For more than a month now, a 1950s nude-pink organza coat has hung at a vintage clothing store downtown. It has a smocked top, gathered sleeves with French cuffs, and an open front designed to waft over full skirts. I imagine the coat resting lightly on the bare shoulders of a woman going to the opera on a summer night. Her rhinestone earrings glitter above the organza’s satiny finish, and the click of her heels on the theater’s marble floors punctuates the coat’s swish against her evening gown.
The coat is priced to move at less than $20. So why hasn’t anyone bought it? I think it’s simply too special for most people to imagine integrating into their lives. They remember their fat couch at home in front of the TV and the afternoon they just spent pushing a shopping cart through Costco or enduring eight hours in a bland cubicle, and they forego the coat for yoga pants. I wonder if Amouage Gold Woman faces the same obstacle? Even hardcore Amouage lovers tend to gloss over Gold in favor of some of Amouage’s warmer, spicier, more incensey fragrances.
This review is a cry for glamour and an entreaty to give Gold Woman a square sampling. Perhaps you’ve dared a spritz at a perfume boutique and were daunted by its Birgit Nilsson of a voice. Maybe you thought, sure I’ll wear Gold Woman — as soon as I get gold taps for my bathtub and a Persian cat. I get it. I can’t pull off Gold Woman most days, either, and the next Amouage full bottle I spring for will be Jubilation 25. But, by gum, at least once a quarter I plan to wet myself down with Gold and live up to it, too.
The legendary perfumer Guy Robert developed Gold Woman. It launched in 1983. Gold was Amouage’s first release, and word is that Amouage told Robert to use whatever materials he wanted, no matter the cost. Robert apparently called Gold Woman his greatest work. Amouage’s website lists Gold Woman’s top notes as rose, lily of the valley and frankincense; its heart as myrrh, orris and jasmine; and its base as ambergris, civet, musk, cedarwood and sandalwood.
Gold Woman is the ne plus ultra aldehydic floral. Basically, it makes Chanel No. 5 look like a street urchin who chews with her mouth open. Gold Woman is huge, symphonic, and loaded with hothouse flowers and diamonds. At first sniff, my nose fills with the champagne-fizz of soft, fruity aldehydes back-loaded with a seamless blend of floral notes leaning especially heavily on the crisp, elegant edge of the spectrum. Clean green notes push the fragrance away from guest soap territory.
For a full half hour, Gold stays sharp, clean, and brittle. Then the fragrance softens into a pillowy aura of quiet wood, sweet incense, and still those wondrous flowers. Gold sheds its diamonds, but keeps the marabou stole. It becomes a perfume that inhabits personal space without calling much attention to itself. It rests sheer, flattering, and whisper-light on skin kind of like — well, like a 1950s, nude organza coat.
Gold Woman Eau de Parfum has powerful sillage for an hour or so, then moderate yet curiously diffuse sillage after that. It has excellent lasting power — for all its delicacy (delicacy after the first half hour, that is), I can spray some on in the morning and still smell it at dinner.
Is Gold Woman really me? Ha ha ha. It’s so much more Elizabeth Taylor, or Jean Harlow without the plucked eyebrows. But if perfume can’t induce glamour and a little what-if, then what good is it?
Amouge Gold Eau de Parfum comes in 50 ml ($285) and 100 ml ($325). If you order from Amouage directly, you can also buy a 50 ml bottle of extrait, perfume concentrate in a compact, or items from their bath collection. See Amouage under Perfume Houses for information on where to buy it.
I was given a large sample of Gold (amongst other generous offerings) with a gift certificate to the Perfume House. I have tried it several times, trying to understand it, feel comfortable in it, and at least admire it. Sadly, it is *so not me*! I am not a BWF kinda girl anyway, and the lily of the valley, et al, feel too sharp to my nose. In my perfume notes on my “to sniff list,” I describe it as a “strong white floral with something green and cedar. Not exactly a pretty scent, but similar to Chanel no. 19 in its aggressiveness.”
