Love The Smell, Hate The Bottle

Remember when I wrote about how I love certain perfume bottles but can’t stand the smell? Today, I thought I’d do a follow-up on that post and share with you the fragrances I love but the packaging, not so much.

To be honest, this post was a lot more difficult to write because it was very tough finding ugly perfume bottles. Cosmetic companies always make sure that the packaging of the fragrances they sell are top notch, just in case the scent alone doesn’t attract customers. It’s a fair call and goodness knows the number of times I’ve been lured to gorgeous bottles first.

As I mentioned before, scent is very subjective. What I like/dislike may be the complete opposite for you. I’d say that the same thing goes for packaging. I may dislike the bottle but you may love it. Again, I’m not knocking your favourite fragrances here. I think these fragrances smell fantastic but there’s just something about the packaging I cannot stand.

Love The Smell, Hate The Bottle

Burberry Body – the scent is a beautiful one but the packaging is too phallic for my liking. Plus it doesn’t stand properly thus takes up space.

Marc Jacobs Body Splash – It almost seems blasphemous for me to knock the body splashes by Marc Jacobs because I absolutely adore them, especially the Curacao. While the bottle is classic and I don’t technically HATE it, I wish they made it a lot easier to hold and spray. I don’t have tiny hands to begin with but I still find it quite tricky to hold the gigantic 300ml bottle with one hand and spray at the same time. I had to decant this to a Travalo in order to use it after almost dropping this on the floor a few times. A 300ml bottle hitting your toes isn’t going to be pretty.

See By Chloe – I don’t normally like sweet fragrances but this one just appeals to me for some odd reason. The bottle though? Not a fan. I understand the birdcage concept but the ring on top is misleading and it makes people think you can pick and hold the perfume up by its ring. It’s not strong enough to hold the weight and the bottom will drop. Plus rings on caps just make the whole thing look cheap.

Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire – It took me a while to fall in love with the fruity scent, not because it doesn’t smell good (let it rest on the skin longer and it’ll smell even better). I just can’t get over the fact that the cap of the bottle looks like , how do I put this delicately, the knob of male genitals. Oh stuff it, it looks like a dickhead to me, okay? Yes, I have a filthy mind but I swear it was the first thing I noticed when I first laid eyes on this perfume! πŸ˜›

Bulgari Aqua Pour Homme – I bought this for Tim a few years ago and while I absolutely love this on him, I’m not a fan of the bottle. The bottle doesn’t actually stand (as shown in the stock photo) but it lies on its back. It takes up so much space! Tim and I share a section of the bookshelf in our room where we store our fragrances and this one takes up almost a quarter of the space. Yeah you can see where I’m coming from here. πŸ˜‰

I’m sure I have more but I’m afraid I could only think of 5 fragrances for now. It’s far simpler to find fragrances with gorgeous bottles and crappy scents compared to the other way round. I’m glad there are more beautiful bottles of perfumes out there. I like me a good eye candy first before I take a good whiff. πŸ˜›

What about you? Are there any perfumes that you love but don’t like the packaging much or at all?

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29 comments… add one
  1. Chelsea

    Oh pick me pick me!

    I love DKNY Be Delicious (go on, throw tomatoes at me) but the bottle is SO hard to hold and spray at the same time. It’s just stupid.

    Also, have never sniffed the new Katy Perry perfume but the bottle is dumb – it doesn’t sit on ANYTHING. Rant over. x
    Chelsea recently posted..Review: Australis Blush BFFs & Lip & Cheek ComboMy Profile

    1. Tine

      What are you talking about? I LOVE DKNY’s Be Delicious! I was actually going to put that into this list too! I can hold it but it takes up space which I don’t like. πŸ˜›

      I sniffed the Katy Perry Killer Queen perfume. Not my kind of scent but I understand what people meant by the bottle. Don’t like it either πŸ˜›

  2. Dawn

    I own, and really like the See by Chloe birdcage design! πŸ˜€

    Yeah I agree with Chelsea, the DKNY Be Delicious and Katy Perry’s Killer Queen are badly designed. Its cute and artistic, but fails when it comes to functionality. Its a pity cause I do like Killer Queen’s scent and the look of the bottle.

