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Meelmefweef – :
This is my second review, this time not the modern EDT but a decant of the real deal. WOW. They seem like different animals and the vintage perfume is far more interesting and evocative It is much more dry and woody and a bit sharp. (I guess it is the galbanum, which I realize I rather like.) A reviewer below said it made her think of the desert and the movie of the English patient, which I now totally get! I’m (sadly) not a nose, but even I can tell it is not really like Timeless, which I do have and think is lovely. This “real deal” decant of Vol de Nuit is not sweet and comforting, it’s for a different type of person and I can see why Katherine Hepburn wore it: it is sharp and dry, a little smokey, then has this subdued lovely dry down. Some describe this perfume as “cold,” but to me it would suit a person who is not cold at all, but very independent yet tender hearted. The dry down is sweetly warm and comforting (a bit like Timeless, there). VdeN is sort of like a night flight in the 30s, eh? Back then, very few people actually flew. So, you’d need to be an independent and brave soul to do that, and then you’d experience the mysterious beauty of the world below at night, and then (dry down time) you’d probably feel some happiness and relief to be home on the ground.
What a treat to have a try of this.
Oksanus – :
Oh my god ! I just got this for The first time in my life. This is perfume ! Oakmoss, aldehydes, iris and Wood. Adorable, feminine and vintage. I guess it`s wearable on every occasions. Wonderful, captivating, charming … almost magical. Stylish and classy. I` m addicted for sure ! Guerlain never lets me down.
Powder, ladylike and intoxicating… I could go on forever.
Lasts forever on my skin and silage i enormous.
anton1159 – :
Okay, so vintage Vol de Nuit is a complex and powdery scent with loads of iris and cocoa. Current version is less than a shadow of its former self. Disappointing, to say the least. I tried it today and found myself mourning the vintage I have long since used up. It was beautiful, ethereal… sorrowful. The current hasn’t much of a personality. May be good for those who found the vintage a bit too much, though. There’s always a person for every perfume, I guess.
9160638275 – :
If the original Vol de Nuit was available, it would be the only perfume I’d wear… Every day, for the rest of my life.
There is no other perfume composition that I love more than vintage Vol de Nuit.
The current formulation, although not as disfigured as current Shalimar or L’Heure Bleue, is still far from the perfume Jacques Guerlain imagined in 1933.
The foundation in the original formula is very animalic: between leather and fur. And although it may seem as very ambery sweet at first glance (due in part to the beautiful Ambreine Samuelson) it contains castoreum and deer musk galore, and of course some nitro musks.
This exquisitely leathery/musky presence, along with real oakmoss extract, imparted incredible solidity, depth, roundness, and lasting power to the fragrance.
All of the above is today gone… The damage is evident. But the tragedy is not the loss of texture, or lack of durability on skin. The real problem is the “holes” resulted from the omission of those essential ingredients, some present in large quantities in the formula.
Without them, the foundation feels like a ravaged world where the iris and amber stand out naked. At the same time the cinnamic alcohol, patchouli, frankincense, and celery seed are more prominent; not as subdued as in the original Vol de Nuit.
Due to today’s restrictions on eugenols, the pimento berry (allspice) is
also “neutered”.
The important costus root is missing as well.
All of the nowadays banned/restricted ingredients were in the formula for a reason, they are irreplaceable pieces to the puzzle.
You take away or diminish one or more of these vital ingredients and the wholeness/harmony of the composition is inevitably compromised.
Even the small, accessory ingredients such as aldehydes, cascarilla, costus root, and celery seed in Vol de Nuit are tremendously important, without them there is no Vol de Nuit!
Da Vinci, Bernini, Mozart, Jacques Guerlain are all in the same level. No one would dare to disfigure a painting, an sculpture, or a music piece from these masters, yet we allow to reformulate Guerlain’s masterpieces! There should be laws protecting this type of patrimony.
I would sell my $500,000 house for 5 litters of original Vol de Nuit extract, Thierry Wasser are you listening?! That’s $100,000 per litter, what do you say, deal or no deal?
sergey-valents – :
I really love this and it was a blind buy. I have the modern EDT that’s readily available. It doesn’t last long, but I find myself so fascinated by how good it smells, I’ll just reapply it and sniff.
