A New Scent

Zara fragrance (sold out, similar here) // Primark perfume oils (similar here and here) // Carolina Herrera Good Girl (here)

I wrote a post recently about some Primark perfume oils that I'd picked up on a recent trip into town, and a couple of weeks ago when I was running some errands I spotted a couple more which, based on how much I'd enjoyed using the previous batch, I thought it would be worth adding to my collection. My perfume collection has spiralled out of control a bit; I need to have a good sort through it as there are a couple of scents I no longer wear in there as well as one or two that I've had for so long I think they might be a bit 'off.' I'm a bit of a bargain hunter when it comes to fragrances and I find it hard to resist a discounted fragrance, especially as they are so blimming expensive normally!

A website that I find so useful when shopping for scents is Fragrantica. I refer to this all the time if I am shopping for a scent 'blind' for example if there is no tester or I'm buying online. The perfumes are described really accurately and really in depth, along with lots of reviews from other users, so it's quite easy to work out the scent group into which it falls. I really love heavy, musky, smoky scents and I don't really like citrusy or sweet fragrances, so researching this way I can pretty quickly tell whether it's worth taking a risk on a scent I've never tried, or leaving it behind. Last year I bought a fragrance by Lalique (who ever knew they did fragrance!?) because in the Fragrantica reviews it had been very closely likened to one of my all time favourites (that I never buy because it's about £90) Elle by YSL. And sure enough, I picked up 100ml for a tenner in Boots to find it's almost identical! It's also probably the most comprehensive perfume guide on the internet - I'm yet to search the site and not find the perfume I'm looking for.

Back to my buys! The perfume oils from Primark are great, they don't last forever but the scents are fairly complex for the price and actually very pleasant. I picked up the Pomegranate and Black Tea oil (which I've been wearing as a daily fragrance) and the Amber Noir one which is clearly a dupe for a famous Jo Malone scent, and I like this one too. I was kindly given the Carolina Herrera sample, and just look at that bottle! Whilst it's not to everyone's taste, it's undeniably different and the scent itself is unexpected; a warm, spicy white floral with notes of cacao and tuberose. It dries down to a fairly powdery finish and definitely has a maturity to it. I'm not sure how much I will wear this, but to be honest, it's ideal to keep in my handbag if I forget to put any fragrance on.

The last scent I picked up was from Zara and I have to admit I've worn Zara fragrances on occasions in the past. In this post from back in 2014 I talk about my recent Zara fragrance purchases - I wore those scents for a couple of years and loved them! I was recently in my local store and spotted this 01 Magic Onsen for £5.99, so thought I'd give it a go. It's a really strange scent, apparently it's a floral woody musk and I do get that but there's also something watery and comforting to it. It's unusual and different, and I think that's why I like it! Especially for the price, I think it's a scent I'll wear more frequently in the spring.

XO Amie