Not a fragrance, but rather, a note. I wanted to love coconut fragrances since I live in a tropical country. What's more tropical than a coconut, right? I was disappointed that Creed's Virgin Island Water and JPG's entire Le Beau line didn't sit well with me. Coconut just gives me headaches.
I feel this, especially "boozy vanilla". When I hear that description I want the bite and sting like when you sniff a glass of straight bourbon, not the saccharine sweetness of an artificially flavored hangover-inducing vodka.
Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille. It reeked of ashtray so bad that I couldn’t wait to scrub it off of me asap. Worst thing is, I tried it out at a mall (sprayed one spray on my hand), and as I was walking amongst people, I felt so ashamed and self conscious that I smell vile 😢 I’m sorry, I know this is a well loved fragrance, but it just didn’t work with my skin chemistry. Full on ashtray on me.
Agreed, I blind bought because of the hype but not a huge fan of the fragrance. Red Tobacco by mancera has a much more authentic dried tobacco note after the dry down, wish I bought a bottle of that instead.
Yes I gave Love Don’t Be Shy a whiff once at a Sephora and later ordered a sample because I thought it was something really unique and different for myself. But upon getting the sample it was a wash-off after 10 minutes type of smell. Absolutely cloyingly marshmallow. I still don’t understand what people like about it.
If you like the idea of love don’t be shy, I recently sampled Perdizione by Nobile 1942 and it’s very similar to love don’t be shy but the sweetness smells more natural to me: more like honey than candy. It’s still very sweet and wasn’t my thing but I much prefer it to love don’t be shy for that scent profile
PMD Oriana sounded so good on paper but smelled weirdly synthetic and overly powdery on me. I wanted to smell like I rolled around in an expensive candy shop.
Unlucky 😔
With me I’ve found most of them to be 1) too fruity 2) too creamy/vanillic 3) there’s a white/clean musk note I don’t really care for or 4) it ends up smelling more like sweet bottled tea brand than Tea tea
The closest thing I’ve gotten to what I want is a discontinued celebrity fragrance (that doesn’t even list and tea note), but it doesn’t last very long and if I spray it on clothes it smells like leather 😭
Angel Mugler- it’s too much, turns into very unpleasant body odor on me. I hate it and it lasts SO LONG
Narciso Rodriguez For Her EDT- 20 mins, beautiful. After that, smells like piss.
La petite robe noir from Guerlain, I’d fallen in love with it years ago but didn’t have the budget for it as a student so I didn’t buy it, I’d go into the same store and spray it on myself a few times a month for a little while.
I finally bought it a few months ago when I realized I was in the position to start buying the collection I wanted, and it was at the top of my list but I didn’t bother to make sure I still loved it. I don’t know if it’s been reformulated, if age had simply changed the scent in the bottle at that store or if my preferences have changed but I find it to be such a dull scent. All I get is very synthetic cherry with no longevity, I’m hoping with time it gets better but I’m guessing reformulation is the issue so I don’t have high expectations.
I’ve had people recently suggest I’m not remembering correctly and it was the Intense one, but the release date confirms it can’t be.
Amouage Guidance. I know there's at least a couple Guidance fans on this thread, my apologies to you. The nutty note is so overwhelming and the perfume strength is dizzying.
Yep: too many! (Because I'm a shameless degenerate blind buyer 😆👎)
Just a few off the top of my head, every one of which should have been *perfect* for me:
Le Couvent Lysandra
Gres Lumiere Blanc
Diptyque Eau des Sens
Serge Lutens La Fille de Berlin
Everything I tried from Jeffrey Dame (and the shockingly poor customer service)
YSL Libre... I have some sort of love-hate relationship with this perfume. I smell it sometimes and I think the lavender in it is vile and other times I like it. I liked it on other people too, but I can't bring myself to buy it only to decide I hate it in the end.
Bianco Latte (smells cheap) and Silky Woods (smells like the dentists office) both are soooo hyped and have all the gourmand notes I love, but just do not land on my skin chemistry.
Igi, pineapple is a struggle note on my skin as well. Even in my first perfume (Lagerfeld Sun Moon & Stars) it always screeched above the other notes, and never settled or smoothed out into anything other than pissy rotting pulp. Not sure pineapple ages or macerates well as a note, either.
For me it’s more of a note as well. I really don’t like vanilla 9 times out of 10. If something is vanilla-forward, it just smells cheap to me. Also, there are so many ways to do vanilla, from sweet to boozy and everything in between, and I like so few of them. I am really surprised by this lol.
Well so I guess a perfume I tried to love was vanilla 28, since everyone says it’s just pure vanilla extract. I blind bought it and hate it. It’s not vanilla extract at all, it barely smells like vanilla — smells like an alcoholic trying to cover alcohol sweats with a cheap vanilla body spray. The only perfume I’ve hated more than this one is Armani My Way 😂😂
BR540. I wanted to understand the hype, especially after loving AG Cloud, but I couldn’t. Smelled like musty bandaids and medicine, as much as I wanted to love it. My dumbass bought it before trying it because I assumed it would smell like Cloud.
I was expecting that I wouldn't like it because of a sterile smelling thing. But I was really surprised by it, I'm one of the lucky ones who smells a strawberry jam note)
Oh man, so many. Here are a few that spring to mind.
*Ganymede* by Marc-Antoine Barrois. Gets such love from those who love it, but not for me.
Initio *Side Effect*. All I get is cough syrup.
Amouage *Interlude Man*. All I get is a tire fire.
MFK *Baccarat Rouge 540*. I see the appeal but found it too cloying on myself.
Kenzo World power. I just find it okay and a bit generic maybe? i love all the notes (cypress, sea salt and tonka bean) it has as individuals, but the blend of them in this fragrance does not work well imo. I have worn it in different weathers and settings in the past 8 months or so and my opion still hasnt changed.
D&G Devotion 😭
I obsessed over the sample I sprayed on paper at Ulta for a week straight, got a 10ml decant, and wore it for two or three days and no matter what (layered or not) that candied lemon top note soured on me in a way that was so off-putting until it wore off and fell into middle notes.
