Eau de Private Collection

(Comparison of the Parfum Cologne Spray (EdP), referred to as PC below, and Parfum Spray (extrait), referred to as PS below, both c. 1990) Something about Vincent Marcello has always intrigued me more than any other perfumer. It’s certainly to do with him being an enigma in his time almost as much as he is now (presumably he’s long passed). Incredible talent, rakish good looks, and, as far as we are aware - which must be emphasized, he only signed three perfumes, but they are three legends, and all three sit very highly on my list of all time favorites. (Four if you count the Halston twins separately, but even his involvement in both is dubious). One of them was Private Collection, but we the masses very nearly didn’t get the chance to experience it. This incredible nose signed a perfume that was intended to be solely for Estee Lauder’s personal use, for her private collection, and thusly its name when she was finally persuaded to release it commercially, if the story is to be believed. Imagine that? - Being a perfumer of his talent that only publicly signed three perfumes, one of which wasn’t going to be public at all? - Was this actually his career? - How could you make a career of three perfumes? - Or was he just an absurdly gifted hobbyist? Color me intrigued, very intrigued, by this character. One day I’ll put in some real investigative effort to reach out to those who know better, but for today I am enjoying the company of “two different concentrations” of Private Collection. Estee Lauder’s penchant for odd concentration-naming conventions considered, there is not much of a difference between both of these and it shows. There are a couple marked differences but that’s it. PC’s opening is super green galbanum and sharp hyacinth made a pale green color rather than neon green; the cold white floral facet of hyacinth adding white to the green of galbanum. PS is full-on neon electric green. The hyacinth and galbanum are sharp and vivid, fully leaning into the green character, and notably richer and saturated compared to the PC. Rather quickly in both a very delicate and sweet narcissus and rose combo slowly blooms from underneath, which is more apparent in the PS. This combo lying just underneath the vivid greens and whites is a bit fruity-floral-honeyed, and heart-wrenchingly gorgeous. The heart layer shifts the focus solely on the hyacinth, narcissus, and rose, with PS being noticeably headier, and a touch sweeter by really pushing the narcissus. The floral hearts of both don’t shy away from the muskiness of any of the floral notes. After this layer dispenses in both, which very nearly happens in the same timeframe, they both swell with oakmoss and musks, and are gently touched with sandalwood. There they stay for the rest of their very long lives on skin. PS goes slightly darker and deeper by emphasizing the balsams a bit more but this could be forgivably missed. Allow me a moment to nerd-out on a little detail: the PS, Parfum (Extrait) Spray, has one of the best atomizers I have ever used. A very gentle and very tiny push releases the perfume for nearly two full seconds, creating an ultra fine mist that superiorly and evenly coats my skin. This is one of the little things that made Estee Lauder great in these days. With their mandate of making beautiful perfumes affordable to all, they knew that the working class was not going to put up with dodgy atomizers, like the bourgeoise-buying-French would, when they are spending their hard earned dollars on a luxury item, especially a more expensive one like an extrait, so they made sure it worked flawlessly. Ok, thank you for that, now back to the Parfum Cologne and the Parfum. Well, actually, what more do I want to say? I don’t know. Flawless, perhaps? Maybe the best perfume to come out of the 70s? As far as the classic greens of the 70s go, I am a No. 19 devotee; she will have my unconditional and enduring love for the entirety of my life, but Private Collection tempts adultery. I can see why Estee Lauder didn’t want to share this with anyone. I can easily be the jealous type too.

I'm wearing the original Private Collection on my left wrist and Eau de Private Collection on my right wrist. The top notes and middle notes are exactly the same to my untrained nose, but the new one, the Eau de Private Collection, has had the base notes changed, they are very faint and cold. The old discontinued Private Collection is warm, sexy and delightful, while staying true to its floral greenness. The new Eau de Private Collection is very pretty, and I will be wearing it to the office and out and about. I needed more day fragrances so I don't regret buying it, but I'm going to try to get my hands on a full bottle of the old stuff (I just have a small sample bottle with a push plug). edited to add, the new version the top notes last much longer, a long-lasting floral green with the citrus still present, while the old version mellows down to a well-blended perfume. last edit, the old version is barely there, after a few hours. Maybe that's the nature of vintage perfume? The new version's drydown is finally here, and while the base notes are fainter than the old version in proportion, they are there. Or maybe the old version had lost more of its top notes due to age? The new version's base notes are a just a tiny bit patchouli, where I could not detect any separate patchouli in the old version. Probably had to reformulate those due to restrictions. Still nice though, better than I was expecting, and still fine for the office. Also I'm realizing my old version was the perfume, not the "Pure Fragrance Spray". I probably should just delete this post, but leaving it up in case others are as confused as I am about the different versions.

