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What are your most regrettable fragrance purchases thus far ???

post #1 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:13am
Thread Starter 
I'm about 3 months into this hobby and I already have a couple.. So I know many others out there may have some or many..

Paco Rabane- 1 Million, I wore the knock off oil that i picked up in Istanbul last summer and finally picked up a bottle over Christmas. little did i know that not only is this the staple clubbing scent here in France, it's literally everyone's signature scent from the ages of 10-30.. I reached for it once, and don't plan to ever again.

Knize- Ten, blind buy.... nuff said, NO the notes look so wonderful and I've read rave reviews and a few honest negative ones.. To my nose, yes a strong gazol smell i'm not fond of and it smells exactly like something that was fabricated in the 1920's. Unwearable for me.

Considering I'm not rich, I will definitely be more conscious in the future before I purchase large decants/bottles.

been sampling quite a bit and 90% of the stuff I will give no consideration to.
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post #2 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:17am
Eternity, Ungaro III, Fahrenheit (2012)
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post #3 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:23am
XS, I knew straight away it was a mistake. Also Safari, Architect, Blue Ted, Chrome, Sex Pistols, Bois Bleu. All sold shortly after they had arrived.
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post #4 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:24am
Diesel Zero Plus Masculine.
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post #5 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:32am
My five worst mistakes to date are:

Memoire d'Homme by Nina Ricci
Briar Rose by Ineke
Geir by Geir Ness
Worth pour Homme Haute Concentration (current version) by Worth
212 Men by Carolina Herrera
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post #6 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:34am
Bond no. 9 Cooper Square
Creed Silver Mountain Water
Armani Code Ultimate
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post #7 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:35am
Gucci guilty, was in a rush and thought it was Gucci homme 2. Thought I'd give it a go anyway and it's the worst mistake so far. Horribly synthetic, I anyone is even thinking of trying this don't, just don't.
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post #8 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:40am
I always buy blind and have rarely sample before I buy:

Worst buys since 2007

1. Paul Smith Men
2. Rive Gauche Pour Homme (Tin Can)
3. Intimately Beckham
4. Beckham Instinct
5. Davidoff Adventure Amazonia
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post #9 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:08am
Bois D'argent. Terrible blind buy based on a YouTube review

- - - Updated - - -

Bois D'argent. Terrible blind buy based on a YouTube review
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post #10 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:11am
Not many regrettable buys here, maybe just On El and only because of good notes, yet with almost no longevity.
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post #11 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Granola View Post

Bois D'argent. Terrible blind buy based on a YouTube review

A youtube reviewer got me interested in it but I have yet to sample it. Can you share why you found it 'terrible'?
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post #12 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:12am
ADG
Vera Wang
Gucci by Gucci Sport
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post #13 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:17am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by NYCBoomBoom View Post

A youtube reviewer got me interested in it but I have yet to sample it. Can you share why you found it 'terrible'?

Please share, I bought a 15ml decant based off what i seen on the tube.. I think it will be quite amazing..
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post #14 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:17am
L'Anarchiste but part of me wants to buy it again to see if my tastes have changed
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post #15 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:17am
Nothing that I have purchased for my collection I have regretted.
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post #16 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:30am
I do a lot of blind buying, but don't regret most. But here are a few:

Bond No. 9 HSLE
Dior Fahrenheit
Tom Ford Black Orchid


and these splits:
Interlude Man
TF Oud Wood
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post #17 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monsieur View Post

Please share, I bought a 15ml decant based off what i seen on the tube.. I think it will be quite amazing..

If you can bottle hay and myrh then you have Bois D'argent. Overrated and not interesting IMO
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post #18 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:39am
My worst blind-buys: Caron Le 3 Homme - the current formulation is apalling compared to the original
Cerruti 1881 Black while a pleasant scent it's quite generic and doesn't project at all on me
TL Pour Lui.... not much to say other than I can't stand the stuff :/
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post #19 of 81
2/23/13 at 12:48pm
Not entirely bad scents, but not too fond of.

