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Questions re Jicky, Chanel No. 19

post #1 of 27
2/8/12 at 2:31pm
Thread Starter 
Let me preface this by saying that I have done the relevant searches, and as it seems that it has been a while since my questions were last posed here, I thought it appropriate to start a new thread rather than revive old ones.

As I detest any form of skankiness other than a mild musk, I would like to ask if there is any recommendation anyone can make for something that smells similar to Jicky only without the civet and with better longevity?

I have always loved Chanel No. 19, and while I agree in theory that we should wear what we like without regard to gender consideration, I feel uncomfortable if not downright unsafe wearing such an iconic and easily recognized "woman's" perfume. Are there other similar fragrances that wouldn't be so obviously feminine? I was thinking perhaps Central Park? Others?

I used to really enjoy the Bath and Body Works Sandalwood Rose aromatherapy scent.
Is there anything that might approximate that? Maybe C&S No. 88? Others?

I also like BBW Eucalyptus Spearmint aromatherapy body spray while it lasts which is not very long. Anything similar with better longevity? (Roadster doesn't work here for me.)

Thanks Y'all
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post #2 of 27
2/8/12 at 3:13pm
If you're not comfortable with Jicky you could probably give a chance to Musc Ravageur which is a lavender/vanilla based composition with just a tad of musk and cinnamon. Another option could be Mouchoir De Monsieur which is definitely less "skanky" than Jicky.

An alternative to No.19 could be Bandit, assuming you don't mind a consitent dose of leather.
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post #3 of 27
2/8/12 at 3:21pm
I'd suggest buying a new bottle of Jicky in which the civet is nearly undetectable. The 2011 batches are capital "W" Weak on the civet if it's still there at all.
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post #4 of 27
2/8/12 at 3:33pm
Chanel No. 19 in the newer versions is lacking in the leather notes, which have been toned down.

I always get a civet blast from MdM, and about as much from Jicky EDP.

Are the newer MdMs and Jicky scents reduced in the civet?!
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post #5 of 27
2/8/12 at 6:09pm
I recently bought a bottle of Jicky EdP and the civet is certainly noticeable. Much more than my vintage EdC, for example...
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post #6 of 27
2/8/12 at 6:45pm
There is nothing like Jicky except Mouchoir de Monsieur which has MORE civet. I would say just jump into a bunch of lavender scents and sample 'em until you find one you like. There are a ton of them (and a ton of threads about lavender on Basenotes) that you'll be overwhelmed with choices. But don't go out there expecting something 'like Jicky.'

For an alternative to No. 19 try Iris Bleu Gris by Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier. Note: What people do you know who would recognize No. 19? My circle of friends/work associates couldn't tell you what No. 19 smelled like if their life depended on it LOL
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post #7 of 27
2/8/12 at 7:15pm
Re: the civet in Jicky, it seems to go up and down. Turin Sanchez, in their update, claim that the batch they smelled in 2011 is raunchier than that in 2007. Of course, it could also depend on the concentration.


Anyway, for lavender vanilla without civet there's always the classic Caron Pour un Homme

cacio
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post #8 of 27
2/8/12 at 7:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cacio View Post

Re: the civet in Jicky, it seems to go up and down. Turin Sanchez, in their update, claim that the batch they smelled in 2011 is raunchier than that in 2007. Of course, it could also depend on the concentration.


Anyway, for lavender vanilla without civet there's always the classic Caron Pour un Homme

cacio

Pour Un Homme is certainly way different but I love it just as much.
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post #9 of 27
2/8/12 at 8:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeperez23 View Post

There is nothing like Jicky except Mouchoir de Monsieur which has MORE civet.

Hmm, this is an interesting claim. I have only tried Jicky once, but its blast of civet caused me to go into a swoon from which, a year later, I still haven't recovered. My most memorable experience in perfumery, really. Mouchoir de Monsieur, on the other hand, strikes me as almost regrettably polite with its civet... Still, I can hardly draw a legitimate inference from a single application.

