Welcome to Forgotten Friend Friday! Today's community project: wear something you haven't worn in ages, or that you tend to forget that you own, or the like.
As always, if you were not able to wear something that fits the project, no matter, do chime in with your scent of the day.
After digging around at the back of my perfume cabinet, I had so many choices for a forgotten friend that I'm thinking we might need to do this more than once a year. I finally picked Houbigant Aperçu because I literally could not remember the last time I wore it — it's probably been some years. It still smells great (and I don't know if it's still in production, but it's still quite easy to find online at decent prices). It's a lovely classic chypre, clearly influenced by Guerlain Mitsouko, but somewhat easier to wear. Still, it's a bit perfume-y for a hot summer day and I'll probably switch by the afternoon.
Reminder: next Friday, July 4th, wear something by a US-based brand.
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2014, where I'll try to always have the next six or seven weeks mapped out in advance.
SOTD is BIche Dans L’Absinthe (Victoire Gobin Daude). I’ve had this sample vial for years and found it digging through my desk drawer. Lovely and sad that it is long since discontinued…
Oh, gosh, that is a blast from the past. I own 2 GD fragrances and adore both of them.
I love this one, wish it had more tenacity, but it is beautiful just the same. The immortelle is tuned just right, that note tends to overpower my nose in some other frags I have that feature it.
Wish they’d relaunch the brand…seems like they were sort of “ahead of their time” in niche.
I’ve not heard of them. Are they functionally unavailable, then?
Yes…long discontinued, and never widely distributed to begin with.
My greatest perfume regret is not testing Gobin-Daude when the line was still available, partly because it was so expensive, but also because I did not like the packaging. *hangs head in perfume shame* I have some Biche dans l’Absinthe and Sous le Buis, and am so impressed with them, and I believe I would have liked some of the others even better. I wish she would come back, but I doubt that her perfumes could be produced within IFRA/EU guidelines.
It was expensive! But within a few years, so many other niche brands were charging even more.
I got Sous Le Buis and Seve Exquise half price when some store (can’t remember which now) was clearing them out after the brand was discontinued. I don’t think much in those 2 scents has been regulated since, but I could of course be wrong.
Adding later…I was in fact actually offended at the high price at the time. That now seems comical to me. Who knew how bad it could get…
YES – it seems comical now. I can’t help kicking myself whenever I think of Gobin-Daude. And the packaging is good quality in person. It would not have deterred me if I’d actually tested them in time. (Unlike Eau d’Italie, of which I will only ever own decants, even though I love Paestum Rose.)
I remember reading that Takashimaya was selling them for half price or less when the NYC store closed, but they weren’t on the website by the time I checked.
I don’t know what’s in them, so it’s a guess. They were supposed to be natural perfumes, and so many naturals have been regulated, so I’m making an assumption that some ingredient(s) would be a problem. It would be funny if I owed IFRA an apology, for once.
I can see that they were $140 in 2005. I think they were more than that by the time I noticed them, several years later, and I actively disliked the design on the boxes (silly, I know, I hope I’ve learned my lesson). In comparison, I got BK Beyond Love, my favorite tuberose, in the beautiful (and usefully ideal for storage) travel atomizer set for $140 in 2010.
It was also partly that they came out before I was reading perfume blogs, and I missed the reviews. Also, they weren’t reviewed in The Guide, which was the main focus of my testing early on. This experience makes me paranoid about missing the perfume love of my life, like that scene in Dr. Zhivago. Especially with the flood of new lines, I always suspect there is another Gobin-Daude out there that I haven’t even heard of, or won’t get around to trying until it is too late.
Ah, bet that’s where I got them. I miss Tak, too! That was a great perfume resource. And now Bendels gone too…just as well I don’t go to NYC these days.
But pretty sure they were not 100% natural.
Since the BDLA has completed faded, I applied another “forgotten” frag, Cuvee Speciale (Charvet). OMG, how lovely to run across both of these in the same day!
relleric, isn’t it wonderful to have even a tiny bit of these fallen stars?
(Although Carvet may be attainable, I suppose. I’m trying out ShopFrance for some other things that are only available there.)
