Chanel 1932 Perfume Review

Chanel is one perfume house, along with Dior, that can take me from zero to furious over a new release as easily as they can enchant me.  Chanel 1932 has charmed me.  I will try to avoid being a little Bittercup  frothing with annoyance about Chanel Coco Noir while I get all giddy about Chanel 1932, but it may seep through.

What I’ve decided is Chanel doesn’t do dark.  Chanel Coco was the closest they got, and nothing they’ve gone dark with since then has really been anything approaching even shadowy. Pretty? Chanel does pretty – or can do it – so effortlessly. I tried to find the Chanel bag that I thought best represented Chanel 1932, but I fell down the Chanel Bag Hole and was lucky to get out with my wallet intact.  

chanel 1932 - yellow purse

 Costs More than Chanel 1932 by, um, a LOT

Now all I can think about is this damn yellow bag that I saw in one of the fashion magazines in the last 30 days and had almost managed to put it out of my mind until i saw this picture.  This is close to this perfume –  bottled beautiful sunshine is what Chanel 1932 represents – it sparkles like the light glinting off the lake. Made to commemorate the diamond jewelry collection Chanel introduced in 1932, this has brilliance, but not the cold sparklies of diamonds. It’s the warm rays of the sun. Notes of aldehydes, bergamot, neroli, jasmine, rose, lilac, carnation, ylang-ylang, vetiver, sandalwood, opoponax, orris root, coumarin, ambrette, musk, incense, vanilla and iralia make up the perfume.  It’s a sum of its parts.  No one note really stands out, it’s blended beautifully.  

Does Chanel need another lovely perfume?  I’ve thought about this a lot.  Chanel doesn’t do dark, and it seems to not do daring so much anymore, so I’d rather they put out lovely like 1932 than mindless vague okay scents like Coco Noir.

So I’m happy about this scent because it makes me feel really pretty when I wear it, like my most feminine nightie and robe. Not my sexiest, just the prettiest.  Angela also reviews it on Now Smell This.  

Some of you find out for yourself. Drop a comment to be entered to win a sample. I’ll give away 5 of them.  If you already have tried this, just put DEM in your comment for Don’t Enter Me, but let us know what you thought about it..  I can’t imagine this will be appealing for the leather folks or those feeling like one or two pretty perfumes are enough.

  • I am always up for trying anything new. My usual Chanel standby is Coco so it would be interesting to see if they put out another winner. Thanks for the opportunity to possibly win a sample! -Tanya Pinkerton

  • Wendy says:

    I would really love to try this. I haven’t been a huge fan of Chanel perfumes, but this one has promise for me, I think!!!

  • sunnlitt says:

    I would love to try this–Pretty is not to be underestimated!
    Thanks for your lovely blog and giveaway.

  • Suzy Q says:

    After a winter of comfort scents I am so ready for something just plain pretty.

  • Kandice says:

    My favorite Chanel so far has been Coco, but I’m really longing for a light, pretty fragrance these days. Maybe this would fit the bill. I’d love a chance to sample it – thanks for the opportunity!

  • Lisa S. says:

    I haven’t been a Chanel fan, but I’d love to try this to see if I could become one! And the purse is just goa-jus.

  • Monica K. says:

    I seriously giggled while reading this review. Gorgeous purse…. I can completely empathize! I would love to win a sample of 1932. It sounds beautiful and has so many notes that I love. Thanks for doing the samples!

  • Missyl says:

    I finally realized wear able and pretty are great attributes in a perfume. You know I think it was the best thing that’s ever happened to me ‘perfume-wise’! It has helped me appreciate Chanel Eau Premiere and Stella. They wont ever get this in our area ..I’d love to try this pretty perfume! Thanks for the draw.

  • Dina C. says:

    I went over to my local Chanel boutique yesterday (the 5th) and sniffed 1932. I asked for and received a carded sample of it (wow! that never works usually!) and today I’m wearing it. I can see the resemblance to 28 La Pausa. It has a bit of that ethereal iris in there. But it seems much more complicated and complex. I can smell the ambrette, I think, and hints of many of the other notes, too. As you noted, it’s very well blended so nothing really sticks out. It’s just over all pretty and calm. I think it’s a winner. 🙂

  • Sharon says:

    1932 sounds tempting. For anyone who has tried it, how does it compare to 31 Rue Cambon, another very pretty Chanel? I’m thinking more sparkle, no powder?

  • Beth says:

    I’ve been reading about this on Basenotes from some users who adore it, and I’ve been curious to try it. Add to that your description of bottled sunshine and now I really want to sniff it.

    It’s interesting to me that some houses do one concept really well and are not great at others. I was just reading a thread on JHAG this morning and they seem the opposite. All dark, no sparkling pretty pretty sunshine.

