I wear L'Occitane Verbena pretty much every day. Occasionally I wear their Lavender. These are both very light. I used to wear a lot stronger perfumes - Obsession and Tresor were two of my favorites. Once I reached about 30, though, I noticed that I seemed to be a lot more sensitive to scents and could no longer wear the ones I used to wear. DH loves the way Tresor smells on me, so sometimes I'll go by the perfume display and put a bit on to test. It's just too strong for me now.

This post was edited by kittiemom on Wed, Aug 20, 14 at 21:38

rob333, I remember Enjoli, Jean Nate, and Charlie.

katlan, I remember the commercial for Wing Song! In fact, it's now playing in my head. LOL!

I have worn Chanel #5 since college. I apply it lightly; usually I'm the only one aware of it. My mom always bought it for me. When she died, and I had to buy my own, I nearly swallowed my tongue at the cost! But I wear it sparingly, and a bottle lasts a long time.

My favorite for the past several yrs.. Is 'Sensuous' by Estée Lauder. When someone hugs me or I bend down to talk to them they always tell me I smell nice! I do have some Chanel no 5 that I should use up before it gets too old.

I wear Red Door in the fall, winter and early spring. Don't wear perfume when I'll be working or spending time outside because I don't want to attract bees and such. Last year a young child that I was working with said to me, "I like your smell."

Another user of Red Door in the cooler months-Jovan musk in the summer-and never heavy with either one

I agree with Alisande about how much is used. Go lightly!

I no longer wear perfume because my husband is allergic. But in my 20s, I wore White Shoulders. Everyone loved that scent on me and even strangers would ask what is that smell and I would get complemented.

So there are a few things going on. One, is it just using too much perfume. Another, might be the smell doesn't mix with the person's own body smell and as a result other people don't like the smell of a popular perfume. So, a perfume can smell perfectly fine in the bottle but just not on you!

My daughters both wear perfume. I actually found a perfume to buy for her because I like peace the smell of a waitress that we had in the restaurant.
But I totally get not wanting my server to be doused in perfume.

I love to smell it on other people when they use it lightly and often compliment them on it, but I can't seem to wear it myself. The most I can do is a scented lotion and I use that sparingly. Otherwise, a headache is sure to develop.

I nearly snurfled a lady to death in a quilt shop, once- she was wearing my absolute favorite scent from the 70's/80's- Estee Lauder's Aliage. I recognized it instantly and just wanted to follow her around the shop. LOL

I had forgotten about Wind Song, but now, I too hear the song in my head!

White Shoulders. I really loved that one. I think I finally used up the last of that.

No, I have asthma. Some people at work pour it on, like our old assistant nurse manager. She used to do our staff meetings and I would literally choke, cough and my eyes would water...especially if I was unlucky to end up sitting next to her.

I can smell some people when they walk in the doors of our ward too if I'm sitting at the nurses' station. I wonder if these people even have a clue. If someone I work with comes in and is wearing it, I usually chart in a different area so I don't suffer all day. I dread when family members come in soaked in it too. You have no option but to cough and choke while you're trying to take care of the patient...in a tiny room with no ventilation.

I've always been really sensitive to perfume. I can stand a few light scents. I absolutely can't stand heavier scents. They give me an almost immediate headache. I also usually avoid stores that are selling heavily perfumed items like pumpkin spice or cinnamon. Gag!

When I worked in hospitals, we were not allowed to wear fragrances because patients might be allergic. I well remember the days of lingering fragrances when someone walked by and the fragrance lingered. I am happy not to smell perfume on others now.

No - I find myself practically gagging by others overwhelming scents and I'd hate to inflict that experience on anyone by wearing perfume myself.

Bob, that's interesting!

This thread inspired me to order a tiny bottle (.27 oz.) of Infusion d'Iris, by Prada. Along with sweet peas, irises are my favorite scent in the garden (okay, I like old roses too), and I've been wanting to try this perfume for some time. So now I'll be able to smell it at last. Thanks, Georgysmom!

I don't wear or buy ANYTHING that's scented. Hate the stuff! too many people douse themselves in it... apparently they think they smell good. yuk. I can smell them coming from many yards away. It messes up my sinuses, ruins my food, hangs in a room, sticks on clothing and furniture and anything they touch (including me!), and makes me miserable for hours and hours -- with some people it takes days to clear the stench. There are certain people that I just dread seeing coming and it's only because of how they smell!

Many people wear perfume in more ways than they realize... deodorant, hair shampoo, conditions, gels, and sprays, laundry detergent, bath soap/gel, etc... I can smell it all and for people who are sensitive to scents it's an overload.

The absolute worst scents for me are anything with musk and Irish Spring soap!!! omg, those both completely wipe me out. :(

yes I do....!!!

Burberry is my favorite

my everyday choice is Avons "Dream Choice" a soft powdery scent

Party, I'm so on your page!! I hate having to hug a few people I know, because then I smell like their perfume, hair products, etc. etc.
And I remember driving a neighbour to an app't and my cloth seat smelled for days like her perfume. Arrrghhhh.

