Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Female Fragrance Discussion › What's the worst female fragrance you've ever smelled?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

What's the worst female fragrance you've ever smelled? - Page 2

post #61 of 188
9/12/10 at 7:09pm
Jeez! And to think I was going to buy each of you a bottle of Secretions Magnifique for Christmas

The worst?

OPIUM by far.

Naw, it's not that bad, it's just that compared with how great it used to be back in '77 YSL managed to maim this once upon a time masterpiece with all its reformulations into mediocrity.

*sigh*

Cry me a River,

Mario

Elliot James: [of his philandering] You know what my problem is? The way they smell. The perfume of their skin. It's, it's so intoxicating. I told my wife I'd never even *look* at other women if only I could cut off my nose.
Michael Burgess: What'd she say?
Elliott James: She said I was aiming too high.

--Michael Caine and Alan Alda in Sweet Liberty (1986)
Reply
Reply
post #62 of 188
9/13/10 at 12:24am
Womanity! It reminds me of chewing on tin foil - creepy!
Reply
Reply
post #63 of 188
9/13/10 at 1:33am
MJ, are you a hoot or what? hahahahaha
Reply
Reply
post #64 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:11am
I'm probably in the minority, but I tend to be the most offended by certain laundry detergent-smelling fragrances with huge sillage. I have no name, don't know which the worst culprits are, but the Clean fragrances are probably likely suspects. Intellectually I sort of get why people like them, although I would never wear one myself, but I really don't want to be assaulted by someones huge, obnoxiously synthetic just-out-of-the-shower smell across the bus.
Reply
Reply
post #65 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:23am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lilybelle View Post

So what is this cat pee-like ingredient anyway? Or is it a combination of ingredients like jasmine + ??? I've smelled it in a few fragrances (Sublime was one).

Nostalgie, Pamplelune didn't work on my skin either. Shtinker!


I smelled bourgeons de cassis (black current buds) at a perfume workshop (for amateurs like me), and it smelled just like cat pee--so I always atttribute the note to that. Obviously, it is not supposed to make and entire blend smell that way (just as some down right fecal notes don't necessarily smell that way once blended)--so maybe I'm just very sensitive to it or my skin brings it out (though perfumes tend to be very sweet on me...so go know!] I"m not sure it is even in Pamplelune. You arr in VA, too, right? Maybe we can blame the climate!
Reply
Reply
post #66 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mette View Post

Womanity! It reminds me of chewing on tin foil - creepy!

Hmm, dosn't sound good at all!

Endnu en dansker, super cool.
Nu er vi fire ... vist nok!
Reply
Reply
post #67 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:33am
haha Jeg blev helt forskrækket! Hej:-)

Thank God (or whatever) for the internet when you live in frag-ignorant country like you and me:-)
Reply
Reply
post #68 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mette View Post

haha Jeg blev helt forskrækket! Hej:-)

Thank God (or whatever) for the internet when you live in frag-ignorant country like you and me:-)

Where the ladies almost exclusively buy light frags from Boss; Armani; and Klein!
Scandinavian ladies have such boring taste ...
Reply
Reply
post #69 of 188
9/13/10 at 7:16am
Guerlain Idyll
Reply
Reply
post #70 of 188
9/13/10 at 8:10am
Blackcurrant (cassis) leaves produce a cat pee smell. We grow blackcurrants and the leaves when rubbed smell just like the spray my cat leaves around his little outdoor house to mark his territory.

But this note can be used very effectively, as in L'Ombre Dans L'Eau. It's also in Limón, a citrusy fragrance by The Thymes, now discontinued, and is the reason why I can't wear that scent in hot weather like other citruses. Limón is definitely a cooler-weather citrus scent for me.
Reply
Reply
post #71 of 188
9/13/10 at 11:06am
Oh I have another to add. It was so awful I actually wiped it from my memory.

Cabotine by Gres, this was so vile on me I couldn't even use the soap I got in the set.
Reply
Reply
post #72 of 188
9/13/10 at 12:11pm
Funny, many of you have mentioned fragrances that I actually own and love :-)
Reply
Reply
post #73 of 188
9/13/10 at 1:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alicka61 View Post

Funny, many of you have mentioned fragrances that I actually own and love :-)


I believe that one sign of a really great fragrance is that some people hate it. Honestly I do.
Reply
Reply
post #74 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:17pm
Borneo 1834.

