Chanel No 5 Eau de Cologne Chanel for women

Chanel No 5 is Chanel No 5. You must try it! Always have it in your wardrobe. Read the positive reviews and buy a bottle. THERE WILL BE day when you want to wear it. Every woman absolutely HAS TO have it in her arsenal. One of most recognizable and lovely fragrances. I kinda like the Premiere one a little better after having this for so many years. But it's almost like you must own pearls, so you must also own Chanel No 5.

I tried to wear this scent in my early 20s as it smelled great on my roommate. However, it did nothing for me. My pale dry skin was best suited to L'Air du Temps. However, now that I've aged, my skin chemistry seems to have changed and I'm able to wear it. Oddly, the final note reminds me of a perfume that came with a childhood play cosmetic set. Incidentally, Fredric Malle has said that if certain regulations are passed, one of the ingredients in this perfume may be banned and the scent will change. (Elle magazine, May 2013)

Wow - just got a vintage 1.5 EDC spray and I haven't smelled so much civet in a LONG time. First blast of this nearly floored me and I could literally taste it in the back of my throat. Dark, musty, dirty, almost indecent, I am thinking more so with the age of the cologne...and sharp aldehydes almost a burn, but when it settles down...she is a very, very pretty lady. This is not for the faint of heart - I can see why some really dislike this one.

I burst out laughing when I first smelled this. This EDC has the 'aldehydes' that people THINK they are talking about. No 5 EDC is bursting with multi-layered, musky, rich, stinky, offensive ALDEHYDE goodness! My my this stuff is practically illicit--really probably is, as I'm sure the ingredients are now banned by the powers that be.

Anyway the top notes are a piece of living history that no longer exists in perfumery. No way would someone dare putting something this animalaic, this rich and unclean in a perfume!

The topnotes burn off to give a rich, sweet, rosey jasmine, so lucious as to resemble actually smelling from a huge red rose during the month of June...beautiful...the drydown becomes vetiver/leather/wood/incense...also this perfume has a blended quality that most perfumes just don't have anymore, a sense that the scent is hiding something from you, and certain conditions will turn notes on and off.

I highly recommend the EDC...it is easily found on Ebay, relativly cheap, and one-of-a-kind...

This is my grandmother's scent, and nobody really thinks about an aldehyde as comforting, but it's the scent of Sunday mornings when I was a child. She barely wears it anymore, but it's always been her favorite. I can't smell any of the No. 5s without thinking of her, but this is hers.

I just found an old bottle of No. 5, but it's not marked anything but Chanel No. 5 on the bottom, (etched in white), the bottle being black square with a really old, heavy gold metal band, also marked "Chanel Inc. New York-DIST.", and an old black atomizer. It's only about 1.2 oz, about 4" high. I found it at a thrift shop (it was actually locked up in a glass cabinet, with the HUGE price of $2.99). I sprayed a quick spritz on my wrist, took a deep breath after it settled, and what a scent! It is a heavy Chanel No. 5, very beautiful, aged, and with a distinct background of leather. Leather??? Yes, leather. I can't even describe it all as I'm not that versed on all of the "notes" in perfume, but it is definitely wonderful. The only problem is that there's not much left, so I can't exactly drown in it.

As I'm sitting here writing, I have the top of the bottle off, and the scent from the atomizer is right there with me. This is the best find I've had in a long time!

Bought this when I was only 17! My first paycheck, almost the entire paycheck spent on this! That was the beginning of my downfall :)

I ask Chanel perfume to bring 5 cologne version back,it will be a big hit

What's striking about the cologne version, is that it was much more long lasting than many eaux de toilette of today. I'm unsure this version of Chanel 5 is still available on market, but I remember when I was a little girl an aunt of mine used to use the Cologne version and, after seeing my eyes staring at the big bottle on her drawer, one day she gifted me with it. It was her bottle, half used, half loved and I never used it, but fully loved it, yes. I loved to sniff it and I remember, many years after, when I finally gifted myself with a bottle of eau de toilette (and eventually eau de parfum) that this cologne was more, more, more in any sense. It has the scent of time, of what Chanel N°5 has embodied, it was not the reformulated version, it had a totally different allure, yes. It was beautiful and needed no plastic surgery.

I've already reviewed this below, but the weather is growing cooler here again and I just applied CN5C preparatory to going to bed. I like to try things out when I can concentrate on them. And once again it is blowing me away with its beauty.

I think everyone who loves this scent in all its formulations is baffled by those who call it stinky and old lady. But, and this has been said before, if you judge it from the bottle or immediately after applying it, you are really incapable of judging it properly.

