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Дания – :
I’m not a vintage fragrance collector; this review is for the recent iteration in the wide cut glass bottle. If there were such a thing as a perfume-scented perfume, L’Aimant is it. Spicy rose and ylang-ylang; I actually thought it was carnation at first, it’s that spicy. The peach and sandalwood are most noticeable, yet overall this is so well blended the notes do not stand out.
Spicy rose, peach, sandalwood, a totally romantic fragrance…I would lay odds on this having been a formative influence on Sophia Grojsman’s style. Or maybe Chanel No. 5 was the influence (more likely). A great classic scent, perfect for fall. A little like Nahema as well.
кот22 – :
Vintage drugstore aldehyde bargain fragrance – there are so many descriptions for this classic Coty scent.
The fragrance isn’t nearly as sharp or sour as Chantilly, another Coty frag. L’Aimant is smooth and floral. It’s a typical classic scent that has stood the test of time. It may be cheap but it doesn’t smell cheap.
Not much sillage or lasting power, which allows me to reapply without blasting anyone in the near vicinity.
I like L’Aimant very much, it cheers me up for some reason. Yes, it’s a bit old fashioned, but in the best way possible.
lekart – :
A cheap thrill for lovers of aldehydes. Reminds me of Topaze and Chanel no 5. A bit too hairspray smelling and soapy for me I have the edt and the body spray and I actually prefer the spray to the edt. Long lasting!
alina_77 – :
Scouting in the Boots bargain section for a fragrance to try I stumbled across this gem. Wow! It seemed so familiar, my first impression was of L’Heure Bleue. A later test revealed they are not too similar except for that vintage vibe, but I knew it reminded me of something. I snagged a little 15ml bottle of L’Aimant for less than five pounds.
So impressed by this, and for the price it’s unbelievable. Soft, feminine, and classy, with a vintage feel that isn’t overpowering. Longetivity is decent, better than some pricier perfumes I’ve tried. Even the Art Deco style bottle is a keeper.
I was curious about the comparisons to Chanel no. 5, but it had been that long since I smelled that perfume I had to seek it out to do a comparison. Yes, they are very much alike. The Chanel has more depth as you might expect, but L’Aimant is a fantastic little budget alternative.
lisa240880 – :
FYI– I bought a sealed talc in a pink canister, with the beige logo and it’s completely lost the scent. 🙁
boriska – :
Such a timeless beauty , sweet , baby powdery , a little musky , heady , charming & calming .. love this perfume . !! It is a must in my collection ..
gedrh – :
This was a blind purchase because I have been reading that it is very similar to Chanel No5. I already own Chanel No5 Eau de Parfume and I have been tempted to buy the Eau Premiere as well as it is, especially in the warm months, softer and cleaner but as much as I adore it, I decidedly refuse to pay that price for a watered down fragrance that will have disappeared after 3 hours.
That said, L’Aimant is also a very nice fragrance, indeed very reminiscent of Chanel No5 and to me it is closer to the Eau Premiere than anything else of the Chanel No 5 series. The only difference is that in No 5 I feel the ylang-ylang and jasmine combo to be the more dominant note whereas in L’Aimant it is the neroli to take the lead.
I don’t know L’Heure Bleu or Baghari, the other two fragrances it has been compared to, so for me Chanel No5 is the only reference.
In order to fully enjoy this scent I try not to smell it for the first 30 minutes after spraying as the top notes are quite strong on neroli. After the top notes have gone, it settles down to a cosy, powdery clean scent, very similar to the dry down of Chanel No5 Eau Premiere. Beautiful!
Update: I have to say that in the heat of summer humid days I prefer this one to Chanle No 5 Eau Premiere. This is somehow fresher and cleaner, like after a refreshing bath.
I have also layered it sometimes with one spritz of Prada Candy and the result is gorgeous!
Mezaj186Diobtetty – :
I have both an older cologne (at least 20 years old) and a current parfum de toilette. I’m happy to say the fragrances are very similar. As these are different concentrations, perhaps a left wrist/right wrist comparison isn’t the best test, but I did it anyway. The current version of L’AIMANT is somewhat richer overall (which I’d expect from a pdt vs an edc), but it’s also just a tad fresher and a tad sweeter, particularly during the initial phase. Both have soft aldehyde notes and they dry down to a lovely powdery scent that is slightly spicy and just slightly floral. Sillage is low/moderate for both. Interestingly, the longevity is better for the modern parfum de toilette than the older cologne.
