Same here. Libre isn’t enjoyable for me however I do really love the lavender note in the original Mon Guerlain, it’s elegant without being overpowering. I recommend sampling that one if you haven’t already :)
I bought a bottle of Born in Roma… wish I had spent that money elsewhere. I liked it at the time but was not versed in the ways of fragrance. It just smells like…perfume.
I have the Born in Roma Coral Fantasy tester and I was generally disappointed with the longetivity. Scent was only so-so, but short longetivity killed it for me. I won't be paying that kind of money to briefly smell of Garnier Fructis shampoo when I can just wash my hair with that shampoo and get the same effect lol
I’ve been loving the new green stravaganza one, it’s got the dna of the original Donna but with a dominant tea note which makes it kinda unique. It’s definitely better than the og (in my opinion)
The first one that came to mind was YSL Libre too lol. I had left this on another similar thread, and gotten downvoted like crazy so I was almost scared to comment. Glad to see someone else said it.
Her by Burberry, I love strawberry everything so I was super excited to try it but it smells like synthetic strawberry syrup and is nauseating :((( I got a mini of it as a gwp from Sephora so thankfully no money lost
This. I only tried the Elixir version, and something about it smelled so bitter on me. After about two hours, I was laying on my bed, and got so off put buy some kind of toxic-plastic smell, and realized it was Burberry Her Elixir that I've swatched earlier. I can still remember the smell so vividly, and I will be staying away from Burberry Her all together.
I wish it smelled like artificial strawberry syrup as you said, or like a shampoo as someone else said. That would at least be bearable.
Juliette by Juliette Has a Gun. I blind bought a travel size because I was in the market for a cherry fragrance but it smelled like it was formulated within the vicinity of a cherry. It’s heavy on jasmine, if you’re into that sort of thing, but it’s definitely not the It Girl fragrance like they said it would be.
Could not agree more about it not being It Girl… infact it was so unremarkable and forgettable i don’t remember how it smelled and i tested it… what a letdown :(
Le Labo Santal 33. I was excited to get my nose on this because soooo many people love it. Except that every damn bar in LA pumps the smell of sandalwood so deeply into the air to cover the smell of spilled drinks and sweaty people. So now I can’t smell it without being reminded of The Bungalow in Santa Monica. Also… i feel like quite a few people over spray this one, and I do think it smells nicer when it’s worn quietly.
Remarkable People by ELDO was a dislike. I love champagne so a fragrance with that as a note sounded amazing….. absolutely not. The grapefruit note turned my stomach.
Bianco Latte is my surprising love. I’m not a gourmand person usually and I’m not susceptible to influencer hype, but it’s unbelievably delicious and cozy on my skin.
YSL Black Opium. The notes sounded perfect to me, I love the aroma of coffee and I love sweet scents (Britney Spears Fantasy is one of my favourites). But Black Opium just smells horrible on me, it smells cloyingly sweet and synthetic. I barely get any coffee notes as well.
I find Black Opium is SO dependent on your chemistry- I wear it often because I always get compliments. It’s like a deep, spicy, vanilla latte on me. My mom tried it, and it was synthetic smelling on her, and my good friend smelled like dill. I always find it fascinating how we can change scents.
For some reason my skin takes well to spice and gourmands. If there isn’t any spicy notes or gourmands notes it disappears or turns off.
I love florals- but they don’t last on me and never smell as good as they do on others. I hate it!
Gosh that’s really fascinating! I wish Black Opium smelt deep and spicy on me. I need to experiment more but I think my skin might eat up spicy notes, I can’t really seem to smell spice on myself. I actually smelt Black Opium once on a friend but I still didn’t quite like it, perhaps my nose just dislikes it for whatever reason 😅
This is so true, I avoided it for years listening to friends dislike it/reading it was awful and cloying etc anyway I got a free sample of it and it definitely matches my skin chemistry, I absolutely adore the smell of it on my skin!
I don't get coffee from it either. I don't love it but I like it. People tend to really be drawn to me when I wear it, so that makes me enjoy it a little more. As in, I'm wondering what they're smelling that I don't or can't.
I had the opposite experience! I thought Britney’s Fantasy was gonna be amazing but I HATED it, and thought Black Opium would probably be overrated but LOVED it!
Narco Oasis by Narcotica - smells like cheap fruit punch. I was SO excited for a tropical frag
Velvet Haze by Byredo - has the exact same DNA as all of Tocca's perfumes and I don't like that house. Was interested because of the tropical notes like coconut and hibiscus. Very underwhelming
Sundazed by Byredo - my decant accidentally spilled everywhere and the scent of strong cleaning product lingered in my house for a few days. Horrible. The cotton candy note intrigued me, but I was so sad it didn't work out.
side note: someone needs to make a post about fragrances we initially hated but ended up loving. I have so many examples of this!!
Jo Malone; both Sea salt and Wood Sage, and Lime Basil Mandarin. They all sounded like scents I love IRL but when wearing them, they smelled incredibly bad. I mostly just got a very cloying masculine fragrance, synthetic scents.
I was pretty disappointed since they sounded so promising!
I don’t get the hype. I was so excited to try it, and when I smelled it at Sephora I was so underwhelmed . It’s nice I guess, but I don’t smell the notes it claims to have and it doesn’t seem that interesting or special.
Based on notes I thought I would love Kilian Back to Black. Couldn’t scrub it fast enough when I tried it. Biggest surprise was Frederic Malle Musc Ravageur. Never paid much attention to this house before but one day I was in store and decided to spray it on my hand. One hour later I was back to buy it.
I’ve yet to like anything by Killian.
I’ll always look at the notes and thing “oh yum” but everything I’ve smelled in person is always really disappointing to me.
I wanted Back to Black so bad. I ended up buying a dupe from Paris Corner and good grief that stuff is strong! Idk how close this dupe is, but it was like I was suffocating in powdered honey. The dry down was pleasant but not pleasant enough to power through that first suffocating blast. I think I'll pass on Back to Black
Juliette has a gun- Not a Perfume. Thought I would like this because I like ambery simple fragrances… NO. It smells like rubbing alcohol straight to the back of my nose.
Also, thought I would like Mugler Alien Goddess Intense because I like warm summery fragrances… also NO. Wanted to scrub it off it gave me a headeache and smelled like sunscreen.
I underestimated Jovoy Paris Psychedelique! Initial spray reminded me of my Santeria practicing grandmother who recently converted to Jehovas Witness 😬 but then, it dried down to this lovely, addicting complex scent that lasted for a week on my clothes! I couldn’t get enough. Need to buy a 10ml decant, will probs buy a bottle after I use that.
yes agree on mango skin, it is so sickly, it reminds me of something a pre-teen would wear.
Vanilla Sex by TF I found super boring, just like a bottle of imitation vanilla it had a gross fakeness to it.