It seems to make other fragrances seem not so good to me. What is that all about?Now I’m persnickety? Oh well! It isn’t what I would call a sensual fragrance, but it makes me feel good. Sort of confident and happy. I have no ability to discuss fragrances in technical terms at all, so I’m just talking about my personal reactions. The other thing I’ve noticed is that I like it more each time I wear it.
zpp – :
I’m a ultra-introverted literary type, and this feels like exactly the right perfume for my INTP self. Like all Guerlains, it’s beautifully mixed and evolves over the length of its wear. This particular scent is cool, unlike so many of the very warm Guerlains. It’s just a little aloof without being off-putting, though the initial spritz is exciting – like lift-off. Unfortunately, the EDT in the bee bottle is watery and weak. I feel the need to re-apply every couple hours, which is not a trait I like in a perfume. I’m hoping to buy a bit of the vintage scent and use that as a base over which to spray the EDT. I also own the bee bottle of Jicky (a nice scent, though less ‘me’) and it has the exact same problem. I refuse to believe that the genuises at Guerlain can’t remedy this situation.
Kann – :
A smooth, powdery, dreamy creation. The aldehydes are not too heavy, they don’t irritate my nose. The orris root makes this scent powdery and fluffy, adding some femininity. The oakmoss adds a masculine element and is one of the more noticeable notes. While unisex, I would say this leans slightly towards the masculine end of the spectrum. Can be worn year round, would be perfect with formal wear for a special event.
rqb046speagoessenda – :
If The English Patient was a perfume this would be it. Melancholy and beautiful and haunting and desert landscapes and bathtub sex flesh. It’s not an in your face fragrance… it’s soft spoken and still very powerful. It’s everything… a riff on mitsouko and LHB and somehow even shalimar. It’s a chypre and a woody and an oriental and a tiny bit a floral and teases you being all… choosing at different times to show each facet. Love.
edka71288 – :
Vol de Nuit starts out green like so many other classics do, but for me the Guerlain magic is always in what comes next, sometimes so many hours later that you don’t even realise that the fabulous thing you’re smelling is your own skin. I get that with Chamade and here as well. My version of VDN is the small cube shaped demonstration pure parfum. It’s thick and rich, almost overpowering with mossy notes. I find it very powerful, which makes the transformation into such a soft, tenderly sweet powdery vanilla all the more surprising. Along with the jasmine and iris the whole composition brings to mind a bygone era of perfume.
ihkgepsyqz – :
Vol de Nuit is Jacques Guerlain’s most underrated masterpiece. No other scent before, and arguably since, has straddled so many disparate genres while maintaining such an utterly unique character.
The opening is pure green chypre, with a huge dose of resinous galbanum and shimmery aldehydes. Almost immediately, these notes are joined by a fougere medley of oak moss and bergamot. The oriental magic follows later, with a Jicky-like base of orris, vanilla and sandalwood. Green, white and purple floral aspects drift in and out throughout.
The overall effect is like a car crash of classic perfumery; the aloof intensity of Mitsouko, the bracing intensity of Jicky, and the oriental comforts of Shalimar, all wrapped into a magnificent ball of shape-shifting olfactory pleasure. It’s as comforting as it is disconcerting, and surprisingly easy to wear by modern standards, at least after the initial aldehydic blast.
Yes, the current EDT has longevity and projection issues. But I still get four to six hours of a comforting personal cloud of VdN, before it transmutes into a skin scent. It’s better to have some VdN than none at all, and thankfully, compared with contemporary scents, Vol de Nuit is stunningly unisex. A must-try for all fragrance nuts.
kanabis777 – :
Vol de Nuit would be my #1 fragrance but the current EDT is so faint/light/watery. I have a vintage EDT in a very rectangular-boxy bottle, but I’m scared to use it up. 🙁 It’s only 50ml.