I put on the last of my DSH Tubereuse, an old-favorite tuberose that I’ve neglected for the past couple of years. It’s got a very fresh green top note that reminds me of parsley, but the drydown is very rich and woody, like aged rum. It was a purse spray, and I’d like to get more at some point…but not until after I move!
Oh, that was a pretty one…I should see if I still have a sample somewhere.
If you want to re-stock, DSH is having 15% off through July 7th w/ code “solstice14.” Just fyi!
My forgotten friend – Shalimar Parfum Initial.
I haven’t reached for it since, gosh, last fall! Now that I have it on, I am actually enjoying it again.
Looking forward to next Friday!
Nice!
My bottle have also been quite forgotten until recently. Apparantly it’s about to be discontinued.
Eh? Shalimar PI for the axe ? Ack. That’s going to upset a lot of people.
Good Morning All! I am a little embarrassed about my forgotten friend scent. It is so simple. My SOTD is White Diamonds from Elizabeth Taylor. My dad used to buy me this fragrance every year for Christmas. I used to love it. I guess within the last 4 years, he stopped buying that and started getting others. Needless to say, I have about 3 bottles of it left. I haven’t worn it in years. I have heard several people say that this is the “old ladies fragrance”. That gave me a complex and I kinda stopped wearing it. I used to wear it all the time, and I’m wearing it today.
Gosh, that’s a great scent…the mother of all celebrity perfumes. Nothing to be embarrassed about at all!
I remember trying that instore a few years ago and being surprised about how nice it was!
This is a favorite of mine as well! Great choice!
I have a small bottle of the perfume to dab. It’s lovely! Enjoy!
I can’t believe next Friday is already Independence Day!
I’m wearing Lush Vanillary — the EDT from a nearly empty travel spray, with the solid in my bag in case I need to touch up later. I began to explore perfume as something to smell and wear lots of for different occasions through Lush. A few years ago I bought solids of Vanillary and Dirty in the mall on a whim… and then more samples from their website… and then a few more samples from STC… and then a few more than that… and then I realized they just GIVE you free samples in the mall… I think yall know how that goes.
Anyway, as these things go I hadn’t worn it in a while and am very much enjoying wearing it today.
I know, it doesn’t seem like it’s that far into summer, does it? It always whips by too fast.
My Lush doesn’t always have the fragrance samples, although they’ll make you a sample of any other product in the store.
Andy Tauer Lonestar Memories. I have a whole bottle but it was tucked away : I haven’t worn it in at least a year, so out of sight, out of mind. And it’s just terrific — wood smoke plus leathery birch tar, and tonka to round it all out. So good! I’m putting it back in regular rotation.
That’s such a great scent, and a great name too.
I have a male friend who loves it and keeps hinting that I should buy him some. Except he calls it ‘Brokeback Memories’ :-/ lol
Ha…that could be the flanker!
or FLANKer
Good one Hajusuuri! LoL
SOTD is Knowing – I haven’t worn it in absloutely ages and always, in retrospect, felt that it was too grown up for me. Well wearing it today I adore it’s cool business-like elegance and feminity and can see this becoming a much much worn friend. Thank you for prompting me to try this again. It actually feels like me which I do not think was ever true before.
Hey, you’ve grown into a classic! Nice.
Yay, I love Knowing! and I love growing into a perfume that didn’t feel quite right before.
I have surprised myself by how right it feels – a really good reminder of going back to things you may not love at first
My forgotten fragrance is Chanel Allure. I got it in high school, in 96 or 97. Same bottle, and it hasn’t always been stored in optimal conditions. Yesterday I was at Ulta, so I tested Allure on one wrist to see how my old bottle compares. The new one is definitely harsher at first, which I think is why I stopped wearing it. My old one is more mellow, I like it better! Glad for this push to try something I haven’t thought about in so long, and I will add Allure back into my rotation after not wearing it for probably 10 years!
Some of my perfumes have improved with age too, although it’s always hard to tell since everything has been reformulated since I bought it anyway.
Interesting observation Ladies! I was thinking the same thing with my forgotten friend today. Better now than it ever was before. Only have had this bottle about 9 years.
My forgotten friend is my big bottle of Prada’s Infusion d’Iris Absolu. Every time I put it on, I marvel at its wearability and wonder why I don’t wear it more often!
