This simple game is a repeat from 2016.
Name ONE favorite note.
Now tell us your absolute favorite fragrance that features that note, and then tell us about a scrubber (or just a fragrance you dislike) that features that note.
Mine: gardenia. Favorite: Strange Invisible Perfumes Lady Day (or Robert Piguet Fracas, but that one is probably more about tuberose). Scrubber: Jean Paul Gaultier Scandal.
Note: top image is Gardenias Popping Out Occasionally [cropped] by Carol VanHook at flickr; some rights reserved.
Oakmoss. Oakmoss forever, plush and warm, earthy-loamy and honey-toned. I love it extravagantly and indiscriminately, and I couldn’t name a scrubber with oakmoss in it, because if that scent exists, I haven’t found it..
My absolute favourite… well, that doesn’t exist, either, because there are two. Is that cheating? Mitsouko, obviously, a work of art, a miraculous golden haze. And Boucheron Pour Homme EDP (not the EDT, a different beast): I bought it when it was launched but did not really understand its greatness until years later — a bright herby-citrusy fougère ingeniously disguising a dark chypre.
Today, though: today it is surprisingly cool and autumnal so I’m wearing Molinard Habanita, the brilliant 2012 reconstruction, floral tobacco dusted all over with powder.
Ooh I do love that Habanita. I’ve had a bottle of it on my wishlist for years!
Buy it. Just do. It is absolutely the best reformulation I have ever smelled — not exactly the vintage but as close as you can get, seductive and sophisticated, without even a hint of modernity to it. (And it is dirt-cheap: Fragrancenet has it for $50.69, which is basically free these days.)
Pyramus – it hasn’t been reformulated, since, correct?
To the best of my knowledge, it was reworked in 2012 along with the new packaging and has not been seriously monkeyed with since. I bought my bottle in I think 2017 and have no reason to think it’s changed since 2012: I believe that what’s on the shelves right now is still the same formulation. I hope! It’s so hard to know for sure.
Do you know if there have been reformulations since then (e.g. I bought a bottle in 2019)? For some reason, it doesn’t work on me so I’ll be offering it up on the upcoming swapmeet if you’re interested.
allo, if you’re up for a pre-swap, click on my SN to contact me 🙂
Definitely! I just sent an email.
I think the 2012 overhaul was the last big one, but it’s has never really been severely altered, as far as I know: this version is still pretty faithful to the one I remember from the 1980s. Millibars seems to have kept the basic DNA consistent over the decades. It might be that Habanita is just not for you, ever.
I never wore or even smelled Habanita until my one and only trip to France circa 2003 where I purchased a beautiful small black bottle of the extrait, which I love and usually wear on my birthday in November. Since you seem to be quite familiar with this fragrance, I’m curious how this extrait compares.
Ah, this turns out to be easy, as I was going through my perfume drawer this morning and sprayed a bit of Coromandel edt, which I hadn’t smelled in an age and nearly brought me to my knees.
So: Patchouli, with Coromandel as the Grande Dame.
Scrubbers? I’ll have to check my notes but I think I tried a Mazzolari patchouli at some point that was traumatizing.
The Big Patchouli Challenge for me would be wearing some straight-up headshop stuff. I’ve got some but have never had the chutzpah to even dab a little on my skin (…maybe today’s the day?)
That said, I love smelling it on other people and always have. When we lived amongst the perfume-offended in Seattle, I almost never smelled perfume in the wild, except headshop patchouli. We had season tickets to the musical theater company there for a few years, and got hit with big patchouli wafts at almost every show. So apparently the kids are still doing patchouli, which is alright with me!
Correction: scrubber was Il Profumum Patchouly Noir, not the Mazzolari. (Though this was in 2018, and may have been around the time my olfactory system started rejecting certain aromachemicals, so it may have been that going on and not the perfume. It took me a long time to figure out that horrid, torturous-smelling perfumes were not created to smell the way they did to my nose :/)
Tried the headshop oil. I’ve had it for 6 or 7 years, and had transferred the bottle (inside a baggie) to a tea tin because it was so potent, it was all I could smell when I opened my perfume drawer.
I initially dabbed very judiciously with a q-tip. Then smeared a bunch over both wrists. It has seriously mellowed over the years and smells gorgeous. I might have to transfer it to a sprayer. This will be a regular wear now – it smells a lot like the Reminiscence Eau de Patchouli that I sadly thunked last week.
I find it so ironic–that combination of perfume-phobia alongside abundant essential oil wearing! I’m in Portland and have witnessed a similar pattern.
My dad is an old-school hippie, and I have smelled patchouli oil (dabbed on fingers then rubbed vigorously through his long, curly hair) on him my entire life! I bought him a bottle of old formulation L’Artisan Patchouli Patch years ago, and now he wears that to be “fancy.” I like them on him, but I cannot wear a patch-dominant scent ever. It overwhelms me and never goes into the background (looking at you POAL!).
I’m going with “It’s Natural” thus okay. Perfume phobia seems to be largely about “chemicals.” (Although no one’s worried about scented functionals, nor concerned that most allergic reactions come from naturals. And with that, I shall step off the soapbox and go no further.)
Agreed.
Every time I see a no-scent sign I wonder about all our shampoos, lotions, deodorants, fabric softeners, hand soap, the stuff they spray into the mall, etc, etc.
And the cleaning products used to clean said perfume-free establishment!
Yep- “chemical” does not mean anything in itself and plants exude chemical compounds that can be toxic or cause allergic reactions.
However I often go for natural perfume (or vintage style, or certain houses with less love for the stuff) because I belong to the seemingly small percentage of people that dislike or cannot smell molecular modern perfumes (molecule 01, JHAG and similar non declared iso-e-super-y molecular stuff) so zero chance of encountering it there. It really helped me to read Kevin talk about this to feel less weird!
Then some people are really sensitive to fragrance and an intense perception of smell can trigger migraines for example, in the same way other strong stimuli such as bright light or loud sound can.. I work in a hospital and some of my patients are migraine sufferers so try to keep it really subtle and very much in the personal space bubble there.
Haha – living amongst the perfume-offended in Seattle. Allo, therabbitsflower and I proudly represent NST here in Seattle! (I know there are others as well.)
And I know none of you were sporting patchouli oil, so presumably I didn’t run across any of you in the wild ?
Oh! But perhaps it was one of you wafting clouds if Fendi at a steakhouse dinner? Or sending wisps of an elegant chypre at the symphony?
Other than that, very few other perfume moments in public- especially on women. Men seemed to be more brave.
Another patchouli lover here, don’t have a favorite, but I do have a small bottle of Coromandel, which I do enjoy.
What an interesting poll! Looking forward to read all the responses 🙂
For me probably this is benzoin, and truth be told, I cannot think of one perfume that features this prominently that I had to scrub. I think when benzoin is at the core, there is less room for other base fixatives I often don’t get along with. I love Bois d’Armenie for its amazing incense woody
benzoin. Closely followed by Embers and Lush Snowcake soap which also features almond and marzipan (and rose and cassis)- this addictive smell is what set me down the rabbit whole of fragrance!
We are spending the weekend in London revisiting old favourite places including of course perfume stores. I visited the L’Artisan Parfumeur stall and spent a few happy minutes smelling the testers. I loved particularly Fables d’Orient- an incensed sweet amber with almond/ heliotrope note. Then a lovely sales assistant from Guerlain allowed me to smell a few of the new samples, including Santal Pao Rosa. First impression was a firm like! Happy to report that Bois d’Armenie smells as nice as ever to me, at least based on that sample. However stopping at Chanel, I thought Coromandel has really changed and not for the better. Maybe it was just my nose though. Has anybody tried this recently?
