Unsung Treasures - Page 3

I have always said Jacomo with the second syllable accented, just like you used to.

Aha - it finally gets some attention! I've been singing the praises of La Perla for ages! It was actually my sotd last Wednesday when I did a week of rosey chypres. I can see the connection to the Sisleys, but La Perla also reminds me a bit of Rose Cardin and Donna Trussardi - another mutual favorite. I just seem to adore this whole category and everything in it!

La Perla's vibrant younger sister, Parfum Prive should also get a lot more attention. It's a gorgeous, radiant, chypre-y green floral that recalls 1000 de Patou (due to the osmanthus, I think) and also a bit of Donna Trussardi (I've actually had the idea that Donna Trussardi is the love-child of La Perla and Parfum Prive!) But Parfum Prive seems more cheerful and lighthearted, somehow...it's very beautiful, but maybe a bit less elegant than some of the others, and more casual. It's readily available and extremely inexpensive - I bought a few bottles from an eBay vendor for $15 each!

Those are the only two from LaPerla that I know, but I've been very curious about Blue and Io, and now I have especially high hopes for them!

Yes, yes, and yes! I just wanted to add my agreement to this assesment of La Perla, too. I love all of these rich and opulent beauties, and La Perla is really one of the best.

A Travers le Miroir by Thierry Mugler is most definitely an unsung treasures. It's a wonderfully bitter and herbaceous Tuberose. It works as a great masculine too.

I'm glad you're talking about Luciano Soprani. Strass is the only Soprani I know besides Soprani 2, which I found disagreeable at the time. I sort of wrote Soprani off without trying anything else, but I gave Strass a go when it came out and it gave me new hope for the house, but I still haven't tried anything else since then. And now I want to see if I can find the other one you recommend...that's the original Luciano Soprani from 1987, right?

Are you familiar with any of the others? I noticed that D Luciano Soprani was created by Pierre Bourdon, so that got my attention. DSoir also looks interesting.

eta - I just saw a brand new one from 2010 - Solo Soprani Rose. Sounds nice!

Yes, Tis I!

Thread bump to report on more juice I've acquired due to this thread ......Miss Arpels is absolutely lovely...see Hillaire's spot -on description.

I've got Lilith by Callaghan and Parfum Prive by La Perla on order now.

I've ordered blind the D by Soprani... by Pierre Bourdon and a Soprani, how could I not like it? (I'll report back when I get it...)


EDIT: How could I not like it? WELL, I'LL TELL YA HOW!
Sadly, just a pleasant, but diluted, pale, ordinary fruity floral.... :-(

I would like to nominate Hillaire as Basenotes' Number One Perfume Pusher!
(and of course I mean that in a good way.)

LOLS... It is so dangerous reading your posts about perfumes, I want every one you rave about!

The Parfum Prive by La Perla EDP (Originally mentioned by Evangeline) arrived today- It's opulent, sweet, happy, and rich! Hmmm...... all attributes i am not, well maybe the happy And it was only $15 on Evil Bay- such a bargain for such quality!

My Jacomo love affair continues. My bottle of Parfum Rare arrived today. Swoon! So gorgeous!

(For the record, I've always pronounced it with the accent on the first syllable, but who knows?)

I keep hoping the Jacomo Art Collection series will make it to the U.S. but no luck so far, not even on Evil Bay.

Can't believe I haven't found this thread sooner! Great initiative, Hillarie!

I'm also a fan of Ysatis, which I wore religiously in my twenties.

My favourite rose along with Agent Provocateur is the discontinued Baroque from Fragonard. I got a bottle last summer, and when I visited their website this year it was gone. It's a luscious red rose teamed with ginger, very sexy indeed.

I also think Galimard fragrances aren't discussed that often. My fave is Gelsomino which is a fantastic tuberose/vanilla with fresh citrus top notes.

I don't know if it is mentioned before but today i wear Shafali fleur rare by Yves Rocher(discontinued):

Fragrance Notes:
top notes
Citruses/Floral Notes
middle notes
White Flowers/jasmine
base notes
Vanille/Resin

Quite nice !I have a mini of it .

Well, i was lucky enough to have two bottles of Shafali fleur rare ...now, i have left only one ..

