synecdochic: torso of a man wearing jeans, hands bound with belt (Default)
synecdochic ([personal profile] synecdochic) wrote in [community profile] smellsgood2015-01-10 06:03 pm

Friday free-for-all, posting from THE FUTURE (or, okay, New Zealand)

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".

Have at!
lunabee34: (Default)

[personal profile] lunabee34 2015-01-10 05:13 am (UTC)(link)
Okay, I have a question.

What is the point of a top note in perfume?

Middle and bottom notes I get but not so much the top note. What's the point of such an ephemeral note?

Is it to mask the alcohol blast of alcohol-based perfumes, fading when the alcohol does?
lunabee34: (Default)

[personal profile] lunabee34 2015-01-10 05:04 pm (UTC)(link)
Okay. That makes sense. Thank you!

I kinda dislike the concept of the top note, though, because so many times I've wished that a perfume continued to smell like the opening, or at least retained the top note as the rest of the perfume blooms. Jicky was like that for me.
kore: (Default)

[personal profile] kore 2015-01-11 02:53 am (UTC)(link)
ooh, do I spy someone else who hates alcohol-based perfumes? (I'm terribly allergic to them, is why)
lunabee34: (Default)

[personal profile] lunabee34 2015-01-11 05:23 pm (UTC)(link)
:)

No, I actually don't dislike alcohol-based perfumes; my favorite perfume of everything I've smelled so far is Chanel's Sycomore, which is alcohol-based. I am not a fan of the misleading top notes in alcohol-based perfumery, though. I hate when I love the initial blast of a perfume only to be disappointed when it settles into its true self. :(

Alcohol allergies must suck. I'm so glad they have so many non-alcohol-based options right now. My daughter definitely prefers the essential oil perfumes, so we mostly buy BPAL to test.
rydra_wong: Close-up shot of Pina Bausch's face. (body -- pina)

[personal profile] rydra_wong 2015-01-13 09:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, whether something's a top, middle or bottom note is down to how volatile the molecule is and so how fast it evaporates off skin.

There are some smells which, by their nature, will be mostly top notes and very ephemeral -- think of something like basil, or grapefruit. There's no way to make them stick around; they come on-stage, dazzle, then disappear for the rest of the performance. *g*
lunabee34: (Default)

[personal profile] lunabee34 2015-01-15 02:41 am (UTC)(link)
Ah, okay. That also makes sense. By their very nature, some scents can only be ephemeral. I wish grapefruit was not one of those because it is so glorious to me. I think I might have adored Guerlain's Aqua Allegoria Pamplelune if the grapefruit had had any staying power.

Thanks!
woldy: (Default)

[personal profile] woldy 2015-01-16 09:28 pm (UTC)(link)
I have the same problem, because many of favorite scents are top notes: bergamot, basil, grapefruit (I like the pamplelune). I guess all we can do is re-apply them more often.
lunabee34: (Default)

[personal profile] lunabee34 2015-01-17 04:34 am (UTC)(link)
OMG, bergamot, yes! Chanel's Eau de Cologne has the most fantastic bergamot opening. I love it.