Cologne Chronicles

There were a few threads talking about what was the first fragrance you've ever fallen in love with and what have you. Or threads about holy grails that I've read in the past. Spray brought up something interesting about how he's never had a fragrance "wow" him and 99.9% of the stuff he's smelled was just "nice." I totally felt this way for a long time. What I'm about to say will probably get me hanged around here or something. LOL.

Nothing has wowed me. At least nothing I've smelled at any fragrance counter at your local department store or Sephora. I figured, "maybe that would change if I smelled some niche." I'm about 4 Creeds in along with a few others that people have raved about. The Creeds were okay at best. Silver Mountain Water and Green Irish Tweed being the ones I liked the most. Silver Mountain Water was just a concept I've smelled before. Green Irish Tweed was just plain boring. Don't get me wrong, they're well crafted, it's just that perhaps I expected them to blow my mind. Bois du Portugal? I smell like I'm 40 and it's not the "fashion forward" modern fragrance I was looking for. Woody, somewhat powdery, masculine, musky. No thanks.

Then there's Parfums de Nicolai, surely the modern niche classic from 1989 in the form of New York would be the ticket! Nope. Once the crisp citrus faded, it ended up smelling like one of my mom's weird ass, powdery smelling lotions. I absolutely hated it. My mom annoys me, so that's why it has such a negative vibe from me. Rose 31, not bad. Not great, but not bad. It's good. Not, "I'll gladly pay $125 for a bottle!" good. Neither was Musc Ravageur. Don't get me wrong, it's sexy as hell, but it wasn't mind blowing. Something about it, I've smelled before. It's almost as if they took Lanvin's Arpegé and smoothed out the rough edges. It's pleasant to wear, but again, not worth the money to me.

So, how do designer scents fare? Well, the bar was set pretty low, but at least I expected fairly ordinary scents at a lower price tag. Don't get me wrong, there's some great stuff out there on a budget that's relatively unique. Dior Homme, the iris is nice with the amber, smells sorta feminine, but nothing else smells like it. Kenzo Power, floral, fresh, and warm, not bad. Bulgari Black, it feels as if I shouldn't think this is awesome, but it's pretty damn good. Terre d'Hermes, bitter orange, oohh, that mineral note is pretty neat. Burberry London, wow, Christmas in a bottle. Platinum Egoiste, so that's what a lot of fragrances copied (...and failed). Prada Infusion d'Homme, soothing, soft, soapy, and clean. Encre Noire, dark, inky, soft, and gentle. Tom Ford Grey Vetiver, fresh, bright, but at the same time, the soft, muted basenote is pretty nice. Gucci II, sweet, black tea.... on ice.

What about things I've owned before or currently own? Bulgari Aqua, dark, mineral, sea shore scent. Thierry Mugler Cologne, bright, bitter, uplifting citrus with a basic clean, soapy dry down. A*Men Pure Malt, fruity, subtle whiskey with slightly burnt caramel. Allure Blanche, bright, BRIGHT lemon note (I usually hate this on top notes, except for this) with a creamy, woody vanilla. L'eau Par Kenzo, refreshingly bright, and sweet, can't see how I can honestly hate this or any "normal" person would hate this. YSL L'Homme, smooth, inoffensive citrus, elegantly blended that would bore the hell out of the majority of avid BNers rather than have them turn their noses on it. There's plenty more, I'm just talking about the ones I favored the most. Nothing has wowed me, everything just smells "nice" or "good". That's about it. Is that all fragrance is to me now? Just something to put on just to smell nice? You mean, I feel the same about fragrances as 98% of the population in this world? "This smells nice, sure, I'll wear it." Then my mainstays are just my way of being stubborn with my habits (like my first repeat purchase, Bulgari Aqua)?

In the end, I'm trying hard not to be doomed to wearing something like YSL L'Homme that feels more like the "nice girl I can take home to meet Mom" rather than "the lovable weirdo with a wild imagination that makes my life more interesting". So, I have a hard time falling in love, is what I'm saying. *sigh* Back to the drawing board. I'll just keep smelling until I find something worth wearing and buying, I guess. That's all I've got going for me in this, "hobby".