L’AIMANT often is likened to No 5 by Chanel and while I understand the comparison, I’ve never thought of it as a dupe. If you’re a fan of powdery, aldehydic fragrances as I am, you might want to try L’AIMANT whether or not No 5 is a fragrance that works for you.
Note: The bottle shape for the parfum de toilette is different than the cologne pictured here. The pdt is presented in a deco-inspired bottle that is somewhat diamond-shaped with angled “shoulders.” The name is printed on the bottle in gold and there is no paper label.
(The modern one has the batch code 6293 and was manufactured in October, 2016. The sticker has long since vanished from the older bottle.)
mishany77 – :
I wanted Chanel No.5 for a long time but there ain’t no way I fork out aud184 for a edt that lasts all but 1hr on me…
So I got this instead…..
Its a blind buy and not yet receive it.
Will dona proper review once I do…
alex-lipa – :
I have a NIB 1.7 Parfum de Toilette from Fragrancnet, just received today.
It does not look like the main photo to this page. It’s kinda like a seashell shape? The six-sided clear glass shape. (2 of 4 above)
I also have a vintage splash of PdeT. A long glass bottle with a flower metal cap.
And honestly I prefer the modern/recent. It’s the same scent, but fresher and stronger than the vintage (which may have deteriorated or gone stale? Don’t get me wrong, the vintage is awesome, but I won’t spend for vintage when the current PdT is really really good)
Overall, a fresher take on Chanel No. 5- cleaner, soapier, sweeter, sparklier. I really like this. While the 50ml PdT is $11-12, I think I’ll grab a couple backups. Very easy to wear and pleasing.
elumen – :
There are two different bottle designs sold on Amazon. The one pictured above isn’t offered on Fragrancenet. So…is there a difference between what each bottle smells like? And I’m referring to the modern formulations, not vintage comparisons. Thanks 🙂
torrent2009 – :
I got a great price on a nearly full 2.5 oz Parfum de Toilette vintage.
Just one tiny dab on my wrist first.
YESSS!!! Oh that No. 5 smell…. mmmmmm…. oh wait… bye aldehydes. No more No. 5… But then it’s fruity and powdery and musky/woody. Vintage smelling but not old. It’s pretty and light. I like this! It’s smooth and powdery, girlie too. (not old lady IMO) It is soapy, but in a soft way, not sharp or cloying.
I can’t wait to decant some of this splash into a spray. I’m a sprayer. I need to try this proper ASAP!
I wore Baghari EDP today (newest formula) because I knew they would be similar, and I could try L’Aimant while still wearing Baghari.
I also ordered the newest PDT 50ml from Fragrancenet for less than $13.
klopomor – :
Blind amazing purchase.
I had one guy I like to check his posts in Instagram and he love this one.
After we have exchanged conversation I have decided to buy it.
I am happy.
Here is why!
I know Chanel 5 really well I don’t like Leau..but Eau de perfum is my fav right next to Misia.
But L aimant.
I didn’t want to have copy of 5.
I respect Chanel with her character… even if Coty was dreaming to be similar to 5… he have created amazing perfume even … it’s a little bit similar to 5.
First spray is a very vintagy soap. To me its paradise because I use Santa Maria Novella soaps and it’s reminds me notes from there so I am happy.
The other thing… dry down.
To me I feel Tonka and poudre and white flowers.
If I can be honest with you- L aimant reminds me more Guerlain – in this scent I feel bergamot and tonka like Tonka Imepriale. With a difference… Coty have made a baby … beans… Guerlain choose an old ones…and mixed it with powerful strenght in formula.
L aimant is a very delicate, shy scent… I think someone who is a very shy will find it attractive because its truly smells innocent… after 30 minutes.
The dry down smells powdery/woody covered with white flowers and sweetness.
So answering question… is it like 5?
Of course not.. these are two different characters with a similar soapy notes.
