Prélude (Parfum de Toilette) by Balenciaga

Bottle Design:
Pierre Dinand

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Prélude Balenciaga 1982 Parfum de Toilette

7.3 / 10 31 Ratings

A perfume by Balenciaga for women, released in 1982. The scent is floral-spicy. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Floral

Spicy

Chypre

Woody

Oriental

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Spices

Aldehydes

Bergamot

Orange

Pimento

Heart Notes

Carnation

Orchid

Ylang-ylang

Cinnamon

Jasmine

Rose

Base Notes

Frankincense

Tolu balm

Benzoin

Ambergris

Civet

Patchouli

Vanilla

Ratings

Scent

7.331 Ratings

Longevity

7.225 Ratings

Sillage

6.023 Ratings

Bottle

5.629 Ratings

Submitted by Lissy, last update on 10/29/2021.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Prélude Parfum

Prélude Eau de Toilette

Reviews

4 in-depth fragrance descriptions

02/14/2013

9Scent 7.5Longevity 7.5Sillage

Scentimental
2 Reviews

Scentimental

1

Prelude by Balenciaga

Prelude was launched I believe in the early 80's and is classified as a 'floriental'. To my nose, Prelude opens with a slightly stinging citrusy aldehyde accord but dies away quickly as the floral heart of ylang-ylang, rose and a citrusy- jasmine accord smoothes the way for the vanilla, musky drydown.
Was marketed for the younger crowd but has a lot of sophistication of it's own to entice any mature person as well.

02/04/2012

7Scent 10Longevity 10Sillage

Lola82
361 Reviews

Lola82

Prelude

A Prelude to a Classic a first Blast
of Aldehydes will make think mmmm
another Chanel no 5 Copy but the drydown
says i don't think so Because
Chanel doesn't have predominent orange
notes and prelude is less shaper.

08/24/2011

7Scent 5Longevity

Turandot
838 Reviews

Translated · Show original

Turandot

Top Review 18

Well, yes...

...I have to somewhat relativize the description of Medusa.

I wouldn't want to compare it at all with Paloma Picasso and Jai Òso, not even in relation, because those are much darker and truly Chypre fragrances. Here we are dealing more with a spicy, rich floral scent. For a Chypre, I miss more pronounced hesperidic notes, and the base is more woody-powdery-sweet than mossy-herbaceous, even though Medusa is certainly right that the pyramid is quite poorly indicated. I cannot analyze which flowers are present here, and I believe making a statement about it is pure speculation.
The reference to Ma Griffe cannot be completely dismissed, but the Carven scent is distinctly greener, more expressive, and above all, more aldehydic.

Balenciaga perfumes are generally beautiful, traditionally composed scents, but I see Prélude as one of the more staid representatives of this house. Nicely done, flowers and spices balanced, nothing annoys, but nothing really stands out either.

The longevity is good as expected for a fragrance from the 1980s. A fine, elegant scent for true ladies.

Sorry Medusa, thank you very much for the sample, but we know more interesting perfumes. So for me, 70%: happy to use, but definitely not a must-buy.

07/08/2011

9Scent 10Longevity

Medusa00
834 Reviews

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Medusa00

Helpful Review 11

I Am Being Followed!

... and by the Chypres, I don't have to look for them, they find me (thanks to Michelangela). They come flying towards me at warp speed, so to speak. Perhaps Mr. Spock not only saved the humpback whales in 1982 but also some Chypre fragrances to enhance them with Romulan oil, scent-wise.
Prélude is quite refined, and the 3 notes listed above are more than meager. Beam me down, Scotty, to the year 1982. Back then, environmental protection was still in its infancy!
So here we go (and I didn't Google this, my nose tells me)
It starts with bergamot and neroli. The Chypre flag is immediately anchored on my arm. Like Armstrong marking the moon. With old Chypres, the base often immediately makes an appearance, only to retreat again right away.
Scotty beams me into the heart note of iris, roses, and other unsweet floral notes (lily of the valley???, I don't think so!)
The base is wood, but warm, supple. A touch of conifer like pine. Gentle powderiness.
Prélude is for all the big girls who say: "I am now grown up, and people say Chypres are mostly worn by adults!" It is not as gnarly as jai Ose, not as soft as Ma Griffe, and not as much of a knockout as Paloma Picasso. Girls, try Prélude!