It's April, and Donatella, Our Lady of Fragranced Forgiveness,1 is not at all pleased that I am a day late (again!) in summoning her to hear the confessions of her flock. Donatella wants to know what you bought in the 1st quarter (January, February and March) of 2018. Do tell, you'll feel better.
My purchases...
I spent $26 on a 10 ml bottle of Atelier Cologne Iris Rebelle, and then I bought three Hermès travel sprays (Myrrhe Églantine, Cèdre Sambac and Agar Ebène). Sadly I do not have access to those receipts right this second, so I will have to update with my total later in the day. Update: that's $190 for the quarter.
As always, report your purchases in the comments if you dare! And as always, we don't include samples or gifts, and you can count miniatures, decants and bottle-splits howsoever you like (I usually count them as half bottles). Samples don't generally count at all, even though some of us spend considerable sums obtaining them.
1. Why does Donatella host (against her will, mind you) the damage polls? There is no real reason other than the picture of her perfume collection, which shows that she indulges regularly at the perfume counter. The image, by the way, is originally from Allure magazine and appears here courtesy of Blogdorf Goodman.
One back-up bottle and one bottle I’ve been eyeing for, oh, over a decade (in large part probably due to the packaging which really brightens up the counter). There isn’t anything left on my want list (although there are always nagging “what am I missing?” doubts).
No want list!! Good for you.
Eyeing for over a decade? Definitely a good purchase!
I did better than I thought I would. My bottle choices are and will love every drop.
1. Andy Tauer’s Vanilla Flash
2. LADDM
3. A half ounce bottle of vintage L’Heure Bleu
Nice mix!
I got some Vanilla Flash as well! It was a gift, so I’m not counting it . . .
I’m well under budget ($100/mo) for the first quarter!
I have made some lovely purchases; mostly decants and minis but the highlights are a full bottle of The Pour un Ete and a mini of Ocean Rain (which I purchased partly because a Basenotes review called it “completely unwearable and untolerable to the modern man,” but I quite like it; check out this underhyped Roudnitska if the phrase “mentholated Diorella” sounds good to you).
My very favorite is a mini box set of vintage Scandal, Rumeur, Arpege and My Sin, mostly full and in good condition for $77. I am convinced all the perfume bidders must have been asleep that day. Thanks Donatella!
Congrats! This vintage mini set is an excellent catch. I am not familiar with the other two, but I enjoyed the samples of Arpege and My Sin.
Scandal is a lovely floral, and Rumeur is an INSANE spicy animalic floral that makes me feel like I am going crazy from the inside out.
THat is an amazing description.
Somebody over on the Posse was yammering about how good a leather Scandal used to be, but I’ve never smelled it.
It does have that gorgeous drydown that a lot of vintage leathers (e.g. Cabochard) have after ALL the top notes have burned off.
I bought three bottles of L’Artisan:
1. Batacuda
2. Voleur de Roses
3. Tea for two
I also bought a full bottle of Cabaret after running out of my mini.
Cabaret is soo good.
Here goes:
Etat Libre d’Orange Putain de Palaces 100ml
Etat Libre d’Orange La Fin du Monde 100ml
Etat Libre d’Orange Charogne 100ml
Etat Libre d’Orange Jasmin et Cigarette 100ml
Lalique Encre Noire 100ml
Comme des Garçons Pharrell Williams Girl 100ml
L’Artisan Parfumeur Seville a l’Aube 100ml
Also picked up 5x10ml PW Girl because they were £1 each!
Looks like it might be a busy year…
Just totted that lot up – should have cost about £812 in total, but thanks to notino, TK Maxx, ebay, allbeauty and Poundland (no affiliations) I spent just under £288.50 – 35.5% of full retail. I’d call that a win!
Nice one(s) bob!
A Total Win!
You have excellent taste, Bob!
Four purchases:
1. Ormonde Jayne Champaca (full bottle)
2. Jo Malone Green Wheat & Meadowsweet (full bottle)
3. Hove rue Royale (body oil)
4. Yves Rocher Moment de Bonheur (small travel size bottle)
Love Champaca! Enjoy 🙂
Me too!
I didn’t buy much at all–my lowest dollar amount in years. I bought the travel 10ml of Slowdive on sale at Twisted Lily and a 10ml decant of Arielle Shoshanna from Mals during the splitmeet. Total outlay, $58.
Very restrained! I’ve already spent more than I spent all of last year so we are opposites.
My confession is… I do not really regret buying anything. Every quarter I post here to brag and reexperience the pleasure of perfume buying. 😛 (Although it helps to monitor expenses, too.)
OK, now to my list. No full or partial bottles this quarter, one mini and a number of decants:
1) Ormonde Jayne Ormonde Woman 10 ml
2) Bvlgari Eau Parfumee au The Bleu 10 ml
3) Serge Lutens Fleurs de Citronnier 10 ml
4) Borsari Violetta di Parma (mini) 3 ml
5) Etro Anice 15 ml
6) Amouage Interlude Man 7 ml
7) Tom Ford Tuscan Leather 6 ml
8) Jo Malone Orange Blossom 6 ml
9) Narciso Rodriguez “White Cube” Narciso 7 ml
10) Chanel No. 5 L’Eau 8 ml
Lots of spring scents, by the way.
Money spent: around 78 EUR without bottles and shipping, probably around 90 EUR bottles and shipping included. Within the budget.
Wow, you got excellent bang for your buck. Enjoy your lovely decants!
Thank you, Koyel!
(They are actually decants from local splits, that’s why the prices are so reasonable.)
I see that you pay in euro
May I ASk you where you find decants and minis? Ausliebe? Thx
Sorry, I just converted into euro for this damage poll so that readers could have an idea of the amount spent. I live in Eastern Europe (non EU) and bought from local (Ukrainian) perfume community/website where people host splits. I actually paid in hryvnias (Ukrainian currency).
1. Arquiste Anima Dulcis, 50ml
2. Parfumerie Generale Aomassaï, 30ml
3. Parfumerie Generale Indochine, 30ml
4. Discovery coffret of seven Sana Jardin fragrances (technically samples at 2ml each but I’m counting this because it was such an exciting purchase)
I love Indochine!
I count discovery sets too – they feel like a real perfume purchase, and buying a discovery set is often more exciting than buying a full bottle.
So true! And I strongly suspect the Sana Jardin set is a forecast of next quarter’s “confession”, as I’m now coveting a full bottle of at least one of them…
Just 1 bottle – Lostmarc’h Lann Ael. I had a decant that was almost empty and I love it so. $70!
Good choice then! And not a bad price.
This is my “no comment” comment. ????
Ha!
Excellent.
So, you’re saying you haven’t bought anything worth mentioning, right? 😉
We all know you bought something. 🙂
Dear friends, I am an endless pit of capitalistic greed. I keep dropping perfumes into my gaping maw but my desire is never slaked. THIS HAS GOT TO STOP.
