A repeat of a poll we did in 2011, 2014, 2017, 2019 and 2021: tell us about your most-hated perfume, your most recent scrubber, nasty layering combinations you've discovered, perfumes you'd prefer to never smell again, or anything like.
Please, DO NOT read the comments if you're at all sensitive about your own perfume loves. Someone else is bound to hate them! If you do read, be gracious about other people's choices. This is meant to be lighthearted.
Note: the top image shows a Kohler sink in the 1927 color "Spring Green", one of the two winning colors when Kohler asked consumers to vote on heritage colors to reissue for 2023. (You may remember we used one of the losing colors for the "what's in your shower" poll last month.)
Hi all, I’ve been MIA for a while – between tons of houseguests this summer and our first grandbaby (he’s now almost 3 months ), I haven’t been wearing perfume quite as much. But when I did, it was mostly Chanel 5 L’eau, Ashoka, Covet or Lady Gaga. Or my new fave sample, Obvious Un Ete (waiting for any kind of discount to buy that one). Hope you have all been well. I’m sure I’ve missed lots and I plan to be here much more often now.
For the poll:
Worst ever for me: Profumum Acqua di Sale, which it seems most people love. It made me feel physically ill.
Most recent scrubber: Francesca Bianchi Unspoken Musk, another one that I think is popular so go figure.
I love Acqua di Sale, but I totally get your reaction to it — it has a sort of oily-ness that sometimes puts me off too. It’s one that I have to be in the exact right mood for.
Congrats Grandma!😉🌹🤗🤗
Glad you are back and congratulations on the grand baby!
Congratulations on your new grandchild! I hope all of your guest-hosting went well. 🤗
Hi springpansy, sounds like you have been having fun! Nice to see you back.
Congrats on being a grandma. 3 months already!
Thanks, everyone. Great to see all of you as well.
Warmest congratulations on the grandbaby! It’s pretty wonderful.
Congrats on your grandbaby!!
Have fun with that grandbaby. They grow up fast!
Hi there, fragrant friend!
Congrats on the new grandbaby! He will be walking and talking before you know it.
The most recent scrubber I smelled was the latest Gaultier for men, Scandal Pour Homme. It’s pretty dire, although not really any worse than most run-of-the-mill men’s scents these days. (I mostly avoid them nowadays because I know what to expect: I foolishly had higher hopes for the Gaultier.)
I’m in Tom Ford Lost Cherry, a cheerful sour-cherry scent. Now there’s one that a fair few people consider a scrubber, but it works incredibly well on me: I find it charming.
I can’t remember the last time I went out of my way to test a masculine-specific fragrance(new)….they really are all mostly meh….
I love Lost Cherry too.
Sadly, it seems that cherry notes do not play nice with me.
SOTM is IA Saint Julep, from a sample I’d forgotten I had. It’s not exactly a scrubber, but it doesn’t do much for me either. Kind of a nondescript, slightly sweet scent with an undercurrent that bothers me somehow. Will switch to something more loved for an early afternoon, and much needed, haircut later today. I enjoyed yesterday’s extended conversation among all of you who recently went with shorter hair — wish I had the kind of face (and neck, and forehead) that could support a pixie, but I just don’t.
The worst thing I ever had on my skin (briefly!) was IA Bull’s Blood — could not get it off me soon enough, and since I had unwisely spritzed it while dressed, it lingered on a shirt cuff through SEVERAL wash cycles. Yeeaugh.
Those are probably about the only two I have not tried by them. I have kind of a love/hate relationship with IA. There are a few scents I have really enjoyed and others I can’t stand.
Bulls Blood at least lived up to its name 😉
I got a sample set for myself for christmas and quickly found that whatever the IA dna is, it is not for me. They all bothered me enough that even when i liked the opening a bit within 10 minutes they were scrubbed.
