...That is a very interesting issue you have brought up here. Haven´t we all experienced at least once how different perceptions and opinions of fragrance can be among people in general and even among those who are close to us. Same goes for food and drinks, doesn´t it ?I believe that the issue of "appropriateness" of wearing a fragrance or which one or how much of it will, as with all other matters of taste and culture and personal habits, remain a divided one.There is a saying in German that pretty much sums it up for me, "What brings joy to one person is another person´s pain." Sort of, well yes :-) I try not to please others too much but there are situations when the smell/scent of a person might be from plain carelessly chosen to shockingly insulting. It is up to everyone to decide which "risks" you want to take when wearing a particular scent.Might "Angel" be a nuisance at the dentist ? Will "Chanel No.5" be the right aura at the gym ? Is "Cool Water" a motivation during the office day ?Last year I had to put that question seriously to myself as I was pondering about whether or not I should wear perfume to my aunt´s funeral. Tricky issue and as I was afraid to scare away my relatives (we live about 6h car drive away from each other and contact is rather loose) I got myself some advice here. On that day I wore "Infusion d´Homme" by Prada which IMHO smells more like fresh laundry and rather "unperfumey". I find the idea to "wear" the deceased´s favourite scent in a handkerchief very appealing. I would never scold someone for doing that. However, I think it would be a good idea to step back from oriental bombs if it was not the scent associated with that beloved person. In my opinion, a funeral is, along with a job interview, the trickiest situation of all to choose perfume for. To be frank : I would not wear any perfume for a job interview and the funeral...well, as described above.Is "Angel" the right choice for gym lessons ? Hmmm....who can tell ? I think nobody can...except the "rules" for the participants of the gym lesson are courteously asked to refrain from perfume during the training.My personal conclusion : "To thine own self be true." You cannot be everybody´s darling. It´s just the very difficult situations that I try to make a compromise or even constrain myself from my usual habits. Otherwise I believe "Chacun á son gout." ... on most occasions.

...What concerns me most are bottles which are hard to handle for one hand. I am always worried I might drop the bottle - god forbid and thank goodness this has not yet happened to me so far.Another thing that I do not like on some bottles are leaking nozzles...I mean if I spray then perfume runs down and into my hand :-( Is it just me using the bottle wrongly or is that a manufacture failure ?Otherwise the bottle is hardly a factor for me to decide for a perfume as I am not a flacon collector but buy to use the juice.

...I have come across a few and mostly was disappointed.Clive Christian's "X woman" smelled like cheap hairspray to me. Gruesome.Amouage's "Gold woman" did not appeal to me either.I bought the XerJoff OudStar discovery set but found that none of them is any good for me. Now I sell them all....well, what's to be learnt from these experiences ? :-)I decided to mainly stick to the brands (expensive, yes, but not overly so or mainstream-priced) I have known and cherished so far and maybe explore another if very interesting by the notes of a certain perfume but letting oneself deceive by the pricetag or the prestige only is nonsense. Just my five scents....

...Hi everyoneI noticed that now with the beginning of the new year I am starting to dislike a number of scents which I liked so far.Paloma Picasso develops strange on me, it smells rancid and weird, similar to a glue product :-(Hypnose by Lancome once bewitched me with that almondy marcipane aura, now I am just bored and cannot even shrug over this perfume.Jasmin Noir l´Essence is way too similar to the regular Jasmin Noir so I very much regret having bought it....to be continued...Which scents have you fallen out of love with and why ? Has your preference/taste changed or is it a reformulation that does not quite meet up with your previous experiences with that particular scent ? I am curious and am looking forward to reading your posts.Before I forget : Happy New Year to you all !

...IFRA will not bring more health to people, only more money into their pockets :-(Let´s ban everything that is harmful.....let´s ban life *irony*...I can really see no point in blocking so-called allergants, they could simply put a warning on the INCI´s. This will enable everyone concerned to read the label before applying the juice.But, well, money has always been a strong motivator for all kinds of cocolores :-(

...I could recently sniff them at Sephora´s but came to the conclusion that none of the new "Jardin" fragrances will haunt me to get one.Somehow I found them bland and made with no imagination. If Tobacco Vanille has a lot of soul then these are merely lifeless phantoms. Good for my bank account but nevertheless disappointing with so much potential wasted.

...Currently I do not have any abstract paintings on the wall at home but I nevertheless enjoy abstract pictures and sometimes create abstract pictures with my camera. Painter-wise I do like Pollock, Kandinsky and Rothko, for example.

