What has been your Best Blind Buy?

[danieq]

I just placed an order for Frapin Esprit de Fleurs as they had a great deal at Luckyscent for October. What a great idea that was! I really like it. It was slightly frightening as the opening was a LOT of citrus which isn't my favorite thing, but very quickly it softened up to a lovely floral musky treat.

So, anyone else have a good blind buy to share?

[remik]

Bentley Intense - very nice, definitely living up to all the hype, and could easily pass for a high-end niche release. Just got it this week and already love it.

Encre Noir - if you love vetiver, this one is bliss in a bottle - and the price is just crazy low for this one. Don't let that fool you, the fragrance is of extremely good quality. Got it about a year or so ago and it's been one of my best blind buys ever.

[phi]

Bond No 9's Silver Factory makes up for all the bad blind buys I've ever had

[hedonist222]

Rose Paestum
Iris Pallida

To be precise though they weren't bonafide blind buys.
I'd read reviews by competent reviewers. More importantly I read reviews by people who's interpretation I can relate to. Meaning I don't necessarily share tastes with them but our interpretation is similar.
So I kinda knew what I'd be getting.

[Eule]

Bandit was my best. Strangely followed by Yatagan - which I seemed to already know from my 80ies childhood but didn`t realize what it was.
And ìt`s like hedonist said, I already read about them here and in the guide

[Curly11]

No. 23 by Ava Luxe, and Loukhoum, by the same perfumer. This was after reading through many suggestions on a Basenotes thread.

[cello]

So glad you love the No. 23, Curly!!!

Mine were Chanel Coromandel and 1932, although I am almost certain of most Chanels.

[601red]

Hanae Mori's HM (edP)

Thank You, Mr. H.

[donna255]

I never blind buy without googling and reading reviews before deciding to jump.

Annick Goutal Myrrhe Ardente
Cuir de Lancome
Heeley Nuit de Iris
Iris Pallida

These are the ones that spring to mind, there are others.

[Curly11]

So glad you love the No. 23, Curly!!!

Mine were Chanel Coromandel and 1932, although I am almost certain of most Chanels.

Yes, cello, it was probably your enthusiasm for No. 23 that tipped me toward a blind buy. Those small bottles are good for carrying in a purse, or even a coat pocket. I know you smell good when you wear Coromandel!

[ScentFan]

A La Nuit by Serge Lutens!

[Tristram]

Chypre Palatin. Most successfull blind buy ever for me. Before that: Pre-Reformulation New York.

[CapriDog]

I LOVE most of the scents mentioned above.

My most beloved blind-buy thus far has been the Majda Bekkali line.

[30 Roses]

I'm pretty leery of blind buys, unless they are very cheap. I also read every review I can find.

My best blind buys were:
YSL In Love Again
Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Flora Nerolia and Aqua Allegoria Lilia Bella
Annick Goutal Rose Absolue edp

[tdwctdwc]

Only blind buys I have ever made (i actually might have the lowest rate on Basenotes in blind buying) are :

24 Gold : Ended up in my all time top 5

Bentley Intense : Rapidly becoming my favorite for fall/winter

Encre Noire : Very disappointed in its longevity on my skin and most likely will give it away.

Edit : By blind buy, i mean not SMELLING or TESTING before buying!

[danieq]

If reading reviews disqualifies it from Blind Buy status then I suppose the only Blind Buys I've ever made were.............well.........none. I do always read as many reviews as I can before making the decision.

[kalli]

I gave away, swapped or sold my few BBs. The only one that worked out and I kept was Chocolovers..which was actually a blind swap as I was swapping out a blind buy, my first and WORST one! Burberry Brit Holiday Edition! Awful!!!! To me anyway!

[teardrop]

Hands down, Estee Lauder Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia; just beautiful! l bought it after reading a review on Now Smell This way back in 2007. And l discovered basenotes at around the same time, so really it represents the beginning of my journey down the rabbit hole.

These days l usually read every review l can find before blind buying, but l do experience the odd moment of weakness even now.

