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!

[bakeamuffin]

Thanks @Samtian, it’s a nice feeling to find fragrances that evoke the feelings you want them to! 

[makeitup305]

Since I've been on my "skin but better" fragrance kick, I picked up the CLEAN RESERVE Reserve - Sparkling Sugar Travel Spray 0.33 oz / 10 mL eau de parfum spray . It is very sweet, with a kick of berries and pear right at the start. It definitely mellows out to a more musky skin scent after like 30 minutes but it you don't like sugary scents (it's in the name, but they mean it!) stay away. I wish it was more musky at the dry down tbh but I'll still keep it, maybe layer it with something else to mellow it out. 3.5/5

On a side note, I tried to compare it to Radiant Nectar and now I'm annoyed. I remember Radiant Nectar having that sweet pear scent with a kind of flowery twist but when I sprayed it, I actually had to go back to my bathroom to make sure I sprayed the right one. It has completely turned on me. It is unrecognizable. The expiration for it is 24 months and I checked to see when I bought it and it was October 2020. I'm glad it was only a travel size but I'm kind of aggravated since I still have half of it left. Instead of pear I get a tobacco or coffee scent, but not in a good way. My CLEAN RESERVE Reserve - Skin 3.4 oz/ 100 mL I had for a lot longer than 2 years and it didn't start to smell off until recently (it was more alcohol-y) but I'm finishing it up as a pillow spray. Unfortunately, Radiant Nectar is going in the trash.

[treestar86]

@makeitup305  I love radiant nectar but just have a tiny 100 pt one. I thought the whole line didnt give me a headache cuz its "clean", but the last time I tried it I got a headache, so idk if it was that or just a coincidence. But I really loved that scent and wasnt aware it goes bad. :'( I got the full sized lush fleur on a good sale but havent opened it yet. now im concerned. 😬 lol

[Samtian]

@makeitup305 I'm sorry about the nectar. That sparkling sugar sounds good!

[makeitup305]

If you like sweet and fruity, this one is worth a try @Samtian 

[Samtian]

@makeitup305 Ooh I do!

[Samtian]

Neo-Animism by Mami Wata

I remember getting an email from Luckyscent about some new ones they got in, and this one was a newly released scent. I read the description, no idea what green bar soap smells like, and placed an order for this sample, and the other ones I've been trying. So this one was the whole reason I have the others haha. 

Luckyscent description-

The Scoop

Neo-Animism is a fragrance that is alive. Alive with meaning and African oceans. Our fine fragrance has been created with two dominant notes.: African ocean minerals. These capture our relationship and experience in the water. The minerals in the ocean are understood by our bodies and minds in almost imperceptible ways. Our nose can identify them.

The scent of ‘green bar soap’ captures the daily lived experience of African surfers growing up in Southern Africa. Green bar soap is a common household soap found throughout the region, that has the power to conjure memories for many people, summoning up the idea of home, or mother, fresh linen, or the beginning of a new day.

The signature fragrance was developed in partnership with South African-born Etienne de Swardt, founder of niche fragrance house Etat Libre D’Orange.

I really like the bottle.

2/5- 4 hour wear time.  Very unique start. Ocean minerals is a perfect way to describe it. I really liked this start. Dries down to a harsh green note I can't describe. One reviewer said it reminded them of something similar to marijuana but more like seaweed, and I think that is kind of fitting. Very strong. Eventually fades to a very faint clean laundry scent. If this had stayed like the start I would have been in love, but it didn't and I'm not a fan of it. 

[itsfi]

The bottle looks so fun @Samtian and I like the sound of the opening notes. That dry down, though, doesn't sound like something my nose (which was all crinkled up as I was reading your review) would like very much - seaweed marijuana is definitely a unique scent profile but I'm not sure it's a pairing that would be a good fit for me. 😂 Would be interesting to see if there's something else from the brand that might be better suited to your sense of smell - especially since the packaging looks so great!