While I admire its…boldness, ELDO Secretions Magnifiques smelled like a crime scene and I could not wash it off fast enough. I sent my sample to a friend who was also horrified but said her dog was extremely interested in it, baying loudly when he sniffed it. Oddly enough, both of ourpartners liked it, though they were not aware of its notes. Mine said he smelled the ocean and hers said he smelled “a sushi restaurant” .
That dog incident is hilarious!
Lol!
I think most of us have an SM-Testing tale to tell!It truly was fascinating/horrific on my skin as well!And lasted through several showers!I tested it on my ex Paul at the same time,and he has never forgiven me for that either!Haha!
🤷🏼♂️🤷🏼♂️
ELDO SM almost made me hurl. The other one was Diptyque Oud Palao.
I tried a tiny drop (spritz, but it didn’t really spray – I’m thankful for small blessings) on a knuckle. I was down in town at my favorite fume bodega. Rushed out the door right away. It smelled a bit milky at first, but went to full on infant hurl (formula), by the time I was in the car. I actually drove home with it on my skin. Good times! 🤢
I haven’t tried the infamous SM yet. But this weekend’s discussion inspired me to order a sample of it from ELdO.
We shall see what happens!
The latest (almost) scrubber I’ve tried was Vilhelm Basilico & Fellini. I’d actually tried it once before and rather liked it, but then when I came back to it, there was a point about 10 minutes in where it turned and never came back. I should probably try it again sometime just to see which way it goes on a third try.
The worst thing I ever had on my skin was a M. Micallef scent. Funny thing is, I don’t remember which one, but it was bad enough that it turned me against the whole line and the shop where I tried it. (Well, it was more the sales tactics of the shop, where the owner only wanted to show me her more expensive lines.) The opening was nice, but pretty much the moment I left the shop, it turned to the most horrendous bug spray on me, and I was headed to my nephew’s birthday party. Sigh.
Commando right now because I’m headed across the border to pick up my IA shipment, which is primarily soap but also a sample set. Based on SheriG’s comment, though, I may need to be careful! 🙂 I’m curious to try Saint Julep against Nomenclature Minted, my mint purchase of the summer that I’ve been quite enjoying.
Money saved with the Micallef? Or a least a way to turn down the noise on all the perfume lines clamouring for our attention
I would have to say one of my most hated perfumes would be Lancome LVEB. I worked with a gal that bathed herself in it and after that, I just could not deal with that smell.
SOTD is Eau des Merveilles. It probably sounds strange, but for years I could barely smell it on myself, but now it smells great. Go figure.
Coworkers have ruined many a perfume for me.
I know what you mean about LVEB. When I was still teaching we shared a women’s restroom for faculty with several other departments in our building and one Italian professor would come in there just DOUSED with the stuff and it was hard to breathe in there when she was around.
Worst scrubber–Jaisalmer. It smelled–let’s just say unwashed. I was surprised, because I loved the rest of the Incense series.
Odd, since I had trouble picking out the differences at all in this line, just: Incense.
Well, that is interesting, I find all 5 of them so distinct! And I do like Jaisalmer ok but it is easily my least favorite.
Funny, but I can’t remember any recent scrubbers. Most of them lately have been in the “like a lot but don’t need a bottle” territory, or somewhere in the “meh” zone.
A scrubber that I vividly recall was SL Ambre Sultan. This was early days, and I asked the SA “ is that cumin?” All I could think was, what a good way to ruin a perfect amber. With apologies to its legions of fans.
SotD is vintage YSL Y. 🥰
Sometimes “meh” is worse than scrubbers.At least you have a palpable reaction to scrubbers whereas “meh” just makes me indifferent to sometimes both scent and the house!(Why Fragonard…why???!😉)
Good point! (I’m with you there on Fragonard.)
Agree!
I did used to feel like Fragonard had a place…pretty, well done florals & whatnot, at a reasonable price, along the lines of L’Occitane or something.