I also vote for Caron Pour un Homme. Vanilla and lavender, and very long-lived. I'm lately finding it better on linen than on my skin. Quite possibly it will reach its epiphany when applied to one's shirt rather than to one's person.
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post #10 of 27
2/8/12 at 11:16pm
I'm on mike's side... I have always found Mouchoir de Monsieur raunchier/dirtier. The new Jicky EdP I have is a nice and pleasant lavender. End of story and end of Jicky buys.
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post #11 of 27
2/8/12 at 11:34pm
I'm with Mike too- especially about the No 19. Just apply and enjoy I say!
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post #12 of 27
2/8/12 at 11:47pm
Ah, the Jicky I tried is not one I would care to try again - it was truly fecal! I do not mean 'most memorable' in an entirely good way. But it was a dusty tester packed into the back of a drawer, quite possibly vintage - and it was a very hot day. Possibly the worst of times to a Jicky whose 'raw' civet was at full strength.
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post #13 of 27
2/9/12 at 12:23am
Personally I find the civet in MdM much MORE efemeral than the one in Jicky. After the initial blast which lasts maybe 10 minutes, the fragrance settles down to a very polite (yet incredibly satisfying) lavender.
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post #14 of 27
2/9/12 at 4:21am
I need to go try some more Jicky! It had nothing on my MDM as far as the diaper scents go, but it seems that there are varying degrees of quality recently.

I think the civet in MDM lasts a while and gives the fragrance its more jewelled, "solid" structure. It's hard to explain exactly, but it changes my brain portrait of the fragrance from a cloud to something with distinct gem cut sides. So pretty!

Pour Un Homme lasts forever on skin, but I don't know if I like it on cloth as much. Caron's drydowns are sooooooooooooooo gooooooooooooooood.
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post #15 of 27
2/9/12 at 9:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lovingthealien View Post

Pour Un Homme lasts forever on skin, but I don't know if I like it on cloth as much. Caron's drydowns are sooooooooooooooo gooooooooooooooood.

I don't find much connection between Jicky and Caron PuH actually. The Caron has a light musk and ethyl vanillin drydown, with a lot of lavender instead of Jicky's citrus top, heavy civet and vanilla bourbon drydown, with many detailed florals and other notes between. Jicky is far skankier and more complex. Caron PuH smells like cheap American vanilla ice cream.
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post #16 of 27
2/9/12 at 12:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MonkeyBars View Post

I don't find much connection between Jicky and Caron PuH actually. The Caron has a light musk and ethyl vanillin drydown, with a lot of lavender instead of Jicky's citrus top, heavy civet and vanilla bourbon drydown, with many detailed florals and other notes between. Jicky is far skankier and more complex. Caron PuH smells like cheap American vanilla ice cream.

I don't think they are similar at all, either, but it was mentioned earlier on in the thread by user "Merely," so I decided to add my opinion of that one, too.

Jicky is amazing and complex, as is Mouchoir de Monsieur (which I own a full bottle of; I've only just sampled Jicky EDT), but all of Caron's fragrances are weird and beautiful, too. Yatagan, Le Troisieme Homme, and Pour Un Homme all have surprisingly great drydowns. Just because Jicky exists doesn't mean that it's the only way to do lavender/vanilla and that Caron Pour Un Homme isn't a good fragrance.