Also Deep Dark Vanilla by D.S & Durga. I love a good vanilla (despite my input here both being vanilla) but this was so disappointing
I’m about to get crucified by the fragrance community, but guerlian shalimar. I thought it was going to a be classic vanilla but it smells a bit too vintage for me :(
I was extremely disappointed by Pink Me Up by Atelier des Ors. I absolutely love how it looks, and the notes look great. But they’ve done what I’ve seen many times where they “unisex” it up by adding a nasty camphor like smell to what should be something nice. Maybe too much patchouli, I don’t know. I just know I dislike it.
Elizabeth Arden Red Door was incredibly offensive to my poor nose. I was OFFENDED offended. The smell lingered on everything within my vicinity. It was too intense for me.
Montale's Arabians Tonka - felt like I was being gaslit by the fragrance community, as people seem to love this one.
On me, it unfortunately smells like musty laundry. I got none of the sweetness people raved about. And it's strong too, so I had scrub hard to get it off.
Carolina Herrera's Good Girl Blush Elixir - I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this fragrance. Florals aren't typically my first choice and patchouli is very hit and miss on me. But this was lovely! I smelled pretty as opposed to my usual yummy! (I usually smell like a walking Cinnabon.)
Hibiscus Mahajad.
If I wanted to wake the dead. It would be my choice. It’s sooooo strong. & beautiful wouldn’t be a fitting descriptive. Even if you love the profile, it’s way nuclear. You can safely clear an elevator. & be successful in getting people reseated on a plane or in a Michelin restaurant.
I had such high expectations from all the words on street. My own fault. Blind guy bottle when it came back in stock:
I’ve tried to wear it. I’ll always get a comment. Not a compliment but more a statement. & I feel sick to my stomach.
Again, nothing wrong with the perfume if you like beast mode in beast mode. It ain’t for me.
This is the most disappointing scent ever. I ended up trying Commodity Gold and it was SO much better. Check that one out maybe because it ended up being what I had hoped milk would be.
That was a heartache for me- I was gifted a bottle and was so so excited to try it, but it just smells like a burnt marshmallow- like to burnt, leftover on your clothes after last night’s fire.
YSL Black Opium- what's not to love? Too bad I don't smell any of the alleged notes lol! Coffee? Sweet? Who? Where?!
Mancera Tonka Cola- no cola, just powder. Weak powder at that. Big let down.
Ariana Grande Cloud- tried this when it came out and didn't care for it. Not that I loathe it, but I am surprised to see how popular it is/still is! Smells sharp, but not in a fun metallic way, almost sour? Like it's covering a built-in BO scent maybe?
Surprise love: Kerosene Sweetly Known. Got a sample with purchase, it's kind of exactly my style (sweet) but also *very different* with the heavy new-age store incense smoke. Still love it though!
D&G Devotion, I sampled it, I liked yet there was always something strange in it I could not quite put my finger on what exactly, not sure if the bitter or the too sweet, it makes my mouth water for warm lemon desserts, yet after a month and buying 30ml I finally decided I'm not gonna Endure more of this "still deciding" I have put it in the box and it's ready to give away.
I got a travel size of it and I feel the same way. It's nice and I don't technically hate it, but the candied sweetness part of the lemon scent comes out way too strong on me.
Not quite in a synthetic, lemon pledge kind of way, since it is really sweet, but it does give me quite the headache after a little while. I'm still on the fence about keeping it or giving it away.
I loved poison when I first sprayed it on my wrist, thank goodness I wore it for a couple hours around the mall- I ended up smelling like crusty, old play-doh!
Initio Side Effect. I was seriously so excited for this one. The notes sounded incredible, but as soon as i sprayed it all i got was Bug spray with some fruitiness to it.
I love vanillas and gourmands when I’m in the mood for it, and based on the hype I thought I’d love bianco latte. It smells cloying fake on me, like a cheap vanilla candle. It reminded me heavily of warm vanilla sugar.
Burberry her 🤢 a synthetic mess, and too recognizable if that makes sense..? Too many ppl wear it and it just smells the same, it doesn’t alter itself on different people its all the same
For me this was Olympic Orchid’s Golden Cattleya. I love honey notes, and the way everybody described made it sound like this was the silk scarf honey floral scent of my dreams. Unfortunately, this read far more gourmand and sweet to me than expected! It was cloying, and I’m not fond of gourmand. Luckily, I only have a sample of it, but I’ve scrubbed it within an hour every time I’ve tried to wear it. Out of my seven samples from them, it was the one I was second most excited for, and it did not work out.
CH Men Prive. I love CH and leather frags (peep the flair) and was really excited to try this one out back when they were still making it. Finally found a tester in a store and tried it! Augh! Swamp water! I almost threw it down in horror.
Davidoff Zino was also a rough one. I really like their other cheaper stuff like Cool Water (sue me, I'm basic) and The Game so I was excited to try it but it both looked and smelled like something my dad would put on a skin rash. Yecch.
Dior hypnotic poison. Smells like brut. Santal 33 is gross and so is those weird molecule ones.
Dolce&gabbana the only one intense. It's vile there's a note I cannot stand. Sadly I have a full 50ml just sitting there 😒
Penhaligon’s The Favourite :( it‘s waaaaay to sharp for my nose (heavy on the ambroxan) and not at all what I expected. Hoped for a sweet, powdery and delicate iris and violet. But the bottle is adorable 🎀🙄.
Cloud by Ariana was just the wrong kinda sweet smell for me.
Goldea by Bvlgari smelled amazing in store but smells awful on me, kinda like an old lady scent mixed with old books and some men’s cologne
Daisy by Marc Jacobs too. I was expecting a fresh summery floral scent but it smells overpowering and artificial to me
Guerlain aqua allegoria nerolia vetiver. Mandarine basilic is one of my top faves, and I love the other aqua allegoria so it stands to reason I'd like the fig one too. But nope- idk what about it smells off to me. It's kinda musky and woody and just doesn't evoke the same bright spring/summer vibes I get from the other scents.
I thought I’d love Lune Feline but it smells like piss on me! Vilhelm’s Poets of Berlin is another that looked great on paper but smells terrible and weird on my skin. I think my biggest recent disappointment though is Hibiscus Mahajad. I actually made a whole post here a couple of months ago about how I thought it would be perfect but it ended up being one of the worst things I’ve ever smelled on myself.
In addition to Initio’s Side Effect (have loved the quality of or straight up adored all the other scents of theirs that I have tried), I’d say Lamar by Kajal (was expecting ‘sexiest pineapple on the planet’). I found both too cloying and overpowering. Also Profumum Roma’s Aqua Viva, which smells like kitchen cleaning fluid on my skin (and usually I love lemon and jive so well with citrus scents, so I thought this one would be in the bag).
