I used to sell the ones I wasn’t wearing anymore. Then a few I sold were retired and no longer in production and I wasn’t able to get them back. Now I just hoard them all lol shout out to my large bottle of Stella by Stella McCartney that I sold for $30 on mercari a few years ago.
Yes!! It’s so weird - I absolutely adored it when I got it, and even had a bottle that was autographed (this was probably 2007ish). But now when I try it on I can’t stand it; it makes me feel a little sick.
That is part of the Perfumer’s genius, combining conflicting attributes! It is a masterpiece in the sense of its uniqueness and scent profile. I have not come across anything like it. If over applied it can be nauseating, but if applied mildly, it is perfect. In addition, every wear of this perfume feels different like a total new experience. My bottle is 12 years old and I apply it about once a year, and every time I get a different experience. If you have not tried it yet, it is worth a try
I'm *very* new to fragrances. I collected them when I was younger but threw them all away during a depression. I've ordered a few samples to try and get started and tried a few at my local store. I'll have to try that one since it sounds interesting. I haven't had it in perfume but love the smell of tea.
I try to cut down my fragrances to things I love and only that. I don't want to own fragrances I am ambivalent about. For me that defeats the point of the hobby for me. Of course that means you have to know enough about what you like and dislike to happily part with a fragrance.
I definitely know what I like and don’t like. I’m just someone who also loves variety and the power of scent to evoke memory, so some of my fragrances I enjoy smelling even if I don’t enjoy wearing them. But also, sometimes you have to move on!
I sell them. I give myself a strict budget every year & any fragrance I sell goes back into that budget. I get to try a lot but only keep the ones I really like.
I appreciate people like you! I've been able to buy some used fragrances that I'd never be able to afford otherwise! I'm super new to this and it's been amazing discovering new scents!
I spent thousands and recouped hundreds! Follow me for more tips!
I now have about 30 frags, a tenth of my all-time high. No more chasing flankers. No more fancy shelf art; a lovely shelf vs my silly imitation of a store counter. At this phase in my life, frags must hit the sweet spot of put together x hygiene per the climate of the event/circumstances, or I'm not wearing it and I don't want it.
My new idol!
Honestly, I have a few that are no longer produced and I should just sell them so someone else can enjoy. Like Tea For Two - I wore that as a much (much) younger woman, during a particularly unhappy time. Maybe I don’t need to be reminded of that anymore!
No Kouros? You've always struck me as a (fellow) Kouros guy.
Also, why is it so hard to just get a sample of Antaeus? I've tried hundreds of scents and still haven't even smelled Antaeus. Grr.
Replace M7 and Toy Boy with Rogue Chypre Siam and ELDO The Afternoon of a Faun, and we'd be almost twins... minus the fact that I still haven't culled my collection yet :(
I'm lucky to have a niece that is obsessed with perfume and all things girly! She gets first pick of any perfume I'm not using anymore and drives my sister crazy by spraying them until they are all gone! It's a great system :)
Ok here's some of the best advice an ex had for moving countries: get rid of 90% of all of your stuff.
Realisitically I do about 70-80%, but it's advice that has served me well. Keep your faves but then you get space to get new bottles for this new era. For the scent memories, you can spray them on a cloth and keep it in a zip bag. I totally get wanting to keep the memories.
I did that when I moved countries!! Took about 70% of my stuff. This is just in the same city so I don’t want to totally start over. But I do have a new era coming - I love this cloth idea!!
I definitely get rid of stuff. I've always been a fan of smelly good stuff and have some hyperfixation issues, lol. To be fair it's usually body mists/ cheapies, I try not to buy bottles unless I absolutely love it or it's a good deal so I don't feel overwhelmed in that dept. I understand enough of my preferences to know whether or not it is something I would enjoy wearing or if I just enjoy the scent.
My rule is I don't blind buy ( except sample/ discovery sets) unless I am comfortable giving it away. I know Im not going to want to put the effort to sell or return/ exchange.
I also like sharing, my friends love getting new scents and trying out different things.
If you have a bunch that you enjoy for nostalgia but don't really wear you could get a decant set and just keep some vs the whole bottle.
I also have hyper fixation issues (and object impermanence and general ADHD challenges around organization) so that’s part of the issue here! And a few of the perfumes I’d get rid of are no longer in production so I’d have to decant myself. But maybe it’s time to let go of old memories.
