July…and so it must be time for another damage poll! Donatella Versace, Our Lady of Scented Abundance,1 wants to know what you bought in the 2nd quarter (April, May and June) of 2015.
Update: the poll is now closed!
My purchases...
I bought absolutely nothing, and that brings my total for the year so far to a big old zero. As I said after the first quarter, maybe 2015 will finally be the year when I don't buy any perfume at all.
As always, report your purchases in the comments if you dare! And as always, we don't include samples or gifts, and you can count miniatures, decants and bottle-splits howsoever you like (I usually count them as half bottles). Samples don't generally count at all, even though some of us spend considerable sums obtaining them.
1. Why does Donatella host (against her will, mind you) the damage polls? There is no real reason other than the picture of her perfume collection, which shows that she indulges regularly at the perfume counter. The image, by the way, is originally from Allure magazine and appears here courtesy of Blogdorf Goodman.
$28 for a partial bottle of Freschiiissimo. All my money had to go towards moving
And you got your money’s worth, right?
I do not actually appear to be saving any money by not buying perfume…it just slips away into other categories, LOL…
Movers were my worst ever so definitely not worth the money, but the perfume definitely was
Ah, that’s what I meant. But sorry about your movers!
My purchases :
1.Wild Fig & Cassis by JM – $125
2. Saturated Cherry Blossom by JM – $125
3. No. 42 The Flower Shop by Jo Loves – $185
4. Bronze Goddess by EL – $65
5. Knot by BV – $130
6. Jasmine White Moss by EL – $150
I am truly out of control!
Don’t worry, somebody here will beat you before the poll is through…
yeah. me. see below.
I like a lot of the same scents as scentfromabove so I bought #1 and 5 on her list recently. I already had #2 and #4 from her list. I also got L’Artisan Parfumeur Nuit de Tubereuse and Seville a l’Aube. I didn’t do real well either, but that’s ok.
Oooh, from where did you acquire Jo Loves?
I bought it off of Amazon. It was more than what I wanted to pay for it, but it was cheaper than purchasing it from the Jo Loves website. Amazon has quite a few of the fragrances from Jo Loves if you are willing to pay. My bottle is small (it’s 1fl. oz.), so I am using it sparingly, but I don’t regret purchasing it.
Thanks. For some odd reason, eventhough I have purchased perfumes through Amazon, I never think of it unless someone mentions it!
5 bottles:
BV Knot 60€
Seville a l’Aube 60€
Paul&Joe Blanc 30€
Ellen Tracy Bronze 30€
Tea for Two 55€
Quite a bit of damage in samples and decants, too.
But you got lovely things!
Annick Goutal Duel (older bottle, discounted), Olfactive Studio Lumiere Blanche, Thierry Mugler Angel Eau Sucrée. Lots of sweet fragrances!
Nice ones!
I confess I’m a little bit obsessed with Lumiere Blanche and Angel Eau Sucrée! Duel is nice too. 😉
Sucree is so nice! I’m planning on buying it.
It’s a guilt free indulgence for sure!
Probably one of the last bottles of Enlèvement au Sérail by MDCI and just recently a bottle of Amouage Beloved. I paid full price for the MDCI and less than half for Beloved. And I got the MDCI sample set, the large one with 8 beautiful bottles with 8 beautiful fragrances.
That sample set sounds lovely. Is EaS discontinued?!
Yes, it could no longer be made because of restrictions on perfume materials. I imported my bottle from Poland ( I live in the Netherlands), fortunately for me shipping is way less expensive in Poland than it is in my own country.
The sample set is such a good deal because you get big samples (around 12ml each), and for most of those scents it will be all I need.
My only chance to sample the MDCI scents were up in Canada, and I bought one for a keepsake of the trip (Vepres Siciliennes). They do a nice job, don’t they?
I think it’s a brilliant line. And it doesn’t seem as outrageously priced these days. Others have caught on.
Confession is good for the soul, right?
I bought:
Givenchy Organza Indecence
Givenchy Le De
Chanel Cuir de Russie parfum
Chanel Cristalle edt
Van Cleef & Arpels California Reverie
Tommy Bahama Brain Fart (Set Sail St Barts, if you must know)
Tom Ford London
Dior Bois d’Argent
Lancome Cuir de Lancome
Van Cleef & Arpels Les Saisons Hiver, Ete, and Automne
Guerlain Vetiver
No regrets except for the Brain Fart, but I only paid $8 for that, so the regrets are small. I might regret some of the Les Saisons (also cheap) at some point, but not yet.
So I bought 13 FB’s, but also sold, swapped, or gave away 9. Net 4 doesn’t sound so bad, does it? Right?
Heh.
Hey, you stocked up on a lot of classics!
Which, of course, means I was totally justified. TOTALLY. 🙂
Absolutely!
I wore California Reverie for the last two days, and would love to have a FB of that one. Congrats on yours!
I’m wearing that one at least once a week since I bought it. Definitely a good purchase.
Ah, Cuir de Russie parfum! And I’d really like to try London.
Yes! Go Pixel go!
Cuir de Russie & Bois d’Argent – all kinds of yes.
I almost bought a Set Sail St. Bart’s at Ross, because it’s often described as being similar to Creed’s Virgin Island Water, which is often described as being similar to the old B&BW Coconut Lime Verbena, which my mother loves. (She currently haunts outlet malls in an attempt to acquire a lifetime supply of the hand soap.) They wanted $20 for it, though, which was too much for a twice-removed blind buy. In other words, I’ll see you at the next swap meet.
Rochas Femme EDT $38
Annick Goutal Songes body oil $55
Le Couvent des Minimes Eau des Missions $35
Oooh, Songes comes in a body oil? I can hear my credit card whimpering now…..
I don’t regret it. I love it!
Wow, where did you find the body oil? I didn’t know it existed, but now that I do. . .