Midnight in Paris
Black XS
llum Dean Fresco
YSL La Nuit De L'Homme
Armani Code
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post #20 of 81
2/23/13 at 1:10pm
Fahrenheit. So incredible smelling, but so disappointingly short lived and weak.

Fresco. No matter how inexpensive, if it's not up to par, it's not worth buying. Lesson learned.
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post #21 of 81
2/23/13 at 1:10pm
Guerlain Héritage edp
Azzaro Pure Lavande -- hateful, but, really, I think it cost me $5
Mauboussin Histoire d'Eau -- there are a lot of reviews out there saying it's a long-lost classic. They're lying.
Thierry Mugler B*Men
Carthusia Aria di Capri edt

Also, there is a special place in hell reserved for whoever made Burt's Bees Bay Rum, but that was given to me as a gift.
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post #22 of 81
2/23/13 at 1:29pm
DG light blue - impulsive. Thought it would be a decent summer fragrance. Really dislike it.
Armani code - not bad at all. Just I have so many other fragrances that I reach for besides this.
YSL L'homme - again not bad. Just boring.
ADG - everyone and there mother has it. Wished I would have waited for essenza.

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DG light blue - impulsive. Thought it would be a decent summer fragrance. Really dislike it.
Armani code - not bad at all. Just I have so many other fragrances that I reach for besides this.
YSL L'homme - again not bad. Just boring.
ADG - everyone and there mother has it. Wished I would have waited for essenza.
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post #23 of 81
2/23/13 at 1:32pm
YSL Pour Homme. It stinks. Literally
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post #24 of 81
2/23/13 at 1:58pm
Musc ravageur. Absolutely hate it.
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post #25 of 81
2/23/13 at 1:59pm
Atelier - Vanille Insensee. This stuff is cloyingly nasty. Creed Sublime Vanille is a delicious vanilla citrus fragrance, but Vanille Insensee is a diet version with full blown aspartame in your face. Nasty Stuff. And I have a full bottle <sighs>
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post #26 of 81
2/23/13 at 2:16pm
For me:

Blood Concept-absolutely rotten(all of the "types)
Eternity-Calvin Klein
Farenheit
Grey Flannel
Bijan for men(original juice)
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post #27 of 81
2/23/13 at 2:26pm
my mistakes to date..


Blood Concept
Silver Mountain Water
Divin Enfant
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post #28 of 81
2/23/13 at 2:28pm
Bond no 9 - New Harlem
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post #29 of 81
2/23/13 at 2:45pm
Versace l homme reformulated
Pure shot
Bond no. 9 great jones
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post #30 of 81
2/23/13 at 2:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by pharmgator01 View Post

Atelier - Vanille Insensee. This stuff is cloyingly nasty. Creed Sublime Vanille is a delicious vanilla citrus fragrance, but Vanille Insensee is a diet version with full blown aspartame in your face. Nasty Stuff. And I have a full bottle <sighs>

Boy, I hope it WAS a blind buy. Because if you smelled it before buying, I DON'T KNOW YOU EVER MORE!!!

- - - Updated - - -

Prada Pour Homme Intense. I know I should educate myself, but nooooo....
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post #31 of 81
2/23/13 at 3:02pm
Creed Silver Mountain Water - smells like dirty mop that's been sitting in a corner for couple months, still soggy and growing weird fungus on it.

Aramis - gives me that dirty, unwashed old grandpa type impression. Smells very old fashioned, can't get past the initial 5 minutes of it to see if it develops into something more interesting. Tried a few times, 5 minutes was the longest before I scrubbed it off.

YSL Kouros - I'd spray it once a week and all I would get was that nasty urinal cake from the dirtiest, nastiest public restroom you can imagine (remember the movie "Trainspotting"?). I wouldn't give up as it was so highly recommended, and even with the bad reviews I thought I'd eventually 'get it'. EVENTUALLY finally happened, two months later. I sprayed it and experienced an epiphany - I finally get the overly rich dark flowery 80's powerhouse scent, alas - it took me 2 months to get to this point - I could not possibly wear this out in public always afraid many (most?) people around me would smell the urinal cake rather than the overly rich and flowery bouquet. Perhaps it meant something in the 80's, but now in 2013 - it should be filed as a footnote or a reference in perfumery books, not as a scent one should wear anymore. By today's standards - it's, well, yucky.
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post #32 of 81
2/23/13 at 4:13pm
GFT by Geo. Trumper
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post #33 of 81
2/23/13 at 4:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monsieur View Post

I'm about 3 months into this hobby and I already have a couple.. So I know many others out there may have some or many..