I think it was Katie Puckric who coined the term “Benzoin Bunnies” for die hard benzoin lovers. “Hi, my name is Deva, and I’m a Benzoin Bunny, too…!” ?
Benzoin bunny ?
I love that! Yes, I am a complete benzoin bunny too! I miss Katie Puckrik’s witty reviews.
I actually like the Coromandel EDP! That’s probably going to be my next Chanel purchase. I also have the EDT, a back-up of the EDT and the Parfum (used for splitting) and a back-up for that.
Okay, I can’t even contemplate the extrait (which I forgot existed.)
I like Coromandel EDP too and was contemplating a bottle! That’s why I was very shocked to smell the current testers. I would try before you buy the current version, maybe a slightly older one is better.
I smelled the current one via a manufacturer’s sample I got in August. I will stop by Saks again to see if I can get a sniff from the tester.
This is encouraging, thanks hajussuri, I loved Coromandel edt, but never got around to buying a bottle, and have been wondering about the edp.
Never heard of Fables d’Orient, it must be new? I love benzoin and Bois d’Arménie. Glad to hear a positive report on Santal Pao Rosa!
Yes, the sales assistant told me it has just been released.
Rose. A favorite scent Tauer Phi Une Rose de Kandahar. I haven’t found a scrubber yet, but Lush Rose Jam is something that I don’t wear often, despite having a full bottle. I find it overwhelming most of the time. However, I love the shower gel.
Love Phi! One of my top 10! I don’t like rose in general, but I really love this one! ❤️
Phi is an amazing rose scent. SL La Fille de Berlin is another big favorite for me! ?❤
I remember when this fragrance came out and how much you loved it – as a rose lover, I was really excited to try this based upon your love of it. And I chuckle when I remember my reaction when my sample finally arrived – it was all tobacco and no rose! I was so disappointed and wondered if I got a bad sample somehow or perhaps just my personal chemistry. It gets so many raves but on me it was just plain awful. I still have it and should probably try it again sometime to see if it smells different to me now.
I had the same exact thing happen with PHI. All tobacco all the time. I thought I was the only person that happened to.
Gorgeous fragrance! I was a fortunate recipient of a bottle of PHI in a recent swap from a generous NSTer and I fall in love all over again each time I wear it.
It is fantastic! I treasure my full bottle dearly!
I love a buxom rose like PHI, but don’t enjoy the thinner, sweeter waifs that often have rose front and center (like most of the Rosine’s I’ve sniffed). They aren’t scrubbers, just boring.
I agree with you about the Rosine’s. I have still not found one that I like enough to join my collection.
Morning all! My SOTD and current test perfume is MFK’s Baccarat Route 540. I wore it to bed last night, and could easily smell it this morning. The opening is beautiful, an ethereal amber and jasmine over burnt caramel/salty woods. The far drydown is honeyed woods. It’s lovely, but not worth the price. I have Alien, and Cloud – the two spritzed over one another (one spritz each), is a very close dupe to BR540. It’s a pass.
I have two absolute favorite notes, one is patchouli, the most beloved perfume with that note is Coromandel, a close runner up is Knowing (vintage).
The other favorite note is galbanum/leather, two perfumes fit that bill, Chanel No. 19, and Bandit.
I am very EL ignorant and had no idea Knowing was a patch. I will try to hunt some down. Is it at all worth testing anything recent?
I would say EL’s recent version is better than most reformulations but vintage is better.
Perfume Shrine has an excellent review of patchouli/floral scents.
Ah, found the article – thank you!
…and just bought a vintage mini
Kpaint, let me know what you think!
Will do!
Back in the day, Knowing did have some patchouli but it was actually a chypre, with quite a lot of honeyed oakmoss: that’s what you’ll smell if you can locate the vintage, particularly the parfum, which is stunning — I’ve gone through a lot of it over the decades. Nowadays, all of the oakmoss is gone, entirely replaced by patchouli.
I also love knowing!
I got a decant from a generous nster that I drained very fast.
?LABOR DAY Weekend Freebies (US only)?:
1. Gallagher Rosé All Daé EdP- 10ml decant.
2. Lalique (Noir Premier Collection) Elégance Animale EdP- 10 ml decant
3. One pound of pure Beeswax.
Anyone who got freebies from me before can claim any of these also, if interested.
Please, place dibs here and email me at monica67 at aol dot com.
Wow, that’s a lot of beeswax!!
Thanks for bring it to my attention! It is only 5oz.
Correction for #3:
-Beeswax 1oz Bars – Package of 5 – Cosmetic Grade.
I have also ended up with a little bit of cosmetic grade beeswax… from my past (not entirely successful) attempts at making my own skincare.
I was pretty successful most of the time and I always loved to give them only to my immediate family, as little goodies for the holidays. But it is time consuming.
In my case I didn’t persevere enough and had variable consistency. I think the last batches were ok and I used them but then I left it aside and it’s been years since. I should try it again- it was fun!
I would like the lalique if available thanks!!
It yours! Please, send me your info. ?
I would love to try Rose all Dae if it’s available?
Also what do people use beeswax for? I wouldn’t know what to do with it.
It’s yours! No need to email me. ?
Many things can be done with Beeswax Cosmetic Grade, like lip balms, soaps, body butters, salves, candles, closet fresheners, etc. I used to make them for my personal use many years ago. I got this beeswax last year during the worse of the pandemic to keep my mind busy on something nice, but never had the chance and I am too busy now for it. The good think is the wax lasts for years. So never late to use it.
I use it to make solid perfumes with my essential oil blends. I buy decorative metal pill cases and put the solid perfume in those. Makes a beautiful gift and quite a few here have been recipients.
Oh, this poll requires too much thinking and my brain is on a serious vacay! Do I even have a favorite perfume note..? I used to think it was vanilla, but now I’m not sure. I have no notes or spreadsheets to refer to, so I guess I’m a loser all the way around.
Today, I’m wearing Kalemat, one of my all time favorites. The dry down is just the most comforting luscious cloud of soft caressing wonderful-ness EVER!
Had a lovely hike yesterday out to the Strait of JdF- stunning views all around! The hike was filled with chirping birds and trees whispering secrets to each other. Forgot my bear spray but found a rock the fit my hand perfectly with a nice sharp point so if need be, I could smash in the skull of a pesky quadraped or biped. Did meet a homeless man on the way back who has been living out in the woods for five years. Went by the name Michael. He was average height, thin, with a long black duster made of some kind of waterproof material. Multiple shirts under that, a pair of Jean which were ripped along the entire length of the right thigh, flashing some neon white skin when he walked. A pair of plastic sandals and two plastic grocery bags filled with his worldly possessions. We had a very nice chat for a few minutes, he scrounged up a dog treat out of his bag to give to T-Rex, who was in olfactory heaven giving him all kinds of sniffs! His manners were exemplary, finally saying, “Do you mind if I ask why you’re carrying that rock in your hand?”
I had forgotten all about it! I explained about the forgotten bear spray. He said there was a sighting of a cougar with two cubs this past spring, he wasn’t sure about bears, but the coyotes could be problematic. In the five years he’s been here, he said he only had a visit from a squirrel, which decided to sit on his chest one morning and eat a snack. ?
Smell well, y’all! Happy weekend!
Tee hee! Love the friendly squirrel story ?
If I didn’t know better I might have thought you’d run into my FIL (who sounds a lot like Michael, but does not live in the woods. ) Last time he flew cross country to visit us, he traveled with a couple of plastic shopping bags with some random personal items inside because he was too impatient to figure out the carry-on rules.
Love friendly squirrels! And yes, friends of mine who camp and hike have run into bears, mountain lions, and while in Yosemite, bison. Their video of the bison encounter is spectacular!
