Hey Hey Posse, Decant Demolition 2025 is running away from me. I’m doing my best to get through decants but already the full bottles are calling my name. Again this month I made the quota but it was hard. Now it’s up to you to comment your way into a chance at a US$50 Surrender To Chance Gift Voucher
Don’t forget. I need 40 separate comments from you out there in the scentbloggosphere for someone to win a $50 STC Gift Voucher.
Decant Demolition 2025 March
My Challenge
For Decant Demolition 2025 I’ll be trying to drain 30ml of juice every month. In any configuration from 15 x 2ml to a 30ml decant of decanted perfume into a spray receptacle 2ml or more. They must also be finished by ME! No giving stuff away. Although Random Acts Of Kindness are encouraged they do not count for my DD2025.
Your Challenge
Play along. Use up some decants/samples/bottles. Pass those unloved extras on to others or leave them in your workplace bathroom for people to take.
Also, in the interest of driving fragrant discussion and your own thunking there must be 40 comments that are not mine. Yes, you read it correctly. 40 comments, and not lazy, spammy bumps like an OK or Got It. It must be a pertinent comment to the discussion at hand. You can answer someone else’s comment. Ask them a question about their comment. Add your own thunks, thoughts on my thunks. Tell us a story about something fragrant that links with previous comments or the post. The secondary (but most important) goal of Decant Demolition 2025 is to reanimate perfumista conversation and engagement.
Should I make 30ml and there be 40 comments that comply. I will give away a US$50 Surrender To Chance Gift Voucher each month.
I hope you’re as excited about Decant Demolition 2025 as I am.
In February I hit the 30ml mark:
WINNER : Maya
Please send me a message
portia (underscore) turbo (at) yahoo (dot) com (dot) au
I’m away Maya but will get on this ASAP on my return.
March Empties
Nuit d’Amore by Guerlain 5ml
Sweet lychee and the fizz of pink pepper over o rose violet bouquet. It’s a bit dated now, smells like it could come from the L’Occitane range or would fit perfectly into the current crop of Maison Christian Dior Collection. A fruity wash of loveliness that doesn’t push any boundaries
Sensual Orchid by Laurent Mazzone Parfums 5ml
There was only 1ml of thick oily grease left. I sprayed it on but it was awful. Completely gone yucky.
Sogno Reale by Mendittorosa 10ml
A boozy, woody amber that has come from the sea and lain sweltering in the sun. My 10ml has evaporated to about 3ml so I was wearing the super extrait oxidised version of Sogno Reale. I think it would have much more lift in the originally bought decant. Now it wears close and mysterious. Still gorgeously beautiful and I’ve been loving it in our Sydney summer heat. Edit: In my APJ review, “Not huge, here we have a very restrained fragrance, all the notes are accounted for but sotto voce. As if this kind of happy weirdness needs to whisper.”
Sunkissed Goddess by Kilian 2ml
Recently I wrote about Sunkissed Goddess over on Undina’s Looking Glass. I was totally bummed because almost no-one commented (thank you Alityke, JillieCat and BonkersVanessa) and that suntan tropical nights boozy beverage perfume is a winner. Also a perfect foil for winter blues. I even did a little comparison with other Lauder perfumes in the same oeuvre at different price points.
Tiger’s Nest by Memo Paris 3ml
I’ve talked of Tiger’s Nest before. It’s an amber, heavily labdanum, and has a cool snowy mountain breeze blowing into the funky den. “Tigers Nest is a lovely, fatty, slightly bitter take on amber. It gets a tingling hit of fresh lime about 5 minutes in. I know absinthe is the essence noted but I also get the distinctive snap of Angelica and a scratchy saffron is also notable. The lasting power is seriously good too.
Tok’yo Mama Fizz by Smell Bent 3ml
Sparkling lemonade backed by crisp woods and towards the end a vanilla ice cream note. Smell Bent was a pioneer is seriously niche, fine fragrance that was affordable and fun. The graphics and wordplay were amusing without the super skeevy sex plays of ELdO. Sadly the house has gone and I’ve found a cache of 3ml samples that are making my heart ache that I didn’t buy more bottles.
With the Candlestick by Clue Perfumery 3ml
Loved this weird beauty so much I wrote about it here on Perfume Posse
WOO HOO! 31ml done and dusted. Don’t forget, I’m overseas till May 15. I’ll try to get to the computer and reply to you all but it will be sporadic.
You need to do 40 comments by yourselves so I can draw a winner. Go to it crew.
Do any of these thunks ring your bell?
What did you get thunking this month gone?
Portia x
I’ve thunked my decant of Bois des Iles edt. I’m sad it’s gone and am considering a full bottle, that is if I can find one.