I should wear it more often too, really a wonderful scent.
I never see this anywhere – I need to track it down to try it.
Sephora has it. The bottle has a gold top and gold label.
Whoops! Apparently I’ve been blind – going to spritz when next I go.
The Sephora perfume wall hurts my eyes so I am not surprised that you missed it!
Happy friday everyone! I’am going way back and wearing Avon Millenia. I wore this the summer I meet my husband and it reminds me of lots of carefree fun summer days. It smells nice, some incense,orchid, and vanilla. The bottle is split in half and the juice is blue. Now I remember going to the drive-in movies,wink wink lol.
Oh, how fun!
I’m wearing Aftelier’s Wild Roses, which I bought last year thinking it would be a great summer rose, but I don’t think I had reached for it once yet this season.
Last night I discovered the one I originally planned to wear today has turned. I’ve had the bottle for maybe 12 years or more, since the days when I owned only two or three perfumes at a time and just left the bottles sitting out, so it’s not surprising. It’s the long-discontinued Estee Lauder White Linen Breeze (a flanker to the original White Linen, not the newer flanker to Pure White Linen). It used to be my “weekend perfume”—such a strange concept now!
Oh, so sorry! I’ve had perfumes turn much quicker than that.
I was going to wear Comptoire Sud Pacifique Vanille Cannelle, which I am sure is discontinued, but then I remembered wearing it a number of times this winter and spring. I moved on to Miller et Bertaux A Quiet Morning, which I know I haven’t worn for a while. And my morning has been a quiet one, so i guess it was the right choice!
Vanille Cannelle is discontinued: I saw it on the official website yesterday and thought they still sold it, but when you select that item it says “N.D.”, which means “non disponible”, “not available”. (They do have other discontinued scents, though: Matin Calin and Bois de Filao, among others, are still available in the old packaging.)
If you should happen to run out, Demeter Egg Nog is a whole lot like Vanille Cannelle only softer, with a creamy quality. It’s also much, much less expensive.
Being so new to perfume as a part of my daily routine, I was not sure what my community scent would be today. Then I remembered the Amber & Myrrh oil that was my one fragrance, probably from 2003 – 2012. I got it at Whole Foods, and the brand is Kuumba Made.
To me, it is not super office-friendly, because I find it very sexy, but I love re-living why I love it. I have not worn it since last summer. It’s amazing for warm summer nights.
Great idea for a Friday theme!
Yes, I had to think about it, too. Long-lost friends may have a different meaning when your newer to scent than to the old-hats! OTOH, I’m sort of looking forward to a decade from now, having that perspective and looking over my collection and having a fuller understanding of my tastes and the changes in fragrance fashions.
DSH Cuir et Champignon. I haven’t worn it in over a year, maybe more like 18 months? I know I was dating a fella pre-Mr. Spicebomb, and it was the only scent that he’d admitted to being “not his thing.” It is undeniably an odd scent, but I still like it! (Although not entirely appropriate for summer–I’m getting a WHOOSH of rawhide-y leather at the moment!)
Otherwise, looking through my perfume cabinet, I’d say I do a pretty good job at using what I own, which is sort of a relief! I’m *sure* there are more “long-lost friends” in my sample collection, but that doesn’t worry me too much!
Samples definitely don’t count…
Neither as long-lost friends NOR in damage polls!
SOTD is SSS Jour Ensoleille. I had forgotten how much I love it. The orange blossom opening and the oakmoss, woody base – just beautiful. Probably a little early in the season for it as it feels a bit more like late summer, but wonderful nonetheless.
Happy Friday everyone!
Gorgeous and I always get compliments on it.
Love Jour Ensoleille!!
Thanks for the reminder…I will have to wear it soon.
Mine is the floral fun of Vince Camuto. I stopped wearing it after I switched jobs and needed to convey a little more gravitas (it’s on the sweet-sexy). I guess I just forgot about it, but I’m definitely enjoying it today, it’s making me smile.
SOTD – Etro Shaal Nur. I haven’t worn this in about year. I forgot how fantastic it is. Beautiful and soothing. I wish they had Shaal Nur body products because I’d use a body gel every morning!
Oh, but they do! I know there is a body milk and a shower gel at least.
