Quick reminder: the next splitmeet will be 2 weeks from today, on September 19.
Meanwhile, an easy poll for a holiday weekend: what fragrance instantly improves your mood?
Note: top image is Summer Smile [cropped] via Cris at flickr; some rights reserved.
Bendelirious for plain cheerful and tea scents for calm. Today it’s Tea for Two, Bulgari The Vert a couple of days ago. My maternity leave is ending soon and my youngest went to daycare this week for a slow introduction and I was sooooo anxious about leaving her there, I needed all the serenity I could get. In the end, she did quite well and hopefully I’ll adjust soon, too :-).
Bendelirious says, “Whee!” (seeing your cheerful and raising you with an exuberant)
Anything light and citrusy will do. One I’ve privately dubbed my “sunshine in a bottle” (Guerlain’s Eau de Fleurs de Cedrat) and the other is Goutal’s Eau d’Hadrien. Wearing Hadrien edp today. Love!
I will take Eau de Guerlain and Eau du Sud, but pretty much same thing!
I agree with Eau de Fleurs de Cedrat. Definitely “sunshine in a bottle”!
Grand Neroli always seems to improve my mood.
I have a question for all of you. Have you ever tried the Coco body lotion and body cream? If so, how do they compare to the EDP? I have a lot of Optimum points to spend and I was planning on a shopping trip at Murale (for my fellow Canadians) who carry the usual drugstore/dept. store brands, including the non-exclusifs Chanel’s, and when does one get to have Chanel perfumes for “free” or at a discount?? I want to get Cristalle and I have fallen in love with Coco from a sample vial (dabbed on). I’m afraid that full on sprays of the EDP might be too much for me so I that is why I was wondering if I might get more wear from the body products.
Lucky you for points to use on Chanel! Their body products are very high quality, and the lotions and creams can basically replace the need of additional fragrance. I was told the creams are 45% fragrance. I would also consider getting the Coco extrait and do small dabs if you want a subtler effect, especially if you have points as the extraits are so pricy.
I do the same with my optimum points, I spent them at Murale where I can get Chanel or Nars. For the Chanel creams, they are really great, their lasting power is superb. I don’t have the Coco cream but I got No.5 and Coco Noir and they are both really wonderful.
I can’t find an answer to this technical question: I haven’t received a feed since Tuesday, Sept. 1. I tried to contact Feed My Inbox, but their help/FAQ offers next to nothing. Should I resubscribe? Have any of you had this problem? I’m dyin’ here. …
I don’t use FMI so don’t know what the issue is, but I do know the feed is working properly — I access it from Feedly and it is currently a few hours behind (hasn’t shown the poll yet) but otherwise up to date.
Most of my perfumes make me feel happy when I spray or dab them on, but to single out a few, I’d have to say that POTL definitely makes me feel happy, as does JM Vanilla & Anise. Anything with linden as a note makes me feel really good, too.
Ditto POTL!
Oh, I love POTL. Thanks for helping me pick my SOTE!
Most of my perfumes make me happy. Today I picked a fun perfume-Viva La Juicy. Once in a while a little fruity is good.
I haven’t worn that in a while. I need to dig up my bottle. Its a great scent. Dang, Kris, we do have similar taste in fragrances.
I know. It is crazy how many of the same scents we like. I hate to know much more about you or I may find out I have a twin I didn’t know about. LOL
So true! Lol! 🙂
I think my happiest fragrance is La Chasse aux Papillons but L’Air du Désert Marocain and Ninfeo Mio also have high feelgood factors. Enjoy your weekend!
Nice picks, and hope your weekend is going well!
Terracotta and Haie Fleurie make me happy and I am seriously contemplating Guerlain’s French Kiss because smelling like a Lauderee macaroon seems to have as good effects on me as eating one
I ate breakfast at the Lauderee in Soho-not bad!
I totally agree with the Terracotta, it’s liquid sunshine and sensuality! I’ve also had my eyes on French Kiss since it came out, sounds like just my kind of thing. Anything with yummy guerlinade really! Just give me the whole Elixir line. 😉
French Kiss sounds like a good candidate to be split!
I’d do it! Too bad I missed out on the Tihota a while back. Some day. 🙂
I’ll price it out and see if anyone else is interested.
