Madame Rochas was introduced in 1960. It used to be one of my favorites for spring and summer. It’s a floral aldehyde, but it has more zing than Chanel No. 5. The vintage fragrance was potent, but not over-powering. The modern version is different than the vintage — no wonder that whenever on whatever rare occasions I found it and spritzed it, it wasn’t me.

Original:
Top Notes: Hyacinth, neroli, aldehydes, greens, lemon
Heart Notes: Bulgarian rose, jasmine, iris, lily of the valley, violet, orris, narcissus, tuberose
Base Notes: Amber, cedarwood, sandalwood, moss, vetiver, musk, tonka bean

Well, I didn’t think it was me for a long time. I gave it a couple of decades long break. It had been one of the bottles I had felt I’d had to use up before I could buy another one. Doing that, I always really tired of it. Ha! if I hadn’t done that, I’d have my own vintage bottle, and it would still be in good scent condition.

Sometime in the last year I found vintage spray parfum on ebay, minus the decorative outer case/bottle. Never having worn the perfume, only the edt (I think) version which was as strong as edp, I thought I’d spring for it, if it were inexpensive enough, which it turned out to be. It certainly smelled fine, but again it wasn’t me. I hated to use it up as room spray! So, I decided to wait…and try again.

Today with spring in the offing, loads of wind and plenty of sun, it just felt like a Mme Rochas kind of day. Plus it conjures up plenty of happy memories and moments. No sense whatsoever wearing anything with bad vibes, LOL!

Yep, I was right. Given the right atmosphere, it is just as beautiful, rich and full-bodied as it ever was, complete with lovely woods.

How to describe it….similar to Chamade in some respects, but brighter. Heavy on rose and jasmine but blended into the woods and iris so it has a green aspect to it. There is more moss in the base than there is musk, which is a good thing for me. I picture myself walking through the woods towards a companion seeing bits of bright green spring grass and moss, with sunlight dappling through the trees, after a rain or with dew or mist on the ground. Each of those things bring me joy; having them together is a bonus.

It is long lasting and makes you happy. What more could you want! I’m glad it worked today.

Do you wear it? have you ever worn it? Why, oh why, do they tweak with perfection!

Karin

Originally posted 2007-04-16 11:54:13.

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Does your favorite go-to fragrance from the past smell different?
If you think one of your favorite fragrances from the past does not smell the same any more, likely you are right.

The list of fragrances that have been tweaked (and will be tweaked due to new regs) is getting longer and longer.

Shalimar
An example is Shalimar. I used to wear this when I lived up north. I wore it during the winter, mostly when it was snowing. A friend of mine told me that she used to wear this when she smoked and that is when it smelled the best to her. I suppose when I wore it, along with Shalimar (and the smell of snow) there was also the smell of smoke from wood burning fireplaces…

I thought I might have simply outgrown the fragrance, or that living in the south now, as there isn’t a winter in the same sense, was making the difference. Certainly there is no snow.

But, vintage Shalimar is quite different from the modern. I find I love the vintage as much as I ever did. The modern is a pale comparison.

Rive Gauche
Same for Rive Gauche. Even the so-called intense modern version pales in comparison with the original, which was knock your socks off wildly beautiful.

Why the difference?
I believe it is formula changes, not that we have become more used to intense fragrances so that the ones from the past seem correspondingly less intense.

If you can find a vintage version today, then…
Sometimes it is like fine wine. The fragrance has become more intense as it has matured and perhaps through some evaporation. Fragrances have to mature to some degree anyway before they are bottled.

Sometimes the top notes have gone (somewhat bad), but that is the part that evaporates first on your skin, so almost immediately you are into the middle and base of the fragrance. And it is worth it to have the real deal.

Modern versions of old faves
Occasionally you will find a modern version that has its own beauty. For those who don’t know the difference, this can be entirely satisfying. Others of us, might want both versions or only the vintage.

What about buying vintage today, where do you get it?
It is possible to find vintage fragrances in online perfume forums or on ebay.

Do you have any vintage fragrances you still like to wear in the vintage formula?

Karin

Originally posted 2007-02-06 19:25:37.

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