Eau de Private Collection Spray is a bold, vintage floral that really makes an entrance. The opening is strong and dense—very floral with a green and citrusy sharpness that screams old-school elegance. It has that unmistakable “perfume of the past” vibe, the kind you’d imagine women from the ’70s or ’80s wearing with confidence. At first, it can feel overpowering—even dizzying—but once it starts to settle, it becomes smoother, softer, and surprisingly comforting. The richness fades into something more refined, and the floral notes mellow out beautifully. As it dries down, there’s this spicy kick from coriander, blending seamlessly with earthy patchouli, giving it more dimension and even a bit of a unisex vibe. It’s bold, classy, and has that vintage luxury feel that’s so rare in today’s modern perfumes. It honestly smells like something you’d find in your elegant grandmother’s vanity, but in the best possible way—nostalgic, opulent, and totally unique. This isn’t your daily spray-and-go kind of scent. It’s for moments when you want to stand out, leave a strong impression, and wrap yourself in something that feels like a statement from a different era.

I've compared the vintage Private Collection to this and layered them both together and can safely say that the differences really aren't huge. This one is definitely more citrusy, and also has way less mossiness but apart from that you have a very similar scent. Both have that Spring magic that's impossible to shake. I must also add that Eau de Private Collection has spectacular longevity... 20 hours longevity, on my skin, to be exact. The corriander in this is absolutely bonkers and I love it, it really goes well with the citrus rinds (I'm guessing bergamot and lime). The drydown has the blend of green notes and citruses and a little bit of sandalwood. I don't really detect much patchouli, but it is there. The jasmine and honeysuckle really even it out. There's something insane about this fragrance that makes it absolutely perfect. However, there is one downside... if you spray it in the wrong conditions, it can smell a tiny bit like rusty metal and that's pretty unpleasant. I sold the first bottle of the modern formulation because I thought it would always smell like that but have since realised that's not the case.

For a looong time this languished on my to try list and finally last summer I stopped by a local shop. My then 4 year old exclaimed “YUM! Salad!” It smelled lovely, but I had a small flacon of vintage Silences I was working on and this didn’t feel like a priority. After an intensive year of sniffs, samples, travelers, fbs, declutters, impulse and well-researched buys, falling in love with No. 19 and Silences, feeling meh about Scherrer, and so on, suddenly I needed to have this. Every time I spray it I think “YUM! Salad!” and it IS so deliciously vegetal, a gorgeously elegant, all natural beauty with a stunning floral top — all right from your very own organic garden. Beautiful projection, still learning the longevity. No one flower outshines the other; this is old school perfumery blending. But it’s just what I needed right now as the weather is pushing toward longer, lighter days and the full bloom of late spring. The whole “private collection” business? It’s fun to play along! And I can just envision Estée glamming it up with this scent trailing behind her.

I was able to finally purchase Estee Lauder Eau de Private Collection in Canada. I used the original fragrance back in the 90s and 00s. Although slightly different, this formulation is still as strong and long lasting, so if you loved the old one, you'll love this one too. I bought mine for $100CAD from fragranceybuy.ca in May 2023 and the batch code is A62 22333 made in UK. A note I smell in this scent that is not listed is Red Poppy. I'm not super familiar with what every note should smell like, but I know what red poppies in Eastern Europe smell like and it reminds me of them. I also consider it to be more of a yellow than a green fragrance. The new version smells more yellow to me. Maybe the old one smelled more green. I don't have the possibility to compare them side by side, plus if I had the original perfume, it would be quite expired by now and have a different smell anyway. This version reminds me of Lancôme Poeme.

