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Long time lurker, first time poster. 23 y.o. college student needs some tips.

post #1 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:33pm
Thread Starter 
Hi guys,

I've been creeping on the boards for weeks now and am at this point completely fascinated by fragrances. I've only ever owned a tiny bottle of Burberry brit and that was my go-to scent. Recently I decided to walk into a store and bought Chanel de Bleu on kind of an impulse and that's kind of where the obsession started (although I must say I have a knack for developing obsessions rather quickly when I find something new I enjoy). But I digress.

I've been hitting up different stores, trying to smell as much as I can before they start thinking I'm a lunatic, because I swear if it was up to me I could spend hours upon hours smelling. I also challenge myself into getting as many samples of off them as I can, although I must say some stores are rather uptight about handing out samples. It's as if they're not made to be smelled. I have a tiny collection of samples but nothing's really knocked me out yet. I tried A*Men and thought I loved it but got sick of it after 24 hours. I thought I smelled like a gingerbread man stuck under a tire-fire.

So, I'm looking to you guys for help. Right now I own Bleu de Chanel and Burberry Brit. I love both of them but want a LOT more. I know it's hard to gauge what I'd like and wouldn't like online but all I need is names so I can go and check them out in real life. I like woody, intense, seductive, memorable fragrances. Not too sweet and I don't like watery/sporty fragrances either. I've been looking at Armani Code Ultimate after a store employee told me it went well with my skin colour (not joking) and I liked it but I thought it wore off much too quickly.


Any help?
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post #2 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:42pm
It's to early to know what you like. Go to Surrender to Chance or a smilar website and go crazy ordering samples. Your tastes will change so take it slow and only buy what you really like.
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post #3 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:42pm
Try Dior Homme Intense. The fragrance that started it all for me.

- - - Updated - - -

I'd recommend trying the following easy to find department store fragrances -

Yves St Laurent - M7
Dior - Homme Intense/Fahrenheit
Hermes - Terre D'hermes
Viktor and Rolf - Spicebomb
Thierry Mugler - A*Men
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post #4 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:45pm
YSL La Nuit is a good seductive fragrance. I like Brit, but I like La Nuit more. When I feel like wearing that type of fragrance, I pick La Nuit over Brit.

Gucci Pour Homme II is a great fragrance, look in to that.

Creed Silver Mountain Water is another great pleasant fragrance.

Jordan Legend is a quality cheap gourmand, which I think you would like based on your initially love of AMen. Legend won't project as much, and should allow you to enjoy it without getting completely tired of it.

I believe these are some good starters. These are fragrances that I love and wear often. Keep sampling
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post #5 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:55pm
Try Gucci PH II
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post #6 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:55pm
I'm having a hard time coming up with any recommendations: you say you want to avoid sweet and watery/sporty fragrances but, in my opinion, that describes Burberry Brit and Bleu de Chanel, respectively. The only other fragrances you mentioned didn't seem to do much for you, so there isn't much of a starting point for suggestions.

Most people don't have much of a vocabulary for scent, so it's sometimes hard to describe what exactly you are looking for as a beginner; at least, I had no idea how to describe what I was smelling/looking for when I first got into this hobby. I remember wanting something that I later found out was leathery, and asking a sales associate for a woody-tobacco scent.

My best advice would be to try as many fragrances as you can, write down the names and your impressions, and use something like Micahel Edwards' Fragrance Database to see if there is any one family that you are particularly fond of. Also, if you have a few fragrances that you know you like, it would be a lot easier to make recommendations.

Anyway, welcome to Basenotes!
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post #7 of 16
1/20/13 at 1:57pm
Chanel Allure, Givenchy Play Intense, YSL L'homme are good ones to check out.
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post #8 of 16
1/20/13 at 2:01pm
Your story is similar to mine. I had a 'small' collection that developed over the years, to around a dozen, and in the past two months, since discovering this forum, that collection has grown to over thirty (started with Bleu de Chanel). If you like Burberry Brit, try Burberry London (great pine scent although it doesn't last long on my skin). You might not have enjoyed A*Men (which I also did not on my first try) but you might think differently of Pure Malt, I blind bought it and absolutely love it. I would also recommend sampling John Varvatos (I had the original and enjoyed it, now I'm contemplating Artisan Black). I also tried Armani Code Ultimate, and didn't like it. Was just too powdery, I do have Armani Code and enjoy that version a lot more. 1 million is a popular go to scent, and I would echo the recommendation of Dior Homme Intense and Terre D'hermes.
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post #9 of 16
1/20/13 at 2:33pm
Thread Starter 
This is amazing. Thank you all so much for the help. I love all of these recommendations and I will be looking into it. NYCBoomBoom I'm definitely going to try all of those.
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post #10 of 16
1/20/13 at 4:04pm
Carbone de Balmain
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post #11 of 16
1/20/13 at 4:07pm
+1 for YSL L'Homme though longevity is an issue with this one. I get about 6-8 hrs. Others have stated they get less.

This is the fragrance that got me in the game.
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post #12 of 16
1/20/13 at 5:04pm
Definitely do alot of sampling. Definitely read reviews here to get a good handle on aspects of a frag like popularity, longevity, comparable scents, etc. And definitely don't fall into the trap of thinking that niche/more expensive frags are better.
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post #13 of 16
1/20/13 at 5:12pm
A few people beat me to it. Gucci PH II
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post #14 of 16
1/20/13 at 5:21pm
Try these....

Chanel egoiste (not platinum egoiste)
Ysl m7
Tom ford oud wood
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post #15 of 16
1/20/13 at 5:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigsteve View Post

Definitely do alot of sampling. Definitely read reviews here to get a good handle on aspects of a frag like popularity, longevity, comparable scents, etc. And definitely don't fall into the trap of thinking that niche/more expensive frags are better.

Highly recommend doing all of the above. And if you can't get samples, when it comes to expensive fragrances hold off and don't make a decision based on what you smell on paper or even on your skin if it's just once. I tried Tom Ford's Noir de Noir on paper and thought it was great. On another occasion I sprayed some on my arm and was totally put off by it; it smelled like something died and defecated on my forearm, in that order.
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post #16 of 16
3/27/13 at 3:36am
I recommend Givenchy Play Intense if you like A*men (gourmand) and YSL L'homme la nuit for night time.
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Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Just Starting Out › Long time lurker, first time poster. 23 y.o. college student needs some tips.