Sonnet

This scent all started for me because of a bottle: The toad perched on a toadstool. The top is gold and the juice is amber. They are so close in color and tonation, it appears the the gold topper is being refracted through the glass. It really is the cutest thing, and I felt obliged to provide this darling a good and loving home. I surrendered the idea of wearing such a thing, aldehydic notes in vintage perfumes are the death of me. But low and behold, it was an extremely wearable scent! Let me clarify further; it's really good! Generic powder, spice, floral, and wood notes are listed above, and I giggle at my own pretensions. This is not only an Avon scent, but they haven't figured out who created this or what that person put in it. Naturally, my snobbish nose pointed north, "This temple needs finer anointment!" after all. Now I find myself eating my words, and scouring the internet for more of this power potion. It is comfortable to wear and pleasant puffs throughout my day make me smile. The woody notes with the pepper give this an almost vetiver feel, leaving me believing in its true unisex potential. Perhaps, we should not forget, that in life, the best things often come from the most humble places. And what seems like a dated company, really held toe with big names in the industry, and were really renown for their approachable fine fragrances.

I was trying to get some vintage Avon Topaze, so I bought a lot on eBay that included a powder sachet of Sonnet. I fell in love with it immediately. I had never smelled it before, because I guess Avon discontinued it before I was old enough to remember. I have since bought some cologne mist from eBay, and the powdery smell is there, along with the rest of the notes that make it irresistible to me. I don't smell the spices as much as the florals, and I don't find that it lasts long. However, maybe that's because it's cologne spray from the 70's. I smell more of the spiciness in the powder sachet. I think Avon had a limted edition of a fragrance called Shimmer Magic in the 2000's. Sonnet reminds me of that.

I bought a bottle still in the box from Ebay in 2010. I bought this for the bottle because I love peacocks. Well, today I tried it for the first time. I let it sit on my wrist for a few minutes and smelled it. It had a floral quality with a dated mustiness to it. I decided I didn't like it. I then smelled it again in 10 minutes and it's lovely. I love carnations and this is such a sweet carnation scent. It is now in my list of perfumes to actually wear. I think I will start opening and trying my other vintage Avons that I bought for the bottles.

Ten years ago I bought this in the box just for the bottle. I love peacocks. Well, today, I tried it on. Wow, it is lovely. Very floral with powder. It does smell a bit dated, but it's still a nice cologne for lounging in bed and reading novels!

My mother gave me this perfume in a bottle with a white cat decor on it for my graduation. I love this perfume, the kind that one can never forget. I wish they made it still...

Oh wow! This smells just like my old fave Armani original!!!

And today's vintage Avon shall be...Sonnet! Another childhood forbidden fragrance, despite being similar in notes to my beloved Cotillion...I wonder what about this one offended my Grandmother? Well, let's find out! I tipped my Crystal Point salt shaker into a small atomizer and spritz away and, OH... Pepper. Black pepper. Immediately. Whoa. I take a moment and breathe. I know to give vintage perfumes a little time to moisten up and develop. Ok, ten minutes into the drydown and the lovely white flower, powder, and gentle cedar "Avonade" springs forward. It actually manages to tame the pepper. I'm impressed. I'm glad to avoid the "ready for the grill" feeling Laila gave me. I also find that this scent perks me up. Normally the Avonade calms me down, but this definitely enlivens. I can best describe this scent as "perky and punctual". Sonnet actually lasts until hour 6, the pepper note was completely gone at this point and it was mostly the powder scent, but it's still there, and that's quite impressive for an vintage Avon cologne. At noon I reapply: fortunately the black pepper starts out a bit less intense this time, and the powdery carnation joins it right from the start. The scent really does put a bounce in my step. Hubby stopped in for lunch and gave his thumbs up to the scent around 1pm. I actually added a little of the modern Dana version of Navy to the evening reapplication, it sweetened Sonnet up very pleasantly for the evening. There's still a faint Sonnet scent in my bed clothes this morning even. Impressive indeed. So, what is Sonnet's classic sister scent? Now, I haven't smelled it since the mid 80's but I do believe it is Roger and Gallet's Blue Carnation, allegedly now only made for Queen Elizabeth II, but long discontinued to us peasants. They're not identical though, I don't recall Blue Carnation having any cedar, and its clove was stronger, but I have no doubt they're sisters. Would you like to know what the Queen finds so alluring but you'd like to save $500? Vintage Sonnet is still easy to find all over the place for less than $20. But am I going to go out and buy anymore Sonnet myself? You know what, I just might. 😉👍 (Update September 8, 2022: R.I.P. HRH Queen Elizabeth II. Wasn't expecting this review to become relevant quite so soon after posting it. I suppose Blue Carnation will be officially retired now. They both had a good run.)