That sounds like a great hike.
You are in one of my favorite places in the world, and this is a wonderful time to be there! I’m glad you’re getting out to enjoy the beauty of it all!
Happy weekend to you, Deva!
It’s nice to read your stories again. Sounds like you and T-Rex are enjoying yourselves ?
That sounds like an amazing expedition! It must be great to go on hiking trips with your dog.
Where I am from in northern Spain, the wolf and brown bear population are finally recovering after being on the brink of extinction and bear encounters are more and more common. That means considering a small risk when going into the mountains, but it’s worth it. Apex predators are the mark of a healthy ecosystem.
❤️ your story!
There have been recent cougar sightings in Saanich and Campbell River on the island. I would love to have such a close-up squirrel visit!
Good Morning-
My oldest was sniffing around my perfume this morning and she picked Givenchy Ysatis, a little much for the farmers market but that is ok.
Note-Herbal perfumes (more than one note I know)
Love: Herba Fresca, Herbae
Scrubber: Aqua di Gioia
Also I dislike most “aquatic” perfumes with herbs.
Oh yes, but how glorious! I adore Ysatis.
I wore Ysatis when it was first released, glorious stuff.
Loved it.
Rose is a note that I used to say nope, never. But, I’ve since fallen for Rose 31 which is now a favorite scent of mine. I have the perfume and the body lotion and my husband is a fan and so win-win!
As for Rose scrubbers, I would say any type of tea rose or fresh rose scents, I really can’t stomach.
SOTD: Rose 31
Rose 31 was one of my gateway roses lol…probably the main one
I am with you on tea roses. It is the rose category that I enjoy the least.
Literal-minded me notes that the perfumes I’ve sniffed that have “tea rose” in the name smell nothing like either the couple of sorts of early Tea roses that I’ve smelled that are close to the types that came to Europe and America from Chinese plant nurseries a couple of centuries ago, or those Hybrid Tea roses that have a tea rose fragrance.
The flower scent of an *actual* Tea rose is often described as being cool and dry, with a subtle combination of notes. Perfumes with “tea rose” in the name have no resemblance to that.
This is very interesting and I am glad that you clarify it! I have never smelled a real tea rose, but your description sounds very nice and the opposite of what a tea rose scent should smell.
I’ve seen reviews that say that Le Labo Rose 31 doesn’t seem to have actual rose notes in it. 🙂 That could be why you like it so much.
I’m with you, some roses can get really screechy on me. It’s fine when paired with patchouli (L’Artisan’s Voleur de Roses) or oakmoss (Gucci’s L’ Arte di Gucci).
Fun poll! My note: leather. A single favorite is hard to choose, but the most gorgeous leather perfume I’ve come across has to be Hermes Doblis. I will probably never own more than one ml at a time because it was discontinued long ago and is very hard to find (and thus expensive) nowadays. Sigh. Anyway, Hermes Cuir d’Ange was a scrubber on me, which was sad because I really wanted to love it.
Cuir d’Ange is sort of baffling, isn’t it? I have to be in an incredibly specific frame of mind to enjoy it — otherwise, I wonder what I was thinking wearing it, or even buying it in the first place.
I haven’t sniffed it in ages, but it reminded me of Vanderbilt. That was one reason I loved it.
So true! There are a few others in my little collection that fit in the “right mood only” category. I occasionally think about divesting them, but there are those right-mood days to consider … ?
This is fun poll.
My favorite note is sandalwood – be it a main player or a supporting player, but I cannot get enough of it.
I have really been enjoying Indian Sandalwood from Pure Presence (a small artisanal shop on Etsy) – here sandalwood is front and center, as well as different variations of TRNP Embers, and Rising Phoenix Yeti attar – sandalwood and ambergris sandwich.
I have also encountered quite a few scrubbers – Santal 33 was a major disappointment, Tom Ford Santal Blush (not exactly a scrubber but I think I have reaction to chemicals), and almost every other fragrance out there claiming to have sandalwood. At this point I am not even open to trying anything on the market because the brand states sandalwood in notes – I end up only going by recommendations of those who nose I trust.
Of course other than sandalwood, there is Iris and Vanilla, but d’Or now sandalwood is winning the race to the top!!!
Good sandalwood is amazing. I thought I didn’t like sandalwood in particular and woody notes in general until I smelled Embers.
Yes!! Embers is amazing – which version do you prefer? I am camp Embers 2021
Glad to hear that! I never smelled the previous ones so I couldn’t say.
I treasure my 2021 batch 30 ml bottle and swoon every time I smell it. If it didn’t cost a kidney to buy and ship from Australia I would get a back up. Other samples I tried from TRNP didn’t quite capture me in the same way.
Do you enjoy other fragrances from her? I would like to try a few more 🙂
While I did not like all of her creations, her talent shines thru, so I still appreciate them. I really liked Shakti (unexpectedly), Raven, Botter Sweet, Polynesia, Pagan Oud. Dragon boat and winter light while nice, failed to impress me.
I love Polynesia, Tantra, Nefertum, Bitter Sweet and Blue Lotus
I have only tried an earlier version of Embers, but based on the positive comments have just ordered a bottle of 2021.
It is beautiful. I hope you’ll love it!
Santal 33 is a weird scent for sure! I associate it with Amsterdam because when we stayed in the Hotel Pulitzer, the bath products all smelled of Santal 33, which seemed very bold! It is not a neutral scent to my nose. I don’t think I dislike it, but I don’t really enjoy it, either. It’s too forceful or something (and I often like big scents).
Good note..I find a good one then discontinued. For a cheapo..I was always impressed some by Nirvana Black..a friend smelled it and became his signature quickly.
I gotta revisit this one!!
I sniffed Santal 33 a few years ago, and got something quiet and woodsy. It didn’t read as sandalwood to me. Fortunately, I did not get dill pickles either!
My favorite note is jasmine. I think my favorite perfume featuring it is California Reverie. Scrubber? Lush’s Flying Fox was just too much on me – it made me smell like a combination of wild vines and wildlife.
SOTD is Sunday. I sure do love this scent. Shopping PSA – if there are any fans of Ellis Brooklyn scents a bunch of them are in sale at Sephora.
No matter how many times I try, I cannot smell even a trace of jasmine in California Reverie. I actually sniffed it about a week ago, and nope.
Lush fragrances are hit or miss for me (often miss as they are often so potent and weird) but have a few loves. That one I have never smelt but Lust is a Jasmin nuclear bomb!
Have you ever tried Jasmin Antique? I have a sample and my thoughts were this would be amazing for a Jasmin lover.
Lust is heaven, my favourite jasmine. I’ve read people opining that it doesn’t smell like real living growing jasmine, and that might well be the case: I’ve never smelled that. (I have the same complaint about lilac, which I certainly have smelled — no perfume that I’ve tried has ever really, properly captured lilac.) But whatever Lust does smell like, it’s gorgeous.
I haven’t tried it, but am adding it to the list!
Can’t think of a favorite note, because it’s difficult for me to identify notes. I’ve always been terrible at identifying the specifics of what I like…music (I’m terrible at identifying artists), wines, etc. Because I’m drawn to greens, my guess is galbanum is something I favor. Chanel No. 19 comes to mind. But, although it’s not a scrubber, I’m no fan of Infusion d’Iris. Too powdery on me.
But, my goodness, what I like over the years has definitely expanded because of all you fine people.
Wearing Shalimar EDC atop body lotion. Football is on, about to make my cookies. And we are going to some music thing tonight at a lovely farm-like venue. And Agnes kitty is happy we turned on the fireplace this morning. She’s been lurking in front of it recently and then looking at us.
