Les Exclusifs de Chanel 31 Rue Cambon Chanel for women

Like most Chanel scents, 31 Rue cambon is an abstraction of several things: there are hints of florals, woods citrus, pepper, etc., that really aren't there and that's what make scents from this house interesting. I can appreciate them more when I think of them as being composed by the perfumer like abstract paintings. However, I can't agree with this whole "modern chypre" thing. I feel that it's too revisionist and an historical category of perfumery like the chypre category, should not be redefined to use as a marketing tool. With that said, I love Rue Cambon for what it is.

Found my summer scent. It took me all of 31 seconds to spray, sniff, buy. This is not what I typically do. I make myself wear a perfume several times (from samples, etc) before I decide to buy. Not so with 31 Rue Cambon. I'm a les exclusifs fan-girl and this perfume is one of the more special ones available from the modern creations (Polge scents). It combines the lightness of summer-appropriate notes with a tangy sweetness that doesn't try to choke me. I picture a woman wearing wispy silks, sandals, a very wide-brimmed hat, and her 31 Rue Cambon chillaxing at her villa overlooking St. Tropez. If I ever win the powerballz, I can be her. I think.

Chanel 31 Rue Cambon? Quite deceptive. My first reaction was negative (too woody, too dry) - on closer acquaintance though it mellows to just a touch sweeter and warmer. Judging by the wildly varying reviews it is all things to all (wo)men - and it's definitely unisex. I get the iris, the ylang ylang, the bergamot - the patchouli seems to be missing in my sample. Interesting, is what I'd call this perfume.
Kind of grows on you.

Very different take on patcholi and iris surrounded by great florals.

Not easy to use, the opening is very aldehydic but the drydown is powedery and sweet.

Unisex for sure.

Sillage, lasting power and projection are average.

err i don't like this one its too much woods so i would consider this more of a scent for men totally...its the wood scent you usually smell mixed with spice except this overrides the spice and you smell more strongly the wood with fresh citrus...i couldn't see a woman wearing this one...

I completely agree with Doc Elly's review below. This is a well behaved aldehydic chypre featuring soft florals and a peachy note in the heart. I don't get much of anything resinous or ambery here. Its a very nice approximation of a chypre minus the oakmoss. In my opinion it inhabits the same olfactory neighborhood as Mitsouko and Yves Saint Laurent's - Y. Beautiful and refined.

The prettiest sweat I have ever smelled, like a lady laying in the grass on a summer day with a crown of daisies in her hair. Very green, very elegant, very human.

Reminds me of D&G Pour Femme and The One. Pretty but I prefer D&G as its slightly more intense but in a soft way. 31 does not last more than an hour on me. Pretty though and worth sampling.

A Chanel? Are you sure? Seriously??? B-b-but...I don't like Chanels (at least the ones I've sampled). I despise the iconic No 5 and I certainly never l.o.v.e. a Chanel. Until now. One whiff, I am transported to a grassy bank along a burbling stream. A golden sun sparkles from the water as it's rays shine to gently warm me through the new spring leaves over my head. Delicate, elusive fresh flowers interspersed with a spicy crispness. I want a wine that tastes like this smells. Effervescent.

Now I must decide, get the sensible size? Or spend less than twice as much and get it in the bathtub size? I'm afraid 6.8 oz will require wearing it everyday for yeeears. Can't have that. Too many other luscious lovelies tucked away need attention too. Such decisions are hard!

very nice and probably my most interesting tester from the exclusifs that I tried, unfortunately forgettable and no Guerlain rival.

Maybe I sprayed too too lightly that I cannot appreciate this fully. Smells citrusy and of iris offset by hint of patchouli. It is pretty and modern but not special (is that bad to say about a Chanel?). After four hours, it is a beautiful floral whisper. I will try it again when I can but for now, I'm not wow-ed.

One light spray on me:
Sillage: close to skin
Longevity: 4 hours
Rating: 3/5
Price: Holt Renfrew 75ml C$145

One of the best perfumes of all time? Please.

Funny story. I applied 31 this morning and went to work. My boss (who hasn't caught on that I wear fragrance yet) is there talking to a female co-worker, and she stops and sniffs the air and says to her, "is that you? like, something in your hair? are you using some kind of fancy shampoo? perfume? it smells like Obsession. are you wearing Obsession? no? huh. that's what it smells like." Then, the co-worker leaves, and I'm left there. My boss then turns to me and says, "actually, I think it's you. are you wearing Obsession?" To which I replied, feeling chagrined, "No, No I am not."