I like them both… both are giving me cosy; clean and fresh time.
I would say… L aimant is like … pouder warm blanket- while 5 has a power.. and glory with his…classic tones and character.
Even I purchase a lot of perfumes daily.
This one I always have in my bag with me.
Lair – :
I have only just received my gift set in the post yesterday so over time I will update my review. I was curious to try this after reading so many other reviews that liken L’aimant to Chanel’s no 5 and having worn Chanel for a number of years I can see why. This fragrance is very similar although it is not as intense as Chanel. The first whiff I got was so similar that it was difficult for me to work out who was who. Then after the dry down period my L’aimant softened to almost a mature peachy scent before fading into the background and then I could no longer smell it on me.
L’aimant is feminine, it’s classy, and I really like it and it’s only day two. I got my one with a free body spray which I keep in the bathroom and the perfume in my bedroom. I think that I will be buying this again and as a gift for a close friend who is also a Chanel lover. I think this one could be saving us a ton of money. Its beautiful and the bottle is too. I bought it as a blind buy and very pleased that I did.
wadaSeksstege – :
I tested it alongside Chanel n.5 (EdT). one on each hand. They do have similarities, but for me they create different moods.
L’Aimant, on me, is a very powdery aldehydic floral with a complex woody base which is there to support and ground the flowers. There is nothing baby-ish about this powder. It is a woman’s powder, proper but slightly sexy. A lady, but a lady who is a human as well. I can smell the rose and the ylang-ylang, the hint of sandalwood, and maybe some of the other notes.
Warm, comforting, relaxing. To me, it creates the feeling of serenity and warmth, and can be appropriate for office, for dates and for relaxing at home. It’s unexpectedly ageless as well, at least in my opinion. Smells like a really really good talcum powder, but better.
I will probably buy it 🙂
—
Compared to Chanel n.5 EdT: L’Aimant is way more powdery and a little more soapy, and even more serene/relaxing than n.5 EdT. Both are floral, powdery, serene and well-balanced. n.5 EdT is woodier, more animalic, much more complex, more sophisticated, less soapy, less powdery.
Both are worth having.
—
I own a sample.
nabby27 – :
My mother never actually wore perfume, but she did receive a few bottles of L’Aimant in the 50s and early 60s. They were unopened, in one of her dresser drawers, and I never actually was able to smell it. She did however, use the body powder.
When my mother moved a few years ago, I was given those bottles of L’Aimant.
Although I’m not generally a fan of classic Coty fragrances, this one really stands apart from the rest. It’s feminine and floral, with just a hint of musk. I find it difficult to distinguish the individual notes, but the overall fragrance is really lovely. And of course, it reminds me of how my mother used to smell wearing the dusting powder, which brings back a lot of good memories.
I have not tried a new version of this fragrance, so I can’t speak to that.
If you are a fan of the modern L’Aimant, I recommend finding a vintage bottle, and giving it a try.
lzx410JeomiWogkig – :
Beautiful!
As a vintage fragrance collector and entertainer, and as the proud owner of a vintage 1950’s pink Cadillac convertible, lover of vinyl records and Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe, this is my kind of fragrance! Why you ask? Because it’s such a sweet old fashioned 1950’s style boudoir pink powder fragrance. This is so pink! It has a delicate femininity that reminds me of Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly. The dresser table vanity boudoir thing. It’s also suited to a young teen. This is a starter aldehyde floral. Love the soapy clean fresh aldehyde opening, the flower notes, the woods and vanilla dry down. It’s long lasting, powdery and very pretty.
The first time I wore her I was dolled up as Marilyn Monroe and a friend of my mother suggested I look for this fragrance so I went to a rummage sale in Palm Beach Gardens my neighborhood in Florida. The lady there had an estate sale not a rummage sale! So I was able to get my hands on this beauty and other little valuables. This is a priceless vintage perfume. I can’t stop smelling myself! This feels so good on my skin and it’s like a rose scented sachet or dusting powder on one’s fresh off the shower skin. It’s also great as bath water. The aldehydes are an old fashioned touch which then turn into a citrus. I smell neroli and oranges, mixed with some fruity peach. It is a bit reminiscent of Arpege Lanvin and No. 5 from Chanel. Since I have worn both and love both as vintage classic masterpieces, I love to wear this one too. They match up with my vintage clothing.