At first it is a little, well, dense and maybe even repulsive. But just wait, baring unfortunate skin chemistry, in just a few minutes it becomes the most enchanting, rich, complex floral/woody/musky/aldehydic potion. Moderate sillage, so you shouldn't offend any but the most scent phobic, unless you literally bath in it. It simply isn't overwhelming, so how can it can be "stinky"? "Old lady? Well, fruity, it isn't. Just ease into it. Let it sneak up on you...if it doesn't work with your skin, part amicably and let those who it does work with, enjoy the experience.
Peace out.

I tried this again for the umpteenth hoping it will finally smell good on me. Not to be. All I ever get on my skin is heavy rose, a too strong vetiver and musk that then smells like dying or dead roses on someone's grave as a middle note and then a drydown to dried roses in a dusty library book. Depressing. I love to smell this fragrance on other people but it truly does not work with my body chemistry.

I have a bottle that is almost empty from my Aunt who was like my mother she loved this and it smelled so lovely on her. When I miss her I open this and it smells so gorgeous I think of her. I would describe this as elegant, romantic, and sweet. Depending on the chemistry on the right person this smells fabulous.

Very original, but not very impressed with this. Found it to be a bit old-fashioned (or classic-like) and most probably for a more 'matured' woman. It tends to linger on for ever and at times could even taste it! so stopped its use. For longevity I give it a 10/10.

This is a bottle of Romance....my first gift of perfume from a boy. I was a bit blind to the importance of such a beautiful gift (or maybe not..) but I felt so grown up and sophisticated when I applied this, but more than anything I felt feminine.... and all this at 18. A timeless classic for very good reason.
Perhaps I will have to revisit this beauty and see what I think now? I would certainly try this concentration again, as it tones down this powerhouse, making it more approachable.
I have gone through many fragrance phases....maybe I am ready for this again.

interesting fragrance, i ordered a sample of the eau de cologne splash, small bottle just because i was curious about it, intending for my wife..i received my package..opened it and smelled it, my 24 year old daughter was in the room with me and i asked, hey what do you think of this? she sprinkled some onto to her forearm...sniffed and replied, that smells really good dad, that would smell awesome on you, a very nice cologne smell..i like it.. and i laughed a little and said, it was actually created for a woman...and she looked at me surprisingly..really? ok i guess, but i think it would smell wonderful on you.. i agree, i think i am going to try and see what kind of feedback i get.. i do like it very much myself.. we will explore this one more.
nice stuff though..

The first "fancy perfume" I ever bought. I was 18 years old. I used half the bottle and moved on to other fragrances, but I kept the bottle with the juice because I am so sentimental. I recently discovered the bottle again, with the cologne still in it, and while the top notes are sharper, the dry down is still "my first fancy perfume" and it brings tears to my eyes when I smell it on my wrist. And that's the whole point of fragrance, isn't it?

I like Chanel No. 5, but I don't understand the mystique surrounding it. This is just another perfume in my collection, and most certainly not my favorite!

Such a rich history, yet I cannot get my chemistry to accept it. It is very mature and from what others have commented smells like body odor. I have smelled it on more mature women than I and it smells just fine, I guess its all about body chemistry and your personal style.

1 of my all-time favorites for Fall/Winter. I can sense the Patchouli and Sandalwood the most.

I remember disliking Chanel No. 5 as a child...but then I disliked most of my mother's perfumes. They smelled like...well perfume; not the recognizable flowers or spices which I loved then and still do. However, recently I acquired a vintage bottle of CN5 eau de cologne and although the smell from the bottle was not that enticing, when I put it on my skin the magic happened. This is wonderfully warm, soft and meltingly natural smell on my skin. Not the overwhelming blast in your face of the last decades of 20th Century or the repetitive fruity vanilla sugars/white floral woodys of the current. This is as natural and soft a scent as I have ever smelled. There are roses in there and civet and citrus and a whole world of wonderful things that blend and elevate one's natural scent into something that is so much more and an enduring pleasure.