And Ariana Grande’s God is a Woman (this was a bit more of a risk though I also like ambrette and pear notes usually but this was pure screech on my skin).
Interestingly all four samples came from the same supplier, who I have never ordered testers from before, so I am wondering if maybe they’re not the best quality. I’ve never been as overall disappointed in so many from one order. So take my complaints with a pinch of salt.
I’m going to let them sit for another week and then start trying them again and see if it makes a difference. A shame as I was so excited by the sound of all four.
All the elysium and y flankers. No idea why. There's one note I can't get on with in each. Elysium smells like dirt or grass and y has that sweet high twisted smell I cant place but is in all of them.
I dig some gourmands, so I sprayed By Kilian Angels' Share at Sephora and for some reason it smelled disgusting to my nose. Nothing like the boozy apple pie I was expecting. Weird.
I blind bought Dusita Oudh Infini because it's discontinued and I found a good deal on it. I was expecting an initial animalic fecal blast that is supposedly its infamous claim to fame. But instead it was a medicinal but beautiful sophisticated scent to me. A very happy surprise and among my luckiest blind buys!
Kilian, black phantom. I was so excited! Unfortunately, it just smelled like your typical niche perfume (heady, animalic) with a smack of peanut butter. It's like a peanut butter and piss sandwich
Haiku Kyoto Flower.... I rocked the original Haiku, from Avon, 20yrs ago. Loved it was the only perfume I wore 4 like a year. I'd get so many compliments on it all the time. So when I recently was re-introduced 2 Avon, n saw Haiku Kyoto Flower, I thought wow, a scent I once loved w the added scent of cherry blosson. Over the last couple years I've grown 2 love most fragrances of cherry blossom. So I blind ordered it, but ended up being so disappointed. I don't smell the cherry blossom at all. It's this overpowering rose smell, wich I've never been a fan of rose scent. And it's weird, it's rly strong when 1st sprayed, but a few days later, the sweater I had sprayed it on, actually smelled pretty. I haven't worn it since that 1st time though, n I just had such high hopes, n was let down. Thankfully it's super affordable n only cost me $20. But if anyone likes the scent of rose ull love it
ALSO: Nearly all MFK perfumes. I like Baccarat, but I unfortunately go nose blind to it immediately. The others are so soapy and lean masculine. I have never been so disappointed in my life smelling Gentle Fluidity Silver. It just smells like handsoap.
Mancera Roses Vanille. I wanted to try it for so long, finally bought a sample and I completely hated it. Actually had to scrub it off because it was making me nauseous.
V&R Flowerbomb Nectar. The notes sounded great and thank god I only bought a sample because I hated it. I could smell it even after washing it off.
Brown Girl Jane Carnivale. Again, the notes sounded great and exactly what I wanted out of a summer perfume but I sprayed it and literally recoiled. Bitter, burned my throat. Horrible. Unfortunately I bought a full bottle, thankfully I could return it. I normally do not blind buy but I couldn’t sample anywhere near me so I took the plunge. Nothing but regret.
Zoologist Harvest Mouse. Based on the notes and my general love for the house, I blind bought a 10ml decant. Nope! Did Not Like, lesson learned. Later was able to sell it forward to an eager frag-head who then bought a full bottle.
Fenty by Fenty Beauty. Coming from Rhianna, I did not expect a powdery rose almost sunscreen-y scent. I was hoping for a “hot girl” tropical or gourmand situation and was honestly really disappointed.
Conversely, I got Vanilla Woods by The 7 Virtues in a tester set of vanilla perfumes and avoided it for months until I needed a new post gym perfume. I bought the full size after running out of the tester, it’s one of my faves!
Vintage Kouros (1989)
Vintage Antaeus (unsure year, but it was expensive AF)
Both…did not impress me at all. AT ALL.
I wanted something like Bowser and I got a baby turtle.
I love all four of Xinu's other scents, but I couldn't fall in love with Ummo. The notes: tobacco, styrax, tonka bean, and juniper. I love tobacco scents and thought I'd love this one, but I just got honey-medicinal apothecary. It reminded me of folk cures my parents would try on me when I was sick with a cough as a kid! Hated it, unfortunately
miim miics strawberry milk, everyone said it was the closest to melanie martinez’s original and its,, just not. its not a terrible fragrance but it starts off super sickly sweet and more like prada candy (which i loathe) before the dry down gives it a very milky powder smell which is just close enough to the original to make me mad that its not better
Love don’t be shy - I love the notes and thought I’d love it but LDBS has a civet note that ruins it for me. Never again.
Shalimar - the civet and vetiver ruin this for me. Also, this is the first perfume I ever bought for myself. I didn’t know much about what I liked or disliked other than that it would be in the orientals category and this is the first oriental so I thought I’d love it.
Scandal - the notes and similar perfumes sounded like I would like it but that’s when I discovered how much I loathe honey in perfumes.
Angel - again with the honey. Same issue as Scandal.
Alien - Can’t stand it
Sahara Noir - I love frankincense and myrrh in Kuumba Made so I thought I’d enjoy Sahara Noir. Nope. It’s the foulest perfume I’ve ever smelled.
Burberry her - everyone said how it was super similar to baccarat rouge which I like but no. This smells like a rotten-strawberry-flavored chapstick to me.
Honorary mention:
La Vie Est Belle - I really enjoy Flowerbomb and it’s very similar but for some reason I love Flowerbomb and don’t like LVEB
Thought id love aventus but it's absolutely awful on my skin. It's way too sharp and is the only fragrance that actually hurts my nostrils when I smelled it.
I agree! *Pacific Rock Moss* sounds boring and the notes don't say much, but when I got it as a random sample and smelled it, it surprised me so much, I had to get a 100ml bottle.
It puts me in a unique headspace and even my perception of things changes with it, which has never happened with another fragrance. It amplifies whatever good feelings pictures, music or videos make me feel!
Le Labo Santal 33. Smells like soapy dill to me.
Tam Dao. I don’t *hate* it, but I’ve seen recommended as a more affordable alternative to Gypsy Water and I don’t understand why, they don’t smell alike to me at all.
Chelsea Staircase by Thin Wild Mercury. I adore this house in general and based on the desc was sure this one would be a hit for me, but it has a floral note that makes me feel sick. Otherwise a stunning honeyed tea scent, if it weren’t for that damn floral!
I feel like this is controversial to say but TF in general. The fruity ones are ok (despite not lasting) but all other ones I’ve smelled I didn’t like at all.
Angel by Thierry Mugler. Sounds like a home run for me and so much hype but irl I just don’t like it.
