Do you intend to continue expanding your collection forever?

Do you intend to continue expanding your collection forever? 4

Lately I've been thinking about the fact that I've only been collecting for a few years (and mostly only samples/small decants) yet I already have more perfumes in my collection that I could ever hope to use up. There are only so many days in a year, and it's getting overwhelming to decide what to wear each day. And yet, there are still more things I want to try, more scent profiles I want to discover.

I have a list of specific scent combinations or notes that I want to thoroughly explore and find my "perfect" representation of. I doubt that I'll ever stop wanting to try new things, but I'm starting to think that once I've checked off that todo list, maybe I need to stop collecting (except for the odd special case here or there) and focus on cycling through what I already have - I have more than enough to keep me entertained for the rest of my life.

How do you feel about your collection? Do you intend to keep on adding to it indefinitely; selling part of it and replenishing with new scents periodically; stop when you've reached a certain goal (number of bottles, acquired the perfect scent, etc); or something else? Would love to hear your thoughts.

7
It's hard to say for sure what will happen once my collection inevitably outgrows both my limited shelf space and my limited time on Earth. After all, I'm still barely at the starting line at the moment. That said, while I will likely slow down at some point, I doubt I will ever actually stop.

I don't collect perfumes for some specific reasonable purpose. I love them the same way I love any other stuff I accrued through the years – as a beautiful little thing on my shelf that makes me happy when I look at it (and maybe sometimes tinker with for a bit). I may wear some of my perfumes more often than others, while some may only come off the shelf once or twice a year. Most of my 100ml bottles will likely eventually outlive me. And that's fine. 

My skull collection will outlive me, my rock collection will outlive me, and if my smell collection will outlive me too – I don't see anything wrong with that. That would honestly be perfect. 
4

Ursaw hit the nail on the head for me. There's not really a moment where I think I'm going to be like "yep, that's perfect..." it's always going to be changing.

It may not expand forever. Things will get used up and might not be replaced, or they might be given away or sold. But things will always be in flux, even if the number of bottles doesn't maintain a consistent upward trajectory.

2

My perfume collection isn't intentional or rational. Instead if I love a fragrance and want to wear it, I will purchase it. So most likely my collection will keep expanding. I don't believe in using up perfumes, I see no point in that. I have only that kind of perfumes in my collection that I want to enjoy the rest of my life so why would I use them up? So yes, my perfumes will outlive me. Just like a collection of bags or shoes, also perfumes can be there either to make the person who inherits them after me happy or that person can sell them or gift them to charity. Either way my fragrances will give joy to someone after me too and I like that thought. I also see fragrances as valuable investment like any valuable collection so I have even an insurance for them. I have no rational intentions or goals to buy more or have a certain size of a collection, however I will get more if I just feel like it.

Passion by intuition 1

Interesting theme. If I learned anything about myself throughout my nearly six decades on this planet, it must be that whatever I get into, I can't do it by half. Be it music, cinema, literature, Franco-Belgian comic books, artefacts - I dive into it with a passion. Accumulating quite a bit of knowledge and, well, a few things in the process. With perfumes it is no different.

It has to be said as well, though, that every once in a while, I sell things. In a radical way, one might say. Over the last twenty years or so, I've sold thousands and thousands of records, novels, comic books and CD's, as well as my entire film library (ranging from books and magazines to memorabilia, tapes and DVD's). If I hadn't done so, I would at one point not have been able to move around in my own apartment any longer. So in the end, it's healthy, you see. Also for the simple fact that I don't want to become a slave of my passions, or perhaps more precisely put: of my passionate nature. After every bigger sale, I felt thoroughly relieved. There are a few regrets, to be sure, but they probably make up less than 0,3 percent of the whole. Those regets are, if you will, part of the deal.

The difference between, say, a novel and a bottle of perfume, of course being that the bottle eventually runs out. I think that's a good thing. Like for Ursaw, in her splendid post, for me, accumulating items is an intuitive act. Something I do take into consideration when it comes to the olfactive arts, however, is that, a handful of all-time-favourite fragrances excepted, I try to avoid 100 ml bottles. You know: so many scents, so little time. Perhaps this is partly the result of the learning curve in acquiring so many different things over a lengthy period of time. I always use the words 'accumulate' or 'acquire' as opposed to 'collect'. For me, it's necessary to steer well clear of that dangerous cliff's edge on which stands the ever-obsessed collector, or his incurably possessed brother: the completist. For me, that would mean the end of enjoying perfumery (or anything else for that matter).

So am I ever going to stop buying perfumes? Well, only if the money runs out, I suppose.

