The Sweet Smell of Civet

I've always loved perfume. Strange, considering I don't embrace other typically feminine grooming pursuits such as applying makeup or hair brushing. But we all must embrace our contradictions.

Though I pretty much wear the same perfumes all the time--Halston alternating with a jar of Lauren body cream that I've been hoarding since the 80s--I'm always on the lookout for new scents. I have a vivid memory of sampling Poison at the mall with friends when it came out in 1985 and becoming so violently nauseous I thought I was going to puke while waiting for our ride, standing downwind, fervently wishing I could extend the distance between my arm and my nostrils.

Though his review is generally favorable, Marlen from Now Smell This says: "Somewhere between a triangle of incense, cough syrup, and tanning lotion lies the olfactory pyramid for Poison." I notice with some satisfaction that Poison has made it into Perfume Smellin' Things Hall of Shame.

The crop of scents in the late 90s left me cold--either they smell like fabric softener or they're so syrupy, more appropriate to pour over ice cream or to administer to a crashing diabetic than to intrigue and seduce. Until I wrote that I didn't realize that was what I was trying to do. Who knew I was such a vixen?

Recently, this article about the use of civet in perfume inspired me to try some scents by The Different Company. But after converting euros to dollars, I had to conclude that I really am too cheap to even consider shelling out $80 to end up smelling like the rear end of a wild cat.

You smell like my ass

I was disappointed. But persistent web searching turned up Lucky Scents and voila, they sell samples of all The Different Company scents at $3 a pop. I ordered five of them--stay tuned for a review.