I’m Not Obsessed
September 12th, 2006
As I was rummaging through my perfume samples and decants in hopes to find an inspiration for another review, I stumbled upon my purse since I often carry various perfume samples with me. I was hoping to find something in there I’d either neglected or forgotten I had. As I unzipped the inside pocket, I saw a shocking picture: the amount of samples was unreal. So, instead of writing a review, I figured why not just tell you folks what I found in my purse? Wouldn’t you want to know? I think women in particular love talking about their purse contents (I’m yet to see a guy who’d be as enthusiastic). Why is that? It’s like our purses are like our little domains where we keep only the things we like, and nobody else has a say what goes in there. So, anyways, here goes (as a side note, what I’m about to list will happen as I procure it):
Citta di Kyoto by Santa Maria Novella, sample – light, herbal incense.
Biche dans l’Absinthe by Victoria Gobin Daude, sample – shaking my fist as I hold this at them discontinuing the line!
Incense by Norma Kamali, sample – killer incense, like no other.
Heure Exquise by Annick Goutal (eau de parfum), decant – ah yes, swooned over it here.
Fidji by Guy Laroche parfum (vintage), sample – gorgeous in parfum!
Unidentified Sample #1 – hmm, some sort of a vintage scent. Perhaps, Cuir de Russie parfum by Chanel?
Santal de Mysore by Serge Lutens, sample – superb spicy and milky sandalwood. I need more of this.
Pierre de Lune by Armani Prive, decant – oh, how I love thee.
Message from Orchids by Shiseido, sample – this one has Marina’s writing, so check her blog for more info.
Eau Noire by Christian Dior (cologne), decant – ah, there you are!
Tolu by Ormonde Jayne spray, sample – thanks for reminding me to wear you.
Zenadora perfume, sample – talked about it here.
Cuir de Russie by Chanel parfum, sample – oops, scratch that Unidentified Sample above. Hmm, maybe it was a Guerlain.
Derby by Guerlain, sample – goes on my Further Testing list.
KenzoAmour by Kenzo, sample – MEH.
L’Origan by Coty (vintage), sample – another one I need to test further.
Passage d’Enfer by L’Artisan, sample – soapy incense.
Discontented Sample 2 – from Patty’s Blind Testing (see the link for more info).
What the heck is this? Another Unidentified Sample. Something vintagey.
Rose Barbare by Guerlain, sample – ah, I knew you were here somewhere.
West Broadway by Bond No 9, sample – way too soapy.
Black Oud by Montale, sample – awesome.
Discontented Sample 3 – see above.
Chinatown by Bond No 9, sample – must you smell like gasoline?
Amoureuse by Parfums DelRae, sample – unconditional love.
Green Tea by Jalaine, sample – I plan to review Jalaine oils soon.
Phenomenon by Yosh, sample.
Oh, I know what that Unidentified Sample #1 is – Chant d’Aromes by Guerlain, vintage parfum sample. Gorgeous!
Sorry if this has bored you to tears. If it hasn’t, please share the perfume contents of your purses in your comments! If you don’t have perfume contents in your purse, I hereby command you promptly remedy such an oversight.
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35 Comments
1. dinazad | September 13th, 2006 at 3:09 am
Changed handbags this morning and unearthed a small sprayer of Biagiotti’s Roma (so that’s where it was!) and a decant of PdN’s New York (gorgeous, that one, definitely FBW), plus one unidentified sample….. hmmmm, maybe Cacharel Amor? Reasonably disciplined, wouldn’t you say? But then, there’s the box I throw the contents of coat pockets, my rings and earrings and such into when I come home in the evening: Bulgari Voile de Jasmin sample, Soir de Lune sample, Jette by Night sample, Chypre Rouge sample, Kenzoamour sample, West Broadway sample, two samples by Macabre Undertakings (Corpse and Satyr, both actually quite nice), Bois des Iles decant, Reminiscence Jammin’ sample, Habanita decant, Rumba sample, vintage Ma Griffe parfum decant, vintage Cabochard decant, and that’s just the top layer……. we’re all the same: addicts. But nice ones.
2. chaya ruchama | September 13th, 2006 at 5:10 am
Oh , Ina and Dina-
I love you, girls after my own heart…
Let me put down my coffee, and fetch my makeup bag…ahhh-there !
Musc Ravageur travel spray,Daim Blond spritz sample,Ambre Narguile sample, Elixir des Merveilles sample,Poivre Samarcande,Jasmin de Nuit,Mille et Une Roses,Dzing!,Etra,Un Zeste de Rose,Habanita,L’Air du Desert, Kuumba Made Ambre Paste,Chypre Rouge spritz, Noir Epices spritz….
We’re done!
[I actually emptied this out recently, because I carry a backpack instead, unless I'm going somewhere fancy]
We share so many favorites…I find it stunning that I rarely meet anyone in my travels who wears the same ones I love- that is, on a daily basis.
everyone enjoys them when I wear them, but no one buys them….
Funny, isn’t it?