Today, I put on my current EDT VdN and it was very potent for about 1 hour. Could be the stuffy heat/humidity of this summer (this 2018 Michigan summer is abnormally HOT and humid). But alas… about lunchtime, I have very little VdN left. Just hints of it here and there. The best part is… my cardigan was worn with Bandit by Robert Piguet about 1 week ago. Now Bandit is tenacious! Between the VdN left on my body/shirt and the cardigan’s Bandit– I’m in heaven! An amazing layering combo! However, Bandit will overpower anything/everything, so it’s best to use some week old Bandit. 😉
(I have my cardi on because my office is air conditioned)
ku4eryava – :
Oh dear! I bought the EDT in the ‘Bee’ bottle and it’s one blind buy I regret. For a start I can’t find the ‘Vol de ‘Nuit’ everyone raves about. It’s just too weak as an EDT. Ok I’m old and my sense of smell isn’t acute any more but all I get is a whiff that screams ‘old fashioned scent’, the kind I remember from my youth, think Ma Griffe which I prefer and is of the same tribe, green and mysterious. However I find Ma Griffe much more distinctive and assertive. Maybe I’ve been seduced by syrupy scents in recent years but I should love to smell the EDP and make up my mind then!
Xeroxyxazp – :
For anyone disappointed in the longevity of the new Bee Bottle eau de toilette; try layering with Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse dry oil. It significantly extends the life of the fragrance and the vanilla lends a lovely backdrop to the Guerlain classic.
I also tend to use the current EDT combined with a vintage bottle and this also extends the life of the fragrance.
IGOR911 – :
Does this remind anyone else of Ralph Lauren’s Safari?
Somehow, I feel transported to those years long-ago when I wore it– more innocent times full of dreams and hopes.
Serg4563 – :
Even if Vol de Nuit is not your thing, you should at least have a small decant of it for reference. I am startled by its lack of specificity–a cloud of aldehydes, florals, citrus, and filler so abstract and beguiling, it is a fragrance I return to every now and then just to see if I can figure it out yet again. VdN just says “perfume”. I’d hand it over to an alien from another planet if it wanted to know what perfume was. It is classy, but also a little dirty and animalic, probably from the indolic nature of the florals. Great stuff.
rza2000 – :
This is for the August 2017 EDT in the clear bee bottle:
I’ve always had trouble being able to physically catch the scent of Vol de Nuit but I ran across the tiny sample I got in 2013 the other day and there was a dab congealed at bottom of the spray tube. When I breathed it in I knew I wanted a full bottle. It came just in time for Easter and I’ve been wearing it since last night.
I find it odd that the original advert for it was aimed at a woman of action.
My impression is that it is ephemeral, ghostly and beautiful. I classify it as fragrance for an intellectually minded introvert whose inner life is far richer and more rewarding than anything one could experience in the outer life. This is a perfume that offers the gift of natural woods, spices and flowers on the altar along side one’s prayers. In my mind it is one of Jacques Guerlain’s most spiritually minded creations that is equal, in that way, to Apres L’Ondee. What an amazing fragrance Vol de Nuit is to have and hold, ghostly though it may be. I’m happy I got it in time for this Easter / Passover Week.
Guerlain continues to enthrall and amaze me with their classics.
VasiliHam – :
i smell oakmoss, iris and orris the most strongly at first. there are hints of carnation. this is dry and a bit powdery but also earthy. it’s so soft, my skin seems to eat it up. this has happened with a couple of other guerlains as well. it ends up a soft powdery orris-sandalwood. i don’t seem to get as many notes as listed. though i am trying from a sample vial, i still seem to be missing a lot of notes. i like this, but perhaps need to try it in spray form? I’m not sure.
RobertHawk – :
My version is the one in the bee bottle. I remember the original, and this is not that dissimilar.
It’s more powdery than I remember, soft and haunting, a heady concoction of musk and iris and that magical Guerlinade which sets Guerlain’s fragrances apart in the industry. Definitely can be worn by both genders, good staying power. If you’re not a fan of powder, then try before you buy, because this one is loaded and I love it.
Metpi312Unlogrere – :
In your minds eye, imagine the most glorious garden you’ve ever seen in full bloom. I’m in Paris, strolling through The Tuileries. The abundance of irises, roses,violets, narcissi as far as the eye can see! Sit on a bench and peel the beautiful ripe orange you’ve brought for lunch; savor and delight in the flavors and the beauty that surrounds you. After you throw away the peel that remains, you sniff the citrus oil remnants on your fingers. Pick a few blossoms and skip back to your hotel room and place the flowers in a vase. Deeply breathe in all of the beauty that has been a most glorious afternoon. That is Vol de Nuit. <3
usacribrams – :
To SolangeN I agree with Silences, also a vintage Ralph Lauren Safari if you get lucky!