I agree with Mary Carol – just wearing perfume lifts my mood. My particular sunshine-and-happiness-in-a-bottle fragrance is Escale a Portofino.
This morning I’m doing an arm-to-arm comparison of Jolie Madame and Heeley’s Cuir Pleine Fleure, two violet/leather compositions. So far, JM has far more punch, but seems more woody and less leathery than CPF. The CPF seemed a little wan at first by comparison, but over time is warming and deepening very nicely. Not sure I could choose between them … so I won’t!
Thank you for the excellent side-by-side!
Besides Bendelirious dancing on a table above, Zeste de Soleil and Orange Sanguine are running through the sprinkler.
Zeste de Soleil works for me too! I tend to spray too much since it seems so light initially, but I learned that just one spray is optimal for me.
Love both of these–a good citrus really is such a terrific pick-me up!
You can’t help but to feel happy wearing Orange Sanguine. Fantastic fragrance.
Anything with vanilla or orange blossom or lily of the valley cheer me up. Today I am sampling Memo Kedu, which I really like a lot! Probably my favorite of all these samples I have been plowing through, except for LADDM….I wish I had noticed this earlier in the summer. This seems like the perfect really hot weather scent. I want to compare it to Latin Quartier…
I have been sampling the Memo line as well..nothing really made me jump for joy or run to the store to buy a FB. Glad you are enjoying them
I like Granada, and now this Kedu. Also Sham’s Oud seemed appealing but I tried it while I was still suffering respiratory symptoms, so I don’t really know what it is like. They are airey, cologne like scents in the new modern trend. If they made a higher concentration version if these, I would be more apt to buy them.
Chinatown!
Plus, pretty bottle 🙂
It IS pretty but as I’ll never be able to afford a full bottle, that is not the part that cheers me up 🙂
As others have said, a good perfume almost always improves my mood, whatever the scent is. But the few fruity perfumes I like – there aren’t very many – seem to be especially uplifting. Byredo Pulp, Neela Vermeire Bombay Bling!, JM Blackberry & Bay… I have just purchased a small bottle of JM Mimosa & Cardamom and that one is definitely of the mood-improving, crowd-pleasing variety, too.
I have yet to smell Mimosa, but hope to try it out on Tuesday at Nordstroms.
It’s definitely worth a try – it’s sunny (but not too summery), happy and very likable. Think I.
Well, I’m looking at the other fragrances you fancy (Pulp, Blackberry and Bay – two of my favorites), so I probably will like Mimosa.
Blackberry and Bay is mine too!
It is such a nice scent.
Oh good that JM Mimosa & Cardamom comes in the 30 mL!
Yes! I really appreciate the smaller size.
I love all my little bottled children equally 😉
But today I went with Amouage Fate Woman because it makes me feel like I have the world by the tail. It’s an illusion I know, but so nice to pretend!
You are good! I have to adnit, I have favorites!
I just got a sample of Fate and am really liking it.
Lately Wit has been my mood boosting scent. It just smells happy to me. And it’s gorgeous!
It is! Does it last on you? I was testing it when it was very warm and humid and it disappeared so quickly… Maybe I’ll get another sample and try it again.
Yeah, it actually does last on me. Not all day, but at least 5 or 6 hrs. Heat and humidity seem to affect longevity for me too. Another reason to hate summer!
Wit disappeared quickly on me in the heat, too, and also seemed too sweet in hot temps, but it’s amazing when the weather is cooler.
Yes! That too-sweet thing put me off Wit too. I’ll try it again now that the weather has turned cooler – I so want to like it.
Amyris makes me feel happy
Along with Sunshine and Journey woman
Terracotta is also great mood lifter
Carven Le Parfum also
Jour de Fete! As delicately sweet as a meringue.
I will have to agree with a lot of the responses so far. All of my fragrances typically make me happy, so its hard to choose just one. The fragrance that I have been wearing the most this summer that puts a smile on my face is Estee Lauder’s Bronze Goddess.
