Paco Rabanne Calandre

Posted on by

Okay, now we’re talking. After three disappointing fragrances in a row, I think a little classic ditty like Calandre’s going to make me see the Paco Rabanne line of fragrances in a better light.

Calandre

In Bottle: Aldehydes and enormous florals. Calandre smells like a classic pretty much immediately. I’m thinking I might associate aldehydes with “smells like a classic” though, so bear that in mind.

Applied: Rose and jasmine with those soap aldeyhydes that makes me think “classic”. The fragrance settles down a bit as you let it age but the opening did knock me back because it was quite strong. As Calandre settles down, the mid-stage is an easier to wear and less “punchy” mix of lilies, jasmine, rose, and that omnipresent lingering aldehyde. The soft floral quality of the fragrance shows through more and more as the time passes and the fragrance is less of a punch in the nose and becomes more of an airy breeze. Keep in mind that when I say “airy breeze” when I refer to Calandre, I don’t mean modern perfume, wispy, wilting daisy, and barely there “airy breeze”. Calandre is definitely more pronounced than modern wispy perfumes. But it is light when you compare it to other fragrances such as the heady Guerlain Jicky or Joy by Jean Patou. The dry down is a little bit of a disappointment as Calandre settles into a soft sandalwood with a hint of dirtiness and musk.

Extra: Calandre, so far, seems to be the only fragrance from the Paco Rabanne line that I can actually see myself liking. Though it’s a bit of a weak contender when it comes to others in the classics category, it is leaps and bounds more impressive than the more recent Paco Rabanne releases.

Design: Remember when Paco Rabanne fragrance bottles weren’t literally designed? By that I mean, you didn’t have a perfume called “1 Million” bottled in a gold brick? Or a perfume called “Lady Million” bottled in a gold diamond? I’m not a huge fan of the boxy, kind of boring, Calandre but it’s definitely a step in a classy direction for a fragrance house that has, so far, rubbed me wrong in the design department. And while I can see the appeal of the literal bottles, I just don’t think they’re my kind of thing.

Fragrance Family: Classic Floral

Notes: Bergamot, green notes, aldehydes, lily of the valley, rose, jasmine, iris, geranium, sandalwood, oakmoss, vetiver, amber, musk.

Calandre, interestingly enough, is still reasonably available for purchase. I’m not sure if it’s still being produced. If it is, don’t expect that oakmoss note to be real–or even present. If it’s been discontinued then that would explain why a great deal of the bottles are going for $100 or more. Still, a pretty good price for a fragrance that doesn’t smell like anything made today but is also light and wearable enough if you’re afraid of the old classics. This is probably one of the more approachable classics I’ve tried.

Reviewed in This Post: Calandre, ~1980, Eau de Parfum.

Paco Rabanne Black XS

Posted on by

After two fails on me with Paco Rabanne, I had to wonder why I keep coming back to the brand since nothing they put out really interest me. Black XS has an enormous rose on the bottle which made me a bit leery about what I would get.

Black XS

Black XS

In Bottle: Slightly woody, creamy scent with a dish of flowers and some slightly tart berries.

Applied: On application, it almost smells like Christmas dinner. You know with the festive spicy smell and the little bit of cranberry? There’s sweetness in here almost immediately and it’s a pleasant little party. I admit, it is a little weird to feel like it’s Christmas all the way in July but hey, it’s fascinating at least! But Black XS quickly sheds its festive cheer and heads into a fairly banal floral mid-stage with a creamy and rich cocoa note adding a bit of interest to it. So far I’m pleased with the cocoa but pretty bored with the floral mid-stage that pretty much adds nothing new or interesting. I get more woods in the dry down, the cocoa note is still present and there’s always that looming sweetness that stuck around. Black XS lacks in a lot of departments and originality is one of them. I’m not all that pleased with this unfortunately.

Extra: Black XS was clearly not for me as it is marketed toward a young audience with a specific taste. I like to call them the Flowerbomb demographic.

Design: The bottle for Black XS is actually pretty nice–until you get to the huge rose on the glass then everything just kind of focuses there. I suppose that’s what they were going for and I suppose the demographic might appreciate the design but I don’t particularly like it.

Fragrance Family: Floral Gourmand

Notes: Cranberry, pink pepper, violet, rose, cacao, patchouli, vanilla, woods.

So I didn’t have a really bad reaction to Black XS. It was all right but like I said, there’s nothing original or interesting about this. It’s definitely wearable but it’s not at all artistic.

Reviewed in This Post: Black XS, 2010, Eau de Toilette.

