This Weeks Quick Thoughts

Been busy lately, Hubby was on vacation, his mother has been in the hospital and now is in rehab. Still no idea when she'll be discharged. Yes, the vacation was spent visiting MIL and fixing the car, with a few pit stops between junk yards, garages and hospitals for me to do some sniffing and shopping.

My punishment/no buying period didn't last long. As always there were some irresistible bargains I couldn't refuse. Perfumes below are not recent purchases, I am dipping into my own collection and making decisions about things, somewhat.

Guy Laroche Fidji. I'm on the fence with this one. I was thinking it would be a good summer wear, but it's so light. Light and airy. It reminds me a lot of Calandre, they do share several notes especially in the base. I'm leaning more toward Calandre, Fidji seems to evaporate too quickly on my wrist. My Fidji is a vintage mini splash, sometimes it's difficult to really test a fragrance with a tiny splash. Depends on the juice. Maybe a Fidji bottle will fall into my possession sometime soon.

Jean Patou 1000. I like to wear perfume to bed. What the hell, I wear it all the time anyway. I wore 1000 to bed the other night, for sleeping. For other "bed" purposes I wear Dior Addict, Hubby likes that-that and fruity floral crap. Not my cup of tea but Addict & the sweet stuff seem to get him in the mood. Back to 1000, it smelled delicious at first, but sometime during the night I woke up and took a sniff and it smelled horrible, perhaps I was having a nightmare and it wasn't bad at all?

Gucci 3. LOVE. Love at first sniff. Soapy in a good way, not in a clean sense, as in sort of an oily or fatty soap. It smells rich. Actually, the initial sniff reminded me of something my mother wore way back when, Chanel no.5 came to mind, or perhaps no. 19? My initial sniff was from either an EDP or a parfum, it was a decant and it's even more luxurious than my EDT. It's probably impossible to find the pure parfum now. But  Gucci 3 is a luxurious soap, a touch of citrus (bergamot) and leather. Thick, strong leather. I've had this for a while, been wearing it frequently lately. Someone actually asked me what I was wearing today, she said it smelled great. I hope she doesn't ask where to buy it. Well, I could decant some.

Treasure Trove

Recently I've been frequenting a different city due to doctor appointments. My first appointment I arrived an hour early so I checked out the shops in this small semi-urban square. A little "downtown" you don't see so much anymore due to the big stores/malls pushing the little guys out. There's several dollar or discount stores, a couple of clothing shops, shoe stores, and a few Indian stores that carry incense, oils and such.

To my AMAZEMENT one of the discount stores and a clothing store (that also sells household items) carry perfumes. Not just any perfumes, but a wide range of them, and old ones at that! They had Caron, which I had never seen in a store prior to this. I bought Caron's Bain De Champange. They also have what looks to be the old formulation of Opium and Rive Gauche, I haven't checked the boxes because I wasn't crazy about their price, I think it was $50 or $60. Chanel no. 19 and no. 5. but I do worry about fake Chanels so I haven't bought any yet. Krizia. Rochas. Montana. Nina Ricci. Patou's Joy, Enjoy and Sublime-but I fear because of the Patou name there will be priced high, not as high as retail but possibly high enough where wouldn't be worth re-selling it.

Ever since I arrive to my appointments early and do a little shopping. The only purchase I kept was the Bain De Champange, the rest has been keeping me in business and paying some bills. BTW my real life job cut back on staffing, I only work 20 or so hours a week, I have to do what I can to pay bills. I did buy some Indian oils, gave a few away, kept a couple. Yesiree, I'll be back there this week, don't know if I'll buy anything, I am on punishment, but if I could find a sleeper or something....

What you wearin'? Quickies

Quick thoughts on some things I've been dabbling in lately:

Chanel no. 19 Due to rumors or possible truth that they'll be discontinuing this I got my hands on some vintage. Very chypre, very green, moist, mossy. Very do-able and wearable. Lasted a LONG time on my inner elbow. Luckily if I fall in love with it, I know of 3 places that carry the vintage of this. Not so lucky for my finances.

