Ready to wade into skanky waters but want a little hand holding? You’ve come to the right place. “Skank”1 usually refers to a hint — and sometimes more — of body odor in a fragrance, occasionally with overtones of halitosis and rotting flesh. (I hope you aren’t eating lunch right now.) Artfully administered, skank can throw a perfume’s beauty into relief. It can feel intimate and sexy. But when you’re not in the mood for it, skank could be just plain disgusting. Skank tolerance is personal. Some perfumistas wear their skank as a badge of honor, like chile lovers brag about downing Scotch Bonnets, but others won’t tolerate a noticeable drop of civet or funky musk.
Here is a skank sampler. Please comment if other skanky perfumes come to mind. I’ve rated them on a Skank Scale of one to ten. One approximates “post-tennis glow,” and ten is “zombie apocalypse.”
Hermès Eau d’Hermès
Skank Scale: 4
In August in Paris this year, I encountered plenty of ripe metro riders. I simply told myself they were wearing Eau d’Hermès. Eau d’Hermès is a classic, expensive-smelling cologne full of citrus and lavender — and skank. Imagine a gray-templed man emerging from a country club. He just played a vigorous round of golf and enjoyed the post-game Old Fashioned, but — whoops! — he forgot his Ban roll-on. That’s Eau d’Hermès. (Related: see Guerlain Mouchoir de Monsieur.)
Serge Lutens Muscs Koublaï Khän
Skank Scale: 9 for the first half hour, steadily declining to 2
It could be a cry at football games attended by perfumistas: “Give me a skank!” the cheerleader yells. “MKK!” the crowd roars back. Yes, this one is a real stinker. Somehow it blends unwashed armpits and “private” parts with the breath of a smoker with gum disease and day-old roast beef between his molars. For years, I feared to be alone with a bottle. What if it dragged me to the grave? Then I was in the Salons du Palais Royal in Paris, and the sales associate cooed about MKK, describing it as an elegant skin scent. By then, I’d built up a tolerance for skank, so I gave it a go. Surprise! This time I appreciated the fragrance’s comfort and intimacy — MKK is almost cuddly in the dry down, where it wafts caramel-leather and tobacco and is vaguely powdery. I still wouldn’t wear Muscs Koublaï Khän in public, but every once in a while I crave a spritz.
Amouage Jubilation 25
Skank Scale: 5
How I love Jubilation 25. It brims with everything good from an exotic greenhouse, with a thick cloud of jasmine wrapping it up and depositing it on delicate wood and moss. A thin vein of tingly fruit travels through Jubilation 25 — not enough to call attention to itself — and, yes, it whispers “skank.” Jubilation 25 is fine-tuned sexy: expensive, expertly built, unfiltered. It’s too proper for Mata Hari, too sensual for Grace Kelly, and too smart for your average silicon-lipped starlet. Perfectly wearable in public in modest doses.
Rochas Femme
Skank Scale: 6
Don’t have the budget for Jubilation 25? Try Femme. It’s a little fruitier, but that makes it more delicious. It’s a little more straightforward, but so are the most successful sweater girls. For me, Femme is the go-to skank for autumn. I save Jubilation 25 for special occasions when the audience is right, but I happily wear Femme afternoons raking leaves or reading old detective novels.
Papillon Artisan Perfumes Salome
Skank Scale: 7 quickly fading to 3
Salome is a skanky floral chypre with the skank just barely outweighing the flowers. Its skank is salty and hints at lady parts. A layer of minerally moss buoys it. I haven’t tried Salome sprayed, but dabbed from my sample vial it wears dense and velvety, with amber and spicy carnation coming out as the fragrance settles in. It’s not as easy to wear as Femme, and it’s more punk rock and not as classically glorious as Jubilation 25. Salome would be a good one for winter nights when you’re out late at a show.
For buying information, see listings for Hermès, Serge Lutens, Amouage and Rochas. Papillon Perfumery can be found in the US at Luckyscent or in the UK at Les Senteurs.
1. “Skank” as a perfume descriptor is generally credited to March at Perfume Posse.
If must be the reformulation, but the MKK I got in an export bottle a few years ago is more like a puppy that is a week before needing a bath, one that you maybe spray with a light rose Cologne.
A defanged MKK! Wow. An icon has fallen.
I remember doing a presentation on perfume for a public speaking class in college a few years ago and I brought MKK among others. It was far and away the favorite of those I brought. I made about six samples of it for other students.
I’m hoping some generous commenter will find a sample they couldn’t wear and hid in their freezer and donate it to my curiosity.
Well, there you go. My decant must be from the old MKK, because it brims with skank.
OH GAWSH! I have ALWAYS Wanted to smell La Fille d’Eve! That Bottle just makes me Cry it’s so Exquisite and I know the scent must be Magical as well!
It’s such a wonderful fragrance! It really does have a hint of baby scalp about it, though. I don’t have a bottle, sadly, but I’m happy simply to have a decant!
Oh, that’s a shame! The first time I smelled MKK my stomach did backflips. There are only two other scents that I can think of that do that to me: Fille d’Eve and vintage Rumeur extrait, and the thing those three all have in common is costus. Perhaps the costus has been eliminated from MKK due to IFRA regs?
That’s an interesting thought. (And you’ve encouraged me to dig out my decant of Fille d’Eve. Love it.)
Thanks for the list of what not to wear
The second time I wore Bluebird by Olivine Atelier it smelled like smegma for at least an hour (((shudder))). There will not be a third sampling.
And by “what not to wear,” I meant for ME not to wear (or for anyone to wear on her subway in the summer)
…or maybe wear in your vicinity?
Lulz, yes for some of us it’s a “must try” list and for others it really is a “what not to wear” list! I kind of love that–three cheers for perfume that inspires any strong feeling, whether love or hate!
I love your attitude!
!!
Oh man, thanks for the laugh.
I thought a cat pee note was bad enough in a fragrance…
Sadly, I can smell real cat pee whenever I want to…
Me too…. ! LOL – but I still can’t stand the smell of intense boxwood!
That’s awful!
Fun read! I am very curious to sniff this Papillon line. I find that some of the skankers I used to like to wear are no longer much in my rotation. Some more fun skank: The rose scent from The Different Company has made a few people blush! And I still haven’t made a very big dent in my Party in Manhattan decant as it is not really the best for polite company! These days I am more keen on the touch o’skank in the classics- No.5, Joy, Shalimar.
I agree with you in that the “touch o’ skank” works best for me, too. Shalimar is right up there for me, so is Jicky. Love them. The Different Company rose must be Rose Poivrée. I remember a definite hint of lady parts to it.
This is making me thinking I need a skank consultant–like a food taster but to make sure I’m not walking around in public smelling like lady parts! I love Rose Poivree and def get the cumin but it just scans as spice to me–heaven only knows what everyone else thinks I smell like!