But there are now a million brands doing that, and it has been a long time since I smelled anything new from Fragonard (and for that matter, I have smelled recent L’Occitane scents and thought why, L’Occitane, why?….they aren’t pretty well done florals anymore)
I remember when I tried Ambre Sultan it was so terrible I thought the tester bottle at the store must have gone bad. I could not believe that this was the perfume that so many had raved about. I tried it again at a different store and it was the same and I wound up scrubbing it off yet again. I’ve tried more scrubbers from SL than any other brand and in my opinion his perfumes are overhyped. Sorry to any fans.
He is fond of spices that turn sweaty … cumin & cardamom especially.
And I thought that Ambre Sultan was kind of bland. I didn’t get any cumin at all from the sample I had. Weird, right?
Huh. Maybe they were different formulations?
Happy Weekend!
My latest scrubber was Jovoy Rouge Assassin.Funny,because the notes seem promising and it all sounded right up my alley.But it SUFFOCATED me with a powderbomb that later on almost smelled bitter.Like pushing one of those huge Caron powder puffs right into your face!It’s a NO….
SOTD!
Montale Crystal Flowers.Now this is perfection.I love when it’s supposed to be a big bouquet of flowers and it actually is!Hoarding my bottle as I do not know if it is still available.
We had a 3-day Nursing Leaders conference that ended on such a wonderful,inspiring note today.I loved all the topics and speakers and the theme was “Dare Dream Deliver”.
It’s good to feel some positivity amongst my peers again as well.
XO’s
🌹🌹
Yes, Montale Crystal Flowers is still available. I like some of the Montale fragrances and this Crystal Flowers sounds quite good.
Wonderful to have an inspiring note at the end of a nursing conference. Now that I am retired there are some parts of nursing I miss. Some conferences I attended in the past were great too.
I still have about 13/18 years before retirement so a little inspiration is always welcome!(13/18,we’ll see if I retire at 60 or 65…lol!)
🤗
Glad it was a good conference!🌞
Thanks!
You still having Summer I hope?🤞🏻🌞🌞
So happy that your conference was uplifting! I’m sure that nurses around the world could use one.
I agree!!
I can’t think of too many scrubbers right now. But what comes to mind is two Hermes ones. Eau de Citron Noir and Eau de Narcisse Bleu. The latter I want to like, but there’s something sharp and unpleasant and headache inducing on me. Citron Noir I just flat out dislike.
Had a wonderful morning. Sprayed on SSS Bee’s Bliss because we headed out this morning to a local learning center and nature preserve to attend a community honey harvest by the local beekeepers club. We have friends who are members, one of whom was extracting honey. It was hugely fascinating and fun. What a great hobby! And, we’d never been there in summer. The wildflowers were wonderful. Late this year because we had drought conditions in late spring early summer. Fair amount of rain in July and August so still blooming. Came home with small samples of freshly harvested honey. As well as a bunch of free packets of seeds for pollinators.
That sounds like such a fun day! I tried to do bees one time got a hive and everything, but my aversion to small crawl things with too many legs go the best of me. Just couldn’t tend them on a regular basis!
Lol. Bees don’t bother me. Other crawlies definitely do.
Citron Noir is awful!
I agree about Citron Noir.
Bees! https://www.instagram.com/p/CwIwvXrx3gc/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
I enjoyed Narcisse Bleue but loathed Citron Noir.
Agree about Citron Noir!
Here’s a longish article on bees:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/19/business/beekeeping-companies-colony-collapse.html
(There may be a pay wall.)
There is a paywall. We did learn about bee behavior with the queen, swarms, healthy colonies…. Fascinating.
A couple of the Renaissance Faires/Festivals in the area have a business that has a clear beehive in front of their booth. The bees are kept contained but happy in their temporary home.
They produce a LOT of heat!
My most recent scrubber is the new Tom Ford Cafe Rose. As soon as I spritzed once I could tell it was not for me. When my sister visited me this spring we were sniffing through my samples, and I gave her sSnowy Owl, which I love. She had a total negative reaction to that! We compared our wrists- on me it smelled like a cold old bar with hay and oddly blooming lily of the valley, which is what I find so intriguing about it. On her it smelled like dirt- dirty dirt shoveled out of a chicken house! Perfume is always interesting!