Thanks Robin. I just found the shower gel and body lotion on Beauty Encounter, placed them in my cart (30% off!!!) and now the server is down…UGH…
Oh figures. Well, it’s got to come back up eventually, right?
I’ve heard good things about the Shaal Nur body stuff, but would really appreciate more input if you ever get them! I’m very tempted.
I have the Etro Shaal Nur trio. I love the scent so much that I wanted to layer it. My verdict: While the shower gel and perfumed lotion complement the perfume nicely, both seem more incense-y with a more pronounced vanilla/rose accord. You could easily wear the lotion on its own on days when just wanted a soft veil of fragrance as opposed to a cloud!
Wonderful perfume – great choice!
There are quite a few I couldve chosen as not having worn for a while, so I chose that of which I’m the fondest.
YSL’s Nu edp was almost my signature about 10 years ago, and one of the very few bottles I’ve drained. As I only have one partial bottle left (back-ups are crazy prices!) I don’t wear it very often anymore. It also has a LOT more competition than it used to!
I considered this one for today as I don’t think I’ve worn it all year.
I’m wearing Beleaf by the Body Shop – long discontinued – which I bought circa 2006. Even though I wasn’t properly into perfumes at the time, I was having a green phase. Haven’t worn it in literally years and it’s bringing me back to that time when I was a naive and sweet young thing….a time I don’t necessarily wish to relive, but the scent is still rather nice.
Well, one thing I don’t lack after several years of avid acquisition is forgotten perfume friends. It could have been almost anything, but I decided to pick an old friend and mentor, AG Eau d’Hadrien.
This was probably my first niche purchase, back in the late 80s or early 90s (not 100 percent certain, since I also bought AG Passion and Heure Exquise around the same time). I naively gave it away when I moved in 1995, before I realized the idea that perfumes usually “go bad” after three years is a myth, and that one can never step in the same perfume river twice, due to reformulation. When I discovered the ebay time machine, I bought a couple of partial bottles of Eau d’Hadrien, hoping for older formulations, and I think they are that.
I’m not actually very fond of citrus-focused scents, so I almost never wear Eau d’Hadrien, but today, in honor of forgotten friends, I have spritzed my two old bottles on different arms and am happily floating in a gentle, soft, cloud of lemon, its tartness subtly sheathed by an almost imperceptible veil of blossoms, herbs and woods.
I thought of EdH but I always mixed it with Red Roses and can’t find my (unnecessarily huge) bottle. You smell better than I do today
That sounds like a must-try layering idea – EdH is soft enough to complement roses beautifully.
Love your reference to eBay as a time machine!
I think I thought of that after I found a pristine set of Christmas bubble lights on ebay, just like the ones my grandmother used to have. The time machine doesn’t always work on the prices, though, LOL.
SOTD: POLO RED by Ralph Lauren
SOTD is Dolce & Gabbana By woman. Why oh why did they discontinue this??
I know! And of course when I finally decided that I wanted some- impossible to find!
Unfortunately, I didn’t buy a full bottle when it was still in production. I found two mini bottles in a small shop at the mall a few years ago. The owner didn’t realize what she had – all minis were $9.00 and buy three, get one free. Those two, an original Miss Dior, and a 24 Faubourg made me a very happy customer. I’ve seen full sized bottles for over $200!
I am starting off with Fresh Mukki (the first one that actually smells milky) and later I will spray some Banana Republic Classic as a room spray and put on some In Love Again. This is fun. I have some pretty unbearable stuff I wore in high school and college and haven’t sniffed in ages. Nicole by Nicole Miller?! Bobbi? One of those Escada LEs in a frosted purple bottle? Bvlgari Blue? 212 (which was great until everyone smelled like it). I am gonna stink today.
I actually do a pretty good job of rotating through my full bottles, but I tend to forget about my perfume oils, so today I’m wearing L’Aromarine’s Mousse de Chine – pretty much straight oak moss, and I’m smelling like a fairy tale forest.
Today is Aftelier Cepes and Tuberose. One of the most unusual scents I own, and I wear it less than it deserves. I am sure I smell like no one else in my town today.
I love that one—it’s such an odd and beautiful scent!
Hi all. SoTD is Diorella, pulled from the back of a closet. My go-to scent in the mid-late 70s.
