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The Perfume Challenge

Do you have a box full of perfume vials and/or a vanity covered in perfume bottles? Are you the Goldilocks of perfume, just looking for the perfect signature scent? Do you want an opportunity to post daily about how your perfume of the day smells oaky and smoky with hints of blackberry and currant, like a cigar in a whisky barrel rolling through a Mediterranean orchard on a breezy summer morning?

 

If you answered yes to any of the above, or you just want to hop on board for the ride, join us for a 31 days of perfume challenge starting January 1st! Some of us from the 25 days of lipstick challenge wanted to continue the fun and exploration, and since many of us have so many perfume samples, we thought this challenge would be perfect. If you don't have 31 perfumes or hate everything that doesn't smell like Meyer lemons and fresh goat cream, that's fine--we're just aiming to use the neglected perfumes we have laying around and incorporate them into our perfume rotations.

 

And if you want more perfume vials, there's no better time than now to take a peek at Sephora's samples section.

 

Edit: Anyone can join in at anytime! We're here to support, live vicariously through, and encourage everyone in their olfactory adventures!

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

I'm giving Mimosa Indigo a second chance today and I still don't smell much beyond a very light floral scent. And I put a *lot* on. Not sure if I got a dud or if my sense of smell is not advanced enough to get something out of this one.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Haha, I have the same problem with allergies.

 

I'm assuming that scent is referring to mimosa the flower and not the brunch cocktail? I do love Commodity Mimosa, which smells like the cocktail. 

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

I didn't realize there was a difference.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today was Atelier Cologne Bois Blonds.

I wish I could say I like this, but I think there is something wrong with my sample because all I can smell at this point when I open the vial is something astringent like rubbing alcohol.

When I first opened the vial this morning, I was getting that same abrasiveness that I smelled in Grand Neroli (maybe I just don't like neroli), but it seemed to be balanced out by a soft, sweet, floral. As that scent faded, all I could smell was that same abrasiveness and musk. Reopening the vial to reapply just gave me that astringent smell. 

It seems like a lot of people list this one as their favorite, so I'm sort of disappointed. 

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Y'ALL.

 

 

It's been a minute hasn't it. Jumping right back in! Today I am wearing Commodity Mimosa - one of my favorites! It's just the right blend of citrusy and musky. So yummy. 

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

You know my thoughts on this one! 😍

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today I wore Atelier Cologne Citron d'Erable. I gave a mini review of it this morning in the Rewards Bazaar thread and after wearing it all day, I'd have to say my initial thoughts haven't changed much.

I would describe the way the scent changes as you wear it as complicated, but consistent.

This fragrance starts off with a sweet lemon scent that is balanced out by a smokey maple (the wood, not maple syrup). As the lemon scent fades, I got a sort of maple sap scent in its place alongside the smokey wood and lingering sweetness. Think refreshing that turns to mysterious. 

Mid-day I had this brilliant (ahem) thought: "I really love this scent and you can usually put on a lot when applying the atelier scents." So I put it all over. Well, needless to say, there is too much of a good thing when it comes to this fragrance. Do not put too much on: the maple sap scent becomes overwhelming.

The good news is that it wore off after a walk.

Overall I reapplied three times, which is better than the staying power of some other Atelier scents I've been testing out. The scent changed in the exact same way each of the applications: first a sweet lemon and smoked maple wood, followed by maple sap and smoked maple wood accompanied by sweetness.

If I could improve this scent, I would want the lemon to stay around longer and for a pop of spice to balance out the sap better.

I'm pretty pleased I managed to snag a travel size of this one in the Rewards Bazaar today.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today I wore Atelier Cologne Clementine California. At the beginning, it smelled *extremely* clementine, in the same way that Orange Sanguine smells extremely orange, but after a while the clementine smell disappeared and all I could smell was a sort of refreshing spiciness (unlike Orange Sanguine which just smells like soap once the orange smell disappears). 

 

I really wish the citrus from the Atelier scents would last longer!

This is a pretty good fragrance, but not the best of the bunch so far.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today I wore Atelier Cologne Grand Neroli. Something about this scent is too abrasive for me. It seems to be extremely masculine and it feels sort of heavy to breathe, if that makes any sense. I felt like I was walking around smelling like a man all day.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today was Atelier Cologne Bergamote Soleil. Bergamote has been listed as a "note" in a couple of different Atelier scents that I liked, so it seems that maybe I'm a bergamote person. (I don't think I've ever come across one in non-fragrance form though.) It smelled like citrus, flowers, and something spicy. The scent did not seem to change on my skin like others from this brand, but it did need to be reapplied after just a few hours. I like this one, but I still like Santal Carmin better.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today I tried to wear Atelier Cologne Tobacco Nuit. It smells like that vanilla flavored loose tobacco people buy from tobacco shops in order to roll their own cigarettes. I don't like the smell of tobacco and found it to be... overwhelming. I ended up showering to get it off after it didn't fade away. 

