The usual open thread: talk about anything you like — the perfume you’re wearing today, the perfume you're thinking will never ever suit you, whatever.
Or, ask a question about fragrance, then see if anyone else has asked a question that you can answer…
Note: image is color!!! [cropped] by extranoise at flickr; some rights reserved.
Good morning! I nerded out about perfume this morning to my poor hubby who just stared at me, eyes glazed over, as I ranted about people not appreciating scent :/ This led to me breaking out some precious bottles and making him smell them…and I stumbled across my lovely bottle of Histoires de Parfums Defile New York (bottle 60 of 150 🙂 ). So I’m wearing that because he perked up a little bit when he smelled it. I like this one but am scared to wear it because I can never ever get another bottle.
Hope everyone has a truly glorious fall day! The last of the leaves are falling here and on Wednesday we’re supposed to get a ‘wintry mix’ dump, so my goal for the week is finding all the perfumes that I find comforting in Winter and putting them in one spot. Virtually impossible. but I Will Prevail.
Ugh. I am so not ready for wintry mix this year.
Me either. And I have no clue where I put my boots. I’m going to wrap myself in a warm cocoon of vanillic scents for the next 6 months and hide.
If you’ve found a perfume that you and your sweetheart both like, I say wear it! 🙂
Wear things you love because while you can never get another bottle you also only get one life in which to enjoy it
yep — I’m with Goddessrena on this one: wear your favorites. When you save your best stuff–you’re just saving it for someone else.
+1
I found an interesting reference to perfume wearing in the biography I’m reading, and thought I’d share it with you.
I’m reading Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, and it refers to when Bess, Georgiana’s dear friend and her husband’s lover, is sent to spend some time in Italy, in 1785.
In a letter sent home from G’s brother George (who had come across Bess in Italy) writes:
‘She is not very well liked by the Italians on account of her want of facility in speaking their language, and her wearing perfume which is here an unpardonable offence.’
I had no idea! I wonder whether it was just Italy, or in other places, as it was obviously ok in England. I also wonder when the fashion changed…
How interesting…would have expected it to be the other way around.
Me too. I don’t know what kind of fragrances were popular in the 1780’s, but it was only a few years later in France that Josephine stunk Versailles out with her heavy-handed animalic concoctions, so maybe they weren’t light pretty florals she was wearing?
In 1780, I would think that there were enough animalic scents coming off the humans (bodies and clothing). Adding the wrong perfume to that could be a lethal combo.
Excellent point.
Maybe the Italians bathed regularly then and the British didn’t but doused themselves in perfume instead. I just can’t wrap my head around the idea that any non-puritanical people could harbor a blanket hatred of perfume.
I really enjoyed Foreman’s biography on Georgiana. One of my favorites! Interesting detail, too, about Italians and perfume. It’s been a few years since I’ve read it, so the details are a little fuzzy.
The coffret would be lovely….. your hubby should seek it out immediately. That said ….I caved already and ordered backups of Carnal Flower , L’eau d’Hiver and Fleur de Cassie…..I don’t trust Estee Lauder as far as I can throw her.
ugh….why is this here? ignore. I’ll try to get it moved….
Ok. Two pieces of perfume-related news. . .
#1–the news that Malle has been purchased has me thinking I might need to bite the bullet and finally give in to my old lemming and buy the full coffret. As my birthday and Christmas are soon upon us, I think I may wait until they are over (just in case Mr. Spicebomb decides to be exhuberant this year), but after that. . . Anyone wanna push me over the cliff or hold me back?
#B–I bought a large decant of ROSE Flash from TPC and will report that it is very nice, certainly Andy’s work, and *Thank Goodness* not something I want 50 mL of! It is linear, with dark rose, a gourmande touch reminiscent of PHI, but not as cheerful, and totally wearable but still distinctive. I am happy to have my decant, so I can mix up my many rose scents one further, but also not crying that I couldn’t access it more readily.
I’m pushing you. I have the coffret and it’s wonderful, totally worth every penny. And you get to keep all your Malles in one place!
I have no doubt I’d have a lot of fun with it!!!