A nice green chypre that is light and breezy. It starts out with a burst of citrus, ylang-ylang, orange flower, jasmine, and honeysuckle over a base of sandalwood and patchouli. It's good for day wear and office wear. This is a fragrance that will instantly lift your mood and bathe you in sunlight. I guess the optimal word is "sunny". It's light and feminine, and makes you feel clean. The interesting thing is the longer this fragrance sits on your skin, the yummier it gets. The notes all blend together into a beautiful spicy, soapy, floral concoction. Eau de Private Collection is sunshine in a bottle, an instant pick-me-up.

I wore the original Private Collection back when I was a young woman. It was gifted to me and I absolutely loved it, which shocks me now that I have smelled it again. I ran out of my original bottle, could not afford to purchase more at that point in my life, and then it was discontinued. I just got a bottle of the newly released formula. I must have always loved my Floral Green Chypres, even as a very young girl. This is wonderful.

Not bad. I didn't see the original version but this is a strong floral green chypre. I recognise rose and patchouli combination, which is sweet and warm, honey-like. Maybe that's the effect of linden blossom. Also there is amber and oakmoss, which make the scent a bit harsh. At the start there is lemon. The whole composition is quite heavy, so it is more suitable for wearing outside.

Oh Lord, NO! Don't tell me they have reformulated my beautiful, unique Private Collection! I am devastated to learn this. There is about one inch left in my bottle that I bought in 2009. I guess I should savor it and use it only when I NEED to smell its beauty on me . I have adored this fragrance since the early 1970's.

Ohh, so gorgeous! Green, exuberant and sophisticated. Private Collection also has this beautiful and realistic scent of linden trees in bloom, captured in a bottle. Just heavenly. The knowers will know...

If you love a classic chypre fragrance, you will absolutely love this. Had literal goosebumps after sniffing it on my arm. Green, soapy, and stunning.

Better than Chanel 19 in terms of sillage and green composition. It hasn't aged well. But I will still wear it

This is definitely a nice fragrance if you are into chypres, but this is not my most favorite fragrance I must admit. I like the jasmine and the subtle honeysuckle in the top notes, but I wish that the honeysuckle note was more prominent and that the citruses were a bit more tamed down. I love the slightly zesty and very indolic sweetness of the orange blossom and the sweet and sensual butteriness of the ylang ylang, but the coriander was a bit too heavy-handed for me and gave this too much of a spicy, woody and peppery character to me. A bit too aromatic and green as well. I felt the same way about the patchouli in the base as I did about the coriander in the heart notes and it made things too green and dank smelling for me. I also found the sandalwood too heavy-handed and strong smelling. I would have liked this better if those two notes were a bit more subtle in this particular fragrance. I'd say that this perfume works for spring and fall and you could wear it during the day. It is perfectly unisex and could be worn by both genders, because of its woody, spicy and green nuances mixed with its white and yellow floral nuances. The sillage was strong and emanated about 6 feet from where I sprayed it onto my skin and it lasted an amazing 13 hours on my skin, so you're definitely getting a good bang for you buck. I liked Eau de Private Collection by Estée Lauder, but it wasn't a love for me and so I'd give it in total a 7.4/10.

I wish I had had the opportunity to sample Mrs Lauder's own "Private Collection", but as it is now discontinued, I trialled the replacement, Eau de Private Collection. It is high summer here in Oz, so probably not the best time to try this one, however I like big brash fragrances and I imagine that this would be fantastic on a crisp Autumn or Winter day outdoors. EdPC is a bracing green floral chypre, despite the classification above - if you blind buy this thinking you are going to receive a pretty feminine floral, your nostrils are in for a shock. The official EL website says that these are the notes:- Top Notes: Honeysuckle, Jasmine, Citrus Middle Notes: Orange Flower, Ylang-Ylang, Coriander Base Notes: Sandalwood, Patchouli Surely there is oak moss here though?? There is a sharp bitterness which on my skin, or perhaps due to the humidity and heat today, overrides the flowers and makes this an uneasy experience for me. EdPC has the typical Estée Lauder endurance and lack of subtlety, which is not a criticism. I think skin scents are a waste of money. Soooo, it's a like for me, but I don't place it in the same class as the other wonderful Old School stalwarts from this house, such as Youth Dew, Estée, Knowing or White Linen.

