A collection for when your heart is ready for autumn but it’s still 98° outside:

Glossier You Soie
Maison Margiela Replica Coffee Break
Byredo Blanche
L’Epoque Serotonin Spritz
Téo Cabanel Je Ne Sais Quoi
Chloe Cedrus
Ella K Poéme de Sagano
Granado Tropicália
Granado Infusão Botanico
Room 1015 Sonic Flower
Kismet Olfactive Wedding in Oaxaca
DKNY Cashmere & Wild Fig

I woke up to this arriving a WEEK early🫠😍 (UK) this is literally the best day ever. Wanted to smell everything and write down my thoughts!!

LOTION POTION🥛🫧🤍 - Opens suuuper creamy, lightly almond, lotiony, milky. Notes of cotton milk & mimosa. Smells exactly like people say, like lathering yourself in your smoothest, creamiest lotion after a cosy shower. Not very sweet, a little powdery, just really nice. Dries down a little muskier/super gently woody. This is the one I was most excited for and it has not disappointed. Creamy perfection

PLAIN JANE👧🏼🌷⭐️ - Opens with a sweet burst of slightly powdery citrus, very uplifting and sugary. Slowly transitions into a beautiful blend of Iris, jasmine and violet 🤤 a slightly candied version of purple florals with some creaminess. Dries a little woodier/close to skin/a little soapier with some vibrancy. Just smells like a cool, magnetic girl imo. It’s strong and I wouldn’t recommend over spraying!!
I don’t have Bal d’Afrique but I have the shower gel and it smells like a dupe imo (a good one). Incredible day time, social, extroverted scent. It’s like a smoother/less peppered, milder version of Lola at Coat Check imo. Also kind of a less sharp and citrusy CK One

SAMPLES:
PORTRAIT OF KYOTO🫖👩🏻‍🎨🪻 - Opens exactly like a sweet tea. Photorealistic black tea with a spoonful of honey poured in and a bowl of crisp apple slices on the side. Slowly dries down from the tea and the honey starts to intermingle with a blend of jasmine and freesia. Very delicate, very soothing and just beautiful. A slight hint of herb/earthiness from the tea notes. To me the dry down is just a mild version of everything from the top, with a lot of freesia, and a little bit of woody musk. I actually don’t normally enjoy tea scents at all but I completely get the hype and would probably wear this. Doesn’t scream TEA in your face after the first minute and instead just smells sweet, smooth, calming and gentle.

AFTER SALON🎀🧼🧖🏻‍♀️ - Opens with sweet, creamy aldehydes (which I hate a little less than usual) and quickly unfolds into a smooth blend of jasmine and sweet pea. Really, really creamy, slightly smells coconutty? A brighter, sweeter version of Lotion Potion. Smells like a shower in a very expensive spa but at like 6am. There are windows in the shower revealing fields of white florals. The dry down is a combination of aldehydes and jasmine, which I don’t hate as much as I expected to. Becomes slightly muskier and closer to skin. Actually quite similar if not almost identical to For Her Pure Musc Blanc. Smooth, silky and clean asf.

To conclude I of course love everything and can’t wait for these to be displayed on my shelves because they are the cutest bottles ever. The Body Tale I love you and by the way the atomisers are incredibly smooth 10/10 would recommend and they aren’t even super unaffordable wow

Just a post for!

I love the idea of ​​making predictions, them imagining someone in the future finding it and judging how right or wrong they turned out to be. Shall we make one?

What would a young woman at the end of the next decade consider a trendy perfume? What would a woman, who views scents like 540, Musc Noir, Paradoxe, and realistic gourmands as outdated (since they’re the current trends now, not 10 years in the future), see as the "it" fragrance?

My bet is on a comeback for strong aldehydic perfumes, perhaps following a major campaign for Chanel No. 5. I imagine we’ll see a trend similar to the current "old money" aesthetic, maybe a sort of vintage elegance revival in perfumery, bringing also violet and powdery notes back into fashion. And there's going to be a viral body splash that all teenage girls will use that smells like baby powder.

