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fun & casual but sophisticated

post #1 of 13
6/13/05 at 10:20pm
Thread Starter 
howdy ladies!

a friend of mine is going to celebrate her birthday next week and i'm looking into buying her a fragrance.

she's the same age as me, 20 -- she's a real casual girl. Â*her usual going-to-class attire is a pair of cotton 'soffe' shorts, a tshirt and flip flops with diamond or pearl earrings to class it up a lil bit lol. Â*most of the time she'll wear her hair in that wavy scrunched look. don't get me wrong, she does get dressy sometimes and when she does its total sophistication and class, like she just walked out of fashion magazine, but for the most part she's a laid back, southern, college girl. Â* she's a brunette with killer green eyes and this time of the year she's really tan cuz we go to the beach and play vball alot.

personality wise, everyone says she's probably one of the most genuine and easy to talk to person you'll ever meet. Â*she's softspoken and very wise and mature. Â*sometimes scrappy, and all the guys love her (most of the time they come to her when they wanna talk and not let their dreaded sensitive sides be revealed to all their macho buddies), but she still is a really girly girl. Â*she's just really classy . . . and hot!

i'm really not a fan of the scents she has now. Â*they don't match her age and sophistication. Â*they all remind of high school -- Clinique Happy, RL Romance, RL Ralph, Tommy Girl. Â*the one she wears the most is Burberry London -- bleh it smells too old on her, its so dry smelling; i don't think she's too fond of it either

now we've gone scent browsing before. Â*the only one that stood out in my mind that she liked that i liked was Chanel Coco Mademoiselle, but she said it was something she would only wear when we're going out, and i agree. Â*she likes a lot of the ambery women's scents that i like like Costume National Scent, Prada EDP.

i'm thinking something less warm and sensual. Â*something light and floral but not overly fruity. Â*even something that could be a 'skin scent' but not Gendarme or Clean. Â*something that she can wear to class with those soffe short that says 'you know i can totally class it up, i'm just not trying right now' haha. Â*i'm not all that great with lighter casual women's scents but i'm thinking along the lines of Stella or Allure. Â*brand doesn't really matter to me but houses like Chanel, Hermes or maybe even the lesser distributed niches that have a certain 'heritage' to them might be nice. Â*i'm just trying to find a well made, long lasting, unsynthetic smelling scent that she'll appreciate.

i appreciate all your suggestions!
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post #2 of 13
6/14/05 at 1:46am
For wearable class and sophistication look up Chanel 22. Hermes Eau des Merveilles is also very wearable and classy. Armani Sensi is a bit more casual but elegant at the same time. For niche look up Annick Goutal, something along the lines of Heure Exquise or Passion. If you want a true ladylike floral look up Elizabeth Arden 5th Avenue.
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post #3 of 13
6/14/05 at 3:48am
As I read that I realized something, and just in case you weren't clear on it, let me say it out loud. Dude, you are smitten. Ah, the power of the female of the species - ain't it great? Best wishes.

As for specifics, the first two that occured to me were Eau des Merveilles and Sensi. So that's two votes for each of those.
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post #4 of 13
6/14/05 at 8:13am
She might like Chance by Chanel it shares some similarities with Coco Mademoiselle but it's fresher.
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post #5 of 13
6/14/05 at 8:25am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cedriceccentric

She might like Chance by Chanel it shares some similarities with Coco Mademoiselle but it's fresher.

I second that!
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post #6 of 13
6/14/05 at 9:10am
I keep thinking Emporio Armani White might be a good choice. It's kind of subtle and is an interesting combo of fresh, light, yet warm notes. It's a gentle citrus/floral with a woody, musky base and makes me think exactly of how you described your friend as relaxed and classy, but casual at the same time.

Good luck on your choice and good luck in general. I think it's really sweet of you to want to get her something as special as she is. [smiley=happy.gif]
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post #7 of 13
6/14/05 at 10:50am
I don't know if you can still find it but I think Lilia Bella from Guerlain would be a good choice. You could also try Diorissimo, Eau Belle from Azzaro, Chaumet for Women, Eau de Chaumet, Fidji from Guy Laroche, Amour d'Amandier or Belle de Minuit from Nina Ricci, Murmure from VC&A.
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post #8 of 13
6/14/05 at 12:02pm
Oh, gosh, I have to second (or third?) all of Levannah's suggestions. I think Elizabeth Arden's 5th Avenue gets overlooked because many young women just assume it's for old women. I spritzed some at a small department store and the very young SA asked me what I had sprayed. She was shocked to like it so much because, she said, she always thought it was for old ladies and had no idea it smelled that good. My son bought me my first bottle of it Christmas '96. Sensi, Chanel No. 22, Eau des Merveilles and Annick Goutal Heure Exquise are all big favorites of mine as well.

Oscar by Oscar de la Renta, in my opinion, would definitely qualify as fun and casual but sophisticated. It's been around a long time, and for good reason. I also recommend you check out:

Estee Lauder White Linen Limited Edition EdT (or regular White Linen)
Chanel Cristalle and/or No. 19
Guerlain Chamade
Dior Dolce Vita
Bulgari Omnia ("fresh" oriental)
YSL Rive Gauche
YSL Opium eau d'ete or Fleur de Shanghai

Don't shy away from Fracas, as this is a very classy tuberose fragrance (and some think it very sexy, too).
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post #9 of 13
6/14/05 at 12:18pm
I adore Annick Goutal's Heure Exquise, but don't consider it fun or casual. I'd have a look at Quel Amour too, even though it does have a fruity note to it. That's my idea of fun but sophisticated. And there's also Les Nuits D'Hadrien, which is quite fresh and citrussy but with a woody, musky finish.
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post #10 of 13
6/14/05 at 12:47pm
Thread Starter 
hey guys, thanks so much for the suggestions! Â*haha, you could say i'm kinda smitten; her i are partners in this one student organization, so we've kinda been forced to get to know each other really well -- unfortunately nothing can happen until sept 30th when our membership expires lol.

anyway, what i wanted to say was that i didn't want to just limit the suggestions to hermes or chanel -- anything is welcome! Â*keep em coming!

i think i'm gonna hit up the galleria today and sniff around
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post #11 of 13
6/14/05 at 1:41pm
Diorella. Bit like Eau Sauvage, but a lot fruitier though with a significantly shorter duration ... on me at any rate. Should work well during the summer, and hey, you can wear it too.
K
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post #12 of 13
6/14/05 at 2:16pm
I'm a guy, but I'll put in my vote for Chanel no 19. I'd recommend the EdT over the EdP. Good luck!
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post #13 of 13
6/14/05 at 8:25pm
Thread Starter 
well i headed to the mall after class today but it was only a little foley's so they didn't have alot of the ones you guys mentioned. Â*one thing i learned was that the shelves are filled with a lot of fresh n fruity scents now -- envy me, nanette lapore, kenneth cole reaction -- i can't remember any others but i smelled a whole bunch that smelled like those. i *think* the ones i liked were exceptions to the rule

anyway here are some of the ones that caught my eye, err, nose

Cartier So Pretty -- its alright, one of the better fruity modern ones
Chanel Une Fleur de Chanel -- liked but must apply lightly. Â*i love how soft it is, but not powdery.
Chanel No. 19 -- love the greeness but not light enough
Chanel Cristalle -- lovely but very lemony
Stella -- i just like it
Stella Sheer -- fruity stella
Marc Jacobs -- i can't really get a feel for this one, but i think it smelled alot like Michael Kors
Michael Kors -- i don't know what flower that is but this one had me at first sniff. Â*its awesome

i think Stella Sheer, Michael Kors, and Chanel Fleur are in the top.
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