Topaze

I love perfumes, I really do. All types. High-end, middle-of-the-road, indie, niche, drugstore, body oils. Fragrance is a key to nirvana. And Topaze is one of those fragrances that takes me there. I own a variety of bottles of this juice, dating from its inception in 1959 up to the 1980's, and the older bottles are like a fine wine. If you can get your hands on the older Topaze, go for it. Believe me when I tell you, as it ages, it becomes a glorious perfume that has mellowed with age and ripened deliciously into a pure aldehyde and civet delight. When I lavish myself in my vintage Topaze, I cannot get enough of this fragrance. The inclusion of ylang-ylang amidst other florals is just enough to keep this pleasant for me. I barely consider this a floral. I immediately sense the presence of tonka bean, benzoin and sandalwood in this wonderful creation, while amber mellows it to a smooth creamy texture with just a hint of spice added to the pot with the coriander mixed in. There are many notes in Topaze to create an unbelievably unique fragrance. I, too, was an Avon snob about their fragrances for years, I'll admit to this. I didn't give them a chance. But I believe that's because I never had a chance to truly smell the originals, the true fragrances of Avon when I was growing up as a child. I only knew the later ones of more recent times as an adult. Now, I am actively pursuing their vintage scents to educate myself in the beginning stages of Avon's perfume. I've found they had some truly quality gems at low prices that smelled divine. Smell is associated with memories, and when I read many reviews about Avon, that's what I hear others talking about. Their pleasant memories with that particular perfume. So Avon had a win-win situation going; great prices, delivered to your door for free, you shopped from a catalog at your leisure, no-hassle returns and quality products. They perfumes became a popular gifting item, also, and thus, from all points their perfume end of the business was destined to become a success. Except they would later discontinue their very popular fragrances, for various internal reasons, much to the dismay of many customers. The good news is that you can find these vintages on Ebay, Etsy, garage sales or at flea markets for very good prices. The vintage parfum lasts longer than the cologne, obviously. This is a scent for confidence, for empowerment, for uplifting spirits, for feeling good about yourself in an earthy way. It reminds me very much of Chanel no. 5. I wear it to bed often because it's a soothing scent that allows you to dream your wildest dreams, to imagine the impossible, to be a sensual, carefree woman. It's a scent to wear a mysterious smile. It's just that good when it's a vintage bottle. Yep, I love those vintage Avon classic scents now. They hold a special place amongst my perfume shelves, standing next to my other vintages of yesteryear with pride. Perfume snobbery doesn't belong there.

Diving back into the vintage Avons today! Topaze, huh? Another one completely forbidden to me as a child. I got a rather large bottle of this one in my haul and WOW, I can see why they bought such a big bottle. I have worn this for many days (non consecutively) and I love this one. 🥰💖 No droplets with this one, she has a wonderful spray head. Immediately the strong aldehyde opening hits. I can see how this could put some people off, but not me! I don't know what it is with my skin, but aldehydes sort of melt or burn off almost instantly and just allows to rest of the notes to waft off (in a pleasant way) and boy is this one amazing. In the drydown the coriander and florals emanate off of me. This one has decent sillage for a vintage Avon. She's not headache inducing though (at least not to me, everyone varies). The amber, vanilla, and tonka are pleasantly sweet and soothing, and not at all overpowering like modern gourmands. My husband came in for lunch one afternoon and Topaze got a, "Wow, what're you wearing today?" 😍 She does smell pretty familiar too, she's absolutely Chanel No5's sister scent. Sisters, not twins, Topaze is spicier and slightly less soapy. And have I done the absolutely forbidden and worn the classic with the "cheap" knockoff? You better believe I have. And I went out in it too. They garnered more compliments together than I ever got wearing them individually. Together they were like magnets for other people. Even I was impressed. Now, she's a bit "old fashioned" or as I prefer, eternally classic. Did your Grandma wear No5 all the time, and to you it just reminds you of being forced to eat liver and sitting still in Church? You're probably not going to like this one then either. But for me, I'm absolutely going to be visiting this classic frequently. I should mention that she blends with absolutely everything as a marvelous base too. Just incredible. If Charlie Blue is just too stinky for you, try Topaze. But in the meantime, the vintage bottles are still plentiful and you get my absolute endorsement to find them and buy them before I get there.

I love Topaze. My Grandmother wore this, and I recently bought a vintage bottle on the 'bay for the sake of memory. It's worth mentioning that this is widely available, inexpensive, and comes in a hilarious variety of flacons, some traditional, some not, including skunks, dogs, bells, butterflies and hippos. Upon first application, I was stunned. On my skin this scent reminds me of Givenchy Organza, only without the strong sweet-peach jasmine note. Today I tested them side by side, and confirmed the experience. I don't get aldehydes from Topaze. It opens warm, spicy, with a subtle sweetness. This is beautifully balanced, and I'm having a hard time picking out individual notes. Instead, this is a beautifully rounded whole. In the heart, civet shows up slightly, adding an earthy animalistic note, and bringing Topaze into a distinctly sensual scent space. In the dry down, Topaze develops a slight soapy note, as the aldehydes appear. This is super inexpensive, and I think it's worth a try. Longevity is good, sillage could be better, but I have applied this the same way that I usually apply edp, and this is edc. I think that three sprays (as opposed to one) would provide a scent trail. To my nose the dry down of Topaze is almost identical to Organza. Now I know why I had such a strong reaction to Organza- scent memory! Warm, wearable, recommended for day wear in fall or winter, or evening in spring or summer.

A decidedly retro (think Bette Davis / Margo Channing) aldehyde amber that is joyously "Golden", comforting, and very cozy. Topaze is not your typical vanilla based amber. It is an exquisitely powdery, aldehyde based floral amber, whose warmth and depth derive from vintage nitro musks, substances that are no longer allowed in modern perfumery, but which imparted to fragrances a deep, sometimes powdery/sometimes animalic "radiance", which is practically unobtainable in todays perfumery. In Topaze, these retro musks combine with benzoin at the base to create the most delicious "candied" affect. Candied not like candy, but as in "crystalized", as if evoking actual amber resin or a golden gemstone like topaz. When hunting down a bottle, make sure that it is from the 70s or before (for those musks!), as this fragrance (like so many others) has had to conform to IFRA guidelines throughout its history, and in the process has lost some of its depth and comforting beauty. The current formulation is acceptable, but only the vintage offers the heady experience of the original Topaze. This "Gem" is best experienced in the pure perfume or oil form, as Avon colognes tend to be light and somewhat fleeting. A True Delight. One of my all time favorites, and great to sleep in !

What I'm reviewing is vintage. To me this smells like you took the current version of Chanel no 5 and mixed it with a bit of Coco Chanel because of the spice and the peach. And some elements of the other fragrances mentioned above. It's so pretty and I don't understand why perfumes like this have gone out of fashion for all the sacarinne sweet gourmands. A Classy, elegant aldehydic spicy floral with a soft peach skin sexiness. This is the fragrance of elegant women. Very refined and beautiful. No one would think you were wearing Avon they would think it was a Chanel, it's that good. Edit: 3/2/25 I was talking to my mom today and she said Avon Topaz was my Great grandmother (paternal) signature. She used to give me Avon perfumes (so did my maternal grandmother) when I was a child. I remember smelling this perfume on her all the time. It was her favorite. My maternal grandmother wore Occur! Love them both.