Part 3- Fully fledged perfumistas- share your fragrances

[shoeprincess2]

Part 2 is nearly full!

Oooh, my first lot of Les Senteurs samples came today - it was a surprise as I wasnt expecting them for a few more days, and I didnt have to sign either.

I realised on smelling the samples out of the bottles, that I have no clue about any of the terms used to describe perfume so I can only describe the smells in my own words. I tried on Orange Star today, but my first impressions of the others are:
Eau d'hadrien - Loved the first smell of this, so fresh, cant wait to try it tomorrow.
Carnal Flower - it was ok, smelled floral but in a bit of a 'planty' way so am interested to see what this smells like on my skin.
Bigarade Concentree - liked this as well, nice and orangey but not in an obvious way.

And as I said I tried Orange Star today and....I quite liked it! I cant really describe the smell apart from the smell of erm, orange! I quite liked it when it first went on, and now I have had it on for several hours and I really like what it has turned into. However, ultimately it is a bit too masculine for me to ever wear as an actual scent although I would quite like to smell it on a man (DH said it smelled like granny perfume but he doesnt wear any fragrance himself and is used to quite fruity and sweet stuff on me).

Anyway, reading all that back I can see I have got an awful lot to learn when it comes to understanding perfume, my descriptions are atrocious, sorry about that! But am excited to try the rest of my samples now!

MMMM well... I did smell some of the green perfumes recommended, but after trying Ninfeo Mio and DH being absolutely repulsed by the smell of 'Tom Cat spray' as he so nicely put it, I failed to find one that fitted the bill. I like it, and it is VERY green, right to the end, whereas the others I tried have ended up just powdery or woody.

I tried Campagne, which was Ok, but not really anything special, and on the recommendation of the SA I tried Rose Splendide (AG) which is a fresh green rose. This would be lovely on a summers day when you need something light, feminine, but not what I was looking for today. I wanted something a bit more agressive. I also had a sniff of Sisley Eau du Soir, which was said to be an evening scent, the second time a SA has told me this, they must be trained to say it, as I would say it is an anytime chypre and is also very green, this was probably my favourite green of the day, but now back homw and reading 'The Guide' it is really slated, should this put me off?

While in HofF I also had a little test of Feminite du Bois, still love it, especially the dry down, and also another Serge Lutens, but now I can't remember if it was Un Lys or Al a Nuit? It was very nice and floral though, jasmine I think so probably the latter.

Isabelle - have you tried Prescriptives Calyx? It's a lovely fresh green.

I tried the last of my Tauer samples today - Eau d'Epices - and it was another "meh" unfortunately. Funny that the first two Tauers I tried I absolutely adored, but since then I have had mixed opinions of the others I have tried. Orange Star and Reverie du Jardin made me actually nauseous.

On the other hand I have now sampled three of the ELdO line and loved all of them! Fat Electrician, Fils de Dieu and Tilda Swinton Like This are all officially on my "love" list.

Isabelle - have you tried Cabochard (mossy green and smoky/woody/leathery) or Cabotine (lighter and fresher and more floral)? Both are often on offer on websites like cheapsmells.

If you like Estee Lauder's 1980s style of perfume, then perhaps you might like to try a drop of Private Collection (available in many department stores). It is v. strong and long-lasting! It begins bright green and then turns into a whole bouquet of flowers.

There is Malle's rather mysterious Angeliques Sous La Pluie. Am wearing it right now, from a sample. That starts green and then - to me - develops a fleeting clove-like or old-fashioned cough mixture smell, and then it turns warmer and cedary and musky, with a thin veil of greenness and cleanness lingering. Also a hint of fennel. On me, not terribly long lasting. The cat seems to like it!

As I've said earlier in this strand, I used to love the old, discontinued version of Vent Vert. I don't like the new versions (there are at least two), but some people do. Might be worth a sniff, if you can get hold of samples.

I am currently waiting for a sample of L'Artisan Perfumeur's Verte Violette. Will report back. Have any other Perfumistas tried it?

Flora I don't think I've tried that but I like the bracing green, bitter notes of violet leaf a lot.

