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The 13 worst perfumes...

post #1 of 43
Thread Starter 
...according to this article:
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/36323461/
post #2 of 43
Thank you for sharing this! Interesting for a mainstream media article.
post #3 of 43
Thanks Stuigi. Some I agree with ,some I don't. I still don't understand the 'old lady smell ' and 'grandma' comments.
post #4 of 43
I know it, mysticknot - I noticed that too and it's ridiculous. Why are we supposed to assume that old ladies and grandmas stink, and what exactly is this particular "old lady accord" that all of these so-called scrubbers have in common? I recently listed a handful of fragrances that I associate with my very stylish and vivacious late paternal grandmother and there's not a single stinker in the bunch, nor are they "old lady" perfumes even in the sense of musty, prim or stodgy. I really think it's just an indication of lack of imagination, intelligence and/or descriptive vocabulary that perpetuates this stupid old nutshell.
post #5 of 43
The comments make me rage so badly
post #6 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by Evangeline View Post

I know it, mysticknot - I noticed that too and it's ridiculous. Why are we supposed to assume that old ladies and grandmas stink, and what exactly is this particular "old lady accord" that all of these so-called scrubbers have in common? I recently listed a handful of fragrances that I associate with my very stylish and vivacious late paternal grandmother and there's not a single stinker in the bunch, nor are they "old lady" perfumes even in the sense of musty, prim or stodgy. I really think it's just an indication of lack of imagination, intelligence and/or descriptive vocabulary that perpetuates this stupid old nutshell.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Lian View Post

The comments make me rage so badly

Rather insulting ,that article to older ladies and women in general , I think . Where do they get these 'consumers' from ........
A little nonsensical .
post #7 of 43
I didn't agree with all of the choices, but I definitely took issue with the explanations for the scents' shortcomings. I felt especially peevish because I am wearing Aromatics Elixir today and am loving it.
post #8 of 43
Leesee- I love Aromatics Elixir. Now when I hear a perfume is 'old lady' or' grandma' - then I know that perfume is for me.
post #9 of 43
Evangeline! you go girl "I really think it's just an indication of lack of imagination, intelligence and/or descriptive vocabulary that perpetuates this stupid old nutshell. " is exactly right. And an indication of how age-ist our society is.
This consumer survey goes to show if you ask the average person, you will get an average answer. It's like one of those Jay Leno games where he asks people on the street questions any 4th grader should know- funny and tragic at the same time.
The title " worst fragrances" was also misleading. The comments on Gucci were that it was nice and didn't last long enough.
post #10 of 43
There's always a big dust up when the term "old lady" is used, and it's so ubiquitous now that it's become part of the perfume lexicon. I find some of those types of comments and reviews so stupid, though, that they're very comical. Can't get offended, just consider the source.
post #11 of 43
I imagine the test group very clearly. Bimbos, to be blunt. What was it one said about the Aveda fragrance? "It's just too (like) organic for me." ?(DUH)

I admit when I saw the thread title, I did get excited, though. I hoped that I would get to read everyone's worst thirteen. So, shall we start our own thread? I think so.
post #12 of 43
I suspect that this "feature," just like fragrance features in fashion magazines, is some form of advertising. The people making comments are not perfume critics. It's just like a 13-year-old turning up his nose at caviar or sashimi with Champagne because his tastes are not sophisticated to appreciate it. As fragrance is very much a function of personal taste, it's silly to feature just one or two comments panning the scent.

As for Aromatics, it did own that this is a "love it or hate it" scent, in all fairness, but then why feature it in a "worst scent" feature?
post #13 of 43
I just perused this, and don't think the article even warrants a comment, which is why i'm not leaving one.
post #14 of 43
Aromatics Elixir DOESN'T smell like old ladies. Why do people always confuse "old lady" with "dead lady"...? ( *flees from Aromatics Elixir fans* )
post #15 of 43
I felt truly sad reading these comments, mostly because they add absolutely nothing substantial in order to get an impression of what the fragrance really smells like. Totally pointless...
I still do read reviews of scents that interest me (mainly here on BN), but I pay, so to speak, no attention to "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" anymore, even if I know the reviewer and I share many preferences. The subtle nuances in fragrance can never be described in terms of omnipotent relevance.
What someone else likes doesn´t matter at all to me when it comes to a scent, since it could never have any influence on my own likes/dislikes.
Depressing reading, but thanks for posting, Stu!
I hereby declare Luca Turin´s description of (one of my HG:s) SL A La Nuit as "death by jasmine" my favourite "review" ever. "Jasmine" says something, whereas "old lady smell" does not. At all.


