A very simple poll for a very lazy Monday: name a recent fragrance release for which your assessment was entirely out of whack* with prevailing opinion.
Mine is Jean Paul Gaultier's Ma Dame. I thought this was a really fun scent, very well done if not exactly my sort of thing, and a great match with the advertising. I don't know how Ma Dame is selling, but the prevailing online opinion is not on my side for this one. Almost everything I've read on the blogs and forums has been negative. A few choice phrases from the reviews at MakeupAlley (there are some positive reviews there as well, and the overall rating is 3.1 out of 5 — not quite as dismal as I expected): "Toilet freshener over bug spray", "the olfactory equivalent of chewing on tinfoil", "just asphyxiating". Ouch!
Yours?
Note: image via Images de Parfums.
* It suddenly occurred to me to wonder where the word whack came from. If you've ever wondered, read this, and if you're constantly wondering such things, check out Cephalogenic.
Weeellll…. off the top of my head … I would definitely wear YSL Elle if someone gave it to me. I thought it was tart and flirty and fun, sort of a cross between Prada and Light Blue. And I think everyone else hated it, starting with Patty! Of course I like Light Blue, so obviously I have no taste.
I do love that Jardin Apres Mousson! But it seems to have garnered little love from my fellow 'mistas…
Out of Whack:
I believe Prada's Infusion d´Homme is just a watered down version from Amber pour home (or at least with differences so subtle that to my nose is difficult to tell them appart except for potency and lasting power)
I like aprés le mousson, because even though I agree that it is not original (melon-cantaloupe has been done over and over for the past decade and a half) it is the only one of the “melon-y” scents that does not transform into soggy-cardboard accord on my skin.
I am thisclose to buying a bottle.
and now, on a not-so-recent launch (2005) I think Miss Dior Cherie is classy! I did not like it at first, but I gave a bottle as a gift to my mother and I like it better every time I smell it.*
* Paging Dr Freud! Emergency in aisle 2!!! 😀
For me it was Prada's Infusion d'Iris for women, I'm glad I only ordered the mini because I just don't love it like everyone else does, no matter how hard I try!
I'm also not nuts about Light Blue, it shares a powdery note with the Infusion d'Iris that I just can't put my finger on (Moschino's I Love Love suits me much better.)
P.S. Also feelin' the love for Miss Dior Cherie!
For me it is Malle's Dans Tes Bras. Almost everybody is loving it and it really did not do anything for me. It is different, it is not unpleasant, it just did not move me.
I may change my mind. I need to try it at home.
Margaret, the SA at Barney's BH sent me a very nice card. Hurray for great service!
What a fun discussion, as usual!
I really love l'Artisan's Piment Brulant despite its negative reviews everywhere!
Conversely, Kelly Caleche has gotten glowing reviews and I was really disappointed by it. To my nose, it is typical and uninteresting.
I also agree with “Kelly” that Prada's Infusion d'Iris isn't as great as everyone says. I guess that's why there are so many scents out there, as we're all so different (thankfully)!
I am with you on the Kelly Caleche- smells like Raid to me…
Also, I did not like Lexington Avenue much, which people are liking more than Chinatown (that's just whack)…
Not terribly recent, but I can't understand the fuss over Musc Ravageur. To my nose it smells cheap and oily.
i love this blog! so timely! i was always aware of the hype/hate of aquolina's pink sugar and just never tried it because it seemed so juvenile. just this weekend i got a free sample and i actually like it! it's very sweet but i think of it as being whimsical and silly, and i wore it this weekend to feel that way. and i'm proud of it damnit! 😉
C'mon, nearly everybody in the world (other than perfumistas) likes Light Blue. Have you tried Elle Intense yet? I'd like to but haven't dragged myself to the mall lately.
Mousson seems to be love or hate, doesn't it? But think it's had a few favorable blog reviews. It's only doing slightly better than Ma Dame at MuA though: 3.2 rating.
LOL — we'll have Dr Freud on your case momentarily, just as soon as we can pry that bottle of Miss Dior Cherie out of your hands!
Kellly, you'll be sharing a room with kaos.geo above 😉
I haven't really made up my mind about DTB either — but it wasn't love at first sniff.
Hmmm…well, I did try Mousson on a smelling strip, and I thought, “what's so terrible? This isn't bad.” But…this is not a full test; I have to wear it to make sure.