1. L’Artisan Parfumeur Venenum 75 mL ($120 on eBay!)
2. Travel set: Hermessences (Ambre Narguile – swapped, Epice Marine, Vanille Galante, Rose Ikebana) ($168)
3. Hermessence Ambre Narguile 100 mL ($140 on eBay!)
4. Hermes Travel sprays: Epice Marine (yes, I now have two, on purpose), Un Jardin Sur le Toit (total $50 on eBay!)
5. Galop d’Hermes ($215) – split 20 mL
6. Atelier Cologne Cedrat Enivrant 30 mL ($30 on eBay!)
7. Atelier des Ors Cuir Sacre ($275) – split/swapped 45 mL
8. NVC Mohur BUB 45 mL ($120 on eBay!)
9. Travel set: Hermes les Colognes (Neroli Dore, Rhubarbe Ecarlate, Pamplemousse Rose, Orange Verte) ($80 on eBay!)
10. Dior Mitzah 7.5 mL ($40 on eBay!)
11. Miller Harris La Fumee 100 mL ($70 on Fragrancenet!) – swapped 40 mL
Total damage: $1308
OH MY GOD.
(Total does not account for things I have split or swapped. This works both way: it does not include splits I’ve purchased, either.) As you can see, I’ve discovered the evil darkness of eBay. Friends, this is bad. This is BAD. If I am going to have any kind of future, this needs to stop.
Dear Donatella, please help.
Robin, thank you for making Donatella host damage polls. Without this, I would never have added up my purchases and been deeply ashamed by my wastefulness.
This is going to sound like someone who eats too much starch and fat saying, “No, really, I’m going to go on a diet after my Paris trip” (yes, 100 % what I am saying), but…no, really, I’m going to stop spending so much money on perfume after my Paris trip.
…Really!
Another rule: I will try to split every full-priced bottle I buy from now on! If that means I can’t open new purchases until the next splitmeet rolls around, SO BE IT.
Don’t beat yourself up, you were a student on a tight budget for so long, it’s normal to finally let go and buy stuff you want because you finally have money. If it makes you feel better, I spent even more than you. 🙂
That’s what I was thinking too – it’s so easy to go overboard once you finally have money to buy what you want. (And it gets easier to slow down once you realize you’ll never have time to wear it all!)
I’m already slowing down (thank goodness)! Yeah, I do look at my bottles sometimes and think about how there isn’t enough time on earth for me to wear them all. Sigh.
Haha, thanks for trying to make me feel better 🙂 I suppose I’m glad to have such good company!
Confession is good for the soul.
Another thing that’s good is adding up the money I sank into this. I didn’t realize it was this bad until I wrote it out. A bottle here and there doesn’t quite feel like it will add up to the price of a laptop.
Donatella — seriously no kidding — helped me stop spending more than I wanted to spend. Anyone who doesn’t mind spending should do so, why not? If you do mind, you can find a way to limit yourself! Eventually. It sure wasn’t immediate for me.
But WHY must it stop? The maw demands to be fed.
Really, you have a lovely collection. Sell or swap the ones you decide you don’t want. And enjoy your beautiful, eclectic, ever-changing collection of fragrances. ♥
I will say that I love everything I bought, and that I’ve stopped buying things because they’re cheap instead of because they’re exactly what I want! Thanks for the support 🙂
Yes, that’s an excellent piece of wisdom right there – stop buying solely because it’s cheap, and do buy exactly what you want (that you can actually afford, of course). Once I started doing that with clothes and other items, I think I actually spent less and was happier and less wasteful.
Yeah, I figured this out with clothes years ago, but it took me a bit longer to figure it out with perfumes 🙂
This lesson took me far too long to learn. It seems to be easier with clothes and shoes, though – maybe because they’re so easy to return.
Some great purchases though. Looking forward to the Paris damage. #livingvicariously
Well, I already know they should include Chanel Bois des Iles extrait and Sycomore edp. Then maybe a Serge Lutens bell jar, maybe some Guerlain l’Art et la Matiere travel sprays (especially Cuir Beluga), maybe NVC Mohur Extrait and Niral, maybe Frederic Malle Portrait of a Lady. Ok, so what I’m saying is that there’s a strong chance I’ll spend way more than I should…again. (But those are souvenirs and thus don’t count, right?)
You will have *so* much fun perfume shopping and sniffing in Paris. There are so many amazing perfume shops there. Do pack some bubble wrap on your way out, though…
Oooh wow, that’s a really good idea. Thanks for the advice!
I wish I’d taken a little more. It felt so wrong padding these be-ribboned pretties with dirty socks and tshirts.
Last summer I did some perfume shopping in London on my way back from a trip to the Arctic. I packed my purchases in my muck boots, LOL. Very undignified 🙂 (worked though!)
That is a great tip!
I am with cazaubon this! Enjoy guiltfree for a while!
Thanks, you all are making me feel much better about this situation!
I think you will slow down naturally, so don’t blame yourself and enjoy your purchases.
Good heavens, I hope so. Thanks!
I will second, third and fourth everything everyone else has said. I had similar spending my first year of serious rabbit-holing but didn’t realize it until I tallied everything up for the year. I’ve since slowed down by 1) pinpointing my weaknesses 2) having enough of a collection that I don’t feel the need to feed (as much) and 3) putting myself on a budget (which I don’t necessarily stick to, but do keep it in mind). My new rule is 4) Unless it’s a cheapie or something I really want the full bottle of, split that mofo.
Enjoy your purchases and revel in the luxury of having things you love!
I’m doing my best to follow those rules! Thanks, kpaint 🙂 it’s definitely luxurious.
I’m a totally self-limiting person but want to fourth and fifth all these good points above. And most importantly, you have learned the lesson of skipping “cheap” stuff and buying what you truly love.
Right before my daughter was born, when I assumed that I would likely not have the budget for perfume any longer, I set an amount of “forever” money and told myself, “if this is all you ever have to spend on perfume and you can’t buy more, what do you REALLY want?” I bought a few really amazing perfumes that make my heart sing. Since then, I have certainly bought more perfumes (it turned out that having children didn’t bankrupt me) but it’s hard to buy something that is just “nice” when my collection is something so well curated with real beauties. I have ended up with things that are really exquisite and don’t really have the desire to buy as much.
When you are satiated, the hunger will likely pass. Buy things that satiate you and you will be fine.
Well, FWIW, you definitely spent more than me this quarter – mwahahahahaha!!! You’re really just practicing for Paris. You have a lot of maybes but I wouldn’t be surprised if you ended up with a good chunk of them. If you end up buying at Duty Free, it is only duty free in the country of purchase.
Hahaha practicing for Paris–love it. I don’t see YOUR confessions up here! I’d be interested to see what you did get, even though you managed to exercise more restraint than I did.
I’m on a complete “no buy” lock down, but when I saw two half full bottles at my local thrift store for a total of $4.50, well I fell off the wagon. Now the happy owner of Hermes Hiris and some vintage Shalimar. Donatella would have done the same, if she ever set foot in a thrift store!!
You definitely would’ve been losing money by not getting those. That hardly counts as falling off the wagon!
It would be insane to pass these up. ABSOLVED.
Agreed!
Wow, that’s a smoking deal. You definitely get a pass from Donatella.
