Blind Sniffs in 2012

Since the Summer of 2007 when Twolf came up with a new fun activity, many Basenoters have enjoyed the Blind Sniffs.

In a Blind Sniff a host comes up with an idea or a theme and three fragrances that fit this theme. Then a host mails the sniffers the identical vials of these fragrances only marked as "1", "2", "3". The names of the fragrances are not mentioned, and the goal of the sniffers is to guess these fragrances. At the agreed-upon time the sniffers and the host/co-host log into the Basenotes, spray the samples one at a time and describe what they smell (and see, and feel). The host and the co-host help the sniffers by asking questions, answering questions, confirming or disconfirming the notes, and answering PMs with the guesses. The spectators are often having loads of fun guessing the fragrances by notes, a virtual experience of guessing without sniffing powered by the online search (sniffers use that as well).

We can be both very scheduled and very flexible in terms of the timing, as long as the host, co-host, sniffers and spectators can plan ahead for meeting on the forums and joining the fun of guessing the fragrances.

In 2011 every blind sniff featured at least three fragrances, one designer, one niche and one mass market. Many sniffers love this format because they have a chance of smell the fragrances blind, with no allure of a known and popular brand attached to it. It is often eye opening.

Here's a link to a 2011 sniff in which everyone loved the drugstore offering.
Here's a link to a 2011 sniff in which most people had second thoughts about a (relatively) popular niche fragrance.

However, there were also the Blind Sniffs in the past when this format=mass market+designer+niche was not followed. It is all about connecting the fragrances around a good theme and having fun!

So please post if you want to be a sniffer in 2012 and/or if you want to host. And please give a shout if you want to sniff/host in January! I know a couple of people, myself included, have some themes dreamed up from 2011.

I follow this format to summarize a sniff:
Month: Host/Cohost: First Sniffer, Second Sniffer, Third Sniffer. Theme of the sniff (with a link to follow to the actual sniff thread).

January: Darkdreams/Warum: TWolf, kalli, OVincze. On Dreams and Illusions.
February: Nostalgie/Warum: Darkdreams, Haunani, Meowmo. Soul Sisters.
March: Warum/TWolf: cacio, Jujy54, saripatates. Orient Express -- The Red Line.
April: Saripatates/TWolf: FrouFrou, mumsy, RingER. Cure for Cold.
July: Haunani/Jujy54: darkdreams, Warum, OVincze, TWolf. Bouquet of Mysteries.

You can see the list of fragrances sniffed in the next post down!


August: FrouFrou/Ovincze: KarmaLee, cestum nocturnum, Sybarite.
September: TWolf/cacio: Irina, Sybarite, meowmo.
October: cacio/Irina: mumsy, KarmaLee, cestrum nocturnum
November: Sybarite/Warum: forfreddie, Alvus, Irina (?)*


Is there an interest in a sniff in December? If so, state your interest in a response to this thread! Do you want to sniff, host, co-host? Let us know!

Fragrances that have been sniffed up to July 2012:
(thanks to Twolf for making a list up to 2011 and cestrum nocturnum for 2012 list)