Good idea! Maybe we could get some kind of sticker to apply that would turn a violent color if we were too skanky.
People are probably thinking you are having a HELL of a time.
MKK isn’t anywhere as ferocious as this article makes it out to be, and hasn’t been in years. This is an overreaction to what is essentially a civet and a beautiful musk. Frankly, Shalimar is probably more animalic than the current iteration of Muscs Koublaï Khän. Would you be afraid to wear Shalimar out as well?
I wear Shalimar out all the time, and my decant of MKK far out-skanks it.
I suspect you’d have to wear MKK outside the safe confines of your apartment to truly appreciate it. And avoid altogether the original version where the civet was even more pronounced and longer lasting. The present version is tame by way of comparison. An initial blast with a quick recession. (The civet in Shalimar lasts longer and is more persistent.) A pleasant, sexy musk which is as it should be, far away from the “laundry musks”.
I think I have the old MKK. I need to try the new stuff.
I tested MKK a few years back and was driving home when I suddenly thought – oh gosh, did I not shower this morning???
I find most Guerlains (the classics) to have a rather feline mix of vanilla and skank. Even the current ones.
I can imagine having that thought!
Lol!
Parfum Sacre is another one with varying skanky for me most of the time it’s just lovely but every fourth or fifth wearing it is a bit much…
Now I’m curious. What notes are you getting?
I never noticed a lot of skank in Parfum Sacré. I’ll have to pay more attention!
There is a tiny bit of civet in PS. It never bothers me, but I notice it.
I’ve never noticed it which only confirms that I am not too bothered by civet.
Cracking up! This post made my day!
Totally made my day too! Ah skanky perfumes, hours and hours of fun for–ok maybe not the whole family
ha ha!
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Parfum d’Empire limited Musc Tonkin extrait was a blaster, eau de parfum version which is now a regular part of the line is still skanky but not as much as the extrait was
Thanks for weighing in on that one! I haven’t smelled it yet.
AHG! the original Musc Tonkin made me recoil in horror. Sold it immediately….and haven’t risked a repeat of the emotional damage by trying the edp ( okay, okay….FEAR… but ”emotional damage” sounds less cowardly somehow.) Of ALL the things I’ve ever tried: Musc Tonkin extract is at the top of the skanky pile.
Nice warning!
I do like just a tad of skank in a few fragrances. I love your list. If I was to toss any post tennis balls of skank light to your list they would be: AG Songes edt, AG Ce Soir ou Jamais edt, AG Eau de Sud, LL Rose 31 (cumin!), Eau de Joy, Lancome les collections Climat, Habanita, Memoir Woman, and vintage Bal a Versailles. It seems I am not so offended by a touch of civet, but I have lots of troubles with big indolic jasmine and too much cumin. Rochas Femme (current) and Theo Fennell Scent just about knocked my nose off my face! They are hobo power 5, er, I mean Zombie Apocalypse.
Me, too, Scent Cousin. I find Memoir W a bit skanky, just a tad, and I love it. Got along fine with current Femme but the vintage was WHOO no. I like BaV, which is just enough skank to be womanly.
Oh yes, Bal a Versailles!
Funny thing about Bal a Versailles — the vintage extrait is only moderately skanky on me…but the Edt is armpits and assorted bits oh hyperdrive.
My cat Squeaky carried away my sample vial of BaV extrait. Seriously. Never saw it again.
Nice list! I definitely note skank in those. (Love the bit of skank in Songes, for example.) Your list makes me think of another, too: Amaranthine.
ahhhhh Amaranthighs…..you know, it smells quite a bit like steamed rice to me…not a lot of skank. But my daughter can smell it at the other end of the house and shouts out “WHAT SMELLS LIKE BAJINGOS??” ….She has been known to make similar disrespectful comments about Epic woman as well.
That’s hilarious! You should tape that and use it as your cell phone ring.
that would be fun at the grocery store…..
The comments on this topic are making my day! I love Amaranthine too, nice creamy floral with hints of rice and banana leaf.
You should seriously consider strong-arming your daughter into a NST account. I would love to hear her scent observations regularly. Or you could just tie her down and douse her with stuff and pass her comments on to us
I know. This is why we have kids, right? The entertainment value.
OMG – have a decant of Amarnthine. I used to smell just creamy banana pudding, but recently when I’ve tried to wear it, just smelling the nozzle makes me almost embarrassed. There is something ridiculously sexual about Amaranthine that seems rather scandalous. I think it must be that attempt at the “skin” smell. I can’t even wear mine at all.
Ta-da! Skank has struck.
pssst! Ann…..it’s the bajingos!
Is there a blushing face?
If I want that smell, I’ll crawl into bed with my favorite person, right? I can’t walk around like that all day!
Hmmmm….I get along best with vintage Femme (Pdt) and really I don’t find it more than maybe a 2 on the Angela’s Skank-o-meter. The vintage extrait , however, always smells like sausage (of every sort) ….at first I thought I got a bad bottle….so I found another: more sausage. I have not tried the current or more modern versions of Femme (the lovely Neela Vermeire sent me a bit of very vintage PdT and after that, nothing else would do).
I don’t find the vintage Femme very skanky either, but I know there were so many formulations that who can say? Vintage Shocking packs some skank, though.
I’ve heard that about Shocking….so I haven’t gone there…I’m not a skankopotamus by any means….. I love Jubilation 25 but it’s Big Floral, Little Skanky on me…..too much and I run screaming for the hills.
Yelling, “Who smells like Bajingos!”
Well, at least we’d know exactly where my daughter was.
No mention of Bal de Versailles?
That and vintage-ish Tabu were the first things that came to mind. Bal à Versailles definitely has a whore’s-bedsheets vibe to it.
Canny description.
It would definitely make the top 10, I agree!
Penhaligon`s Hammam Bouquet
I haven’t smelled that one in ages. Thanks for throwing it in the list!
I second this. A sample 8 years back wasn’t so bad but a recent FB purchase made me regret it every time I sprayed. Someone dropped too much civet into it!
You’d think that in a reformulation they’d lessen the civet, not amp it up!
Yes, absolutely! Thanks for a great post. So much fun and informative at the same time.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Yes! Glad to see Jubilation 25 made it in! By far the skankiest perfume I own, I think. One drop of that and I’m wearing it for two days…at least it means I won’t likely get through my large decant in my lifetime. On me Jubilation 25 is much skankier than Rochas Femme, which I bought in (failed) hopes of a cheap alternative to the Amouage.
Though I have to say my second skankiest perfume is probably S-EX (which probably qualifies in some sort of skank crossed with weird category).
Yes, the Jub 25 is expensive enough that it’s kind of nice that just a bit goes a long way! I completely forgot about S-EX. With a name like that, I guess we shouldn’t expect less than some skank.