It's easy to dismiss the story as the ramblings of an inexperienced and ignorant by-passer, but a pedestrian's opinion tends to be like a child's: brutally honest and to the point. In this case, the perfume smells good (Obsession smells good too), but not the stuff of legends. It strikes me as being a loud oriental. I know it's classified as a chypre, Luca Turin calls it a chypre, yadda yadda yadda. There's no oakmoss in it. Therefore, it's open for interpretation. And let me say this - 31 desperately, desperately needs oakmoss. It's painfully obvious that this precious note is missing from the pyramid as I sniff the sparkly bergamot and iris top accord, with its thin bready aspect that yields too little depth and too much synthetic sheen. Then comes the lactonic flow of peachy-milky notes that caress the air in a soapy cloud of freshness. One minute it's a floral jasmine-like arrangement of blatantly synthetic notes. Another minute there's a citrusy-vanilla vibe going on. And yet another minute later, peppery sandalwood with labdanum standing in for moss. Quite a merry-go-round.

Ultimately it dries down to a woody-floral base that grows increasingly flat and sweet as the hours wear on. Without the foundation of real oakmoss in the base, without that bitter-green monster lurking beneath the sunny proceedings, 31 feels a bit hollow and commits the greatest sin of modern perfumery: it lacks tension. To suggest otherwise feels disingenuous. Let's face it, you can't create a high quality chypre with fair-grade synthetics and a masterful composition without attaching the perfume to the basic structure of a classical chypre. Yes, the citrus is there, yes, the labdanum is there, but no, the moss isn't, and no, 31 Rue Cambon doesn't quite pull off ravishing beauty without it. It is, however, very, very pretty, and I received a compliment from a younger female co-worker today who had to know what it was called, and said more than once that it smelled VERY nice. So to suggest this fragrance is a failure is also disingenuous.

I think it might be time for Chanel to move their perfume manufacturing plants back to New Jersey (as far as I know many of their fragrances are made in the USA anyway). The fact that they're complying with European IFRA regs is admirable, but when you're this close to total success, it isn't worth playing by someone else's rules. Sometimes one seemingly insignificant note is the difference between perfection and disappointment. I won't be wearing 31 in the future, simply because the notion that anyone would mistake it for Obsession, and be ADAMANT about it, is a punch in the gut, and I'm not a glutton for punishment.

I just got this scent today from Chanel and I wasn't sure at first what I thought. As with any vintage era scent, I put some on again after an hour or so and went through the drydown. It is a rather faint scent so you are unlikely to smell like an old lady as someone said.

This is so not an older person scent, it is a lovely very sophisticated scent-- it's just not all fruity and overly sweet like a lot of scents today. It is a perfect balance of chypre and warmer notes. To all you naysayers out there 2 young woman under 30 today told me I smelled nice and asked what I was wearing. These are not people who would lie to me. They have my back. If I'm wearing something unflattering or a not nice perfume they will definitely tell me, in a not mean way, so I don't make that mistake again.

I think this is worth everyone trying a decant. It's a classic scent, beautiful Chanel, what have you got to lose?

Although I appreciate the Chanel quality in this perfume, I don't feel it is right for me. I prefer others in the Exclusifs line. Immediately I sprayed it, it smelled like mustard seeds being fried, but then some sour citrus rind developed, and was soon joined by a generic woody smell. I don't get any patchouli or floral notes in this. It IS long-lasting, but by the time a few hours had passed I was bored by the smell.

31 Rue Cambon is beautiful, symphonic fragrance. Citrus is just a quick whiff, the fragrance itself is sweetish floral scent, elegantly rounded by patcholi&amber accords. Patchouli gives some depth and warmth, but is not detectable as a strong note. On me this is more like an ambraic floral than citrus-patchouli floral.

I have EdT and the lasting power is around 6h. I was a bit indecisive when purchasing this as I had some doubts about sillage and turns out I was right. The EdT stays rather close to skin, although I catch random wafts of loveliness every now and then. On my scale, this is rather elegant than sultry. If it was stronger, I would definitely love it. Now I am just liking it a lot.

I would recommend this to someone who is looking an elegant, unique fragrance that does not shout its presence. Agree with previous reviewer, this would be great on a man. Correction to the frageance info above, this is available in 75ml size too.

Sweet-woody-powdery heaven in a bottle. Chanel.com also lists cistus oil as an ingredient along with the bergamot and patchouli. Amazing fragrance from a 3 composition masterpiece. I could just eat myself up! :D It is a smoothly mellow scent akin to the likes of Chanel No. 5 (the original version). I do believe it would suit men as well.

This just did not do it for me, I passed it onto my Mom, she loves it. Too woody for me, not enough floral and it did not "linger" well enough for the price. Disapointing.

