Perfume solids: Like?

I find that solids wear a lot closer to the skin-- which makes sense, since they have an oil/wax base rather than alcohol. I don't think I will be buying any more solids after having made several disappointing purchases (both were Pacifica fragrances.)

I suppose their advantage is that they travel well-- e.g on airplanes.

As 30Roses points out, perfume solids don't offer much in the way of sillage but I do appreciate them for their portability. Then too, of course, so often the compacts are little works of art. Estee Lauder's wonderfully detailed, whimsical pieces come to mind.

I have a solid of Boucheron Trouble. I found it at Marshall's for I think $20, one of my better perfume buys:



I once lucked into a fabulous perfume solid of Caron Aimez-Moi. I found it on Ebay and the item was being sold from the UK. I don't think Caron ever sold these here in the States:



Instead of an oil/wax base, it was very finely milled pressed powder. The scent was lovely, full and completely true to the scent of the extrait, of which I once had a sample.

A less successful buy was a solid of Molinard Iles d'Or. The compact was lovely and the scent true to the juice, but the wax base was very hard and draggy, just about impossible to get on the skin, even after contact with body heat. Plus over time the solid perfume took on an appalling greenish tinge, despite my careful storage.


All said, I do appreciate perfume solids above all as a wonderfully sensual, uniquely feminine way to apply scent.

I like solid scents and have three right now: the Boucheron Trouble that tdem1961 has, SJP Covet and L'Occitane Green Tea.

I don't think top notes get full expression in solid scents, but solids still have their place. They're great for travel and they work well when you don't necessarily want to cast a large perfume aura.

Trouble has great longevity. SJP Covet and Green Tea are so-so. I used to have a Crazy Libellule and the Poppies solid that came in a handy stick shape and had monster sillage and persistence. I can definitely recommend those if you find a scent you like.

Tdem1961: I am SO jealous of your Aimez-Moi solid! Wow!

It seems like more and more companies are offering solid perfumes these days. It makes sense to me that they would generally have less sillage than sprays, and it does sound like they would be very convenient for travel.

But I've never tried one and remain skeptical. I do use Arabic oil perfumes and enjoy those, so it isn't that great a leap into solid perfumes. So maybe I'll find some and try them out! It is interesting to hear what others think about them.

I like the containers they come in.

I had a couple from Crazy Libelulle and still have Encens Mystic which smells wonderful but on me it has no sillage whatsoever. Plus it leaves a thick film of wax on the skin which starts to come off after a while. Yves Rocher used to have some cute looking solids, but I never tried them.

I have enjoyed perfume solids since my parents bought me those Avon plastic lockets as a child!

They are such fun, especially when packaged in appealing containers.

I have the Stella McCartney necklace solid, the Michael Kors Very Hollywood pink glass ring, the Daisy solid ring, the Boucheron solids in Trouble and Boucheron Pour Femme, and Juicy Couture.

I also have two of the Crazy Libelulle solids in Hommage a Gabrielle and Pompon Gardenia.

Finally, I have the Estee Lauder compacts in fun compacts such as the dog in a tub and the dachshund. They are like jewellery AND perfume. What could make me happier?

I have only one, crazybleu and the poppies Encens Mystic

I can almost exactly echo what Primrose has said, including my start with the Avon novelty lockets, compacts and demi-sticks - I still have these in Raining Violets and Honeysuckle. I also have an Estee Lauder cameo compact with Youth Dew, and little "jeweled" cases of Jean Patou's Sublime
and 1000.

I really don't use these as they were intended - I like them because they're pretty and they smell good, but they just don't do the trick for me. I like to spray or generously dab, and I like more projection than I can get with a solid...although I must admit the longevity seems to be rather good. One related product I do use is the Euphoria body balm that comes in a larger compact with a soft applicator, but it's really more of a highly-fragranced moisturizer than a perfume, I think, and I layer it with the edp anyway.

Solids are certainly not my favorite way to wear fragrance, but I wanted to mention one rather impressive line whose scents are only offered in this form (and with very classy packaging, I might add): In Fiore. They're also at BeautyHabit.


Oud Amberi Attar
Queen Rose Attar
Vetiver Sambac
Fleur Orange
Fleurs Blanches
Fumée D'Ambre
Night Queen
Patchouli Royale
Rose Noir

@BayKAT: They're based in San Francisco and have a small shop on Post between Hyde & Leavenworth. When I stopped in a couple of years ago they were also stocking a few outside lines (Serge Lutens, The Different Co -- nothing you can't get elsewhere in the city, except for their own products). Worth stopping by if you're ever in the area...

The Estee Lauder solids that come out at the holidays are so lovely I wouldn't even care what scent was inside. They're pretty expensive, though.

Wow those are really extravagant! I would want the tiger one, but filled with tiger balm!

In fact, Tiger Balm is the only solid perfume I wear. (If Heeley's Spirit of the Tiger counts as perfume, then plain old tiger balm should count too!)

