Love Chanel - A side by side test of two Chanels

In my mind, I have thought of the Jaques Polge (former house pefumer of Chanel) creations Allure Sensuelle Edp (launched in 2005) and Coco Mademoiselle Edp (launched in 2001) as quite similar, always thinking of the other when wearing the other one. As I have to get clarity in this mystery, I've at last compared them side by side. Below my thoughts:

The similarity between the two is that they are on the same level of radiation, on the same stage on the fragrance notescale, both are somewhere between bright than dark even if containing heavy notes and accords. And of course, the elegant Chanel interpretation of patchouli is the core ingredient in both fragrances.

Picture: Chanel Allure Sensuelle Edp
Photo: PR Chanel (c)

Allure Sensuelle starts with radiant notes of spices and resins with an ambery, patchouli character. The texture is balsamic and almost like sweet rubber, I can imagine of a pink chewinggum. There are also glimpses of something resembeling menthol or nailpolish in Allure Sensuelle. The spicy notes are strict, well mannared and have an almost cold quality.  The ambery, spicy patchouli are accompanied with discrete flowers and dried fruits, everything very balanced and well behaved. When coming to Chanel oriental fragrances, the chilly, balanced and behaved  floral oriental  Allure Sensuelle contrasts to the warm, spicy and bombastic spicy oriental Coco (launched 1984). Compared to Coco Mademoiselle, Allure Sensuelle is sweeter and  more polished. It also feels more complicated, with some strange twists which gives the fragrance an overall more interesting drydown than Coco Mad.

Picture: Chanel Coco Mademoiselle Edp
Photo: PR Chanel (c)

Coco Mademoiselle starts with a contrasting orange/citrus and patchouli accord with elegant touches of bergamot. The heart of Coco Mad is classic florals interpreted in a clean, scaled down, contemporary way, there is no traces of a romantic floral bouquet or rural flower meadows. Coco Mad is a fragrance for urban life, a fragance which mingles well with asphalt and exhaust. The flowery heart is accompained by a musky patchouli, instead of the ambery patchouli in Allure Sensuelle, wrapped in light balsamic notes. The base of Coco Mad is the gold standard for the contemporary so called chypre, where patchouli blends became a different alternative to the banned oakmoss. Not in smelling the same, but to create a similar feeling. Compared to Allure Sensuelle, I find Coco Mad as lauder and more straight forward in its development, there are not the weired twists as in Allure Sensuelle. The patchouli is also more outstanding as single note in the basenotes of Coco Mad, in Allure Sensuelle the patch is more integrated with the amber and spices in the basenotes.

To summon up; two great classics where definitly Allure Sensuelle deserves more attention as an alternative to Coco Mad and Coco Mad doesn't need any attention as its one of the bestsellers, if not the bestseller of the 2000s.

Love Chanel

Picture: Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel
Photo from the blog The Encanted Manor

Chanel is a house with an aesthetics to love (just as Hermès). The chic aesthetics  also affects, or maybe more correct, inspires the fragrances from the house. The fragrances are well made and even if not in love with every subline, my craving for Chanel fragrances is enough to qualify Chanel as one of my favorite perfumehouses. I think many of the Chanels in the regular line is as good as Les Exclusifs, the difference is more in price and distribution, not the quality of the production.

I very much appreciate the aldehydic classics like No 5 in its difierent versions, as also the mossy citrus of Cristalle and the greenery of No 19 in the different interpretations of those classics. Also the modern classics as the incredible spicy oriental Coco and the not as much talked about gem Allure Sensuelle are favorites as also the mega hit, the contemporary fruity-floral chypre Coco Mademoiselle and its balsamic, spicy follower Coco Noir.

When it comes to Les Exclusifs there are also plenty to love. The green and clean woody vetiver Sycomore, the putty, slight dirty aldehyde No 22, the strange amberette No 18, the elegant flowers of Beige and best of them all the smooth, light flower touched, gunpowder leather of Cuir de Russie.

I'm now curious to try the new Gabrielle and find out if the new Chanel pillar fragrance will qualify among my favourites.