Such a pity as I love original Cafè Rose!
I should do a comparison asap.
I was at Sephora and smelled the new Cafe Rose. It was forgettable.
This made me laugh out loud!
And the bottle looks better in pictures!
Lol, sounds like Tom flunked rose this time around.
My worst scrubber ever remains Pharell G.I.R.L. but I agree there is something very off-putting in Citron Noir. Eris Perfumes Mx was also a big “No” for me though I know there are people here who love it. Sex and the Sea was another scrubber and I’ve learned that none of the Bianchis suit me. Today I’m wearing Messe de Minuit and going to the Made in Hawaii festival. There are food booths and I hope to find some things to give as Christmas presents this year.
I had the same experience with Pharell GIRL; I sprayed maybe once or twice, and my hubby said to never put that on again! And he rarely says anything, good or bad. I’m not sure if it was any one note or just the whole combination but I sent my travel spray off to my niece in a “bundle” of samples.
Enjoy your time at the festival. I hope you find some lovely things.
Sounds like fun and you smell great.
Aww, too bad. I love Mx. I also really like Messe de Minuit so we do share one perfume like!
Wish I could join you at the festival!
I haven’t sniffed any scrubbers in a while but I vividly remember my first sniff of Teint de Neige, it made me gag. I do wonder why as I tend to like powdery scents. I’ve never wanted to revisit though.
Had to look that one up, as it sounds up my alley. Hmm, the brief description I read had mentioned it was similar to No. 5. I’m not sure if that was your experience but I will stay far away.
Thanks for taking one for the team!
I can’t remember any resemblance to No. 5 at all. I actually rather enjoy No. 5 (and aldehydic florals in general).
Interesting! I like Chanel No. 5 l’eau much better (on me). I’m not sure what my skin amplified with No. 5 but I usually like powdery scents.
Gagging is not a good response! Sorry you had that happen.
An all time scrubber was PR Lady Million, I haven’t been testing many perfumes lately so no recent bad experiences but I will be flying early next month so there will be scope for scrubbers at the duty-free.
Vintage Yardley Violet today and tonight Molton Brown Rosa Absolute EDT.
I tried Lady Million when it came out. The only thing I recall is that I didn’t think it smelled like a perfume. The bottle is hideous too.
Oh yes the bottle is so tacky. All those years later I still remember how awful I thought it was.
I do remember trying Lady Million and thinking it was a NOPE! But it wasn’t horrific.
I’m a bit more cautious than I used to be about spraying new things on skin, so over the last couple of years I think I’ve avoided having to literally scrub my wrists in the bathroom. However, I’ve tried so many things that are forgettable, nice enough but very bland. I’d prefer to find dramatic things that I didn’t like.
On the other hand, I can’t really criticise a perfume for smelling like something I already have, it’s not that perfume’s fault that I bought something else earlier 🙂
Smell-alikes only bothers me when they’re expensively unoriginal.
Some of my somewhat recent scrubbers have been Baccarat Rouge 540 (too sweet and cloying), Zoologist Harvest Mouse (also cloying and I really cannot stand malt notes in perfume), Sacred Scarab, and Cockatiel. Farther back, I also scrubbed Akro Malt (where I realized I hate the smell of malt) and Tauer Sotto la Luna Tuberose, which singed my nostrils and smelled like gasoline.
No SOTD yet and no ideas about what to wear other than to maybe dig into the untouched samples I bought in the first half of the year. I bought the D’Orsay sample set at Luckyscent some months back and still haven’t tried them for some reason.
Yesterday I got to experience heliotrope flowers for the first time! My favorite nearby park houses both an Asian art museum and a conservatory, and the conservatory recently posted on Instagram about the heliotrope that’s planted around their entrance. So of course I had to swing by on my first evening walk in a week last night to smell them. Smells just like the heliotrope we smell in perfume. You have to really kneel down and get close to get their scent.
That’s very cool about the heliotrope, I’ll have to look up the plant, love it in several perfumes.