Oh! Rochas Femme does not put me in mind of Jubilation 25 at all….but I’m weird, so who knows……BUT…vintage Femme PdT ,very muchly <—new word, but work with me here, reminds me of MDCI Enlevement au Serail (which I love almost beyond words.)
I think of Enlevement au Serail and I want to cry to think that it’s discontinued.
Now, I’ve never thought of a skank scale before, so thank you, Angela. I own J25 and Femme, and it’s never occurred to me that there swanky. I just thought, rather naively I now see, that they were “womanly” in the sense of being grown up, fully thought through — having layers of significance. The skank factor that rounds and completes them, for me.
And I meant to say — I’m involved in three separate conversations at the moment, so not focused –that your review was, as always, both fun and provocative.
Thank you!
I do love both of those fragrances, and I do see them as a lot more than skanky. The skanky (not “swanky,” danged autocorrect) bit is just another dimension.
I’m not a big fan of MKK – smells unpleasantly of unwashed hair to me. But I find a surprising amount of sexy “skank” in the musky dry down of SL Fleurs De Citronnier. I also love the cumin in Fleurs d’Oranger (and Jub. 25 & Femme).
I love the cumin in Fleurs d’Oranger, too. It really makes the scent for me, I think.
Also in Azemour and Lumiere Noire (femme)…. But I am a cumin hound dog…didn’t used to be… I can’t wear the current Femme, but I used to… Sigh.
Super fun essay!
Oh my gosh, Azemour les Orangers is marvelous. It’s too skanky for you? You are a tender one. I envy you in some ways and am happy for my blunt nose in other ways.
I can, and do, wear them both. But they are at the top of my cumin meter of wearable frags. On the hand, I love many indolic frags and can spray those with abandon. I guess I like poop not sweat!
Oh dear.
An important distinction!
I think of MKK as a horse barn scent–so personally I think it’s fantastic, but I realize others might have just the opposite view
My father was a horseshoer, so the smell of horses is wonderful to me, too. I think MKK must be one of those shape-shifting scents that plays differently on different people.
Oh, I didn’t know your dad was a farrier! Wow I bet you do have good horse smell memories. Do you have a favorite horsey scent, or does really nothing match up to the real thing?
L’Heure Fougueuse comes to mind. I come from three generations of horse people and it takes me right back to my thorobred-training grandfather’s stables. You get not only the horse but the barn, the saddle and a hint of jockey with that one.
Nice choice. Very horsy.
My dad had a leather apron he used, and it always smelled so good. L’Air de Rien is a good one, though.
Oh, I bet that smelled wonderful. Now I’ve def got to try L’Air de Rien!
Oh i love l’air de Rien!- and just purchased a partial bottle for 20 quid on ebay!
I am a skank chicken, having run into Joy EdT early on in my sniffery – on me it smelled like that useful thing known as a “whore’s bath,” perfume splashed over postcoital ladyparts. (eep. sorry.) I’ve found that on my skin, jasmine can either go very green and high-pitched, or very very raunchy – and Joy is super-raunchy. Femme was along the same lines but not nearly as skanky, oddly enough.
I haven’t tried MKK or Musk Tonkin, but after reading this review by Tom at PST about Smell Bent Commando (http://perfumesmellinthings.blogspot.com/2009/10/get-bent-part-2-smell-bent-little-miss.html) I had to try it. “Impeccable clean skin of a child”? Yes, please. Unfortunately, on me, Commando smells like a whole locker room crammed with sweaty guys. Um, no. Just no.
Bal a Versailles is about as skanky as I can manage.
I have to layer Eau de Joy with any rose soliflore to make it wearable, which is a shame b/c I like the green parts. It is totally jasmine skank to my nose. Even the gorgeous Songes can be too much of that for me.
Vintage BaV on the other hand – sheer bliss. It’s the only fragrance I’ve ever worn that’s got a kind of something-something reaction from a man.
Isn’t it funny how different skin and noses respond? For me, Joy is a lot more manageable than BaV–although I love them both.
It sounds like you and some jasmines just don’t get along! That’s hilarious about Commando, too.
Yeah, picture me sampling Commando, thinking of warm clean baby… and instead getting the LA Raiders, postgame. In an enclosed space. Yikes.
I once drove past our dairy farmer neighbor’s field on a summer evening, and thought, “Oh, jasmine, that’s niii… no, it’s not. Dale just spread some manure.”
Holy smokes! Did the Raiders move to L.A.? I guess you can tell how long it’s been such I watched a football game.
I can’t believe you haven’t mentioned Citizen Queen or Tocade….your description of the Tocade bottle stashed in your closet calling out “I’m drunk and I’ve lost my panties….take me home.” ….will be forever burned into my memory….
That’s hilarious! I don’t get any skank from Tocade, though. On me it’s all sugar and roses and vanilla. A regular cupcake.
Tocade is super musky on me. So Mals’ comment (lo, these many years ago) really stuck in my brain.
Okay, tomorrow I’m wearing Tocade, and this time I’m going to focus on ferreting out the musk.
Somehow that bottle of Tocade started smelling like dirty ashtray to me, and I just can’t wear it anymore. And I finished my decant of CQ, but I didn’t buy any more. Don’t know why.
I haven’t worn CQ in a good long time….but now I’m thinking about it…. I remember you didn’t like wearing it to work because the guys “looked at you funny”. See, you gotta watch what you say around me….cuz I’ll remember it……but I can’t remember where I put my keys 5 minutes ago……sigh
I started to have troubles wearing Tocade a few years ago – musks? – but it must have some skank factor b/c it worked great to spray around my garden to keep the deer away!
Having just doused myself in vintage Femme extrait (at smell grrrrreat!) I thought I’d toss a little L’Air de Rien out there for further consideration.
I’d give L’Air a 10.
It’s a skanky one.
So strange. The first time I tried al’Air i ONLY smelled manure. I kept a sample for if I ever wanted to sniff something vile again. Tested it more recently and it was sweet and soft – warm, intimate… Bizarre – I now love it!
I’ve changed my opinion many a time on re-smelling something. Isn’t it amazing?
That’s what I got too…..it’s been along time…maybe I should dig that sample out and sniff again.
Absolutely Daisy! I liked it so much I bought a bottle from a friend who had become disenchanted. The first time I sprayed it I just went woozy from joy
Not sure what my policy will be about wearing it out – given my initial reaction…
Oh, you do smell great! L’Air de Rien is a terrific addition to the list, too.
I really, really need to try L’Air de Rien. I always forget about adding it to my wish list at the decanters.
It’s such an interesting scent and a bit of a shape-shifter, I find.
In anticipation of my full-bottle, I can probably spare a sample. Shoot me an email, username at the geemale-com place (those spam bots are really getting clever but I still feel silly typing this gibberish), if you’re interested.