Also smelled Light Blue without knowing what it was, and thought it was pretty nice. So much for my cred, HUH?
They were supposed to have the Intense but … didn't. And I did note while in the store that Light Blue is their #1 seller according to their sign! Mebbe it's too lowbrow for the true perfume-lover. My recollection is that LuTan (LuTania? our new coinage, which is better?) loathe it.
I loooove perfume but don't think I'm nasally ready to be classified as a perfumista; on that note, I can't stand Light Blue: hey, who ordered the foot spray?
Oh, thank heaven – I thought I was the only one who didn't get anything out of Kelly Caleche. I tried, I really did. But my reaction each time was, “yeah, so?”
Prada Infusion d'Iris does NOTHING for me. I could barely smell it the first time i tried it, but carried along by the hype, I ordered a small decant. Everytime I wear it, I find it vaguley annoying after a while. Not unpleasant. Just annoying. It's certainly not a scent that I'd pay $70 for drawer liners or candles in! I've also found Magnifique to be generic and headache-producing, rather than the original I'd hoped it would be. So there.
I really wanted to like the new EL Sensuous when it was touted as a less expensive version of all my favorite woody niche scents, however like it I did not. I do adore 5 o'clock au gingembre which folks were finding meh (of course, laying out for a bottle will endear me to a scent…) I also bought apres la mousson around the same time and my affection for it stuck. (OT: a vial of Tom Ford's Oud Wood broke in my purse and I keep looking around for the dude wearing cologne at work today…)
Recent? No. I haven't sniffed a tenth of what we've seen coming out recently. I need to get on it, though.
I do think I'm one of the seven in the world who love Paprika Brasil. I really hope Hermes is too proud to discontinue an Hermessence because it'll be a good while before I can afford a bottle.
My sister loves Ma Dame and I have to say, I love when she wears it. She always smells fantastic.
Just my two cents!
Tanca?
Foot spray — ouch!
See, I didn't think KC got universal love anyway. I remember lots of puzzled and/or negative reactions at MakeupAlley.
Lovethescents: Piment Brulant didn't get a bad review here!
My perfume likes aren't exactly highbrow either… I own several Escada LEs… but I can't stand Light Blue either. It reminds me of nothing so much as Lemon Pledge. I think it's disgusting and I can smell someone wearing it a mile away.
Bulgari Jasmine Noir. I think it's dark, sexy, and not boring at all for a department store scent. Maybe a little overpriced, though. It does remind me of EL Sensuous, but much better and not so sweet.
I stand corrected… 🙂
Smells great when first applied, then turns to generic men's cologne. Not bad cologne, just not for me.
It really isn't me at all. Don't know about cheap & oily, but don't want to wear it.
Thanks!
And wear proudly whatever you love, always! The majority stand with you: Pink Sugar is terribly popular.
Hey, I think Light Blue is about as pleasant as you can get. For a perfumista, to some extent that's damning with praise, but I think we all forget how hard pleasant is to do — most perfumes don't manage it.
And, did not think Mousson was terrible at all. I just don't like aquatic notes.
Take that, LOL…
Seriously, I wouldn't pay $70 for drawer liners or candles that smelled like anything.
This is not exactly recent but I do not get Juicy Couture at ALL. It smells typical and sweet then boils down to chemical stew. I couldn't wait to get it off me. All those awards made me think it might be good – lol. Same kinda goes for Daisy, which did not impress me enough to even try on. Shame, since the bottle is so freakin' cute.
I also was not impressed with Sensuous and wanted to be.
I keep smelling test strips of TF Black Orchid and recoiling – maybe someday I'll hold my nose and put some on to see if it is better on skin. lol
I like some things that are pleasant, like Light Blue (don't own) and Flower Bomb (do own), and some really anti-perfumista things like LaVanila Grapefruit.
I am hoping to get a sample of MaDame soon – I still have my little plastic bag-wrapped sprayed card and enjoy taking whiffs.
Dont' think you were alone on Sensuous! It seemed to be another love it or hate it, and Angela called it “dull” here just last week.
Hey, interesting point: will they keep producing it?? Although for all I know it sells like gangbusters. They don't tell me what sells 🙂
Glad someone loves it!
Jessica Simpson “Fancy” has gotten some decent reviews, which has surprised me. It was a total scrubber to me, just awful.
