IT ARRIVED: Vol de Nuit Extrait purchase

I think they use to go for 170 - 180 USD on ebay. And hey - if you don´t like it you know who to contact...

Well considering an ounce of new VdN is around £170 now anything less than that is a bargain IMO .

I would snap it up myself ....

i think u should leave the price matter to the person who is selling it.
that is the best thing.

it is a nice fragrance. it somehow reminds me of diorella.

Hello Dimi,

depands on how mkutch u like it.
I wouldnt pay more than 120€ for it.

you dont know who it smells and you cant compaire it any more to what i was in the early days.
i have bought a vintage shalimar tear drop bortle 400ml.
smells gourgous , i do recognize the SHALIMARNESS in it.
but it does smell like another scent. i still like it allot.

What i want to say is that u have no refference to what it must smell like.
so u will never know if the smell did change pr lost some power or some notes.

Well, last time VdN extrait sold on eBay it was for $160 and that was a 15ml and not even in the original bottle. The time before that the exact same bottle as you describe went for much less, I think $150 for the 30ml.

Vintage VdN extrait is quite a rare find on eBay these days since the fragrance was nowhere near as popular as Mitsouko or Shalimar back in the day... I'd say $250 is definitely fair and probably more than fair. If you don't like it I very much welcome you to pm me, I'm dying to get my hands on it!

EDIT: I just noticed that it's not sealed anymore? that changes things quite a bit...

Another thing I wanted to add: contrary to current formulation Mitsouko and L'Heure Bleue, the current formulation of VdN is very good (by coincidence, I'm sporting it today ). If you don't like that one you're not going to like the vintage either, I think.

To reject such a bottle will be hard.. Hope you'll find the right solution Dimitri..

Hi Dimi - nice find! As said here, depends on 1) is it sealed? 2) no evaporation? If sealed and no evaporation, I'd personally pay up to, say, 180 since it's a 60s edition.

I bought a .25 oz, 90's vintage bottle for $90 recently. It was sealed in the box. Vol de Nuit is wonderful in that Youth Dew way. A rich and resinous oriental.

Here's what I wrote about it on my site:

Vol de Nuit is really dark like the night - it's the most successful of Jacques Guerlain's "1930's style" perfumes that all seem to share a mystic, gloomy and "lonely" atmosphere, thanks to dry, herbal-earthy-mineral or leathery notes. Vol de Nuit is the only classic range survivor of Jacques Guerlain's post-Shalimar perfumes and not least renowned for its wistful scent of galbanum and daffodil. It's scarce on top notes, so you are in the middle of its green-brown, herbal-woody heart the moment it is let out of its bottle. Together, L'Heure Bleue, Mitsouko and Vol de Nuit are often referred to as "sister fragrances" because of their shared spicy qualities. Yet, Vol de Nuit is the darkest, least flowery and most aromatic of the three, and consequently some people find it to be a unisex fougère-like fragrance, just like Jicky.

Dimitri, how exciting.

I have sampled Vol de Nuit in the EdT and in the parfum.

I didn't like the powdery aspect of the EdT. As you know I am not a fan of powdery scents, but there are some Guerlain's that I will wear that are powdery simply because the olfactory aura they give off is dusty and slightly different than just the smell of talcum powder. But it seemed as if VdN EdT didn't have this aura - it, just smelled like talcum powder and slightly feminized the fragrance (in my mind).

But the parfum, well that was incredibly wonderful. It took me about three wearings to even figure out the smell - it doesn't really smell like any oriental I've ever smelled before. The galbanum, that's very present, when you apply it is more akin to a green scent (or a fougere) not an oriental, but the way it's woven into the overall fragrance is really, really special. When it dries down, it turns very antiquated and got me a little melancholic. It has a weightiness to it, that diffuses around you when you wear it, but yet it's very subtle. I wore the last of my parfum sample a couple of months ago, on a sad Sunday evening - it seemed like the perfect scent for the moment I was in. I will never forget that night.

In addition, as Mr. Guerlain has already pointed out, the box (showing in the picture) proves that this is 1960's era VdN. When I saw the picture, my heart skipped a beat a little - since when it comes to VdN this is the EXACT formulation and bottle I would buy if I could.

What should you pay? How ever much you can afford Dimitri. As has been said before - I have tracked bottles just like this on Ebay (opened, not sealed) that have sold for more than $250.

I love this scent. I have a brand new bottle from the French Shopper (Ebay) that was around the $250 price. It is fresh, which is a plus. I haven't noticed any faults in strength or beauty with it.

This is the most spot-on description I have ever read about Vol de Nuit. There's something wonderfully gloomy about the minimal top notes. You are forced into sulking awhile for it to share its magnificence. I think it's worth the wait.