Only about ten days ago, I brought home twenty-one second-hand novels from one of my trips to Brussels. Was my library in dire need of them? Not in the least. Yet over the course of one afternoon I joyfully acquired the books. Picked with precision and conviction. Why? Because their plot, theme, setting, characters, cover illustration (just as aesthetically important to me as the bottle a perfume comes in) greatly appealed to me. Whispered to me, you might say. Even if I never get round to reading a few of them, I still like having them on my shelves. That's how I go about things, there is neither plan nor objective, there's only the mysterious phenomenon of intuition. And it hardly ever betrays me.

As I write these lines, the next olfactive creations are already waiting, somewhere, to eventually find their way to me. What they will be, what they will smell like, I have no way of knowing yet. That is, to sum things up, the beauty of it.

Last edited by Arcane on 05/05/2025 - 08:59 AM; edited 1 time in total
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Arcane

Interesting theme. If I learned anything about myself throughout my nearly six decades on this planet, it must be that whatever I get into, I can't do it by half. Be it music, cinema, literature, Franco-Belgian comic books, artefacts - I dive into it with a passion. Accumulating quite a bit of knowledge and, well, a few things in the process. With perfumes it is no different.

I am the same way. I like to say I always put 200% into anything I do, sometimes to my detriment. I also often get the urge to sell a lot of my stuff, partly to recoup costs but also because I dislike being burdened with things I no longer have a passionate interest in. I think it would be healthy to part with some of my collection (that's currently just sitting in storage) but selling stuff is easier said than done. I've tried to do it with clothes and ended up spending more money on new ones than I ever got back from selling old ones. Perfume is even harder to sell, since I unfortunately live in a country without a huge perfume community, and that forbids international shipping of flammables.

1

This may be a thought that doesn't resonate much with me on this topic.Because it is said that Japan will soon experience a direct hit earthquake in a major city (well, this has been happening for over 30 years lol), and there is a possibility that the current situation could come to an end at any time. Humans cannot control the earth's crust. No one knows when it will come.That's why I'm always thinking about the possibility that it will end someday without me having to think about it. In other words, I'm prepared to finish my collection at any time. (Sorry, maybe I'm getting off topic? lol

But if there is no earthquake, if I find a fragrance that I'm satisfied with, I won't collect any more fragrances. I don't have a hobby of collecting.

2

I won't claim to understand your point completely, but I get it, @Akira1005, and I don't think it's off-topic. We are having a discussion about time, after all. 

Most people (at least in developed countries and/or income brackets that allow them to indulge these kinds of hobbies) don't have a reason to think too deep about it, but "forever" is kind of a meaningless concept when it comes to human condition. Sure, noone is safe from passage of time or, say, a random drunk driver... But generally speaking – most people can reasonably expect to continue living (and holding onto their prized possessions) for at least some decades to come. 

But the unfortunate reality is that each person's "forever" can just as easily end tomorrow. As a Ukrainian, I'm acutely aware that any perfume I'm smelling right now has a tangible chance of being the last one I ever try. Perhaps that's why "forever" as concept doesn't really matter to me that much. As long as I'm having fun right now – that's enough. We'll see what happens next when it comes to that. 

1
Ursaw

I won't claim to understand your point completely, but I get it, @Akira1005, and I don't think it's off-topic. We are having a discussion about time, after all. 

Most people (at least in developed countries and/or income brackets that allow them to indulge these kinds of hobbies) don't have a reason to think too deep about it, but "forever" is kind of a meaningless concept when it comes to human condition. Sure, noone is safe from passage of time or, say, a random drunk driver... But generally speaking – most people can reasonably expect to continue living (and holding onto their prized possessions) for at least some decades to come. 

But the unfortunate reality is that each person's "forever" can just as easily end tomorrow. As a Ukrainian, I'm acutely aware that any perfume I'm smelling right now has a tangible chance of being the last one I ever try. Perhaps that's why "forever" as concept doesn't really matter to me that much. As long as I'm having fun right now – that's enough. We'll see what happens next when it comes to that. 

@Ursaw Yeah, well, as odd as it sounds, I figured you would agree. Of course, I understand what you wrote and the gist of the topic. I wasn't trying to suggest anything in particular, it's actually pretty universal.
You're right. Well, here we have earthquakes every few days, so eternity doesn't apply. I don't claim to understand your situation, but I am thinking about you and your country.My words will be very deceptive, but I can't help but think so.Still,at the same time I also think it sounds deceptive to you.(I couldn't come up with a good English expression! It might have sounded strongly worded.
After all, it is about never giving up having fun, no matter when it ends.

0
Ursaw
It's hard to say for sure what will happen once my collection inevitably outgrows both my limited shelf space and my limited time on Earth. After all, I'm still barely at the starting line at the moment. That said, while I will likely slow down at some point, I doubt I will ever actually stop.

