Safe blind buys?

[Leifer]

So out of this list, which ones are a safe blind buy, and which ones would you recommend that I go test out before I purchase?

Estee Lauder -- Lauder for Men
Guerlain -- Vetiver
Guerlain -- Heritage
Yves Saint Laurent -- Body Kouros
Bvlgari Extreme
Versace -- Versace l'Homme
Givenchy -- Xeryus Rouge
Boucheron -- Jaipur
Paloma Picasso -- Minotaure
Laura Biagiotti -- Roma Uomo
Hermes -- Terre D'hermes
Thierry Mugler -- A*Men
Burberry London
Burberry Brit


I blind bought Nightflight by Joop, and Le Male. Hopefully I didn't make a mistake though. I was thinking that Terre D'hermes and Body Kouros are safe blind buys, considering the amount of positive feedback.

[bront82]

To be honest, I don't think there is such a thing as a safe blind buy ... the gamble I guess is part of the fun. No matter how much I like something, that doesn't guarantee that you will find it at all appealing. Looking at your list you have some pretty bold choices up there as well. A*Men, Terre d'Hermes, Xeryus, Body Kouros ... these are not light fragrances, they are strong and direct. Take a trip to your local department store, as they will have a nice selection of these to choose from. Smell before you wind up with something you can't stand!

[Zerby]

Well bront82,

There is such thing as a safe blind buy. I bought Eau Sauvage Extreme via off the internet. It smelled great & I love it. Back to Leifer. Buy Vetiver & Heritage. I love both of them. You can't go wrong on Guerlain's(My Opinion).

[Off-Scenter]

It's very hard to say, since everybody's tastes are distinct. If I may rephrase the question to "Which of these are high quality scents and have garnered consistent praise?" I'd suggest:

Jaipur Homme (EdP is best)
Heritage
Terre d'Hermes

[gupts]

It's very hard to say, since everybody's tastes are distinct. If I may rephrase the question to "Which of these are high quality scents and have garnered consistent praise?" I'd suggest:

Jaipur Homme (EdP is best)
Heritage
Terre d'Hermes

I am a dissenter as far as Jaipur edp goes.....
I just can't stand the excessive tonka in the base...

Terre d'Hermes is something i admire....fantastic stuff....as long as you dont overspray...

So there you go....what others like you may not like....what you like others may not like...

btw....if anyone is keen on Jaipur edp *metal jacket*...pm me

[tvlampboy]

I cannot imagine why Heritage and/or Carven Homme would disappoint -- they're both lovely fragrances.

As much as I love Guerlain's (ORIGINAL) Vetiver, though, I can easily see how its strong vetiver and tobacco notes might easily displease many.

[ChrisW]

I would say Bvlgari PH Extreme and Terre d'Hermes are safe blind buys, but you should probably test the rest first.

[Redcomet]

Guerlain -- Vetiver (not safe)
Guerlain -- Heritage (not safe)
Yves Saint Laurent -- Body Kouros (kinda safe)
Bvlgari Extreme (not safe)
Boucheron -- Jaipur (safe)
Paloma Picasso -- Minotaure (not safe)
Hermes -- Terre D'hermes (kinda safe)
Thierry Mugler -- A*Men (NOT safe)
Burberry London (not safe)
Burberry Brit (kinda safe)

so really, the only safe blind buy is jaipur. unless you hate sweet scents.

yes, those are very ambiguous but that's personal tastes for ya.

[MadScientist]

Well bront82,

There is such thing as a safe blind buy. I bought Eau Sauvage Extreme via off the internet. It smelled great & I love it. Back to Leifer. Buy Vetiver & Heritage. I love both of them. You can't go wrong on Guerlain's(My Opinion).

Ahh the blind leading the blind

I'd have to wholeheartedly agree with bront82. The responses so-far prove it.

The only "safe" blind buy is one in which you know you can get your money back if you don't like it.

[RCavs]

The safe blind buy depends on what you like (that apparently nobody knows) and what you're looking for... Maybe the only blind buy that exists, is Acqua di Giò.

[jeffrey]

I think New York by Nicolai is a safe blind buy. Very classic and user-friendly.

[Havok]

no such thing as a safe buy, everyone's tastes are different. personally some of my blind buys based off of this site smelled like old men (Burberry London for instance). Old White men to be exactly, something I'd expect my friend's grandparents to smell like. You may ask for people's age and THEN their favorite scents so you can get a grasp on some demographic.

[gupts]

Ahh the blind leading the blind

The only "safe" blind buy is one in which you know you can get your money back if you don't like it.

The safe blind buy depends on what you like (that apparently nobody knows) and what you're looking for... Maybe the only blind buy that exists, is Acqua di Giò.