I am just totally happy with Un Jardin Apres La Mousson. It was a great summer while using CdG rhubarb, Leaves and Energy C – and of course the great mousson. Am I like the only person that loves this fragrance? Well obviously I have no taste either.
A lot of people (among them, Luca Turin) dismiss Chanel Egoiste Platinum as a poorly made flanker. I, by contrast, wore it for years and still love it. 🙂
(raising hand) I'll join you, IrisNobile, in liking Mousson. I enjoy the melon/ginger/cardamon thing that Ellena has going on in it. Maybe at some point melon will repel me, but for now I enjoy it. I also like it in Chanel Allure.
CdG Rhubarb is on my next luckyscent order. I like the Rhubarb note in Rose Ikebana, so I thought I would sample the CdG as well.
Side note to IrisNobile: Did you get a chance to see the Iris Nobile limited ed bottle yet? Very nice in person.
For the wedding, how about Paestum Rose? It's spicy, warm, and the roses are blended with a nice incense touch, if I remember.
I'd also suggest Roma, which is very romantic, but not a recent release. It is a very romantic memory to me, I haven't smelled it recently.
Wish I could smell what everyone else is smelling in that one!
Oh do put Black Orchid on skin! Maybe you'll still hate it, but paper is so misleading it's hardly worth bothering.
I don't think I've even seen many reviews of Fancy! I did think it was better than many celeb scents, but it's hardly what I'd call a masterpiece.
IrisNobile, gosh, there are several Mousson fans already commenting.
My out of whacks:
I'm with Eric – I LOVELOVELOVE Paprika Brasil by Hermes and most people hate it. What's up with that?
Conversely: I really don't like Derby by Guerlain and everyone goes GAGA over it at Basenotes.
I have terribly lowbrow tastes, which I can't seem to be rid of. I own Stella in Two and love it, while every review I've seen has dismissed it as worthless, and while I TRIED to like Jicky, it smelled literally like ass to me. Ah well, at least the lowbrow perfumes are cheap.
I have not seen the bottle yet, but I am about to receive it in the mail anytime soon:)) My aunt who has the access to different dep. stores and high end boutiques has purchased it for me and she said it's shipped! I have actually bought her Dyptique's candle in John Galliano in return – she loves Dyptique line.
* by the way it's a good idea to purchase rhubarb, seriously it's worth it! I enjoyed it this summer and it really is a lil, unique fragrance with a gorgeous drydown. Oh god the drydown is so beautiful and creamy, and tart but in a good way. I just love it!
Well, Lipstick Rose and Drole de Rose both actually made me feel nauseated. And count me among those who like Mousson.
I'm out of step with apparent prevailing opinion on the new Jo Malone Sweet Lime & Cedar. I thought this stuff just smelled cheap and nasty. No cedar and precious little lime. It sounded like it would be a must have for me – until I smelled it.
I also cannot see the appeal of Beyond Pleasure for Men, which “Turtan” raves about… I found it generic and uninspired…
I could be dead wrong I think it may depend on where you live–my Hermes SA told me that people in the colder climate don't get it…but PB sells really, really well in the hot climates. I actually did a test when I was in Hawaii–PB transformed into a very self-assuring scent, almost a spicy Kelly Caleche…but it did nothing when I went back to Vancouver…just a cold iris. The Hermes headquarters seem to notice this–it never bother sending any PB samples to the Vancouver boutique and it's the worst seller among the Hermessence line at the Vancouver branch (OY is the exact opposite in sales, by the way…)
I do not like Coco Mademoiselle soo much, but everybody loves it. To me it is just “another pinkish floral”, and I love the Monusn garden. It evokes the books of Salman Rushdie to me, but I am still not sure if it something for me. As soon as I see it somewhere just a bit cheaper it will be mine though.
I was disappointed about Kelly Caleche though. Leather, leather, leather. Not for me, and I was so so curious when I have heard of it!
Aye. Exactly the same reaction here. A UK discount site was offering a small bottle for £9.99 and I *almost* fell for it – but thought I'd give it one more tester squirt before ordering. V.glad I did. It's nice but faint for about an hour on me and then turns… I dunno… just a bit 'urgh' – I'm suddenly more aware of the smell at the point I'd rather not be!
Another vote for Marc Jacob's 'Daisy' – I so wanted to love it because of the bottle but it's just completely bland to my nose. Also, Tom Ford's White Patchouli – dull, dull, dull.