That’s a great one. And affordable too. Plus, the body cream is to die for-incredible moisturizing and so scented you don’t even need to layer with the perfume. Did I mention it’s affordable? 😉
I do like BG, but I find the spray fragrance to be seriously lacking longevity. I love a nice, delicious drydown but on me this lasts a short time then disappears without a trail, like something is missing. Sounds like I should have gone with the cream! I love this year’s bottle though. 🙂
Live Deva said, all you need is the fabulous body cream. It truly does last all day. When I get home from work and change clothes, I can still smell it! I do layer the cream and the fragrance, but the cream alone does it for me. And Deva is definitely correct when saying its affordable. That’s what I like most about EL scents, they are affordable but smell like a million bucks. The body cream might be a bit harder to find now, but if you can get your hands on some, it is totally worth it.
I’m getting rid of all the fragrances that don’t make me happy (my swapmeet list is going to be very long). Today I’m wearing Dame Perfumery Dark Horse, which made me happy for the two hours it lasted. Into the swap pile it goes–for me, longevity is an important component of happiness with a perfume.
Did it only last 2 hours? I wanted to try a couple of their frags, but not sure if I can handle a fleeting 2 hour onces 🙂
I put it on at 9, and now at 12:15 if I cram my wrist to my nose I can just barely tell that I sprayed something on this morning. It was gone as an identifiable scent in two hours 🙁
Can’t wait for Swapmeet! I have a few to offload and once I get them out the door, I will have a little extra space in my perfume cabinet some new friends.
Regarding Dark Horse: it lasts quite a while on me and I was wondering if you asked someone else to sniff you to get their feedback? I think sometimes we stop smelling ourselves for some reason. Maybe the nose kind of treats some scents like “white noise” after a while and we become less sensitive to our own scent? Someone mentioned “nose fatigue” in a previous post I think…
No one sniffed me in Dark Horse today, but when I was wearing Black Flower Mexican Vanilla someone else couldn’t smell it after a couple of hours. I get better longevity if I apply his scents right after I moisturize, but couldn’t be bothered this morning.
I’m with you. Longevity is a must when I make a perfume purchase.
Immortelle de Corse by L’Occitane.
Sweet dry hay and curry of immortelle flowers on a relaxing black tea. Then, my first favourite note: benzoin. Dry, lightly sweet, and dusty 🙂 It feels like a day in the Mediterranean summer..
I keep forgetting I have this — I need to wear it!
sigh…they discontinued it :/
I got mine in late 2012. None of the stores in NY had it and I was happy I found it in Brussels while on vacation.
Such a shame — one of the better scents they’ve done in years & years
How odd–Immortelle de Corse is still around in Auckland. Usually perfumes disappear down in A-NZ long before they’re unavailable in the rest of the world. Wish I get a bottle for you and flick it on!
Huuh?! You mean in boutiques?! I need to check the shipping fees. You have raised a tiny bit of hope!!
How much is it there? Including shipment fees?
I found some on Ebay for 119 USD exclusive of shipping! Urghh
Nick, I’m not at home at the moment, or I’d pop across the road & check the price for you, but I seem to remember it as being around $80NZ. Given the state of our dollar against the US dollar, that would be a snip for you. Dunno about posting to the States, but they might. I’ll be here in SA for a week, but I can look into it for you when I get home if you like n
Wow! I live in the Switzerland, so a snip indeed!! Yes,
take your time, I am not in a rush XD I am just happy to know that they are still around.
Thank you so much, Waterdragon!
I agree with what some said earlier that any of the frags improve my mood, but for me the best pick me up would be any of my vanilla based onces – Tiholta, Jaques Zolty Vanil-le, Vanilla Flash. There is just something so comforting about them
On the hand, I have a question for the forum.
I am ready to go and buy my first expensive body cream – I was thinking of Malle. Since I do not live close to any of the Malle’s stores I would have to drive to San Francisco’s Barneys and test them out – but the problem with body products, – you do not have have enough hand space to try more than 2.
I have Carnal flower and do enjoy it, what body creams would you guys recommend?
I have not tried it, but I’ve heard the CF is wonderful. BUT, I do think if you’re careful you can get small “stripes” of the body creams up your arms and test more like 6 without a problem (3 on each arm) so long as you’re in short sleeves. You will have to either apply them with single fingers or wash your hands in between, though.
california reverie (van cleef arpels) is my happy fragrance
(and I was happy to finally find it for 50% off)
Well done!!