Авдей Милый – :
To SolangeN: try Silences Jacomo…it is a greeeeeen galbanum
all.sytes.net – :
Against my better judgement, I blind bought a new bee bottle of this.
It’s mostly powder. And by powder, I mean old…um…let’s say “school” dank.
There’s a little waft of galbanum-y resinous that weaves in and out, but it’s not nearly enough to counterbalance the baby powder on a sweaty body vibe.
I vaguely remember Timeless, and don’t recall if it resembled this. For me, the nearest Avon that comes to mind is Cotillion’s heavy duty boudoir powder miasma.
I also get a weird top dose of good old drugstore English Leather.
Still searching for a quality galbanum frag that doesn’t stank of sugar candy chemicals. A true green.
It’s looking more and more like I’m gonna have to buy the raw material and do it myself. RIP perfume industry.
prihozhanin – :
Vol de Nuit and Grey Flannel are so similar.
VdN is more creamy and powdery sweet, I smell almond cream in it, it is very gentle (sadly also the projection) while GF is more fresh, with bunch of lovely violets in the grass and galbanum.
They are both powdery, woody and evoke mossy green color and vintage times, clothes, photographs in ivory shades etc.
Iris vs violets.
нецке – :
I am enjoying this and would, but for the price, buy one of those absolutely STUNNING bottles right now. Green and woody, a little peppery, a dash of spice. It has a masculine vibe but is safely unisex. So classic and tasteful- in testing the old Guerlains I really am seeing how tarted up today’s fragrances are. Not that that’s a bad thing- gotta let out the wild child every now and then, but there’s definitely something special about perfumes like Vol de Nuit that expect you to be polished and well bred. I’ll wear them often and hopefully their elegance will transfer to my comportment.
kasjan750li – :
I wonder how many people have tested both the lovely and mysterious Vol de Nuit and ALSO the classic Avon scent, Timeless? For the sake of perfume lovers everywhere, I’m compelled to acknowledge and mention their similarity. Those of you who love perfume should know this!
Only one fragrantican I spoke with mentioned it also. She herself tried both, and we concur that while Timeless lacks that distinctive ‘Guerlainade’, it is still very much related and truly creates a similar aura. I own and love many gorgeous scents, two of them Guerlain, and it seems to me that anyone who enjoys good quality will also enjoy this particular Avon. The vintage is best (as with Guerlain!), but though Timeless is lighter in the new formulation it is recognizably distinctive and beguiling.
So I write this in hopes that those who love Guerlain will perhaps give themselves an opportunity to try Vol de Nuit’s inexpensive American cousin, and that possibly those who have only ever smelled Timeless will now be beguiled by a Guerlain!
gela12345 – :
Woody – animalic – resinous
Color impression: pale pink
I wonder how people who wear Vol de Nuit wear also other fragrances. It’s pure excellence in a bottle. I’ve been gifted a generous sample of its vintage juice that wore whole week and made me sell three fragrances of mine not because I needed money to buy Vol de Nuit, just because after discovering Vol de Nuit I embarrass to wear them again. Vol de Nuit is a bit of everything related to opulence and prestige.
Opens soft – yet without top layer – directly in resinous and powdery, floral aldehydic facets that slither to woodsy spicy heart, where a tinge of worn leather and animalic curtain waves without pushing on their faunic references. The whole idea smells like trumpet of Chet Baker. Silvia you gave me not a fragrance but a liquid diamond.
★★★★★
naveki – :
From an early age I loved clinking the almost empty bottles that adorned my Mother’s chipped dressing table. She worked as a housemaid at an International Hotel and the perfumes on her dressing table were orphans abandoned by their affluent owners with just a few mls remaining. Sometimes there was more, or a perfume with a leaky stopper left behind among cigarette butts, tissues, lipstick stubs, and foundation smears.
