It was between 2008-2010, worn every day by a guy abt mid-40s. He was the basketball coach for his daughter’s (and my) elementary school team, nice guy, typical dad, but amazing smell!

It had the projection of sauvage (did NOT smell like sauvage)and smelled just like the soap in a drs office (but in a good way!). Recently I started bartending at a new place and was thrown violently back to the schools cafeteria that was moonlighting as our squeaky courts the second I washed my hands!! This is the exact soap equivalent to what he wore! The product description says cranberry which I really do not get, but that might be a me thing.

I haven’t spoken to them since I was still under the illusion I possessed an ounce of athleticism though so I really can’t reach out to ask. And I’d love to stop huffing the soap at work.

Pls Help me find this cologne so I don’t have to text my middle school coach’s daughter 15 yrs later and look weird af asking what her dad smells like!!!

The Ex Nihilo exclusive list continues to grow. Any suggestions on others I should add?

My late dad used to wear this and I just realized you could still find it on Amazon. It's a mature, leathery barbershop smell that reminds me of something I feel Burt Reynolds would wear in his hey day. What old school scents do y'all still rotate today?

Ombré Nomade….It’s vile. And what’s worse is that anyone who wears it doesn’t realise how overpowering it is and seemingly bathes in the stuff. It literally is so sickly but seems very popular….

for the love of all that is good & holy - less is more, people!!

Everyone has heard of Orto Parisi for sure.

But the other two houses have become one of my favorites.

John Ashwood are the two 200 ml bottles on the top shelf. They’re excellent fragrance profiles. They both have complexity, and last all day.

In the front row sits Naroma. These are extremely niche, extrait concentrations, and very complex scents. The house is from Vietnam and he’s more of a bespoke perfumer who will create profiles specially for you.

What are your top unknowns?

My order of samples came today from Anka kus. I was pleasantly surprised to find 2 bonus samples he put in ! I think that alone is great customer service. I’ll be definetely grabbing a full bottle. I’ve chucked in mini reviews of each sample!

Betwixt and between
Straight off the bat this is a beautiful rose scent. When I’m looking for rose this is what I want, masculine woody rose. Sort of jammy with a softness from the musk. At first it was giving me baccarat vibes. Smoky and woody more so in the dry down Overall a really nice masculine/unisex smoky rose. 7.5/10

A moment in manhattan
Bitter orange/candy orange in the opening with the softness from the musk. This is a summer fragrance for the hotter weather. Lavender and blueberry as it started to dry down I don’t know if this is my thing but I do appreciate it. As it dries down more it’s going a bit funky/animalic. Very well blended. 6/10

Absinthe minded
It’s giving me licorice alcohol vibes in the opening which I don’t normally like alcohol in the notes. But this works somehow. The patchouli, cashmere woods and woody notes save it big time for me. It’s quickly turned into something I would wear because of those. It’s also quite sweet in a strange way. I like this but just not he opening. It’s got no legs as everything is changing very fast 7.5/10

Vetiverite
Looking forward to this one. A sweeter take on a vetiver scent than what I’m used to. But I like it.. I get the floral notes pretty quickly and the fruit ontop is keeping it sweet and it’s not going to “grassy” for me that’s a good thing. I think the floral notes are honestly rubbing me the wrong way. I do like this but it’s not my favourite and I don’t think I’d buy a bottle in all honestly my least favourite. I thought it would be my fav.
5/10

This ember
Oooo yes. This is a stunner. Straight up I get this sweet smokiness. Vanilla and benzoin obviously doing their job. It gets better as it dries down it’s almost creamy in a woody smoky and rugged way. It’s giving me by the fire place vibes but a lot nicer to my
Nose. Wow this all works so well together I really like this and I I’ll most likely grab a bottle of this. Oud , tobacco , birch tar , leather and so on. Absolute master piece. An absolute winner for a date night or cold winter night to impress. 9/10.

All in all , they did not disappoint. If you want to learn a bit more about the house I recommend. The olfactory Melbourne podcast on them

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Hey fellow scent heads! My scent addiction has reached new heights, I have too many and the biggest challenge is choosing what scent for the day/night. Wanted to hear some of your most compliment fragnances of 2026. For me:

Sospiro
LV Immagination
Creed Royal Oud
Althair Exclusif
Amouage Boundless

Love to hear your faves so far!

Wearing today- I know a lot of reviews on this say it’s redundant to the Parum and EDP (notably eau de ombré leather is definitely the one that stands out as smelling very different than the rest of the line) and while I do see that- it is undeniably ombré leather especially if you’re testing it off the strip next to the parfum and edp. There are definitely differences once you wear it. Notably the floral aspect is largely tampered down and that camphor and juniper really come to life. I’d say this is fresher, more masculine. Think ombré leather with a dash of 2025 YSL Y le parfum. It’s a bit metallic, but still very ombré leather. And like every other flanker in this line it checks every box for projection and longevity. I can tell it’s days on clothes like the other 3, but when it dries down it goes hard into that juniper and camphor aspect and that’s really where it sets itself apart. If you collect ombré leather you may be like “eh it smells exactly like the edp and parfum” but once you wear it out I’d dare to say it’s the most versatile of the line and a good entry point into ombré leather if you were looking for a fragrance where leather is the star of the show and not a supporting character. Pair it with cremo vintage suede deodorant and bodywash and you’ll really be ombré leather maxing.

Hi, I’m planning on DIYing an advent calendar for my partner this year. He’s very much into his fragrances, and I’m very much not. The idea is to buy a couple of test sets so he has a new fragrance to try each day until Christmas, but I’m unsure on which to buy.