Hey, and I followed your lead last week and got some sale goodies from Beautyhabit 🙂
(that Jurlique Jasmine shower gel that Kevin recommended is nice!)
Oh I am delighted–and also really appreciate the seconding on the jasmine shower gel! I have and briefly loved Lush’s jasmine shampoo bar “Godiva” which I basically use as a soap (dried out my hair too much), but I think it’s gone off before I was able to use even half of it…would love an alternative!
I have the opposite problem. It works okay w my hair so long as I use a lot of conditioner, but the one time I used it as soap I became incredibly itchy all over. So bummed that Flying Foxes is no more!
Argh! That perfume… I tried it… eh… okay for me… but then I started to crave it… and my 2 ml STC sample slipped away, and I found myself holding back on the final drain. It is so simple and expectedly nice that I assumed I would not fall for it… but I did. I have. It makes me happy too. I admit it. I LOVE CALIFORNIA REVERIE.
Ha!
And I think we also both liked Ostara; wouldn’t you say Ostara is another happy scent?
Definitely!
Yes. Oh yes. California Reverie is Just Right. 🙂
Score!
Bravo! That’s a beauty.
I am so impressed by all the folks who find their perfume universally happy-making! I think it must be sign of a robustly positive constitution–I meanwhile cannot be counted upon not to get weepy if caught in an guarded moment by, say, most any lilac perfume! Darn you, lilac perfume (of which I now own three and am considering a fourth. Maybe the real issue here is that I would keep buying perfume that feels melancholic to me!)
Hmm … that’s a most interesting remark. Sadness is an important emotion, or at least, the ability to recognise and deal with it is. Isn’t that what that recent kids’ movie wastars partly about? (Inside Out.) My former mother-in-law was a relentlessly positive and happy person. It got her through some tough times but it drove me nuts too.
Anyway, I suppose melancholy is not the same as sadness. Lilac is very wistful. There’s nothing wrong with a good wallow occasionally! L’Heure Bleue does it for me.
Yes, some things are so beautiful it moves us to tears, yet that’s different from sadness.
What makes me happy is when I hit the nail on the head and apply exactly the right perfume for the moment. This morning is was Aftel’s Wild Roses… it is making me very happy indeed! (Except that it was the last from my tiny bottle and now I am faced with the FB challenge!)
Great point! The right season, weather or mood for each perfume is not always intuitive or logical, so it’s very satisfying to find it.
Definitely agree. It’s like realizing what food you really want, it satisfies a need.
Hi, all. I think this thread is where I belong too. Almost any perfume that matches my day (or night) makes me happy, and conversely, if I get the perfume wrong, I can feel edgy and uncomfortable in my skin until fades. I’m in South Australia right now and have only three perfumes with me (19, L’Ombre dans L’Eau and Rahat Loukhoum), and I’ll be interested to see if I can achieve a week’s worth of perfect matches with such limited choice. Horrifying thought: if I can, does that make all my other perfumes — brace yourselves, I’m going to use a bad word!– you know, unnecessary?
Oakland, I’m going to give you the advice that a twig of a child serving me in a shop once gave me: I was dithering over a pair of shoes, and she said to me with immense earnestness, and a lisp, “Life is short, madam. Buy the shoes.” I was so taken with her that I did. So, feeding forward, I say, “Life is short. If it will contribute to the sum of your happiness, buy the bottle.”
Now for me it is ‘life is short. Buy the bottle!’
And because the idea of paying $180 for .25 oz (I think that is about 7 ml) is too heretical, I just purchased (literally, this morning) FB’s of Hanbury, Assam, La Chasse aux Papillons (replacement bottle), and Parfums de Nicolai’s Weekend in Normandy, which I am assuming (!!) is the same as Weekend and Weekend a Deauville (what is going on w the naming of this perfume?).
How’s that for perfume math!? $$= $+$+$+$
I think there’s a sophisticated economic principle in play here, and I like it. I do something similar with dress fabrics– if I bought last season, it’s free when I sew it this season….
Oh but happy perfume! Blackberry & Bay is really my most cheerful fragrance–but I needed some stiff-upper-lip perfume today and Dzing is getting the job done. Very good for reviving a flagging sense of pluck, should anyone else be in need of such a remedy!