Push. It’s the same advice I give everyone 😉
I know you’re a big Malle fan and have a couple of bottles, but this is all the rest that are covetable but not fb-worthy. And it comes with picture/post cards 🙂
Does he know to check NST for specific direction for his exuberance?? 😛
He asked me if there was any fragrance-related stuff I might wish to get for my birthday, and I sent him links to a few things–the last “suggestion” was the coffret, but I figured he’d think it was over-the-top! OTOH, he bought me PHI last year for my birthday, and the Malles are *THAT* much more expensive than a special order from Europe! 😀
Does Mr Spicebomb have a twin in Australia I might be able to meet? 😉
Just last night, one of my best friends (who happens to be 20 years my senior) told me she needs to meet a nice man, pretty much exactly like Mr. Spicebomb, but 20 years older!
shoot. That’s supposed to say “AREN’T” that much more expensive. Sheesh. Need. More. Coffee.
Oops. Bought the Flash at STC not TPC, in case someone finds themselves needing to get some, too. 🙂
Out of curiosity, how does one buy the coffret? Do you have to go to the physical store? I looked at the Malle website but it didn’t seem to have a link to actually buy it. Not that I’m considering buying it, of course…
the coffret was from 2012. i think barneys still has it.
You know that is a good question. If you google it, you can find a link at Barney’s (http://www.barneys.com/Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Malle-2012-Coffret-Collection/00505024316330,default,pd.html) but if you go to their website, the search bar only turns up the men’s version…
You know, at risk of dis-enabling (for shame!), this actually reminds me of another question I’d had about the coffret, namely to wonder whether this is something FM has continued to manufacture, or whether all of these were made at once in 2012 and any on the market now are remaining stock. In the FM website’s FAQs, it lists fairly short lifespans before their perfumes start to degrade–two years or less for ten of their fragrances! (You can see it under “What is the shelve life [sic] of your fragrances?” at http://www.fredericmalle.com/about-us/questions-answers .) So if all the perfume in the coffret is already two years old…?
Pushing you, MarjorieRose. The coffret is one of life’s delights. I found it rather ominous that the news was silent about FM being able to retain artistic license (or not). OR maybe EL realizes it has to be a given!
Yes. What will happen to the let-the-artists-create-as-they-please feeling with that much commercial cautiousness backing it up?
The coffret would be lovely….. your hubby should seek it out immediately. That said ….I caved already and ordered backups of Carnal Flower , L’eau d’Hiver and Fleur de Cassie…..I don’t trust Estee Lauder as far as I can throw her
I know what you mean. Thankfully, I still have most of 100mL of L’eau d’Hiver and Lipstick Rose, so I’m probably ok . . . maybe.
And for the record, Mr. Spicebomb is just a very fragrance-friendly boyfriend–so far. 🙂
I’m sure I speak for many when I say that a fragrance-friendly male (boyfriend, husband, whatever) is a thing to be envied. 🙂
For heavens sake you wanted this coffret for years now. Just do it. You know you love most, if not all the perfumes so seriously, once it’s in your hands will there really be any regret over buying it?
I think not. Where’s your credit card?
Put that way, it really is a no-brainer, isn’t it?!
yes, I think you’d best do it before Poodle comes over and slaps you around a little! *in a nurturing way, I’m sure….. *
Completely nurturing, yet firm. Tough love. 😉
Perfumes never suiting me: I will make the possibly-shocking confession that lots of classic perfumes do not suit me, and I am no longer going to even make the attempt: Shalimar, L’Heure Bleue, Vol de Nuit, and so forth. Perfume shouldn’t be a duty…
No, I’m pretty sure you’re obligated to adore Shalimar and Chanel No. 5. Hop to it!! 😉
Marjorie Rose, you forgot to call me “missy”! Have a fragrant birthday…
The “missy” was implied. . .
I can’t wear original Shalimar, Chanel No. 5, or L’heure Bleue. 5 Premiere, and Shalimar Eau Legere , and L’heure De nuit are all great on me though! Have you tried the flankers?
Oddly enough — I despise the original edt of Shalimar….have affectionately (snort) referred to it as Shalibarf for years. Then I discovered the Ode a la Vanille Sur la Route de Madagascar….and had something of a perfume epiphany…. then I discovered the 2005 limited edition gold bottle of edp….and really fell for it. There seems to be some real differences between the vintages.
Chanel No. 5 Eau Premiere is all right, but the Shalimar flankers I’ve come across have been, well, dumb. Would definitely sniff one of the fancier flankers, but again, not going to go out of my way to do at this point.