I think it’s fairly new. I got in an AG boutique but I hear it’s also on the AG website in clear oil and one with shimmer. I got the clear. Always happy to enable 😉
Thanks for the heads up. I could possibly see this in my future. And just you carry on enabling, you’re very good at it!
FB’s of Amouage Sunshine 100 ml and Jean Patou Sublime 50ml, but at great deals from discounters.
Small decants of Wit, SL Un Bois Vanille, PdN Vanille Tonka, and the Arquiste for J. Crew frags. Samples of the first three Neela Vermeires (now wondering who does samples of the Mohur extrait).
Overall very pleased. Waiting until fall to order anything else so nothing has to sit in a hot mailbox since my kids and the babysitter don’t think to go check it.
I received a sample of Mohur extrait when I ordered the discovery coffret from her web site. Just saying…
Checked the website and they aren’t shipping discovery sets until sometime in late August, but that would work fine with my plan on putting off purchases so they don’t sit in a hot mailbox (especially as wonderful as her perfumes are!).
And the discovery set is definitely on my to-buy list.
Yes, where can we purchase Mohur Extrait?? Good question!
LuckyScent unless they’ve run out since it is limited edition.
Oh, dear, now I am nervous. I better just go buy some….
I had a good quarter mostly because I’m really, really happy with everything I got (even though 3 were blind buys).
-Tauer Vanilla Flash rollerball
-Kiehl’s Musk oil rollerball (which I broke a month or two later and am still trying to salvage the purse it was in)
-House of Cherry Bomb Tobacco Cognac
-ELDO Fils de Dieu
-Guerlain Vetiver
Plus, nothing cost more than $100. Between my upcoming vacation and birthday, though, I’m sure I’ll make up for that next quarter.
Goodness! I can’t imagine Kiehl’s Musk oil broken in a purse. Wowsa! But a way interesting smell once it drys down 😀 If you have sunny days, I’d try sitting it open to the sunshine for a day or two to calm it down.
Your other purchases sound great, and I’ve really thought about the Fils de Dieu and Vetiver, as those are amazing scents. I bought the Tauer Vanilla Flash, too. Good quarter, all in all.
I once had a mini of Givenchy Very Irresistible for Men uncap itself in a leather knapsack. The leather absorbed every drop and it smelled FANTASTIC. I don’t know why Givenchy didn’t do a Mugler-style leather flanker. Or just sell scented leather knapsacks.
100 ml bottle L’Artisan Parfumeur Nuit de Tubereuse, replacement bottle. $68 from an on line discounter
Decants of:
Chanel Misia
Penhaligons Ostara
Not too bad! I only ordered a few samples this quarter too.
Have to admit the one thing I’m really eying is also a L’Artisan discounter bottle… I don’t need it, at all–it wouldn’t even be a replacement for me but a back-up bottle–but for the price…!!
I’m in favor of backing up loved scents! 😉
Agreed!!
Heh, thanks you two! (…my wallet is less grateful!)
None! Feeling pleased with my restraint as I’d gone quite overbudget in the first quarter–in fact, now that I’m looking at Mint, I’d really gone a lot more over than I realized, so alas it’s going to take another quarter before I’m back in the black on the perfume budget, but that’s probably for the best–it would not be the worse thing to “spend down” some of what I already have on hand!
I’ve gone over mine, too, but I expect to recover this quarter. I’ve got my sights set on a bottle of Misia in the fourth quarter, which helps with the urge to splurge in the moment.
Congrats on a great quarter!
Only one–Infusion d’Iris edp, which I thought would play well with the heat this summer. And I bought it at an online discounter, so that makes it practically free.
But I’m with you, Robin–restraint in perfume seems to be leading to less restraint in other parts of my life. My clothing budget as especially shown some loosened pursestrings! (But hey, I needed those cute workout clothes to stay motivated, right?!)
Are you wearing your purchase? I love it but it’s a bit much for me in the summer.
Buying cute workout clothes can definitely increase your commitment to exercise!
Yes, I’ve worn it half a dozen times since I purchased it. I definitely have to be in the mood for it, so I can see how it might be too much sometimes.
I actually really enjoy lifting weights, so I don’t need a ton of motivation to get there (most days!). However, it’s been frustrating that all my hard work doesn’t *show* more, and hence, the cute clothes. . . Some day maybe I won’t be so shallow and extrinsically motivated! 😀
How long have you been at it? It took me fully two years before the effects of yoga accumulated into a noticeable change in my body. Annoying that it takes sooo long but on the other hand, don’t despair if it doesn’t happen right away! To my mind you’ve already done the key part–find something you authentically like enough to stick with for the long haul 🙂
It’s been about a year and a third that I’ve been really consistent about working out. I’ve been working really hard, and it feels good, and I’m certainly getting stronger. I know you’re right that I need to be patient for the external signs of improvement, but *sigh*.
I’ve gone through this process once before. When I went to college, I lost a bunch of weight and started to go to the gym regularly. The goal at that time was just to stop *hurting* from lack of fitness. Twenty years (and plenty set-backs) later, I’m far less patient this time around. I think it’s because I know how good it feels to be strong and healthy. But on the plus side, I know I can do it, since I’ve done it before!
Workout clothes are the craziest. Really glad nobody does a damage poll for yoga pants.
YES!
I think I did better this quarter fragrance wise.
Tauer Vanilla Flash roller ball.
Tauer Rose Flash spray.
impulse purchase of JM Wood Sage and Sea Salt, 30mL
I’m headed to Vegas in August, and thinking (ok fantasizing) about what I want to bring home as a perfume souvenir. Maybe a Box of Eels extrait or one of the Amouages or Diors–something I can’t get here at home!
I vote for Box of Eels!
What is “Box of Eels” pray tell?
Chanel Bois de Iles. I had to have it explained to me about a month ago, after Googling it with no luck. Good name for a band, right?