    I love my Burberry Britt edt, but the bulky rectangular bottle with white plaid design is a little boring..

    1. Tine

      Haha glad you like the birdcage design! See what I mean about things like this being so subjective? You like, I don’t like. I like, you don’t like. πŸ˜›

      DKNY’s new Be Delicious (the one with the hydrating mist – a bit of BS I say. I don’t see the difference other than it comes out in a finer mist) has a better bottle. At least it stands up tall.

  3. Allison

    You are toooo funny! I love my Fred Malle Musc Ravageur, but the greenish-tinted round bottle with the black top is just too masculine and boring for this voluptuous scent πŸ™‚
    Allison recently posted..Hada Labo Tokyo Anti-aging Hydrator: More of the Good StuffMy Profile

    1. Tine

      What can I say? I have a filthy mind. πŸ˜›

      I haven’t heard of the Fred Malle Musc Ravageur so I had to Google it. It does look quite masculine, doesn’t it?

  4. Paris B

    Hmm I’ll be seeing the Guerlain in a new light from now. No thanks, Tine πŸ˜› I hate the See by Chloe design. Absolutely hate it. Hate the scent too so that’s alright. I’m not very into pretty perfume bottles I guess. I like simple clean unfussy designs but I appreciate the art that goes into a perfume bottle because these days, that’s all the art that’s left in beauty πŸ˜› /synical
    Paris B recently posted..Your Say: Do you have a skincare product graveyard?My Profile

    1. Tine

      Kakakaka when you gave me a sample of the Guerlain perfume, first thing I thought was “ooh the dickhead perfume!” Hehehehe! The scent is quite lovely but I just can’t get over the bottle cap, that’s all πŸ˜›

  5. Norlin

    I agree with Chelsea…Katy Perry’s perfume. GORGEOUS scent. Looks AMAZING but so darn bloody impractical!!! WTH? It doesn’t stand. I have to keep it in the box!
    Norlin recently posted..Last Week’s Proud MomentsMy Profile

    1. Tine

      I haven’t tried Katy Perry’s Killer Queen perfume (that’s the one you guys were talking about, right?) so I went to Priceline today to take a whiff. It’s not my kind of perfume but I do agree with you on the bottle. It just lies there and takes up a lot of space. I wonder if it rolls, since it’s conical. Hmm.

  6. Lyn

    Hahaha, I didn’t even think about the cap of the Guerlain bottle but you are absolutely right. I dislike the bottle for Burberry Body too.
    Lyn recently posted..Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse Foundation – An Affordable Everyday FoundationMy Profile

    1. Tine

      Damn, this post must have ruined Guerlain’s La Petite Robe Noire for a lot of people now that I say out loud it looks like a knobhead πŸ˜›

  7. Annamaria

    Eh, I’m such a Guerlain fan I hardly notice the standard bottle shape anymore (except in a “this shape contains moar pretties for me to love” associative way). However, have you seen the 100th anniversary edition bottle of L’Heure Bleue?? Pretty colour, pretty gold details…and a cap that doesn’t even require a dirty mind!