Chanel no.22 Hello? Anybody home? I got an Eau De Cologne and there's not much happening in that bottle. Where are all the white florals, nutmeg and vanilla that 22 promised? I didn't encounter much of anything during my initial sniff and dabbings late, late, last night. Will try again with a clearer head.


Mariah Carey M. I wanted to try this because of the marshmallow, salt and incense notes, from the almost empty tester I found I managed to squirt a few drops out, not impressed.

Caron Nuit De Noel. I'm not familiar with Caron perfumes, I had never heard of them until I got seriously involved in perfume. All of the Carons I've tried so far are unusual. Nuit De Noel I haven't made up my mind on yet. The dry down is pleasant and on the sweet side, but it's got this oddball note I've encountered in several perfumes that I don't care for-the oddball note is a whole other post in itself.

Zo-Zo The woman in the perfume shop urged me to try this. Zo-Zo (she prounced it as Jo-Jo) was very sweet and flowery. A fruity floral I suppose. I passed, didn't knock my socks off. Haven't been able to find any info on this scent online either.

Pacifica Indian Coconut Nectar. Pure yum in a bottle, or in my case a tube. A tube of body butter. I just can't resist the coconut.

YSL Opium I haven't been dabbling in it, a co-worker has. She's been wearing it for years, probably since it was first introduced. It smells wonderful on her, I get a hint of it when she's near me and she moves around. I'm wondering if she's wearing the old or the new formulation? Will ask at some point.

Shut off

I'm shutting myself off from buying for a while, if possible. It isn't easy, I attempted this before Christmas, before my birthday and failed, there was always something catching my eye or at a deep discount. I did successfully shut myself off for a month during the winter. How about I shut myself off until July 5th? Close to a month. July 4th weekends I work extra hard at my regular job (doubles over the weekend & work the Monday holiday) and I usually buy myself something special for doing so. We'll see how it goes this year.

This punishment was brought on by a  buying episode today. I had saved up some money and patiently waited until I had a free afternoon to go to my favorite perfume store, the one that has loads of old stuff. Today was that afternoon and I spent all the money I brought except for some loose coins in my purse. It's a good thing I had money on my bus pass. $150=5 bottles. I planned on selling 4, the other was for me, but now I'm not so sure, after smelling it on my skin it's not turning me on, it smelled fantastic in the store a couple of weeks ago. BUT my period is due in the next few days, my nose goes haywire right before, I'll have to hold off before making a final decision on these. And I'm not sure about the other 3, they smell sort of promising.

I am almost kicking myself for not buying Habanita today. I had a mini splash, decanted it into an atomizer and have been dabbling in it lately. I'm wearing it now, it's powdery, leathery and with a bit of vanilla, a couple of hours after spraying it I'm getting a hint of the fruit notes from my wrist, or I've spilled something sweet on me, but I haven't had any sweets today. Quite an accomplishment during a bout of PMS. But do I really need a full bottle of Habanita? I'll continue to work on my mini.

During this month of no purchases I will concentrate on some neglected perfumes I haven't fully tested yet. Organize the collection-have been thinking of moving it into a different room. Set aside what I'm definitely keeping, what is sell-able, what to hold for future reference. Oh my, it's going to be a long month.

Comments/Compliments

First off, I wear perfume for my own enjoyment, if i love the way something smells, I revel in it. Some make me feel confident and aggressive even,  feminine, elegant, some I seek comfort in and a few make me feel almost skanky. I do not wear perfume to seek the approval from others, or to gather compliments.  Several years back, I continued to wear Gucci Rush at work even though one woman complained it gave her a headache (well, she complained about everything) another person said something about the place having recently been sprayed for bugs. (On a side note, that was said when I on my 3nd bottle, which I swear smelled "off").

