We may do Bad Things, but we smell divine - it's the Friendly Perfumistas Thread no. 18!

[UnnecessaryFennel]

Morning all! Come and join the gorgeously-scented chat!

Today I smell of lavender, woodsmoke and cinnamon biscuits, in Another Kiss By The Fireside.

Oh, that Burne-Jones exhibition sounds fab, will try to get along to it!

SOTD is Vanille Insensee by Atelier Cologne. I think I'm just going to wear some version of vanilla all winter.

SOTD Lush vanillary. It’s from 2009 do you think it could have gone off? I still quite like it. Any bargain vanilla cakey perfumes about?

SOTD 4160 New York 55, which I love! I might buy a bigger bottle in the 3for 2. I'm definitely ordering Excess of Carelessness too.

If you like Portrait of a Lady, the PP dupe is nice.

Fanny, we might be perfume twins, as I love New York 55 too

Never got to sniff Lush vanillary, Cherrypi, but I am a much maligned vanilla lover, too .

Vanilla cakey...hmmm..have you tried Britney Spears Fantasy? That and its flankers are all meant to be vanilla/cakey. I've only tried (and love) Fantasy the Naughty Remix (hilariously bad name), which is a musky white chocolatey cake vibe. Satisfies my gourmand cravings without straying too far into 14 yr old girl territory.

SOTD Black Opium, btw. Havent worn it in ages. I like this very much just occasionally.

I’m wearing Burberry Brit today. This is a sweet almond and vanilla with some fruity notes. It is quite “cakey”, Cherrypi, so you might be interested? Another sweet, cakey, perfume is ILoveYou by Parfums Hashtag. It was a bargain buy (£4.99) from Fragrance Shop. It seems to be out of stock online currently, but some branches may still have some. A poster on these threads told me about it (can’t remember who, sorry!). Aimed at teenagers, it has a very delicious French Patisserie vibe. 🧁

Thank you. I’ll keep my eye out for those. Baking a Christmas cake now so maybe I’ll smell of that.

Hello! Newbie here. Any other fans of SJP Covet? I loved it so much but haven't found it in years. Currently wearing MH La Pluie!

Cherrypi, nothing nice than the smell of a Christmas cake in the oven! Also, and you perhaps already know this, SheHasNotions’ Black Opium is a beautiful sweet vanilla with coffee and spice. It’s nothing like Opium.

“nicer”, not “nice”!

Hi all! The gurelain insolence arrived and I’m not keen ☹️. It’s too floral for me, dh asked if I’d sprayed air freshener!

Gallivant samples delivered this morning, but I had already spritzed on Chergui and you all know that it is lovely but tenacious. I weakened and sprayed a very small amount of Istanbul into my elbow, where it's lovely but overpowered. It has a rather nice bitter green drydown I can't place. Distinctively non-mainstream and very very different.

bothears I love Insolence for cosy bedtime, but I know what you mean. It’s very, very violetty and pungent.

Notions twins! and I like Insolence too - in moderation

@wellfuckmeinbothears. if you fancy swapping something, then message me. I might have something and I've been after Insolence for ages.

@xingming- did you get all the samples? I can't wait to hear your verdict.

SOTD Rive Gauche.

SotD vintage Missoni (not to be confused with the Missoni that launched in 2015 - a different perfume altogether). LT describes this as a kaleidoscopic floral, and awards 5*s. It's a bit bonkers - there's a spicy geranium start, made a bit strident by aldehydes, then it gets sweet and powdery, and after that, mossy and animalic in equal measure. One to sniff obsessively to keep track of developments. It doesn't smell dated, but it doesn't smell contemporary either.

I did get the full sample set and I tried two yesterday in the crooks of my elbows.

On the left was Istanbul, which is as the notes say a warm, spicy amber, spot-on for yesterday's chill. It dried down to something green and bitter and this morning there's just an echo left on my sweater. Very wearable indeed.

On the right, late afternoon, I tried a spritz of Tel Aviv (which MissBattleaxe mentioned favourably). This too has lingered well. It's more floral, with smooth, creamy gardenia to the fore, so not in my comfort zone but I am looking forward to its solo trial.

Amsterdam, Berlin, Brooklyn, and London to go. London is today's plan.

Parfumerie Generale Querelle this morning. This starts off as citrusy/soapy but there's a cumin note in there as well, which is interesting. This was a blind grab from the samples box and I don't think I've worn it before, so will see how it develops.

I have a cold though, so my nose is not to be trusted!

@Missbattleaxe thank you but it was just a sample I ordered not a whole bottle x