Unusual samples size/conditioning

Hello everyone ! I wanted to broach a the subject of unusual samples conditioning !

I recently made a sample order for two brands : Chapel Factory and Fragonard

Here are some pictures :

As you can see, fragonnard samples came in a little pouch, with a paper wipe inside that kind of look like to lemon pouch you use after you ate shrimps. Actually, i didn't knew that fragonard don't give "normal sized" samples, i believe it's because they have this very old school policy of sometimes giving samples with their promotional magazines. That also means that samples are more or less "one time samples" and that you have to rub this wipes on your skin (cannot spray on clothes obviously). Honestly, i'm not really convinced by this conditioning, because i struggle to understand how you can reall try a fragrance with this type of samples...

And for the Chapel Factory/Jardins d'Ecrivains , those sample are really nice in my opinions they're glass bottles of 5ml (and 10ml for ex-libris which is a cologne), those are litteral small decants ! And damn for 7€ i have the feeling i got for my bucks as i can really try on the long term if i like those fragrances. Moreover, my enviromental friendly mindset immediately thought "once they're finished i can reuse those bottles ! (after deep cleaning them and wiping any residual fragrances with alcohol"

After a week of trials i can say that Anaïs Biguine brands has very unique brands with highly qualitative products, and i like most of her propositions, and i would probably like if brands can offer more of this samples size !

So do you have any opinons on those samples conditioning or experiences to share ?

nasomato has those non-sprayable, dab type of samples that i hate!

they are packaged like pills in those plastic/aluminum type of container. and once you break the seal you have to use all of it, which is too much for me, so half of the sample goes to waste 😑

I received two or three times these small pouches ( 2 from Fragonard and the third i don't remember) along with other samples I swapped or bought. The one-time aspect of it and it being... a wipe retained me from ever open it. I handed it away in another swap... It's a pity because Fragonard has good fragrances.

Jardin d'Ecrivain really picks my interest. I mean dedicating perfumes to stellar writers is so enticing. Saint-John Perse Exil , Apollinaire Alcools 🤩 . And Tom Ford with his chocking perfume names seems just a tryhard when someone just comes out with a perfume dedicated to Pierre Louÿs L'Eau de Louÿs .

I agree, 5ml is just fine.

As for unusual size, I recommend the discovery set of perfume oils from Maison Louis Marie : 5 decants of 3ml (roll-on). The full bottles are 15 ml! It's perfume oil so a little goes a looong way. It's perfect for me.They are pretty hard to get in Europe ( I got it second-hand from someone in the Netherlands, I don't know how she got them in the first place).

Another (French) house that does perfume oils also in 3 or 15ml : Elaïo. www.parfumo.com/Perfum...

I got the Peau à Peau (in shop it was pure orange blossom, on skin it's a fight between marshmallow and orange blossom. That's life)

@Ebichuunee you mention the discovery box of Versatile Paris in your blog, with 1ml sample of perfume oils, how do you apply them ? If it's a roll-on it's ok for me if you have to struggle with a plastic thingy to dab it on your skin, well I am not sure I am interested ...

@Markofrojlan I would also be mad. Thanks for the information!

my mother worked in a department store in the late 70s / early 80s and I remember when the perfume counter had 5ml mini bottles as free samples, as well as carded 1-2ml dabbers.   sad that it's come to moist napkins for shrimp fingers, but I guess there's more surface to print the label

@LouBe definitely recommend Jardins d'écrivains in my order of samples/decantsi got Oud PagodeBaptismaErborista and Ex-Libris, because I was in the mood to explore incense-based fragrances. I wasn’t disappointed, so I’m planning to make another sample order from Jardins d’Écrivains. I really want to try Baltasar del Alcazar , Ajar , Wilde and L'Eau de Leopardi , which i believe would be perfect fragrances to evoke the spring mood I need!

I’ve never heard of Elaïo, but they definitely remind me of Versatile, though with less extravagant offerings. Regarding the dabbers from Versatile, I don’t really mind the packaging. The fragrances are quite potent, so wiping the stick on your forearms works well—but, I agree, it does require nimble fingers. Sometimes, I just place the vial directly on my forearms and gently tilt it as if it had a rollerball. Thanks to the small opening and the oil’s consistency, it doesn’t spill and applies the right amount effortlessly.

Bwahahah, damn! Who in the Nasomatto marketing department managed to convince the board to approve this type of packaging?

Actually, after looking it up, it looks like a lipstick sample you might get from a makeup store! But it still feels really weird for a fragrance!

I agree those Fragonard samples aren't a good way to test the perfumes really. Whenever I get them, I just toss them in my travel bag and use them in place of refreshing wipes, since that's basically what they are.

They sell some actual spray samples, but not for their entire range. They're a good price for the amount you get though (4ml in the set I have).

I'm very intrigued by those Chapel Factory samples. The only other brand I've seen do samples/minis in that size is 1000 Flowers, but I haven't tried them yet either since I want to go to Grasse at some point and test in person.

The Nasomatto samples look the most inconvenient. Don't they also have a reputation for being quite strong? Seems like a recipe for disaster. 

Those Nasomato samples seems really out of place. Who uses 1 ml in a single time to test a perfume? I think most of us do a tiny spray on the wrist the first time and maybe a full wear afterwards. If I ever get one of those samples, I'll use a syringe to pour it in a real sprayer...