I've also recently discovered that I can't wear Rochas perfumes 🙁 I bought both Femme and Byzance unsniffed and they just give me a headache. Does anybody in the UK want to take them off my hands?
Similarly pretty much all Chanel perfumes are out for me. I went through a short period of wearing 'Allure' with some success but now can't wear any of them – they all smell too synthetic on me 🙁
Totally agree with you on the Sweet Lime and Cedar. I thought that was going to be my next FB purchase, but I had to scrub it off.
What does 'out of whack' mean? Is it like something 'outside my box'?
There is a fragrance I believed that I would not like… but that I very much like and love and that is: Salvador Dali ItIslLove. Such a happy watery flowery fruity perfume ;-))
Once again, March, you have assured me that I am not completely crazy. I didn't think Elle was all that heinous either. IMO, it is the best of the patchouli-for-13-year-old scents. I would definitely wear it over Midnight Poison, which is just unbearable. And in these opinions, we also have LuTan/Tanca with us.
It's also been on the market for years, so you couldn't be the only one!
Wrong article 🙂
Mike, I didn't hate it but it did NADA for me. Ah well.
Aha. Maybe I need to try it on a humid day in August. I reviewed it in October.
I didn't get to try Stella in Two on skin at all. I thought people had liked the ambery one?
It is so funny but alot of the scents I like alot are the scents that people do not like or have poor evaluations of. I loved the Viktor & Rolf flowerbomb, Miss Dior Cherie, Fancy, FireIsland, Saks fifth Duo, Folavril, Miami Glow by JLO to name a few of them. I love light blue but I am not wearing these fragrances anymore because there are so many new releases out there that I am trying to sample the ones I find interesting as well as classics or names I have never heard of , leaving no time for me to go back to my older perfumes. Try how I try to love Hermes fragrances I find them so heavy even though I absolutely love the packaging. I have also tried the L'artisan lines and I am only liking the amber scents. I cant remember other but there are some mentioned here alot that I cant for the life of me like at all.
Completely agree here, The reviews sounded wonderful but it just smells like a Thai kitchen. Add a little chicken behind one ear, a smear of shrimp behind the other, and dinner is served.
The Mousson fan club is growing!
Not sure there is a prevailing opinion on the Jo Malone yet, so yours may win out!
LOL!
I got beat down on Miss Rocaille. For me, it's reminiscent of my young perfume life (I'm thinking Coty Elan – but I could be wrong). My lunch got ATE on that one!
Alas, I have to say I side with Patty on YSL Elle – I got Raid Lite. Did you ever sample Miss Rocaille? Your thoughts (she says, cringing:-)
Light Blue puts my teeth on edge, like the Granny Smiths that purport to be in it.
You got it – Lemon Pledge, Teeth on Edge!
Hey maybe I have found my scent twin! I also love 5 o'clock- it is one of the only SL's I would consider getting a FB of (also Chene)-
(however, I do like Sensuous but dont need a bottle)
Nor for me re DTB – sweaty skin and violets is not a marriage made in heaven, if you ask me.
And it also has salicylates, the SA in Liberty's told me. So I said: “Right, as in acne ointment?”, which rather shattered the mood.
As a mega fan of Jasmin Noir, I am out of whack on that one too!
Count me in too. It is the official misspelling of my real name, apart from anything, so maybe that is why I am drawn to it!
I love flower bomb and miss dior cherie as well. They are totally underrated imo. Both are fab. I'm also kind of shocked when people do not acknowledge the brilliance of Angel. I don't like everything either, but Angel was revolutionary and certainly not simply pretty. I understand hating it, but it remains art. ( :
Sacre doesn't do much for me. I'm missing something there. I should probably try it again.
New? Magnifique, which got some decent reviews, is terrible on me. Instant headache. I don't understand the appeal.
It means “Improperly ordered or balanced; not functioning correctly”, and in this context, means when your opinion is entirely different from everyone else's.
Perfumeaddict, have you tried Hermes Eau des Merveilles, or Osmanthe Yunnan? Those are very light scents. Also Caleche Eau Delicate.
Gosh, I'd say most people think Angel was revolutionary, don't they? Most perfumistas, anyway.
Ok, thank you Robin 🙂
Yep, I'd say it started a revolution (with two armies- the Lovers and the Haters!)…seriously, it is revolutionary and I can respect it for that-
I am also a fan of Flowerbomb and love smelling it on others (and if a bomb dropped from the sky, I would wear it 😉
I thought it was vile and disgusting – a scrubber!