This is a marvelous opportunity. The box type indicates 1960's and if no evaporation and sealed, and it were me, I would place value at $200 to $275. Anything less would be a bargain IMO. If you don't buy it let us know where it can be had. I am sure it won't last long.

Dimitri,
you are just a lucky person!
I was looking for that bottle (since I bought VdN (15 ml, perfume, 90`s, usual bottle, USD 70)) with no luck.
Seems to me this bottle (in perfect unopened condition) could cost from 150 to 300 euro.
And I`m sure that you could find the same bottles on perfume collectioners meetings (bourses) in Europe quite regularly.

It`s a small world after all, and everything in EU is quite close (well, compared to Russia scale) - so I believe that you will be in France, Holland or Germany quite soon

At least, I would went there until I find some vintage VdN and Sous le Vent.

Yes. Grab it!

A 30 ml bottle of new parfum is over $300, and occasionally I see a parfum tester of the newer formulation on ebay for around $180-$200. A 30 ml vintage, full and sealed is a treasure!

No-brainer. Please please please () pm me should you decide not to buy it!

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!

Dimitri, when they ship it to you, make sure they use parafilm around the stopper neck (if needed) and pack the box and bottle separately (more secure for shipping).

I totally understand D - of course, here we are egging you on to spend your money on the blind buy, for a fragrance we know we like. SIlly, I know, but you asked for it.

I rarely blind buy these days also. However, ever since I became a Guerlainaholic (Hi, my name is Mike, and I'm an....) I have purchased a handful of Guerlain fragrances blind. All of them I was happy with. The newer Guerlain's should NOT be blind bought (I hated Guerlain Homme and the new Aqua Allegoria's). But vintage Guerlain? I will blind buy vintage Guerlain in a heartbeat.

Of course, only you can be the final judge of whether it's worth it or not.

But don't expect us Guerlainaholics to stop enabling you.

Aha ! That's exactly the one I have been after. (Thanks for the pic !) ... I just luv that fab zebra-striped box. It's the "cherry on the top" of an already magnificent, iconic bottle ! ... And then of course the magical "jus" can only be excellent !

The paper label simply indicates that the product is not to be sold by unauthorized vendors. This particular style label with the red marley horse logo was used between 1930 and 1950. The juice inside I don't know - I've never tried pre-1960's VdN.

so, are you going to go for it?

I have a small samples of the 40s extrait and it's amazing!


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so, are you going to go for it?

I have a small samples of the 40s extrait and it's amazing!


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I wanted the vintage extrait for so long, but I am such a cheapskate. I wasn't willing to go over $125. And it never fails when a VdN bottle pops up on eBay and I have no cash to snap it up.

Not really an update is it , for goodness sake just buy it and dont be such a drama queen

Then pull the trigger and buy it ........ otherwise PM me the details of the seller

Hey buddy, you're going to have to wait in line!

I am finally chiming in.
Buy it!! It is one of the masterpieces of the Guerlain stable of scents. It smells fabulous, it is timeless, it is one of the top 10 greatest in my opinion.
To miss an opportunity of this magnitude would be something to ponder through older age.
Good luck

Dimi,
225 + shipping for sealed full bottle?
Come on, buy it and then we`ll arrange the grand-swap

No, don't buy it, its a Nigerian scam trying to steal your money! Just kidding. Tell us how it goes afterwards

Yes! VdN is one of my favorite Guerlain's, even in its current formulation. Stunning. Great buy Dimitri!

Congratulations Dimitri.. Now I got my first vintage, I know you can't wait, haha

Excellent choice Dimi ... I'm pretty sure that you shall not regret it ! ......

But just in case you do ..... you'll know just in which direction to throw it (wink wink, nudge nuge ) .... Then again, you will probably have quite a few of us tearing each other limb from limb, just to get front in line ! .... The "Great Vol de Nuit Massacre of 2009" ...... (LOL) !

Dimi, don't will your fragrances to any of us. If you do we'll conspire to kill you.

Pretty much, yeah! Although there's a certain other Danish person on the top of my hitlist...

Haha yeah a Guerlain bunker! Congrats Dimi, report back when you got it! I'm jealous you know!

Yes but not such a very old one

Good to hear D.

Do me a favor - give it at least a handful of wearings before you make a decision about it. VdN is one of those scents that it takes several wearings to wrap your head around.

Really? It took me about a nanosecond to fall in love with it

I'm with you Mike, it took me half a year to really love its powdery iris and green-brown heart - but I was also Guerlain novice back then

The extrait is IMO so much better than the EdT. Mind you, I only tested new EdT (rather than vintage) but I found the VdN EdT rather lacking whereas the parfum is just hugely deep and complex.

So excited for you D.

I have the extrait, but sometimes I want it a bit lighter, and the EDT is great for that. For me, it did not take long to "get it":

1st wearing: what?
2nd wearing: mmm, galbanum
3rd wearing: where have you been all my life?