Knize- Ten, blind buy.... nuff said, NO the notes look so wonderful and I've read rave reviews and a few honest negative ones.. To my nose, yes a strong gazol smell i'm not fond of and it smells exactly like something that was fabricated in the 1920's. Unwearable for me.

Sorry you don't like Knize 10. I'll give your bottle a good home!
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post #34 of 81
2/23/13 at 7:32pm
Most immortele based perfumes. I cannot stand it in long doses.
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post #35 of 81
2/23/13 at 7:39pm
Tom Ford Italian Cypress 50 ml split. A rare blind buy since many BNers claim it to be better than the original RL Polo. They were dead wrong.
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post #36 of 81
2/23/13 at 7:46pm
most of Creeds, with the exception of GIT and Jardin d'Amalfi

and many blind buy FB of designers frags when first got into this hobby, many collecting dust after 1 spray
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post #37 of 81
2/23/13 at 7:53pm
Versace The Dreamer and Roadster Sport.
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post #38 of 81
2/23/13 at 8:00pm
I regret blind buying Givenchy Xeryus Rouge. Got it a few years ago. Bottle is gathering dust and I barely ever wear it. Not really a fan of the scent either.
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post #39 of 81
2/23/13 at 8:10pm
Bijan for men
A*men
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post #40 of 81
2/23/13 at 8:36pm
Lauder for Men (current formulation) They did not have a tester, but I blind bought it anyway since I was collecting Bernard Chant. (The original formulation is brilliant BTW).
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post #41 of 81
2/23/13 at 9:32pm
I somewhat regret buying Leather Oud. I don't think I have ever worn it after buying it last summer. Most of the ones I regret are blind buys I ended up just giving away and not even recouping any money from. They include:

Tommy Bahama Original
Remy Latour Cigar
Perry Ellis 360
Zirh Ikon
Kanon
Kanon Norwegian Wood
Nautica Blue
Guess by Marciano for men
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post #42 of 81
2/23/13 at 9:43pm
I'm surprised some of the mentioned fragrances. This just shows you, that everyone has a different taste and perspective.
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post #43 of 81
2/23/13 at 9:49pm
Leather Oud. Still can't erase the pain.
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post #44 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:07pm
I don't have a purchase that I completely regret. However, I did swap Pure Havane, Burberry London, and a 10 ml decant of La Nuit de L'homme for Pure Malt right before it was re-released. That sucked.
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post #45 of 81
2/23/13 at 10:51pm
Polo Blue, Polo Sport, CK Escape, Versace Man (wanted the purple colour bottle because I love Man Eau Fraiche). I don't plan to wear them anymore. Could've use the money I spent on them for other ones I do plan on buying.
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post #46 of 81
2/23/13 at 11:17pm
None of these are particularly bad fragrances but they stand out as being lesser alternatives of other things I own.

Ed Hardy Love and Luck-- people say it smells like MI; not so much to me - sold it.
Animale Animale - wore it twice, sold it. Pure Malt made it irrelevant.
Boss Bottled - sold it. Stale/synthetic. Surpassed by YSL L'homme.
Armani Code - no point as I own Midnight in Paris which surpasses it.

EDIT:
BTW, three mentions for Creed Silver Mountain Water so far which is surprising to me.
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post #47 of 81
2/24/13 at 2:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by hedonist222 View Post

Most immortele based perfumes. I cannot stand it in long doses.

