship to Singapore I think! Even if they do the shipping cost would probably make the sampling not worth the money at all!
Paulo, I adore Vetiver Tonka also. You can find the 15 ml travel sizes on eB*y. Hermes sells them on their website but you have to buy four of them as part of a set.
[Posting for Jessamy:]
Hi Robin,
I requested leather scents for my then-fiancee, now-husband Robert!
I fell for Tuscan Leather + Moss Breches by Tom Ford and wanted some more affordable options.
After all the searching, it is still my favorite, but some wonderful stops along the way included:
Serge Lutens Cuir Mauresque. Love that kneaded-rubber-eraser oriental Lutens base. Robert was a fan of this on me.
Bond No. 9 Chinatown. We both fell for the peachy-woody mixture.
Heeley Cuir Plein Fleur. The closest to TF in terms of literal leather kid gloves smell. A very close second.
Honorable mention:
Equipage by Hermes
Azuree by Estee Lauder
Cuir de Russie by Chanel
Thanks to all the NST readers for their help. Will probably buy a decant of TF Tuscan Leather to splash for special occasions!
Moss Breches is discontinued now, is it not? Or is soon to be phased out?
Yes, it’s discontinued….. I’m treasuring my bottle-I do love it….
Thanks all for helping me get started on my perfume odyssey! I tried many of the suggestions from NST readers, and some of them were absolute winners.
I was lucky that any of the suggestions worked out, actually, because I knew so little about perfume when I started I hardly knew what to ask for or how to describe what I liked. For example, Chanel 5 used to make me sick, but now I adore it.
Tocade was nice and a great suggestion, but lasted about 35 seconds on my skin.
Paestum Rose intrigues me, but I still haven’t gotten around to trying it.
Dzongkha smelled like cardboard to me.
Boojum recommended Psychotrope, and, while way out of my budget league, I of course went and fell hard in love with this chilly transparent floral.
Sad thing for me is I seem to have really expensive taste in perfume. But hey, who needs to eat?
I love SL’s Bois de Violette, Gris Claire, and Chergui.
I love Psychotrope, beyond words.
I love Shalimar, Mitsouko, Jicky, Heure Bleu, Chamade, Apres Ondee… most of the Guerlains, actually.
I was obsessed with the Hermes line for a few weeks, but they had poor longevity on me, and I found them a bit minimalist for my liking.
I love Tabac Blond.
I have decants of PG Bois Blond and SL Khoubli Khan coming in the mail.
I have dozens of decants that I’m rather “meh” about, and wonder how to go about swapping or selling. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Thanks!
Peggy
Hi Peggy! Oh yeah. Expensive taste. Most of us can relate to that! I also love many Guerlains AND Chanels. Really want to try Bois de Violette. Never heard of Psychotrope – now I’m curious!
Re: swapping, try makeupalley.com’s swap pages…
Yay! It just sounded perfect. Re: the expense… if you look at it as cost of joy per day, it starts looking pretty cheap after awhile.
So true! Like comparing a bottle of perfume to dinner out. A nice dinner can cost upwards of $100 for two…and it’s gone in a couple of hours! A $100 bottle of perfume provides DAYS and DAYS of joy!!!
Hello everyone. Lauren here! Glad to have this opportunity to update all of you! I was looking for an everyday, “signature” scent, but had the complication that I’m a nurse, and I didn’t want it to be overwhelming to sensitive patients.
(this might be old hat for some of you….keep in mind I’m a novice perfumista!)
First off, several people brought up The Perfumed Court for decants….I’m SO HAPPY to have found this website! The ability to try a wide range of hard-to-obtain scents on a budget has rocked my fragrance world
Second off, I’ve expanded beyond the idea of a “cover-all, signature scent.” The more I explore perfumes, the more I like to have different fragrances for different moods, outfits, activities, etc.
I have found that the Fresh line of fragrances do well for me at work. I especially enjoy sugar lychee. It’s very subtle, and when I wear it I don’t feel like I’m fragranced…I feel like I’m fresh, clean and pretty.
I tried the philosophy scents at the suggestion of many…..and I DO NOT like them! I really thought I would, and I’ve smelled all of them, but I just can’t find reason to really appreciate any of them. They smell flat, boring, tame, and generic to me. That being said, I DO love their delicious shower gels (yellow birthday cake…yum!).
I’ve added Chanel Chance and Bronze Goddess to my perfume selection, and am pelased with both. My favorite new perfume, though, might be Jardin sur le Nil.
Thanks for providing the forum, Robin!
I would looooooove to be treated by a nurse who smells like Un Jardin sur le Nil!
Robin, what a great way to wrap up this year of the Monday mail! There are always so many diverse recommendations, and I always wonder what the participants trie, love or hate, and end up buying. Thanks to all who reported back!
Hear, hear! It’s like watching someone’s face as they open a gift.
Hi!! Thank everyone for all advices… I love this experience, trying new fragrances. I´ve got some samples, and it´s amazing find out this new world (other than Ralph Lauren, Lancome, etc that I just knew…)
From Frederic Malle , I ´ve chose “Lys Mediterranee”, yes… this is the one that I was looking for! But I also like ” Le Perfum de Therese” and “Carnal Flower”.
I liked very much jubilation 25, but It didn´t fit in my poor pocket…
My next bottle must be one of this three: Amaranthine, Manoumalia or Reverie au Jardin. It´s been hard to choose one…
Hello Lilian, I love Amaranthine and Reverie au Jardin too, they have different qualities so very hard to choose which to buy first!! I have a sample of Reverie au Jardin which has lasted a verrry long time, Tauer’s sample programme is great but I still really want an FB. Amaranthine I find the most wearable of the two and was “forced” to by an FB. Have not tried Manoumalia, bit scared to be honest by what has been said by the Perfume Posse so will have to investigate a sample or decant. Beauty is in the nose of the beholder!
Coming latetothe party because I wasin Chicago….learning to love NM and Saks for their fragrance selections! All those Guerlains! Every Hermes I needed to sniff! and Francis Kurd, etc etc! Stopped by the Chanel Boutique as well, but it was after hours…
Since my request for neroli scents, Ive moved on! OMG! My tastes have evolved. From Violet scents to OB, to hating jasmine and now loving the skankiest jasmine I can find…from one bottle of Bosari Violette and various etsy concoctions…to my latest HUGE bottle of Coromandel! Ive discovered so many and have moved from floral to animalic to ambers and aouds…current love is Ambre Russe and I love Parfums DEmpire fiercly! Eau Suave is a great love! And Chanel? I used to smell the distince ‘Chanel-ness’ and run…now, I run toward it! SL and LArtisan intrigue me, Etat Libre is lovely…and frightening (you know which one I sniffed!), and MMicallef and Montale are new to me as I further explore! The only thing I have truly learned is that heliotrope is simply playdough on me…and that every scent is absolutely marvelous! TY all!