3. March | September 13th, 2006 at 6:42 am
“It’s like our purses are like our little domains where we keep only the things we like, and nobody else has a say what goes in there. ” Babe, have a couple of kids and then get back to me about that.
So I have Handi-Wipes, a kid’s allergy pills, a purple plastic pony (say it three times fast!) confiscated at the preschool door, bug spray towelettes, handouts from last night’s elementary school open house… but I have a fairly low tolerance for kid crap in there, so nothing sticky or gross. They learned early that Mom is Not a Trashbag. (She is a totebag, though.)
I looked. Cuir Amethyste; a travel atomizer with a custom lemongrass and tea scent; AG Chevrefuille, Kolnisch Juchten.
4. Judith | September 13th, 2006 at 6:55 am
I feel bereft. Except when I am travelling, I don’t carry much perfume with me. Maybe a couple of things to spray during the day. My desk, on the other hand is a complete mess–or Perfume paradise, depending on how you look at it.
So what have we in the bag? Just this: 4ml. “samples” of Osmanthe Yunnan and Vetiver Tonka I picked up last time I was at the Hermes boutique. Almost finished decant of MeB #3 from the summer; almost finished decant of Sel de Vetiver from the same period. Sample of MPG Centaure from yesterday. Decant of Or des Indes. Hmmmm. . .more than I thought, but I still feel like I piker next to you all.
OK, so to catch up–these are on top of my desk (which is NOT where I keep my perfumes); I’m not even going into those that are around it in boxes and bags: decant LV Vetiver, decant NRody Rose, decant MeB #3 , decant Paestum Rose, decant Rose en Noir, decant Cote Bastide Fleurs d’Oranger, decant SMN Nostalgia, decant SMN Marescialla, small bottle LV Incense room oil, bag o’ Ciro samples,minis of JP Colony, Schiaperelli Shocking, and Millot crepe de chine, small bottle of CB Old leather, and samples of Etro Shaal Nur, Yosh La Contessa, balenciaga prelude, Le jardin retrouve vetiver vanille, Nouf oil {? what is this?} and. . .I’m gonna stop now; this is making me feel like I should clean up–or at least locate my work, which is hiding under the perfumes.:)
5. Elle | September 13th, 2006 at 7:20 am
I’m w/ Judith – don’t have many samples in my purse, but mostly because I’ve been traveling recently and had to clean my purse out of all it’s fun samples…only fun things left in it are my mini kaleidoscopes, compasses and sketching stuff.
The only samples are one of Patou Forever parfum and my precious Sous le Vent decant (Must. Have. Bottle.). However, like Judith again, my desk is a scented wonderland. Tons and tons of samples. Here are the ones in the left top drawer alone – Bond Fire Island, West Broadway, Guerlain #68, Desprez Nuit de Versailles, Dior Homme decant, Diamond Waters (swoon), Rosine Rose d’Amour, Zenadora, PdN Rose Pivoine, Guerlain Derby, Montaigne decant, Andy’s Orris sample, OJ Orris Noir, various ouds, various samples of Ayala’s scents, L’Artisan Mandarine, L’A FdO and Ineke samples.
BTW, if you have enough of the NK Incense you could use that as a mace substitute if you ever are mugged. I *adore* Incense, but it is definitely powerful in large doses.
6. Marina | September 13th, 2006 at 9:13 am
What fun. And, girl, that’s a lots of samples in one bag
I only ever take a small decant or a sample of what I’m wearing at that moment if I know I’ll be out all day. I am boring. 
7. IrisLA | September 13th, 2006 at 9:55 am
Fidji parfum — gorgeous.
I’m boring like Marina. I carry a decant of whatever my day’s scent is. I subscribe to the minimalist school of handbags: carry as little as possible. I hate heavy purses.
8. violetnoir | September 13th, 2006 at 10:55 am
Guilty as charged, captain ma’am! I currently do not have any samples, decants or bottles in my purse.
But you should see the contents of the closet in my office…
Hugs!
9. Patty | September 13th, 2006 at 11:06 am
I have a teeny purse, so there’s only credit cards, my cell phone and a lipstick in it. I used to do big purses and they about killed my shoulder!
No samples, no nothing in there, it’s pathetic. I think I need one step up on size, though, so I can put a little spritz of something in.
10. nikki c | September 13th, 2006 at 11:24 am
ina, where do you get all your samples? do you buy them online? could you recommend a few sites? i’d like to get more but stores seem pretty stingy with them, especially with specialty/rare/exotic brands.
thanks, and i love your site– i read it every day!!
11. Tom | September 13th, 2006 at 3:02 pm
well, I don’t carry a purse, so I can’t look there. Some days I carry a backpack, that contains a small bottle of Paul Smith Men, some pens, books, my iPod and headphones and the billls I want to shred at work. I mostly take a small decant of the stuff I am wearing if I feel the need to refresh, and if I drive, there is a bottle of Eau d’Hadrien and a bunch of Hermes towlettes in the glove box (I park inside at both work and home, so I am not worried about spoilage)
12. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:02 pm
Dinazad, glad to know I’m not alone! Loved reading about your perfume contents.
13. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:04 pm
Chaya, if I carried a backpack, oh man, I won’t even go there. I’d carry half of my perfume collection in there, for sure.
14. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:05 pm
March, LOL!! I know, I’m just enjoying this while I can, I guess. I remember that Lemongrass spritz of yours! Yikes!
15. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:06 pm
Judith, funny, but I never had much in/on my desks. Omnia mea mecum forte, I guess.
Loved reading your contents!
16. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:08 pm
Elle, you’re excused due to frequent traveling.
17. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:09 pm
Marina, shame on you but you’re excused, too. Know why? Cuz you’re NEVER boring.
18. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:10 pm
Iris, I see what you mean by heavy purses. I just always assume what makes it heavy is my cell phone or wallet.
I’m in denial.
19. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:10 pm
Robin, I’d love to see the contents of your closet!
20. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:11 pm
Patty, tsk, tsk. No excuse for you. Small purses? I could never live with small purses.
21. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
Nikki, thank you! I get my samples mostly from swapping on Makeupalley.com or eBay. I also highly recommend ordering sample packs from various online perfume stores. Please check my New To Perfume page for Online Perfume Sites (with links to sample programs). Good luck!
22. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
Tom, OK, what are these Hermes towelettes??
23. peppernuts | September 13th, 2006 at 4:21 pm
Nice -you have Fidji in your purse, my first perfume love, decades ago my father bought it for me on a flight to Tahiti…it will always conjure this island! Looking in my handbag I find a small decant of Paestum Rose (aaahhh so beautiful) and a sample of Bois du Portugal.
24. Katie | September 13th, 2006 at 4:22 pm
Suddenly I feel like I have a ridiculously tidy purse, despite evidence to the contrary. I only have a couple samples in one purse, and they’re from a while ago… Bond’s Eau de New York, and Sous le Vent. The rest is all loads of crud like a small pen collection obtained by accident (I apologize to all cashiers everywhere right now), a book I’m reading, lists of things I was apparently supposed to remember but forgot I wrote the lists, and so many napkins. When you have not one, but two, seven year olds, big stacks of napkins are a necessity on the highest order.
25. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:24 pm
Peppernuts, Fidji is a total new discovery for me. What a lovely memory of your father! Glad you love Paestum Rose!
26. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 4:26 pm
Katie, funny about the napkins! Sous le Vent and me were not meant to be, alas.
27. Tigs | September 13th, 2006 at 8:54 pm
I have a new 70s style retro purse that pops open, so I tend to not carry too many small samples anymore which might fall out. I just looked and I have: my cards, keys, two emergency diapers, a very drooled-on Mr. Seahorse fingerpuppet, MAC lip jelly, a Dior compact that came free with my Dolce Vita, Miller et Bertaux #3, Diptyque Virgilio, CDG Palisander and SL Encens et Lavande (what I was trying today: very nice but – heresy! – I prefer Eau Noire, which I find very similar.)
28. Ina | September 13th, 2006 at 9:11 pm
Tigs, fun contents you have!
I prefer Eau Noire, too.
29. Teri | September 14th, 2006 at 11:15 am
I think my handbag is telling me I want to be a door-to-door salesperson for Annick Goutal. lol I have 5 AG atomizers, including Heure Exquise, Grand Amour, Passion, Eau de Charlotte, and Eau de Hadrian, as well as one travel-size bottle of Bulgari Eau The Verte. I suspect with summer fleeing the mountains as I type, my autumn handbag will have a different scent palette. It would be interesting to revisit the handbag inventory idea come November.
30. Ina | September 14th, 2006 at 12:07 pm
Teri, I’ll take an Annick Goutal door-to-door salesperson any time!
31. Ayala | September 14th, 2006 at 11:44 pm
I always carry a flacon of Espionage in my purse, and recently to this I also add a flacon of either Razala, Zohar or Charisma.
Besides my own perfumes – I have a roll on of Narciso Rodrigues parfum and Agent Procovateur in the purse spray bottle. In the summer – sometimes also Le Parfum de Therese – but the glass is so thin I am afraid it might break. This is what makes my purse heavy…
32. Ina | September 15th, 2006 at 1:04 am
Ayala, you get an A!
This reminds me, I need to get the purse spray of AP. I saw them on ebay – perfect size.
33. Tom | September 15th, 2006 at 6:33 pm
they are little fragrance samples that are in a towlette form with the Hermes scent (the one in the green bottle that used to have no name). My friend used to work at Hermes and sent me a box. They’re great!
34. Ina | September 15th, 2006 at 8:56 pm
Tom, thanks! I don’t think I’ve seen those. Cool!
35. Giselle | September 28th, 2006 at 5:38 pm
I just dumped the contents of my bag on the table. Only three perfume samples are in it. One is a page torn from a magazine–the stinky purple ad for Stella, an almost full vial of John Varvatos, an almsot empty vial of Voille de Jasmin (Bulgari) and I also had a small bottle of Shalimar in there, less than a third full. I always lug perfumes and candy around with me, but this wasn’t my best day.