Do you like juicy, thick and slightly gourmand rose scents like Noir de Noir? If so, have you tried J. del Pozo's In Black? Ridiculously cheap on line, $15 for 1oz at Scentmonkey.com - beautiful black globe bottle, too.

Agree! IN BLACK is a dynamite sleeper scent. IN WHITE is also a good deal.

In White by Del Pozo is very close smell to Dior Pure Poison

Haven't tried any Pozos, but looking at the line on eBay, I'm loving the bottles!

I agree with the recommendations for Del Pozo's In Black and In White - very good and a bit unusual, long-lasting and very well-priced. In Black reminds me a bit of Black Orchid ...maybe with a bit of Poison (?) thrown in. It's dark and sexy with juicy cherries and licorice over sultry florals, musk, cedar and patchouli. And I agree with sophi, In White is very similar to Pure Poison, but I actually prefer In White - it seems rounder and a lot less shrill to me. I've never really gotten along with Pure Poison so I was pleased to find In White to be a more refined and wearable version of it.

Halloween is interesting...reminiscent of Alien, maybe, but with violet instead of jasmine. I need to dig out my mini and give it a sniff to remember exactly, but I don't think the name really fits the fragrance which isn't dark or spooky or even very incensey (although incense is listed in the notes) at all. It's a sweet and creamy floral oriental, maybe with a touch of an aquatic something or other going on. On Ella is the other one I've tried and like, but would need to resniff to really recommend it. I can say that it's a nice green floral with a hook....I think it was the freesia that was the stand-out note. And now I'm wondering if it's Gucci's Envy that it reminds me of...!?

They're certainly affordable, but I wouldn't really recommend buying Del Pozos blind - they can be sort of weird and somewhat polarizing...then again, if you come across them in a bargain bin I'd say go ahead and grab one. No matter which you find, it probably won't set you back more than $20. And the bottles are pretty cool.

Does anyone know Duende or Ambar? Duende is from 1992 and was created by Olivier Cresp, so that's pretty interesting! Ambar is new and I like the bottle and the notes - cardamom, bergamote, tangerine, iris, tea, peony, virginia cedar, sage and amber. Here's the bottle -

I recently stumbled upon a couple of old minis of Montana's first fragrance, Parfum de Peau. I used to think it was amazing, so I bought one mini each of edt and edp. It's even better than I remembered it!

Bold, tangy, fruity, spicy, leathery, animalic, delicious. I'm stocking up on vintage bottles of edt, edp and parfum...

I like Parfum de Peau too, tott - I'm glad to hear it's still good! It reminds me a bit of Diva and L'Arte di Gucci with more leather and less rose. Another Montana worth mentioning is Parfum d'Elle, a luscious fruity-floral chypre from 1990.


eta - For anyone interested, Parfum de Peau was created by Jean Guichard, the nose behind a few of my personal favorites, namely Donna Trussardi (already mentioned on this thread) and Cartier's So Pretty, as well as Cacharel's LouLou and Eden and CK's Obsession.

eta2 - I just noticed Twolf's recommendation earlier in this thread for yet another Montana, Suggestion Eau Cuivree. It seems the house of Montana might be needing further research!

Nice to hear there are more fans of this little gem! And I must say that I am curious about both Diva and l'Arte di Gucci...

There is a store here that stocks the new PdP, so I will swing by and test it to see if it's worth investing in, or if it has been destroyed by reformulations...

Sooo... Today I tested what I believe is the most current PdP; the typical (Montana) blue box with the bottle depicted.

It is recognizable as PdP, but it's not as complex and thinner. It feels like it has less sillage and rapidly turns into a skin scent.

We are still on the road and I am logged in from the Motel, but there is one scent that I have never known was so good (on a female!) and that I spotted in Miss Tao's collection -- Zirh Ikon in an impressive black bottle -- and Miss Tao said she paid like $13 at TJMaxx.

eta: spelling

Jean Nate: As luscious as Aqua di Palma at a fraction of the cost; JN lasts much longer , too,

Two recent discoveries: En Avion by Caron; wonderful carnation, spice, cedar and civet. Great in cold weather; kin the Jicky. Also, Or et Noir...also by Caron. A creamy, softly sensual rose with spice. Some say this is a dark rose; I think it's more like a rich and mellow Merlot laced with absinthe. Both have good sillage and longevity.