Yes- good name for a band.
Well, if it’s fantasizing … why not all three? Or two of each!
Memory is a bit vague, but here goes…
Burberry Brit Rhythm Woman 30 ml
Guerlain Tonka Imperial 75 ml
Mitsouko extrait 8 ml (why have they DC the perfect 8 ml spray 🙁 ? )
Amouage Journey Woman 50 ml
Nice haul!
Joining in with everyone who bought Andy Tauer’s Vanilla Flash. I got the 30 ml bottle.
Also this quarter:
A full bottle of PG Indochine
Decant of Frapin Speakeasy
Tiny bottle of Alkemia Blessed Bee (honey, lots of honey)
Total – under $200, so I’m giving myself a gold star!
I admire your willpower to NOT buy Robin!Lol!Cannot say I’ve been “good” at all.My vote has been cast.No confession further though,ha!Happy 4th of July weekend NST!
It is truly not willpower — my interest in owning perfumes has just gone down as my collection grew. I have too much already! If every brand sold 15 ml bottles, I’d be helpless, really.
Lol,I hear you.And I’d probably be bankrupt/out of space/suffocated if those 15mls of all the perfumes I love were available.
I’m still anticipating that moment. Not wanting anymore perfume, seems like ages away, yet who knows….
Only one FB, April Aromatics Liquid Dreams, which just arrived from Germany today and smells ridiculously beautiful – part of the payment went to Nepal Earthquake Relief fund, too. Couple of smaller bottles, Floracopeia Vetiver & Rajasthan Rose Attar, plus travel sprays of two Strange Invisible Perfumes scents, to check current formulas of Epic Gradenia and Prima Ballerina, along with Sage & Rose Body Lotion. Can’t tell the precise amount spent, depends on Euro to USD conversion 😉 but overall, pretty restrained quarter for me, FB wise!
Sounds delightful.
Not at all bad this quarter. I had no purchases at all in May and went until the 29th of June without one, but Chypre Mousse was too good a deal to pass up.
15ml Versace Blond extrait–30.00
30ml EL Tuberose Gardenia–30.00 (had a gift card for the rest)
20ml vintage Caron Bellodgia–20.00
100ml Chypre Mousse–110.00
I bought decants of Pichola and Feve Delicieuse for $32.
Total for the quarter was $222.
Well scored with Chypre Mousse!
I bought Volnay Brume d’Hiver in Paris and with the exchange rate saved about $55 off the $225 it would have cost at Neiman’s. I think that is a score!!!
Nice!
I bought:
– Chanel 28 La Pausa
– Serge Lutens A La Nuit
– Masque Milano Russian Tea
– Jo Malone Birch & Black Pepper
– Carner Barcelona El Born
– Ramon Monegal Cuirelle
– Le Soft Perfume Rock (solid perfume)
– Yves Rocher Eau des Vahines (plus the entire Monoi body range…)
– travel spray set of Thierry Mugler Womanity
– 4x8ml Neela Vermeire coffret
And I received a bottle of Tom Ford Lys Fume as a gift.
No regrets, although I probably would not have bought the Spaniards had I not been in Barcelona.
Nice list!Especially the 28 and El Born(love love LOOOOOOVE those 2!)
Love this list! Enjoy!!!
What’s this Soft Rock scent now?
The Russian Tea is a wonderful scent. Great choice.
I fell in love with A La Nuit during my holiday in Spain…such a gorgeous jasmin. I think it may appear on the next damage list! BTW I really like your blog very much Anniky, that Zome lamp, it may be to most beautiful lamp I have ever come across.
Well you seem to be expanding your collection 😉
Didn’t spend a dime, but how could I….I won the Bergdorf Goodman raffle prize at Sniffapalooza in May. Nineteen bottles (and I mean big 100 ml bottles) of fabulous stuff. Some classics (Shalimar, Joy, etc.) and some newbees like Regime des Fleurs. I will be spending the rest of the year working my way through all of this bounty. I feel like Donatella and I soon may need a perfume closet like hers! Happy 4th everyone and best wishes to all my fragrant friends.
I am green with envy! 😉
How lucky! Congratulations!
Wow!! That is awesome, am delighted for ya!
Holy cow!!!
MOOOOOO!
Awesome!Enjoy every drop!!
Wow, just wow. That’s a lot a juice.
Amazing! Lucky you!
And I was with Jepster when her name was called. The next time there’s a draw, I want to be near her again for the good luck to rub off on me!
I will send you all my good vibes hajusuuri–you deserve it for your very generous nature. Will have to figure out how to share the bounty!
OMG! It’s like winning a fragrance lottery! Congrats! That’s so awesome!
OMG- I think my heart just skipped a few beats! Congratulations! I’m so envious! Enjoy them fully!
After more than a year (!) without a FB purchase (swaps don’t count!) because I wanted to make a dent in my sample collection (which only seems to have increased), I bought two on the same day:
Jennifer Aniston, which seemed a no brainer at 20$ (CAD) for 85ml
Infusion d’Iris EDP, at 77$ for a 100ml tester and which was at the top of my to-buy list for quite some time.
Guerlain Terracotta
Guerlain L’Heure Bleue
Burberry Brit Rhythm
Chanel Cuir de Russie (partial on ebay)
Annick Goutal Ce Soor ou Jamais
10 mls of FM L’eau d’Hiver and En Passant.
Gosh, I didn’t realize there were so many! But several were bought on vacation in NYC.
Vacation spending doesn’t really count, does it? I categorize all scents purchased on vacations as “souvenirs.” 🙂
Absolutely right. Much as cocktails and desserts consumed while on vacation have no calories. 🙂
I bought full bottles of:
Hermes Eau de merveille
Hermes Un jardin sur le nil
M.Micallef Ananda
And a mini set of all the Elie Saabs.
Two and a decant. This is, I think, my second-lowest quarter since 2009.