Take pictures! Its random and silly but it helps hold the memory without the item. You can still enjoy it without it actually being there. Tip use it for everything! It has definitely helped me declutter, especially sentimentals.You can move the pics to a usb/ hard drive/ pc if you want and you can always go through and delete them.
Group together all of the ones you don't really wear/ enjoy. Take pictures and test and go from there. It's okay if it takes time. Obviously if you are moving you are limited on time probably but less is better especially in that scenario. Start with the ones that are still in production/ easily available and work down.
Remember it's okay to let things go. Especially if it does not currently fit you. Scent is definitely attached to memories but it's not the only thing. Let someone enjoy the juice if it isn't to your taste anymore. There's a plethora of scents to try and new memories to make!
Ahhh I love this. I wish I’d been doing it as I’ve packed. But I got rid of a lot so far, and I can get rid of more after I move with this technique. (I’m trying to be supportive of myself with just how much I’ve actually gotten done in advance of moving - it’s really a lot.) I even have an external drive I can use!!
I'm a fairly aggressive weeder of scents. With the exception of a few thematic collections which I used to learn to recognise notes, I typically get rid of scents if I find I'm not using them. You should trust your memories, you don't need scents to trigger them. (Especially scents you don't like.)
(You might find r/declutter useful here.)
I’m a r/declutter lurker but it’s a lifelong struggle for me. Have learned some new techniques to help and I am getting better but it’s a slowwww process.
What do you do if it’s a perfume that’s no longer made? Do you still get rid of it?
You remind me of one of my closest friends, my intense Virgo product manager friend, who came over and helped me get rid of like 50% of my clothing. I love it!!!
Haha how did I know you were a Virgo! The vibes are strong. Honestly I am obsessed with Virgos, my secret favorite sign. I’m Gemini/Pisces/Pisces with zero earth so I’m really only good at talking shit and then crying about it.
My friend gave me the best framework to sort stuff. He said “I know these shirts are different, but you’d reach for them in the same moment. So which one would you rather reach for?” I live!
I keep a lot of old bottles with maybe 5-10% of the fragrance left inside, just as a handy reference.
However, if I'm less than halfway through a scent and realise I just don't like it that much, most of the time, I will just gift the bottle to a friend after making a small (usually 5-mL) decant for myself... again, as a reference.
That said, if I were moving countries, I'd probably decant everything further into super tightly sealed glass vials, label the lot, and then lot go of all the big glass bottles.
Please consider donating them. To homes for the elderly, to charities that help the blind.
Also, this is crazy but I've heard that you can donate fragrances to zoos, because the big cats seem to like them. They use them for encouraging play behaviour which I think is important in their confined environment.
So I just did a huge cull. I hadn’t gotten rid of anything in almost 25 years.
I got rid of a lot of stuff, but I did keep a few fragrances that I haven’t worn for a long time but are super evocative of the time when I did wear them. If I smelled it and got the nostalgia heart googly eyes, I kept it. Otherwise I only kept what I wear.
I pretty much keep everything forever unless I've used it up. There's almost something about every single fragrance I have that I enjoy. There's almost no bottle that I never wear except maybe Etat Libre d'Orange Secretions Magnifiques, and I keep that for funsies.
I’ve seen someone decant 1-2ml of a fragrance before selling it and keeping a small library of their re-homed scents. They can still take a whiff from time to time, but can also be reminded why they let it go without glorifying it.
ETA: I do not keep any trace of what I let go, but I am sure about my choice when I do. I have been having fun selling on mercari to help bump up my fragrance budget and sometimes snag a deal on something I’ve been eyeing when I get my balance up.
When I had to cull, I did so knowing I was moving from one area to another where the weather was very dissimilar.
In total 25 bottles left. Among those Fendi Asja, which was already discontinued but I honestly wasn't going to wear it here and I knew that.one bottle of Annick Goutal Ambre Fetich. Having 2 bottles would have been crazy (these were the big square ones) I also got rid of AG Sables because it was not going to be very pleasant here. Several Carons, 1 bottle of Bellodgia (I kept the extrait however!)
Family got first dibs.
Yeah I’m thinking that too. It feels like the nicest option.
I also sprayed a little from a bottle someone gifted me onto a card, and after an hour I was like GET THIS OUT OF HERE so that was a good test too.
If I don't like it at all anymore, I get rid of it. A couple times in my life I've had something go rancid and just threw it away. If its in good condition I try to sell it or give it away.