Like No. 5, this is a glamorous and very feminine powdery floral woodsy musk. Still I have to say that No. 5 is more on the animalic side because of the civet note, which is missing in L’Aimant. This is instead a more fruity floral with a sweet freshness that totally goes with youthful skin and younger fresh faces. It must have been a prom queen perfume in the 50’s. This goes with pink or carnation, beige or baby blue satin or velvet dresses and gowns, tiaras, rose bouquets. This is very lady like. It’s also a scent that is instantly at home in the beauty salon as it would be in the interior of a woman’s bedroom. This is a smell of good hair from the salon when done, of make-up, lipstick, rouge and powder. It’s the kind of frag I really love. Pin-up girl perfume. In the same league as Givenchy’s L’Interdit. The rose here is powdery, so powdery. But tempered with orchids, ylang, jasmine and geranium. The geranium and rose notes are similar. The dry down is vanilla and woods. The cedar and sandal wood is terrific. The musk. These are good base notes that give the scent a longer lasting performance.
This is a floral and great for wearing in spring time. It’s one of my mother’s perfumes but I don’t care if I smell like her or her friends. When in costume and in character as a person who lived through the 50’s and before that, it is so helpful in establishing character and mood. This is a theatrical type of perfume. I have even put it on in dressing rooms before going out to perform. This is heavenly florals, soapy sweet clean delicious aldehydic citrus and peach, vanilla beans and woodsy notes. And powder powder powder.
FDSservi – :
Powdery elegance, classic floral aldehyde, soft, warm, comforting. Has a powdery makeup quality to it, something about scents like this make me feel fulfilled. Not sure how to explain it. I feel like the only person who doesn’t get Chanel No 5 from this but it’s an entirely different fragrance to me. Maybe it’s the aldehydes. Fragrances with a lot of aldehydes all smell similar to me when first sprayed but most venture off to do their own thing. The dry downs are so different on me. This being much more “powder puff” than No 5. It also strikes me as more prim and proper. This is the scent of a lady. I’m so glad I finally tried this. I love it.
*reviewed vintage version
wed3d4 – :
Fragrance Review For L’Aimant
Top Notes
Aldehydes Peach Bergamot Neroli
Middle Notes
Rose Jasmine Orchid Ylang Ylang Geranium
Base Notes
Musk Sandalwood Vanilla Tonka Bean Cedar Wood Vetiver
Sweet, soft, soapy, powdery, charming, feminine, as enchanting as a ballerina who has pirouetted into your life. I was very drawn to this fragrance when, on a whim, I bought it from eBay. The vintage bottle resembles the same one for L’Origan and was reissued in the 1980’s as a spray cologne. I’m a vintage fragrance slut so I had to have it! So glad it’s mine. This is a delicate powdery floral boudoir scent, with aldehydes that invite you to inhale the freshness and transport you to a romantic atmosphere. It took me to the 1950’s and I’m an adolescent girl in a pink dress and bow, pony tail and putting on make up and lipstick, perfuming my skin and doing my hair up in a French twist for the junior prom. And the dress is a pretty pastel pink chiffon. This is a youthful fragrance, at least it was in the context of it’s time, similar to a softer soapier Chanel No 5 and or Manhattan Rose 44 by Krigler. Sweet, unassuming, pure, and innocent. American. Despite it being French lol It matches up with the Neil Sedaka song Calendar Girl. She is a pretty blonde teenager.
The first spritz is an energizing freshness derived from aldehydes, old fashioned gorgeous aldehydes which are the signature mark of any great vintage fragrance. There’s some neroli in it and if you like neroli in your perfume, this one is very nice. Oranges courtesy of bergamot provide it with that sharp citric scent but it is not too heavy nor anything like medicine. It has a sweet peach note keeping this thing fruity and sweet, fresh, suited to summer time and day wear. The perfume is great from the start. At times it is reminiscent not only of Chanel No. 5 which also opens with aldehydes and neroli, but with other aldehyde classics like Lanvin Arpege & L’air du Temps by Nina Ricci. If you have worn those frags and liked them, you’ll like L’Aimant.
