u/Violetteotome

I know a lot of people have been like me and are on a quest for vanilla, so I thought I might write up a summary here. I reviewed all of these and wrote a big paragraph for each, but I'll try to summarize the biggest takeaways in a sentence or two instead:

• Celine Black Tie - A buttery vanilla with the tiniest hint of smoke, just to give some edge. Very sexy femme fatale.
• Bianco Latte - Starbucks Caramel Frappe with caramel drizzle and whipped cream in a plastic cup (which is maybe a little melted from being next to the steamer). Most gourmand perfume to ever gourmand (but almost painfully so).
• Vanille Orchidee - Reminiscent of Chloé Vanilla Planifolia (but better imo). Almondy vanilla + florals. Lovely and sophisticated.
• Fire at Will - Vanilla extract + brown sugar. Less longevity than Tihota, but a more rounded scent. Gourmand.
• Tihota - Pure, photorealistic vanilla extract. You will not find better. Pure gourmand paradise.
• Mon Guerlain Intense - Comforting & cosy. Amped version of the original. Vanilla + lavender opening, less herbal than the original. Dry down is incredible and consists of vanilla, benzoin, tonka, and sandalwood.
• Spiritueuse Double Vanille - Vanilla incense + cedar. Masculine leaning. Not a yummy or sweet gourmand type of scent, much more mature in that way.
• Vanilla Planifolia - Cosmetic vanilla + playdoh (from almond). Super feminine, goody-two-shoes. Has a minor green banana peel aspect and a very subtle touch of spice. More powdery.
• La Vie est Belle Vanille Nude - Soft vanilla + powder. Hint of jasmine. Cozy, musky skin scent.
• Tonka Latte - Warm, fuzzy, like a scratchy old cashmere and wool blend sweater. Hints of vanilla. A bit dusty, but in a pleasant way. Extremely similar to Mooncake by D'annam, but slightly less syrupy and less honeyed.
• Palais Bourbon - Smells like a sticky bar in France (in a good way). Licorice + vanilla + slight spice. Contains oud, be warned. A strong scent.
• Hypnôse - Sweet, lemon-vanilla shortbread biscuit. It’s buttery and crumbly, with a sand-like texture. Yet, not full-on gourmand. The passionflower is stunning; it’s my first time smelling this note and it is both fruity and floral. It is powdery and cool.
• La Nuit Trésor Vanille Noire - Lovely, but generic. Sweet like a little candy! Soft, comforting. Has body to it and a comforting quality you can also see in Absolutely Blooming from Dior does. I get some cute peachy facets.
• Un Bois Vanille - Metallic/salty vanilla. Hints of coconut (the dessert flakes, the milk, and the earthy shell), some beeswax, some oaky, woody effects, and a natural creaminess.
• Vanille EDP Molinard - Medicinal, linear vanilla with “cola” facets. Pleasant, but not a love for me.
• Fresh Cream Warm Cashmere - Extremely similar to BBW Warm Vanilla Sugar. Poor longevity.
• Hypnotic Poison - Rootbeer float in a bottle. Warm vanilla + almond.
• Secret Sucre - Gentle, warm vanilla + walnut + nougat + cashmere wood. Soft, comforting. Incredibly under-rated. No one ever talks about this one.

Hi everyone! So I am really struggling with my fashion lately. A little context:

I’m immunocompromised. When Covid hit, I became a HARDCORE hermit (was living with my parents, they went out on my behalf for food, etc and I just did online shopping for other essentials) and had zero social media. I also don’t have many friends honestly. I had no idea how fashion was evolving or changing. About five years after COVID, around 2024, I kinda re-entered the world. My fashion had been frozen in time and… I’ve never really quite recovered. I’ve tried to reset my fashion here and there, but it’s never felt quite right.

I’ve always struggled with my fashion too and was content as long as I had some staples items that my peers had. I just kind of followed some high level trends.

But now I want to be my own person and I want to feel good about myself. I just don’t know where to begin. I made a Pinterest board recently and tried to get some items that fit, but they just… don’t look the way I hoped they would on my body.

As a result, I’m thinking I need more serious help. Has anyone ever worked with a stylist for a closet clean out and some recommendations?

Hi all. I’m going to try to be succinct here. I’m working for a company in Northern Ireland, I live in Scotland. I have a disease called Cystic Fibrosis (genetic disease of lungs and digestive system, it’s an invisible illness, not contagious, and doesn’t impact me intellectually). This disease lowers my immune system and makes me vulnerable to bacteria that would normally have zero impact on average people.

I got hired at a company I really like about three months ago. I was told that for the first six months, I would have to fly every week from Scotland to Northern Ireland. After that I could work entirely remotely. Because I’d been really well and because I needed the job and I liked it, I agreed. I was nervous about what could happen, but decided I’d try to white knuckle it and powered through.

After two months of traveling every single week, I became very sick. I had to take off three weeks of work basically and was hospitalised. I have now recovered and return tomorrow.