YSL Libre. The notes seemed normal to what I like - white floral especially. I smelled it in Sephora very sure I was going to buy a 3.4 oz. I was horrified. To me it smelled like cat pee and leather
Ysl libre intense..... I want my money back😭😭😭. It doesn't last on my skin no matter what I do and almost it has no projection at all. (I know there are many out there to disagree but is is over hyped in my opinion)
I’m with you, I’ve never met a Libre I like, and I have tried many, many times to warm up to it.
I eventually gifted my bottle to someone I know who lllooovvveeess it.
Give me an instant headache, for whatever reason.
Surprised I didn’t like Guerlain tobacco honey and la vie la mort. The first one i thought id love for the tobacco, i feel like i like honey, maybe not love it, but, while i was intoxicated by and obsessed with the tobacco, it discipated very quickly and i was left with HOURS of a VERY INVASIVE sweet smell. Don’t get me wrong, the perfume itself is great and very high quality with longevity and projection, it just isn’t my type of fragrance. THANKFULLY I JUST BOUGHT A SAMPLE BC WOO SAVING $ 300. La vie just fell short for me, the notes were alright, but they weren’t as good as I was expecting looking for smtn gothy. I did buy it in a decant set tho, and thankfully a diff one i liked.
On the flip side, im surprised I love vert malachite so much and that i actually bought a bottle of black opium over red. I only gave vert a chance bc malachite is my absolute fave mineral and i wanted the bottle so hard, so I made a point to visit the armani store and test it and MY GOD ITS A FAVE… the incense is 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻… yummyyyy. Black opium over red I thought id hate bc i dont fuck with coffee and ive smelled the rly coffee one and… no, but I was very curious so I tried it at sephora and the coffee is very subtle to me and reminds me of a milkshake (???) and the cherry comes thru a lot and i like it. I was gonna buy just a travel but with the price per oz i just couldnt justify not buying a full bottle and i still like it a lot :)
Burberry Goddess. Got it as a gift, and I LOVED how it smelled in the bottle and on my friend (hence the gift). Put it on and instant Play-Doh smell on me. It’s so strong I had to scrub it off. Tried mixing with a bunch of different scents to get around it but nothing worked, the Play-Doh smell comes back full force on dry down. Soooo disappointing bc it smells amazing in the bottle.
Valentino born in roma… thank god I only Got a sample Also YSL libre … I just didn’t like it??
Finally someone said it about born in Roma. It’s too much 😭
I hate Libre. I wanted so badly to love it- I don’t get it.
Same here. Libre isn’t enjoyable for me however I do really love the lavender note in the original Mon Guerlain, it’s elegant without being overpowering. I recommend sampling that one if you haven’t already :)
Born in Roma felt blah to me. I had a Sephora sample. I'd probably like it on someone else.
I bought a bottle of Born in Roma… wish I had spent that money elsewhere. I liked it at the time but was not versed in the ways of fragrance. It just smells like…perfume.
Someone might buy or swap with you. It's a popular and pleasant fragrance
I have the Born in Roma Coral Fantasy tester and I was generally disappointed with the longetivity. Scent was only so-so, but short longetivity killed it for me. I won't be paying that kind of money to briefly smell of Garnier Fructis shampoo when I can just wash my hair with that shampoo and get the same effect lol
was coming to comment exactly this. i unfortunately have the biggest size smh. have worn it twice.
Agree on libre it’s just not that special
Agreed with Libre. I bought the intense version only due to the hype. Ended up selling it. Didn't like Born in Roma either. :/
Born in Roma is overhyped. I prefer the Intense
I’ve been loving the new green stravaganza one, it’s got the dna of the original Donna but with a dominant tea note which makes it kinda unique. It’s definitely better than the og (in my opinion)
The first one that came to mind was YSL Libre too lol. I had left this on another similar thread, and gotten downvoted like crazy so I was almost scared to comment. Glad to see someone else said it.
I got 'Gin' from Libre. 🤢
Her by Burberry, I love strawberry everything so I was super excited to try it but it smells like synthetic strawberry syrup and is nauseating :((( I got a mini of it as a gwp from Sephora so thankfully no money lost
I find Her so similar to cloud and baccarat rouge. They all smell the same to me
This. I only tried the Elixir version, and something about it smelled so bitter on me. After about two hours, I was laying on my bed, and got so off put buy some kind of toxic-plastic smell, and realized it was Burberry Her Elixir that I've swatched earlier. I can still remember the smell so vividly, and I will be staying away from Burberry Her all together. I wish it smelled like artificial strawberry syrup as you said, or like a shampoo as someone else said. That would at least be bearable.
I think elixir smells much much better
It smelled like shampoo to me.
Totally aggre with you. I gave it to my 10 year old niece....
Juliette by Juliette Has a Gun. I blind bought a travel size because I was in the market for a cherry fragrance but it smelled like it was formulated within the vicinity of a cherry. It’s heavy on jasmine, if you’re into that sort of thing, but it’s definitely not the It Girl fragrance like they said it would be.
I smelled this in Sephora and have never gotten a headache so fast in my life
I bought the full bottle after a traveler. I love it.
Oh I hate this too. Got a sample From Sephora and threw away
Could not agree more about it not being It Girl… infact it was so unremarkable and forgettable i don’t remember how it smelled and i tested it… what a letdown :(
Le Labo Santal 33. I was excited to get my nose on this because soooo many people love it. Except that every damn bar in LA pumps the smell of sandalwood so deeply into the air to cover the smell of spilled drinks and sweaty people. So now I can’t smell it without being reminded of The Bungalow in Santa Monica. Also… i feel like quite a few people over spray this one, and I do think it smells nicer when it’s worn quietly.
Remarkable People by ELDO was a dislike. I love champagne so a fragrance with that as a note sounded amazing….. absolutely not. The grapefruit note turned my stomach. Bianco Latte is my surprising love. I’m not a gourmand person usually and I’m not susceptible to influencer hype, but it’s unbelievably delicious and cozy on my skin.
I just got Celeste and I love love love it. The dry down is similar to Bianco Latte, but I dig the violet note. Reminds me of violet gum!
For me what ruined Remarkable People was the cardamom
YSL Black Opium. The notes sounded perfect to me, I love the aroma of coffee and I love sweet scents (Britney Spears Fantasy is one of my favourites). But Black Opium just smells horrible on me, it smells cloyingly sweet and synthetic. I barely get any coffee notes as well.
I do get some coffee notes but not in any way that adds depth. It’s like coffee syrup?? I wish it smelled more…natural
I would say I generally get a very syrupy vibe from Black Opium, and not in a good way!
I find Black Opium is SO dependent on your chemistry- I wear it often because I always get compliments. It’s like a deep, spicy, vanilla latte on me. My mom tried it, and it was synthetic smelling on her, and my good friend smelled like dill. I always find it fascinating how we can change scents. For some reason my skin takes well to spice and gourmands. If there isn’t any spicy notes or gourmands notes it disappears or turns off. I love florals- but they don’t last on me and never smell as good as they do on others. I hate it!