I like their smell, and they are a pretty little blossom, don’t you think?
Yes, they’re adorable!
I love the smell of heliotrope. It is reminiscent of lightly spicy vanilla.
Nice to hear that the heliotrope note in perfume is very close to the flowers.
BR 540 is a scrubber for me too. I barely get sweet from it. It has lots of fans, and similar to Santal 33 I just can’t access the beauty but people are obsessed lol. I smell BR 540 in the wild the most often these days. Or its clones.
My SOTD is Bois de Paradis. It needs to be refreshed.
I’m quite sure others like the scent that is my scrubber, Mugler Aura. Initially I kind of liked it and mainly loved that faceted emerald green bottle, but after a few wears it became truly nauseating to me. It has some kind of plastic mouthwash element that literally made me feel sick to my stomach. (Apologies, people!) I have not found any single Mugler that is wearable by me.
Another triple digit day, 102 at 3:42 this afternoon. We broke a record with 105 on Thursday, my birthday. :-(. I am seriously thinking about moving away, it is simply unlivable here in the summers and likely to continue or worsen.
I’m with you on Mugler. My all-time scrubber is Alien.
I’m the same with Aura and I wondered if it was Ambroxan. I noticed a similar thing with Alien Goddess Intense and with Issey Miyake A Drop. A plastic melted butter popcorn vanilla .
Oh. I think I tried Aura and and it was a big nope.
I am finding even PA more difficult in the summer…we’ll all end up trying to crowd into Vermont, right?
Happy belated birthday! Hope you managed to have fun despite the heat.
My all time worst scrubber was Jul et Mad Stilletoes on Lex. I never understood people getting a headache from perfume and learned from that one try, it opens with a soaring sweet violet note that was like a blow to my sinuses. There are some I’d prefer not to smell again, like Zoologist T Rex and IA Bull’s Blood. I like a cool smoky incense but not that charred meat thing and any blood note is a big no. But I never get out to sample anything so I miss most mainstream releases and I don’t order samples often, I have too many as it is, so the chances are low for running into a true scrubber.
Oops, forgot my sotd! L’Artisan Seville l’Aube, so gorgeous. It’s still lingering from early this morning.
It is indeed so gorgeous 🙂
Hello! I have also been MIA for awhile, but that’s pretty typical for me in the summer.
This poll is so amusing. My most recent scrubber was the newish Hermes Jardin, which made me feel ill. It has a recognizable “woody something” in the base that has ruined other scents for me, too. The opening was so nice, though!
My all time most painful scrubber, though, is OJ Ta’if, but only because it gives me an instant, searing headache. I’m sure it smells lovely on those who can wear it.
SOTD is No 5 l’eau.
You smell wonderful in No.5 L’Eau!
Nice to see you — love the No. 5 L’Eau. Just so great and esp in warm weather.
That’s funny. Ta’if works well on me. Even the time I used the body lotion and then the scent…I was wafting a huge trail.
L’Eau is one of my favorites!
No. 5 L’Eau was my first Chanel.
I gave away Le Jardin de Cynthere, it is a pistachio and olive tree combo and I just could not enjoy it. Made me a bit nauseous.
L’Eau is lovely, you smell great.
SOTD = Centauri Perfumes Mirabai
I occasionally respond to questions from other Instagrammers. One time a NYC tourist from Virginia (I could be wrong about this guy’s residence state) was concerned about missing an appointment with. Bergdorfs SA. I suggested via direct messaging for him to contact an SA who manages that perfume line and he was able to do the meet up at another time. Anyway, to make a long story short(er) 🤣, he recently wrote about a perfume line I never heard of. Me being who I am regarding large samples went ahead and ordered a bottle. Mirabai is exactly as described and the bottle is a gorgeous, you guessed it, RED!
https://www.instagram.com/p/CwIscM1RgH2/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
I may do a red bottle / red juice CP this week with a theme of “Cherry on Top”.