I don't collect perfumes for some specific reasonable purpose. I love them the same way I love any other stuff I accrued through the years – as a beautiful little thing on my shelf that makes me happy when I look at it (and maybe sometimes tinker with for a bit). I may wear some of my perfumes more often than others, while some may only come off the shelf once or twice a year. Most of my 100ml bottles will likely eventually outlive me. And that's fine. 

My skull collection will outlive me, my rock collection will outlive me, and if my smell collection will outlive me too – I don't see anything wrong with that. That would honestly be perfect. 

what a beautiful comment 💫

0

I don't really think of my fragrances as a collection, even if they technically are. it's not like my plush collection or my amiibo collection. at any rate, no. I think there'll always be things coming and going... but I'm slowing down on buying because I only have so much space for these things. there's always more I'll want to smell, but that doesn't mean they all have to enter my living space in some capacity.

1

I’m aspiring to the opposite! I would love to get to the point where I have a small capsule collection of perfumes that I absolutely love and would happily repurchase.

A relatively small number of limited edition and discontinued scents would also have a place in my collection, but those would all be in mini and travel sizes.

But I always hope that I will be sampling and keeping an open mind. Half the fun of the hobby is exploring, so I want to keep that going!

1

It's not my intention to have a big collection...I only buy and sample perfumes to finally find something that would tick all my boxes. If Infusion d'Iris (2015) Eau de Parfum would have a stronger sillage, I would be 'done' I think, because that scent is all I want...but...damned: a little too weak, I can only smell it myself with lovely, sudden whiffs and that is why I keep wearing and enjoying it, but a bit more sillage...Oh that would be lovely Smile. So still searching for exactly the same scent with better sillage. Or for something that I may love as much for other reasons. And so still sampling to find my HG, but not to expand my collection, I find I have too many perfumes already...

0

I used to have like one (white musk/body shop,) then Champs Elysees found me. Then the OG Lancôme Miracle found me and BCBG (?) I discovered Good Chemistry, circled back and went on Sniffari and now I’m back to Guerlain. I have more fragrance than I ever have had before but I prefer it. I have enough variety for seasons/occassions/my moods etc. I will never have such a huge collection that I can’t possibly wear them all in a calendar year or anything though.

1
PerfumeL0v3r

I used to have like one (white musk/body shop,) then Champs Elysees found me. Then the OG Lancôme Miracle found me and BCBG (?) I discovered Good Chemistry, circled back and went on Sniffari and now I’m back to Guerlain. I have more fragrance than I ever have had before but I prefer it. I have enough variety for seasons/occassions/my moods etc. I will never have such a huge collection that I can’t possibly wear them all in a calendar year or anything though.

Ooh, this raises an interesting question - how many is too many to wear in a calendar year? (I am not being too serious with this question, haha). 

Do we go off the assumption we're wearing a different perfume each day, therefore 365 maximum? 

0
ScentNebula
PerfumeL0v3r

I used to have like one (white musk/body shop,) then Champs Elysees found me. Then the OG Lancôme Miracle found me and BCBG (?) I discovered Good Chemistry, circled back and went on Sniffari and now I’m back to Guerlain. I have more fragrance than I ever have had before but I prefer it. I have enough variety for seasons/occassions/my moods etc. I will never have such a huge collection that I can’t possibly wear them all in a calendar year or anything though.

Ooh, this raises an interesting question - how many is too many to wear in a calendar year? (I am not being too serious with this question, haha). 

Do we go off the assumption we're wearing a different perfume each day, therefore 365 maximum? 

Maybe me having a predilection for Guerlain and being picky might help restrain impulse/blind buying. I’m nervous for my samples to arrive (tomorrow, allegedly) I have been obsessing over these Guerlain and now I will find out if they suit me/I like them. I think I’m a light/well-blended, je ne sais qoui. I’m still shocked I don’t like LVEB, others in that vein; they have a rank, astringent note I can’t stand. 

1

Just as long as I'm alive.

1

I think ill just slow down. I alternate fragances a lot varying of season and such. Like I still wear Versace pour Homme Dylan Blue Eau de Toilette but it reminds me of a vacation I had in Argentina when i bought it in the duty free. Or L'Eau d'Issey pour Homme Eau de Toilette reminds me of the time period when I first bougth it. I like having those sort of anchors to scents.

3

I don’t think I’ll ever stop. I remember one year ago I was thinking to myself: “Ok my dude you now have 4 perfumes. Time to call it a day.” 
I now have 21 full bottles and countless decants. No I don’t think that will stop anytime soon. Too much to see, sniff and discover.

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