STILL HAVEN'T FOUND A TOM FORM FRAGRANCE I LIKE

There is a Macy's right next to where I used to work. After work, I would sometimes go in to look at fragrances, shocking. 

There is a Tom Ford counter with EMPTY perfume bottles, but there are these "metal trays" in slots with the fragrance sprayed on paper. I sniffed each one right after another (I know you're not supposed to do that) and did not like most of them. I would've taken my time if there wasn't a salesperson breathing down my neck. Sniff and leave. 

About three years ago, I got a Black Orchid sample with a Sephora order; I still have it because I don't like it that much. 

Everyone loves Tom Ford fragrances, and I don't understand it. I'm sure they're high quality with all those different notes in the perfume and that price tag—I appreciate the craftsmanship—but it's not to my peasant-like tastes. I guess it's like Chanel in that sense...

Recently, I received another Tom Ford sample in my Sephora order, and I have flashbacks.

Costa Azzurra EDP

Driftwood, Seaweed, Agarwood (Oud), Ambrette, Cardamom, Celery Seeds
Lemon, Cypress, Yellow Mandarin, Lavender, Myrtle, Artemisia
Oak, Incense, Vetiver, Olibanum, Mastic or Lentisque, Vanilla

First things first, I love the photography direction for the fragrance. I love the lighting, how it shines on the bottle, the movement of the water, how light is refracted in the glass and water, etc. Stunning campaign image. 

Looking at the notes, I expect a saltiness/brininess that reminds me of the sea because of the seaweed. I'm also expecting something woody and earthy with all those woody, musky, and green/herb notes. Something spicy because of the cardamom and celery. A little bright and tangy. A lot of smokiness from my least favorite base notes, incense, vetiver, and olibanum. I know I'm not going to like the olibanum.

This smells like Vetiver 46. I hate Vetiver 46. It's the same used car filled with pencil shavings. Unlike Vetiver 46, far in the background, I can see a man who sprays a generic cologne breaking from the water. (It's a masculine-leaning perfume.)

It's as if, while filming a commercial for this fragrance, at the same time, several kilometers away, D&G is shooting a new commercial for Light Blue. I think I'm just imagining things and picking up a different perfume coming from my room in the background. 

I do not smell the sea/anything aquatic. No saltiness or brininess. Just earthy, spicy woodiness. 

Because I hate olibanum, that's the main note I get, along with the vetiver/other wood and green notes. I get some tartness from the citrus notes but no lavender or vanilla. 

Tom Ford has some quality, long-lasting perfumes. However, in my ill-informed opinion, they don't really transform or develop, despite having all the workings to be multi-faceted and complex, because one aspect of the composition dominates everything. 

A burnt flavor ruining a delicious meal or delectable dessert. Getting mascara on your eyelid after spending time blending a beautiful eye look. Wrinkles in a shirt, in an otherwise clean and sleek outfit. That belligerent drunk at some event.

I'm sure I will eventually discover a gem in Tom Ford's private collection of fragrances, but it's hard to remain optimistic or excited when it's one disappointment after another.