Fragrance Junkie Central

[Mochapj]

I know there are a few of us on BT that are fragrance addicts, so I thought it would be nice to have a dedicated place where we can share our thoughts.

This is not to take away from the lovely What Are You Wearing Today, Fragrance Edition thread, but more a place to post longer reviews, chat about new brands or releases, and just shoot the breeze on anything good and smelly 🙂

For me, I recently acquired 2 new decants that I've been anxiously awaiting.  Ever since Lachaton mentioned that MMM was releasing a new scent called By The Fireplace I've been itching to get my hands on it.  My decant arrived yesterday, so I'm looking forward to marinating in it this weekend.  Secondly, I recently picked up a tiny sample of Shiseido Nombre Noir.  Supposedly it is one of the most expensive failures in perfume history - made by Serge Lutens for Shiseido back in the 80s.  Of course, with a backstory like that, I was dying to get a sniff 😄

What's new on your scent radar?  Do tell!

 

[Mochapj]

I had a bit of an eye-opener last night.  

I was sorting through my 'samples to try' vials and upon counting, it seems I still have a backlog of 90 new things to sample.  These were acquired either as decants, GWP, sampler sets from brands, or random suggestions from others.

I need to start working through this mountain, so as of today, I'm committing myself to not acquiring any more until I've gotten through all of these.  At a rate of 2/day, that should take me 4.5 months (if I humor my husband and don't sample on weekends, or 6.5 weeks if I do) 😮

So, starting today, I'll also be posting my thoughts on what I'm trying (when time permits)

Arquiste L'etrog

notes: citron, myrtle, date fruit, vetiver

I'm really starting to appreciate Arquiste as a fragrance house.  Their scents are beautifully blended, sophisticated, and stronger than subtle, but not quite punchy, either.  Elegantly restrained.  L'etrog smells like Italy in the summer.  Bright, lemony citrus, the astringent sweetness of dates, and also the herbaceous breathiness of bay leaves.  I enjoy it; I'm going to put it in my 'try again' pile, as I think it might shine more in summer.  But even now it is a strong contender to be FB worthy.

Andy Tauer Pentachord Auburn

notes: cinnamon, citrus, sandalwood, amber, tobacco

I think I got lucky liking the few Tauer blind buys I have made, because since those few I have sampled at least a half dozen more and have not enjoyed them in the slightest.  I was cautiously optimistic for Pentachord Auburn, because I really like cinnamon and tobacco, and can enjoy the others depending on the blend.  This is not appealing on my skin in the slightest.  It has an overpowering aroma of Playdoh, powdery plastic and those pastel colored Rockets candies (I think in the US you call those 'Smarties')  This couldn't be more of a NO for me if it tried.  I don't get cinnamon at all, unless you consider the breath of a person who has eaten too many candy hearts as an accurate representation of cinnamon.  I had been intrigued to try Pentachord Verdant (if I could find it) but I think now I will pass.  AT and my skin seem to be at odds.

score: 2 down, 88 more to go...

[CosmicBeauty247]

i am loving your detailed reviews, and look forward to reading through your thoughts on the 88 scents left to go. 🙂

while i was pregnant, i gave myself the task of going through all my samples, one per day, every day. i didn't have quite a stash like yours, but nevertheless my stash was large enough to bother me. and it took me about 1.5 months to go through them. i was able to narrow down what i loved, liked, and give away.

[Mochapj]

I didn't think I had that many, until I counted them all up. 😮

My next decision is if I want to bounce around, or devote myself to exploring one brand at a time.  I had fun going through brands previously, so I am leaning towards that, but I worry I'll burn out quicker that way.  

For instance, explored Serge Lutens around this time last year, and after going through ~30 scents, it was pretty apparent what notes he was partial to (rose, lily, jasmine)

[k617]

I kept hearing about this Luckyscent profile quiz so I went and took it as well. I was recommended:

Loukhoum   - Keiko Mecheri

Made in Heaven   - A Lab on Fire  

Kashan Rose   - The Different Company  

Made in Heaven doesn't seem to have very good reviews, but I ordered samples of all 3 recommendations. I also ordered samples of:

Moon Dance   - Juliette Has a Gun 

Rose 31   - Le Labo   
Rose Cut   - Ann Gerard  
Hedonist Rose   - Viktoria Minya 

I'm looking for a warmer, more complex rose for the winter, to go with my current rose fav JM Red Roses.

[Beautiful2468]

DSH Inner Sanctum is both bright and warm, which seems to be uncommon for winter-appropriate rose scents. It has a little incense/warm woods with the rose that's not overbearing, it just rounds the rose out beautifully.  I love the smell of roses, hate the smell of 'rose perfume,' but I really liked that one.

Her website is clunky to say the least, but I weathered it out and chose some samples, and overall I was pretty impressed with the compositions. There's a variety set of darker roses here: http://www.dshperfumes (dot) com/shop/fragrance-families-sample-pack-florals-no-8-dark-roses/  (Inner Sanctum is the only rose of hers that I've tried so far.)

[Beautiful2468]

Also, I'm really curious about Loukhoum and Made in Heaven, I'd love to hear what you think of them.