I agree :toppie:

[Renato]

Estee Lauder -- Lauder for Men - smelt okay last time I tested it, but I've never sought it out again.
Guerlain -- Vetiver - Most like it, but some really don't.It grew on me.
Guerlain -- Heritage - Never grabbed me.
Yves Saint Laurent -- Body Kouros - I disliked a lot at first, but it really grew on me.
Bvlgari Extreme - Always thought this Bvlgari and the non extreme one, didn't project enough. Too subtle for me.
Versace -- Versace l'Homme - Didn't like much, but nothing subtle about it.
Givenchy -- Xeryus Rouge - I like this sweet and loud scent, but not many others do.
Boucheron -- Jaipur - I like a lot, a good multipurpose oriental.
Paloma Picasso -- Minotaure No thoughts, I've tried it a few times and can't remember it.
Laura Biagiotti -- Roma Uomo - A stand out scent, but too sweet for many. If you liked L'Male, you won't dislike this one.
Hermes -- Terre D'hermes - I liked a lot, but it wouldn't last more than three hours on my skin.
Thierry Mugler -- A*Men - A love it or hate it scent. If you liked L'Male, you'll like this one.
Burberry London - Safe but not oustanding. Too subtle for me.
Burberry Brit - Safe but not oustanding. Too subtle for me.

My idea with blind buys is to find them cheap on the internet, and buy three for at least a third or more off. Hopefully, if there is one you don't like much (and you continue not to like it), well, you're not really out of pocket. That's why I used to like Strawberrynet - the third scent in an order got me an extra 5% off the entire order.

I've never bought three out of three duds on blind buys.
Renato
--------------------------------------

The safe blind buy depends on what you like (that apparently nobody knows) and what you're looking for... Maybe the only blind buy that exists, is Acqua di Giò.

Funny, that's the one scent I cannot fathom why anyone likes it. All the supposed clones of it smell heaps better to me.
Renato

[Leifer]

Whoa there's alot of dissent in this thread, haha. I guess none of them are safe to blindly-buy. I guess there's no harm in going with this list and trying out all of them first, that way I can cancel out the ones I really don't like and order the ones that I do. Thanks for the suggestions.

[Lightninrod]

Boucheron -- Jaipur, the only safe one IMO. I bought it blind a long time ago; before I found BN and I loved it.


Dan

[Leifer]

Well if it helps to decide which one would be safe for my age group... I'm 18 years old.

Also, I blind bought Nightflight and le Male.

[KMF]

Whoa there's alot of dissent in this thread, haha. I guess none of them are safe to blindly-buy. I guess there's no harm in going with this list and trying out all of them first, that way I can cancel out the ones I really don't like and order the ones that I do. Thanks for the suggestions.

www.scentedmonkey.com

You can order samples from there for $2.99 each. I don't know if they will have everything you're looking for, but they should have most!

[Suppressor]

Congratulations, there are no good blind buys in your list!

[Leifer]

Haha, are my choices of cologne bad? I mean, this is just a list that I want to go out and try before I buy. I've heard relatively good things about them, so yeah. If you have any suggestions on colognes similar to those, or ones that fit my age group (I'm 18) I'd be more than happy to take the suggestions with me to the department store to try them out. Any help is much appreciated, as I just got into the world of scents.

[Redcomet]

oh no, many of those fragrances I love to death... and a few of them I hate as well (I'm looking at you A*Men). but as far as blind buys go, many of the best scents are controversial, making them extremely unsafe. high risk, but high reward. or, you could just test them, which, it sounds like, you are already planning on doing.

[nova]

Boucheron -- Jaipur

[Leifer]

Redcomet:

Yeah, that makes sense. I've noticed that alot of the scents I picked were just out of curiosity (Like A*Men... it's apparently sweet enough to give you cavities) while others like Terre d'Hermes and Body Kouros I just want to straight up buy because they seem so appealing to me. However, they may not necessarily be what I'm looking for... which ones do you think have the best projection and sillage? I looked through your wardrobe and looked at the ones you rated highest in rating/longetivity, and I'm going to add them onto my list, because it seems like you and I have similar taste.

[Dimitrios]

Hi Leif ...
Like redcomet above an interesting lot ..
Just curious have you sampled thes ones yet ?
....................... Estee Lauder
........................Xeryus Rouge
........................Roma Uomo
........................Burberry London
I would really like to know your thoughts on them ..
cheers ..

[Leifer]

Dimitrios, I have sampled all of them. I own XR from that list; but I tried all of them! What do you want to know about them?

[Dimitrios]

Well ... why not a full review of Xeryus Rouge ! in the same fashion as your first few .
If you have already done it I have missed it ,, It would also be valuable over at the database as well .
As for the other 3 , Estee L - Roma U & B London .. If you have still have samples left in the atomisers or mini's just do what your instincts tell you wear them properly and review just like you have been doing . Likewise if you haven't any juice left don't attempt it on memory . cheers .

[Buzzlepuff]

Are you kidding me? None of those are safe to blind buy! Always test a fragrance more than once or you will probably be sorry you bought it. The only fragrances of those listed that I think are safe blind buys are Heritage by Geurlain and Jaipour by Bucheron. But test them first. Their easy to please nature is also considered too level headed and boring by some. Heritage is my favorite of the group.

[deck89]

Guerlain Vetiver is a risky blind buy.. Really does depend on your tastes!!

[Bromo33333]

There are no safe buys. As an 18 year old you have to decide what scent "speaks to you" - most people under 25 will steer away form things like Terre d'Hermes and more towards things like le Male, A*Men and so on.

I myself had Hermes d'Orange Vert (was called something else when I had it, though Eau something) which was pretty new at the time, and over time if there was any scent that I felt comforted by, it is this one. So I have the Concintree d'Ornage Vert version.