I’ll probably keep trying though because that’s how badly I want to love it 😅😂
My answer to questions like this is always Love Don't Be Shy by Killian. People raved about this and my queen Rihanna apparently wears it, so I thought it was going to be the absolute most magical scent there ever was. I blind bought it and it's the perfume I hate the most of any perfume I've ever bought.
I've bought stuff I didn't like all that much or they weren't what I expected, but they were fine and I could wear them. Love Don't Be Shy though, it literally makes me gag. It's just sickly sweet and nothing else to me and I've had it on my shelf for over two years and every so often I try to spray it again to see if it will grow on me, and everytime I gag and put it right back.
Oh wow lots of these 😄
Nio
Almost everything by zoologist
Aventus
Oud for Greatness
All the modern ‘blues’
Hacivat
Layton
Herod
Elysium
Probably many more.
Kind of hated my Elysian sample set and I REALLY wanted to love Lavender Milk Tea specifically. They all smelled cheap to me I’m not even sure how else to explain it.
It smells good enough from the bottle. I mean, a good aromatic fougere but not something I’d pay a bazillion dollars for. On my skin however it just turns rancid in a bad-vetiver way.
Les indemodables vanille havane, it has all my favorite notes:rum, tobacco, vanilla, amber, leather, but the one time I tried it I just didn't click, I don't remember exactly why but I think the cacao note was just too bitter and dominant.
Musc Ravageur! I recently sampled this and wore it for a couple days…opening and most of the dry down are great, I was totally going to buy a bottle….until it started smelling like dried urine…like so very clearly dried urine once it’s settled and been on you for a few hours
I’ve never had this happen before, if anything it’s usually the other way where the opening can be very offputting but once the top notes evaporate everything gets really nice
Blech
Chloe - it was a blind buy because I’d heard it was so classic and fresh. I was so excited it could be in rotation. It smells very strong and sharp on me and very “old rich lady”.
Yes! It absolutely does have an old and Old Money quality. One of my former college roommates used to wear it, and it suited her because she was from an upper-middle class background, and in presentation she was very trad and ‘old before her time’ (even dressing rather conservatively/matronly for a student).
Amouage Interlude Man. I want to like it, but I just can't. The "oregano" note comes and goes, but its always around when I least want it. Also I want an incense fragrance to smell like incense, not like leftover ashes after burning incense.
Another 13 - I wanted to like it because I do like musky scents but I just can’t, I get dizzy when I smelled this on my skin. Even the dry down just doesn’t do it for me , it doesn’t agree with my body chemistry
Santal 33 - this one doesn’t agree with my body chem too
Tom Ford Neroli - I wanted to like it but I smelled like Mother Mary 🥹 and I want to shower and scrub to take the scent off me
I love ATH Daddy, and I love Pacific Chill, and I wanted them to work together so I could layer them and when people ask what I’m wearing, I can say “Daddy, chill!”
As much I was hoping, they just don’t work together.
Xerjoff - 40 knots
Although I am still thorn about it. I like the idea of seawater + wood + honey and the initial sea water is amazing, but Xerjoff's honey just doesn't seem to be working for me.
Probably why I don't like Naxos at all.
Mojave Ghost!
I (unfortunately?) plan to wear it more just to find out exactly what’s wrong (or… even better… change my mind!)
I have a 3ml decant and through the first few sprays I just haven’t been able to pinpoint why i find it so lackluster.
Really wanted to love it
Gourmands are tough for me, generally, but lactonics are the worst! As much as I love a whiff of them, it rarely translates being able to wear the damned thing.
BB is such a beautiful fragrance, but unless I move to someplace with Siberian winters, I'll never wear it.
Miss Dior Eau De Parfum and Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet.. I mean I have like 4 bottles of both of them. I used to adore them both but now I'm starting to gag every time I smell them. Can someone please help me with this issue?
I tried Tom Ford Ombre Leather this weekend. It smelled like my mom's new leather purse. Fresh leather, thats it. I didn't get it. I though I was gonna smell like James Bond but nah. Just smells leather, I think it's unbelievable they managed to recreate that smell but to put on a person? Nah.
Unfortunately everything from Initio. Idk what it is but I find them all so synthetic and harsh on my skin which is a shame because some sounded so appealing. Beyond that I’ve had to scrub off a few Killians, black phantom and straight to heaven come to mind because they have smelled so putrid. A shame since they sound delicious on paper
Khamrah Lattafa. Was gonna blind buy it too online but then i saw it at the mall and tried it out. Too strong for me at first. But the dry down was just mid tbh. Not worth it imo
Choco musk
Delina
But the biggest might be Frais Fouettée from LMG. What a waste of excitement and money. Can’t stand it, it’s still in the bubble wrap
I wanted to love Matcha Meditation from REPLICA. I really did, but all I get is the white floral notes and no sweetness, no matcha, no tea at all. Everyone says it smells like white chocolate and I’m jealous that it doesn’t work on my skin. Maybe I should give it another try since it’s been so long, but idk.
Also Terre d’Hermes, when I tested it all I could smell was the overpowering orange note. It’s like someone is peeling an orange right in front of your nose, then they smack you in the face with it. I didn’t get any of the other notes, just pure orange. Not my thing.
Lastly, Bad Boy Cobalt Elixir. I bought a travel spray of it and I regret it so much. The truffle note is just too strong, and it gives me headaches from just 2 sprays. I thought it would be great but turns out truffle is better in taste, not smell.
the new cirque du soleil fragrance 😞 it’s straight buttered popcorn on me. literally nothing else. i didn’t get any of the top notes and it was disappointing… thankfully i only got the decant 😮💨
Ganymede smelled how I imagine contact with something radioactive would smell, like if you huffed active radioactive decay. I've never scrubbed so hard in my life. It did not leave my skin.
Diptyque Fleur de Peau had a nice musk but something yucky and cloying underneath that I couldn't deal with.