I’ll hold onto the sample in hopes that I can grow into this one, but I suspect that I will never be quite glamorous enough!
Gold, especially initially, is definitely commanding! But it dries down to something softer and easier to wear. That said, I know what you mean. It’s not really me, either. But I love pretending it is sometimes!
Amouage Gold is just gorgeous – and there really are a few fragrances that are too much for everyday, and that just beckon for the most special events and special clothes. I love your review. I always think, yes, the next time I get to wear my maroon velvet evening gown (from 2000 New Years) to *any* opera, then I’ll wear some Gold. (I am fortunate enough to have a delux sample.) It is so rich and more than elegant. It really makes me think of Liz Taylor, actually, and what her White Diamonds should be. I really like the men’s Gold too – what I understand to not be the original,but the current version. It’s all honey and aldehydes and jasmine to me. I want to wear it, but whenever I go to put it on, I think, no, this is too much today. But heck, most of the time the only glamour I get is the liquid kind. If I wore fragrance to match my work & wardrobe, I’d be in something rather dull most of the time.
I like Gold Man, too–it’s definitely unisex, in my mind.
I feel your pain on the lack of glamour! I have some great old nightgowns and dressing gowns that have some glamour potential, but most everything else is sort of vintage-casual.
I find Amouage Gold Man really interesting, but still Lyric Man is a little bit closer to my heart. They’re both great fragrances!
I have to get out my sample of Lyric Man and try it again, but I do love Gold Man. (Dia Man, too, and let’s not forget Jubilation XXV.)
I still have to try most of them. I’m only familiar with these two.
It’s not always easy to get samples of these, I know.
Silver Man is also quite nice and much overlooked.
Is that one still in production? (I wonder if I have a sample around somewhere–I bet I do.)
I think I’ve seen it sitting on the shelf while visiting my niche boutique last time
Sounds like you’ll need to try it!
It is odd that Gold so often gets passed over. I’ve got samples of it that I dab now and then and enjoy very much. It’s almost like it’s too perfect! When I want the full spray effect I turn to Guy Robert’s other aldehydic creation, Madame Rochas. There are similarities, and the price is within reach.
Madame Rochas is an incredible bargain! I’m sure it’s undergone changes over the years, but it’s a good one, and I love the bottle.
Fabulous review Angela!
Gold Woman is one of my all time favourite perfumes simply because it is so glam and ostentations. I’ve always seen it as a sort of No 5 on steroids.
I’ve heard that Kim Cattral wears it too, which says a lot!
Oh, yes I totally see Kim Cattral wearing it! Perfect.
I love no 5; maybe it’s time to do ‘roids. . .
You and Kim Cattral….
I can’t smell it properly. I can detect a very vague air of a classic floral but I get this strange sensation that I can only describe as my sinuses instantly shutting down and I know that I’m not getting the full picture.
Luckily, I adore Dia so that’s my go-to fix for a classic, abstract aldehydic floral for when I want/need to feel all grown up and lady-like.
Does that happen with you with other fragrances, too? There must be something in Gold that doesn’t agree with you.
Nope, so far it’s the only one. There are scents that I think I must be anosmic to because they just disappear but it’s a different sensation with Gold. I still bring out my sample every so often and re-test it just in case.
Weird! Maybe someday you’ll figure out what it is.
Love your acticle Angela!
I was hoping for a happy ending where you would have given a home to this poor coat… even just to display as a throw on a bed.
I love the whole Amouage line, but I feel that they are mostly just too chic for every day life.
I guess I could justify the price tag, I have for some other frags, but I never have events that are so over-the-top to wear them. Even going to the opera, at least once a month, I find that big perfumes are out of place. You go for the music, not to smell someone sitting 10 rows down.
You know, I am thinking about that coat….
I know what you mean about perfume at the opera. I’ve only been to the opera a handful of (wonderful) times. Last time I went I wore Songes and was mortified I might waft too much. But surely just a little dab of Gold?