My go-to happy scent is Vero Profumo Mito. It just vibrates with sunshine and life, like a busy untamed garden. I wear a lot of perfume and yet still find myself wishing I was in Mito.
I have a very modest collection of scents that I love, enjoy wearing, and all make me happy or they wouldn’t be mine. Most of them are vanilla based comfort scents that I personally find beautiful and delicious. Among my favorites are Chanel Allure, Allure Sensuelle, and CM, Guerlain Shalimar Initial, LPRN, and Terracotta, and Prada Candy. 🙂
Mmmmm!
Escada Summer in Provence is pure fun, from the box with happy poppies and woven cane on it, to to the watermelon colored bottle and the strawberry praline fragrance.
Oddly, Fragrantica says the notes include a veritable fruit salad of pineapple, apple, cherry, nectarine, pear, lychee and watermelon, but no strawberry. Could it be that the color of the bottle has tricked my suggestible nose? 😉
Eau de Givenchy is my instant-happiness scent. Was my signature for years, but now that it’s gone, I’m ekeing out my last bottle.
I love it too. Has it really gone? No corner of the Internet has it?
Just noticed that Fragrancex.com has it. This is the ‘Mythiqye’ version, which is a tad drier than the original. Still pretty good though.
I haven’t tried the Mythique version. Am a little afraid to, but dryer than the original sounds like something I could live with. It disappeared from sale in New Zealand many years before it was discontinued, so I had to do without until it was available online.
Givenchy are pretty much dead to me now, although I wore nothing but Eau de G and GIII for years.
Have you had good luck with Fragrancex? I’m wondering if they are reputable..
I’ve ordered lots, over a period of about 8 years, and have never had any problem.
Yum…I am hoarding my last decant myself.
I’m another who will perk up with any perfume that I like. Right now, anything that makes me think of spring will make me particularly happy.
Speaking of being happy, I was delighted to find yesterday that the only niche perfume stockist in town now carries Le Galion (as of only a couple of days ago, it wasn’t there last week) – not something I was expecting in this part of the world!
Lucky! I want to try Le Galion!
Gaynor, hi! I can see a trip to Wellington in my future. Please can you tell me the name of this wonderful shop and where to find it?
I don’t use perfume as a mood lifter and don’t have a go-to happy perfume. There are perfumes that are peppier than others: Chanel No.19, NVC Bombay Bling and JM Blackberry & Bay.
I went to Twisted Lily yesterday and stunk up the place :-). I waffled between Isabel Lys Noir and Slumberhouse Ore. In the end, I got Ore and will consider Lys Noir for some other time. I got samples of Yesterday’s Haze, Bruno Fazzolari Lampblack, Lys Noir and Tauerville Incense Flash. I thought the trip was pretty successful and I got my $5.50 subway fare worth :-). I was going to stop by Aedes to get the Carnal Flower shower gel but ran out of time.
Please update is on your samples when you gat a chance to wear them. Sounds like a wonderfully enjoyable and productive day 🙂
I sure will!
I love Ore. You smell fabulous.
🙂
Ha! I stunk up Twisted Lily on Saturday afternoon. Got some samples for my niece, who’s developing an interest. They had a L’Artisan sampler on sale so picked that up for her.
I also got two Slumberhouse samples: Jeke and Savannde(?)
A budding perfumista, how neat! When my nieces were in their early teens, we went to Sephora and I told them to pick 3 perfumes and I will surprise them with one of them. This was before Sephora started carrying Atelier Cologne, L’Artisan and the like so they were more influenced by what their friends wore. Last year, I gave them the L’Artisan sample set – I will ask them which ones they like and will make them a hajusuuri’s collection pack.
Carnal Flower shower gel sounds amazing. Love to hear how you like this once in your possession.
Talk about a luxurious shower!
I hope the Barneys SA includes a sample as requested. I did a Beauty Bag event pre-sale with La Mer but of course I was cheeky enough to ask for non-La Mer samples 🙂
Oh num. Lys Noir is on my to-buy list and Ore is one of my never-want-to-be-withouts. Great job you!
I’m not surprised as our perfume tastes overlap!
Much like deva, I love my bottled children equally.
I read an article many years ago, an interview with Diane Von Furstenberg where she said something along the lines of my fragrances are like men, the one I’m with that day is my favorite….or something close to that? Anyway, the one I have on that day usually makes me happy.