Exactly.
Really, it’s more like you were paid to take those bottles home! Well done.
Nice job!! If a bottle costs less than a Starbucks coffee, it should not count as a violation of a no buy rule. It should be looked at as a gift from the heavens not to be taken lightly!!!
This is my rule of thumb as well. Fortunately I drink really expensive lattes 😉
Wow! What amazing bargains!
If your “no buy” is due to the financial reasons (and not, let’s say, limited shelf space), then $4.50 spent on perfume (if you live in the U.S.) is a perfect self-compensation for being good otherwise.
Wow – what a find!
That sounds like Donatella herself sent you a little blessing to reward your no-buy!!!
Oops, I voted twice. 🙂 I was thinking I got just a 30 ml of Nicolai Cap Neroli (does that count as one? 0.5?) for $48. But I forgot I finally got a Hermessence mixed bag of travel sprays in February. Convenient to forget the $215 one….
I would 15 ml as a half, 30 ml as a whole, but hey, there are no rules. How is the PdN?
Great! It was predictable that I’d like it, though. 🙂
I thought it would be good, she is great at those notes. I’m glad to see it’s not an eau fraîche, that means it will probably be around for a little longer!
Yes, it has good longevity, I’d say, definitely for a cologne.
Oh good.
Does the Cap Neroli have any aquatic notes or calone notes to you? I’m about ready to buy a sample but if it has the aquatic vibe, it’ll be a no go…I’ve only found one review so far online, and I think it mentioned a “whisper” of calones. For example, the watery notes in weekend are already too much for me. Thanks!
I didn’t really notice any marine vibe, or calone. I would say it’s quite different from Week-end a Deauville, which is one of the new Nicolais I don’t get along with at all. If there is a salty angle, it is likely because of the oakmoss, and I would say this salty moss is less present than in PdN Odalisque (which is a favourite of mine). Cap Neroli is mostly a very herbal/aromatic floral, with the petitgrain and rosemary very prominent initially, and then orange blossom and moss taking over — very sunny.
thanks for the review! I’m going to order a sample.
I am so tempted to blind buy Cap Neroli! My reasoning is that I’ve never found a neroli that I truly dislike. How’s that for self-enabling? ????
1. Two bottles of Note Vanille (so good I needed a BUB)
2. Maison Vanille sampler set
3. Il Profumo Vanille Bourbon
4. Acqua e Zucchero travel spray
5. And The World Is Yours
6. Various and sundry splits from the Splitmeet
I am at 62ish% of my 2018 perfume budget. ???? I may go over.
Pray for or congratulate me. ????
Bravo!
????????
Well, your Vanilla Quest seems to have been more successful than mine!
Or maybe not? I mean, if we’re both satisfied with the result 🙂
Because I have settled on a vanilla. One. It’s the SDV dupe* at CocoaPink, 30 ml for $17.50, and I’m getting it for my anniversary in May. (*Oddly, I did not love the sample of actual SDV because it was less linear than I wanted. But the dupe was perrrrfect.)
Tell me more about CocoaPink plz
They used to have an Etsy shop, and now they have a standalone website. All samples are in oil format (which I don’t generally like), and they tend to focus on body products, with a lonnnnng list of fragrances, many of which are gourmand. The Luxurious Body Butter is really nice. I have not yet tried a fragrance spray, just the oils, but I figure for $17.50 I’ll risk it.
Thanks for the intel.
I am going to check out the SDV dupe and see what else I “need”.
Also, perfume accounting, I am not counting body products against my perfume budget…go figure. 😉
Definitely congratulations! Enjoy! And adding Note Vanille to my must sample list.
Only 2!
Chanel 22 Voile Parfume, and Chanel 22 vintage EDT in the refillable travel bottle thingy. I know what I like! 🙂
Yes you do!
It was another blowout quarter for me:
Carner Barcelona Palo Santo and El Born
Jo Malone Honey & Crocus
Kerosene Unknown Pleasures
Serge Lutens Fleur d’Oranger & Santal Majuscule
VCA California Reverie
Lancome Parfait de Roses, Roses Berberanza & Tubereuses Castane
Kilian Sweet Redemption refill
CSP Vanille Extreme
And the World is Yours
All except the last two were purchased with discounts/reduced prices online, but yes it is still a lot. I am planning to cut back to one bottle per quarter for the rest of the year.
She-Ra just reminded me that I also bought Micallef Note Vanillee and Vanille Orient.
Palo Santo is sooooo delicious.
If you cut back to one bottle per quarter, who will the rest of us live vicariously through? 😉
Exactly. I agree!
LOL… if you can’t be a good example, at least be a bad warning, eh?
LOL! That is excellent!
Good for you for finding discounts 🙂 Your list sounds delicious. (JM Honey and Crocus is hands-down my favorite JM. I should wear that one again tomorrow.)
How do you like the Lancôme’s? Do they ever make their way to discounters?
Sadly no, except for the original release of the 3 oud scents. I did find Roses Berberanza for $150 on ebay, the rest I got with Nordstrom notes or the regular 20% off coupons on Lancome USA website. I love the collection so despite the price it’s worth it to me.
A sweet tooth after my own heart! 🙂
I love those two Serge Lutens perfumes. I get a lot of wear from them. And Honey and Crocus is such a good breakfast scent, it helps get the day off to an easy start. I wish I knew the others…bet they are grand.
I bought 3 things this quarter:
1) Arizona by Proenza Schouler
2) Nick’s Sunflower travel spray (Eric Buterbaugh Florals)
3) Jasmine Rouge body lotion (which I bought to prevent myself from buying the perfume)
#3 — that often works for me too. In fact, I often find I like having the lotion even better.
Sadly I found the lotion thinner and less moisturizing than I would have liked, but I bought it to layer under the perfume, so it does serve the purpose of amping up the scent, which I love.
Unless I’m forgetting something, I don’t think I bought anything this quarter. I think the last thing I bought was Angel Muse, and that might have been last quarter.
Yay!
If memory serves, my only purchase was Idylle Love Blossom (enabler pin toss to Elisa P) for about $25.
Nice price!
Oh wait, I forgot I bought that too! Enabler pin to ElisaP.
I got some travel sprays here and there and too many full bottles, but what can you do? For the 30 ml or more:
MdO Suede de Suede
Vilhelm Purple Fig
AA Pink Wood
January Scent Project Smolderrose and Eidenthal
HG Dilittante
Note di Profumum Luce Dell’Este and Maraviglio
NVC Niral
I really like that MdO Suede de Suede. Don’t hear much about it.
I really love it too. Possible my favorite first quarter purchase and definitely the most worn.
Suede de Suede is on my wishlist but probably not an anytime soon buy
You guys are lucky that Suede de Suede works n you. It is very fleeting on me:(
I liked it a lot but it was too light on me too.
