https://www.skool.com/bos/introduce-yourself-here-post-all-intros-on-this-thread?p=08706496 As you know, a brotherhood is only as strong as its newer members. Let's take the time to welcome our newest brothers!

As Amouage Decision 42 starts rolling out, I figured I would touch on the fact that it has a higher oil concentration. Somehow, our minds have been conditioned to believe that more automatically means better, and that is not necessarily true—especially with fragrances. Two perfumers can use many of the exact same notes and raw materials and still create two completely different fragrances. It all comes down to how those materials are balanced, what the perfumer chooses to emphasize, and how the fragrance is constructed. The same thing applies when you increase the concentration. A higher oil concentration does not simply make the original fragrance stronger. It can change the entire wearing experience. The fragrance may become richer, smoother, deeper, and last longer, but it may also sit closer to the skin. An EDP can sometimes project farther because the lighter materials have more room to lift off the skin and create a larger scent bubble. Look at Reflection Man and Reflection 45. Reflection 45 is denser, richer, and more complex, but the original Reflection Man is brighter and more open. There are situations, especially here in Arizona, when I would rather wear the original because it breathes better in the heat. The same applies to Blue Talisman EDP and Blue Talisman Extrait. The Extrait has more depth and weight, but the EDP has that brighter, airier quality that makes it so easy to wear. The Extrait does not make the EDP unnecessary. They serve different purposes. That is how I am looking at Decision 42. I am not automatically going to call it better than the original Decision just because it has more oil. I want to see how it wears, how it projects, how it develops on my skin, and whether it gives me a different enough experience to justify owning both. Higher concentration may give you more richness and longevity, but it does not always give you more projection—or a better fragrance. Sometimes the original concentration is what allows a fragrance to open up and really breathe.

Hypothetical: You have $300 in your perfume budget. Theees no stretching it, this is strict. You can go over a little bit only for tax and shipping cost. What do you get? Looking for inspiration.

Day Three Desert Fire: - Top: shiso leaf, pink pepper, and cypress - Heart/base: frankincense, palo santo, leather, myrrh, and burning woods - Central accords: burning woods, black leather, and smoldering resins - Concentration: Extrait This is Fire; think of Amouage Purpose’s green-earthy woods + Ébène Fumé’s palo santo and resins + a polished Italian-leather accord It feels like He took a dark woody-leather-incense and made it more approachable and signature-worthy. Quality is excellent and is definitely full-bottle worthy. The leather is in line with something like Widian London.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkvHq3GC9FI&t=309s This video by Frag Yap really hit home because I have made many of these mistakes myself. When you first get heavily involved in fragrances, it is easy to confuse buying with collecting. You chase deals, blind-buy hyped releases, and purchase several alternatives while trying to avoid paying for the fragrance you actually wanted. I went through a heavy clone phase and accumulated several hundred of them. Some were good, but many became bottles I rarely wore and now practically cannot give away. In some cases, I would have been better off saving that money and buying the original from the beginning. However, I still believe clones have a place when the original is grossly overpriced, discontinued, or performs poorly. The key is buying them strategically—not simply because they are cheap. The strongest point in this video is knowing what you already own. Two fragrances may have completely different notes but still serve the same purpose in your collection. Before buying another fresh fragrance, date-night scent, or tobacco fragrance, ask whether it does something better or is meaningfully different from what you already have. I also agree with sampling whenever possible, purchasing the appropriate bottle size, and exchanging samples with other collectors. A lower price per milliliter is not a bargain if most of the bottle will never be worn. With a large collection, 30 or 50 ml is often more practical than another 100 ml bottle. The real lesson is not that everyone should stop buying fragrances. It is that we should buy with intention. A collection should represent what you genuinely enjoy wearing—not every bargain, new release, or bottle the internet convinced you that you needed. Video on top. Love to know your opinions? I happen to agree with his assessment.