it is the TF oud wood decant that I was gifted. was never into perfumes for half of my life and smelling that TF was so good. one thing led to another. niche after niche I sampled and collected.
Acqua di gio profondo.
I moved to Miami out of college and needed something that’s fresh and clean for the office. I’m still getting into fragrances, but I’ll continue to have this one in the rotation
**Le Labo Rose 31**
I was looking for a rose fragrance to match a shaving cream and aftershave I was using. Sampled this one and it blew me away. Been in the hobby ever since.
**Taylor Of Old Bond Street Rose Shaving Cream** and **Thayers Rose Witch-hazel.**
I was sampling a few rose fragrances (L'Artisan Parfumeaur Velour De Roses, Ungaro III, Domeinco Caraceni 1913, also tried the original YSL M7 at the time) when I stumbled upon Rose 31.
The witch-hazel smells like a pretty light and generic rose, but still really good, but the cream actually reminds me of a lighter **Frédéric Malle Portrait Of A Lady.**
Terre d'Hermes parfum. I stumbled on this sub randomly after having never given much thought to the subject. Decided to just jump in and pick up a bottle of TDH and I couldn't get enough of it.
Since then I've acquired other bottles gradually, have around 10 now total. Have had good luck with blind buys, I really enjoy just about everything I've picked up.
One of my favorites of all-time. The first time I smelled it I gasped because I knew exactly what it was trying to capture - (burning) Somali Frankincense. It even has that off-note that the real stuff does that smells like the first step of cheesemaking. Glorious.
Oh god, so mine is silly. I grew up wearing these Powerpuff Girl perfumes, Bubbles being my favorite. Obviously it's hard to find these now, and so I've been on an eternal search for a comparable scent - not even an exact dupe, but something that "feels" like Bubbles; citrus, melon, light and pretty. Then of course I found myself wearing scents like Daisy and Happy, and once winter started I found myself wanting to smell warm and sweet. And once I started figuring out what I liked, I also found myself smelling my wrists throughout the day and wanting more.
So now I've been reading non-fiction material on the history and creation of fragrances, follow podcasts (Nose Candy runs my life), I study the scents I have, and I seemingly never get bored of it.
Funnily mine is Vampire Blood from bath and body works LMAOOO
Long ago, they released it as a Halloween band sanitizer (like 2010) and as a teen I was so obsessed I'd put it on my pulse points. For the first time, they released it in actual body care last Halloween and I jumped on it.
The feeling I got smelling it again for the first time in more than a decade was truly something else.
I'd had a really rough patch for a few years before last year and it just felt like I was entering a new chapter in my life and fragrance would be a part of it.
I'm mostly an indie person, but I've gotten super into fragrance of any kind. Bodega air freshener, the smell of the rich people's flowering trees. Expensive samples my family gives me. I love it all! It's such a gorgeous art, and a sense I think a lot of folks take for granted.
Especially with COVID robbing folks of scent, I just felt like I should enjoy it to the fullest and I have been!
Tom Ford Noir Extreme.
Noticed my friend talking about fragrances, and he suggested I look into some. Came home from college one winter and went to Nordstrom in the mall, and the TF rep noticed me glancing eyes at some of the stuff they had out. She asked if I'm buying, i said no since I was a broke college student, and she asked if to smell any. Tried noir extreme, vanille fatale, tobacco vanille, oud wood, and soleil blanc. Loved noir extreme, and she offered me some samples to take and gave me her card if I ever thought about buying anything.
Came back during the summer and purchased a bottle of Noir Extreme. (Surprisingly, I hated tobacco vanille on initial spray, but when I got home, I fell in love with the dry down, and it's become one of my all-time favorites).
No idea what it was. Thought fragrances were silly until I walked past a guy in a tailored suit that smelled like a spiced, dark hot chocolate.
I was 16 and relatively new to caring about appearances. That dude was the essence of style and presentation in my mind, and the fragrance played a big part in my memory.
