Traveling Fragrance Sample Box
- Thread starter temjeito
- Start date
I was just thinking about that earlier. Fall is time for new scents!
Hey fellas, sorry about the delay. Real-life has kicked my butt the last few weeks. In fact got called into work again today and I am still there right now.
I do have a list of the things I was able to try that got wife approval and thoughts, along with the list of what I am adding. I can tell you there was a wide variety of scents in the box, many of which didn't get past the LOTH sniffer... bummer.
I did PM syntheticevil but haven't heard back. I'll try again when I get home, along with getting the list of stuff up there, to get this thing moving again.
Thanks again for letting me try this box. It was a learning experience, for both the wife and I, as to what she likes and what she doesn't. Hopefully, my additions will add some value to the box. I apologize for the extended stay here in Michigan, but Lee is right that the majority of the scents in there will be great for the cooler weather, so that should help.
I do have a list of the things I was able to try that got wife approval and thoughts, along with the list of what I am adding. I can tell you there was a wide variety of scents in the box, many of which didn't get past the LOTH sniffer... bummer.
I did PM syntheticevil but haven't heard back. I'll try again when I get home, along with getting the list of stuff up there, to get this thing moving again.
Thanks again for letting me try this box. It was a learning experience, for both the wife and I, as to what she likes and what she doesn't. Hopefully, my additions will add some value to the box. I apologize for the extended stay here in Michigan, but Lee is right that the majority of the scents in there will be great for the cooler weather, so that should help.
AndroiDad75 - thanks for replying. My suggestion is first to get the address worked out with SyntheticEvil13 - make sure you've got the right person, lol - it looks like that while he hasn't posted in awhile, he does pop in here and has recently. If no further interest, then the working it out with the next in line gives you another couple of days. But, you've got to commit to a shipping date either way.
Since many find it difficult to ship on a weekday, shoot for this Saturday. If you need a lot more time, ask me to put you back on the list and you can look at it in another year or so. If you don't have that many left, then you'll be able to make it happen by "stepping up your gameplan"
Glad to see your enthusiasm, and especially bringing the wife into it. Mine didn't want anything to do with the box when I had it, haha.
Since many find it difficult to ship on a weekday, shoot for this Saturday. If you need a lot more time, ask me to put you back on the list and you can look at it in another year or so. If you don't have that many left, then you'll be able to make it happen by "stepping up your gameplan"
Glad to see your enthusiasm, and especially bringing the wife into it. Mine didn't want anything to do with the box when I had it, haha.
Thanks Zombeezy.
I just heard back from SyntheticEvil and he no longer wants to be in the passaround. I will reach out to the next in line.
I just heard back from SyntheticEvil and he no longer wants to be in the passaround. I will reach out to the next in line.
Alright, got the address for the next person in line. I will get this box out by Saturday.
Today I am wearing a spritz of one of the samples my wife liked: John Varvatos.
Zombeezy, you are right about the wife initially not wanting anything to do with the box. I kind of had to talk her into it. I figured I didn't really want to fall in love with something and have her hate it if I bought an expensive bottle of cologne. With this argument she succumbed, although a bit hesitantly - especially as she started working through the box with me and not liking a lot of what she was smelling.
Even out of the ones we landed on, none WOW'd her.
I still plan to put up my summary, but may not get to it until tomorrow night.
Today I am wearing a spritz of one of the samples my wife liked: John Varvatos.
Zombeezy, you are right about the wife initially not wanting anything to do with the box. I kind of had to talk her into it. I figured I didn't really want to fall in love with something and have her hate it if I bought an expensive bottle of cologne. With this argument she succumbed, although a bit hesitantly - especially as she started working through the box with me and not liking a lot of what she was smelling.
Even out of the ones we landed on, none WOW'd her.
I still plan to put up my summary, but may not get to it until tomorrow night.