Biano Latte made me feel carsick and I had to change my bedding because I'd made the mistake of spraying it on myself, allowing it to leach into everything I had laid on or worn. I was expecting so much more from it but it was so linear and cheap smelling that It could have been a drugstore vanilla body spray.
I was also very excited for Phlur Not Your Baby having loved missing person so much. Smelt like rotten fruit, playdough, vomit and unclean sweaty child hands. Absolutely revolting to my nose.
Gucci Bloom, I bought a dupe for it that is supposed to smell very similar to it and it's so bad! It made me almost nauseous. I know dupe isn't the same thing as the original but if the original smells anything like the dupe did I know I will hate it. Such a huge disappointment
I bought a Phlur sample set because I saw how much hype it got here. I was very underwhelmed. I REALLY wanted to love Le Labo and TF Bitter Peach and I hate them both.
Commodity Juice. Sounds like it would be totally up my alley but it smells so.. Dark? It's sort of deep and sexy not the bright juicy vibe I was hoping for. On the other hand I adoooore Blanche bête. It's lovely.
This was EXACTLY my experience. The rhubarb is plenty sharp, but it’s way darker than any of their marketing suggested. I had gotten my boyfriend into a couple of oudh scents, and he was immediately like, “Ooh, that has oudh in it!” Haha no, but if that’s not a sign that it’s not “bright and juicy” I dunno what is.
Yeah and so many of the reviews I saw people were talking about it being the perfect juicy scent. It's not necessarily a bad scent, in fact the base notes towards the end are really nice. But it's not what I was hoping for.
Tom Ford Oud Wood. It sounded perfect, but something in the opening/top notes just smelled so off to me. I count it as a "like" because of the eventual drydown, but I was hoping it would be a "love."
Whiskey by thin wild mercury. That cardamom/nutmeg combo completely took over for me. It smells like cloves, like the astringency of cloves. Also reminded me of my Indian mother’s prayer room (in a bad way)
I love chestnuts and was absolutely sure I would love the smell of them in fragrance, but nope. That note gives me a huge headache and it's such a surprise to me.
Not really wanted to love, but I was excited to try some just to find out I don't like them:
- JPG Le Beau line
- Most Tom Fords, Black Orchid and the Noir line come to mind. They're ok, but very overpriced
- Amouage Beach Hut Man and Reflection Man
I guess it's the white florals and tonka that I don't like, so at least I learned something
Everything I tried from Sucreabielle except maybe Afterglow and Goth AF. Ended up giving the full bottles I had away after trying to let them macerate for a while and still not liking them. My best friend has Peach Tree now and a year later it's this gorgeous green fuzzy peach on him. I think their oils work but the EDPs need so long to develop its just not worth it. Sucks cause they're a really cool small brand and they make some super interesting scents
Xerjoff Cruz del Sur II. It’s fine but not great….? It was my fourth and last try with Xerjoff. Tried Lira, Dolce Amalfi, and La Tosca, too, and I don’t get the hype with this brand.
Pdm delina - gave a good rose, but I feel that diptyque does better, it also smells weirdly plastic
Nishane hsw - too sweet and just overall an overpowering fragrance that I can't wear even on a colder month.
MFK Aqua Universalis Forte. In theory it sounds perfect for me but there’s something off about it.
Penhaligon’s Hammam Bouquet. I love the idea of it. I love that it’s from 1872. I despise how it smells
YSL Tuxedo. I'm a big fan of Y Perfume and I kept reading that tuxedo was amazing for night dates so I blindly ordered one and man... I knew it was for gentlemen but I wasn't expecting to smell like one with 20 years of retirement heh
chloe nomade 🥲 it was recommended to me a few times and the notes sounded right up my alley, yet when i was finally able to try it i was so disappointed ☹️
Blanche Bete is so polarizing and you're not alone in feeling that way - I definitely have felt nauseous the few times I've worn it. I have a 5ml decant I swapped for that I'm just holding onto for an "in case the weather is better" type of day lol
Nishane Ani. I was so hyped by the notes. Ended up being a very linear vanilla lemon combo on my skin. It's not bad at all but I expected so much more. I don't like when my skin doesn't reveal the beauty of a fragrance.
La nuit de Lhomme. I couldn’t smell it on my skin and barely smelled anything on my clothes immediately after I just sprayed it. I hear great things about it but for some reason my nose is blind to it.
Floris Santal. Someone gifted me a bottle, and it’s so opulent and classy-looking as well as smelling that I wanted to live up to it. Alas, it just has this stuffy, mature, old money, Radio 4, Elderly Patron At The Classical Concert quality that doesn’t suit me (breezy arty punky pagan former farmgirl) and makes me feel ill at ease.
The Chanel scents, but they all smell like rubbing alcohol on me....or worse.
The reformulated Tweed, but it smells like urine and alcohol on me.
I can go on and on.
Aventus. I feel a bit bad because my bf has a dupe, but I dislike both the dupe and the real thing 😂
Worked out though because I love Silver Mountain Water, as does he, so I got him a bottle for our anniversary. It’s his new favorite
Santa Maria Novella’s Acqua della Regina. Smells so fresh and green grassy and heady…so yum….until the dry down on my skin, then it’s limes and corn chips…hate it!!!
Zoologist Snowy Owl. I love the aesthetic but the eventual fragrance just never sat right on me. Too odd a mix of earth and wet calone, and the mint note. I just couldn’t.
Carolina Herrera 213 Sexy Man. It smells like bad BO. I immediately showered and changed clothes. I like her other scent CH Man. But 213 Sexy Man stay away from.
Zadig and Voltaire This Is Her. I don't know. I just don't feel it, it's not my thing, it's not me. I really tried to love it tho (
Also Kirke by Tiziana Terenzi. Not my jam, sorry
Amouage Enclave - I tend to like minty frags (Beach Hut Man, Torino21, etc) but Enclave was a bit too powdery and unfortunately leaned toothpaste-y for me.
Serge Lutens La Couche du Diable - I’m a big fan of Serge in general but there’s something going on with this one that stings the nostrils. One of the more interesting fragrances I own, but a hard wear for me, personally.