Today I wore Jesus Del Polzo In Black. Applied bit heavy handed, I was working in an open atmosphere so I can get away with more. No one said anything, which is fine. Also typical.  A co-worker was wearing her Tommy Hilfiger T Girl and I hear, "Oh, you smell so pretty, what is that?" from others a few times, and one "What a nice perfume, you smell like shampoo." Lololo, you smell like shampoo! I may not have gotten any compliments on my perfume, which is better than being told you smell like shampoo. If someone told me I smelled like shampoo I'd toss that fume, I'd rethink what I was wearing, depending on what it was, how much I liked it.  Squeaky clean scents, shampoo scents, laundromat scents are not my bag.

Ironic thing is, since I began this perfume passion, I can't recall much in the line of comments or compliments from anyone about my scent. Occasionally when I slather on some hand lotion at work I will get a compliment, actually today I had a tube of Insolence in my purse and the woman next to me said she liked the scent. Didn't want to try any when I offered her a squirt. During the winter when I wore Boucheron's Trouble, this (young, much younger than me) girl told me it smelled like something her mother wore. Okay. But other than that, nada. Back when I was wearing coconut & vanilla scents, everyone commented on it. At the grocery store, the doctor's office, cab drivers, co-workers, I must have worn the coconut well. But I tired of it, burned myself out on it. Of course I will probably hit the bottle a few times this summer.

Tomorrow I will be working in a closed room with TGirl.  Historically, TGirl has always sort of competed with me: men, clothes, drinking, dieting, jewelry, anything.  It doesn't bother me, I take it as a compliment and have a bit of fun with it. My husband once said, "Why is she making a competition with you?" I hadn't realized it until he said it. Last week we worked together, it was TGirl and Mitsouko, the possible beginning of a perfume competition. So now I'm wondering what scent of mine would compete well against TGirl? Without gagging the other 2 people in the room, of course. Coco or No.5 came to mind, but I'm thinking something obscure. And with silliage. Kenzo Jungle Elephant? Guerlain's My Insolence? Maybe LouLou? Habanita? I wore that to bed last night and I can't get it out of my mind, need to fully test drive that one. I'd better make up my mind tonight or else I'll be spraying a bottle of anything  on my way out the door.

Edited to add: I wound up wearing Serge Lutens' Louve. It came in the mail the day before and I was eager to try it. Very creamy and comforting for a stressful day at work. No one noticed, but at least I enjoyed it ; )

Mitsouko

Lets get right down to business.

Mitsouko. Wasn't exactly love at first sniff for me, but this was very early in my perfume career and I had just gotten the micro mini on the right here based on all the rave reviews. Extrait. Didn't see what all the fuss was about until my third try or so. During that wearing I kept noticing a lovely, delicate sweetness coming from my wrists, hours after application. My husband noticed and commented with approval. All from a few drops! A creamy peach, with a spiciness, notably cloves and cinnamon, on a base of mossiness and amber. The more I sniff and study it, the more I discover and enjoy. Right now, 8 months later, taking a whiff at the back of my hand, I'm smelling a bit of lilac, never noticed that before, and lots of cinnamon this wearing. I swear things smell differently during different times of the month, and my sense of smell seems to be "off" right before my period-sometimes nothing smells good to me then, even my old favorites.

But I digress....after falling in love with my tiny bottle of Mitsouko I decided to get a full bottle. Before the full bottle came into my life every time I was in Saks or Neiman Marcus I'd spray myself with their testers of the pure parfum. Lovely. I got a mini EDT in the current formulation. Not so lovely. It screamed pepper to me, was as sharp as all hell and practically biting to my senses. Got rid of that fast. When I finally got a bottle of the current EDP that also had a pepper note, but no so much as the EDT.  Am I losing my mind with this pepper note? Maybe it's not exactly pepper, but it's a spice note and it's got a zing to it.

