Soooo… I’ve been thinking about how much money I’ve wasted buying full size perfumes over the years. I’ve always loved uk perfumes, those unique scents you can’t easily find locally but I would jump straight to a full 50ml or 100ml bottle because I was afraid a smaller size wouldn’t last. Then the other day I realized… why not try decants or mini bottles first? I went through some old perfume samples and tiny bottles I’d forgotten about and it felt like I had a whole new collection. I smelled things I’d been avoiding because I didn’t want to commit to a full bottle. It hit me that I could order small decants from a variety of vendors (I even found some interesting international sellers on Alibaba just browsing) and test a bunch of scents without blowing a ton of cash. Now I plan to keep a tiny rotation of perfumes I actually enjoy, and only ever buy a full bottle if I truly love it. Honestly, it’s freeing. I get all the enjoyment of trying new uk perfumes without feeling guilty about the money I’d normally spend on full bottles I might never wear. Has anyone else had this “tiny perfumes > full bottles” realization?
Realizing I don’t need full bottles of perfume
byu/magino0ngpilyo inFrugal
Posted by magino0ngpilyo
7 Comments
How about this….. you don’t need perfume at all.
I’ve had good results with Scentsplit.com.
They buy bulk scent and decant it into glass spritzers. 5ml Creed Viking $28, or $350/100 ml. 5 ml lasts me years and that’s frugal.
I’ve ordered several over the years and they all appear to be genuine product.
I make my own scent but only in small batches. I have a roller ball dispenser for travel. Other wise it’s a base oil + alcohol in a sprayer.
Essential oil based scents degrade in light and heat, and over time (patchouli is the only ester that improves with time). Small batches means better scent without preservative chemistry I don’t want to bother with.
I make three blends, all related, for seasons.
I Commit to a signature scent that everyone can give me for holidays, birthdays, etc. I’ve worn 3 scents in the last 40 years. Changed when one was no longer available, then changed again for some reason I can’t even remember. I guess I just found something I liked better than scent 2. Have been wearing scent 3 for at least 25 years.
Decants are great bc I’ve found often that I like the scent in store or even that first day, but by the third wear, it’s making me feel nauseous and this way, I’m not wasting a ton of money.
I do this, especially for trips! I pick out a scent that reminds me of the location I’m travelling to, get a sample, and use it all through the trip. Then I have a smell associated with the trip and it helps lock in memories you can tap into once you’re back home when you smell it again. I have a good little collection now that I treasure, and I’ve saved a lot of money compared to full size bottles I’ll never finish.
Do perfumes really go out of date once you’ve opened them or is this a myth? I always store mine inside the box and don’t keep them near a heat source. Are they only really good for a certain time?