L’Air de Rien is one of my favorite cozy-sweater scents. Rates about a 2.5 on my skank meter. Oddly, lots of people seem to get a dirty hair scent from it which, in real life at least, is one of my least favorite smells.
Some iris scents register as dirty hair to me. Hiris is one.
Hiris? wow…..but dirty hair is about the most disgusting note—I can’t tolerate it at all. (glad I don’t get that from Hiris)
I know I’m an odd one with that! Plus, I love iris so much. But 5% of iris scents scream dirty hair to me. It’s a curse.
I like that dirty hair costus thing. There’s a touch of it in L’Arte di Gucci, and I really enjoy that. My daughter picked that element out right away (don’t know how, under all that loud rose chypre!) and said it smelled like her youngest brother when he’d been playing outside. She hates the stuff.
She must have a keen nose.
*I. Damn autocorrect.
Love the post . Many I have in my collection and yes , agree with the “badge of honour” reference .
Would like to add Al Oudh , cumin rich and ripe as a peach . Not for the faint hearted .
Of course! That’s a terrific addition. Don’t know why I forgot about it. For some reason, it dislodges in my brain that Absolu le Soir is a skanky fragrance, too.
Yes, definitely Al Oudh and Absolu pour le Soir – also the L’Artisan for Aedes scent and Serge Noire. Way, way too much cumin… Pure sweaty armpits.
How did I forget Serge Noir? On me, it’s manageable skank, but it’s there.
This was fun to read. I’m sorry to say, I have an enormous tolerance for filth and probably have people stepping away from me in horror fairly frequently. To me, if something is supposed to smell “barnyard” it means that it will smell warm and comfortable. One of my all-time favorite perfumes, Tropic Of Capricorn, is supposed to be virtually unwearable to many people and smell like straight-up crap. All I get from it is peachy-mango fruit leather, band aids, and a general air of warmth. I think MKK is rather tame and smells a bit like old-fashioned shaving cream. I missed out on the Musc Tonkin Extrait (which I’m really kicking myself for), but wear the EDP easily. I don’t think I’m like those chili-eating macho folk, at least I hope not, I just don’t register the stinky bits.
I can NOT do massive doses of indoles though, or even fairly small amounts sometimes, so there is some hope for me yet.
I was behind a woman at the grocery store today though who was wearing massive amounts of something patchouli and either had a kid with her who needed a diaper change or a straight-up fecal note in her perfume. I hope I don’t cause that reaction, but I fear I might.
I really, really think skank reacts differently on people–both their skin and noses. You sound like the perfect example of that.
I hope my skin tones it down. I like to think my family would stage an intervention if I smelled too bad.
I did overdo the Hard Leather on Saturday and heard my husband ask one of the cats, “whew, did mommy put on too much smelly stuff?”, which is an unusual reaction from him. I asked and he did say it was a bit unclean at first, but not terrible. Even I can almost get a hint of something a bit like the bottom of the dirty laundry bin. Apparently, HL tastes great to the feline contingent so he was the only one who suffered.
As long as the cat didn’t answer back by sticking out his tongue, you’re fine!
There is an elderly woman I regularly encounter at the grocery store who wears Elizabeth Taylor White Diamonds, and it’s clearly her signature because she wears a lot of it and it has that layer-on-layer feel. You can sort of trace her through the store by her scent trail. Unfortunately, it’s either reacting badly with her skin, or she has some other issues, because it smells like a giant floral arrangement next to a filthy diaper. (I suspect it’s overapplication and not incontinence… I once got a big spray of Memoir Woman on the sleeve of my hoodie and then the next day put on some Long Lost Perfumes Tuvache Gardenia, which is a big ole skanky bleu-cheesy gardenia thing, and the combination was incredibly fecal. Reminded me of White Diamonds Lady.)
I do get the occasional indolic whiff sometimes from other people’s perfume, but this was major stuff. You’re probably right about skin chemistry really amping the whiffy bits. I think I was smelling her perfume, but I can’t imagine what she was wearing. It was like Angel and poo, which actually made the Angel-like aspect much more interesting than usual. Should have told her she smelled good and just asked what she was wearing, because now I really want to know.
That sounds so awful!
Interesting. White Diamonds is so classically grand that I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some civet or castoreum in there.
I think there may very well be something animalic in there. And granted, I like WD in tiny amounts. She wears a lot, though. And is of an age where (to my shame) I do wonder whether there are Depends under her knit trousers, because she is otherwise well-groomed. I don’t know.
Once in an antiques store I talked with a sales person who was immaculately dressed with a shiny chignon and all, but she smelled overwhelmingly of B.O. I had the same sort of thoughts (not Depends, but you know what I mean).
I don’t get a lot of skank from Theo Fennel Scent (creamy rose/saffron), or my sample of l’air de Rien (warm spice, a little leather). Don’t know if I have a reformulation or if neutralize the skank, or if I am unknowingly offending…
You are a very lucky gal.
I bet they smell terrific on you, and it’s as simple as that.
Its lady’s nether regions for me, the Theo Fennel scent. Another skank fest for me is vintage Jolie Madame by Balmain. It’s rotting flowers on bed sheets that smell of two sweaty lovers, and cat piss of course.
Calamity J I was promised would be skank, but I get warm, fuzzy sweaters instead. I’m not complaining. I guess not all animalic is skank.
Jolie Madame is so sweet and pretty on me! Sure, there’s some leather, but I’ve found it well behaved. I think I’d rather smell it on you…
Hmm.
Current Shalimar EDP has a slight BO note somewhere in there.
WW Boudouir is wonderfully sweaty in places.
Lush Lust: indolic to the max. I sprayed it liberally in the Lush store and then hit the streets feeling slightly self-conscious. Bought a bottle, gave it away.
My Grandmother might’ve worn Jicky. She smelled of shitty bad breath (suspicion confirmed after smelling Jicky in person 25 years later).
I can also attest sampling Imogen Rose together with Gucci Bamboo smells like someone farted.
I have troubles with Jicky too.
The EdT is especially civet-y to me.
I’ve got an old tester of PdT and it’s a civet bomb. I fly my skank flag high but that formulation of Jicky is out of my league.
Which is a huge red flag to some and a lure to others!
Oh yes, Boudoir. I wish that was still on the market. As for Lush Lush, isn’t it amazing what some jasmine can do?
I have stayed farrrrr away from Lust because I know me and jasmine.
“Like someone farted” is HILARIOUS. Thanks for the laugh!
Mouchoir de Monsieur and Jicky come to mind with the noticeable civet! Still, the note grows on me. Speaking of which, I have to give first-impression-cat-pee Kouros a second try…
Those are definitely two civet-y scents to me, too!
Slightly OT – is it possible to replicate actual human BO in a scent? (If it’s a dumb question please tell me.)