30 ml Carven Le Parfum, $38
10 ml decant original RL Lauren, $9
75 ml RL Safari cologne, the early stuff, a partial bottle and my third of Safari because I’ve become addicted to the stuff (2nd backup because I am going through my first ebay bottle really fast), $45
That’s a total of $92. I’m happy with it and not feeling an urge to buy more at the moment.
I hear ya on the Safari; I have a 50 and a 75 that should last me for a while. I assume it, along with just about everything else, has been reformulated. Have you sniffed from a recent bottle?
Bruno Fazzolari, Lampblack, 30 ml, $110
Ex Idolo, Thirty-Three, 30 ml, $120
Comme des Garçons, Wonderoud, 100 ml, $145
Cartier, L’Heure Fougeuse, 75 ml, $280
Hermès, Eau de Narcisse Bleu, 100 ml, $63.74
Annick Goutal, Néroli, 50 ml $40
UNUM, lAVS, 100 ml, $220
Love love love L’Heure Fougeuse!
I like the look of your list!
Good quarter for me…only bought 1 fb: Shangri La which I absolutely love and was worth every penny.
I am slightly disappointed in myself that I spent $50 on 3 decants/samples though I have way too many already hanging around and swore to downsize. On the other hand, a heart wants what a heart wants and it could have been far more damaging.
I am now consoling myself with your last sentence.
Alien the taste of fragrance
Alien Essence Absolue
Prada Candy
The first two because I just love Alien. The last one I like enough, and my daughter loves it.
In the last three months I have bought:
By Kilian Back to Black 50 ml refill
Oriza L. Legrand Vetiver Royal Bourbon 100 ml
Dior Vetiver 250 ml
And Montale Aoud Leather blind which I have sold in the meantime because it was meh. I thought it could substitute Tuscan Leather…no way.
Dior Vetiver is REALLY something 😀
1. Hiris
2. AG Ambre Fetiche
3. Unum Lavs
4. Infusion d’iris Absolue
5. Cristalle Eau Verte
6. PdN Weekend a Deauville
7. Cristalle EdP
I love them all.
A good selection, especially the Cristalles.
And I already had the EdT. Can’t have too much Cristalle.
Just one purchase for me: Mary Greenwell Plum for €28. Score! Am a happy camper with that one. Almost gave in to temptation on Cartier La Panthere, but I didn’t succumb. Great restraint : )
Well done!
Just two: my third bottle of Gucci EDP (“Gucci Brown”); and the BIG bottle of Jour d’Hermes. No, wait – four! I also bought bottles of The Different Company Kashan Rose and Jo Malone Wood Sage and Sea Salt. Good thing the poll category was “2 to 4” – Donatella does not give second chances for honesty!
This is the first time I’ve participated in the damage poll, and it’s never going to look like this again!
I finally went back to London half a life time after spending a year there way back in 1988. The incentive for finally getting to London and Paris was to get lots of perfumes I can’t get in New Zealand! Places in the US will post to New Zealand at horrendous cost, but most of the exclusive lines just aren’t obtainable.
I bought everything on my shopping list:
Serge Lutens – De Profundis, Miel de Bois, Rose de Nuit
Guerlain – Myrrhe et Delires, Encens Mythique d’Orient
Ormond Jayne – Ormond Woman, Orris Noir
Papillon Perfumery – Angelique
I also bought a couple on impulse – not my usual habit, but I’m not likely to be overseas shopping again anytime soon – Le Galion Sortilege and Armani Prive Rose d’Arabie.
My sister-in-law came with me, so she got a crash course in perfume shopping. She bought lots as well, so we’re busily posting samples of each others’ perfumes.
Did you go to the Lutens boutique in Paris? Because oh my god that place.
I fully approve of your purchase of Miel de Bois. I love it inordinately and that seems to be a rare thing.
Yes, I went to the boutique, quite stunning.
I wasn’t too sure about Miel de Bois when I first tried a sample, but it grew on me quickly. Good thing too, because it was the only thing that leaked a little in my suitcase, and my whole apartment smelled of it for weeks!
Well done! Lovely perfumes.
The Guerlain Encens Mythique is such a beautiful scent. I don’t see it mentioned often. Enjoy!
I hear ya, Gaynor! We travel = we buy, for those chances don’t come our way at home. Brilliant choices!
I’m already developing a list for the next trip. It will be some time off, but I don’t plan to wait 27 years between trips this time!
I adore Myrrhe et Delires! To me, it’s for a special romantic evening.
I was so virtuous, me and my moratorium, until I went to Europe, and then all hell broke loose.
in Rome and Florence, a total of 6 I Profumi di Firenze scents, 15 to 20 euros each
In Berlin, A set of 5 Acqua Colonia minis, 19.99 euros, and
Acqua Colonia Hazelnut & Tonka, 19.99 euros
In London, Mugler Pure Zest, 48 pounds
I don’t know how much that is in $CAD and I decline to do the math. (It’s under $300, though.)
And now the moratorium is back on. Until next year, I guess (we’re going back to Berlin because it was AMAZING).
Sounds like a wonderful trip!
That Hazelnut and Tonka is the most delightful little thing,isn’t it? I also scored one this month and love it! Never thought they’ d come out with something like this. Glad they did though!
I’d love to hear more about that scent.
I don’t think Acqua Colonia is distributed in North America, but in Europe they have a bunch of colognes that are based on two main ingredients, a citrus plus an accent (Lemon & Ginger, Mandarin & Cardamom). They decided to do two “winter colognes” that were constructed along the same lines but warmer and denser: hence Plum & Honey, which I didn’t get to try, and Hazel & Tonka, which is very nutty and warm, not much lasting power (it is meant to be a cologne, after all), quite offbeat.
Sounds lovely. Thanks for the info!
