Saturday Question

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Saturday Question: Do You Like Modern Niche Perfumes?

I know, I know, it’s a very broad question. But I thought: if “Do you like vintage perfumes?” is a legitimate question, why wouldn’t this one be?

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #209:

Do You Like Modern Niche Perfumes?

Give your own definition to what you consider “modern,” and what you classify as “niche,” and after that tell me whether you like them, find new favorites, I’ll even dare to say – buy them?

My Answer

As a rule, I do not feel old (or even “older”). But recently I caught myself thinking that the way I feel about new niche perfumes that I come across makes me sound old, because my mental mantra these days is: “in my time” perfumes were better.

I am not talking about ingredients that were banned and substituted (even though, of course, that plays its role in my perception of new perfumes). I am not even complaining about lack of originality or not being memorable. But more and more I test new perfumes that smell either very minimalistic or too gender-neutral or overly artificial or not really perfume-y.

And after a while, I realized that those are not just poorly constructed perfumes (well, some of them are), but it seems like a new style. The industry keeps creating new aroma chemicals that become popular, and many new brands eagerly utilize them. They are not necessarily unpleasant, they don’t even smell identical. But many of them have some recognizable characteristics that just don’t excite or inspire me. And if perfumes aren’t expensive, I think: “Of course, how much could these aroma chemicals cost?” And if they are expensive, I think: “How could these aroma chemicals cost that much?!!”

I’m not a fan of vintage perfumes. I remember hundreds of perfumes of the past that I didn’t like. And I still come across some perfumes I like. But in general, I do not like the prevailing style of modern niche perfumes.

 

How about you?

Do You Like Modern Niche Perfumes?

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Saturday Question: Have You Ever Used Someone Else’s Perfume Without Permission?

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 on Undina's Looking Glass

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?

Have You Ever Used Someone Else’s Perfume Without Permission?

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Saturday Question: What Would You Consider a Fair Perfume Sampling Offer?

Long gone those times when departments stores gave away bags of samples with (and sometimes even without) a purchase. And most niche brands know better than to part with free samples (sometimes even with the purchase). Samples became a commodity, and in most cases we have to pay for them.

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #207:

What Would You Consider a Fair Perfume Sampling Offer?

Free samples with a purchase? Free for S&H? Discount for a future purchase? Some other arrangement?

My Answer

All brands, mass-market and niche, should shower paying clients with free samples. Samples can be small (0.7ml – 1.5 ml), and preferably they should have some correlation to what the customer bought. But in general, who is in a better position to be a returning customer if not the one who had already paid for something else? Instead, most stores became extremely stingy with samples, which miraculously find their way to eBay instead (that’s where I bought all those samples on the photo below).

With testing perfumes without a purchase, for brands that do not have significant store presence, it is harder. I realize that brands cannot just hand over free samples: people will abuse that, and the samples would end up at the same location as their mass-market brethren. But I also do not understand when brands charge 2-3 times more per ml for a tiny sample: how else are customers supposed to decide whether they want to buy perfumes from brands they aren’t familiar with?! $40-$75 (and more!) for a set of samples, most of which won’t be even finished (since most people would not like and want to wear all 5-7-10 perfumes in the line).

What do I see as a fair solution? An ability to choose 3-5 small free spray samples with minimal (if any) bells and whistles in packaging, and pay just for the delivery. The ratio of the perfume one gets to how much the delivery costs should be such that it wouldn’t make sense to abuse the system. Another possible solution would be deducting the full price of a discovery set (minus the delivery cost) from the future full bottle purchase: don’t sell me for $45 (+S&H) 12-15 ml of perfumes most of which I won’t even like offering a $25 discount later if I pay a full price for a $200+ bottle.

Rusty and La Prairie Life Threads Platinums Samples

How about you?

What Would You Consider a Fair Perfume Sampling Offer?

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Saturday Question: Do You Wear Perfumes on a Plane?

I missed the last week’s SQ post: I was traveling for work, and it messed up my blog-related activities. But I’m glad to be back: I missed you all!

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #206:

Do You Wear Perfumes on a Plane?

I was surprised to confirm that we haven’t done this question yet.

Do you have a routine for such trips? Any special perfumes or methods?

