The drawing has been done, and the winner of the winter flowers drawing is:
LEAH
If you’re the winner, please contact me by e-mail at olympicorchids at gmail dot com or PM on Facebook with your full name and shipping address.
This past week we’ve had nothing but beautiful blue skies and sunshine during the day, but the down side is that it’s been horribly cold at night, in the 20s F (below 0 C), well below freezing. We still have snow on the ground in shaded areas, and the typical ugly piles of snow and sand on the sides of the roads and in the parking lots. This is completely abnormal for March, and all the plants are about a month behind schedule. We are still cleaning up broken branches and beaten-down bamboo canes from the heavy snow. I hope things will warm up as we get into what should be spring.
As should be obvious from the giveaways, I always have a huge number of perfume samples on hand. I view sampling other companies’ perfumes as part of my continuing education as a perfumer, partly to learn what is possible, and partly to avoid duplicating what’s already available. I don’t know about you, but the more I sample, the more everything seems the same. These days it is rare that I experience that beautiful flash of discovery when something really new and surprising comes along. It’s all déjà vu (or rather déjà senti) I think part of the problem is that a huge number of new perfumes are released every year in a futile attempt to keep brands in the public eye, and this number seems to increase almost exponentially every year. It’s easier just to recycle the standard scents and try to push them on the public through advertising and gimmicks than it is to be innovative in terms of the perfumes themselves. It’s actually depressing to think of how superficial all of the marketing is and what a glut of products are sloshing around.
This week there’s another giveaway of 100 g of samples plus whatever goodies I have sitting around that will fit in the box. Just leave a comment about your experiences with perfume sampling. Do they all start to smell the same after you’ve sampled a lot?
[Pics are mine, all types of flowers that are blooming now, but should have bloomed a month ago.]
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I love sampling as I love to discover new perfume that I love. Every night when I am quiet, I go dig in my big sample bag and I pick one and try it. Many times it is just a like but the time I fall in love I am so happy! That is what happened to me when I picked my Hamsa sample. Had to buy it!
ReplyDeleteIt does not show my name somehow: Nathalie Morin
DeleteNathalie, Thank you for your comment. I'm like you when I find the rare perfume that I love. You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteYes, it does get old Ellen. I've resorted to following my favorite houses and relying on my friends' recommendations at the Aussie Fragrance Network if they discover new finds. Otherwise, I'm not as enthusiastic about getting sample sets (or even receiving samples) as I was 3 years ago. I suppose that's good for my wallet and allergic rhinitis!
ReplyDeleteTrace, the more perfumes you smell, the more iterations of the same theme you come across. That sort of repetition makes it less interesting. Anyway, you're entered in the drawing to win some samples.
DeleteI have never sampled more than five or six by one house at the same time. I usually give a full wearing to a sample on its own rather than sniff and test. So, I can't sample as much as some others do.
ReplyDeleteGina, I use the same method you do - full wearing of one sample per day, no more. I also make notes about everything. Because I'm slow at sampling, I still have boxes full of untried samples. You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteJust to dispell the notion that I sample multiple perfumes at a time (as I know some people do) I never sample more than one fragrance a day, and then just when I'm not working on my own stuff. I've been sampling for so long that I've accumulated a horrendous pile of samples.
ReplyDeleteI'm really quite new to the world of perfume, so I'm wanting to discover and learn as much as I can. For the longest time I thought I didn't like perfume at all, because all I ever knew of and smelled on people around me was the typical fruity celebrity-style perfumes. Those to me all smell the same. I've since come across the more exciting niche and indie perfumes, so they're still very new to me. It's a pity to hear of how samey it's all becoming. I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised, though. It does seem to be that way in many other areas, too.
ReplyDeleteI love the pretty yellow flowers! I saw a fair few purple crocuses today, which was a very welcome sight.
Mari, the yellow crocuses bloom first, followed by the purple ones. Enjoy your exploration of niche and indie perfumes. You're in the drawing.
DeleteI seem to find something unique in all fragrances. Every sample I try is like a new olfactory experience to be savored for the day. I like the variety of scents and am blessed with all of the choices perfumers create. My garden is as eclectic as my sample trays, lol.
ReplyDeleteMary, eclectic sample collections and eclectic gardens go together! You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteI like buying discovery sets (usually about 5 ml each) from a perfume house. I can usually get a pretty good feel for their aesthetic and skill in a set of 5-6 fragrances. I try to go for collections that try to tell a scent story.
ReplyDeleteAnne, I like discovery sets, too, because I could never use a full bottle of perfume. You're in the drawing.
