Summer Fragrance Challenge ( Quest For Perfect Summer Scent )

[RavenR]

I guess I need a partner in crime. 😉 I am trying to find a perfect summer scent, and I am sure I am not alone on that quest. I see people asking about summer scents all the time. I've been going through a lot of samples lately, old and new. Why not make it fun and ask you, guys, to join me! Maybe we can help each other. It is definitely way more fun to play when in good company. So! Bust out that endless stash of samples! Let's find that perfect summer scent! Let's try a new scent every day, or whenever we feel like it, and compare our notes. Come! Play!

 

[pocketvenus]

@RavenR Love your review!!! And my understanding is that this was Hermes' attempt to appeal to "young people" ha ha. I have never seen someone Gen Y/Z wear a twilly scarf 😛

[RavenR]

TF Soleil Blanc. Rich and creamy suntan lotion. It opens with strong, very loud white flowers, but that quickly quiets down and softens. Becomes warmer. There's some ylang ylang, coconut, vanilla and amber. It's super creamy and soft, fragrant, stubborn, demands attention. Bit heavy and cloying ( but not in a sweet way ). It's a pretty scent, happy scent, safe scent, a crowd pleaser. But nothing special about it. It smells like many other beach scents out there. Super underwhelming.

TF Eau de Soleil Blanc. Lighter, fresher, airier, sparkier version. A lot of citrus and white flowers... strong tuberose... slightly creamy base ( not as heavily creamy as the EDP ), touch of spice, dash of powder, bit of salt... It's sunny, cheerful, sparkly, but also smooth. It does smells like the EDP in a way. You can definitely say they are cousins. But it's also different enough to get both if you like them.It's pretty, pleasant, safe. Easy to wear. Easier than the EDP. That one is just so rich and creamy it ends up being super heavy and cloying. I like this one better. And this one performs better on me, too. ( They don't last. Super short lived. )

Both of these smell safe, generally pleasing, and inoffensive. Crowd pleasers. Which is cool. I see why they're popular. There's just nothing special about them. To me, they smell like so many other beachy ( suntan lotion ) scents out there. Surprisingly meh. TF, dude, blink twice if you've been kidnapped!

[RavenR]

Zoologist Chameleon. Very much tropical flowers, sun, greenery and wet woods. Little earthy. Just like the rain forest with its lush greenery, and fantastic tropical flowers. Super damp and humid. Sticky, really. But gorgeous. There’s some tropical fruitiness to it too. It is really like the rain forest near a beach. You can smell all what I mentioned above with some whiffs of salty, sea air and sand from the beach. Even your warmed up skin pleasantly salty. Warm, sunny, tropical, a bit creamy. Super pleasant. It reminds me so much of some past sunny, tropical adventures, and calls for new ones. Unusual offering from Zoologist ( because it is so "normal" compared to their usual beautiful weirdos ). I kind of like it. It's sunny and cheerful. Happy.

[Titian06]

@RavenR - This one sounds nice!

[RavenR]

@Margalee Yeah. I'm primarily looking for some kind of realistic ( or even a good "fantasy" ) sea/salt/marine stuff scent. Not your typical, usual beachy and summery scents. But I am going through all my samples ( or trying to ), and I am not dismissing other possibilities. You never know. So many nice scents out there. I just have the hardest time with spring/summer scents and finding something that I'd really like. Love! As I lean more toward richer fall/winter kind of fragrances. I don't like most of the usual summer notes. And concoctions. 

Thanks for your suggestions! 

[RavenR]

Zoologist Squid today. Well, this is an interesting take on marine scent. Amber-marine. With a lot of smoke and incense. And I am loving it! It's so so good! It makes me think of Cthulhu. Not a squid. It's divine! And powerful. It smells of salt, ink and smoke. Wild sea winds, crashing waves, and velvety sea foam. It smells of old, angry volcanos still spitting tons of smoke out, and ground that hasn't settled down yet. It smells of warm, ancient sun, and deep, virgin, dark blue, almost black, ocean. Depths unreachable for mere mortals. But those depths are not cold. There is a big, soft, amber heart beating down there, and warming everything up with vanilla-ish heartbeats like warm hugs. Hard to describe this one. But it is simply wonderful! Mmmmm....

[pocketvenus]

@RavenR Wow, this one sounds really interesting. The Zoologists are definitely not for everyone but I have never been bored by any! The reformulated my favourite one though, Bat ;_;

[LCResz]

Kicking it old school today: Clarins Eau des Jardins. It’s fruity but not very sweet, and floral without being overpowering. It doesn’t project a whole lot, but as a skin scent it stick around all day, and when things get hot and humid here in FL the scent makes me feel refreshed.