I love it but this bottle must be reformulated; not as pretty, and fading fast. It was sold to me as vintage. Won’t be going back there.
I, too, wore the heck out of Diorella in the 70s. I like the bottle I currently own (circa late 90s, I’d guess), but it isn’t the same Diorella of my youth. You’re right, definitely reformulated. But how annoying that what was sold to you as vintage, isn’t.
I’m wearing Bulgari’s Omnia (original) based on Robin’s post yesterday of summer spicy perfumes. I haven’t worn this in at least a year, if not longer. Actually, I had planned to wear the Piment Brulant instead and had the bottle in my hand when I spied Omnia sitting in the back and changed my mind on the spot. It’s been really humid lately and the dry spiciness of Omnia is working really well.
A friend wears Omnia and it really suits her. That and Black are nice, but seem to be an anomaly to the rest of the line, alas.
Scent twins!
I am wearing Chinatown, for the first time this year. It’s a cool, rainy day and it seems to be doing well.
Ohh…Chinatown is one of my favorites, but it really packs a punch!
OMG, that’s the one I chose today also! I can’t remember the last time I put it on.
I’m wearing Voile de Violette by SSS today. I am also bereft because they no longer ship internationally, and I’m already halfway through my bottle of Nostalgie
Somehow, despite its obnoxiously colorful packaging, I’ve managed to forget about my Harajuku Lovers G Perfume. It’s a bit sunscreen-y and cheap smelling, but carefree and fun enough for an easy summer day.
I thought about wearing one of my Harajuku scents today as well. I have Super G and the Mermaid one (both bought for the bottle). Oh! and a Santa one as well!
They are a lot of fun!
Ack. I haven’t dragged out my Harajuku doll head solids in ages. Maybe since I bought them.
My Forgotten scent today is Dior’s J’Adore (original version, pre-reform). I won this at a fragrance fair at a department store some years ago. I can usually appreciate most scents even those that are not to my taste, but this one, not! So many reviews describe this as light and airy, luminescent, golden, shimmering, but this is one scent I just don’t ‘get,’ didn’t when it first came out, still don’t now. I’ve always been surprised how popular it is. To me it’s a very sharp and synthetic floral with a very strong pear note that makes it cold and distant and, surprise! (for me) calls up no memories and conjures no magical images. One of the very few I have found to be a ‘scrubber.’ Nonethless, it was good to try it again today, haven’t worn it in a long, long time.
I really like J’Adore! Congrats on your win.
I agree completely – I cannot stand J’adore! Maybe it’s okay on other people (maybe…), but to me it’s so synthetic and sharp, there’s nothing romantic, or refined, or glamorous about it to my nose. It’s like the Kim Kardashian of mainstream perfume.
Should I have saved this mini-rant for those poll days when we list the perfume we hate that everyone else seems to love? Sorry if that was a little too charged…
You aren’t alone, I don’t like it either for the same reasons.
LOL! It’s the Kim Kardashian of mainstream perfume! That is so funny to me.
That’s so funny! I read it is
one of her favorite scents!!!
Aww! I’m sorry you didn’t really like it. I loved the original J’Adore.
By original, do you mean from 1999? I loved it in 1999, but it appears that they changed it shortly thereafter. By 2004, it definitely wasn’t the same. Of course, if you dislike any version, you probably wouldn’t love the original, either.
Mine is in the “haven’t worn in ages” category, because the perfumer stopped making it several years ago, and my bottle is just about drained. It’s Ava Luxe Oeillet Blanc. One little spritz and it’s like standing in a field of carnations. Lots of lovely clove. Sigh.
I feel you – I miss a lot of the older Ava Luxe fragrances….some I only spray on the back of my hand in hopes of making them last a little longer.
I had a really hard time picking a single scent from all the perfumes I rummaged through last night (I should probably spend some time with these “old friends” before they completely forget about me!…), but I came away with one of my very first niche purchases – Pierre Guillaume’s Querelle. I haven’t worn it (or even thought about it) in years. I missed you, ole pal.