I review opera, and much as the occasion seems to call for a bombshell perfume, I do make an effort to keep my scents understated. It’s actually an interesting challenge to find perfumes that are well behaved yet still feel opera-worthy. I usually go with a light spritz of Yvresse, though I think natural perfumes also work well because they tend to stay close to my skin (last fall I wore DSH Poivre a lot, and it felt perfect).
And you should buy that coat before I get on a plane to Portland and hunt it down!
Oh, Yvresse sounds perfect! I can imagine a hint of Natori being nice, too.
Tomorrow is payday. I just might have to see if the coat is still on the rack.
*sigh* I wish I liked Natori, but the aldehydes do me in. For someone without that problem, though, it’d be a great opera scent.
The aldehydes in Gold might get you, too, then. But there’s always Jubilation 25!
You could keep that coat on display as an objet d’art, you know!
I know I’m ultra late to the discussion, but since y’all are talking about um… perfume and opera, I just had to chime in. 😉
Gold is in the same family as No. 5, which also includes Guerlain’s Liu, and since Liu is named after an opera character – I see no reason why Gold should not be worn at the opera, with judicious application, of course. I’ve been wearing perfume to the opera for over 2 decades and none of my neighbors have ever complained; nor have I ever taken issues with any of my neighbors’ fragrances save one very extreme case and I have recounted that experience on the Posse last year.
Many of Christopher Chong’s Amouage commissions were also operatically inspired (although I still don’t get the connection between the grandness of J25 and the sweet, melancholy air of Rusalka). I especially like to wear Amouages (particularly Lyric) and Guerlains (think L’HB) for the 19th Century romantic and early 20th Century verismos. For Mozart operas – Annick Goutal, Apres L’Ondee.
Again, I think that with the proper application, most of these grande dame perfumes are suitable to wear. So spritz away and enjoy the music.
Cheers to my fellow fragrant opera fans!
I hope next time I’m lucky enough to be at the opera I get a seat next to you! It certainly would be a nice smelling place to be.
LoL, Angela – ya never know! Your nose will probably let you know if you’re sitting near me. Do let me know if you ever get to come to the MET in NYC.
I’m even later to the discussion but really enjoyed your comment. I can’t wear Liu but I love the story behind it and the theatricality of the original presentation.
As for Chanel n.5 and for Fracas, I am puzzled by most reviews of Gold. In all these cases, I don’t get diamonds and champagne, nor do I get a huge diva – those of the impossibly chic but obnoxious kind.
All I get is a soft, femine, genuinely beautiful trail, clean at first and then warming up with time…
I love these kind of perfumes…my casual outfits never feel out of place with such beautiful fragrances.
I wonder how Gold’s pure perfume concentration compares to the epd: for n.5 the concentration makes a huge difference!
It’s a whopper on me–at least initially. It sounds like Gold was made for you! I too would love to smell the extrait version. It comes in a 50 ml bottle. Really luxurious!
Gold is an enigma to me. Never large or loud and often plays hide and seek, I have to really search for it sometimes after applying. Overall, while I like it, I kick myself for not getting 100 ml of Dia instead. That one really projects on me and lasts and lasts til the next day with the lovliest animalic drydown. Last time I wore it, I got dirty looks from patrons in line at a restaurant. Ask me if I care . . . he he he. Angela, how does Gold Man compare to Gold Woman? I’ve not read a review that I feel really answers that. Dia extrait is available at the Perfume Shoppe in Vancouver. Huge lemming . . . . .
I just searched through my samples, madly digging for Gold Man, and I can’t find it! (I did find Dia Woman and Epic Man, though). Gold Man, as I remember it, was a strange, tender floral. Do try it if you get the chance. (I just dabbed on some Dia Woman. Pretty!)
