WIthout getting too much into the details, let's just say I did a fair amount of research, conversing with various shop owners and studying all things oud on my recent trip to Dubai at the "fragrance souk" (the marketplace in the old part of town.) The shop owners couldn't have been more helpful educating me about this fascinating topic. I bought several different forms of ouds (e.g. pure oils/attars, wood chips, incense.) This morning I thought I'd try the more traditional, Middle Eastern way of applying an oud scent given that I wasn't going to see anyone until dinner tonight. I've already burned a few chips of this particular oud in the burner, that was given to me by a shop owner. From those first few burns I got a real good idea as to the smell and strength of this oud, and there was no real surprise from what I remembered back in that shop. To "apply" the smoke from the burning oud chip (soaked in pure oil) I waved the fabric of my shirt through the smoke for about 15 seconds. Then I cupped the smoke with my hands and basically patted it onto my head and neck. Yep... I REALLY did this today. BTW, if it's the real deal, you should be able to put your face in the smoke and it will not burn your eyes. If it's fake, it'll smell like a cigarette or worse. So the big question some will ask is; Where are the chips sourced? Lootah does not specifically say where they're sourcing some of their chips from because, like blended Scotch, their chips are generally from India, Cambodia and Indonesia, but the important thing for most Houses is the consistency of the fragrance among their various products. This one shop owner gave me some Indian oud, Vietnamese oud, Cambodian oud and others, so I can distinguish the general aromas from the various countries. However as he explained, it's more complicated than simply where it's sourced. You can have oud that is wild vs. plantation grown, sinking vs. floating, and of course there are various grades within all that. The scent profiles can be woody, earthy, animalic (sometimes down-right barnyardy), sweet, smoky, etc, with regional styles often dictating the characteristics.

I won't go into details and this is not to post to point fingers at individuals or put anyone in blast. I am not good with conveying my thoughts so here I will try. Also trying to be vague just to make a generalized comment. We all join this community for our own personal reasons, learn, teach, or just plane relax and enjoy the hobby. I am of the latter. I have a full time job with a fair amount of responsibilities and a business on the side in which small business depend on me. So BoS is my getaway. I like to read people's post, chime in whenever and a lot of you are the same way. Some of you are here to get educated and I am all for that too. I know some of you want BoS to be more than just a post and like board, a place of education to further the knowledge in the community and hold their own standards, but we can't expect everyone to adhere to those standards although some of us try. A part of education is also people having to have some accountable and do a search for information, be surprised on how much info is out there and has been repeated many times. For those who need or want the education, there has to be some some level of accountability for self education. I use the search function to look for my old posts, other people posts for info etc. I know this may be confusing for some since I didn't give any context, I do apologize for that, but again this is not to call people out, just a statement if we are all here for different reasons and be respectful of that.

Wonderful house and frag to stave off the return of winter to my door. Mother Nature brought back sloppy Friday snow. Yuk. Well this spicy leather based frag rings out the raspberry perfectly so nod to our brother @Edward Mooney this needs to get a look from you!!! If I remember we talked recently about this topic. Longevity and performance is excellent. Stay warm today all.

Yesterday I did the whole camel ride, star gazing, local cuisine thing in the Arabian desert, and yes, it was cool. However with me, very often one thing leads to another, so my life is often a series of rabbit holes (examples upon request). Suffice to say, I'm not on my way to Abu Dhabi right now by accident. For the most part, the thing I've really captured with this whole new fragrance hobby is a much better understanding of myself in ways I never could have imagined. Anyway, yesterday I joked about just trying to smell better than the camel, but that got me thinking... I'm going to have to follow this up when I get back home and I can sit in front of a real live computer rather than pecking away on my phone. Question: Over the course of a week ON AVERAGE, how much time do you spend watching YouTube and/or Tictoc influencers? Your additional comments and explanations are appreciated.

Sitting here looking at all the clones I have acquired has me thinking, why? And these are my conclusions and thoughts!!! Clones serve a purpose in the fragrance community as either an introduction to fragrances not usually affordable to a great segment of people. Although you are sacrificing, for the most part, Quality, it gives you a great perspective of the scent profile. Here are the main problems that I see daily 1. The marketing can sometimes get really deceptive, and it is not just the company 2. The Influencers who are hoping to capitalize on the clone market. 3. The fanboys who promote the clone fragrances anytime they can. In the first instance, the Companies will go out of their way to market it better than the og 2. The influencers, for the most part, will try to market it as if it were its identical, as it guides the consumer towards a purchase. Usually, for some monetary gain or gifting from the company. And the third part, well, most people will promote either what they have or can afford, and some are frugal. It gives them a sense of belonging, and it is human nature. Some of the reasons for #3 are: Illusory Truth Effect: Repeated exposure to false information makes it seem more true, even when you know it's false. Confirmation Bias: We actively seek, interpret, and remember information that supports our existing beliefs, while ignoring disconfirming evidence. Illusion of Information Adequacy: People assume they possess all the necessary information to be correct without seeking more, even with limited facts. Emotional Reasoning: We justify conclusions we've already reached emotionally, rather than logically. This is why it is necessary to evaluate your purchases, especially when referencing the above criteria of how and why we purchase clones. Reasons for Purchasing Clone fragrances should be: 1. The Price of the Original is so outrageous that you want the experience knowing you are going to sacrifice quality and often performance. 2. You like the scent profile not love it, and would like to have this in a collection, but you know you will not get alot of wear out of said fragrance. 3. Price again, you are at this time in life, or have other expenses that would prohibit you from purchasing the Original. Or you are frugal and want to save your money for other things. but then again, you still need to revert to #1 in terms of what you are sacrificing. 4. When the original fragrance has already been deemed to have poor performance, and the Clone has been noted to improve on the performance issues. ( This is the exception and not very common) But I have experienced this from time to time, so let's stop promoting everything based on this premise!!! Reasons for Not Purchasing Clones should be: 1. You are Meticulous in your expectations and are looking for Quality and performance, and you expect to recreate the original at a bargain price. including performance. 2. You believe that there is resale value in the Clone, which in fact thier is virtually none!!! 3. The price of the Original is lower than the price of the Clone on a dollar-for-dollar basis, unless on those rare occasions where you just love the scent profile and the original has a lackluster performance. Examples of this would be when the original is an EDT, and the clone preserves the Scent profile and is made into an EDP or an Extrait. 4. You are trying to keep up with others and are willing to do anything to amass a large collection based on what's posted in the group!!! Any way just some information for us all on my perspective on making informed purchases, and all feedback is welcome!!!