List update
27 AndroidDad75 (10/05/13; 11/25/13; 11/27/13) - expect to mail off this weekend.
28 SyntheticEvil13 (12/02/13) - opting out of the box, so onwards to wscottb7862
29 wscottb7862 (12/27/13)
30 insomb (12/28/13)
31 mastershake (1/01/14)
32 moostashio (1/09/14)
33 kbull719 (5/12/14)
34 LBussy (5/23/14) "if the SO is into it, it makes it a whole lot easier"
35 mrlandpirate (5/24/14) Personna Grata
36 dfoulk (7/7/14)
37 USMCKoontz (7/17/14)
38 Joe I (7/18/14)
39 jmurphy (7/18/14) - dead last is better than being dead
40 smoothie72 (7/25/14) - can't get enough
27 AndroidDad75 (10/05/13; 11/25/13; 11/27/13) - expect to mail off this weekend.
28 SyntheticEvil13 (12/02/13) - opting out of the box, so onwards to wscottb7862
29 wscottb7862 (12/27/13)
30 insomb (12/28/13)
31 mastershake (1/01/14)
32 moostashio (1/09/14)
33 kbull719 (5/12/14)
34 LBussy (5/23/14) "if the SO is into it, it makes it a whole lot easier"
35 mrlandpirate (5/24/14) Personna Grata
36 dfoulk (7/7/14)
37 USMCKoontz (7/17/14)
38 Joe I (7/18/14)
39 jmurphy (7/18/14) - dead last is better than being dead
40 smoothie72 (7/25/14) - can't get enough
Alright everyone, first off I want to thank everyone for understanding that I had the box a week or two longer than normal. Life just got in the way, in a serious way, the last couple of weeks. In that, I am also sorry that it has taken me this long to get my thoughts, and my wife’s thoughts, up on what we smelled and tested.
The box is all set and ready to go out in the mail tomorrow.
Also, I tried to keep the baggies the way they were, but I can’t for certain say that they are all in the same baggies any longer. I did my best. What I can say is that the baggies marked free, or PIF, or take one pass it along didn't get mixed, they were kept separate so that there wasn't the possibility of adding something to the free bag that didn't belong there, etc…
On to the thoughts/reviews:
Pashana Aftershave: I was excited to see this in a “Free to good home” baggie. I have read reviews where people loved it – especially if they like Clubman. Well I am one of those guys who appreciates Clubman. I thought it smelled nice, but the wife didn’t like it. She said something about it was just off to her. This was surprising since she does like Clubman in moderation.
Amouage Honour for Men: To me this seems like a pretty strong pepper scent out the gate. It is also pretty strong and seemed to stick around. My wife thought it was pretty much a one trick pony, pepper, pepper and more pepper and she wasn’t impressed in the least bit.
Ralph Lauren Notorious: This is one we were both just kind of “eh” on. We didn’t hate it and we didn’t love it. It was just kind of in the middle somewhere.
Amouage Jubilation: This is one I really liked but the wife wasn’t sure on it. It has a kind of oriental smell to me, and I am not sure if that incense smell is what is turning her off. I didn’t get to try this one and may get a sample sent to me to try it out.
Amouage Interlude for Men: This was one that by the time we got to trying it that day the scents were getting to the wife and giving her a migraine. We had to stop and never re-visited.
Bay Rum's in General (Ogallala Bay Rum, Superior 70, etc..): I have enough bay rum, especially since she isn’t sure on the scent, and I didn’t want to fall in love with yet another bay rum so I didn’t even dare test…
Polo Double Black: We have gotten a sample of this from the department store and tried it, therefore didn’t use any. This is one that is a winner for both and will be an eventual purchase.
Jacomo de Jacomo: I like this one but it gave my wife a headache.
Hermes Eau d’ Orange: We first unscrewed this to smell as there was very little in there and I didn’t want to spray it if it was a no-go right from the get-go. We both kind of liked it, so I used the last spritz. It’s hard to tell from the one spritz if it’s a keeper but initial thought was it’s nice. I will probably get a sample of this to try.
Rather than keep boring you with reviews of each one we tested, I think I can make a summary of our time with the box. My wife gets migraines and it seems like the initial smell out of a small vial may be overpowering for her as there were very few she liked by just smelling them from the vial. This was especially true of the stronger scents that had an initial blast of spice like the Amouage scents.
