Chanel Cormandel EDT Review

It's time for me to just review Coromandel due to the fact that I've spent more time than I really needed to with it. I picked Coromandel due to the fact is that I've kind of been wanting to slowly work my way through the Les Exclusifs line by Chanel. My thought about the line is that Chanel is trying to get somewhat of a foothold in the niche department but still be mainstream. And I'm confused by that. Chanel's prices are already in the price range for niche but the Les Exclusifs line has some of the old offerings (Cuir de Russie and no 22 for starters) from way back when. Maybe they are marketing this line for perfume people like be who don't tend to shop mainstream and have smelled much more than the average consumer.

When I had first put on Coromandel, I smelled something akin to Frapin 1270 without the booze. I initially liked that but did need to wear it again because I knew that there was something that I was missing and it had something very familiar about it. On my second and third wearing, I knew what I was missing and what was familiar about it. It smelled an awful lot like Coco Mademoiselle. The patchouli and the fruity parts are tones down in Coromandel but still there. The thread of vanilla that shows itself an hour in tames the fruit and patchouli. I've said before that anything that has patchouli as a dominant player really isn't my friend. There is something about patchouli that I haven't come around to, probably the fact that it always smells kind of dirty to me. Yes, the patchouli is smoothed out and toned down but it's still there and still detectable to me. I will admit that Mademoiselle is a frenemy to me and Coromandel is a little more of a friend but not much. The decant that I have is at least a couple years old and obviously the EDT since the EDP version came out a couple months ago. Lasting power on my skin is about 6 hours and the sillage is about medium. Maybe my luck will change with Coromandel and I do fall in love with it but my track record with CM tells me otherwise.

Frapin 1697 Revisited

I remember a few years ago that Frapin had announced that there was going to be a new perfume to be released. That perfume's name was 1697 and since I had already fallen in love with 1270, I wanted to try it. When I got my hands on a sample, I was so excited. I promptly wore it, reviewed it and decided to not get a bottle. At the time, I was confused with the whole absolu thing and I still don't know what the hell it is. It's not exactly high on my priority list to fund out. I remember saying that 1697 was pretty much a toned down, less boozy version of 1270. While 1270 and 1697 are boozy, 1270 has more booze and stewed fruit than 1697. And since I had gotten another decant of the absolu, I stand by that statement. Wearing a decant of 1697 a few years later and knowing that the absolu isn't being sold anymore makes me want to take another look. I remember taking a look at the price tag for the absolu and saying that I don't love it enough for the price tag. Frapin's price tags are still a little scary to me even though it's a 100ml of perfume. I still stand by my statement that if you like 1270 but find it a little over the top, 1697 would be the better bet. I do love 1697, I don't love it enough to have a bottle since I have 1270. I wouldn't mind if 1697 were dropped in my lap but I am not going to buy it anytime soon.

I still don't know why I decided to visit 1697 again and look through it with new eyes but I did. I think that shopping my collection has something to do with it and being on a no buy. I have been wearing perfumes that I haven't worn in a while and some of them have been waiting over a year for me to grab them. Now, I need to rectify that and hopefully this no buy will help me use up a couple bottles. It's horrible to have almost no space because my collection is large. Maybe not the 700 bottle type of large but the 60 bottle large.

Frapin 1697 Absolu Review

I keep meaning to review Frapin's 1697 but I always get sidetracked with something else. When I first heard about this being released last year, I was kind of excited. I was going through an odd phase of just randomly buying full bottles of Frapin perfumes. Espirit de Fleurs and Passion Boisee left me underwhelmed and one of them left me a little nauseated. I'm guessing that I was so enamored with Frapin's 1270 that I thought that the others would be in the same vein. Passion Boisee and Espirit de Fleurs were nowhere near the same vein as 1270. Then, I got my hands on a decant of 1697 when first released. I was reading a lot of perfume blogs to see what other's were saying about it and the results were mixed.

On first contact with skin, there is a massive blast of booze along with what I can maybe identify as pineapple. I've never had a huge liking of fruity perfumes but Frapin did a fine job with fruit in 1270 but in 1697, I think it (the fruit aspect) was overdone along with the boozy aspect. I've noticed after three hours of wearing, the fruit and booze mellows out but still packs a huge punch. After 12 hours, 1697 is still going strong with no signs of slowing down. To tell the truth, I find this to be a much harsher and louder version of 1270. Would I buy? No, not when there is the mellower and much better 1270.

**Please note that 1697 is no longer sold in absolu form. The current version is an EDP.

Frapin 1270 and Serge Lutens Daim Blond review

My odyssey with my Frapin 1270 began the day after Thanksgiving. I had ordered my bottle of Frapin 1270 from The Perfume Shoppe. After about a week and a half, I noticed that I had not received my order yet or even an email saying that it was shipped. I did initially figure that with the holidays that it may be taking a little longer than usual especially since they are located in Canada. Then after about two weeks, I received a phone call saying that there was a mix up and that they didn't receive the Frapin in their order and they did have a bottle of it but it was not in a box. I said that was okay and it was shipped to me. I'm probably going to have to think twice before I order anything that is not located in the US due to the fact that I would have to be home to sign for the package. With my wacky work schedule and living in a rural area, it's not practical and kind of a hassle to sign for something.

Now on to the review. It's going to be a side by side review. When I first sprayed Frapin 1270, I thought I grabbed the wrong bottle. Frapin 1270, to me, smells almost identical to Serge Lutens Daim Blond. But Frapin is more candied fruit than Daim Blond. Both contain leather but I can't smell leather in Frapin 1270. Frapin 1270 is a spicy, candied fruit deal. I've never been fond of fruity perfumes but this one works on my skin probably because of the spiciness of it. I did note with the Frapin 1270 that there was a boozie smell to it. It was very prevailent in the beginning but did calm down during the dry down but remained throughout.

Serge Lutens's Daim Blond is very similar but very different. I found it to be very linear on my skin. I had a very prevalent apricot smell with a hint of leather. It has been a while since I have worn it.

I find ultimatly that the Daim Blond is the prim and proper sister to Frapin 1270 were Frapin 1270 is the boozy sister that can never quite seem to sober up. Daim Blond is more for daytime/office. Frapin 1270 is more for a night on the town (not like that will stop me from wearing it to work).

Frapin 1270 has found a permanant place in my rotatation of frequently worn perfumes while Daim Blond is more or less regulated to languish on my dresser top to be passed over. After I finish my Daim Blond, I most likely won't be getting another bottle. After my bottle of Frapin 1270 is finished, I will be getting another bottle even though it is on the pricey side.