Part 11 - Beast-Mode Projection Means a Fragrance Is High Quality THE MYTH: "If a fragrance fills the room and everyone can smell you coming, it must be high quality. If it stays close to the skin, it must be weak or poorly made." THE REALITY: Projection describes how far a fragrance radiates from you. It doesn’t establish how well the fragrance is composed. A fragrance can be powerful and beautifully made. It can also be powerful and unpleasant. THE EXPLANATION: I enjoy noticeable projection and a good scent trail. When I wear a fragrance, I like catching it around me and having some presence as I move. But that’s a performance preference. It doesn’t automatically tell me the quality of the blend. Think about music. Turning up the volume makes a song louder. It doesn’t improve the songwriting, musicianship, or arrangement. The same distinction matters with fragrance. A large scent cloud can get your attention immediately, but there’s still a composition inside that cloud to evaluate. What does it actually smell like? Do the materials work together? Does the fragrance feel balanced for what it’s trying to accomplish? Does it develop in an interesting way? Is the drydown something you enjoy? A fragrance doesn’t answer those questions simply by announcing itself across the room. Likewise, a quieter fragrance may offer beautiful detail, texture, and development at closer range. That style may suit dinner, an office, or an occasion where you want a smaller scent bubble. Quiet doesn’t automatically mean refined, either. A fragrance can be quiet and disappointing. We shouldn’t replace one assumption with another. There’s also a difference between quality and suitability. A well-made fragrance may project more than you want for a particular setting. Another may smell excellent but offer less presence than you personally prefer. You can reasonably say, "This is beautifully composed, but I wish it projected more." You can also say, "This performs strongly, but I don’t enjoy the scent."

After some thought I decided to divest of some fragrances. These are some I didn't wear, enjoy, or were too similar to others I do use. Took a few bottles with me to the office, printed out a price list and showed it co workers so they could choose. Gulf Orchid Mango Ice: Sweetness overload the one time I sprayed it on. Even after maceration felt too juvenile for me so off it went. Montblanc Explorer: Similar to Aventus, Cedrat Boise, Intense Cedrat Boise and even a hint of Y Le Parfum. Too many frags with similar scent profile and I felt it was redundant after 2 wears. Not a bad scent by any means. YSL Y Le Parfum 2025 3 full wearings and I just never warmed up to it fully. Y Le Parfum 2021 hits better for me and garners easy compliments. Grab the 2021 while still somewhat readily available. Have a great day.