Cristalle Eau de Toilette

Cristalle - Edt - Henri Robert & Edmond Roudnitska Vintage early 80’s or possibly late 70’s bottle. Bergamot, Petigrain, Galbanum, Lemon, Cumin, Basil, Hyacinth, Honeysuckle, Peach Jasmine, Lily of the Valley, Narcissus, Cyclamen Oakmoss, Vetiver, Sandalwood, Musk, Patchouli, Civet, Ambergris Official notes for the original vintage edt. Taken from syllektikaaromata.gr, a veritable encyclopedia for anyone who speaks Greek. A crystal echo... Cristalle is (or was?) the bitchy ice queen Chanel, a title usually given to N°19 unjustly. But underneath the cold façade, there are hints of darkness and grit which may be undetectable most times, but give the fragrance its beauty. They anchor it -vintage Cristalle has a good tenacity- and at the same time they serve as a backbone and counterweight for the rest of the notes to shine. Not every animalic note has to be front and center all the time! I love them and can’t get enough of them, but let’s remember that half a century ago, they were also fixatives. And any proper perfume that was proud of its worth had them. Cristalle is a member of the fresh Eaux family that reigned supreme in the late 60’s to late 70’s. Every house had them, all displaying various commonalities and more differences. I don’t find Cristalle icy cold, but cool. Grey with specks of emerald green. There’s raspiness but also gentility. The greenness is offset by a gentle floral embrace to soften the edges. The freshness of the citrus is not tart or bright, but slightly fermented. Every fresh Eau of the time made allusion to freshness, drops of carefree youth...a burst of invigorating vitality that none the less was a prelude to a perfume underneath it. It’s not about a light and ephemeral sensation. It’s about a fragrance that sparkles because of its jovial opening. The icy bitch side, for me, it’s the reveal of its tease. Under the green canopy of galbanum and moss and vetiver, under the gentle nectar of honeysuckle and the raspy woody base...that’s were you find a spicy cumin tease not too dissimilar to the heftier Eau d’Hermès and a gentle salty naughtiness that like a good salad dressing, enhances the explosion of flavor. This young Mademoiselle Chanel has the naïveté and the fresh sparkle of an endless spring day, the grey of an early sky before the sun comes out, the bloom of a Parisian garden...but she also has a reservedness, a distance. A slightly dark mind perhaps, when said distance becomes close distance. A Chanel rigidness that never becomes frailty, but familiarity. She’s not the carefree laughter of Diorella, Eau Folle, Y, Eau Vive..she’s not the Ô de Lancôme or Eau de Roche (and Rochas) tomboy. She’s the serious and intelectual one, the one that makes you wonder what happens when the glasses go and the jacket falls...what’s underneath??

Paintedtrillium......You do realize that Fragrantica is a perfume review site and not a YouTube review site don’t you? Why would you criticize a person on YouTube tube for making long form videos? That is what YouTube is about. If you want 10 second videos stick to tik tok. Some of us want in-depth reviews and to know the history behind a product and brand. Dacob delivers all that and delivers it with style ! Regarding Cristalle......Dacob was letting us know that the current version of Cristalle was being discontinued so that people that loved the current version would have a chance to stock up on it. He was right. He also mentioned that there was a chance that Chanel would re-introduce Cristalle in new packaging. He was right. He also mentioned that sometimes when a fragrance gets re-packaged they change the formula. He was right. I think a lot of people would benefit from Dacob’s extensive knowledge of perfumes and especially Chanel perfumes. The kind of knowledge you can’t find anywhere else. His collection is museum worthy. Also.... Dacob is a polymath and his knowledge in several fields is extraordinary. Every one of his livestreams is like a Masterclass. I think if you took the time to get to know him through his videos and livestreams you would find out what a kindhearted person he is and how generous he is with the knowledge and experience he has gained through decades in the fashion industry. But that requires an attention span longer than 10 seconds so pour yourself a cup-a-tea and sit back and enjoy a few of his videos....he has several excellent ones on all those Chanel perfumes you love so much. Tip: Save the No.5 one for last....it’s long but so worth it. Paintedtrillium please consider editing your Cristalle review so that it’s just comments about the fragrance. Also .... if you would like to talk to Dacob about Cristalle you can just call in on one of his livestreams. He usually does livestreams on Wednesdays and Saturdays. He is probably aware of your post on here but he would speak to you with the utmost respect and kindness...and I guarantee you will learn something new from him that would make you appreciate Cristalle even more. For context....I have no connection to Dacob other than just being a subscriber on his YouTube channels.