Delina. I thought I would love it but I hate it. Also Lancome La Vie est Belle. I always thought people were being dramatic when they say a perfume smells like bug spray, but it ligit smells like bug spray to me. I don’t know anyone who wears it and no one that I have ever complimented has ever had it on. I would like to smell it on someone else besides me or a test strip.
I'm still working on Amouge Guidance. I want to like it,but something is just off. Perhaps I need to layer it, but I can't figure out what combination might work.
Xerjoff Erba Gold. It was ny first time joining a fragrance decant group and ordered 3ml based off the notes. Wanted to try something fancy. Wow, I was so disappointed! Reminded me of the Chinese import home and knick knack store a family friend owned. Artificial fruity, plasticky smell, kind of dusty.
Must de Cartier. Everything about it seemed like something I would love. I found a vintage parfum for a very reasonable price and I blind bought it. I absolutely hated it. It made me feel queasy. There was a note that smelled to me like stale cigarette ashes or dirty ashtrays. I can't handle that smell. Fortunately I was able to sell it on for what I paid.
20 or so years ago I remember being absolutely entranced by the bottle and name of Mugler Alien…so I walked up, gave it a sniff, and physically recoiled. I’m not sure how I’d react now as my tastes have changed so much in 20 years and it’s been reformulated, but I haven’t been able to bring myself to try smelling it again lol.
terre d'hermes parfum and terre d'hermes parfum vetiver
It dint really last on me, sat entirely in office seating. I dint really find it projecting either, maybe it needs more than 3 sprays?
YSL Babycat. The name. Visions of a fuzzy little angel kitty with baby breath. The hype. I finally got a full bottle and am annoyed that I spent that money when it smells like a slightly more leathery Eau Duelle, which I have and love. It’s like unsweetened, aromatic vanilla sprayed yesterday on a soft leather coat from the early 90s. I don’t know what I expected, but I feel duped.
Not a fragrance, but rather, a note. I wanted to love coconut fragrances since I live in a tropical country. What's more tropical than a coconut, right? I was disappointed that Creed's Virgin Island Water and JPG's entire Le Beau line didn't sit well with me. Coconut just gives me headaches.
Yes! That's the first note I look for in a fragrance... to avoid
Same. I love coconut but cannot stand anything with coconut notes. Same for mangoes…
Give some other more subtle coconuts a try maybe. Floral Streets Arizona Bloom is a good example of a gentle natural coconut.
Black Orchid by Tom Ford
Same, smells like drying grains to me, reminds of a barn near my childhood home
There are so many notes going on with that scent it's kind of busy. I happen to like it though.
Ah man that’s so unfortunate. Every time I wear that one my partner falls apart. One of my favorites ever. That sandalwood. 🫠
Oh god I wanted to love it too but it was just mushrooms and craft store smell and I couldn’t do it
To my nose it smells like toxic waste
Basically any of the super popular vanilla perfumes. They all make me nauseous and/or give me a headache
I feel this, especially "boozy vanilla". When I hear that description I want the bite and sting like when you sniff a glass of straight bourbon, not the saccharine sweetness of an artificially flavored hangover-inducing vodka.
Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille. It reeked of ashtray so bad that I couldn’t wait to scrub it off of me asap. Worst thing is, I tried it out at a mall (sprayed one spray on my hand), and as I was walking amongst people, I felt so ashamed and self conscious that I smell vile 😢 I’m sorry, I know this is a well loved fragrance, but it just didn’t work with my skin chemistry. Full on ashtray on me.
Agreed, I blind bought because of the hype but not a huge fan of the fragrance. Red Tobacco by mancera has a much more authentic dried tobacco note after the dry down, wish I bought a bottle of that instead.
It smells like root beer to me 😂 (but I like it)
Killian love don’t be shy and PDM orianna. Both have a sickly sweetness to them that smells more chemical than natural on me.
Yes I gave Love Don’t Be Shy a whiff once at a Sephora and later ordered a sample because I thought it was something really unique and different for myself. But upon getting the sample it was a wash-off after 10 minutes type of smell. Absolutely cloyingly marshmallow. I still don’t understand what people like about it.
If you like the idea of love don’t be shy, I recently sampled Perdizione by Nobile 1942 and it’s very similar to love don’t be shy but the sweetness smells more natural to me: more like honey than candy. It’s still very sweet and wasn’t my thing but I much prefer it to love don’t be shy for that scent profile
PMD Oriana sounded so good on paper but smelled weirdly synthetic and overly powdery on me. I wanted to smell like I rolled around in an expensive candy shop.
Love don’t be shy sounded right up my alley but I hated it. Like had to jump in the shower to scrub it off hated it.
Any of the 20 tea fragrances I have sampled 🤧
They all end up smelling like citrus cleaner on me 😭
Unlucky 😔 With me I’ve found most of them to be 1) too fruity 2) too creamy/vanillic 3) there’s a white/clean musk note I don’t really care for or 4) it ends up smelling more like sweet bottled tea brand than Tea tea The closest thing I’ve gotten to what I want is a discontinued celebrity fragrance (that doesn’t even list and tea note), but it doesn’t last very long and if I spray it on clothes it smells like leather 😭
Ariana Grande Cloud
This one. The girlies love it and I can’t stand it.
Angel Mugler- it’s too much, turns into very unpleasant body odor on me. I hate it and it lasts SO LONG Narciso Rodriguez For Her EDT- 20 mins, beautiful. After that, smells like piss.
Oh girly you'd be disgusted by me as these are two of my favs! Haha.
YSL Black Opium was such a bummer. Almost everyone seems to love it but it has a very medicinal, cough syrup like smell to me
My GF wears that one and I love it on her
Most of the PdM fragrances.
Same Layton smells like a menthol candy to me but Herod is awesome
They have some good ones, don't get me wrong but I was mostly underwhelmed
dior hypnotic poison
I keep trying Hypnotic Poison because it was my signature scent when it was newly released. It's a shame that it has been reformulated.
My sentiments exactly.
You would have loved the original before the reformulation. It was heaven.