I have no scrubbers as I try my best to spray on a scent strip before wearing a perfume. I am not very forgiving of a perfume doesn’t first pass that initial screening.
Here’s my caturday post:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CwI-jk2R2mO/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Oh the perfumer from that brand is Peter from the youtube channel Fragranceview. I watch him and am very happy his line seems to be doing well.
Are the bottles as weighty as they look?
The bottles have a good heft to them, particularly the stopper. I have Gaea, aka Space Flowers. The first hour is quite bizarre, but then blooms into something lovely.
The cap is for sure. I think when I wear 1/3 of the bottle the cap may win.
Mirabai sounds yummy!
It is!
Wow, fancy bottle!
I bet y’all know which one i’m gonna cite – Le Sillage Blanc!!! Yayy! Boo-hiss!
Seriously, I had not expected this one to be so dis-likable, but, there it is. (maybe it had turned?)
What a pity! I found it a disappointment, but not outright horrible
It is difficult to recall scrubbers. Usually if a scent doesn’t suit me it is more likely a “meh” or I just move on, happy I can go on to other things and scratch something off my list.
One I recall HATING is the Giorgio Beverly Hills from the 80’s. Thankfully it is not too popular these days. Screechy and headache-inducing.
I am doing my “sample Saturday” in Obvious Perfume Une Vanille. Very understated, a little “plastic doll head” note that I haven’t decided if I like yet.
I liked Giorgio at the time, but would have to pass on it now. It was pretty screechy now that you mention it.
I hated Giorgio back in the day too.
Thanks for the birthday/ anniversarywishes yesterday. Unknown to me, my husband went perfume shopping at our local department store and was given brilliant service by the guy who works in the perfume dept…a very sweet, young guy who I often chat with. Anyway, my husband found it too difficult to decide between perfumes so ended up buying two ( what???!!!). Coco Mademoiselle and Alien Goddess Intense ( which I don’t actually, honestly like…bit of a scrubber on me) . He then went to another shop where there is another really nice, sweet assistant who showed him a whole lot of CDGs and he ended up buying another bottle ( Floriental). It was all a bit overwhelming as we don’t usually “do” birthdays, Christmas or anything really. And certainly not fancy stuff…the specially shaped plastic gutter trowel for cleaning leaves clogging down pipes being more the norm. Such a shock. I wish I had been there to watch as I am so curious about how it all happened. Would love to know what he tried and what was rejected, and what they said….felt sheepish for the cup of coffee and mumbled ‘Aw yeah, happy anniversary” which is all he got from me.
That’s so sweet. It would be so fun to see footage of his inspired shopping spree💐🎁
Aww… I am so happy you got perfume that you didn’t even ask for! That makes it so special!
How sweet that your husband went perfume shopping for you! Mine only shops from a list, he very rarely buys me anything I haven’t specifically said I want, but a few times he has chosen some real winners based on recommendations from the SA after hearing him describe what I like.
Maybe you can use the Alien Goddess as a bathroom freshener or spray it on your socks?
What a nice husband. You better keep him.
That is so sweet!
Anything with Ambroxan is a very big no for me😬 I wanted to like Eris Scorpio Rising but I didn’t get spice, just Ambroxan and I couldn’t stand it.
On the other hand, I am sampling the new Eris fragrance, Delta of Venus and I’m very much enjoying the Guava note.
I’m also struggling with Dune. I’d never smelled it before and have read so many good things that I jumped at the chance to try it (vintage and more recent). It’s one of those perfumes I can’t read very well, even though I know the notes. Not sure if that makes sense. I really want to appreciate it but the jury is still out.
I found with Dune that less is more. I also think it works better on a crisp cold day.
Thank you, lillyjo. I’m going to try that out😊
Definitely agree with lillyjo that less is more with Dune. It’s rather temperamental on me.