Music thing at farm place sounds lovely!
I don’t get along with infusion d’iris either even though I should as I love Iris and powdery perfumes. I think it’s something else that creats that fuzzy texture/ aura that perfume has, maybe an iso e super look alike.
Galbanum inspired my scent choice today- Fleur de Lalita. It is interesting, I used to smell more the jasmine and the lily in this but lately it is the galbanum what I detect the most. It is a very nice scent.
I love vetiver. Current favorite is Tom Ford Grey Vetiver. I haven’t found a scrubber yet.
I almost did vetiver, but could not decide on a favorite and did not know a scrubber 🙂
Tom Ford GV is an excellent choice.
I’m going to go with tuberose, one of my favorite notes.
Love: Carnal Flower.
Like: Diptyque Do Son
Strongly dislike: Tubéreuse Criminelle.
Happy Labor Day weekend!
Happy Labor Day to you adanst!
I must be feeling very philosophical this morning, as this poll has me tied in mental knots. Do I have a favorite note? If a note is a favorite, do I ever HATE it somewhere else, or by definition, would that keep it from the “favorite” category? When was the last time I tried a scrubber? What’s the difference between disliking something and scrubbing it for me these days?
I know, I need to lighten up!
I wear a lot of rose, but I bet the note that shows up the most in my collection is something like cinnamon or black tea. I went through a real “chai tea” scent stage early on, and I still have a soft spot for them. The best spicy scent I own is Lyric, which is really a rose, but the spices compliment it so well. The black tea scent I never wear anymore is Bulgari Black, with that rubber note I can’t not notice.
Lyric is lovely
It smells divine on my husband. Like the sexiest musk imaginable. But not much rose, and I’ve never noticed spices.
Agreed. It’s a 10/10 as far as I’m concerned!
Indeed that is too serious an attitude to take towards this poll 🙂
Sorry. 😀
Have you tried Jacomo Art Collection No. 08? Straight up chai, and it’s fabulous!
Yep, it’s in the collection. 😀
Tea for Two is my fave of the genre, although sometimes the smoke is too much for me, and then I reach for No. 8 for the smoother, cleaner feel.
Amber and jasmine..too many good ambers to list ..lol. Jasmine, A La Nuit..of course:). I got to smell fresh jasmine for the first time this year..so nice.
Sotd..ambrette 9 le labo from a sample used too fast. So light..I need to douse…like a lot.
Oh yeah..a scrubber, ironically Sarrasins..it needed off my skin asap lolol
I like that the SL line is now so big you can pick both from the same brand, ha!
SL has four roses so I bet you could find a fave and a scrubber from the line.
Asian Green Tea for me.
Gardenia is a favorite note for me and this poll reminded me that I haven’t worn Velvet Gardenia in a while. I have no idea what I’ve scrubbed with gardenia in it since I sample so many perfumes in a year but I’m sure there must have been something. Tauer’s Sotto La Luna Gardenia I’m thinking of getting rid of– it works better for me in humid weather and Denver is just too dry so if anyone wants it, my username is my yahoo address.
Off to an art fair and then a nice dinner for my husband’s birthday
The JD Gardenia soliflore was polarizing. Were you in the “more, please” camp?
Hello, what’s the JD Gardenia please ?
Dame Perfumery. He makes many soliflore perfumes and has great prices. I haven’t tried the gardenia, but have had good luck with what I have tried.
The Tauer Gardenia didn’t work for me either. But the absolute worst was JAR Jardenia. Turned my stomach, it smelled like rotting vegetation.
Oh gross!
It was an awkward situation too, as I was in the fancy JAR boutique in Paris smelling it, and it made me feel so sick I thought I might have to excuse myself to the SA and step outside.
Ew. That’s definitely bad.
Oh by the way about the CP: favorite note: tea. The Time by THoO because it has two, yes TWO tea notes: blue and black tea. Also Imperial Tea by Kilian. So photorealistic and beautiful but so hard to find… I must also name Winter Palace of course. Still drooling over a FB of this. A scrubber? Hmmm haven’t found one yet… Like Pyramus with Oakmoss I am yet to find a Tea scrubber. I even am ok with immortal Elizabeth Arden Green Tea and the flankers.
There are lots of pleasant EA Green Tea flankers. My favorites are Honeysuckle and Exotic. I mostly use them to scent my car 🙂
Hehe what a great idea!! I have a bottle of Green Tea Mimosa and it smells nice. Maybe would use it to perfume my sheets lightly. I would also happily try EA Green Tea Lavender.
Fig. I love lots of fig scents; not sure I can pin down one ‘best’. There’s Philosykos, of course, which was the first fig perfume I ever smelled, and what a surprise that was. Fig! As a perfume! Fragrance Republic 01/06 is another favorite… AdP Fico di Amalfi… PdN Fig Tea… I could go on.
As for the scrubber, that would be Eau d’Italie Easy To Love, which it is not. Here’s my notes: “Super sweet fruity (fig) floral (peony). Did not know you could apply the mallrat formula to fig. Live and learn.”
SOTD is soon to be sweat. I’m off for a hot sweaty only a bit smoky walk, before it gets outrageously hot.
LOL at ” Did not know you could apply the mallrat formula to fig” 🙂
Enjoy your walk pixel!
Thanks! It was hot, but still good to get out and move a bit.
Post-shower, my SOTD is Guerlain Liu in one of the new ‘Legendaires’ bottles. Yes that’s Liu not Lui. I know that French-speaking folks wouldn’t get those two words confused, but for the rest of us… well apparently Guerlain agrees since Lui is getting renamed to ‘Oeillet Pourpre’, according to Fragrantica.
I smell all fizzy aldehyde-y 🙂
You smell very nice! I think Liu it is more aldehyde forward than Chanel 5… makes me want to dress up.
Oh this made me lol for real, thanks!
I love many notes but perhaps my favorite one forever has been orange along with citrus-adjacent scents like bergamot and tangerine. My favorite has to be the one that’s truly the best, Azemour les Oranges. How could that one be bettered? One weird scrubber experience was with an orange scent I truly adored, Spezie de Medici by Profumi di Firenze. I had an immediate quite bad allergic reaction to something in it. I’d love to try it again but am afraid to. Oddly perhaps I dislike neroli a lot. If it’s predominant, yuck. An example I had to scrub was a L’Occitane neroli fragrance from some time back. I tried it on at an airport shop and did have to run and scrub it off. I don’t think it’s the one they have out now, which is combined with orchid. It was very pungent and strong with that bitter aspect. Ugh! I’m always open to new orange scent recommendations!
I just got a PdE sample set in the mail today. I hated Azemour when I tried it years ago, but sprayed it this afternoon and I think I see where the fanpeep club is coming from.
About a month ago, I was itching for something new to smell and read back through all the 5 Perfumes series Robin did a while back. PdE came up over and over again, thus my ordering of the sample set (which is a great deal, btw.) I always do better sampling when I crowd source NST rather than going on my own instincts!
I know there are people who hate Azemour but it puzzles me all the same 😉
I was chypre-averse. I’m recently chypre-curious, which was another reason I wanted to re-try some of the PdEs. I think I also smelled their first round of releases too early in my career and they were too intellectual or inaccessible at that time.
It has a cumin note to me that I just can’t get past
Kpaint and Yasmina, I am so sorry I was flippant…of course anybody can dislike anything! It requires no explanation.
Oh, boy, I need a sample set, NOW! Enabler pin flying your way!
I think I might order a 2nd one ?
I don’t think it’s odd that you like citrus scents but not neroli, I find myself in the same boat. I find it a frustrating boat because I’m often looking for a nice citrus scent and they always seem to include neroli! I will be looking up your favorite to see if I might like it too.