I also thunked my sample of Des cendres. Liked it, but not a love.
I haven’t worn a lot of perfume this month but my garden is in full spring swing (I’m in California) and it is epic! The daffodils and freesia I cut and brought indoors have scented up the whole house from just a few blooms, and my pittosporum hedge’s funny little black flowers breathe out the most incredible musky fragrance at night. I take my almost-one-year-old out into the garden every morning to say hello to the flowers. Early indoctrination for gardening and scent!
Today I used a sample of Atelier Cologne Trufle Pur. I really like it.
Tok’yo Mama Fizz sounds fun and speaking of lemons I have yet to get through my huge bottle of Marc Jacobs Lemon splash. Perfect for the warmer weather!
It’s my 50th in a few days. My sister found 3 Chanel samples in the op shop & gifted them to me. Gardenia, No 5 edp & Coco mademoiselle. I am wearing No 5 today. It is quite thick & sweet & powdery. I have L’eau & really can see where they have borrowed the notes from for the pared down formula.
Wishing you a Happy Birthday! I hope the day is lovely for you. The 50th is a milestone one. Oh to be 50 again. Sigh. 😉
I finished off a few more samples. I try to use them up, rather than hold on to too many, otherwise I’d have samples everywhere. There are so many things that I can only get to try by buying samples, so I buy quite a few.
This month, I finished samples of:
Amouroud – White Hinoki
Jousset Pefume – Ramdan Night
Ralph Lauren – Safari
Isabey – Perles de Lys Noir
Liquides Imaginaires – Dom Rosa
Serge Lutens – Borneo 1834
Serge Lutens – Cuir Mauresque
I’d had the last drops of some of these for years!
Well done! Please don’t be offended but how many sprays to you use? I can’t seem to get through things but I’m habitually a light sprayer. 1 to each wrist, one to the neck K one on my chest, under clothing.
Portia – I’ve not tried Sunkissed Goddess but that sounded most interesting….maybe I’m just craving summer weather. I finished up a couple of Narciso Rodriquez samples the Poudre and Ambree….both nice. The Ambree was my favorite.
At the beginning of March I ordered new clear plastic storage drawer units, reorganized, and decided to clear out some ‘older’ stock. I thunked decants of Kenzo Jungle L’Elephant and Worth Je Reviens, the last few drops I owned of original Opium, and a trio of Eric Buterbaugh floral samples. This month I am working on a ‘smoke’ theme while it is still cold outside. After that it will be rose scents then greens.
We’re out of town for a month and I brought some small decants and large samples with me. Quickly working my way through my Guerlain Iris Torréfié decant. I also brought a sample of Pierre Guillaume Indochine (I already have a bottle but it’s so amazing, I didn’t want to be without it). Also Bond No. 9 Scent of Peace and Lubin Epidor samples — tried to be prepared for all kinds of weather and outings.
I haven’t thunked anything, but my housemate ran through the last of her Onda, and it smelled absolutely fantastic. If I’d been paying attention on LuckyScent I’d have ordered samples of the line — I’ve been clinging to my last bit of Rubj and am unwilling to thunk it! However I am enjoying all the other samples I’m playing with.
Rubj and Onda are such great fragrances. Mito is my favourite from the line, I brought out my bottle for spring.
I’ve done a single thunk. MDCI La Belle Helene. But of a disaster. The black sprayer had partially disintegrated & only realised when I spritzed my wrists. Sadly I had spritzed my neck & chest first & was wearing a white T-shirt. Looked like my neck had cried mascara tears! The stains came out ok as I sprayed 4711 over them & washed the T straight away.
The fruitiness had gone but the iris was still sniffable!
Oh no, that’s terrible! I am glad the stains came out!
Oh…..I love La Belle Helene and Peche Cardinal from MDCI. And those bottles with the resin busts – would love to own one.
WOW! And thank you! I’ll be in touch.
I recognize some of the perfumes you thunked but have not tried them, except Sogno Reale. I agree, it has a beautiful weirdness to it. It’s very different from what I’m usually drawn to and that makes it a bit more special.
I took the suggestion to take samples (sprayers) to work and leave in the restroom…for air freshener use. It’s been a hit. If anyone loves the scent they can take the sample. I had someone find me and tell me how they lurved the Aventus dupe. I’ve thunked only a few (5) that way, but it’s been fun. (DNEM)
If I still worked in an office I would TOTALLY do this, it would be so much fun to spread the love!
I finished three travel sprays in March: Lost Cherry, Vanille Insensee, and Slowdive, and probably snuck an almost-empty bottle into the ladies. I didn’t know any of PT’s choices, although I adore the name With the Candlestick.
I only managed to thunk my sample of Phlur Vanilla edp and have decided that I prefer the hair and body mist.
