1917

I went in expecting a “modern chypre homage” and came out with something else entirely. I’ve worn Roja Diaghilev for a while and always respected it more than loved it — it’s a masterclass, but it can feel like admiring a painting behind glass. 1917 does the opposite. A few wears in, a specific note pulled me straight back to childhood — walking into my mother’s home salon after her friends had left, that fragrance trail still sitting in the room. I wasn’t expecting a perfume to do that. What gets me is the restraint. It would’ve been so easy to make this louder or richer to compete with everything else in the chypre space right now. Instead it feels controlled, almost quiet in places, and that’s exactly why it works. Longevity is solid on skin, projection is moderate rather than a room-filler — this isn’t a perfume trying to announce itself. Not “better” than Diaghilev, but I’ve reached for it more. If you want a chypre that feels lived-in rather than displayed, this is worth trying. A truly honorable conversation with the real history of chypre.