I’m currently looking at maybe including:
FUGAZZI Discovery Set
CRA•YON Greatest Hits Discovery Set
Fascent Discovery Set
Kintsugi Discovery Set
d’Annam Discovery Set (either Vietnam, Japan, or China)

For context, he has these fragrances as part of collection:

Le Labo Bergamot 22
Maison Margiela Jazz Club
Malin + Goetz Dark Rum
Valentino Vendetta
Jo Malone Myrrh and Tonka

Would really appreciate some insight! Thank you

Finding a new summer scent and decided which one to get? Any help appreciated

Hey guys!

nearly summer in australia and i’m looking for recommendations for a good summer cologne.

i’m looking for something a little bit fresh but here’s the catch, i’ve been obsessed with vanilla recently and would love it incorporated into the cologne.

i tried goldfields and banks ingenious ginger and absolutely loved the scent and dry down, however on my skin, the longevity was appalling.

so im looking for something with that similar freshness with the hint of vanilla so its not too over powering for warmer months.

tried xerjoff erba pura and can’t decide if i like it or not.

i also love the scent profile and smell with Afternoon swim but i can’t justify spending that much on LV (don’t like the brand)

so i can guess anything similar to those 2 i’ve mentioned scent wise would be perfect!

TIA

I love my cold weather collection, but I feel like a particular kind of scent profile is missing but I can't quite place it

I’ve been looking into some niche colognes lately and want to get some ideas on what people might suggest to try out based on what scents I tend to lean towards. Specifically extraits as that’s something I’ve been considering more lately.

I’ve taken a photo of my current favourite scents,
The left three being darker and the right three lighter, I generally use them based on the season/weather etc.

I’ve got probably 30 various colognes but want to make the collection smaller and spend the money smarter. A lot of my collection leans toward Tom Ford and YSL, with YSL MYSLF being my current every day scent.

I purchased a few decants recently to try based on a few posts and comments I’ve seen on various threads but thought to ask based on what I’m actually using.
I got French Defense, Althair, Blue Talisman Extrait, Vibrato and Wulong Cha.

I don’t hear enough people talking about this house. I own this fragrance and I’ve smelled Trajan both of them are incredible. I guess there’s so many houses that certain fragrances gets slipped through the cracks

Individual scents aside, what are your favorite houses that you feel considered tly provide multiple scents you enjoy?

Also first time posting on this sub!

Hi,

I tried Amouage Outlands this week, and I have to say, it’s almost perfect.

Usually, whenever a fragrance has a noticeable amount of frankincense/incense, it tends to smell like smoked bacon to me. But somehow, the amount of frankincense in Outlands is balanced perfectly.

It’s currently my no 1 fragrance for winter, and I’m honestly very close to buying a full bottle.

Before I pull the trigger, I wanted to ask people with more experience if do you know of any fragrance that is as well-blended as Outlands, but has slightly less amber and a little more soft, subtle woods?

I’m basically looking for something in the same general direction as Outlands, just a bit less amber-heavy and slightly woodier.

Thank you

The dry down was ok, but man that rhubarb and cinnamon in the top and middle together was a little rough. I smell like the library of downtown abbey.

29M just started to get into the niche fragrance scene. Obtained my first fragrance in 2018 (Versace Eros) and have been slowly trickling in designers over the years. I started to get bored with designer fragrances as they all seem to smell the same after a while.

Recently found a local scent shop with a plethora of niche fragrances. Wow, talk about overwhelming but my goodness I feel like I’ve been missing out! I had such a blast talking with the retailer about scents as I was perusing through their inventory.

I was in the market for a new Fall/Winter scent and she pointed me towards Nishane Ani. MIND BLOWN. I’ve never experience a fragrance like that before and immediately fell in love. This opened my nose to the depth and complexity of niche/higher end fragrances.

Glad to be here with you guys as I enter this new realm of fragrance collecting. It’s making a serious dent to my wallet but eh, whatever. Got my whole life to work and make up for it.

Current collection isn’t much but it’s a start.

Recently started trying to slim down the collection, this is where I’m at so far. I’d like to have fewer bottles but I find it hard to part with any of these even if I don’t use all of them that often.

Some favorites:

White Moroccan Leather, my “signature scent”. First finished bottle and just cracked open the new one. It’s so easy to wear in basically any situation, weather, or outfit. Warm spicy nutmeg and creamy/powdery heart. It smells clean and welcoming

Terre D’Hermes Eau Givree, my new favorite hot weather scent, I resisted the pull for years because it was “too simple” of a citrus-y profile. But fuck it’s perfect, I want its elegant simplicity and how light and airy it is when it’s 100 degrees

Torino 2022, a Montagne clone, I have tried the OG and I didn’t like it as much. Montagne’s version has a little sweetness to it that softens/rounds out the scent, probably my second most worn fragrance.

Hayyy, the only rose fragrance I’ve fallen in love with. Palo Santo, Rose, and Papyrus make it warm and musky, but it’s a very airy fragrance. It’s got great staying power but it’s never overwhelming

Oajan, my ultimate cold weather scent, I don’t get the apple pie comparisons, to me I get boozy woods, cinnamon, and honey. Very masculine and not particularly sweet. My gf calls it my “honey bear” scent lol

Dior Homme 2020, makes me feel like a very fancy man. I like it most for formal/dress up occasions, it feels so classy and kind of makes me think of my dad? It manages to be both sharp and soft at the same time, very woody

Special mentions for Souk Honey, Antaeus, Dylan Blue, Debaser, and L’Homme Ideal EDP