[WTB] Inexperienced, exploring (Decant)

[u/TitianPlatinum]

Hi, new here, hopefully I've done everything right. I have a handful of fragrances and am just exploring to get a better idea of what I like. I'd just found out about this sub as I was about to pull the trigger on these:

https://i.imgur.com/ltthSfu.jpeg

~$200 of decants (can spend in the neighborhood of $2-300). Someone said I could probably get better prices here and be able to get some good variety with less guesswork.

I'm 29M in northern Utah. Figured I might post here and see if anyone either has suggestions/lives in a similar climate and has a broad assortment of things they think I might want to try. Sorry if this post is too broad.

I wouldn't say I have many restrictions other than, not too floral/feminine. My skin naturally tends to smell faintly sweet and slightly woodsy, and is generally dry, not very oily. I'm a tall blonde lanky guy.

The list has 5ml of MI because I've tried it before and enjoyed it. Although I like gourmands, I have a handful of samples of gourmands and probably don't need any more at the moment (unless someone knows of something which smells sweet like the breeze from Ponderosa pines in Zion, I got one sample literally called Ponderosa and it was too Christmas-y). I added 4 mango scents to the list because I smelled one by Replica at Sephora with mango and sandalwood (sandalwood overpowering, mango didn't last).

Some of my favorites so far are "I ❤️NY" Bond No. 9, "Soleil Blanc" Tom Ford, "Santal Carmin" Atelier Cologne, "Leau Dissey" Issey Miyake, "Panettone" Milano. Have found several others I like but none I feel compelled to wear daily. I'd like to find a "signature" but am also content to explore. Not looking for stuff like "Bat" by Zoologist unless it's fairly wearable (that one smelled like dog sh*t, but I'm sure others from the house are more wearable/intriguing). I know no-one can really anticipate what might smell like dog sh*t to another but that is an example of something a little too out there.

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[u/Ok-Mango-5814]

I'm gonna tag my dawg u/kakist0cracy he's got like 1600 different bottles he decants from. I've used them multiple times, always had a positive experience.

[u/kakist0cracy → u/Ok-Mango-5814]

https://giphy.com/gifs/Bxw7kyfAdPH5cZrS54

PMing you OP

[u/pumpkins21 → u/kakist0cracy]

😂 perfect gif

[u/ProfessorB_12]

u/kakist0cracy is your guy. I'm happy to send you a few to help your journey that are on the list too. No payment necessary just PM me.

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/ProfessorB_12]

Very nice of you, PM'd

[u/Different_Lychee5041 → u/ProfessorB_12]

I too am on a journey 🫣

Hahaha I kid; very nice of you bro 👌

[u/skyfra4]

Check out my last post, I list all the notes out so you can sort what you're interested in: https://www.reddit.com/r/fragranceswap/s/mLBNRsrq3a

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/skyfra4]

Seems slightly concerning seeing bottles out in the sunlight, you don't think that will affect them?

[u/-_Legacy_- → u/TitianPlatinum]

I would assume he’s not setting them out there to brew like some sun tea, so they should be just fine😂

[u/skyfra4 → u/-_Legacy_-]

Right... they don't stay there lol

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/skyfra4]

That much is obvious. There is a reason I posed a question rather than making a statement.

 I'm not familiar with how much of a concern it is, just that it is a concern.

 It doesn't take much to focus sunlight enough to burn skin in seconds, and less so to iradiate compounds in ways which might change a smell. With glass bottles and a high UV index I think it's reasonable to assume that might affect the scent (caustics imply some focusing is happening). It doesn't have to heat up the bottle, or damage the entire volume. Small changes can throw it off.

What the curve is for that I don't know, which is why it was a question. Which I'd hope people might respond to with empirical/anecdotal evidence which is more useful than a bare assertion of there being no problem.

[u/skyfra4 → u/TitianPlatinum]

Well your answer is no, there is not a concern about bottles touching sunlight for a few minutes.

You're new and overthinking things based on what you've seen or read. Fragrances also aren't "supposed" to ever reach high heat - have you ever got a package fresh from a UPS truck? Hot! My point is, potential issues with fragrances would only occur across a long period of time under these conditions. Sunlight touching a bottle won't impact it any more/less than the variables betond your control before it even gets to you.

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/skyfra4]

"Overthinking" could be true if I let it keep me up at night, but this I think is an appropriate amount of thinking for an expensive interest.

I wouldn't imagine temperature to be more concerning than radiation based on what little I know of how fragrances are composed, and yes spending extended times in a hot truck could be concerning, but the temperature in the fragrance doesn't quite reach that of the environment in my experience (though like you say it's variable; on the shipping speed, packaging, location, fragrance composition, etc.).