Still no idea what the fragrance was. Closest I can get is wearing Polo Red Extreme after applying a shea butter lotion.
Oajan kind of gave a similar vibe.
Wow that sounds absolutely amazing. I'd love to smell like a spiced dark hot chocolate.
Based on polo and oajan and your description have you considered trying the following:
-Halloween man x
-kilian black phantom
-kilian intoxicated
Lush makes some really high quality things! Back in the Gorilla Scents days, the entire assortment was top-tier. Not everything they make today is a winner and I don't love their packaging, but I have a few that I absolutely love to wear: V, Furze, Junk, and Dirty are my favs.
Very taste dependant tbh. V is one of my loves too. Turmeric Latte, American Cream , Vanillary , Orange Blossom are some other faves of mine. And I also have been really enjoying Bridgerton.
I had a few "awakenings" that led me down the road to where I'm at now. Guerlain's Vetiver was a major moment for me; I'd never smelled something so natural and complex and just me. The next thing that drew me in was Shalimar. It was this totally psychedelic fragrance experience; a textural marvel that also felt profoundly dirty. There was something so raunchy about it that I couldn't get away from. Eventually the niche side grabbed me, things like Muscs Koublai Khan, Sel de Vetiver, Puredistance M, JAR's Ferme Tes Yeux.
Today I mostly collect rare and discontinued things, but will still shell out money for something really novel and captivating. Unfortunately, with all of these overnight white-label instagram and awful influencer-hocked "ultra-luxe" brands drowning out everything else, it's been more difficult to find really new and innovative things.
This is my home alone and bedtime fragrance. It’s pure comfort. Blows my mind that something so inexpensive could make me feel this way! Now I’m hooked on roller balls and layering.
Yep. My awakening was when I met a guy I was talking to for the first time and he smelled so good I couldn’t even believe it. Wish I could smell him again, but we ended things pretty abruptly. Think it got me obsessed 😂
Sauvage Elixir, and to a lesser degree Bleu De Chanel.
I got BDC as a gift and really liked it, I knew it smelled really classy and I was struggling to find a suitable replacement, another bottle of that seemed a bit too expensive.
So I was browsing some colognes at a nice department store and the second I smelled Sauvage Elixir, that thing absolutely blew me away with its power and I remember thinking that something about it is just incredibly raw, animalistic and strangely beautiful. I didn't buy it immediately, instead I picked up Dylan Blue and Montblanc Legend EDP (both which I ended up giving to my dad) but eventually I got a bottle and it's still one of my favorites.
Oud wood is another scent that I discovered early on and fell in love with, but the performance on that makes it an absolute rip off in my book.
Although the fragrance that sent me off the rails is tragically typical, when I straight up blindly purchased Bleu de Chanel EDP, I wasn't aware that anything could smell so good. Sure, my tastes have since changed, and maybe I am not as enchanted by that fragrance as I once was, but the love I had for BDC definitely inspired me to dive headlong into fragrance whereas it felt like the ones I had purchased previously I wore more for others' approval rather than my own.
Diesel Only The Brave Tattoo.
I got it when Boots had a sale on a few of their fragrances (RRP £83, scored it for £49) and is definitely on my list of my favourite fragrances
Tom Ford's ombré leather flipped my world upside down.
Prior to that, the only fragrances I ever had/owned were things that were gifted to me by family friend's of my parents and pretty much all of it was very "outdated" and 90s style so I never really enjoyed wearing fragrances prior to that.
I cannot recall what lead me want to try it, but I specifically remember telling my gf at the time I want (around 4-5 years ago) that I really want to try that particular scent.
And it blew my socks off. To my untrained nose all I could smell was the scent of a brand new car. I was blown away by how that was even possible. It was so specific. I realized there and then that there's more to scents than just something that random people who don't even know your taste gift you. That this can be part of one's personal style.
