I'm annoyed with myself.
Last time we were in Seattle, winter of 2009, I discovered Serge Lutens' Borneo 1834 and fell deeply in love. Everything about it resonated with me and I thought for awhile that Borneo and I might have to leave B-man and get a place of our own.
There was really only room for the two of us.
Before we left for Seattle last week, I convinced myself I could recreate that moment again and find 'My One True Perfume Love of All Time.' Once there, we took the bus to Fremont so I could go to Essenza, one of my favorite perfume boutiques. B-man left me to my sniffing madness while he strolled around this funky little town, taking pictures and looking for souveniers.
And sniff I did until I came up with the following finalists:
Tam Dao by Diptique
Philosykos by Diptique
Silk by Andrea Maak
Sharp by Andrea Maak
1697 Eau de Parfum by Frapin
Cannabis Rose by Fresh
All of these were applied somewhere on my arms (except 1697, which I swooned over, but assumed it was one of those $300 perfumes), then I went outside to walk around, smell myself and try to find B-man. One thing was certain, I was not leaving Freemont without a new perfume love.
Here's my thought process on each:
Tam Dao - Yeah, I like it, but it's a little boring...smells like something else but I don't know what.
Philosykos - It's true, I am in the mood for something herbal and figgy, but it's just not quite lighting me up.
Silk - Love the beginning, but really ordinary in the drydown.
Sharp - This interests me...it's vanilla, but weirdly green and unlike anything else I have.
Cannabis Rose - I like this, and it's hard to find, but it's not new to me so, 'meh.'
I ended up with Sharp, which I like a whole lot. And it's different than anything I have, which is always a plus. But do I want to bathe in it, re-apply it morning, noon and night and possibly leave my husband for it? Uh, no.
Note to Sharp: Yes, I know I wrote the ode and even faked a couple of orgasms for you, but I really just want to be friends. Look, it's not you, it's me.
The worst thing about the whole fiasco? Frapin's 1697 costs only twenty bucks more than I paid for Sharp. Twenty dollars. But I didn't discover that until later in our room, after I had already purchased the Sharp.
Because I never asked.
Yesterday, I called B-man from work to confess to buying perfume in Seattle that I didn't love. That's a cardinal sin, if you ask me, and one that warrants harsh punishment. Instead, he said, 'well, I can understand that - just let yourself off the hook, it's okay.'
But what I didn't confess - until now - is that I pre-emptively cheaped out on a perfume that may just have been my next true love. I hate when I do that.
Image from zazzle.com
I did that once - bought a Bond No. 9 instead of a Hermes - I was regretting that decision, well, I still regret that decision!
ReplyDeleteHi Frida - I know, right? What really ticks me off is that it's not the first time I've done this...you'd think I would learn one day.
ReplyDeleteSuch an easy mistake to make and one I have made myself a number of times, because I wanted to come away with a bottle that day! Have mostly managed to pass along the offending perfumes, thankfully. The "quite liking" them was a case of damning with faint praise that simply bugged me too much.
ReplyDeleteHi Vanessa - good to see you! Glad that others have made this mistake, too. As much as I like to buy perfume when I travel, I am now committed to sniffing and debating...then purchasing when I get home...if I still want it. We'll see how that plan goes. Somewhere between impulse buying and cheaping out lies the perfect balance.
ReplyDelete