Rule 1: Buy the smallest available bottle.
I have no need for 100ml of perfume. Or 30ml. Heck, I have samples of things that I love that I haven't used up. I would have said before that there's no reason to own more than 15ml; now I'm concluding that for most fragrances, there's no need for me to own more than 5ml.
Rule 2: Spend my money where it counts, in terms of encouraging the market to produce the perfumes that I want.
Right now, I've decided that "where it counts" for me is small and indie and artisan perfumers. (What's the difference between those three? I dunno. A number of houses seem to qualify on all three grounds.) Perfumers that rebel against annoying regulations--for example, participants in the Outlaw Perfume Project--get bonus points.
Why am I telling you all this? Because, for once, I've actually followed some of my resolutions. My perfume purchases of the nearish past are;
- Aftelier Honey Blossom in the itty bitty "Barbie fifth" 2ml bottle.
- Providence Perfume Co Moss Gown in the small 7.5ml size.
Yay resolutions!
Today, on the other hand, I wore Estee Lauder Youth Dew. The perfume, not the bath oil. New. (Ish; I bought it a few months ago.) My first thought, when I sprayed it, was "hairspray." Except, I can't actually identify any hairsprayish note in Youth Dew's fog of spicy, er, spiciness. My theory is that every beauty parlor that I entered as a child was filled with women wearing Youth Dew.
That is all.
Interesting. I also wonder what is the difference between "small and indie and artisan" - I notice I use them interchangeably. :)
ReplyDeleteI think I am finally becoming realistic when it comes to perfume. I have way too much of it in any type of container (samples, decants and bottles) so I'm not buying any unless it is something seriously good or interesting which luckily doesn't happen that often. :)
I love your description of Youth Dew. I'll be sure not to buy it. Or, maybe I want to smell like hairspray! What I didn't understand is why the need for small sizes of perfumes. I would assume that if you fall in love with a fragrance, you'll want to wear it over and over again!
ReplyDeleteYo, Ines! Yep; are they synonyms or are there different nuances? I picture "artisan" as being smaller than "small", but...
ReplyDeleteThe not-buying is an admirable resolve. I am pleased that I've slowed down substantially on purchases, but I don't know exactly why I did, and so I don't know if I can rely on it.
Yo, Melody! I understand that Youth Dew is not the knock-'em-down creation that it once was; now I need to get my hands on a (small) vintage sample.
ReplyDeleteWell, if I fall in love, I want to be able to smell the fragrance forever, but the difficulty is that I have too many loves. :) If I rotated through all of them, wearing one each day, it would probably take me years and years to finish off any bottle, even a small one.