i've pared down my perfume collection to nine bottles (probably still sounds like a lot but i've been collecting, writing about and sampling perfumes for about a decade now) and i'm so happy with it now.
there's about three or four that I'm really eyeing to add to my collection that i'll get when i have the money to do so but, i'm making an effort to break away from this "collector" mentality of enjoying things and trying to pare things down to the absolute minimum of what means something to me and what i really love. it did take me a while because i wanted to wait a year or so for the seasons to change as tastes can radically change depending on weather/humidity
mainly i'm really disillusioned by how fragrance is talked about on the internet now, most of the community enthusiastic about it often have collections of literally dozens of bottles and those who have the biggest platforms talking about it on spaces like tiktok and instagram seem to have largely got really into it in the past year or two and already have close to a hundred (if not more) bottles. on top of it encouraging shopping addictions i also just find it absurd and unbelievably lame to conflate owning that many things with being more passionate or knowledgeable about something; and i really want what i have to just tell a story of who i am and not just the things i like (as i will never have enough money to own all the things i like, it is a pointless endeavor.) it takes time and patience to figure out your own unique taste in things, and collections developed out of instant gratification and recommendations from influencers are rarely interesting.
the ones here are:
- shalimar parfum initial (guerlain) vanilla citrus patchouli pin-up girl boudoir scent
- tea escape (margiela) mint, mate and sweetened matcha latte
- poivre piquant (l'artisan parfumeur) very dry, minimalist black pepper scent and unsweetened licorice; this is the one i usually wear daily
- la fin du monde (茅tat libre d'orange) buttered popcorn (yes it does really smell like that), sesame, carrot seed and burnt ashes, I also wear this one regularly
- coromandel (chanel) sexiest patchouli scent of all time, also has a lot of white chocolate and frankincense; a horny church perfume
- fils de dieu (茅tat libre d'orange) lime, ginger, rice, coconut and dry spices
- calamity j (juliette has a gun) frankincense and myrrh cinnamon, another horny church scent
- dune (dior)聽my mom wore both of these Dior perfumes growing up and I wear them too, this one is very hard to describe unless you've tried it, but I would describe it as a very androgynous amber-spice, both perfume and cologne, both a masculine barbershop cologne and a warm and sensual ambery women's perfume. It's weird, good weird.
- addict (dior) dry and sultry tonka bean floral vanilla scent with lots of jasmine and blackberry
and the ones i really want to add once i am not so broke are:
- empire des indes (oriza l. legrand) smells exactly like horchata or arroz con leche to me
- l'eau chic (nicolai parfumeur) mint/chamomile/geranium/pepper, i want this for hot summers and humid days
- vanille (mona di orio) most expensive smelling vanilla perfume i've ever tried, full of rum and bitter orange peel, doesn't smell cloying or too sweet at all it just smells like a very dry and burning and resinous bitter bourbon vanilla
- bandit (robert piguet) incredibly old-fashioned and in your face butch/masculine mossy leathery scent, i have to be in a certain mood to wear this one but when I am it feels more like me than anything else. but i am looking for the eau de toilette because i bought a small vial of the parfum and it was more floral and feminine and just not the same
i also have a fragrantica where i write down notes on perfumes and keep track of what i want to try: here is mine, let me know yours if you have one:
i'm also thinking about writing a blog post about how to sample a lot of different types of perfumes on a budget so if that's something anyone would be interested in let me know. i take part in a couple of travelling perfume sample boxes periodically and that allows me to swap perfume samples with other enthusiasts for only the price of shipping, it's definitely the most cost-effective way to sample short of going to a store in person and asking for samples for free.
Comments
Displaying 1 of 1 comments ( View all | Add Comment )
鈽攫潗ヰ潗潗氿潗潗︷潗别潗别潗р樉
honestly the realest blog ever i fear the rampant overconsumption on the internet literally makes me sick, especially seeing as i grew up poor. perfume and cleanliness have always been something i hold in very high regard, but it gets to the point where its just endless greed and i don't see how so many ppl are okay with it?? i have my own little collection (around 10 i'd say) but i cant imagine buying more when i don't even need it. the shit is insane to me.
but n e way, u have nice taste! u should totes write that blog, im sure a good amount of ppl would want to see it!
Report Comment
Thank you so much for writing this, it's beautifully written. Would love to know what's in your collection too. All for normal people having normal collections and using them like it's an actual part of their life.
by diana; ; Report
haha thank u馃挒 most of my stuff is from bath n bodyworks since its the only thing i can afford currently. i'll branch out soon when I settle into my job but that's for future me to think abt!
my fav scents i have rn are viva vanilla, into the night, and jolly gingerbread village. the first one has this deep, musky richness that i rlly like and the second just itches that scratch i have. the third is nice and cinnamon-y. the other bath n bodyworks scents i have are snowflakes & cashmere, warm vanilla sugar and getaway soiree. ive got one from victoria's secret but i cant remember the name right now, and my last is the pink sugar body spray. shoulda got the one with a higher concentration of actual perfume oil but oh welllll. i ran out of one of my fav scents, choco musk, but i think i'll replace it with another arab perfume i smelled at the mall. god it smelled so good
as u can see im a fan of vanillas and gourmands they itch my brain juuust right. smelling nice makes me feel nice, and im not burning off any one else's nostrils. win-win!
by 鈽攫潗ヰ潗潗氿潗潗︷潗别潗别潗р樉; ; Report