I hear you! I can do the orientals- but anything even resembling classic chypre- no way José!
“Perfume shouldn’t be a duty…” Hear, hear!
I don’t really get Chanel No. 5 or Mitsouko, either. I do love my Shalimar though 🙂
Perfume shouldn’t be a duty….and it shouldn’t be “work” either — there’s enough out there to just wear what you like and leave the rest to someone else. Life is too short to struggle like that!
After reading all the posts here on NST about Lush’s Rose Jam, I finally got a chance to purchase it. I also purchased So White. Both were shower gels. I can see why people who love rose – scented fragrances would like it, but it wasn’t what I expected. I actually prefer the So White. The apple scent is amazing! Glad I finally got a chance to try it. My SOTD is Tom Ford’s Santal Blush. Hope everyone has a super weekend.
Kevin hated rose jam, so I think it is not universally loved. Those of us that love it, though, REALLY love it.
I gave it an “eh, it’s okay”.
I bought some So White a couple of weeks ago and am loving it too- it’s so nice and fresh but there’s some sweetness to it too which is just so lovely.
I still have Rose Jam from last year (stocked up!), and whilst I really like that too I have to be in the mood, whereas So White is good for most mornings.
Yeah, I use So White daily. While I adore Rose Jam, I don’t use it every day.
I love the Rose Jam and the So White shower gels! The So White smells fairly natural and is not extremely sweet. It might have a teeny, tiny bit of the apple’s stem in it, but it is not bitter.
The apple in So White is to sharp for me. It pretty much confirms for me that I just don’t like apple (and pear) scented things. I prefer apples from the fruit bowl. My daughter (who hates apples) loves So White. So, money not wasted.
I agree AnnieA, it should be a pleasure not a duty. I have tried to love Shalimar, to no avail, and that is OK. There is so much more out in the scented Universe to explore. Today, I am slathered with Lush Karma Kream and Breath of God. Tauer Lonestar Memories and Breath of God opened my olfactive senses to all the delicious strangeness that niche can be.
I live in NYC and looking to pass along some bottles of perfume I no longer wear, any ideas?
Today is 31 rue cambon- not sure it suits me – but I love it
Gosh I am sure there are some New Yorkers and/or periodic visitors (me! me!) who would be so happy to help you out. Alternately, I think there’s going to be a freebiemeet in January where everyone lists what they would like to pass on to a more loving home (and then usually the transfer is made by mail, but I assume if you wanted, NYC’ers could ask to keep it local!)
That’s to say–a freebiemeet hosted here on NST. (Thank you Robin!)
ok-do I look in January for this post?
I was hoping to dish them out sooner rather then later..
I am due this month and I am clearing out space for the baby and came across bottles that I no longer use. Let me know if you know of anything else.
I’d consider taking them if they were things I wanted and I’m always up for meeting new perfume friends. My screen name is my yahoo address if you want to send me a list of what you’re getting rid of
If you guys want, feel free to CC me (I’m on gmail at catherineh789)–I may not be up before Thanksgiving but maybe my sister or cousin could pick up what thegoddessrena doesn’t want.
And congratulations on the baby!!
The freebiemeet is listed on the far right side of the screen: TBA January. Since you’re in nesting mode, perhaps someone currently in NYC could meet you and take your unwanted stuff off your hands. I doubt you’re in the sniffa party mode or interested in going to the post office to mail stuff out as all of your focus is on your baby and will be for quite some time. It seems from other comments that this should work out just fine for you. If it gets too complicated, you can always take it to Goodwill. I have friends and family in New York who will take the lot off your hands if you find yourself in a pickle, and then I can offer it in the freebiemeet. You can always email me at: harukirumi at yahooooo dought com.
More importantly, I send you congratulations and best wishes for peace and tranquility during this poignant time. Sending love and a big hug as well.
Congratulations on the baby 🙂
Congratulations on the soon-to-be-here baby!
I also live in NYC, and would be interested in knowing what you’ve got. My email address is missionista ATTTTTTT yahoo DOTTTTTT com.
Alternately, if you want these to be able to travel further than NYC, you could deputize someone to list them for you at the freebie meet in January.