I totally agree with Shabbus. It's very pretty, but I feel like I'm at a meeting of the Daughters of the American Revolution. I just can not imagine anyone other than a rich grandmother pulling this off. My tester also is extremely strong. I won't be wearing this one.

Now I know why I love this so much, into the drydown reminds me of the pachouli / chocolate / subtle anise from mens's L'Instant. Sits wonderfully on my skin and had a great time trying it on at NM here in Houston. It's a muted powdery floral that keeps this watery undertone to it, fresh and green. Quite captivating, enough that I would write about it. It's understated and luxurious and would find this great to wear in copious amounts for an evening out or go lighter on the trigger for a day at the office. It's a living room and cocktail fragrance with a dimly lit chandelier. And this is a good thing. JG 033012

042312 edit: I tried this once again, couldn't help it, and I love this wonderful fragrance. Smells incredibly close to Apres L'Ondree but a tad woodier and longer lasting having tried it on opposite sides of my forearm. I can see myself owning this beautiful scent. It still conjures a grand baroque style French apartment to me with lots of gilded mirrors and brocade wallpaper. JG

Powdery aldehydes and sweet floral notes combine to produce a classic chypre-type scent that I could swear has some civet in the base. It starts out aldehydic-citrusy, softly floral, and powdery. Within half an hour it develops a slight peach note. The florals are dominated by a powdery iris, but there are probably also traces of ylang-ylang, rose, and some others.

There’s supposed to be cistus oil and patchouli in the mix, but these really stay far in the background. To my nose, it’s primarily a warm, powdery, slightly musky floral that almost manages to smell like a vintage perfume. It’s more or less linear, and lasts a good 8 hours with moderate sillage. It’s beautifully put together and I like it a lot, but it’s probably not something I’d wear often just because it’s not really my style.

Of all citrus scents, I like bergamot the most, then orange.
This opens with an elegant bergamot scent but not long before the creamy patchouli joins in and pushes the citrus to the background. I prefer it this way because too much citrus could bother my nose.
It's a light, smooth, and well blended perfume; just perfect for a non-floral Spring scent.

beutifull mix but no longevity at all...what a pitty

I LOVE this scent.

It is so gorgeous, and would be a LOVE if it were 3 TIMES AS STRONG!!!

It disappears almost completely from my skin in 30 minutes.

Sob!!

Very soft, classy, mysterious & secretive.

I can't truly say this feels like a chypre to me. But it's lovely to have an earthy-bergamot accord which is so warm, inviting and approachable. There is no quality of austerity or coldness here.

I understand why many people find my favorite classic chypres to be challenging, and in some situations I feel self-conscious wearing them. But this, never. I imagine most people readily percieve the appeal of this scent. It's just plain beautiful.

I wear perfume becasue it has a beneficial effect on my mood and outlook, a sort of low-level sensual ambient experience that lasts all day. If other people like it, so much the better, but it isn't why I buy perfume. I don't usually get compliments on my perfume from people I casually interact with during the day, probably because the majority of stuff I like is considered to be out of style. This is the exception, the only perfume in my collection that has ever garnered compliments from acquaintances or strangers.

Notes:

pepper, bergamot, orris, narcissus, jasmine,
patchouli, ambrette, vetiver, labdanum.

31 Rue Cambon does actually conjure the shape of a chypre. I appreciate the way it redefines the olfactory geometry that makes a chypre so compelling and I love the way it smells. There is a notable lack of bitterness without the oakmoss, but there is a dirtyness/skinness/nuttiness that melds with the buttery amber and just slides along from top through drydown.

Fruit? I actually don’t see it. More of an ambery woodiness infused with a classic Chanel approach to singing florals, all iris and aldehydes. 31 is effectively a floral oriental folded into the shape of a chypre. Light? Delicate? With its oriental DNA, I find 31 both emphatic and durable.

A fantastically successful stab at the contemporary chypre dilemma. I’m surprised it’s not more emulated.

This smells of wealth, but also of age. If you were sitting in the lobby of the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach and a wealthy dowager entered and sat down next to you while her driver checked her in and made sure her bags were handled by the bellman, her Hermes scarf would smell of 31 Rue Cambon. And so would the Pomeranian on her lap.

I usually get the floor cleaner note with citruses as well but not with 31 rue Cambon! This is just pure class. Not overwhelming, nothing vulgar. Beautiful soft chypre. Would be a perfect work scent for a lady who enjoys wearing pencils skirts and heels.

Bergamot (and citrus in general) and I tend to not be friends, and 31 Rue Cambon confirmed it. All I get is ashy-burned-medicinal citrus--in other words, floor cleaner. No. 5 Eau Premiere and No.19 did the same exact thing to me, so I'm not surprised, just disappointed.