 

I previously thought I wanted to own every Atelier Cologne fragrance, but I guess there are a few I can safely skip. I can see how this one might be something that someone else appreciates, but it's *really* not my thing.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Day 2: Today I have to take a train so I thought I would try something very inoffensive and having recently received a sample of Coach, the Fragrance (the new one they re-invented and re-released in Sept. 2016) I thought it would do nicely for a train because it is a nice, inoffensive sort of fruity-floral.  My first impression is that it's quite pretty - off the top I get a little raspberry and pear and after about 30 minutes the rose and gardenia come through a little bit more... I know there is supposed to be a leather/suede note in here but I can't detect and isolate it though it could be kind of structural - part of the backbone that holds these scents together.  I smell a little light musk and some wood in the base.  Overall I quite like the use of raspberry - it's nice - I'm not crazy for this fragrance but I do enjoy wearing it, it is pleasant : )

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today I tried out Atelier Cologne Santal Carmin. I am pleasantly surprised. While most of the Atelier lineup involves an abundance of citrus scents, this one seems to balance the citrus out with other scents extremely well. 

 

My first impression was a strong wood scent with a faint floral in the background. After an hour or so, it seemed to change on my skin into something of a sweeter softer floral that was followed by an extremely vague vanilla, but neither the floral nor the vanilla were the stand out scents.

By the middle of the day, the only scent remaining was a faint musk. As I went to reapply, I opened the vial and found that a previously undetectable limey citrus hit me strongly. That faded into that same sweet nurturing scent after a while, and then at the end of the day all that remains is a very slight smell of wood (like cedar chips left in the back of a closet for too many years).

I ended up opening the vial numerous times after mid-day because I was confused as to what this fragrance was. My conclusion is that it's sort of mercurial: it balances out the different scents so well that one moment it is one fragrance and the next it is another.

 

This one is at the top of my wish list right now. It's a really amazing fragrance.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

This one was on my wishlist, but I received a sample of it and didn't like it.

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Oh, I definitely need to try this one! And also just the Atelier sample set like I've been meaning to since this challenge started...

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

If you do, we can compare notes 🙂

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Oooh neat! : ) I have a bunch of little vials, samples, fragsplits, older stuff I forgot about - all sitting around - when I haven't liked a full bottle I try and trade for a bunch of little things to try.  This was how I came to find myself, amongst other things, in possession of a bunch of ZOMG smells perfume oils.  Today I am wearing "Baby Unicorn Birthday Party" it really is baby-soft, frilly and innocent fragrance, it kind of smells like a few generic flowers, a few pink roses wrapped in vanilla cake frosting.  I probably smell like a kid's scratch and sniff sticker but I'm actually feeling it! : ) It's a fun sweet smell and it's making me smile!

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

There are a lot of people on BT who would love to have Baby Unicorn Birthday Party just for the name!

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Baby Unicorn Birthday Party? What a fabulous name!

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

@Titian06 @txcatx  Hahaha part of what made me want this was also the name! : ) ZOMG smells seems to pride itself on giving the fragrances weird and interesting names - in fact they have a "squee" set (a sample set of 10 vials) that is devoted to their most weirdly named perfumes and the set is called "You're Wearing What?" It includes names like "Wrestling Tigers While Calling Your Mum Long Distance", "Swift-Tuttle's Shiny Butt" and "Kuiper Belts Objects Unite in Vengeance".  I quite like like their concept though - they make strange and interesting little smells - not all are the scents are what I would call wearable but I'm always surprised and entertained by what they come up with hahaha.  Oh - my personal favourite was the new April 2017 spring perfume they launched called "Dr. Zomg's Extremely Reliable Callipygian Embiggener" - I found out that "Callipygian" means "having nicely formed buttocks" so I guess that perfume is a bit of joke about all the booty enhancing products out there that (probably) don't work.  Also... "embiggener" hahaha.  I think I might have to order that one just for the name too!

 

Re: 31 Days of Perfume Challenge

Today I wore Atelier Cologne Cedre Atlas. From just outside the vial, it has a woodsy aroma, but immediately after unstopping the vial you smell a tart non-orange citrus and it is followed by a very light floral. Like many of the Atelier scents I have tried, it disappears almost completely by mid day, but in the mean time it sits softly on the skin. It is neither masculine or feminine to me, just heavily citrus. For some reason I just don't like this one as much. 

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