Variations on Chantilly

Chantilly Perfume and Chantilly Lace

The life of Chantilly perfume is a complicated meander. Here is some background:

Chantilly, created by perfumer Marcel Billot, was introduced by [the House of] Houbigant in 1941 as an up-market fragrance. Over the years, as Houbignat fought to remain solvent, Chantilly made its way down market and today, marketed by the "new" Dana company, is most likely to be found in drug stores.

Chantilly was licensed to the Dana Perfume Corporation some time between 1994 and 1996. In a 2003 lawsuit, Houbigant (Houbigant, Inc. and Establissement Houbigant) accused Dana (the "old" Dana) of selling a watered-down version of Chantilly and of allowing the formula to be given to unlicensed producers. Dana, at this point, was bankrupt and Houbigant brought the suit against Dana's insurers, Federal Insurance and Fireman's Fund. Eventually settlements were reached.

The perfumer-creator of Chantilly, Marcel Billot, founded the French Society of Perfumers in 1943 and became its first president.

Here were some of Houbigant's patrons:

Clients included Queen Marie-Antoinette of France; two French emperors; Princess Adélaïde d'Orléans (1829); Princess Dagmar of Denmark, wife of emperor Alexander III of Russia (1890); Madame Du Barry, mistress of King Louis XV of France; and Queen Victoria of England.

Quite some company Chantilly kept - Marie Antoinette, Madame du Barry, and even the staid Queen Victoria. Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, where Houbigant launched his store, is as stylish as the name implies.

Houbigant has a history of his own:

Jean-François Houbigant (1752-1807) launched his perfume business at 19, Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris, in 1775. Houbigant was twenty three years old at the time and — so it is said — arrived at the location of his new business with a basket of flowers. The Basket of Flowers became the sign over his shop and, for many years, the address given at the top of his invoices.

Enrolled in the appropriate guild — the Perfumers and Glovemakers — Houbigant was permitted, under law, "to make and sell all kinds of scents, powders, pomades, pastes to whiten and clense the skin, soaps, toilet-waters, gloves, mittens and skin material."

An 1801 Houbigant handbill advertised that:

At the Sign of the Basket of Flowers,

Grande-Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré

Houbigant

Merchant - Perfumer

Manufactures and Sells Gloves, Powders, Pomades and Perfumes also the genuine vegetable Rouge which he has perfected to the highest degree. He makes and supplies Corbeilles de mariage et Baptêmes with every requisite.

Chantilly is sold in drug stores now, and at an incredibly reduced price ( around $20), like that other classic Elizabeth Arden's 5th Avenue, but that doesn't diminish its fragrance. In our contemporary era of slap-dash "celebrity" scents, Chantilly is a breath of fresh air (and sophistication). One of these days, it will come out of hiding from its corner in the drug store, and sit where it belongs.

A longtime Chantilly user (Kiku) compares two variations of Chantilly at Fragrantica, an online perfume forum:

My favorite. I've worn Chantilly for 45 years and although I love to try new fragrances this is the one I always come back to.

The original Chantilly was a true oriental: warm, sweet, thick, and spicy. The opening was an explosion of oranges. The heart was more oranges with sweet Middle Eastern spices. The drydown was a soft powdery vanilla and sandalwood mix.

Today's Chantilly is a reformulation. The original notes are still there but much softer and lighter. Much cooler too thanks to a heavy addition of cedar(a note that I love, I don't think it's used enough in women's fragrances) in the drydown. I'm not sure Chantilly is still an oriental. With that predominant coolness it now has it is more of a chypre/chypre floral. It is reminiscent of Aphrodisia, Crepe de Chine, or L'Air du Temps. Despite the changes I still consider it the most wonderful of all perfumes, the always and forever star of my perfume wardrobe.

The drug store version starts off with a light lemony whiff, then finishes of with powdery florals, so I'm assuming it is the latest "chypre/chypre floral" as the commentator above describes.

The perfume bottle has also gone through quite an evolution, although I prefer the latest version.

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- Chantilly Lace
- Chantilly Cream
- Chantilly, France
- Chantilly Lace (song)