Yesterday, I was so taken with the green floral Weil de Weil that I realized I wasn't just sniffing my wrists politely — I was huffing it as if it were a can of gold spray paint.
Not very attractive, particularly in public, but we've all been there.
The term "scrubber" is used among perfume-lovers to refer to a perfume so repellent you'd rather scrub it off than let it fade away.
But is there a term for a perfume so amazing you can't stop sniffing it, like a pig looking for truffles, only, the truffles are on your skin? To my knowledge, no. So I'd like to propose
Huffer (n.): A term used to describe a perfume so appealing that merely sniffing it is insufficient. One must inhale it as if it were an intoxicant. (Antonym: Scrubber)
Here's a random list of both vintage and contemporary perfume I would huff in a heartbeat. Perhaps I am a positive person at heart, because I really couldn't think of too many perfumes I consider scrubbers, which doesn't mean I haven't experienced them...
HUFFERS:
Vintage: Diorella, Miss Balmain, Baghari, Calvin Klein by Calvin Klein, Empreinte, My Sin, Shalimar, Vent Vert, Fille d'Eve, Aliage, Aramis, Rumeur, Le Feu d'Issey, Theorema, Sikkim, Bandit, Calyx
Contemporary: Musc Ravageur, Gucci Rush, Carnal Flower, Muscs Koublai Khan, Chergui, Byredo's M/Mink, and Pulp by Byredo (I know I'm going to get skewered for this one), Mona di Orio's Carnation and Jabu
SCRUBBERS:
Boucheron, Rumba, Je Reviens, Amarige, Animale, Drugstore Tabu, Flower by Kenzo
What are the Huffers and Scrubbers on your list?
I love your definitions. Hmm, I go through phases where some are my favourites, and I don't try many scrubbers, but right now I'd say...
Huffers: Soir de Lune, L'Ombre dans l'Eau, Bandit, Le Temps d'un Fete, Ormonde Jayne Tiare
Scrubbers: Amouage Opus I
Posted by: kjanicki | February 11, 2011 at 01:12 PM
Fantastic! I second your motion to institute "huffers" as the term of choice :D My huffers: L'Air du Desert Marocain, Arabie, Sacrebleu, Nuits de Scherrer, Lalique Flora Bella, and Un Bois Vanille. My scrubbers: Angel, the new YSL Opium (did someone leave the gas on?), and Vera Wang Princess.
Posted by: Meg (Olenska) | February 11, 2011 at 01:20 PM
I've been wanting to try Tiare, Kjanicki. That reminds me, there's a great Mona di Orio I need to put on this list...
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 11, 2011 at 01:45 PM
Hi Meg/Olenska , Ouch, re: "Did someone leave the gas on?" So funny...
Is Nuits de Scherrer the same as Nuits Indienne? Because I've been wanting to try that one for a while. I LOVE Scherrer I, and Scherrer II with that pineapple note isn't half bad...
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 11, 2011 at 01:51 PM
i think the first step is admitting you have a problem, so i am here to say that i can't stop huffing le labo oud 27.
Posted by: flippy | February 11, 2011 at 02:26 PM
Wait, flippy. I'm to blame for that, right?
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 11, 2011 at 02:48 PM
RE: Nuits de Scherrer-- yes, it was indeed named Nuits Indienne when first released - then rechristened a few years afterward.
Posted by: Meg (Olenska) | February 11, 2011 at 03:53 PM
Rumba is the first one that came to mind for me for scrubbers! Can't stand it. I've also been known to scrub L'Heure Bleue though I keep trying and retrying it but it just smells gross on me.
Too many huffers to mention (why wear something you don't love enough to huff?) but one that really keeps me huffing for hours is Cuir de Lancome. I also love to huff Belle en Rykiel.
Posted by: Elisa | February 11, 2011 at 04:34 PM
Now I gotta try Cuir de Lancome and Belle en Rykiel, Elisa. Thanks! (I didn't even know Sonia Rykiel had a scent.)
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 11, 2011 at 04:39 PM
I try to forget the scrubbers in my life! One that springs to mind is Flower by Kenzo. Lovely opening, but it transforms into a sour and metallic thing that I cannot stand.
Actually, I especially love the second skin perfumes, not perfumes you want to huff because they feel just perfectly right in a simple, non-perfumey sort of way. L'Heure Bleue creates almost this sort of effect because if its lovely 'perfume veil', but I do huff it sometimes. Dior's Granville (one of its new La Collection fragrances) is a second skin perfume for me - a strange mix of austerity and comfort. It's not vintage of course, but like a lot of the exclusive fragrances that Dior and Chanel have put out recently, it is both retro and modern in style.
Posted by: Anne | February 11, 2011 at 06:05 PM
Oh, I am with you re: Kenzo, Anne. I had heard so much about it, and recently (I know it's been out for a while) sprayed it on and it made me queasy. I don't think I liked anything about it. Interesting point about not wanting to huff subtle perfumes...
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 11, 2011 at 06:25 PM
ALL-TIME HUFFS (SO FAR):
- BYREDO'S OUD IMMORTELLE - This so far is the sexiest damn thing I've ever sampled - anything comes down the pike hotter than this and my head will explode.
- GUERLAIN'S L'INSTANT POUR HOMME - perfect sophistication, mystery and intrigue in a bottle. James Bond can't carry himself better.
- AMOUAGE JUBILATION XXV - If Jefferson Airplane's song, White Rabbit, hadn't already been recorded, the first time anyone sampled this fragrance, it would have right then.
SCRUBBERS:
- anything sold as fragrance by Bath and Body Works. You might as well just dump a gallon of fruit jelly and Jolly Rancher juice all over yourself and call it good. HIDEOUS (and damn tenacious!)