Relatively modest purchases (for me):
Bruno Fazzolari Ummagumma 30 ml
Comme des Garçons Jaisalmer 50 ml
Frédéric Malle Monsieur. 10 ml
Etat Libre d’Orange Une Amourette 30 ml (it’s nice to see they’ve started the smaller sizes)
Etat Libre d’Orange Divin’Enfant 50 ml
Marlou 50 ml d’Ambiguïté
Serge Lutens Bourreau des Fleurs 50 ml
Kiehl’s Original Musk Oil 14 ml
Imaginary Authors A City on Fire 14 ml
I always enjoy posting AFTER you 😉
Me too! ????
These are such great choices! Can I come over? 🙂
Mmm, Bourreau des Fleurs! Wish this one would show up at the discounters. Have only found L’Incendiare so far.
Donatella, I know I’m no fun. I don’t buy unsniffed. I don’t spritz with abandon because I prefer to keep fragrance close. And I can’t buy much as I have a strict budget due to a recent house purchase just at the edge of our means. But I have great admiration for those who do indulge in the above!
My budget for the year is $325. However, don’t bother taking pity on me, it’s been much greater in other years and I have a good-sized collection to enjoy.
For this quarter:
-By Kilian Amber Oud (The 50 ml refill bottle at $195. Yes, it’s an interesting choice for one on a strict budget who still wants MORE, isn’t it, Donatella? But it is true love and I did split it, which means that $78 was my portion.
-Profumum Acqua Viva (the 18 ml travel bottle at $70, which of course isn’t nearly as good a deal as the 100 ml bottle if you look at price/ml. But I need it, I could afford this size and was afraid the travel bottles might go away.)
Lotion:
-I also bought a small 75 ml tube of Mediterraneo hand cream for $15. Yum. Still debating with myself over whether I have to count this, too. And I’m eyeing the L’Annine hand cream in lemon as well. For some reason, lemon is my current passion. All the hand soaps in our house are Watkins lemon.
Total plus a samples purchase for $29 (I have to count those in my budget as well): $192.
Which leaves $133 for the next 3 quarters. Bring it!
Lemon is always my preference for hand soap, shower gel, body lotion, et al. If I could find the european-brand lemon-scented glycerine soap I recall from my childhood, I would be in heaven. I have no idea what it was, though.
Well, now I want some of that lemon-scented glycerine soap. Any other lemon recs for me in the hand/shower/body category of things?
Nope! It’s not like I seek out fabulous lemon-scented products, it’s just what I always choose over other options. I buy functional products in those categories rather than luxury or perfume-related ones. Thus far anyway. I really don’t need to start down that road…
But I still want that soap 😉 And some Love’s Fresh Lemon cologne from the 70s.
Oooo Love’s Fresh Lemon. I wore that back in the day. Probably early or mid-70s.
Yaaas! Love’s Fresh Lemon.. I have a current version that I found at Walmart. It’s not bad; I use as a body spray, mostly when it’s hot. I’m hoping to be able to use it this year, weather permitting.
Thanks, Gail! I will buy some of the current.
Hand cream doesn’t count, but I’m dying to know if that is a good cream? I do love the scent.
It’s lovely. A light non-greasy lotion (I don’t know that I would call it cream as that implies heavier to me). Its small size means it could fit nicely in most handbags, and it smells fresh and lemony and just like my bottle. The fragrance doesn’t last very long AT ALL (also like my bottle) but still totally worth it!
VERY tempting, thank you so much!
Eep. Bruma, Fleur de Peau, Tempo, Tam Dao edp, L’Ombre dans L’Eau edp, Eau Mage, Mortel. Bless me Donatella for I have indulged.
Donatella forgives, of course!
Diptyque also forgives ???? Nice stuff you got there.
Not sure how to add up my total, because I don’t know how to count splitmeet purchases… hmmm. I could guess?? (Especially since I haven’t notified the Epidor splittees! Bottle came in the mail on Saturday and I need to get rolling on it. Split participants, be looking for an email from me soon.)
I have about 9.5ml left in the Arielle Shoshana bottle I split.
I should have about 70mls left in Epidor when I’m done splitting it.
I bought another BUB of vtg Safari edc because I wear it so often. (not ashamed!)
I bought vintage minis on ebay right after Christmas: Armani edp, Anne Klein, Fendi, Louis Feraud Fantasque, Montana Parfum d’Elle, and another Jolie Madame. (IT HAD TO BE RESCUED! IT WAS CHEAP! THEY WERE BASICALLY THROWING IT AWAY!)
Plus two decants, of Perry Ellis Black Oud Vanilla and JM Honey & Crocus.
Total, by my best guess on the splits, $250. Ehh, I’ve had worse quarters.
Ebay rescue missions are done out of the goodness of your heart. So glad to hear those sad lost mini’s now have a good home!
And I FORGOT!! I bought a BUB before Laurie shut down, of SSS Tabac Aurea. Add about $50, more or less…
2 bottles, both on my trip to CA!
1) Fair Verona, from Strange Invisible Perfumes. This will be a summer scent- grapefruit and jasmine really do go together!
2) Kai rollerball- but that was a gift for a friend.
Souvenirs don’t count!!
Whew!
*bless you*
I don’t think gifts for friends count either. So you’re at 0!
WOOT!
Yikes! Donatella, it’s not nice to sneak up on people like that!
So, January. Well, I did contribute to the arts (bought mini’s of CBIHP Wild Hunt and La Curie Faunus, direct from the perfumers). But really…I binged; there’s no other word for it.
Tom Ford FF
Dior Balade Sauvage (one of the new Prive’s)
Dior Grand Bal
Dior Bois d’Argent
Arabian Oud Kalemat
Guerlain Baiser de Russie
February: austerity! There was another patroness of the arts purchase (mini of Hendley Bourbon EDC). And just one commercial purchase, a mini of Atelier Clementine California. Which I bought to wear at a wedding in Mexico (making it a “fashion accessory”), but I forgot to pack it, oops, but the thought was there.
March: pretty austere, too. Did a couple of rescue missions on Ebay (a mini of Carthusia Mediterraneo, and a BUB mini of vintage Balmain Vent Vert parfum). And I received a bottle of Guerlain Black Perfecto in the swapmeet.
Meanwhile, I swapped sold or gave away 6 bottles this quarter. So, let’s see (licking my pencil)… mini’s don’t count, nor do contributions to the arts, or fashion accessories, so let’s cross all those off. The Bois d’Argent was a BUB, so cross that off too. A significant part of the attraction for the Black Perfecto was that bottle, which is indeed Black Perfecto, so we’ll call that one ‘household decor’. And I split off a bunch of the Baiser de Russie, so we’ll call that half a bottle. Which leaves me with +4.5 purchased and -6 sold, and thus: -1.5! Astounding!
We will not discuss the second quarter binge that is underway as we speak.
I am always eager to see your posts and read up on your creative accounting.
Nice!! And how is the new Dior??
Nice! It’s fig-centric. (Can one ever have enough fig scents? No, I say.) As you might expect from the Dior Prive Collection, it’s polished and well-behaved.
I will have to look out for this one!!!
Love it! Excellent purchases. And you need that BUB of Bois d’Argent.
Still kicking myself that I didn’t get that while it was around. Also, a mini of Mediterraneo? *Ears perk.* I need to haunt eBay more. Or make that, I want to haunt eBay more and do some of my own rescuing.