Due to this, I need to spray on me and come have her test after 15 minutes or so when it isn’t as strong.
Here are the samples we liked:
Chanel Egoiste: One of my wife’s favorite colognes, on me, is Chanel Egoiste Platinum. I wasn’t sure how this one would go as it seemed a bit spicier, but it is one she liked.
Hermes Eau d’ Orange: See above
John Varvatos Vintage: There wasn’t a ton of this so I tried just a little dab, but it was one that the wife didn’t object to. I liked the scent well enough.
Creed Acier Aluminum: This is one that I sprayed rather than have her smell out the bottle. I knew Creed would be a stronger one from the gate and wanted to save the headache factor. We both found it an interesting cologne, and I am not sure what to compare it to. Not entirely sure if it is one I’d spend Creed money on though.
Creed Silver Mountain Water: This was one that was in a “free to take” baggie. We both really liked this scent. It was probably the one she liked best, other than the Egoiste, out of the whole box.
Floid Vigoroso Aftershave: I really, really liked this stuff. It smells good and felt good on the face. The wife initially didn’t like it, but after it was on for a bit she came around. She thought it smelled good. I will probably look to getting a bottle of it in the future – once I work through my A/S stock.
These are things we already knew and liked (and therefore didn’t want to waste it for someone else): Polo Double Black, Very Sexy for Him (wife bought for me so I have to like LOL), Tabac EdC (I love it but is super strong for the wife therefore I have to be careful in application), Honeybee Gardens Sandalwood (I love it), Lucky Tiger (love it).
Here are my takes from the box:
I don’t have a lot of fragrances that weren’t already in the box (see above about the ones we didn't test) but hopefully these make up for my take of the Egoiste sample.
Here are my additions:
Again, I want to thank temjeito for originally starting this thread, and Zombeezy taking over after temjeito left the site. This was a great learning experience for my wife and I and even though we didn’t find a ton in the box we’d buy today, we did find one or two that will warrant a future purchase.
I will let everyone know tomorrow when I send it out.
P.S. There were some vials where the name smeared and some that were dry as a bone. I left the dry ones there in case someone needs a sprayer to fill. It will just need to be thoroughly cleaned before use - I can't find our alcohol or I would have done it.
The box is all set and ready to go out in the mail tomorrow.
Also, I tried to keep the baggies the way they were, but I can’t for certain say that they are all in the same baggies any longer. I did my best. What I can say is that the baggies marked free, or PIF, or take one pass it along didn't get mixed, they were kept separate so that there wasn't the possibility of adding something to the free bag that didn't belong there, etc…
On to the thoughts/reviews:
Pashana Aftershave: I was excited to see this in a “Free to good home” baggie. I have read reviews where people loved it – especially if they like Clubman. Well I am one of those guys who appreciates Clubman. I thought it smelled nice, but the wife didn’t like it. She said something about it was just off to her. This was surprising since she does like Clubman in moderation.
Amouage Honour for Men: To me this seems like a pretty strong pepper scent out the gate. It is also pretty strong and seemed to stick around. My wife thought it was pretty much a one trick pony, pepper, pepper and more pepper and she wasn’t impressed in the least bit.
Ralph Lauren Notorious: This is one we were both just kind of “eh” on. We didn’t hate it and we didn’t love it. It was just kind of in the middle somewhere.
Amouage Jubilation: This is one I really liked but the wife wasn’t sure on it. It has a kind of oriental smell to me, and I am not sure if that incense smell is what is turning her off. I didn’t get to try this one and may get a sample sent to me to try it out.
Amouage Interlude for Men: This was one that by the time we got to trying it that day the scents were getting to the wife and giving her a migraine. We had to stop and never re-visited.
Bay Rum's in General (Ogallala Bay Rum, Superior 70, etc..): I have enough bay rum, especially since she isn’t sure on the scent, and I didn’t want to fall in love with yet another bay rum so I didn’t even dare test…
Polo Double Black: We have gotten a sample of this from the department store and tried it, therefore didn’t use any. This is one that is a winner for both and will be an eventual purchase.