The heart is floral, powdery floral, soapy floral, sweet, sophisticated and demure. Roses, pink roses. Geranium. Jasmine. Ylang ylang and orchid. There are no white florals to speak of but this allows the rose and the orchid to make their music. I think of this as a very well made artificial orchid as much as it is a powdery rose. The flowers soften up the citruses and aldehydes and turn into a much warmer musk toward the dry down stage. The scent evolves from florals to a musky base but for me it’s not terribly musky nor even animalic or mature. In fact Chanel No 5 is more animalistic and the civet that emerges in No 5 is missing here. There is no civet in L’Aimant just a light white musk.
A good amount of vanilla and tonka keep it very sweet, powdery, and the vanilla is the major player in the end. It is a gorgeous vanilla with layers of woods on it. A fragrant sandalwood and a nice cedar scent. Now this is a cologne concentration so it’s not going to be as long lasting or as heavy as an eau de parfum but it has a decent life span and projection. It’s day wear stuff so it matches up with blouses, dressy shirts, something semi formal or even business formal business casual. It can also be sexy. I wear it to charity fund raiser dinners with my Wall Street Rotary Club and they all love it on me!
Please check this out. It’s extremely rare and hard to find so you’ll have to make a blind buy. The glass bottles of the cologne sell on eBay. L’Aimant is classy, sweet, pretty and although normally I prefer Orientals and deeper statement fragrances, it’s just as much a statement to wear softer fragrances like this one. Suited to office and work, romantic dinners and weddings. Like with L’air du Temps & Arpege, this is also a good intro to perfume for girls. Well known women that I think would have worn this: Shirley Temple, Judy Garland, Deanna Durbin, Julie Andrews, Audrey Hepburn, Angela Lansbury and Mary Tyler Moore.
This perfume has so many of the accords I enjoy: aldehydes, neroli, florals, vanilla, sandalwood, musk, cedar wood. Oh, what an aroma!
A brilliant fragrance!
natali24077 – :
I just received this relatively unknown magnet, and I’m glad I bought it on an auction site.
I like the elegant old-style bottle, and the fact that it is a PDT is intriguing, as it is a rarity… the only other PDT I have is Shalimar, which is one of my most treasured fragrances. It also suggests good longevity.
Yes it instantly reminds me to No. 5, it has the same airy, powdery-soapy quality. To me it is more approachable than Arpege. On me, Arpege only works in very cold weather, otherwise it is sour, but I believe the Magnet, just like No. 5, can be worn in different weather conditions. Refined, subtle, creamy. To me, this is what effortless elegance smells like.
Qerdf3eererdf – :
L’Aimant is a sweet, aldehydic floral perfume with a 1950’s boudoir air despite it’s biggest success selling in the 1920’s and later reformulated and reissued in the 1980’s. I came across this fragrance sometime around 1986. I wore it to bed with lingerie usually long nightgowns and negligees. My last husband loved it on me a lot. It has a close resemblance to Chanel No. 5 but I also detect strong similarities to Arpege & Chanel No. 22. These 3 fragrances: No.5, 22 & Arpege are floral aldehyde fragrances which were quite popular and common in the 20’s, the first decade of aldehyde perfume.
As such one has to be familiar with aldehyde content in fragrance. That often harsh chemical and alcoholic blast of freshness with an old fashioned perfumy smell. It’s also associated with powder and soap scents, quite clean and delicate like soap suds. I happen to love fragrances like that because it matches up with my white skin while in the bath tub and this fragrance being older provides it with better projection.
Following the alcohol-aldehyde opening comes a citrus smell. It smells a bit like a lemon soap, an orange, and neroli & orange blossom. There is a peach note which is similar to the peach in Arpege, a note that was never in Chanel No. 5. The opening is still a bit reminiscent of No. 5 in the neroli-citrus & aldehyde opening, but once that slight peach emerges it turns into Arpege which I don’t mind at all because I adore Arpege. The same kind of delicate intimate quality is there: fresh, sweet, citrusy, and floral. It’s high end soap in a bottle. A simple perfume, long lasting and quite potent.