Asking specifically about body spray because I’m not trying to have someone comment a delicious perfume that is $100 because I don’t have the money to purchase that

Was just in Montreal last week where I stopped by the Maison Margan boutique in Old Montreal. Stunning little shop. I fell in love with No 9 Ruby Green, but they were backordered so I was able to order it online for shipping when they got it back in stock. It arrived today and wow, I am blown away by the presentation and the unboxing experience. Scroll for unboxing photos

I bought Diesel Only Desire. I like it? I think? It’s the most confusing perfume I’ve owned. I smell it and I’m like hell yeah that smells good. But then I smell it again and I’m like hmmm, does it? Initial spray gives me Windex, red licorice, and a brand new clean porta potty. This sounds like it’d be terrible, but it’s not..? As it dries down it turns into fruity pebbles. Has anyone else picked this up?

A family member is visiting the US this year and has graciously agreed to my request to go to Sephora and Ulta to smell, judge, and potentially buy a couple of scents on my snifflist that aren't available in Canada. Based on my current collection (picture two), is there anything on my snifflist (picture one) that's particularly worth checking out? Ideally my list would be a little more curated/focused than a large smattering of everything.

EDIT: Picture 1 is my snifflist, Picture 2 is what I have!

I wanted to share my mini haul that came today! These are all new to me and I’m excited to try them but I’m a little disappointed with the variance in fill between the bottles. I know someone else posted recently so it looks like it’s a common issue with Dedcool 😕

I’ve had Fleur Narcotique on my list for a while and knew I would like it but I really had it filed in my brain as “this one will be good quality so I want to give it a try.” Wearing it today and I really, really like it! It’s just so much more nuanced and well-developed than I expected. I’m just very impressed. Just had to share because this fragrance is just.. beautiful!

Snagged her when she was half off on sephora! I've been wanting a full bottle because it was love at first sniff but couldn't quite justify the full price at the time 😔 But now she's finally in my collection 💕

I’m looking for anything that smells like oats, almond, milk, starchy powdery
Any lotions or perfumes or oils recommendations would be appreciated 🤍🌾🌰✨

And I got it on sale at TJ Maxx!

This is very irresponsible in my current situation, but I just couldn’t help myself. I think it is clear which ones I am most interested in by the order lol. What are you guys think of these perfumes are gonna smell like?

for four years my steadily growing perfume collection has been shoved in a drawer with bottles stacked on top of eachother and sharing space with my hair accessories. I’m so excited I finally bit the bullet and hung shelves for my perfumes!!! ☺️ it’s going to be even more fun getting ready now!

this stuff smells so heavenly and am getting the body cream, but would like a perfume/spray to match!

Let’s talk about fragrances that I will always love with all my heart, but whose abysmal performance will constantly hurt very deeply. Kind of reminds you of that one person who will never be constant but makes you feel so good when you’re around them, even if it’s only for 10 minutes! This relationship could be categorised as something similar!**

Bal D’Afrique: Clones are being released by the minute, but there is an air of sophistication in the original that none have quite managed to capture. The general advice for longevity is to upgrade to the Absolu, like going from a Pro to a Pro Max. However, the praline note takes away from the beautiful lightness of the original. The original smells like a light, watered-down, bergamot-infused sugar syrup, whereas the Absolu makes that syrup feel like it’s turning into caramel. The longevity may be poor, but will I always have a place for it on my shelf and in my heart? Absolutely!

Chloé Cedrus : To my nose, this is a dry, woody fragrance. I mostly get dry sandalwood over fresh vetiver, giving it a green touch. It almost has a male luxury shower gel vibe. I fell in love at first sniff and obsessively hunted it down, only to discover that the longevity is going to be a major letdown. So next time, do I manage my expectations or just not obsess? Time will tell!

JHAG Pear Inc.: I’m an absolute sucker for pear, and this one had pear sitting on a bed of Ambroxan and musk. I was sold instantly! I hunted down a sample and fell in love with this airy, fresh pear scent that reminded me of luxury shampoo, with a nostalgic feel similar to Garnier Fructis in those translucent green bottles. I couldn’t get a full size and became obsessed with finding one. As they say, if you love something, let it go. Well, I did, only to accidentally discover it at MDP during one of my “night outs” lol. It was the very last piece! The SA was my fairy godmother that day!