Jacomo de Jacomo: I like this one but it gave my wife a headache.
Hermes Eau d’ Orange: We first unscrewed this to smell as there was very little in there and I didn’t want to spray it if it was a no-go right from the get-go. We both kind of liked it, so I used the last spritz. It’s hard to tell from the one spritz if it’s a keeper but initial thought was it’s nice. I will probably get a sample of this to try.
Rather than keep boring you with reviews of each one we tested, I think I can make a summary of our time with the box. My wife gets migraines and it seems like the initial smell out of a small vial may be overpowering for her as there were very few she liked by just smelling them from the vial. This was especially true of the stronger scents that had an initial blast of spice like the Amouage scents.
Due to this, I need to spray on me and come have her test after 15 minutes or so when it isn’t as strong.
Here are the samples we liked:
Chanel Egoiste: One of my wife’s favorite colognes, on me, is Chanel Egoiste Platinum. I wasn’t sure how this one would go as it seemed a bit spicier, but it is one she liked.
Hermes Eau d’ Orange: See above
John Varvatos Vintage: There wasn’t a ton of this so I tried just a little dab, but it was one that the wife didn’t object to. I liked the scent well enough.
Creed Acier Aluminum: This is one that I sprayed rather than have her smell out the bottle. I knew Creed would be a stronger one from the gate and wanted to save the headache factor. We both found it an interesting cologne, and I am not sure what to compare it to. Not entirely sure if it is one I’d spend Creed money on though.
Creed Silver Mountain Water: This was one that was in a “free to take” baggie. We both really liked this scent. It was probably the one she liked best, other than the Egoiste, out of the whole box.
Floid Vigoroso Aftershave: I really, really liked this stuff. It smells good and felt good on the face. The wife initially didn’t like it, but after it was on for a bit she came around. She thought it smelled good. I will probably look to getting a bottle of it in the future – once I work through my A/S stock.
These are things we already knew and liked (and therefore didn’t want to waste it for someone else): Polo Double Black, Very Sexy for Him (wife bought for me so I have to like LOL), Tabac EdC (I love it but is super strong for the wife therefore I have to be careful in application), Honeybee Gardens Sandalwood (I love it), Lucky Tiger (love it).
Here are my takes from the box:
- Creed Silver Mountain Water sample from the “free to take” baggie. Since this was a hit with the wife and a free to take it was a no-brainer.
- Free Sample of Klar Kabinett: Thanks to Zombeezy for the sample
- Free Sample of Barrister & Mann Solstice soap
- Chanel Egoiste: This was the only “non-free” sample I took. It was the only one in the box that my wife truly liked, without reservation, other than the Creed “free” sample.
I don’t have a lot of fragrances that weren’t already in the box (see above about the ones we didn't test) but hopefully these make up for my take of the Egoiste sample.
Here are my additions:
- Buberrys of London
- Herrera for Men
- Davidoff Good Life
- Calvin Klein Escape
- I have these in glass 6ml sprayers that all have 2 to 3ml in each.
Again, I want to thank temjeito for originally starting this thread, and Zombeezy taking over after temjeito left the site. This was a great learning experience for my wife and I and even though we didn’t find a ton in the box we’d buy today, we did find one or two that will warrant a future purchase.
I will let everyone know tomorrow when I send it out.
P.S. There were some vials where the name smeared and some that were dry as a bone. I left the dry ones there in case someone needs a sprayer to fill. It will just need to be thoroughly cleaned before use - I can't find our alcohol or I would have done it.
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Seriously, awesome review. The bar has been set!
Holey Moley!!! Excellent all-around thoughts on experience. As items are added or subtracted, everyone's experience will differ, but if the takeaway is a solid experience and you've also conveyed that, then that also is a big plus for all. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and wife's reactions as well.
Well done!
Well done!
Thanks guys!!! I appreciate that. It was nice to be able to actually sit down and put a nice post together. It's been a while, as those of you who visit the SR journal section know, since I have been around posting much. I am hoping things start to stabilize over the next few weeks.
