The Perfume Challenge

[txcatx]

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!

[pocketvenus]

Tried Clive Christian's L for women which is described by the website as a bold chypre fragrance, built around a rose and jasmine samba heart and with a twist of dry orris and dry peppery frankincense, wrapped up in sensual vanillas and musks.

I actually get fruit in the opening, something light, peachy and feminine before patchouli fills out the bottom. The perfume has many facets but mainly, a luminous jasmine/floral accord takes center stage. There is a shift to a powdery iris and rich, earthy patchouli. In the end, the skin scent is a powdery floral. I was expecting to like this one more than V, which I reviewed below, as I do enjoy chypres, but it really didn't suite me. Like, if it was a symphony, it would be Brahms who I can't stand. My apologies to Brahms fans, I know that he is a great composer!! But there was something dull, plodding and soupy about L for me. It's not horrible, in fact, there's a pleasing richness to it at times, but ultimately, I found it rather boring.

Excellent longevity and sillage. I wonder if I'd have better luck with the men's fragrances.

[pocketvenus]

I tried some of the LV Men’s collection on paper today with mixed results. I do see that others seem to really like l’Immensite and Nouveau Monde though, so please don’t take my words as a final verdict.

The Good 

Orage is a competent, well blended fresh fragrance with a rooty iris, grassy vetiver and rich patchouli. Smells unisex to me. Quite pleasant and versatile, if not a bit pricey.

The Bad

l’Immensitie is generic sporty fragrance. The friendly kid brother of Dior’s Sauvage. Like ambroxan came up and gave you a jocular punch square in the arm. “What’s up bro!” Could work for a man in his early twenties with six pack abs and a carefree demeanor.

The Ugly

Nouveau Monde started off quite promisingly. There is a hint of a creamy, cheesy oud in the beginning that shocked me as I was expecting your typical raspy synthetic oud. I was pretty excited because the blue-cheese ouds I have smelled like Malle’s The Night are not easy to carry off while NM has just a hint of it. However, this interesting opening only serves to heighten the travesty that follows. After an hour the scent has collapsed into a sweet, headache-inducing mess of generic musks and god knows what else. I also recall LV’s women’s oud, Matiere Noire, drying down into a saccharine vat of regret. Very disappointing considering the nose, Jacques Cavellier, was on the team behind the groundbreaking oud, YSL’s M7.

[pocketvenus]

I skin-tested TF's Ombre Leather and Fougere d'Argent today.

OL opens with a beautiful luxury handbag leather using a durable hide and a smooth finish. It is softer than Tuscan Leather's deep, burnished tones. OL softens into a more suede like texture in the dry down and carries a touch of amber sweetness. I was considering getting this when I read about it, but it just becomes too harsh and sweet on my skin after a couple hours. I don’t do well with sweet and my skin can amp that up. Also, I prefer scents that are more structured on the dry down and this became fuzzier and indistinct. A little sad this didn't work out for me, especially as the opening was great 😞

I smelled OL16 ages ago and am not sure I even tested it on my skin so I can’t compare it to the new OL. I wish I could do a side by side comparison. The current Holts SA for TF insisted that this was the exact same juice and when I pointed out the price difference from OL16, he backtracked a little and said okay, they may have made a few changes. Ha ha ha!

Fougere d’Argent is not your typical fougere, which I associated with a fresh lavender and being brisk or brightly aromatic. As I’d hoped, this fougere features a very metallic lavender, nothing like, paper money! Even the ginger note feels chilly and metallic. The opening is a little tinny on me and closeup, I didn’t like it at all. But FA is fantastic from about half a foot away!!! And as it develops, it begins to have a very rich feel to it as its metallic chill is tempered by the amber and tonka. Although it never devolves into your typical musky, ambery vanilla cream oriental. As the two sides of FA blend together, it begins smelling good closer and closer to the skin. The scent eventually coalesces into an unsentimental, medicinal lavender with a hint of Muskol in the dry down, but not in a bad way. For those unfamiliar with Muskol, it’s an old school insect repellent that used to have very high concentrations of DEET, a toxin so potent, you couldn’t touch plastic after application because you’d melt it. I should however mention that as harsh as Muskol used to smell, I have only positive associations with it. The scent of it reminds me of long, hot and mosquito-free summers in Muskoka cottages spent exploring the bush, boating and fishing.

