In my experience, some people never really grow in the fragrance hobby because they get comfortable and stop exploring. They stay in the same lane year after year, buying the same types of fragrances, chasing the same trends, and listening to the same opinions without ever branching out and developing their own taste. A lot of people get stuck in the designer and clone world. There is absolutely nothing wrong with designers or clones—I started there myself, and they can be a great way to learn. The problem comes when someone never moves beyond them. If every purchase is just another variation of the same popular DNA or another clone of a fragrance they have never even smelled, their fragrance journey can become very limited. They may end up owning dozens of fragrances but experiencing very little of what perfumery has to offer. Many people also judge everything by the same standards: projection, longevity, compliments, and value for money. Those things matter, but they are only part of the picture. There is also composition, quality of materials, creativity, balance, transitions, emotion, and the skill it takes to create something unique and memorable. Some of the most interesting fragrances in the world are not necessarily the loudest or longest-lasting. Another issue is that collecting can become more important than learning. Owning hundreds of bottles does not automatically mean someone has developed their nose. Sometimes a person with twenty carefully selected fragrances has learned far more because they have spent time wearing them, comparing them, studying them, and understanding what makes each one special. That’s why I believe that if you join a fragrance lover community, it should be about exploration and discovery, not just validation. The goal shouldn’t be to have everyone wear the same fragrances or chase the same hype. It should be about learning from each other, discovering new styles, exploring different fragrance families, understanding perfumers, and expanding your horizons. Whether that’s designer, niche, artisan, indie, vintage, or even a well-made clone, there is always something new to learn.

It was a fun fragrance week for me. CDN revisited after a LONG time no wearing. Compliments followed! Percival and Versace are my warm weather workhorses. Percival being more elevated and Versace being no brainer, lots of spraying. ALSO big win on Sartorial. Finished the decant a brother gifted me. It has grown on me. Got to a point where the vanilla was no longer prominent and I was able to ID the distinctiveness of the other spice notes. Finished decant of BR540. Won’t replace it. Good to know about it but don’t need to wear it again. Finally, it’s VETIVER season! I’m still debating my favorite FB-worthy options of zesty grassiness. GIT, dupes of GIT, Michael Malul Vetiver+Zest. AND last but rising to first is TDH Vetiver. Man, performance is fantastic. P.S. Perseus is lovely but duplicative for me and doesn’t last.

Many of us own clones. I'm conducting a quick survey on spending patterns.

Alexandria Limited #78 100ml (V2) Added Ambroxan Think of this fragrance as high-voltage freshness. It hits you immediately with a massive, hyper-realistic blast of grapefruit and lime, sharpened by fizzy ginger. It’s not just citrusy; it’s electric and biting. As that initial rush settles, you get a cool, juicy layer of crisp bergamot, pear, grapefruit and green apple that keeps it from feeling sharp. But the real hook is the dry down. It warms up into a salty, mineral scent—thanks to heavy doses of Ambroxan and Ambergris—mixed with spicy woods and clean musk. It smells expensive, polished, and incredibly clean, lasting all day without turning heavy. It’s the kind of scent that works just as well in a gym bag as it does with a tailored suit. V2 has added timbersilk (iso super E) to elevate the base and add a woody dry down. Review to come Had to order in England as it is an original from Alexandria Fragrances UK

So my friend had to cancel our dinner plans tonight and I found myself home alone. Thought it would be a good night for another episode of my solo beast mode series, when I go through my collection and spray the $hit out of one of my old favorites. I realized I hadn’t worn Tom Ford Oud Wood in a long time, and since today was a little bit cooler here, I thought what the heck I’ll do it. Six sprays to each arm, five to my chest and neck and a few on my shirt for good measure and I’m basically guaranteed that I’m gonna marinate in a delicious warm spicy woody bubble of goodness for the next few hours. Oud Wood was my very first fragrance purchase and was the scent that opened my nose to world of fragrances in the first place about a year and a half ago. As my nose has developed, I don’t find myself reaching for it as often, and sadly I don’t love it as much as that first revolutionary time I got my nose on it, but I’m definitely still enjoying it. It’s savory sweet, with a blast of warm cardamom, vanilla and woods (including a replica oud) but with a little bit of powdery sweetness, I guess from Tonka. I don’t usually love oud and only have a handful of fragrances with that note (and it’s debatable how many of them actually have any real oud in them anyway) but as for tonight, I’m gonna sit on my couch in my little nuclear cloud and enjoy it for what it is. This one doesn’t usually have the best longevity (with normal sprays I get maybe an hour and a half of projection, then it’s a very nice ambery woody vanillic skin scent for another maybe 4 to 6 hours, longer on clothing) but let’s see how my 20 odd sprays will do tonight :)