Privilege

Update: I was able to find a more vintage, full bottle of this beauty online for a reasonable price. It is definitely more smooth, mellow and well rounded than the later reformulation. This is such a classy, gorgeous floral and brings back so many good memories. I remember getting a few samples of this perfume from the dept. store in the mall, back when I was a teen. I was a perfume lover even then and I absolutely loved this lovely floral aldehyde. As others have noted, this is not a floral fruity. It's a soapy, slightly green floral, which isn't too loud or heavy, like a lot of other 80's florals. And while it does not smell the same as White Linen or indeed, VC&A First (which I also own and love), it is in a similar vein. I still have a couple of my vintage samples, and surprisingly they have not turned. I compared them to the newest version, which I bought recently. While the new one is definitely similar enough to the vintage to satisfy my longing to have this in my collection, the vintage is richer and has more depth. It also lacks the slightly sharp, synthetic opening of the new version, which is so common with less expensive perfume reformulations. Thankfully, the sharpness of the opening settles down after a while and the lovely essence of this perfume is allowed to shine through. Longevity is not as good as the vintage, but for the price, I don't mind spraying more often.

I'm by no means an expert nose, but I was quite surprised to see this fragrance listed as a Floral Fruity. I would probably classify it as a Floral Aldehyde. I don't really get a "fruit vibe" at all, and to my nose there's more to this than just the jasmin and fruit notes listed here. But what they are, I am clueless to say! [Hangs head in shame!] It's a fragrance I wore in the 80's, and I think it's a good representative of that fragrance era... not a 'soft-spoken' fragrance, it has great sillage and is very long lasting. It's bright but not overly sharp, certainly not creamy or what I would consider warm. Yes, it's a "power fragrance". It's one I liked a lot and always gathered many appreciative compliments from when I wore it. Don't readily remember where I first discovered it, but am thinking more drugstore v. department store. Even back then, though, it wasn't widely recognized or popular. Several months ago I was looking at the offerings on an internet site and was surprised to see it listed, and for a reasonable price, so decided to treat myself to a new bottle. To my recollection - some 20+ years later - it smells the same as I remembered it, and it's just as lovely as it ever was. It reminds me quite a bit of a somewhat 'brighter' Van Cleef and Arpel's "First". Top notes through the dry-down are wonderful. Still smells way more expensive than it is.

Privilege was a favorite of mine, still is except I'm a fan of layering and you can't get the soaps, cremes, shower gel or perfume anymore except for a spray. I loved because it smelled EXACTLY like the tiny wild tulips I grow every spring. Not a fragrance for everyone. Not fruity at all, more soft musky floral. The dry-down is warm and fresh like a spring day when the humidity is high and you can smell all the flower scents carried on the breeze.

I don't know how Privilege managed to pull this one off. The notes aren't the same, but this smells identical to Estee Lauder White Linen. I have ELWL as well and did a side by side comparison. The results were astonishing. Privilege smells exactly like White Linen. Sillage and longevity is also the same. They're both powerhouse fragrances.

Ohhhh, how I loved this! I wore it my sophomore year of college in 1988, and just loved it's spicy, fruity, flowery goodness. I see some have compared it to White Linen, which I hated. This definitely had more spiciness to it. I would love to smell this again! Went through at least 2 bottles of this! Definitely a "love" for me!

This has became my Signature scent, I have always had EL Beautiful as a signature but I much prefer the clean crisp smell of Privilege more. My bottle is pretty old so it extremely long lasting! Love it.

I wanted to write that now that I am wearing Privilege again it doesn’t smell anything like White Linen like I thought it did I own vintage version of WL and there similar that’s about it. Love both!!

This Privilege perfume is fabulous , so chic , so glamour ! Love the spirit , love the scent , love the bottle ( so feminine ! ) , a real 1986 perfume treasure !

Evokes white French tulips cascading artfully from a Baccarat “Edith” vase with a bit of vodka in the water meant to keep the tulips fresh.

