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I have it: 781 I had it: 792 I want it: 441 My signature: 18
Designers » F-H » Guy Laroche Floral « Groups
I have it: 781 I had it: 792 I want it: 441 My signature: 18
Fidji stands for the name of the islands located in southern part of the Pacific. Just there, on one of the Fidji islands (where the managers of the house were at their vacation), the idea of first Guy Laroche perfume was born. Fidji has become incredibly popular, because it is the perfume from the sunny islands, far and attractive. The fresh wave of galbanum, hyacinth, lemon, bergamot and meet the floral heart across rose, jasmine, violet, ylang-ylang. Spicy floral nuance of carnation gives its harshness and makes the character of the composition stronger. The base is combined of: musk, patchouli, sandal, amber, vetiver, moss. The perfume was made by Josephine Catapano in 1966.
Perfume rating: 4.15 out of 5 with 1158 votes.
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I am wearing the vintage. This is a lovely soapy floral aldehyde that is not a chypre with the sharp oakmoss. This is clean and bright like aldehydes of the era and is one of the best.
Just when I thought that there wasn't an iris perfume for me (as I am finding the more contemporary iris notes somewhat synthetic and redolent of plastic dolls), I encounter a sample of Fidji amongst my stash and am enthusiastically enlivened.
Fidji opens with the most heavenly elixir of flowers, magnificently evocative of a tropical sunset: the perfume of a stunning spectrum of flowers warmed by balmy rays throughout the day and beginning to cool as the sun hits the horizon. It's hard to summarize the breathtaking beauty of this magical introduction.
As the wonderful nectar dries, iris and violet make a soft, hazy showing and release a miasm of powder, tinted with green and slightly indolic. Woody with a delicate aroma of clove, a little soapy like a golden bar of bitter, ambery soap.
Fidji is gently narcotic and has a way of simmering your soul.
I am BLESSED as I was born in Fiji!! In the capital of Suva. My parents immigrated to Canada when I was 8.
My boyfriend bought me a bottle of Chanel No.5 when I was 15. He was slightly older and had very good taste (and a little assistance from his mother, I'm sure).
On my Sweet 16th birthday, my Aunt gifted me wih a bottle of FIDJI Eau de toilette. I loved the name, associating it with my birthplace ~ the romantic islands of the South Pacific. ..and thus grew my love of perfumes. (My love of scent began as a child in Fiji ~ where gardenia, franigipani/plumeria and tiare blossoms grew in abundance)!
I am now at the wonderful age of Sweet 60!!..and have been bequeathed a full bottle of the Original VINTAGE blend of FIDJI Eau de Parfum (by a complete stranger! A woman from my church who passed away last month and left many items to be "given away" as mementos to the ladies of my church. As I looked over the items, I couldn't believe my eyes! There was a FULL bottle of FIDJI!! Didn't these women know a good thing when they saw it?! I picked it up and cherished it. I've let it sit on my dresser for a week without wearing it. Until today. Palm Sunday. I went to church today, and thought of this dear benefactor who not only bequeathed me perfumes (Tresor and Madame Rochas as well) plus a 14K Jerusalem Cross pendant!
This VINTAGE scent is reminiscent of my 16th year but it has matured.
Feeling VERY BLESSED INDEED!
I love my perfumes and I seem to be gifted with many ~ and I gift myself many as well!
It's fascinating to revisit this fragrance again - I wore it in the 80's as a teenager and it was my fave. Today's formula is different, but that's to be expected - I'm different too.
When I smell the fragrances that I loved back then, they are so aldehydic - Fidji, L'Air du Temps, Rive Gauche etc. These days, that element is just so over-used in functional fragrances (bathroom cleaning sprays and laundry detergents) that it seems discordant in fine fragrance. The musk/soapy aldehydes were once so exciting in modernising heavy florals (Apres L'Ondee, Chanel 5, Joy, etc) outta the murky grounds of the past. The heaviness of many natural fragrances was typically dictated by limited palettes of 20th century perfumery. Today these 'screechy' ingredients merely plasticise and cheapen the jus.
Super-cranked aldehyde fragrances are (to my nose), a desperate clutch at grabbing the credit card details of people attempting to mask body odour and project a sort of neon-lit applied artificial refinement.
That's an example of wonderful marketing strategy.
Beautiful name, slogan "a woman is an island etc", escapism, even the letters' style on the packaging are gorgeous. All things exotic and oceanic, matched with a minimal, very basic b&w bottle design, a *contrast* that created an *instant classic feel*.
But have you noticed I haven't said a word about the smell yet? That's because it is nothing you would truly adore if it wasn't for its ad campaign. Yes it is somewhere between L'Air du Temps and Anais-Anais, quickly evaporating, nice but not exactly memorable. Would I own it and wear it, even for the dreamy marketing? YES, OFCOURSE:)
Fidji Eau De Toilette Splash Bottle
I wore this in the 1960's and it always brings me back to a time in my life when I was young, idealistic and smelled of this stuff! It was and still is a perfume for day wear. This smells of soap and clean, very easy to pull off. Nothing complex about it. It would pass for Ivoire de Balmain the new formula in today's fragrance market.
This was Guy Laroche debut fragrance. It was marketed for women but by today's context this is a unisex fragrance. Men folk you can wear this too. Fidji opens with a blast of aldehydes which is terribly old fashioned but fresh, refreshing and revitalizing. I was thinking it sort of smelled like sailing out on a fast moving motor boat and the wind and ocean breeze is in your face. The aldehydes wear off and the citrus scent is that of lemon but not at all sharp or sour. It's sweet and soft. In fact, sometimes I don't detect any citrus or fruit at all. However there is a fruity vibe to this perfume, perhaps fruited with additional notes of grapefruit or mandarin.
The floral notes are composed of rose, jasmine, hyacinth, iris and violet. Each of these flowers are completely discernable. This is a gorgeous iris based perfume; an iris which turns powdery like dust, flower dust. The rose is also quite a dusty rose. I wish the flowers had been more aquatic but this is long before the aquatic fragrances were in vogue. Instead this turns into the powdery floral scent, or soap. It's clean and very smooth, almost like a vanilla flower that has been made into body cream.
There is an Oriental base body of cloves, patchouli, galbanum, sandalwood and musk. It's woodsy, green and musky, aromatic and very beautiful. Spicy. The dry down is quite masculine in fact. I never thought of it as masculine back in the 60's but then again women were wearing what could pass as men's musk scents today - i.e. Bal a Versailles even Chanel No. 5. This is nowhere near Chanel No 5 because the moss and the florals, the soapiness, is quite a day wear fragrance which is quite casual and relaxed. It's a perfume of clean simplicity and at the time matched up with those baby doll dresses, Mary Quant fashions from London, micro mini skirts and so forth. It's a perfume for a young girl to wear throughout her day as she works at an office - i.e. dentist, hospital, business office, etc. Just a straight no nonsense perfume of fruit, florals, powder, soap, moss and musk.
I don't think this fragrance evokes Fidji the island and nor is it exotic or even that much of an Oriental. It's hard to classify it but I suppose it's aromatic and green-floral. Gorgeous too.
A gorgeous, classic green floral chypre. I'm lucky enough to have found a vintage mini which still smells as fresh as the day it was made.
The first impression is of a huge dose of galbanum - very green and resinous. Hyacinth, iris and tuberose then come to the fore. It's not so much powdery as it is soapy. There's a subtle spiciness to Fidji that sets it apart from the aloof, icy green chypres of its era. It's surprisingly creamy, thanks to smooth sandalwood and amber, in perfect accord with the earthy vetiver and moss. It's also warmer than other galbanum-heavy contemporaries like Chanel No 19, thanks to the lighter touch of aldehydes and the woody-resinous base. There's a deft touch of sweetness that staves off the gloom of darker green scents like Piguet's Futur.
I live in the Pacific, and I don't find Fidji to be a particularly tropical scent. The name seems oddly mismatched. It is, however, cool and clean, like the feeling of waxy petals against skin. Some may find it soapy and old-fashioned, but for those who love lighter greens, it's pure bliss.
I brought this home on a blotter today and waved it under the husband's nose. "Horrid in a granny way!" he shrieked, entirely unprompted, throwing the blotter away from himself with some force. Oh dear. Don't shoot the messenger just because he said the G word. I know what he means and so do you! This is of a certain time. For me this conjurs my gran's friends all sat round the table at xmas, playing cards and smoking, through an added veil of this, or something very similar. (First by Van Cleef & Arpels is quite similar, or at least the vintage is, but First is much better, Fidji smell cheaper) I actually quite like this, but it is going to come across spectacularly old fashioned so you have been warned. I get aldehydes, galbanum, oakmoss and spices mostly I suppose, but nothing stands out on it's own, this is as just PERFUMEY as they come, it's oh I can't wait for the upset this is going to cause, but this is GENERIC GRANNY PERFUME. A fresh island breeze IS NOT HERE. Unless your concept of that is being on a cruise ship with the over sixties. Oh please, I'm old too, I can face it :D
"Take me away to Fidji." Never been there, but if its breezes are scented anywhere close to my just purchased 2011 formulation, I'll have many wonderful days arm chair traveling to Fidji this winter. Still, I want to buy a vintage, just so I can delight in this floral with real oakmoss. Why did I wait so long?
Such a disappointment! I have a sample of vintage and it smells like LD Temp at the start and then dries down to alluring notes of resins - an evening worthy kind. I bought a new bottle(reformulated version) hoping for the same heart notes at least. But these two are completely different scents. The reformulated opens like watered down version of LD Temp with citrus notes. Then it starts to smell like watered down men's cologne and then it settles down to the notes of galbanum and oakmoss with hint of musk as its heart. No sandalwood, no patchouli, no resins whatsoever, not even amber. Completely Two different perfumes. This can easily pass for a day time summer scent with a sporty vibe for me.
Vintage had decent sillage. Reformulated sits close to skin.
My darling mothers signature scent, literally the only one she has ever worn. I utterly adore it. Never has a perfume had such an emotional impact on me as this one. It is the scent of true love! Reminds me of warm hugs when I was little & watching her dress up to go out to dinner with my father. This fragrance is a fresh tropical floral yet classy and evocative. I will never tire of this perfume and when she is sadly gone from my life I will buy a bottle and wear it to honour her.
Galbanum is one of my favorite green notes. So fidji is my cup of tea as floral chypres concern! Today was my lucky day. Was able to test a 35 years old tester vial in mint condition. Opening was the most resinous green galbanum i've ever smelled. But is not bitter, is much well rounded by the citruses.
After half an hour galbanum is settled down- always present- and hyacinth, aldehydes and iris give an airiness to the composition. Guess that "tropical" character of fidji is somehow all the notes above in perfect balance plus some nuances of tuberose.
In the drydown, after several hours some spice and woods are there, maybe some moss and vetiver but the astonishing factor imho is that galbanum, even subdued, is always there!
So if you love that note, well...you must try it. I believe is not a safe blind buy. If you got the chance you should take a skin test.
Longevity is excellent- 7 to 10 hours although after 3-4h is close to the skin.
New formula has the top notes considerably toned down it goes straight to the middle notes and stays more linear. Of course longevity is moderate. All in all still is a winner for me!
It's a bit sad. Purchased a vintage bottle and the top notes are shot. What's left?
All of the middle and base notes which are shared by every other vintage perfume: jasmine, rose, cloves, orris, etc.