Not a bad quarter for me:
BV Knot 50ml
Decants of:
Dior Ambre Nuit
Balenciaga Paris EDP
Hermes Cuir d Ange
La Chasse aux Papillons
I spent over $225 in last quarter, all on minis, travel sizes and coffrets. I did spend $19.95 on a 5.7 oz tester of my favorite cologne, because I was about to run out. However, that was the only full bottle I’ve bought this year.
I’m afaid to tally:
1.7 of Guerlain Vetiver – I was traveling and left it home
3.4 of Goutal’s Eau d’Hadrien – same reason as above
1.7 x 2 of Cuir de Lancome (you know, for backup!)
Bottle of Berdoues Grand Cru for a lovely blogger
2.5 of Diptyque’s Philosykos edp – wanted it for a long time. Finally caved.
3.4 of Guerlain’s Eau de Fleur de Cedrat
3.4 of Eau Sauvage Cologne – for the SO (he loves it!)
Fragrance by French Connection (the original one composed by Jo Malone)
3.4 of Jo Malone’s Nutmeg & Ginger Cologne
I’m off to have a good cry!
Well, it sounds like there is more than one gift there, and officially they don’t count 😉
May you be consoled by your many gems!
Don’t cry! No tears allowed when you smell so wonderful!
I went a bit crazy this quarter:
Chanel CdR EDP
Vero Kern Rozy Extrait
Dame Perfume Desert Rose
Goutal Vanille Exquise
Unum Lavs
Guerlain Apres L’Ondee
CdG Leaves: Lily
CdG Leaves:Tea
Gucci Rush
CBIHP: In the LIbrary
In my defense, I had planned to spend my 1st alimony cheque entirely on perfume (And I did ) After 20 years, I darn well deserve it, and the madness of FB stops here.
You Go Girl!
You definitely deserved it! Good for you!
Excellent work!
Rozy Extrait is quite good isn’t it? My sample only just arrived today & my nose is buried in my wrist. I have Rozy Eau de Parfum (last quarter purchase) but I didn’t care for Rozy Voile d’Extrait- too dry & too urinous- so I was surprised that I seem to like the Extrait… Have you noticed that there has been a *significant* mark-down in the price of the vero.profumo Extraits?
I am in love with Rozy EDP, and so when the extrait came out, I could not resist. The other, earlier extra it’s did not tempt me, so I am not aware of any price drop, but am glad if I benefited from one…
Oh yes- from $325 to $255…
I was going to confess, but then I decided I wouldn’t admit my specific misdemeanours, but would use this moment of facing the truth to draw a line under my buying behaviour and be a better-behaved, more grown-up and self-disciplined Waterdragon from now on. But no sooner had I formed this particularly ennobling and entirely worthy thought than–and this is my real confession–I just happened to glance, almost accidentally you understand, at an on-line merchant, and there on screen was a bottle nodding and smiling just at me…and then some Roget & Gallet soap winked at me…and there was a discount…
Clearly I’m a lost cause, but at least I’m going down deeper down the rabbit hole in the very best of company!
🙂 love your post! And, yes, you’re in good company.
Laughing with you, not at you!
We’ve all been there. 🙂
Can totally understand your predicament, you are among friends here, haha.
Full bottles:
Penhaligon’s Lavandula 50 ml
Chanel Critalle EDT 60 ml
Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterraneo Mirto di Panarea 75 ml
Guerlain Mitsouko EDP 75 ml
Decants (only over 5 ml, I refuse to count the small ones :lol:):
Jo Malone Verbenas of Provence 8 ml
Molinard Habanita EDP 8 ml
Balenciaga Paris 10 ml
Carthusia Mediterraneo 10 ml
Van Cleef and Arpels First EDT 10 ml
Mancera Aoud Cafe 7 ml
Escentric Melecules Escentric 03 10 ml
Prada Infusion d’Iris EDP 10 ml
Dior Hypnotic Poison EDT 7 ml
Seville a l’Aube 9 ml
Great list!
I wasn’t too bad this quarter.. I got:
Demeter Tomato 30ml $15
Bvlgari Eau Parfumee au The Rouge $27 (this one may have actually been last quarter but I don’t remember and I’m too lazy to check)
Aromatics Elixir (limited edition bottle) $29
Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Camellia $8
I just smelled Tomato for the first time–gosh is it a great scent!! So original, and so true-to-life.
It is! Demeter is good like that. And they’re so inexpensive too.
As someone already mentioned- confession is good for the soul… Ok here goes:
1) Richard Luscher Britos- 14oS 48oE Madagascar
2) Tom Ford- Fleur de Chine
3) Frederic Malle- Lipstick Rose (the 10 mL travel spray)
4) Frederic Malle- Carnal Flower (the 10 mL travel spray)
5) Regime des Fleurs- Bel Epoq
6) LesNez- Manoumalia
7) Hiram Green- Moon Bloom
8, 9) Carven- vintage Ma Griffe (2 bottles- 1st one didn’t work out, 2nd was a charm)
10) Serge Lutens- A la nuit (as a present for my friend’s b-day- does that count?)
+ More decants than I want to count from STC & TPC (but only when they have holiday discounts & not as many as last quarter!)
Nice list!
Someone likes BWFs as much as I do! Yay!
Damn- at the risk of sounding like a dunce, I have to ask- what’s BWFs? Big White Florals?
Not a dunce – as it turns out your answer is….correct!
Yay! Thank you! Yes, I like BWFs, also Greens, Chypres, & Woods (especially BWFs on Woods).
I am jealous of your Malles.
How does Moon Bloom compare to Carnal Flower? So curious to see which one is worth buying…
I want to try the samples and hear opinions! Thanks!
Moon Bloom is more peppery esp. in the opening and doesn’t last nearly as well as Carnal Flower. I think CF is quite a bit greener, with way more projection than MB. I prefer CF but MB is very lovely as well.
More than I had intended ….
AG Songes
Miller Harris Terre d’Iris – love this – my second bottle!