First time I tried this I didn't like it. It felt very brass and retro in a overpowering way, but admittedly that is part of the charm of this fragrance. It opens very strong, very green and retro but over time softens becoming more floral but still with that underlying green earthiness with a gorgeous retro flair. This has that slight "bitterness" that many chypre have but on my skin that bitterness is a lovely green earthy sharpness. I tried this in store then went for a walk with my dogs at a park, it made me love this fragrance more. It perfectly captures the outdoors during spring. I love this but it took time to warm up to.

I didn't love this as it doesn't really have the beautifully deep green resinous notes of the original. This is a white and yellow dewy floral blend that reminded me of scents like Molinard de Molinard.

The opening is a burst of florals that could be headache inducing but are calmed by the fresh green notes. This fades into something that could be described as an aggressive yellow floral. The perfume starts to give me a massive headache a few minutes in and I regret putting it on. But then as we reach the base of the perfume, the florals fade into the background. The blend of sandalwood and patchouli with light coriander mixed in takes over and it’s quite lovely. My favorite part of the fragrance. I wish I could have tried the original version.

I too thought that what I was buying was Private Collection EdP, not Eau de Private Collection Fragrance Spray (a tackier name I can't imagine). The confusion was because the image on the Estée Lauder website looks like the original EdP, not like the frosted glass flacon I received. The notes are a far cry from the original, which I was interested in since I've been trying to fill the chrysanthemum-shaped hole in my collection for a while now. Eau de Private Collection lacks chrysanthemum altogether, replaces oakmoss with galbanum, and amps up the narcissus and hyacinth. To me, this smells like a softer, more rounded-out Chamade or Safari. It actually performs much better than Chamade, and is more lush than Safari, so it's a wonderful fragrance to own. However, it is doubly redundant in my collection, which already features both others. Dries down to an extreme soapy powder, so if you're not into that, beware. And don't get mislead by the EL website, which is absurdly ambiguous about what product you're actually buying. Also, the bottle and packaging are hella outdated and ugly.

EL is in my DNA, and in my heart I will forever be an Estee-girl.... -My mother was, and still is, totally devoted to EL, and she always brought home to us a lot of small 25-30ml bottles of EL back in the 70thies and -80. I grew up with this juice in my nose, and, I sprayed a tinyest drop of my vinage bottle of my skin tonight, and it smells so marvellious, so many good memories came back in my mind, the last enormous big house we lived in we called "playa del Sundtsvei", it was such a sunny place on earth, my mum was so happy, we, her 4 girls, was young womans, life was so intrieguengexg, we was so fortunate, I love my mother, she's so beautiful (89), up and going, dying her hair and washing her own floors, this exceptional beautiful fantalastisk perfume smells so good on my skin, she gave this bottle to me, cause she only want Pleasures now, and, I would say there is some galbanum in this one, which I also looove, perfezt, perfeqkt, pøøørfext, perfume!!! -And, in the distance I can hear Sarah Brightman singing La Luna =))

The notes are not listed above, but are as follows: orange blossom, lime, bergamot, hyacinth and lemon. Hmmm... Not sure how I feel about this one yet, as I just sprayed it, but it's definitely not a love. This is citrus on steroids, with dewy white floral, best suited for the spring season in my opinion. It vaguely reminds me of my memory of Aqua Allegoria Nerolia Bianca Guerlain, only more "in your face". It's squeaky lemony clean and on the mature side. This was a blind buy and I'm thinking it's not a winner for me. It is clearly good quality juice so I'll give it a few other tries before I make up my mind, but not in the near future. Maybe next spring... or in another decade...

The scent is not bad at all. For some reason, I get overpowering coriander at first, but it does dry down to something really nice. I like it a lot. Update: 06/28/20205 I realized that when I reviewed it, it was for Private Collection, not eau de private collection. This one is quite sharp and pretty bitter throughout the wear.

I love the gorgeous original Private collection. This Eau de Private collection, which they sell instead of the original is a disaster. The Private collection is an original green floral chypre perfume like no other. The Eau is a cheep smelling, mostly retro floral obnoxious scent.