This is not something I can see myself wearing but I’m pleasantly surprized. A rich and spicy fougere that’s a little aloof and a bit haughty. Not an easy wear. I think it fits the house well and a woman could definitely carry this despite fougeres being a "masculine" genre.

[curlychiquita]

Thanks for posting detailed reviews, @pocketvenus!  I am really curious about these and the closest Nordstrom is almost an hour ftom my house.

[pocketvenus]

@curlychiquita, You're most welcome! ❤️ I'm so glad these can be helpful 🙂 If you are looking for perfume reviews, a number of perfume bloggers write really good ones, much more detailed and experienced than what I can write. My favourite blogs are Kafkaesque and Bois de Jasmin.

[Titian06]

My mom went to Bermuda and came back with a travel spray of Oleander from Lily Bermuda.  As I spritzed it on, I could smell light and very powdery.  Once it was on, I couldn't smell it at all--nothing.  Mom really likes the scent, which didn't surprise me.  She gravitates towards light, powdery scents.

[pocketvenus]

A very sweet SA gave me a couple samples of Clive Christian's women's perfumes. She asked me to choose a couple, but I asked her to pick what she thought were the best in the house. So today I'm testing V For Women, which is described as a fruity floral. Fruity florals are definitely not to my taste, but V really surprized me!

The notes pyramid differs from site to site. The official CC website description is as follows, "With bergamot, black pepper and frankincense it is brimming with aromatic allure. At its heart is a clean jasmine note, complimented by top notes of cassis and palmarosa. The perfume is light and clean before richer notes of dark plum and ylang ylang take over." It also identifies palmarosa and cedarwood as key notes.

I don't know where Basenotes got its pyramid from but it does read as more complete, even though it repeats the cistus note.

• Peach, Neroli, Bergamot
• Jasmine, Carnation, Ylang-ylang, Rose, Gardenia, Orange blossom, Pink pepper, Black pepper, Chamomile, Lavender, Liatris, Heliotrope, Coriander seed, Cistus
• Honey, Sandalwood, Ambrette seed, Benzoin, Amber, Cistus, Oak moss, Patchouli, Leather, Frankincense, Labdanum, Musk 

edit: There are two CC scents with the name V! Apologies for any confusion, I smelled the 2017 release and this pyramid was for a different scent!

Rather than the insipid, generic opening I associate with fruity florals, V began with a strange, cool and damp, melony accord. The suggestion of fruit on the verge of going bad, but without any rotten sweetness. There were no strong and clear hespiridic notes. A hint of citrus was paired with something grassy or dark, which I'm guessing was the oakmoss. ed: I think what I had attributed to citrus and moss was the palmarosa which is described as lemony with green nuances. There was nothing here to remind me of sweet fruits or pretty florals. So, off to a good start.

After the initial opening, the scent shifted, with the jasmine blossoming onto the scene. It's a beautiful jasmine although I wouldn't describe it as clean. You get a delicate jasmine tea like aspect as well as a touch of jasmine's leathery side. If by "clean" this means no ripe bananas, mothballs or rotting indoles, then yes, this jasmine is clean. But it is also lush, complex and sensual and filled out by accompanying notes.

After roughly half an hour, the fruit starts to come to the fore. One pyramid states the main fruity note is peach and the other plum. I would say there is the weird melon accord from the opening that remains throughout the scent's development and then a dark rich plum emerges, bringing a sweetness. And it is the mellow sweetness of plum offset by a bit of tartness. It's not sugar sweet, honey sweet, nothing like that at all. As the plum strengthens, it brings with it a surprizing turn towards something smoky, incense-like even. How delicious!

I have to admit, at this point in the scent's development, I took a mid-morning nap and woke up to a more generic fruity floral, albeit, a very nice and nuanced one. At this point the fragrance becomes very pretty and feminine. You have a creamy fleshy-fruit and woods base enlivened by sharper aromatic facets and the barest whisper of smoky leather. I more impressed by the fragrance's early development in which the notes were continually shifting around, making it very interesting and exciting to wear. I have the sense that every time you wear this, you'll detect different notes.

I should probably note here that CC's perfumes are exorbitantly expensive, and in what I find to be a rather crass move, the house's tagline is "the most expensive perfume in the world." Which I'm not even sure if that's true with what fellow British house Roja Dove charges and all the ultra-expensive attars and what not on the market. Regardless, at US$395/50ml, this is at the high end of what the market will bear. Is it worth it??