Hermes Jardin sur le Nil
Chanel 28 La Pausa
So, I didn’t participate last quarter because…there had been a sale at a local shop that sells niche (not many hereabouts) and I went totally off the wall. This was exacerbated by falling in love with something expensive and discontinued. It was the most disgraceful period in my whole history as a perfume lover! 😮
I managed to be a little better behaved this time round:
Molinard: Habinata edp 50ml
Guerlain: Shalimar edp 50ml
Tom Ford: Grey Vetiver 50ml
EL: Tuberose Gardenia 75ml
The first (unavailable here) was from a discounter and ponied home for me by a most amazing and generous friend! The second I got on a special and used a gift card so it did not come to that much. The third and fourth was from a shop that had a buy 3 items and get- one-free special. As a freebie I finally replaced my ten year old torn and much abused hoodie!
Just remember, Merlin – this is a safe space to confess all your perfume issues (I refuse to call them sins!).
Yes, ‘issues’ sounds a LOT more excusable 😉
I have to say, it was only because of the sale that I really tried some of the scents with my full attention, and only because of that that I ended up with Mona di Orio’s Chamarre. 100mls for something like $45. This perfume is powerfully beautiful and justifies all the rest 🙂
They are NOT sins! Nor are they issues! They are a hobby or an interest that give you pleasure! Like wine lovers, say. Or sports- I can’t even tell you how $ my brother departs with on Yankee baseball tickets & memorabilia, like $2,000 for a row of weathered seats from the old Yankee Stadium to cite just one example! The buckets of $ my sister puts out on hair & makeup- to say nothing of shoes & handbags!- amounts to a monthly bill that exceeds the electric & the gas! Or the amount of $ that my mother puts out for high-end, specific-use kitchen & cooking items, like an ebelskiver pan. Why on earth are we apologizing for enjoying & spending our $ on perfume? Because it’s not a very “common” hobby like fashion, cooking, & sports? Rubbish. This shouldn’t be called the “damage” forum or the confessional that induce our feelings of guilt! This should be called the Braggarts forum. Hold your heads high folks & brag away with PRIDE!
I think that deserves a 21-spritz salute. 😀
I’m just busy calculating how many perfumes I could buy instead of those Yankee stadium seats!!!
Thank you. And Merlin, the answer is… a lot.
Woooo!
And I have to say, I think I’m having perfume-envy. Reading all your purchases is making me go, “Oh, I wish I had that!” It’s like that moment in a restaurant when the waiter brings the meals, and everyone else’s choice looks even more delicious than your own order.
I know exactly what you mean! But come on, fess up so we can all admire your darlings 🙂
Exactly! I love these threads cuz it gives me an idea of other people tastes & who shares my own tastes so that when they list something new I know to try it for myself. I learn from these threads! So spill it out (not the juice mind you… Lol)!
Love your comment.
I’ve been thinking about this thread for the past three months, and I think that has been a very good thing. Looking forward to the next one! Here it was:
0.5) Givenchy III EdT 50mL 50% — regret this due to the process more than the scent. Let’s just say it was impulsive.
1) three micro-minis of vintage Vent Vert parfum, one for my mom, one for me, and one for a perfume buddy — love love love!!! — probably because I’d already sampled something similar from a different and most wonderful perfume buddy, so I knew what I wanted.
1.5) Nina Ficci Farouche perfumed bath oil 25mL 35% — not impulsive, but not my favorite scent, either. A certain amount of trial and error is part of vintage-hunting, but I wish I could bat 1000.
2) Prince Matchabelli Abano Perfumed Bath Oil 5/8 Oz 50% — still on the fence with this one, and I’m not sure it made sense to go looking for a better-smelling version than the sample I had been given. Must rethink that approach entirely.
2.5) 5mL decant Grossmith Shem-el Nessim (contemporary) — no regrets, although it’s the priciest item on this list.
That’s all less than $100 shipped, which seems reasonable to me. On the other hand 2.5 for 5 is not the best record. I may have to rely more on sample swapping to give me better odds on my vintage gambles.
There was a *lot* of swapping and giving and other moving of things around, which compels me to estimate the postage…. at over $50. That’s not counting decanting supplies, nor the postage that folks reimbursed me, for example, in the recent freebiemeet. (Thank you all for those reimbursements!)
At first glance it seemed nuts to spend a third of my perfume budget on postage. But then I thought about what I got for those $50, and that was a heck of a lot more fun than $50 worth of perfume in the cash market. So, yay swapping!
Oh, vintage Vent Vert parfum is SO AMAZING. I have one of those adorable micro minis, I keep getting tempted to get another. You know, Just In Case…
I just tried vintage Vent Vert for the first time recently- it was wonderful! I’m gonna have to get myself one of those vintage minis. Which one do you have- the one from the 90’s with the grass stopper or the one from the 60’s with the square stopper? I’m personally right now into vintage Ma Griffe.
I’ve got the square stopper one, but I hear the grass stopper one is also good.
My micro mini is the square bottle with the round brown bakelite stopper. I also have 50ml of the edt with the grass stopper — I think that’s the Calice Becker version — quite nice too, but nothing like the depth of the older parfum.
You could always buy one for someone else and then ask for it back if the case comes to be. 😉
Now there’s an idea!
Time to fess up and I am happy to report that I did not make double-digits this quarter. I AM slowing down! I don’t count samples / sample sets.
Amouage Sunshine (this was my first Amouage FB purchase)
Atelier Cologne Mandarine Glaciale
Atelier Cologne Sud Magnolia
Burberry Brit Rhythm for Her (a bargain at Marshall’s even though I already have a generous decant from an NSTer)
Dior Addict
Dior Feve Delicieuse (I used BG gift cards so this is really free)
Serge Lutens Five O’Clock Au Gingembre (the buzz is that this had been discontinued)
I will be triggering some purchases tomorrow so the 3rd Quarter Poll is not looking auspicious.