So we used them up and stuffed the empty bottles to scent clothes and I got the perfume education of a London debutante. Nobody ever left a Vol de Nuit behind, I would have remembered the bottle. Today I only have the EDT version which doesn’t project much but is a skin scent of unrivalled beauty, my favourite Guerlain. I rushed to buy Penhaligons Ostara and, as lovely as it is, it doesn’t hold a candle to Vol de Nuit’s narcissus. It was T1’s mention of furs that prompted me to write this, as I recall VdN as the perfect fragrance to watch all the old movies starring Rita Hayworth, Ginger Rodgers, Heddy Lamar etc. Diamonds and Vol de Nuit are a girls best friend.
escondido – :
I’ve had it for a couple of days and adore it so far. Guerlain remains my favourite house, for classics. I find definite similarities with Eau Fraiche by Dior but it’s easier finding a bottle and cheaper! I also get facets of Jicky which I owned and sold because it was just too much skank for me to wear outside of the house. Vol de nuit has just the right amount of skank in my opinion. I am a lifelong wearer of shalimar and love the guerlinade qualities of both. This is one of my new favourites, particularly as we’re in autumn in the UK. Perfect.
Update: after a week or so I realise I’ve used up more that I’d like to of my bee bottle – because it has no longevity! Arggghhh how annoying! I really want this to sing out and stay with me. Ffs guerlain. *sigh*
zaqw007q – :
I so dearly love it, but the EDT, the only thing available in Austria, is unfortunately so too weak on me that I feel almost frustrated. Beautyful as it is, it hurts to say after two hours I have nothing on my skin and to put on it 100 plus euros to only have to re-apply, hmmm, maybe not. In the EDT available nowadays, I find a huge similarity to Miss Dior, the original first EDT, which on me has more staying power. Never in my wildest dreams I thought that I would have to give up a Guerlain for a Dior.
stars – :
Fragrance Review For Vol De Nuit
Guerlain
Top Notes
Bergamot Orange Mandarin Lemon Orange Blossom Narcissus Galbanum
Middle Notes
Aldehydes Narcissus Rose Carnation Violet Jasmine Iris Vanilla
Base Notes
Spices Oak Moss Orris Root Sandalwood Musk
Purchased on eBay
Night Flight An Aviator’s Fragrance
I bid and won the 1933 extract pure parfum bottle in the glass bottle with the Art Deco design of airplane propeller. Wow. I’m only sorry I didn’t discover it sooner. This blew my mind. What an amazing absolutely beautiful glamorous fragrance from the 1930s the height of the Depression and Old Hollywood. The first thing that came to mind inhaling the rubbery oily green notes of galbanum was that it was evocative of an airplane that has just landed (or crashed) on an exotic faraway island. Amelia Earhart came to mind. We all know that she disappeared in the South Pacific during her around the world final flight and was never heard from again after July the 2nd 1937. This is Amelia’s perfume, complete with an aviation theme and based on a book from the same author of The Little Prince who had a romantic fondness for flight.
Opens with citrus notes and galbanum in your face. It’s like breathing and taking in an aroma of natural green leaves of petit grain and citrus on groves. Smells of petit grain, mandarin, lemon, orange and orange flowers. There’s also the traditional aldehyde scent that most old perfumes have. It’s also oily and aromatic with a hard to miss galbanum. The galbanum note is the icing on the cake here. The aromatics are completed with the dry down of oak moss which there is a lot of as well. Smells like a green island with hanging moss on trees and exotic plants, flowers, and high grass. Moreover it smells of flying in a private plane a la Indiana Jones in South America as you crash land on the Amazon jungle.
The heart is composed of faint florals which are not prominent when compared to the galbanum or oak moss but it has a whisper of powdery florals – violets, iris, rose, carnation and white florals of jasmine and narcissus. There are two notes of narcissus so I do smell it more than the other flowers but this is mostly an iris note. Most irises are the make up lipstick cosmetic woman’s handbag type but this iris is unisex, smooth, light, more like a fresh hyacinth. Smells like a light gossamer neck scarf, the kind around an aviator (Amelia coming to mind again). The flowers are subdued but very enjoyable with iris and white florals, traces of jasmine and narcissus petals.