[LolliLove]

I know you didn't ask me, but I thought I'd butt in.  I tried Loukhoum about a year ago and really wanted to like it, but it's just SO sweet and powdery.  I'm a rose lover, but for me this lost the rose and wandered into candy-land.

[Beautiful2468]

Thanks for butting in! That sounds exactly like what I don't like, so that's really helpful feedback. I'll probably still try it at some point, but I'll bump it down my lengthy 'to try' list. : )

[Mochapj]

I just had a thought - have you ever tried Serge Lutens Chergui?  It's not specifically just a rose scent, but it is warm, definitely complex and it has rose notes, along with a bit of hay, honey, tobacco... other stuff.  

It's a great winter scent.

[CosmicBeauty247]

i would also suggest chergui - it's really beautiful and complex. i get rose notes from this as well.

definitely try this from surrender to chance.

[k617]

Definitely have not tried! This is my first time ordering samples without smelling them first!

I wanted to try a few Serge Lutens fragrances but Lucky Scent didn't carry any of them in sample form. I'm waiting to smell the ones I ordered, then I might go over to Perfumed Court.

I will add your suggestion to the list 😄

[lachaton]

Chergui doesn't feel like a rose scent on me, but it is LOVELY so I hope you do check it out! 

K, I just tried out Surrender to Chance, and so far I've been happy - they seem to have regular coupons if you sign up for the newsletter. 

Did I talk to you about Evening Rose from Aerin? It's one of my fave rose scents for a warmer fragrance. Also, what about SL La Fille de Berlin? Also a favourite 😄 the peppery notes make it so nice!

Since you like JM Red Roses - have you tried Velvet Rose & Oud? I haven't myself, but maybe it would work.

Also, try Guerlain! Guerlain loves rose and they do complex scents well. 

[k617]

Thanks for all the suggestions lachaton!

I didn't like Evening Rose, it was too boozy for me 😞

I will take note of all the others you suggested. the HR Guerlain rep gave me a couple of Guerlain samples but they were ICK. Miss Guerlain and French Kiss, I think?

I think I might have spritzed Velvet Rose & Oud when I was buying Red Roses, and I didn't like it, but I think I'll need to go and check it out again to be sure. I might be thinking of Tuberose Angelica or something like that.

[lachaton]

was it Mademoiselle Guerlain that you tried, maybe? You can try the Bloor Boutique, too. 

I tend to prefer the classic line - and of course, it also depends on if there are any notes that you hate 😉 I also find Guerlain can be a bit harder to love some, because many of the classics have that older, vintage composition to them. I know some people hate it now, but I'm rather partial to it - some are also rather strong. If you love rose, I'd try Nahema, maybe Idylle, Rose Barbare. 

Also, Chanel - No 19. I'm trying Misia soon, so I'll update you on that one...

La Fille de Berlin is great though, might be worth a SL sample if you happen to be ordering some!

[k617]

Yeah, Mademoiselle Guerlain. I don't think I would call Bloor Boutique to send me samples though (I'm in Calgary)?

Unfortunately, I could not stand Chanel No. 19. It smelled like straight up baby powder to me. It was so offensive to my nose, I actually got a huge headache when I smelled it 😞 I think I actually got a sample of the poudre version, which makes sense as to why it smelled like baby powder!

La Fille de Berlin I wanted to try, but LuckyScent  did not have samples 😞

[lachaton]

Ah darn, I forgot you were in Calgary! They have free shipping, but I don't think they do decants so that wouldn't help. 

Oh, that's right you did mention that. Keep an eye out at the other decant websites if you ever place an order - I've seen it on some others 🙂 

[Mochapj]

I did my profile the other day and got 3 things I am pretty certain I wouldn't like.

I wish it had somewhere to tell them what things you don't like, in order to prevent that from happening.

Anyway, I have Moon Dance and it's really nice.  My notes from when I had trialed it say 'soft rose, slightly powdery'

I'm going to give your 'complex, warm rose' criteria some thought.  I may have suggestions...

[k617]

I'm still trying to figure out what sorts of notes appeal to me, other than the obvious ones I know of already: rose, jasmine, peony, patchouli, I have no clue, probably because I really don't know what musk is supposed to smell like on its own, or neroli, or amber, or aldehydes...LOL the list goes on.

I have a feeling I was recommended some gourmand scents because I told them V&R Flowerbomb is on my top 5, and I like the scent of cookies baking and Turkish delight. I LIKE those scents, but it doesn't necessarily mean I want to SMELL like them.

[buggirl]

hey folks, just wanted to point out that the bglowing dot com 20% 5 hour sale DOES NOT exclude many of the perfumes (there are a couple brands excluded).  I bit the bullet and bought D.S. & Durga Mississippi Medicine because I have really been drawn to the descriptions of it and that brand isn't excluded. So there is about an hour left on that.  It runs out 10pm CST

[HoneyBrownBunny]

So I took the scent profile quiz at Luckyscent and got samples of the recommendations. One of them is SL Jeux de Peau. I'm wearing it today and it's reminding me of 2 things: toast and those [disgusting] butter popcorn flavored jellybeans. I think I like it...

[CosmicBeauty247]

i read about jeux de peau:

and your detection of toast and butter is consistent with what the reviewer said about this being a woody, dark gourmand.

i need to try this! 🙂