I'm a perfume blogger- Ask me anything

[MissBattleaxe]

I've been blogging about perfume since 2013. Ask me anything. No snobbery, all budgets and nothing is off the table.

My current favourites are LouLou (the shame!), Be Delicious Pink, Imari Fantasy and (always) Coco Chanel.

Are these the same type of fragrances? I'd love to find something new xx

How much do you get paid for writing a review?

In the 80’s all I ever wore was Dewberry oil from the body shop and loved it. Never found a replacement...any suggestions?

@Jaxinthebox I tried a few on cards and the ones that had 'cat pee note'

That made me laugh, exactly what I smelt too . I though it was off but no, it was a brand new bottle.

I used to wear Estée Lauder Private Collection. I first smelt it on someone else and loved it but when I sprayed it on myself it had the initial smell of dead chrysanthemums! It settled to a lovely fragrance.

For years my everyday perfume has been Issey Miyake EDP, I love it. My other go to favourite is Coco Mademoiselle.

@Spinderellacutituponetime dewberry oil was discontinued a long time ago but there are some lovely perfumes and oils still around. Maybe try the Black Musk or Black Musk Bloom from body shop.

I used to wear Dewberry too, not sure I could have such a heavy scent now though.

I like a 'big' smell! Angel, Alien and forgive me, Obsession. Do you have any other sexy suggestions that I don't cost more than Angel and Alien?

Jasmine makes me smell like cat pee. Especially mixed with ylang ylang. I used lust perfume from lush once when I worked there to prove it and my colleagues were recoiling in horror

I wore angel on my wedding day; my bridesmaids decided they wanted to wear it so we would all smell the same and it was a long lasting smell... except on them it smelled like cat pee. They had to wash it off it was hideous, thank God they tried it before the day!

@WaitingForAGovernment Jo Loves Gardenia was lovely. You might want to try Elizabeth Taylor Gardenia, Scent Doctor Gardenia or Diorissima.

@yodafogey I have heard of it and it is very spendy. In my opinion, you don't have to spend a lot to smell good. A lot of Grasse trained master perfumers are the noses behind many High Street and mainstream brands as well as celebrity brands.

I love perfume but I've got bills to pay and a teen boy to feed so I would never spend over £60 a bottle, and that's my Christmas bottle! I would get your husband the Perfume Society Men's Edit box which has a lot of niche samples in and let him have a browse and a try.

@Spinderellacutituponetime yes actually- Shay and Blue Blueberry Musk is very similar. They do a nice discovery box for £25 if you want to try before you buy. Here's my review iscentyouaday.com/2017/02/12/shay-blue-london-blueberry-and-musk-hidden-surprises/

@wallymum I love sandalwood too! Try Le Jardin Retrouve Sandalwood Sacre. It has musk and sandalwood is utterly divine. You have to order from France but they have an offer on. (NB for disclosure I do some work for them but was a fan of this long before that). You might also like SJP Stash or Rihanna Rogue, both musky and woody. Oh, and Miller Harris Peau Santal.

@bringmelaughter I would really recommend a few discovery boxes. As a blogger even I can't get hold of samples over the counter! The Perfume Society have got the best I've found.

Do you like orange flower or orange blossom scents? That might be just right: a white floral tinged with citrus orange? Citrus tend not to hang around, but they can still have good base notes. LUSH Orange Blossom is excellent.

@MissBattleaxe thank you for the recommendations. I'm definitely going to try them. Xx

@Livpool Don't apologise for LouLou, I was wearing it yesterday. It's a plummy tuberose masterpiece!

The scents you list are all very different and don't have a perfumer in common either. Coco Chanel is a fabulous spicy amber floral ( assuming you do mean Coco and not Coco Mademoiselle?), Be Delicious is a floral, Imari Fantasy is a gourmand, so it sounds like you've got all bases covered!

@Butterflycookie I don't get paid anything. My income comes from private writing gigs for clients, my social media management business, some tiny amounts from Google ads and private advertisers and almost single figure sums for skimlinks. I barely break even as I pay hosting fees to Wordpress for the site and the domain. I do all my tech stuff myself and I do get a lot of fragrant freebies. In today's climate, bloggers should declare everything for transparency. I did do a sponsored post once for double figures.

IME blogging doesn't make you rich but it can to lead to paid opportunities in the area you blog in (in my case, perfume).

My favourite perfume has been discontinued- Marc Jacobs Lola. Can you suggest an alternative?

@FlameVert Never apologise for a perfume. Obsession is an 80s Great. If you like BIG, try Rihanna Reb'l Fleur (yes I know I mention it a lot but it's amazing) or Paloma Picasso. My Mum likes huge fragrances as her sense of smell has faded and she smells terrific in Orientals. Try Paloma Picasso, Estee Lauder Knowing, LouLou or the new Avon Soft Musk Chocolat (a mere fiver at the moment!)

@Jaxinthebox I'm of the school of thought that perfume smells different on everyone. We all have different pH levels and moisture levels so the same perfume will smell different on everyone.

I invented a tradition on my blog (because I am an enabler!). Whatever perfume you wear on your wedding day, your husband has to buy a bottle on your anniversary. Enjoy many years of beautiful Angel!

@YesQueen jasmine is a right little madam. I tried LUSH Sikkim Girls and it nearly put me off jasmine for life, yet is made with expensive jasmine absolute. On the other hand, I tried Serge Lutens Sarrasins ( a big jasmine) and it smelled like fresh bluebells. Jasmine is in so many fragrances as a background scent, so don't avoid it, but keep trying til you find one that behaves! Try Givenchy Dahlia Divin of Bvlgari Mon Jasmin Noir. If you want samples before you buy, try Notino.

@MeredithShepherdssister try NR Fleur Musc, H&M Lipstick, or Elizabeth Arden Untold. (My source is trusty Fragrantica)

@MissBattleaxe thank you, I'll do that!

I am beginning to take it personally that every time I fall in love with a perfume and make it my signature fragrance, it gets discontinued! My all-time favourite was Trussardi Skin. Can you please recommend an alternative? I loved how it was such a sexy fragrance but never intrusive. I honestly understood the power of the “wake” of perfume for the first time from this fragrance. God, how I miss it!!!

@justilou Try Eau de Cartier. It's gorgeous.

@FlameVert I just remembered- Samsara! Fantastic musky sandalwood.