I’m asking because I’ve always loved the armpit smell of my various S/Os. Unfortunately I seem to be anosmic to musk (except laundry musk) in fragrance. I’d love to find that warm, slightly sweet/sweaty, nosehair-vibrating scent in a fragrance.
To do that, you’d need to use original animalic essences (such as harvesting human skin flakes and such) which I don’t think is doable. So is there a way around it? I’ll stick my nose in my bf’s armpit in the meantime.
I’m the wrong person to ask, but it’s an interesting question. Perhaps someone here will chime in.
I think some Hermes Bel Ami might get you where you want to go. Just my opinion. Thanks Angela for a fine article.
One of my favorites, and thank you!
You’re the first person I’ve encountered who shares my armpit fetish. If only I could recapture the scent of X from long ago. Swoon.
Count me in as well . I think there is a distinct difference between the armpit and BO ! One smell like vinegar and the other like spice .
Have you experimented with cumin-centric scents? They are the most like human sweat to my nose. To some people cumin just smells like food though, so you may just need to experiment. Kingdom is still one of my favorites, but you may want to try Salome, Absolute pour le Soir, or Rubj (the EDP, I think) as well.
Definitely worth a try.
I’m fond of an arm pit myself . Not the type that u can smell from person to person , but the spicy animal intimate smell . It’s dead sexy .
See my comment above , Al Oudh . Arm pit party !!!!!
Now I’m envisioning women in full Middle Eastern garb dancing like at a disco!
Guerlain AA Pamplelune!
Pee and armpit!
You might check out Frederic Malle’s Bois D’Orage
Thank you for this! I’m not very well versed in skank, so this is highly educational. I seem to be doing very well with cumin-y skank, as I love both Jubilation and Femme and ADORE Fleurs d’Oranger. I have more trouble with the rot (I get the bad breath association, too – love Jicky on some days, not so much on others) and often cannot smell the serious musks – MKK almost didn’t register to my nose, I was so disappointed.
I, too, get along best with the cumin-y skank as opposed to the rotting flesh kind, and I’d be bereft without my Jub 25 and Femme. (And I’d love some Fleurs d’Oranger!) How strange about MKK–musk is tricky.
I was surprised to not find any skank in my sample of Fleurs d’Oranger, but I read somewhere (lessee, that would have been about 2012) that it has been reformulated since its early days to be far less cuminy. Don’t know if that’s the deal, but I didn’t find Fd’O skanky at alllll.
I sampled Fleur d’Oranger last year. It made me want to cry, the most beautiful Orange blossom followed by straight up B. O. My skin amps cumin… I was so disappointed!
Too bad! It really is a beautiful scent–with a hint of B.O., though, not as much as your skin gives it, it sounds like.
It really does…orange blossom and sweaty armpit. Another great post Angela!
Thank you! And may you find that perfect orange blossom yet.
I have a sample of SL Fd’O. It’s dirty for sure. The cumin is still there, but probably more polite in the more recent reformulation.
I need to go smell a recent tester.
I also got a small decant over the summer, and can’t smeel the cumin/BO. WAs most dissapointed!
Too bad! A perfume gets a huge reputation for skank, then goes all cuddly.
Awesome post, Angela
While I despise almost all musk, the fragrances that are considered uber skanky musk-fests (MKK and my beloved Yatigan) tend to smell lovely and warm to me. I am obviously anosmic to the horrible parts, and just get the cuddly bits. It’s the sweet musks that kill me. (SSS has a very sweet musk in the base that I just can’t tolerate)
I have not sniffed the Hermes, but a BO note is hard for me to deal with. Some cumin works for me ( adore Femme, Jub25, Bal) and some doesn’t; I can never tell how it will go. I do also love some indoles, especially that dirty-diaper jasmine.
One note that can go really nasty on me quick that I never hear anyone else mention as skanky/problematic is sandalwood. It quite often smells like belly button gunk to me. The combination of a sickly sweet note to the overripe/musk/skank seems to be what does me in.
The only two skanks that I have had to scrub were Secretions Magnifique and the abject horror that was Smell Bent Untitled.
That Smell Bent was just ungodly. Straight up *ss, and 3 day post e.coli unwashed *ass at that.
You are very funny.
Agree!
Interesting about SSS. SO hateshatesHATES all of the SSS scents I love, claiming they smell like musk bombs from the underworld. On the other hand, he was looking forward to Secretions Magnifique purely because of its promised grossness.
Of course, I thought I was tough, but Secretions Magnifique was too much ick. Forget what I was expecting to smell; instead it smelled to me like dirty hands that had handled dirty coinage. Apparently that’s the line my nose can’t cross with me.
I couldn’t take Secretions Magnifique, either. I keep thinking of dirty shag carpeting removed from a 1970s porn set.
Oh, well there’s almost something reassuring about that description, because I’d sorta thought there was no smell too gross for me–but nope, I’m properly horrified now! Good to know I do have some limits!
(For reference, until now I’d been imagining Secretions Magnifiques as a combo of spoiled milk–which, yuck, it might even make me gag, but still, not upsetting per se–and the metallic tang of blood, which, I’m honestly sorta curious about how that might translate into perfume! Or I was. Now you’ve cured me, thank you
)
I think you might have to sample it, just because, well, why not push those limits? Plus, you’ll have a good story to tell.
Let me know if you need a sample. I happen to have one that won’t be getting any wear anytime soon.
No, seriously, I think you need to sniff it! It’s the metallic blood angle that got me; I just personally hate that, having had a bad accident when I was younger that involved a great deal of blood in my mouth.
The scent itself is very interesting, I just have unfortunate associations with one particular aspect.
I had a friend who described SM as “straight-up boy juice,” so that was what I was expecting. Instead, I got “sex crime complete with bloody knife,” and it was the HECK of a shock. There’s a very strong metallic component.
I am dying laughing. Skank day on NST has got to be the most fun day of all
I can tell who shouldn’t be writing Sec Mag’s marketing material…
Well: (1) I will never try Smell Bent Untitled, not now, thanks for the warning. (2) It sounds like skank+sweet is your Achilles heel!
It really is hideous to my nose, but then again, I adore Yatigan and MKK, so you should probably not let me be your guide!
I remember reading about that Untitled! It got some strong reactions.
Sandalwood USED to be problematic to me in my early perfumista days! Unfortunately for my bank account & bursting perfume cabinet, I’ve somehow cured myself of the aversion. The frag that had me changing my tune (not initially–after a few tries) was Eau Premiere.
A classic beauty.
Hmmm, I will have to give that a go. I am not generally a Chanel-ista, but I’m up for a challenge!