A teensy tiny bit of hyacinth somehow clung to the formula such that the whole thing reminded me of the reformulated version of Je Reviens. Not the vintage Je Reviens in all of it's glory (that formula is an iron battleship when it comes to remaining strong through the years), but the mandy pandy watery reformulated version that was sold cheaply in drugstores for a bit.
Im amazed at how I have taken to this oldie but a goodie. Hyacinth and aldehydes are usually notes I steer well clear of. No one is more surprised than me. Its got so many notes in (like many vintage fragrances) that Im surprised the kitchen sink isnt listed!
Yep, I can pick up on everything pretty much in the same order as everyone else on here. The result though is wonderful. It sweeps you away to a tropical beach somewhere in the South Pacific. Its fresh, a touch spicey yet there is some sweetness and warmth to never make it smell harsh or screechy. Wipe away any thoughts of similarity with the ubquitious modern "beach" fragrances with lots of sweet coconut, tiare and frangipani. This is pure class. This has gone straight into my top 5 summer fragrance. Im just sorry I didnt try it much sooner. Do test it NOW! If you can find the Parfum then even better.
Sillage and longevuty moderate.
Something in this smells different than the other green perfumes, more depth. It might be the tiny amount of cloves , sandalwood and spicy notes, just a bit though, not to overwhelm ,just to differentiate this perfume from the others. A subtle scent that is my springtime go to.....
Fidji is pure nostalgia for me. I wore it in the 70s, and just a whiff of it brings that era back to me. Elegant and very original.
I smelled Fidji on a blotter at an event about female noses that the Osmothèque put on in Paris. It was one of the stand outs of the entire presentation, and it lasted so long on my blotter that I ordered a bottle online as soon as I got home to California.
I still love it. It reminds me of Giorgio of Beverly Hills, but not so much that I regret having a bottle of each. The Fidji tuberose is more furry, more green, more languid and casual than Giorgio's sexy power suit tuberose/white flower bomb.
I'm still getting to know Fidji, but it is so easy to wear and so reminiscent of sunny days at the beach without smelling like other 'beachy' scents that can be too literal, smelling of salty notes or coconut and sun tan lotion. I read other people's reviews comparing Fidji to suntan lotions, and I'd like to smell those to compare, but for me, I get a more abstract beach experience; gold heat, dappled shadows, turquoise breezes, and a private, sexy secret.
My only complaint is its lack of projection and longevity. Otherwise, I'm pretty ready for my fling with Fidji.
I had one bottle in the 70s and , at first, loved it. But Lux launched a soap with exactly the same scent. It became common place and I couldn't stand it anymore. For me it starts with aldehydes, which stay thoroughout, and becames a light floral with hyacinth as the second main note, ending with an aldehyde/floral/ambery combo. Very light but long lasting.
Thanks to dear member @mufulia, she sent me a vintage mini, and I'm here to review the "very real-deal" :)
It was extremely an emotionally charged experience, because my mum who happened wear Fidji as her signature when she was young (in late 70s) burst into tears when we smelt the juice from the tiny miniature bottle...
She had so fond memories of the perfume, and sometimes would mention it when the subject perfume opened up. Well, she was right...
Vintage Fidji is drop-dead-gorgeous!
I found it quite similar to Guerlain's Mitsouko which I adore. Fidji is slightly greener, but make no mistake, we aren't on the fresh side. It smells deep and resinous, just the right amount of sweet, creamy and balmy. It has a chypre feel to it. A very compact perfume which stands on its own, it's distinctively vintage, any perfume enthusiast wouldn't make a mistake on that smelling it on you. I've also seen similarities to Rochas Femme here (early 2000s).
Very queenly.
Pure perfume, it's distinctively powerful. 1 drop of it projects and lasts...
I've found a heavily secure black leather box to store it along with other especially precious specimens.
Ohh how I love perfumes from the 60-ties.
This tuberose floral dream is just adorable. It makes a summers day even more beautifull.
I remembered loving this as a teenager, but my chemistry has changed and it smells horrible on me. Too bad because I purchased a 1.7 oz bottle. I am more than will to trade for a 1.7 of something else, so inbox me.
Initially I thought I love this... But after a few days I have to admit it's way too strong for my taste. The lily of the valley is sickening ( and I loooove Diorissimo....). And it lasts and lasts and lasts. I still can't detect any green, fruity or citrusy in this. Just the overly sweet florals. I literally feel nauseous as I write this:( Will be happy to get rid of this. Fidji, I will not go there unfortunately.
The first few minutes is so promising! it reminds me of a much diluted Estee Lauder Private Collection. Private Collection is so lush so bitter so green thatit forced tears out of me i i first tried it. Both perfume share a few notes and are both classified as green woody and floral.
But what happens it this perfume simply disappears. i test this one in summer and in winter. I spray 10plus generous spray. It weakens considerably and very rapidly into skin scent within 10minutes. within an hour or two, it is gone.
Spraying in bedding fairs better. it leaves a simple clean uplifting green scent.
I get the green colour one, the recent version.v
Like others, I used to sniff this when my mom had a tiny bottle of the pure perfume in the 1980's. So, I recently bought a huge bottle, and was so excited!
It just doesn't last on me at all. It smells very much like L'Air du Temps; which also doesn't last. What is it about my chemistry that dissolves away these lovely, light, clean florals?
It also smells like Windsong. But Windsong is now a bit too industrial strength for me.
Anyway, this smells delicious out of the bottle. So sweet and clean and flowery and ladylike. Doesn't remind me of the tropics at all. Pure girl. Too bad it's just a waste of money since it has disappeared within half an hour.
I so love this perfume despite I've never tried the original and am talking about the reformulation.
It's so refreshing green and classy; it reminds me of Aromatics Elixir and Eau du Soir. A fresh lovely oakmoss with touch of flowers.
Whereas it's quite an affordable perfume online, it's like 3X the price in stores here in Cyprus; and I totally detest this situation! I condemn UK's embargo on online shopping perfumes!
Guy Laroche launched his fragrance Fidji in 1966. His nose was Josephine Catapano. They were on vacation in the islands of Fiji when they came up with this fragrance. The lush beauty of the islands, the same islands that inspired French artist Paul Gauguin, is supposed to be contained within this bottle. The design of the bottle, in 1966, was avant-garde. This is not a frilly, pretty bottle. It's simple, sharply curved and similar to a hexagon made of glass with a metallic handlebar stopper. For the 60's, this was an artistic statement, something different, something for the young woman of the 60's who enjoyed being experimental not only with her choices in life but with her clothing, hair styles and fragrances. This fragrance would have suited a bohemian girl in San Francisco's Haight Ashbury district, or in New York City's Greenwich Village. It's the fragrance for a peace loving hippie. But this is what I feel about the fragrance in the context of the decade in which it was made. It's been reformulated and this is what you are likely to buy. I can't speak for the new version as I have only worn the classic 1966 original formula fragrance. Notes in Fidji include:
Head Notes: Iris Galbanum Hyacinth Lemon Bergamot
Heart Notes: Violet Orris Root Jasmine Cloves YlangYlang, Rose, Spices and Aldehydes
Base Notes: Sandalwood, Amber, Patchouli, Musk Oakmoss, Vetiver and Resins
This is a heavily layered concentration, so the result is a strong cologne that can feel unisex. I can defintely smell Fidji on a guy and it would smell good. The aldehydes in the original are in the top notes and they're powerful, like crashing waves against rocks or the shores on the island of Fidji or the monsoon winds in the South Pacific. Even that was beautiful, but it would not be wearable for some people. Obviously, the reformulation is wearable and contains less aldehydes. The vintage Fidji is more fruity. It would fall under the genre of fruity floral aldehyde. The fruits I can detect are grapefruit and orange, but they are very pulpy and acidic. Then there is a very distinct kava, which comes straight out of Polynesian islands like Tahiti or the Marquesas islands. It's the most popular intoxicating drink from the islands. It's very peppery and layered with the rose it's absolutely delicious, like an island girl with a flower in her hair has just sat down next to you on the beach offering you kava to drink. The fragrances takes you away to Fiji, where the sun is hot, where dark skinned Samoan people are idly passing the time at the beach eating fruits. This fragrance reminds me of Paul Gauguin's painting Nave Nave Moe or Sacred Spring Sweet Dreams. It depicts Tahitian people at a picnic, some seated, some standing or dancing. The two identical looking dark haired island girls in white top and flower print red skirt in the forefront of the painting are eating what looks like a mango or blood orange. Fidji is a trip to Fiji. So for the more practical use of this perfume, wear it as a casual day time spring and summer fragrance. If it's too strong or you've sprayed too much on, it can become like a cologne for the evening, but it is definitely a summer fragrance. You can take it with you and wear it on your trip to island getaways- to Hawaii, to Tahiti, to Fiji, to the Caribbean islands. Perfume is definitely something to take when you travel and certain fragrances absolutely fit in with the destinations you're visiting. For another example of this is Donna by Pavarotti, which instantly takes me to Italy and can be worn on a trip to Italy. Fidji by Guy Laroche is a masterpiece and one that doesn't get much recognition under the shadows of today's generic celebrity fragrances or designer fashion house fragrances that are light delicate florals. This one is simply gorgeous but I would recommend you get your hands on the vintage original formula. The new one is probably good, but it would be a skin scent pick me up fragrance to wear every day, and nothing like Fidji original fragrance that clearly has the power to take you away to Fiji, no matter if you're just standing in line for a movie ticket in New Jersey.
..PS an original unused bottle of Fidji (from the 70's) in sealed packaging has just sold on eBay for £82!!
:-) I missed out at the £40 mark
...oh and doesn't it smell very much like L'air Du Temps
I was first introduced to the delicious Fidji in the 1970's as it formed part of a four pack set called 'The French Quarter' one of the other miniatures was VU by Ted Lapidus, can't recall the other 2 perfumes in the set. Have bought it recently and hadn't realised the scent had changed :-)
This was my special fragrance in my 20's but sadly the new version just does not compare.
MY personal experiences with the Fidji perfume started when I was a child ..and it was resumed some years ago, when I got a box full of many different brands of perfumes in miniature flacones.
One of these small bottles contained the Fidji perfume. The moment I put my nose to the little flacon's opening, I was transported back to a time of my childhood,to wonderful trips to Italy with my parents, to my mother's exciting, silk lined handbag, to her crackling clean dresses and femininity, to summer holidays and sparkling drinks. This parfume was the one she always used then, I realized! It was a treasure discovery, and I swore I would always keep the tiny flacon in a safe place, and only use it for mental trips back in time, when needed, via smelling it .
However, a few weeks ago I strangely reached the conclusion, that I might now be at the crossroads on which I was to decide for good, if I wanted to keep Fidji as a memory generator, or if I would actually attempt to transcend the boundaries between past and present, parents and child, and try using the perfume on my own skin.
I found my little Fidji flacon, which I had not handled for at least a year, and I was amazed at how little perfume was left in the bottle! I suppose it evaporates by itself over time, because I had not used the perfume itself, ever, but had merely sniffed the scent.
It was an enormous pleasure to return to this scent, and indeed to allow myself to even wear it on my own skin. {I think that Fidji is the one perfume in the world, which I instinctively am most attracted to, even though I have learned that you should use more sophisticated fragrances like Mitsouko and Shalimar - which I also like lots, for the record).