Being an aldehyde lover, I really should try this. Sigh. Love your description. I don’t mind wearing scents that are over the top or out of character with what I’m wearing. Being an overweight mom of a toddler who works at a semi-bureaucratic job at a university, I don’t have much glamour in my life lately. So I get it with perfume, which I wear unapologetically.
However, $285 for 50 mL might be just a tad bit too much glamour for my budget…
This kind of glamour doesn’t come cheaply, that’s for sure. The 100 ml bottle is, relatively speaking, a good deal! The first 50 ml costs $285, but plunk down an extra $40, and you get 50 ml more.
I was really really super lucky and found a bottle of Gold at Goodwill. I just about fell over when I saw it. Otherwise, I’d be hoarding the few drops left in a sample vial.
Oh, that’s no fair! I shop Goodwill very frequently, and the best I’ve found was a small bottle of vintage Shalimar! (Although I did get a gift set of Youth Dew last week that makes me smile.)
It really was one of the once-in-a-lifetime finds! I’m still in shock. But vintage Shalimar is pretty great, too!
Agree *
Ha ha, betcha there’s some super peeved matron turning out her drawers wondering what happened to her bottle of Gold after inadvertantly turfing it with last year’s cashmere sweaters. Ummm, I think I better go look for mine . . . .
Sorry, matron! You shouldn’t go leaving your Amouage around where it can get tossed in with the giveaway stuff!
Gold Men is wonderful, a kind of perfume you have to have really courage to use. I want a bottle. Someone told once that Gold Women is very close to Men’s what turns Gold Women a must try to me.
Although I like both Gold Woman and Gold Man, and they have a similar, refined mood (to me, anyway), they don’t smell an awfully lot alike. Do tell me what you think, though, if you get the chance to try Gold Woman.
For sure! I will try to find a sample, not an easy task. I love aldehydes and your words “plus ultra aldehydic floral” SHONE to my eyes!
Oh, you might love it, then!
That phrase hooked me, too!
Anything that reminds me No5 is always appealing to my nose.
Anglea, how distinct is the lily of the valley in Gold? I’m all about upping the glam quotient in my life, but I am not all about LOTV. It sometimes triggers a reaction that seems like what Abyss is describing, so I’m a bit nervous about sampling Gold.
To me, the lily of valley doesn’t stand out at all, but it doesn’t mean it isn’t there. Do you have a store near you that sells Amouage? It sounds like a drive-by testing might be in order.
I love it that you review opera! I’ve been listening to Tristan und Isolde a lot lately–a real change from the friendly Puccini and Mozart I’m more used to.
Mozart operas are easy to love! Don Giovanni will probably always be my favorite. But making friends with Wagner is well worth the effort. I saw the Ring Cycle last year in SF, and it was utterly stunning.
I’m sure that Amouage is available somewhere in the Bay Area, but I haven’t sought out the line before so I’m not sure where, exactly. I think I’ve been afraid to lead myself into temptation and credit-card debt, so maybe I should begin by scouting around in Goodwill stores.
At one point, Amouage released 30 ml travel bottles for $50 each. Now I kick myself for not stocking up on them, although I did get one of Jub 25.
Good luck at the thrift stores! I’ll cross my fingers that if not Amouage, you’ll at least find a serviceable Chamade PdT or something like that.
Funny, I’ve been thinking about Chamade a lot lately. I didn’t care for it much the first time, but that was many scent-years ago (so to speak) and it may be time to revisit.
I adore Chamade. I wore it yesterday, in fact.
They have Amouage at Parfumerie Jacquelyn (too lazy to get correct spelling) in Union Square in San Francisco. Also spotted vintage Gold (at old stock prices) at Diva in St. Helena, California.
Thanks, Suddenly! I have been meaning to go to Jacqueline for a long time. It’s been a while since I’ve been up near St. Helena, but I could be up for a perfume road trip.
I own Lyric and Gold. I am going to get
Memior and Opus VI. Cannot wait. I really like Gold for church, weddings, big family time. I love Lyric all the time just like Memior and Opus VI, I will look forward to it. That’s the two + Ormond Woman. I’m getting Montale’s Black Aoud.
