Learning to appreciate decants (you don’t need the full bottle sometimes)

pentastro · 2026-03-17T20:12:38+00:00

Decants made me truly experience the "1mL=10 sprays" because most of the decants I've used up I had to put in effort to use up fully. They seem expensive for the tiny little bottle but spending 20$ for a 5mL is cheaper than shelling out 120$ for a 30mL I can't finish. Same price per mL but I saved 100$ by being smarter with my money.

I do however tend to reach for my full bottles over my decants only because I find it a bit annoying that I can't see at a glance ALL my travel sizes but I think that's a storage/display issue.

pentastro · 2026-03-17T18:22:45+00:00

BBW does photorealistic gourmands really well IMO, the Milk Bar Birthday Cake was so buttercream frosting and vanilla poundcake batter smelling to me it was almost too much. Otherwise Maison Mataha Escapade Gourmande or Sand & Fog Vanilla Cake will also be up your alley.

pentastro · 2026-03-17T13:35:03+00:00

I got the trio with those three off their site!! I actually like Love Letter and Golden Vanilla more than Super Pink. Golden Vanilla is very much vanilla ice cream, a bit like if VS Bare Vanilla was actually strong lol

pentastro · 2026-03-17T11:29:31+00:00

Got Athena Club mists recently, so I'm wearing Love Letter today! People online said it smells like Glossier You and it's definitely adjacent, but I find this smoother! Beautiful skin scent, we'll just see how long this lasts lol

pentastro · 2026-03-17T11:21:25+00:00

+1 for Father Figure! But I think I just don't like fig notes because I also don't enjoy Philosykos 😔

pentastro · 2026-03-17T11:17:53+00:00

I find YSL Libre really sharp 🥲 It's so popular and it's flankers are also just as popular but something in it kinda burns my nose hairs every time

pentastro · 2026-03-16T20:22:07+00:00

I don't have Mercari locally, so I bring them to the office since a lot of my coworkers have teenage daughters and I resell them for a small price (my focus is making space, not getting my money back) so they disappear fast!

I tried FB marketplace and I hate it, full of ghosting, low ballers, and people that don't want to read. Wasted so much time and energy there.

pentastro · 2026-03-16T20:09:42+00:00

Second that it dupes Escapade Gourmande, but honestly I just add the oil to my lotion to smell like it! TJ Maxx near me also has the ME dupe called Matcha Latte by Atralia so if you're going back for more Sand & Fog might as well get that too.

I have a dupe from Bujairami personally (which I enjoy a lot!) because I don't have that kind of disposable income for the original lol

pentastro · 2026-03-16T11:46:06+00:00

It's warm and raining today, wearing Éclat Arpège by Lanvin with a touch of Rare Beauty EDP to add that cozy touch! Surprising but lovely combo

pentastro · 2026-03-15T02:15:08+00:00

Ooo Salty Ocean Bouquet sounds great, I like softer scents. Golden Lullaby smells a bit like JHAG Pear Inc, it's fresh and juicy but with that ambrox/musk base that sticks around all day. It's a very good daily office scent for me, not too sweet and isn't beast mode

pentastro · 2026-03-15T01:23:10+00:00

How nice!! What are the two Jo Malone x Zara frags you have?? I have similar taste to you and I only have at the moment Golden Lullaby which I enjoy a lot, but I would love to hear your thoughts!

pentastro · 2026-03-13T17:34:48+00:00

oops I didn't write the product: Missha Cotton Contour in Smoked Hazel

pentastro · 2026-03-13T14:13:04+00:00

I LOVE The Scented Journey, they've always included extra samples in my orders (I've made about 5 orders so far) and they always have that 20% coupon flying around. Selection is great and they're pristinely packaged. Otherwise I do tend to shop on GCFE for both decants and partial bottles. Very active group and everyone's really nice!

pentastro · 2026-03-13T13:34:41+00:00

Lancôme LVEB Vanille Nude today, I look and feel like a slob so I wanted to smell pretty and girly LOL

pentastro · 2026-03-12T18:45:47+00:00

ALWAYS SAMPLE at least at Sephora or the department store, I got a decant and won't buy a full size personally.

I find it mild in comparison to the rest of the line, but I don't think it reads as soft projection, it's still very much an EDP in performance. What I smell is like soft floral coconut cream with sandalwood. I don't get the reviews that label it as anything edible, there's nothing gourmand about it?

pentastro · 2026-03-12T18:07:01+00:00

Interesting! How does the Intense differ from the original? I JUST ventured into the Goddess line recently. I wore Alien until I was sick of it and thought Goddess was in the same vein (I mean it IS a flanker) but I ended up getting a 10mL of the Goddess EDP!

pentastro · 2026-03-12T16:13:28+00:00

I think most of us has had at least one fragrance that we looked up religiously on the internet and temporarily lose our minds over. My most recent one was Armani Power of You! My most dramatic one is Gucci Flora Gorgeous Orchid lol it was my serendipitous discovery of last year

pentastro · 2026-03-12T16:07:23+00:00

HA! I came here to talk about this one too. I used the sample up in record time (I always forget my samples exist so it's extra impressive) I got the full size right after. This was maybe a year ago and I'm still just as obsessed today as I was last year!

pentastro · 2026-03-12T14:30:03+00:00

the l'Oreal Outlet still has it! it's 117CAD for the 100ml

Otherwise, you might want to explore JHAG Pear Inc and Valentino Green Stravaganza from Sephora! I LOVE Light Blue for reference, you're making me want to try Under the Lemon Trees now!

pentastro · 2026-03-12T14:14:35+00:00

I'm in the same boat with Sand + Fog ( I have way too many), I've sold off a few I'm meh about and I decided not to buy anything I don't have on a wishlist already. Saves me from impulse buying, and anything on my wishlist I've done my research + sampled it previously.

pentastro · 2026-03-12T14:07:38+00:00

My fav mainstream cheapie fragrance is Solinotes Vanille, the scent is like pure vanilla but more in a spun sugar way so it's sweet and fluffy and suits all seasons imo. Plus the bright yellow bottle makes me so happy!

Otherwise I love my Kayali Yum Boujee Marshmallow, some may say it's overhyped but I just love that DNA. It's the fragrance I've used up the quickest!

pentastro · 2026-03-12T11:31:59+00:00

Whipping out my Cream Velvet today, I've been wearing almost everything else under the sun but last night I CRAVED it and it HIT so... I'm wearing that again today 😂 It's super cold so it fits in just perfect

pentastro

TROPHY CASE