I wonder if my adoration of Fidji simply is due to my memory aspect of it, or if the scent in itself is enough to make me swoon. I do so love the scent from my little flacon. I find it clean, yet lush, and definitely very warm in an alluring and unique way. This scent is a jewel and a masterpiece, for sure - a perfect creation, like a sunny, beautiful child who has a very open, curious, trusting mind.
For nights, now, I have been dabbing some of the perfume on my wrist, and have stayed awake and sniffed my wrist in the dark, long into the night, and for days, I have been looking forward to going over to the cabinet where the little flacon is kept, to take a sniff. The smell makes me feel so good.
Whatever the case, there is almost no perfume left in the small flacon, and I have intercepted a slight odor of alcohol in the aroma, which makes me suspect that the fragrance will soon be too old .. So I ordered a new bottle of Fidji, and it arrived yesterday.
I was pleased beyond words to get this new flacon, and was looking forward to really turning myself into a user of the Fidji perfume. However, I was also a little nervous, as I had read some reviews here, which were critical of the new edition of the perfume ~ and alas, as I sprayed a whiff of the new Fidji on my wrist, I instantly knew that what I had read was true.
It is as if the clear, deep, immaculately happy smell of the Fidji from my small flacon, in the new bottle has been turned into something entirely different. As if the deep, amber clarity has been contaminated with something foggy and vague - something that perhaps is supposed to be sexy and feminine, but which destroys the essence of Fidji, as I perceive it.
I am a total novice in the fragrance world, when it comes to expressions and identification of the various components of a fragrance, so I do not know what happened, but I really think that the perfume has changed character to such a degree that it is difficult to recognize it. There is only a faint echo of its former wonderful soul. The sunny,happy child has grown up and become an ordinary, troubled adult.
I think that my starting adventure with Fidji thus is destroyed, and now , again, I only have the little flacon with a bottom scraper of the old perfume to stick to .. and I will use it as I originally did, only as a memory developer.
Having said all this, I do like the new Fidji scent, and will perhaps use it .. Yes, I do think I will use it, and cling to the hope that some of its original soul will turn up, or hang around the fringes.
(Had I not known the smell of the original Fidji, I would probably have REALLY liked the new Fidji, but
one thing that I simply can't understand is why they have changed this scent? Is there no way to get the old one back? )
Fidji is one of the most beautiful and deliciously compelling perfumes I know and love. With all the horrid celebrity err 'fragrances' (I refuse to call them perfumes) saturating the market, Guy Laroche's luscious Fidji is a breath of fresh air and the sweetest assault on the senses.
A gorgeous melange of, tuberose, yang ylang, orange blossom and jasmine forms a heady cascade, layered with soft sandalwood, patchouli, musk and amber.
Fidji is so delicious you almost feel like you want to drink this wonderful nectar. It cheers me up during autumn and winter, but come spring and summer Fidji delightfully weaves its exotic magic...mmmm.
Bellissima review, Polly.
Fidji è stato il mio primissimo profumo.
Una valanga di memorie, avevo 12 anni circa... niente a che fare con le odierne celebrity scents..
Beautiful review, Polly .
Fidji was my very first fragrance .
A flood of memories , I was 12 years or so ... nothing to do with today's celebrity scents ..
nostalgia di terre lontane. oggi indosso un capolavoro senza tempo che mi ricorda inesorabilmente una vacanza passata alle isole eolie con mio padre (avrò avuto 7 o 8 anni). avevo con me un minuscolo beauty case con un paio di pettinini di plastica, un campioncino di Fidji in forma di fazzolettino imbevuto e poco altro. mi piaceva molto, allora. e, con mia grande sorpresa, mi piace ancora. la prima impressione è quella di una versione più leggera ed esotica di mitsouko, più floreale che cyphre. nonostante la complessità fiorita dell'accordo con note di giacinto, gelsomino, iris, ylang ylang, l'effetto generale è per me molto confortevole. il profumo si inaugura con note frizzanti e verdi, per lo più floreali, appunto, e leggermente aldeidiche. la "verdezza" (non so come altro chiamarla!) però viene ammorbidita, nel tempo, grazie a sentori speziati ma soprattutto resinosi (galbano, ambra, patchouli) con un fondo decisamente legnoso (vetiver, sandalo). come gran parte dei profumi di vecchio stampo, anche qui mi trovo di fronte ad una complessità elegantissima e perfettamente dosata, molto distante dalle attuali fragranze astratte e generiche, che richiede tempo e concentrazione nel tentativo di risolvere un puzzle olfattivo così variegato. e comunque, sì, la sensazione evocata dal nome è proprio quella di trovarsi su un'isola, in una spiaggia (come le foto della pubblicità anni 70) prossima ad una foresta lussureggiante. eccellente.
I just bought this (blind-buy) about a week ago and it's super fresh and I think the name Fidji suits it perfectly. It really kind of brings you to a beach with summer breeze. Definitely a spring/summer fragrance. So far I've got so many nice compliments wearing it. My Fidji doesn't last very long, the projection/sillage is best during the first two hours and then I like to apply some more. But really, I like or maybe even love it!
And I think that if you like this one you should also try out Calvin Klein's Truth for women! Very pure, fresh and natural.
Agree so much with derkargy!!! Ambre Solaire sun tan cream!!! Wooow spot on!!! (in a good sense)
Oh wooooow!! No need to say much... Beauty and elegance perfectly mastered in a bottle!!! Clean , fresh, classy...! Soooo classy!!
When things are done with passion, one doesn't have to worry about the results so the beauty of it is that way results come in an unexpected and pure authentic form. And they turn magnificient. That's how this wonderful scent from the past has been created. With passion. The excitement of the process and the pleasant anticipation, not merely the running after the goal (which often in perfumery of today means only making lots of money). The elegance and complexity of Fidji is capable of captivating and charming almost everyone, taking granted that one enjoys sophisticated, sensual florals. As Kate Bush puts it in her song: "You turn roses into gold", and all of the other notes for that matter. I still have a vintage formula so I'm taking about the old Fidji. Yes, a wonderful masterpiece which brings you lots of compliments...
Looking at what's in this fragrance puzzles me because it looks like something I would love. But each time I tried it, I noticed a buttery element that made it seem heavy and cloying. This scent never worked for me and I wish I knew why.
This is a remarkable fragrance.It clears resemblance with Ambre solaire,the famous suntan lotion we used when I was a kid.Sometimes it brings back memories from fresh clean sheets hung from balconies,sunkissed by the summer sun.However,it doesn't last on me as I expected.Silage is extremely weak.
What Fidji once was and what it is now implies such a huge difference that the two should bear totally different names.
But we, we passionate perfume lovers from old, perfume lovers since the days when Perfumery was an Art and when scents were released by the main brands every 4-5 years and not by the dozens as today, perfume lovers from a time when "flanker" was not an entry in a perfume dictionary, we have debated numberless times about reformulations and how they have changed (i.e. ruined) perfumery for ever.
The Fidji of my younger days, talk about mid-70es, was a perfume that had no equal at all. It was a strong flowery scent but very far from Diorissimo, Fleurs de Rocaille et alii. It was also spicy but totally different from Opium, Youth Dew and its contemporary. It was creamy and tropical and if I had to find a resemblance I would compare it to Annick Goutal's Songes. Not that Fidji and Songes are similar, but in that they both embody the feeling of Pacific Islands.
What was spectacular - among the rest of course - is that it was a scent that you could wear both in summer and in winter: in hot days it wrapped you in a tropical haze; in cold climates it soothed you in a sweet, maternal embrace.
The current Fidji has no smoothness, it's very harsh, rude and crude and nothing has remained of its original velvety feeling.
I still have a few drops of that old Fidji in the light brown box and it smells as good as it was. If you find a well preserved vintage, you may like it.
I hope the owners of this brand will come out with a nicer reformulation, this present one has totally ruined a wonderful masterpiece.
I completely agree that the original Fidji, of which I have easily gone through at least 3+ bottles of various sizes, including one brought back from Paris (that's France y'all), as a birthday gift is divine.
There has never been another fragrance like it that I can think of, and it truly rocks anyone's world you may happen to pass by when worn in a warm climatic environment.
However, I am in total agreement with Jasmasid about "Fidji Du Soir", Laroche's evening version of this classic fragrance; it should be (and maybe it was) declared illegal...it is Fidji to 25th power: sultry, sexy, seductive and magical, and did we mention that "Fidji Du Soir" was infused with gold dust!!!???
Si...où est-il maintenant??? M. Laroche, se il vous plaît le ramener à nous.
After testing the EdT version, I came to several interesting conclusions. First of all, the drydown reminds me very much of Mitsouko, probably due to the amount of oakmoss. Secondly, I believe this perfume is purely for hot weather. Although many reviewers claim it to be very spring-like and cold at times, from my own experience I can add that the whole bouquet opens mostly in hot environment. If you happen to take hot bathes and sauna instead of showers, try to add a couple of spritzes to water. All the flower notes will bloom at once.
The overall impression--reminds me a bit of Chamade (if my olfactory memory does not fail me), gives an impression of a clean skin, similarly as Je Reviens vintage version and Je Reviens Couture.
OMG....Fidji.....LOVE YOU!!!!!! Sand, bikinis, suntan oil - total summer indolence + temptation!
I couldn't bear to be without a bottle or two of Fidji in my life as I have worn it since I was a teenager in the mid 70's , and I chose to wear it above any other on my wedding day in 1982 .
As a lover of spicy oriental and plummy gourmand fragrances I never imagined that this heady green floral would be a lifelong companion ,but I still wear it often and always will.
The reformulated pale juice is a girlish echo of its older and much more womanly sister ,but I will never abandon her, even if she is a pale imitation.
I was recently lucky enough to get my hands on a full bottle of Fidji du Soir ( still not in the database!) which is the even more grown -up version, to be worn when the sun goes down and you have somewhere special to go , and it is just heavenly ...it's still Fidji, but with oomph , and very classy but very sexy at the same time .
The newer Fidji is fairly widely available here in the UK , but if you ever come across a vintage version that doesn't cost an arm and a leg , snap it up and enjoy .
@CollinMaillard your review sums this fragrance up to a tee!!!
I've worn this on and off in the summer months for years...since I was in my late teens.
I'd describe it as a green floral with a bit of powder and warmth. It's somehow got a bit more oomph than a one note floral, slightly sharper but still softish.
I tend to buy it in France. It's cheaper there and seems to be easier to find, but perhaps I'm just not looking in the right places in the UK.
Too light on me in winter, when I go down the heavy oriental/musky route.
I like to 'pair' it with white linens and floaty summer dresses.
Great day or night.
New bottle ETD, not vintage one. This is a sweet chypre. Wonderful. This fragrance is very far from modern trend. The sweetness is not gourmand. It's a flowery and natural sweetness. It has got a classic vibe, but it's also young. Non tropical for me. Calyx is tropical. Fidji is a beautiful garden in the morning. It's summer, but the weather is not too hot. I smell flowers everywhere, I see dewdrops on the leaves and the sun is kissing a fairly mist. Fidji is so complex, so elegant but not severe and austere as many chypres are. I only can imagine how amazing can be the vintage version of Fidji. A lost paradise. Stunning. A masterpiece for sure.