Yeah Me
You’re putting together quite a nice wardrobe of perfume!
Amouage is one of those houses that I don’t go near, for fear of the expense, even to sample. But Gold does sound wonderful and I am glad that it has been around so long, as a genuinely fine fragrance that sounds like it is worth the money. In that, it would be unlike some of the niche de la niche offerings that seem desirable because they are expensive, but really …
As for glamour, I have a wardrobe of work-a-day fragrances and little that is truly glamourous, unless you count Chanel No 5 and Shalimar of course. And maybe Rochas Femme? My greatest treasures are a couple of minis of vintage Deneuve parfum. But Deneuve is superbly chic rather than glamourous, if your nude organza coat is a measure of glamour.
Emily’s suggestion of Yvresse is a good one. I passed up a 60 ml bottle of that that I saw going cheap recently because I know I can’t get through 60 mls. But a decant would be just the thing.
Any other suggestions for cheap glamour, or is it a contradiction in terms?
Cheap glamour is, in some ways, more glamorous than expensive glamour, don’t you think? Cheap chic–that might be more of a challenge. Coty Sand ‘n Sable might be cheap glamour. Or Knize Ten on a woman in an evening dress? But a fizzy, floral bomb of glamour, Gold does it well. I’m going to ponder this question. It might make a good post, too!
Yes, spending money on something believing that it is good because it is expensive is not really glamour, because genuine glamour includes a dash of intelligence and discernment. So does elegance, and so does chic.
And chic to me elegance with an added sense of humour, and a willingness to take risks with unexpected contrasts. And that need not be expensive.
Anyone interested in the history of glampour should see this book:
https://nstperfume.com/2010/08/27/glamour-women-history-feminism-by-carol-dyhouse-perfume-books/
Adding: I wonder if the best chic is a creation of the wearer or the user. A cheap vintage necklace from a charity shop matched with a beautiful new suede jacket. I’m wearing EL’s Private Collection and jeans today. I doubt Private Collection is meant to be worn like this, or that EL meant it to be chic: elegant certainly, glamourous maybe, but not chic.
And then you made it part of a chic ensemble by mixing it up.
Annemarie, I love wearing Private Collection with jeans and a crisp button-down shirt. That perfume seems to confer instant chic upon almost anything — and it makes me mind my posture.
I have decidedly become more fashion-conscious, and honestly, more traditionally feminine, in my personal style over the last decade–especially the past few years since I’ve been single–and I must say it’s been a HUGE realization how many ways I can frugally add flavor to my style! A few well-chosen accessories, clearance racks and even Goodwill have helped me feel more and more “put together” with much less investment than I used to assume was necessary. Of course, I also accessorize with a wide variety of perfumes, some definitely on the spendy end, so I can’t claim total frugality in the pursuit of glamor and beauty!
In any case, there’s a part of me that yearns for a return to a more conscientious fashion culture–give me an excuse to wear a matching hat with my bag! In the casual NW, the line between being feminine and being over-dressed is pretty quick to cross!
Honestly, the vast majority of my wardrobe comes from Buffalo Exchange, with the odd vintage clothing store dress tossed in. Buffalo Exchange has a fair amount of good vintage if you spend enough time looking for it. Good shoes, too–I have three pairs of Ferragamos, some Costume Nationales, and (my favorite) Henry Waters Shoes of Consequence from Buffalo Exchange. Just two weeks ago I brought home a great old tooled leather belt with a buckle featuring a scorpion suspended in resin, a 1930s silk chiffon nightie, and a 1960s gorgeous plaid Pendleton jacket. But then, as you say, I spend a ton on perfume.
Really late here, but wanted to comment that I love this post and discussion!