Have you tried Bigarade Concentree?? ❤️
No, is it recommended?
Iris is my favorite note, hands down. Prada Infusion d’Iris and variations (including Absolue, Purple Rain and Infusion d’Homme) are my favorite.
Lutens Iris Silver Mist is a perfume I can’t bear so keep that thing away from me.
Today I’m wearing Hiram Green Arbole
https://www.instagram.com/p/CTZVn4CD2PY/?utm_medium=copy_link
I too am an iris fan, and my favourite is Masque Milano L’Attesa, which is beautiful if pricey. Prada Infusion d’Iris Absolue is the runner up and VCA Bois d’Iris is also lovely. My one iris No was Crabtree & Evelyn Iris, which made me think I didn’t like iris.
L’Attesa is gorgeous too!
What don’t you like about the SL one? I’m curious because so many people seem to love it. (sadly, not an iris fan myself, so no power of discrimination here)
To me it smells like rotting carrots burried in the wet ground and I just can’t stand it.
Ew! Yuck to that!
Ah! I bought Arbole after you rhapsodized over it. It doesn’t work when I’m not quite in the mood, but I wore it a few days ago and it was dreamy.
I don’t think I’d ever worn it in hot weather, but it works, what with all those airy green bits floating about.
Glad you found a moment wuen you enjoy Arbole.
So interesting. When I smelled Purple Rain, it smelled like nothing to me – I certainly got no iris from it. I love iris. My nose must have been off at the time. I will try it again if I have the chance. Always need more irises. 🙂
To me Purple Rain smells as if they took Infusion d’Iris Absolue and tripled its price. Still love it though.
🙂
Today’s photograph is stunning, Robin.
(And it’s kinda making me want some fancy wedding cake. )
That’s a funny association! I’ve been looking online at sheet cakes because I plan to order one for my mom’s 90th birthday next Friday. Some of them are quite fancy and there are so many options for different flavors and decorations! I’ve just about picked out one that has very beautiful rose decorations. It’s just a white cake with butter cream icing but I think it’ll be pretty. Sadly, candles won’t be allowed, but I’m hoping to find some of the little battery ones that light up and look real.
I assumed because it looked like an icing flower?
Lovely! I keep seeing swirls of buttercream in the photo ☺
For today’s question I’ll pick jasmine. My favorite jasmine is probably Sarrasins, with California Reverie and A la Nuit as runners-up. I haven’t had any jasmine scrubbers, but Diptyque Olene was a definite underperformer. Such a disappointment.
Today’s walk was an oldies festival, with Bonnie Tyler, Don Henley, Bill Withers, and Jefferson Airplane making the miles go quickly. After a shower I think I’ll wear Moon Bloom.
I like A la Nuit a lot. I haven’t tried the other ones you mention.
I love all the jasmines you mention. Just ordered Heeley Jasmine OD (overdose?) which used to be called Bubblegum Chic. I thought it was a tuberose scent but apparently there’s enough jasmine in there as well to be considered an overdose (insert eye roll).
Darn. I liked the name Bubblegum Chic, and think the new one is kinda lame.
Amber is one of my top notes, along with incense, and L’Air du Désert Marocain represents the epitome of what I love about those notes. The only scent of this type that put me off was Norma Kamali Incense, which was acrid and overwhelming, and that was early in my niche journey so I might find it more tolerable now.
Finally we are getting some significant rain! Sitting curled up with the dog and a cup of tea enjoying the pitter patter on the skylights.
Few things better than curling up with a furry family member while it is raining outside ❤️
Such a wonderful sound.
https://poetryarchive.org/poem/rain-2/
A Rain poem for you
Thanks for the poem. It made me think of my Mom. She loved the rain.
There’s an old Jackson Brown song that’s starts…you love thunder, you love the rain…
When I moved to Northern California 40 some years ago I loved the great Pacific storms, and now….no rain.
Thank you, how lovely! It’s stopped raining, just windy and cloudy now, walked down to the beach to enjoy the fresh air and crashing surf. So soothing.
I still smell a bit like the lovely Koyel’s coffee and vanilla bath scrub, which I used during my shower last night. I’d gotten very grimy planting and transplanting my garden plants. I smelled much better after that shower. 🙂
*garden rambling ahead*
I finally got the mock orange shrub I had in a largish pot planted in the ground. It seems to like getting a lot of water, so it ended up fairly near a drainpipe. We had just gotten our gutters fixed and cleaned a couple of weeks ago, and gutter guards put on. That was timely.
I transplanted a “milk-and-wine lily” crinum from a heavy clay pot into a lightweight plastic pot, so I’ll be able to move it before frost. I’ve told this story: I’d gotten the bulb in 2016, and then lost it. I found it in the winter, and decided to see if it was still alive. Roots sprouted, and then leaves sprouted. It’s been outside since the late spring, and some of the leaves must be 3 feet long. It was pot-bound, but they like that.
I transplanted a couple of the dianthus (pinks) that I got in April from the flowerpots they were living in to a sort-of gardening area by the driveway and not far from the front porch, where the purple iris and the orris and the ‘Tete-a-Tete’ daffodils live. That’s a favorite note of mine — the clove scent that some pinks and carnations have.
I’d dug up a lot of those ‘Tete-a-Tete’ daffodil bulbs to thin them out and replant them with some space around them, so they have room to spread out again. I replanted a number of them yesterday. I think I’ll use some of the “extras” to make short and early-spring-only outlines around some of the areas where I’ve been planting other plants. 🙂 I think I made this offer a couple of weeks ago, but I’ll repeat it: If anyone local wants “extra” ‘Tete-a-Tete’ bulbs or ‘Ice Follies’ daffodil bulbs, just reply here or e-mail me.
I’ll also be trying to dig up and thin out the ‘Cheerfulness’ and ‘Yellow Cheerfulness’ daffodils that have been growing down by the mailbox since the 1990s. They only had a couple of flowers this spring, but boy, did they have a lot of leaves. They have a kind of musky scent, reminiscent of paperwhite narcissus, but not that strong.
I’ll be trying to overwinter the jasmines, which are still blooming, in the house. One from this year, the French Perfume jasmine, has started to bloom. The other jasmines that are native to places where it’s generally hot and humid continue to thrive.
The ‘Winter Sunset’ rose had a flower this past week. It has a nice fragrance, but it’s the relatively subtle colors that I found amazing. The petals are in shades of soft peach, amber, and peachy-pink.
Have a good holiday weekend, folks!
I one lived in a rental that h
had a mock orange in the backyard that was just heavenly.
🙂
Good luck with your new mock orange. We have one just outside our screened porch and, mmmmm . . . every June its’ luscious white flowers perfume the air. ❤️
Thank you! Something to look forward to. 🙂
I’m also a mock orange fan. My father-in-law gave me his when they moved out of their house. I was so happy to get it because we shopped together at the garden centre when he bought it originally.
So it has sentimental value to you, also. Very cool! 🙂
Your flowers sound lovely, especially your description of the winter sunset rose.
Thank you. 🙂 Somewhere online there’s a website of Griffith Buck roses. It hadn’t been updated for some time when I saw it, but it had pictures and descriptions for a number of the roses. I got mine from Heirloom Roses.
Sounds like your daffodils are very happy in your yard.
Hi! 🙂
After a few years, the bulbs need to be thinned out and replanted, or they produce many more leaves than flowers. When you dig up a clump of daffodil bulbs that started from one bulb, you can put a bulb or two back where the clump was, and they’ll have room to spread out again. Pests tend to avoid daffodils.