-- Agent Provocateur Strip;
-- Annick Goutal Eau de Camille;
-- Annick Goutal Myrrhe Ardente;
-- Auguste Esprit de Chine;
-- Balmain Jolie Madame;
-- Bath & Body Works Java Bloom;
-- Bellodgio Uomo;
-- Body Shop Amorito;
-- Brécourt Eau Trouble;
-- Bvlgari Blu Note pour Femme;
-- Carlos Santana Men;
-- Carlos Santana Women;
-- Caron L'Anarchiste;
-- Caron Tabac Blond;
-- Chanel No. 5 (current EDP);
-- Chanel 28, La Pausa;
-- Chanel Coco;
-- Christian Dior Miss Dior;
-- Christianne Celle Calypso Mimosa;
-- Comme des Garsons Original Parfum ñ EDP
-- Coty Emeraude (vintage);
-- Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Viridian;
-- Escada S;
-- Estee Lauder Dazzling Silver;
-- Estee Lauder Youth Dew (new EDP);
-- Etat Libre d'Orange Tilda Swinton Like This;
-- Five Star Fragrances Royal Secret;
-- Frapin Terre de Sarment;
-- Genki Wear Pon Farr;
-- Frederic Malle L'Eau d'Hiver;
-- Ginestet Botrytis;
-- Guerlain Habit Rouge;
-- Guerlain Sous le Vent;
-- Gwen Stefani Harajuku Lovers Li'l Angel;
-- Halston Catalyst;
-- Helena Rubinstein Heaven Sent;
-- Hermes Hermessences Ambre Narguile;
-- Hermes Parfum d'Hermes;
-- Hermes Un Jardin sur le Nil;
-- Jean Desprez Bal a Versailles (EDT);
-- Jean Louis Scherrer Scherrer 2 (vintage EDT);
-- Jean Patou Cocktail;
-- Jean Patou Divine Folie;
-- Joubert Blue Waltz;
-- Keiko Mecheri Loukhoum Parfum du Soir;
-- Keiko Mecheri Ume;
-- Kenzo Jungle L'Elephant;
-- Knize Knize Two (EdT);
-- Korres Vanilla Cinnamon;
-- Krizia My Africa;
-- L'Artisan Parfumeur Fleurs d'Oranger 2005;
-- Lancome O de Lancome;
-- Lanvin Mon Peche;
-- La Perla Blue;
-- La Perla Dark Extacy;
-- La Prairie Silver Rain;
-- Le Labo Bergamote 22;
-- Lalique Encre Noire for Men
-- Lenthéric Tweed;
-- Liz Claiborne -- Realities
-- Lorenzo Villoresi Alamut;
-- Lorenzo Villoresi Piper Nigrum;
-- Lubin Nuit de Longchamp (current EdP);
-- Madeleine Mono Madeleine;
-- Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier Georges Sand;
-- MDCI Rose de Siwa;
-- Miller et Bertaux Green, Green, Green and Green;
-- Miller Harris L'Air de Rien
-- Molinard de Molinard;
-- Molyneux, Le Numero Cinq;
-- Naj-Oleari Naj-Oleari EdT;
-- Neil Morris Parfums Midnight Tryst;
-- Nelly Rodi Scent Factory #3 Cardamom;
-- Paloma Picasso Paloma Picasso;
-- Parfums d'Orsay Femme de Dandy;
-- Parfums de Coeur Fireworks;
-- Parfumerie Generale L'Ombre Fauve;
-- Pecksniff's Chypre Green;
-- Prada Prada Women;
-- Priscilla Presley Roses and More;
-- Proctor & Gamble Old Spice;
-- Revlon Moon Drops;
-- Salvador Dali Salvador Dali Women;
-- Scents of Time Night Star;
-- Silvestre Pino Silvestre;
-- Sonia Rykiel for Women, Not for Men;
-- Strange Invisible Perfumes Magazine Street;
-- The Healing Garden Green Tea Therapy;
-- Tom Ford White Patchouli;
-- Yves Rocher Rose Absolue;
-- Yves Rocher Voile d'Ambre.

2012 Blind Sniffs (many thanks to cestrum nocturnum for making this list!):
January 2012 Sniff: On Dreams and Illusions
Liz Claiborne Realities
Annick Goutal Myrrhe Ardente
Helena Rubinstein Heaven Sent

February 2012 Sniff: Soul Sisters Sniff
Naughty twins:
Miller Harris L'Air de Rien
Jean Desprez Bal a Versailles (EDT)

Complicated twins:
Jean Louis Scherrer, Scherrer 2 (vintage EDT)
Estee Lauder Youth Dew (new EDP)

Pastel twins:
Brécourt Eau Trouble
Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle L'Eau d'Hiver

Bonus twins
Molyneux, Le Numero Cinq
Chanel No. 5 EDP, current formulation

March 2012 Sniff: Orient Express: The Red Line
Keiko Mecheri Loukhoum Parfum du Soir
Escada S
Hermes Parfum d'Hermes

April 2012: Cure for Cold
Lorenzo Villoresi Piper Nigrum
Caron L'Anarchiste
Comme des Garsons Original Parfum ñ EDP

May Sniff in July 2012: A Bouquet of Mysteries
Naj-Oleari Naj-Oleari EdT
Knize Knize Two (EdT)
Lubin Nuit de Longchamp (current EdP)

Cacio, would you also like to sniff? We tend to have people sniff first, and then do hosting having been on the other side of it, so to speak.