Finally the dry down is more like a masculine/unisex cologne in the style of Shalimar with a dark smooth vanilla, sandalwood, musk and moss. For me the vanilla at one point becomes edible and turns into a gourmand scent, once again, similar to Shalimar. The perfume has superb longevity but not an offensive major projection. Most old perfumes like vintage Shalimar have a softer close to skin projection which is more lady like and soapy. This is actually quite soapy and clean, soft but not weak. This smells sporty, athletic, if such words can have scents. I can picture women of the 30’s wearing this. It’s outdated by today’s standards – soap and musk – but it has a very touching nostalgic glamorous cleanliness that I like in vintage perfumes.
I’m a time traveler when I wear perfume. The Time Machine has not been invented and perhaps never will but the only way we can actually travel into the past before we were born is to wear perfume launched before we were born. This is how women smelled when perfume was real, authentic, made with formulas that are no longer with us and by names that are deities in the industry’s history – Guerlain for instance. A beautiful and long lasting perfume that is hard to find but available online via eBay. I recommend the EDP extract which is far more complex and superior to the softer but equally nice EDT spray bottle.
ype674speagoessenda – :
To me this smells similar to “Shaina” by Atelier Delteil, from the 70’s or 80’s I think. I should say “Shaina” smells like “Vol de Nuit” because “Shaina” was made much later.
They are both woody orientals, one (Shaina–basenotes labdanum and fir resin…smells powdery resinous similar to Vol de Nuit) is a bit more modernized but still has a powerful, classical feel. I own “Vol de Nuit” in the extrait version and it’s one of my prize possessions. I used up an edt 93 ml bottle in about six months. I could not keep my hands / nose off it. I have about 20 ml extrait left, a version from about 7 years ago, give or take. The extrait is for special occasions, or really happy moments, I am looking to buy another edt soon. I love spraying perfume for application, even with a pure perfume — the effect feels the most complete. Like dabbing is for contemplation, spraying is for immersion. I found out about “Shaina” after reading about Atelier Delteil in Luca Turin’s original 1994 Parfums: Le Guide and then finding a reference on his blog. I wish Fragrantica would also add Nicky Verfaillie Parfums (“Grain de Sable”, “Grain de Folie” and “Grain de Passion”) from the late 70’s early 80’s…such an interesting period in perfume history! Nicky Verfaillie parfums are also mentioned in the preface to the 1994 Le Guide. My French is rudimentary but I could decipher these recommendations…Oh, to be able to write reviews with such confidence! To experience smell like that. Perfume is amazingly substantial for such an ephemeral product.
LindaMccartney91 – :
Hello from Deco Dawn this is my review of Vol de nuit from Guerlain. Elegance. 1930s Elegance but very contemporary at the same time. Light, sparkling opening with an oriental heart and woody dry down. Very similiar to the original Miss Dior by Christian Dior. Another fabulous Guerlain fragrance to add to my collection. Try it you will love it.
Absent13 – :
The galbanum is so prominent, it cured my rhinitis!
BrianKT – :
#116
Vol de Nuit, to me, is such a happy and inelegant Guerlain. I say it’s not elegant because, by today’s standards, it’s not. To me, it’s too mossy and down-to-earth to be.
It feels very old fashioned, dying down in that ‘woah’ opening as time progresses. It becomes more and more comfortable, relaxing.
I write this wearing the vintage EdT which is actually so, so smooth. It’s absolute perfection. I have no idea what the recent smells like, but this I just need all the time. Mossy, green, not screechy or loud but just comfortable.
RocketDog87 – :
EdT
Two sprays. Woody and dry to begin with. I Find it special, good but not outstanding in this phase. But, when it gets to the drydown it is outstanding, very beautiful. One of the best guerlinades to my taste. Low sillage and great longevity. Two sprays lasts most of the day.
eugen 714 – :
A little known beauty by Guerlain. Woodsy warmth, sunlight through the pines, earthy, comforting. A beautiful blending of notes that are hard to identify, but very classy and very upfront. They don’t make them like this anymore. A work of genius.
flame82 – :
I love the history of this fragrance, and I was so excited to finally be able to smell it…
But it was a heart-breaker on me. The lovely citrus hit, then the flowers, soft aldehydes and oak moss mutated into what can only be described as hot halitosis breath on my skin.