Ironically, I think sandalwood is what I love about the drydown in Nuit de Noel, which is one of my HGs, and I also really liked Andy Tauer’s Miriam, which is predominantly sandalwood. But the sandalwood in both seems very…. dry, maybe? It hasn’t got that sickly sweet moist aspect to it.
There are some sandalwood oil bases that can be cloying, I find. I know what you mean about liking a “dry” sandalwood.
Jicky came to my mind too, which I love, as well as J25, and I have a small decant (for reference) of al Haramein’s Obsessive Oudh, which I think needs a new level of the Skank Scale range…Skunk scale I suppose.
I haven’t heard of Obsessive Oudh. Sounds dangerous.
Thank you for the list of skank-factor fragrances! I have been flailing around trying to make a decision on next skank purchase and this is helpful. I’m looking to replace Boudoir (Viv Wwood).. Any thoughts on said fragrance by readers? Annie :))
I hope someone chimes in with some good suggestions for you!
Interesting. I own the Hermes, old MKK & owned Jub 25.
EdH is to me a nice lemony-leather cologne, no skank at all (I own the copper bottle version btw :p)
Jub 25 is a mildly spicy chypre
MKK is warm and fuzzy
But then, I’m Pakistani and our food reeks of cumin, our streets of cowdung, and our leather jackets of, well, leather jacket
Given my impressions of the above, it may interest you that what I find skanky in perfumes are:
(6) Masque Montecristo – mostly due to the Hyraceum.
(8) La Via del Profumo Oud Caravan #2
(5) Montale Aoud Cuir d’Arabie (smell changes completely into a refined, dry leather in the dry summer heat where I live)
(5) Bogue MAAI – only a little skanky, also due to Hyraceum
This should definitely be a starter sample pack! Great post!
Fascinating! Of the fragrances you listed, I’ve only tried the Montale, which was skanky but deliciously tarry-leathery, and MAAI, which was over the top in all the best ways, but definitely fecal on me. Thanks for the list!
Wow, I’m such a wimp when it comes to skanky notes. Jubilation was easily a 10 on me and Bogue MAAI was over 9000. It was so fecal on me my fiance said I smelled like I’d been rolling in cat poo.
Both Jubilation and Maai scared me, too…and Salome just about rendered me unconscious
I smelled Salome on a friend yesterday, and it was lush jasmine with just a hint of skank. I think skin must really make a difference here!
Maybe you’re a skank enhancer!
MKKis so not skanky ot me … maybe I am anosmic to it.
Vintage Joy extrait. A guy visibly moved away from me haha !
And over the weekned .. another guy in Starbucks moved away from me… I was wearing Shalimar EDP ( current EDP ) layered with 3 healthy sprays of MFK Oud Cashmere Mood ..lol lmao.
Actually Oud Cashmere Mood and Shalimar play very well together but I guess the guy in Starbucks didn’t think so .
MAAI .. I loved ! It gets into the sweaty skin and pants realm in the drydown for me ..somewhat…but I still want a bottle.
Is there somewhere I can buy a bottle of your attitude? I would purchase a back-up too
No kidding!
I remember the Oud Cashmere having a kick to it. Mixed with Shalimar? You have cojones, my friend.
Sorry for my terrible typos……. eek
No apologies necessary!
0 on skank scale (for me) is Khiel’s Musk. I hear people complaining about it’s dirtiness on forums, but to me it’s all innocence.
Totally agree–actually this is a good solution to my “I don’t even know what powder smells like” problem for this week’s community project. Very quickly this one just starts to smell like powder to me.
Few perfumes don’t turn powdery on me!
Me too!
Admittedly it’s been a while since I smelled it, but I don’t think of Kiehl’s Musk as skanky, either.
Totally agree. Kiehl’s? Skanky? No no no.
Thanks for this post, Angela! Some of the descriptions intrigue me, and I don’t have a one of the scents you mentioned, although I’ve been curious about a couple without even knowing their skank index.
Have fun trying them!
Great article Angela, as always! I love many a skanky scent, they are in my powerhouse. I adore all of the above, but it’s sad to read MKK has been softened a bit. Too bad.
A few favorites….
1-Etat Libre’s Secretions Magnifiques – smells like woods, leather and oud (on me).
2-McQueen’s Kingdom-not skanky at all but a furry warm skin musk.
3-L’ Artisan’s Al Oudh, spices, woods with dirty undergarments. I love to layer it with Voleur de Roses, Mandarine, or the original Vanilla.
4-Joy (vintage), smells like rotting flowers and dirty barnyard animals. I don’t wear it but love the smell straight from the bottle.
5-Serge Lutens-Fleurs de Orangeur-very odorous, no flowers at all (on me), it’s all skanky pants….
I forgot all about Kingdom! A good one. I love your layering ideas for Al Oudh, too.
Ah, Kingdom … or “hooker with a burrito,” as someone on MUA christened it back in the day.
That’s hysterical! Oh man.
That’s hilarious.
Fantastic. And now I must try.
Love the hooker with a burrito, classic.
Get along with Salome and tiny doses of Joy, but I haven’t tried the others you mention. I know the sample that stood out as “skanky” was Rubj. Must try both new & old Femme one of these days.
Oh yes, the Rubj EdP is definitely skanky in the most beautiful way.
I went vintage sniffing yesterday and the theme was “Parfums de putain”. Vintage skank scents. It was amazing!
My favourites? Tabu, La Nuit by Paco Rabanne, CK Obsession, Max Factor Primitif and Schiaparelli Shocking! All skanky, all wonderful!
The only skank scent I own though is Agent Provocateur. Rose + powder + skin = skank level 3/4.
What a great idea for a sniff! Vintage skank scents. I wish I could have been there.
Me too.
Such an interesting topic and thanks for the review! I think I must have a high tolerance for skank, both animalic and indolic. Like C.H., I get warm animals in a barn from MKK and I would wear it anywhere (as I would all my perfumes). My favorite skanky smell is civet, which I love. The original Carolina Herrera is a tuberose/civet blast, and underlying the flowers in the now discontinued Panthere de Cartier is civet, too. And I can never forget Paco Rabanne La Nuit, which I got hooked on via your review, Angela!
Oh yes, Paco Rabanne La Nuit! Whew.
I can see I am woefully ignorant about skank. The only one that initially repulsed me was SL Cuir Mauresque. Admittedly, I have tried hardly any on the list. My first inhalation of CM made me gag, so I think I must be a lightweight when it come to skank.
What disturbs me it that I became quite entranced with it- I blew through a small decant in no time. I fear that if I dip my toe into skanky waters the entire body may follow. I’m an all or nothing kind of gal! I really enjoyed this post and look forward to trying some the scents mentioned.
Cuir Mauresque’s skank is gentle compared to MKK (at least, compared to my decant). It sounds like skank notes are calling you in, though…
My votes for skank go to Rubj EDP and Opus VII. I love Rubj even though I’m careful of where I wear it. Definitely not suitable for work on me. While I don’t love Opus VII my skin tames the panther pee notes down a bit and it’s actually quite nice.