I too have made a concious effort to dress better in the last few years, initially motivated by a promotion at work. I buy almost exclusively in consignment shops, and am constantly amazed at the fantastic bargains to be had. In any fair-sized city, there are shops ranging in quality from boutique to thrift, and I’ve gotten great stuff in all of them for next to nothing (my $2 Ann Taylor blouse comes to mind). You can find really upscale designer items (Dior, Chanel), and there is usually a ton of mid-range mall brands (Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, J Crew) some of it unworn with the manufacturer’s tags still attached. If there’s a sale on, you can almost replace your wardrobe for a couple hundred bucks!
OK, replying to my own self here, but it occurs to me that in most consignment shops, you COULD replace your wardrobe for the price of 100 ml of Amouage Gold. Not that you shouldn’t go for the Gold–with the money you save on clothes you can buy more perfume! (How’s that for a rationalization?)
As for wearing expensive perfume in your everyday life, if it gives you pleasure I say do it. One of the epiphanies of of middle age has been to enjoy fine things now rather than saving them for a special occasion that might never come. I think it’s also very chic!
It’s true–consignment stores are hotbeds of bargains. I also like your philosophy of using the good stuff while you can! It’s been said a million times, but you truly can’t take it with you.
I love these kinds of discussions! I agree that chic demands wit, or else it’s simply good taste. Glamour is trickier. There’s the classic diamonds and red lipstick glamour, but there’s also a messier, earthier glamour that is, ultimately, more compelling, I think. I can’t believe I haven’t already seen the book you link to–I will definitely track it down.
This review was very timely, as I have been thinking about Gold a lot lately. I recently snagged a mini of Dia and have been wearing the heck out of it. I don’t worry about matching my perfume to my clothes or lifestyle. I realized long ago that it was sheer folly for me to have perfumes that I saved for special, glamorous occasions or clothes–in my life there are no such things.
My initial impression of Gold was that it was gorgeous, but just too big. Right now, though, I have it on alongside Dia and my own personal ne plus ultra aldehylic floral, Vega. I would never have thought of Gold as “sharp, clean, and brittle” at any stage of its development. but compared to Vega, which is like an aldehyde-jasmine-powder bomb, I can get that angle. I do think Dia is a better everyday scent, though, although now I need to test Gold some more. I think I smell a decant in my immediate future.
Oh, and Angela–I know of at least one reason why that coat may be remaining unsold. You didn’t specify the size, but–most women today simply don’t fit into vintage clothes. I myself am 5’9″ and curvy, and on those occasions when I have come across vintage items, inevitably they are at least 3 or 4 sizes too small for me to even think about trying to squeeze into them.
I am 5’10” and not skinny, but I had a rather large vintage wardrobe in college. I probably had good luck with sizes because I have the kind of true hourglass figure that was fashionable in past decades. I love 1940s and 50s dresses!
I think that’s the key–find the era that suits you!
I love Vega, too! It’s wonderful. (Big sigh just thinking of it.)
This coat probably would fit you great, then! It’s made for a tall woman, and it doesn’t fasten, so it would fit just about any type of curviness.
It’s true that lots of vintage clothes–at least those that survived–were tiny. But lots are larger, too. I’m 5’8″, but I still find things that fit. I know I’m a 1940s-50s figure, though, so I stay away from anything that doesn’t hug my waist but leave ample room for bust and hips.
My eye caught this, and I realized I basically described a sack dress! What I meant was, for a curvier woman with a waist, there are plenty of vintage dresses with nipped in waists but full skirts and room for a bust.
I LOVE Vega!
Oh, I love Gold, I love it so. But I just can’t bring myself to spend that much money on it! So it’s decants for me.
Oh, I understand. They sure don’t give that stuff away.
This is a wonderful review, Angela and I love everything you have to say about glamour but you could not have described a perfume more thoroughly out of my wheelhouse. Aldehydes kill me–at least the Chanel No. 5/Arpege type do. (I’m always mystified when people talk about the aldehydes in Parfum de Therese. They must be a different kind.) That said, I love a glam vintage perfume with a casual but put-together outfit. Jeans, a cardigan, red lips, and Mitsouko for example. In fact, I find most of the old classics adapt well to everyday wear. Since I just don’t do super dressed up I suppose I have to feel that way!