I’ve been eyeing up the Phlur body mists. Sali Hughes, who has tastes that align with my own, included Vanilla Smoke body mist in a recent spring scents reel on IG
Hi, Portia. Thunked a sample of Ormond Jayne’s Champaca. I liked it a lot more today than before. It reminds me of Chanel 19 only herbier.
Oh, I love Champaca. I have a travel spray, and on some days nothing else will do, usually in summer.
Thunked a manufacturer’s sample of No 5 L’eau, very wearable in the shoulder season, though I prefer Premiere and must eventually spring for a bottle
L’Eau was my favorite purchase of 2024, I wear it a lot, but I would like to have a bottle of Premiere, too.
I really enjoy Tiger’s Nest, and Winter Palace is delish. But must. stop. buying. more. I hate using samples because gone but if don’t use then also gone..
I just got my L1 gift from Libertine- more goodies to use! A set of Memo samples, 10ml Akro Bake (nicer than expected), JHAG Not a Perfume 5ml I think. I don’t really love this brand and this to me is meh.
I love Morocco. Have a fantastic time and don’t get lost in the souks- easy to do!!
You have an excellent taste:) Winter Palace is my favourite from the Memo line and Bake is so lovely. I upgraded my sample to a full bottle very swiftly when it came out and half of that 30ml bottle is already gone.
My most memorable completion in March was a travel spray of Kate Spade New York Sparkle. A nice sweet, thick vanilla with a sharp black currant. A bit juvenile and very nice!
Goodbye to 1ml sample of Eris Perfumes Delta of Venus. I like everything this brand does — and thought DoV would be ‘the one’ I might buy eventually. But, by the end of the sample it just wasn’t love. Almost there but not quite. Anyway, this is probably one of the best big fruity florals I’ve encountered in a long time and very worth sampling.
One of the samples I wore this month was Eris Green Spell. I like it and need to wear it more.
I’ve been eyeing that one for a long time. How do you find it?
I love Delta of Venus. Agree that it’s one of the best fruity florals to come along in many years. Still using up my decant but I think it will be a bottle purchase for me.
Love Delta of Venus too (so many readers with excellent taste). It was one of my thunked samples in the previous Portia’d monthly challenge that resulted into a full bottle.
I thunked 7 manufactuter’s samples in March: absolute favourite was Figure Libre (Technique Indiscrete): gorgeous urinous floorwax floral
The rest were in the pleasant/ok territory:Absolu de Vanille (La Maison de la Vanille): pleasant patchouly vanilla
Kasar (Teo Cabanel): smooth saffrony leather, highly wearable and entirely pleasant
Carnal Cacao (Maison de Tahite): Hypnotic Poison mixed with generic gourmand
Daffodil (Technique Indiscrete)& Velvet Coffee and Cacao in the Sun (both Maison de Tahite): no memory trace whatsoever. I suppose they were ok because both were thunked 🙂
I was meh on Delta of Venus when I first tried it, but there was something about it, so I kept trying and by the end of my sample, it was/is on my to buy list. It’s lovely!
I should bring it my sample of Delta of Venus and test it some more.
As you know I wasn’t keen on DoV but now the weather has warmed up I’m feeling fruity so DoV may prove a hit now
I’m wearing DoV today. It’s T-shirt weather here & it’s a much better fit than when I last tried it. Not FB worthy thoughI prefer Neela’s fruities. Didn’t like Bombay Bling but I’ve done a 180 on it
The only decants managed to finish was my danger of Lyric Woman Extrait and a 15ml decant of no 19 edp. I am saddened that the extrait for Lyric has been discontinued and used my last little bit but I am thankful that I have 3 bottles of the edp.
Well, you had a great-smelling month! The edp of No 19 is my holy grail — love that one even more than the edt. It’s more a green floral where the edt is a green chypre with leather. I’ve never had enough of the No 19 parfum to parse out how it differs from the other two. But this is typical of Chanel scents; usually each of the 3 iterations smell completely individual.
The parfum is heavy on the iris. So it’s a powdery, green iris but it’s intermittent in terms of being for sale on the Chanel website.
Yes! So disappointing that Chanel is not more committed to the No 19 line. Where is the soap, lotion, and bath gel of yesteryear in addition to the parfum?? Stop making gorgeous auxiliary products for Coco Mademoiselle, which I dislike naturally, and return your attention back to the glorious No 19! rant over
I am so with you on this. No 19 seems to be suffering the fate of Cristalle EdT.
Yet CM aka Angel for snobs is being treated like No5.
I know it’s all about money but Mademoiselle Chanel must be spinning in her grave at the selling of something so obviously a copycat, me too fragrance