I need more skank in my collection I think.
I love Rubj EdP, I really do. Every perfume collection needs a touch of skank!
I feel like I should add–way down here–that I just smelled Salome on a friend, and it was a whoosh of jasmine with just the tiniest skank hit! I got much less jasmine and more skank. So, you never know…
Love this and love the choices!
Well — I am finding what my problem is now. I can handle the indolic Jasmine stank — bring on grandma’s musty basement! Love Lush Lust and Joy and any other j-bomb.
However, that cumin…. Yikes. Rubj is so lovely, but sometimes it just smell like straight BO with some vague fruit. Other days I can barely smell the cumin. Also – Fleurs d’Oranger and — this is weird and I’ve never noticed anybody say this except for me — Lys Mediterranee has some sort of odd skank that kind of ruins it for me. Anybody else notice that?
ah, bet it’s the ham facet of lily that bothers you.
Oh! Good call.
I haven’t tried this Malle, but Luca Turin, in The Guide say’s;
‘The smell was so intense that it distorted into something else, and it took me a while to figure out what. then i suddenly saw it; salami. There is a salty, hammy quality to fresh lilies that sets them apart from other white flowers.”
For a properly indolic jasmine, it’s worth trying SL A la Nuit, too.
I recall it being called “Death by Jasmine” by more than one reviewer.
I love your Skank Scale, Angela!
I am a lightweight, though, and can barely tolerate many of these scents. Maybe I just have a weak stomach.
At the bottom of the scale along with Eau d’Hermes, I can appreciate Jean-Claude Ellena’s Cartier Declaration, which can only be called sweaty. I find it interesting that J-CE’s frequent exploration of watery notes sometimes ends up in a rather earthy place.
I remember that JCE’s FM Cologne Bigarade definitely has a “meaty” feel to it.
I have a travel spray of this which I’ve had for over a uear and have not worn at all – may be a candidate for the swap pile!
Good thinking! You might end up with something you love. I bet it would swap well.
Have none of you tried Absolue pour le Soir?!??!!?
It is HORRIFYINGLY skanky!
I like it. It’s mostly benzoin on me, later drying down to a smoky honey. Other people have commented on urine notes and sweaty bodies, but I don’t get that.
Sounds kind of cozy on you.
I thought of it while I was responding to some comments here! I’ve only smelled it once and don’t have a sample, but I remember liking it.
Oh, I like that one a lot. I believe there is a Secret Skank Monster lurking inside me
I think you’re right!
I’m in a no skank household. If I could not tolerate Hermes Epice Marine, it doesn’t bode well for others with cumin. Thanks for the post and the comments, like kindcrow way above, I am compiling a What Not to Wear list.
I’m glad to be of service!
I had the same response to the Epice Marine! Yes! And then, No absolutely NOT!
Vintage Scandal by Lanvin has a Smidgen of Skank about it as well… But very well Manicured Skank!
Oh my gosh, I love that fragrance. Bring it on.
Not too many things smell truly skanky to me. Civet usually smells sort of sweet. Yes, cumin smells like sweat, but that’s too easy. The Brent Leonisio that Jolie Fleurs mentioned smells like pure poo to me, so I don’t count that, either. Jicky is one of the few – I have and EdT from the 60s or 70s that really does make me think, how the heck did an animal get into my apartment? Also, L’AP Timbuktu usually has a very definite salty-celery-cumin note that smells like the arm pit of a man’s tee shirt the day after he wore it outdoors on a hot day. But Timbuktu smell very different to different people. Many people think it smells fresh and foresty, which I guess I can smell under the skank. The wonderful Party in Manhattan smelled skanky to me sometimes. And, yeah, Fille d’Eve smells like musky fur.
Forgot to mention how much I love the illustration – did Robin put that together?
Yes, she did!
Timbuktu is kind of amazing, really. Sometimes it feels floral, sometimes incense-y, sometimes like an old chypre to me. I need a bottle, I think.
I am in that cumin-a-phobe group, and I adore Timbuktu, which actually has an almost soapy clean smell to me at the end… like hands washed in an antique floral soap–perhaps made with tallow or lard…but in the best way ever.
I’m convinced more and more that I need a bottle…
I’m not that good with skank. My favorite ones are Byredo Gypsy water andMiller Harrie L’air de rien. Both are very cozy and intimate, but I really can’t wear them to work etc. Doesnt feel right. Back in the day, I swapped away a big bottle of Kingdom edp for the same reason, and have kicked myself many times because of that intensly stupid move.
I’ve swapped or given away many a bottle that I regretted later, so I understand. But if you weren’t going to wear Kingdom anyway, it might as well go to someone who would!
I have to say that Amouage Jubilation did smell like rotten fruits to me when I have tried it, so I agree that it has some skank to it.
I would mention also YSL Kouros (I hate this one, smells like a dirty public toilet to me), Chanel Cuir de Russie (nice, but a bit fecal), Dior Leather Oud (nice, but a bit fecal) and Andy Tauer LDDM (smells like unwashed armpits after a few days).
Really, from LDDM, you get skank? All I get is fresh desert air blowing across the dry plains.. hmm.
Yes and I don’t understand the hype behind it. It’s very cloying and it doesn’t smell good on me. I have tried it once on my skin and found it repulsive in the first 3-4 hours. Maybe something in it just doesn’t work with me, but definitely no fresh air here.
You have a sensitive nose for skank!
On the LDDM, since I am actually afraid to try it, do you mean it starts to smell like armpits after you’ve worn it several days in a row (and showered everyday) or …?
If it helps, it’s not particularly skanky on me. Try it on paper and see what you think!
What a fascinating post and set of comments! So diverse. Who’d be a perfume evaluator???
Does anyone worry that what is not skanky to me is hideous to someone sitting next to me? I mean, when I first smelled Rochas Femme it was like meeting an old friend I didn’t know I had. No skank, just an intensely human smell, intimate, skin-alike, but not skanky.
But is the person sitting next to me on the bus thinking ‘Dear lord, how long is it since that woman showered??!!’
I wonder about this a lot.
Yeah, it is a concern! In the above discussion someone is speculating whether an elderly woman is in depends or whether she is just wearing too much White Diamond. Someone else wonders when last this immaculately dressed woman actually took a shower…
I am fairly independent in wearing what I like but I would rather not raise speculation about incontinence or poor hygiene!
Yeah me neither; there’s a lesson in there about applying perfume with a careful hand, what ever it is.
Ditto on that – I rarely get in troubles with any fragrance I’m wearing b/c I try to apply carefully. The only fragrance I was particularly worried about was AG Ninfeo Mio b/c it has such a pronounced boxwood-cat pee accord.