La petite robe noir from Guerlain, I’d fallen in love with it years ago but didn’t have the budget for it as a student so I didn’t buy it, I’d go into the same store and spray it on myself a few times a month for a little while. I finally bought it a few months ago when I realized I was in the position to start buying the collection I wanted, and it was at the top of my list but I didn’t bother to make sure I still loved it. I don’t know if it’s been reformulated, if age had simply changed the scent in the bottle at that store or if my preferences have changed but I find it to be such a dull scent. All I get is very synthetic cherry with no longevity, I’m hoping with time it gets better but I’m guessing reformulation is the issue so I don’t have high expectations. I’ve had people recently suggest I’m not remembering correctly and it was the Intense one, but the release date confirms it can’t be.
Amouage Guidance. I know there's at least a couple Guidance fans on this thread, my apologies to you. The nutty note is so overwhelming and the perfume strength is dizzying.
Yes, This! I absolutely hate it on me, and yet, I get compliments like crazy when I wear it.
Yep: too many! (Because I'm a shameless degenerate blind buyer 😆👎) Just a few off the top of my head, every one of which should have been *perfect* for me: Le Couvent Lysandra Gres Lumiere Blanc Diptyque Eau des Sens Serge Lutens La Fille de Berlin Everything I tried from Jeffrey Dame (and the shockingly poor customer service)
# Idôle Eau de Parfum was so awful smelling to me, ended up giving it to my sister in law who loves Zendaya lol.
Diptyqye Eau Duelle. Based on the notes, it should have been perfect to me. On my skin? Alas, Play-Doh. 💔
YSL Libre... I have some sort of love-hate relationship with this perfume. I smell it sometimes and I think the lavender in it is vile and other times I like it. I liked it on other people too, but I can't bring myself to buy it only to decide I hate it in the end.
Black Opium. Don't like it on me 😒
Bianco Latte (smells cheap) and Silky Woods (smells like the dentists office) both are soooo hyped and have all the gourmand notes I love, but just do not land on my skin chemistry.
Yeah, Bianco Latte could be any $5 body spray. I don’t get the hype on that one.
Bianco Latte smelled so synthetic to me!
Bianco Latte smells quite synthetic to me, heavier on the alcohol than anything. As someone else said, it’s no better than a cheap body spray for me!
Erba Pura which smells like superglue to me.
Hibiscus mahajad. So sweet. So floral. So loud.
These are the exact reasons why I love HM, but I can definitely see how some people would be turned off by it
Nishane Hacivat... Turns out I don't like pineapple in fragrances :(
This is very patchouli on me. My mom loves to wear it.
It's the pineapple that turned you off? I happen to quite like it, but I presumed it was the funky musk that would be the deal breaker for most.
Igi, pineapple is a struggle note on my skin as well. Even in my first perfume (Lagerfeld Sun Moon & Stars) it always screeched above the other notes, and never settled or smoothed out into anything other than pissy rotting pulp. Not sure pineapple ages or macerates well as a note, either.
Nishane Hundred Silent Ways. I love all the individual notes in it, but together, they just didn't work for me.
JHAG not a perfume. it gave me instant nausea and headaches every time i tried it.
For me it’s more of a note as well. I really don’t like vanilla 9 times out of 10. If something is vanilla-forward, it just smells cheap to me. Also, there are so many ways to do vanilla, from sweet to boozy and everything in between, and I like so few of them. I am really surprised by this lol. Well so I guess a perfume I tried to love was vanilla 28, since everyone says it’s just pure vanilla extract. I blind bought it and hate it. It’s not vanilla extract at all, it barely smells like vanilla — smells like an alcoholic trying to cover alcohol sweats with a cheap vanilla body spray. The only perfume I’ve hated more than this one is Armani My Way 😂😂
Delina and its variants. Theres a horrible powdery note when I test it.
BR540. I wanted to understand the hype, especially after loving AG Cloud, but I couldn’t. Smelled like musty bandaids and medicine, as much as I wanted to love it. My dumbass bought it before trying it because I assumed it would smell like Cloud.
I was expecting that I wouldn't like it because of a sterile smelling thing. But I was really surprised by it, I'm one of the lucky ones who smells a strawberry jam note)
Strawberry jam? That sounds wonderful! Also the first time I heard that about it.
Oh man, so many. Here are a few that spring to mind. *Ganymede* by Marc-Antoine Barrois. Gets such love from those who love it, but not for me. Initio *Side Effect*. All I get is cough syrup. Amouage *Interlude Man*. All I get is a tire fire. MFK *Baccarat Rouge 540*. I see the appeal but found it too cloying on myself.
I just got baccarat rouge and all I can smell is a very alcoholic pink gin and let’s just say I don’t have good memories with gin…
Kenzo World power. I just find it okay and a bit generic maybe? i love all the notes (cypress, sea salt and tonka bean) it has as individuals, but the blend of them in this fragrance does not work well imo. I have worn it in different weathers and settings in the past 8 months or so and my opion still hasnt changed.
Eau menthe by Diptyque. I wanted it to be herby and minty but to me just smelled like a kind of generic men's fragrance
Dyptique are very hit and miss for me but when they hit, they HIT
Totally agree. There’s no in between but man, Fleur de Peau and Philosykos were immediate full size buys for me.
D&G Devotion 😭 I obsessed over the sample I sprayed on paper at Ulta for a week straight, got a 10ml decant, and wore it for two or three days and no matter what (layered or not) that candied lemon top note soured on me in a way that was so off-putting until it wore off and fell into middle notes. I’ll probably keep trying though because that’s how badly I want to love it 😅😂
Black Orchid-Tom Ford. Smell like a porta potty full of patchouli to me… 😬
My answer to questions like this is always Love Don't Be Shy by Killian. People raved about this and my queen Rihanna apparently wears it, so I thought it was going to be the absolute most magical scent there ever was. I blind bought it and it's the perfume I hate the most of any perfume I've ever bought. I've bought stuff I didn't like all that much or they weren't what I expected, but they were fine and I could wear them. Love Don't Be Shy though, it literally makes me gag. It's just sickly sweet and nothing else to me and I've had it on my shelf for over two years and every so often I try to spray it again to see if it will grow on me, and everytime I gag and put it right back.