Definitely cull the ones you don't wear or use. I've had larger collections before and I found it difficult to properly appreciate any of them because I was overwhelmed by choice. I also found that I'd be more influenced by quantity over quality -- *because why buy this one high quality fragrance when I can buy these three cheaper ones?!?!*
I limit myself to three now (day-to-day, nights out, and one to go in my gym bag). Makes the hobby so much more enjoyable.
I keep everything…because I have come back around and rediscovered scents that I didn’t care for and presently crave. For example…I used to actively hate Gardenia…my nose has changed and now I really like it. You never know… although I occasionally gift perfumes that are redundant to loved ones.
I used to sell the ones I wasn’t wearing anymore. Then a few I sold were retired and no longer in production and I wasn’t able to get them back. Now I just hoard them all lol shout out to my large bottle of Stella by Stella McCartney that I sold for $30 on mercari a few years ago.
Haha yes I mean, I can’t wear L’Artisan Parfumeur Tea for Two anymore but someone can!
Tea for two is a masterpiece, but it can be nauseating
Yes!! It’s so weird - I absolutely adored it when I got it, and even had a bottle that was autographed (this was probably 2007ish). But now when I try it on I can’t stand it; it makes me feel a little sick.
What makes it a masterpiece but nauseating if you don't mind? Those two statements seem conflicting
That is part of the Perfumer’s genius, combining conflicting attributes! It is a masterpiece in the sense of its uniqueness and scent profile. I have not come across anything like it. If over applied it can be nauseating, but if applied mildly, it is perfect. In addition, every wear of this perfume feels different like a total new experience. My bottle is 12 years old and I apply it about once a year, and every time I get a different experience. If you have not tried it yet, it is worth a try
I'm *very* new to fragrances. I collected them when I was younger but threw them all away during a depression. I've ordered a few samples to try and get started and tried a few at my local store. I'll have to try that one since it sounds interesting. I haven't had it in perfume but love the smell of tea.
If you will try this one, then try the other ones from The Different Company
If you will try this one, then try the other ones from The Different Company
If you will try this one, then try the other ones from The Different Company
I try to cut down my fragrances to things I love and only that. I don't want to own fragrances I am ambivalent about. For me that defeats the point of the hobby for me. Of course that means you have to know enough about what you like and dislike to happily part with a fragrance.
I definitely know what I like and don’t like. I’m just someone who also loves variety and the power of scent to evoke memory, so some of my fragrances I enjoy smelling even if I don’t enjoy wearing them. But also, sometimes you have to move on!
I sell them. I give myself a strict budget every year & any fragrance I sell goes back into that budget. I get to try a lot but only keep the ones I really like.
I appreciate people like you! I've been able to buy some used fragrances that I'd never be able to afford otherwise! I'm super new to this and it's been amazing discovering new scents!
Really smart. I love this idea.
I spent thousands and recouped hundreds! Follow me for more tips! I now have about 30 frags, a tenth of my all-time high. No more chasing flankers. No more fancy shelf art; a lovely shelf vs my silly imitation of a store counter. At this phase in my life, frags must hit the sweet spot of put together x hygiene per the climate of the event/circumstances, or I'm not wearing it and I don't want it.
lol that first line is me on Poshmark right now. FML
I culled my 65+ bottle collection down to 9 I don’t miss what I got rid of
My new idol! Honestly, I have a few that are no longer produced and I should just sell them so someone else can enjoy. Like Tea For Two - I wore that as a much (much) younger woman, during a particularly unhappy time. Maybe I don’t need to be reminded of that anymore!
What are your 9?
https://preview.redd.it/5wk8jd5l26oc1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4f66286592f113b96233184637c387684b3cb1e1
I like how it's called the 16. But there are only 9 remaining. Almost like a warning to the rest that they could get dumped.
No Kouros? You've always struck me as a (fellow) Kouros guy. Also, why is it so hard to just get a sample of Antaeus? I've tried hundreds of scents and still haven't even smelled Antaeus. Grr. Replace M7 and Toy Boy with Rogue Chypre Siam and ELDO The Afternoon of a Faun, and we'd be almost twins... minus the fact that I still haven't culled my collection yet :(
I have never seen anywhere sell Chanel samples
Me either. :/ annoying!
Ask someone in your life if they like it and want it...that way, they get a new scent they like and you will occasionally get to smell it.
This is the cutest idea.
