Norell

This smells like old money to me. Or maybe it's my association with this scent and who wore it that is making me think that way. You see, this was the signature scent of my godmother. Her apartment was the top floor at the Stanhope Hotel, opposite Central Park and the Metropolitan Museum. She wore Chanel suits, tastefully exquisite jewelry, and Norell. I purchased a bottle of the vintage cologne and with just one spray was transported back in time. Sophisticated, worldly, classy, refined, elegant; that was my godmother to a T and exactly what this captivating fragrance exudes. It's very complex. As complex as she was. A beautiful chypre with strong dynamic florals on an Oriental backbone. It's said this fragrance shook the world of French perfumery when it was released. Of that I have no doubt. A fragrance with this level of complexity could certainly go toe to toe against anything created in France. Considering the popularity of this fragrance, even in that country, I am sure French people at that time would agree. After not having smelled this for over 30 years, smelling it again flooded me with memories of the lovely lady who was a second mother to me. Though she is long gone, I still have all those wonderful memories, and now something that will bring back those memories in even sharper relief. That makes this little bottle worth its weight in gold. One thing I want to say about the versions that are available. I wanted to get the exact version that my godmother wore. I know it was the first. Something that impossibly rich couldn't possibly be anything else. While doing my research I learned that this was manufactured 4 times, as follows in this order: Norell Perfumes Inc Norell Prestige Perfumes Norell Five Star Fragrances Norell Norell Parfums New York I've only smelled the original formula, Norell Perfumes Inc., so I can't speak about or recommend the others. But I do recommend the original Norell, especially if you want to experience something uniquely beautiful that will make you feel, and smell, like a million bucks too.

I’m happy I bought Norell even though the similarity to Fidji is there. Norell is a creature of her own! There is familiarity between the two. Catapano composed both after all and in Norell you can smell that ethereal floral halo that is part of Fidji. But Norell is closer in character to something along the lines of Occur, Mystère and even Charlie. Aldehydes, ylang butteriness and light spices are there in the start. Gardenia with tuberose remind me of the alabaster skin I smell in Chloé. The purple feel of hyacinth and iris tie it to Fidji. There’s a sense of skin cream and powder that to me feels familiar, safe and comforting. From what perfumes used to be and smell like. Fidji is a nightgown in the summer breeze. Fidji du Soir goes R-18. Norell takes a more dynamic character, with the galbanum, oakmoss and resiny spices giving it a power chypre personality. The hidden animalics give it a dark side that reminds me of the floral chypres I mentioned above. Norell is sexy while Fidji is innocent. Kinda like Chloé is the peach fuzz to Ysatis glowing tanned skin. A bold and powdery floral chypre, spices instead of leather and subtle civet/musk notes that make it the Americana version of the best 70’s French and Italian perfumes, the high end version of Charlie (a stunner from when Revlon was gold) and the nocturnal side of Laura Mars, who brilliantly captured the essence of Norell in the ads. Norell, like many perfumes, is inevitably inspired by others and has inspired others that came. But even though Fidji and L’air du Temps are the ‘closest’, there is a darker development, a bolder character and a more visible ‘I don’t give a fuck’ attitude. If this was released in the 80’s, it would have become a sought after unicorn. Masterpiece! And as far as the European ‘Soft Eau de Cologne’ version, which I own in 240ml; this is downright edp in strength with 73° concentration. This ain’t a wallflower!

A kind Fragrantica friend here gave me a partial bottle of this vintage fragrance and I love it. For some reason it actually reminds me a bit of vintage Stetson for Men but like a woman version of that. And it's not at all like Lady Stetson. This is a powerful fragrance. The type of fragrance that announced your arrival. You were marking your territory back in those days. I remember formidable, strong willed women wearing this type of fragrance when I was very young in the 70s and I didn't understand them or these types of perfumes. I was still in Princess mode in my mind and had no use or liking of Evil Queens. I wore Avon Roses roses. I was pure and innocent. But as a middle age woman who has seen quite a bit of life and has suffered the blows the world can give I understand this type of perfume and why women of that time wore them. Norell is green stems pulled out by the roots and transplanted in a musky dark black earthy ground. It is the sharp arrival of spring with pouring rain of thunderstorms, the aromatic driving wind carrying the aroma of tender spring flowers, the muskiness of the past autumn leaves, grasses and past animal skat newly free from the winters snow. But all of this is done in a perfume way because this is a real perfume, not nature. It is a mimic, or more of an impression of wildness. This is a perfume wore by a woman who is a thunderstorm. A beautiful old school green, musky, animalic, floral. Dated for most but for me I still say it is chic. Retro chic. And ps the dry down is a purring tiger.

before I joined this club,I had read the term chypre, but had never really known what it meant. I knew that certain perfumes contained oakmoss or cedar but did not know how it affected the perfume. After having read several reviews and doing some research I decided to try a chypre floral,now I had tried Norell several years ago in a local drug store and had really liked it but for some reason did not buy it. I have preferred oriental and oriental floral perfumes, most of my life. After trying Cuir de Lancome and Nike de Saint Phalle, I decided that I love chypre florals and am trying to branch out. I saw Norell at a local department store for a very reasonable price and decided to get it. One of the Fragranitica members was asking about green chypres and mentioned Norell. I realize it is considered a floral, but it is much more complex than that. I am still trying to improve my reviews so bear with me. Norell does start out fresh and green and soon after blossoms into a rich and beautiful floral. I can smell the carnation and mimose, but the other flowers and spice seem to become one opulent note. The dry down is amazing, warm, but with a fresh note as well. It like Niki,is very underrated. It is elegant and classy, perfect for any age or sex. It can be worn anytime day or night. One of the best 1960's perfume out there and(this is the best part)it is very affordable. I bought the cologne because I understand it has not been reformulated. Even though, a cologne, it last several hours.

Not being a purist about fragrance formulations, last year I bought a bottle of the Norell EDT at TJMaxx. Unlike the reformulations of other well known fragrances, I could find no improvements over the old scent, only very very bad characteristics. The new EDT opening is so harsh it's almost unbearable and the opening is very long lasting, over an hour. The dry down is not much better. The original was a beloved fragrance of mine back in the 60's and 70's and this new formulation made me question my olfactory memory. I just had to check my memory so I purchased a bottle of vintage extrait. There indeed was that wonderful fragrance of my past. This led me to purchase a lot of 2 partial bottles of the vintage EDT, one a splash, the other a spray. These were also excellent specimens of the original fragrance. These EDT's have the longevity and sillage of the best of today's extraits. Loving the Alien wrote the most apt description of this divine scent. I had to laugh at the comment about Norell being suited to outdoor activities. I first encountered Norell on my Lacrosse team opponent during a game in the spring of 1969. Isn't it amazing how often we can recall the first time we smelled a fragrance? If you are looking to try a vintage fragrance, there is a lot of Norell available at reasonable prices. All of the concentrations have held up well. I've since bought several bottles for friends and they all agree that a vintage bottle of this is a priceless treasure!