I have a special joy when I reach for Dzing! I love the woman on the tiger with her little whip. I bought my first bottle of it in the L’artisan boutique (now closed) on the upper west side in NY. Meow, bad kitty, meow ????
L’Artisian on UWS?!? When was that? I’ve lived on UWS for 20+ years and don’t recall it. Then again, I wasn’t exactly the perfume lover then as I am now and may have not cared much if I did see it.
Floragal, I remember it too, circa 2009, I want to say on Columbus? It was there I learned that I hated tuberose. 🙂
Yes, the store was on about 76th and Amsterdam?
My office when I traveled to NY was 66 and Columbus by where the big Barnes and Noble used to be; and I would walk west and up. It was a lovely little jewel box of a store. There was one in the west village too that closed around the same time and I still don’t get what or why Bendels did what they did. I would spend so much time there and then walk over to St. Patrick’s to light candles, put money in boxes and work off some guilt for my purchases.
I am dithering back and forth on my purchase for Barney’s love yourself purchase. It must be FM but can’t decide between musc ravageur or noir epices. BTW, has anyone seen TDC Le 15 pop up anywhere?
Terracotta and Pacifica Mediterranean Fig have been uplifting, happy scents for me this summer.
Having complete fragrance regret today. I was in a rush and over applied Kelly Caleche. I’ve worn this for years and really enjoyed it this past week. However, as soon as I put it on I wished I had applied Bvlgari Black instead. :-/
Oh man, I am so sorry! They are both beautiful perfumes, but they are rather different! I am not sure they have any overlap at all, in my mental Venn diagram of perfumes…
Totally different, no overlap at all! Love the Venn diagram reference, especially since we’re in back to school mode in my home!
Ha. And I shuddered. The worst are the world religion Venn diagrams …. I get my kids’ angst just thinking about them. But Venn diagrams for perfume is a wonderfully fun mental exercise. In my mind’s eye I am starting with Timbuktu and Ylang 49.
I’ve never tried either. Any overlap in the Venn world?
Okay Nightingale… here’s my whirls for the overlap— it comes in the base of Timbuktu, in which I find a distinct overlap with Ylang 49. I smell vetiver, patchouli, and incense in both, with a fizziness, chypree-like, that might come from their shared mix of white florals, patchouli, and oakmoss.
Whew!
Excellent work!! A++
Today I am wearing Iris Nazarena, and it is making me very happy!
I’m wearing Richard Hudnut Gemey EdT, a discontinued scent that was first released in the 20s. I haven’t figured out the age of my bottle, but it’s a very pretty floral aldehyde, with no growl but still some dimension. It makes me a little wistful, like many of the non-animalic pretty vintage scents seem to do. It’s some sort of induced nonspecific nostalgia, I guess, whereas animal notes seem to make a perfume cut a little deeper. Well, the suddenly cooler weather makes me nostalgic, too, so who knows?
I am really impressed with your forays into the lands of vintage fragrance. My luck has been spotty enuf that I gave up on the whole endeavor– too many off scents and my insecurity about what it was I was actually smelling. I kept thinking that the current condition of the perfume might be so far from the original intent of the perfumer and what customers were actually purchasing at the time… And the fragrances on their current merits frequently fell into just two categories–still wearable, or “off.”
What has been your method of acquisition and what are you learning? I am really interested!
Oh, goodie! I’ll answer your question about acquisition and mostly save the one about learning for another time. (Feel free to drop me a j1-ma1l. That’s were they call me alederberg.)
I really got going when I received a mind boggling box of vintage samples, all gifts from an exceptional perfume fairy. Nearly all of those were in great condition, which in retrospect I think I defined as some sufficient combination of: beautiful, recognizable notes based on contemporary marketing publications, similar to what current reviewers describe, non-linear, fascinating, *smelling* non-toxic (I make no claims about their being toxic or non-toxic).
Next I tried to swap for or buy some partial bottles / minis of some of my favorites from the Fairy Collection. That was very successful in many instances (e.g. Arpege, My Sin, Great Lady, Poison, Sortilege, L’Origan) and unsuccessful in a few (e.g. Golden Autumn, Miss Dior).