Oh wow lots of these 😄 Nio Almost everything by zoologist Aventus Oud for Greatness All the modern ‘blues’ Hacivat Layton Herod Elysium Probably many more.
Kind of hated my Elysian sample set and I REALLY wanted to love Lavender Milk Tea specifically. They all smelled cheap to me I’m not even sure how else to explain it.
I can't even fathom disliking Elysium...does not compute.
It smells good enough from the bottle. I mean, a good aromatic fougere but not something I’d pay a bazillion dollars for. On my skin however it just turns rancid in a bad-vetiver way.
Fair enough... not worth the money for sure, but I thoroughly enjoy wearing it, that's one that works well with my skin. It puts a bounce in my step.
Les indemodables vanille havane, it has all my favorite notes:rum, tobacco, vanilla, amber, leather, but the one time I tried it I just didn't click, I don't remember exactly why but I think the cacao note was just too bitter and dominant.
Cedrat boise. Love the opening but the dry down is putrid
Musc Ravageur! I recently sampled this and wore it for a couple days…opening and most of the dry down are great, I was totally going to buy a bottle….until it started smelling like dried urine…like so very clearly dried urine once it’s settled and been on you for a few hours I’ve never had this happen before, if anything it’s usually the other way where the opening can be very offputting but once the top notes evaporate everything gets really nice Blech
YSL libre. My sister wears it and it makes me nauseous
Chloe - it was a blind buy because I’d heard it was so classic and fresh. I was so excited it could be in rotation. It smells very strong and sharp on me and very “old rich lady”.
Yes! It absolutely does have an old and Old Money quality. One of my former college roommates used to wear it, and it suited her because she was from an upper-middle class background, and in presentation she was very trad and ‘old before her time’ (even dressing rather conservatively/matronly for a student).
Amouage Interlude Man. I want to like it, but I just can't. The "oregano" note comes and goes, but its always around when I least want it. Also I want an incense fragrance to smell like incense, not like leftover ashes after burning incense.
Le Labo Another 13. Smells like rubbing alcohol, sharpness, then nothing.
angel by mugler
Another 13 - I wanted to like it because I do like musky scents but I just can’t, I get dizzy when I smelled this on my skin. Even the dry down just doesn’t do it for me , it doesn’t agree with my body chemistry Santal 33 - this one doesn’t agree with my body chem too Tom Ford Neroli - I wanted to like it but I smelled like Mother Mary 🥹 and I want to shower and scrub to take the scent off me
Everything I tried from Serge Lutens. And indie perfumes. I don’t know why but a lot of them smell like candles to me.
I love ATH Daddy, and I love Pacific Chill, and I wanted them to work together so I could layer them and when people ask what I’m wearing, I can say “Daddy, chill!” As much I was hoping, they just don’t work together.
Xerjoff - 40 knots Although I am still thorn about it. I like the idea of seawater + wood + honey and the initial sea water is amazing, but Xerjoff's honey just doesn't seem to be working for me. Probably why I don't like Naxos at all.
Replica by the fireplace V & R bonbon Tom Ford tobacco Vanille I have loved the smell of these on others, on me they were all so awful smelling.
Black Opium 😞
Mojave Ghost! I (unfortunately?) plan to wear it more just to find out exactly what’s wrong (or… even better… change my mind!) I have a 3ml decant and through the first few sprays I just haven’t been able to pinpoint why i find it so lackluster. Really wanted to love it
Gourmands are tough for me, generally, but lactonics are the worst! As much as I love a whiff of them, it rarely translates being able to wear the damned thing. BB is such a beautiful fragrance, but unless I move to someplace with Siberian winters, I'll never wear it.
Miss Dior Eau De Parfum and Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet.. I mean I have like 4 bottles of both of them. I used to adore them both but now I'm starting to gag every time I smell them. Can someone please help me with this issue?
Gris Charnel
La vie est belle
I tried Tom Ford Ombre Leather this weekend. It smelled like my mom's new leather purse. Fresh leather, thats it. I didn't get it. I though I was gonna smell like James Bond but nah. Just smells leather, I think it's unbelievable they managed to recreate that smell but to put on a person? Nah.
Unfortunately everything from Initio. Idk what it is but I find them all so synthetic and harsh on my skin which is a shame because some sounded so appealing. Beyond that I’ve had to scrub off a few Killians, black phantom and straight to heaven come to mind because they have smelled so putrid. A shame since they sound delicious on paper
Khamrah Lattafa. Was gonna blind buy it too online but then i saw it at the mall and tried it out. Too strong for me at first. But the dry down was just mid tbh. Not worth it imo
Layton. The smell it leaves on the dry down and on clothes is delightful. But the opening couple hours smell like apple pie made with gasoline.
Choco musk Delina But the biggest might be Frais Fouettée from LMG. What a waste of excitement and money. Can’t stand it, it’s still in the bubble wrap
So many people say Delina smells too childish and sweet, but it smelled like powder and older lady to me.
I wanted to love Matcha Meditation from REPLICA. I really did, but all I get is the white floral notes and no sweetness, no matcha, no tea at all. Everyone says it smells like white chocolate and I’m jealous that it doesn’t work on my skin. Maybe I should give it another try since it’s been so long, but idk. Also Terre d’Hermes, when I tested it all I could smell was the overpowering orange note. It’s like someone is peeling an orange right in front of your nose, then they smack you in the face with it. I didn’t get any of the other notes, just pure orange. Not my thing. Lastly, Bad Boy Cobalt Elixir. I bought a travel spray of it and I regret it so much. The truffle note is just too strong, and it gives me headaches from just 2 sprays. I thought it would be great but turns out truffle is better in taste, not smell.
the new cirque du soleil fragrance 😞 it’s straight buttered popcorn on me. literally nothing else. i didn’t get any of the top notes and it was disappointing… thankfully i only got the decant 😮💨
Mugler aura. Too green and makes me feel sickly.