I no longer want to travel because it’s pretty clear to myself and my doctors that the travel was a major factor in this hospitalisation. I need to have this conversation with my boss, and I’m really afraid since I haven’t yet passed my probation. What do I do?

Before I begin, I know there are many people with CF who are worse off than I am, but their experiences are their own. As we all know, CF is unique for each individual. I posted here not too long ago and, frankly, the responses pissed me off, so I deleted it. Yet here I am again.

To give a renewed history: I am 28. My PFTs have always been quite high (105%+) and I have only ever had one hospitalization until now. Last week I was admitted for my second ever hospitalization and was given a midline for IV antibiotics. I’m home now, but still continuing them. 

For the last 6 years, up until this point, I was on trikafta and was not doing any airway clearance whatsoever. I learned what it felt like to be a “normal” person for the first time. I could smell, for the first time. I remember waking up to the scent of bacon. I remember learning that fish, is in fact, stinky prior to cooking. I could breathe without crackling or strain. I forgot how it felt to have this constant, looming shadow over me. 

Since this second hospitalization, the illusion has been shattered. My life has become monotonous eat, sleep, shit, meds, repeat. No break, no respite. Every day blurs and becomes Groundhog day. I find myself plummeting back into a black hole of medical uncertainty and fear. I am reminded once more of how it feels to be tethered to the weighty anchors of my vest and my IPV. My world has shrunk to the range the hoses and tubes allow me to stretch at. I think things were easier, in some ways, when CF was all I knew and had no "normalcy". Now I do though, and I never want to go back.

The devil in CF’s details is the unexpected ramifications of it. Have a lung infection? Get on tobi. Risk going deaf. Have CF? You have a higher likelihood of bowel cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis. No appetite, can’t keep weight on? Get a feeding tube. Get a life saving drug that can keep you alive? Better hope you don’t get cataracts from it or god forbid, that it trashes your liver. In any way you slice it, CF is just pure suffering. I guess I forgot that for a blissful few years. You ever been on medication with a side effect of fucking bone pain? Or taken an IV that makes you reek of cat piss? Seems like I'm back on that beat now.

Everyone wants me to continue these meds, and insists this is a blip, a temporary hurdle. The reality is that we still don’t know what caused my PFTs to drop. We don’t know if the past four weeks of intense IVs and meds is even going to yield any fruitful results. There is zero guarantee any of this is going to work or help. I spent years taking 50+ pills a day, with 3-4 hours daily airway clearance. I was a CF poster child and a human guinea pig for new trials. Because to quote my mother “if not you, who?”. 

I’ve sacrificed my childhood and my body in the name of science and for a shot at “life”. In reality, I am staring down the barrel of a significantly reduced quality of life, especially now that I'm older. Even with current modulators, that fact doesn’t change. I spent 22 long years militantly adhering to every element of my care regimen. I still have a very high lung function (despite a 20% drop), and I find myself here and forced to take time off work. Did I mention I'm also at risk of losing my job and have had to use up all my vacation days since I don't yet qualify for sick pay?

The truth is, I don’t want to do my meds or treatments anymore, save Trikafta. I want to stop. If I lose lung function, if I can’t do it anymore, I feel peace with that. I had an excellent 6 year run of freedom. People here jumped to the conclusion that I’m suicidal, that I need mental counseling, that I should be grateful to be as healthy as I am. And, very respectfully, fuck you. I don’t want to die, I want to live on my terms. I want to hear music without going deaf. I want to move and dance and run, for as long as I can, without picc lines or mid lines or oxygen. This is about my quality of life and I would rather have a much, much shorter life than one that is longer with stretches where all I know for weeks are the walls of my lonely hospital room. I don’t want to get stomach injections for blood thinners, I don’t want my blood pressure taken at 3am, I don’t want my fingers pricked to check my blood sugar when I’m already have to do my glucose tests annually.

I am tired all the time now and just wanted to vent.

Edit: Yup, feel free to downvote me to hell. Sorry I can't be the upbeat, positive, smiley inspo CF warrior you all magically seem to be. Sorry it's not the feel good circlejerk you're hoping for. We are entitled to different experiences and I don't deserve to be shamed for mine.

I’m in the hospital and having an extremely difficult time. I’m on very intense antibiotics, etc. I am losing hope and I not sure I will ever get back to baseline. Usually when I am down or going through something, I will use perfume as a pick me up and buy a new one to celebrate an accomplishment. Are any of you the same? And if so, what are you wanting next?

I’ve only been admitted once in my life and this is the second time now. I have some basic questions I need answered.