Yeah, a 25ml splash. Good price, too. Happy camper here 🙂
How’d you like the Bourbon edc?
Nice! More wearable than the EdP. I’m still pondering one of his travel sprays of Amora…
Oh wait, I forgot to count bottles I gave away against my total! I gave away about 30 bottles in the last quarter, so my purchases are completely wiped out! 🙂
Perfect! No austerity diet needed, then! 😀
There ya go! Perfect. And if you gave them away, that’s a charitable act so you’re even more likely to have the perfume gods in your good favor ????
That’s what I’m hoping for. 🙂
The perfume gods are MOST DEFINITELY smiling down on you, especially in knowing that your bottles are getting much use!!!
30!!!! Whoa, impressive.
I love your accounting.
And rescuing poor lonely strays from ebay is a truly humane act.
I had spent a lot of the split meet
Mizha
BdR
Vanilla Hinoke
Ritual
Uh oh, I was not ready for this!!
But I’m a day late!!
I’ll be honest, I’m never ready for a personal reckoning. 😉
I am surprised to find that all I night was a small split of Guerlain Baiser de Russe, and then a travel spray of Zoologist Rhinoceros. And samples of Hyrax and Camel. I had to put Hyrax into a ziplock – I can smell it from 2 rooms away and it is…potent.
I am DYING to try Hyrax. But it can’t be… more potent than… RHINOCEROS? I didn’t think such a thing was possible! (I love Rhinoceros)
Oh, is it ever. It smells to me like animal poop. Surrounded by dry flowers. But mostly poop. My husband likes it, wore it and does not smell poop (and he’s about as big of a perfume freak as I am). My daughter smells it but my son just says it’s way, way too strong. For reference, I like Orso Parisi Stercus. For the record, I opened the bag and stiffed. It’s like a dry day downwind from the zoo. I am picturing tall dry grasses and wildflowers. And poop.
This totally cracked me up. You are hilarious!
I haven’t made any perfume purchases this year, I recieved a bottle of OJ Taif on Mothering Sunday tho, so I’m not complaining!
So enjoying reading about others splurges tho, go go go!
Oh, great present!
I bought a few things on March but since they have not been deleivered yet, they don’t count.
This quarter for me was pretty much attars(The Rising Phoenix and Sultan Pasha). True to hajuusuri and pixel math I am not counting bottles I split and decants.
I also sold a bunch of bottles, so I think net net I saved money 😉
Oh I forgot a big purchase. Sycomore EDT, one of the earlier vintages. I do not think I saved money 🙁
GREAT choice!! Well done!!
Part of the Sycomore went into a swap so that doesn’t count either. Doing good, I say.
I’ve been restrained. Although desparate to try Lancome Lavande Trianon so that might be a splurge in the near future On a lavender kick bought Lush What Would Love Do? Qualifies as a cheap thrill at £29 for 100ml and absolutely loving it. Benzoin, lavender and mandarin. Also bought a solid of Lush Cardamom Coffee – a bottle is on the horizon.
Oh, jealous of both of those!
Not the best, nor the worst quarter for me. My goal this year was to cut back all my spending, including perfume, by 40%. I reduced spending in the 2 other categories I track by 25% (*congratulates self*) but my perfume spending actually increased by 50%. Oops. Overall I’m at 80% of my 2017 spending, so I’m considering this an accomplishment.
My birthday is in January, so it’s easy to justify gifts to myself. I also bought a few bottles for the splitmeet, though to my mind that’s the most frugal way to buy perfume regardless of the cost. But I was also on a mission to explore vanilla and patchouli perfumes, and that’s where most of my Donatella dollars went – samples and decants, which I had massively curtailed in 2017.
Damage: $440
This is including samples and decants (though I won’t list them here.) I’m not counting my many splitmeet purchases as they were offset by my own splits.
Small bottles:
8 ml Carner Barcelona Tardes (from scentbird, which I joined so I could buy this and a few other things from their catalog. 8 ml is a small bottle, right? Or a mini?)
9 ml Jo Malone Mimosa & Cardamom
15 ml Queen by Queen Latifah. Perfect size; cost me less than $10. Also my 2nd most-worn fragrance this quarter.
Full Bottles:
30 ml Guerlain Insolence edt
Nobile 1942 Patchouli Nobile (splitmeet purchase)
Aroma M Vanilla Hinkoki & Geisha Noire (also splitmeet purchases)
Queen is so nice. And at that price, you have to buy it.
It got me through the winter, for real.
“Donatella Dollars” LOL
Very excellent and I will have to steal it.
I’ve been trying not to buy, especially large bottles, but the opportunity was too good to pass up. I got a 3.4 oz. bottle of AG Nine Mio (in the old label Men’s bottle) for $39.68 from fragrancenet. With shipping it came to $46.63. Summer here I come!
Ninfeo Mio!!!!
Shoot! I forgot about the split meet! Add one 10ml bottle of PdN Eau d’Ete to my total. It was $20.00-ish.
Another great choice!
Shoot! I forgot about the split meet! Add one 10ml bottle of PdN Eau d’Ete to my total. It was $20.00-ish.
Let’s see here.. umm I’ve done a lot of damage since January lol. I picked up a 3 oz bottle of Gucci guilty absolute, ormond Jayne isfarkand, various 30 ml Parfums de Nicolaï, Van Cleef and Arpels bois d’iris, Serge Lutens bois et fruits, fleurs d’oranger, a mini of vintage no 19 and some others I can’t remember off the top of my head. My apartment was burglarized in December and I had a lot of my collection stolen so I’m using that as an excuse to go ham on luckyscent and all the discounters! Number one perfume acquisition was a coffret of all the Chanel les exclusifs that my partner found on eBay and bought me for Valentine’s Day
How awful that you were robbed and your perfumes taken! Of course it was necessary to restock.
They STOLE YOUR SCENTS?! that’s, that’s… unspeakable.
(Also: top gift from your partner!)
WHAT?!? Do I need to get a locking dresser?? That is tragic and horrible and awful! You poor thing! (Do you think it was someone you know?)
This is seriously a HUGE fear of mine! When we go on vacation I hide my irreplacable fragrances in different spots around the house.
No joke. That’s the level of my addiction.
I have mine in a locked walk-in closet in the house in San Diego.
I did really well in Q1, $93 dollars, two bottles of vintage perfume (Knowing by EL and No 19 EDP by Chanel).
I’m going to see if I can keep up the good work in Q2! 🙂
Love that Chanel!
Although I bought several samples from Lucky Scent, I only bought three bottles so far in 2018.
Kalemat Amber Oil
Kalemat Floral Oil
Bogue Noun (although I can’t remember if I bought Noun in late December or early January).
I am awaiting receipt of my April purchase of Neeley Vermiere Niral.
Oh nice list — and lucky you on the Niral!
I love the Neeley Vermiere perfumes.