DD, not necessarily for the best deal, but for the best customer service, quality stuff and extras with every purchase, I always go with the Accessories for Fragrance. Here's my favorite stuff from there, dab and spray:
Short dab vials (they have long ones, too)
Clear plastic ones, I think these were used for the sniffs in Jan, May and Aug/Dec.
Plastic key ring atomizers

I am so excited about you being a host in January! Thank you for jumping in!


Love you too, Wolfie. Of course, you're on the list to sniff!


Kalli, welcome! You will have great fun!
Will January be OK for you?


Done!

A word on the need for experience:



Ladies, I think you both have expressed interest in being sniffers, and that makes you qualified for doing it. Sniffing perfume and sharing with others what you smell is a wonderful experience, and sometimes one can figure out notes come from the more everyday descriptions of smells. You won't be on your own, you will be on a team with other sniffers, and you will be able to work together. So I think you will both be great, Kalli and OVincze! Are you available in January?


Great! Are you available in January?

DD, thanks so much! <3

Right here!
This is the place. Here we will cover the basics and then once you are in a sniff, your host will let you know what to do by posting here, PMing, creating a separate thread or all of the above.

I wrote you down, FrouFrou, right here! I knew you would respond! This is great fun, I agree. Do you want a spot in January?


I am putting you down for January then.


I am sure then that you will be great! Sniffing a fragrance, trying to discern the notes and sharing it is the core of this game. Making mistakes is a part of it as well, I don't know any sniffer who hasn't made a mistake. And yes, we are all pretty nice (if I say so myself) and no one ever laughs at the others about making a mistake since if you've been a sniffer, you had made a mistake. At least one time in your long sniffing life that said, even a non-accurately guessed note may give your team an idea of thinking in a different direction, so mistakes are helpful as well. And hosts provide feedback and hints, too.

As long as the host incorporates extra time for shipping to Europe this is fine. In 2011 we shipped to Netherlands, I believe, and to Turkey.


Wow, these are great deals! If you need more splitters, let me know. Pollux will need some atomizers for a special Blind Sniff he has in the works and I can help him with that.

Alright, I think we are in a position to start planning for January! (and even a little further). Let's have 4 sniffers lined up, do y'all mind? Three with a back-up sniffer?
TWolf can sniff any time, Kalli and OVincze want to do January. There's three. Let's have a back up member.

Cacio, would Feb/March be better for you than January? We can plan around your availability in January or pick a less busy time for you. Either is a valid option, I believe.

FF, do you want to back up on Jan?

I can be a back up on Jan or a co-host, whichever makes more sense, unless you want someone else to co-host, DD, and have an idea of who that is. I might be co-hosting with Pollux on a special Blind Sniff he came up with during the last one of this year and considers doing in in Feb/March 2012.

TWolf, are you still on co-hosting with me down the line? We discussed the ideas, so you are very well in the know of what we'll be sniffing when it is my turn to host.

DD, could you show me please what these atomizers from Madina look like? I tried to search for them and got confused with the site.

Someone has to have her anyway Next time I'm hosting I have avoided that cleverly by having Wolfie as a co-host, but oh well, my next host will have to have our dear Wolfie as a sniffer I guess! That will make it a graduation, right? a sniffer, a co-host, then a host with Wolfie, then a host - gulp! - with Wolfie as a sniffer!

We just have to face this challenge and live up to it! I'll be in the same boat some day!
But think about how relieved our sniffers will be to have such a seasoned member on their team! Isn't it great to start with the very person who came up with this and is really good?

And hey, it all worked out very nicely, and if you needed a dunce for Encre Noir, I gladly filled that role!
It's the game of sorts, and there's always an element of chance in every game.

Love you too, DD. Meeting people on BNs in general and through Blind Sniffs in particular is one of the few of my favorite things!

OK, we do need more sniffers for the later upcoming sniffs.
We also would like one back up sniffer for Jan. sniff hosted by DarkDreams.

FF,


Great! We have a very special one in the works for this time, and will let you know more about it closer to time.

DD, all sniffers are still up, at least no one said they wouldn't be. OVincze is traveling and will come back early Jan. I'll be glad to co-host.

DD, if you ordered from AFF, I can give you Sally's email, but she is always lightening fast with confirmations. Unless she's on vacation, I dunno.

Haunani, I am putting down your name for a sniffer and a host! So good to see you here expressing interest in both. The Paint the Town Red Blind Sniff was my first one and so I am counting you responsible to get me hooked!

OVincze, no worries, they will still all smell! So you will still be able to smell and post impressions