It's actually available at Henri Bendel in NYC. They haven't joined the rest of us in the 21st century as far as e-commerce goes, but they accept phone orders, so you can give them a call (Giuseppe the manager of the perfume department is absolutely wonderful).

nice bottle, too, Hillaire.

This thread seems kind to my wallet but I'm afraid it's bad for my addiction...

Molto Missoni by Missoni

Youth Dew by Estee Lauder

Farouche by Nina Ricci

I have some Unsung Treasures that I have to share!!

For lovers of Diorissimo (one of my favorite Dior's)
Nina Ricci Fleur de Fleurs (AMAZING!!!!)

For lovers of THICK HEAVY WHITE flower perfumes:
Caesar Women original (and what a GREAT price!!!)
Nazareno Gabrielli original (WAUWWAUWWAUW)

For lovers of 'purple & spicy' perfumes:
Dali Purplelips Sensual (really fantastic!).

For the Classic originals:
Pierre Cardin original (sooo fantastic!)
Revillon Detchema

For subtle vintage perfumes:
Yves Rocher vintage Chevrefeuille ( Citrus & Honeysuckle)
Yves Rocher Milrose (splendid subtle rose aldehydes, old school).

This thread is a goldmine, makes my heart beat faster - literally!! I'm taking notes and trawling the internet at the same time, and all of a sudden I feel like buying stuff that I never heard about, just because it might be... it could be... a forgotten gem. OH the excitement!!

I don't know if they were already mentioned:
Jardins de Bagatelle, everybody is raving about Guerlain, but noone ever mentions this one, and it's so PRETTY? It's young, sweet and ever so floral, but there is like a fresh breeze blowing all the way through it, that makes you (well me!) feel soothed.

Spellbound, used to own, never could forget its rich creamyness. Must. Buy. Again.

Nocturnes de Caron, another used to own - must buy again. Smells like you (well I) would want to smell when you're meeting someone for a late dinner. In Paris. In November.

Thought I would bump this thread by mentioning 8e jour by Yves Rocher a discontinued and not in the directory spicy oriental with some vetiver .It smells similar to YSL Nu edp but without the big orchid topnote.

bookwyrmsmith - Holy cats! Not only do I love 8e Jour, it's my sotd, which is a pretty unlikely coincidence! Your take on it is interesting - I don't get any vetiver, it's just soft florals with warm and vibrant cinnamon, honey and myrrh to me - no green. I've never smelled anything like it, not even remotely. However, I might have to revisit Nu (you're talking about the edt, right?) as I suppose the iris and jasmine combo plus some vanilla and myrrh might seem similar.

Btw, it is known and loved around here but only by a seemingly very small minority - it's mentioned on the first page of this thread!

No I meant the edp Nu that's what I have (blackish-blue hockey puck shaped bottle in a dark plastic box not the silver and bright blue edt) .
Hmm maybe my 8e jour has turned (at least partially)?or maybe my skin brings that note out.

Oh, You have mentioned so many of my faves! I used to wear Moschino original but it was too fougere and manly to my liking. I agree a guy could wear it with ease. Here are some of mine:

Trussardi Donna (1984 white snake skin like bottle) - great animalic chameleon - dry and green when it's hot, rosy and sultry in cool weather. I smell quality ingredients, not the sinthetic new ones and think it has not changed. Hard to find, but still in production.

Donna Trussardi (1994 in clear bottle) - fresh, but sultry chypre.

Montana Parfum de peau (original) - the greatest animalic ever made. smoky, powdery, soapy, greenish chypre. Even the reformulated version still makes my heart skip a beat. Very true to the original, but less fierse

Rumba - My all time favourite. Similar to Montana, but a tad sweeter and has more fruits and insense.

Diva was a great animalic too, but the new version leaves me cold, Sweeter and milder, sillage is a bit like Knowing

Gucci III - a green, fruity, rosy, powdery leathery chypre. My daytime fave. Impossible to find.

Miss Balmain - classy rosy insensey chypre. Preder it to Jolie Madame

Narcisse Chloe - best floriental ever. Even my mum grew to love it and it's among her faves now. I get so many compliments when I wear it.

Sublime by Jean Patou - fresh insense. Love it.