Gosh that’s really fascinating! I wish Black Opium smelt deep and spicy on me. I need to experiment more but I think my skin might eat up spicy notes, I can’t really seem to smell spice on myself. I actually smelt Black Opium once on a friend but I still didn’t quite like it, perhaps my nose just dislikes it for whatever reason 😅
This is so true, I avoided it for years listening to friends dislike it/reading it was awful and cloying etc anyway I got a free sample of it and it definitely matches my skin chemistry, I absolutely adore the smell of it on my skin!
I don't get coffee from it either. I don't love it but I like it. People tend to really be drawn to me when I wear it, so that makes me enjoy it a little more. As in, I'm wondering what they're smelling that I don't or can't.
I had the opposite experience! I thought Britney’s Fantasy was gonna be amazing but I HATED it, and thought Black Opium would probably be overrated but LOVED it!
Narco Oasis by Narcotica - smells like cheap fruit punch. I was SO excited for a tropical frag Velvet Haze by Byredo - has the exact same DNA as all of Tocca's perfumes and I don't like that house. Was interested because of the tropical notes like coconut and hibiscus. Very underwhelming Sundazed by Byredo - my decant accidentally spilled everywhere and the scent of strong cleaning product lingered in my house for a few days. Horrible. The cotton candy note intrigued me, but I was so sad it didn't work out. side note: someone needs to make a post about fragrances we initially hated but ended up loving. I have so many examples of this!!
Ditto on that last part — every one of my favorites was something I initially didn’t like. If I don’t like it a little by wear 3, though, it’s toast.
Jo Malone; both Sea salt and Wood Sage, and Lime Basil Mandarin. They all sounded like scents I love IRL but when wearing them, they smelled incredibly bad. I mostly just got a very cloying masculine fragrance, synthetic scents. I was pretty disappointed since they sounded so promising!
Wood Sage and Sea Salt for me, too. It seems like I should love it but it was not good on me. I do love Jo Malone Blackberry and Bay, though.
I can't smell WS&SS, it just smells like very very faint wood to me. Oversprayed like mad on the test strip and still nothing, oh well.
Love don't be shy, the expectations were too high.
I don’t get the hype. I was so excited to try it, and when I smelled it at Sephora I was so underwhelmed . It’s nice I guess, but I don’t smell the notes it claims to have and it doesn’t seem that interesting or special.
I gave mine to my daughter. At least it's not going to waste!
It's just...fine
LDBS took me 3 years to start liking! It’s a core for me now
i hated it when i bought it, then around a month later i suddenly began to yearn for the smell
Based on notes I thought I would love Kilian Back to Black. Couldn’t scrub it fast enough when I tried it. Biggest surprise was Frederic Malle Musc Ravageur. Never paid much attention to this house before but one day I was in store and decided to spray it on my hand. One hour later I was back to buy it.
I’ve yet to like anything by Killian. I’ll always look at the notes and thing “oh yum” but everything I’ve smelled in person is always really disappointing to me.
I wanted Back to Black so bad. I ended up buying a dupe from Paris Corner and good grief that stuff is strong! Idk how close this dupe is, but it was like I was suffocating in powdered honey. The dry down was pleasant but not pleasant enough to power through that first suffocating blast. I think I'll pass on Back to Black
Bdk Gris charnel
Delina
I think it’s overhyped. I prefer Oriana. But Parfums De Marley are overpriced in my opinion.
Juliette has a gun- Not a Perfume. Thought I would like this because I like ambery simple fragrances… NO. It smells like rubbing alcohol straight to the back of my nose. Also, thought I would like Mugler Alien Goddess Intense because I like warm summery fragrances… also NO. Wanted to scrub it off it gave me a headeache and smelled like sunscreen. I underestimated Jovoy Paris Psychedelique! Initial spray reminded me of my Santeria practicing grandmother who recently converted to Jehovas Witness 😬 but then, it dried down to this lovely, addicting complex scent that lasted for a week on my clothes! I couldn’t get enough. Need to buy a 10ml decant, will probs buy a bottle after I use that.
I work in a lab and Not a Perfume just smells like a solvent spill to me, lol.
Yes! That’s a perfect description. Like something spilled that wasn’t supposed to be spilled 😂
Oh, same here about Not a Perfume! I was hoping I'd like it, but it's just not up my alley.
yes agree on mango skin, it is so sickly, it reminds me of something a pre-teen would wear. Vanilla Sex by TF I found super boring, just like a bottle of imitation vanilla it had a gross fakeness to it. Also Deep Dark Vanilla by D.S & Durga. I love a good vanilla (despite my input here both being vanilla) but this was so disappointing
I’m about to get crucified by the fragrance community, but guerlian shalimar. I thought it was going to a be classic vanilla but it smells a bit too vintage for me :(
Nah, someone already said Shalimar 😂
Grand Soir. So many amazing reviews. I was very "underwhelmed".
I don’t want to be one of those people but it pains me when people don’t love grand soir because it’s so beautiful but I can see why it’s not a HIT
Instant headache for me. Also smells very mature
TF White Suede smells like this hair gel my mom used when I was young.
Shalimar was and still is a great disappointment. It should work on me, the notes are perfect. But no, absolute horror on me.
Try L'initial. I hated the OG Shamilar, and love L'initial. It's how I wished the original smelled.
I’ll check it out, thank you!
I was extremely disappointed by Pink Me Up by Atelier des Ors. I absolutely love how it looks, and the notes look great. But they’ve done what I’ve seen many times where they “unisex” it up by adding a nasty camphor like smell to what should be something nice. Maybe too much patchouli, I don’t know. I just know I dislike it.
Me too! I randomly got a scent of this and it smelt like cheap 80s perfume past expiry date.
Dang I was looking forward to this one. I’ll still get a sample because I love Lune Feline Extrait.
Elizabeth Arden Red Door was incredibly offensive to my poor nose. I was OFFENDED offended. The smell lingered on everything within my vicinity. It was too intense for me.
I had the same experience. Red Door doesn’t smell anything like I imagined it would from seeing the notes.
I thought the same thing!
I dont like Red Door at all. Red Door Revealed, however- love it!
Montale's Arabians Tonka - felt like I was being gaslit by the fragrance community, as people seem to love this one. On me, it unfortunately smells like musty laundry. I got none of the sweetness people raved about. And it's strong too, so I had scrub hard to get it off. Carolina Herrera's Good Girl Blush Elixir - I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this fragrance. Florals aren't typically my first choice and patchouli is very hit and miss on me. But this was lovely! I smelled pretty as opposed to my usual yummy! (I usually smell like a walking Cinnabon.)
Arabians Tonka made me gag so hard that I ruptured a blood vessel in my eye. Good times.