I’m in El Born by Carner Barcelona today, finally getting some leisure. We’re having a long weekend here in Poland, I won’t be going back to work until Tuesday 🙂
Have a lovely weekend all!
Today, I went with Zelda- what a beauty she is! I am still hemming and hawing over a FB purchase and wishing that this came in a travel size.
Also realizing I need to head over to SSS to pick up some of the newer scents now that samples are available again- I still need to check out Yin-Ylang and her new Amber Incense. Anyone have any feedback on either of those?
Beautiful day here in the southern US- this is the most gorgeous time of year here. Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend =)
Nope – do report back to us…
I have a question on this brisk Saturday morning for my Chanel No. 19 experts. How different is No. 19 EDT since the bright green reformulation? How does it compare to the previous incarnation? Any insight would be much appreciated. 🙂
It’s different. Hard to say *exactly* how it would differ, because there have probably been several incarnations, but this is my take on it.
When I first got into sampling in late 2008/early 2009, No. 19 edt – no special label, no “vintage”, just “No. 19 edt” from TPC – was the one that made me kneeless with joy. An ebay search netted me a mini of edt that was bright green – and the magic was gone. It was considerably more vetiver-focused, sharper, no leather, and didn’t last as long. Mind you, I now have two of those mini edt bottles that do appear to be the older stuff, because the green color is paler and more yellow, and they’re slightly different from one another, and I also have an edc mini that is different still.
I finally scored a partial bottle of older edt in the gray canister shell. You can take the glass bottle out and see the color of the liquid, and it’s quite green as opposed to yellow-green (possibly guarded from light damage by the canister?), but it is definitely older because it has that leather hint in the base.
As things stand right now, I’d rather have the edp*, which is softer and rosier, than the current edt, but you have to understand that I like rose and am not a big vetiver fan, and I think that factors in.
*My edp bottle came from the Rome airport duty-free; I don’t think Chanel markets it in the US at this point.
Thank you so much for your take on this! I look forward to trying it in all it’s forms. I’ve heard they each have their own personality… I too fell in love with my EDT sample from TPC (pale yellow-green), and am scheming how to acquire more. It sounds like I’d better stick to what I know I love!
No. 19s still show up on ebay from time to time – that’s a possibility. That’s how I’ve scored nearly all of my 19 stash, except that bottle of edp my daughter bought me on her trip to Europe. I think Strawberrynet has the edp, though. And there *is* always a risk when buying older perfume secondhand.
You’re right on the different versions of the scent – not only the concentration, but the age! You know, the extrait has its firm fan base. I had some at one point, but as it turned out, the extrait is… sterner? More austere? More focused on iris and vetiver, certainly. I passed on my mini parfum (also from ebay) to someone who could appreciate it.
That’s also good to know. Thanks again!
Nicolai Vanille Tonka today. The opening reminds me of root beer before incense adds a more sophisticated edge. Yard work today! I have a huge maple tree in the front yard and I live in a “leaf zone.” The city charges to collect fallen leaves in the street unless you let them know you’ll remove your own leaves. My tree has been shedding since September so the leaves are mostly gone but every rainstorm blows more down. I’ll sleep well tonight!
Vanille Tonka is a favorite. Though I notice that the lime note which used to be so prominent up top was toned waaaay down in my most recent bottle, and it smells more like root beer than it used to, as well. (I like root beer. ‘Sokay.)
Yes. my bottle is new and there is hardly any lime that I can detect. But I like root beer too, so I’m happy. And it lasted all day.
Last night I wore A La Nuit and dark burgundy lipstick – I felt so femme fatale! Today, trying to decide between TF Tobacco Vanille and FM Musc ravageur. I really want a boozy scent, but I don’t think I have one!
A bit ago there was some discussion about rose teas – the strongest rose flavor and aroma I’ve had is the Rose Pearl Green from Ten Ren Tea. Very very rosy and quality tea.
I just bought some tulsi tea in the sweet rose flavor which is incredibly fragrant.
Had to work today, but thankfully the place is very perfume-friendly so I wore Lyric!
Since it’s THAT time of the year again, I’m trying to decide which Diptyque Christmas candle I should order. Has anyone had a chance to try them yet?
Resine is in my possession–the box smells piney & Christmassy. Probably won’t open till early next yr, as I’m still burning last yrs Ecorce de Pin.
