BIC Fragrance Finder

[pocketvenus]

Are you looking for a new fragrance to try and fall in love with? This thread is for people looking for a signature scent or a new addition to their scent wardrobe.

It would help if you have an idea of what you're looking for. If you're not sure how to narrow things down, try asking yourself about

• Notes? Amber, bergamot, jasmine, leather, just name what you like 🙂
• Type? Looking for something floral, sweet, fresh, spicy, fruity, woody, smoky, aquatic?
• Vibe? Something sultry, girly, bracing, polished, simple, extravagant, playful?
• Place? A scent for the office, first date, weekend day wear, something else?
• Price? Let us know if you have a budget 🙂

[pluffm]

You like vanilla + lavendar and want soft and warm..  try Mon guerlain. That perfume sounds exactly what u r looking for.

[jadealycebod]

CLEAN RESERVE Classic - Rain 

[jadealycebod]

Try clean reserve! They actually have one called rain you may enjoy but all of their fragrances are not too overpowering but still smell very nice!

[pocketvenus]

@Sophiebixx If you are willing to try more classical compositions, you might enjoy fougeres which often combine vanilla and lavender. A great fougere that leans feminine is Dusita's Issara. I enjoy Sartorial by Penhaligon's as well. Bogue's MEM comes to mind. It is very complex and a bit dirty though.  

[Zandersauruslex]

Hey all!

I really loved the Mac’s Creme d’nude and velvet teddy. Looking for something similar. 
velvet teddy is listed as a honey/musk notes; “oriental. It’s probably my favorite! I also enjoy fragrances with apple tones, but not citrusy. 

Any ideas? Love to see! 

[pocketvenus]

@Zandersauruslex Try TOM FORD Tobacco Vanille Eau de Parfum Fragrance Travel Spray 0.3 oz/ 10 mL for a luxe version of Velvet Teddy 🙂

[EmLovesCake]

Hi everyone ♡ 

I'm looking for a new signature scent, no budget. I want something that's versatile and I can wear everyday both at home, and at work.

I recently moved into a more serious work environment and have been able to really realize where I'm going and I want something to match that attitude and drive. I want something minimalistic or polished. I wear very angular/boxy and tailored clothing (mostly professional) so I want it to compliment that vibe. 

I think that I'm looking for something woody, citrus, fresh, or aromatic. I do like some florals notes though, like rose and violet. 

I want to avoid sweet and fruity scents, powdery florals, and gourmands.

[jadealycebod]

TOM FORD Tobacco Vanille Eau de Parfum Fragrance 

GUERLAIN Mon Guerlain Eau de Parfum 

[bulada3]

@jadgourmand.

 #Guerlain Mon Guerlain Eau de Parfums is a gourmand scent type. I love it but thought she said no gourmands.

[pocketvenus]

@EmLovesCake 

I'd try some of the Comme des Garcons. They are solid when it comes to urban, woody scents and are mid-range in price. You may enjoy the Monocle series. Kyoto is an incense scent but you might like this too.

Some of the Hermes might work for you. I wouldn't overlook scents marketed to men. HERMÈS Terre d’Hermès Eau de Toilette 6.7 oz might be up your alley and it's fantastic. Another one that's very bold that suits the look you're going for is Gallop. Don't be put off by the rose in the notes pyramid - it is not romantic or girlish at all. Rather it is modern, polished and sophisticated.

TOM FORD Grey Vetiver Gift Set is also marketed for men but it's very versatile and not too heavy for the office.

[EmLovesCake]

@pocketvenus 

Thank you! I’ll take a look at those! 

[LadyDragonfire]

Actually..just out of curiosity, I have another quick fragrance related question for Pocketvenus as well. 🙂

  (Or..anyone who can answer the question lol.)

  I was wondering if anyone can give an example (or a few examples) of fragrances that fall within each category on the fragrance wheel (that is posted here?) 

  I understand most of the categories, I think, but I'm a bit uncertain about certain sub-categories and what perfumes belong to them? For example, "Soft Oriental", "Floral Oriental", "Woody Oriental", (I know that full Oriental is like Shalimar, I think.), Woods, Mossy Woods, Dry Woods..I'm not quite sure what the differences all all between the categories, and what fragrances would be categorized as what? I'm also not quite sure what I would categorize as "floral" or "soft floral." 🙂 

  I'm not critiqing the categories, I'm actually just asking because I'm not sure! 🙂 I was kind of thinking of this question but I didn't really think to ask it here until right now lol! 🙂

  Thank you so much! 🙂 Have a great day everyone! 🙂

[pocketvenus]

@LadyDragonfire 

Hi hi! OK, so this wheel is definitely not definitive so I would only refer to it as a guideline.

Some genres here like soft florals isn't really used to my knowledge. I'm guessing here it refers to florals that are gauzy and blurred out with a lot of cleans musks and stuff like ISO-E Super. This might be contrasted for example, with a cut-glass sharp aldehydic floral like Chanel no. 5.

There are newer genres missing in the wheel like the new smoky genre, sporty woody-ambers for men typically associated with Ambrox and other similiar chemicals, or oud which is technically a wood, but it's sooooo different from the other woods, I would give it its own genre with sub-genres like rose-oud.

Like all categories, there are fragrances that fall in multiple ones and I think that's a part of what this wheel is trying to capture with these mixed genres. So instead of just "floral" there is "floral oriental" which is exactly what it sounds like. Oriental but with strong floral notes, sometimes called floriental. TOM FORD Velvet Orchid Eau de Parfum Fragrance for example, pairs jasmine and rose with a rich base of vanilla and myrrh. 

