Raffaella Curiel

Yes, this is every bit as good as the classic floral aldehydes of Guerlain and Caron. Almost. It's a chypre haters chypre. It is a lovely classic woody floral with some oakmoss present but not the star player. I would not classify this quite as a floriental. It is classy, sexy and the florals and woods mingle with a hint of that fruity chypre quality to create a well-balanced fragrance. I blind bought this, and it really belongs in my museum of frags.

Apricot/rose and oak moss in equal parts. (I have to disagree with reviewer above, in that I find the oak moss is VERY much a star player here.) Funny that the two main notes are absent from the pyramid. Classic, vintage feel. Very pleasant, sweet, but tempered by chypre notes. I prefer what I lovingly call "old-fashioned" fragrances - they are my obsession, and Curiel fits right in with my collection. Is it the most exciting, complex or interesting one I own? No. But I enjoy it and I keep sniffing my wrists, so, that's good enough for me. Oh, and the bottle is a little annoying. It does not stand up on its own, and the tassled cap it comes with has no use after you attach the sprayer. The cap does not fit over the sprayer. Weird design.

Ahhhhh! I have this! I purchased it almost near blind, not even a Fragrantica review to steer me in the right direction, lol. When I purchased it a few months ago, there was no entry for this designer. Now? Voila! My bottle was vintage, unused, and came in a pretty little velvet presentation box. The perfume itself is a stunning apricot (check out the bottle shape for that hint) chypre. If the illustrious Mitsouko is elaborate peach silk chinoiserie fabric in an antique shop, Raffaella Curiel is burgundy silk velvet closely cut to the skin in a haute couture studio. It's luscious...and I'm the type to wear sequins and the most ostentatious fragrances to the grocery store, yet I've not found an event appropriate for this one yet. I also must admit that I have a tendency not to want to "waste" some of my very hard to find vintage fragrances on just an average day...which isn't good...because I haunt estate sales and I know what happens to all of that stuff that people never use instead reserving it for "just the right occasion"---- They die and the stuff is sold for near pennies on the dollar to whatever human happens to pass by on a Saturday morning. Lesson here? Wear your perfume, your best outfits, your jewelry, and eat pizza on that doggone good china. I still struggle with this. ETA: Just did a search and there's bottles to be had folks. *spritzing myself liberally head to toe with my bottle* Yessss. Now this can go into my regular perfume rotation.