One of the most beautiful things I've ever smelled. A true work of art. Starts sparkly fresh & green and has the most addictive drydown ever. A chypre without the bitterness. Just gorgeous! My jaw is dropping on the floor every time I smell this.
10/10

“Be Chic” is Coco Chanel’s style we can see on her back and this fragrance is very iconic, a symbolic creation.
She continues to make small evolutions happen inside her body with keeping tradition made by herself.
She does it very lightly in a sophisticated way, this is the reason I am a fan of the house/maison Chanel.
People gaze at her with reverence and adore her sophistication, a front runner.

I can breathe more deeply and feel oxygen when I wear this fragrance, I am in the new world, it might be said “intoxicating”.
The best in the collection.

I am looking forward to trying the next, “Jersey”.
How many people can feel relaxed without jersey?
How many people prefer to spend hours in bed wearing silk satin or cotton linen now?
Most of us cannot feel relaxed without jersey anymore, it is very interesting concept.

I love this scent, but it doesn't last on me. So sad. I have a 75ml, 90% full to trade....and it's gone!

If this scent lasted like Coromandel did, it would be in my Top 5 fragrances.....nothing else smells like it to me! Stunning.

I don't die for this fragrance, but it's one of my favourite from the Les Exclusifs.

It's a very opulent interpretation of a modern chypre. The drydown is a little powdery and spicy. This fragrance can be the great grand daughter of Mitsouko.

The lasting power is very good for an Eau de Toilette

Absolutely fantastic! This is the classic-classy floral chypre theme superbly revised with a tremendous modern twist. A sober masterpiece and possibly one of the best perfumes of all times. A big dose of iris, some bergamot and fruity notes are the most detectable in this fragrance made of a delicate sweetness and and a luminous radiance. The drydown is warm, embracing, intimate and somehow ambery. 31RC stays at the top of my favourite female fragrances list together with its precursor Mitsouko. Unquestionably elegant, sober and beautiful. Do great also on a man.

Rating: 9.5/10

Similar to Mitsouko, although a little bit lighter. I tried it on, and a 60 year old woman told me that it smelled like something her mother would have worn.

For the first time ever I don't want to read anyone else's opinions of the perfume. I will eventually. Just not now, not when it's here with me. Just today, walking into Chanel boutique I was saying to my husband that I haven't yet encountered a Chanel that would agree with me. No 5 rejected me without mercy: the EDT, the EDP, finally the parfum (both contemporary and several vintages), and I didn't really hope for anything more. How wrong I was!

Coming from a quaint provincial town in Russia, that miraculously managed to sustain its oldwordly charm through the whole epoque of terror which 20th century was for my country, I have in my mind the perfectly precise picture of what 31 Rue Cambon is to me. I picture myself a six year old, just having seen The Nutcracker ballet and charmed by Chaikovsky's music. It's New Year's eve and my mother, fascinated by all things Paris and stunningly beautiful in her long purple gown, her coat trimmed with luxurious silver fox, and a wide brimmed hat, to my eyes looks just like one of the Ladies of the royal court in the ballet. We're going out to spend the New Year's night with my parents' friends, and as she steps out of our building into the snowy starlit evening, there's a whurry of crisp winter wind, and it showers my mother with snowflakes, and she laughs, and the wind carries her laughter and the delicious fragrance of her perfume all around us, snowflakes shimmering in the black and silver fur of her hat and coat like diamonds. That's the perfect moment I've been longing to relive, and that's exactly where Rue Cambon takes me.

I like what Sissi wrote in her comment,that poem is lovely,giving a real description of this perfume

Before I fell head-over-heels in love with 31 Rue Cambon, the Chanel sales assistant likened this fragrance to the scent of old bookshops and museums. At first my response was, "who would want to smell like that?" Well, let me tell you, smelling like ancient manuscripts has never been so appealing.

The old, musty smell comes from the complex blend of dry, dusty woods, earthy patchouli and subtle, soapy iris. I cannot find a better way of describing this fragrance's beauty.

Perhaps a year ago, when I was mostly into florals and gourmands, I may have passed this fragrance by, however making a discovery of the whole Les Exclusifs range has opened up a whole new world of fragrances for me.

Thankfully, this fragrance works well with my chemistry, hence the reason why it made it to my wishlist. Every few seconds I manage to discover something new about this fragrance. One second it smells nutty the next it's smokey and woodsy. There's a touch of pepper in there too, maybe even incense, amber and spices.

