Trying to find a signature perfume. Any ideas? - YouLookFab Forum

Category

General

Welcome! Read about what to wear and how to wear it on the YLF Blog. Join the YLF Forum to ask specific questions or just chat about fashion and personal style. Or check out the curated list of things we love in YLF Finds.

Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

Trying to find a signature perfume. Any ideas?

Irene

Veteran

Ah, the eternal search for the perfect perfume that you can use for years until you finally get tired of it.

For years I've been coveting the Madmoiselle Coco (EDT, I believe the EDP to be too strong). I think I started obsessing over it at age 19 but always felt too young for it since I was still going to uni and wearing cons. My mom bought around four or yeras ago for herself but never got to finish the bottle (it wasn't meant for her, she much prefers J'Adore) so I am finishing the bottle mysef now. It's almost over. So far I like it (been using it for two or three weeks only though), and I am thinking whether to get a new one for Christmas or not.

See, the thing is, I've discovered Miss Dior Chérie on the way. I think it is more fruity and flowery though, which might be tiring for me. I tend to like fresh, citric, masculine smells much more. I can't stand most feminine scents, especially if they have vanilla in them. I do have an imitation Miss Chérie bottle which is really close to the original one (only lasts much less) and so far like it too. It's sweet, and young and fresh. I only use it on fabric though, just in case it's bad for the skin.

I'm really helpless when choosing perfumes in a drugstore since after trying three scents I'm all dizzy and can't recognize anything anymore, which is one of the reasons I'm going for the obvious. Also, because I would hate falling in love with a scent and then not being able to find it anymore because its season is over. I would like to go for something classic.

What scents do you use, if any, and what do they smell like? Do you think they represent your personality? Oh, and which scents bother you when other people wear them?

General

19 replies

Latest reply was from Jenava

Louise

Veteran

I really struggle to find scent which suits me. I love Very Valentino on others but on me it smells of cat piddle! I have settled on CK one for Spring/ Summer it's a light, fresh citrusy fragrance. For Autumn/ Winter Versace Red Jeans. It's heavier but not cloying. I'm not sure what family it would fall into though? X

Irene

Veteran

I think it's ONE that literally smells like Mr Propper on me lol Or maybe it was Light Blue? Neither of them work well on my skin!! I don't know what the Versace Red Jeans smells like. After reading some reviews, it does sound like I could like it Thanks for the idea! (I'll go try it on some day this week)

Kim

Veteran

First, don't try 3 scents at once, you poor nose will just get confused! LOL

Get a spritz of one scent you'd like to try. Don't bother to smell it right away. Wait about 20 minutes (go shopping! Yay!) and then give it a whif once it's settles into *your* body chemistry. The two combined make your own scent. If you like *that* scent then consider buying the perfume.

I am one who likes many scents and they depend on my mood in the morning when I'm getting ready. I wear some scent *every* day, and that's my signature I think.

Also, if you tend to wear a single scent you can often become so accustomed to it that you stop smelling it on yourself. I think that may be why some ladies seem to overdose on a perfume and bathe in it...They simply can't smell it as well on themselves any more. When I change it up (I often wear the same scent for a week or so then change) I can smell the new scent ALL day.

Gaylene

Veteran

I've been wearing Jo Malone scents almost exclusively for the past few years. I think I'm drawn to them because many of them have that fresh uni-sex note that I like and are subtle enough to be worn in public without anyone else noticing. The very qualities that perfume lovers don't enjoy about her scents are what attract me.

I've found that her sales people are usually quite generous with handing out the small samples so you can try them out to see which ones you like the best. My current favorite for this fall is Blackberry and Bay and I wore Grapefruit all summer. Some of the other ones that I've tried and liked are French Lime Blossom, Amber and Lavender, Pomegranate Noir (my last year's holiday fave), and Lime Basil and Mandarin. Many people like to mix the scents when they wear them to create their own scent. I buy mine at Holt Renfrew and in the duty free shop at Heathrow, and I think Nordstom is one of the distributors in the US.

http://www.jomalone.com/shopbyfragrance/index.tmpl

Susie

Veteran

I favor more spicy scents rather than sweet or flowery.

My current favorite was an unexpected find from The Body Shop. It's called Neroli Jasmin and I've gotten lots of compliments on it. I like that it's neither a dept store pick nor trendy- and it's not expensive!

Scarlet

Veteran

Personally I like to alternate between two because sometimes one fits my mood better. I actually like to perfume shop with someone else because you can get a couple more opinions after your own nose wears out. I also like to spray a card and keep it in my purse for awhile to see how the scent is appealing to me. Or you need a friend like me who hates the perfume samples I get whenever I buy cosmetics and gives them all to you. (I give them all to a friend of mine who loves scents.)

RoseandJoan

Veteran

I think there is a pressure to find a signature scent but I believe it is more important to just enjoy your fragrance and if it becomes a signature over time so the better.

Like Gaylene I have enjoyed Jo Malone's Amber and Lavender greatly and would like another bottle for Christmas. The lady behind the brand is really quite inspiration starting her business over the kitchen sink to eventually selling her brand to estee lauder for a rumoured five million pounds.