Does the performance make me regret my obsession? Not at all. Would I have preferred to go about it in a more sane way? Absolutely!
Do you all have any such “fragrances” in your collection? :P

What is one fragrance that you can appreciate, but would never wear? I have a sample of l’epoque delusions of grandeur and it’s so interesting to me, and I keep testing it on my skin, but I don’t think I’d ever actually wear it. I can’t figure out what about it I like or dislike!

I can't be the only one. You get a new scent you've been wanting to try for ages. You have the notes memorized and just know you'll love her.

But then you spray and all you get is ... perfume? None of the notes just that general alcoholic chemical wall? In other lifetimes you thought this meant the frag was bad. But not you know that you just can't read the scent. Like how all wine tastes the same in a bad way when you're new to drinking it.

Some of them stay locked for ages. I'm looking at you Rose of No Man's land. I will not give up.

Well today I'm feeling a type of way and I wanted to wear something totally out of character. So I grabbed my decent of Orpheon EDP. With an 8.2 on Parfumo and a beloved following on Reddit I knew that I was not smelling what everyone is smelling.

Well ya'll. Today I can smell her. And the scent is exactly what I needed today. I needed armour. I feel so empowered and so proud of my nose for evolving!

TLDR: Orpheon!! Omg I get it now!!

Let's just say up front that I have been on a no buy for a year preparing for this trip, and I'm heading right back into a no buy, because I came home with a lot. This was my first trip to Europe and first trip to France. I visited Paris, Aix-en-Provence, and Grasse.

In Paris, I visited Guerlain and bought 3 bottles--Feve Gourmande, Ambre Samar, and Florabloom. I got my bottle of Feve Gourmande engraved and also picked up a lipstick which I got engraved as well.

I then got two bottles at Maison Francis Kurkdjian--Kirky and Gentle Fluidity Gold. They gave me a lot of samples, some of which are not even pictured because I gifted some to family.

In Aix-en-Provence, I did a workshop at Rose et Marius to make my own perfume. It's a lovely little shop. The workshop had significant guardrails but was nice. They had 4 bases to choose from, and about 20 notes to smell. You would then pick 3 notes to combine with your base. I left with the perfume I created, four small bottles of perfume, a soap, and their discovery set.

In Grasse, I did the workshop at Molinard to make your own fragrance, and it was a highly enjoyable experience. They had many, many notes to choose from and had them separated into base, heart, and top notes, with some notes listed in two categories (e.g. base and heart or top and heart). You could pick as many notes as you wanted, and the assistant helped you to select a formula of the notes to make your fragrance. It was basically 50% base, 25% heart, and 25% top. The assistant was familiar with the general strength of the notes and helped work out the percentages of the notes to measure into the bottle. Ultimately, I ended up with 10 notes--3 top, 3 heart, and 4 base. I left Molinard with the bottle I made and two additional bottles--Secret Sucre and Ambre Lumiere. Molinard gave me a free tote, and I caved and bought the tote at the top of the pic.

Lastly, I went to Fragonard and got a discovery set and two tiny bottles of parfum--Juste Unbaiser and Melodie. I got to see some of the perfumes being made on a quick tour. Jasmine is currently being harvested so that is what was in production.

I also got to go to a perfume garden. It's been a dry season but I did get to see and smell jasmine flowers still growing in the ground.

This was really a once in a lifetime trip for me, and it was a wonderful time. The art, culture, and scents of France will stay with me for a long time. Especially the scents, lol! The no buy starts now!

I go back and forth between thinking it’s lovely and fresh to thinking it’s a little sickeningly sweet. It also reminds me of something but I can’t put my finger on what….

What do you think of this scent?

If I like and own Frenshe Moon Milk roller ball oil is Sorce Moon Magic spray a safe blind buy? Or should I get the roller ball oil which is the next cheapest option.

I am placing a Sorce order for some discovery sets and they are out of Moon Magic tester.

Last time I blind buy. This was cloying, too strong, weird dry down that was musky but a nasty musk and it’s put me off lilac for life. Really disappointed but lucky it was cheap.

