Perfume / Cologne

Oh yes, definitely! Do you have some idea of what you like/don't like?

there needs to be a Shazam for perfume! sometimes i smell something so good and want to know what it is without asking, or i don't know who to ask. also sometimes i smell someone that smells terrible and i want to be sure to avoid their perfume at all costs.

has anyone tried scents that purposely smell like bodily fluids like Secretions Magnifiques? from a customer review:

THE SCENT: It's fear sweat. Hot, semi-sour, salty, and immediately recognizable from human evolution. I'm frightened to ask how they achieved this! It's also sickness, something sick and hot and possibly dead nearby. Blood? Maybe in the saltiness, maybe the sour tang has a pinch of blood too but mostly it's the smell of fear to me. In less emotionally-linked terms about an hour later, it does smell like LOW TIDE FISHINESS/SALT + MILK left in the sun to spoil.

i don't want to smell like bloody jizz btw i'm just intrigued by the idea of conceptual art fragrance. i wish you could get a box of a bunch of little samples of them like the harry potter jellybeans.

yeaaaahhh nope

favorite perfume ever is Lolita Lempicka

too cheap to buy a new bottle at the moment so I googled around for similar-smelling perfumes and bizarrely found out that the consensus was on Jessica Simpson's 'Fancy' now discontinued & available at every Ross/TJMaxx for like $10. It's not perfect, but it's pretty close. Has nowhere near the staying power though. Lolita Lempicka, it was good for the whole day if you put it on in the morning

funnest thing is ppl saying ooh you smell good and telling them I'm wearing some Chicken of the Sea Jessica Simp perfume :D

You used to be able to get a box of little samples from Etat Libre d'Orange! A lot of places would credit the cost against a full bottle so they were effectively free. I'm not sure if they still do that, or whether Secretions Magnifiques is still one of them, but it's worth checking. It doesn't smell great, tbh, but a lot of their other ones are very good.

Lolita Lempicka is terrific too. I need to get another bottle of that.

i have asked strangers what scent they are wearing. mixed results.

i don't usually like fragrances, but i've been wearing tokyo milk's gin and rosewater. it's young, fresh, and not too heavy, as long as i apply it with a bit of restraint.

After a 18 months on it and I'm still addicted to it I guess I'm Philosykos for life now. I don't think I'll ever get tired of it. It's damn expensive but then the last bottle of the parfum, which is manlier I think than the toilette, did last me 8 months or so, so.... It's a bit of a hit shelling out the cash when you do need to though.

http://www.diptyqueparis.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/523x768/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/p/h/philosykos_resize.jpg

It is a little sad to be with someone who sneezes at every perfume I own/love.

Fragrance also an absolute no-no at new gig.

Missing u, fancy smells.

:(

I love the nose who created Philosykos, Olivia Giacobetti. She did two of my favorites: En Passant (for Frederic Malle) and Ofresia (Diptyque). I have a sample of Philosykos but it's too woody for me, but I love it on others.

My current fave is Geranium Odorata (also Diptyque. I get so many compliments on it) and my all-time favorite is L'Eau d'Hiver (Jean-Claude Ellena for Frederic Malle).

i got a sample of molecule 01 by escentual molecules - i layered it with flower by kenzo, and it's a nice combo, but i don't think it's any better than the kenzo on its own. def not as mindblowingly unique as i was led to believe.

i had a subscription with olfactif for a few months, hoping to find a new scent, but i found most of them really really repulsive - like, outright unpleasant.

I think i'm getting into fragrances! I just bought a v small bottle of Maison Martin Margiela (untitled) which is like SO green and grassy with undertones of musk, omg, so good! Also v much into Comme des Garcons Sherbet: Rhubarb (on fgti's recommendation) and it really smells like rhubarb! It's like tart and sweet and so intersting, I love it so! I've also got a small sample of Terre d'Hermes which on paper was interestingly bitter and hyper-woody (like pine sap) but on my skin just smells like a very pleasant but very approachable men's cologne

I'm about to order like 6 Comme des Garcons samples from luckyscent (2, Odeur 53, Odeur 71, Amazingreen, Guerrilla 1, Guerrilla 2) and am v excited to try them out.

I'm really into things that are not assertively masculine or feminine and are also really strange and unique, like "oh wow I would never imagine they would make a perfume smell like THAT but I quite like it!". Numerous ppl have also recommended that I check otu CB I Hate Perfume which I am going to sample next time I'm in NYC

but yeah am v new to all of this and am open to any recommendations of grassy + musk, or just intriguing and unique gender-neutral frags of all types

rly I just want to smell like the weirdo that I already am

Commes des Garcons Wonderwood is really nice - been wearing that for a while. In the recent past I've also worn Clinique's Happy and Chanel for men.

I also have a few of those Demeter "fragrance library" things - the "dirt" one is quite good, kinda smells like a forest floor, but in a good way. I got some in Duane Read last time I was in NYC - some are more for use in rooms rather than on yourself, though it can be hard to decide about this. A lot of them are quite generic smells that get used in theatre, by Punchdrunk or other interactive companies - kinda depends how much you want to smell like "rain" or "bubblegum".