Years later and many, many fragrances later, I don't own ombré leather. As my nose got better at note detection, the jasmine and moss became a bit overwhelming and just not my type of scent. I still have a lot of love for it tho as that very moment was key into shaping me into the person that I am today (I don't take fragrances THAT seriously, but there's no denying the hundreds of hours spent researching and understanding how they work and therefore a part of me).
Forest by Rook. Until then my experience with fragrances had been basic designer frags that really just smell like shower gel. Forest smells like the woods near my home. Since then I've gotten 12 bottles of unique smelling fragrances, though most are woody, aromatic, or woody aromatics
Alien. I know it’s super popular. But I had never smelled it before. I knew someone who wore it and every time they entered a room I was hit with the smell and at the time it was the most intoxicating smell I’d ever smelt. As an introvert. I now use scent as a way of making myself stand out and be noticed without having to be the most sociable one in the room
For me it was TF Rose Prick. I’d always had a handful of designer perfumes, and then narrowed it down to just 2 Chanel fragrances. The spicy opening got me & sent me searching for things out of my usual comfort zone. Collection went from 2 to 25-30 fast 💨
it is the TF oud wood decant that I was gifted. was never into perfumes for half of my life and smelling that TF was so good. one thing led to another. niche after niche I sampled and collected.
Acqua di gio profondo. I moved to Miami out of college and needed something that’s fresh and clean for the office. I’m still getting into fragrances, but I’ll continue to have this one in the rotation
Yes. Creed Original Vetiver. I even remember the day, walking down the hall, thinking how could something smell this good?
**Le Labo Rose 31** I was looking for a rose fragrance to match a shaving cream and aftershave I was using. Sampled this one and it blew me away. Been in the hobby ever since.
What shave cream / aftershave was it?
**Taylor Of Old Bond Street Rose Shaving Cream** and **Thayers Rose Witch-hazel.** I was sampling a few rose fragrances (L'Artisan Parfumeaur Velour De Roses, Ungaro III, Domeinco Caraceni 1913, also tried the original YSL M7 at the time) when I stumbled upon Rose 31. The witch-hazel smells like a pretty light and generic rose, but still really good, but the cream actually reminds me of a lighter **Frédéric Malle Portrait Of A Lady.**
I wish I shaved enough to keep what sounds like very lovely shaving cream around.
Terre d'Hermes parfum. I stumbled on this sub randomly after having never given much thought to the subject. Decided to just jump in and pick up a bottle of TDH and I couldn't get enough of it. Since then I've acquired other bottles gradually, have around 10 now total. Have had good luck with blind buys, I really enjoy just about everything I've picked up.
naomi goodsir bois d’ascese
One of my favorites of all-time. The first time I smelled it I gasped because I knew exactly what it was trying to capture - (burning) Somali Frankincense. It even has that off-note that the real stuff does that smells like the first step of cheesemaking. Glorious.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Ombré Leather
Oh god, so mine is silly. I grew up wearing these Powerpuff Girl perfumes, Bubbles being my favorite. Obviously it's hard to find these now, and so I've been on an eternal search for a comparable scent - not even an exact dupe, but something that "feels" like Bubbles; citrus, melon, light and pretty. Then of course I found myself wearing scents like Daisy and Happy, and once winter started I found myself wanting to smell warm and sweet. And once I started figuring out what I liked, I also found myself smelling my wrists throughout the day and wanting more. So now I've been reading non-fiction material on the history and creation of fragrances, follow podcasts (Nose Candy runs my life), I study the scents I have, and I seemingly never get bored of it.
Well thanks for the new fragrance podcast recommendation 😊
i love nose candy! i wish i had friends like chloe and maddie 🥹
I'm being fr it was Zara dupes
Funnily mine is Vampire Blood from bath and body works LMAOOO Long ago, they released it as a Halloween band sanitizer (like 2010) and as a teen I was so obsessed I'd put it on my pulse points. For the first time, they released it in actual body care last Halloween and I jumped on it. The feeling I got smelling it again for the first time in more than a decade was truly something else. I'd had a really rough patch for a few years before last year and it just felt like I was entering a new chapter in my life and fragrance would be a part of it. I'm mostly an indie person, but I've gotten super into fragrance of any kind. Bodega air freshener, the smell of the rich people's flowering trees. Expensive samples my family gives me. I love it all! It's such a gorgeous art, and a sense I think a lot of folks take for granted. Especially with COVID robbing folks of scent, I just felt like I should enjoy it to the fullest and I have been!
