Carven C'est Paris ! Elixir pour Homme Carven 2024

This is proper niche perfumery right here. I don't know the house very well, the bottle is a pretentious, obtuse, slightly cheap-feeling mess and the fragrance itself doesn't have many reviews online. The ones that it does have are in some cases negative and speak to an apparently muddled, weak concoction that fades off the skin in two minutes flat. You could be forgiven for skating right past this one and not giving it a second thought on that basis. But I think that would be a mistake.

C'est Paris Elixir by Carven, which dates back to the end of the Second World War in Paris, is an EDP/elixir concentration that at its heart a charming and enjoyable study on noble sandalwood, fortified with a non-gourmand, silky hazelnut note. You get the wood and sweet nuts in the beginning, across the heart and all through the drydown so the blending is logical and makes sense. There is some citrus in the opening but not much and some aromatic tinges in the heart and base, which are only ever peripheral. In the base there is a deeper, richer feel that comes from some ambery textures smoothed with benzoin, some velvety tonka and some Iso E Super that pushes this into an indulgently sweet but never gourmand territory. I was surprised at the depth and richness from the opening spray. It is really good.

The aromatics in the notes are extremely subtle. The green accords are very well blended in and hard to pick out on their own. I also find the criticism of a very short skin life to be hard to understand as I got an easy 8 hours on my skin from the first spray of a new bottle, before it has had a chance to maturate. I cannot understand how anyone could think this was a poor performing fragrance. It sits close to the skin as an extremely sensual and very charming skin scent for most of this 8-9 hours. I am a sandalwood fan and this is gorgeous. I have several sandalwood-centric fragrances in my collection and this is a different take: sweet, satin woods with a really interesting hazelnut feel, not smoky or bitter. I'd say it would be a stunning date night fragrance because of the way it sits on the skin. It is very unisex and very sexy.

Three Word Summary: Rich, Hazelnut Vibes

Layering Suggestion: Orange X Santal by Essential Parfums. I think you can see where I'm going with that one.

Outfit Suggestion: Date night vibes abound here, so whatever you wear, hopefully you get to take it off.

Scent - 8/10
Drydown - 7/10
Sillage - 7/10
Bottle/packaging - 4/10
Performance - 8/10

34/50