Privilege is not fruity at all 100% floral

I'm basing this review on a sample that my mom passed along to me in the early 90s. So this was definitely an older version. I liked this, but I have very dry, perfume eating skin, and it lasted maybe 2 hours on me. YMMV. I think this was an EDT. I remember it as a jasmine forward floral. I think there was a fruity note, but on me, it was mostly jasmine. I'd recommend it for warm/hot weather and for daytime wear. If you want to wear it at night, you might want to layer it with something else to give it a little more of an impact. Maybe a white musk oil? I'd say it's safe for office wear and on mass transit if it's not very strong on you. I wouldn't recommend it as a blind buy unless you like jasmine. And since the jasmine is so strong in it, I'd say it's not a safe gift unless you know the recipient likes jasmine. My understanding is that a lot of people don't, or at least, don't like it on themselves. I didn't buy a full bottle because of the longevity issue on my skin. Too bad, because I really liked it!

This is in *no* way a fruity-floral. It's a straight-up floral aldehyde with a mossy green chypre accord along the lines of, as previously noted, White Linen or VCA's First...I also get a beautiful little K de Krizia vibe. It's crisp, clean and herbal and becomes warmer and softer with wear. It smells elegant and sophisticated - a hidden French gem for sure.

The note pyramid above doesn't seem very accurate to me. I don't get "fruity"-- this is a floral aldehyde. Maybe there is some peach or pineapple but it is LIGHT. Reminds me of Madame Rochas, Fleurs de Rocaille or Climat actually. This isn't my favorite category of scents, but if you're looking for something affordable, this is worth checking out. Especially if you enjoy vintage aldehydic florals. Spring for the vintage, it's not too expensive or hard to find. I'm sure the reviewer Jacob below is correct, and it probably has something to do with the fixative properties of Oakmoss, an ingredient that's surely absent from the modern formula.

Just got the original from eBay. OMG! On back of the box it says that the "essential are oils imported from France"! Also, the box has pink and green floral designs all over box. It smells of essential oils of jasmine, softer, not as sharp as the reformulated one I have... Wonderful adult sweet scent. Does anyone, have this older orignal? Like to know what you think. Update: Had a comparison of the original and the one pictured above. Very distinct difference in formulas. The original gives off essence of natural or synthetic blended oils, (jasmine, rose)while the recent one tingle your nose at first spray and is sharp and loud and screaming at you! It eventually dries down but stays 80's loud.

I have the vintage as well as a newer version and they are very similar. They did a great job with the reformulation on this one! There is something so lady like about this perfume and a very expensive feel upon the first sniff (but it is NOT expensive). I bought my first bottle at a department store (possibly Dillards). It is a feel good perfume that is not shy and has resilience. It was one of my first Floral Fruity fragrances back in the late 80's but unlike many of the floral fruity or gourmand fragrances today, this one really lasts! Bonus: The dry down is really spectacular and continues to linger for many hours.

I blind bought a bottle in a box that looks exactly like this page. And this perfume is exactly like the page suggests: a generic uber-fruity floral. I wanted something along the lines of what the reviews suggest: something green/aldehyde/floral like. I happened upon this unknown scent because of the comparison to First by VC & A. Nothing like First. This is a NICE fruity floral with great staying power, but it's not what I wanted and not what I like now. Is it my nose? A reformulation? Bought dirt cheap new, I'm thinking this is a modern reform.

I bought this for the name, since I figured one could always buy "Privilege" if one does not already have it. :) It smells just what I remember my mom's old Estée Lauder White Linen smelling like, although I no longer have it to compare the two side by side and I'm probably the 6398064523452th [sic] person here to make that comparison. How in the world is this categorized as "floral fruity" when I smell no fruit and only white floral aldehyde? Smells "retro" to me due to the aldehydic quality.

Reminds me so much of something else and I am also testing beside EL White Linen and yes similar tones but to me EL WL has also some other elements and Privilege is alot more simple. I dont get fruit so much either. It has a Chanel No 5 vibe also but NICER to me for sure--- Either way, this is a classic type floral aldehyde of that era 60 ́s 70 ́s. Very respectable and not so common these days. Recommended as a solid throwback.

This perfume has floral, green-fruity, aldehyde, and powdery musky facets. It reminds me of Calyx, another 80s green-fruity scent. There is something sharpish and bright about Privilige as well that gives it distinct sillage. The dry-down is lovely. An affordable gem well worth seeking out. Very pleased to hear the reformulation is good, I may need to seek a FB!

Jereine123 has this just right in her review. This bright and distinctive, but not heavy...just pretty, and unusual. This is my go-to scent, perfect for any occasion, and I always get compliments whenever I wear it. This does not smell at all like White Linen or Chanel #5 IMO, but the effect is the same..CLASSY