I like this fragrance but.... It cannot help pull me to those rather heavy bit headachy sweet scents as Hypnotic Max Factor, or a patchwork Avon bam in your face scents, it settles down softly after it breaths a bit.... And melts with skins warmth......screams of the era of it, not the best on hot humid days in a hot elevator....lol
Vintage Fidji got a special place in my memory. I mean wearing vintage Fidji I can be transferred to that memorable place, its small European town (nothing tropical in Fidji to me, as tropical to me means sweet and coconuty, lol) near Baltic Sea, where tall pines can reach the sky and the sand is golden and waves are blue, where wind, just as being a perfumer itself, shakes the crowns of the pines and throws full palms of white sand into the sea. While you are sitting by the shore with eyes closed, totally intoxicated by the beauty of that dry sunny day, by pines and dunes, by brightness of the sun, by Fidji.
Its strange how was possible to creat such a strong visual effect of sea and sun and woodiness working mainly with hiacynts , galbanum and oakmoss *rolled eyes*
This summer Fidji was relaunched in some stores in Denmark...and in the classic EDP version, not the green one pictured above.
When I first smelled it, I thought it was a little too much of an "old ladies" scent, but after staying on the skin for about 15 minutes, it turns into the most delightful floral, warm, breezy summer scent. I love it!
Fidji by Guy Laroche opens as a fresh, green, dense and "botanical" floral chypre, deep and textured, on a superb base of velvety dust, slightly animalic but radiant and powdery, supported by a woody-spicy axe with almondy nuances (heliotropin, I guess). What strikes me is a splendid, general, chic luminosity all over, greenish and floral, which does not contrast with the darker woody-resinous-animalic side, but instead completes them, or better say, the visual impression is that is almost "arises" from them. The name fits perfectly the scent, you are transported into a chypresque exotic ambiance refreshed by a fresh breeze, shady and mysterious but bright and lively, earthy and raw. All beautifully blended with a more classic, Western carnal soapiness and powdery opulence filled with chic and austere elegance. It may look like a clashing contrast, but as I said, it's not: it smells perfectly compelling and "compact". As minutes pass Fidji warms and softens, a soapy-dusty woody accord emerges while the "fresh" green and zesty breeze tones down and vanishes. A pleasantly modern scent, clean but raw, unisex and "young" somehow. Nothing stunningly new, but a smart, unique, classy and timeless range of variations on a classic theme – the feminine chypre. Effortless, exotic, lively rawness, Another underrated vintage gem from Guy Laroche.
A timeless fragrance that would work well on any lover of florals. People who enjoy Madame Rochas, this has the same feel an friendliness. It just makes you feel beautiful. It represents what was great about that decade of perfume making. My only complaint is that it does not last. After 4 hours, not even a trace remains of the EDP.
Soapy Creamy Elegant Charming.
Butter of flowers.
A tuberose marine.
An aura of class.
No time, no space, another island.
An intimate place born to be romantically and generously shared with the rest of people.
That's Fidji.
Wow , speak about oldies and goodies , I though it was discontinued. It was on everyone late 70's, literately. I have a bottle for good time sake , even so I am more an 80's oldie. I use to love it, now I leave an other generation to love it, I am kinda over it.
It´s so nice fragrance. Perfectly matching color of the liquid too. It smells flowery clean, airy fresh and dry.
Who would have guessed, that such strange combination as soap, carnation and cloves, will work so good together.
Carnation is not listed, maybe it´s hiacynth with galbanum (it is kind of bitter).
So nostalgic, clean, elegant, timeless.
This works way WAY better in hot weather, I think this is not a scent that works in cold wet grey weather. But add some sunshine and heat and this comes alive, a much more balanced bright slightly heady floral that is very enjoyable.
I have found that layering with Berkely Square White Amber gives this the "oomph" I felt it lacked, turning it into the perfect hot weather smell, the combo becomes rich, sultry, sensuous, heady and floral, It makes me feel like the colour yellow!
On my skin is mostly cloves.But since i loove cloves very much i like fidji also
My older sister used to wear this when I was a little girl . And I loved it . Could not wait to grow up to have my own . It so wild and free , pity you can not get it any more.
Review from my notes over several sample days, sorry it gets long!:
This does not smell how I expected it to smell! I don't know why, but the name, the notes, the reviews, OK so I knew I was smelling the reformulated version, the pale coloured liquid, but I expected this to be bigger, heavier, bolder.
With listed notes of sandalwood, oakmoss, amber, jasmine, ylang-ylang, vetiver etc I was expecting a BIG, heady floral woody powerhouse.
I was surprised, when I tried this on, that it seemed relatively tame. I think I had hoped for a big floral, woody, ambery resiny heady scent, and so this possibly coloured my expectations. Also, I believe my mother may have worn the original version of this when I was a child so I guess I was hoping for a nostalgia trip too.
The initial blast was quite promising, a pleasant floral, but as this settled, after about 30 minutes I started to smell a metallic, almost slightly oxidised smell - you know the smell when you have been pushing a supermarket trolley around, that metallic note that you have on your hands after. It also faded relatively quickly to a light floral skin scent. I was disappointed. However I had tried it on a very cold, damp and gloomy day, so decided to give it another shot on a slightly milder sunny day. This gave much better results, so I think this may work better on the summer months.
I have tried this on a few times now, and find some days the metallic note is present, but not on others, so I am trying to work out why that is - I am guessing a combination of climate/heat/humidity, what I have eaten, where I am in the month etc. If I can pinpoint what it is that makes this work some days and not others then I think it will make a reasonable spring/summer scent but it does not strike me as anything special.
But when I have so many wonderful, amazing perfumes it seems silly to settle for something that is merely "ok".
I just feel this needs something more, something to give it some "Oooomph"! It reminds me of one of those cakes used in shop windows to advertise their wares, but is actually just an iced cardboard box, or of the fake presents under xmas trees in department stores. At first glance they are right but then peel away the top layer...
I have now tried layering this a couple of times, and find this seems to work better.
First time layering, I layered with an attar Neroli perfume oil. A few dabs of the oil on pulse points and 2 sprays of Fidji. This works quite well, emphasising the floral notes and making a much bigger bouquet. Works quite well and will be nice for summer casual days. Inexpensive too, to give this a bit more pep.
second layering experiment - I sprayed Berkeley Square White Amber, let that settle for 10 mins then sprayed Fidji over the top. YES! This works now, the heady sweet sultry amber sandalwood gives depth and sensuality to these flowers, making this a much more interesting and deep smell. I can see myself wearing this combination together and enjoying it.
I may try layering with a small amount of neroli and amber attars to see if this gives the punch I want.
Overall, nice enough little perfume, wouldn't really miss it if I didn't have it, I guess I just wish it were a little bit "more" than it is. Maybe the original met that brief. I may continue experimenting. Can't see myself rebuying, and may gift this bottle to my mother!
It was my mom's signature perfumed too in the 80's.I remember her with together its.She was smelling elegance,loving,charming,tender when she perfumed it.Sometimes I feel like I had taken her scent and i remember my young,beautiful,lively mom.I know i can't live those days never again but i know if i buy it for my mom,she's going to cry of happiness straight :)
Dear Guy Laroche,
This used to be my dream perfume growing up. It was my mom's signature in the '70s. She always smelled so good- elegant, refined and comforting. I loved hugging my mom especially when she had it on. I wanted to grow up and wear Fidji to smell just like my mama. My mom passed away three years ago so I bought a bottle to feel her presence. Sadly, it was reformulated and smells nothing like the gem it was. Why did you have to reformulate and mess up something that was genius? That we will never know.
Disappointed Nostalgist
My mom wears this perfume on and off since I was a little child and I love it to death. It is such a timeless crisp floral that also achieves to be sensual, in my opinion. Maybe I will reach for it this summer as well, now that I'm 27. A plus is that it is not very common so you won't smell it on every second person you pass!
I also remember the older Fidji, like 20 yrs ago, was indeed a deep yellow color, now i see it everywhere as a cooler color.
And was also muskier...i recently tested this, and it smelled a little crisp, if not sharp...
Its funny how we associate this scent with 'old', my mother used to wear it and i used to be infatuated with it as a child.
But now i am unsure as whether to buy it... The colour concerns me, it must have been reformulated... and also, people's perception. Its perceived as an old frag, people say how it takes them back with memories...but i think thats beautiful as scents evoke memories. Id buy this frag if i find it in the yellow color.
A Masterpiece, the older version is the better formula of this great fragrance created by Josephine Catapano, pure perfection: 10/10
When trendy, during the 80s only older people than me used to wear it, so I have connected it with my mother's friends... never bought it to wear it myself... Maybe now that I am growing older!
One of my very first perfumes when I was a teenager, evokes lovely memories.
I got a tiny amount of this juice (vintage EdT) in a perfume set of unfinished bottles on Ebay - a 10 ml amount or so, and I raise my hat to every single one of them: it's so bountiful, self-sufficient and just one big olfactive celebration! Yes, you know right away it's old school ( same musky bordering on dusty bottom level as in Rive Gauche or Air du Printemps ), but it's somehow very appropriate here, creating an allusion of a humid hot air cloud one steps into exiting the plane, hopeful of an incredible holiday adventure to begin happening instantly. What left me gobsmacked is the ambiguity of this scent, Firstly, it is moist and powder-dry simultaneously. It is like that contradiction of an underripe pear: you bite into its juicy flesh and it somehow leaves that sandpaper feel in the mouth that leaves you gasping for a drink. Secondly, it is green and white and sweet and minty all at the same time: I actually suspect that the listed lemon note should rather be lime, because it is lime that carries that minty kick and disrupts the sweet and powdery cloud of white florals and clove ( clove - in a summer scent: who could have expected?!). I felt like a million dollars wearing it, it did cause some flashbacks from the childhood, so perhaps it was resting in my olfactive memory all along, and I found it worked best on warm cloudy rainy summer days: it just hit the nail on the head in terms of working with the skin temperature ( sillage just the right amount, longevity exactly as one would expect - 6-7 hrs , and it keeps on living for weeks on fabrics ). I also tested the modern version in a dept. store and I can't even begin to explain how bleak and characterless it is in comparison to its original. ) Hunting for a vintage extrait and would only use it for veeeery festive open air summer occasions. Hardly a young scent: it has waaaay too much "secret female knowldege" in it, if you know what I mean. ;-)
To my nose Fidji is one of the sweetest and muskiest of the "green" fragrances of the 60's and 70's. It's also one of the softest with very little of the sharpness typical of the genre.
I understand the marketing genius of naming this scent after an exotic tropical island, but the name is so misleading. The strongest note is Hyacinth which is a cold weather bloom that could never grow anywhere near the tropics. It is the very sweet rich smell of a crisp cool late March early April Easter flower.
This fragrance is very soft and lovely but on me the EDT is almost a skin scent. I need to use a lot of it to get any projection. If I liked it better I might invest in an EDP or parfum but think that I won't for now.
The vintage color you can see in the small picture group on the right. It's the color I remember. My mom wore this throughout my childhood, in the '70's and '80s it was her favorite. Think of it, some 20-30 years this juice remained the same, I never once heard mom complaining. As opposed to what happens now to these masterpiece frags. I know I'm biased, this one I really love, it smells like mom when I was little.
PS: IFRA, hear this: my mother is in her '70s now, and she is just fine. She wore this a lot and never got as much as an itch from it. Butchering the frags for our health's sake is bull*t and you know it. I no longer buy butchered frags, a lot of guys out there I think are doing the same. It's your loss, IFRA.
My very first perfume, when I was a little girl :-) Beautiful and fresh. Lovely.