Right now I am wearing Prada by Prada which again has a basenote of Amber http://www.basenotes.net/ID10212700.html . The funny thing is I originally wanted the Prada L'Eau Ambree http://www.basenotes.net/ID26131117.html but Ben was given the wrong scent by the sales assistant; after initially thinking the nose was too light for my taste I have grown to really appreciate the middle and base notes and it has become my favourite.

If I do find a bottle of Amber and Lavender in the christmas stocking this year I will happily switch between the too knowing that an amber is my signature rather than a particular perfume.

Laura

(website)

Veteran

Another Jo Malone fan here. I am allergic to quite a few scents and sometimes I like a fragrance, only to discover after buying it that some ingredient bothers me. Ugh! For that reason, I like Jo Malone's scents because they are very clean and pure. My signature scent is her Red Roses. Also, her house candles are heaven - I love Orange, and sometimes I put Fig in the next room. They are heavenly together!

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I'm a fan of Clinique Happy. It's both floral and citrusy, but not too much of either. http://www.fragrantica.com/per.....y-372.html I dislike heavy perfumes, smoky or spicy ones. I have tried Estee Lauder's Pleasures in the past but came back around to Happy and it's derivatives: Happy to Be, Happy Summer.

Atlantia

Veteran

I am addicted to Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab.
http://www.blackphoenixalchemylab.com/

My go to scents are Gluttony, which is a very foodie sort of caramel/hops smell. O, which is pretty sexy, and only comes out on date night. And Dragon's Tears, which is sort of aquatic with a dark undertone...can't quite put it into words.

I love ordering from them, because they throw in free tester imps with every purchase, so that's fun. They are oils, so the scent changes a lot throughout the day, and varies a lot from person to person. They also last quite awhile, and, to me, smell pretty different than traditional perfumes.

catgirl

Veteran

I never wore perfume as so many strong scents give me allergies. But a friend wearing Light Blue turned me on to it, and it's all I wear. I prefer citrusy lighter scents for sure. I don't bother with winter/summer issues. It gives me a huge lift in the morning. Funny because another friend spritzed it on on day at my house and it was awful on her.

Good luck!

Scarlet

Veteran

RoseandJoan, that is a good point about the base note being signature rather than the perfume itself. I would say at the end of the day I also come back to some form of white flowers, just like some people really suit a citrus base. But now I am wondering what amber smells of.

annagybe

(website)

Veteran

Well, don't get too attached to a particular scent. I had found mine, Le Feu by Issey Miyake, and then they discontinued it. I now have a bunch a perfumes that I choose from based on my mood.

RoseandJoan

Veteran

I am sorry to hijack your thread Irene but I had to partially answer Scarlets question, what does amber smell like? because there is no definitive answer.

Old perfumes used ambergris ( an enzyme left in the water by the sperm whale) which does not smell great by itself but really enhances a floral note. Perfumes often use the term amber when they are trying to recreate ambergris.

Natural fossilized Amber does not smell unless heated, it also poses the problem for perfumers of a turnaround time of a couple of million years to form, Therefore each perfume house will have it's alternative which is often a tree resin with added essential oils and leads to little continuity and no definitive scent.

I'm sorry for the waffling but I thought it may appeal to your scientist sensibilities.

Personally I'm heading back to Nerdom for the night with my head held high.

Scarlet

Veteran

Ah, that is interesting. And it is conjuring a smell for me which I find hard to describe, but lets say warm and resin-y. I am going to take a whiff of those Prada perfumes next time I am in a store.

Irene

Veteran

Just an update here! Finishing Madmoiselle Coco bottle and still loving it. I think I'll get an 'inspired by' instead of the real thing. I know, it's not very glamorous but I'm going through a dark economic patch and need those 100€! I'm not talking knockoff though, just a similar scent in a completely different bottle and brand. Also, I think it will give me a chance to try different scents for a lower price and keep looking!

Thanks all of you for your imput, you did give some ideas Unfortunately, my heart was set on MC (posh me) from the start... I know many people wear that (not in my office, fortunately), but there's something about the mixture of citric+sweet that gets me every time I smell my wrists -been doing that for the last three weeks every half an hour lol

rute

Veteran

Love Madmoiselle Coco, an old favorite of mine!
I have a new passion: Miss Dor Le Parfum, it's the new version and I love it!

Anonymous

Irene, the perfume board over at makeupalley.com is fun to read. Those ladies know everything about perfume!

I have ordered samples from luckyscent.com of some more obscure perfumes. It's fun to read their write-ups. They also have an astrological guide to scent:

http://www.luckyscent.com/luckystars.asp

I always wind up back with Hanae Mori Butterfly, though, because it drives my husband crazy! (In a good way, ha.)

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

I am wearing Gucci tuberrose, but now that it's fall I am not loving it as much. I have a sample of miss cherie, which I love, and I also love the Chanel scent...I think it just comes down to what you won't get sick of...and I feel free to change it up when I do, esp. seasonally.