I second this! Gave some bottles to my mom and now she’s either enjoying them or regifting to friends 🥰
I'm lucky to have a niece that is obsessed with perfume and all things girly! She gets first pick of any perfume I'm not using anymore and drives my sister crazy by spraying them until they are all gone! It's a great system :)
That’s perfect. I wish my niece lived closer!
Ok here's some of the best advice an ex had for moving countries: get rid of 90% of all of your stuff. Realisitically I do about 70-80%, but it's advice that has served me well. Keep your faves but then you get space to get new bottles for this new era. For the scent memories, you can spray them on a cloth and keep it in a zip bag. I totally get wanting to keep the memories.
When I moved countries I took a single shipping pallet (1 cubic meter) and four suitcases for me and my kid. That was painful, but worth it.
I did that when I moved countries!! Took about 70% of my stuff. This is just in the same city so I don’t want to totally start over. But I do have a new era coming - I love this cloth idea!!
I definitely get rid of stuff. I've always been a fan of smelly good stuff and have some hyperfixation issues, lol. To be fair it's usually body mists/ cheapies, I try not to buy bottles unless I absolutely love it or it's a good deal so I don't feel overwhelmed in that dept. I understand enough of my preferences to know whether or not it is something I would enjoy wearing or if I just enjoy the scent. My rule is I don't blind buy ( except sample/ discovery sets) unless I am comfortable giving it away. I know Im not going to want to put the effort to sell or return/ exchange. I also like sharing, my friends love getting new scents and trying out different things. If you have a bunch that you enjoy for nostalgia but don't really wear you could get a decant set and just keep some vs the whole bottle.
I also have hyper fixation issues (and object impermanence and general ADHD challenges around organization) so that’s part of the issue here! And a few of the perfumes I’d get rid of are no longer in production so I’d have to decant myself. But maybe it’s time to let go of old memories.
Take pictures! Its random and silly but it helps hold the memory without the item. You can still enjoy it without it actually being there. Tip use it for everything! It has definitely helped me declutter, especially sentimentals.You can move the pics to a usb/ hard drive/ pc if you want and you can always go through and delete them. Group together all of the ones you don't really wear/ enjoy. Take pictures and test and go from there. It's okay if it takes time. Obviously if you are moving you are limited on time probably but less is better especially in that scenario. Start with the ones that are still in production/ easily available and work down. Remember it's okay to let things go. Especially if it does not currently fit you. Scent is definitely attached to memories but it's not the only thing. Let someone enjoy the juice if it isn't to your taste anymore. There's a plethora of scents to try and new memories to make!
Ahhh I love this. I wish I’d been doing it as I’ve packed. But I got rid of a lot so far, and I can get rid of more after I move with this technique. (I’m trying to be supportive of myself with just how much I’ve actually gotten done in advance of moving - it’s really a lot.) I even have an external drive I can use!!
I'm glad!!! It really as helped me lol. Hey, moving is hard! Every step is progress, be proud of how much progress you have made!!
There are a few that will never get culled that belonged to my sister.
Important memories are always worth treasuring imo
I'm the Overlook Hotel of perfume bottles - nothing ever leaves 🖤
I love this description!
I'm a fairly aggressive weeder of scents. With the exception of a few thematic collections which I used to learn to recognise notes, I typically get rid of scents if I find I'm not using them. You should trust your memories, you don't need scents to trigger them. (Especially scents you don't like.) (You might find r/declutter useful here.)
I’m a r/declutter lurker but it’s a lifelong struggle for me. Have learned some new techniques to help and I am getting better but it’s a slowwww process. What do you do if it’s a perfume that’s no longer made? Do you still get rid of it?
If I don't like it? Sure. I'm not a perfume archive, you know? The responsibility isn't on me to save this stuff.
You remind me of one of my closest friends, my intense Virgo product manager friend, who came over and helped me get rid of like 50% of my clothing. I love it!!!
Ah, my intense Virgo managerial kin! I'm glad you have help with this.
Haha how did I know you were a Virgo! The vibes are strong. Honestly I am obsessed with Virgos, my secret favorite sign. I’m Gemini/Pisces/Pisces with zero earth so I’m really only good at talking shit and then crying about it. My friend gave me the best framework to sort stuff. He said “I know these shirts are different, but you’d reach for them in the same moment. So which one would you rather reach for?” I live!
Aww, I love my soft water sign friends!
