What do you do with perfume you've outgrown? - YouLookFab Forum

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What do you do with perfume you've outgrown?

viva

Veteran

Several months ago I picked up a new scent, and it -- along with a scented oil that I've had for about a year -- is really all I wear now on a daily basis. But I also have several bottles that I have amassed during the last 4 or 5 years. Do I hold onto them in a display sort of way? (This kind of thing goes against my personal aesthetic, which tends to be more stripped down.) Do I throw them away? (Also goes against my nature, as there is SO MUCH scent left in these bottles; seems so wasteful.)

What do you do with scent that, after a few years, just isn't you any more?

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16 replies

Latest reply was from Summer

Colette

Veteran

A few years ago I culled my perfume because 99.9% of the time I don't wear it. I'm super sensitive to fragrances, most of them don't agree with me. I only saved about three that I love and dab on when the mood strikes, about once or twice a year. I asked my Mom and other family members to pick anything they wanted and then offered the rest to my cleaning lady. The few bottles remaining are in my bathroom closet in a pretty box next to my make-up. My decorating aesthetic is simple so I don't have things on display or I probably would have them in a tray on my dresser.

Elly

Veteran

I don't wear scent for a multitude of reasons, but I think the suggestion to give it away is a good one. It doesn't keep forever-- if you don't have friends or family locally that would take it, depending on how well the bottles seal you could offer it up here for the cost of shipping or what have you.

K.M.

Veteran

I second the suggestions to give it to someone else, and I agree with Elly: it won't last forever. I speak from experience, as I kept some bottles for 6 to 10 years and saw them go bad (the color got darker, the scent changed).

Anonymous

I was always under the impression that perfume only had a shelf life of a couple of years . This bothers me too, and I wish that cosmetic and fragrance manufacturers sold perfume in much smaller bottles. I don't think I've ever finished a bottle of anything before tossing it. Yes, that's what I do, and I don't like it either. But what else indeed do you do with them? Giving it away doesn't really feel right, unless it's practically brand new and was just a buying mistake. I really love perfume, even though it's harder and harder to wear now with so many fragrance-free environments and workplaces . I do buy new ones from time to time and admit to having a small collection.

What did you recently buy? I love to know who wears what

Sal

Veteran

I would ask friends and family, Most cosmetics I would not share after opening but perfume is different.

I almost exclusively wear Chanel No 5.

viva

Veteran

Okay, so maybe some of my collection are part their shelf lives. Very good point, and that helps me feel better about tossing them.

I never wore scent until maybe 10 years ago, and I am sort of on and off with it. It's funny because my migraines make me very sensitive to smells, but I really like having a pleasant smell close-by, especially for headache times (it's the offending odors that can put me over the edge -- not all scents). Although I went through a heady floral stage (I still love the smell of geranimum), now I tend more toward plant-based androgynous scents (cedar, herbs, etc.) and those that are marketed to both men and women. The one I bought recently and have been wearing nonstop is Tacit by Aesop, which I really like a lot, tho the basil is a bit heavy at first (but it dries down quickly). My mother always loved green scents; I think I get that from her.

I also found this article this morning and really, I want to try every scent in it.

ttp://tinyurl.com/hu6cpwb

Anonymous

Because I need to try everything deemed cool and cult by the fashion crowd, I will absolutely be on the lookout for these 5 scents. I've heard of the Santal one, but have never had the pleasure of smelling it or seeing it at retail. I sincerely doubt I'd see it here in Wpg Intrigued too by your Aesop . Must check it out.

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

I have way too many perfumes. I love the bottles. Some I go through and replace multiple times (Le labo Jasmin 19, L'eau d'hiver, L'eau merveilleux) and others I tire of.

elpgal

Veteran

I Offered a bunch of makeup samples on Freecycle and they were snapped up really quickly.

ma

Veteran

A thrift store near me accepts them as donations as long as they were full-ish and still useable. Maybe donate, or freecycle is a good idea. I hate tossing thongs too.

ma

Veteran

^things, not thongs! Blast this phone!

Anonymous

I meet regularly with a group of women who gladly take unwanted perfume and makeup for daughters who can't afford to buy these things. It's also possible that a women's shelter may be glad to take them.
I have occasionally used up older bottles of fragrances as room sprays.

Louise

Veteran

You've had some great suggestions but just wanted to add that if stored in a cool dark place perfume can last for years. I have a bottle of Very Valentino which I bought around 2000 which I have stored in its box in a drawer and it's still as good as the day I bought it. Heat and light will cause perfume to go off x

deb

Veteran

I never go through a whole bottle so I started purchasing decants from The Perfumed Court. I can get small vials if I just want to see how my skin reacts and if I really like a scent I order a larger bottle.

http://theperfumedcourt.com/

Anonymous

If I no longer care for it, I know for a fact that people I work with would love it. I place it on the break room kitchen counter with a tiny note. Everything disappears within 15 minutes flat. I believe those other women really appreciate the "find."

Summer

Veteran

I do much the same as Joy. Many charities request perfume and toiletries as well as clothing donations, so some find their way there. Others are used as room sprays or left in the bathroom for guests to sample.