I'm really surprized at the absence of fruity floral though. This has been a dominant trend from the 90s onward that basically consumed the market with increasingly sugary iterations. Most popular women's fragrances and celebrity scents fall into this category. We have classics like Tresor by Lancome, which is also ambery, or Dior's J'Adore. The fruity floral goes way back though with great classics like Rochas Femme, Diorella and so on.

As for the woods.... Usually when we talk about woods, we're talking about clean, fresh scents or spicy scents. For clean woods, it's hard to beat Comme des Garcons. Hinoki is pretty classic, but there's also the rest of the Monocle series, Wonderwood, Wonderoud, Palisander Wood, I can't even try to list them all.

For subgenres, I'm not sure I'd go for Dry Woods. I mean, I can think of some like Diptyque's Tam Dao which is so dry to my nose it's almost scratchy. L'Artisan Parfumeur's Dzongkha is pretty dry. But you know, I think there are more fresh, citrusy woods like HERMÈS Terre D'Hermes Eau de Toilette Set than dry woods, or smoky woods likeMaison Margiela 'REPLICA' By the Fireplace.

As for Mossy Woods. I think what this is getting at is the Chypre genre, which has a traditional structure that includes a base of oakmoss. Chypres have subgenres like Guerlain's Mitsouko, a classic fruity chypre. So I wouldn't consider all chypres woody. Really mossy green chypres are a personal favourite and a major sub-genre of the chypre. Papillon Perfume has one called Dryad which is great. Etat Libre has one called Afternoon of a Faun that's pretty woody.

There's also sandalwood which can get really creamy and aromatic instead of fresh. There are so many good sandalwoods. CdG has its take with Concrete. My fave is Mona di Orio's version. Le Labo's Santal 33 is majorly popular. This doesn't even get into oud. Woods are a genre that has quite a lot of variation compared to say, citrus!

Yes, you are correct, Shalimar is an Oriental classic for sure!

I'm also going to just take this opportunity to say that this genre could basically be renamed to reflect notes like all the other genres, which would be less racist. There could be an spicy-amber genre for example. Professionals in the perfume industry are talking about possible alternatives but change has been slow.

The reason why this genre is called Oriental and not something like ambers is a result of Europeans' festishization of this diverse continent, flattening the entire region into fantasies about the decadence, opulence, sensuality and immorality of the "inscrutable East" (Opium being a classic in this genre which, if you can get your hands on the vintage stuff, smells amazing). So orientals are usually HUGE, full of rich ambers and resins, spices and animalistic musks. So not the laundry fresh musks but the filthy ones that recall the nether regions. Cleanliness and rationality are not a part of that orientalist fantasy. 

Ad campaigns emphasized this fetishization of the East and association with moral and sexual decadence. Consider, for example, this ad for Opium.

It might seem tame now but it was utterly shocking in 1994 and I believe it was under Tom Ford's direction.

Another modern video ad of Shalimar featuring Natalia Vodianova shows a romanticized version of India. You can find it on YouTube. It's beautiful but deeply orientalist a la Said.

Thankfully, noses creating scents that reflect the actual variety and diversity of the region exist now today from the legendary Amouage, formerly run by Christopher Chong, who created scents based on personal experiences to little niche houses like Jazmin Sarai, Dusita, Neela Vermiere, and so on. 

[LadyDragonfire]

  Wow! I've never seen that ad for Opium..that is actually almost pornographic! But then..yeah..it's a perfume ad. lol

  Thanks for answering my question in such detail. 🙂 

  Actually..after I asked this I did some googling and I found the fragrances of the world website (that the fragrance wheel is from.)

  So..that kind of answered some of my questions too. 🙂 But I agree with you that the fragrance wheel seems incomplete too..I think there could be some more categories there too. Still though..the person who made that website obviously did so much work! And..his knowledge of fragrance is obviously huge! 

  But again thank you. 🙂 I greatly appreciate that you took the time to answer. 🙂

[pocketvenus]

@LadyDragonfire This ad received so much criticism. It was considered pretty obscene for the mid-90s.

Yeah, I definitely do not want to say the wheel is incorrect and I found it more helpful than the usual categorizing which doesn't account for HUGE genres that overlap like the fruity floral genre. Definitely the author knows way more than fragrance than me 😛 But it could use an update to better reflect our current day situation, I think.

You're very welcome 🙂

[Titian06]

Wow!  Thanks for taking the time to share so much information, @pocketvenus !  My head is spinning!  🤪

[pocketvenus]

@Titian06 You're so welcome! Thanks for reading! Happy to share what I know about perfumes <333

[pocketvenus]

@LadyDragonfire I love this question, I'll try to reply when I have more time ❤️

[LadyDragonfire]

  Hi everyone! 🙂

  I am looking for a new fragrance to try this Spring! 🙂

  The fragrance categories I usually like are floral, fruity-floral, sometimes sweet (vanilla) and citrus scents. 🙂

  Some fragrances I have used that I enjoy are Shiseido Everbloom EDP, Marc Jacobs Daisy, Lancome's Miracle, Fresh Hesperides Grapefruit, Biotherm Eau D'Energie, L'Oreal's Gloria Vanderbilt, Love's Baby Soft and Bath and Body Works Warm Vanilla Sugar. (for example.) I would rate all of those fragrances very high..like either four or five stars! 🙂

  So..if I was looking for a new signature scent, what might you recommend? Thanks. 🙂

[jadealycebod]

Armani Beauty My Way Eau de Parfum 

[pocketvenus]

@LadyDragonfire Have you tried Dior Miss Dior Eau de Parfum or any of the Atelier Cologne Atelier Cologne Discovery Set?