Whoops! Somehow my comment to you posted just below.
I don’t know all the science, but I do know there are lots of types of aldehydes, and they don’t all smell like the top of Chanel No. 5. But if you don’t get along with No. 5 or Arpege, Gold is probably not for you! I like your picture of you in Mitsouko, though. That sounds perfect.
There are indeed many different aldehydes. For example, vanillin, the primary fragrance component of vanilla, is in fact an aldehyde, but it smells very different from the aldehydes in no. 5.
Interesting! Thank you.
Angela, great review! Lately, I had been thinking a lot about Tableau de Parfum Miriam. How would you compare Gold with Miriam?
Oh gosh. They’re really different. I remember lots of creaminess and violet to Miriam, but Gold feels more angular and aldehydic, more vaporous somehow.
“But if perfume can’t induce glamour and a little what-if, then what good is it?”
I love this!! For some reason, the Amouage line universally gives me a screaming headache – the only line to do so.
But with that said, I do not share the idea that certain perfumes are “glamorous” vs. “casual”. I wear whatever scent I feel like wearing on a given day/occasion no matter what my clothes are. I really think that comes from my many years of perfume loving/wearing pre-internet – back when the dinosaurs roamed 😉 – when there was no one to tell me that my Bal a Versailles was too skanky and sexy to wear with chinos and a white shirt (the uniform of the horse business). Maybe I should have figured it out on my own, but I never did. 🙂
You’re lucky Amouage gives you headaches–big money saved!
Somehow I see horses and Bal a Versailles as making a gorgeous combination, really. Mmm. I can smell it now….
Lol on big money saved!!!! I want headaches on Clive Cristians and XerJoffs if possible.
Oh yes!
Hurray for Rappleyea! There are very few scents that I would reserve for special occassions so I just wear whatever I feel like.
In my early days of serious perfume wearing, I had Chamade as my everyday scent.
a:)
Oh, Chamade is wonderful any time!
Beautiful review, Angela. You hit it on the nose.
Thank you so much!
Gold is truly gorgeous, I’ve almost completely used up my sample. I can’t justify buying a FB though, since it does feel too glamourous for most days (and I’m not a glamourous person at all, Mitsouko’s much more my style 🙂 ). I’m definitely getting another sample though for the rare days when I wan’t to feel like La Nilsson!
For me, one of the 30-ml travel bottles would be perfect. I hope Amouage brings them back some day! They were so reasonably priced and held just the perfect amount for a special occasion perfume.
I just got a samle of Gold, and I’m in love. True love. I don’t care if I’m wearing jeans and my red converse sneakers. Where I live, perfume is the space I have to be glamourous without attracting robbers or becoming incapacitated of walking. I can feel some sort of tridimensionality in Gold, a kind of depth, that makes it great company for a rainy day! By the way, someone said it is fit for winning the Oscar – I’d say it is fit for winning the Nobel Prize, but is great for eating popcorn with coke in the couch either!
I love your description of Gold’s wearability! Well, you certainly will smell marvelous sitting there on the couch. Maybe you should pour that coke into crystal glass…
I’ve had Coke from crystal glasses before–and milk, lemonade, iced tea and other equally unglamorous beverages. I believe in using one’s good things, not hoarding them away for special occasions that never seem to come. Now I’m not going to wear an evening gown to wash the laundry or work in my garden, but I can wear an evening gown scent such as Gold while I do it. The strenuous, dirty work would ruin the gown, but it doesn’t harm the perfume one bit!
I bet there’s a New Yorker comic somewhere with a woman in an evening gown doing the laundry. I wonder what the caption is?
You’re right, of course, to encourage us to wear good perfume no matter the occasion. I might feel a little cognitive dissonance, though, if I wear Gold while washing the pickup. But you know? I’ll give it a try!