I have only been into perfume since a couple of years ago, and my collection is quite small, so I don’t have true forgotten friends in there yet. However, I am (or rather was, because I’m actively trying to lose that habit) one of those people who keep minis and samples of anything until ‘the perfect occasion’, which of course never comes (or if it does, then it’s been so long that I forget to use said sample!). Anyone else is like that? One of those samples was the Nuxe’s Huile Prodigieuse that I’ve had for probably two years in my drawer… well today was the day! I slathered myself in it this morning after my shower. It feels quite appropriate for this warm summer day. Now I’ve spritz on top of it some of Jo Malone’s White Jasmine & Mint, one of my least used full bottles.
I’m very glad because my small collection will actually get a new member very soon: just ordered a 30 ml (I wish all brands would do such smaller sizes, like 15 to 30 ml) of Grand Neroli to celebrate the end of my MSc degree! Yay!
Yay, congrats on finishing your degree!
Love GN. I bought 30ml and later it grew into a 100ml bottle. Great for the heat. And congratulations!
Thanks!
I almost bought the 200 ml, just to get a 30 ml of another scent + the engraved leather case (such a nice idea), but I was too afraid of getting bored with it (even though I do love it) and that it might turn before I ever reach the end of the bottle. I don’t go through perfume quickly enough I think (so many things to sample, so little time!)…
But I can relate to the idea of getting the smaller size and once it’s done to let it grow to the next size. I try to always buy the smallest bottle (with a spritz!), thinking that if I finish it, then I can justify getting a bigger size next time. But I get really annoyed sometimes at how little the price difference is between a 50 ml and a 100 ml bottles, say, making the justification for the larger bottle easier (from a price per ml point of view). But then again, if I end up wasting it, I still have wasted money, haven’t I!? aaghh… choices, choices, choices!
I’v been on a patchouli hunt lately, so I wore one of the few I own that has a good dose of it – CdG’s Daphne. I often pass over it as it can be demanding, but this morning it was great!
I have always wanted Daphne!
I got it on sale at a good price and sometimes love it. At other times though, it does not feel quite right…
I’m cheating a bit here: my SOTD is Un Jardin sur le Nil which I actually wore a few days ago. But it is a forgotten friend as I bought a full bottle last week after several years without it. And it was lovely to make its acquaintance again!
SOTD is Santa Maria Novella Eva. I bought it on impulse in Florence two years ago, for a souvenir, but never worn it since. Wearing it today I’m quite convinced it’s not me, doubt I’ll reach for it again.
Sell it on ebay! (and let me know when you do, ha)
I’m stumbling in late but since it’s time to change scents for the afternoon, I just dug around my perfume cabinet and found Tom Ford White Patchouli. Can’t remember when I last wore it – it’s definitely been a few years. It smells elegant, sophisticated and subtle and there’s not much patchouli to my nose. The more I’m sniffing my wrist, the more I’m liking it! I don’t recall wearing it in the summer before.
I went with Bulgari Omnia (original) today. I think it was the first bottle I bought after falling down the rabbit hole, which has been like 2 or 3 years ago by now, I think. I wish it hadn’t been discontinued, since it’s so much better than the rest of the Omnia line.
I totally agree about its relative worth to the rest of the Omnias. Also its sheer spiciness makes it wonderful for layering.
Today I am wearing Un Jardin en Med. After wearing it often last summer, tried it in the fall and couldn’t stand it! I thought the love was gone but I’m loving it again today. I guess there really is something to the whole seasonality thing. Yay!
The old friend I’m wearing today is Sinfonia di Note’s lovely Fleur de Santal. It is a cool wet day and something woody yet floral sounded just right. First in Fragrance describes it –
‘Fleur de Santal is a fascinating composition, in which sandalwood plays the main role. It’s a welcoming and at the same time spirited fragrance where delicate flowers and luxurious sandalwood combine with a very naughty musk and earthy patchouli.
This composition is accompanied by a soft vanilla note and a powdery ambra note. The result is a sophisticated fragrance that dares to break the rules. It´s extremely sexy, but also warm and playful – comparable with the black sheep of a royal family who sneaks away from an official celebration and jumps on a Vespa to go to a party which is on the wrong side of town.’
I’ve use it sparingly because it is harder to come by now that Luckyscent isn’t carrying the line any more.
