Imprevu

A lesser known selection from the oeuvre of the great perfumer Bernard Chant, Imprevu displays his penchant for highlighting the emotive qualities in the dry and otherwise seemingly stoic materials in the perfumer's palette. He had much success with then Cabochard with its "take no prisoners" feel (a nod to mentor Germaine Cellier's own iconic Bandit). With Imprevu ("unexpected" in French), Chant turns up the citrus, floral and grassy levels, with a notable presence of vetiver to accompany the massive moss and raw, rooty sharpness of quinolines, albeit their ferocity somewhat contained. A honey glaze and rosy sweetness are also worth mentioning here, so this is by no means a completely acrid and brutalist experience. We would see this same template once more in Chant's creation the year following, Aramis, this time with the aromatics as the core, then once more with Azuree, with the florals of Imprevu and the aromatics of Aramis resulting in what could be called the paragon of these variations of the Chant theme (by way of Cellier's evident inspiration). However, Imprevu, since it ended production long ago, is sort of the forgotten chapter, not to mention it was released by Coty, whose lustre was a bit tarnished by the mid 60s. So, it isn't spoken with quite the same adulation, but it certainly worthy of a bit more than a footnote in the history of perfume.

Wearing this, you can feel that people in the 60s had optimism for the future. There’s something jaunty and forward thinking about it. It’s too artistic to express practicality, exactly, but it gives you the feeling of being on the go and getting things done. It’s bracing in a good way. All of the notes minus the rose come through for me. There was a moment when the leather really reminded me of Chanel 19. And another accord reminded me of something else, but, maddeningly, I couldn’t place either. My bottle is the small crinkly one with the ribbon and the ozone destroying gas. Remember when we actually tackled our big challenges instead of pretending they don’t exist?

When I opened my Imprevu's small bottle I thought I knew what to expect. Another great deep mossy and moody perhaps masterpiece. Well....a light wet earthy smell is there indeed. Sweet peppery moss on the background. Woods and subtle leather are detectable. Why it doesn't seem to me as a serious retro chypre? Because I feel also playful glowing notes of bitter orange and gentle flowers in between. I feel as if the wet fog is lifting and warm sun beams start to carress my skin. Imprevu is subtle from the beginning but extremely long lasting. Nicely sweet with a slight sour juicy note and remains ethereal despite its earthy status.

I remember really liking this scent as a teenager, and now I understand why. It has a sharp, fresh woody smell throughout from the citrus, oakmoss and woodsy notes; I think I also detect some pine or cedar. It's almost a unisex fragrance on me, but toward the end the floral notes and the sweetness of the cloves becomes more dominant, tempering the more masculine elements. I was only able to find a small amount of the EDC within my price range, and unfortunately the longevity is very brief (although the sillage isn't bad for a cologne while it lasts). I must try to find some EDP...

For me, Bernard Chant gets it right every time. Users MaryjaK and akats summed up my experience of this fragrance quite well. My bottle is a wonderful little propellent spray mist cologne, late 60s? The kind that ruined the ozone but seem to capture and hold these old beauties so well. I want the extract. The cologne smells delightful but doesn't last. But for my budget it's a treasure nonetheless.

I wore this one in my mid to late teens. I liked it a lot back then & remember it as having a somewhat "green" quality to it. Maybe that green quality for me came from the aldehydes. I do remember it as very "womanly" & more mature fragrance than I usually wore back then. I loved the bottle & the pronunciation of the name. Other than that, I don't recall anything else about it.

This was the perfume I was wearing when I first started work.....don’t think I was that keen on it then back in 1979 lol

I'm not surprized there are no reviews for this scent. As popular as it was(and it was very, very popular) it was not memorable. Like so many Cotys the opening was a lovely blend of citruses. But this one had something very unpleasant in the dry down, a "dirty shoe" smell. Other than this unpleasant note it was bland. I'm surprized it's still around.

I recently acquired a vintage bottle, and though to some beautiful, not for me. Reminds me of Chanel 5 in a way and very long lasting.