Today I tested both EdT and EdP and I do find them to be rather different. The Eau de Parfum opens with fresh citrus and juicy melon, but then becomes a beautiful fuzzy blend of hiacynth and peach (skin and flesh). It has a more floral character than the Eau de Toilette and it is quite watery, but not aquatic. The melon stays quite prominent in the heart of the fragrance and I find it be a similar melon to the one found in Le Parfum de Thérèse, although a bit greener. In the late drydown I get quite a lot of (synthetic) oakmoss, giving the fragrance a wonderful earthy, slightly dirty edge. Cristalle EdP reminds me of a greenhouse or flowers in a vase, the water allready a bit murky. A bit melancholic, but still beautiful and a reminder of spring. If Art Nouveau could be represented by a single scent, it would be Cristalle Eau de Parfum, imo. The Eau de Toilette is more citrusy and sharp. The citruses stay longer and the opening reminded me of curry in a weird way. After some time a green crisp accord emerges from the curry. It smells like green stems and sap. The hiacynth is sharper and not accompanied by peach here. There's also a hint of woodyness and the wet, earthy vetiver is more pronounced. It reminds me of a young branch, still slightly green but with a firm bark, broken off from a tree. It is so bright and uplifting, beautifully elegant and yet, there's a dark, foresty edge to it. A spring forest at dusk maybe? I left the store with the Eau de Parfum, the currynote of the EdT had not yet disappeared and I just loved the quiet contemplative dreamyness of the EdP, but now, I'm wondering whether it was the right choise... I don't really understand why there are no different pages for EdT and EdP, they truely are worlds apart. I mean, even the composition is different, different accords were used!

This review is long overdue. I bought a bottle of Cristalle in EDT several years ago, and admired it for its icy cold persona, sharp citruses over woody mosses, it was herbal and cold and citric all at the same time, and reminded me of a frosty day in early spring. Fortunately, or unfortunately, an extremely generous swap partner added a vintage 15 ml spray bottle of Cristalle to my box. It totally ruined me. It was so much better than the new bottle I had! When compared side to side, my new bottle felt comparatively flat and hollow, it felt like there was a lot missing. I figure that the most important/expensive components of perfume are the natural extracts, say the rose petals or iris roots or cedar oil, or what have you. I find vintage perfumes have better and more assertive florals, and this is the case here. My vintage bottle has a beautiful jasmine note, and a long lasting, green hyacinth compliment to the perfume. The citruses last longer, too, and the woods in the base are more velvety. I think that to cut costs, most perfumers take out the florals, or at least lessen the concentration. In my 'new' bottle of Cristalle, I hardly smelled any florals, they were fleeting at best, and the whole composition is a little screechy in comparision, and now that I've smelled Cristalle the way it is intended, the reformulation does not make due at all. Instead of a frozen spring day I smell a new spring day, with greens and florals about to burst forth. I swapped away my newer formulation of Cristalle, but thinking back, at least that one still had Oakmoss listed in the ingredients. Once they take out the florals AND the oakmoss, what's going to be left of poor Cristalle? PS--The sillage/lasting power are about the same, that didn't change.

I love this scent in EDT. The opening is abit harsh and green, but after that settles, I was rewarded with a very soothing, cool green drydown, reminiscent of crushed wet leaves, subtly sweet like a touch of flower nectar (or maybe something like cold, moist honeydew rinds?), and deepened with some crispy fresh vetiver, just enough to keep it from veering into the masculine territory. It has something like an 'expensive face cream' note in it, so I don't find it sharp at all! The opposite infact, it's quite smooth, no annoying masculine tartness (it's just for the first 15mins) or acidic/sour/orange-juice nuances like you get in many modern summer scents. Very natural, feminine and refined, Cristalle is totally easygoing, laidback, cheerful and relaxed, but she is also very graceful, cool, calm and collected...I see a natural beauty wearing this, a shy and soft-spoken sort of intellect. Her style is minimalist and put-together, classy, casual-smart, with some dainty feminine touches. Great for all ages, even teenagers (if they can appreciate green scents). But I don't know if a man can pull this off because of that 'face cream' note in it. So comfortable for warm days, it tricks my nose into thinking I've just slathered some cold moisturizing lotion on my skin. Now, I don't know what it must have smelled like in the past, I'm smelling Cristalle edt for the 1st time today, and loving it so far. I have enough warm-weather scents for this year, so next year I will get me a bottle of this stuff. I'd love to try the EDP as well if I come across it, because the longevity is not that great with EDT (~5 hours with 3 spritzes..sillage is moderate).