Bonus questions: When was the last time you were on a plane? What airline was it? How was your experience?

My Answer

My business trip (and the most recent flight) was to Las Vegas. One would think that it’s a good destination for such a trip, but I was at a conference where the company I work for was an organizer, and it was held off-off-strip (one of the resorts on the outskirt of the city), so this time I didn’t see Las Vegas much. But I got to wear several perfumes I brought with me without risking to suffocate anyone: those large open spaces were just asking for a hajusuuri-style application (but I settled for about four sprays at a time).

As for the plane, for many years my go-to perfume was Voyage d’Hermes dabbed from a mini bottle. It was our shared perfume with my vSO that fit perfectly to the idea of a travel perfume. And then I got tired of the scent, and Diptyque Volutes decanted in a roller-boll small bottle took its place as our shared travel perfume. But since this time I was traveling alone, I decided to go with something different – and chose Hermessence Musc Pallida (from a small decant bottle gifted by a generous friend). Applied to wrists, it was soft and pleasant, and I’m sure it didn’t bother anyone (on my short flight to Las Vegas there was an empty seat between me and another passenger, and on the return flight I got an upgrade, which also allowed an extra space – not that this perfume required such a precaution).

Shadow of a plane from the plane window

My flights both ways were on United Airlines. Boeing. Luckily – completely uneventful.

How about you?

Do You Wear Perfumes on a Plane?

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Saturday Question: How Much Would You Pay For Your Favorite Perfume?

Discussing perfume prices, we periodically say something like “It is nice, but not enough to pay that price” or “I wouldn’t pay that much for what it is.” This usually describes our reaction to new for us perfumes that we just smelled or tried. And it is easier to dismiss a new scent that you have no emotional connection with yet. But let’s consider a hypothetical (once again – hypothetical!) situation: one of your top favorites was stolen from your collection. Would you want to get it back?

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #205:

How Much Would You Pay For Your Favorite Perfume?

Would you pay its today’s official full price? How about more? What if it is not available for the official price? You know this perfume, it proved over the years that it works for you, and you love it (I’m sure you have at least one or two such perfumes in your collection – so, think of one of them). Provided that you’re guaranteed the authenticity and freshness, what is the absolute maximum you would be willing to pay to get it back even if it means not buying any other perfumes and having to save money for a year or two (or more) to do it? After which price you’d give up and decide that it’s not meant to be?

Don’t “cheat” thinking and telling us that you’d pay any price. But don’t disregard it completely either just because now you have a bottle and a back-up of it and don’t think you’ll ran out any time soon. Ask yourself how much that “one of the top N” perfumes is actually worth to you if you don’t have another choice.

My Answer

My quick scanning of my collection gave me an idea that even though I haven’t paid the full price for most of them, I would have paid a full retail price ($350 or less) for approximately 50 perfumes in my collection (I don’t mean for all of them but rather for any one of them). I wouldn’t want to replace them with anything newer, so if I had a budget, I would have funneled it first towards repurchasing one of these 50.

But if to talk about my absolute favorites – let’s say, one of the top 3 (Lancome Climat, Ormonde Jayne Ta’if and Amouage Ubar, two of which are sadly discontinued now), – I estimate that I might consider paying up to $1K for one of them if I knew they were genuine. I wouldn’t have done it lightly (it’s a lot of money!), but I would be willing to save my perfume budget for as long as it’s necessary to repurchase one of these three. Of course, all of these exercises assume that my regular bills are paid, I’m not starving, and the regular necessities are taken care of. So, one thousand doesn’t feel like something completely out of question. Would I pay more? I don’t know. On one hand, it seems crazy to spend that much on perfume. But then… If I really think that they are that great and love them, aren’t they worth twice as much? Three times? I really hope never to test my hypothesis.

 

How about you?

How Much Would You Pay For Your Favorite Perfume?

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Saturday Question: Do You Write Reviews?

I understand that those of my readers who have blogs post perfume reviews, this is given. I’m not talking about posts or comments on blogs, Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. The question is about designated review spots where your feedback will stay with the product/service and will be visible to others.

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #204:

Do You Write Reviews?

The main question, of course, is about perfume reviews. Do you write them on one of the large perfume sites? How about online perfume stores? Perfume decanter sites/services?