Maybe she’s wearing the evening gown to do the laundry because everything else is dirty?
That’s a good punchline!
I have Amouage Gold in the original beautiful crystal bottle. I have had it since it came out and it still smells divine!
That sounds wonderful! I’m glad it lasts a while, too.
I’m a little scared of Amouage. I’m mostly worried that I’ll like them and then be even more broke than I am. It is fun to have a fragrance in the collection like this, though, that is uber-glam and heady and smacks of wealth.
Nice review, as always….
I understand your fear completely!
I am actually saving up for this one. Will go for the edp first. I have a sample box of both male and female Amouages. So far I like gold the best. I was not particularly impressed with Ubar, which also seems to get a lot of love. Gold however is pure perfection.
I love your comparison to no.5. One of the fragrant masterpieces I don’t love. ( Bois de Violette is another). Remember Luca’s funny remark about this one? “Scheherazade eloping with Joy for a 1001 nights of illicit fun”.
I never feel under dressed for any perfume. I will wear Gold to dig the garden of go shopping!
Recently returned for a 2 day trip to Paris. I did some sniffing no Amouages or Xerjofffffs of Clive Christians. I did go and sniff the MDCI’s. My heart is broken by La Promesse de l’Aube. Why are the truly beautiful ones often so very expensive?
that is from Paris not for Paris.
Promesse de l’Aube is so nice! I love Enlevement au serail, too. As you say, if only they weren’t so expensive, although I’m sure they’re worth it.
I envy your trip to Paris!
It was lovely; a nice mix of shopping ( books, tea and perfume) and sightseeing ( Musée d’Orsay and the Petit Palais).
I agree they are worth it. They are exceptionally beautiful, I might consider getting the sample set or a full bottle of the Promesse.
The sample sets are a good deal, considering how much fragrance you get.
Why hasn’t anyone bought that coat? Because I don’t live in your neighborhood.
Gold is on my to-do list b/c I don’t live near an Amouage counter. IMO w/big scents you can go big and spray with abandon, or when that won’t work you can apply touches on the pulse points – no need to wait for an occasion.
Actually I have an organza trenchcoat. Something like that just cries out for a good home – you must buy that coat.
Wow–you already have an organza trenchcoat–marvelous! I’m sure I’ll go to the vintage store and see if the coat is still around. It was awfully pretty.
What a great post! I have thought about this too, this idea of wearing a gorgeous, beautiful big scent that belongs to a life that is really at odds with my Ikea furniture!
But for special occasions, this sounds divine.
It really is pretty!
I love your review Angela. Such a brilliant metaphor with that organza coat!
I received a sample of Amouage Gold when I bought Dia last year. As I remembered smelling it in the shop and immediately thinking: NO way i ignored it for few weeks. Then one November evening when I was going through my cosmetic drawer I found that sample in far right corner. Something must have got to me, because I sprayed in on my wrist without thinking. Gold literally hit me and left opened mouthed! My immediate thought was to run to the bathroom and wash it off. But I didn’t. And I’m so happy I didn’t. Gold settled around me and after this ‘crazy’ half an I almost forgot about it. Almost, because everytime I moved my hand I was getting a whiff of lovely luxury. I still remember waking up twice that night just to smell it on my wrist and thinking: this is SO beautiful. Needles ti say I repeated my ‘evening – Gold – wrist’ exercise for few more nights, literally dreaming about perfumes. And then I was sure: I wanted a full bottle. It didn’t come cheap but it was worth every penny. Is it my signature fragrance? No. But I’m sure it’s the one I will always want to have close to me. So that I can reach out for it whenever I want over and over again. Gold is a fragrance that I’m loyal too. And nowadays I can’t say that about many fragrances!
I’m so glad you discovered Gold’s beauty! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a similar situation–I was sure I didn’t like a perfume or felt so-so about it, until one day I fell madly in love with it. Go figure.