I think part of our success is that the sorts that have survived after being planted a long time ago are the “you can’t kill them with an axe” types of daffodils. LOL! ‘Ice Follies’ is especially notable for being an extremely hardy and vigorous cultivar.
They should have more flowers again once they’re more spread out.
In the books about heirloom flowers that I read, one comment I see every so often is that people going into the wilderness in the spring can see spots where homesteads used to be because the house that used to be there is outlined by daffodils that are still there. Imagine!
It’s the right time of the year for dividing and replanting daffs, yes? Not at all experienced with planting those.
My favorite note is Oud. I was a very strong oud fan waaaaay before it became the butt of a joke here on NST. I absolutely adore the deep wood resinous smell and prefer it straight up, not mixed with a floral.
Favorite perfume is pure oud oil I bought in United Arab Emirates, it doesn’t have a brand. One tiny drop lasts about 48 hours! But TF Oud Wood was a scrubber! Mostly because it smelled so artificial to me.
Amber would be a close second in favorite notes, but my heart will always belong to oud.
Sweet memory of the salesman in the tiny UAE shop being thrilled I loved oud so much. Our only initial head-bump was I did not want a more traditional female version. He tried very hard to get me to fall in line, but we ended up laughing over glasses of tea at my just being a crazy American. I walked out of that shop stinking to glorious high heaven!
What a wonderful story! There’s a new perfume shop coming soon to the Houston Galleria. The House of Oud. Can’t wait to see and sample what they have on offer!
If that’s the same House of Oud that is on Luckyscent, they have some marvelous ouds. The bottles are stunning, they are very expensive. They look like marble eggs in different colors. I have about 8-10 samples, some I really like, others too many side notes.
I would be interested in seeing your recommendations from House of Oud.
Oh, please report back!
Incense.
Well, it is impossible to say which is my favorite note, but I do love rose. Tart rose, lipstick rose, fruity rose, spicy rose. . . yes please. I’m in Mohur this morning! However, a rose beloved by many that definitely, absolutely, multi-time tested, does NOT work for me is Tresor. Based on all of the classic’s notes, I should adore it. I do not. In fact, it makes me a wee bit ill.
My older son heads back to college tomorrow. His flight leaves a t 9 AM. We will be empty nesters again. Bitter sweet.
Bittersweet is the right word, eh? So much pride in them and yet the sadness of not being able to stare at them with a heart full of love on a daily basis. My son came home for lockdown (he’s in typical student flat – cold, damp and dark) and it has been so good having him around. We watch old films (Japanese, Russian, American, German) and discuss their merits in serious tones that would seem silly with anyone else.
I’ve scanned the comments looking for inspiration….I love citrus notes in general, but not one note in particular. I don’t really have a favorite citrus fragrance, and I’ve bellyached aplenty about Yuzu Fou on this blog, so I’ll avoid any more complaining.
I really enjoy rose, so that’s what I’ll pick. CdG Grace Coddington is my favorite light, summery rose. PHI, SL La Fille de Berlin and ELDO Rossy de Palma are lovely for winter. I draw the line at POAL. That one I can admire from a distance, but when I wore her, she drug me around town by the wrist. I’m not even sure I scrubbed as the memory is dim….
So funny, I didn’t even notice that you talked about citrus right before I posted.
I like the CdG Grace as well. In fact I have several perfumes I love with lots of rose but I would never have called myself a rose lover. Maybe I am?!
It IS tough picking one note. I love the woods in Eris Mx. I love the spice of Chanel Coco and Amouage Lyric. I love the berries of DSH Muresque. I love the orange in Fendi Theorema. I love the licorice in 1000 Flowers Reglisse Noire.
But I’m going to go with lemon. Mediterraneo gets top billing for me–it’s just so perfect yet SO short-lived, sadly. Eau d’Hadrien is a close #2. Not exactly a scrubber, but a dislike was Hermes Mediterranee which isn’t just lemon, of course, but I thought I’d like the citrus in it. The fragrance as a whole was just too sharp and poked me right in the sinuses.
Okay, this might be mean, but have we ever done a cp picking our least and most favorite perfumes from a specific perfumer? I was looking at the notes from La Vie est Belle and noticed Dominique Ropion had a hand in it. He also created Dune, which I love. Can’t stand LVeB.
Call it: What were they thinking?
That’s a nice idea.
Great CP idea! I love Dominique Ropion’s Carnal Flower, Promise, Une Fleur de Cassie, What We Do In Paris Is Secret, Aimez-Moi, etc. etc. but I too am not a fan of LVeB and Enchanted (probably others). Obviously he is given a different budget with FM than with Chopard but the range is still fascinating to me.
I’m with you on those two Ropion frags! He has enormous talent but in the end he has to make what the customer wants.
Wracked my brain a bit and came up with violet. I do like it in Insolence and Bois de Violette but an absolute scrubber on me is Girl Pharrell. Something in it goes terribly wrong; I was asked to not to wear that again. I happily wear whatever I like with minimal comments from the peanut gallery, but that one was a big no.
I had to give my bottle of Girl away — I bought it at a huge discount, and loved the funky bottle design, but just couldn’t wear it.
I’d forgotten that one, but yes, it didn’t work on me either. The bottle was a little unsettling too.
I hate that bottle! It gives me the creeps.
It really is! I have the travel spray thankfully so I don’t have to look at that bottle.
I liked the travel spray but agree with lillyjo… the full sized bottle was creepy AF.
I’ll have to noodle on this question for awhile, since I have never really come across any scrubbers with my fave note (also gardenia) in it. Maybe the gardenia from Pacifica, only because I got kinda tired of it? But the Lady Gardenia hardly ever disappoints me.
SOTD: Citrus Ester. It was cold the past couple of days and now the temps are climbing again. Really wish it would make up its mind.
The Botanic Gardens is at the end of my street and so I can visit during lockdown . Because all my hamstring muscles were removed in one leg I find hills and steps difficult so I can’t walk there as I used to but I can go by car and yesterday I was overwhelmed by the renewal of spring growth . First, the car itself was coated in a thick layer of pollen – I would say dusted but it was too thick for that. Arriving at the gardens the first thing I saw was a field of daffodils, then crocuses, primroses, grape hyacinth, blue bells (what an intense blue) and most beautiful, wood anemones. I used to love seeing wood anemones in the forests in Germany and I half-expected to hear cuckoos (though we don’t have them) and woodpeckers (don’t have them, either) . Our town has an large rhododendron collection and the flowering azaleas were sweetly scented, almost a cross between magnolia and daphne/jasmine. You could smell them before you saw them. The magnolias themselves were a mixture of white blooms, and magenta pink (no leaves) and beyond them was the avenue of cherry blossom , all flowering. You can hear the bees now, and the nectar feeding birds are feasting off the native kowhai (yellow) . I have been feeling pretty down recently, due to not being able to walk properly and explore the hills as before, and I miss the signs of spring in the forest (the pollen on the pine trees and in the puddles, the violets, manuka and kanuka)…I think I miss being alone in nature more than anything. Not being able to walk for long distances means not being able to get off the beaten track and experience solitude and I feel a sense of grief I suppose…but anyway, early days. On the plus side I have to concentrate a lot more on walking itself so I poke out my tongue and look at the ground a lot more and am getting more and more obsessed with the lichens that grow on the footpath, microcosm worlds at my feet. This brings me to the note: gorse (furze). The hills are now yellow with gorse and broom and I have an old eye-dropper bottle of Furze which I am wearing today. It was unopened in its cardboard tube (would have to be about 5 years old) but has evaporated by 1/2. It is so true to life that I love it. I don’t know of any other gorse scents so no scrubbers.
