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Have you ever bought a fragrance because of the bottle alone?

post #1 of 44
4/21/10 at 9:27pm
Thread Starter 
I was just browsing through the Neiman Marcus website, and there are a couple of fragrances I'm really tempted to buy even though I've never tried them and they might be a little too feminine to wear. The first is Narcisco Rodriguez's Essence, whose bottle apparently is designed by Ross Lovegrove... The other is the NM exclusive bottle of Halston's Woman in the metallic chrome bottle.

Previously, I'd bought Varvatos' Artisan mainly because of the woven rattan cover around the bottle. Luckily I like the orange blossom scent. I'd also bought Comme des Garcons' 2 Happy Pillow when I saw the crazy bean bag. I would have bought the Encre Noire EDP as well if not for the fact that it's like $700.

Anybody else felt compelled to buy a fragrance because of the bottle design?
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post #2 of 44
4/21/10 at 10:09pm
I got carried away with the design of Green irish tweed. Complete black and masculine. I just took that bottle purely for its looks.Well ofcourse the perfume is also good.
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post #3 of 44
4/21/10 at 10:58pm
no but there are frags i bought because they had a nice smell and just happened to have a nice bottle too, sometimes the bottles impress you but if it does not smell good i do not want it.
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post #4 of 44
4/21/10 at 11:05pm
Puma Create was bought solely for the awesome toothpaste-esque bottle. I have very little interest in the juice, and still have not given it a full wearing.
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post #5 of 44
4/21/10 at 11:09pm
No.
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post #6 of 44
4/21/10 at 11:44pm
Nah I haven't.
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post #7 of 44
4/21/10 at 11:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by surileo View Post

I got carried away with the design of Green irish tweed. Complete black and masculine. I just took that bottle purely for its looks.Well ofcourse the perfume is also good.

Ditto. I refused to buy the 2.5 because it wasn't black. Although I do preffer the shape of the 2.5. And now that I look at it, when the 2.5 oz GIT has it's cap with the gold crest on, it looks even more rich than the all black 4.0 oz.
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post #8 of 44
4/22/10 at 1:36am
Never.
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post #9 of 44
4/22/10 at 3:47am
No, I have only purchased fragrances based on their olfactory merits. I can understand, however, why some folks would want to collect bottles. There are some really interesting ones to be found out there. I hang on to way too many nifty "artifacts" as it is, most of which will ultimately end up in the annual garage sale!
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post #10 of 44
4/22/10 at 5:15am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by SillageMonger View Post

No, I have only purchased fragrances based on their olfactory merits. I can understand, however, why some folks would want to collect bottles. There are some really interesting ones to be found out there. I hang on to way too many nifty "artifacts" as it is, most of which will ultimately end up in the annual garage sale!

True that... too bad we can't reuse the bottles for other uses.
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post #11 of 44
4/22/10 at 5:20am
While I never bought a frag because of the bottle alone, on numerous occasions, it was actually the bottle which turned out as one (although not the only one) of the decisive factors in buying a frag
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post #12 of 44
4/22/10 at 5:24am
Nope but Id love a vintage Mitsouko Parfum bottle please .......
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post #13 of 44
4/22/10 at 5:32am
Tempted, quite often. But I never give in unless the juice makes it FBW. And the crappiest fragrances often come in some of the more gorgeous bottles...
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post #14 of 44
4/22/10 at 5:50am
I'm much tempted by Coriolan, but don't like the juice enough to buy it. Maybe I'll give another try.
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post #15 of 44
4/22/10 at 6:29am
My very first Creed was Millesime Imperial, which I'd bought back in 2001. I was smelling a bunch of Creeds at a store, liked a lot of them, and I just picked MI out of the batch simply because the gold bottle looked the coolest. I did it because I couldn't otherwise make up my mind which one to buy. The bottle was the tie-breaker.

I quickly got sick of the smell of MI, and I ended up throwing it in the trash about a year later.
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post #16 of 44
4/22/10 at 11:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by shamu1 View Post


I quickly got sick of the smell of MI, and I ended up throwing it in the trash about a year later.

Please don't do that again. If you really want to throw something away, at least put it up on basenotes and offer it for free excluding shipping costs.
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post #17 of 44
4/22/10 at 11:18am
If it was a blind buy and cheap enough then yes -- it may influence my decision; but, with fragrances I've already smelled, I don't just buy them based on the bottle design.
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post #18 of 44
4/22/10 at 11:21am
I'll own up.

I've always liked the upside-down bottle of Mont Blanc Presence. Don't know why really, it's such a corny commercial tie-in to relate to the brand, but when was in stores with it I'd just want to look at it and pick it up and imagine having it. I didn't like the scent, but the bottle was so much eye candy I got it cheap online in hopes that the scent would grow on me. Still love the bottle except that it always reminds me that a good bottle does not a good experience make.
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post #19 of 44
4/22/10 at 11:33am
Never. It's what's inside that matters.
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post #20 of 44
4/22/10 at 12:03pm
It's all about the juice. The bottle means very little to me.
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post #21 of 44
4/22/10 at 12:14pm
I don't give a **** about the bottle, though I prefer them small and portable.
I know some women who buy just for the bottle even if the juice sucks.
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post #22 of 44
4/22/10 at 1:11pm
I have considered many scents due solely to the bottle design, but if the scent doesn't cut it, I would be stupid to buy the bottle.
For instance, Ungaro III has one of the best bottles out there, but the red wine smell kills any appeal for me.
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post #23 of 44
4/22/10 at 1:55pm
No, in fact just the opposite holds true for me. My favorite fragrance house is MPG, and I always thought that their original bottles the 90 ML. bottles were a bit tacky, not to mention they were pretty east to tip. I did, and do have a great respect for their fragrances though.
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post #24 of 44
4/22/10 at 4:43pm
Can't say I have.
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post #25 of 44
4/22/10 at 5:43pm
Oh, certainly not. And I buy Playboy for the articles.
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post #26 of 44
4/22/10 at 6:33pm
I have.