The only perfume that made me vomit. I had bought a decant as soon as it was released but i had no luck with it.
Reply
Reply
post #75 of 188
9/13/10 at 4:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dimma View Post

Borneo 1834.

The only perfume that made me vomit. I had bought i decant as soon as it was released but i had no luck with it.

Hmmm - not my favorite either ...............
Reply
Reply
post #76 of 188
9/13/10 at 5:15pm
COVET by SJP...
Reply
Reply
post #77 of 188
9/13/10 at 10:33pm
There's quite a rude scent called Jungle Gardenia. There was a substitue teacher when I was a child who punished the universe by wearing this stinch! I was 6 years old, I was so disturbed, I complained to my parents. They eventually met her, agreed that her perfume was offensive, and told me the name. It was burned into my memory! There's nothing gardenia about it!
Reply
Reply
post #78 of 188
9/14/10 at 7:23am
FM Dans te Bras, a surprising miss from Malle. It smells like wet concrete and old mushrooms to me. I think it's a unisex scent but can't imagine either sex wanting to wear it. Some must, though.

Oh, and Georgio...the all-time champ.
Reply
Reply
post #79 of 188
9/14/10 at 9:51pm
Great thread! I've mentioned it before and I'll do so again: without a doubt, unequivocally, 100%: Prada's Infusion d'Iris, the vilest juice of them all. There are many scents that I don't like at all, but I truly DESPISE this one. If hell has a smell...

And my apologies to those who do like it. I know it's very popular and often gets rave reviews from perfumistas. So it's not you, it's me.
Reply
Reply
post #80 of 188
9/14/10 at 10:32pm
I have a new one : Interlude by F Denney.

Maybe mine has turned...
Reply
Reply
post #81 of 188
9/15/10 at 2:26am
Eternity for Women

Calyx
Reply
Reply
post #82 of 188
9/15/10 at 2:57am
CK One Summer.
It made me feel physically ill.
Reply
Reply
post #83 of 188
9/15/10 at 9:38pm
I notice two themes in the scents people dislike: those that are so distinctive they're either love or hate (i.e. Aromatics, which I love and indeed consider one of the most beautiful perfumes ever created) and those that smell bad because they were made with cheap ingredients (anything Hilton or SJP). I doubt anyone would spend much time defending the scents in the second category (i.e. they're cheap shots, pardon the pun). Of the scents in the first category, I own and enjoy many of the ones mentioned. I didn't always start out by appreciating them - some I came to enjoy after deconstructing them into components I loved in other scents. For example, Magie Noire smelled like vomit when I first smelled it (before I had smelled many oriental scents), but with a more educated nose I really enjoyed it.
Reply
Reply
post #84 of 188
9/16/10 at 11:58am
Eternity by Calvin Klein, the one for women. Puts me in mind of the song No More Heroes by The Stranglers - "He got an ice pick that made his ears burn" - only this makes my sinuses burn, screech and try to climb out of my eyes. Not a good reaction, I'm sure you'll agree.
Reply
Reply
post #85 of 188
9/16/10 at 12:56pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by kitsch View Post

Eternity by Calvin Klein, the one for women. Puts me in mind of the song No More Heroes by The Stranglers - "He got an ice pick that made his ears burn" - only this makes my sinuses burn, screech and try to climb out of my eyes. Not a good reaction, I'm sure you'll agree.

ROTFL!! Brilliant description with punk references, love it!!
Reply
Reply
post #86 of 188
9/17/10 at 10:26am
I got stuck in the backseat behind my mother-in-law one time in the car and almost got sick from the combination of her smelling like smoke and some scent of hers, I don't know if it was her perfume or maybe hairspray. I noticed lately a bottle of Imari in her bathroom, do you think that could be the source of the nausea-inducing smell?
Reply
Reply
post #87 of 188
9/26/10 at 9:05am
I'm reluctant to describe anything I've sniffed as the worst I've ever smelled - it's all very subjective - but four fragrances I've tried very, very hard to like without success (and so have given up for the time being) are No 19, Angel, Shalimar and Rive Gauche. Possibly I'm just revealing how little I know about fragrance here, but there you go. As I say, totally subjective ...
Reply
Reply
post #88 of 188
9/26/10 at 9:18am
Too many to name: there's a lot of bad stuff, out there.
Reply
Reply
post #89 of 188
9/26/10 at 9:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Via View Post

The absolute worst ever for me was Musc Kublai Khan from Serge Lutens... absolutely cruel

One of my favorites!!