Easter fragrances 2016

Picture: Imperial Coronation Egg (Fabergé),
photographed at an exhibition in Rome
Photo: Miguel Hermoso Cuesta (cc)
Wikimedia Commons some rights reserved

This year I'll skip to find something to the usual Easter fragrance categories (gourmand-sweet, churchy-incense, green-crispy- leafy-bulbflowery) from which I pick fragrances suitable for Easter. Instead I'll pay attention to some fragrances which pleases me extra right now.

Heliotrope Blanc (Oriza L.Legrand): Ok this one suits perfectly in my traditional gourmand sweet category. Fluffy, alamonds, powder and vanilla, this is cosiness and comfort at it's best. The smell recalls  the sweetest of Easterbunnis.

Black Opium Edp (Yves Saint Laurent): I know I'm taken the risk to be written of as a serious perfumista by admitting that I feel very comfortable in Black Opium and I think it smells quite good. And so does also Mr Parfumista "This one smells better on you than many of the niche fregrances you're testing". Another one in the sweet territory.

Rosarium (Angela Ciampagna): A calming and contemplating, smooth rose incense, like taking a break sitting down in a small italian medival rual chapel a warm summerday.

Shermine (Huiteme Art): This furry iris/lavender with its very special almost chalky citrus note attracts compliments from those around. Perfect for the early wintery Easter of this year.

Marions Nous (Oriza L.Legrand): Recently I've been in an Oriza circle, I just can't get enough of the fragrances from this house. Marions Nous is a successful intepreation of an 1920s aldehyde fragrance. Sparkling, almost refreshing and in the same time with animalic notes lurking from it's depts. A fragrance which becomes better with each wearing.

Allure Sensuelle Edp (Chanel): A incrediable comforting fragrance in the Coco Mademoiselle - Coco Noir style but more fruity and with less patchouli  Smoother and rounded compared to the former two, a forgotten gem in the Chanelline.

Ylang-Ylang Nosy Be Extrait (Perris Monte Carlo): Last but not least the beautiful, intense, glowing, sweet, flowery, vanillic interpretation of one of the most faithful flowery teammates of "parfums de femme" the ylang-ylang.

Happy Easter!

Parfumerie Générale - L'Oiseau de Nuit

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

Scroll down for an english version.

Pierre Guillaumes L'Oiseau de Nuit ska vara något av en light-läder och något lätt-lädrigt finns det nog i denna nattfågel. Men främst finns där en fin kittig not som jag tycker är trevlig i dofter. Den kittiga noten finns också i Chanels Allure Sensuelle och i Serge Lutens ekträ doftande Chêne. Så därför känns L'OdN ganska bekant. En annan not som är tydlig i L'OdN är en mörkt, dov, fruktighet som kommer av davana extrakt (artemisia). Det finns också en lite jordig ton i L'OdN. Den påminner också om en mer feminin, sötare och snällare variant av PG:s L'Ombre Fauve.

För mig är L'OdN en mörkt, blå doft som faktiskt ger nattassociationer. Doften är komfortabel och mörkt, aprikosmarmeladigt söt, sammansatt av fina ingredienser av hög kvalitet. Men samtidigt känns den lite rörig och splittrad, som om den inte kan bestämma sig utan ska vara så mycket på en gång, lite som en splittrad tonåring. Både L'Ombre Fauve, Allure Sensuelle och Chêne är mycket mer vuxna och bestämda i sin karaktär, de kör sina egna race med tydliga mål i sikte. Men det här är som L'OdN uppträder på min hud, den är säkert helt suberb på många andra. L'OdN passar bäst höst och vinter och är bärbar vid de flesta tillfällen. Projektionen är ganska låg, något av en skinscent på mig, och hållbarheten på huden är fullt tillräcklig.

