The winner of this week’s drawing is EMILY.
To claim your winnings, just send me an e-mail at olympicorchids at gmail dot com or leave a comment on the Olympic Orchids Facebook page.
Years ago I started trying to keep an archive of perfume samples. I carefully tagged and recorded them in a database, put them in baggies with cards, one for each brand, and put the baggies in alphabetical order in shoebox-sized plastic carriers. It’s probably been 8 or ten years since I started collecting samples, and I have recently been dismayed to find that many of the samples are not in good shape. A lot of them have leaked or evaporated, and there’s not a lot of juice left. Some may have experienced other ravages of time – I haven’t checked.
I discovered this when I took some of the samples out of the archive to send out to winners of my drawings and free up some shelf space. Because of the preservation problems I’m slowly dismantling my archives and sending out the samples “as is”. Some are in perfect condition, some are pretty good, and some are not good. Some are cheap junk perfumes, some are the average stuff, and some are really beautiful, interesting, expensive, or rare. You take what you get because I don’t choose what I send, I just weigh out a couple of handfuls at random. Pick through them, enjoy whatever appeals to you, and use what’s left over to scent your laundry or your bathroom, give away, throw away, use up, do whatever you like with them. Like everything else in this world they won’t last forever, much as we would like them to, so enjoy them while you can.
[Perishable flower photos are mine]
Posts
I do the same with spices! I like variety, lol. Thanks for your generosity, Ellen. Mich USA
ReplyDeleteOh, spices! They do need to be used or replaced regularly. You're entered in the drawing.
DeleteI used to have a hard time with the idea of anything being gone forever. Now I try to use/enjoy things as much as I can. The impermanence of things makes our time and experiences unique.
ReplyDeleteUnknown, I think my philosophy is pretty much like yours. You're entered in the drawing.
ReplyDeleteCongrats, Emily!
ReplyDeleteI do the same with perfume samples. I'd rather someone else find a brand new love or discover something unique than to have unloved samples go bad or evaporate.
Parrot, it took me a long time to realize that there were better things to do with perfume samples than hoard them. You're in the drawing.
ReplyDeleteFor a while I was in a habit of hoarding tons of samples, but now I share with friends and family and find that so much more fulfilling. In fact I created a sample set as a gift to my husband which helped spark his interest in fragrances
ReplyDeleteCrystal, that's great that your gifts are sparking interest in fragrances. You're in the drawing for more samples to use or share.
DeleteOne of my favorite things to do when I travel is find a perfume shop who carries local artisans. I try to purchase a fragrance that is evocative of the location. This provides a scent memory of my travels and takes me back whenever I wear it.
ReplyDeleteAnne, this is such a good idea. I do the same thing, although it's not always perfume. Something really nice, not souvenir-shop junk. You're in the drawing.
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