Chanson de Vie by Coty

I remember it as the first ‘grown-up’ perfume I ever had. Someone, I can’t recall who, gave it to me for Christmas when I was 12, and I simply adored it. Its soft, citrusy and green aroma wrapped around me, giving me a sense of freshness that made me very happy. Today, looking at its notes—the yuzu and bergamot in the top and the musk in the base—I realise its influence on my nose was definitive, as those are the notes I like most now in the perfumes I choose and wear. Its scent comes to my memory as a summer afternoon, in a patio full of freshly watered plants, with some flowers and a young orange tree, brimming with life, patiently waiting for its blossoms to give way to juicy fruit in the next season. After the intense heat, a shower, a white dress with blue flowers, an almost cool breeze and a painted sky. That is Chanson de Vie in my olfactory memory.

What a shame there isn’t a single review of this perfume yet! My grandmother gave one to each of us three sisters. I received Chanson d’Emotions Calme de la Mer, my identical twin got Pure Innocence, and my older sister got this one, Chanson de Vie. I was absolutely in love with my little bottle; I adored that unisex touch and used the whole thing up that year. But what a joy it was to smell on my sister! I was about 11 or 12, the launch year being 1999/2000, and my sister was just starting secondary school. So, she smelled like my big sister, like a young lady preparing to ‘make her life’ and meet friends outside school, subtly put-together and cheerful. I loved it. It’s etched deeply in my memory. Now that I’m reading the notes, it’s amusing because many are my favourites (yuzu, green apple, lily of the valley, freesia, and let’s not forget the musk). I remember it tactilely as soft, soapy yet not nose-creasing, very luminous with just the right amount of sweetness to balance the citrus. I never wore it again, of course; it’s not easy to find these Coty scents in Argentina. But one day I came across Biogreen, a national company that makes eco-friendly air fresheners (no aerosols), and their ginger, lemon and rose scent. I don’t think it’s exactly the same, but it instantly brought it back to mind—it’s so close! And it’s so lovely! I buy it again and again whenever we run out for the bedroom…