This perfume was too much for me. It is perfect for my grandma :P

The blast of aldehydes from this fragrance always knocks me off my feet. It's head-ache inducing. I tried to like it (when I was young, and thought I had to like all the "classics" since they'd been around for such a long time) but it was, and remains, a very cold, sharp-edged scent that repels rather than seduces. Cold as the tomb. My chemistry dislikes all of Chanel. The mystery of body chemistry and fragrances--a whole new world opens before me, and yet I sink beneath the powerful aldehydes she tosses my way, lead weights meant to sink me fast. I would despair but I know there are warming, sensitive, and more skillful perfume houses out there who can offer gentle succor and depth beyond Coco's capability, so I reach out for assisitance and BAM it's there.Thank you Balenciaga, Givenchy,Guerlain, Hermes, La Perla, Rochas, Carven, Caron, you've saved me from death by aldehydes at Coco's hands.

A just rediscovered an old friend-my beloved EDC. I secured a bottle dating from around the late 1950-just as Pour Monsier was launched according to the leaflet within the timeworn & tattered box. The bottle is 2.oz and full. This is pure history in a bottle! Its hard to imagine how many people's lives Chanel No. 5 has touched. The contents are as perfect as the day they were produced. Simply amazing for an eau!

Times have changed, yet this fragrance doesnt. As it is fashionably popular for a woman to smell like Carmen Miranda's headdress, this seems all the more relevant as how a woman should smell-civet and all! If women dont want it anymore, I am claiming it! "Style never goes out of fashion."

I have decided to use it on my skin-a man's skin. It (EDC) has always fit me without shouting-"hes wearing Chanel No 5!" This splash lets you control the aldehydes. I am using it as an aftershave and it feels great! The rose(prevents wrinkles) and jasmine(calms me) charge it for the first few hours. The neroli then dominates the composition with whispers of vanilla, civet and sandalwood. I cannot think of something more pleasant to use as a daily shaving toner! It lasts until I retire for bed.

This was the first "feminist" perfume launched in 1921. As feminism has been polarized once more(vanished) in perfumery, Chanel no. 5 has become unisex-at least on my skin. Coco designed it to empower women. In the age of reformulation, men need to use it as well. Now, more than ever is No. 5 important. I enjoy it every minute of every day until this bottle dries up...A little goes a long way! I feel that Coco is standing with me, urging me on, in this sea of fruity body sprays, spray tans and pink jogging suits.

I appreciate its timelessness on other people. For those who call it an "old lady" scent, please remember that Marilyn Monroe wore this, and had she lived, she would be an old lady now, too. . . but does that make her less sexy? However, on me, it dries down to a scent identical to that of the old drugstore powder "Shower to Shower" so it just isn't either unique, or worth the cost on me. "BOO!" to body chemistry!!!

To me, the most timeless scent out there, ever. I am 41 and have been wearimng since I was 18. Never fails me. Always get compliments. A true beauty.

Aprildawn - you are a woman after my own heart! This and Obsession are my two most hated perfumes in the cosmos. LOL! Seriously. They BOTH give me really bad headaches, each and every time I smell them. I don't know what it is in Chanel No. 5 - but it smells like something used to induce vomiting to me. And that's not even on my skin (I would NEVER put it near my skin lol)...that's me smelling it on others/straight from the bottle. I hated it long ago, and I hate it now. Didn't smell it for years. Decided to do a test in a department store recently; thought my palate may have matured.

UM, NO. Still gave me an instant headache and made me sick to my stomach. It can't just be the adelhydes...I love the OLD Je Reviens by Worth and that's floral adelhyde, too. Can't figure it out. Whatever it is should be buried in a toxic waste superfund never to be unearthed. XD

Just found a PRISTINE bottle of this, still in the yellowed cellophane wrap - unopened - in my mother's closet - buried for many, many years. Judging on the look, labeling and other hallmarks, I've dated it to around the very late 60's.

Initially, I was just going to save it and keep it for collector's sake - but the fragranista in me made me open it so that I could experience a well-preserved example of this. The foil seal was a nice touch - and the color of the juice was lighter than examples I've seen online auctions - so the preservation was better than most.

It's beautiful - just amazing. The composition is perfect, and those vintage musks and pre-IFRA materials give it a depth and glow that's really hard to verbalize. This is my mother, during her glamorous period, captured in a bottle. I can smell her furs, her makeup, her pearls and diamonds, her highly-musked hairspray from the time - all of it flooding my brain with nostalgia and wonder.

After decanting a few ml., I used some nitrogen gas to displace the bit of air that had made its way into the bottle and put in into a temperature controlled storage with the other of my vintage treasures. AHHHHH! Today's No. 5, while nice and as faithful to the original as it can be, still seems miles away from this gorgeous cologne.

If you find this for sale, grab it!!! You won't regret it.