Isabelle don't worry if none of the greens I mentioned clicked immediately. Taste in perfume is such a personal thing. I imagine that bigger, more voluptuous perfumes are more your thing (Chanel No. 19 EdP might come closest to that group - galbanum rounded up with lots of sensuous florals.)

Isabelle you may have encountered one of these SAs who do not know a lot about perfume. Maybe she took inspiration from the perfume's name, but imo the day/evening scent stuff is conventional mumbo jumbo and perhaps not worth paying attention to. I've never really understood it, if it means cologne during daytime and bring on the big guns (Poison and Giorgio anyone?) when going out I don't enjoy a cacophony of loud perfumes at theaters, restaurants and discos; and yes, perfume can be seductive, but you are often better off without (given the sharp love/hate divides). And I find that discreet drop of EdP or extrait in the morning often gives a full workday's worth of delicious perfume. That said, I'm not a heavy sprayer, half-a-spray or a light dab is often just enough. I often spray something heady during the day when I'm mostly alone and when I go out, I try to pick something discreet - a classic cologne is often ideal.

I'm generally not a jasmine soliflore person but A la nuit is fantastic. We have a park full of jasmine down the street so early in the summer I cross-reference with the real thing and it's pretty darn close.

Cointreau about half of the Tauer line are 'meh' on me and a couple are unwearable. But the ones I love I really love.

Fuzzy Anais Anais is super classy, one of the great budget bargains. I don't wear it well but always enjoy a whiff from passers-by.

Scarlet enjoy your samples! Orange Star is a very bold and modern unisex choice and I'm thrilled that you like it. Re: words, most of us smell very well but finding words for what me smell is very difficult. It doesn't come naturally to perfumers either. They rigorously train their noses my first smelling the most common raw materials in isolation and then moving on to accords (several notes/substances together) and the reference perfumes of each perfume subclass. They are encouraged to take notes (raw material X: the cool cucumber sandwiches my granny made, and cool stones underwater) to create strong and lasting associations and to facilitate learning. I often perceive perfumes as a visual image or a color. Lists of notes bore me - they really don't capture the experience, but of course they are useful when you are doing research.

Spending time with Le temps d'une fete by Parfums de Nicolai. It has a clear narcissus note and a curious green/cool - sweet/warm balance. It's one of those strange, complex but delicate perfumes I would have overlooked when I started out.

Thanks everyone, getting some really good ideas for a green. Don't think I want an eau de cologne type green, more a floral/chypre green like no19. I didn't get a chance to try all the ones suggested Profumo, but No19 is the closest to fitting the bill, the only thing putting me off is that a close friend has always worn this for years, and in my head it is her fragrance and I would be stealing it. Private Collection sounds like a possibility too, never tried this, do they stock it at most Estee counters, not sure I've ever noticed it? Not tried Calyx for a long time, remember it being popular in the 90s, I don't seem to see it around any more. Will have a look for it. I liked Ninfeo Mio, but not sure I could wear it if DH hated it. It doesn't smell of cat pee does it? I might try him again in a couple of weeks as he is not always consistent in his reactions.

Anyone tried this this from Lubin?

I thought A La Nuit was very natural for a Jasmine and quite green and fresh, the nicest I have smelled. I tried Jasminora from Guerlain a while ago and didn't really like it, it was too indolic, and soapy for me. I'm liking lots of the Serge Lutens at the moment.

scarlet, I love carnal flower, it is quite green, planty is a good description, but I find tuberose without the green quite nauseating.

For anyone confident enough in French, here is a good source of some hard to find niche perfumes. They have 2? samples and if you order for 10?, shipping is free to selected countries. Have just ordered from them, no idea how well it works, but have not had problems with small independent perfumeries.

Thanks Profumo. I had a look at the site. And could understand most of it. But don't think I'm confident enough in French to order. Although they do have a smaller bottle of Annick Goutal Neroli, which sounds lovely.

Chanel Tendre is lovely, quite subtle smell, not over powering

Viviennemary, I had no problem ordering my 10?'s worth of samples (just needed to select some samples and fill in my address and payment details, just like any other eshop). Will post here if/when they arrive. I get my 'fumes mostly from the perfume houses directly (most of the ones I like are French), small boutiques or fellow perfumistas. Websites can be a creaky sometimes but nobody has ever let me down.

