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Best mainstream/ dept store fragrance

post #1 of 21
5/23/11 at 8:21pm
Thread Starter 
I have a gift certificate to Sephora I want to use up and am tossing a few possibilities around: Bvlgari Jasmine Noir, one of the Poisons (taking Hypnotic back, too much vanilla dominating) really want to try Guerlain l'Heure Bleu if they have it in store (its on their website). Everything I can think of only sounds so-so to me and I want something awesome. What mainstream fragrances do you think have a big wow factor?
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post #2 of 21
5/24/11 at 2:51am
Angel
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post #3 of 21
5/24/11 at 3:14am
If they have them in the shop, Guerlain's L'heure bleue, Mitsouko and Samsara. Other personal favourites would be Crystal Noir and Trouble. What classification are you drawn to,by the way?
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post #4 of 21
5/24/11 at 3:22am
since you dislike the Hypnotic Poison I doubt L'Heure Bleu will be for you. It is very heavy on the helitrope which is almondy.

What sort of fragrances do you normall like? Floral,florientals,orientals etc.
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post #5 of 21
5/24/11 at 3:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paper Moon View Post

... one of the Poisons (taking Hypnotic back, too much vanilla dominating).

Go with the original Poison ... she is lovely!

L'Heure Bleue is really sweet - marzipan'ish!
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post #6 of 21
5/24/11 at 4:33am
Midnight Poison
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post #7 of 21
5/24/11 at 4:36am
Sephora - Honestly, I'd go with Dior Homme.
Dept. Store - give Chanel #5 Eau Premiere a try
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post #8 of 21
5/24/11 at 5:06am
I have no answer for you -- try dozens or hundreds, it is all very personal. One may struck you as unusual, another would transport you into another realm, the third may evoke memories long gone, the fourth will turn out to be pretty beyond words, etc.

Do your home work first: go to the BN Directory Advanced Search (you have to be patient with this, sometimes it would not work) and type in the notes you are looking for in fragrances. That should give you a list of scents -- click on each and read reviews. Please do not trust them all -- figure out who likes/dislikes what you do (how about CD Hypnotic Poison reviews first?) and read more. Then go to other sites with reviews, like MUA or F and read what their people got to say about your Potentials.

Then sniff yourself. Something that can't be found at Sephora /Macy's etc. can be received through exchanges -- down below there is a forum "Fragrances Wanted" or through the dedicated Sample/Decant Sites, like TPC or Posh Peasant. Do not invest into the whole bottle unsniffed.
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post #9 of 21
5/24/11 at 6:33am
Sephora? Kelly Caleche or 24, Faubourg...they have a lot of Hermes
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post #10 of 21
5/24/11 at 10:11am
Thread Starter 
To Donna and Inee- I am drawn to darker, spicy scents such as Opium. I also like gourmands. I do like Hypnotic Poison, but I feel like on my skin, the syrupy, root beer scent I like so much at first fades into just vanilla, as if I were wearing vanilla extract. A nice scent, but there are others I would rather have. I am indeed interested in Guerlains Bleu and will definitely try it if they have it there. The original Poison I know I need to explore- my fathers girlfriend wears it so I have always associated it with her. I think I might realty like it on myself though. She is a heavy smoker so I only know comingled with cigarette smelling hair.
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post #11 of 21
5/24/11 at 11:16am
Poison is very nice but you would be better off trying ebay for an older bottle.
L'Heure Bleue (edp if possible) is amazing but it does not fit your requirement for dark and spicy. You should still try it.
Sephora here where I live has a very limited selection, maybe yours is better. Just go and try as many perfumes as you can, perhaps ask for a couple of samples. Don't buy anything right away.
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post #12 of 21
5/24/11 at 11:24am
Shalimar.
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post #13 of 21
5/24/11 at 11:41am
+1 for Chanel No. 5 Eau Premiere
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post #14 of 21
5/24/11 at 11:50am
Have you tried L'Instant de Guerlain?

Top notes: mandarin, bergamot
Middle notes: magnolia, sambac jasmine, ylang ylang, iris
Base notes: vanilla, benzoin, musk, amber
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post #15 of 21
5/24/11 at 11:53am
+1 Chanel Eau Premier. But I'm with Twolf. Just go and sniff everything that interests you. And don't purchase right away. Ask for samples and spend some time at home with those. Do make sure to sample whatever they have from the great perfume houses (Chanel, Guerlain, Dior) But other lines have good stuff, too. Bulgari, Hermes, Gucci, etc.

The Basenotes Fragrance Directory is vast and helpful when trying to find fragrances that may be worth your time. I also found Turin/Sanchez, The Guide to be helpful as well. Your local library may have copy.

Good luck and have fun!
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post #16 of 21
5/24/11 at 1:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paper Moon View Post

To Donna and Inee- I am drawn to darker, spicy scents such as Opium. I also like gourmands. I do like Hypnotic Poison, but I feel like on my skin, the syrupy, root beer scent I like so much at first fades into just vanilla, as if I were wearing vanilla extract. A nice scent, but there are others I would rather have. I am indeed interested in Guerlains Bleu and will definitely try it if they have it there. The original Poison I know I need to explore- my fathers girlfriend wears it so I have always associated it with her. I think I might realty like it on myself though. She is a heavy smoker so I only know comingled with cigarette smelling hair.

Based on your likes, I recommend Lolita Lempicka's Si Lolita and 'L'. They are both excellent.
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post #17 of 21
5/24/11 at 1:54pm
Chanel Coco
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post #18 of 21
5/24/11 at 5:13pm
I'd love it if someone gave me a Sephora gift certificate! I can always find plenty of fragrances in a Sephora to love. Based on what you've said and on Sephora's offerings, I'd suggest...

+1 Angel (it sure has the "wow" factor)
Kenzo Amour
+1 Guerlain L'Heure Bleue
+1 Guerlain L'Instant
Armani Emporio She
Tom Ford Black Orchid
Prada
+1 Lolita Lempicka
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post #19 of 21
5/24/11 at 6:53pm
Another one worth trying is Bulgari Omnia.
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post #20 of 21
5/24/11 at 11:40pm
Thread Starter 
I tried both Guerlain L'Heure Bleue and Eau Premiere today. Both are very nice but out of the two I prefer Bleue. It is so lovely and classic. Unfortunately- I had to try those at Bloomingdales because Sephora didn't have them!

I keep going back to Black Orchid. One one hand, I think its lovely, on the other, sometimes it seems to get too sweet. I know everyone thinks its dark, but for me, I wish it were just a tad darker. Perhaps it would lend itself well to some layering....
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post #21 of 21
5/25/11 at 12:21am
Ah! With the Guerlains always try the edp version. Yes then do try L'Heure Bleu(its a rich floral but does have the darkness), Shalimar might be too much vanilla going on for you. Lancome Magie Noir the new version not as good but still give it a sniff.

Now if you can go over to the men's Bulgari and if possble sniff Black. Its disappeared here but hopefully Sephora might have it. It has the darkest, don't be frightened its classed as male.

Coco but edp only.
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