Value is really subjective, especially with perfume which commands very high margins and much of the price going toward factors like prestige, marketing and the actual bottle itself. Kafkaesque wrote an article awhile ago stating a "Roja Dove rule" which I'll paraphrase as "if the fragrance is opulent with quality ingredients that are expertly crafted together, yes, the price is flagrantly exorbitant, if not arrogant, but that's just a part of the prestige of the scent and the price is justified."

So I'd almost give V a "Roja Dove rule" pass were it not for the less than interesting dry-down and the fact that V smells remarkably like a much more affordable scent, Frédéric Malle's Le Parfum de Thérèse which retails at almost half the price of V at US$225/50ml. LPDT shares the odd melon note, a soft peppery spice, a beguiling, sensual jasmine, a sweet plum and a leathery base. Notably, the pyramid on Basenotes is very similar

• Mandarin, Melon, Jasmine, Pepper
• Violet, Rose, Plum, Nutmeg
• Cedar, Vetiver, Leather

LPDT was released 12 years prior to V and while you don't get the twists and turns of V, I think it is the superior fragrance. It's like V takes LPDT and adds all these unnecessary bells and whistles. They're nice, and I'm guessing V uses more expensive ingredients, but V lacks the emotional tenor of LPDT that makes the latter fragrance in my mind, the better perfume, as well as one of the best from Malle.

[pocketvenus]

I tried Juliette Has a Gun's Moscow Mule yesterday on a piece of paper. It really does open up like a refreshing cocktail and the copper note blends in nicely. It's not overly metallic or harsh. I did however, find that the dry down lost its fresh quality to a heavier "clean musk" that I'm guessing is ambroxan. I really wish the perfume had maintained its fresh, crisp and dewy opening rather than becoming fuzzy and musky.

If that development from refreshing to musky sounds good, I'd give MM a try 🙂 If you'd rather a cocktail that remains light and sparkling, I'd recommend Frederic Malle's Angeliques Sous La Pluie.

[Titian06]

@pocketvenus - I'm glad you were able to finally give Moscow Mule the sniff test.

[pocketvenus]

Thanks, @Titian06, me too 🙂

[LCResz]

@pocketvenus Thanks for the details, the scent hasn’t been stocked at my local Sephora yet and I’ve been dying of curiosity! Your review reminds me of how I felt when I tried JHaG’s Sunny Side Up, the opening is very bright but it quickly morphs into something muskier as it dries down. JHaG doesn’t really do light and fizzy scents, it’s more of a roses and woods kind of house. 

[pocketvenus]

@LCResz, You're most welcome and yes, this was my impression of the house too - woody and musky on the dry down. I figure they must love ambroxan as Not a Perfume is based on it. I was reading up on MM and indeed, the base has ambroxan! I really like that they are clear about which aromachemicals they've used in case people are sensitive to them. Usually, houses will just write something more romantic like, "woods, cashmere musk and amber" instead.

Top notes Lime Bergamot Ginger

Heart notes Jasmine Apple Essence

Bottom notes Ambroxan Norlimbanol Ambretolide

I had to look up norlimbanol and ambretolide. Norlimbanol is described as dry, woody and patchouli-like which might explain why the scent no longer seems dewy. Ambretolide is described as soapy and musky with a sweet, fruity touch, so again, clean musk.

[pocketvenus]

I tried Maison Francis Kurkdjian's Grand Soir yesterday (on skin) and Ex Nihilo's Viper Green (paper).

Grand Soir is a lovely deep amber that's rich but also soft and slightly powdery so it's not too dense. There is a strong sweetness but it has a mellow quality, nothing overwhelming or harsh. The benzoin lends some shape and darkness which helps. I'm not really an amber fan but this is done well. Personally, I'd like something more up top, a dusting of cumin perhaps - but I think what I really want is another Absolue Pour Le Soir. Grand Soir is simple and that on its own can be difficult to do well.

Great projection that lasts. The longevity is just incredible. I gave this one spray at 7pm yesterday and I could still smell it on my skin when I woke up at 10. That's 15 hours!

Viper Green is a bright scent that is very high pitched, uncomfortably high for me. The opening is piercing. I love galbanum and appreciate its sharpness but I'd like it at least an octave lower. I also love vetiver but when it's very grassy and earthy. It feels like any trace of that has been stripped away with an industrial cleanser. The scent that remains is fresh and its floral notes unsentimental. It softens up in the dry down and the iris helps to tame the edges somewhat, but the scent continues to irritate me, like the whine of a mosquito. I'm relieved I didn't spray this on my skin. Just the thought of smelling it for hours is exhausting.