Many vintage perfume lovers praise this scent, so I was very happy when I landed a sealed 1970's splash bottle of the PDT. I've worn it now and then, dabbing it on from the bottle, and while it was perfectly nice, I wasn't wowed.. Today, inspired by SadieBluesLady's recent review, I decanted some of my PDT into an atomizer and went to town. Okay, NOW I get it. Imprevu is a surprising and rare composition. It's a softly woody and spicy chypre. The hesperidic opening may be muted with time, but it still sets up a fresh introduction to the scent. Imprevu is greener than Quadrille, although they share some spices in common. It has cleaner wood, leather, and moss basenotes than Vol de Nuit, since they are not veiled by the dollop of Guerlain vanillla. The drydown is wonderful sandalwood and soft leather. When I am wearing Imprevu, I keep sniffing myself, because it is so subtle and complex. The PDT lasts about 5-6 hours on me: it may be time to get my hands on some vintage extrait.

I have the feeling, from reading these reviews, that the vintage of one's bottle plays a huge role in whether or not you get the original woody chypre or just some reformulated to death pallid excuse of a scent. Also, the strength of the juice has to play a significant part in how it is perceived by the wearer. I just received my partially used 1.5 oz bottle of parfum de toilette and it is very wonderful!! I somehow managed to find a reasonably priced bottle on Ebay and claimed it before anyone else had a chance. And I am so happy that I did!!! I never would have been happy with anything weaker than parfum de toilette for this rich scent. My best guess is that my bottle is from the 70's and it is a splash, not a spray.

One of the perfumes that CLARICE LISPECTOR wore: "[W]e need to talk. It so happens that I thought that nothing was any use any more. Then I saw an ad for a perfume by Coty, called Unexpected. The perfume is cheap. But it helped me to remember that good unexpected things happen too. And whenever I'm discouraged, I put on Unexpected. It gives me luck. You, for exemple, were not expected. And I unexpectedly accepted an afternoon signing books. Yours, Clarice" Source: Borelli, Olga. "Limiar, a difícil definição", in Lispector, A paixão segundo G. H, in Moser, Benjamin (2009). "Why this world - A biography of Clarice Lispector", Oxford: New York.

This is one of those classically complex dark chypres that's so wonderful I can't even begin to articulate the experience of it in words, it just has to be experienced. It harks back to the bold chypres of the 1930's through 50's There's far more to it than the notes listed above. I couldn't disagree with Kiku's review more...there is something very memorable about Imprevu and it's quite far from "bland". All I can say is that if you're a lover of the classic chypres, try this if you can find it, because even small amounts go for big bucks on ebay.

Wow. This one brings back memories. It was the real first fragrance I ever used or bought for myself back in the 1960's when I was a teenager. I thought I was really something going to school with a real grown up scent. It was my signature fragrance back then. I wore it throughout my high school days. My, how things have changed. Although, I haven't smelled or worn it in 40 plus years, I don't think it would be something I would like today. There's too many choices out there to pick from now. But it's nice to know that it's still around.

I was very fond of Imprevu when i was given some in Australia in about 1966. It was an a blue bottle and was a liquid creme perfume which was applied with a spatula connected to the lid. I only had the one bottle because i did not earn much money. I have looked in vain for it since. All the notes were very nice on me, but I believe it could smell different on other people, as many perfumes do.

What is left in my little splash bottle is sweet, a bit licorice-y and very nice. Almost as if Lagerfeld Classic and Dana Ambush had an offspring. Not a fragrance type you smell today but very interesting.

I wore imprevu when from when I was 16 until I could no longer buy it. I loved the fragrance very mush, it is such a shame that it was discontinued. I would buy it still if it were back in production.

I wore Imprevu when I was 16 and was in love with it. Wish I had some today. Wish it would go back into production as it is so rich and heady. LOVE IT!!!!

First impression: nice soapy aldehydes. After few hours: my mother in Christmas I am reviewing pure parfum, same bottle as on photo and pre barcode

Ha! I too wore this as a young teenager. It was not a good choice. Never remember recieving any compliments on it, quite the contrary in fact! ;)