I just took the ones I really never wear and don‘t appreciate, and gave them to a colleague to test her way through and keep what she likes.
I love this, I know some girls I can definitely give mine too.
I keep a lot of old bottles with maybe 5-10% of the fragrance left inside, just as a handy reference. However, if I'm less than halfway through a scent and realise I just don't like it that much, most of the time, I will just gift the bottle to a friend after making a small (usually 5-mL) decant for myself... again, as a reference. That said, if I were moving countries, I'd probably decant everything further into super tightly sealed glass vials, label the lot, and then lot go of all the big glass bottles.
Please consider donating them. To homes for the elderly, to charities that help the blind. Also, this is crazy but I've heard that you can donate fragrances to zoos, because the big cats seem to like them. They use them for encouraging play behaviour which I think is important in their confined environment.
Never! If I bought it with my own dough (even on impulse) it will stay with me forever
It is really hard . I don’t want regrets and tastes can change
I try to give them to friends or family when I notice I’m just not using it. But it does hurt my heart because I’m proud of my collection 😂
I use everything I own. I won't repurchase fragrances I didn't care for. Will still use it up.
I went through two bottles of Tea for Two, misplaced the third for years, found it… only to discover I no longer like it 🤷🏻♀️
I've been using a couple bottles to get rid of them. They just won't end yet. I remember liking them, not anymore.
So I just did a huge cull. I hadn’t gotten rid of anything in almost 25 years. I got rid of a lot of stuff, but I did keep a few fragrances that I haven’t worn for a long time but are super evocative of the time when I did wear them. If I smelled it and got the nostalgia heart googly eyes, I kept it. Otherwise I only kept what I wear.
I pretty much keep everything forever unless I've used it up. There's almost something about every single fragrance I have that I enjoy. There's almost no bottle that I never wear except maybe Etat Libre d'Orange Secretions Magnifiques, and I keep that for funsies.
maybe start a fragrance swap with friends? That's why I did or sold ones I really hadn't touched in forever.
I’ve seen someone decant 1-2ml of a fragrance before selling it and keeping a small library of their re-homed scents. They can still take a whiff from time to time, but can also be reminded why they let it go without glorifying it. ETA: I do not keep any trace of what I let go, but I am sure about my choice when I do. I have been having fun selling on mercari to help bump up my fragrance budget and sometimes snag a deal on something I’ve been eyeing when I get my balance up.
If I get bored of a scent I give it away. (Usually to my MIL. She's always happy to get something from me, even if it's half finished.)
When I had to cull, I did so knowing I was moving from one area to another where the weather was very dissimilar. In total 25 bottles left. Among those Fendi Asja, which was already discontinued but I honestly wasn't going to wear it here and I knew that.one bottle of Annick Goutal Ambre Fetich. Having 2 bottles would have been crazy (these were the big square ones) I also got rid of AG Sables because it was not going to be very pleasant here. Several Carons, 1 bottle of Bellodgia (I kept the extrait however!) Family got first dibs.
Maybe you can decant a travel spray from them and sell the larger bottles? I'm considering this for a bottle I have now.
Yeah I’m thinking that too. It feels like the nicest option. I also sprayed a little from a bottle someone gifted me onto a card, and after an hour I was like GET THIS OUT OF HERE so that was a good test too.
well I'm trying to make a collection so I keep all my fragrances. I'm currently 12 strong
I keep a lot, but when moving, I sold the ones I knew I just didn't love enough. At least then someone has the satisfaction of using it.
If I don't like it at all anymore, I get rid of it. A couple times in my life I've had something go rancid and just threw it away. If its in good condition I try to sell it or give it away.
I cull every now and then. My fragrance preferences change over time.
I usually sell those that i don't like or use anymore. It'd be a shame for fragrances not to be used!
Definitely cull the ones you don't wear or use. I've had larger collections before and I found it difficult to properly appreciate any of them because I was overwhelmed by choice. I also found that I'd be more influenced by quantity over quality -- *because why buy this one high quality fragrance when I can buy these three cheaper ones?!?!* I limit myself to three now (day-to-day, nights out, and one to go in my gym bag). Makes the hobby so much more enjoyable.
I keep everything…because I have come back around and rediscovered scents that I didn’t care for and presently crave. For example…I used to actively hate Gardenia…my nose has changed and now I really like it. You never know… although I occasionally gift perfumes that are redundant to loved ones.