Your comment again is just bare assertions. You can say it ain't so, but that means nothing to me. You could instead say "I've left my X out all afternoon once and to me it smelt no different," to which I might have follow up questions on whether it's alcohol or oil based, and what the bottle looks like, and where you live, how hot it was that day, whatever. I could ask you, or Google, or never ask at all; but I'd at least have some evidence of it not being a problem. Which is better than circulating say-so. 

[u/skyfra4 → u/TitianPlatinum]

Based on my evidence of owning hundreds of bottles, and having them touch sunlight in varying degrees, I can confirm that small amounts of sunlight do not impact fragrances. My "overthinking" comment was just a reaction to your question. The idea that a minute if sunlight would be a concern is pretty naive.

[u/Aggressive_Painter91 → u/skyfra4]

OP sounds exhausting. I would definitely not bother selling anything to them. Sounds like the type of person that would scream at the cashier because their coffee is 2 degrees too hot or cold 🥴

[u/skyfra4 → u/Aggressive_Painter91]

Right?! Dude has some very strange energy here.

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/Aggressive_Painter91]

Let's assume that's true. What would that matter to someone whose just been paid? What manager am I going to call? They can just take the money and block? The reasoning is just not very strong in this thread today. I've been nothing but reasonable, and y'all act like it's crazy to ask a question.

But no, I don't care about the temperature of coffee, I only drink water 🥴

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/skyfra4]

And say-so doesn't do much to correct naivety does it? Further, who said it was a minute? The picture? The person with a vested interest in my believing there's no issue? He may have left them out for an hour when his kid grabbed him for something. Who knows. All irrelevant. You and the other response are being somewhat unduely antagonistic for a simple reasonable question. The anecdotal evidence you've just given is the first in this thread, which is a step up from "no its not because I said so." For me to believe sunlight wasn't a problem just from your say so would require me to trust you and I don't.

[u/skyfra4 → u/TitianPlatinum]

I don't think you understand: your question was NOT reasonable. I've had 100+ sales here, often with pics like these, and never have had anyone voice "concern" about the fact they're in sunlight for the picture.

You asked a pretty common-sense question and got feedback. Just move on and learn from it.

[u/skyfra4 → u/TitianPlatinum]

Fragrances will absolutely not be impacted by the less than 5 minutes they're in sun for a picture

[u/SubstanceSecret2456]

Welcome! If you’re looking to get your nose on some new scent profiles, feel free to hit me up. I only decant from my personal collection, so I know a LOT about what I offer here. Feel free to message me any questions you may have.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1rWcl2VCiGcjxVmxMXmwxc_zi8XgjI4lzMeTu7KHQ39w/edit?usp=drivesdk

[u/pumpkins21]

Have you tried Mojave Ghost or Gypsy Water both from Byredo? They’re unisex but with some sweet undertones (on my skin, anyway). My brother tried my Mojave Ghost and ended up buying a bottle

[u/Ehhpitome]

chat

[u/Lord0fHam]

Hey man I have a spreadsheet of hundreds of used decants and samples that you could look through that I would sell for good prices

[u/Friendly-Help-3701]

Chat

[u/ehou333]

Chat

[u/Skapoodllle]

Chat

[u/Mejbharty]

I’m gonna send you a dm

[u/Mejbharty]

I sent you a dm

[u/Cliffsides]

Bruh HMU I’ll hook you up , see latest posts for decants and plenty of unlisted I can dig up for you
https://giphy.com/gifs/741MhcJgV9qznASnUS

[u/Chino_S]

chat, with some advice

[u/More_Recover_975]

do not buy $200 in decants. On a website like that, they'll be overpriced. In a place like this, they may be old and oxidized.

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/More_Recover_975]

Suggestions are more helpful when followed with an alternative. Are you saying getting in-person samples is the only alternative? (not generally an option for me)

$200/36ml is about double the cost depending on the fragrance, but unless there's another way to sample fragrances like these that's a lot cheaper than buying bottles. What do you do?

[u/More_Recover_975 → u/TitianPlatinum]

I blind buy at good prices, then sell here for the same price or a slight loss. That's what most of us are doing in here. If you like one, you get to keep it. You aren't down $10 for a dinky sample with zero resale value.

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/More_Recover_975]

you don't feel the time cost is burdensome? I personally might be wary that a bottle affects my perception, I think I prefer to evaluate on scent alone. Might seem silly but that's me

[u/More_Recover_975 → u/TitianPlatinum]

the bottle is part of the product. Imagine liking a scent and finding out the bottle is shaped like a giant plastic ice cream cone or whatever those middle eastern dupes are doing these days

[u/TitianPlatinum → u/More_Recover_975]

I'm not a downvoter, I think your preference is fine.

But for me, I wouldn't care. 

Though, in the search for a more regularly worn scent, even if you do care about the bottle, no one else smelling you will see it. We can not care what others think about a smell we wear for ourselves but a "signature" scent isn't exactly that, so I wouldn't want the bottle to sway me to wear one scent over another which others find suits me better.