I hope walking becomes easier with practice. Your spring sounds so lovely! Nice that you can get to the gardens even during lockdown.
Kanuka, I sincerely hope you’ll be tramping through the wilds soon. Being outside is so wonderful, even if you can’t get there the way you used to yet.
We have woodpeckers here! So cute and entertaining. 🙂 And lots of huge rhododendrons. I hope despite the loss of your hamstring muscles that someday you will be able to walk with more ease and be alone out in nature. It is such a balm to the soul. But as you say it’s an opportunity to observe the things that are small and close. If you can’t zoom out, zoom in. I’m guessing you’ve been doing a lot of that this past year.
Contact with nature is healing… and the forests of Germany stunning. Years ago I was in the Black Forest doing a 4 day hike and camping, and have such nice memories from it. We saw and heard owls, deer, woodpeckers and crested tits. I also love the smell of gorse and own Furze as a consequence.
Enjoy your spring! I hope you continue to feel better x
Kanuka, I enjoyed reading this very much, and I’m sorry about your leg. Hopefully you will gain some strength over time. I have read that gorse smells a bit like almond, is that true? Can you describe it?
For me it is more of a coconut than almond note, but it is heavy/dense (more like pollen-rich mimosa) rather than a copy of coconut (so not sun lotion ). Gorse is best (IMO) next to hay so you get coumarin added, a touch of vanilla/almond or best next to the beach so you get driftwood/kelp and sea breeze with it. It’s quite rich and fuggy on its own . Broom is cooler and has the tiniest touch of mint whereas gorse is like the ‘white floral’ of pest species.
Thank you, it sounds interesting. I know broom is a note in Dior Dune, which I love. Maybe I’ll get a chance to see gorse some day.
May your love and appreciation for nature heal your body as it does your soul.?
Glad to see you posting, Kanuka. Sending you thoughts of strength as you go thru this experience.
Sending love back to you . I’m so sorry about your loss.
Thank you.
Linden, I love the linden in La Chasse aux Papillions. I am wearing it today!
I thought I would love the linden in Waltz, but there was something in there that was sharp and unpleasant to me. I gave my bottle away.
This one got a mention in a novel I just finishes
Rose. Favorite–Portrait of a Lady. Scrubber–so many–ironically, it usually turns sour on me. JM Red Roses, for one. Love the name, keep thinking I should try it again and somehow make it work by sheer willpower.
Life’s too short to do that!
I have always had a problem with a rose notes. It can be headache inducing. One rose perfume I liked which I am not sure if they still make is Stella
Okay my note is patchouli and my love is Coromandel and my scrubber is…Borneo 1864. These two are often reviewed as identical but I really can’t stand the Borneo!
In Shalimar Philtre, from my new muled from Paris bottle ❤️❤️
A muled bottle from Paris! How fun – enjoy!
Really can’t stand gardenia but in Chant D’Aromes it is well-blended and tolerable. The real flowers remind me of graduation day.
I like Chant d’Aromes because I got a gardenia corsage to wear to my Senior prom, and it reminds me of that.
I don’t think I have a favorite note. One I like very much is Musk. My all time favorite is TM Over the Musk. I swoon whenever I wear it. Jovan Black Musk and The Body Shop White Musk were both scrubbers for me.
Today I wore Kenzo Flowertag and later Vanilla Flash.
Mmm, I love Vanilla Flash. It’s so much more than just vanilla. You smell great!
Thanks! It stayed with me until my morning shower.
Hi there Lillyjo. I hope you are having a decent weekend and the horror of your difficult meeting is behind you. May this week be happier!
Thanks Kanuka! Alas, the meeting just brought more paperwork to fill out and a promise of another meeting at a later date. Sigh… but at least the ball is rolling!
Did you end up getting a FB of Over The Musk?
I wish! I was never able to pay as much as it goes for. I have been living off of samples and generous decants from a perfume fairy godmother ?
Wearing an overdose of Laboratorio Olfattivo Tonkade to bed. Just ordered a sample of the newish BDK Velvet Tonka. Reviews are mixed so I’m curious to try it myself.
Please report back on Velvet Tonka – I forgot to request it from Beautyhabit. Is Tonkade worth a FB?
It depends on which other tonka scents you already have. It’s similar enough to Tonka Imperiale that you probably don’t need both. After I gave it a full wear I decided it’s a bit superfluous, but I still like it. Probably should have bought Nerotic instead though.
Spent yesterday living a little more dangerously than normal. For some reason, I applied for a Sephora credit card and Ulta credit card after many years of not applying for credit cards. Just bought some no 5 extrait from Sephora. I have too many notes that I love and jasmine is one of them. In no 5 Eau Premiere right now but will wear LADDM when I go to the county fair this afternoon.
Hope you had a great time at the county fair! How’s your dad?
Trying the first frag from the PdE sample set that arrived yesterday, Corsica Furiosa.
It is a rare occasion indeed when I spray something new and my immediate response is, “I need a bottle of this,” but that is what I am thinking. Wish I’d tried this at the beginning of the oppressive heat and humidity season rather than toward the end. Still more to come, though…
Did you get the PdE sample set from their website? I was eyeing it, but haven’t checked out how prohibitive the shipping cost might be to the U.S.
I did. Free shipping! It came to just under $25 for 5 samples. I figured they must have stock to ship within the US, but no – shipped from France. It took 3 weeks to arrive. (Just long enough to have forgotten what I ordered ?)
(Pokes lemming with a ruler to keep it at bay)
A ruler is for spanking so…that wouldn’t stop the lemming…?.
From what I have heard, rulers can also be smacked across one’s knuckles as a deterrent. Thankfully, I have never had that happen. Sounds painful!
Happy Labor Day weekend.
Like Robin and thegoddessrena,
my favorite note, especially in the summer is the note of gardenia.
My absolute favorite since its introduction in 2007 is Estée Lauder’s Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia. In my opinion, it’s the closest and most refined perfume you can get that smells like real gardenia. I now live in Texas where it’s hot most of the year. So it’s a perfect fit for me.
Very few perfumes smell like true gardenia, besides PCTG, Kai and Elie Saab Essence n•2 : Gardenia. Tom Ford’s Velvet Gardenia was also a good candidate even though it emphasized the woody side of the flower (that famous mushroom note) where as the others are definitely more delicate, fresher, more crisp.
A lot of so called gardenia perfumes are usually more Tuberose than Gardenia and lots of them tend to be cloying. I am thinking of Jungle Gardenia, Elizabeth Taylor’s Gardenia, Island Gardenia, Chanel’s Gardenia to name a few.
I don’t like the one by Andy Tauer, nor the Serge Lutens’. They are a bit too complicated for my taste in gardenia. But I understand other may find my favorite as too soliflore.
I am always interested and intrigued whenever I read gardenia in a perfume. I love La Panthère eau de parfum in the fall but I must say I don’t smell the gardenia in it. Yet, it’s one of my new classics.
Please feel free to name other gardenia perfumes I wouldn’t know.
There are of course other notes I love, patchouli among them but I keep it for wintertime.
Teone Reinthal Natural Perfumes makes a nice one called Avant Gardenia. I like Guerlain Cruel Gardenia but it’s definitely not a soliflore. Also not at all a soliflore but I like Parfums MDCI Nuit Andalouse.
Dame Perfumery Soliflore Gardenia.
Iris, Iris and more Iris! Sotd is Trimerous. ISM is my favorite Iris and I haven’t met an Iris I don’t like.
I enjoy all of their many facets: rooty, carroty, green, a little powdery, sweet, cosmetic, dirty…
Oy, see I did not even list Trimerous and it is one of my favorites!
I’m in great company!