Lisa O, the color of the vintage Fidji was darker and had almost the color of brandy. The new one has a light yellow-green color (look at the picture).
Lisa O, the color of the vintage Fidji was darker and had almost the color of brandy. The new one has a light yellow-green color (look at the picture).
The original Fidji of the 1970s was truly exquisite and it is still possible to find this vintage version, now and then. But the one I really miss is the very limited edition "Fidji du Soir" that they brought out as the strongly sultry evening version of the same. Exactly the same bottle design but it had a dark blue lid (instead of the usual beige or cream.) How I wish Guy Laroche would relaunch that one!
is there any possibility to distinguish between the vintage and new editions by the bottle? is the colour of the vintage-liquid more green or yellow or transparent?
Forget the recent formulation of Fidji, because the Vintage EDT is by far the best.
Vintage Fidji is a smooth, crisp and slightly sweet hyacinth, ylang ylang and iris fragrance. It's charming and feminine, perfect for Spring and Summer. The reformulation is a joke and is not even worth trying.
Fidji is a fresh floral, although some may mistake it for a chypre due to the oakmoss accord in the base. I tested this fragrance on the same day that I tested Carven's Ma Griffe and I had to smile at their similarities. They're both fine examples of classy and fresh green fragrances.
Surprisingly, Guy Laroche hasn't bothered to update the packaging for Fidji. It's a little outdated if you ask me. It needs a more attractive bottle to compliment its beautiful contents.
Fidji lasts a relatively long time on the skin, however the sillage is fairly soft. I believe it's designed this way as not to overwhelm you during the warmer weather. I highly recommend testing this vintage gem. Decants are still available on many decant websites.
What is this show olfactory fragrance, warm and enveloping notes of jasmine the waxy soap more refined and pure a cone of light linger where small particles of talc powder seductive, I can not help but smell the back of my hand to inebriate from time charm.
Fidji be able to flout even the most hard-working bee, so it is haunting his feeling that the poor animal will remain subdued, but not only strenuously defend its conquest by the queen also finding the strength to rebel.
Fidji is a fairy tale that has spanned many years, but still retains a simple charm and regal at the same time.
Do not miss
Used to surreptitiously apply Fidji while mom did not look. For some reason she did not care about this fragrance in her 30s, or she just did not like the gifter. I remember Fidji was not warmly accepted in our family, while my attachment to it was growing. The transparent yellowish bottle(not the green bottle) with precious liquid used to be a neighbor of several other gifted fragrances that my mom seemed to favor much more.
That bottle is left in the past, but I am writing the review to share with you that I think I found the equivalent of the tropical flowers component (not the complete fragrance equivalent) for Fidji, fresh, intoxicating, waxy and subtly indolic and yes, truffles: Chantecaille Tiare EDP.
Ce parfum rayonne comme un soleil.
Un soleil des tropiques bien sûr avec le nom qu'il a...
Je ne peux pas m'empêcher de penser de ce qu'était Fidji avant la reformulation qu'il a subit.
Plus poudré/vert. Plus vert moins épicé. L'oeillet évoquait une fleur qui vient d'éclore, il jouait sur une partition plus poudrée moins écrasé par le soleil, moins épicée que celle que nous avons actuellement. Dommage. Le girofle aussi était moins prononcé qu'à l'heure actuelle.
Je me souviens qe j'avais travaillé tout l'été au début des années 80 pour m'offrir l'extrait !!! Le nirvana olfactif avec l'ancienne version de Fidji.
Fidji is the best ever fresh green / floral / cyphre fragrance ever. Only the lasting power is very poor...
But there is a spin off called fidji du soir created in 1977 which is much deeper and lasts for ages. I do happen to own some bottles / now i would love to add this fragrance to fragrantica but i have no clue how to. Any ideas?
(I must add this: the bottle is a disappointment. Plain square edges, weird rectangular black top, and while the front lable "Fidji" is in a unique, avant-garde script-scribble, the label on the back shows through in an incredibly tacky way!)
This is a lovely hyacinth-centric fragrance, cool and powdery in a way similar to Jacomo Silences. Fidji is sophisticated and subdued, cool, crisp and a tad bit aloof; yet not overly formal or uptight.
Fidji is the woman in a linen dress with pearls, walking on the beach with sandals in hand. It is beauty and sophistication letting her hair down. I just finished reading an Agatha Christie novel set in the 60's in the Caribbean with Miss Marple as the sleuth; I can imagine one of the female characters in the novel wearing this fragrance while on holiday.
It is absolutely a white floral, and has a vintage-vibe in a similar category to L air du Temps; I swear I smell carnation, but there is none listed. While Fidji is not as shrill as some white florals, it is somewhat headache-inducing for me. As it dries down especially, the powdery lightness is giving way to that somewhat dank sour note that white florals can end up with.
I will have to explore this a bit more, as I find myself torn on this one. Sillage is moderate, longevity is good at 7+ hours.
A contradictive wet-dry and powdery delicious fragrance, slightly reminicent of Chanel No 19 but so much better for me as my body does not appreciate leather :). I'm so happy that I rediscovered Fidji, but sad that I only have a decant. Suitable for a woman on a beach in a white dress that slowly sways in the warm wind, just like in the ad's. A beautiful summer scent, now on my want list.
Actually Fidji is very similar to Givenchy III which is more herbal from the larger amount of patchouli. Fidji is more powdery, has a bit more floral sweetness and a careful touch from cloves.
thank you to blacktaffeta for this. I opened this and bam. It's 1977, it's my grandad's wake. I'm sat on the lap of my Mum's cousin June. I'm little. Her face is big and I'm slightly transfixed by the large brown mole on her chin. She gives me 10p. She smells of Fidji, the whole parlour smells of it. I run down the Liverpool street to the sweet shop with my cousin. He's 10, and much faster than me. I'm 6, I smell of Fidji. I'm 41, I'm crying and I smell of Fidji.
It was popular in my childhood, and one of rare French perfumes on USSR poor market with a lot of bottles of Red Moscow and other Soviet frags more suitable for disinfection and mosquitoes repel. Fidji has a very classy opening with lily of valley.
Modern Edt is light, turns into soft light floral. EDP lasts longer. But something was missing in both. I got a Vintage, but it did not smell the way I remembered. I went trough all three and did not keep any, may be it was just my fantasy perfume.
Elderflower described this fragrance to a T ..Worn by my mother as well (but I am proud to be the one who bought her the first bottle on Mother's Day :)
A bouquet of white florals and the warm , doting smell of amber to calm it down ..Truly it's the perfume of a sophisticated , chic lady with impeccable taste who still manages to have a good job , a good family and still wore those high heels, neutral elegant coats & designer bags ...Wish I can find this perfume again ..:'(
My mother wore Fidji for years, switching only because she herself could not smell it any more, and feared putting on too much (although, as others have said, the EDT is relatively light). It was her Going Out Scent, and for this reason, I'm apt to be nostalgic about it.
It's possible that the name, and Laroche's 'sunny islands' schtick, has led some modern buyers to expect a tropical juice. It's better to judge it by the severe but stylish bottle: this is something you'd pair with Biba and a Campari, not a bikini and a Midori Splice. Looking up the two dominant opening notes – galbanum and hyacinth – shows that scents majoring on these themes tend to be of the classical-glamour sort, especially where galbanum is concerned. If Fidji is a tropical scent, it's in the sense that its non-cloying, bittersweet greenness makes it quite compatible with warm humid evenings.
I bought a large, pre-owned splash EDT on Ebay. I can't date the bottle any more accurately than post-1984, and have no memory of the scent before the 80's myself. It's a formal affair by current standards, but instead of the 'Look sharp...or else!' of a full-on galbanum blast, it has the purr of the personal shopper who exists (probably a good thing) only in my dreams: '...Oh! I think this would look just fabulous on you.' Fidji makes me feel like an uptogether lady with impeccable taste, and that's quite an achievement.
Another blast from the beautiful past. This really is lovely stuff. In summer I like to wear l'air du temps during the day and then top it up with Fidji in the evenings as they seem related. (Get me! You can't buy class.) Fidji is less soapy than l'air du temps and is a beautifully blended floral. I can't tell most notes from a hole in the head but the flowers here are so soft and creamy, not like most of the offensive indolic flowers preening on top of a lot of fragrances. I don't really think we have any business smelling like a flower in general, but with Fidji I have to cave and admit their beauty. It is womanly.
Why has it been banished to the drawers in the shops while the latest Marc Jacobs and Thierry Mugler get all the attention. Is it being discontinued. Oh fragrance world. Thou art fickle.
I like L'Air du Temps, but it´s too soapy spicy; i love No. 19, but there is a lot of bitter galbanum and sweet powder; Chamade is charming, but too powdery; Cristalle is maybe too wet and dark.
I am pathologically indecisive Libra and Fidji is super combination of all the good of these gems + lovely carnation and hiacynth.
Just bought it.
Nostalgic. Chypre, Floral. Spicey. Aldehydic.
Reminds me a bit of Ma Griffe by Carven....only lighter, fresher, with a vibe of the tropics.
A classic.
timeless, eternal, fresh, clean, breezy but warm at the same time..instant bliss!!!
got a small sample of the vintage fidgi, not sure how it much it differs, but this is one beautiful fragrance, i absolutely adore this, just an amazing scent for a woman. wow.. i need to find a bottle of the vintage if i can..certainly would purchase if not too staggering a price. very impressive, omg what a sexy woman that would wear this..two thumbs up and two growls to go with it, stops me in my tracks..get over here baby!
update: was able to locate a small bottle of vintage splash, bought a nice atomizer perfect sized , gave it to my wife.. it is a very nice perfume. I will keep my eye out for more..
sexy lady stuff...beware..
He was studying Mandarin, I was a travel agent, just starting to see the big wonderful world. We were so young and the possibilities were endless.
He walked in and asked me for the rates to Hong Kong. One way I asked? Only if your going he murmured, I pretended not to hear. . He was a rare exotic animal, not like anyone I had ever seen in my life.
Black huge eyes, much darker than his ebony tasseled hair. Tall and chiseled. He spoke like an academic, but looked like a wild Heathcliff . When he leaned in and asked if he could see me after work, his lips inches from my neck, brushing slightly against my ear. My heart raced, I was petrified, yet elated. I handed him my business card, on the back I wrote the time and place.
Long and short of it...
Heathcliff and I don't get out of bed for a month, totally obsessed with each other. Eventually....he runs off to seek his fortune in China, I end up marrying the young Doctor who who bandaged my sprained foot running after Heathcliff!
During this wild journey of my life, the sound track was Steely Dan, and everything smelled like Fidji!
Fidji will forever remind me of my Mother. she is 77 years old now, but she wore this fragrance constantly during my childhood, and just one sniff of it transports me back to the 1980's. Its nostalgia in a bottle for me.
When I began wearing perfume myself, I chose this because I wanted to be like my Mother, and admired how she was always so effortlessly chic.
This fragrance does not scream and shout, its understated elegance. Its not "fashionable", by which I mean it doesnt follow the trend of being powdery or sweet. Its a fresh, clean citrussy smell.
This is a classy scent. I once went on holiday to Amalfi, in Italy, and sat outide a church on a hot sunny day with a drink and watched a wedding on the stone steps, as the stunningly beautiful bride went past, I swear she was wearing Fidji, she smelt divine.