...The Twilight Zone (the old 60s version)The Night GalleryThe Munsters (the 60s version)The Addams FamilyDownton Abbey Highway to HeavenBewitchedI dream of JeannieThe NannyGolden GirlsHart to HartCarnivaléDeadwoodSherlock Holmes (with Jeremy Brett)Hercule Poirot (with David Suchet)Sex and the CityScarecrow and Mrs. KingThe AvengersThe Walking deadI could list countless others but these are roughly my favourites...I am more the "nostalgic" type :-)

...I forgot "Arpège" / Lanvin and "No.5" --> not to be underestimated as animalic bad girls :-)

..."Parfum de Peau" by Montana...goodness gracious, that one is a blast...on me, however, rather a nightmarish experience."Paloma Picasso" --> I love it as the animalic notes are not overdosed on me. It is rather a chypre, though."Memoir Woman" --> Very animalic but the tuberose and the absinth keep that at bay (for a while) :-)

...Heavy, rich, opulent juices give me the feeling of luxury and decadence, hence my orientals wonderfully fit the purpose :-)Some special and loved divas in my collection :Memoir Woman / AmouageAmbre Fetiche / Annick GoutalOud Royal / ArmaniBlack Aoud / MontaleLuxor Oud / MEMOHowever, just to feel warm, cozy and protected : Mitsouko, my olfactory home and castle. Sometimes, my inner diva needs a rest from her usual self :-)

..."Luxor Oud" by MEMO --> I am so in love with this intense rose scent....could bathe in it (however, sillage is enormous, so two spritzes will do) :)

...Shalimar and Mitsouko. Both are timeless but nevertheless have that nostalgic vibe.Another one I could very much imagine in the 40s is "Azuree" by Estee Lauder. That´s a to-die-for chypre and it buzzes with vitality."It don´t mean a thing if it ain´t got that swing..." :) Doo wup doo wup doo wup doo wup.

...Received my highly-awaited perfume parcel today *yippieh*Mazzolari´s "Patchouly" MEMO´s "Luxor Oud"andLaboratorio Olfattivo´s "Alkemi"arrived - I am very happy.Mazzolari´s "Patchouly" was sold out everywhere I asked, I was a bit worried it might not be available anymore...but now I know it´s just very popular :-)

...Currently I store them all in a chest of drawers, before that I used my wardrobe (the shirts had to go *g*).In my opinion this has worked out good so far and I have them all easy at hand. What annoys me a little is the fact that I never have them all in sight when pondering which one to wear (especially time-consuming in the mornings). Probably the only way to solve the problem is to buy a smaller wardrobe just for the perfumes..with nice shelves in it so they can be lined up similar as in a store (I need to wake up, am already dreaming again *g*).Right now I have grouped them into chypres, orientals (the biggest part of my collection anyway), vanillas and summer scents (those are placed in the very rear of the drawer). However, I do not group them name-wise, brand-wise, colour-wise or anything. I need to perouse a bit.While I am dreaming : How about a perfume room ? Mine would be in black, violet and burgundy *sigh*.

...Sherapop:I just received the complete set of wax samples and am considering doing a Serge Lutens challenge: can I don a different scent at bedtime for thirty-two nights in a row. Will I get any sleep? 8)Sherapop, please report your experiences....besides, the dreams following to sniffing his scents might be of specific interest to us :-)

...PontNeuf:I tried 4 or 5 of her scents (i.e. Peau de Peche, Zazous, Iris Pourpre, Iris d´Argent, Oliban) but I found them very watery on me.Besides, the overall impression I had with them was "This is not me."However, I love love love the Loukhoum Parfum pour le Soir. This one is the complete opposite of the above-mentioned scents. Sweeter than Angel, even foodier than Angel ! It is a dream of marcipane cherries with marshmallows around. One of the most remarkable gourmands I have ever smelled.Update : The Loukhoum Parfum pour le Soir had to go in the meantime, love is a fragile little thing sometimes :-)....well, I would like to try her Bespoke collection to see if there is one for me but I have little hope.

...I recently sprayed on some "Bois des Iles" by Chanel before going to sleep. This scent has a really soothing and relaxing effect on me, it almost felt like a motherly hug.

...I had a lot of personal issues to solve in the past months and hence did not have much time and muse for Parfumo. Things are getting sorted out more and more now and I am really looking forward to drop by more often again in the future.Kind greetings to everyone I have encountered here so far.

...Admitted, Serge Lutens fragrances are strange. Sometimes very strange and more often than not utterly strange :-)My first SL scent was Datura Noir. I could not wear it for long, it wore me out. Next try was Fleurs d´oranger. Same thing but faster :-)In the course of time I owned Miel de Bois, Bois Vanille, Arabie, Santal Blanc, Fille d´Aiguilles. They all did not fit my nose properly.BUT : I found and still dearly love these ones which I can wear :Ambre SultanFumerie TurqueCuir MauresqueAt least one can say they are all worth a try and surely bring some kind of olfactory experience :-)