Then I tried blind buying/swapping for some inexpensive, obscure vintage bottles / partial bottles / minis I had never heard of, most of which were disappointing. One I still love is Mouson Lavendel, which nozknoz shed a lot of light on right here (SOTD thread 6/10/15). Another good one was Gemey, which I was thrilled with at the time but now feel I can live without because I have more juice in that style than I will use up.
I’ve had mediocre results blind acquiring inexpensive bottles / partial bottles / minis based only on what I read (e.g. I love Silences PdT; Givenchy III EdT, so far, meh).
I think I’m mostly done blind acquiring bottles and partial bottles, partly for reasons of space and money, and partly because I’ve now gathered enough classics and oddities to be able to swap samples and decants and minis with other vintage lovers. I’ve gotten to know them via Perfume of Life (RIP), Fragrantica (especially but not only the vintage board), and the other usual spots (including this one).
I’m interested in your phrase, “on their current merits,” and in which scents fell into your wearable category. Feel like sharing a bit more?
Oh dear, I am too dense to interpret your email. I think it is a g—-mail account w your name… ?
By current merits, I only meant based on what the fragrance smells like now… after sitting in a bottle for 10,20, 30 odd years. For instance, I have a fun bottle of Eau Arpege from Saks Fifth Avenue that was sold for $3.00 (price tag is still affixed). I have no idea of the vintage, but the scent reminds me of shopping at Hinks in downtown Berkeley with my grandmother in the early 1970s. (https://www.pinterest.com/pin/465559680200226388/) I don’t really like it enough to wear it, and I am very uncertain that it still smells like what it was designed to smell like… (But would be very happy to pass it on to you to add to your study!)
I did not have much luck tracking down actual vintage years with an precision on the bottles I acquired, but my best experience was from a “discovery” set from the 1980s of Balanciaga’s Le Dix, Quadrille, and Michelle. I also bought a few vintages of My Sin a year or so ago, and at least one of them was lovely. I used it up and chucked the rest.
Yes, you’ve cracked my email address encryption!
Nice pic of Hink’s in the 50s. I wish I could remember what department stores smelled like when I visited them with my grandmother.
I assume that old perfumes don’t smell the way they were intended to, or that if they do, I won’t be able to tell. If I get to the Osmothèque someday, I might have a chance to calibrate. 🙂
I think of these things partly as artifacts or ruins, which can be interesting when incomplete or unknowable.
It’s very sweet of you to offer your Eau Arpège. I’m sure I have enough, but I’m curious about individual specimens. Drop me a line if you’d like. I’m also happy to share. 🙂
Vintage explorations interest me as well. I’ve done some exploring of vintages, though probably my earliest scents are from the 60’s. Most of mine are from the 80’s. Of course I have no idea what the scents originally smelled like — didn’t much care about perfume back then — but I’ve had pretty good luck with getting juice that still smell good. The open can be challenging but the base notes seem pretty steady. Since base notes tend to be my favorites anyway, that works for me. Pretty much I just bucket them into “eww, that can’t be right” and “hmm…”
Mostly I buy vintage mini’s (Etsy is a good source), and mostly parfum concentration. I have no idea if it’s just luck or if the stronger concentrations really do last longer, but nearly all of them seem good to me — once they settle down, that is. Does anyone know if my luck is just random, or does parfum really last longer than edt / edp?
I can definitely tell when they’ve got real oakmoss since it makes my skin tingle. But oh what a scent! So worth it. 🙂
My most favorite vintage scent so far is YSL Champagne parfum. That one’s easy to date — it came out in 1993 and they had to change the name to Yvresse the next year. I have a bottle of the edt also — not as swoon-worthy. Perhaps time was not so kind to that bottle.
Vintage Vent Vert parfum is so, so fabulous too.
Love the “eww” and “hmm” categories.
I’ve had pretty good luck with vintage purchases, though I’ve stuck to fragrances familiar from years ago. I aim for full or nearly full bottles to avoid air exposure, spray versions over splash to avoid touch contamination, and of course stay away from anything turned dark. And higher end perfumes seem to age better than drugstore (lookin’ at you, Faberge).