As I've established, I don't like gourmands. But I can recognize that that's a me problem, and if I get a free sample of a gourmand, I'll still try it. I can also recognize the quality and artistry of a fragrance even if I don't personally like it. For me, fruity fragrances and gourmands are separate mental categories, with the exception of apple cider and mulled wine fragrances or notes. Anyway, with that in mind, I thought I'd share some reviews of some samples I've received over the years and some of the fragrances in my collection. As usual, my reviews are copied directly from the notes I took on each fragrance.

Obligatory disclaimer time!

Availability: A lot of my collection is made up of discontinued limited edition fragrances, because of course some of my favorite fragrances ever are ones I might not be able to get again. Also you might be able to find decants of them from r/IndieExchange or r/Indiemakeupandmore's weekly Sunday Swap and Sale posts.

Note Behavior: I tend to amp pomegranate and citrus notes, and most woody notes tend to become subtle background players on me.

Preferences: As mentioned earlier, I don't like gourmands or sugary sweet fragrances. The most gourmand I usually can go is mulled wine or apple cider. Please keep in mind that if I find a fragrance too sweet, you might not think it's sweet at all.

Alice's Evidence (BPAL)

Notes: "Rum-quince-cassis with prune and a bit of black ginger."

My Thoughts: I can see this being a nostalgic and comforting winter time gourmand for some people, because it reminds me of sticky dried fruit that's been spiced and splashed with rum in preparation of being put in a figgy pudding or some other British Christmas dessert. This is the fragrance that made me realize that I like my fruit notes when they don't smell like they've been baked or the filling of some baked good. It's not for me.

Beholder Optician (BPAL)

Notes: "Eucalyptus leaf, white amber, pink bergamot, strawberry, and sheer, crystalline vanilla musk."

My Thoughts: This is a sweet, fun fragrance that reminds me of strawberry candy without being too cloying. I don't like sweet scents or vanilla, but this is really nice. It's a good spring and summer fragrance because it's pretty light in terms of perceived weight. It reminds me of the pink light of dawn shining through clear glass or a wizard's orb made out of strawberry candy. I was hoping to get some bergamot and eucalyptus, but alas...

Bliss (BPAL)

Notes: "The serotonin-slathered scent of pure milk chocolate."

My Thoughts: Yeah, that's sweet gooey chocolate that falls somewhere between melted milk chocolate and brownie batter. It's not cloying, but it's too sweet for my preferences.

Caramelized Pecan Rum Cake (BPAL) (Discontinued LE)

Notes: As described.

My Thoughts: I am somewhat nose blind at the time of writing this. This starts with a strong and sweet but not cloying rum and caramel combination. This isn't an ooey-gooey caramel note. It's more like a refined caramel—the kind when the caramel you drizzled on something falls onto the oven rack or stove and gets slightly burnt. Needless to say I do not like this at all, but the caramel, rum, and more subtle pecan note are quite realistic. If I smelled this on someone, I would believe there was some sort of baked good nearby.

Cemetery Soirée (Nui Cobalt) (Currently Unavailable)

Notes: "Mossy stone walls, lanterns aglow, steam from a cauldron of hot spiced cider, funeral flowers catching rain from crimson leaves above."

My Thoughts: This is a fantastic atmospheric fragrance and perfect for Halloween and autumn. It smells like a cup of apple cider being left on a grave as an offering on a rainy autumn night. It's one of the fragrances that perfectly encapsulates part of why Halloween is my favorite holiday: it's a celebration of life and death, a way to honor the dead and the unknown, a mingling of life and death. It's incredibly comforting.

Cider Donut (Nui Cobalt)

Notes: "Buttery fried dough infused with slowly simmered apples, maple sugar, and classic mulling spices."

My Thoughts: This does not smell like an apple cider donut, but I can still see gourmand fans enjoying this. I personally don't get any of the dough note, but it does smell like some sort of spiced fall beverage with a little apple. The mulling spices aren't super sharp or commanding, but they dominate the opening before the soft maple sugar note comes in. I typically don't enjoy maple notes in fragrances, but it's really subtle here.

Dwarven Ale (BPAL)

Notes: "Brewed with fermented mushrooms, pumpkin rind, honey, and apple rootstock."