Fidji is unusual, and hard to come by, I managed to find this in the perfume store in the UK, quite reasonably priced, around £28 GBP for 50mls.
agreable light scent. I tried it because I've heared a lot about it. You can imagine time when it was launched and what impact it would have made then. Now there are more exiting things to try on, but Fidji remains there.
it starts as really quite hesperidic fragarnce, and then develops into warm sensual floral, dominated by jasmin.
Oh Fidji!.... "I am a rock - I am an island, and a rock feels no pain and an island never cries..." You were to my nose, what Simon & Garfunkel's song were to my ears!
This was the fragrance I chose after divorce, and it worked. Not only is it the epitome of femininity, it exudes fresh, exotic optimism - confidence with just a hint of vulnerability, and a promise of as yet unseen potential...
Fresh air and flowers, nothing sickly sweet or powdery. Plumeria, lily of the valley, jonquil, pheasant's eye narcissus, exotic white lilies, jasmine, stephanotis, acidanthera - heavenly, powerful but never overbearing - and grass roots!
I once had a gift set which included a pot of delightful hand cream and a shell shaped soap in its own little travel dish. Everything in the set smelled exactly the same - there was no difference between the edt and the perfume, or the cream. Only the strength differed slightly and the hand cream was almost as strong as the perfume.
I was wearing this when I met my 2nd husband, :)
Warning to all fruity floral lovers - do not blind buy this. Although I (gasp) am slowly being nudged towards some softly woodsy fumes (I bought and love Dolce Vita after sampling it at a girlfriend's) Fidji is plunging off the precipice. It's bitter carnation, shrieking chypre (all chypres shriek on me), it's harsh and horrid and reminds me of what happens to the air I breathe when I venture into earthy, balmy, woody and white floral.
fidji is a timeless classic ..one of my all time favorites.. and a master piece....its so classy ..fine.. light ..yet full of wonder..as it itakes yoi in to a magical jjeourny in to a mysterious island.. fidji is an island name as you all know..fidji is so sophisticated.. has a strong character of is own.. its unique..its super balanced.. all its notes are in perfect harmony with one another.. as if they play a perfect symphony..in Harmon.. it reminds me of my favourite aunties.. as a child, i grew up smelling it every where.. day and night.. where ever there were family gatherings, and special occasions.. whenever they got dresses, and put their beautiful bronze make up ..it was the final touch to their elegance...fidgi is truly a statement of elegance...finess.. and femininity.. yet for an independent.. confident woman who is so sure of her self and her self worth and self esteem..its not a crowded sent..very pure.. simple.. and elegant ..not over whelmingly so ..its a free spirited scent that portrays unconstitutional love,giving and forgiveness..its a perfume made for mothers lovers working women doctors educators..for every true passionate woman who has a story and a passion and a mission in this life..its an endless love story that carries within its notes some of the most beautiful memories ..
rating 4.7 out of 5
This is a very pretty classic floral and extremely appealing. In my opinion, it's more suitable for warmer weather than the colder months. Very elegant and wearable indeed, although I only have the EDT and need to reapply often. It seems that the EDP is as rare as hens' teeth and I won't be purchasing another bottle of the EDT - it just doesn't have the staying power.
This used to be my mothers signature scent from 1966 until the end of the 1980s. She stopped using Fidji when she couldn't buy it anymore in the regular perfume stores. My mother has excellent taste for perfumes. She is not a glamourous diva wearing loud scents, but a subtle, sensuous, elegant woman, even at her present age of 80. I wanted to make her happy by giving her Fidji as a present for mother's day. I found it last spring for a reasonable price in a tiny, tiny perfume store I never noticed before. I wanted to try it, before buying, to be sure it was the same scent I remembered. With one sniff I was a little girl again, looking at my gorgeous mother getting ready for a party. I loved to watch my mother prepare before she went out at night with my father. I was sure she was the most beautiful and best dressed woman of the world. Putting on silk, black stockings under her little black dress (the same dress I used to wear in my twenties), black satin gloves, with high hair and the most beautiful silver filigrain earrings, wearing Fidji by Guy Laroche. Sweet memories from the female boudoir.
Do you remember that 80s advertisement with that mysterious and beautiful woman sitting in a white shore carrying the Fidji bottle? The music was so great as well as the perfume itself. That ad gave the atmosphere of this unique perfume. There is a promise of escaping in a tropical beach, where the sand is white and the sunrise magical. In my opinion, this is the very first "tropical" perfume. It was very different from any other perfume at its time and still differs from the next ones. Very classy and elegant, with a unique character. A must-have!
This fragrance is among my top 5, despite having many years is always present and is a fragrance that knows how to dream about sweetness and freshness, you know the breeze on a summer evening in a lake? is something charming like its flowers and sparkling citrus that go into a fund to bask entrancing.
It is written 'spicy floral nuance of carnation' but I don't see carnation in the ingredients though.
Clean, classy, long pearls, headbands and hippie girls, sunshine and ocean waves, long hot nights and balmy days, Cleopatra Soap, the first tang of spring, heavy dew on cut grass, Love on a Real Train by Tangerine Dream. Can't be without it.
Bought a deodorant from top seller "vintageperfume 2010". Great seller but the deodorant is a huge disappointment. Nothing in common with a magic perfume I remember from 80s. First (and last) what you can smell in screaming ugly carnation. Very similar one to mens eau de cologne Carnation from soviet era which was used as bugs spray those days. After a long wait hoping to found any hints of good old Fidji can you guess what I got? Mumbling nasty CARNATION! Don't know who was the smart nose behind this new formula but THAT was a big fail! Shame on you, nose... Who can tell me is Eau de Parfume Fidji any different from deodorant?
This shares quite a few ingredients with Jontue by Revlon:
Hyacint, bergamot, violet, orrisroot, jasmine, ylang-ylang, rose, sandalwood, amber, musk, oakmoss and vetiver. That makes me wonder if they smell almost the same....
اول عطر لي عندما كنت مراهقه
ماأجملها من ايام
Used to wear it in the 80's (showing my age),managed to find another bottle on a low shelf in the airport! It had changed somewhat, but grew to love it again, (of course it brings to the surface memories, which perfume doesn't?) When you put it on it makes you feel fully dressed and ready to take on anything. A very confident perfume without being brassy! Keep coming back to it! My daughter even said, "It sums you up Mum", so can't be that bad! Definitely one that makes you smile!
This was my first perfume, years ago. I haven't seen it for a long time where I live but I found it in a netshop. I am so glad I did. This one is just so beautiful from top to bottom. Bright, joyful, elegant, soft. Lasts all day long without being strong. It makes me so happy.
i love Fidji but for evenings preferred Fidji De Soir. I haven't been able to buy this in G Britain since the '80's (discontinued)- Is it available anywhere else....?
My first ever impresson of FIDJI was when i first noticed that Linda Evangelista ( my oh my ! all time fave face in the model business ) was starring in the advertisement of the product.
Around the early 90s this pic was ubiquitos everywhere...Linda was kneeling on the sandy beach , with her perfect short bangs ,holding a great bottle of the perfume...this scenery is still blows my mind .and this time was the right moment to reminds me of that time ...
Thanks FIDJI!!!
By the way i did not know the smell was originated from 1966...
This was my Aunt's favorite perfume, it reminds me of her. Exotic, effervesant, rich, elegant and crisp.
Unforgetable smell. Bitter but not harsh. Light but very distinctive. Suitable for every season and every occasion. Fidji is unique because does not remind you any other chypre. It is something different. Sour and bitter, but gentle as well. Floral, but not quite romantic and airy, yet, femimine, light and not overwhelming. Full of contradictions...A must have for all chypre lovers.
Hyacinths, jasmine, ylang-ylang and a whiff of amber: that's the bouquet that unfolds under my nose when I spray this on. I don't smell any citrus, but boy, what I smell is divine! The silage is just right to be a sexy aura when I move, the longevity is good. (3-4 hours).
It's a classic but smells modern. It's cheery yet elegant. An "adult" with a sexy, naughty charm. And NOT just for island wear! ; ) I wear this during the day and it's unusual enough to satisfy my evening out 'scent-moods'. Fidji will always be part of my perfume-wardrobe, just as it was in my mothers.
This together with Shalimar perfume I think the best expression for the female universe, is sweet, tender and sensual because citrus fruits are very beautiful, as well as the flower (lush) and the bottom dense, almost creamy woods and patchouli.
What struck me most when I heard him (30 years ago)
was the simplicity of its arrangements and tenderness that evokes, is unforgettable once smelled ... I happen to associate the actress Carrè Otis in the movie Wild Orchid with Mickey Rourke, who will be in the room while projecting the film I felt that Fidji I had heard years before, and as I saw the beautiful face of Carre Otis I had the distinct impression that the perfume had crossed the screen (of course it was just an armchair below)
An amazing and very cool but very seductive.
Hooray Fidji Islands and the sun
The most beautiful perfume! Very clean, but not too clean, very stylish, but not too stylish. And quite grown up, but still young at heart.
One of my favorite perfumes!
Around Christmastime, I was perusing an antique store when I found an old Fidji bottle. It hadn't been cleaned out, so I could smell some of the remnant, but it was dried and sticky and stale. I wanted to see what the "live" fragrance was like, so I got a sample from TPC, and found it to be a refreshing, light, "green" fragrance. I could immediately smell the hyacinth in the top notes. Hyacinth is a pretty strong scent - it's one of my fave flowers but I can only handle it for so long because it's so heavy. But the hyacinth in the top of Fidji is light and ethereal and just gorgeous. Once that fades away, the scent becomes a little earthier and I can smell the oakmoss and vetiver, but they aren't terribly harsh. In all, a light, lovely fragrance!
I love this perfume. Along with Bluegrass, it's the one my moher used to wear when I was a child. I can remember her wearing it and getting ready for a night out and it was so young and fresh and beautiful and wherever she went, she received complients from men women.
Even though it reminds me of her, I would still wear it myself. I told her recently they still made Fidji and she was so surprised. I'll have to buy a bottle for myself and get her to smell it again and see if she still likes it.
Like savlon antiseptic mixed with L'air du temps on my skin but I love it - fresh, clean and lively but a bit musky - almost musty with a dry green edge. Way too old for me but like all perfumes these are the ones that suit my chemistry. To me this just screams springtime it smells fresh green and like wet carnations with a tropical edge. Its one of those scents that no matter what the time or season I could easily wear without hesitation (unlike some of my spicy orientals and gourmands which can sicken me depending on mood/hormones) though I save it for the warmer months as I don't want to finish the gorgeous bottle which is already half finished.
How come it took me so long to speak about "Fidji"?
It is a French perfume with an American identity that came out when women started to take good care of their career and lifestyle (well I guess so, I wasn't even born the time this came out).
It appears that everybody's mother has worn this sometime in the past, I can confirm my mother was one of them.
The bottle and the packaging were different and recognisable but I don't think they ever did this wonderful perfume justice.
The smell is like the 60's fresh that doesn't lack luxury or smartness and please do keep the word "smartness", it is Fidji's main quality.
I have no doubt this is one of the finest perfumes ever made but today's version (yes one can still find it in Athens) doesn't last at all. I am sure "Fidji" wouldn't have had such a remarkable career with such a poor longevity so apparently a reformulation has taken place.
Still, if you have never smelled it I suggest you did. Soon!
Wow, this is the very first perfume I used ever and I can still remember the scent of it. I wish I had it right now.