Beautiful list!
Eeek, I left out CSP Amour de Cacao…Deva gets the enabler’s pin on this one. I also failed to mention that I don’t count travel-sized purchases either (e.g. 2 from SSS, 2 from Dame Perfumery)
On the other hand, I sold off 7 FBs, assorted minis and samples so using perfumath, I only really bought 1 FB 🙂
Love your perfumath (and the word!) – I’m going to have to remember to use it!
🙂
Righty-o. Well, as with a few others this quarter, it seems that many of my purchases are actually souvenirs, and therefore negate any associated frivolity induced guilt.
Aesop Marrakech Intense 50ml
Baiser Volé edt 30ml
L’artisan Jatamansi edt 50ml
Jo Malone Blackberry & Bay 30ml
Guerlain Encens Mythique d’Orient
Chanel 31 Rue Cambon 75ml
Arabian Oud Kalemat 100ml (buy one get one free!)
Givenchy L’Atelier coffret
2 amber solid perfume blocks
2 musk solid perfume blocks
Orange blossom essential oil
Damascus rose essential oil
Aramis Calligraphy Rose 100ml
MPG Ambre Dore 100ml
Lolita Lempicka for Men 30ml
Diptyque Virgilio 100ml
Miller Harris Geranium Bourbon 100ml
When I travel I try to fly Emirates to take advantage of the delight that is Dubai Duty Free. I do regret the Guerlain however, and wish I’d gotten Cuir de Russie instead. So I think I may try to sell the Guerlain as in the cold light of day I just dont love it.
That’s a fabulous haul! I know what you mean about the glories of Dubai Duty Free, but the last time I was there, it was so crowded and busy that I just wimped out. I wanted to buy, but no one served me, and I there were so many people frantically pushing and shoving that couldn’t be bothered that I just shrugged and walked away. Of course, I’m a little sorry now, but at the time, it seemed like a good idea. So, well done you!
Waterdragon, I hear you! I initially only had about an hour stopover in Dubai which I knew wouldnt be long enough. So for the sake of perfume shopping and perfume shopping only, I booked the next flight- 9 hours later! By the time I made it home I’d been travelling about 42hrs and felt like the walking dead- but I had perfume goodies 🙂
Full disclosure: essential oils and other raw materials are not in my perfume budget at all. They’re in my arts and crafts budget, which obviously has no place in a blog about perfume. 😉
Mine usually aren’t either. However, the oils I bought in Morocco are labelled as essential oils but are packaged in rollerball bottles and used as perfume/cosmetics, so hence they were added to my perfume haul..
Only 1 this quarter Jo Malone wood sage and sea salt. It would have been more but the duck egg cashmere sweater in uniqlo distracted me from a visit to jo Malone where I would have bought blackberry and bay, next shopping trip perhaps! I would have also purchased Le jardin de Monsieur Li and cologne indelible but neither of those fragrances will be available in Australia till August!! How frustrating! Saved me from myself!!
I would also have been distracted by a duck-egg cashmere…
I’ ve bought 9. Two were used,and four of them under 15 mls travel edits. Total costs about 120! ✌
Ha! Not bad, got good bargains this time!
I’m actually in a stage where I’ m getting a little fed up with decants, so in the near future my very limited money will go for well chosen fbs. Though of course in some cases, a decant is all one can get… But my poor collection was so brutally cut back a few years ago that Im only just starting to build it up again. I feel no guilt!I consider my spending sprees and the frugal times as well as a learning process through which I have acquired a taste I can trust today. That’s not a bad advisor to have. I will have no problem up until some 50 bottles. More than that, I couldn’t manage.
Though I always do envy a well curated wardrobe of five rotating scents.
nice!
If not to count one bottle I bought as a gift, for myself I got just two small bottles – 5 ml travel spray of SSS Amber Incense and 4 ml of En Voyage Captured in Amber parfum. $65 total.
One of my SSS travel spray purchases was Amber Incense! The other one was Cocoa Sandalwood.
🙂 I liked Cocoa Sandalwood as well.
It’s always interesting to do these as I thought I hadn’t bought much but when you write it down it appears that it does seem like a lot. The difference is now I hunt around a lot for a good price. Although I always get rid of perfumes I don’t like now before I buy another as I feel I’ve got too many already. I did meet a Russian woman recently who keeps a few of her precious perfumes in a bank vault and a friend of hers bought a new apartment to house her perfumes! Now that’s serious …
Yves Rocher Monoi Eau des Vahines
Serge Lutens Fleurs d’Oranger (old version)
Reminiscence REM EDP
Diptyque Do Son EDT
Annick Goutal Ambre Fetiche (only partial bottle from ebay) one of my favourite perfumes
L’Artisan Parfumeur Traverse du Bosphore – the small 15ml bottle – such a perfect size. I wish every perfume came like this.
L’Artisan Parfumeur Premier Figuier
Annick Goutal Songes Oil (it’s new and DIVINE) and I saw Elisa (up above) has also bought it and loves it
I love Ambre Fetiche, and bought a full bottle after sampling it extensively. It is a very beautiful perfume.
Is your friend of a friend called Donatella?
Sounds like it! I was quite astounded to say the least but the Russians are perfume mad and it’s where most of the niche perfume sells in Europe I believe. But you need to be seriously cashed up to buy an appartment. I’ve heard of people buying storage cabinets or a fridge but that’s on a totally new level.
I got summer favorites. Guerlain Terracotta x2 and Bronze Goddess. 🙂
Almost forgot the volume calculations!
My current total volume estimate is 3.8 L. That might or might not be up from the last, rougher estimate of 3 L, but I think it’s safe to say I haven’t substantially reduced the total volume this past quarter.