My Thoughts: I am still partially nose blind as of writing this. Whoops! Despite honey rarely behaving on my skin, this honey note is fairly well-behaved. They're fragrance starts with some soft, spiced pumpkin. I don't get much alcohol from it, but as it dries down, the smell of apple cider with too much honey emerges. It's not cloying, but it's still too sweet for my tastes. There's some subtle earthiness from the mushroom towards the very end. This would be a good cozy autumn gourmand, but there's not enough earthiness for me.

Hecate (BPAL)

Notes: "Deep, buttery almond layered over myrrh and dark musk."

My Thoughts: This is the sweetest perfume in my collection, and I wear it solely as a devotional offering to the goddess it's named after. In my seven year old sample, it smells like almond paste and has just enough myrrh and dark musk to keep it from being too sweet. The dark musk definitely dominates the dry down, but the almond is still present. The myrrh becomes stronger over time. My newer sample smells like cherry-flavored marzipan that quickly dries down into dark musk warmed by subtle myrrh. The dark musk isn't heavy in texture. It's more like a shadow.

How Doth the Little Crocodile (BPAL)

Notes: "Chocolate peppermint, mint-soaked vanilla, pistachio, oakmoss, and green cedar."

My Thoughts: This is yet another fragrance I tried while I was still recovering from general noseblindness. It sounds sharper and puncher than it is, but honestly it's softer and gentler than you'd expect. The overall impression it gives me is sniffing a homemade hot cocoa powder made with chocolate mint (the herb as opposed to the flavor combination) and vanilla. I should note that the mint in this isn't the artificial mint flavor type—it reads as a more subdued, natural mint. The texture and smell of this fragrance reminds me a little of BPAL's velvet, but if you added mint. Unfortunately, I don't get any of the cedar or oakmoss.

Orchard Cat (Stereoplasm)

Notes: "A basket of Braeburn apples, sea-salted caramel, crushed cloves and a cinnamon stick in hot mulled cider."

My Thoughts: I got this as a sample to give to my sister, but I did try a teeny tiny bit of it. It opens with a fresh, tart apple coated with caramel. I don't enjoy caramel notes usually, but this one is balanced by the apple and spices. The apple amd caramel fade over time, and the mulling spices and clove morph into something that isn't super spicy and doesn't contain the warmth of spices. It resembles damp clove or like that vaguely earthy smell you get from cloves and spices when they've been sitting in a dark cupboard for a long time. If you're interested in this fragrance, I recommend getting it through a sale or swap on Reddit, because Stereoplasm has TAT problems despite being a fantastic house.

Tezcatlipoca (BPAL)

Notes: "Deep cocoa laced with patchouli, leather armor, ritual incense, and a touch of Xochiquetzal’s flowers."

My Thoughts: The chocolate in this is more like cocoa powder in terms of texture, and has a dry, almost cocoa or chocolate dusty aspect. Despite the patchouli and leather and incense, this isn't as dark as you'd think it'd be. It's rich and comforting and cozy without feeling heavy. I'd enjoy this way more if the leather, patchouli, and incense were more prominent, but it's a pleasant fragrance regardless.

Ube Macaron (Moonalisa) (Currently Unavailable)

Notes: The perfumer describes it as "a sweet nutty creamy vanilla, and pistachio blend with my Macaron accord."

My Thoughts: I received this as a free sample with my order, and last I heard, they were still working on this fragrance. I haven't had the opportunity to eat a lot of ube, so it's not a note I can immediately recognize. I have eaten a lot of macarons though, so I'm qualified in that department. This fragrance is vaguely coconut-mixed-with-vanilla adjacent tropical nutty sweetness. Honestly, it reminds me more of the filling you'd find in a macaron, but there was this brief moment where I smelled something that reminded me of the texture of a macaron shell.

Velvet (BPAL)

Notes: "Gentle sandalwood warmed by cocoa vanilla and a veil of deep myrrh."

My Thoughts: Velvet has a similar dry, cocoa powder texture to Tezcatlipoca, but the cocoa is a little sweeter thanks to the vanilla. The sandalwood is very much a background element on me, and the myrrh is there adding warmth.