    Thanks for the draw!

  • Elena says:

    I think I’m going to love this. There’s hardly a Chanel that I don’t at least like or appreciate (Coco Noir being the glaring exception), and I looooove anything with a bit of leather. I wonder if they’ll have it near me soon?

  • Sue H. says:

    Love that “light glinting off a lake” line, Patty. I love sparkly Chanel scents like No 22 and Eau Premiere and would love to win a sample. Thanks for the review and giveaway!

  • Amelia says:

    Dying to sniff this. Chanel perfumes make me feel classy and grown up!

  • Joan says:

    Bottled sunshine? This sounds great!

    That bag sure is tempting.

  • I am a total perfume newbie, I’m trying to get educated, and need all the help I can get. I’d love to smell it, and there’s nowhere near me that has Chanel anything. Just found your blog tonight, I see some great reading in my near future!

    • Ann says:

      Welcome to the Posse, Sonya! So glad you found us and happy you’re here; looking forward to seeing you here often. BTW, even if you don’t win a sample via this giveaway, you can always ask for one in the Posse’s Fairy Godmother post that goes up around the first of each month. I’m sure some kind Posse reader can help you out. Perfumistas are a wonderfully generous bunch!

  • Caragh says:

    I’ love to try it! I love Coromandel and I’m saving my pennies for Sycomore. I think I could use something a bit brighter now that Spring is around the corner.

  • FearsMice says:

    I could use a good dose of pretty right now! I’m longing for Spring and sunshine… Thanks for the draw.

  • Farouche says:

    DEM as I have a lovely large decant from STC 🙂 Does this fragrance challenge you? No. Is it long lasting with impressive sillage? No. Still, I have a feeling that my decant will be drained before long and I will be moving into FB territory. So happy to read a positive review of this pretty and very wearable fragrance.

  • kizzers says:

    Annnnnd……another lemming is born! Both 1932 and that bag. It’s Mother’s Day in the UK this Sunday, so that’s a good excuse to go sniffashoppin’ at the Exclusifs counter in Glasgow.

  • May says:

    Is there a Channel for me? I’ve been exploring Chanel’s fragrances and I’ll admit the aldehydes threw me initially but I’m getting into them big time. I’ve been keenly waiting for the release of 1932. The profile sounds like exactly my thing, beautifully feminine and memorable. I could afford the fragrance but not the matching bag! 😀

  • Barbara says:

    The only Chanel I have ever had a full bottle of is Coco. So disappointed by Noir. Would like to sample this.

  • Kelsey A says:

    I don’t have very many pretty scents and would love to try this!

  • Tiara says:

    As I get older, I’m leaning more and more towards pretty. Sadly, Grand Bal never made it to a store here but I’m hoping to catch up with 1932. I just can’t imagine having too many pretty perfumes!

  • wefadetogray says:

    I would love to try 1932 for sure. I like pretty perfumes as much as I like dark ones and a bottled yellow ray of sun sounds like a dream when it is so darn cold outside!

  • Gwenyth says:

    I’m one of the handful of folks who happens to adore Coco Noir. It must be that old mysterious skin chemistry thing, but Coco Noir wears well on me. [shrugs] I’m happy about it. 🙂

    I happen to love everything Chanel. There is not one of their perfumes I don’t at least like. I’m happy about that, too.

    I would love an opportunity to test Chanel 1932 so please enter me in the draw, Thanks very much.

  • susan says:

    Really want to try this as an aldehydes, jasmine, and pretty lover. 🙂 🙂 Thank you for the draw.

  • ElizabethC says:

    Would love to give this one a try! Huge fan of No. 22, Bois des Iles and Coromandel. Why not add another to the list 🙂

  • Dana says:

    Sure, who doesn’t like just feeling pretty sometimes? Please enter me in the draw.

  • Maureen says:

    I LOVE pretty! I like most of Chanel’s fragrances, out of the latest releases I liked #19 Poudre very much, very pretty…just wished it latest longer. Coco Noir I was just OK. Love Coco in winter, but for summer need something light and pretty. I am looking forward to sampling this.

  • eldarwen22 says:

    As soon as I read jasmine and aldehydes, I was done for. I love jasmine and aldehydes and don’t recall smelling them together in the same perfume.

    • Musette says:

      Sure you have! Chanel No 5. Practically invented the genre. Which reminds me – I have a gorgeous No5 extrait. Gonna wear it tonight! xoA

      • eldarwen22 says:

        Good to know. I normally don’t really pay attention to notes ‘Cause there are a few notes (citrus) and I have somewhat of a dislike of citrus after a bout of the stomach flu.

  • Janice says:

    DEM. I was surprised by how much I liked this. As you say, it’s really pretty. I like the sparkly aldehydes. It’s not something I’m likely to want a FB of—I prefer dark, or daring, or both—but it just felt like it was extremely well put together and… well, pretty.