My most recent scrubber is also one of my most recent blind purchase. Backstory: I went looking around in Sephora and saw the new-ish Kayali Yum Pistachio Gelato (having read up about it before and as a lover of pistachio, I wanted it, bad.), I immediately looked for the tester but it was nowhere to be found. SA told me it was so popular they ran out… On the shelf were 2 50ml and 1 100ml bottles left and FOMO struck hard. I picked up the 100ml and ran for the cashier.
What it smelled like: Initially it’s hot melted plastic with a rum undertone. It could be the Summer weather but it actually smelled “warm”, which is not cute for a gelato-inspired scent. Did I mention it was also screechy? The dry down is cheap/fake vanilla essence with a side of “vaguely-nutty”-ness (if you sniff hard enough I guess you can make out it’s supposed to be pistachio?)
At least the bottle is somewhat okay as room decor. Ha.
Sotd is the much much lovelier: Amouage Overture Woman.
Happy weekend everybody!
I didn’t smell any Pistachio either. I mostly got lily of the valley and powder. I almost bought it but after my last testing I suddenly smelled baby wipes and that is a definite no for me.
Sephora is pretty good about returns if you kept the receipt, or you are Insider and they can look it up. They took back a Replica I purchased once that seemed good on paper but was all ambroxan on my skin.
I think I will do that! Contacting Sephora tomorrow. 🙂
Ew, hot melted plastic sounds horrible! 🤢
I’ve had a few memorable scrubbers. Hideous BO smells: Serge Lutens Serge Noire and Aedes de Venustus x L’Artisan Parfumeur. The worst by far was Bogue Douleur which smelled like vomit. It actually made me panicky, frantically trying to scrub it off me. Traumatic. I also felt nauseous from smelling JAR Jardenia in the boutique right in front of the SA, thought I might have to dash outside.
On a brighter note, I had a wonderful day trip out to an artisan perfumer’s studio about 1.5 hours south of Montréal called La Grange du Parfumeur. Lovely perfumes and the perfumer and her husband were very sweet. I bought a bunch of travel sprays which I’m looking forward to exploring further.
Your day trip sounds like fun.☀️
Sotd is Chanel Biarritz. Our few days of pleasant temperatures are gone and we are back to HOT. Temps nearing 100 this coming week. Yuck. Along with air quality alerts.
Scrubbers. Hmm…I had to look back at my notes. My last scrubber was MFK Grand Soir. In the perfume’s defense, I was wearing it the same day I tested positive for 🦠 so I think my whole system was off. I kept my sample to retry in the cool weather.
Another not quite scrubber but huge disappointment on my skin was the Diptyque Paper perfume. I thought it might be my perfect skin scent but it dried down to pure ambroxan.
One more week of work and then I’m headed up north to collect my older daughter and visit my parents for a few days. She ends her summer camp job this Thursday. She’s been up there since Memorial Day. I talked to her friday and she said she’s not “homesick” but she’s ready to be home.☺️
I share your huge disappointment with Paper. For 5 minutes it was beautiful! Then not. 😁
I love both those scents! Maybe give Grand Soir another try on a cool autumn day when you’re feeling good, then you will know for sure. My husband insists everything must be given at least two tries. I generally agree, except for the scrubbers I mentioned above. 🙂
Wow. I’m sure people are complaining here today because it’s over 80 and humid, our temps will bounce around this next week between high 60s and low 80s. I’m kind of enjoying today’s heat. Sidewalk sales going on in our town this weekend.
Just received a decant of Fan di Fendi Leather Essence, which is pretty nice. It’s a like not a love, happily, since it is no longer around.
As for a scrubber, the Hall of Famer is Van Cleef & Arpels Muguet Blanc. To make it worse, I was on a trip and could not successfully scrub it off until back at the hotel at the end of the day.
Fan di Fendi was a decent scent, and had some really nice flankers.
I must not have had any scrubbers lately, because I remembered another one, but it was decades ago. Ungaro Diva , the original one. Maybe it was the tuberose? Civet? Combo of those two? Whatever it was, was not me, lol!
Today’s scent is an all-time summer favorite, Lancôme Climat. Love those late-sixties, early-seventies classics. 💚
I too hated Ungaro Diva. He was my favourite fashion designer though! Fleur de Diva I absolutely loved.
