Part 4- All you ever need to know about fragrance continues

[shoeprincess2]

Well, we're nearly all full.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/style_and_beauty/1665844-Part-3-Fully-fledged-perfumistas-share-your-fragrances

Kiwigirl: I really wanted to love Kelly Caleche from the listed notes, but I don't. I keep trying it again and again, and it's just a bit strange - not right. Ok, but not great. Boo...

Toys, sorry, I hope I wasn't teaching my grandmother to suck eggs!

Seriously, I used to be very dismissive of sleb scents, and still am when they all smell the same (fruity floral, synthetic vanilla etc). However, it's worth looking out for a few gems in that genre since they are not usually all that expensive. Madonna Truth or Dare is a true homage to Fracas and I was not expecting that from her!

Today, I did the pre-school run in Fracas

I like to have a range of cheap/expensive and both niche/mainstream in my collection- if I fall in love with a costly perfume I either save up, put it on the birthday list or look for a decant. But I do find I only REALLY love quite strong 'special occasion' type scents, so generally any lighter day scents I have are cheaper ones as I'm less prepared to shell out for a day to day scent (I have no idea if that makes any sense!) Lovely is one of my 'go to' day perfumes if I don't know what else to wear.

I am very drawn to bargains though, even when I know it might end up a terrible mistake. My watch list on ebay includes several body shop perfumes, Britney, Mariah Carey and Hilary Duff I can't help myself!

OneLittleLady I love hearing about your perfume bargains, I'll have to look out for Kenneth Cole now!

I'm always tempted by bargains, if I don't like them, I pass them on to someone else to avoid them festering. I'll have to check out SJP Lovely by the sounds of it, the description sounds very good.

Chocs: No worries, really, I'm no expert. Very much still learning.. And a massive, ridiculous snob from the looks of it Although I've got some Demeters in my collection as well (Fig Leaf, Holy Water, Snow).

Turns out I like l'AdDM a lot. It's very long lasting. Tomorrow maybe try another Tauer.

did like Truth or Dare, but not enough to get all excited about it. The bottle was nice as well (here we go with judging the book by its cover again . I think I' not just very into floral scents or cheap/generic smelling gourmands (unless they're especially weird), so that automatically rules out most of the cleb scents. If Britney's next perfume is an incense/herbal based one, I'll definitely try it..

Oh britney's are awful. Totally designed for 14 year old girls!

But Hilary Duff With Love is surprisingly good. I was really surprised. It's not fruity floral (which I loathe) but Tropical and woody, like good pipe smoke.

Fuzzybirds- I think I'm a bit like you. I have a good handful of to die for good ones that I only wear occasionally and loads of cheaper daytime scents that I chop and change. I am increasingly buying so many samples off eBay that they all live together in a big box.

The quest in unending with perfume. No matter how much I love the ones I've got, I'm always on the lookout for more, or something different, or that thunderbolt moment.

Thank you habadashery my package arrived this morning. You are right it's VERY chocolatey but I am catching roses underneath, it's very interesting. I think it might be a grower rather than a shower IYKWIM.

I'm still wearing what I put on last night. Tauer White is ok after the first hour, but not good. Auburn is nauseatingly awful, but okish now, 12 hours later. Vetiver Dance is quite good, if only it had less vetiver.. Not got much faith in Tauer at the moment.

Talking about scents for 14 year olds: What did you guys wear in you teens? I was bought my first perfumes by dad (who went on lots of business trips abroad, so could buy from duty free) from when I was somethibg like 11 or 12 onwards. First was L'Air Du Temps (meh), then (not sure about order) Champs Elysees (hated it even then), Sergio Tacchini- Donna, Escada Sport Country Weekend, Nina Ricci Deci Dela, Ricci Belle de Minuit, Calvin Klein Truth, Tommy Hilfiger- Tommy Girl, L'eau de Issey, Rochas Tocade and A Body Shop scent called Tobacco Flower (bizarrely not on fragrantica) and their vanilla perfume oil, all of which I still like.

Trying Quarzazate on now. I like it, but it's a bit boring.. will wait and see.

Also, have to add to my previous post that I didn't order the Vetiver Dance- it was a freebie (I wouldn't order something with vetiver in its name).

My first perfume as a teen was exclamation. I loved the stuff and it was the only one my mum would allow me to wear!

My first expensive perfume was bought for me by my Dad and was Estee Lauder Beautiful. I was so pleased! I don't like it at all now, but it holds pleasant memories.

Earlier than that I bought a beautiful Boots one called Bluebells and an Avon one called Eau Givree, which was lovely.

Exclamation was one of my first ones too, also So...? which I remember as being really sweet. When I was about 16, I received a gift set of minis of Chloe, Chloe Narcisse, White Diamonds, Sun Moon Stars and a Jean-Louis Scherrer, Nuits Indiennes maybe? I thought I was soooo cool wearing those! I still love and wear the original Chloe (not the same bottle mind, that really would be vintage!) might have to hunt out some Sun Moon Stars too...

Oh yes and Body Shop's Fuzzy Peach. How we all used to love collecting the lip balms, school used to stink of them. You were nobody unless you had a ready pot of TBS morello cherry or kiwi lip balm

Wearing Chanel Sycomore today, I really like it as a day scent but I've now read it's similar to Encre Noir so will have to sample to compare as it's way out of my league for a FB!

Fuzzy: We had that thing with the lip balms at school too. I had the mandarin one. Ugh And it was in Finland, so must have been a Europe wide craze..

My mum had the original Chloe. I didn't like it very much, but the bottle was fascinating with the "eye" (?) thing.

Also love the bottle for Sun Moon Stars, but from the notes, it's probably not for me..

The first bottle of perfume I was ever given was a bottle of Shalimar EDP - I still adore it

I remember wearing copious amounts of Impulse at school. My first ever real perfume at about age 16 was Poison! Straight in at the deep end . After that I wore Exclamation, a copy of Coco Chanel and bodyshop Dewberry and White musk.

Ah, body shop white musk was the second favourite choice in my school behind exclamation. Impulse of any variety also ranked highly. Nothing but Lynx for the boys though

Dad told me that he used to ask the saleswomen/air hostesses, which fragrance would be good for a young girl, and then buy that. Hence no Poison or Shalimar for me!

Shalimar as a first perfume is quite sophisticated, Kiwi!

Mine was Anais Anais, closely followed by Geminesse. I remember, while I was still at school, plucking up the courage to ask for some samples in a big branch of Boots, (I think I made up some nonsense about a school project) and coming away with a whole bagful of cute mini bottles (the little carded samples weren't so common back then); I certainly remember having Chanel Cristalle, Anais Anais, Dioressence and Chloe ( ghastly!)

I had Apple Blossom (Helena Rubinstein) and then Anais Anais. I have no memory at all of what Apple Blossom smelt like but still love Anais Anais.

I remember wearing LouLou as soon as it came out in 1987. I still like it now but I take it down a peg now. Volume LOUD.

It brings back so many memories: LouLou, red wine and Marlboro Gold. that was my 20s!

SOTD is Serge Lutens Chergui. Stunning, warm, sweet tobacco, and still in evidence 15 hours after applying.

Cointreau- I liked Chergui. I loved the hay in it! Gorgeous.

I adore the hay note in Chergui too. It really is full bottle worthy