Boo. What is it with my chemistry and the powerhouse frags of yore? It might be the oak moss and aldehydes. My chemistry despises them, and turns something that is so gorgeous on someone else to a hideous, screeching gargoyle on my own skin.
Either way, it was definitely worth a try.
tengo_pato – :
This is so beautiful. Oh my. But I could cry… because I can barely smell it. Noooooooooo I want to sob my heart out. Why????? I have the only accessible version — the 93 ml EDT refill.
At first it’s like Shalimar a bit… then thick medicinal green spicy, then a gorgeous sweet woodsy powdery vanilla. But seriously weak… with 6-8 sprays on clothes and skin. And all these stages/smells in about 40 minutes.
I just can’t afford a parfum… and buying vintage on eBay (if cheaper) scares me after I got a “turned” or diluted Shalimar parfum. 🙁 🙁 🙁 Plus I’m not a dab-on perfume kind of girl… I love to spray.
I do have some hope… because as crazy as it sounds… what I smell (in the drydown of Vol de Nuit) is very similar to Dark Woman by Police and that is very cheap, and I have a couple bottles already.
Misted on my pillow, I get this mossy/musky antique smell that I enjoy, reminds me of Mitsouko a bit, but more medicinal. Overall, I’m still super disappointed because I know this is a beautiful perfume. 🙁
I must like to torture myself… haha… because I got a 1.7oz older bottle (the rectangular bottle) and I think it’s more potent than the refill… but I only have 50ml and it’s hard to find… lol….
This smells so good. It does smell “old” (which I like) and it has a musty Mitsouko vibe… and the drydown smells a lot like Shalimar… overall I still LOVE This… and I’m going to get that extrait somewhow…. 😉
effonudderbug – :
1960s edt
The green galbanum, petitgrain, moss, and a whiff of something animalic from the base with an incredible mysore sandalwood facet. The peach aldehyde lifts the heart and the creamy orris takes over with narcissus blending into the green notes. Spice from carnation, and powdery rose and sweet violet join in.The transitions are flawless and melts into the other creating a soft aura. Its one of those fragrances you notice when you hug someone hello or goodbye. The edt wont make a grand entrance but it does give a lasting impression.
It reminds me of the old wood cabins in the first airplanes with beautiful stwardesses, the smell of warm skin, beauty powder like coty’s airspun on her face, and aldehydes to give it lift and takeoff..landing in a gentle earthy moss and classic mousse de saxe base (the night/dark component) A gorgeous ,unique fragrance. For those looking for a quality modern rendition try Papillion Artisan Perfume called Dryad.
luchici13 – :
The latest fragrance in my Guerlain collection has just arrived. I´m very excited. It is very light and fresh. Today it´s quite warm and sunny so it´s very suitable for this day and I like it. It has a cooling effect on me. Most people prefer this in winter but I think it´s perfectly wearabble in warmer weather too. Definitely great experience to wear this beauty. After trying this fragrance my galbanum love affair started.
Unfortunately the sillage and longevity of EDT version is very poor and I´m very unhappy to say that I can´t smell it after an hour. So I can´t wear it to work without taking a bottle with me and using it repeatidly because I love feeling this wonderfull scent around me.
sergey010175 – :
I am in my mid-20’s and the most common perfume era represented in my wardrobe is the 2010’s. I have no nostalgic memories attached to this fragrance, I am not a Guerlain afficionado and vintage perfumes tend not to do it for me.
It does remind me of the original Miss Dior. Quite a bit actually. I can’t say I dislike it. Galbanum, oakmoss, aldehydes, very much a product of its time. Exactly the type of fragrance younger noses might deem… brace for impact… “old lady perfume”. Since I find that term offensive I will instead say that I, because of the reasons stated at the beginning, don’t see the enduring appeal of this particular fragrance.
*ducks rotten tomatoes*
barabulka45 – :
Oh how i have learned to love this beauty . I was just resently curius about this perfume and bought a saple of a dera fragrantican 🙂 And it instent Love . Somehow this make me feal grown up ,strong, independent and beautiful . It has as many states a heart oflike Shalimar in here , But this also absolutly has a different feal aswell .
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