Don’t ask me how I came up with this one. It just emerged from some depth of my end-of-work-week brain (in the US, Good Friday isn’t a public holiday).
Saturday Question #208:
Have You Ever Used Someone Else’s Perfume Without Permission?
If yes, what were the circumstances? What perfume was that? Were you “caught”? Did/do you have that perfume in your collection?
My Answer
As a child, I loved perfumes my mother and grandmother wore. And sometimes they would allow me to use some. I understood what perfumes were, I knew that I wasn’t supposed to touch them on my own. But somehow the concept of perfume leaving an “evidence trail” of my misbehavior escaped me at that early age, so on more than one occasion, being left alone, I would perfume my favorite doll with one of my mom’s Diors (pure parfum!) or “sniff” my grandma’s Climat parfum almost dipping my nose in the bottle opening. I wasn’t sure afterwards how adults could tell that I touched their precious bottles.
As an adult, I resist those temptations. Though I have to admit to sniffing mini bottles in a couple of my friends’ bathrooms. I don’t know whether they wear perfumes they keep in those guest bathrooms, or if those are used for decorative purposes, but I was intentionally careful not to pick up any of the scents with my nose.
How about you?
Undina's Looking Glass 
I could never bring myself to have a sneaky spritz of someone else’s perfume, but as a child I would carefully sniff from any bottles I saw. Particularly memorable was the Mitsouko in the bathroom of my parents’ very glamorous French friend – I had never smelt anything like that before and I was bewitched.
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To be fair, even these days not too many perfumes these days smell like Mitsouko.
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Sorry if you’ve read this story before.
My sister and I thought we had found Dolls Perfume when we discovered Mum’s 2ml Bal a Versailles parfum. So we used it all up on the Barbies. You can imagine how thrilled Mum was!
During the showgirl years we used to use each other’s perfume in the dressing rooms all the time. We never asked and it was all alright. If it was free range in the dressing room it was fair game. Anything special was packed tightly away in our bags.
Portia xx
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Even if I heard this story before, I didn’t remember, and it’s hilarious!
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Thanks Undina. XXX
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Like you I used to use mum’s Femme & now I own both the modern version & her pre 2000 vintage bottle. Love both.
I have a clear memory of dad (pre alcoholic time) bringing her a bottle of Apple Blossom by Helena Rubinstein. This was in the 60s & the bottle was squeezy, pale pink plastic. Mum hated it. She wore Femme & Shalimar. I enjoyed squeezing that bottle. In the end it was mine!
Since then? Again like you, no not really. Of course, if I’m invited to, I accept. A work friend & I used to try each others on skin & sniff each other. On her, my leathers & chypres often smelt like pee. On me, her modern fruity florals generally smelt generically sweet. I always remember her face discovering Hilde
Soliani’s Fraaagola Saalaaata. She had never smelled anything like it & immediately loved it. That decant became hers
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That’s funny-did you ever read the Lindy Woodhouse biography of HR and Elizabeth Arden? HR didn’t see the point in perfumes-she believed in creams, and massage, and things like that. She didn’t care for fragrance and didn’t see the point in it. The Apple Blossom scent sold well and people liked it-but not HR :) It’s an interesting book for sure. And it might have been a nice scent but if you appreciated fragrances with more complexity and depth, like Femme and Shalimar, not sure Apple Blossom would appeal :)
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Yes I have read the book. Interesting rivalry & both self made women.
We don’t have HR in the UK anymore
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Not that I can recall. My mom would occasionally give me permission to wear her L’Air du Temps, but I rarely asked as I considered it hers. We both drenched ourselves in Giorgio though. 😁
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My friend had Eau d’hadrian body cream, and I used to filch some. In my defense I always loaned her money knowing I’d never get it back lol. My mom had Je Reviews and I tried to take some, but she didn’t believe in sharing. As for me: I deliberately leave fragrance out esp in the washrooms at work-amazing how many people will try it. Makes me happy because fragrances are a shared pleasure and I find it neat to see who chooses what, and how it smells on them. I love the Hermes colognes, and my dad smells awesome in Rhubarb Ecarlart. It’s funny cause he’s a man’s man, you know, and I think it’s cool he chose something a bit different. I love it when people are open to something new.
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I love the image of you sharing perfumes with co-workers. It has been a while since I was able to “corrupt” anyone at work :?
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I don’t remember ever doing so, although that doesn’t mean I haven’t for sure. My mother wasn’t a regular perfume wearer, and when she bought a decant for the first time that I could recall, she also bought me one that smelled much more “youthful” than hers. Later on I also always had my own perfumes and didn’t yet feel possessiveness toward anything that smelled good on others. Now, the closest I come is touching bottles in stores that turn out to be display only or something!
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I think that I’ve never tried any perfumes not designated as testers at a store: I’m painfully aware of the cost of perfumes for independent sellers. And department stores usually have testers.
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I’m also careful not to spray from bottles that aren’t testers in stores. I’ve certainly picked up bottles to look at, only to notice anxious looks from SAs…
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No one in any house I’ve ever lived in had interesting enough perfumes to explore. Lucky for them I guess. 😉
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Lol
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I used to sneak spritzes of my aunt’s Tabu, but never as an adult.
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I’ve never tried that one, only saw it on Internet :)
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I used to sneak spray my sister’s Tatiana perfume thinking only I can smell it. It was like closing my eyes so people could not see me.
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I LOVE that simile! I see that even as kids we had a lot in common :)
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Yes, my mother and older sisters wore perfume so there was always something to sneak, even though they regularly told me to keep my mitts off. As an adult I’d sniff something in my friends’ houses if I’m unfamiliar with it. I wouldn’t help myself to spraying it on though, without asking.
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I think it’s almost impossible for a child to restrain from doing something when told so :)
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Naughty me! Yes, I have done this, occasionally. Can’t remember specific situations right now. But have tried to keep the spraying to a minimum.
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LOL
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Yep! Shalimar, and also a discontinued green one whose name escapes me. In the bathroom of a friend whose cat I was feeding, but I’m sure she would have let me if she had been there to ask.
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Whoever takes care of my cat can help themselves to (almost) any of my perfumes :)
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