What about this new entry into jewellery and solids:

http://www.fragrantica.com/news/Thie...Ring-1718.html


Yes, they are expensive, but that makes them all the more to collect.

I have a few solids and I like them, but I'd really like to have the Amber Ylang Ylang one from Estee Lauder. It's so pretty, but it's crazy expensive, for a solid.

That's a great idea. I haven't used tiger balm in ages, but I've been thinking about it lately. I used to love it. I love that tiger, and I love the little jeweled take-out Chinese food box with the chopsticks on top, too.

l love that butterfly!

l too remember the Avon ones; l had a solid stick of Hawaiian White Ginger which had a gorgeous creamy tropical scent. l recently got a bottle of this off ebay & l agree with Nebraska that it smells very different with the topnotes intact, sharper somehow.
ln general though, l prefer to spray a fragrance as l seem to get much better sillage that way.

Has anyone checked out Ayala Moriel's beautiful pendants & "poison rings"? l bought a pendant from her for a friend's birthday this year & she loved it!

I had a linden blossom solid from L'Occitane some years ago. And I had Coty Sweet Earth compacts like a hundred years ago. I might enjoy a solid, but I'd want it to be made with natural essences. I love the EL ones because they are charming, not so much for the scents (although I like EL fragrances). I like the sillage of spray, too, but there are times I think I'd use a solid for aromatherapy. I'm becoming more interested in natural perfumery.

Oh yes, lilybelle - I had those Sweet Earth compacts, too, both of them! They're selling them again at VermontCountryStore.com, and I've been thinking of getting one just for the memories.

I saw those, too! They're very tempting. Hmm...holidays are coming...Merry Christmas with love from Me to Me! Hee!

And what a perfect stocking stuffer!

Indeed. Now I'm getting misty for my favorite holiday.

Love them as objects. The sort of thing I'd like to receive as a gift, but probably wouldn't buy b/c I'm a fragrance sprayer.

I have a few of the Yves Rocher ones mostly because they are so cheap and good for travel. the longevity is fair and they do stay close to the skin. The first perfume i got when i was about 2 years old was an Avon solid in a bunny pin that my grandma bought me for easter. I actually still have it although the cotton tail have long since fallen off. Unless you are into collecting compacts/pins that they usually come in though, I wouldn't spend lots on them.

I just bought the solid of Pacifica's new fragrance, Indian Coconut Nectar. The packaging is adorable, and so far I'm finding the fragrance to be subtle and pretty. I also have the solid of their Malibu Lemon Blossom. Both seem perfect for the beach, exercise, medical appointments, and other times that one wants just a hint of something.

Oh, my, I think I had that one!

I had the bunny, a green mouse, a skunk (the irony...), and a gingerbread man. I think the Barbie (Mattel) lines still have those perfume plastic compacts.

Right now, L'Occitane is marketing their shea oil balms.

http://usa.loccitane.com/FO/shea-but...-_-DiscoverAll

I have a very pretty box with a solid perfume from Mecca, It's very nice, and does have some sillage.
In fact I was working and I thought, ''hmmmm... what is this nice smell?''
And I finally tracked it down to the box sitting on a bookshelf.
So yes, I like solids

Just a few random thoughts on solid perfumes.

Like others in this thread, I've loved solid perfumes since my childhood and Avon. I still love honeysuckle perfume (of any kind) because of a honeysuckle solid perfume by Avon from long ago. I also recall one that was a yummy peach, and came in a container that looked like a peach basket (which I kept even when the perfume was gone, and used in my Barbie house).

My grandmother had a tiny little pot of solid perfume she kept in a dresser drawer. I used to get it out and have a smell of it, though I never wore it. It seemed very heady and exotic to me. I think now it was probably Miss Dior parfum, probably acquired in the late ninteen fifties (I was sneaking sniffs of it in the late nineteen sixties, so it wasn't really "vintage" then ).

If you want to try out some nice but very affordable solids, have a look at the Lush range. I LOVE the "American Cream", which is a gorgeous vanilla and clary sage. They have others, too, with various citrus and floral scents.

Mandy Aftel of Aftelier makes a number of solid perfumes, as well, but they're pretty pricey (mind you, they do come in a sterling silver compact!).

I like the intimacy and sensuality of a solid perfume. The sillage isn't great, but as I get older, I find I'm more interested in pleasing myself than in whether other people can smell me from across the room So long as I can smell it and enjoy it, I'm happy with that.

Another nice thing about solid perfumes is you can wear them when you're going to be in close quarters (a theatre, for example, or a plane), and you can get away with them in a "no perfume" workplace because they are pleasantly subtle.

[sorry, double post; don't see any obvious way to delete]

bonni,

I had some of those Avon creme sachets as well-- the peach one, the honeysuckle, the violets. So nice, too bad they were never brought back.