I don't think Pour Un Homme smells like ice cream, either. I get a very distinct caramelly vanilla which plays with the cedar to make an almost (almost) repulsive smell reminiscent of dried fenugreek and cigar boxes. It's definitely one of the stranger, more minimalist combinations of vanilla/lavender I've smelled.
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post #17 of 27
2/9/12 at 1:01pm
Thread Starter 
So I just now have the opportunity to check back in on this thread. I'd like to offer my sincerest thanks to each of you for all your responses. I've enjoyed reading the discussion and all your various opinions.
The take away here is ,first of all, that I agree that Pour Un Homme is great but doesn't quite have the same dense, rich character as Jicky. I'm going to place a sample order for Musc Ravageur, Meharees, HdP Casanova and Iris Bleu Gris. As Central Park, which I have yet to sample, never entered this conversation, I gather that no one thinks that it bears any similarities at all to No. 19?
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post #18 of 27
2/9/12 at 1:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jonty Coppersmith View Post

I'm going to place a sample order for Musc Ravageur, Meharees, HdP Casanova and Iris Bleu Gris.

All good choices
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post #19 of 27
2/10/12 at 3:51am
I dislike Central Park intensely. The scent, not the actual park.
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post #20 of 27
2/10/12 at 4:37am
If you can find it you could try Patou's Moment Supreme. It's a nice, slightly soapy lavender, no skank.

I don't think you should be afraid of wearing #19, I don't think many people can identify it.
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post #21 of 27
2/10/12 at 5:12am
Thread Starter 
I wasn't going to go into this, but because some have suggested that I shouldn't be afraid to wear Chanel No. 19, I will elaborate.
Indeed I should be very afraid, and I am. I'm in a very rural, ultra conservative area where a nearby billboard proudly announces "Welcome to KKK Country" and where said group marches in the Christmas parade of the small town. Around here if you're not white,straight, and Christian you had better watch your back. Only one of those descriptors applies to me, and that means that I must be hypervigilant as past experience has made perfectly clear. Not so long ago I was accosted by a man, a total stranger who thought I smelled like a woman. He cursed me with all manner of homophobic epithets and further threatened to blow my brains out. I made a hasty retreat all the while wondering if the guy would follow me and actually carry out his threats. The offending scent that day was JHL which I love. Needless to say that JHL is now reserved for days at home or with friends only and never in any public spaces. I hope this explains my reluctance to sport certain scents in public.
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post #22 of 27
2/10/12 at 5:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jonty Coppersmith View Post

I wasn't going to go into this, but because some have suggested that I shouldn't be afraid to wear Chanel No. 19, I will elaborate.

Thank you for the explanation. I am very sorry that the community you live in is so intolerant.
I hope you can still enjoy No. 19 at home and will find a good alternative for going out. You could also try spraying very little (or walking through the mist instead of spraying). Maybe the people around you won't notice your scent that way while you can still happily sniff it during the day.
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post #23 of 27
2/10/12 at 7:06am
Jonty Coppersmith, sorry to hear about your fear of offending those who live in your community. I grew up a skinny, limp wristed, homosexual myself and I know all too well how it felt to be tormented by my peers.

My advice: Move. Or take a self defense class & next time someone pulls that stunt knock his fucking block off. Or both.
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post #24 of 27
2/10/12 at 7:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeperez23 View Post

My advice: Move. Or take a self defense class & next time someone pulls that stunt knock his fucking block off. Or both.

This is, by far, the best advice ever!
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post #25 of 27
2/10/12 at 8:54am
Really dangerous situations... This guy evidently wanted a fight and was under the influence and picked up on anything.

And the ironic thing is, you were wearing a masculine. I doubt anybody would be able to categorize a scent as masculine and feminine out of context. As so funnily described by Tania Sanchez, the ur-masculine cowboy Stetson Original is in fact a classical feminine floral oriental.

cacio
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post #26 of 27
2/10/12 at 9:10am
Wow I'm sorry to hear that too. KKK billboard and marching in a parade? Frankly, I'm shocked and appalled. I had thought such cretins were confined to secretive, shameful meetings in skeezy back-alley speed labs or abandoned barnhouses. My friend, the BN community supports you in wearing whatever you like. But if you wear whatever you like in public where you live, I recommend firearms. In all seriousness.
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post #27 of 27
2/11/12 at 10:21am
JHL really does smell like Opium.
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