And a wider, general question is whether you leave any reviews, for any products, services or experience.

My Answer

As most of you probably noticed by now, I rarely publish anything remotely resembling perfume reviews even on my perfume blog, so I don’t remember even once being tempted to write a perfume review anywhere else. For me, perfume reviews are useful if I know (I mean, virtually) a person whose opinion I’m reading because that allows me to “calibrate” expectations based on what I know about the reviewer’s tastes. Reading Fragrantica reviews from time to time, I’m amazed at how different people’s perceptions of the same perfume might be and how categorical some of them sound, even when their opinion completely contradicts everybody else’s. I wouldn’t dare. Not with my nose.

As to the other types of reviews, for many years the only place where I was almost religiously leaving feedback was eBay: since I myself rely a lot on the sellers’ reputation, I thought it was my duty to contribute to those ratings. But my feedback is usually done for the “service” (how well the seller described the item, how quickly it was delivered, etc.) and not for the product itself.

On several occasions, I left a review for a restaurant (because I was annoyed; they were mostly negative) and for an Airbnb/VRBO rental (those were mostly positive – but only because I was lucky with my choices, thanks to reading other people’s reviews!).

Other than that, I rarely write any product reviews: Who cares whether I liked (for example) that iron or blanket? – I was thinking. But over the years, I started feeling almost guilty about it: I noticed that I heavily rely not even on the ratings people leave for different products but for additional information and sometimes personal photos of those products – be that on Amazon, Sephora or other sites that sell products I am not familiar with or can’t try at a store. So, I’m thinking that I should start contributing more actively – to warn others about products that I find subpar or to offset ratings from idiots who complain about items being not of the size they expected – even though measurements were clearly stated in the description.

Rusty Fragile

How about you?

Do You Write Reviews?

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Saturday Question: Do You “Collect” Anything (Besides Perfume)?

I think we all understand that while talking about our perfumes, the use of the word “collection” is somewhat a stretch: it is a collection in terms of being an assembly of items of the same type, probably even systematically arranged. But since the objects of the collection, perfumes, are being used (no matter how infrequently) and also can spoil, the “collection” part is a figure of speech rather than a literally meaning. Today’s question should be considered in this context.

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #203:

Do You “Collect” Anything (Besides Perfume)?

As it is hopefully clear from the introduction, the question is not about collecting art, baseball cards or vintage Hermes scarves. A “fair game” would be something that is/can be used up, which you’re buying in excess of regular use/consumption. Food, drinks, bath and body products, socks, ties, pens, paperclips, umbrellas, etc., etc. – I hope you got the idea.

If you have photos of your collections somewhere online and can share, please do.

My Answer

I LOVE lipsticks. It has been a while since I posted about them, but for a non-beauty-centric blog, the number of posts on the topic of lipsticks is quite telling: Lipstick Extravaganza, Lipstick Queen’s Mixed Metaphor, Sunday Self-care, Episode 6: Read My Lip… Care Choices, The (Last?) Two Queens, (Pillow) Talking myself into buying perfume, They had me at “Hello” – and now “Goodbye”, Frog Prince(ss)’s Kiss, Black Lace in Tropics, and more, but I’ll stop here.

A couple of years ago, I decided to sort all lipsticks I had at that time by color, take pictures of them and swatches, and have those photos with me every time I think of buying another one while at a counter. These are pictures of almost complete “collection” of my lipsticks back then.

I use lipsticks, lip balms, lip veils and other lip products daily. So, since these pictures were taken, I used up some of the lipsticks I had. Lock-down and not shopping as often somewhat helped to slow down my acquisitions, but still, I bought more than I finished (I think – I’m afraid to count).

 

Do You “Collect” Anything (Besides Perfume)?

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Saturday Question: Do You Have a Red Perfume Bottle in Your Collection?

Happy Lunar New Year! Sending happiness your way in the Year of the Dragon.

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #203:

Do You Have a Red Perfume Bottle in Your Collection?

I realize that it’s a superficial connection between the celebration and our perfume hobby, but since most of these SQs aren’t serious anyway, I decided “why not?”