I enjoyed Bob's family history story, too. Glad you were inspired to order a new scent, Susan. Hope you enjoy it. This thread also brought back memories for me when I thought of my momâ¦.she loved lilies of the valley. I think I will try to remember to put a try slight dab on from time to time.

K! Just had a student come get something from me in my office, and I am considering opening both doors to let the smell out. Whoa. Soap? Cologne? Can't tell, but it was strong!!!! I cannot stop sniffing and saying phew! Wow! I haven't smelled anything like that in a long time. Made me laugh cause it made me think of this thread.

Bob_cville,

I am the person who wears L'Heure Bleue and L'Instant de Guerlain.

My mother, who died in 1970 at the age of 53, always wore L'Heure Bleue if she wore any fragrance at all, and I always loved the scent. I wore it exclusively until two years ago when my husband brought me a small sample bottle of L'Instant de Guerlain.

The Guerlain makeup products are also wonderful. :-)

"The man who was the "nose" for the company as recently as 2002 was her great grandfather's, younger brother's grandson."

Jean-Paul Guerlain would be your wife's 2nd cousin once removed. That is, if I correctly understand what you wrote. Your wife descends from Pierre Guerlain (grandson of the founder Pierre-François Pascual Guerlain), and Jean-Paul Guerlain is the grandson of Pierre's brother, Jacques Guerlain (creator of L'Heure Bleue in 1912 and Shalimar in 1925).

Does your wife wear Guerlain perfumes? She should get a family discount, at least! :-)

alisande, my mother wore Arpege to church when I was little. It was her favourite perfume. I also liked Amarige, but it did have a heavy scent, so I never sprayed it directly onto my body. I just sprayed a quick mist in the air and swiped my wrists through the mist. My favourite scent ever is a cheap dime store bottle of musk by Bonne Belle, called 'Skin.' I still love it to this day, but only use one dab, so I'm basically the only one who can smell it. I've heard Sarah Jessica Parker on t.v. say that she is always asked what her amazing scent is, and that's the one she wears most often. Surprised me to hear that, since she has a line of her own scents. I do love her 'Lovely' perfume.

Bob, I enjoyed the pictures. Very interesting!

Seeing that estate reminded me that when I was in New Mexico one time, I met a lady who was heir to the fortune that her grandfather made because he invented fly tape. It made him a multimillionaire. 8-)

Ont_gal, can you even buy Jovan Musk any more? I bought a storage locker at an auction...reason being it belonged to an old woman and she had paid on it for 15 years. I was interested in some collectibles she had...and anyway, in it was a new box of Jovan Musk oil perfume, cologne, soap, dusting powder. I don't wear it but I like to smell it. Like I said, I like smelling it on other people, but I am not wound very tight, so not much in that way bothers me.

No. Many people are chemically sensitive to it. I don't want to make anyone unable to breathe.

Pickyshopper, now I want to check out Skin! (I first typed Sin by mistake. Maybe it was a Freudian slip. LOL)

Almost every day. I work retail and love to wear a pretty scent. I try hard not to wear too much perfume, just one or two sprays. If I forget to wear one of mine, I can use a tester in the beauty boutique. It's a great way to try new scents. If the perfume I'm wearing bothers me (yes, I'm allergic to a lot of them), I spray them on my back so they don't bother me nearly as much. My collection:

Marilyn, yes you can still buy Jovan Musk. An unopened old set may be valuable as often times fragrances are purchased by other companies and the scent changes although I'm usually leery of old bottles of perfume as they do tend to go bad after some years.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who doesn't wear perfume. I have a lung disease that makes me sensitive to fragrances. Even a light amount on others makes me sick on days when I'm having trouble breathing. If you don't wear perfume out of consideration for others who have trouble breathing, you have no idea how much better you make life for those of us struggling to breathe.

My son gets migraine headaches from perfume. So thanks on behalf of him, too!

In my younger years I did wear perfume. I don't any longer. I don't like
strong perfumes. I shower & used a lotion after.

Bonjour Lindsey_CA,

You have that exactly right. I only know the relationships because on a recent trip to visit my father-in-law in Maine, I took pictures of a poster of the Guerlain Family Tree that was on the wall.

My wife pretty much never wears any perfume or cologne, but has used some of their cosmetics. The family used to be able to purchase items at a sizable discount, but that ended when the company was sold to the large corporation.

Her father has always used Eau du Coq Toilet Water as a cologne, which I think is not available in the US, since on a recent trip to France he has us pick up several bottles.

Chicken water? Is that what her father wears? Am I reading that right?!

I think Coq specifically refers to roosters, so it does sound like you'd be wearing a strong chicken broth. Maybe that's why it isn't imported to the US. "My darling, you smell delicious"

Taken from the website:
http://guerlainperfumes.blogspot.com/2013/02/eau-de-cologne-du-coq-c1894.html

Eau de Cologne du Coq c1894
Eau de Cologne du Coq: is a citrus aromatic fragrance for men, launched in 1894. The nose behind this fragrance is Aime Guerlain. It was also known as "Eau du Coq". This was created for a friend of Aime's, the distinguished French actor Benoît-Constant Coquelin, , whose nickname was le Coq (the Fool (foolish but having the slyness of a rogue), or the little Rooster).