  • solanace says:

    The notes sound lovely. Thank’s for the draw, Patty!

    • solanace says:

      I just received my decant of Amouage Beloved man. I’m so thrilled i can barely type. Excuse me, I gotta jump.
      THANK’S PATTY!!!!

  • Musette says:

    DEM, obviously! Just wanted to hop in here and say how much I LOVED 1932 – but not nearly as much as I love that bag and that little planet brooch! Ooooh, to be rich. RICH, I say. RICH! (cough! ack! okay. much better now).

    More than anything, 1932 reminds me of a glammed-up Eau de Cologne. Which is just as loverly!

    xoxoA

    • Ann says:

      Hi, dear! My thoughts exactly! A little more dressy, a little more pretty than their EdC. I don’t go much for yellow, but I would love that bag in black, beige or navy. Would love to be rich, too …

  • tammy says:

    DEM, thanks anyway! I thought this was kind of boring, and just the same ol’ same ol’ from them.. I think Chanel just Isn’t My Thing. The iris tends to go sour one me and I am always wondering where the bottom notes are. (I feel the same way about several famous French houses. I tend to prefer heavy scents)

    I do adore 19 (and have a FB). I like Coco, and I DID get the fuss about 28 La Pausa, but it lasted literally seconds on me, so I didn’t bother with even a decant.

  • fleurdelys says:

    1932 has gotten a lot better feedback than Jersey! I’d love to try some, please enter me in the drawing.

  • Kathryn says:

    The yellow of that handbag is totally appealing on this gray day. I’d love to try something that smells like that.

  • malsnano86 says:

    DEM. I am a total sucker for pretty florals, and this is just so so SO pretty. Wears a little too close to the skin, though that might not be an issue once it heats up around here in the summer. The longevity was fairly good for me, considering that I’ve got scent-eating skin: 4 hours. It’s a beautiful falling-in-love fragrance – you know, everything around you looks and smells and sounds gorgeous because you’re happy when you’re falling in love? Like that.

  • AnnieA says:

    Chanel does Pretty AND Pretty Expensive quite well…

  • FeralJasmine says:

    I’d love to try this. As spring gets closer and the buds on my fruit trees are just starting to swell, I’m getting obsessed with “sunshine scents.” Can’t get enough light, sparkle, and warmth in my perfumes right now.

  • aimtx says:

    I could use some pretty right now, in a big way. The bag doesn’t appeal to me (I really never have gotten the appeal behind the 2.55 OR those infernal jackets), but the description sure does.

  • kathleen says:

    They did do dark. They did Bois Noir, which was outstanding, so they dc’d it. Bois des Iles extract is darkish. I woul love to try 1932, thanks.

  • CC ... says:

    It really does sound pretty and I would love to be able to try it. The bag is beautiful, too…very Spring!

  • Ann says:

    Hi, Patty. I am really enjoying the 1932! It reminds me a bit, in feel, of the Chanel Eau de Cologne, except a bit sweeter and more feminine. And hold the bus on that bag — sooo cute! I adore the Chanel wallets on a chain and I think this might be like a mini-me version of that. Alas, my bag-buying days are over. And even if I had the big bucks to get it, I’m too hard on a purse and can’t do their lovely lambskin — would have to stick to their durable caviar. DEM, of course, but thanks for the lovely and generous draw!

  • MadVito says:

    Chanel 1932 is on my wish list. Would love a chance to try it out!

  • Keri says:

    I can never decide if I prefer “pretty” or “dark” – it depends on my mood! I’d like to try this one out though.

  • GvilleCreative says:

    DEM … I like it, but I don’t love it. That said, I like-but-don’t-love Beige but still managed to empty my decant of it, and it’s the only decant I think I’ve ever finished. Both have that Grace Kelly kind of prettiness (she was pretty, but she didn’t really stand out to me. Her prettiness seemed to be based on a balance of proportions, and I always forget exactly what she looks like).

    I agree about that sparkling lovely opening. And throughout the day, after I think 1932 has disappeared, I’ll get a lovely whiff when I move and realize that the smell IS ME! It’s really quite pretty. Although in my mind, it’s a very pale pink color.

  • Spiker says:

    “bottled beautiful sunshine”? You practically had me ordering a FB with that line. Practicality demands a sample or decant, but it sounds absolutely lovely. Who couldnt use a little more pretty in their life?

  • DEM Patty please but I love the little baggie.
    BUT I have a story about a CHANEL bag. Just saying.
    Portia xx

  • Connie says:

    I would love to try it, I’m a big Chanel fan- Bois des Iles, No. 22, No.5 EDT and Eau Premiere, No.22, the list goes on and on. 🙂
    And that bag is temptation itself, isn’t it?

