Last week’s topic clearly wasn’t a favorite of my loyal readers: some didn’t participate at all, some still refused to part with any of their bottles even theoretically. Let’s try the other way around.

Saturday Question #262:

What Perfume Would You Get Back If You Could?

The condition is: you previously had that perfume in your collection – not a sample, but anything else from a decant (the smallest allowed size 5 ml) via minis and travel bottles to a full bottle can play. It doesn’t matter if perfumes are still in production, discontinued or reformulated. In this fantasy poll you can wish for any version of any perfume – as long as it fits the criteria.

My Answer

Since in the last 15 years I haven’t finished any bottles that I loved without replacing them, and I’ve bought most perfumes I tried and liked, my choice is between something mainstream that I wore before falling into the niche rabbit-hole and perfumes that were discontinued before I could get them.

My choice is Deneuve by Avon. I had only a decant of it shared by a kind friend, and every time I wear it, I feed sad that once my decant is gone, I won’t be able to replace it. Vintage bottles can still be found online, but I wouldn’t trust it to be in a wearable condition. It is a wonderful green chypre. You might like it or not, but when you smell it you know that what you smell is a real perfume and not some conceptual art or abstract scented product. If I could, I would have magically conjured a bottle of Deneuve.

How about you?

What Perfume Would You Get Back If You Could?

Let’s do a mental exercise. Just for fun. Don’t worry: nobody will hold you to whatever choice you’ll make answering this week’s SQ.

Saturday Question #261:

What One Perfume Would You Vote Off Your Wardrobe Island?

It has to be a full bottle (presentation-wise, it doesn’t have to be actually full), so no decants, travel or mini bottles! It has to be a perfume that you used to wear at some point – and not just got someone else’s castaway (“I know you’re ‘into perfume’ – here, take this one, I do not use it”-style). It can’t be a perfume you’ve already consciously decided to “retire” but just couldn’t or didn’t want to part with. Just look at (or think about) your perfume wardrobe and name one bottle you’d let go if you had to make this choice.

If you have a “good” candidate, tell us how you got it in the first place and why you don’t want it any longer. If you don’t have any such perfumes, you still have to choose one (that’s the rules of this game!) and explain your “Sophie’s choice.”

My Answer

I constantly put myself in this situation: I come up with a question – and then I’m not sure how to answer it myself!

After spending some time going through my perfume collection in my head last night, I fell asleep. (Hmm… maybe I should start using this method as a sleep aid?) Today I went through the database and came up with a list of 7 “maybes.” One was a gift – so, not ready yet. One was kind of a swap… and it’s discontinued/rare, and the bottle is cute… Nah, it’ll die in my collection. In the end, I decided to go with the one that was the latest to my collection (out of the five considered) – Ilio by Diptyque. I bought it almost four years ago (here’s the story – I should have known better by that phase in my hobby!), and since then, I have chosen to wear it… exactly two times, both soon after the purchase. I am not sure I even thought about it since then. So, I suspect I wouldn’t even have noticed if it had decided to abscond and join the secret all-perfumista army of MIA fragrances.

How about you?

What One Perfume Would You Vote Off Your Wardrobe Island?

As much as I do not care for the most new brands these days, a brand created by one of the most prolific perfumers of 2010s, Bertrand Duchaufour, seems deserving at least a consideration.

Saturday Question #260:

Have You Tried Any L’ENTROPISTE Fragrances?

If yes, did you like any of them? If no, do you plan to?

A bonus question: Do you have any favorite perfumes created by Bertrand Duchaufour?

My Answer

I have not tried any of these perfumes yet. I would have been tempted to get a mini-discovery set from the brand’s site, but shipping to the US almost doubles the price of already quite spendy samples. So, I’ll probably wait until I can try them somewhere at a store or at least buy with the local delivery rates.

I remember a couple of years when Mr Duchaufour would release more than 20 perfumes per year. So, for some reason I thought I would have more perfumes created by him. But according to my database, I’ve ever tried just 46 perfumes where I know he was the nose. And out of those, I counted only 8 strong favorites – Naomi Goodsir Or du Serail, Neela Vermeire Creations Bombay Bling!, Ashoka, Pichola and Trayee, Parfums MDCI Chypre Palatin, The Vagabond Prince Enchanted Forest and L’Artisan Parfumeur Traversee du Bosphore. And even then, I have full bottles only for the first two, and with the rest – just travel bottles or decants. I wish I didn’t miss the opportunity to buy Traversee du Bosphore while it was still available, because that one and Bombay Bling! are the only two from the list I will miss once I’m done with what I have.

