So we just spent 25 minutes looking for this Celine perfume we noticed for the first time in South Africa. We asked for it at this store that looked sort of like Sephora, and the saleswoman brought us to a not-Celine perfume. “But that says ‘Bulgari,’” we said, in this ridiculous, petulant, put-upon voice we are still embarrassed by, three weeks later. (“I thought you said ‘Crystalline,’” the woman said. She was about twice as nice about it as we deserved.)
Anyway, we looked for it again tonight, and found, instead of lovely French Celine, like a million iterations of fairly aggravating Canadian Celine Dion perfume, and then finally, after three weeks of not being able to find it, we were like … er, Chloe. We meant Chloe. This, we are realizing, is how more or less all of our stories go: interest, followed by irritated confusion, followed by guilt, followed by the realization that we are idiots.
Back to the perfume, and our much-treasured perfume review form!
Because we have been thinking: “What we really want is perfume with a bow on the bottle.”
What Chloe says: “Chloe’s newly unveiled signature scent captures the creative, confident individuality of the Chloe woman.” Especially the ones that can keep Chloe separate from Celine. And both of them separate from Celine Dion.
What we say: For all that aggravation, this is our new favorite perfume. Usually we like quite obvious and sunny perfumes—we’re thinking of you, Marc Jacobs Lemon Splash.
The packaging: We’re not feeling that bow.
The smell: “The airy, flirtatious head notes drift away to reveal the richer and more sensual side of the rose, derived from the velvety interior of the flower. The distinctive character of this unique rose is accompanied by heady magnolia and lily of the valley, as well as subtle intimations of warm amber and elegant cedarwood.” Honestly, all that makes us tired. We think it smells nice. It smells … like the perfume version of a country house. (Er, we’re thinking that’s where the cedarwood comes in.) We can’t help it. We love it.
Our grade: An enthusiastic A!
Chloe eau de parfum, $85
Awesome! As I was reading I realized that I had just received a Chloe eau de toilette sample from Sephora. I like!! Not quite the same I guess as the perfume, but sure made for an excellent interactive review ~ thanks! ( “a fresh and sparkling interpretation of the sublime Chloe rose”)