Also disappointed in Kelly Caleche, Infusion d'Iris and UJALM – but raising my hand as another lover of Paprika Brasil!
I would love to find some Miami Glow – I know it is on ebay but I want to smell it first if at all possible.
I came to Angel recently (how I managed to miss it I'll never know) and really like it. I think I might like A*Men more but need a sample. It is a love-or-hate type of fragrance, for sure.
I love love love Stella in Two-which is surprising because I've never really met anyone who has it or uses it.
As far as missing the boat on something. The original Prada-It dried down to smell like play dough on me. Yet a friend wore it and smelled amazing. Body chemistry is so strange.
Will do! It seems like I should like it, so maybe my body will do its thing and make it a masterpiece on skin. I am hoping to try the TF Patchouli's, too, but haven't run across them yet.
I reviewed it, ages ago. I think it's a fun scent. No masterpiece, but fun, and I'm sure I'd wear it if I had any.
Do try the newer A*Men Pure Coffee! I really like that one.
To be honest, I don't like either of the two on their own, but I love them together. Maybe opinion has changed, but I do remember the first couple of reviews I found of them after I bought them seemed to think they were nothing more than a gimmick, which is too bad as I find them to be quite an interesting take on the original Stella
I love it too. On me, it's mostly peony and cedar, with a bit of rose and amber, but last time I checked it only had one review on basenotes.
I tried eau de merveilless I tried the line at Saks. I remember when the SA had even called me about the one in the brown bottle that was supposed to have a chocolate accord… I was gagging for fresh air. I had the worse headache imaginable. I for some reason find that brand to be harsh to my taste. But I love the bottles so much I am tempted to buy that luscious blue bottle at least. But I have never had the Osmanthe Yunnan so that is one I will add to my long long list of perfumes I have to get. Thanks Robin LOVE THE BLOG!!
Just adding that I love CdG Rhubarb as well, so you're not alone (unfortunately, I'm not so happy with the solid perfume and wish I had the edt instead). I also enjoy Mousson enough to want 50ml, so we're all in good company. 😉
Robin by-the-way I totally enjoyed that blog cephalogenic. It was funny and informative. I am not even sure I should be hyphenating the by the way lol!!
Even before reading all the comments, the first thing that came to mind was Infusion d'Iris. Pretty boring to me, as was Prada Man, which I found extremely generic (not sure if it was well-liked in any case, though).
I have tried it! My arm was glued to my nose and I had a big smile on my face! Want some, but probably just a decant.
Interesting, I think of Merveilles as being so sheer! Ah well, plenty of other brands, right? And thanks for the kind words 🙂
Isn't that a great blog? Makes me bite my nails about my own writing all the time!
Infusion d'Iris got at least one other mention above, so you're not alone!
I am still a burgeoning perfumista-but I did send back my Light Blue. I loved the sample, but the juice made me feel like an apple rotting in the field.
I'm dissed by a lot of things: Dior Pure Poison, Versace's new signature, Baby Doll by ESL and a lot more I love, i.e. Romance by RL
Guerlain's Cruel Gardenia is my Ultimate perfume scent, all the reviews I have read by other reviews are great BUT one Perfume guy who wrote a perfume book, said it should say, “Sucker, sucker, sucker”, every time you spray it.
I hope he was speaking about the $230+ price tag…if you can even find it. But he brought me down man.
But all these scents have a certain way of making me FEEL a certain way. like Baby Doll helps me on sad gray day if I'm sad- it has such a sparkling pink grapefruit sort of opening with a beautiful freesia heart. The point is…it's cheerful.
What I do if what I like isn't liked by the blogs-I go to the people reviews, who usually offer positive feedback. I stop feeling alone and with bad taste. I'm still a blush zinfandel on an aged Cabernet world.
Joy, Becca
hey becca, zinfandel is fine! the point is that you have to grow on cabernet – like on perfumes!
The journey is the regard, and there is still one thing you should never forget: important is YOUR taste, what YOU like! I like light blue and ck one 🙂
I like easy smelling scents like YSL Baby Doll, that just gives you a smile! Nevertheless I go further, but I am not respectless to those – scents as well as people.
Every “Connaisseur” started as a liitle curious person, so what.