[Samtian]

@itsfi This was a collab, the Mami Wata brand is an African surf clothing brand. But I do like some E'tat scents. 

[Kim888]

Ooh that does look interesting @Samtian! sorry to hear it wasn’t a winner !

[Samtian]

@Kim888 It really sounded like it would be great to me. Oh well. 

[Titian06]

@Samtian - When I read "green bar soap," I immediately thought of Irish Spring.  I wonder if the ad writer gave that any thought or maybe it's just me having grown up in the 1970s? 😄

[pocketvenus]

@Titian06 Ah, so distinctive, the scent of this one!

[Samtian]

@Titian06 That's what came to mind too lol. 

[Samtian]

1270 by Frapin

From Lucky Scent

The Scoop

Named for the year the Frapin family established itself in the Cognac region of France (and continues to make cognac to this day), 1270 was created by Beatrice Cointreau, great granddaughter of Pierre Frapin. Together with Frapin's Cellar Master, she sought to create a noble fragrance full of the scents surrounding the creation of cognac. 1270 is dry, rich, velvety and smooth. The flowers of the once-proud Folle Blanche (a grape nearly extinct from the region), the vineyard grass, the wine warehouse, the rich smell of damp earth in the cellars, the wood of new casks, the loamy smell of humus where the ancestral cognacs are stored– all these notes can be detected in 1270. Gorgeous is putting it mildly... this scent defies flowery prose. A true masterpiece.

1270 Fragrance Notes

exotic woods, spice, raisin, vine flowers, pepper, candied orange, nut, hazelnut, prune, cocoa, coffee, leather, woods, white honey, vanilla

Looking at these notes and the description I have no idea why I ordered this. 

3/5- 5 hour wear time. Very nutty with a little spice and coffee. Very fitting to description. Heavey, Rich, Boozy. Dries down to a chocolatey hazelnut with a hint of something else I can't explain. It's just ok for me, but not something I will seek out. 

[itsfi]

Ooooh, this one sounds like one I'd like @Samtian! If I'm remembering right, you don't like coffee scents, right? I wonder if that makes it less likable for you.

[Samtian]

@itsfi Possibly. Let me send it your way. 

[Samtian]

Hattai by Le Couvent

From Lucky Scent-

The Scoop

A member of the Eaux de Parfum Singulières collection, designed to embody the spirit of rare or endangered fauna, Hattai represents a wolf tracking silently through the woods - a chiaroscuro of light and shadow in equal measure. For darkness, we have red berries stewed in mulled wine, thickly spiced with cinnamon and cardamom, and dusted with the darkest of organic cocoa powder. Fruity and spicy, like a candle (in the best way possible) or those dense fruited breads and buns eaten all across Northern Europe at Christmas.

For the light part? A sparkling, almost fizzy amber-Ambroxan accord that is honeyed and resinous but not heavy. The musky, radiant sweetness of the drydown lifts and diffuses the darker, fruited elements of the scent, making them as bubbly as a glass of champagne. The fruit and spice dry up over time, leaving a trail of smoky woods in their place. What a surprise this one is, turning from a festive, cozy quasi-gourmand to the scent of a log fire on the cold night air.

Hattai Fragrance Notes

Red Berries, Cacao, Cinnamon, Cade Wood

4/5 6+ hour wear. Starts off a honeyed cinnamon with very slight cacao poking through. After initial spray the mulled wine comes out. Final dry down is a very heavy chocolatey wine. After 2 hours it faints to a lovely boozy chocolatey berry smell. Still heavy, winter fragrance. I really like this one, but not enough for a full size. I would definitely keep samples around. 

[pocketvenus]

@Samtian Sounds very festive 🙂 Really enjoying reading your reviews!

[Samtian]

@pocketvenus Thank you!!! It racks my brain trying to describe things. 

[itsfi]

Oh, this one sounds absolutely beautiful @Samtian! 😍 I told myself I should hold off on picking up more fragrances of any size until I make my way through a few more samples or sample sets, but this one has been added to my list of samples to pick up.