Edit: Hey - maybe we could all agree on that Aromatics Elixir smells somewhat "aromatic"...?
post #16 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by musse View Post

Edit: Hey - maybe we could all agree on that Aromatics Elixir smells somewhat "aromatic"...?

I've often wondered about the description "aromatic". Like "aromatic fougere"... So, opposed to what? Scentless fougere? Invisible fougere? Stealth fougere?
post #17 of 43
Glad you got my point, G_B!
post #18 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by Galamb_Borong View Post

Aromatics Elixir DOESN'T smell like old ladies. Why do people always confuse "old lady" with "dead lady"...? ( *flees from Aromatics Elixir fans* )

*LOL* Dead lady a.k.a Mystic Knot.. running after Galamb.

I always think of the term 'aromatic' as in lavender ,lemon .
post #19 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticknot View Post

Now when I hear a perfume is 'old lady' or' grandma' - then I know that perfume is for me.

Same here, mysticknot. Though I admit Galamb_Borong's "Dead Lady" comment made me laugh out loud.
post #20 of 43
I expected something totally different. I wonder where did they find those people..there are too many "granny perfume", "old lady", "old lady in a bottle" etc. comments.
post #21 of 43
The perfumes mentioned certainly don't represent what people wear. And gimme old lady anytime - I mean, Shalimar! L'Heure Bleue!
post #22 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by Madame du Barry View Post

The perfumes mentioned certainly don't represent what people wear. And gimme old lady anytime - I mean, Shalimar! L'Heure Bleue!

Me too! I love both of those, although I must say Aromatics Elixer would feature on my Wrost 13 Perfumes...it's headache in a bottle for me!

I agree with Lilybelle ...I don't really think those 'old lady' comments should be taken too seriously
post #23 of 43
Irregardless, it's good to read these candid opinions--to me there is nothing worse than investing money in a fragrance and it has no staying power whatsoever. As for the other harsh comments, one person's poison is another's pleasure.
post #24 of 43
So its either old lady, too strong or in the case of Gucci not strong enough.

WOW third graders really know their stuff. NOT.

Some people just need a good slap.
post #25 of 43
Oh I don't rage because of ' old lady smell' I think it's just a way to describe the fragrance; it doesn't smell like a contemporary or modern fragrance. II don't read it as an insult to grandmothers or women who are older than the commentators.

I rage because of all the sensitivity issues. If you don't react well to a perfume don't wear it, or don't cover yourself in it if it can give you a headache. A lot of the comments are also hearsay ' a friend of mine got sick of it' . Not very credible.
post #26 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eva Pasco View Post

Irregardless, it's good to read these candid opinions--to me there is nothing worse than investing money in a fragrance and it has no staying power whatsoever. As for the other harsh comments, one person's poison is another's pleasure.

Staying power is very subjective, often according to the wearer's skin. Some scents just dry up on me, while others report hours and hours of scent. Best in all cases to try.

I agree that one person's poison is another's pleasure...and I adore Poison!
post #27 of 43
Sad that a network would publish a bash board to get attention.

I noticed that all the choices were fairly mainstream, nothing new, niche or "high end", just whatever the participants could come up with to bash and see their learned opinions online. They seem to have a distorted need to take shots at their moms and grandmothers.
post #28 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by BayKAT View Post

I just perused this, and don't think the article even warrants a comment, which is why i'm not leaving one.

Well said, Baykat! I'll leave a comment anyway. This article is an egregious example of the useless, content-less journalism that exists only to tease and fill up space, not to inform. Whenever I read garbage like this, I regret having spent 60 seconds of my life on it. Now I'm spending time ranting about it.
post #29 of 43
I look forward to the day when "old lady" means generic sweetsy frootsy florals. I hope I live long enough to see it!

I read the article and was surprised to see AE listed as one of the worst. I've always liked it on others. I'd not read much into the article. I like BayKat's comment above.
post #30 of 43
I was very very reserved about L'heure Bleue, because the bottle is like Mitsouko. And second- cause it's a Guerlain, I'm always suspicious about this, bought some expensive stuff unsniffed, and resulted bad for me... jicky,vol de nuit,voile d'ete,insolence,l'instant,nahema (yucxk),samsaraand some more,etc

Bought it (l'heure bleue) just because of the legend around it (just like I bought a Mitsouko I gave away...)...than it stood unopened for a while, and when I opened it, I expected a Mitsouko mutant to hit me, honestly...