Wearing Lollia Relax after first putting on a wrong perfume and having to scrub it. This one was one of those immediate yeses and never fails me
Today I’m wearing FM Portrait of a Lady and mourning the sale of FM to Estee Lauder (what can I say? I’m in something of a dramatic mood).
This might not be such bad news. EL has maintained their own original, surprisingly high quality perfumes respectfully.
Today I am doused in Frederic Malle Carnal Flower. Even the cat does not wish to sit upon me…..perhaps I’ve over applied….a bit.
I do understand how from a business standpoint selling FM to Estee Lauder is good….but I fear what EL will do to fragrances I’m attached to.
I bought a back up. So now, while I’m not happy about the new EL acquisition…I’m not as “nervous” .
I should probably go ahead and buy that bottle of Iris Poudre I’ve been saving up for.
I have VERY good news for Hera, who wrote in yesterday’s SOTD posting that she was almost out of SL Rahät Loukoum and couldn’t buy it in Canada. You CAN buy it in Canada now! I’m on a visit to Montreal, and Ogilvy has Just this week gotten a shipment of the Vaporisateur Tout Noir in several scents, one of which is Rahät Loukoum! 2 30-mL sprays and a black travel case plus a funnel for refilling, just $120 Cdn, which is an awfully good price (actually cheaper per mL than the regular sprays). I bought one and you probably should too — they do mail orders, I’m almost certain. And I bet you could do a split with someone, too.
Ooh, can it be two different SLs? The Ogilvy site is not *nearly* detailed enough for perfumistas.
Unfortunately no: you get two bottles of the same scent in the box. I think they have Ambre Sultan, Iris Silver Mist, Feminité du Bois, and Rahät Loukoum in stock as of about four hours ago. But if you can get a friend to order one, and then swap….
eep, you’re not joking…that website is terrible, bilingually
I saw your post just right now and I am beyond happy. Thank you for this great news. I will go there this week to get the Rahat . Thanks again
Please let us know if you managed to get one!
Yes and yes, I went there this morning and got the set, I haven’t opened it yet , thank you again pyramus, the sales lady said that all of a sudden she was receiving requests about these sets.
I am DELIGHTED for you! (And also for me any anyone else who happens to get some.)
Wearing FK Cologne pour le Soir today. I can barely smell it, though my SO tells me it smells like incense. All I’m getting are faint hints of honey up close and occasional wafts of benzoin. What I can smell is pretty sweet and subtle–I like it, but suspect my nose is completely blind to a large percentage of the fragrance.
SOTD is one of the only two Oriza L LeGrand samples I have been able to wear without getting desperate to wash it off: Relique d’Amour. Interesting in that I get the pine and dusty stone and incense first, and THEN the lilies later.
I am fascinated by some of those Oriza legrand bottles – not so sure about the scents themselves. What have you found wearable and unwearable in that line? I’m just getting ready to get some of their samples (from Luckyscent) but I am interested in your impressions. The one you mention, Relique d’Amour, is not one I had planned on, but this sound sort of interesting, what you describe….
If you’re placing a large-ish order (over $100) don’t forget to add the women’s sampler to your basket. I got a couple of OLLs in my sample pack last time and they were the nice 2ml sprays. I got Deja Le Printemps which I liked on paper but haven’t worn and Jardins d’Armide which I didn’t love. Of course, the samples vary each time but you might score something interesting. Deja Le P. appeared to me to be super oakmossy fig chypre, hope it lives up to itself on skin.
I like Foin Fraichment Coupe best but its not part of their sample pack…I have a bottle of it and it’s a nice, soft, sweet, velvety green. The others just seemed wayyyy to strong for me. I haven’t tried chypre mousse, Deja La Printemps, or Relique D’Amour yet, just the more floral-y ones. Jardins D’Armide, I think, was a nice rose/honey/tonka scent. A little strong but if you’re a Loukhoum fan you might like it.
