Eau de Joy

(Review of a 1980s bottle) I feel like I could write about Joy ad nauseum, but since I’ve already reviewed the extrait and the EdT - and I’m running out of superlatives, and also grievances for the way this storied brand has been treated (thank you LVMH/Dior) - I will spare you all nauseous repetition, and simply describe Eau de Joy EdP. The primary thing to note about the EdP more so than the extrait and even the EdT is that the focal point is the dry down. The EdT’s intention is to hold on to that sublime and heavenly blend of roses and jasmine for as long as it can, even though it doesn’t have the muster before going to the sandalwood base - and you can sense that in the dry down; the extrait holds onto the sublime and heavenly blend of roses and jasmine for hours upon hours. The EdP holds onto the florals for only a little bit longer than the EdT before seeming to shift gears to focus solely on the dry down with more muscularity and determination than the EdT could hope to put forth. This is not really a surprise, right? - EdPs are supposed to be a middle-ground between an extrait and an EdT concentration. But, I would argue, the EdP holds to that signature floral heart for a shorter period of time than you would expect. Is it at a loss for doing so? Is it writing itself off as pointless? You buy the extrait and the EdT, and the EdP becomes redundant? I don’t believe so. Where the EdP makes a connection to the statement that is Jean Patou's Joy in a way the other two formats do not is with musks. This is the most “animalic” of the Joy formats, but do not take that to mean it is a civet bomb. It is not nearly as urinous, fecal, or otherwise animalic as several reviews would make you believe; it just seems that way to people who are perhaps not used to these yesteryear perfumes. You will not smell this and think Jicky or Kouros. A significant reason for this is the barely lingering floral heart that touches the base like a gentle caress, giving the ever so slightest of lifts needed to the sandalwood and animalic base. The result is an achingly gorgeous floral and animalic sandalwood perfume, as opposed to the straight abstract floral of the extrait or the floral sandalwood base of the EdT. I mentioned that the animalics are not much to worry about for those sensitive to civet/fecal/urinous notes, yet go on to mention that this is what separates the EdP from the extrait and especially the EdT. Before you think that I am contradicting myself, I want to reiterate a point long lost to 21st century perfumery and its connoisseurs: big differences can be made by little things. In a reformatting today, this EdP would be a no-holds-barred woody or soapy-musky affair, amplified to deafening levels of nose-bleeding proportions. Not in the 1950s though, as this was Joy reformatted in the classic and tried-and-true way of making sure the summation of little differences lead to a noticeable yet nuanced change in the big picture. But everything I’ve said so far is whatever. Eau de Joy is still Joy, and it’s still one of the best - if not the best - of modern perfumery, full-stop. Sorry, I know I said at the beginning that I wouldn't but I just can't - I love Joy no matter what.

A kind fragrantica member gave me a decant of this vintage beauty. Eau de Joy is very similar to the original Joy which I own. I find w/ the Eau de Joy the aldehydes are less pronounced, and the civet is amplified. Eau de Joy is less floral than the original Joy and more of an animalic musk w/ florals, where the original Joy is a floral perfume w/ an animalic base. If you want a Joy w/ more animalic musk and toned-down florals this is a good way to go if you can find a well-preserved bottle on Ebay. This is a very skanky musky floral and you have to love real civet musk to appreciate this. The May rose in here is the same as in the original Joy for my nose it really shines, and I have always felt that the May rose does not take a back seat to the jasmine in Joy and she doesn't in Eau de Joy either. A beautifully crafted old school animalic floral of yesteryear. Again, similar to the original but muskier, and the aldehydes, green notes and florals are softened slightly. Just stunning.

A very generous Fragrantician shared a 10 ml decant of EDJ with me. I already own the EDP and the EDT, and this is such an amazing surprise to me! I never expected a perfume with such a dominant civet note to work so well on my skin!! I am going by one spritz to the back of my hands, but I already think she may be my favorite of the three. Yes, the civet is there and in your face for about the first half hour, so if that doesn't work for you, this might not be your jam. However, when she settles down a bit and the somewhat indolic jasmine and rose come out to play, the civet grounds it all in a sexy, sophisticated manner and I just can't get enough of it. An animalic floral done to perfection, one I consider a masterpiece. EDIT - just reread my review and noticed that I failed to mention that I purchased a full splash bottle a while ago. I prefer a spray so I decant into an atomizer as needed. Still beautiful and timeless!

