Chanel Bois des Iles

>I’ll never understand the decisions of marketing executives. How is it that a company has a practically perfect fragrance- and that’s saying a LOT, because this company has many wonderful fragrances- and instead of plastering ads throughout every magazine targeted to women, they decide to sell it only in their boutiques, where many women will never go, and choose not to advertise it? This is the scent that causes men to follow me, breathing deeply, before asking me what I’m wearing so they can get it for their wives/girlfriends. This is the scent that women love but can’t believe they’ve never heard of. And this is the scent that makes me giddy for autumn, just so I can finally wear it.

The scent, of course, is Chanel Bois des Iles, and as mentioned, you probably haven’t heard of it unless you’re obsessive about fragrances. It’s not sold at Chanel counters throughout the country, so you’ll need to contact a Chanel boutique to get your fix, or get a decant from a kind person. Like all Chanels, it’s pricey, but absolutely worth it.

More than any other fragrance, Bois des Iles (pronounced “bwah de zeel”, in case you do ever get to that swanky Chanel boutique and want to ask for it) deserves the accolades it has gotten from the perfume community. It’s classy, elegant, sophisticated, beautiful. It smells rich, in the most deliciously subtle way, like a Hermès scarf wrapped casually around a pale throat. It’s hard to pick out the individual notes here, because it’s so seamlessly crafted the notes just meld together to create a complex woody chypre floral that makes every other scent in its class pale in comparison.

Bois des Iles, at first sniff, is all about aldehydes and bergamot, before slowly turning warm as ylang-ylang and sandalwood make their appearance. Coriander and bitter almond add the lovely spicy gingerbread scent that stays close to the skin and makes this my favorite fragrance for the holidays.

It’s hard not to compare BdI with Chanel No. 5, which remains the best-selling fragrance in the world. Not only were they both released under the same house, both creations came from the brilliant mind of the legendary Russian perfumer Ernest Beaux. It’s softer and warmer than No.5, and definitely more approachable, as it is missing the powdery scent often associated with No. 5 (and little old ladies). Where some people find No. 5 overwhelming, BdI is sensual and stunning, at turns woody and spicy, but always infinitely classic.

I recommend this to any woman who wants a sensual, classy fragrance, especially those who are looking for something less floral. The woods in the fragrance also make it very wearable by men- it’s just a bit warmer than Chanel Égoïste. For anyone who doesn’t want to invest in a trip to a Chanel store, The Perfumed Court sells decants of the EDT starting at $3.00 for 1 ml and the parfum from $12.00 for .5 ml