How about you?

Have You Tried Any L’ENTROPISTE Fragrances?

I started thinking about this topic when I read that Domino’s Pizza, an American multinational pizza restaurant chain, for the recent Valentine’s Day had launched a limited edition perfume, Eau de Passion, inspired by their most popular pizza, Pepperoni Passion. It wasn’t openly sold, but you could enter to win a bottle of it somehow (I’m not sure about details). They liked that idea so much that recently they continued the theme in their April’s Fool FB post. It wasn’t a completely novel idea: Demeter had their version of Pizza perfume in 2012, and it looks like it’s still in production. And it looks like at least a couple more of the less known brands cooked up their own pizza-inspired perfume recipes. So, let’s talk about pizzas and perfumes. And taking into consideration how geographically diverse my loyal audience is, I thought this topic might be deeper than it seems on the surface.

Saturday Question #259:

Do You Like Pizza? How About Pizza Perfume?

Do you eat pizza? If yes, do you have a favorite? Have you ever smelled any of the pizza-inspired perfumes? What do you think about the idea?

My Answer

Story time! Since I haven’t done real perfume stories for a while, I’ll use this SQ post to tell one of my stories.

I grew up without pizza in my life. We just didn’t have that in my native country. I am not sure I even knew about that food. Many other foods, even more exotic, I knew at least from books or movies, but somehow pizza wasn’t a part of that learning avenue. And then around the time I started university, the first pizza restaurant opened in my city. Chicago-style deep-dish pizza was the closest our first pizza resembled. It smelled divine, it tasted great, and it seemed totally worth the 40-50-minutes waiting in line to get seated and order it.

Even before coming here, from the friend who came here first with his parents and worked for a while delivering pizza, we learned that local pizza was completely different from what we knew as “pizza” back at home, which was confirmed when we moved to the US. The fact that pizzas would be usually ordered from (as I still think horrible) chains didn’t help. I refused to eat it.

After many years in the US, I kind of accepted the tradition of ordering pizzas to the office or improvised parties and resolved to eating just toppings leaving most of the crust on my plate. My co-workers and friends laughed looking at me scraping the toppings from the next slice, but at least I participated.

And only decades later, I discovered that pizzas made by good Italian restaurants were quite tasty. So, from time to time, we order a pizza at one of my favorite restaurants (to dine in or to take home). The one I like the most is a pizza with prosciutto, burrata cheese, eggplant and arugula. I am still not a fan of any “traditional” pizzas. Pepperoni is not something I would eat in any form, and as a pizza topping it seems even less attractive.

As to pizza perfume… Definitely no. I am not even curious to smell it. There are not that many food-related scents that I would find attractive as a personal scent. And nothing about pizza, even the best one, is associated for me with perfume I would wear.

How about you?

Do You Like Pizza? How About Pizza Perfume?

Thank you to Portia for holding the fort last week. I’m back and feeling better. But my last week’s malaise brought us this topic.

Saturday Question #258:

Have You Ever Lost a Sense of Smell?

If yes, how long did it last? Did you keep wearing perfumes? If you were to experience these for a prolonged period of time, do you think you would keep applying perfumes?

My Answer

Last week I got sick. It was some type of a virus that goes around. Several of our friends got it, then my vSO followed them. I was the last one to finally succumb to it. I thought I escaped it, but almost a week after my vSO got sick, I eventually followed him. Not a fun experience. Do not recommend.

One night, feeling feverish and thirsty, I took a sip from the bottle of Smart Water on my night stand and in half-dream thought: “So, now they decided to reformulate this water as well?” Water didn’t taste the way I remembered it. The next thought woke me up: “Wait a minute… It’s not a new bottle, I had some water from it the day before, and it tasted fine…” I immediately picked up my Vicks VapoInhaler – just to confirm my suspicion: I couldn’t smell neither menthol nor camphor, both of which are very well represented in that inhaler. “Can it be that I do have Covid?” – I thought and went back to sleep, since there was absolutely nothing I could do at this point.