Still cool and grey here, but feeling sweet and flowery in Iris Ganache.
You smell fabulous!
You smell wonderful!
Let my kids pick my perfume. Beautiful Belle from my little mini was the winner..
Gray skies -cuddled up inside
Sounds like a trend with the kiddos picking your perfume!
Grey skies here too. Wearing La Pausa today.
You smell good and we’re grey skies twins with drizzly rain to boot.
In Japanese Cherry Blossom lotion today.
I’ve enjoyed reading everyone’s comments, this is a fun poll.
Like apsara, I choose incense (although I have many favorite notes.) Incense covers many things, it could be frankincense, opoponax, different woods and resins, and there’s hot incense and cool incense. One of my favorites is YSL Nu. Never had a real scrubber, just some I didn’t like as well. One would be Gres Cabaret which combines rose, another favorite note, with incense. I like the kitschy older bottle but it’s thin and screechy.
Greys Cabernet was on my ‘to sample’ list, will take it off now I think.
Favourite note; Rose; Favourites, POAL, Fille de Berlin, and Tauer Incense Rose.
Scrubber; Tocade – smelt like sickly Royal icing to my nose.
At the moment I’m deliberating over a Neela Vermeer sample set, has anyone splurged on the sample set, would you say it was worth the price? Thanks!
Tocade was a scrubber for me, too.
I was not a fan either. Rose & vanilla was not a combo that worked for me.
I do love the bottle, though! Especially the little ones that look like a dressed up bottle of tabasco ?
Fave note: Iris
Fave frag: Iris Poudre
Scrubber: Found one just yesterday! Parfums de Marly Athalia. What started out so promising (iris! orange blossom!) was followed by a giant, woody amber which squashed everything in its path. It coulda been a winner.
The thing I don’t really like at Athalia is the pepper.
I’m twins with pyramus in voting oakmoss as my favorite note and also agree that I couldn’t really name a scrubber in that category. Even as a young woman my favorite scents were vintage Miss Dior, YSL Y, and YSL Rive Gauche; still love these decades later. Miss Dior will always be #1 with me.
But I also love vanilla and that’s what I’m choosing for today. My favorite vanilla fragrance most definitely is the original L’Occitane Vanille (the one in the brown bottle, one of their first fragrances), a wonderful caramelly vanilla I’ve gotten more compliments on than any other scent I’ve worn (luckily I still have 1/2 of a BUB left). One I don’t care for too much is Guerlain’s Ylang & Vanille, way too much heavy, sweet ylang-ylang, a note I’m not too fond of.
But since today is too warm for the L’occ Vanille, I’m going with LMDLV Vanille Fleurie de Tahiti, a bit sweet and powdery but only gently so.
I love vintage Miss Dior too! I was lucky enough to find a bottle at an estate sale a couple of years ago and have treasured it ever since.
I have several notes that I could call favorites, but I will pick incense for this go-round.
Favorite incenses: SSS Incense Pure, AG Encens Flamboyant, and Tauer’s LAdDM.
Scrubber: Dries can Noten par Frederic Malle. It was discordant on me to the point that I wrote it down in my testing notes.
SOTD = AG Mandragore EdP, from the sample stash. Another perfume that wears gently on me. Normally I complain about perfumes with a short “skin life”, but these aren’t normal times for me.
Dries van Noten is very challenging on me too! I like it much more on a blotter than on my skin. Despite liking all the notes, it can go a bit sickly on me.
Not quite sure what went sideways for me with that one.
Great favorites for incense!
Thank you! I’m always ready to sniff another version of that note, even if it doesn’t work out.
Is Encens Flamboyant the one from that series that’s really smoky? And if not, can anyone remind me which one was?
Also – thank you for the crab-eating tips. I will continue to do cakes or lump when consuming in public ?
And another thank you for suggesting patchouli as a non-summer summer note – I have been doing it and it totally works!
And finally, my condolences on your loss.
I don’t find EF to be smoky at all. It’s definitely frankincense to my nose, completely with the citrus-y top note. Maybe you are thinking about Ambre Fetiche or the myrrh one (can’t recall the name of that one right now)?
Glad that my hard earned crab eating tips were of some use! ?
Thanks for the condolences.
Sigh. “… complete with…” Looks like I am slacking on my proofreading.
If incense were my favorite note, we are twins in terms of loves and scrubber, although scrubber is too mild a word for DvN. What did me in with DvN was the exploding musk that took over my air space and caused me to not be able to breathe. I had high hopes for it.
What DvN did on my skin is best described as that sound a needle makes when it scratches across the surface of a record. Nothing exploded with that one, but I have experienced your infamous “exploding perfume note” in a few other perfumes.
I’m following a few of you and going to name patchouli as one of my favorite notes. My favorites are Coromandel, Patchouli Patch, and Patchouli Intense (PdN). My scrubber, wow, it’s not even a scrubber because I’ve never even dared to spray it on skin, is Tauerville Patchouli Flash. Sprayed on a blotter it is completely overwhelming to me. It doesn’t smell bad or offend, but it’s the definition of FUME for me! It does make me think I love patchouli as a supporting player, that perhaps I’m not ready for big time patchouli.
Is it wrong that I am now rather curious about the Patchouli Flash? ?
Nope! I don’t hate it, but it’s not a go-to for me. IIRC it’s very dirty. Like dirt-dirty (not naughty-dirty ?)
I can deal with dirt-dirty patchouli sometimes.
How do you feel about Profumum Roma Patchouly?
I love patchouli too and bought Patchouli Intense last fall, it’s so good! Never smelled Patchouli Flash but I really disliked Rose Flash so that turned me from trying the other Flash perfumes.
I was just today going to order up a 3rd bottle of Patchouli Intense for my husband. He wears it on a very regular basis and I love smelling it on him. I have to say I’ve never picked up on much patchouli in it, but do get a fair amount of lavender. I love that barbershop-y opening.
That one didn’t work for me either, tulipani. Way too rough.
Reeksville holiday weekend sample report…
I was in samples of Lancôme Figues & Agrumes and Oranges Bigarades before the shower. Maybe they didn’t suit because of the heat, but they didn’t suit me. Some fixative in the base that should have been humming quietly was trying to sing a solo on my skin.
After shower I tried Creed Neroli Sauvage from a sample. Lovely! However…no staying power past a half hour. The drydown was wonderful too, but it’s still a definite no. ??
Reeksville ?
Wish that Aerosmith would have said “Waft this way!” in one of their songs…
Lol!
“Waft this way! Just gimme a mist!”
Chiming in very late to this great LWP! My favorite note is iris. I have too many to list so I’ll just name a few — Chanel No.19, Chanel La Pausa EDT, the Pradas (Infusions, Purple Rain), Serge Luten Iris Silver Mist, Gallivant Bukhara, Masque Milano L’Attessa, Parle Moi Orris Tattoo, DSH Scent of Hope, etc. etc. etc. As to scrubbers, I don’t recall any ?.
I’m having a great weekend so far. Yesterday, I went to a family get-together and had a wonderful time with my cousins, sister, aunt and the various in-laws. Today, I had lunch with my sister & Co., a friend and his parents (we’re cruise buddies and the friend is actually my BIL’s longest standing friend) and another friend. I went to the mall afterwards and stopped by Sephora (no samples to be had) and I doubled back to Nordstrom and got a manufacturer’s sample of Dior Sauvage Elixir (which I will wear tomorrow). I also went to Barnes & Noble and got two Weird NJ magazines and JJill although I bought a necklace and not linen shirts that I was hoping to get (now too late in the season).
More perfume news will have to wait until I can take photos for show and tell!
Happy to hear you had some great family time!
Glad to hear that you’re having a good weekend!