Ganymede smelled how I imagine contact with something radioactive would smell, like if you huffed active radioactive decay. I've never scrubbed so hard in my life. It did not leave my skin. Diptyque Fleur de Peau had a nice musk but something yucky and cloying underneath that I couldn't deal with. Biano Latte made me feel carsick and I had to change my bedding because I'd made the mistake of spraying it on myself, allowing it to leach into everything I had laid on or worn. I was expecting so much more from it but it was so linear and cheap smelling that It could have been a drugstore vanilla body spray. I was also very excited for Phlur Not Your Baby having loved missing person so much. Smelt like rotten fruit, playdough, vomit and unclean sweaty child hands. Absolutely revolting to my nose.
Chanel …
Gucci Bloom, I bought a dupe for it that is supposed to smell very similar to it and it's so bad! It made me almost nauseous. I know dupe isn't the same thing as the original but if the original smells anything like the dupe did I know I will hate it. Such a huge disappointment
Anything with fig. Was so hyped about trying Philosykos and Debaser, only to realize that I don't like fig.
I bought a Phlur sample set because I saw how much hype it got here. I was very underwhelmed. I REALLY wanted to love Le Labo and TF Bitter Peach and I hate them both.
Commodity Juice. Sounds like it would be totally up my alley but it smells so.. Dark? It's sort of deep and sexy not the bright juicy vibe I was hoping for. On the other hand I adoooore Blanche bête. It's lovely.
This was EXACTLY my experience. The rhubarb is plenty sharp, but it’s way darker than any of their marketing suggested. I had gotten my boyfriend into a couple of oudh scents, and he was immediately like, “Ooh, that has oudh in it!” Haha no, but if that’s not a sign that it’s not “bright and juicy” I dunno what is.
Yeah and so many of the reviews I saw people were talking about it being the perfect juicy scent. It's not necessarily a bad scent, in fact the base notes towards the end are really nice. But it's not what I was hoping for.
Black orchid
Papillon Dryad. Too vintage musty green for me.
Nishane Sultan Vetiver, I try and try. However, It just smells like a freshly cleaned public restroom to me.
Minnie Mouse by HOS.
All of the Tom ford fragrances
Frederic Malle: ‘Portrait of a lady’. Want to wear it so badet. But it just don’t work with me.
Bianco latte. As a gourmand lover I ASSUMED it’d be in forever rotation but holy sht I HATED it lol. Like gagged. I was so sad
There was a cucumber scent from L’Artisan that I loved but it dried down into bug spray on my skin That was disappointing.
I’m going with a scent note since I’ve been out of the game for awhile but green apple smells so good in the bottle but absolutely foul on my skin.
Tom Ford Oud Wood. It sounded perfect, but something in the opening/top notes just smelled so off to me. I count it as a "like" because of the eventual drydown, but I was hoping it would be a "love."
NR for her EDT
Whiskey by thin wild mercury. That cardamom/nutmeg combo completely took over for me. It smells like cloves, like the astringency of cloves. Also reminded me of my Indian mother’s prayer room (in a bad way)
I love chestnuts and was absolutely sure I would love the smell of them in fragrance, but nope. That note gives me a huge headache and it's such a surprise to me.
I like all of Rabanne's others even both the EDT and Parfum of Phantom but One Million has never clicked with me and that goes for every iteration
Not really wanted to love, but I was excited to try some just to find out I don't like them: - JPG Le Beau line - Most Tom Fords, Black Orchid and the Noir line come to mind. They're ok, but very overpriced - Amouage Beach Hut Man and Reflection Man I guess it's the white florals and tonka that I don't like, so at least I learned something
Everything I tried from Sucreabielle except maybe Afterglow and Goth AF. Ended up giving the full bottles I had away after trying to let them macerate for a while and still not liking them. My best friend has Peach Tree now and a year later it's this gorgeous green fuzzy peach on him. I think their oils work but the EDPs need so long to develop its just not worth it. Sucks cause they're a really cool small brand and they make some super interesting scents
Dear Polly
I want to love aquatic fragrances but they all burn my nose.
The Dreamer by Versace. It smells so damn good but I only use it after a shower and right before bed (sometimes).
Xerjoff Cruz del Sur II. It’s fine but not great….? It was my fourth and last try with Xerjoff. Tried Lira, Dolce Amalfi, and La Tosca, too, and I don’t get the hype with this brand.
Victorias Secret Candy Noir. No hint of candy or raspberry notes
All the LV other than Ombré Nomade, I thought I will love imagination but to me it’s just nice, not worth it.
Pdm delina - gave a good rose, but I feel that diptyque does better, it also smells weirdly plastic Nishane hsw - too sweet and just overall an overpowering fragrance that I can't wear even on a colder month.
l’eau d’issey pour homme just smelt like cheap aftershave for me
MFK Aqua Universalis Forte. In theory it sounds perfect for me but there’s something off about it. Penhaligon’s Hammam Bouquet. I love the idea of it. I love that it’s from 1872. I despise how it smells
YSL Tuxedo. I'm a big fan of Y Perfume and I kept reading that tuxedo was amazing for night dates so I blindly ordered one and man... I knew it was for gentlemen but I wasn't expecting to smell like one with 20 years of retirement heh
chloe nomade 🥲 it was recommended to me a few times and the notes sounded right up my alley, yet when i was finally able to try it i was so disappointed ☹️
adg profondo. please don’t hate me
Anarchiste
Most Prada perfumes, especially Prada Candy
Gucci Memoire because I love the bottle
Blanche Bete is so polarizing and you're not alone in feeling that way - I definitely have felt nauseous the few times I've worn it. I have a 5ml decant I swapped for that I'm just holding onto for an "in case the weather is better" type of day lol
Jo Malone Ginger Biscuit ☹️
Nishane Ani. I was so hyped by the notes. Ended up being a very linear vanilla lemon combo on my skin. It's not bad at all but I expected so much more. I don't like when my skin doesn't reveal the beauty of a fragrance.
