Thursday Free-For-All

[synecdochic]

Before I forget!

This post is a free-for-all for people to:

a) post links to perfume-related content they posted elsewhere (on or off DW)
b) talk about anything they want to talk about that isn't big enough for a full post
c) socialize and hang out without worrying about "off topic"
d) or anything else that comes to mind!

Comments

[synecdochic]

Belatedly: I skin-test everything eventually, even the stuff I don't think is going to work, unless the predominant notes of the scent are ones I know I will never, ever, ever wear. (For instance, I skintested Omen, which is heavy on the patchouli, despite generally hating patchouli -- and sure enough, it didn't work well on me! but I can tell that maybe in another few months of aging it might be nice -- but I got a decant of Pumpkin Hard Candy as a frimp with an ebay purchase, and I hate pumpkin scents, so I didn't bother.)

This occasionally leads to surprises! This morning I opened the bottle of La Vita Nuova that I also got off eBay, and my immediate reaction was "ugh this smells like fruity shampoo and not in the good way". But on me it bloomed into a very lovely gentle soft herbal underpinned by rose, with just a tiny hint of fruit, and it was very refreshing and springlike without being cloying or too femme for my tastes.

My general rule is: Plan on skin-testing everything. For the stuff I really hate in the imp, I apply sparingly to just one wrist and don't dab it that wrist on the other, so it minimizes the amount I'll have to scrub. Then I do my very best to sit with the scent for at least five minutes before deciding "nope", unless it's so revolting that I'm physically recoiling from it. After five minutes, I'm allowed to scrub it off if I know the first wave of the scent is so awful on me that there's no chance it can be redeemed if it morphs past that.

Mind you, my skin chemistry makes most bpal scents morph like whoa. But starting from the assumption that I'll be skin-testing everything has led me to discover a few I otherwise wouldn't have. We got a frimp of Paris with our last order, for instance, and I never would have picked it on my own, and I was super-dubious about it in the imp. Then I put it on, and it was lovely.

[sathari]

No problem with the somewhat-belatedness (as witness my own delay in responding)!

Yeah, the general consensus seems to be to skin-test everything! I'll admit I'm still on the fence about my own habits in that area, though--- not only does my skin cling to scents, as I mentioned above, but I got forcibly reminded this week of another reason why I'm cautious about trying scents--- I have apparently managed to be allergic to something in not one but (at least) two different things I tried within the last week, so I'm "benched" from testing until I heal up, ugh! So anything I test really needs to be worth the risk of an allergic reaction. Sigh.

[synecdochic]

Ugh, allergies.

(You can generally remove a stubborn scent with rubbing alcohol, or oil and then rubbing alcohol. Just for the record!)

[sathari]

Ugh, indeed!

Thanks for the suggestion! I've used alcohol, and peroxide, and soap-and-water, and combinations thereof, until I'm honestly worried I'll scrub the skin raw, but if a scent wants to linger on me, it's going to. :( Ugh again!