Hello all, first time posting after a month or two of lurking
I’m too new to really have ‘forgotten’ scents, but went with one I haven’t worn for a few months – SL Feminite du Bois. This was my first niche scent and also a blind buy – glad I lucked out because I do love it. It’s still exciting to me because it doesn’t smell like anything I was finding at drugstores and department stores. I’m in Canada and options can feel pretty limited outside of Toronto (I’m relatively close by, but it’s not a trip I make often).
The good news is I got my first Surrendertochance order last week so I can try some of the brands everyone is always talking about
I picked out some Chanels and SLs and a couple of other wants and then held my breath and asked for a 25-vial grab bag. I’ve barely started digging in but I think this will be an interesting introduction to 20+ new-to-me lines. There are notes I think I love and dislike but I bet this will have some surprises in it for me 
Looking forward to chatting with everyone!
Hello and welcome! Do just keep jumping in and you’ll be a regular in no time.
That’s arguably the most respectable “first niche” scent ever…and a grab bag sounds like great fun.
Thanks Robin! What fun to be part of a group that doesn’t say ‘but aren’t three or four perfumes enough?’
I definitely lucked out, but now I’m going to try to buy smarter by actually sampling first.
By lucky coincidence, the grab bag had a few I already wanted to try, like Etat Libre d`Orange’s Rien, so I feel like it’s off to a good start!
Ha, no, you won’t hear that around here!
25-vial grab bag?
My heart just skipped a beat.
Yours, too? Yes Yes YES!
I figure 25/$40 works out to $1.60 per 1ml vial, which is amazingly low-risk for stuff that is often $7-12 for a full ml
Awesome! Please report back on the grab bag–I’ve thought about ordering one, but chickened out. I’m pretty new myself, and I’ve discovered that I’m not that great at picking out samples based on notes. I’m often quite surprised by what works for me and what doesn’t.
Laurels, I’m about a 5 years old perfume-enthusiast and I have the same problem. I’v decided its because its mostly the actual combinations that appeal to me and does not have that much to do with the solitary note. This is true even of soliflores which always emphasize one aspect of the flower over others.
At $1.60 per 1ml vial, I figured I could have low expectations but I’m really having a lot of fun so far
I figure even if I don’t like an individual perfume, I get a rough idea of whether a perfume house is going to be worth going back for a more expensive sample of a different scent. I know it’s a grab bag and random luck is at play, but I will say every single sample was from a different perfume house – SL, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, L’Artisan, Montale, Amouage, Parfums MDCI, Keiko Mecheri, etc.
I’m also finding looking at the notes in niche perfumes don’t help the way they do with most mainstream brands! It’s a whole new world
Welcome Applebite! Glad to have you join us.
Indeed! Welcome!
Thank you!! That grab bag of 25 vials will keep me busy for a while
Thanks so much, glad to meet such a friendly bunch of people
SOTD is YSL Rive Gauche. I got this in the 1990s sometime, and haven’t tried it in a few years. I don’t think that it is the best choice for a hot Texas summer day, but I might try it again when it cools down. The sillage and longevity is pretty great.
SOTD = L’AP Seville a l’Aube
I haven’t worn this in ages and I should! It is perfect today in NYC with just the right touch of orange blossom, incense and lavender. I know it’s now part of the regular line. Does anyone know if it has been reformulated?
I knew what I had to choose when I thought, “I haven’t worn that one in the bottle like an Art Deco skyscraper in a while,” and realized that it had been so long that I didn’t remember its name. It turned out to be Ysatis.
Oh, I used to love Ysatis! What a beautiful fragrance!
I don’t really have enough fragrances to forget them but I rarely wear voyage d’hermes. I like it best in summer – it’s spicy (barrels of cardamom, lasts ages) but light and airy and citrusy still. I just find my other summer scents more interesting I suppose, though it does make me feel put-together and peaceful in its undemanding but undeniably distinct aura. It’s been months since I last wore it! My only
*my only other contender was miss Dior cherie (whatever it’s called these days), from my teen years but I really can’t wear that one unless I’m in a very pink mood. Voyage is a lot easier to wear…
Today I went poking through my perfume cabinet and came up with the last bit of Serge Lutens Clair de Musc. So I happily spritzed on what was left, started my day out on a soft, soapy and slightly animalistic musk and enjoyed it well into the afternoon. It is one of those perfumes I kick myself over not replacing and really need to bump it up on my buy list. It’s so perfect and easy to wear.