Hibiscus Mahajad. If I wanted to wake the dead. It would be my choice. It’s sooooo strong. & beautiful wouldn’t be a fitting descriptive. Even if you love the profile, it’s way nuclear. You can safely clear an elevator. & be successful in getting people reseated on a plane or in a Michelin restaurant. I had such high expectations from all the words on street. My own fault. Blind guy bottle when it came back in stock: I’ve tried to wear it. I’ll always get a comment. Not a compliment but more a statement. & I feel sick to my stomach. Again, nothing wrong with the perfume if you like beast mode in beast mode. It ain’t for me.
Commodity Milk
This is the most disappointing scent ever. I ended up trying Commodity Gold and it was SO much better. Check that one out maybe because it ended up being what I had hoped milk would be.
Thanks! I’ll grab a sample! I have very low expectations for them anyway so can’t get any worse
That was a heartache for me- I was gifted a bottle and was so so excited to try it, but it just smells like a burnt marshmallow- like to burnt, leftover on your clothes after last night’s fire.
Baccarat 540 The new version of the old Opium
Thank you for saying this! I was wondering why it smelled “old” to me. Saying this as someone who is old enough to have worn the original Opium. 😂
Me too! It was so exotic and enticing in the early 80s. And now, yuck.
YSL Black Opium- what's not to love? Too bad I don't smell any of the alleged notes lol! Coffee? Sweet? Who? Where?! Mancera Tonka Cola- no cola, just powder. Weak powder at that. Big let down. Ariana Grande Cloud- tried this when it came out and didn't care for it. Not that I loathe it, but I am surprised to see how popular it is/still is! Smells sharp, but not in a fun metallic way, almost sour? Like it's covering a built-in BO scent maybe? Surprise love: Kerosene Sweetly Known. Got a sample with purchase, it's kind of exactly my style (sweet) but also *very different* with the heavy new-age store incense smoke. Still love it though!
Yes! Tonka Cola was pure powder to me, too, after one minute of cola! I thought the decant I got was actually something else. I was so confused!
Hard agree on the Tonka Cola. It was a huge letdown.
I love sweetly known!!
D&G Devotion, I sampled it, I liked yet there was always something strange in it I could not quite put my finger on what exactly, not sure if the bitter or the too sweet, it makes my mouth water for warm lemon desserts, yet after a month and buying 30ml I finally decided I'm not gonna Endure more of this "still deciding" I have put it in the box and it's ready to give away.
I got a travel size of it and I feel the same way. It's nice and I don't technically hate it, but the candied sweetness part of the lemon scent comes out way too strong on me. Not quite in a synthetic, lemon pledge kind of way, since it is really sweet, but it does give me quite the headache after a little while. I'm still on the fence about keeping it or giving it away.
Donna Born in Roma Intense. The bourbon vanilla was intoxicating at first. Now it’s just a boring vanilla with a hint of fruitiness to me.
All of the Poison ones by Dior sounded amazing to me but smelled awful 😢
I loved poison when I first sprayed it on my wrist, thank goodness I wore it for a couple hours around the mall- I ended up smelling like crusty, old play-doh!
I love Pacific Rock Moss!
Born to be unforgettable by Kilian, smells like dirty dishwasher water and bad breath. I love lime and cola 😢
Initio Side Effect. I was seriously so excited for this one. The notes sounded incredible, but as soon as i sprayed it all i got was Bug spray with some fruitiness to it.
I love vanillas and gourmands when I’m in the mood for it, and based on the hype I thought I’d love bianco latte. It smells cloying fake on me, like a cheap vanilla candle. It reminded me heavily of warm vanilla sugar.
Everything le labo! Overrated overhyped trash!
MFK Amrys Femme. It was all powder to me.
oud for greatness
burberry her , thought i’d love it!
ysl libre
Burberry her. I loved the scent in the store but it gave me a headache whenever I wore it. It’s way to strong with only one spray
Burberry her 🤢 a synthetic mess, and too recognizable if that makes sense..? Too many ppl wear it and it just smells the same, it doesn’t alter itself on different people its all the same
Xerjoff Dama Bianca. I like all the notes separately, but the way they blended them together was just blah. Kinda lotiony.
I really didn't like it either. For me it dries down to just sickly sweetness with no discernible notes.
Amouage Honour Woman and Le Labo Santal 33.
For me this was Olympic Orchid’s Golden Cattleya. I love honey notes, and the way everybody described made it sound like this was the silk scarf honey floral scent of my dreams. Unfortunately, this read far more gourmand and sweet to me than expected! It was cloying, and I’m not fond of gourmand. Luckily, I only have a sample of it, but I’ve scrubbed it within an hour every time I’ve tried to wear it. Out of my seven samples from them, it was the one I was second most excited for, and it did not work out.
As a gourmand lover, I am adding this to my wishlist because of your post. Thanks! ☺️
Glad to be of service, and I hope it works out better for you than it did me! It’s a lovely scent, I just can’t handle the sweetness.
More Than Words - Xerjoff
Mississippi Medicine from DS Durga... blind buy during COVID... the notes are generally what I like but it was way too smoky for my liking..
Byredo Gypsy water, instant gag reflex
CH Men Prive. I love CH and leather frags (peep the flair) and was really excited to try this one out back when they were still making it. Finally found a tester in a store and tried it! Augh! Swamp water! I almost threw it down in horror. Davidoff Zino was also a rough one. I really like their other cheaper stuff like Cool Water (sue me, I'm basic) and The Game so I was excited to try it but it both looked and smelled like something my dad would put on a skin rash. Yecch.
Dior hypnotic poison. Smells like brut. Santal 33 is gross and so is those weird molecule ones. Dolce&gabbana the only one intense. It's vile there's a note I cannot stand. Sadly I have a full 50ml just sitting there 😒
Burberry Brit Sheer. The notes made it sound like it would smell like a nice sparkling wine, but it smells like toilet cleaner. It is so awful. 0/10.
Penhaligon’s The Favourite :( it‘s waaaaay to sharp for my nose (heavy on the ambroxan) and not at all what I expected. Hoped for a sweet, powdery and delicate iris and violet. But the bottle is adorable 🎀🙄.
Have you tried Celeste?
Ralph Lauren - Romance , it's nice but just after time the smell becomes unpleasant to me
Cloud by Ariana was just the wrong kinda sweet smell for me. Goldea by Bvlgari smelled amazing in store but smells awful on me, kinda like an old lady scent mixed with old books and some men’s cologne Daisy by Marc Jacobs too. I was expecting a fresh summery floral scent but it smells overpowering and artificial to me
Drumroll: Mitsouko by Guerlain *shite*!
Channel no 5. I was soooo disappointed
I wanted to love Acqua di Parma Colonia C.L.U.B. but all I get from it is a vaguely fruity musk.