My Answer

My first thought was, “No, I don’t think I have any.” I remembered that for my blog’s “rainbow anniversary” (7 years) I managed to find a red-colored perfume. And I used to have a deep red bottle of the eponymous perfume (probably, it’s the other way around, but you got what I meant), but the current bottle that I have is silver. And that was it. And then I remembered: Puredistance Rubikona! (Just in case you want my take on this perfume, a couple of year ago I published Puredistance Rubikona: Iacta alea esto!)

Puredistance Rubikona

How about you?

Do You Have a Red Perfume Bottle in Your Collection?

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Saturday Question: Did You Ever Have A Signature Scent?

Theoretically, it is possible that one of the visitors who is reading this post is currently a “signature scent person” who got to this blog by searching for similar-minded people. But it’s not probable. So, I assume that none of us is currently monogamous perfume-wise. But what about the past?

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #201:

Did You Ever Have A Signature Scent?

If yes, what was it? How long did it last? If no, did you ever consider getting one? Do you know anybody who wears just one perfume (all the time or at least serially)?

My Answer

Since this is my blog, I have previously touched this subject once or twice (or ten times?). So, I hope that those two readers who a) read it in the past and b) remember about it would forgive me repeating myself.

When I was growing up, having any perfume – leave alone a good one (read “French”) – was if not a true luxury then definitely something excessive and indulgent. From what I remember, even adult women who owned perfumes didn’t wear them daily saving them for special occasions. It was slightly different for men since they used colognes and balms after shaving, but that was considered as a functional application rather than “decorative” (and those colognes weren’t either too interesting or tenacious).

So, while owning just one perfume at a time was something common, that was rather out of necessity than a conscious choice. But since perfumes were rare and hard to come by, those women who did wear perfumes would usually use the one they managed to procure or were given as a gift. Thus, having a “signature scent” was mostly a romanticized but unobtainable idea.

Lancôme Climat became first my imaginary (while I didn’t have it but used my Grandma’s bottle once in a while) and then actual (once my Grandma bought it for me as a gift) signature scent. I did wear some random scented products from time to time – not because I wanted a variety, but because Climat was cherished and designated to the most special occasions. But I remember back then being convinced that I would wear only that perfume if I could afford it. And I was genuinely perplexed by the fact that not absolutely everybody was in love with that scent: it was the most amazing perfume ever!

By mid-twenties, I outgrew that “one and only perfume” idea (admittedly, with some help). And today I can’t imagine wearing not just one but probably even 10 perfumes over and over again. But if I were to fantasize about perfume I would want people to associate with me (that was one of the premises behind the signature scent concept I grew up with), Climat still would be one of the top 3 contenders (together with Ormonde Jayne Ta’if and Amouage Ubar).

Rusty and Climat Bottle

Rusty with my very first bottle of Climat from 80s

How about you?

Did You Ever Have A Signature Scent?

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Saturday Questions… for Undina on the Blog’s 13th Anniversary

Since earlier this week Undina’s Looking Glass turned 13, I decided to do something different for this Saturday Question post.

Below is a 13-question self-interview, after which I invite you to answer in comments any of the questions that you feel are relevant to you (some of them are just for me, but others could be valid for my readers), ask me any questions if you happen to have them, or just join me in celebrating my blog’s 13th Anniversary.

Saturday Question 13th Anniversary Edition

1. When you started this blog, did you expect to be writing this post?

I don’t remember specifically thinking about my plans, but I know that back then I wouldn’t have been surprised had anybody told me I’d keep this space alive for the next 15 years and beyond.

2. Do you have any regrets about the current state of the blog?

I do. I don’t have the time and energy to publish stories regularly. The “Saturday Question” series is the only commitment I’m trying not to break. I realize that my readers are doing just fine without additional posts. But I wish my life would return to the state where I could do it at least once a month – especially since I have what to write about.

3. How did your “no-buy” go last year?

Surprisingly, it went well. For the first 6 months of 2023, I spent on perfume $5: I bought a sample of Parfumes Quartana’s Ierofante. In the second half of the year, I bought one full bottle and several samples from my visit to the ZGO Perfumery and Le Labo boutique in September – that’s it.

Perfume Samples

4. What was the last perfume you bought?

Tauerville’s When We Cuddle And I Can Smell Your Perfume On My Clothes. After it came up as “My Answer” in two different Saturday Question posts (Do You Like Skin Scents? and What Is Your Most Calming Perfume?), and I complained in both how I missed getting it when it was available, I just had to pounce once it was re-released as another limited edition (even though it was almost twice more expensive than the first release).