I never heard of Fleurish de Diva. Hmm, I’ll have to check it out!
Love Climat💕
I think we must be ‘almost’ scent twins. 😉
SOTD is Henry Bendel Pink Grapefruit and Vetiver. Perfect for warm and humid day. Fleeting, though.
I love those notes together when it’s hot and sticky outside.
Yes. My husband thought I had sprayed on Hermes Pamplemousse Rose….
Wow! He can tell one from the other and he knows the names? 😯 I’m impressed.
Same here!!
😮😮😮!
Euphorium Brooklyn Chocolatl by a landslide. Really foul stuff. 😳
Feeling melancholy with unusual for us rain from the former hurricane today in southern CA and the first day of school tomorrow which is a week earlier than usual this year. Where did summer go?…please tell me if you find it. 🌦Reserving the right to forget this post and complain about unrelenting heat next weekend if need be in true hypocritical fashion. 😎
It’s 88 degrees here but I still feel like summer is gone. It seemed extra short this year.
And to add insult to injury, earthquakes going on near my sister’s town in SoCal…
Oh, no! I hope she stays safe.
It does feel like this summer went by in a flash. But it doesn’t feel like autumn here just yet.
One of my most memorable scrubbers was TM Womanity. I can still see myself spraying it on and sniffing it at Macy’s. All I could smell was fish ( which is one of my most hated smells) I never tried it again. The new Cafe Rose was a scrubber for me too. Also most new releases with heavy ambroxan.
This weekend is crazy busy with back to school shopping. I’m hot and tired. The first day starts tomorrow. Fingers crossed I can wake my daughter up in time.
Better hot and tired than hot and bothered! Here’s to a successful week for your daughter!
Lol! True!
Thanks for the good wishes. 😊
Good luck!
Good luck for you and your daughter tomorrow!
What a bummer the “new” Cafe Rose seems to be a dud.
SOTD = Chanel No.5 L’Eau
Hopefully, this won’t be cancelled 🤣
https://www.instagram.com/p/CwL4mBbRQyS/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Did I mention I’m going to do a week of red bottles (or at least red juice)?
I love the red kitty!
Looking forward to the red bottle collection.
Thank you!
OMG, that itty bitty kitty is freaking adorable!
Thanks. I always just passed by the display and decided to take a look yesterday.
I haven’t come across any scrubbers recently, but I also haven’t been trying or wearing much in the way of perfume. Trying not to get negative perfume associations.
But I will agree with the people who have mentioned TM Aura as a scrubber. I tried it only on paper, and there was something in it that I disliked intensely. So I never bothered testing it on skin. Also remember hating Hermes Citron Noir. That one just wasn’t right, period.
SOTD = commando, except for Korres Guava body butter.
On the good news side, I think Hermes has a few newish perfumes I haven’t smelled.
Looking forward to hearing your take on them all!
Catching up on this poll. The scrubbers I can remember all seem to be widespread favorites: Hermes Eau des Merveilles (and most of the flankers) creates a stomach-turning note on my skin; Nuit de Bakélite was a unpleasant hot-inner-tube on me; and Pacific Rock Moss causes an instant headache and I cannot figure out why. Skin chemistry is a fascinating thing.
SO so late to this, but the one perfume that *really* turned my stomach was An Air of Despair by IA which was discontinued right around the time I bought my partial bottle.
I finally got around to selling it this year – for more than I paid. I almost felt like I should put a warning on it.
The cedar and saffron combo was a nauseating BO on my skin. I wasn’t brave enough to try again after that.
I love leaving critical reviews of popular frags on Fragrantica – they’re not mean or bad, and usually explain *why* I didn’t think a scent worked on me, but I think it hurts their feelings. But then, I also like reading critical reviews of some of the ones I love. Whenever I pull out Dzing! I feel compelled to read Kafkaesqueblog’s take down of it. 🤷🏻♀️