Calypso Violette (1999)
by Calypso Christiane Celle

This is one is a straight and sweet violet scent. It is much like the Violette colognes in the first half of last century. It is nostalgic and cute but disappearing very fast.

I am wearing Violette today. It's a very rainy day here, and my first thought upon waking was, "Violette!" I went on a very heavy Violet kick about a year ago, and after trying about 15 different violet perfumes, my three favorites were Aroma M's Geisha Violet (which layers very nicely with Calypso BTW), Calypso Violette, and L'Artisan Verte Violette. This is not a powdery violet. It is one of the darkest violet scents I have tried, and it really works on my skin. After wearing both Verte Violette and Calypso Violette for the last year, the only differences I can tell are the following: Calypso lasts longer and is a bit more syrupy, and Verte Violette is lighter and has a hay note. I love them both, but if I had to choose (for my money), I would choose Calypso. :) Beautiful stuff.

I wish this smelled nice on me. It starts off a nice spicey violet, but instead of a rose drydown, it smells like urine on me. I can't get past it, but I think on the right person with the right body chemistry it would be amazing.

Christiane Celle Calypso Violette is one of only two violet fragrances I've tried that I can wear well; the other being Penhaligan's Violetta. Others smell syrupy-sweet after about 10 minutes and give me a headache. Calypso Violette is a fresh violet, and it's the least powdery violet fragrance I've ever smelled. It has a deep rose undertone that emerges as the initial airy violet notes warm into my skin. The beginning has a raspberry note as well, which transitions to dark violets and dewy leaves, and a hint of white tea. Violet scents usually smell innocent and sweet to me, (possibly because the first fragrance I ever owned, at age 6, was Devon Violets), but Calypso Violette is sexy! The lasting power isn't great, but it's not bad for an edt. In cool weather I refresh it after about 4 hours of wear, and it lasts about an hour longer in hot weather. Violette is quite lovely, and I recommend giving it a try even if you despise violet. It's a really intriguing creation that's also priced reasonably for a boutique fragrance: $55.00 for a 3.4 oz. bottle.

This is a smoldering, lovely sweet honeyed violet. True, it is quite different from most violet scents, and that's a good thing. I love violet, but no need for more of what I already have!

It reminds me of a fairytale forest, dappled light through the trees, violets blooming on the mossy forest floor, spreading a blanket and opening a basket of honeyed cakes to share with the satyr who is flashing me his wicked smile. See you later!

A very heavy version of violet, this one; I think the honey in it just basically overpowers the violet note (and even mostly smothers the rose, if that's possible) and makes the whole thing too overly sweet and totally lacking in the qualities that I normally associate with violets. The violets I do enjoy are either shyly subtle or mysteriously verging on unsweet, and this is neither. It's just dripping with cloying sweetness and a fake quality I can't quite identify. Additionally, it's a dead ringer for a scent MAC used to make, one called "Asphalt Flower" that was supposed to smell like synthetic florals. I could nevr pull off the MAC and can't do this one either; both punish me with severe headaches.