What Is a Decant?
Decanting is a method of transferring the contents of a larger container into a smaller one.  A fragrance is decanted from its original manufacturer’s bottle into either a small glass sample vial or atomizer bottles of various sizes by one of several methods: either by transferring with a sterile pipette, or by pouring the perfume through a small metal funnel, or often by directly spraying the contents into the smaller container. Each fragrance is freshly decanted just prior to shipping or delivery.

Why Decant?
The reasons are many: it allows perfume aficionados to sample scents that aren't available in their area, or to "test drive" a fragrance and prolong the purchase of a full bottle until they know whether it clicks with them.  Decanting allows a person to buy a small quantity of a pricey perfume that is otherwise unaffordable – and it’s great for the person who only wants, say, a quarter-ounce of a fragrance rather than a huge amount.  For the truly scent-obsessed, decants make it affordable to have an entire perfume wardrobe and to enjoy sniffing a little bit of everything!

 

 

Photo of Serge Lutens Chergui by Suzanne Keller
Original mfg bottle on left; decant in gift pouch on right.

Currently available scents in my collection:

(Click here for descriptions/sizes/prices)

Amouage Gold (women's)
Amouage Jubilation 25 (women's)
Amouage Lyric Woman
Bond No. 9 New Haarlem
Caron Parfum Sacre
Caron Yatagan
Chanel Chance
Chanel Coromandel
Chanel No. 22
Coty Ambre Antique (Vintage 1940s)
Coty Chypre (Vintage 1970s)
Creed Fleurs De Bulgarie
Donna Karan Black Cashmere
Frederic Malle Bigarade Concentree
Frederic Malle Carnal Flower
Geoffrey Beene Grey Flannel
Guerlain Jicky
Hermes 24, Faubourg
Hermes Eau Des Merveilles                                                            1 ml sample; 1.5 ml spray sample; 8 ml glass spray;
Hermes Hiris                                                                                  5 ml silver chrome purse flask; 10 ml glass spray. 
Ines De La Fressange                                                                    (Not pictured: 5 ml glass spray.)
Jean Desprez Bal A Versailles
Jean Patou 1000
Jil Sander No. 4
Kenzo Jungle l'Elephant
L'Artisan Parfumeur Tea for Two
Molinard Habanita
Mona Di Orio Nuit Noire
Montale Black Aoud
Parfums de Nicolai Sacrebleu
Parfums Delrae Amoureuse
Pascal Morabito Or Black
Robert Piquet Fracas
Serge Lutens Chene
Serge Lutens Chergui
Serge Lutens Un Lys
Tauer Perfumes Lonestar Memories
________________________________________________________________________
Read the latest essays & perfume reviews in Suzanne's Perfume Journal

THE NEW YEAR, SMILLA, A CLEANSED PALATE FOR WINTER

& ANGELIQUES SOUS LA PLUIE

 

I rose, unexpectedly, around 5 a.m. on the morning of New Year’s Eve, went to the kitchen and threw out the last several pieces of lasagna from the pan I baked the night before, when one of my husband’s friends from work came to dinner. It was the last of the holiday food; I’d sent half of it home with our guest and intended to cobble a couple of easy meals around the remainder, but then awoke with an intense desire to be rid of it entirely. It’s the same feeling I wake up with every New Year’s Eve: an impatient need to purge myself of the indulgences of Christmas and return to the semi-monastic lifestyle that suits me best. If that description sounds odd coming from someone whose perfume choices seem to reflect a love of all things decadent, well, as I’ve said before, my real-life self is quite the opposite of my perfumed self. For the most part, I crave a steady diet of simple foods, long walks, and quiet, focused work.  Though I enjoy cooking and titillating forays into the world of rich foods, my sensitive digestive system allows for only the briefest of holiday flings. My tolerance for the other trappings of Christmas is limited, too. I keep my Christmas decorations up for only a week. It’s not that I am immune to their glittering beauty; it’s that they seem to occupy a lot of precious space, so that after a while they lose their shine and I begin to regard them as distracting clutter. Click here to read the rest