The current formulation EDP. I enjoy this, it's a fabulous scent and every time I wear it it makes me feel elegant, even if I'm running around in jeans and sneakers returning my husband's empty beer bottles at the liquior store. Something like that. I've worn it to work and felt like a queen. I do feel like I have a peppery aura around me while wearing, but that's part of it's charm, really, the pepper note is do-able, even likeable in the EDP,  and almost head spinning in the EDT. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but I just couldn't stand the EDT.

Is Mitsouko a sexy scent? At first I didn't think so, but now I do. Sexy in a sophisticated way. A confident and mature sexy. Femme Fatale. Seductress. It smells rich and modern, doesn't smell old fashioned to me at all. It's timeless.

And I'd love to be the proud owner of a bottle of extrait. Vintage. Another micro mini will suffice, but a 1/4 ounce or larger would be wonderful.

Addict >>>>Collector>>>>Dealer

My name is Sasha and I'm addicted to perfume.

Plus a bit of a hoarder, and I tend to stockpile things that might be difficult to get, or are difficult already. I've always liked perfume and have always had several bottles in my possession. Several? Prior to becoming a collector (a nicer term than addict, hoarder or stockpiler)I'd roughly estimate I had maybe 15 bottles on my dresser, a few in the basement (stored away for future use), a couple in the bathroom, plus a bunch that were my mother's.

Fast forward to now: the bulk of them are in my mother's room. The top of the bureau is covered, mostly neatly arranged, of my go-to perfumes and ones I'm in the process of testing. They're in 5 of the dresser drawers, the drawers are tall enough to accommodate bottles without having to lay them sideways. My "permanent collection" is in the bedside table cabinet, that's another post.

I have a theory, if you're addicted to something you have to deal in it in order to keep oneself rolling in it. So I became a dealer, you know, like a drug dealer. But not with drugs, just perfumes. Unlike a drug dealer, I don't cut the product to up the quantity for profit. I certainly wouldn't want it done to me. I'd be bullshit if I was sold a diluted perfume and would fight to get my money back. In the past I bought a couple of fakes, not a fun experience, and it was almost a project to get my money back. It's very disappointing to be eagerly awaiting a perfume, finally get it and you spray nothingness. I wouldn't want to do that to anybody.

How do I deal? I go shopping. I have leads, I have secrets, connections. Flea markets are the worst, lots of fakes and bottles that have been in the sun/heat, my least favorite place, but fleas have other things I want and/or can resell so I go. The last flea market I went to had a table with all perfumes, a beautiful sight at first. Chanel, YSL, Paco Rabanne, Dior, Ralph Lauren, a really fabulous selection. The fabulous selection was a red flag in itself. Chanel is a red flag anyway. It's VERY rare (if not impossible) to find an authentic new-in-box Chanel for sale other than from an authorized dealer. I took a spritz of no.5. It smelled wrong, it smelled very citrusy, almost like Pledge. Didn't last on my skin either, it was gone in less than 20 minutes. Moving right along, I came across another table, had a mix of cosmetics, hair products and some fragrances. I found an old bottle of Folies Bergere, box was slightly beat up, but the juice inside is wonderful! $18 talked down from $25 (ouch! the woman selling it was tough, and since that was all there was for perfume I got it). I'm a bit torn between keeping and selling this one. Very potent stuff, it lasted on the back of my hand though a dish washing and a bit of a scrub with a brillo pad. I can't pinpoint if it's a chypre or oriental, can't find a list of notes for it anywhere, but it's nice, it's got that old school vibe to it.

So I buy with the intent of keeping or reselling for a profit. This isn't my actual lively hood, it's more like a second job, or hobby-but I don't like the term "hobby". If I turn a profit= fine, if I take a beating on a sale=not so good. I don't rely on this to put food on the table, although I often pay some bills through paypal (and do all my Christmas shopping that way, too) but so far so good, I think. Like I told my boss at my real life job, I do this because I enjoy it and I get to wear (or at least sample) whatever I'd like. It's fun and I smell fantastic!