On me, the worst are:

ELdO's Putain des Palaces (although I love cumin when it's well done, e.g., Bois de Violette, Arabie, etc., I couldn't take the combination of sweat and cheap-smelling rice powder -- GAG)

Reminiscence Elixir Patchouli

Montale's entire Aoud line, but especially Black Aoud
Reply
Reply
post #90 of 188
9/26/10 at 10:45pm
Tresor by Lancome. BARF! Interesting comments about Pamlelune and so true. It's heaven on some people and just rancid on others- very selective about to whom it will reveal it's magic.
Reply
Reply
post #91 of 188
9/27/10 at 6:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nostalgie View Post

I'd have to say the worst ever on my skin has been "Pamplelune." [And I mean worse than anything. Worse than Secretions magnifiques.]

I've read all the reviews, here and elsewhere, and it am amazed at how different it is on me.Fresh? No. Slightly sweet? No. A touch of vanilla? No.

On me it is 95% cat pee, or more precisely a mixture of cat pee and that fetid, other-people's-BO-in-a- unventilated-room smell, doused in grapefruit, and screaming for ventilation.

I *hate* when a perfume that smells great on others smells doesn't work on me.

I know what you mean about Pamplelune. I love it and it's one of my sig's but you have to have the right chemistry for it, and i have a friend who really doesn't!

Worst ever: Tribe. You know, from Walgreens. I think it's made by Coty. Runner up: J'Lo Glow. Hairspray all the way.
Reply
Reply
post #92 of 188
9/27/10 at 6:45pm
Combination of citrus + resinous wood sometimes = cat pee. Totally about your chemistry tho. Oh, and sometimes the more onerous jasmine scents can = cat pee.
Reply
Reply
post #93 of 188
9/30/10 at 2:24pm
+one for Tresor. Just like being smashed in the face with a load of fake apricot juice & plastic. (Sorry if you love it.)
Reply
Reply
post #94 of 188
10/1/10 at 10:53am
Definitely Giorgio. Back in the '70's, I think, you could not go anywhere without being assaulted by clouds of stinky Giorgio. I remember sitting at a theatre surrounded by it and wanting to gag and leave but did not want to forfeit seeing the play!
Reply
Reply
post #95 of 188
10/1/10 at 12:52pm
The very first perfume I was given was Lou Lou from Cacharel.. and I hate having to say it's the only fragrance so far I don't want to come near to ever again. I hardly dislike perfume, whether or not I would wear myself, but this one is more than I can take. I wouldn't even consider giving it another try, after all these years... Sorry if you like it
Reply
Reply
post #96 of 188
10/1/10 at 3:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nuria G View Post

The very first perfume I was given was Lou Lou from Cacharel.. and I hate having to say it's the only fragrance so far I don't want to come near to ever again. I hardly dislike perfume, whether or not I would wear myself, but this one is more than I can take. I wouldn't even consider giving it another try, after all these years... Sorry if you like it

I love LouLou! Cacharel's Eden on the other hand .... Eden is still in my collection though just because it's so weird - and ludicrously cheap in the UK. It's perhaps the only scent that my SO recognises - not that he likes it - but at least it makes an impression!
Reply
Reply
post #97 of 188
10/1/10 at 4:41pm
For me it would be Estee Lauder White Linen, not sure how to discribe it, just really OFF. There are a few from Estee lauder that smell bad, but then a few nice ones too.
Reply
Reply
post #98 of 188
10/2/10 at 2:01am
Hermes Rouge is awfull, as well as SL Santal Blanc, AG Eau de Charlotte, Dans tes Bras and Angel. as for drugstore and celebrity scents, they are so bad on my skin that I always, but really always, think the tester must be off.
Reply
Reply
post #99 of 188
10/2/10 at 3:08pm
Aromatics Elixir and Poison (which my daughter wore & loved).
Reply
Reply
post #100 of 188
10/2/10 at 3:08pm
I'm not a fan of Tresors, but I don't blame the perfume, I blame the hype! I was working at Macys at the time of it's introduction. They created 2 Lancome locations, both heavily promoting Tresores. As a result, most of the customers had sprayed themselves silly with the sweet, cloying perfume! I was in hell! It's not the worst, but at the time, I wanted to make it a crime to wear!
Reply
Reply
post #101 of 188
10/2/10 at 5:22pm
Madness Chopard - salty rose + cough syrup, cold and spicy.