I bought minis of Atelier Iris Rebelle and Bvlgari Eau Parfumee au the Bleu and the Parfums de Nicolai Eau Fraiche set (15ml each of L’Eau Chic, L’Eau Mixte, and Eau d’Ete). I meant to stop there, but I also wound up snagging a 50ml bottle of Ostara off of Ebay at the end of March. Very happy with all of my purchases!
Oof, plus 5ml of Baiser de Russie at the splitmeet!
Those PdN sets are so tempting!
Like an industrious squirrel I’ve been out gathering and collecting, laying in stores for the cold winter months ahead:
Bracken. A big purchase but not a blind buy . I haven’t actually got it yet as I bought it from a US seller on Ebay. Just noticed on tracking that its now in South Korea which kind of makes me jealous as it seems to be getting in more international travel that I can hope for. $200 US …about $3 trillion NZ.
An unopened 7ml or 10ml 1980 or 1970 ish bottle of Fidji perfume ( can’t recall exactly as I sent it to Waterdragon ) NZ$7 ….that’s about minus US $5000…from a garage sale
Three 30ml JMs. Honey and Crocus, …meadowlark,…cornflower and oats. I bought these when I was visiting my mum. Every morning she gets up and puts the radio and the tv on ( at the same time ) at full volume and the result of this may have made it more difficult for me to hear my inner voice telling me to slow down.
LOL about the tv & radio! My ex in-laws were the same, drove me insane. Congratulations on the Bracken!
lolololol
maybe you can fold yourself up like Flat Stanley and send yourself off on a world tour!
I love Flat Stanley. Must look up the illustrations again.
Just looked.I think the illustrations have been reformulated since my day
???? that may be a bigger crime than reformulating perfumes. I think the same has happened with a lot of the Garth Williams classics as well.
Ooh Bracken Woman is a beauty! It is on my wish list (hah! auto-correct turned it to ‘wish lust’ which is not far off) but while I still have half of my decant to use up keeps sliding down underneath other items…
I didn’t see this coming either! If my memory serves me:
1) Hendley travel sprays in Rosenthal and Amora (Brooklyn neighbor so just being neighborly. Although I hear he’s moving his studio to The Bronx so further purchases may count)
2) Aroma M Nobara Cha (and a sample set)
3) Idylle Love Blossom 50ml
4) Partial 30ml bottle of Yves Rocher Pur Desir de Lilas (still not sure how I feel about it so it doesn’t exist yet)
5) 80% full vintage 100ml Diorissimo EDT which I happened upon in a FB group after the swap meet and was cheap, cheap, cheap. Sold by a guy who’d never even heard of it and couldn’t tell me if it was still good- but it is pretty perfect. Sweet.
6) MDCI Rose de Siwa 10ml from Petunia’s split. Came with a generous 12ml manufacturer’s splash sample (I got Cio Cio San)
7) 2 5ml recants from the split meet.
8) 15ml Philosophy AG Ballet Rose which I picked up while in line at Sephora- none of those line acquisitions count for anything, really.
But I do love everything (except the split decants which were blind purchases)!
I did sell a partial bottle and a couple of decants so that lowers the stakes a bit.
Doesn’t exist yet! I like that.
Bless me Donatella, for I have sinned. Gloriously, decadently, and unashamedly. This is the most extravagant quarter in my entire history of perfume buying. You see, I went to Paris with the rest of my year’s generous perfume budget in my pocket.
But: I did not buy two Lutens bell jars. That was my plan. I had budgeted for it. I had a short list. And then I was thwarted. I was so inordinately annoyed by their snooty-rudeness and impatience in the Palais Royal shop, I decided to take my dosh elsewhere.
Every single other sales person? Charming, helpful, friendly, and made sniffing and choosing these an absolute pleasure:
* a 250ml bottle of Mitzah. Because: Mitzah, and I have very little of my previous 75ish ml left, and this giant vat is the only size that remains for sale.
* 100ml of Oriza L Legrand’s Reve d’Ossian (and a lovely Relique d’Amour soap)
* 100ml of Jardin d’Ecrivains George
* 30ml of Nicolai New York Intense
* 15ml of Histoires de Parfums 1926/Turandot
* 15ml of Histoires de Parfums 1.3
* 10ml of Portrait of Lady (thank you, mister malle, for your travel sprays, because that is spendy damn scent)
* 10ml of Carnal Flower
* 10ml of Vetiver Extraordinaire
There were a few earlier-in-the-year purchases too (ahem):
* a glorious 14ml bottle of early-to-mid 1970s No19 extrait because if it’s just sitting there with NO BIDS on it… what’s a perfumista to do?
* a 1970s boxed set of four 10ml Dior sample bottles (all full, and too cute to pass up)
* 40ml of Bois D’argent (with a decent discount) because I am weak
* 60ml of Zoologist Civet
and some of the not-Lutens money will probably end up being spent on some of the other lovely things I encountered there. Later. I’m in no rush. I am AWASH with new loveliness.
You got great things though, George for one, and Oriza, Parfum de Nicolaï, Histoires de Parfums.
Congrats on your purchases!
Thank you! I am delighted with them. And the whole thing was a lot of very indulgent fun.
Fabulous . I can not stand snooty, arrogant sales people. Good on you for taking your money elsewhere but how aggravating to have to deal with that and disappointing too . Not cool.
It was pretty disappointing. I’d really looked forward to going there and getting to sniff my way contentedly and steadily through my short list. Instead it was like I’d crashed someone’s funeral and tried to steal the deceased’s wedding ring. Pfft.
Such a contrast, say, to the absolute charmer who runs Marie Antoinette, who told me stories about perfumes and perfumers and love for the best part of an hour.
I may still see if I can pick up a decant of La Myrrhe somewhere, though…
Good luck. So disappointing when you are really looking forward to having a special experience and it turns to dust
Amazing, I thought that sort of service had gone out of style even in Paris.
How sad that you were treated poorle chez Lutens. I have not had anything but gracious service there, they must have really been off their game. Quite right of you to spend your precious money elsewhere. Congratulations on Mitzah!
It’s a relief to hear that they are not like that with everybody, and that you have had far better service 🙂
Mitzah is my precioussssss.
Oof! No wonder you had such good advice about perfume shopping in Paris. I hope they don’t treat ME poorly at SL. I’d very much like to give them some money.
Ha. Yep. I was there last week.
I hope they welcome you and cherish you at SL, and that I was just there on a missed-lunch and no-coffee day or something…
Oooh great purchases! Enjoy 🙂 (And I’m sure you will!)
thanks, Lillibet! (you had a seriously *quality* quarter too, huh?)
LOL sprung! But without your excellent excuse of souvenirs from traveling 🙂
i regretted not buying the biga$$ bottle of Mitzah when I was at the Galeries Lafayette in Nice.
this was me making up for not buying a back up when it was being discontinued… and I dithered too long over the 125s, and they then vanished so fast.
I bought a Dior mini set and SL Cedre. Enabler pin to Jalapeño for the SL.
Hey, we swapped enabler pins! ???? I’m really happy to hear that SL Cedre was a hit for you.
I just got one bottle, I think. I didn’t intend to buy anything yet, but the first quarter of this year was so taken up with exams and work and the like that it has left me rather exhausted.