[blackkitty2014]

@pocketvenus, thanks for the review.  I have the soft spot for Maison Francis Kurkdjian.  If it aint for the cost, i would probably own a bottle or 2.  The samples that i tried out are excellent ... just a tiny bit lasts me all day ... and guess what it lingers on my coat for days 🙂

[pocketvenus]

@blackkitty2014, You're welcome! I also find MFK scents very long lasting 🙂 I wish he made smaller sizes. I would buy Absolue Pour Le Soir in a heartbeat if it came in 7.5ml or even 30ml. It's just too difficult to wear for most occasions!

[howconnie]

Tried a few different fragrances, sometimes this site is hard to log into 

versace Bright Crystal requires a lot of sprays for me to smell, but last 12 hours once on. Love the mix of Peony and yuzu for spring.

d&g Light Blue intense This scent is more linear than the original. It last longer, but I prefer the more complex original.

Commodity Nectar smells so good to me now. Just finished my sample and loved the honeysuckle and Neroli 

[Titian06]

Yesterday, I wore MMR Jazz Club.  I really liked this one.  I've made the first pass through the MMR sample set; now I'm on to round two.

Pink Pepper, Primofiore Lemon, Neroli Oil, Rum Absolute, Clary Sage Oil, Java Vetiver Oil, Tobacco Leaf Absolute, Vanilla Bean, Styrax Resin 

Today, I wore Juliette Has a Gun Moscow Mule.  I liked it better this second time around.  It has an astringent-like smell that I noticed the first time but could not identify.  Like the first time, the scent mellowed quite a bit over time.

[pocketvenus]

@Titian06- Moscow Mule is def on my to try list. I wonder if the astringency is the "copper" note?

[modernwarpaint]

Today I am wearing Atelier Vanille Incensee on one wrist, and Diptyque Eau Duelle on the other.  After a couple months of sampling literal gourmands and vanilla noted fragrances, I bought Eau Duelle this weekend.  I couldn't help but pick up a sample of the Atelier just to compare on the skin.

I am so happy I am not enjoying Vanilla Incensee as much as I wanted to because then I'd be going through buyer's remorse right now.  VI does not smell good on me at all; it's very powdery and woody and I believe the coriander and lime are too biting.  So far, the opening and midnotes are not working for me. 

Eau Duelle is just absolutely beautiful.  The duel between light, sweet vanilla and the spicy warm vanilla is captivating.  At one point it smells of paper, old books, giving it a vintage vibe.  Then minutes later I smell a creamy, sweet Chai, black tea.  My only gripe is that it lacks projection.  It could stand to project just a little more and still not overwhelm people. 

[pocketvenus]

Glad you chose the right fragrance for you @modernwarpaint 🙂 The Eau Duelle sounds amazing

[pocketvenus]

I've been away with login troubles but am happy to say that I have tried a lot of new scents in the meantime. Happy to share some brief thoughts!

• Finally got around to trying the Demeter line with thanks to other BIC members for bringing it to my attention! The concept is like Commodity in that you are meant to layer the scents, but they're a little more playful and gimmicky. There are a number of oddball scents like sushi and tomato. Some scents were bang on, others were not. Thankfully, sushi does not actually smell like raw fish and vinegar rice. The cannabis flower fragrance however, was closer than I thought. Imagine weed, take out all the pungency, grassiness, oil and skunk and pile on generic floral notes. It's still miles off but I have never smelled a perfume before with a "canna" note that bore a remote resemblance. No skin testing.
• Sniffed the new Jo Malones in the fluorescent bottles - none really interested me so I didn't test on the skin. They smell very pleasant though, and good for the summer.
• Skin tested Aesop's Hwyl. Long lasting with decent projection. Somewhat reminiscent of CdG. Warm and spicy woods. Played it too safe for my taste, but this is primarily a bath and body brand so it makes sense they wouldn't make anything really creative boundary-pushing.
• Not a perfume, but I tried Le Labo's Hinoki shampoo. The scent is very long lasting. It does not smell like your typical shampoo but it reminds me of how Le Labos fall apart on me, starting off with a structure that collapses into a generic cloud of musk. So it smelled interesting in the bottle but imagine an amorphous musk floating around your head for hours... I'd much rather spray perfume right into my hair. I'm disappointed but not surprized.