I bought one called "funeral home" to try and see if I would actually wear it, it sort of smells like cold sad memories of death - lily and chemicals - prob more a curio than anything else.

They're worth messing around with though, some of them make quite good and unusual scents.

stevie i think you may enjoy BPAL
this is a good way to sample
i had a severe problem for a while but then i switched to making my own blends
http://blackphoenixalchemylab.com/product-category/imps-ears/

fragrancenet.com has really good deals, but i don't think they offer any indie stuff.

stevie, i'm really getting into perfumes, too! i generally prefer unisex/neutral scents to really strong masculine or feminine ones as well.

i tried the ineke library sample box, which comes in beautiful packaging, but the scents are all really really soapy :/

stevie give guerlain vetiver a sniff and tell me what you think!

Quite enjoyed a sample set of Murdock's colognes - http://www.murdocklondon.com/

xp I will track down this Guerlain Vetiver if I can find it!

Quite enjoyed a sample set of Murdock's colognes - http://www.murdocklondon.com/

i used to get my hair cut here - these are nice

I almost looked for a fragrance thread last week!

I am very much uncultured when it comes to perfume/cologne, but I definitely feel like I have some strong preferences when it comes to scents.

Very interested in Commes des Garcons' interest in non-standard fragrances. Wondering what Odeur 53 smells like.

If you are interested in smelling like modern furniture this is cool http://comme-des-garcons-parfum.com/perfumes/artek-standard/

those kind of scents are the best imo. i mean it's nice to have a fairly affordable daily thing that smells like you've just showered, but mainly you want your clothes to accumulate some kind evocative musk that people aren't sure is a scent.

I stopped wearing fragrance when I was pregnant because puuuuuuuuke, then I didn't start again when the baby was an infant because it majorly weirds me out when she smells like something other than herself, but I have been feeling like I want to smell like something again. Of course right about the time I made that decision, we got a firm-wide email asking us to refrain from using "chemical scents" although it was very vague as far as whether that pertained to like air fresheners or personal care products or if it is the latter, putting them on at work versus putting them on at home. I think it's more of a "be considerate" kind of thing.

I've been using White Rabbit from BPAL as my main smell for a few years. Maybe I'd like to branch out? Body chemistry does change after childbirth/breastfeeding/when we get older. I'm not sure what I'd like to smell like, though. Something... interesting.

Anyway, good call reviving this thread, Stevie.

mainly you want your clothes to accumulate some kind evocative musk that people aren't sure is a scent.

YES! Exactly so!

My mom has used Clinique Aromatics Elixer for my entire life and even when she doesn't wear it, her ~~aura~~ seems to carry that essence and I love it. I want people to associate a smell with me.

A good smell, I should say.

babies smell kind of nice when they don't smell like poop

Non poop smelling babies smell amazing! Baby head is the best smell. I wonder if the maternity ward will let me borrow a baby to sniff at lunchtime.

I don't want to smell like baby, though.

No, I'm not suggesting that. I think that was in reference to you mentioning that it weirds you out when she smells not like herself!

This is my all time favorite perfume: http://www.sephora.com/for-her-eau-de-toilette-P110113

This stuff is also great:http://www.neimanmarcus.com/Library-of-Flowers-The-Forest-Eau-De-Parfum/prod160940112/p.prod?srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=43-38579937-2&ecid=NMCIGoogleProductAds

And in summer I love this . . . oh no! My favorite summer scent by Lush is no more. This is bad.

I know you weren't! I was making a joke as dry as baby powder.

Which Lush? I used their orange flower water Guerrilla Scent for awhile, but although it smelled great in the little sampler vial I got, it never smelled the same coming out of the spray bottle, and now it's years old and I should really throw it away.

speaking of lush, their 'grass' products smell great imo -- sandalwood and chlorophyll

i unabashedly love patchouli oil

Local Garda, you really need to check out Philosykos if you like unconventional fragrances.

I will investigate.

CA it was this one: http://staging.gorillaperfume.com/us/products/35/25-43 and it was really interesting nice for summer. I think this summer I just want to smell like the beach.

For which this is supposed to be very good: http://www.sephora.com/beach-fragrance-P270559

Vetiver? Frederic Malle "Vetiver Extraordinaire" is my current fave eau de parfum. I always stock up when I visit France. It's way overpriced here in the States.

OMG OMG OMG my cute tiny bottle of Maison Martin Margiela (untitled) just arrived and I am so elated!!!! It's so green and delightful and I lost the tester I had years ago and I cannot stop smelling my wrists. It's so pleasant and delightful and not v assertive and I think I might make this my signature daily frag! My only quip is it dries down to like a cinnamon/bubblegum smell but it's still so great. It's a dabber and not a sprayer so I am legit considering investing in one of these:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41k91bk1suL.jpg

stevie d: ebay is great place to find people selling samples or small aliquots of scents that sound interesting without having to commit to a full bottle.

yeah that's where I got this lil baby bottle!!! it is SO CUTE TOO, I just have to post a picture

http://i.imgur.com/64hGrmj.jpg