It wasn’t Covid after all, and a day later, as the inflammation in my nose subsided, the sense of smell came back. But before it restored, I was extremely upset thinking that it would have been quite unfortunate if I were to lose my sense of smell for any prolonged period of time (I didn’t even consider a possibility of a permanent loss!). I didn’t wear any perfume while I was sick (I couldn’t get out of bed, so perfume wasn’t a priority), but I was thinking that once I feel better, I would put something on – even if I can’t smell it for a while. Luckily, I didn’t get a chance to live through wearing perfumes without being able to smell them. But the thought was scary.

Have You Ever Lost a Sense of Smell?

It’s been three years since Atelier Cologne disappeared from most markets. At first, I thought they had only withdrawn from the US and Canada, but it seems that, aside from old stock at various discounters, their presence is now limited to online sales in Europe and about ten brick-and-mortar stores in Asia. So while some of us still have bottles to enjoy, for many perfumistas, it’s become just another name in perfume history – and for the next generation of perfume enthusiasts, it probably won’t even be that. Atelier Cologne’s fresh yet long-lasting citrus compositions were fun, but they weren’t groundbreaking, aside from introducing eau de parfum concentrations while still calling them colognes (or cologne absolue).

Saturday Question #256:

Do You Miss Atelier Cologne?

Were you a fan of the brand while it was around? Do you have any of their perfumes in your collection? Will you miss any of them when they are gone completely?

My Answer

Atelier Cologne was one of my favorite brands. I can’t believe that I published my Brand Appreciation post about them almost 10 years ago! I still have some perfumes left, and I’m not sure I’ll use them up before they spoil. The only perfume that I will actually miss when I don’t have it any more is my most favorite perfume from the brand – Clementine California. Not only I enjoy how it smells on my skin, but also because of the “photo shoot” for that post, it reminds me of Rusty (he had such an angelic look on those photos!). Now I need to negotiate with myself that I do not need a backup bottle. Or do I?

Still, I’m sad about the brand’s fate. I still don’t understand why large companies do what they do buying good brands and destroying them. There were some talks about Atelier Cologne coming back “rebranded” – whatever it means and for whatever reason the parent company thinks it might be better/easier to do that than keeping the brand present on the market without a 3-year hiatus. If it happens, I will try them. I saw that Atelier Cologne released this year Mandarine Fauve, a fruity chypre with the notes citrus, green mandarin, fir and patchouli. Notes sound like something that I might like, but so far I liked just a single creation of Maurice Roucel, who is a nose behind this composition. But I will try it if I ever get a chance.

How about you?

Do You Miss Atelier Cologne?

The last week ran away from me, and I missed the SQ. At least, it was a good reason: we went for a short trip with our friends, and I didn’t realize I wouldn’t be making back in time to ask Portia to take over for that week’s SQ. But now I’m back, so let’s do it!

Saturday Question #255:

What Was The Last Perfume You Decided Not To Buy?

It has to be something you liked and seriously considered as a contender to join your collection despite the fact you don’t need any more perfumes – and then, in the end, decided not to buy. Is it a final decision, or do you plan to revisit it in the future?

My Answer

A month ago, while talking about a wish list, I mentioned Parfums de Marly Delina Exclusif: it kept pulling me in, I was thinking about it and even did a couple of searches trying to find it with at least some discount. I got a sample from the store and wore it several times while going back and forth on whether I want to buy it.

Today I went to the store, sprayed it liberally from the bottle (I’d say, about 5 sprays), which is different from using a small sample, lived with it until the end of the day, and finally came to the conclusion that I do not love it. If it were to drop from the sky, I wouldn’t have said “No.” But even in that case, I don’t think I would wear it often enough. Hence, I just can’t justify buying it – not now, not ever. I am a little sad because of it: I thought I was in love with that perfume.

How about you?

What Was The Last Perfume You Decided Not To Buy?

Wait! Don’t go away! I promise I don’t plan to ask you about each of the dozens (hundreds?) new brands that appear on the market. But there are a couple that seemed more special, so I want to learn what you think about those.

Saturday Question #254:

Have You Tried Any Aphorismes Fragrances?

If yes, which ones? Did you like them? If no, are you curious about them?

A bonus question: Do you have any favorite perfumes by Dominique Ropion?

My Answer

I don’t remember how I came across the news about Dominique Ropion having launched six perfumes in his own new brand, Aphorismes, but unlike most of the new launches, this one attracted my attention.