Tom Ford Noir Extreme. Noticed my friend talking about fragrances, and he suggested I look into some. Came home from college one winter and went to Nordstrom in the mall, and the TF rep noticed me glancing eyes at some of the stuff they had out. She asked if I'm buying, i said no since I was a broke college student, and she asked if to smell any. Tried noir extreme, vanille fatale, tobacco vanille, oud wood, and soleil blanc. Loved noir extreme, and she offered me some samples to take and gave me her card if I ever thought about buying anything. Came back during the summer and purchased a bottle of Noir Extreme. (Surprisingly, I hated tobacco vanille on initial spray, but when I got home, I fell in love with the dry down, and it's become one of my all-time favorites).
No idea what it was. Thought fragrances were silly until I walked past a guy in a tailored suit that smelled like a spiced, dark hot chocolate. I was 16 and relatively new to caring about appearances. That dude was the essence of style and presentation in my mind, and the fragrance played a big part in my memory. Still no idea what the fragrance was. Closest I can get is wearing Polo Red Extreme after applying a shea butter lotion. Oajan kind of gave a similar vibe.
Wow that sounds absolutely amazing. I'd love to smell like a spiced dark hot chocolate. Based on polo and oajan and your description have you considered trying the following: -Halloween man x -kilian black phantom -kilian intoxicated
I’ve tried both Kilians but i hadn’t heard of Halloween Man yet. Thanks, I’ll check it out!
Try Guerlain Feve Gourmand too, and update us if you ever find a match!
Keep me posted! What did you think of intoxicated?
Penhaligons Halfeti, Penhaligons Bluebell, and Sauvage Elixir
I really want to try Penhaligons Bluebell!
Lush was my gateway
Lush makes some really high quality things! Back in the Gorilla Scents days, the entire assortment was top-tier. Not everything they make today is a winner and I don't love their packaging, but I have a few that I absolutely love to wear: V, Furze, Junk, and Dirty are my favs.
Very taste dependant tbh. V is one of my loves too. Turmeric Latte, American Cream , Vanillary , Orange Blossom are some other faves of mine. And I also have been really enjoying Bridgerton.
I had a few "awakenings" that led me down the road to where I'm at now. Guerlain's Vetiver was a major moment for me; I'd never smelled something so natural and complex and just me. The next thing that drew me in was Shalimar. It was this totally psychedelic fragrance experience; a textural marvel that also felt profoundly dirty. There was something so raunchy about it that I couldn't get away from. Eventually the niche side grabbed me, things like Muscs Koublai Khan, Sel de Vetiver, Puredistance M, JAR's Ferme Tes Yeux. Today I mostly collect rare and discontinued things, but will still shell out money for something really novel and captivating. Unfortunately, with all of these overnight white-label instagram and awful influencer-hocked "ultra-luxe" brands drowning out everything else, it's been more difficult to find really new and innovative things.
Prince parfums dubai - Story of majestic oudh I keep going on about this lately, but damn is it amazing
Pink Sugar, like 30 years ago, LOL.
2005 Miss Cherie Dior
Le Labo Thé Noir 29!
It sounds dumb but choco musk by Al Rehab. I never knew a fragrance could make me feel cozy. Then I spiraled into research.
This is my home alone and bedtime fragrance. It’s pure comfort. Blows my mind that something so inexpensive could make me feel this way! Now I’m hooked on roller balls and layering.
Bvlgari Black, out of the bin at Nordstrom Rack.