When I read the earlier revue just below ,I realized this was actually one of my first perfumes....
My father gave it to me after beeing away on a trip with work. I could have been somewhat about
eleven to 13 years old. Havent got it since then, nor tried it and what I recall is a vague memory of lime and cucumber.
Now, checking notes I would say it was daring of my Father, to pick this for me, with all those notes....
Now I would love to at least try it again to see if I get any whifs from Childhood days
My mother wore this in the '70's, and I remember thinking it was heavenly, but after she started wearing Inoui, I didn't want her to wear her Fidgi, her Emeraude, her Zen, Norell, My Sin, Arpege, or anything else! I haven't smelled Fidgi in years, but my memories tell me it is a scent with a fantastic galbanum topnote, and a clean, sandalwood drydown. As a little girl I thought of it as the smell of the secret "grown up" life, and elegance.
This was my signature fragrance at age 21 and wore if for years - would love to use it again but it doesnt seem to smell the same on me anymore.. times change! Such a a beautiful fragrance
I wore Fiji over 30 years ago, and almost forgot about
it. Thanks to Ebay, I found it again....and still love
this perfume after all these years. On me, a little goes
a long way. One of the most alluring fragrances I've ever worn.
I have no idea why, but every time I wear this, it makes me think of the scenes in the 1973 movie "The Long Goodbye" with Danish actress Nina van Pallandt as Mrs. Wade. She plays a cagey but stunning woman who drifts through the open floorplan of her custom Malibu beachhouse in silky, printed caftans and similarly flowing garments. Everything about her from her long, straight hair to her tanned glow is '70s chic. She's very cool and controlled, in contrast to her clothing and the wild, pounding surf and ocean breezes outside her door. Of course, since it's film noir, she's hiding something. I'm sure the scent she wears is Fidji.
I just received a bottle of EdT. Nice smel, but doesn't last on my skin.
Fidji is one of the most feminine,soft,powdery,elegant and joyful fragrance ever produced!
It is so suitable and wearable for decades...almost aproppriate for each occasion and age.It has grace,character which is rarely for todays modern,all-the same,sweety perfumes!!Its even more discreet and gentle than two great classics Chanel 5 or Shalimar!
Perfect floral,sensual harmony!Masterpiece!!!
I have just ordered one bottle from Amazon...
I put it right next to Y, Madame Rochas and Byzance, bacause they seem to share some similarities in character, especially with Y by YSL. But I think Fidji is a bit smoother and a tiny bit sweeter.
Love it!
You are right Sherapop!! I do have this and I do love this!! Actually, Fidji is one of a kind!! It does have some great similarities with Balenciaga's Michelle, and Madame Carven vintage so if you are loving this you with certainly love that!!
Good luck!
My! It was so sweet, I just couldn't stand it! Didn't remind me of a paradisiac island at all!!
The staying power was very good, though.
Fidji is "paradise lost" by todays trite efforts. No Transatlantic flight was complete without bringing at least a sample of this luscious chypre with lots of florals. In its time, it caused a lot of attention. It was French perfume that appealed to an American audience.
Its discontinuation is perhaps one of the greatests losses of the perfume industry. It was clean, smart and sexy and had nothing to do with Tahiti. It is a beauty from a bygone era and should not be missed by vintage fans.
Celebrity=Sharon Tate
Love, love, love Fidji! It is absolutely unique and there is no other scent like it, the cleanest and freshest fragrance. But, it has ZERO staying power on my skin. Even so, that never stopped me from buying it -- when I can find it, that is. Also it has become suddenly and inexplicably very, very expensive. In the seventies it was medium-priced compared to the Diors, YSLs and Chanels of the time. Does this label make any other scent?
Love Fidji! I just recently tried it again after not wearing perfume for almost a decade. Wonderful! But the EDT sure doesn't last long on me - an hour or two and it had faded quite a bit just after 30 min. Is Guy Laroche still making it? Does anybody know if it's been discontinued? It sure is hard to find now.
I'm reviewing the EDT, which is just absolutely wonderful. This perfume somehow evokes a tropical garden without any headiness or cloying tendency which many other 'tropical' scents have. This is fresh and light as a summer breeze, and is very complex in its composition. It manages freshness without either being citrus or aquatic based and yet projects the same message. Don't be misled by the galbanum, this is not a cold or bitter scent, and everything has been used with a light hand. I've been looking for a while for a good summer scent, and this ticks all boxes. Unbelievable that this timeless scent was composed 40+ years ago. I would be most impressed if Hermes released this, Ellena is the only perfumer today who manages this type of effect.
Sillage and longevity are fairly short lived and discreet.
I bought this perfume for my now late Mom, it reminded me the scent of my childhood in 70's. I am not sure if my Mom loved it but she used the whole bottle with pleasure.
Me and my mother, we used to share all parfums, but this one I was claiming for my own:) I loved it in 80s a lot:)
My mother-in-law used it. On her it smelled divine, but at this moment I was young and a bit afraid of her :)) so I needed time to "give the second chance" for this perfume. Feelings.. Nice perfume, perfect staying power.
Fidji is great! Simple and natural, starts smelling creamy and is constant in its freshness. Very similar to L'air du Temps of Nina Ricci, another classic smell, but fresher and more perfectly refined.
This was my wedding day fragrance, in 1979! I cant wait to buy it again!!!!!!
This was one of the first fragrances of which I was aware as a child - I remember thinking it was absolutely beautiful. I cannot for the life of me remember what it was like, though! I am going to seek it out and try it again, all these years on. I will report back!
wohooo!! that's my mom's signature scent, too sexy ;) i remember she once had more than one bottle of this one, as i was going through her perfumes one day *coughs*curious cat*coughs* i found a bottle getting really really dark, i was too young then and i thought maybe it was... rotten? XD little did i know, that was the pure essence in it and it was filling the whole bottle which suggests not much of alcohol was in there, GREAT, not like other fumes when you forget about them then you go look for a certain bottle just to find 3 dark drops at the bottom, that's when you know you were scammed... funny it says EDT on the bottle, isn't there EDP or even Parfum? i was kinda sure it wasn't EDT :S
I bought my first bottle of Fidji PP while skiing in Cervinia, Italy in 1975. It is still in my fragrance wardrobe. I am now in my 60's but I feel just as comfortable with the fragrance as I did in my 20's. I agree with Aalia that this is an energizing, crisp floral. I also really appreciate the lingering sandal, amber and moss aspects of the base notes. I have never detected the sour note she mentions, but perhaps that is because I only use the PP? I think that classic scents like Fidji are making a comeback with younger women. I hope that the new EU regulations don't spoil these fragrances for them.
i have had a tiny bottle of fidgi for 20 plus years and has not gone off it's scent just purchased a 1.7 oz online and am thrilled-everyone should try this scent-it's floral heady and light all at the same time-which it shouldn't be but somehow it is-started wearing it again recently after retiring it for awhile but am planning on putting it back in rotation-brings back great memories of my life in hawaii-
Wearing Fidji I feel classy, elegant and oh so confident. Definitely a head-turner, as it blows kisses to people around you :)
Fidji is an elegant, sophisticated woman, drinking tea in her garden on a nice spring afternoon. Nice, friendly, but somehow mysterious. I really, really like this scent.
This is how Ombre Rose Chant d'Aromes should smell!!
It opens very fresh with a a hint of creamy rose. It is linear, But It doesn't even matter because this is just a pleasant and pure scent.
A classic fragrance that will never smell outdated for modern women. Fidji worth a try!
Intoxication, Guy Laroche FIDJI is your name! Wow, this is a beautiful composition. The moment it hit my skin I was transported to a vast garden of damp tropical flowers and lush greenery with colorful birds chirping off in the distance. Rich and seductive and complex, FIDJI is not a fragrance but a breathtaking bouquet!
Luxurious. Resplendent. As rich and compelling as FRACAS to my nose, but not at all the same. This is one of the only tropical floral creations I've tried that does not evoke images of beaches and suntan lotion. Definitely not for those looking for a nondescript, inoffensive office scent. This is a special, dress up in a silk dress and high heels perfume. I'm impressed! Du vrai parfum! Where's Action? Nyoka? You ladies would love this! (-:
EDT (now in store) is NOTHING like PP (it's production is stopped as I heard). I'm searching Pure Parfume for my mother <3
As for many other scents , i know this one thanks to my Mom . My father gifted it to her and this scent made me dreaming everytime my mother would use it in front of me . A few years later when i was 15 i got the set with the EDT , body lotion and a cute shell shaped soap . Now i'm 31 and i think i'll buy it for this summer .
This perfume is fresh and yet very gentle at the same time ( how do they do that ? ) . It meminds me a bit of Ivoire de Balmain (which i love too ), but as if it was an "eau of ivoire de Balmain" it's more wearable , less serious , less heavy .
I tried this because it was formulated in the year that I was born. I really like it. It is a bit strong as a first blast and then has a wee bit of a soapy tone, but then it settles down beautifully and becomes a lovely warm, lush floral. I can smell the carnation in the blend, which pleases me greatly as I love carnation. I think I will use this a lot when the weather comes warmer. I'm really pleased I tried this.
I haven't smelled this for a while now but I remember it to be a sweet, gorgeous, classy, potent scent. Lovely smell!
One of the greatest fragrances ever!!
I had never heard of Fidji until recently, and all I knew of Guy Laroche was Drakkar Noir, which I hate. (How can you fully appreciate a scent that became THE dude-car-freshener scent of the century??)Happily, Fidji has proven to be a wonderful accidental find. Even with a tiny dab, it opened very harshly, chemically on me--so much so that I almost scrubbed it. But I got distracted, and a while later, I kept catching whiffs of something heavenly...intoxicating. As it settled, it became the most lush floral I've experienced in a long time. It is sweet, but not sugary or edible. It is creamy, but not heavy and lotiony. It reminds me a little of Monyette Paris. Despite its age, Fidji is remarkably modern and youthful.
Ahhhh like lots of others this was bought in my 20's, first trip abroad with my friend (she bought Blue Grass,) just recently bought another bottle and all those memories came flooding back. It seems to smell a bit different on me now but hey another 20 years have passed and your skin changes
This perfume also brings me back to my 20`s...I even remember the wording in the advertisement: "Every woman is an island". I try to keep up-to-date with perfumes but this is such a wonderful creation that its got to be in my top three alltime favorites and it regularly pops into my mind - like today, which is how I ended up reading your comments here. I`ve GOT to get a hold of a bottle again somehow.(online from France probably - I,m in Portugal) Merry Christmas everybody, may you smell divine in 2011!
I don't like it at all.It smells too strong for me,i gave it to my my mother and it seems it fits her skin well.
I absolutely love this perfume but have found it difficult to come by until I found it in a local chemists! I had this perfume in my early 20's and am so glad I found it again ... brings back so many lovely memories and is such a lovely scent and would recommend it to anyone
im so disappionted with this fragrance!!!!! i read comments and i decided to give it a shot and...i didnt like the smell at all.it reminds me of something old.i expected it to be summer,light fragrance perfect for summer according to its name but its light years far from that!
What fantastic reviews of such a classic perfume.I was born in Fiji way before Fiji Water and Pure Fiji.I remember as a ittle girl the adverts in all the resorts displaying the model holding the big white conch shell on a gorgeous golden beach.My Mum and all the females in my family each had one and I couldn't wait to own my own FIDJI perfume.!!This is a very personal choice for me coz it reminds me of the beauty of my islands and it's culture and people....