I am so with you on the Magnifique. To me, it smells like generic cheap pharmacy perfume. It gave me a headache on first sniff also! (well, at least that is one less perfume for me to buy!)
I own a couple of bottles of Miami glow and I have to say, although not typical perfumista fare, it is very nice. It has a very tropical coconut and mango feel about it and always garners complments when worn. As for Angel A*men is a good alternative for a woman who likes Angel but finds it a bit too much. I honestly can't really imagine it on a man. If you like Angel, you will like A*men and it has been going quite cheaply lately.
Hey, wait a minute — “people reviews”? Blogs *are* people reviews. It's not like I'm some expert!
NST: Yes!
Maybe she ment she sticks with the blogs who like teh same stuff?
But – Blogging is not peoples review anymore because we became a kind of expert. People ask me for advice pretty often these days. And when YOU say go and try e.g. Nahema, then I GO AND GET IT 🙂 because I know you are a kind of expert and probably right… (you are, most of the times!)
In all seriousness, people do ask me for advice but I am really not any kind of expert at all…just a busybody consumer 🙂
Okay, then I am in good company with Mousson! I will definitely try the Rhubarb, getting 2 samples to put in a spray to get the proper effect. Joe's 2d makes me want to try it even more. :~)
You are going to love the Iris Nobile bottle, IN! I am really glad I spent my Nordie bucks on it.
. . .and a sexy suburban housewife of A Certain Age! Credit where credit is due, Ms. K.
I was totally out of whack vis-a-vis Parfumerie Generale's Cuir Venenum. I ADORED it at first sniff and bought a whole bottle, then was totally chagrinned to read on MUA that it receiving something like 2.7 or 2.3!! But I don't care. On me it is candied citrus and leather and just still wows me.
I think I am out of whack, most recently, with the general consensus re: El Attarine. On me, it is vile, strange, rotten-Pez-candy stuff — and I love all sorts of funky SL things. . .
Haha, ok, so I may be the only perfumista out there who LIKES Light Blue. As in, I think it's lovely to smell, with (obviously) a few caveats. I love smelling it on other people (I'd never wear it… I'm not that cheerful), and only from a distance (it's STRONG).
I also HATED Guerlain My Insolence, which I felt got way better reviews than it deserved. I also really detested FM Lipstick Rose. Blasphemy, I know! Don't hate me… maybe I had a cold that day?
I never realized until a couple of months ago how different perfumes smell in the winter! I wear Bond 9 Chinatown as my daily scent, and while is smells like incense in the summer, it gets very woody the minute the temperature drops. Still beautiful though- I've never connected so well with a scent.
On the other hand, my beloved EL PC Tuberose Gardenia starts to smell really lame in the winter- flat, boring, one dimensional. I guess I'll have to hold off until spring (and here in Montreal, that's not til the middle of May).
Generally, I go to fragrance.com. If the scent is listed, there is a “Here's what people who bought this had to say:” and there are always some disappointed people besides the admirers. It's fair. A lot of sellers have this rave or vent opp. Lucky scent has the same thing.
When I got a sample of Fifi Chachnil, I thought I was going past a burning tire fest. I thought I was a real rube-but others felt the same…whew!
Perfume bogs ARE NOT the same. In a Blog we love to *worship* every nuance of perfume. It is like being at a wine tasting. A lot of people in the room know the exact age, season, and the kind of barrel it was aged in. You taste something from the same vineyard two years apart and you don't get it, so you keep your mouth shut. You don't say, “Tastes like Cabernet to me.” You WILL get looks. Some people will appreciate your “wine in a carton taste”, and know that you are trying to refine your love of wine. BUT a lot of people won't. We try not to be elitist, but we can be.
I asked what fragrance was your (Robin) guilty pleasure, (I didn't didn't say guilty). You gave me Kai, which is a niche scent, adored by certain celebrities (according to Lucky scent). I was hoping you would say something like Jean Nate. Absolutely no offence! But I realized your taste has evolved, you are now a conniseure. Do you own a mainstream popular scent? Or what was the last one you bought? I'm just curious, I like your taste.
Even I, am beginning to see the similarities of a lot of mainstream fragrances. I see Robin as an icon with incredible taste, she knows fragrance. Robin you know fragrance! And your a great writer and teacher, give yourself some credit.
My point is, “A fool's paradise is a wise man's hell”
Sometimes I have to go to the commoners like me…ha ha ha, the mass consumer, to understand what other people are smelling.