I am hopelessly devoted to this fragrance, just like when I discovered Coromandel, it was instantaneous love. I don't admire 31 Rue Cambon because it's sexy (although it is in a nerdy librarian way), bold or feminine, I love it because it's like nothing I've ever experienced before.

Unlike most reviewers of this particular fragrance, I didn't have an issue with its longevity. It lasted perfectly well on my skin, it almost pained me to wash it off in the shower the next morning.

Mellow, soothing and dry, there is no doubt in my mind that this fragrance will be gracing my collection come next Winter.

I took a shower after I tried this one at Selridges. I did not washed with soap the place on my arm where I put the perfume on. I did not wanted to leave me, the smell. And it didn't, for that night. To me it is very masculine but amazingly good quallity perfume.

Chanel 31 RUE CAMBON is a fine, well-crafted and compelling chypre with great staying power and sillage in the edt.

In thinking about other favorite chypres, this Chanel creation may come closest to YVRESSE, but it is less wet and a bit smoother to my nose. The citrus is just right: not acrid, not too sharp, just a perfect dose to complement the grassiness (which I assume is vetiver...) and patchouli, which is woven symphonically into the composition, rather than serving as a dominant note (a la Thierry Mugler).

The only other chypre which I find quite so compelling is MITSOUKO, but 31 RUE CAMBON is a bit less intense, perhaps more modern, and possibly easier to wear without being constantly distracted by its opulent beauty. Yet it is beautiful, and a real wristsniffer, as odd as that may sound for a nongourmand. On my wish list!

A black leather glove a lit cigarette
between the fingers a bony spinx-like
face ala garbo with thin red lips a scarf around her blonde hair huge black
sunglasses covering the eyes to make it more androgynous in a 1930's black V-12
cadilliac when she get out.
her outfit is a black botero a gold blouse the most form fitting skintight
black leather pants with 5 inch heels
stelletos all the photograthers paparatzzi and fans scream for her when she walks in a exclusive premire of an event and her mistique that she never
gives autographs ever does interviews
but i'll tell you for one thing she can
turn a hetrosexual girl to fall in love with her.

this is a very sexy perfume i can pick up Leather in this then dries down to
an orris root scent the early chanel perfumes before the girlish coco mademoiselle or the allures had more
of a masculine feel chanel was ahead of her time with fashion on perfumery.
at a time when stiff rigid corset gowns
where in vogue chanel broke that rule
she taliored more simple less restrictive clothing for women and it was a hit.

and perfumery before chanel it was cloyish girlish and naive when chanel no 5 was introduced aldehydes where the rage finaly they had a fragrance that
was going on in women sociality at the time women where voting smoking in public wearing shorter more revealing
attire chanel was cought up in that.

this is a perfume that if you what to think outside the box don't follow
convertional life and be androgymous
this is the perfume.

I've got a decant on perfumista's meeting. It starts very mild amber,a little hint of rose, mix with something green. It opens after couple hours with something interesting, like old school lipstick smell, just hint of powder, but overall this is very spring blossom like perfume.I haven't put it in the evening yet,however it is
perfect for light sunny day.

Be aware! Chanel 31 Rue Cambon is a scent that differs a lot from person to person, and even smells really differently on the same person under different temperature. So I guess it’s wise to try more than twice or even three times before you reach a definite conclusion.

Chanel 31 is like the merits combo of No.5 Eau Premiere + Allure + Chance. My apology here for my chronologically wrongly referring Chanel 31 to later and more commercially wider distributed Chanel scents, to describe how Chanel 31 smells.

Ok, about the scent:

Chanel 31 Rue Cambon starts sharp and clean in an intoxicating bergamot dominant citrusy/aldehyde kind of chypre, reminds me a little bit of the elegant Chanel No.5 eau Premiere.

Then it goes sweeter, smoother, rounder and woodier. There’s sweetness in a patchouli powdery way, with some floral hint. Really warm, in a elegant and confident way, plus a little touch of sensual feeling. This reminds me a much refined Chanel Chance + Allure. It's self-assured luxury without boasting.

The dry down comes smoothly, like a sheer version of what I’ve experienced before. It’s comforting with the elegant and clean iconic Chanel-style edge.

Worth trying!

I've worn this scent three times now, and have to say this is my favorite Chanel fragrance. Granted, I'm a huge chypre fan, and if you are too don't pass this one up. I know it is an EDT, but it lasts all day long, which is impressive. It wears 'expensive', and changes throughout the day so give it time before making up your mind. I doubt this is a three note wonder, but someone with more skill will have to identify the other influences. Is this as good as Mitsouko? No. But I would put it in the top five chypres I've come across. The bergamot note really sets this apart for me - makes it very smooth and comfortable. Mmmm!