Chypr-esque, so I love that aspect. Sweet amber notes, pink florals, Ticonderoga pencil shavings (familiar in other vintage Avons), the citrus actually shows up later for me. Then a mild Vetiver or oak moss. I like this. Wish it projected more, I'm used to crappy longevity for vintage Avon. I have the cologne, purse perfume roll-on, and a scary-looking, long-expired cream sachet that smells DIVINE, with amplified aldehydes. I dab this on cautiously, but that cream sachet is the bomb, if you're brave. I was surprised to see it debuted in 1938, it smells at least 50 years ahead of it's time in my humble opinion. Thanks Avon for another great treasure from the past.

Sonnet seems to be one of the lesser-known discontinued Avons, I'd never heard of it until recently. Seeing the fun bottle and cheap price, I bought it online and am surprised how much I enjoy wearing it. Fairly long-lasting, it's a pleasant powdery-spicy floral with carnation and pepper being prominent to me. It's kind of similar to Unforgettable, Imperial Garden and some of the other spicier early Avons. I enjoy spraying this one liberally all over my hair and clothes when by myself with nowhere I have to go. This is soft enough that I can wear it lavishly and not feel smothered by it.

Powdery, sweet, woody. That's my impression of sonnet. I like it upon application and after a few hours. I don't love it, but it's nice enough that I would be happy to wear it frequently. The bottle, though...that I love. It's the little egg-shaped painted bottle whose lid is the stand. Beautiful. I would have been tempted to buy it for that alone. If Avon brought back their past array of funny to gorgeous bottles, they'd draw collectors who never would have otherwise thought to look to them for perfumes.

Very classic vintage perfume smell. It's a little bit stronger with like a heavier musk forward sent rather than a powder forward scent, but it is still VERY powdery in the floral overall. I have this one in a high heel shaped bottle!

I'm amazed that the vintage bottle of this stuff I found is still good. It's very warm, quite delightful, and absolutely screams autumn.

Wasn't when it was released but today it will easily pass for unisex (though it still leans very slightly female). Recommended.

I would swear there are aldehydes in Sonnet that linger and linger on my skin for ages and steal the show of this perfume. They're not listed, but I know that all-too-familiar smell that some enjoy and some despise. A few minutes in, the poof of the powder begins and mingles with aldehydic waves. Sonnet is a mature perfume, and certainly one quite different than offerings of the last thirty years or so. This is what we all imagine ladies used to smell like, you know, the ladies in their fur coats with their Lilly Dache hats and opera gloves. This is true vintage and could be considered a bit harsh by today's sweet standards. It settles down to a skin scent within a few hours and I thought that was that. Not at all. About four hours later, I noticed a spicy aroma, with a vibe similar to Youth Dew, or Bright Night. Sonnet had morphed into a spice bomb, altho a skin scent spice bomb. The combination of carnation and spices suddenly came together strongly, but rather late to the game. An interesting vintage that takes you on a Journey, through true notes. Sonnet is a chameleon. If you're a vintage fiend, you'll enjoy this one for its diversity. Another Avon vintage surprise.

I just received a vintage bottle of Sonnet and totally agree with Sorceress. In fact, I purchased this based on the review and the comment; "This is true vintage and could be considered a bit harsh by today's sweet standards." This has all of my favorite notes and I love trying as many vintages as I can. Avon has several vintages that are out of this world compared to most of today's offerings. Too bad Avon isn't interested in bringing back the real stuff. I will keep looking on eBay and hope I find more treasures like this.

I have a vintage bottle of this from the 70s that has remained miraculously fresh. At first I didn't know what had me coming back to this for a second, third, and fourth sniff but I think at present that it is likely the spice notes that I am finding so attractive. This is one of those scents that likely gets shoved aside in the vast catalog of Avon scents and I think that is a shame. I would also had to see this one brought back as the pure but very much vintage elixir in my bottle suits me more than just fine!

Yes, this smells like an aldehyde. It goes on very soapy then dries down woody with some oakmoss. It is borderline chpre. Lasted a long time. Lovely vintage.