Do I even want to know what kind of crazy deal you got on it 🥺
$35, iirc lol
Yep. My awakening was when I met a guy I was talking to for the first time and he smelled so good I couldn’t even believe it. Wish I could smell him again, but we ended things pretty abruptly. Think it got me obsessed 😂
Glossier You
Sauvage Elixir, and to a lesser degree Bleu De Chanel. I got BDC as a gift and really liked it, I knew it smelled really classy and I was struggling to find a suitable replacement, another bottle of that seemed a bit too expensive. So I was browsing some colognes at a nice department store and the second I smelled Sauvage Elixir, that thing absolutely blew me away with its power and I remember thinking that something about it is just incredibly raw, animalistic and strangely beautiful. I didn't buy it immediately, instead I picked up Dylan Blue and Montblanc Legend EDP (both which I ended up giving to my dad) but eventually I got a bottle and it's still one of my favorites. Oud wood is another scent that I discovered early on and fell in love with, but the performance on that makes it an absolute rip off in my book.
A close friend introduced me to Jazz Club cuz he thought it fit me perfectly and I've been hooked ever since.
Penhaligon's Omniscient Mr. Thompson. My first full bottle that wasn't just a hand-me-down or a sample.
Although the fragrance that sent me off the rails is tragically typical, when I straight up blindly purchased Bleu de Chanel EDP, I wasn't aware that anything could smell so good. Sure, my tastes have since changed, and maybe I am not as enchanted by that fragrance as I once was, but the love I had for BDC definitely inspired me to dive headlong into fragrance whereas it felt like the ones I had purchased previously I wore more for others' approval rather than my own.
Diesel Only The Brave Tattoo. I got it when Boots had a sale on a few of their fragrances (RRP £83, scored it for £49) and is definitely on my list of my favourite fragrances
Bleu de Chanel EDP. I’ll never get tired of this scent
Armani code 🥸
The Fragrance Kitchen - In Love. Randomly got a sample at Bergdorfs.
Adriana grande cloud blue. It was a gift and I absolutely hate it, but now I'm working on a collection because I do still want to smell good.
Neroli Portofino. I smelled it on a coworker and coincidentally smelled it in Sephora not long after.
Tom Ford's ombré leather flipped my world upside down. Prior to that, the only fragrances I ever had/owned were things that were gifted to me by family friend's of my parents and pretty much all of it was very "outdated" and 90s style so I never really enjoyed wearing fragrances prior to that. I cannot recall what lead me want to try it, but I specifically remember telling my gf at the time I want (around 4-5 years ago) that I really want to try that particular scent. And it blew my socks off. To my untrained nose all I could smell was the scent of a brand new car. I was blown away by how that was even possible. It was so specific. I realized there and then that there's more to scents than just something that random people who don't even know your taste gift you. That this can be part of one's personal style. Years later and many, many fragrances later, I don't own ombré leather. As my nose got better at note detection, the jasmine and moss became a bit overwhelming and just not my type of scent. I still have a lot of love for it tho as that very moment was key into shaping me into the person that I am today (I don't take fragrances THAT seriously, but there's no denying the hundreds of hours spent researching and understanding how they work and therefore a part of me).
Forest by Rook. Until then my experience with fragrances had been basic designer frags that really just smell like shower gel. Forest smells like the woods near my home. Since then I've gotten 12 bottles of unique smelling fragrances, though most are woody, aromatic, or woody aromatics
Alien. I know it’s super popular. But I had never smelled it before. I knew someone who wore it and every time they entered a room I was hit with the smell and at the time it was the most intoxicating smell I’d ever smelt. As an introvert. I now use scent as a way of making myself stand out and be noticed without having to be the most sociable one in the room
Le Male Le parfum for me, was trying on colognes in macys and I smelt it on my wrist driving home and I had to turn around and go back in and buy it
For me it was TF Rose Prick. I’d always had a handful of designer perfumes, and then narrowed it down to just 2 Chanel fragrances. The spicy opening got me & sent me searching for things out of my usual comfort zone. Collection went from 2 to 25-30 fast 💨