  • Sherri says:

    DEM I thought it was very pretty–in that cool, elegant Chanel way of course. It reminds me of MFK Cologne with more florals. Contrary to several reviews I’ve read, I think it represents the brand well as a Spring and Summer fragrance. I wish I could wear this one. Unfortunately it does have a huge dose of the aldehydes/chemical whatever that make me not able to enjoy it fully. :[ It will smell beautiful on lots of you, though!

    • Patty says:

      I agree with you. I think Chanel does Pretty, and they do it well. This is definitely one that fits their esthetic perfectly.

  • Dusan says:

    Ooooh, I’d love to try this one! Please put my name in the hat 🙂

  • alityke says:

    Chanel? Pretty? Aldehydes? Count me in please

  • Katherine says:

    I would love to try this one, I absolutely adore jasmine!

  • septimus says:

    this perfume sounds delightful! i’m always a sucker for easy, pretty scents. I’d love to try this.

  • Katrin says:

    I’d love to enter the draw, this perfume sounds lovely!

  • Cristine says:

    I’d love to try this. It certainly sounds like something I’d like! My fingers are crossed for my name to be drawn….

  • rosarita says:

    I am dying to try this! Definitely in the market for a pretty perfume for spring. Thanks, Patti. I’d tell you to go for the yellow Chanel bag but it looks so…small. Dainty. For that kind of money I want a gorgeous workhorse.

    • Patty says:

      It is small! But I like having small sometimes. I have a lot of big, heavy bags, and I tend to overfill them. The smaller ones, I just can’t overfill!

  • Ninara Poll says:

    Sometimes pretty and wearable is just what’s needed 🙂 I have to sniff Coco Noir now… I’m just too curious about just how bad it is! Maybe my pathetic local Belk finally has it in….

    NP

    • Patty says:

      You know, it’s not that Coco Noir is bad, it’s just so not remarkable and pointless. Chanel has done flankers pretty well, so I just kept thinking it would have something about it that stood out, and nothing did, it was just bland. Not awful smelling, just not something I remember, which is really the worst thing you can do in perfume for me. 🙂

  • Civet says:

    Sounds lovely! I’d really like to try it.

  • Leonel says:

    would die to try . 🙂 As Ivy and Karen sing in SMASH, “please choose me” 🙂

  • hajusuuri says:

    I’ve sniffed it, kind of still ambivalent about it and would like to try it again!

    • Patty says:

      I was ambivalent for a while on it, but that was just my own mishishness about Coco Noir. Once I discarded my disappointment with that, I really did like it for exactly what it is and really enjoy wearing it!

  • Claudia Strandstra says:

    would love to try- already have BdI. Cuir, and Coromandel.

  • Rina says:

    DEM- The nice SA at the boutique found 2 for me, and it’s a good thing. Really pretty. I can see wearing it in the Spring, on the days the inner Goth sleeps late and doesn’t get a say on the Frag of the Day…. 🙂

  • shaney says:

    Well, I’m excited to try it. They don’t do dark, do they? At least one of my faves, Coromandel, is at least very warm, if not dark!

  • Cat Schultz says:

    This sounds delish!! I’d love to try it!

  • E.Lime says:

    I’m dying for a sniff… I love me some Chanel Coco, but I could go for a Chanel that was less sexy, more sparkly for everyday wear.

    • Patty says:

      Everyone seems to feel different on whether it’s an everyday perfume. For me, it feels like just that. Others seem to note it’s for special occasions. I think how you fall on that spectrum i how much you skew to liking really pretty perfumes.

      • E.Lime says:

        Good point. I do tend to save the pretty ones for special occasions or pick-me-ups, but maybe it’s time to indulge more often. There’s no reason La Chasse should sit neglected…

  • Pklagrange says:

    DEM: I already have ordered my second sample! I agree completely with your review. It’s a lovely perfume that’s easy to wear. I’m trying not to buy a FB, but it smells so delightful. It lasts longer than La Pausa, but not as long as Coromandel. It reminds me of Dior’s Grand Bal – another beautiful blend for me – but 1932 is a more distinctive scent. Nice job, Chanel!

    • Patty says:

      yeah, Grand Bal is a good describption of something close to it in feel. They did redeem themselves with this.

  • Steve Tsotras says:

    sounds like something my mom would really enjoy, plus i think she’s jealous of all the samples i get, lol. definitely hope I can get her one right now

  • lorraine says:

    Sounds lovely! And sounds like its hard to pin down what it smells like. Is it similar to anything out there?

    • Patty says:

      In feel, it’s a little like Dior Grand Bal and even a little like the new FM Dries Van Noten, without the weirdness. That’s probably as close as I can come. it’s just really darn pretty!