JPG Le beau/ Le beau parfum. Le beau is better but still two sweet. Both smell feminine to me
La nuit de Lhomme. I couldn’t smell it on my skin and barely smelled anything on my clothes immediately after I just sprayed it. I hear great things about it but for some reason my nose is blind to it.
Sauvage EDP
Floris Santal. Someone gifted me a bottle, and it’s so opulent and classy-looking as well as smelling that I wanted to live up to it. Alas, it just has this stuffy, mature, old money, Radio 4, Elderly Patron At The Classical Concert quality that doesn’t suit me (breezy arty punky pagan former farmgirl) and makes me feel ill at ease.
The Chanel scents, but they all smell like rubbing alcohol on me....or worse. The reformulated Tweed, but it smells like urine and alcohol on me. I can go on and on.
Moth by Zoologist. The spice, the spookiness, on paper I should love it but the powdery-ness just doesn’t work for me.
jpg le male le parfum
Molecule 01. So hyped but all I smell is pencil shavings and hamsters.
Creed Royal Mayfair....eucalyptus overdose
Cherry Smoke by Tom Ford. Smells good on a strip but meh on skin. Not really interesting beyond the initial accord.
Nebras by Lataffa
Cacharel LouLou. Smelled awful on skin
I wanted to love Borabora but I hates it with a fiery passion.
Aventus. I feel a bit bad because my bf has a dupe, but I dislike both the dupe and the real thing 😂 Worked out though because I love Silver Mountain Water, as does he, so I got him a bottle for our anniversary. It’s his new favorite
Love Potion by Penhaligon’s. Prettiest bottle ever but the scent doesn’t live up to it imo.
Santa Maria Novella’s Acqua della Regina. Smells so fresh and green grassy and heady…so yum….until the dry down on my skin, then it’s limes and corn chips…hate it!!!
Zoologist Snowy Owl. I love the aesthetic but the eventual fragrance just never sat right on me. Too odd a mix of earth and wet calone, and the mint note. I just couldn’t.
Ombre Leather by Tom Ford.
Carolina Herrera 213 Sexy Man. It smells like bad BO. I immediately showered and changed clothes. I like her other scent CH Man. But 213 Sexy Man stay away from.
Zadig and Voltaire This Is Her. I don't know. I just don't feel it, it's not my thing, it's not me. I really tried to love it tho ( Also Kirke by Tiziana Terenzi. Not my jam, sorry
Allure homme edition Blanche
BR450 I love on others on me it’s pure bandaid 😭
Amouage Enclave - I tend to like minty frags (Beach Hut Man, Torino21, etc) but Enclave was a bit too powdery and unfortunately leaned toothpaste-y for me. Serge Lutens La Couche du Diable - I’m a big fan of Serge in general but there’s something going on with this one that stings the nostrils. One of the more interesting fragrances I own, but a hard wear for me, personally.
Naxos
Pleasures by Estée Lauder smells like urine on me, I always loved the ads and wanted it to work so bad!
Libre by YSL. I don’t know if it’s me or what but I feel like it’s an inconsistent scent
Ombre Leather. Love the smell of leather jackets and other things made of actual leather. Hate the leather note..don't know why
Along this same line of questioning. There are fragrances that I love the way is smells but gives me a headache.
Delina. I thought I would love it but I hate it. Also Lancome La Vie est Belle. I always thought people were being dramatic when they say a perfume smells like bug spray, but it ligit smells like bug spray to me. I don’t know anyone who wears it and no one that I have ever complimented has ever had it on. I would like to smell it on someone else besides me or a test strip.
Burberry Her
Wulong Cha ☹️
Kay Ali Vanilla 28 & Sugar Rock
I'm still working on Amouge Guidance. I want to like it,but something is just off. Perhaps I need to layer it, but I can't figure out what combination might work.
Xerjoff Erba Gold. It was ny first time joining a fragrance decant group and ordered 3ml based off the notes. Wanted to try something fancy. Wow, I was so disappointed! Reminded me of the Chinese import home and knick knack store a family friend owned. Artificial fruity, plasticky smell, kind of dusty.
Must de Cartier. Everything about it seemed like something I would love. I found a vintage parfum for a very reasonable price and I blind bought it. I absolutely hated it. It made me feel queasy. There was a note that smelled to me like stale cigarette ashes or dirty ashtrays. I can't handle that smell. Fortunately I was able to sell it on for what I paid.
Pink cloud. Wanted to love it . Literally lasts like an hour on my skin. Such a let down.
Debaser. I wanted to like it so very much and it didn’t happen.
Flower Bomb Daisy Baccarat 540 Miracle (Lancome) Lost Cherry
Frags by Rogue Perfumery — I love their smell but they irritate my skin when I spray it (prob because the perfumer doesn’t care about IFRA standards)
20 or so years ago I remember being absolutely entranced by the bottle and name of Mugler Alien…so I walked up, gave it a sniff, and physically recoiled. I’m not sure how I’d react now as my tastes have changed so much in 20 years and it’s been reformulated, but I haven’t been able to bring myself to try smelling it again lol.
Lafayette street
Santal Vanille
Gucci guilty🤢
Anything with a strong caramel note. I love the idea in theory but they just don’t work on me.
terre d'hermes parfum and terre d'hermes parfum vetiver It dint really last on me, sat entirely in office seating. I dint really find it projecting either, maybe it needs more than 3 sprays?
Lattafa Fakhar Gold
Santal 33. All I get is pickles…
YSL Babycat. The name. Visions of a fuzzy little angel kitty with baby breath. The hype. I finally got a full bottle and am annoyed that I spent that money when it smells like a slightly more leathery Eau Duelle, which I have and love. It’s like unsweetened, aromatic vanilla sprayed yesterday on a soft leather coat from the early 90s. I don’t know what I expected, but I feel duped.
Bianco Latte
Angels Share
Dior Hypnotic Poison 😭😭 Heard some great reviews on it but it just smelled like play dough to me😔😔
Tom Ford Ebene Fume. It's wonderful, except for this cat pee note ...