This is despite giving away a considerable volume of perfume, swapping a separate considerable volume for non-perfume goods, only purchasing about 50mL, and applying perfume 2-3 separate times on most days, usually liberally. According to Kevin’s delightful 2008 post entitled “Perfume for Life: How Long Will Your Fragrance Collection Last?” I should have used up the new 50mL in about 73 days, leaving about 20 days in the quarter to reduce the total stash just by wearing. Don’t think that happened.
How is this possible? Crazy generous perfume people is how! (including ~10mL in free samples from retailers) I nearly always think I’m aiming for generous, but apparently perfumeland is still besting me in the generosity department. Perfumath don’t lie.
I love that article of Kevin’s and still consult it regularly as a bit of a reality check!
I wonder where I’d be if I’d stumbled across that article sooner…. Possibly not here!
Cautionary tales are less effective than one might hope 😀
That’s generally true, isn’t it?
LMAO. I read that article very early on in my perfumista-hood, and though i refer to it quite often (I wrote down his calculations in my perfume notebook), it hasnt made an ounce of difference. Merlin is right. When I die of old age, there will be enough perfume to pickle me in it :-/
I bought Dans tes Bras, Gris Clair and L’ombre dans L’eau. The last one was a surprise, I found it in Saks, half of its price like 45/47 dollars. I don’t know what happened but it took Saks Mexico about a year to restock Diptyque, it was empty!, and for a mysterious reason philosykos and l’ombre dans l’eau arrived costing half their prices. I was tempted to buy Tom Ford Cafe Rose, I also found it 50 off, but I don’t know, I don’t need it. Atelier cologne arrived Mexico last month, (finally!) and I heard le Labo and Frederic Malle are expected to do the same this years.
If its any help I also found Cafe Rose half price at a local outlet store, and I decided that even at half price it was a little too meh. I am considering the Jasmin Rouge though! I get more floral-fresh than floriental with it – no spices or anything, but I still like it…
And I’m personally a fan of Philosykos edt, so I would have snapped that one. (I find the edp a bit too dry and woody..)
A lovely list.
Inspiration, temptation, fascination, desperation — it’s all here. I love perusing the damage reports!
I didn’t buy any bottles in the last quarter, so this makes a nice bit of vicarious shopping escapism. And it reminds me to re-read Kevin’s “Perfume for Life” article. In my head I subtitle that one “Perfume: A Cautionary Tale.”
Happy 4th to those who observe it, and happy weekend to all of NST.
I bought:
Partial bottle of D.S.& Durga for Shipley & Halmos Colorado and Florida
7.5ml bottle of Providence Perfume Company Hindu Honeysuckle from Ebay
15ml bottle of Providence Perfume Company Mousseline Peche-This doesn’t work on me. If anyone’s interested for a good deal, just let me know.
30ml bottle of Pacifica French Lilac
10ml bottle of Maroma Night Jasmine
10ml roll on oil of rareEssence Bloom-a Whole Foods impulse purchase
30ml bottle of Olympic Orchids Peace
10ml decants of Aedes Copal Azur and Oeillet Bengale
10ml decant of Au Pays de la Fleur de L’Oranger Violette Sacre
5ml decant of Monsillage Eau de Celeri (hasn’t arrived yet)
10ml decant of Atelier Cologne Jasmin Angelique (hasn’t arrived yet)
Like several of you, I was thinking I’d been pretty good, especially after a buying moratorium covering most of the first quarter. My only FBs were not technically purchases–I returned a sweater I got for my birthday to TJ Maxx and picked up 100ml of Queen Latifah Queen of Hearts and 50 ml of Adam Levine for Her. (Thanks to Jennifer/Sweetgrass for recommending the Adam Levine. It is just the sort of easy-to-wear daytime-appropriate cool-weather perfume I was looking for, and you can’t beat the price.) Then 4 minis from Evilbay–no, five, only one of which I regret even a little. (M. Micallef Ylang, Automne, and Black Sea, which had a bit more Sea than I was expecting; Chloe Narcisse; and Cartier Baiser Vole Essence de Parfum.) And the 15ml Sage Onyx I just bought. Still juuuust under budget. (Baby needs a new pair of specs, which is putting a crimp in discretionary spending.) (OK, to clarify, I’m Baby in this scenario. I don’t have kids, no child is wandering around squinting due to my perfume habit.) And, I forgot the L’Artisan minis from Sephora I bought around my birthday. Although I had been seriously considering a FB of La Chasse aux Papillons, so really the cost there should be about -$55. And that MPS order had three 5ml decants, but samples don’t count, and according to Glannys (and her ruling should really be considered definitive), 5ml decants don’t count either. So, at least $50 under budget, then. Well done, me.
Baby, you are funny!
Hilarious Laurels… I laughed so loud my cat ran away :-0
Hazy about time frame..I think this is what I bought this quarter, but April was a long time ago….
1. Travel spray FM Iris Poudre $56.00
2. 50 ml oldish Caron Parfum Sacree $72.00
3. 50 ml newish bottle Guerlain Apres l’Onde Edp $107.00
Oops forgot the Chanel No 5 travel spray I got later week! Another $113.00. Oh I better start writing this all down!
Beautiful list!
Late here – I had a nice weekend away! I wasn’t really keeping track, but I know it was at least 2: Shiseido current version of Classic Zen & a very small bottle of the Jo Malone Red Roses bath oil for a cheap thrill. I think the swapmeet is throwing off my memory. I would guess there is something else, but right now I just can’t remember. Cheers!
L’Artisan Timbuktu 100ml
Lalique Encre noire (men) 100ml
Jeanne Arthes Patchouli Sumatra 100ml
0 regrets and lots of love!
Late report here (because I’ve been back and forth to the mountains for long weekends), but the past quarter did see some purchases for the first time in a few years. Full bottles of Bottega Veneta Knot – love – and of EL PC Jasmine White Moss – not quite love, but I panicked upon discovering that it had been discontinued.