Paco Rabanne Lady Million

Posted on by

I was hoping Lady Million would hit it off with me a little better than 1 Million but it was a sad day as my hopes were dashed. Lady Million

In Bottle: Fruity, sweet, and slightly cloying, with a base of earthiness that draws the sweetness away from pink girly happy fun hour. Only a little though.

Applied: Ah sweet fruitiness, cloying it up in my nose upon spray with that distracting cleaned up earthiness that I wish hadn’t been introduced into the  mix as all I smell upon application is Lady Million’s very cloying dirt. I think the best part is when the opening finally fades after what seems to be an hour and goes into a slightly more sophisticated sweet, warm honeyed amber fragrance. Though I wish it had reached that point a lot sooner. The cloying note in the opening is still present here sort of ruining the honeyed aspect and just making it smell like a fruity woodsy floral. Highly depressing, though not repulsive at all. In fact, the raspberry note that keeps wading in and out with its cloying syrup-drenched fruit reminds me a bit of Guerlain’s My Insolence. A fragrance I actually liked. As Lady Million proves to be true to her counterpart as her strength clings to you with impressive stubborness. Once again I had tried to wait for fade but ended up having to wash her off. She’s a little less insistent after a shower but there were still faint traces of her the next day.

Extra: All right, so that’s two for two striking out in the million category. Lady Million’s not something I’d even consider trying again as it smells like so many other things that I have smelled before and on top of that, it does this weird and annoying cloying routine on me.

Design: Lady Million is gold on the outside with a significantly less hefty weight than 1 Million. I was actually disappointed that this thing wasn’t heavier. Its shape was reminiscent of a gem. Upon lighting my eyes on it for the first time my initial thought was, “Looks like a diamond, I guess”. So bravo for a concept well executed. the handling of the bottle is not too bad either, despite its unconventional shape.

Fragrance Family: Sweet Floral

Notes: Citron, raspberry, neroli, orange flower, jasmine, gardenia, patchouli and honey.

Honestly, there wasn’t that much floral going on in Lady Million but there was no way I could truly describe the strange, and slightly nauseating mix of syrup, raspberries, woodds, and random flowers. I am just not a fan, Lady Million. Sorry.

Reviewed in This Post: Lady Million, 2010, Eau de Parfum.

Paco Rabanne 1 Million

Posted on by

1 Million is a love it or hate it fragrance. In my case, I hate it. Just as a forewarning. It’s been lauded for its sillage, longevity and sweet, woodsy personality. All I smell is citrus and wood. One Million

In Bottle: A nice, pleasant and slightly sweet citrus mixed with a reassuringly sheer spiciness.

Applied: Maybe I was a little heavy-handed with this stuff but it’s hard to see how one spray could go so wrong. I spritzed a little on my hand, enjoyed the sweet spiciness of it then walked away from the counter thinking it was an interesting twist for juice that came out of a gold bar. Then the woodsiness started to amp up, and keep amping up. Amping so much up that it overtakes everything and turns the scent’s mid-stage into a sharp, synthetic, spicy wood affair with a lingering amber cloying quality. This juice reminds me of Versace Versense slapped with a hint of spice. I tried to wait this one out for its fade but it took hours upon hours and eventually I had to take a shower. At which point, 1 Million was still detectable. This stuff is strong, it’s got huge projection, fantastic longevity, and it is a head turner–though it’s a nose turner for me. The dry down is a difficult thing to pin down due to what the scent had already gone through by the time it reached that point. I got more woods blended with a sweet amber as far as I could tell.

Extra: 1 Million won three fragrance awards in 2009 and judging by how this acted on me, I think I have some broken skin or something because I just can’t get on board for this. It was a mess to me. An men’s fragrance that overindulged in the wood notes department and slapped in some spicy sweetness to try and figure itself out.

Design: This design is garish and tacky and it doesn’t care! 1 Million is a glass bottle, with a gold plate that’s made to look like a brick of gold that you’d find sitting in cartoon versions of Fort Knox. It’s a rather heavy and hefty bottle, feels a little too heavy but then I can only assume its weight gives the allusion that wearing it would make you feel like a million bucks.

Fragrance Family: Spicy Woodsy

Notes: Grapefruit, red orange, mint, rose, cinnamon, spices, blond leather, blond wood, patchouli, amber.

Maybe I’m being too harsh on 1 Million. Maybe I’ll give it another chance sometimes but I don’t see the appeal of it right now. Heck, maybe I even  sprayed too much.

Reviewed in This Post: 1 Million, 2010, Eau de Parfum.