Concerned and Confused: My Friends Smell My New Perfumes

I am equally concerned and confused by the reactions my non-fragrance-obsessed friends gave after smelling my most recent perfume purchases. Here are the official notes... versus what my friends actually smelled.

Orpheon -- Diptyque

This clean and powdery scent reminds me of Grandma's house, always clean and comforting. Notes include juniper berries, jasmine, powdery notes, cedar wood, and tonka bean.

My friends smelled:

• Starch

• Zest soap

• Fresh laundry with citrus

• Hairspray

• "Professional room spray, like what the leasing office smells like"

• "Reminds me of Ibiza"

How did we get from Grandma's house to Ibiza?

Lettre de Pushkar -- Ella K

At this point, I love anything with a cinnamon note and this warm, spicy vanilla and rose scent won me over. Notes include saffron, nutmeg, cinnamon, rose, orange blossom, cypriol, patchouli, vetiver, and musk.

My friends smelled:

• Something heavy and weird

• "I want to lick it"

• Key lime

• Sweet, but no florals

• Straight chapstick

I don't understand any of these comments.

Strawberry Jam -- The 7 Virtues

This one smells like the strawberry filling inside shortcake or pastries. Notes include pistachio, strawberry, marshmallow, and vanilla.

My friends smelled:

• Rice

• Sweet

• Candy

• Maraschino cherries in a jar

Rice was... unexpected.

Fetiche La Rose -- Louboutin

To me, this smells like slightly spicy cherry rose candy. Notes include rose, black cherry, pink pepper, and ginger.

My friends smelled:

• Strong, heavy, and dense

• Warm vanilla sugar

• Apples

• Hint of Carmex

The same person who called this "heavy and dense" wears Atomic Rose by Initio, which is objectively louder. Make it make sense.

Ave Maria -- House of Bo

This one is always a crowd pleaser. To me it smells like watery white florals. Notes include gardenia, jasmine, cashmeran, neroli, pear, rain notes, red wine, oak, and leather.

My friends smelled:

• Peach and apricots

• Honeysuckle and rose

• "Smells like cuddling up in fresh warm laundry"

• "I would drink that"

• Soap

• Light and fresh

Finally, some consensus.

After these testing sessions, I’ve come to two conclusions:

1. Perfume notes describe what's in the fragrance, but not necessarily what everyone will smell.

2. Non-perfume people will smell absolutely anything except the notes listed.