And then I happened upon a bottle of Amouage Myths Woman at a 50% discount from a very reputable shop, and I couldn’t resist. I now own 5 full bottles of Amouage and that in itself feels very decadent. (Still eying Lyric Woman though 😉 )
Congrats! I bought Myths last fall, also at a very good discount on ebay.
And Lyric Woman is worth eyeing, for sure!
1. My first back up bottle, Fille en Aiguilles, Serge Lutens (discounted)
2. Man and Woman Amouage sampler sets (I count those because the price of these 2 sets together is equal to at least one average niche bottle – say, a PdE or 50 ml Frederic Malle)
3. Thebes grade 1 (1 ml) by Sultan Pasha
I think there’s a perfumista badge for the first back up bottle 😉
Only one small bottle for me this quarter, but oh was I happy to get it: Sonoma Scent Studios Bee’s Bliss.
Ahhh, lucky you. Congrats!
Wow! Good for you!
Hmmm…I had a bit of a spending breakout this quarter so now need to behave until July (when I can claim birthday privileges):
– Chanel Sycomore EdP
– Chanel Cuir de Russie Parfum
– D.S. & Durga Mississippi Medicine
– Jo Malone Blackberry & Bay
– L’Artisan Dzing!
– Chanel Eau Premiere purse spray (via ebay with 1.25 refills)
Oh, but Lillibet, such wonderful choices for your breakout!
Hah! Well they weren’t impulsive purchases and will get plenty of wear so there is that!
Well done!!
Dearest Donatella, you and I are two peas in a pod! I mean, how much more perfume do we need? (NONE) But there are so many wonderful bottles to discover and smell!
LOTS of cheapies here. That helps! But there’s a couple of birthday splurges too….. 🙂
1. Scentbird January: Estee Lauder Sensuous Nude $14.95
2. Scentbird February: Montale Intense Cafe $14.95
3. Scentbird March: Amouage Reflection Woman $14.95
4. Demeter Christmas Tree $6.99
5. Demeter Golden Delicious $3.00
6. Demeter Mountain Air $3.00
7. Demeter Pumpkin Pie $3.00
8. Demeter Hawaiian Vanilla $2.00
9. Demeter Cranberry $5.00
10. Perry Ellis 360* Purple $5.99. I WANT MY MONEY BACK! TERRIBLE! 🙂
11. Katy Perry Mad Love $10
12. Chanel Allure Edt $31
13. J.Lo Live $15
14. Versace Crystal Noir $21
15. Burberry Weekend $10 (DEAL OF THE LIST!)
16. Yves Rocher Comme Une Evidence $12
17. Yves Rocher Orange Blossom/Lavender/Petigrain $7.00
18. Yves Rocher Oui a La Amour $5.00
19. Yves Rocher So Elixir Bois $5.00
20. Poopoo Pidoo $100 (BIRTHDAY SPLURGE!!)
21. Body Shop Shea Edt $3.50
22. Body Shop Indian Night Jasmine $14.00
23. Body Shop Black Musk $20
24. Body Shop Satsuma Body Mist $13.00
25. Estee Lauder Youth Dew $34
26. Luxury Scent Box April: Tiziana Terenzi Arethusa $15.95
27. A Lab on Fire And the World is Yours $30
I’m not totaling….LOL! There were a lot of clearance cheapies from Demeter….but the couple of nice splurges added to those deals add up!
Smelling fabulous,
Jada
I’m with the 60% of people who bought 2-4 bottles – but if any of the other Ormonde Jayne scents are as good as the Champaca I got in the swap meet – oh boy!
I bought:
30ml Parfums de Nicolai Sacrebleu (and split off 10ml)
The Nicolai Eau Fraiche set (and split off the eau d’ete)
I also got a bunch of samples from Beutyhabit and Twisted Lily and ZGO- mostly parfums de nicolai – and I have an Ormonde Jayne sample set coming to me (they’re throwing in an extra sample because I couldn’t pick all the scents I wanted from their drop down menu, isn’t that nice?).
I feel pretty awash in fragrance – got some lovely decants in the swap meet as well as “just because” from some lovely NST’ers, so lots to discover still.
My guess is that you will find several OJ frags that will impress you (since you and I seem to have some overlapping loves)
Alas, my huge perfume collection has finally caught up with me, and I didn’t buy a thing this quarter!
Success!
????????????
farouche! Glad to see you back!!!
Félicitations Farouche! Nice to see you. I wish my perfume collection would catch up with me. I thought I was done last summer but then relapsed badly.
A 1oz bottle of Fat Electrician when Sephora last had them, and a travel spray of Angel Muse. So that might be 1.5 bottles?
Oh, and Lillyjo gets an enabler pin for the Angel Muse.
We are enabler twins! Oh, i just saw Burberry Brit Rhythm florale for her at Nordstrom rack website. It’s probably different than the one you were mentioning but wasn’t sure.
I haven’t tried the Florale flanker, so yes, that is something different. I did see a bottle of the original BBR for something insane like $18 yesterday on one of the discount sites. Hard to beat that price even with having to pay shipping costs.
Luckyscent, Twisted Lily, Fragrancebuy had sales on items that I am actually interested in (this has never happened to me ever). I bought around 20 full bottles from various houses >_<
…we’re waiting for the full confession ????
Agree….please share your treasures here if you are willing! 🙂
We are going to need details. Spill! 🙂
Ok here goes, items I scored on good discounts 🙂
Mugler – Pure Havane, Cologne
Serge Luten – Arabie
Serge Luten – Fille en Aiguilles x 2 bottles (because I foolishly believe this was going to be discontinued)
Serge Luten – Daim Blond
Serge Luten – Iris Silver Mist, 10ml? I paid 20 CAD for a used atomiser. It’s an interesting beast this one.
Nicolai Parfums – Amber Oud, Rose Oud, Vetiver, Cedrat Intense (probably stock they wanted to get rid off, well good for me then :D)
Nicolai Parfums – I was given these travel sprays for free, 15ml each, New York Intense, Incense Oud, Patchouli Intense, Rosa Royale, Amber Cashmere.
Penhaligon – Ostara, paid 20 bucks for a rollerball and It was discontinued. It smelt like fabric softener to be honest :/
Chanel – Coromandel EDT (got it for a decent price, yeah!)
Gucci Guilty Absolue Pour Homme, this scent is amazing
House of Matriarch – Kazimi (75% discount off :D)
I just realised I said full bottles in my original post. As you can see, that was a mistake. Some of what I’ve bought/ received are travel sprays (made by the house themselves).
Nice buys and congrats on finding Coromandel edt at a good price!
Finally it happened! A no-buy quarter for me!
But I have mixed feelings about it. The main reason for not buying anything was not my restraint and rational thinking, but rater a loss of interest in lots of things, including perfume, due to high levels of stress at work and otherwise. I haven’t even sniffed anything new for a couple of months. Need to get myself together and start at least paying attention to new releases in hope of finding something exiting enough to kick me out of this rut.
Ah…there is always more perfume and more time. Take care of yourself.