Rusty And Tauerville When We Cuddle And I Can Smell Your Perfume On My Clothes

5. Why are there fewer photos of Rusty on the blog?

While I publish fewer new perfume-related posts in general, which creates fewer opportunities for me to showcase Rusty, sadly, it’s not the only reason. Recently, Rusty was not feeling well. I will not go into details (it’s too depressing for a celebratory post) but just say that we are actively fighting for each extra month we can have him around. With his age and illness, Rusty has become much less energetic or curious, so it is much harder to interest him in what I am doing with a bottle of perfume or prompt him to jump to the sideboard or table where I am doing that. But he still has good days, and I try to snatch as many pictures of him as possible. And since most of them do not feature perfumes, I post them daily on my Instagram.

Rusty On My Lap

6. How large is your perfume collection?

For years, I didn’t feel right divulging the number of bottles I had. I’m not sure why: I don’t think it’s excessive for my hobby, it’s not the largest collection I know of, and I like most of the perfumes that I bought myself. To tell you the truth, I didn’t know the exact number of full bottles in my collection: counting full bottles didn’t make much sense since I have probably twice as many travel bottles and decants that I bought or swapped to wear.

But for this post, I decided to dig up some data from my database. So, not even touching other sizes, I have 123 full-sized (30ml +) bottles of perfumes that I still like and wear and 14 bottles that I liked and bought at some point but am not sure now if I still want to wear them. I still might. Another 14 are almost empty bottles from my pre-perfumista times that I do not use but keep tucked away for sentimental value. The last 13 bottles were gifted to me or came as a part of the set I bought for just one of the items. I wouldn’t have bought them myself (or for themselves, in case of sets), but some of them are lovely, and I use them because they were a gift. So, not counting “old flames,” my collection holds 150 full [at some point in the past] bottles.

7. Do you plan to downsize?

As of now, I’m not sure I have anything I’m ready to part with. But, in general, I think I should. Setting aside the issue of not having enough shelf space to hold any more perfumes, I really didn’t like the feeling of choice paralysis I experienced last year. Using a self-made perfume Advent Calendar helped in December, so I reused that approach again in January. It works! Now I plan to keep doing it this year, and in the end, I will know better which perfumes I don’t choose to wear even when I have time to think about the set for the whole month ahead.

8. What were the first perfumes in your perfume database?

Without looking into the underlying data, I would have never remembered or guessed what perfume I started it with. I can’t even remember when it happened. My best guess would be at least 15 years ago, but it might be earlier. So, this is the list of the first 13 perfumes in my database (chronologically in the order they were added):

Givenchy Amarige
I had a mini bottle. I didn’t love it, but it was fine for variety. I think I finished it (at least, I don’t have it any longer).

Lancome Miracle
I had a bottle. I almost finished it, and I have a mini of this perfume, but I haven’t worn it in 14 years since I started recording my daily use.

Estee Lauder Dazzling Gold
I had several samples that I used up, but I never went for a bottle of it.

Givenchy Extravagance d’Amarige
I had a mini bottle. I think I finished it.

Annick Goutal Petite Cherie
I went through at least 2 bottles of this perfume. I still have a bottle and still like it.

Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue
I had a sample. I don’t think I’ve ever finished it.

DKNY DKNY Woman
I still have the remaining 10% in my second bottle. After a 12+ year hiatus, I wore it again a couple of years ago and still found it pleasant.

Hugo Boss Deep Red
I finished a couple of bottles, have a bottle gifted to me by Vanessa (Bonkers About Perfume) and still like and wear it periodically.

YSL Baby Doll
I loved this perfume and went through almost two bottles. Unfortunately, the second one turned on me before I could finish it, and the reformulated version available at the time wasn’t as wonderful as I thought the original one was.

Guerlain Champs Elysees
That was my first bottle, pre-”bug spray” comment from my co-worker. Since then I acquired another bottle, but I haven’t worn it in almost 8 years. Probably I should check if my bottle is still good.

Estee Lauder Pleasures Intense
I think I had a sample… It says a lot about how I felt/feel about it.