All my life, I have told stories, many stories. Today, I am adding a new chapter. These six perfumes encapsulate the essence of my craft as a perfumer, the territories I have continuously explored. These essences, I see them as concentrations of life, designed to evoke delight and invite each person to tell their own story. They are invitations to embody emotion, sent to those who will wear them.
– Dominique Ropion

While I can’t say that Ropion is my favorite perfumer, I have several favorite perfumes created by him. And, in general, I think that if anyone, someone like him, after all the years creating perfume for others, deserves to have his own brand.

I haven’t tried any of the perfumes in this new line – A Rose is a Rose, Crazy Garden, Encens Insensé, Innocent Tuberose, My Clémentine and Oud à l’Amour. Currently, they are available from the brand’s store in Paris and from Jovoy. The brand’s site is “coming soon.” I am curious and will even consider paying for the discovery set when/if it becomes available.

My favorites created by Dominique Ropion: Cacharel Amor Amor (don’t have it any longer but used up a couple of bottles), Calvin Klein Euphoria (have never bought a FB but used up a couple of decants and regret not getting it when it was released first), Frederic Malle Portrait of a Lady (still have the original bottle and enjoy wearing it) and Une Fleur de Cassie, and my latest additions to the collection, Olfactive Studio Rose Shot, Iris Shot and Violet Shot.

How about you?

Have You Tried Any Aphorismes Fragrances?

I admit, the title is kind of a clickbait. Not that my regular readers need to be specifically enticed to participate in the SQ post, but I thought it would be a good playful way to pose a question related to a Valentine’s Day celebration.

While cooking our celebratory dinner, I decided to put on some music. Since I haven’t planned anything in advance, and I know my usual Italian Cooking Pandora channel by heart, I decided to check if my Sonos could offer anything occasion-appropriate. I checked, and there they were, two playlists – Love Rules and Love Stinks. And that gave me this idea.

Saturday Question #253:

Do You Celebrate Valentine’s Day?

If yes, how? If no, why? Do you have special perfume(s) you wear on that day?

My Answer

We usually celebrate Valentine’s Day. We try not to participate in the organized part of it (other than using some decoration, themed napkins, etc.), but we cook something special, dress up and watch something romantic. And I always wear Annick Goutal Rose d’Amour. This year’s celebration was dampened by both of us being slightly sick. But we still managed to enjoy it. And my vSO spontaneously complimented me on my perfume (which was a miracle because even when not sick, he usually can’t smell what I’m wearing).

How about you?

Do You Celebrate Valentine’s Day?

My G-d daughter recently sent me a link asking if I knew about the product and what I thought about it. The product was Optimal Habitat Fragrance Enhancing Primer. The claim is:

Imagine if your scent could last 24 hours…

Now it can, with our fragrance primer. Inspired by the resilience of nature’s ecosystems, Optimal Habitat works in harmony with your skin’s unique biology to create the ideal environment for scents to thrive. By forming a nurturing layer on the skin, each scent note is amplified, allowing it to bloom to its fullest potential.

I didn’t know anything about that primer, so I promised to ask my readers.

Saturday Question #252:

Have You Ever Used Fragrance Primers?

Not necessarily this particular one but maybe some other similar product. Fragrance primer, booster or enhancer? Did it work? Would you repurchase?

My Answer

When I read a description for this product, I immediately remembered that I previously read about some other products that were supposed to work on extending perfumes tenacity on your skin. It took me a while to remember the name. It turned out, I was thinking in the right direction, but try typing “perfume” and “canvas” in a search engine and see what you’ll get. Finally, I figured out what it was – Canvas Fragrance Primer from Canvas & Concrete. It was released in 2014, and the Perfumeland was talking about it for some time. I’ve never got to try it. I don’t know what happened to that brand, but as of now, their website doesn’t respond.

I think that I read about some similar products as well, but I haven’t tried any of them. As I was researching the topic, I came across The Perfume Guy’s video on the topic. I have two of the perfumes he recommends as a booster – Molecule 01 (which I live) and D.S. & Durga I don’t know what (which I wasn’t impressed with). So, I might try using them in that role. though, to tell the truth, these days I rarely notice that my perfume has disappeared. And when I do, I re-apply it if I want to extend the experience or use that opportunity to wear or test a different perfume.

How about you?

Have You Ever Used Fragrance Primers?