DeleteI love choosing my own samples as an introduction to a brand or house. I usually choose samples based on the notes, and wear them in our hot, muggy weather to see how they work with that and my chemistry. I’ll go through the whole sample before making a decision. Typically, they end up smelling like rubber and synthetic yuck. Sad. Our weather and climate gives them a workout. Those that hold up sometimes end up on my wish list for Christmas or my birthday.
ReplyDeleteKim, hot, muggy weather certainly does call for specific scents. You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteWhen I get new samples (which itself is irregular depending on budget, energy etc to coordinate swaps, and fluctuating interest) I tend to open them all and sniff and try dabbing teensy bits of my new favorites all over my arms. But the actual sustained attention trials come in waves as I get the energy for them. Some months I will wear no samples or new thing, others I will make a commitment to wearing something new almost every day of the week (when there is a big backlog).
ReplyDeleteI still have notes from when I took notes... now with voice to text on my phone that would be even easier.
It is an education of sorts although I am not a creator. I do miss the days of makeupalley and exploration and discovery and finding things where I had literally never smelled anything like them before. Even if I did not find the new thing particularly pleasant I at least knew what people were talking about after trying it.
Often a blog or review will spark interest in me and I will put something on my radar or wishlist... But generally what I end up buying is what's on sale, plus what I super duper want.
I tend to view samples as potential teeny tiny bottles which I will keep forever if I love them and use sparingly if they are rare and precious. I do have a box of samples and decants that I has been meaning to swap sell or give away... Should get on that...
Oh snow. I've been staying inside not because of the snow but because of the cold...but I really want to get out and walk around somewhere with trees and water before it melts. There's almost like this weird pre nostalgic feeling of knowing this is probably the last snowfall of the season. Our plants here are a little less confused because it didn't really warm up much before successive snows... But nature in general seems to be getting confused.
More and more I just let specialists, critics of perfume doing the job for me. I only doing the effort to really test a perfume or buying samples if i've read a relevant analyse. I think it's the normal evolution of a perfumista after years and years of compulsive purchases, have smelled all the classics and piles of flasks in the cabinet.
ReplyDeleteAnyway I've still some perfumes in my mind that i dream to see being create one day.
Frederic, it's good to think that you still dream of perfumes that have not yet been created. You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteHello, I'm the same way - read blogs, facebook groups, get themed sample packs from perfumeries & pick through samples from that approach. . .great stuff - & how I found Olympic Orchids wonderful scents! Really enjoy your blog (please omit me from drawing) thank you so much for the win last month! I am looking forward to it!
ReplyDeleteLeah, did you send me your shipping info? I can't find it in my e-mail.
DeleteThe more I've smelled, the more things smell the same, it is true. I've moved on from expecting new things from Designers, and look to independent perfumers. Unfortunately, there's a lot of crap in there (not including your perfumes in that statement!) but it's generally more innovative than what is found on the shelves at Sephora or a department store.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy the vintages of the 90s, I think it was an amazing time for perfumery. Most of my collection is vintage, versus contemporary. I like a lot of the old Guerlains and Carons, those are always worth smelling.
I've moved into smelling perfumes from other countries, like Italian perfumers. They seem to have something different to say than the mass-market safe, floral/fruity line.
The more I've smelled, the more things smell the same, it is true. I've moved on from expecting new things from Designers, and look to independent perfumers. Unfortunately, there's a lot of crap in there (not including your perfumes in that statement!) but it's generally more innovative than what is found on the shelves at Sephora or a department store.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy the vintages of the 90s, I think it was an amazing time for perfumery. Most of my collection is vintage, versus contemporary. I like a lot of the old Guerlains and Carons, those are always worth smelling.
I've moved into smelling perfumes from other countries, like Italian perfumers. They seem to have something different to say than the mass-market safe, floral/fruity line.
Agreed, most things from Sephora smell similar. You can still find unique scents, but it's harder because they are hidden among a lot of stereotypical stuff. You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteOh, and I've been smelling hardcore, starting with department stores, and then branching out into ordering samples, and haunting Tigerlily, for about 10 years now, so yes, it makes sense that perfumes smell repetitive at this point. On the other hand, it can be fun to identify the DNA of a more recent perfume in an old one. All of the aldehydic florals are so interconnected to each other.
ReplyDeleteLarkin, you're right - it's interesting to see how one thing leads to another in perfumery.
DeleteSo many fragrance have come out in the last few years that smell similar, its starting to take the joy out of discovering new fragrances, because everyone seems the same. I do sample many fragrances and they all start to blend and smell similar, but some are actually clones of other fragrances, like you said, deju vu scent! I am still searching for a scent that is unique and blows me away, maybe someone will create it this year, and I can avoid, scent fatigue from all the sampling!
ReplyDelete