Rive gauche - cold metallic aldehide, my HG in hot weather. Like a cold shower.

Farouche - best aldehide ever

Calandre - green and cold aldehide composed by Michael Ho who composed Rive gauche and Farouche as well

Fleur de fleur - a nice flowery aldehide by Nina Ricci
Replique by Raphael - not a chypre, but nice green dry fragrance. Also like the original by Irma Shorell.

Stephanie by Bourjois - little known chypre composed by Polge. Some of the best ever made

Evasion, Flamme, Premier muguet by Bourjois. Evasion is a tarty jasmin composition with lots of moss and lilly of the valley. Premier muguet is dry, bitter and mossy lilly of the valley, Flamme - an old school chypre

K by Krizia - a nice crisp floral. I wear it today mixed with Grey flannel

Creation by Lapidus - a wet chypre with monster sillage. Does not suit me though

I bought unsniffed Capucci by Capucci and it is awfull. Stinks of carnation and has nothing, absolutelu nothing in common with the original. No point buyng this one.

I have a question. Has any of You recently bought Cachet by Prince Matchabelli? I remember the original as a dry, bitter, green chypre, similar to Alliage by EL. How is the new version.

I'm interested in revisiting Norell, but am not sure it is the crisp old version. How do they differ?

Orazuli by Dupont - won in a contest here at Basenotes, bought another bottle at TJ Maxx. Actually wearing it today, soft creamy vanilla with a distant citrus by this time of the day.

Adrienne Vittadini by Adrienne Vittadini - beautiful light oriental for the summer. Getting hard to find now.

Pivoine by Yves Rocher - used to wear this a lot in the summer.

Sun Moon Stars by Lagerfeld - beautiful, sleeper oriental.

I came across and bought a slightly used 100 ml EDT bottle of Van Cleef and Arpels Gem in the original formulation, as pictured in this thread. It is really fine and classic perfumery.

Oh what a horrible, fascinating and dangerous thread!!!!

How about Aperçu by Houbigant.
It's a lovely Chypre, very not flowery. I got a tester on E-bay!
Also the first perfume I brought blind.
The first perfume I brought because of the reviews on Basenotes,
And the First perfume which brough about a bout of Hillairitis.
Which affliction is now greatly enhanced by this threat and now I have to get some La Perle, Miss Arpels, Fath de Fath, Capucci de Capucci and Bogner Woman....

I will be good and post .Though a part of me says NNNOOO!!!!! not till you back-up the bottles !!!
Shush selfish side .
Golden Autumn by Prince Machabelli -a soapy woodsy
and
Golden Woods by Max Factor-spicy ambery probably a cousin or sib to Cinnabar ,Obsession,or Toujours Moi
Both are delicious

My unsung treasures include:-

Fragonard's Fleur D'Oranger - my all-time favourite summer scent. Nonchalant, carefree,
uplifting and totally beautiful.

Empreinte by Courreges - this one is a real beauty with notes of peach, artemesia,
florals, melon, leather, woods and castoreum. It is a little "Femme"-like, dare I say.

Casaque by Jean d'Albret - now sadly discontinued, but available in a re-creation by
Irma Shorell. A lush floral with real depth.

Lullaby by Jeffrey Dame for Perfume Of Life. This is a poignant, caressing little scent with
that touching heliotrope note that makes it feel tinged with sadness.

Ohhh Evangeline, I DO love 8e jour sooooo much!!! It is my gourmand interpretation of Opium. Where Opium can be a tad too spicy at times, 8e jour has polished all the edges away and made it a WONDERFUL passionate perfume.

I am one of the biggest fans of Yves Rocher vintages. Ispahan as my oriental interpretation of the vintage Miss Dior, Cantate as the gourmand ahead of it's time, Venice as the sensual version of Galbanum, Shafali as the exceptional interpretation of the white flower and honey. I am totally crazy about my jewel Orchidee and her sister Nuit D'Orchidee, I adore the dewy green Nature, the utterly FANTASTIC vintage En Avril Un Soir, the sillage monster Rose Ispahan, the sophisticated vintage Chevrefeuille, the lovely lovely new range Secret Essences, and the stunning woody gourmand Nature Millenaire, the allrounder Nebline, where to begin and where to stop??
Yves Rocher - masterpiece supplier of all times!