That’s interesting. I’ve heard that base notes should do best, but I’ve almost never had a vintage that started badly and ended well. Maybe I’m alternately more forgiving and more unforgiving than most. 😛
I can think of speculative ‘reasons’ why higher concentrations should be both more and less prone to deteriorate, i.e. I’m curious too!
I get the sense that at some time in the past, different concentrations were used together, for example EdT over parfum, and then again later to freshen up the scent. I can’t remember where I got that idea, but I don’t often hear about that these days. Do folks around here do that, and why or why not?
If that’s true, it might also be the case that olden days parfums were formulated in a different way that might unintentionally affect their aging.
I also only buy things that make me feel good or moved in some way. Lolita Lempicka, L’Heure Bleue, are 2 of my favorite calming, reassuring ones. Femme, Jubilation xxv, and ELDO Rossy de Palma I find exalting and grounding at the same time. Right now I’m sitting outside at dusk in L.A. & wearing Lyric Woman. Just mmmmm.
I say mmmmm to Lyric too! It is really beautiful.
did not expect to like it but I am totally in love with shalimar souffle..so yes it’s my happy scent.
I still have two ode de la vanille’s (madagascar) and the real thing of course but cannot wear it to often.
The souffle makes me inhale like a drugaddict:)
I wear it for myself , my husband doesn’t smell it grrrrrrrr:)
My happy scents are Lyric, Coromandel, Bois des Isles, Vanille Orchidee, and most especially Sballo. But then, most of my perfumes make me happy.
Can anyone tell me if it is worth buying the Parfum of Bois des Isles vs Les Exclusifs? There isn’t a huge difference in cost and I’ve read that that the parfum in this particular frag is gorgeous.
On me the LE version disappears in a flash. I found it so frustrating that everyone gushed over Box of Eels and here I was thinking “what’s the fuss all about?” Then I tried the parfum. oooooooooooo
Would you like to try both? I can send you samples, assuming you’re in the US. I’m emc dawt 7 1 1 7 in the land of gggmail.
I first tried the pre-LE version and loved it, then noted that the LE disappears in, as you say, a flash. Oh well.
Parfum is the way to go on this one. I’m actually wearing it today and not only does it stay with me all day, it’s absolutely gorgeous.
Thanks girls, and thank you Pixel for your generous offer. However, I do have samples of both…just bought a sample of the Extrait. However, it is allergy season and I am having a hard time distinguishing the difference. It is very frustrating!
And thank you all for your excellent advice!
SOTM on a cold, rainy Sunday is Tom Ford Violet Blonde. Oh my WORD, I had forgotten how gorgeously spicy/golden/warm this is! I love that kind of happy surprise.
Yes, Violet Blonde does make a statement!
Definitely agree that Wit, Terracotta, Orange Sanguine, La Chasse aux Papillons, and Blackberry & Bay are happy scents. Even reading about them makes me smile.
I get a mood-boost from two of my Hermes favorites: Jour d’Hermes and Eau des Merveilles. Both feel happy to me, but each is very different in its expression of joy.
I’m with you on Eau des Merveilles! and Blackberry & Bay
I’m not sure that wearing perfume always makes me happy, but it does always make me feel good about myself, and that certainly contributes to happiness.
I wore Diorissimo yesterday, and Hansbury today, because LOTV and orange blossom are pretty cheery notes.
Box of Eels extrait. (I mean Bois des Îles from Chanel, and thank you Gis for sharing!) I am happy that I get to post about it here, where it has that adorable nickname. And swapping/sharing perfume with delightful people makes me highly, unaccountably happy.
So far I’m getting a very peachy, powdery oriental, with a bit of shape from the ChanExclusIris signature note. Still early in the development. Love to hear thoughts from its admirers and/or dissenters if anyone’s in the mood.
‘Box of Eels’ 😀 😀
I just got Box of Eels extrait last week. I’m getting a huge #5 vibe with the aldehydes and sandalwood. To me it’s a sexy, woody, spicy skin scent. However, I’m not getting great longevity with it. If I apply at night I can no longer smell it in the morning.
Jo Malone – Blackberry and Bay, Carthusia – Corialum and Yubris Cerchi Nell’Acqua, they all smell like summer & sea to me and summer & sea means happiness.
SOTD Bvlgari Black. Cool and cloudy – perfect fit.