So true! Perfume will always be here, with hundreds of new things to sniff every year….so the next adventure is always around the corner when you are ready! Focus on exiting that boring rut and kicking stress to the curb! 🙂 (Easier said than done sometimes, no doubt!)
I hope the stress calms down and your perfume mojo comes back. But take your time, the perfume will still be there.
Thank you all for the support!
Wow, least damage I’ve done in years. I reported (confessed) to one bottle, but it wasn’t really – I used up my decant of De Profundis and ordered another 8 mls. And that’s it! I’ve really slowed down lately, but I’m sure my next perfume obsession is right around the corner. 🙂
Nice work!
My only bell jar is De Profundis. It’s so beautiful!
Just ONE bottle:
* Chanel 5 L’eau ($41 ebay)
* Chanel 1932 edt Manu Samples x 5 ($22 ebay for 10ml)
* 2 Hermes soaps for a whopping $3.49 (happy dance)
I think that the No 5 L’eau turned out to be a fake– it’s a BUB and smells fairly different from my other legit bottle. Sad, since I really love this frag.
But YAY for the deal of the century on the two soaps: Kelly Caleche and Terre d’Hermes. I love fancy soaps, and they were SO CRAZY CHEAP!
As I replied to someone else above, it’s fairly easy not to buy these days, because I feel like my collection is so well curated with things that I love. If anything, I need to let a few things go, just to better focus on the things I truly love.
I winnow my clothing in the same way – I don’t like stuff I don’t really wear anymore crowding out my closet. It makes it harder to see the clothes I really love wearing. For me, perfume is the same. There really can be too much of a good thing.
Exactly. I generally like to put the perfumes that I have-but-shouldn’t-keep somewhere else, away from my main collection. It just feels yuck to look at a perfume that I have but don’t love.
Also: great word choice! “Winnow” isn’t used nearly enough.
Oh, dear Donatella, I’m afraid I’ve let you down once again. I only have a few bottles to confess this quarter (for a total of $76).
Full bottles:
• Guerlain Chant d’Arômes
• Guerlain Shalimar EDC
Minis:
• Nina Ricci L’Air du Temps
• Elizabeth Taylor Passion
And please also bless the lovely parent who bought me a full bottle of Jean Patou Joy for a very early birthday present.
Passion was one of my first scents that I ever received and truly loved! Unfortunately it was stolen from my dorm room in 1989? LOL!
I need to revisit it soon! Wonder if the current formulation is close to the original? I loved it so!
Boooo, perfume thieves!!! ☹️
I imagine it’s changed like pretty much everything else, but I can’t say because I’ve never actually worn it before. ☺️ …Which is why I bought it! I’m still waiting on the order. I decided to get this mini because it’s theoretically the parfum, which I’m hoping will mitigate any potential watering-down of the formula.????????
Wow, I bought way more than I realized this quarter. Two were cheapies and one was a split. I had good coupons for percentage off three of them.
1) Noir Pour Femme, 30 ml – still can’t decide if I like it
2) Cinema, 30 ml
3) Florentina, 3.4 oz.
3.5) Opardu, partial travel spray from the bay. Maybe 14 mls
4.5) Rose de Siwa – 75 mls, Split off 30 mls
5.5) Ormonde Jayne, Ta’If – 50 mls
Lumiere Blanche – I’m not counting this because I haven’t received it yet.
I also swapped two FBs for decants. So really a net gain of 3.5 but I’m still shocked by my spending. Time to reign it in, I hope!
I *adore* Ta’if. That is SUCH a great bottle choice!
Thanks, I really love it. There is a lot of love for Champaca, and it is lovely, but Ta’if has always been my favorite.
You picked some beauties up! Wow!
Thanks Jalapeno!
I love Cinema and Ta’if. Great choices!
Thanks! My bestie wears Cinema quite often and always smells wonderful. Wish I had the opportunity to sniff the original. I bet it was amazing.
I think it’s only 1 bottle this quarter, but it didn’t come cheap.
A bottle of vintage Guerlain Vol de Nuit EDT from ebay – 100ml.
Well worth the price of admission.
Nice choice!
A very restrained quarter for me. $125 total which consisted of a bottle of Jo Malone Oat and Cornflower and a backup 10ml bottle of Soivohle Rosa Sur Reuse (which I’ve been wanting ever since it got discontinued a few years ago)
Nice work!
I had a pretty purchasey quarter:
50ml Serge Lutens L’eau Froide
10ml Prada L’eau Ambree travel spray
100ml Miller et Bertaux Green, Green, Green, and Green
7ml Marni mini
100ml Provence Sante Tilleul
100ml Library of Flowers Linden
10ml Edward Bess La Femme Boheme decant
10ml By Kilian Amber Oud
5ml Jo Malone Honey and Crocus
5ml Parfum d’Empire Le Cri de la Lumiere
5ml Mendittorosa Rituale
5ml Aroma M Geisha Vanilla Hinoki
Some lovely purchases there 🙂
I am posting so late, forgive me Donatella:
I managed to acquire 5 bottles this quarter (one of which is a dud, so I am not “officially” counting it), after swearing that I wouldn’t buy ANY more fragrance until I got rid of the abundance I already have.
SJP Stash (TJMaxx $8, yum)
Reem Acra (TJMaxx $8, yuk, will have to give or swap away)
Robert Graham Fortitude (TJMaxx ~$65, sort of yummy)
Fendi Uomo “vintage” (eBay, $12 LOVE, LOVE, LOVE)
Lush Karma (full blown retail, something like $59?, YUMMY)
I’m very happy with my buys this quarter though my plan was to buy nothing…
50 ml Slowdive which was purchased with a surprise back payment from my prior employer. This came with a bonus 10 ml travel spray of Arbole Arbole. I love the Slow dive so much I’ve worn it almost every night since it arrived.
50 ml Bottega Veneta Eau de Velours. Bought to make me feel better, and it worked.
Second tube of Fredric Malle Iris hand cream. Lotions don’t technically count, I know, but since this stuff costs as much as perfume I felt I had to confess. I wish I never tried this stuff as it has completely spoiled me for any other hand creams and will now have to budget to repurchase for the rest of my days. Sigh.
Late as usual, sorry Donatella.
I’ve been pretty good recently, seven bottles altogether. Not bad at all, and some of them were only 50 mls or less. Dozens of decants though, but hey, they don’t count;)!
Have a peaceful weekend Everyone.
I was really good- of course, I have a son graduating high school and starting college and man, that is really expensive!
I did get a decant in the splitmeet, but my only FB purchases were of Buglari Black from a discounter (and let’s face it- it was only $30 so it was practically free!) and also a bottle of Shalimar Light from a generous NSTer who had a back up bottle she let me buy off of her! I plan to indulge a bit more this summer though haha.
Just one: Ann Gerard’s Cuir de Nacre has been on my list for quite a while.
I’ve been trying to hold off for my 30th birthday in a few weeks. I think my present to myself will be the Aedes Eau de Parfum. Very excited for it! But that counts as a Q2 purchase 🙂
…!!! … What? Let me count again…
13 bottles, gosh…