My SOTD is a sample of Gucci Guilty Black that I forgot that I had. It’s actually quite a pleasant amber-y flruity scent. I don’t know if I would buy a full bottle, but it’s nice.
SCENT OF THE EVENING:
BOSS HUGO BOSS BOTTLED UNLIMITED
SOTD Kelly Caleche, truly an old friend as I wore it daily for almost 4 years. It came in handy today when my son and I were walking through Downtown and he told me it smelled like a porta-potty. I offered him my wrist and he inhaled deeply. Mom to the rescue! (TMI?…sorry if so)
Ha! One of the reasons I never go anywhere without perfume is that I have a sensitive nose, and often prefer my own scent bubble to my surroundings. I should really learn to appreciate all the smells around me, but sometimes it seems overly difficult. Let’s hope your son grows up to smell wonderful himself.
I’m hoping to guide my son through his first scents and be sure that he steers clear of great offenders such as Axe. When I was a teen boys smelled like Polo, Grey Flannel and Z-14. I still love the memory of those scents, but a recent whiff of Polo has me wishing for the version I remember from the early 80’s!
I wish I had something vintage and fabulous to wear today, but I started my fragrance love affair with celebrity perfumes in 2003. Haha! I just stumbled across my bottle of With Love collecting dust in my closet. She’s about 8yrs old now, and while it does smell slightly off, it’s still just fine in my book. My word it makes me feel old. Lol! ^_^
I complimented someone yesterday and asked what she was wearing. The answer: Jessica Simpson Fancy Nights! So celebuscents or niche, its all about how it smells on you to yourself and others around you. I need to wear that sample of Bonbon
Habit Rouge is the old friend for today, though I am reminded of quite a few others by reading the other posts! It is a perfume I had to grow into, but I like it very much now on certain occasions. The week after I “got” Shalimar, I retried Habit Rouge and found I liked recognizing the Guerlain-iness of it, even if perhaps that was precisely what bothered me before! I have also gotten more accustomed to powder in perfume.
Today I wore Sacrebleu which had exactly the effect I wanted–not only did my coworker hug me, but Sacrebleu is lush and ripe like the buildup to the first kiss was, and, we snuck away like teenagers to neck in the backseat of his car and he kept saying how good I smelled
Lucky you!
Whoot whoot! I think the Goddess in you must have had some influence!
Woohoo!! Go Rena go!
Well the scent compliments were the cherry on top of something that had been building for a while (grin)
You’ll just have to go into more details when we go sniffing
SOTD is Gucci by Gucci. I haven’t been down the rabbit hole long enough, or acquired a large enough collection, to really forget about a bottle, but I don’t think I’ve worn it since last fall. It was a contender for Fruity Friday as well (that guava in the opening!), but I thought it fit better this week. It’s one I like rather than love, but it’s easy to wear, and has good persistence even when applied sparingly, which is an excellent quality in certain circumstances. I wish I had a story like Rena’s. A sample of Sacrebleu is definitely in my future.
Over 9 years ago, a co-worker gave me a gift set of Shi, by Alfred Sung.
I was never crazy about it, and lost track of the bottle last year sometime. Found it last week, and new it would be perfect for today.
Seems time has been good to it, and it is better now than ever before. Must have liked it more than I thought, as it is half gone!
My SOTD was soooooo forgotten I couldn’t even find it. I have/had a small CB bottle of something tropical–red ginger or some such thing. It’s just too cloying. But! I also recently got a sampler of JHAG Not A Perfume, and I thought that would tone down the CB nicely. I just never quite got around to trying the combo, and when I went to do so today, I couldn’t find the CB anywhere. Argh!
So I went with Chinatown. It’s OK, but I think it was forgotten for a reason. Glad I just have a bon bon.
Chinatown is one of those I feel like I should like but cannot feel more than luke warm towards. The guide pointed out that it smells like a lacquered box and went on to enthuse about it. I guess that while I love gasoline and wet cement I find lacquer hard to warm up to!
Hello Everyone!
My forgotten “Saturday” friend is Aromatics Elixir. It is perfect for our cold weather (It is winter here).