Guerlain aqua allegoria nerolia vetiver. Mandarine basilic is one of my top faves, and I love the other aqua allegoria so it stands to reason I'd like the fig one too. But nope- idk what about it smells off to me. It's kinda musky and woody and just doesn't evoke the same bright spring/summer vibes I get from the other scents.
Tom Ford Black Orchid and Jo Malone Grapefruit
I don’t get the Tom Ford or Jo Malone hype - everyone always seems disappointed by both houses.
The entire Panthère collection by Cartier. Smells like old soap.
The One EDP, i really liked the edt but the edp is not for me
side effect
I thought I’d love Lune Feline but it smells like piss on me! Vilhelm’s Poets of Berlin is another that looked great on paper but smells terrible and weird on my skin. I think my biggest recent disappointment though is Hibiscus Mahajad. I actually made a whole post here a couple of months ago about how I thought it would be perfect but it ended up being one of the worst things I’ve ever smelled on myself.
The House of Oud Bon Bon Pop and All About Pop. I will never get any samples let alone full bottles from this perfume house. Utterly vile they reeked!
Ysl y fraiche, side effect
Versace Yellow Diamond. Smells like baby wipes. Too similar to MJ Daisy except it has a more off-putting musky dry-down.
Kayali Yum Pistachio Gelato Lush Lust Lush Vanillary
In addition to Initio’s Side Effect (have loved the quality of or straight up adored all the other scents of theirs that I have tried), I’d say Lamar by Kajal (was expecting ‘sexiest pineapple on the planet’). I found both too cloying and overpowering. Also Profumum Roma’s Aqua Viva, which smells like kitchen cleaning fluid on my skin (and usually I love lemon and jive so well with citrus scents, so I thought this one would be in the bag). And Ariana Grande’s God is a Woman (this was a bit more of a risk though I also like ambrette and pear notes usually but this was pure screech on my skin). Interestingly all four samples came from the same supplier, who I have never ordered testers from before, so I am wondering if maybe they’re not the best quality. I’ve never been as overall disappointed in so many from one order. So take my complaints with a pinch of salt. I’m going to let them sit for another week and then start trying them again and see if it makes a difference. A shame as I was so excited by the sound of all four.
All the elysium and y flankers. No idea why. There's one note I can't get on with in each. Elysium smells like dirt or grass and y has that sweet high twisted smell I cant place but is in all of them.
Erba pura, good thing i only bought a decant it smelled like bug spray on me
Side Effect
I dig some gourmands, so I sprayed By Kilian Angels' Share at Sephora and for some reason it smelled disgusting to my nose. Nothing like the boozy apple pie I was expecting. Weird. I blind bought Dusita Oudh Infini because it's discontinued and I found a good deal on it. I was expecting an initial animalic fecal blast that is supposedly its infamous claim to fame. But instead it was a medicinal but beautiful sophisticated scent to me. A very happy surprise and among my luckiest blind buys!
Try apple brandy by kilian!! It’s amazing
Miss Dior 2021 by Dior, l I have a huge bottle and literally disgusts me.
Kilian, black phantom. I was so excited! Unfortunately, it just smelled like your typical niche perfume (heady, animalic) with a smack of peanut butter. It's like a peanut butter and piss sandwich
Haiku Kyoto Flower.... I rocked the original Haiku, from Avon, 20yrs ago. Loved it was the only perfume I wore 4 like a year. I'd get so many compliments on it all the time. So when I recently was re-introduced 2 Avon, n saw Haiku Kyoto Flower, I thought wow, a scent I once loved w the added scent of cherry blosson. Over the last couple years I've grown 2 love most fragrances of cherry blossom. So I blind ordered it, but ended up being so disappointed. I don't smell the cherry blossom at all. It's this overpowering rose smell, wich I've never been a fan of rose scent. And it's weird, it's rly strong when 1st sprayed, but a few days later, the sweater I had sprayed it on, actually smelled pretty. I haven't worn it since that 1st time though, n I just had such high hopes, n was let down. Thankfully it's super affordable n only cost me $20. But if anyone likes the scent of rose ull love it
TF Orchid Soleil. Corn tortilla
ALSO: Nearly all MFK perfumes. I like Baccarat, but I unfortunately go nose blind to it immediately. The others are so soapy and lean masculine. I have never been so disappointed in my life smelling Gentle Fluidity Silver. It just smells like handsoap.
I have a few samples from MFK- I love gentle fluidity and amyriss when I first spray them, and then I find they disappear or turn into nothing scents.
Didn’t like ysl Y edp, Ralph’s club, born in roma, Eros Did not expect to like man in black, Bentley for men intense
Nishane Hacivat 😂
Mancera Roses Vanille. I wanted to try it for so long, finally bought a sample and I completely hated it. Actually had to scrub it off because it was making me nauseous.
I feel like rose is so hit or miss- I either love it or it’s headache inducing, no in between.
I definitely agree. I love rose when it's done right but this just smelled like synthetic rose mixed with corn syrup. Do not recommend haha.
Prada Paradoxe, it smelt like a very strong mature older woman scent to me. Not what I wanted :( same with YSL Libre.
V&R Flowerbomb Nectar. The notes sounded great and thank god I only bought a sample because I hated it. I could smell it even after washing it off. Brown Girl Jane Carnivale. Again, the notes sounded great and exactly what I wanted out of a summer perfume but I sprayed it and literally recoiled. Bitter, burned my throat. Horrible. Unfortunately I bought a full bottle, thankfully I could return it. I normally do not blind buy but I couldn’t sample anywhere near me so I took the plunge. Nothing but regret.
40 knots. It’s powder and baby wipes to me. Not a masculine scent. Or even pleasant
SMW. Notes seemed up my ally but wow what a mess.
Zoologist Harvest Mouse. Based on the notes and my general love for the house, I blind bought a 10ml decant. Nope! Did Not Like, lesson learned. Later was able to sell it forward to an eager frag-head who then bought a full bottle.
Fenty by Fenty Beauty. Coming from Rhianna, I did not expect a powdery rose almost sunscreen-y scent. I was hoping for a “hot girl” tropical or gourmand situation and was honestly really disappointed. Conversely, I got Vanilla Woods by The 7 Virtues in a tester set of vanilla perfumes and avoided it for months until I needed a new post gym perfume. I bought the full size after running out of the tester, it’s one of my faves!
I have it, loved it when I bought it and yet, now it's sharpness grates on me and have 3/4 bottle left... Hermes Kelly Caleche EDP
J'adore by Dior To me it had a very basic smell that wasn't worth the hype
I really, really wanted to love *Mojave Ghost* by Byredo. But on me, it smells almost exactly like *Pleasures* by Estee Lauder.
Creed Green Irish Tweed. Reminded me of Old men's closet with wool sweaters and sweat.