- anything Chanel currently makes for men outside of Bleu.
- the original Aramis. Why would any man in his right mind think a fragrance that smells exactly like a dog wrapped up in a rug that was under the feet of 20 cigar-chomping poker players be a symbol of great scent? GODAWFUL, CHEAP and GHASTLY. Just dump the contents of your car ashtray down your neck and call it good if you like this.
Posted by: Steve Johnson | February 11, 2011 at 09:04 PM
Hi Steve,
Thanks for the amazing list. Now I must run and resniff Byredo's Oud Immortelle! Ditto on the Bath and Body Works anything. I do part ways with you, however, at vintage Aramis, which is one of my Huffers. It is dirty — and it is spectacular! But I guess I wanna smell like "a dog wrapped up in a rug that was under the feet of 20
cigar-chomping poker players." I'm crazy that way. ;-)
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 12, 2011 at 11:58 AM
Huffers! What a great term! Ooooh, where to start...
Vintage Huffers: Magie Noir, Dioressence, Cabochard, Bandit, Jolie Madame, Jicky parfum, Rive Gauche
Contemporary Huffers: Ambre Sultan, Boxeuses, Ubar (so beautiful it made me cry, and write about it, too!), Incense Extrème
Vintage scrubbers: Giorgio! and Giorgio Red, Poison, Fracas
Contemporary scrubbers: Anything with oud except M7 (I'm trying to love oud! I'm trying, but I'm. Just. Not. Feeling. It. ) Angel. Fruitchoulis. Eau Mega and Flowerbomb. Every Miss Dior and flanker currently in existence. I'm turning green just thinking about them...
Posted by: Tarleisio | February 12, 2011 at 04:35 PM
Mmmmm, Magie Noir and Jicky...Tarleisio. And I need to try Ubar. A perfume that you can huff and then cry about? Yes, please! Some perfumes on your scrubbers list I love, but to each her own. :-)
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 12, 2011 at 08:11 PM
So funny Elisa (Hi, Elisa!) huffs Cuir de Lancome... I love that one, but it's one of those that, to me, smells very different two inches above my wrist than huffed directly from the wrist, and I prefer the waft to the huff.
Posted by: mals86 | February 12, 2011 at 10:36 PM
CdL and BeR can both be found very affordably on the internet. Cuir is more classic, BeR is a more subtle riff on the Angel school.
Hi Mals! I like that phrase too, "I prefer the waft to the huff."
Posted by: Elisa | February 12, 2011 at 11:03 PM
Some examples of my Huffers: Chanel Bois Des Iles, No. 22; SL Un Bois Vanille, Chergui; Diorella; AG Heure Exquise; Diptyque Eau Duelle; Hermes Un Jardin Sur Le Nil; CDG Ouarazate (sp?)
Some Scrubbers: AG Songes; SL Un Bois Sepia, Gris Clair; Caron Tabac Blond (modern version; never tried vintage); Tom Ford White Patchouli; KM Loukhoum; Angel Pivoine (the original is tolerable - barely - but the Pivoine variation is VILE!); EL Azuree
Posted by: Amy | February 13, 2011 at 07:17 PM
I commend you, my friend, for this most useful addition to the perfumisti lexicon!
A few of my huffers: Aramis, Black Afgano, Bois Marocain, Fille en Aiguilles, M7, Mitsouko, Muscs Kublai Khan, Oud Wood (Tom Ford), CDG Ourzazate, Sycomore, Vettiveru
And the requisite scrubbers: Lonestar Memories (instant headache), Terre d'Hermes (ditto), Beyond Paradise for Men, and almost everything I've smelled from Bond No. 9 withe the possible exception of Silver Factory, which bored me more than anything.
Posted by: Jonno | February 14, 2011 at 01:25 AM
You, Jonno, are a Huffer extraordinaire with extraordinary tastes. Happy Valentines Day!
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 14, 2011 at 01:14 PM
What a great post!
Huffers: Une Fleur de Cassie (Editions de Parfums; Bellodgia (Caron); Amaranthine (Penhaligon's); Que Sais-Je? (Patou); My Sin (Lanvin).
Scrubbers: Ivoire (Balmain); Tubereuse (Caron); Dulcis in Fundo (Profumum); Volupte (De La Renta).
Scrubber-turned-Huffer: Songes (Annick Goutal)
Posted by: Emma | February 18, 2011 at 03:00 AM
Hi Emma. I must get my hands on Amaranthine. I keep hearing good things about it! And I've wanted Bellodgia for ages. I'm surprised Ivoire is on your Scrubber list, but that's just because I love it. As for Songes, it's good to know that a Scrubber can turn into a Huffer! I feel that I could be suggestible that way with lots of scents, but not with intensely fruity ones. That's where I draw the line...
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 18, 2011 at 06:34 PM
I know, I'm definitely in the minority with Ivoire, as most people love it. Perhaps it will go the way of Songes with me, and turn into one I can love?! Here's hoping.
Posted by: Emma | February 19, 2011 at 06:52 AM
Huffers: L'Heure Bleu (Guerlain), Ecusson (Jean D'Albret), Caleche (Hermes), Ma Griffe, Dior Dior, Tweed, Arpege, Le Dix (Balanciaga, Parure (Guerlain), Heure Exquise (Annick Goutal)
Scrubbers: Opium, Charlie, Poison, Angel (smell a trend?)
Posted by: Dorette | February 22, 2011 at 02:31 PM
Dorette: Is the trend that nobody likes Angel? (Pssst: I love it!) I agree with almost everything on your Huffer list, though, espeically Ma Griffe, Arpege, and Parure! Thanks for stopping by.
Posted by: Perfumaniac | February 22, 2011 at 02:34 PM