Scents I hate


I don't even know that I can learn to love these. Maybe. But I'm skeptical...

  • Cedar closets
  • Moth balls
  • Mint (mostly spearmint, but all others but peppermint) and I really, really hate this smell. It makes me very nauseous, instantly.
  • Bleach
  • Tobacco
  • Cigarette smoke
  • Chewing gum
  • Really strong jasmine (more on this, soon)
  • Gasoline
  • Ferrets
  • Urine
  • Vomit
  • Stinky feet
  • Sulfur
  • Most cleaning products

Scents I love

Not perfumes I love. Scents. Not even in regards to perfume (which would be referred to as "notes"), but just things I enjoy smelling.

In no particular order:
  • A fire burning in chilly Fall air
  • Church incense
  • Vanilla (not too sweet, though!)
  • Pumpkin pie
  • A baby's breath (not the flower, but the milky sweet breath of an infant)
  • Lilacs (though I am violently allergic)
  • Freshly mowed grass
  • Baby powder
  • Roses
  • The smell from a laundromat (specifically a bank of washers and dryers, not the ones at home)
  • Pasta sauce
  • Baking chicken
  • Baking bread
  • A roaring fireplace
  • Books
  • "The BPAL smell" (collectors will understand - it's the melding of all of my bottles and imps in their box!)
  • Fresh soil
  • Nutmeg
  • Cloves
  • Mulling spices
  • A bakery
  • Coffee
  • The scent of a room full of plants
  • An artist's studio
  • Fresh hay (though I am very allergic!)
  • A horse barn


I'm sure you'll be shocked to hear that my next post is going to be about scents I dislike. ;)

Welcome!

I want to know more about fragrance. I'm fascinated by it! I'm starting this site as a way to clearly document my passage from complete and utter perfume newbie to... what? I'm not sure where it will take me, actually! That's part of the fun, isn't it?

A little bit about me
I'm a writer and makeup artist. You may have read my beauty blog, BSB, where I have written about makeup, skincare, and even fragrance for the past few years. I'm also a mom and wife and a pretty decent napper.

My fragrance history
Just because I have reviewed some perfumes on my beauty blog doesn't mean I'm an expert. Far from it! Essentially, I am a typical fragrance consumer. Because of that blog, I have had the unique privilege of testing some perfumes I otherwise might not have known about. That has given me a peek through the cracked door of the fragrance world. I want to kick that door open!

I don't think I have a particularly good nose. It's probably average. That's why I thought this blog would be fun!

I am not someone who knows how to pick apart a perfume and discuss it like a fine wine. Nor am I a poet, like most fragrance reviewers.

At this stage in my fragrance development, I can identify some basic notes if I know they are there. I can't just sniff a scent and expound upon the jasmine heart and benzoin base. Nor can I identify a perfume on a passerby.

 
My goal here
In this blog, I intend to review fragrances, yes, and perhaps review them multiple times as my talent (?) develops. I also plan on learning about how fragrances are made, conceived and perceived. I will figure out "houses" and "noses" and "notes". What's a facet? What does civet smell like? Why are scents like Jicky and Chanel No. 5 and Joy so revered? I know enough to realize how little I know.

I hope you are interested in learning along with me! If you have suggestions, recommendations, pointers or corrections, please let me know. I need all the help and companionship I can get. It's going to be a bumpy ride!

xoxo
*jen