This is a review for a vintage bottle that I got for a good price on eBay. When I unscrewed the top I expected to be smacked around the face by an angry civet cat then choked by the I doles. Instead I got a happy, purring civet and the most beautiful jasmine I have smelled in a perfume so far. One YouTube reviewer suggested that one dab is enough but I have hit all my pulse points and I am surrounded in a warm bubble of tropical air in which the jasmine and distant roses set the scene. This is yet more proof that bucking the trend for modern perfume can pay off in bucket loads. I won't be wearing it often because I want to make it last and savour every minute. Totally unisex in my opinion but then again I wear what I like and don't bow to convention. You carry on with your Sauvage, I'll command the room with my exotic pet on a solid gold leash, we can still be friends. I am yet to meet an animalic that I don't like.

I'm on my second bottle and I've got TWO backups- my STILL CELLOPHANE-SEALED bottles are OLD but they were stored in air-conditioned darkness for DECADES... the two (BIG) bottles I've got left are both from the 1960s (one might be early 70s) and the current one I'm using is also 70s so beware, the civet is real and trust me you'll know it by the time you reach the drydown... This (along with the extrait) has to be one of the best fragrances ever created... The name is appropriate: JOY.... It truly is... I'm a guy and I unabashedly wear this out and fairly often get asked what I've got on-- for an EDP is got some serious weight and longevity... It's GORGEOUS stuff... It is not merely a weaker version of the parfum... It really is something else entirely and it is absolutely worth owning both... I can't praise them enough.

This iconic Masterpiece really needs no further adornment, as it is one of the most beautiful animalic florals ever created... But! if you're ever in the mood for something just a bit darker, a more of a "Noir" version of Eau de Joy, try layering Eau de Joy with the Russian ~Tete-A-Tete~ by Nouvelle Etoile, combined they produce an almost gothic, plush velvet version of Eau de Joy. Suddenly Joy becomes a witching-hour elixir, composed of the very darkest roses, moist earth, night-blooming jasmine, sweet black honey, and of course, that erotic, animal ROAR🐯 of civet that makes Eau de Joy, all on its own, so very magical. This combination is heady, narcotic, and just plain gorgeous! A black, sweetly perfumed wildcat on a moonlit night🌚. Fans of dark, vampy florals will surely enjoy it.

I purchased this thinking it as the original Joy. I then purchased a vintage Joy Parfum to compare. To me, this smells very similar to Joy Parfum with the civet toned way down. I think my skin chemistry doesn’t emphasize civet as much (in this one or in Joy Parfum), but it’s still faintly in the background. This is still an EDP (I got the splash bottle) so it does linger for quite some time. The sillage on my is about two feet, but it quickly dissipates and I’m left with a very beautiful and delicate rose. I love all forms of Joy, although if I had to choose this would be lower on the list only for the fact that on me it becomes a skin scent very quickly. Longevity is still superb!

Like its progenitor Joy, it shares the iconic luxury of its bouquet of roses and jasmine and that base that is so full of bawdiness that you don't know if it stepped out of the Opera or the bordello. One of the main differences is the presence of aldehydes that really lifts the indolic jasmine cutting its banana jam note and enveloping the composition like a crisp cellophane wrapper. The ambergris has gone AWOL but the catcall of civet seeps into the bouquet effectively with its paws nicely padded by the rose. A balanced opulence that offers all matters of ecstasy like the OG, a proud Marguerite Gautier before tragedy strucks with its longevity cut too short as well.

I wore this to my beloved son's wedding. In fact, I was so nervous that I spilled lthe dupe all over my lap when I was getting ready, so I am pretty sure I was smellable. I wear the dupe oil version of this by Hayward Enterprises. I will never be without it. However, I recently bought some Rose oil as I was going to do some blending and I was really shocked when I tried the Rose on my wrist - IT SMELLED JUST LIKE JOY!! Joy must just be chock full of rose. So if you love roses, you should really try Joy. If you don't want to spend a fortune on it, maybe try my dupe oil at Hayward.

I must be one of the lucky ones whose skin adores this! I managed to purchase a vintage bottle of this & was instantly transported. I have been a longtime wearer & great lover of "Joy" but for some reason had never got around to sampling this treasure. The very note that others describe as "urine" is wonderfully deep, warm & sexy on me, the rose clearly evident, jasmine wafts in & out, the chorus of supporting notes develop slowly & last forever. I will now be trying to find more of this beautiful, feminine fragrance...the way this makes me feel is impossible to pass up.

1970s eau de joy Splash 1.5oz reviewed. Such a beautiful civet/rose configuration of Joy Civet is working overtime in this giving the rose a full blooming heft with a musky undertone. Im not sure there is a dirty rose better than this. Bal a versailles cologne is a contemporary only Bal runs more civet musk and the florals take a back seat..where here in Joy..the rose blooms with the civet as support. Just old time gorgeous secret pleasure.