In Central / Southern Europe, people in general are more knowledgeable about perfume and ordinary people pick sophisticated scents. Just about every village profumeria in Italy sells Teint de Neige... Our humble corner perfumery has all Artisans, Goutals, TDCs etc one could ever wish to sample. That's why I recommend continental sellers. eBay.de is excellent too, particularly for perfume minis and discontinued gems.

Le temps d'une fete: of two minds. Loving the soaring galbanum+narcisse, and the incensey opoponax base (now there is a lovely word), but also detect a cheap stinky musk I last smelled on a street musician... And the perfume is fleeting. But I keep reapplying Parfums de Nicolai are in any case worth knowing about and sampling, if you find them somewhere. They are elite niche, very cheap (about 35? for 30ml) and iirc, they have a shop somewhere in London (you can buy 2? samples online from Parfümeria Neroli as well).

We are going to be traveling for the next week or so. Will promise to raid duty frees but postings may be less frequent than usual

It's my birthday, and the sun is shining, so nothing experimental today. I'm enveloped in the warm loveliness of Chanel Coromandel.

Can anyone recommend a perfume for me? From recommendations on here, I bought Jo malone Dark Amber and ginger lily. I really like it but it's just not dirty enough. I want something similar with a liberal sprinkling of pure filth in there. Any suggestions?

Oh ProFumo, you keep putting such delicious temptations in our way! There are so many lovely smells on the site you link to. (Fellow Perfumistas, it really is very easy to use. I have just tried and now have hole in cedit card. And there are lots of lovely new 'green' smells for those of us who like such thing to try.)

ProFumo - have a very good trip, and I hope you find some duty-free perfume bargains.

Cointreau - Many Happy Returns of the day!

Charlie, Miller Harris L'Air de rien. The dirtiest.
or Serge Lutens Musk Kublai Khan.
Annick Goutal Musk Nomade - the tamest from the bunch.
Those are musks.

Or, a very dirty amber - Agent Provocateur Strip.

In fact, I think I'll get some Strip on in a minute.
Haven't worn it for ages.

Pure filth you say?
Worth Courtesan
or
Feminite du Bois (Shiseido/Serge Lutens)

Both smell like musky sex smell after a while. (At least on me)

there was something called Indiscrete, Lucien Lelong, many years ago, now that was pure filthy knickers.
Made me blush first time I smelt it.
I was young then..

there's also Boudoir.
It's dirty in a different way. It has the high pitched viburnum note, as opposed to the earthier musks and ambers.
I'm afraid that turned to pure soap and powder on me.

Happy birthday, Cointreau!

Very tempting site there, ProFumo...

Thanks all for a quick response. Love boudoir. Had it for years.

Just read about Strip. Says there's a cigarette accord. Sound perfect. Love the smell of booze and fags on a very dirty man!

Only problem of course is that Strip would appear to be impossible to get hold of

Charliefox - among the oldies, have a sniff of Bal a Versailles. And try sites such as Surrender to Chance for vintage scents which contain now-banned ingredients such as civet. For example, Weil's Zibeline.

Somebody - I forget who - does a perfume called 'Old Fur Coat'. I have not smelled it. Perhaps other Perfumistas have. And see: perfumeshrine.blogspot.co.uk/2009/02/perfumes-and-fur-part-2.html

With my humanitarian hat on, I quite see that the ban on many wonderful old scents is much, much kinder to animals. Therefore I have to say it's a very good thing. Had I known what many old scents contained I would not have purchased them. We just have to hope that today's perfume chemists can come up with equally powerful replacements.

More humanely, some heavy aniseedy scents such as 'L'Heuere Bleue' do have, to some people, a rather 'animal' resonance. Have a sniff of that, too.

Our resident expert ProFumo had some interesting things to say a few days ago re perfumes such as 'Fat Electrician'. If you have not already done so, perhaps you might like to scroll back for a few pages and look for the comments.

Bal a Versailles and Guerlain Jicky are the dirtiest I have.

Charliefox - I forgot, there is also Aziyade from Parfum d'empire. It's described as 'fleshy and fruity'.
And, from the makers of Fat Electrician, there is this: www.luckyscent.com/shop/item/47716/Putain_des_Palaces.html