The florals are a mélange of roses, orchids, geranium, ylang-ylang jasmine and orange blossom. The rose is the strongest note, and it’s a powdery delicate feminine rose. It’s a lot like rose scented talcum powder in the dresser table in a lady’s boudoir. Very lady-like. Not old lady. LADY. This is a perfume for a woman who loves being a woman and smells of womanly smells: roses, soap, and powder. The flowers in this perfume are lovely. Once they kick in they start to smell like the floral arrangement in the heart of L’air du Temps as well as Arpege. The same flowers of rose, geranium, orchid, ylang ylang and jasmine are there. They aren’t heavy or aggressive florals. They’re just sweet powdery florals.
As the fragrance dries, I detected some light musk, vanilla, a scent of cedar wood as well as sandalwood. So I would say that the dry down is rather woodsy but the vanilla gives it a creaminess and helps in the longevity. It’s like a full bodied powder. What I most like about this scent is how long it lasts. The fragrance was advertised as a romantic day wear or evening wear perfume for the classy woman.
Finally I want to say that this fragrance is suitable for any time of the year, any time of day or night. Just a clean simple no nonsense soap scent that should match up with your clean skin. It’s such a sweet aroma and quite soothing. Like I said before, I used to wear it to bed. And not in bed alone. In today’s context, this fragrance is old school and mature but if you like vintage aldehyde florals this should be your cup of tea. It’s beautiful.
Happy New Year
koop – :
This is a Chanel No 5 clone. I like it better though some how, but to me it is very very similar, at least the vintage original version which I am testing now. To me L´Aimant is somehow less cloying and a tiny more soapy and overall softer. I would even venture to say a vintage buy of L´Aimant would beat modern Chanel No5 at a fraction of the cost if blind tested.
pro_saymon – :
Oh this perfume!
When I was coming of age but not yet eighteen, probably about 16, and was wearing perfume for the first time, this was a drugstore classic that sold as a more affordable alternative to Chanel No. 5 or Lanvin Arpege. It came in the same bottle design/packaging as the picture on Fragrantica. It resembles some kind of weird Coke bottle, glass with a metallic stopper in the shape of a star. There was also a dusting powder with the same scent. This was a boudoir perfume, subtle, delicate & powdery, a fine intro and transition perfume for young ladies. I had previously received perfume gifts for Christmas namely by my father (who was less of a cheap miser than my mother). I had Dana Love baby Soft & L’Effleur. This was actually the first perfume I bought with my own money from the first job I had. This was a beautiful perfume! I have such a fondness and nostalgic sentimental feeling about it.
The dreamy aldehyde opening is similar to Arpege with a peach & rose blend that smelled very sweet. The florals are on the powdery & soapy side. There’s orchid, jasmine & ylang ylang. Pretty flowers. The powdery & aldehydic content might come off as mature now but trust me at the time this was as youthful as perfumes could get. It worked well with my skin chemistry then and it always felt soft, like tender rose petals.
The dry down as I recall was vanilla and light wood (sandalwood or cedar wood). There was a faint musk. The perfume that is still selling has been reformulated and I have not bothered to wear it. I have bought the vintage original (which was reissued in the 80’s) on ebay. This is still a very lovely floral fragrance. I wear it mostly as a change of perfume when I want something sweet & subtle. In the 80’s there was also a spicier and muskier version of this called L’Aimant Eternelle.
What memories! In love with this perfume again!
аувщк-113 – :
I have a new version of it and there are only traces of what it once was, it does remind me a bit of an 80’s version of Climat (the small 5ml bottle with the black cap), this smells too much like hair spray and it puts me off.
tukuy – :
I’ve had L’Aimant in my collection for a while now and have only recently begun to appreciate it. At first it seemed a bit nondescript (perhaps it needed a bit warmer weather to really shine), but actually it’s a beautiful soft, sweet, powdery rose. To me it reads even more “vintage cosmetics” than L’Origan. Like L’Origan, it stays close to the body but lasts all day. I love it for work, but I think it would be nice dressed up as well. If you find it for a decent price, do snap it up.
p.korablev – :
So pretty and soft and a definite less expensive cousin of Chanel No. 5. I bought my bottle from Chemist Warehouse in Australia and am so glad I invested the tiny amount it cost ($12 or something like that). L’Aimant has a beautiful powdery floral quality but it smells modern and at the same time classic. Not fusty. It has a touch of baby products (not baby powder) which I love. Lasting power is reasonable.
