Jolie Madame Balmain 1953 Eau de Toilette

Jolie Madame (Eau de Toilette) by Balmain

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Jolie Madame (Eau de Toilette) (Balmain)

8.0 / 10 136 Ratings

Jolie Madame (Eau de Toilette) is a popular perfume by Balmain for women and was released in 1953. The scent is floral-chypreartig. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Floral

Chypre

Leathery

Spicy

Woody

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Bergamot

Artemisia

Coriander

Gardenia

Neroli

Heart Notes

Narcissus

Orris root

Jasmine

Rose

Tuberose

Base Notes

Oakmoss

Vetiver

Leather

Musk

Patchouli

Civet

Coconut

Perfumer

Germaine Cellier

Ratings

Scent

8.0136 Ratings

Longevity

7.894 Ratings

Sillage

7.088 Ratings

Bottle

7.289 Ratings

Submitted by TVC15, last update on 05.04.2024.

Reviews

7 in-depth fragrance descriptions

02/05/2013

Chickenpotpi
8 Reviews

Chickenpotpi

Very helpful Review 7

Nice, but know what version you're getting with this one

As its been said, there's a lot of differences between vintage and the recent versions, even more so with parfum to edt!

The current EDT I have is more like a violet candy with suede note thrown in. Slightly loud on the floral at first spray but it calms down quickly. I don't get any tobacco or oakmoss at all. Sillage is a little heavy at first but lightens considerably (I use 3-4 sprays), but longevity is quite bad, about 3-4 hours.

The vintage parfum is way way deeper and lasts a long time. leather in this borders on horse stable (could be the added civet who knows) and I FINALLY get tobacco in all its gloriousness! And though I smell the florals I can now pick out different ones. Like, I now can tell its violet leaf, rose, jasmine dirtyness and gardenia;. I don't smell any tuberose at all to be honest. I can smell the vetiver as well. These notes to me smell way more natural...likely because they were, than the more recent version. The musk is really divine here, its way in the back but not harsh its just beautiful.

This perfume has multiple stages, and its really nice to finally get them.

Now that I have the vintage I do smell the syntheticness of the current version. I would advise that if you already like and enjoy the current, don't get vintage, sometimes its best to not know....you know, pandora's box and all that.

Its unusual for sure in both recent and vintage versions but, its no contest as to what smells better to me.

04/19/2013

7.5
Bottle 10
Sillage 10
Longevity 8
Scent

Sherapop
1239 Reviews

Sherapop

Very helpful Review 6

Sueded Violets

My version of Balmain JOLIE MADAME is clearly the reformulation, but I like it anyway. To my nose, it's a blast of unsweetened violet petals (not a contradiction in terms) and powdery suede. In some ways the combination strikes me as rather odd, but that is probably also why I like it!

Whenever I wear this perfume, I think of Hermès KELLY CALECHE, which seems to use a similar suede note. Somehow JOLIE MADAME is more appealing to me, although here, too, if I overspray, then regrets ensue, especially since the sillage is already quite big. It's the suede note, in particular, which is easy for me to overdose on, as I find myself literally aspirating suede. "Too many violets," on the other hand, is in fact a contradiction in terms! The violet here smells greenish without smelling like violet leaf, as strange as that may sound.

The case of JOLIE MADAME is probably another one where if I knew the original perfume--which boasts tons of notes in no way detectable by me here--I might be disappointed by this version. But I don't, so I'm not. The greenish violets and the suede play off one another in an appealing way, and I enjoy wearing this eccentric creation now and then.

The longevity is also great, and I love the scent the morning after applying this perfume, so that's more evidence of the high quality of this creation.

07/10/2013

5
Bottle 7.5
Sillage 7.5
Longevity 9
Scent

ChapeauClack
16 Reviews

ChapeauClack

7

Gris De Perle

The first time I tried Jolie Madame (vintage EdT) on my skin, I found it to be the perfect match to Dior Fahrenheit. Its top notes are all about cool, smooth leather and the silvery sheen of violet leaf for me. Later on the delicate, perfectly blended florals, spice and just a drop of juicy citrus kick in, and it's pure heaven from then on - powdery, cool, silvery-green and with a beautiful light sillage.

I also find this fragrance exceptionally wearable of all things. It's as easy to slip into, as the perfect satin gown in my favorite gris de perle shade.

05/26/2022

BrianBuchanan
355 Reviews

BrianBuchanan

3

Just Medium

Germaine Cellier was a perfume Grandmaster, but - like the best players - she didn’t always win and this is one of her lesser works.
A half way house between leather and a violet bouquet, it doesn’t have the arresting quality of Bandit, the audacity of Fracas or the lived-in feel of Visa.

Tania Sanchez wrote that if she had to choose just one fragrance it would be Jolie Madame because it ‘always seemed to hit the spot’ [no matter the mood or occasion – one
assumes].
And this is the problem, it doesn’t have a stand out character.

She’s right about one thing though, the new version has been cut off at the knees, and without the mossy brown leather it’s now insipid, instead of just being dull.

To be fair, violet suffers from being old fashioned. Jolie Madame also doesn’t fare well in the light of Paris, where violet is paired with rose, which is still the best combination in my opinion.

08/10/2023

6
Pricing 7
Bottle 6
Sillage 8
Longevity 6.5
Scent

MrsGuerlain
282 Reviews

MrsGuerlain

4

Beautiful lady

I must admit that when I was a child I loved these ‘chalky white’ (that was my childish way to categorize leather/chypre) fragrances. This love has only grown bigger with age. I am now able to enjoy these scents even more, because I know what is going on. Gres Cabochard, Lauder’s Azurée, Clinique’s Aromatics Elixir and Jolie Madame - just lovely, clean and at times magical scents.
Jolie Madame starts out really chalky. The dryness of this is amazing. I love the way it moves into a blend of gardenia and jasmine, that goes on forever. Anyway, this is a fragrance that lives a long and beautiful life on my skin. In the end the leather, the vetiver and the oakmoss takes the last shift. I feel so clean when wearing it.
This is not as great as Azurée, but I love it just the same.
The bottle is nice, a bit old school with the baby blue ribbon; same bottle as the Miss Balmain (baby pink ribbon) that my mum had in her closet for several years. It fits nicely in my hand and I like the golden top.
30/365

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