Calvin Klein Eternity Rose Blush
I somehow got this sample, tried and didn’t like it.

Issey Miyake Le Feu Light
I liked it and went through a small bottle. By the time my bottle was almost done (I think I still have it somewhere with a couple of drops in it), this perfume was discontinued.

9. Can you estimate how many perfumes you tried over the years?

It’s hard to think of a realistic number: between 1993 (when perfumes became more easily available where I lived then) and 2010 (when I started my database), I was sniffing and testing one way or the other all mass-market perfumes I could get to in department stores, Duty-Free shops and catalogs (mostly, Yves Rocher, but probably some Avon as well). My estimate would be 350-400 perfumes. As of today, I have 2,113 perfumes in my database. These are perfumes that touched my skin at least once. Additionally, over the years I think I tried on the skin (at stores) but didn’t record another 100 and gave a nozzle sniff or a paper strip test to another 1,000 perfumes.

This brings me to the total estimate of approximately 3,200 perfumes that I at least smelled during my life.

10. What are your Top 13 Perfumes?

As for most of us, this type of list changes often, but as of today, these are my favorites (in alphabetical order to avoid ranking):

Amouage Dia
Amouage Ubar
Chanel №19 EDT
Giorgio Armani La Femme Bleue
Guerlain Cruel Gardénia
Jo Malone Sweet Milk
J-Scent Yuzu
Krigler Lieber Gustav 14
Lancome Climat
Les Parfums de Rosine Rose d’Amour
Ormonde Jayne Ta’if
Teo Cabanel Alahine
Tom Ford Fleur de Chine

11. Does your vSO (very significant other) read your posts?

Nope. He subscribed to updates, but I don’t think he makes it to any of the posts more often than once a year. But he’s very supportive of my hobby: he never once complained about the size of my collection; he patiently tolerates my sniffing rounds both domestically and when we travel (and even provides his skin for testing more masculine offerings); and he listens to all the stories about perfumes, perfumers, bloggers and anything else I throw at him. And he allows me to spray him with perfume of my choice (from his collection) 9 out of 10 times I ask.

12. What are your favorite stories over the years?

I thought it would be quite appropriate to name 13 stories from the previous years. Some of them saw a lot of attention from my readers at the time. Others went under the radar. But each of them was special for me for one reason or another.

First, a bunch of posts with the strongest emotional connection between my past and perfumes:

First Love: Perfume
The very first post on this blog about my all-time perfume love.

First Love: Love
Perfume connected to my first childhood romantic relationship.

“Here’s a photo I’ve been looking for…”: Sweet Milk by Jo Malone
Childhood memories – sweet and bitter-sweet – that preconditioned my love to this perfume.

Angel of Jealousy
I’ve never felt like that about any other perfume.

A Fairy Tale Ending, Perfumista-style
A heartwarming story of perfumistas kindness and support at one of the hardest times in my life.

A couple of lighter posts:

“Oh, TOES!! (for some people)” or Where to Apply Perfumes
I still smile every time I see that title (or remember the scene it referenced).

Tu-ti-tu-rum-tu-tu or Musical Perfume
A concoction of anecdotal stories, music, jokes and a cute cat picture.

lebaB fo rewoT or Found in Translation
Joys of multilingual experiences and strange perfume names (actual or perceived).

In the Search for the Perfect Lavender
Lavender and Terminator-2: in this post, I managed to build a connection between these two.

Déjà vu, Episode 3: powdery fruit vs. peony oriental vs. sandalwood jasmine
For a while, I was obsessed with several well-known perfumes smelling very similar.

Posts with “literary whiff”:

My First Perfume Review: Puredistance Antonia
My scheherazade-esque frame story about this perfume.

Everything Is Relative
I think it’s my only fiction story on this blog.

The Royal Nonesuch of Perfume
One of my most negative posts about perfume.

I’m also somewhat proud of movie-posters’-based illustrations I made for my posts (though, I wasn’t sure at the time whether anybody else had made that connection):

In a separate category, not counted towards perfume-related favorite posts, are all the stories about Rusty and everything that led to him appearing in my life.

13. What are your plans for this blog?

I plan to keep going as long as it brings me joy, I can find what to write about and have at least a few people to communicate with in comments.