7507760 – :
Beautifull creamy, floral aldehyde, with a musky drydown.
I think that Chanel no 5 has a more beautifull drydown compared to L´Aimant.
I think that L´aimant stays the same in the drydown no matter how beautifull it is. It may seem a bit too much.
jhgvnbvc – :
Given its history and pedigree I really want to love this one, but I can’t make a decision about it. I’ve got the Creamy Skin Perfume, Talc, and PdT, and all of them smell different. All of them are the modern formulation.
It’s just soap. Acrid, powdery, soap. No fruit, no identifiable florals. Hours later it doesn’t warm up and doesn’t change. It’s just throat-catching soap all the way.
Edit: I wrote this a while ago, and my idea of it has changed. With practice, the peach and florals do come out. It is still mostly aldehydic and quite powdery-woody, but not quite so bad as I made it sound a few months ago.
bogdanpas – :
VINTAGE l’aimant – warm, sweet, pink roses, summer flowers wafting on an evening breeze, pink swansdown, deliciously feminine, and dangerously innocent! Who could resist? This was the scent everyone reached for when they didn’t know what to choose for an important date/occasion. It was always appropriate.
As classic and inoffensive as the proverbial “little black dress” – this beautiful fragrance was perfect for all ages, all occasions, and guaranteed to be gratefully received with a smile. I never knew anyone who disliked it! And I never caught any soapiness about it.
This is the younger, though grown-up sister of No5, unpretentious, unsophisticated and gentle on the nose and on the skin. An all time favourite and loved by all the family (mine anyway) from teenyboppers to grans.
THE NEW VERSION
I bought the creamy skin perfume, and waited with great anticipation for this “long-lost” old friend to arrive. It arrived today, looking quite familiar in its deep pink and gold box, enclosing a glossy black bottle. The wavy-edged lid was a little sharp and unfriendly to unscrew.
The first thing I noticed was that the cream had no hint of the delicate pink I was expecting (the original was creamy powder pink). This cream was just white.
I began to breathe in slowly, to enjoy the fragrance I know and love so well…. but what’s this? Ugh! Gasp! This is NOT L’aimant – not in any sense of the word. This is a horrible imposter, emphasis on horrible.
EWERssxxacycovecvg – :
The great Coty vintage L’Aimant (1927) (The Magnet) was sold with the tagline “The most attractive perfume in the world.” Well, your mileage may vary.
My very vintage and well preserved bottle of L’Aimant dates from the mid 20th century. L’Aimant is slightly warmer and fruitier to my nose than my equally vintage No.5 parfum, but it never comes close to the peachy fleshiness of vintage Femme. It’s balanced and absolutely beautiful.
My package containing L’Aimant arrived at the end of a family dinner, and I eagerly opened it and passed it around at the table. My immediate family–my dear, practically anosmic but always 100% supportive husband, my teenage daughter who dislikes wearing any perfume at all, and my little perfumista tween who can identify bergamot at twenty paces–are all entertained by my vintage perfume hobby. They congratulated me on my latest acquisition. Let us just say that the rest of the table was immune to the magnetic “attraction” of L’Aimant. My parents view all perfume with deep suspicion. My father mutters darkly in Italian about men who wear cologne; my mother sees perfume as self-indulgent. My parents sniffed the bottle of L’Aimant with the attitudes of people confronting radioactive waste. My lovely SIL, who favors the lightest application of the most evanescent Jo Malone scents, wrinkled her nose but gamely ventured to say L’Aimant was…”Interesting!” My brother, who wears no perfume or cologne, announced the most damning verdict of all… “This is not just an O.ld L.ady perfume, this is a Perfume for O.ld L.adies at FUNERALS!”
I shrug off these comments, because I wear perfume to please myself, but I do wonder…how does a hugely popular scent that was enjoyed for decades as a “magnet” become so distasteful and re-coded with the opposite meaning? There seems to be more going on here than the dislike of a perfume that smells dated or t