I'm a sucker for anything blue. There are a few bottles in my perfume cabinet that I bought either for the blue bottle or because there was "blue" in the name.
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post #27 of 44
4/22/10 at 7:17pm
Yes I have done this in the past.....not recently.....Gary
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post #28 of 44
4/22/10 at 7:30pm
Yup.

There was a massive sell off here of The Different Company line (can't think why because their stuff is excellent, guess local market didn't get it) so I bought a few of the 10 ml + aluminium travel covers, decanted the juice - gave it away - and now have 4 extra travel spray units ideal for short hauls - you can put whatever you like in the bottles. I think the TDC packaging is a work of art, personally.

Probably would have bought the new Hermes 35ml regardless but as it happens I like JCE's work and it turns out Voyages is fine (if not earth shattering).

I bought Lubin Idole blind because I think the bottle is fun but I had read reviews and the juice is excellent so I guess that doesn't count here right?
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post #29 of 44
4/23/10 at 8:07am
I'm not going to lie, I am a human being, and we are visual creatures. More times than I can count, have I been first drawn to a fragrance based solely on the bottle. And I've decided to purchase something with the bottle playing a major role in the decision. I can't lie. In the end, I agree, it's about the juice, but I like to look at the bottles too, so if it's a nice bottle, it certainly won't hurt.
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post #30 of 44
4/23/10 at 8:24am
I remember losing some sleep over the delayed purchase of the A*men metal flask. Even though I had bought a refill bottle & absolutely fell in love with the juice, I longed to own the metal flask.
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post #31 of 44
4/23/10 at 8:39am
In my pre Basenotes days, the bottle design would indeed often lure me. My last "bottle" puchase was that Gucci by Gucci which I bought just as I was becoming much more educated about scents. It sucks.
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post #32 of 44
4/23/10 at 10:15am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mr. reasonable View Post

There was a massive sell off here of The Different Company line (can't think why because their stuff is excellent, guess local market didn't get it) so I bought a few of the 10 ml + aluminium travel covers, decanted the juice - gave it away - and now have 4 extra travel spray units ideal for short hauls - you can put whatever you like in the bottles. I think the TDC packaging is a work of art, personally.

Yeah, definitely if the fragrance isn't too expensive (<$30), I probably won't mind buying it just for the bottle even if the juice is terrible or inappropriate. Unfortunately, none of the bottles I like fall into this category. Right now, I just hope that Narcisco Rodriguez releases an Essence for men and have Lovegrove design the bottle again.

I just noticed He Wood by DSquared2 and it looks awesome! I'm gonna try a sample of it first, but I might just buy it even if the scent is just so-so. The good thing about designer fragrances is that they generally aren't repulsive, so even if they aren't fantastic, they are probably still wearable.
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post #33 of 44
4/23/10 at 4:32pm
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I ordered blind Kingdom because the bottle is just the most beautiful bottle I have ever seen.
I have also baught Lalique Le Parfum. The bottle was just too beautiful to pass by, I smelled the juice, it was quite nie, so I bought it.
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post #34 of 44
4/23/10 at 5:26pm
Nope.The bottle is just a plus, but it's all about the fragrance for me.
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post #35 of 44
4/23/10 at 5:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by shadesofbleu View Post

I have.

I'm a sucker for anything blue. There are a few bottles in my perfume cabinet that I bought either for the blue bottle or because there was "blue" in the name.

That's silly but cute. Do you like the Gucci Pour Homme 2 bottle? I think it's one of the nicest bottles around...
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post #36 of 44
4/24/10 at 12:40am
I bought Clive Christian No. 1 Pure Perfume just for the bottle, I hate the juice. :-)) LOL

Just kiddin'....

NO!
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post #37 of 44
4/24/10 at 1:13am
No. But I sometimes test a fragrance because the bottle catches my eye. And I have to confess that I once considered buying a limited edition of one of my favs because of the bottle design.
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post #38 of 44
4/24/10 at 3:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by G Man View Post

Ditto. I refused to buy the 2.5 because it wasn't black. Although I do preffer the shape of the 2.5. And now that I look at it, when the 2.5 oz GIT has it's cap with the gold crest on, it looks even more rich than the all black 4.0 oz.

hey that's how i feel. i don't like the 2.5oz.
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post #39 of 44
4/24/10 at 4:10am
No.

I do love the bottles, though. Getting to look at and handle so many beautiful (and occasionally stunning) bottles is an enjoyable part of the perfume collecting hobby. But I've never bought a fragrance solely because of the bottle, and probably will never get into perfume bottle collecting, either.

noggs
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post #40 of 44
4/24/10 at 4:44am
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post #41 of 44
4/24/10 at 10:28am
Thread Starter 
^Whao... cool bottle indeed.
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post #42 of 44
4/24/10 at 10:33am
  • Zgb
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No way, it's the stuff it contains that counts...
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post #43 of 44
4/24/10 at 10:14pm
Although I have never bought a perfume for the bottle, I am a little tempted to own L'Air du Temps with those beautiful doves.
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post #44 of 44
4/25/10 at 1:17am
Although I haven't bought a fragrance *solely* for the bottle, there have been occasions where an attractive bottle played into my decision to buy blind. Jil Sander Sun Men, for example. That bottle is too cool.
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