The box has been sent to wscottb... Have fun with it sir. I think the timing of the box actually plays a part, as there are some heavier scents there that will work during this cooler time. I bet if I got the box in december as opposed to the end of August, my wife might have felt differently about a few of the choices. That and I learned to late to not have her sniff right out the bottle
Also, the Regional A box is pretty darn full and the box is starting to break down. This next part it important.
The PO worker stated that the Regional A box was the way to go. It was actually about $4 cheaper to send it Regional A than if we had used the equivalent Priority Mail boxes. You can order the Regional Boxes from the PO website and they will deliver it to your house for free. We had to do this for the Passaround Box. You'll get a case of them but they are good for other things too, and are free. I think the way the box is someone in the next couple of participants needs to have a new Regional A on hand.
The box has been sent to wscottb... Have fun with it sir. I think the timing of the box actually plays a part, as there are some heavier scents there that will work during this cooler time. I bet if I got the box in december as opposed to the end of August, my wife might have felt differently about a few of the choices. That and I learned to late to not have her sniff right out the bottle
Also, the Regional A box is pretty darn full and the box is starting to break down. This next part it important.
The PO worker stated that the Regional A box was the way to go. It was actually about $4 cheaper to send it Regional A than if we had used the equivalent Priority Mail boxes. You can order the Regional Boxes from the PO website and they will deliver it to your house for free. We had to do this for the Passaround Box. You'll get a case of them but they are good for other things too, and are free. I think the way the box is someone in the next couple of participants needs to have a new Regional A on hand.
Good tip on postage and great reviews Rob. Regional Priority pricing in great but it does depend on the zone you're sending to and from so be sure to check the pricing. If the box is going to another member across the country instead of the next county over Flat Rate Priority might be cheaper.
I've never even heard of "Regional". I usually go into post office with a box, ask them to tell me the options while they put it on the scale and ask me when it needs to be there, and pick which seems most reasonable for the time frame. Thought it came down to Priority or Ground, and books/educational material or not, lol.
I had never heard of regional before the passround box third round. The box came to me in a regional A box, so that's why she looked up that price and then did the comparison. Chris is probably right about watching how far it goes, but it went from MI to KY for $9 as opposed to the $13 or $14 it would have been for Priority, she said.
I received the box yesterday, thank you AndroiDad75!!! Holy Cow that's alot of stuff... Thanks to all the guys before me that contributed.. I'll be working my way thru it quickly as possible...any helpful hints??? LOL.. I mean it's alot!!!
Room for one more? I just got into frags, and this seems like a great way to test the waters 
SkepticalWalrus - you are added. It may be awhile though, lol.
List update
29 wscottb7862 (12/27/13) - box in hand 10/07
30 insomb (12/28/13)
31 mastershake (1/01/14)
32 moostashio (1/09/14)
33 kbull719 (5/12/14)
34 LBussy (5/23/14) "if the SO is into it, it makes it a whole lot easier"
35 mrlandpirate (5/24/14) Personna Grata
36 dfoulk (7/7/14)
37 USMCKoontz (7/17/14)
38 Joe I (7/18/14)
39 jmurphy (7/18/14) - dead last is better than being dead
40 smoothie72 (7/25/14) - can't get enough
41 SkepticalWalrus (10/07/14)
List update
29 wscottb7862 (12/27/13) - box in hand 10/07
30 insomb (12/28/13)
31 mastershake (1/01/14)
32 moostashio (1/09/14)
33 kbull719 (5/12/14)
34 LBussy (5/23/14) "if the SO is into it, it makes it a whole lot easier"
35 mrlandpirate (5/24/14) Personna Grata
36 dfoulk (7/7/14)
37 USMCKoontz (7/17/14)
38 Joe I (7/18/14)
39 jmurphy (7/18/14) - dead last is better than being dead
40 smoothie72 (7/25/14) - can't get enough
41 SkepticalWalrus (10/07/14)
Thanks! Good thing I can appreciate anticipation
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So whos next in line for the box I know I am still aways from me, but just checking in
I know I am still aways from me, but just checking in Similar threads
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