    1. Tine

      PHEW! I’m so glad I didn’t ruin it for you!
      Okay I had to Google the L’Heure Bleue and erm, err … erm … okay. πŸ˜›

      1. Annamaria

        What were they thinking, right? πŸ™‚

  8. MissCarole

    On that note, I would mention…
    – Avril Lavigne: the perfume smells soooo good but the bottle is too rocky round the edges for me.
    – Lolita Lempicka: my personal favourite in winter and the bottle is a nice apple-shape but it is a bit “fragile”. I broke the stem that you push to spray the product out. Impossible to repair my self. I called their reseller and they told to send it in for repairs. A couple a weeks later, I got my repaired bottle… and I use it very carefully now πŸ˜‰
    MissCarole recently posted..The Picture of the Month – November 2013My Profile

    1. Tine

      Oh yeah, the stem of the Lolita Lempicka is quite fragile and is something you have to be careful with. Usually for fragrances with nice but fragile bottles, I prefer to decant them to a Travalo or a cheaper atomiser. I get to bash it around without worrying I’d damage the bottle.

  9. Rute

    Ahahahaha you are surounded by phallic looking perfumes, poor you xD
    Well, for me one that I used and it was pretty hard to ‘store’, it was the Diesel Loverdose. It has a part on his side that sits properly, but if you don’t put it that way, all the other ways it’s just not fine and I was always scared that it would slip off my table, to the floor!
    Rute recently posted..The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter | ReviewMy Profile

    1. Tine

      I know right? Tsk tsk such a dirty mind. πŸ˜›

      I’ve not tried the Loverdose but I’ve seen it. Another bottle that doesn’t stand. It’s hard to store, cosmetic companies!

  10. Marga

    You are def right on these bottles. they smell good but their bottles are not so good like the marc jacobs. Hope they improve their packaging to be more appealing.

    1. Tine

      Yeah me too. There are lots of good perfumes with crappy packaging that could do with a lot of improvement.

  11. Beauty Box

    Hi Tine, love this post – and the phallic references haha!!! I really like DKNY’s Be Delicious Golden but it is impossible to decant (esp into a Travalo) because the metallic top can’t be removed. I don’t hate the aesthetics of the design, just the functionality.
    Beauty Box recently posted..Meet My Baby Boy CharlesMy Profile

    1. Tine

      Haha I have a dirty mind πŸ˜›
      Aww man you can’t decant the Be Delicious to the Travalo?? I haven’t decant it yet as I have a couple of tiny 1.5ml vials that I can bring with me when travelling but I didn’t know the metallic top can’t come off! Grr.

  12. Victoria

    I too love DKNY Be Delicious Apple and Cherry Blossom but the bottle cap is a pain to remove especially if your hand is oily after applying body creams. LOL. Have not tried decanting it like Beuaty Box did but thanks for the information πŸ™‚

    1. Tine

      I didn’t know you can’t decant the Be Delicious to the Travalo either. Grr. I love the Be Delicious but it can be quite a pain to hold if you have small hands. And it takes up a lot of room.

  13. plue

    the See by Chloe reminds me of Lanvin Rumeur2 rose bottle design, which the cap has a ring on it and I am ALWAYS tempted to pickup the bottle via the ring >.< Nearly had it dropped quite a few times. Gah.
    plue recently posted..Guerlain Sakura Cherry Blossom G Blush & TheBalm Down Boy – Excellent Combo!My Profile

    1. Tine

      I don’t understand the point of putting these sort of rings on the caps of perfumes. It makes the perfume look cheap πŸ™

  14. Ozlicious

    My all-time favourite fragrance is 212 by Carolina Herrera but the bottle is terrible! It’s this weird spaceship-looking silver tube and there are two spherical bottles containing the fragrance which then click into either end of the tube. I hate it for a number of reasons. One – each little “ball” bottle doesn’t have its own lid, so it’s impossible to travel with it just on its own (a Travalo would solve this problem I guess, but I keep forgetting to buy one!). Two – I display all my fragrances on a shelf, and it keeps rolling off. I have to have a little blob of blu-tack to keep it from rolling off onto the floor! Three – it just looks lame.

    It’s the PERFECT fragrance to me – clean, subtle, classy, wonderful – I just haaaate the bottle!

    1. Tine

      Oooh I know the one! Yeah, not a fan of it either. I think that’s why I’ve never tested it because the bottle just turned me off πŸ˜›

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