But I'm really falling inlove with l'heure bleue (I don't think it's anything like mitsouko, thanks god...) ...it's becoming one of my favourite frags, I've been wearing it like an addict in the last 2 weeks...

I don;t think it has anything of an "old lady" smell. And I don;t think "old lady" is a bad remark,anyway. I think this about Shalimar, and I still like it (uhm well... I don;t rave about it.though, like I do about l'heure...)
post #31 of 43
I love the "old ladies " smelling kinda perfumes . I find using this therm really insulting too, but i know what people mean when they say that . That can not stop me to love , love them .
post #32 of 43
I think what pisses me off about the terms 'old lady ' and 'grandma ' in re. to describing scent ,is that it's meant in a derogatory sense. It's meant to describe something that has passed in fashion ,style, passed its sell by date, musty and 'off',horrible. It's age-sim and negative.
When I think of 'grandma' and 'old lady'-I think of......... strength in will ,strength of character, wisdom, character in general,fortitude.

Anyhow, I am now off my soapbox .
post #33 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticknot View Post

When I think of 'grandma' and 'old lady'-I think of......... strength in will ,strength of character, wisdom, character in general,fortitude.

Nicely stated, and I could not agree more.
post #34 of 43
I think I may have used "old lady" as a description for fragrances redolent of earlier styles of perfumery, but it can be positive or negative depending on the lady I'm picturing. For example, I find both Une Rose and Lipstick Rose to be "old lady", but Une Rose in a bad, bag-lady sense and Lipstick Rose in a classy, vintage fashion way.

I think there is a tendency to imagine fragrances as people, or imagine the folks who would wear a certain fragrance.
post #35 of 43
thanks, that was fun!
post #36 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by musse View Post

The subtle nuances in fragrance can never be described in terms of omnipotent relevance.

Rocking the writing, M.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doc Elly View Post

This article is an egregious example of the useless, content-less journalism that exists only to tease and fill up space, not to inform.

Amen. Am offering a dignified round of applause for true journalism.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticknot View Post

It's meant to describe something that has passed in fashion

As though nothing is lasting and never repeats.

Interesting referral reading though. Thanks, stuigi!
post #37 of 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by Galamb_Borong View Post

I think I may have used "old lady" as a description for fragrances redolent of earlier styles of perfumery, but it can be positive or negative depending on the lady I'm picturing. For example, I find both Une Rose and Lipstick Rose to be "old lady", but Une Rose in a bad, bag-lady sense and Lipstick Rose in a classy, vintage fashion way.

I think there is a tendency to imagine fragrances as people, or imagine the folks who would wear a certain fragrance.

I do this too, and I tend to think of Une Rose as an Ava Gardner type - sultry, dark and mysterious, and Lipstick Rose as a Jean Harlow or a Vargas Girl - sexy pin-ups in pink silk teddies and maribou slippers, ultra-feminine and posh. I adore both and hope to have both in my boudoir when I'm 90.
post #38 of 43
i wonder how they got those comments -- did they browse a forum for them or randomly googled them off the net or ebay reviews, because how would they get so many readers to comment on so many perfumes at one time?

maybe makeupalley? lol.

edit: oh its totalbeauty.com. i wonder why they dont get the comments from basenotes. it would be more reliable that way. LOL
post #39 of 43
I think the article was initially done internally for totalbeauty, where it makes slightly more sense. Why the port to mscn I don't know.
post #40 of 43
I have to agree with all of you, who are these people and why couldn't they just list them on one page instead of hitting the next button, did they think I was going to read the news there?
post #41 of 43
I literally laughed out loud. Their comments were ridiculous and offensive, enough said on the subject.
post #42 of 43
I think it's hilarious that one of them is Lil' Angel by Gwen Stefani, part of the Harajuku lovers line. My husband LOVES the smell of that stuff, so much that he bought himself a bottle. I can't wait to tell him I'm not the only one who thinks it sucks! It is so stupendously sweet. LOL
post #43 of 43
When I read a perfume smells of "old lady" I know I'll probably love it -so the term does have its uses
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