Smell Ya Later!

My latest bottle of fragrance is nearing it's last few splashes and I'll soon be looking for something different. I always find shopping for perfume (ewwww... isn't that just the most horrible sounding word for something so lovely?) a bit overwhelming. I know that many women have sort of a signature scent... they pick a certain fragrance and stick to it with tenacity and verve. My moms is one of those people and to this day every time my kids catch a whiff of Elizabeth Arden's "Red Door", one of them is bound to exclaim "GRANDMA!!" before I can count to three through the smiles in my brain.

Me? I'm not really a signature scent kinda girl. But I am a monogamous scenter. I don't ever have more than one scent in my possession... So, in a way I try to claim the "ideal" of a signature scent, but without the commitment.

Yeah... I just lost respect for myself, too.

Anyhow, with the prospect of finding my newest fragrance Love in the near future, I thought it would be... uhhh, how you say? APROPOS... to take a brief look back at all the lovely (and some rather unfortunate) frangrances I have called my own.

1.) Ahhh, first ever perfume... your name has been long forgotten but I will remember you always. One in a package of five tiny sample bottles that my Mom didn't want, I chose you first because your name was something like "Sea" or "Paradise" and smelling you made me think of clean, clean water and sunshine. Unfortunately, our love affair was short as there wasn't much of you in the bottle and I soon found out that "Real" perfume costs more money than an eleven year old can concieve of.

Which led to my brief affair with cheap, stanky perfume that was adored by pre-teen girls and featured in Seventeen on every third page.


2.) Love's Baby Soft. My first issue of Seventeen sent me spiralling down the deep dark vortex of Advertising Targetted to PreTeens. Who wouldn't want to be like one of those perfectly perky collegiate babes, posing with their side ponytails and scrunchy socks? They had clear skin and big earrings and surely they must smell really, really good and be wanted by everyone! OK, so technically I didn't OWN this one, but beyond coveting it, I regularly borrowed a spray or two from my friend who was (dubiously) lucky enough to own a bottle of it and freely let me partake of the LOVE that is the Baby Soft.




3.) Exclamation. Honestly, I didn't really even like this one. But every single SuperCoolGirl(tm) wore it and I was phasing through that rough, but necessary "I really want to be Super Cool" patch. From our spiral permed hair teased within an inch of it's life to our Asics Tigers volleyball trainers, IKEDA baggy sweatshirts and tight jeans, teenage girls of that particular vintage were barely discernible from one another.




4.) Colors by United Colors of Benetton. There was a few different varieties of this one; my first "real" fragrance. I was fondest of the clear bottle with the black top and stuck with it for a few years. I was also allergic to it at first. Which meant I got a bit red and itchy around all those pulse points you were supposed to dab at. My allergy eventually subsided, though and this is probably the closest I became to being a "signature scent" girl. I think I used at least two or three bottles in succession... a record no other scent has come close to.




5.) Eternity by Calvin Klein. I really liked this one, as well. "ETERNITY, inspired by the ideal of lasting love and intimacy, is a romantic floral fragrance. This harmonious blend of both classic and contemporary scents is a perfect combination, created to reflect timeless quality and modern style. I think it's the low notes of sandalwood and patchouli that hooked me (don't get me started on those two... a am a certified sandalwood junkie) and kept me lovin it until the bottle was finished. Ummmm... the sexy beach ads didn't hurt, either.



6.) CKOne. It was a Christmas gift and it didn't quite hit the mark. I had first sniffed it out on a friend and actually really liked it. This was my first experience with the First Rule Of Fragrance "What smells good on someone else, will not always smell good on you". I'm sure there's some scientific reason involving skin chemistry and other such factual stuff. What matters is that it smelled really rather fake-ish and one dimensional on me. For the record, though... I did try to use it all. Waste not, want not, right? Besides, it was a gift.




7.) Hemp. Sandalwood. Patchouli. For a while I nixed the fragrance search, opting instead to become a human incense stick. Well, I wasn't that noxious... it was really a very subtle thing. It's not like you can go out and buy Hemp-scented perfume. Well, maybe you can. But I preferred the body lotion and shower gel route. Hydrated skin is happy skin!




8.) Curious by Britney Spears. Seriously... I hated that this was in any way, shape or form associated with Ms. Spears. I just happened to be flipping through a magazine and the sample strip fragrance hit me and it was kismet. Having learned my Chemistry lesson well, I took this one out for a tester date and it was love at first sniff. My skin + Curious. Heart! Arrows! But I hid the bottle and didn't let anyone know what I was wearing. Cause, ewww, pop princess... *shiver* But, yes... the sandalwood wins again. "The fragrance is a white floral scent. Its notes are Louisiana magnolia, golden Anjou pear, lotus flower, tuberose, star jasmine, pink cyclamen, vanilla-infused musk, sandalwood and blonde woods."




9.) Euphoria by Calvin Klein. This is my current fragrance. With an ingredient list that sounds as delicious as exotic, how could you not love this one? "The main notes are rose hip, Japanese apple, green leaves, Lotus, black orchid, red woods, black violet and amber." And look... no sandalwood! It's dark and sensual and fun. And almost empty.

And so the search begins. Any suggestions?