Ten years ago it would have been impossible for most of us to have become as absorbed by perfume as we are now. Ten years ago if we’d stumbled across a bottle of Guerlain L’Heure Bleue and were fascinated by its combination of old-fashioned femininity and offbeat melancholy, we might have trolled through the perfume counters at department stores in big cities to smell other Guerlains, then tried in vain later to remember what we smelled. Most of us wouldn’t have had anyone to send us samples of Balmain Vent Vert and whisper how it has changed over the years, or tell us about the surprisingly terrific old fragrances at the Estée Lauder counter, or introduce us to Serge Lutens, who — at least stateside — we may not otherwise have encountered.
The internet changed all that. We can share impressions and read reviews of perfumes then swap samples to see if it’s worth ordering. We can find our Evil Scent Twins so we know what to avoid — or try. And we can meet all sorts of fascinating people.
But there are drawbacks, of course…