I'm with you in this. The new Frapin Speakeasy surely a nice scent, but after a while it's about nothing but immortelle - it simply turns my stomach.
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post #48 of 81
2/24/13 at 2:32am
Lolita Lempicka au Masculin. Cloying, chemical, oversweetened, artificial. Yuck.
Eau de Reglisse by Caron - the tester smelt great but the bottle was dull, linear and same-y.
Bois d'Argent by Armani Prive - nice scent, but no projection or longevity - far too expensive.
Duro and Absinthe by nasomatto - short lived, unmemorable.
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post #49 of 81
2/24/13 at 3:08am
Quorum
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post #50 of 81
2/24/13 at 3:17am
I recently bought (blind) two fragrances from Smell Bent. I live in England so I had to pay postage too. I don't know if the fragrances I received were off or were supposed to smell that way; in either case I found them quite vile and will never wear either again.
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post #51 of 81
2/24/13 at 3:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by autumngleeman View Post

Musc ravageur. Absolutely hate it.

Send it to me, I love it!

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Quote:
Originally Posted by pharmgator01 View Post

Atelier - Vanille Insensee. This stuff is cloyingly nasty. Creed Sublime Vanille is a delicious vanilla citrus fragrance, but Vanille Insensee is a diet version with full blown aspartame in your face. Nasty Stuff. And I have a full bottle <sighs>

Send it to me, I love this one too!
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post #52 of 81
2/24/13 at 3:34am
Too many to mention, but 99% of the ones I regret have come from TJ Maxx/Ross/Marshall's. Impulse buys that I quickly swapped or sold off. Incredibly, I have purchased probably 100 bottles in those places and not a single one is part of my 30 bottle wardrobe. They're all gone or going. Why do I buy scents there? Impulse retail therapy. Wastes a ton of cash. Just plain stupid.
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post #53 of 81
2/24/13 at 4:41am
For me it would be Egoiste.Its as if someone drained the awesome juice i have read about on here countless times and refilled it with off bugspray.The second i sprayed it on i knew it had to go.

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For me it would be Egoiste.Its as if someone drained the awesome juice i have read about on here countless times and refilled it with off bugspray.The second i sprayed it on i knew it had to go.
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post #54 of 81
2/24/13 at 5:48am
Regrets...I have a few...but then again, too few to mention....
My biggest regret was 1 Million. I sampled it in a mall, walked around with it on, and enjoyed it. I bought it, I used it twice and grew tired of it. Now it sits.
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post #55 of 81
2/24/13 at 6:14am
Juicy Couture Dirty English
Zirh Ikon

Blind bought them both cause they were under $20 but I'm not a fan of them at all. After that I realized I didn't want to have many bottles of fragrances I wouldn't wear and have been sampling endlessly. No more blind buys for me.

I agree with the criticism of Bois d'Argent. Reminds me of hay as well. I tried it again yesterday but it's not growing on me. My mom liked it though
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post #56 of 81
2/24/13 at 6:59am
Live Jazz
B*Men
Quorum
Herrera Aqua
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post #57 of 81
2/24/13 at 7:51am
Well lets see..

YSL Pour Homme Haute Concentree
Yatagan
Bandit Light pour homme
Or Black
Versace Black Jeans
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post #58 of 81
2/24/13 at 8:03am
Now pleased don't start bashing..but for me it was ..DHI
The next I remember, was AdG, which I gifted to my brother :-)
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post #59 of 81
2/24/13 at 8:14am
I went through a blind buy phase, even for expensive niche frags. My regrets:

PdE Aziyade - the cumin is too much for me and it becomes sticky and cloying
Eau d'Italie Paestum Rose - the dryness grates on me after a while
And some cheapies from TJMaxx - Bulgari Blue Notte comes to mind, the vodka note makes me nauseated (but I love that in Ambre Russe, so go figure)
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post #60 of 81
2/24/13 at 8:52am
I don't get the dislike of B*Men. If anyone has an unloved bottle of this, I'll give it a very good home.

My biggest regret is Miracle L'Aquatonic. Its supposed to be a bit like Mugler Cologne but with a Violet note.

It doesn't.

It smells like Lilacs and little else. It smells like something your Granny would wear.

I can't even bring myself to give it away to someone, it wouldn't be fair on them
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