“I would rather not raise speculation about incontinence or poor hygiene. . .” thanks for the belly laugh this morning!
Maybe we could have tee shirts printed up that say “Tell me if I smell bad.”
Yup! I’ve just accumulated a list from reading the comments here that perhaps I should be worried about what others smell. Azemour les Orangers, Epice Marine, Pamplelune, Eau de Joy, Songes, Ce Soir ou Jamais…nope. I’m not getting any skank from those, and on top of that, even light perfumes tend to linger on me. Perhaps I need to try some stronger skank.
I’m beginning to think that the skank barometer is very personal.
My worry too. So this is a helpful ‘only to try out at home list’! So far I’ve only tried Rubj and I love Epice Marine so cumin is not an issue. But the descriptions of some of the others have me scared or giggling
such fun comments!
Giggling is always good!
I would also include L’Air de Rien and Olympic Orchids’ Tropic of Capricorn.
L’Air de Rien is getting a lot of mentions!
Like Jolie Fleurs various others, I find MKK (and Yatagan!) warm and cuddly, and not skanky at all. I do wonder how much the MKK perception has to do with reformulation (mine is the initial version that available as export). My favorite perfumes that DO register as skanky are Ferme tes Yeux and Acaciosa.
The only time I smelled Ferme tes Yeux, I definitely keyed in on the skank. You’re lucky to find MKK cuddly!
I also kind of forgot the ORIGINAL Composition of Michael Kors was SO Heavy on the Tuberose that the Indoles really did come through. I know because I got it the year it released for my Sister for Christmas because her Husband’s Name was Michael… I remember that being a WHOPPER of a scent and had a fair bit of Skank about it as well! I think I still have the Bottle somewhere… when she got divorced she didn’t want anything to do with the scent so she gave it to my Mother whom COULDN’T STAND It on herself, so she gave it to me!
It’s amazing how glorious and repugnant a gigantic floral can be!
I had troubles with tuberose for a very, very long time (ice pick to the brain). It is so intense – I wouldn’t call it skanky, but it has such an intense effect on me. Years ago, if I smelled Fracas, it made me want to puke. Now I can deal with tiny bits of strong tuberose, and a bit more of a lightly developed tuberose.
I love tuberose, but I find I tire of it after a few hours, and it really wears me out.
Yes, interesting how some scents can be overstimulating after a while…
I feel like I ‘got’ Jub 25 for the first time this weekend. I always thought it was beautiful, but too much woman for me… so grand and expensive smelling that it was like trying to wear an orchestra. But some kind of breakthrough has happened and now I am verklempt that I never will be able to afford a bottle.
Femme is so cozy and intimate-sexy; I never want to be without a bottle. Bal a Versailles took me some time to get, but now I love it though it requires the right mood. And in the right mood nothing else will do. La Nuit by Paco Rabanne is another heavy hitter – I can only wear it in tiny amounts, in the winter or fall, but I enjoy its civet-waxy rose intenseness. Vintage Joy has quite a bit of civet to go with its sparkle. New contender – Putains des Palaces. Face powder and perfume over unwashed skin. Yet I get compliments on it!
I find Amaranthine would be a good intro to skank for those unfamiliar. That cumin is balanced by comfortable creamy rice and banana, but it isn’t foody at all. There’s a greenness to it that prevents a dessert effect.
I tried Rozy and found it to be way too much for me – like a jar of honey dropped into a vat of civet, left out in the sun.
My love of shank is the most surprising thing about my perfume habit. I never would have expected it.
This is a wonderful summary of some of my favorite skanky perfumes–thank you! I was lucky to find a travel bottle, 30-ml, of Jub 25 a while ago. Hopefully Amouage will offer them again and you’ll be able to indulge.
Do you mind me asking how much the travel size was? I’ll keep an eye out for it.
$50. A bargain! I wish I would have bought a few of them.
Not sure if this one was mentioned… Al Oudh by L’Artisan Parfumeur. Male parts and cumin. Never screwed up enough courage to buy a bottle let alone wear it! People at the office would think I spent the night at an orgy with no soap and water to be had.
Got to give them something to talk about around the water cooler…
Loved this article, Angela! You always make me smile!!! ????????
I’m glad you liked it!
This was the best comment thread! Lots of laughs – thanks for a great post. Here’s a question. We have so many feelings associated with fragrance. I tried on Carolina Herrera 212 and drove home like a maniac filled with road rage. I just felt so angry for no reason at all and it would escalate every time I took a sniff. And I’m a very easy going person. Any other weird fragrance reactions that took you by surprise?
I’ve heard of fragrances that make people weepy. This is the first time I’ve heard angry. I can see it happening, though!
I like some skank… it kind of depends on what it is. I like cumin if it’s paired with sweet/fruity/floral elements like in Rochas Femme or Jubilation 25. I get a cuminy note in Feminite du Bois and Songes too, but I think that’s from the cedar, since neither lists cumin as a note. Eau d’Hermes was more cumin than I could handle. It was just straight-up armpit to me.
I think my skin plays down some skank, though. When I first smelled MKK on a blotter, I swear it smelled like sweaty dude bits, but it’s not quite so .. ummm.. suggestive.. on skin. I’ve also never found Bal a Versailles all that skanky. I’ve tried vintage EDT and EDP. I just found the EDT powdery (and not in a way I liked), but I love the EDP. It’s just warm and cozy and not particularly dirty.
I’ve never tried any of the Papillons but I want to try Salome after reading this description.
Also, I tried TDC Rose Poivree, and I hear the newer version has been defanged a bit, but the sample I got must have been the old version. That was pretty foul. Just sniffing from the vial I could smell rose, but on skin, the rose note turned into peppery melons in a horse stable. I think one of the nastiest for me was Soivohle (I think) Alpha Musk. The opening was like fresh manure, kind of sharp and strong. Very unpleasant.
The first time I tried Rose Poivrée, I remember thinking it smelled like someone needed a visit to the bidet, pronto.
Isn’t it great to try all these fragrances and see how they fall out on skin? That’s a lot of the fun, I think.
Thank you for such a wonderful article and comments. I have not stopped laughing!!! It also makes me wonder if I haven’t olfactoraly offended unsuspecting bystanders…????????
I think we all wonder the same thing sometimes!
I never considered Byredo Gypsy Water to be in this category. Lots of laughs in this thread for sure!
We can always use a few good laughs!
I’m not a “skanky” perfume lover, but I greatly enjoyed and chuckled over the descriptions here. I’d love to smell these fragrances even if I don’t want to smell LIKE them, if that makes sense.
The closest I get is enjoying a real, in your face jasmine, but I have to be in the mood for it. I do enjoy the animalic side of jasmine in moderation.
It completely makes sense to me! If you don’t wear a skanky perfume, you can always escape from it if you want to.