I'm comparing the original and this side-by-side and they're very close - but I like the Eau de Private Collection better - cleaner and greener. I do wish Estée Lauder would keep the vintage style bottles for their classics like this. Azuree and Alliage are both on my wishlist, but those squeaky plastic caps and uninspired bottles have kept me from pulling the trigger- this bottle is a pleasure to hold and own. And the scent - perfect! I think this will be a summer staple. It is the antithesis of sweat or body odor - it's like air conditioning in a bottle. Dated? Maybe - if you care about that sort of thing. I think a younger person could easily wear this and surprise all of the naysayers. Edit: the drydown on this is A LOT more barbershop/aftershave than the original, which I find more dry/powder/cosmetic. I do prefer the original dry down and I'm struggling to wear this after the incredible opening fades away. Wish those first 10 minutes would last!

And that’s strident, brash chypre, retro. If you want to smell different than the rest, and you’re not afraid to bend your boundaries, try something old. Try something ‘dated’. Sampled this in a Cosmetics Company store, along with Frederic Malle’s Uncut Gem, Rose Tonnerre and French Lover. Each got a couple sprays on a different part of my arms. Went about my day. Perhaps I’m insipid; I ended up buying the Eau de Private Collection. This doesn’t sparkle like Wrappings, and it doesn’t spice like Aromatics. But it fucking greens like nothing else. Blows N°19 out and away. This is a dry, green, chilly, herbaceous power player and I love it. The citrus is perfect, not juicy, but dry like the zest of a lemon or a lime. The coriander is perfect, punchy. Photorealistic. Dries down to opulent yellow flowers. This is how perfume is done.

I found this perfume in a duty free shop whilst trying to make 4 hours pass before the opening of my gate, and I have fallen in love. What an absolute gorgeous perfume! Opens up as AGGRESSIVE green white flowers. Picture the scent you can smell inside a florist's shop. Fresh cut stems and flowers mixing with the smell of the water in which the flowers are kept. There's something a little bit dirty and indolic there too, perhaps it's the Ylang Ylang: you know how flowers tend to start smelling just a tiny bit funky after a few days? That's the feeling. And it makes it even more interesting. It's opulent, green, refined, retro. I really don't see an occasion for it, cause it's just so out of fashion. And I love how out of fashion it is.

I bought this thinking I was buying the original Private Collection pure fragrance spray. I still love this particular fragrance. It has the green note and a touch of citrus in an airier, lighter style to the pure fragrance spray. It reminds me of playing in the garden after a thunderstorm as a child, with citrus trees surrounding. The dry down and cedar note reminds me in atmosphere of a 1970's erotic film set in a Japanese bath house and the incense burning within. Mysterious and sensual. It radiates both innocence and eroticism. This feeling is more pronounced in the pure fragrance spray. Both are lovely fragrances in their own ways. I recommend trying both, and seeing what suits your particular mood and taste. My signature scent.

Oh dear...What language is @Mona Lygre using? "intrieguengexg", "fantalastisk"? Anyway, about the scent. I smelled it on a friend and although quite bitter on her, I decided to look for a bottle. It is different, vintage and out of the beaten path, and that's why I liked it. Somebody has it for sale on a perfume lovers FB page for about $40 for an almost full bottle and can't decide if I should get it or not, on account of somehow polarized reviews.

I’m really glad I bought this. It is quite different from the many perfumes I have in my collection as I tend to avoid green fragrances. Green is a category I find difficult to wear, but the florals in this one are lovely enough to taper the sharpness for me, much like the way Must and Must Gold makes green wearable for me. It’s currently winter for me, but I can’t wait for summer when this will be my go-to.

Reminds me of the scent of white flowers after the rain ,while suddenly the sun arises and fills the ambience with light and crispness at the same time . There is no other way to describe this .... I keep repurchasing whenever I find it in stock somewhere ....

This fragrance is my new favourite. It’s green it’s a little powdery, it’s floral. It smells old school but in the best possible way. It’s refined. It’s just so beautifully blended. They just don’t make fragrances like this anymore. Happy it’s still available.

Gosh this is womanly and luxurious 😍 Old money, fur coats, manners, style, educated woman, pleasant, spends time in a theatre and reading books, loves a breakfast with friends, has a beautiful smile and joyful attitude.

This frosted bottle has been in the market for a long time now...years and years, and it it is called Eau de Private Collection all those years...

Private Collection is discontiued in USA...