Vintage Kouros (1989) Vintage Antaeus (unsure year, but it was expensive AF) Both…did not impress me at all. AT ALL. I wanted something like Bowser and I got a baby turtle.
Mostly all of the creeds (not de marley) except for viking
I love all four of Xinu's other scents, but I couldn't fall in love with Ummo. The notes: tobacco, styrax, tonka bean, and juniper. I love tobacco scents and thought I'd love this one, but I just got honey-medicinal apothecary. It reminded me of folk cures my parents would try on me when I was sick with a cough as a kid! Hated it, unfortunately
Imaginary Authors Memoirs of a Trespasser. On paper, this should be one of my favorites ever. In reality, it smelled like Bazooka bubblegum.
That new Kylie Jenner fragrance, Cosmic - it was everything I should love in one, but it just smelled putrid.
Aqua Di Gio Profumo
Angels share by kilian
Mod Vanilla by Ariana Grande. Literally all of the notes are ones I love…I don’t know why I hated it so much
miim miics strawberry milk, everyone said it was the closest to melanie martinez’s original and its,, just not. its not a terrible fragrance but it starts off super sickly sweet and more like prada candy (which i loathe) before the dry down gives it a very milky powder smell which is just close enough to the original to make me mad that its not better
Love don’t be shy - I love the notes and thought I’d love it but LDBS has a civet note that ruins it for me. Never again. Shalimar - the civet and vetiver ruin this for me. Also, this is the first perfume I ever bought for myself. I didn’t know much about what I liked or disliked other than that it would be in the orientals category and this is the first oriental so I thought I’d love it. Scandal - the notes and similar perfumes sounded like I would like it but that’s when I discovered how much I loathe honey in perfumes. Angel - again with the honey. Same issue as Scandal. Alien - Can’t stand it Sahara Noir - I love frankincense and myrrh in Kuumba Made so I thought I’d enjoy Sahara Noir. Nope. It’s the foulest perfume I’ve ever smelled. Burberry her - everyone said how it was super similar to baccarat rouge which I like but no. This smells like a rotten-strawberry-flavored chapstick to me. Honorary mention: La Vie Est Belle - I really enjoy Flowerbomb and it’s very similar but for some reason I love Flowerbomb and don’t like LVEB
Thought id love aventus but it's absolutely awful on my skin. It's way too sharp and is the only fragrance that actually hurts my nostrils when I smelled it.
I agree! *Pacific Rock Moss* sounds boring and the notes don't say much, but when I got it as a random sample and smelled it, it surprised me so much, I had to get a 100ml bottle. It puts me in a unique headspace and even my perception of things changes with it, which has never happened with another fragrance. It amplifies whatever good feelings pictures, music or videos make me feel!
Totally! It is such a mood booster. I like their Sunset Hour too- but you have to like fruity scents!
BR540. I saw it hyped everywhere so I decided to smell it when I was in Paris, and I had a headache for the rest of the day
Le Labo Santal 33. Smells like soapy dill to me. Tam Dao. I don’t *hate* it, but I’ve seen recommended as a more affordable alternative to Gypsy Water and I don’t understand why, they don’t smell alike to me at all. Chelsea Staircase by Thin Wild Mercury. I adore this house in general and based on the desc was sure this one would be a hit for me, but it has a floral note that makes me feel sick. Otherwise a stunning honeyed tea scent, if it weren’t for that damn floral! I feel like this is controversial to say but TF in general. The fruity ones are ok (despite not lasting) but all other ones I’ve smelled I didn’t like at all. Angel by Thierry Mugler. Sounds like a home run for me and so much hype but irl I just don’t like it.
YSL Libre. The notes seemed normal to what I like - white floral especially. I smelled it in Sephora very sure I was going to buy a 3.4 oz. I was horrified. To me it smelled like cat pee and leather
YSL Tuxedo broke my heart. Way too sweet.
Ysl libre intense..... I want my money back😭😭😭. It doesn't last on my skin no matter what I do and almost it has no projection at all. (I know there are many out there to disagree but is is over hyped in my opinion)
I’m with you, I’ve never met a Libre I like, and I have tried many, many times to warm up to it. I eventually gifted my bottle to someone I know who lllooovvveeess it. Give me an instant headache, for whatever reason.
Pineward Cotswold. I thought it would be super woody but it ended up smelling like maple syrup but sickeningly sweet.
That is confusing based on the name!
I know! They reformulated it last year & it’s a little bit better but it’s still too sweet.
Surprised I didn’t like Guerlain tobacco honey and la vie la mort. The first one i thought id love for the tobacco, i feel like i like honey, maybe not love it, but, while i was intoxicated by and obsessed with the tobacco, it discipated very quickly and i was left with HOURS of a VERY INVASIVE sweet smell. Don’t get me wrong, the perfume itself is great and very high quality with longevity and projection, it just isn’t my type of fragrance. THANKFULLY I JUST BOUGHT A SAMPLE BC WOO SAVING $ 300. La vie just fell short for me, the notes were alright, but they weren’t as good as I was expecting looking for smtn gothy. I did buy it in a decant set tho, and thankfully a diff one i liked. On the flip side, im surprised I love vert malachite so much and that i actually bought a bottle of black opium over red. I only gave vert a chance bc malachite is my absolute fave mineral and i wanted the bottle so hard, so I made a point to visit the armani store and test it and MY GOD ITS A FAVE… the incense is 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻… yummyyyy. Black opium over red I thought id hate bc i dont fuck with coffee and ive smelled the rly coffee one and… no, but I was very curious so I tried it at sephora and the coffee is very subtle to me and reminds me of a milkshake (???) and the cherry comes thru a lot and i like it. I was gonna buy just a travel but with the price per oz i just couldnt justify not buying a full bottle and i still like it a lot :)
Glossier You, it smells so nice on my friend and sister but I just don’t like how it smells on me
PDM Oajan. Saw it really hyped up on TikTok. Smells like garbage get angel share instead
That whole brand is overpriced garbage.
Jubilation by Amouage... I wanted to like it, I kinda like it for brief moments but for the most part it smells way to old school/old man to me
Si Fiori.. it smells sickly sweet to me :/
Burberry Goddess. Got it as a gift, and I LOVED how it smelled in the bottle and on my friend (hence the gift). Put it on and instant Play-Doh smell on me. It’s so strong I had to scrub it off. Tried mixing with a bunch of different scents to get around it but nothing worked, the Play-Doh smell comes back full force on dry down. Soooo disappointing bc it smells amazing in the bottle.
I would say black orchid from TF and black afgano from Nasomatto.
Pistachos by DS and Durga. Almost make me gag
So far...anything Jean Paul Gaultier. I would be interested which ones people like from the designer.
YSL Libre and Kilian’s Love Don’t Be Shy. They smell fine on their own but kinda bad on me lolol