I agree with Perfume addict, there are no bad perfumes, it's just the way we perceive them. I initially, like her felt some body odour in Magie noire, but I grew to love it. Fracas smelled like vomit to me, sorry. I still can not wear it.
Reply
Reply
post #102 of 188
10/2/10 at 5:30pm
Youth Dew. So strong, and not one note I like in it.
Also Jean Naté; we had a piano teacher in music school who must have marinated in the stuff. You could smell her coming around the corner. Both of these frags have an acidic sweaty quality. Sweaty can be nice, but these are not. To me, that is. Is anything more subjective than olfaction?
Reply
Reply
post #103 of 188
10/2/10 at 5:33pm
I used to sit by a woman who wore Jungle Gardenia...made me feel ill. For a newer scent that I think is putrid: TF Black Orchid.
Reply
Reply
post #104 of 188
10/2/10 at 5:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by flashpoint321 View Post

I used to sit by a woman who wore Jungle Gardenia...made me feel ill. For a newer scent that I think is putrid: TF Black Orchid.

Funny, 20 years ago I used to sit by a woman who wore Jungle Gardenia and loved it. Never got it for myself though. I love and wear TF Black Orchid. Just shows they are love or hate scents.
Reply
Reply
post #105 of 188
10/3/10 at 3:50am
I found Arden Beauty so awful I washed if off my wrists and neck after applying it. Horribly strong peppery watermelon.
I wanted to like Cabotine, but there was something offensively pungent in it - maybe the coriander?
Estee Lauder Beyond Paradise smells like cheap air-freshener.
Origins Frolic attacked your nostrils and wouldn't leave. It was their big scent when I worked there.

All of the above IMO, of course.
Reply
Reply
post #106 of 188
10/3/10 at 6:01am
I agree with a lot of the previous posters on scents such as LouLou and Giorgio, White Linen, Poison, Putain des Palaces and others.

My absolute nemesis is Caron Narcisse Noir, and runners up for the title included:

S100%Love
Mona di Orio Nuit Noire
Amarige
JPG MaDame

And many, many more...
Reply
Reply
post #107 of 188
10/3/10 at 6:35am
The 'cat pee' note is ......? Guerlain's Acqu Allegoria Pamplelune is the Queen IMO!


Reine
Reply
Reply
post #108 of 188
10/3/10 at 6:50am
1: Elizabeth Arden - Red Door
I have to run fast when I recognize it near meg. It fills the room and makes me feel ill

2: Giorgio Beverly Hills
Has been one of my friends favorites .. Well, I'm not particularly happy when I'm sitting in a car with her
Reply
Reply
post #109 of 188
10/3/10 at 7:24am
I agree with Nostalgie - masterpieces often offend as many people as they inspire. I can completely understand why Aromatics Elixir wouldn't agree with everyone, but that makes me almost proud that I'm someone it favors! And this is the first I've heard of anyone thinking that Hermès Rouge and So Pretty by Cartier are awful, but reading those points of view actually made me smile and think how lucky I am to love and wear them well.

I also think that many good fragrances are rendered toxic by over-application. I remember the original Giorgio fondly....although I do know of one particular lady who wore way too much of it. But I keep a bottle of the vintage stuff around to remind me of my late grandmother (from whom I inherited it.) She never wore too much and it was (and still is) a beautiful fragrance that I never want to forget. My own experience with terrible clouds of suffocating fumes always seemed to involve Poison or Tresor, but I still manage to enjoy them (or at least understand their appeal to others) when applied more judiciously.