I haven’t tried the Foin scent as it isn’t part of their sample pack, but I also liked Reve d’Ossian. The others just did not suit me at all! Did not enjoy Jardins d’Armide, even though I typically do all right with powdery scents – it almost suffocated me with powder, which surprised me as I expected a more floral thing. And I looooove a nice green floral with galbanum, but the Deja le Printemps has fig leaf prominent, and I CANNOT DEAL with fig leaf, so that was a mess. Chypre Mousse, which I was expecting to be something like Coty Chypre (the old one) was so bitter and rancid on my skin that everyone I came into contact with while wearing it jerked their heads away from it. I still don’t know what caused that, but in general the line was a big fail. Worth sampling, sure, and they are Proper Perfumes. Clearly good work and decent raw materials went into them, but a) I get very little sillage from them, unlike audreylicious (I have scent-eating skin that doesn’t hold on to fragrance) and b) so many of them were just plain awful on me.
And then I felt terrible because so many bloggers loooooved Chypre Mousse. Oh well. Not everybody loves one single fragrance… Mitsouko has its un-fan club too. 😉
Does anyone know when or if Lush USA online will have fragrances available again? SOTD is Krazy Krizia.
I don’t know about on-line, but I went to a store recently (I’m in the U.S.), and they only had two perfumes — two solids. I asked the clerk and she said that they are re-doing the bottles/packaging. So, there might be hope …
I asked in-store last week or so, and the girl said late January. There were a couple of things she said that I mentally questioned, so I’m not sure I entirely believe her, but that’s what I’m going on for now 🙂
When I was there last, they did say that the spray bottles themselves were going away, though a bunch of the fragrances will be back (the website identifies which ones).
SOTD Bond Westside. I may have just barely over-sprayed but not minding it. During the week I work as a nurse in a community setting and often feel like I have to do a hard smell of my wrists to find my scent. I don’t have to be fragrance free, but most often wear scents that stay close. Today I felt like being a little louder and Westside is doing the trick.
I wasn’t able to post on yesterday’s fabulous community project so to share my own rabbit hold experience…After being a perfume serial monogamist for years and in my 4th year of wearing Kelly Caleche, I purchased Bvlgari Omnia, discovered on NST. Wearing it was my “Ah-Ha” moment – realizing that I can have different fragrances for different moods/events/company, etc. Two years later and there’s no turning back!
“the perfume you’re thinking will never ever suit you”
I believe I no longer need to worry about suitability now that I’ve grown into all my “old lady” perfumes. 😉
On a related note, when I bought a lot of my perfumes they were new and now they’re “vintage,” as am I, I suppose!
🙂 My top notes are a bit wonky, and my base notes have greater depth. Fortunately, my heart notes are still strong. 😉
SOTE (after working in the yard all afternoon – and what a beautiful afternoon it was!) is Dior Escale a Portofino. It’s light and refreshing and very, very pretty.
Perfume I’m not sure will ever suit me: any of the Goutals. Maybe I’ve just not found The One yet, but all I get from those I’ve tried is indoles and more indoles. But then, I used to think that I’d never find a Guerlain that would work for me, until I tried Vol de Nuit, and later, Terracotta Voile d’Ete, and both are lovely. So maybe there’s hope on the Goutal front.
AG does some intense florals! The rose and violet ones may be lighter. Eau du Sud and Vetiver are completely unisex and some of my favs from this line.
Good to know – thank you Nozknoz! I’ll put those on my to-try list. There’s always hope!
Hiram Green Moon Bloom today. I used to find tuberose unbearable but slowly I’m becoming a fan. This is a particularly nice one. One more for the “want” list!
Happy weekend everyone! I got a set of L’Artisan samples from Sephora and jumped in with Timbuktu. It’s very pretty, incense-y but light. It made me think a bit of Byredo Encens, which led me to layering it with Gypsy Water, which was quite nice.
I thought it was Thursday yesterday until sometime after 7pm, so missed the Community Scent again, sigh. I was going to go with Anne Pliska, which I think was actually the very first sample I ordered, and also the one that eventually pulled me away from serial perfume monogamy. I was bored with Opium (and had never heard of reformulation, which may have had something to do with that), It was about a year-and-a-half ago. On first trying AP, I thought, It’s really well made, but too powdery. Day Two: Powdery, schmowdery, this is gorgeous. Day Three: Why do I smell Play-Doh? Well, it’s not my next perfume, I thought. I kept going back to the sample, though (why waste it?), and discovered that if I only wore it occasionally, it didn’t turn to Play-Doh. I finally realized that I didn’t have to wear the same perfume every day. So thank you, Anne Pliska. If only more perfumers would put out one amazing perfume, instead of two dozen mediocre ones.