L'Oiseau de Nuit  by Pierre Guillaume is something of a light leather and some delicate leather there certainly is in this night bird. But mostly there is a putty, slight sweet, woody, note that I think is so nice in fragrances. That putty note is also available in Chanel's Allure Sensuelle and Serge Lutens oak scented Chene. So that's probably why L'OdN  is quite familiar. Another note that is clear in L'OdN is a dark, subdued, fruitiness (as dried dates) that comes from the Davana extract (artemisia). There is also a slightly earthy tone of L'OdN that recalls me of PG L'Ombre Fauve. And to me L'OdN is something of aa more feminine, prettier and easier version of the dusky PG L'Ombre Fauve.

To me, L'OdN is a dark blue fragrance that actually gives associations of the night, just as the picture above. The scent is comfortable and dark, sweet like apricot jam and as PG:s generally are, composed of high quality ingredients. But at the same time it feels a bit cluttered and fragmented, as if it can not decide how to evolve, a bit like a lost teenager that want's to be so much at once. Both L'Ombre Fauve, Allure Sensuelle and Chene are much more adult and definite in their character, they are running their own race with a clear goal in sight. But this is as L'OdN appears on my skin, it is certainly quite superb on other skin chemistrys. L'OdN is best suited for autumn and winter and wearable for most occasions. The sillage is quite low, almost a skinscent to me, and the longevity good but not outstanding.

Rating: 4

Noter: Labdanum, davana extrakt, benzoin, läder/leather

Mer om doftval

Foto: Herr Parfumista (c)

Ursprungligen publicerat på min tidigare blogg "Parfumistans blogg" på Damerns Världs hemsida i november 2008.

Med tanke på mina inlägg om hur man ska gå till väga för att välja doft så finns det ytterligare en parameter som kan vara bra att ta hänsyn till: En parfyms uthållighet på marknaden, att låta tiden ha sin gång. De dofter som finns kvar några år efter introduktionen är i regel sådana som håller i längden och vissa av dem blir också klassiker. Dessutom har de hunnit falla i pris. Ofta är det bäst att satsa på den första doften och inte på någon av alla flankers som numera brukar följa en bra doft. Men det finns å andra sidan bra flankers som står på egna ben och som är helt nya dofter som Diors flanker-Poisoner, Coco Mademoiselle, Allure Sensuelle etc.

Hitta pärlorna

Foto: Parfumista (c)

Ursprungligen publicerat på min tidigare blogg "Parfumistans blogg" på Damerns
Världs hemsida i januari 2009.

Som jag tidigare skrivit om så tar det i regel ett par år innan pärlorna i en årgång sållats fram. Att de fortfarande finns kvar på marknaden trots det massiva, ständigt ökande utbudet visar på dofternas kvalitet eller åtminstone på en personlighet/originalitet. Dessutom har priserna ofta sjunkit jämfört med nyheterna. I en normal parfymaffärs standardsortiment kan man hitta många bra parfymer som kommer att bli eller redan är klassiker. Här några som passar för den mörka årstiden:

Prada (Prada): Elegant patchoulli, trä och tonkaböna baserad doft som gjord för att matcha kashmirtröjan eller pälsen. Skapad av Carlos Benaïm och Max Gavvary 2004.

Angel (Mugler): Denna patchoullibomb med mörk choklad och mörka, övermogna frukter var banbrytande när den kom 1992. Hatad av många men älskad av fler. Skapad av Olivier Cresp och Yves Chiris.

Coco: (Chanel): Kryddig oriental, inspirerad av barockens överdåd. Skapad av Chanels mångåriga husnäsa Jaques Polge 1984.

Hypnotic Poison (Dior): Träig vaniljbas med kardemumma, mandel, dov jasmin och mossa. Skapad av Annick Menardo 1998.

Jasmin Noir (Bulgari): Denna fina gröna, träiga jasmindoft som kom ut så sent som 2008 är en säker framtida klassiker. I mitt tycke en av årets absoluta topplanseringar. Skapad av Carlos Benaïm och Sophie Labbe.

Vilka exempel på bra, lättåtkomliga, ”vinterdofter” har du?

Vintern 2011: Håller fortfarande med men vill lägga till ett par till som: Dior Addict (mmm), Chanel Allure Sensuelle, Paco Rabanne Lady Million och gamla trotjänaren Guerlain Shalimar förstås.