Certainly one of my favourites. It's sophisticated and makes me feel great and special when I wear it. It provides that wonderful off balance rose and floral (jasmin, forget me notes etc - so classical scent) note with a dash of wood and earthy scent that last all day. A timeless scent, and in fact the best selling perfume of all time. It generates sales of $100 million a year, so clearly it must appearl to quite a few! As Marilyn Monroe and millions of other woman have said, What do I wear in bed? Why, Chanel No. 5, of course!

(;-)

I wanted to like this, I really did. Unfortunately though, I'm a seventeen year old girl, and this perfume made me smell like a mature woman. It kind of reminds me of my Gran, maybe she wears it, I'm not sure.
Anyway, the bottle I had was only about 10ml but I'm glad it was only that. Horrible, horrible smell, and lasted for hours, which, in this case, I wasn't pleased about.
It's probably because it has none of my favourite notes in it, and is far too mature for me, but I'd still advise people not to buy it. I don't feel it deserves the fame it has, really. Certainly one of a kind though, I can't say I've smelled it in any other perfumes.

oh God, i try to like this but one whiff and i'm gone! too bad i love the bottle and the colour of the perfume...it looks sophisticated...simple but elegant....i can't say the same for the smell...>.< what if i buy it and not use it? meh...waste of money....-.-

I loathe this perfume. I hold my breath whenever an older co-worker comes around and I have to leave the area asap. I hate this one even more than obsession for women!!

Not a fan. Too heavy and overpowering. I didn't like it when I was younger and still do not like it in middle age.

Chanel N° 5 Eau de Cologne is truly gorgeous.

I feel that Chanel's flagship perfume is something of a timeless legend, truly feminine, classic, and masterful. Its only drawback, if one can consider it so, is its tremendous strength and longevity. One spritz of N° 5 will last forever, with little diminishment.

The Eau de Cologne formulation, however, is quite light and heady. Brilliant aldehydes and bergamot off the top notes illuminate the civet, oakmoss, rose, and iris of the central accords. The result is something sheer, classy, and great for spring walks in the park.

This variation is perfect for younger women (mostly of the under 40 set) who want to exude the class and sophistication of N° 5, without the risk of smelling too ripe and stodgy. It's a perfect 10/10.

How could I leave the 1920s without mentioning this? It was my first exposure to "Haute Perfumerie". My bottle hailed from 1980 and was a true composition without a note sticking out. Her perfection is stunning, setting the standard for the coming decades! This particular vintage allowed me to "share the fantasy". Indeed, everything after has failed. The current EDT smells like stale makeup and the current EDP tries too hard.

This EDC was why I saved my money and visit Paris to experienced the inspiration. My bottle is long emptied, yet I vividly remember it. It is history in a bottle. How many women have used it? How many hearts did it touch? Mine is one of them...Its sleek, dry, hypnotic and demonstrates the feminine mystique.

...bought it for my wife for her b'day last year. Was a little worried considering it is such an old scent, but then its reputation has lasted as many years, so i gave it a try and bought it !

needless to say, the feminine logic put me in the docks so to say; " an obtuse reference to growing old ? " seemed to be thought.
It took a few friends ( my sons friends ie. ) compliments to get her to believe in the magic 1

I have a beautiful vintage bottle. When I put it on the top notes had clearly turned, so I smelled awful. The rancid top notes disappeared after 10 minutes, and I was left with a glorious yet soft whisper of Chanel No5. This is what the EDT should smell like but doesn't. The EDC is closer in scent to the Parfum, while the EDT is powder-heavy. Truth be told, I love No5 in ALL forms. I wish I could try the EDC brand-new from Nordstrom, but alas I may never have the pleasure.

There is no other that compares with this version.Upon application,u r greeted with a BURST of freshness and aldehydes! The florals spin round and round u while every now and then a magenta rose sticks her head out of the jumble and screams,ME!ME!THe rose is the alpha male here!

The drydown is sweet,powdery and oh so womanly floral,yet there is a woody,earthy even musky trail left behind.

Once a day was enough and u could still smell it the next day! I wish they would bring it back!

Yes, thank you to Fragrantica for adding this. This is my favorite concentration of the legendary No. 5, and I know I am not alone. This is nice and about as light as civet and rose can get...still a heady scent. Filled will florals and aldehyde, this to me smells the closest to a freshly cut rose of all of them. It is not as overwhelming as the others and it was my mothers first choice in perfumes as I was growing up. Whenever I got a whiff of those roses, I knew it was going to be a night either with a babysitter, or of a kid friendly dinner party. Great associations with this fragrance, I know I am not alone in wishing this was still offered by Chanel.