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Iām really into fragrances. I have 30 bottles on my dresser as we speak. This is one of my main go-toās lately, a blend of citrus and almond and leather. I blind buy all my fragrances from Fragrancenet for the most part, usually basing my decisions off of reviews from Fragrantica which is like the perfume nerd mecha. I know ordering something without smelling it in person is a risk, but scared money never wins. Iāll usually buy anything that mentions the adjectives āmasculineā or āelegantā in the reviews, and this is just that. I donāt really jive with the āsignature scentā mindset, especially when outfits and seasons come into play. You mean to tell me you use one perfume bottle all year round? Thatās fine, but I hate you. Variety isnāt just a river in Egypt, ya know.
Dec 14, 2021
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Might be a bit of a hot take but Iāve never taken to the idea of a āsignature scentā. I donāt wear the same clothes all the time; why would I want to wear the same perfume?
That said, the perfume that most of the people who know what I smell like would associate with me, and the one I almost always reach for when I donāt know what else to wear, is Vettiveru by Comme des GarƧons. Itās part of their āCologneā line, three perfumes that highlight a particular note ā amber, citrus, or vetiver ā against a classic eau de cologne accord. (They reformulated it a few years ago so the official name is āVettiveru 2ā but they didnāt mess with the original too much.) Vettiveru starts out as a juicy, slightly woody/spicy citrus and dries down into one of the softest, most lovely vetivers ever. (I probably have more vetiver-forward perfumes in my collection than any other type, so the fact that this is my favorite is really saying something.) Even better, itās weirdly inexpensive for a niche perfume - less than $100 for a 125ml bottle, which is a lot of perfume. Iām in constant fear of it being discontinued and if I didnāt already have a couple of backup bottles squirreled away Iād be anxious that itās currently out of stock on Luckyscent. Worth hunting down - give it a try if you have the opportunity.
Apr 8, 2024
Although I have a pretty extensive perfume collection ā around 200 bottles, plus hundreds of samples and decants ā for the last several years I've only worn a handful of them on a regular basis. Lately I've found myself gravitating to older and vintage scents, particularly classic Guerlains (Jicky, Mitsouko, Shalimar) and Caron (Yatagan, Caron pour Homme). Often dismissed as "old lady perfumes" (which is both ageist and misogynist!) they're the best examples of perfumery as high art I know. There are decades-old vintage samples out there if you know where to look or get lucky at an estate sale, but even the contemporary reformulated versions are more interesting and intricate than 99% of what you'll find at Sephora or even a niche shop like Luckyscent. I'd much rather smell of something that would have been familiar to Proust (that would be Jicky, a spiced lavender-vanilla considered to be the first "modern" perfume and one that has been in continuous production since it was released in 1889) than Santal 33 or whatever Maison Francis Kurkdjian everyone else is wearing.
Apr 6, 2024
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Obsessed with perfume. For a while I was searching for a signature scent, but then the hunt just became too much fun, and now Iāve ended up with a full on vanity tray in my bathroom piled with a different smell for every mood. I used to wear only China Rain, a rollerball scent my mom got me in high school from a perfumery in LA called Spiritbody. I still have a bottle of that, but when I wear it Iām transported to a more insecure time lol. Right now I love Shadow in the Water from Diptyque for when I want to smell clean and romantic. I wear Smudge by Heretic almost every day because itās colder out and it makes me feel so warm and cozy, like iāve been sitting by a fire all day, and like I give good advice and paint landscapes. Perfume is definitely a splurge, but it lasts for so long, and I think itās really special to have a beautiful scent that people can recognize you by. I am going to gatekeep my secret combination of Byredo perfumes that I wear constantly, and Iām sorry about that. Itās just too good and too me.
Dec 20, 2022
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I never was a coffee drinker. I know energy drinks are dĆ©classĆ©, but whatever. If you know me, you know this is my signature beverage. I start my mornings with one, and Iām aware how disgusting that sounds. More for taste than any kind of caffeine buzz, which I think Iām numb to anyway. This flavor used to be more common but every now and then Iāll have to drive around town from gas station to gas station to track one down. Always worth it.
Dec 14, 2021
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My favorite song to play when Iām driving home at the end of the day. Itās a living soundtrack song if there ever was one. Itās ideal for rainy nights, getting ready in the morning, or field stripping your pistol.
Dec 14, 2021
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I read this earlier this year and still think about it. At over 700 pages, it was daunting, but I was in the mood to read an epic western that I knew would make me feel some sort of emotional connection. It took me about 2 months to finish, and it blew me away. I felt immense dread when characters who I had spent weeks getting to know were in peril or dying. I truly loved everything about it and I was devastated when it was over. Itās been months and Iām still upset about certain parts.
Dec 14, 2021