1. I am really struggling with IV antibiotics. It’s extremely uncomfortable and I can’t handle it. I am getting it in the spot where you would normally have blood taken, the crook of your arm. It’s just unbelievably sore. They tried it in each arm and had to remove it both times. They tried at the top middle of my arm which was even worse. I didn’t even attempt my hands. I’m considering a picc line like I had at my last admission but if I can avoid it that’d be good. Any ideas to cope?
2. None of the nurses or staff at this hospital wear masks in my room. Sometimes they don’t wear gloves or they aren’t like… visibly fresh gloves (like if they’re just popping in) and they never really put on their little aprons like they did at my first hospital stay. Is this acceptable or standard?
3. The hospital ward I’m in is not solely for CF patients. It has cancer patients, pneumonia patients, COPD, etc. It also has other CF patients. I’m in a room by myself though. Is this normal?

Basically the title. I know there tend to be a lot of these threads, but I’m frankly too exhausted to comb through them. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. I love all kinds of food. If there is a better place for me to post this questions let me know and I’ll go there instead. Thanks!

Edit: it’s the Western General, but I think my husband would be willing to go a bit further if it was particularly good (I’m very lucky, he’s a saint). Not really sure why I’m being downvoted

This question was posed in another sub, and I'm certain it's been posted here, but I always love reading other peoples responses to it. If you lost your entire collection tomorrow, what would you repurchase? (Please try to keep it to one scent, though I know I am about to break my own rule so... two max people!)

I would choose:

The Favourite (my wedding perfume) and Violette de Molinard (the first perfume my husband gifted me). I would buy them both again immediately.

Violette is my signature perfume. It’s a bright, fresh, candied violet with green apple. It’s a youthful, whimsical, and sugary gourmand. My husband bought it for me at the Molinard store in Grasse, France. It was part of our first time meeting. When we left the store, I sprayed it on. We tucked into a cobblestone alleyway, with the rain pouring down around us, and he kissed me there. It was a moment I’ll treasure for a lifetime. The scent always brings me back to that kiss and the taste of passionfruit macarons.

As for The Favourite, the reason is more complex. For most of my life, I felt unwanted—the black sheep, someone who was difficult to love, never really anyone's first choice. My husband is the first and only person in my life who has seen me for ME, and loves all of me. On our wedding day, I was his favorite, and he was mine. Now we belong to one another forever. That perfume was a way of immortalizing that magical feeling of being chosen. I originally debated heavily over whether to wear this as my wedding scent due to its name. However, I felt like it gave me a certain courage to take up space and say “yeah, I deserve this, I AM loveable”. It allowed me to claim a word that never felt like it could belong to me. Now when I smell it, I think of how hard he was smiling on our wedding day.

Background: I am on trikafta. My lung function in the past years since I started it has been stellar. I have stopped all airway clearance since being on it, which is about 6 years (since 2019). My PFTs during this time remained very high, usually 105%-117%.

I had a CF appointment last week and my lung function dropped for the first time by about 20%. It went from 117% to 98%. This meant I needed to get back onto airway clearance asap. I’m also on two decently strong oral antibiotics (cipro and amoxicillin).

I’ve restarted albuterol, hypertonic saline (7%) and pulmozyme for the first time in six years. I’ve been doing them all through a nebulizer. No vest or pep or IPV yet but am starting it soon. I imagined when restarting it that it would be a walk in the park. I used it for 22 years and I’m healthier now than I was then. How bad could it be?

Well, it’s fucking kicking my ass. I’m having a pretty severe reaction I think but I’m white knuckling it and trying to regain the tolerance I clearly had before.

I’m having severe issues with the following:
* shaking
* rapid heartbeat, heavy heartbeats (pounding heart to the point it’s alarming/uncomfortable)
* feeling weak
* feeling faint
* feeling nauseous, like I’m going to puke
* feeling a sensation like I need to hiccup or on the verge of a hiccup, but unable to

The heart symptoms are the worse and most prominent.

I notice it most around either the albuterol or hypertonic saline, but I’m leaning towards the latter. I am exhausted after every treatment and have to lay down. I’m not coughing at all though and producing no sputum. Has anyone else had these issues?

I am not planning on telling my doctors this because I am determined to reacclimatise myself and I don’t want them to stop prescribing these three solutions. My UK team is shitty like that.

I am going through a pretty significant health crisis. I’m originally from the USA, but have moved to the UK. I am grateful for free healthcare, but I am experiencing significant cultural strain.

In the USA, it is encouraged to discuss options with your doctor and to advocate for yourself. I understand the NHS is under significant strain, but I am simply looking to get equal quality care to that which I received at home. I have made concessions at every turn here with my NHS team to be flexible and to try to not be seen as difficult, but I am now paying a very steep cost.

Please. This feels very “the doctor tells you what to do, I may take some things you’ve said into consideration, but you will do whatever I feel is best and I’ll cut corners where we can”. There’s also a very British “chin up, could be worse” attitude. The entire approach is very reactive rather than proactive.

And before it starts, yes, I’m beginning to look into changing cystic fibrosis care teams and I am also looking into private healthcare.

Please. My health is in a very precarious position. I don’t know what to do anymore to be listened to. No one will listen to me. It’s been three years and I have not even been met halfway.