[Wingie]

Only blind buys I have ever made (i actually might have the lowest rate on Basenotes in blind buying) are :

24 Gold : Ended up in my all time top 5

Bentley Intense : Rapidly becoming my favorite for fall/winter

Encre Noire : Very disappointed in its longevity on my skin and most likely will give it away.

tdwctdwc, I have been on these boards since 2009 and have only blind bought once!! It was Shalimar Eau Legere, the 2002 formulation created by Mathilde Laurent that was reformulated/discontinued shortly thereafter. The Guide spoke very highly of it as did the reviews I had read online. Saw a bottle on eBay and bought it because it was discontinued and was intended to be a lighter, more modern version of the original Shalimar, which I never personally liked (although I appreciate it as a masterpiece in the intellectual sense). I didn't like the Eau Legere at all and vowed to never buy blind again, as I felt I had foolishly wasted my money. I know now that I am very picky about what I would like to own FB's of (I often go through a sample AND a small decant first), and even many positive reviews of a fragrance are not enough to guarantee I will like it. There are times I have since been tempted to blind buy when I have seen a good deal but have managed to discipline myself to sample first.

[badarun]

Every Slumberhouse that I've bought blind have been excellent, along with MDCI'S Invasion Barbare...

[remik]

If reading reviews disqualifies it from Blind Buy status then I suppose the only Blind Buys I've ever made were.............well.........none. I do always read as many reviews as I can before making the decision.

Exactly. I'm pretty sure we ALL read reviews here and other sites first, sometimes over and over again, before "blind buying" anything. By "blind buy" I always assume we all mean the same thing - you buy a full bottle based on just reviews alone, without actually seeking a sample first. I don't think anyone (sane) would "blind buy" any fragrance just by throwing a dart in the fragrance directory - there always is some research involved before pulling out the credit card to place an order online. The only times when "blind buy" doesn't qualify is if you got a sample of the fragrance first, or tried it at a store, or your friend's place, etc. If you have tried it, you have first hand experience and know what the fragrance smells like, so it's not exactly buying full bottle blindly hoping you like the scent.

[sjg3839]

Bentley for Men Intense was my best blind by for 2013.

[Evangeline]

I don't think I've ever bought a full bottle of perfume that I hadn't already at least smelled right there in the store, so I have dozens of impulse buys, some of which I rather regret, but none completely blind. Well, one - Ava Luxe's Pivoine Rose, which I adore, but it was replacing Ava Luxe's Peonies which I had smelled and liked well enough to buy, but it was being discontinued so I figured its replacement would be close enough ...and those bottles are small, so it wasn't much of a risk anyway.

I understand it's a huge thrill for some people, but I can't seem to get thrilled about anything I don't already know is FB-worthy, and no matter how eloquent or persuasive, reviews can only point me in the right direction. I just won't be convinced until I smell it myself.

[ExtremeK]

I've had a number of impulse buys (after only sampling for a short while in shops), and 75% of those turned out badly. I've given away all but one of them (anyone need a full 50ml bottle of original Prada EDP?). I've had 6 total blind buys, and only one didn't really work out. The other 5 have been wonderful, starting with the best of them:

Badgley Mischka EDP
Ava Luxe No. 23 -- also thanks to cello
Ava Luxe Bois Exotique
Ava Luxe Opoponax Intense
Tom Ford Black Orchid Voile de Fleur

The one stinker was Ava Luxe Madeline -- the musk ruins it for me. Without the musk, it would be the perfect chai fragrance.

[danieq]

Seems like a lot of Ava Luxe blind buys. Guess that makes sense since she doesn't do samples.

[jujy54]

Luten's Sarrasins. A friend was in Paris and I asked for advice from basenotes friends as to the best exclusive to have brought back.

[Twolf]

There are no fragrance stores around here and I do not buy blind since 2009. Too many disappointments. Samples and decants are the way to go.

[KBear]

I bought Cuir de Lancôme blind when it was still available for around $40 from the online discounters, and I still love it. It gets a lot of wear, and it's the only fragrance in my collection that I have a backup bottle for.

[Evangeline]

Seems like a lot of Ava Luxe blind buys. Guess that makes sense since she doesn't do samples.

That's exactly right, and Serena's bottles of edp are 15ml, so that's like a large decant ...now having said that, I have purchased some decants that I would have been better off with smaller samples of first, but I've never considered those blind buys, though I'm not sure why. I guess I just think of blind buys as being for full bottles.

[Ken_Russell]

As I might have mentioned on a few other threads before: a "mixed bag" of three fragrances I didn't know before, never having sampled, tested, them prior to buying them, but was quite reassured about the BN reviews. These three fragrances were: Grey Flannel, Halston Z14, Francesco Smalto PH.

In the "single blind purchase"-category: YSL Rive Gauche PH. No previous testing experience, but somehow I knew that this fragrance would most likely be a good experience for me.