Probably because I am the mother of all rescued cats (all the cats in the world can come live with me, honestly! I'll look after you!)- anything with a high civet content is for me. Like this. I bought a vintage bottle and I have not stopped wearing it since it arrived. It's enough like Joy that of course I'm going to love it and enough different that it means I have TWO versions of Joy to wear. What's not to like!

a sweet musky floral, very alluring; I blind bought this on accident thinking it was Joy but I'm not sorry. Civet heaven.

Amazing. Has much the same flavor as the original JOY, but so much better on my skin. This doesn't turn skanky, as JOY itself can. The jasmine seems considerably less indolic, while retaining the joyful uplift of the magical Rose and Jasmine notes. I do not specifically smell the other florals or the peach, but they seem to lighten and brighten Eau de Joy's composition, creating sunshine! Simply charming....

It’s wild to imagine a time when people walked around smelling this opulent ! Kinda smells like a heavier Ysatis.

Ohhhh this is what I call soapy 😍😍😍 Jasmine, aldehydes and animalistic notes, just gorgeous, feminine, timeless.

On my skin, the rose and civet combine in a urinous note for the opening accord. The urine scent keeps getting clearer, and nothing else develops. After an hour, the rose is dominant to the urine, but the combination is still pretty unpleasant. After 2 hours, I have a pungent rose note, not as dark as I would like, and a faint powdery background, I can't distinguish the notes, but cat pee lingers faintly. In the dry down, I get soft rose, a green note, a faint iris butter warming the mix, and just a touch of LoV. My skin does not love this scent, and while the dry down is tolerable, that overripe catbox note pretty much ruins it for me. After 4 hours I scrubbed and went for something more joyous. I strongly recommend testing before buying!

I'm currently soaked in it while reading Nightwood (1936), Djuna Barnes' decadent, modernist tour de force, and it couldn't be more fitting: both celebrate life through death--in the scent's case, feline glands, rotting flowers, and plastic. Like Nightwood, Eau de Joy is enigmatic, vaguely offensive, and purposefully oblivious. I'd never have the guts nor the inclination to wear it in public, but home alone with Barnes, Baudelaire, Rimbaud, or Wilde, I find EdJ to be perfection.

I tried it at the departments store. I think it was this one or the regular Joy but could be both. As soon as I took a whiff of my wrist I knew I would never want to smell like this. I wanted to wash it off immediately but was able to when I got home. It smelled like male cat spray from being un-neutered. Now I know why- it has Civet in it. I refuse to wear perfumes with civet. Some perfumes have civet but it won' be in their list of notes.

I've written and mentioned this a few times recently, so I suppose I'm trying to prove a point to myself: I don’t view my life as a narrative. I suppose this is one reason that, although I'm very emotional about perfume, I'm not terribly romantic about it. To call memory a reflection of experience gives memory too much weight. The reflected image suggests a more clarity than memory can offer. Memory is more a filter than a reflection. The perceived jump from experience to memory is quick, yet in that instant so much editing occurs that I can’t call memory anything other than fiction. When I think of Jean Patou Joy, I think of my mother. When she was a girl, her brother brought her a bottle when he returned from from France and the 2nd World War. She kept it until I suppose we all lost track of it somewhere in the past dozen years. I remember that she wore it very occasionally and that otherwise it sat in a box in a drawer. I loved the scent of that Joy. I imagine I loved it more than my mother did, yet the perfume and the story were both hers. I have my own vintage bottle of Eau de Joy and despite the fictions of memory, reformulation of perfume, and all the years, I still think of my mother when I open the bottle. This sort of memory is more pensive than visceral yet it's very important to me. I suppose you never know where you'll to find the big 'Rosebud' moments in your memory, and I never thought the bottle of Joy would sweep me up and carry me away. But I'll tell you where the moment found me. My mother is living with very advanced dementia. She hasn't been able to speak to me in years. Early in her dementia I used to talk with her by phone as often as I could, though we lived on opposites coasts of the US. Most of these phone discussions were about nothing in particular but only as she grew unable to carry on these conversations did I realize how important those small ways of keeping in touch were. Clearing out some papers last week I found a couple of folded sheets of paper that for god knows what reason I printed out years ago. The contents of these papers were a compilation of four or five emails back and forth between me and my mother where she was asking me about a recipe for tofu that my husband David had. I laughed out loud and knew that Marguerite would have, too. What could be more ridiculous than a decade-old string of emails about tofu? But here she was. I heard her voice, her laugh. I remembered. So my lesson about memory and how wonderfully little control I have over it is to wear the perfume and relish the emails.