(Vintage Parfum review)
Wow. how in the world did I go so long without trying this? I'm wearing the vintage, which is oily, sharp, and dewy sweet. Hyacinth gets top billing here, which is so perfect.
Five minutes into wearing this I pictured it on my perfume shelf. As a green floral chypre it has few competitors.
A truly gorgeous composition
this perfume is absolutely beautiful: it's a clean floral scent, quite "grown up" but not "old"; I don't sense anything sour though, it's more like a very fresh floral, but deep and classic at the same time. it makes me nostalgic for some reason, even though I don't remember anyone wearing it during my childhood. an EDT lasts relatively long on me, but I wish to find an EDP - this is so gorgeous)))
Found this little gem two days ago in an outlet shop- last had it about 15 years ago so it takes me back in time!! for me it smells like a beach towel at the end of a long sunny day, with a whiff of that Ambre Solaire sun tan oil that used to be used in the 60's. also conjures up a picture of my mother in psychedelic halter-neck sun dress and pink sandals, with her blonde 60's bob.it's a warm, gentle, sunny and optimistic smell, not too strong, not too sweet, definitely recalls the 60's for me, which i saw from my pushchair. the warmth of it reminds me a bit of madame rochas, but then without the aldehydes. glad i found it again!!
I don't really love florals for the most part, but I do enjoy wearing Fidji from time to time, especially in the summer. It is lovely and uplifting. I find also it reminds me so much of Norell, which is a lot cheaper than Fidji...and they are both were made by Josephine Catapano.
It is the fantastic scent. It smells like holidays. I was in Tunisia where the exotic vegetation and flowers had also beautiful scents , because I tower that on Fidji so it smells.To have the unrepeatable charm. This splendid to find scent which so transparent and recently smell. I feels as went out from the bath with flowers.
I Love Fidji.
Just what I can describe & I do mean it.
This is what I'd call a beautyful fragrance! Very classy and yet very modest!
It is a flowery scent that succeeds to be fresh. Warm and cool at the same time. Wearing it, you'll feel open minded to the notes it sings...Lovely!
You'll find that its hard to get though outside of France...In the Netherlands only perfumery's that sell niche perfumes have it. It is still on the Guy la Roche official website, so luckily it is not discontinued...
For me, one of the best light florals. Not cloying but well blended. It would be one of my desert island 3.
I also associate this scent with my mother, back in the Eighties that was a rare thing to get in Poland- I remember German magazines we were being sent by relatives ( my mum would look some fasion up, as a reality of living in a communist country was sort of grim)and they all had the adverts for Fidji. That seemed to me like a breath of a distant, elegant world. Then mum bought Fidji in "Pewex" and I couldn't get enough of smelling it from the bottle. Could easily have it again, it's timeless.
So many beautiful reviews had made me feel enthusiasm about this perfume, although I didn't know it yet. Now that I have tested Fidji I want to test it again... The resin note is very original, noticeable and long-lasting; it is also intriguing: I imagine it as some kind of envelope, the petals of a flower opening like the ones of a peony, showing slowly a fragant heart of a different character: deeply, softly floral and femenine.
Until recently, I knew very few things about Guy Laroche; some days before I saw in a magazine a wonderful dress from this house, tye-died in coral and grey, very well cut; now this perfume reminds me that dress, and also a teacher I knew... I am practically sure this was her smell; she was wonderful, but she was a nun, so probably I have mistaken.
This is the perfume which instantly makes me think of my mother. Recently I got her EDT again, I just HAD to buy it for her. I still remember the extract parfum she used to wear when I was a child and of course EDT version is still the same Fidji but it is not as deep and sultry. I think EDT has a much more 'tropical flower' feel to it while parfum was very 'french'.
A lot of older perfumes smell almost the same to me, but Fidji definetely stands out. A classic.
It was 1977, I was 15, and in France with my school's Brass Band as part of my home town, Harlow, twinning with Velizy. I was going out with a lad a year or 2 younger than me, but lovely. One day I found a small vile of Fidji Perfume in my cornet case, he had got it for me and I have loved the perfume ever since, the lad and I parted a year later. But I am now 48 and still love it as much although it is increasingly harder to buy. I used to have the powder puff and bath oil but haven't seen them since. Love it love it.!
When I was a teenager in the 80's my best friend and I used to share a mini of this and bring it on nights out in one of our bags. I always meant to get more but never saw it - I might buy it again as it's available online. Nice stuff.
Wore it on Holiday to Greece and met my future husband on the island of Ios it was romantic carefree unforgetable time .I thought that Fidji had disappeared along with that time. Shall be getting another bottle
I wore this perfume in my youth. I remember the english summer of 1976, it was very hot and I was in love with a French young man. He always commented on how beautiful my perfume smelled. Our relaionship ended and a few years later I bumped into him, he was with his new girlfriend. We had a drink together and when I went to the ladies room with his girlfriend she sprayed herself with Fidji, she said that my former french boyfriend had gave it to her. I felt a inner glow and never ever mentioned it was my former perfume.
I first bought this when I was 23 in a set with body lotion. I loved its subtle exotic floral scent. Now when I smell it I remember how it felt on my fresh young skin. As someone else said, it is a young woman's scent.
This is one of my mom's favorite fragrances. She really loves it.
I mostly feel the iris note and the sandalwood note in this fragrance. The iris note is really good here. Smells delicate and nice. But actually I think that the noticeable sandalwood note spoils the floral notes beauty a little bit in this fragrance and makes it smelling vintage enough.
Anyway, it's worthy. It smells really elegant.
This is my signature scent and it's been in my collection most of the time for the last 15-20 years. I think it's suitable for young girls and women in their thirties.
Naina, I have the EDT as it seems to be easier to get at the moment and it still lasts all day on me. Also, unlike a lot of perfumes, you can wear it all year round.
I haven't found a floral quite like it although I would like to try Alfred Sung as it might be similar.
A winner for me :o)
Can somebody tell me the smelling difference between EdT and Perfum? I know, perfum is much higher concentrated and lasts longer, but is there another difference to a EdT??? Does it smell more exotically, or cheap???
Best regards! (Excuse me for my English!)
Adoro este perfume. Não encontro no comércio local. E, há alguns anos estive na Argentina e uma vendedora disse que não produziam mais o Fidji fiquei muito triste. Estou louca para usá-lo novamente. Ele é simplesmente marvilhoso. E uma curiosidade: minha mãe não era muito fácil de agradar com perfumes, mas o Fidji a conquistou também.
This is a energizing and complex floral. At the first moment of application I thought, "Oh, what a great pick-me-up scent!" It's a great sunny and vibrant scent, and flowers seem to burst from the scent. It's truly amazing. It's so natural and bright, and I wonder if this is what the wildflowers, sands, and breezes of the Fiji Islands really smell like! Wearing the scent I can imagine crystal blue waters all around me, and tall palms gently rustling from a Pacific Ocean breeze. The drydown is just gorgeous, well rounded, full of all the top and middle notes and with the earthy, spicy and resinous notes coming forth.
I do like bitter and sharp perfumes, and, well, Fidji is bitter and sharp, at moments- but moreover Fidji is very crisp, fresh, in a lovely way This sour note is vinegary, distinct, unrelenting! I can actually taste it. I also recently tested Alfred Sung Sung, and it too had a similar sour note, with the same frustrating effects. I was with high hopes for Fidji and Sung to be the perfect florals, but, this ugly tone in both of them is really bothering me. Perhaps the sour note is only developed by my own skin chemistry, as no previous reviewers mentioned it. On that note, I also find the scent slightly similiar to MaGriffe by Carven. Overall, I really enjoyed the scent,(minus that one detail!) it's gorgeous!
I absolutely adore this perfume. I was introduced to it when I was 21 and am now 50, but it is still my favourite after all these years, even though I have tried others along the way, just as we all do. I would say it is my signature and interestingly enough I wore it just recently to my brothers 25th wedding anniversary party where I was inundated with enquiries from both the men and the women as to what perfume I was wearing.For me it really is a timeless classic and will always be the perfume my children will remember me by.
it was my mom's favourite fragrance:) extraordinary, tropical, exotic and very unique.
I love Fidji, I wore it long ago and now I have another 30ml bottle. On my skin is silky, even floral oriental. Lasts long enough, but it bothers me that Iris was quite noticeable. The fragrance is nice and somewhat romantic. Very soft and feminine, almost airy and a bit dreamy, but still noticeable.
Used to be popular, but now seems to be rare.
Fidji does still come in the EDP concentration, but it's only available in France. The parfum can occasionally be bought in the US at perfume shops and online. If you know someone going to Paris ask them to bring you some back.
Lovely scent! It now comes only in EdT which is very bland, still nice, but it lacks depth. I used to smell Fidji many years ago as it was my mum's signature scent. I was enchanted. It smelt divine on her. It smells worse on my skin, but what is important in Fidji is its intrinsic beauty and elegance, the virtue of being light, elegant and sexy at the same time. Very feminine with a very light sparkle quality, it boosts an aura of tropical smell. No coconut, no suntan lotion, only a light floral breeze among woody branches. A winner!
Very pretty! It's truly a tropical floral scent, but not at all sweet like the more recent tropical scents from Comptoir Sud Pacifique or the Michael Kors line. Fidji's version of "tropical" is beautiful white flowers tempered with tart citrus and an earthy/woodsy dry-down.
It strikes me as a scent that's perfect for just about any age and any occasion.
I only wish the EDT lasted a bit longer. I get just a few hours out of it. Looks like it might be tough to find in a higher concentration, though.
I absolutely love this one, too bad I am right out. No where in town can I find this one. I might have to order it on line. It is the most feminine and fresh fragrance out there. It is in line with L'air de temps, but not that powdery. It agrees better with me.It is a soft floral green which really does make you think of the island of Fidji. Some place they compared it to Sung! I have to tell you it is nothing like Sung. Much much lighter and way more beautiful. Sung is actually a bit heavy and sticky compare to Fidji. Fidji is L'air de temps without the powder and carnation.
This wonderfully balanced melange of flowers on a bed of sweet greenery virtually flies out of the bottle and onto the skin, then dries to a smooth, powdered-floral sheen. I have loved and worn this scent since I was a girl, and it captivates me now, some thirty years later, just as it did then. In a word, marvelous.
This was one of my perfumes bought for me when I was 16. I think it is lovely and reminds of of hot sunny days in the English countryside. I really does take me back to my teens.
Fidji is the essence of beauty captured in a bottle. My all time favorite. This scent has it all. Clean, fresh, sexy. Timeless classic.
Interestingly enough, it was my first fragrance, too! And that was in Bulgaria, Europe in 1989. I remember the purity of the initial impression and the sweet musky aftertones. Years later, I have dreamed of looking for it and not being able to find it - a serious nightmare ... Love Fidji and want to buy it again very soon! One fragrance you will never forget, even after 15-20 years! Fidji is truly enchanting!
This was my first parfum I purchased,I loved it so much and I'm thinking of getting it again because it's a magical clean and perfect scent!
It used to be the perfume I wore at my high school days. I recently repurchased it to realize I still like it as much as I did back then. It's a real classic, smells refined and very stylish.
It was my mother's summer fragrance for many years, and I loved it so much!
Unfortunately on me it's not so interesting like the effect on her skin.
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