My MIL wore too much perfume...always choked me! She would mail birthday presents from Florida to our house in Houston, and the packages would smell like her perfume.

I've actually seen a friendship dissolve over a sensitivity to scents. I have a friend who feels very ill and has an asthma attack when she's been exposed to even mildly scented products. We have a mutual friend who often forgot to refrain from wearing anything scented when we're together. But one time when we met for an outing, she proudly told me she had remembered to not come into contact with a single scented product and even wore clothes she laundered with unscented detergent and hung to dry. I gave her a good sniff and a two thumbs up, lol.

But when our other friend arrived, she began having an asthma attack as soon as she approached, saying that our friend's strong perfume had caused it. I couldn't even smell any random smell in the air nearby that might have triggered her reaction. So I can only think that when one is constantly exposed to smells that make them ill, they might even actually begin getting ill when their brain is tricked into assuming they were exposed. This friend now refrains from joining us when the other lady is coming, because she's convinced our friend is still making her ill.

I am allergic to a lot of perfumes, it gets my asthma going very quickly. I hate stores like Shoppers Drug Mart that have their perfumes right at the front door. I hold my breath as I grab a shopping cart and run to another area of the store.

I love wearing perfume. I like citrus/floral scents. My current favorite is Chloe.

Arrrrghhhh!!

2 new tenants, both retired, male and female and the whole building reeks of cologne/perfume! It pours out of their apts. I'm doomed.

when I was young girl, my grandmother used to sell Avon.
She kept all of her samples and stuff in boxes under her bed.
Grandfather smoked.

The house smelled like Avon perfume & cigarette smoke.

When my sister & I would spend time with them in the summer, we always took our own pillows. Our pillows, of course would absorb this smell. But after a while, it became a "comfort" smell. When I'd get to missing them, I'd bury my nose in my pillow and "breathe" them in.
After a while the smells faded away.

I miss that still.

Only on evening dressy occasions.
And I only wear a bit of Joy below each ear.

Like Alisande, I wear Design by Paul Sebastian, when I remember.
And, like many others, Shalimar memories are bad due to a college roommate who doused herself with it, including powder in excessive amounts!

I love to wear perfumes and cologne and love it when others do. Especially my hubby. I have days when I'm a little sensitive to fragrances because of allergies but since taking Claritin daily, I've not noticed the sensitivity problems.

It's almost painful read of others tossing bottles of perfume. When I get hooked on a certain fragrance, whether it be in liquid or lotion form, I will scour the world, literally, to find more of it. Don't even want to think about how it may be sitting in the bottom of a trash can at your home! :-)

I have my daily favorites and what I wear each day depends on who I'm going to be around. If my daughter is coming for a visit, I'll wear Tuscany per donna by Aramis because it is her "Shalimar" ... she told me she will always think of me when she smells Tuscany. It's probably the most pricey of the perfumes I have.

I often wear Chanel No. 5 when I retire at night as I find it soothing. I will also wear it around older friends who remember the days it was a popular scent.

When I'm going to meet with people I worked with back in the 70s, 80s and 90s, I usually wear Ciara by Charles Revson because that's primarily what I wore back then and it helps them to reconnect I think.

For every day use, I love Avon's Imari. I get a lot of compliments on it and it's in keeping with my rather zen lifestyle.

Gosh, don't toss your bottles, send them to me. :-)

Jodi-

Jovan Musk for about the last 30 years.

jasdipâ¦.so sorry about your new tenants. I don't mind a very slight scent but overwhelming is awful!

Pudgeder, loved your grandparents story.

I agree with Jodi! I can't imagine throwing away a good bottle of perfume, at the very least donate it to a charity thrift shop so someone can use it. It doesn't have to just be clothing donated, they will take bottles of fragrance...GLADLY! I have donated a few myself! Now we have a local FB page for selling and would sell anything I got tired of there.

a friend mentioned that her favorite perfume 'Poison' no longer had the same fragrance after it was applied as before; has something been deleted or added to perfumes recently ... changes after a while after being applied? Think I have also now noticed the same thing!

Only for special, dressy occasions...my scent is, and has been for years - Joy perfume by Jean Patou. I never wear cologne.

Yes, JOY, OPIUM ... & AMBERGRIS (Alyssa Ashley; sadly, AMBERGRIS is no longer!!) are my favorites. I keep mine in the refr. ... heard it kept better?!

Another old thread that's popped up.

I only use the scented body lotions now. My newest one is "Girlfriend" its a Justin Beeber one (I don't care for him) I tried it when I saw a sample and liked it.

I used to wear perfume all the time -- Halston. When I was 40 I got asthma, and couldn't wear it anymore. The people I worked with refused to give up perfume, and it got very bad. I had to leave meetings in closed rooms because I started wheezing.

For those of you who don't wear perfume -- Thank you!