I already mentioned this on the first page, but the only fragrance I've ever smelled that truly baffles me with its bitter ugliness is Wrappings by Clinique, and I know that even it has its devotées....but I'm still not convinced and I just can't seem to be more open-minded about it - I think it's just plain horrible.
Reply
Reply
post #110 of 188
10/3/10 at 5:11pm
I don't know many niche frags, but I really don't like Spellbound, Tabu, and Sunflowers. All three make me want to run to the sink!
Reply
Reply
post #111 of 188
10/3/10 at 9:33pm
Clinique Aromatics ( Elixir ). Especially if overapplied. But even if not, its unpleasant to me. And to think I almost bought Aramis 900, which is quite similar.
Reply
Reply
post #112 of 188
10/6/10 at 12:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by devilcat View Post

I'm reluctant to describe anything I've sniffed as the worst I've ever smelled - it's all very subjective - but four fragrances I've tried very, very hard to like without success (and so have given up for the time being) are No 19, Angel, Shalimar and Rive Gauche. Possibly I'm just revealing how little I know about fragrance here, but there you go. As I say, totally subjective ...

Frankly, I'm outraged.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Perfume_Addict View Post

I notice two themes in the scents people dislike: those that are so distinctive they're either love or hate (i.e. Aromatics, which I love and indeed consider one of the most beautiful perfumes ever created) and those that smell bad because they were made with cheap ingredients (anything Hilton or SJP). I doubt anyone would spend much time defending the scents in the second category (i.e. they're cheap shots, pardon the pun). Of the scents in the first category, I own and enjoy many of the ones mentioned. I didn't always start out by appreciating them - some I came to enjoy after deconstructing them into components I loved in other scents. For example, Magie Noire smelled like vomit when I first smelled it (before I had smelled many oriental scents), but with a more educated nose I really enjoyed it.

Well put and I pretty much agree.

Personally, I've recently had the misfortune to experience both Chanel Chance Eau Tendre - nasty, nauseating, sickly sweet, cloying and generally bleeeeeargh - and Paul Smith Extreme Women - like cheap rubber that's been left out in the sun. Both utterly repellent.

My mum, who is a Guerlain obsessive, absolutely loathes Womanity. It's a scrub-the-scent-off-and-throw-your-clothes-in-the-wash scent for her.
Reply
Reply
post #113 of 188
10/7/10 at 1:01am
[QUOTE=Ratfink;1952143]Frankly, I'm outraged.

Why 'outraged'?
Reply
Reply
post #114 of 188
10/7/10 at 1:06am
[QUOTE=devilcat;1952715]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ratfink View Post

Frankly, I'm outraged.

Why 'outraged'?

That's four of my absolute favourites!
Reply
Reply
post #115 of 188
10/7/10 at 1:35am
[QUOTE=Ratfink;1952717]
Quote:
Originally Posted by devilcat View Post


That's four of my absolute favourites!

Which I guess is one of the reasons why scent is so fascinating (and why I would not say they were the worst I'd smelled)! If it's any consolation to you two of my faves - Aromatics Elixir and Loulou - appear regularly in this thread. I do intend to keep trying these 4 since I'm sure I must be missing something. Interestingly, although I don't care for Rive Gauche, I do like Calandre and they're often reckoned to be similar. What a weird and wonderful world this fragrance stuff is!

I like Chance Eau Tendre too!
Reply
Reply
post #116 of 188
3/15/11 at 3:52am
What is the most Repulsive scent you ever tested?
your least favorite designer fragrance i have a few of them
here





So what your list of Worst Fragrances?
Reply
Reply
post #117 of 188
3/15/11 at 5:05am
I HATED CK One, it's like toilet cleaner. Also Angel, although I like the men's version. L'Eau d'Issey, yuck- many of these are scents of the nineties that people drenched themselves in! Elizabeth Arden Sunflowers and (shudder) Elizabeth Taylor White Diamonds, Britney Spears Curious. Ewww
Reply
Reply
post #118 of 188
3/15/11 at 5:21am
Weimar you list Organza, howcome?
To me it's just a dull, inoffensive
fragrance. Not bad per see.
Reply
Reply
post #119 of 188
3/15/11 at 5:23am
Double Post
Reply
Reply
post #120 of 188
3/15/11 at 6:24am
2nd Sunflowers and Giorgio.
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Female Fragrance Discussion
Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Female Fragrance Discussion › What's the worst female fragrance you've ever smelled?