[alexasteph]

I haven’t been wearing perfume much lately, but I immediately thought of By Rosie Jane Leila Lou Perfume when I saw “summer.” It may be a bit more of an early summer/late spring type of scent, not a late summer type sent, if that specific of a scent season matters to any one haha. It’s just so fresh and easy and bright, without being harsh. It smells exactly how outside smells, if that makes sense… Fresh cut grass, crisp air. It just reminds me of a calm sunny summer morning where there’s no rush to start the day. 

[RavenR]

I am wearing TOM FORD Soleil Brulant Eau de Parfum Fragrance today. First time trying it. It is super interesting for my non pro nose to try and figure it out. 😄 

Rich, creamy, heavy, powdery, sweet, burnt.There are a lot of things and morphs going on right from the get go. This opens up citrusy and bitter on me. It even has something medicinal to it. Quite sharp and in your face. Then pink pepper and burnt honey quickly show up. Honey takes over. And everything smells of that burnt honey. Quite prominent leather. And amber. And then finally white flower ( orange blossom ) starts to emerge and the scent softens and turns into more pleasant composition where all those notes finally come to some agreement to start behave and play nice together. As it was sitting on my skin longer and longer, it settled into quieter and softer leathery-ambery-woody ( think I can smell some vetiver, too ) base with distant creamsicle vibe. Very faint, though. It’s powdery. Sweet. Quite rich, creamy, and cloying. But not in a sweet way. That burnt thing that now smells like burnt honey AND burnt leather at the same time is still there, and even though it's in the background, it's quite distracting to my nose. Makes me frown. No hidden beach vibes. It’s more like some weirdo gourmand. It does get a bit lighter the more it sits on your skin. But still no beachy, summery vibes.

( At the end of the day when I tried to scrub it off, and off course couldn't do it... what was left was finally something faintly and pleasantly beachy and summery. If it were like this the whole time instead of the crazy ride it gave me... that would've been pretty nice. I think I really, really, really do not like burnt honey. It messed it all up for me. )

[RavenR]

@Margalee You definitely should try it. It is really interesting. Just not my cup of tea. 

[LCResz]

@RavenR Today Jo Malone London Fig & Lotus Flower Cologne was calling. Such a great summer scent! Opening with a sweet, milky fig that is not cloying, it has an aquatic floral heart that makes you feel like you are going to have a great day all day long!

[RavenR]

Haven't tried this one yet. But, mmm, it sounds good! 

@LCResz 

[eshores]

@RavenR, how fun! I don't know if I have enough fragrances to try a new scent every day, but I've been loving NEST New York Sunkissed Hibiscus Eau de Parfum 1.7 oz/ 50 mL this summer - it's like a vacation in a bottle. 

[pocketvenus]

@RavenR I love this thread, will join in if I try any summery scents.

Also, have you tried the HERMÈS Eau des Merveilles 1.6 oz/ 47 mL ? Or the HERMÈS Eau des Merveilles Bleue Eau de Toilette 1 oz/ 30 mL ?

[RavenR]

Thanks, @pocketvenus !

I haven't. Hopefully I will now. Have you tried those? What are they like? 

[pocketvenus]

@RavenR It's been forever and a day since I tried them but recall them having a salinity that might offer the sort of salt water accord you're looking for?

[RavenR]

Today's lucky winner is TOCCA Giulietta . Clean, fresh, floral. Pretty, colorful bouquet. So many different flowers. I like that I can smell lilac as it is very dear to me. That green apple at the opening is giving all the flowers a nice fresh touch. It's lovely and soft. Just a touch of powder. Somewhat soapy. Kind of romantic.Very easy to wear, and I'd say a crowd pleaser. It's just... pretty. Non offensive. ( Unless someone is sensitive to some of these many flowers. It is really a rich bouquet! But the scent is not strong. It is pretty gentle after initial spray. ) It smells more like spring, but I don't see why it couldn't be summer, too. 

Not what I'm looking for.

[RavenR]

I was wearing Atelier Cologne Lemon Island Pure Perfume 3.3 oz/ 100 mL Cologne Absolue Pure Perfume Spray  again today. To finish up the sample vial. And because I like it. But it is barely there on the skin. Barely noticeable. Shame. I am curious if sillage would be better if I could actually spray it on. If it would make any difference.

This is what I wrote about it yesterday in another thread. Still think the same:

It is soft, quiet ( too quiet! ), with subtle beach vibes. It opens with a splash of this soft and almost creamy lemon. Not your typical AC sharp citrus. Then it quickly turns into soft beach vibe kinda scent. Bit creamy, bit sweet, bit salty, definitely sunny and warm. Like a lazy day at some sandy beach hidden among lemon trees. It's simple, but pleasant, and I am really enjoying it. The only problem is... the sillage is almost non existent. I can barely smell the cologne, even after I first apply it.