“If only more perfumers would put out one amazing perfume, instead of two dozen mediocre ones.”
AMEN to that.
Preaching to the choir, sister. 🙂 Absolutely.
This past spring I hit up Sephora with my friend and she was after a new scent. I had been sticking to a scented oil from Haus of Gloi (until someone told me I reeked of baby powder, which oddly devastated me) as perfume generally didnt interest me. It all smelled like either old ladies, or fruit and candy. I happened to see a neat bottle and sprayed my wrist and it didnt smell terrible, or like candy. It was Balenciagia Rosabotanica. Only, I *thought* it was florabotanica. I ordered a deluxe sample of it from ebay, (because I wanted to make SURE I loved it before I dropped money) and florabotanica is well…..its awful. In any case it sent me into a tailspin on online research, where I discovered my mistake and promptly went back to Sephora and bought the correct bottle.
Fast forward a few months and all of those perfume blogs I stumbled onto from my research had become regular habits. I was very into the idea of a “signature” scent, and had intended to stay faithful to Rosabotanica. Until Dita Von Teese’s newest scent campaign, “Erotique”.
It was terribly hard to find here, and I didnt want to buy it without smelling it. I discovered decants!
That was 2 months ago. I own the full size of Erotique now (and it is delicious and cheap) but I now regularly order decants and am currently wearing Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Absolue Pour le Soir. Which I dont have to tell you is a FAR cry from Rosabotanica.
The rabbit hole is deep, and I fear I am still only just starting to realize how far down it goes.
Ive been here for over 5 years and I’m still falling… 🙂
You know, you don’t have to pay for samples off ebay if you’re looking at something at Sephora– they will make you up a couple of free samples per visit
Anyone else find similarities between Tauer Zeta and Atelier Grand Neroli? Can I justify having both in my small 8-bottle collection?
No, I find them to be quite different. I own and love my bottle of Zeta–in fact have nearly drained it in a year or two. I don’t get any of the citrus hit of Grand Neroli in Zeta, and Zeta stays present on me for many hours, whereas GN fades into a light floral on my skin pretty quickly. Which I guess is a long way of saying, sounds like you need both! 🙂
Commando so far today. I will be doing lots of cooking and baking today – cinnamon and nutmeg and lemon and mint and chilis should be the theme – anyone know a perfume with those notes?
No, but if you find one, please report back!
SOTD is Fleur du Cassie. The news about EL buying F Malle gave me acute discontinuation anxiety. I own the sample coffret but no FB, I’ll have to consider if I need to stock up…
I’m pondering that too. I have some Carnal Flower, but Iris Poudre is the Malle I truly love, so I am thinking seriously of getting a bottle for Christmas (for my family to give me).
Ah. Now there’s the corolary problem with me potentially buying the coffet! What if I find some new total love and then discover it no longer exists?! Could be heart-wrenching. . .
I’d do it–have heard that Cassie is the least popular Malle in the U.S.
Fortunately I’m set with a FB and a set of travel sprays.
My sister likes Givenchy’s Dahlia Noir, but she’s run out, and that was her only fragrance. I plan on getting her a bottle for Christmas, but I want to add another scent to her collection so she’ll have a choice. Can anyone suggest something?
Maybe some of the non private collection Tom Fords, like Violet Blonde or Violet Orchid, they’re like “level up” but still accessible, and great packaging.
Also, Sephora has some great holiday sample sets now stocked, she can try several scents and then gets a voucher to exchange for a bottle.
SOTD: HiM Hanae Mori for men
Exhausted today and wearing Encre Noire. Ordered a couple things today – bottles of SL Rahat Loukoum and Indult Tihota. Guess those are my early Christmas presents! I also need to remind myself that buying cake is probably cheaper.
Mmm Tihota. I’ve been thinking I need me some of that too.. Good score!
SOTD is Jasmin Tabac from niche Australian line Evocative Perfumes. I’ve tried three of theirs and they’re all well made, distinctive, intelligent and unconcerned with gender – my picky, picky husband keeps saying “What’s that? I’d wear that.” This one is causing some kind of indistinct scent memory which if I had to describe it would be ‘1960s career woman’. In a good way.
The Frederic Malle sale got me to thinking about just biting the bullet and just getting En Passant. I just love how the lilac and wheat play off each other.