And this is because I'm still insecure.
I don't expect my choices, like YSL's Baby Doll to be hurrayed, but I have actually heard it insulted. Not snarky fun, insulted.
I should have said something, but it was an old post-“Hey your talking about my happy juice!” or something. Oh well.
Love this blog,
Becca
I agree, I am no dermatologist either, but exactly that helps, we are not concentrated on one thing and provide a wider view. And: The blog offers the possibility of exchange between the readers, so everybody learns something new all the time.
Hey Becca, I totally agree with you! Thank you.
for…
>>In a Blog we love to *worship* every nuance of perfume.
and
>>We try not to be elitist, but we can be.
Love this blog too, and my english gets better with you everyday.
Smells like MKK with cinnamon to me. When I tried it I just felt nostalgic of MKK and like: why all the cinnamon? How can I clean my MKK of it?..
I think ratings at MUA are interesting, but I don't worry about them either.
Interested that you found EA vile though — I think of it as fairly tame! Will have to try it again with “rotten Pez” in mind.
Kai's celebrity following is a mystery to me — it's an incredibly simple clean musk w/ some floral oils thrown in. Really. It is “niche” only because it isn't widely distributed — not because it has some greater artistic merit than mainstream perfumes (and that is true of tons of niche scents). And if you look at many other perfume oils supposedly popular w/ celebs, they're the same — clean musk, sweet flowers. So I'll stand by that one!
The last mainstream scent I bought was EL Sensuous. Before that it might have been Burberry Beat Elixir, but I'd have to go check (I'm not including the Gwen Stefani Harajuku Lovers since I don't actually wear them). Overall, my collection is probably about 40% mainstream.
Forty percent? No kidding! That's rather reassuring. 😀
It would probably be higher if such a huge proportion of my collection wasn't bought in the first year of my addiction, when I was niche-crazy. Now I'd say it varies. Some years seem better for niche, some for mainstream.
Thank you. It's nice to know I'm not alone. :- D If you only knew how much I relied on my spell checker and my grammar isn't very good either. I think you speak English better than most Americans these days.
Yep, that “molten river of woods” was a bit of genius. I wanted to buy that too, except there's a kind of pine smell that disagreed with me. I love Burberry. Have you ever smelled their Tender Touch? It sounds lovely…and it's pink with no plaid 😀 I've never smelled it.
Thanks so so much for sharing Robin. I'm sure a lot of us newbies are sighing with relief and less insecure with their choices.
-Becca
I have not tried Tender Touch, but again, I wouldn't be insecure about anything. If you like something, wear it. Who cares what anyone else thinks? It's fun to write about fragrance, and I think it's fun to read about it too, but in the end you've got to wear what you like.
Hi Becca,
I remember Tender Touch. It is sweet and feminine and reminds me of the spring even though it isn't particularly floral like so many others….
On that note, has any tried any of the Fragrances of Ireland? Very inexpensive but hard to find….intriguing.
Miss Rocaille smells like Coty Elan? I used to LOVE Elan! Must track down Miss Rocaille & give it a sniff 🙂
hi lovethescents
By Frags of ireland, do you mean Inis? It's a floral, oceanic, scent with a Muget note?
Thanks so much for your response. I'm talking about Inis Or and Connemara. Have you tried them? Do they smell as cheap as their cost or are they “cheap thrills”?
I've tried the Inis and like it. It does have a unisex vibe to it. The website where I found it sold a 50 ml bottle for 49.50
I haven't tried Connemara but with as many Irish specialty stores in SF that we have, it wouldn't be difficult to find……
thanks for your reviews and response. Am waiting for an Inis Or sample (not the Inis). Will wait for the Connemara sample later…
I don't live in SF but in Montreal. Not available here….
I too love Stella in two. It's hard to find on the net, and if you can find it-it is just the peony in 2. The only place on line that sells it is *Barneys New York* , and they also sell the solid, I've looked everywhere on the amber solid, and nothing. It's an expensive scent. Critics have only crucified the solid. The peony in two is probably my favorite as of now. I'm saving money to get the two at
Barneys.
-Becca
Becca, check beautyencounter ($37.90 fora set w/ the solid + the peony edt).
Thanks Robin. Odd that it can be found at a high end store for a premium, and a discount store for a song. The world is not singing the same tune.
That's how it works! Never pay full retail unless you have to.