The Comeback of J. Grossmith Son & Co Perfumes {Fragrance News}
A 19th century British perfume brand that few remember today, Grossmith, has been re-established by a descendant, Simon Brooke, with the help of perfume expert Roja Dove.
J. Grossmith Son & Co which has had slightly differing company names since 1835 the year of its original establishment was a contemporary of familiar-sounding fragrance brands to the contemporary ear like Eugene Rimmel, Yardley, Jean-Marie Farina or more obscure ones like George Payne from the Isle of Wright and T. W. Fisher & Co.
One of their bestsellers seems to have been Shem-El-Nessim the Scent of Araby. When looking at advertisements for Grossmith perfumes, one cannot but be struck by how they carried the prejudices of its time offering some of the most colonialist imagery I have seen, and certainly as appearing behind the name of a fragrance.
For Wana-Ranee the Perfume of Ceylon and in 1918 it won't do if the perfume is not presented as a quasi devotional offering by a deferential Indian woman who is either on her knees or hunched and extending her arms from afar (in terms of social distance hinted at by her gesture) towards a group of Blond, European maharanis as if all English women ought to be ideally blond as cherubs. It is unsettling to the modern eye and we see that Grossmith was a great supporter of the British imperial crown...
C'est La Vie by Christian Lacroix Faulted for First Difficulties
An article in the Wall Street Journal takes a gloomy look at the spiraling down of the Christian Lacroix brand. Despite the known qualities of the vision of the couturier, the problem has always remained that unlike Christian Dior who consciously defined haute couture as part art, part commercialism, Lacroix stuck too much to an artistic conception of high fashion. That and other reasons.
What the article stresses is that the launch of C'est La Vie in 1988 which was a flop marked the beginning of the end for the couturier. It is hard to judge the importance of that factor. What we learn is that Lacroix did not have his way with the design of the bottle and found it "disgusting". Apparently he is still sensitive to the trashing he got in the press because of that bottle design. It seems a bit blown out of proportion but it is true that the Lacroix perfumes never succeeded in being as cool as the Yves Saint Laurent ones, say, also a newcomer to the world of fashion who was luckier in that he got the unwavering support of business man and life partner Pierre Bergé. As for C'est La Vie, I just remember how, without thinking of a human heart and finding the bottle "disgusting", I felt uninspired by the color of the brown glass which looked a lot like that of cheap glassware favored by retirees with staid tastes...
Les Fleurs du Guildo & Jicky by Guerlain: An Early, 19th Century Precursor of Marine Scents & a Reexamination of Jicky's Gender & Fresh Factor {Perfume History & Facts} {Scented Thoughts}
So called marine scents have known an explosion of interest that came from the top in the 1990s, with the use of molecules such as Helional and especially Calone (discovered in 1966 by Pfizer), but that does not mean that in previous eras the motif of the sea was completely left outside of the history of perfumery. Even before Calone came into existence - pardon me for being so didactic - people had noses, enjoyed promenades by the sea or breathing the salubrious coastal air and if a perfumer happened to be amongst that crowd of strollers or dreamers, then an impression for a perfume might be born.
Common sense can make us see retrospectively that it would be exaggerated a view to think that perfumes have not incorporated the experience of the sea side in one way or other and that perfumers never contributed this experience to perfumery. In fact, going further, one could point out that the famous oakmoss found in the island of Chypre is a very early reference to the aromatic palette that can be experienced by the sea, if for nothing else than sensations of dried heat and salty vegetal nuances.
One case in point of an early, 19th century seaside motif is that of Les Fleurs du Guildo by Guerlain, which is a fascinating example of an early, avowed attempt at capturing the quality of the olfactory atmosphere in the region of Brittany, and in particular in the specific context of its moors expanding around the ruins of the castle of Le Guildo, as it was advertised at the time. Just by choosing this locale alone, Guerlain is telling us something about an interest for an earth-and-sea contrast. As its name indicate, this perfume wanted to distill the scent of flowers growing on the coast, the Côte d'Armor here....
Ancestors of Betsey Johnson EDP Bottle {Perfume History & Facts}
Spotted a genealogical link between a set of three perfume bottles from the 1950s and the distinctive Betsey Johnson EDP issued in 2006. The Betsey Johnson stopper is not 100% identical but very much inspired by their forerunners similarly made out of bright plastic. The glass flacon is also a copy with a twist.
I think we have found the lost grand-mothers of the more recent Betsey Johnson Eau de Parfum. The 50s bottles do not seem to come from a famous brand. They must thus for this reason as well be reproductions of more ancient flacons as one would doubt that they would have had the resources to do original research and design.
My guess is that they are cheap but cute imitations of Art Deco Czech perfume flacons.
Video from the Research Institute for Fragrance Materials (RIFM): What People Are Saying About Fragrance {Perfume History & Facts}
Here is a video from the Research Institute on Fragrance Materials (RIFM) on popular perceptions of fragrances and fragrance safety. Everyman answers questions on the curbs of New York City in June 2008. A few humorous moments such as: who knew perfumers used "yak pee" in their perfumes? Now, that's an idea...Or the guy who wouldn't be happy about lack of fragrance in products... because his wife wouldn't be happy about it "and that's not a pretty thing" verifying on the spot the cliched notion that men's thinking about perfume is primarily mediated by their relationships to the fair sex.
Odore Di Femmina by Johan Creten {Perfume History & Facts}
Odore di Femmina by Johan Creten
This is a picture of a female torso in ceramic called Odore di Femmina created by Johan Creten while he was artist in residence at the Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres. It was meant to be an illustration of the perfume by the same name created by perfumer Françoise Caron for the 2007 exhibition Essences Insensées...
I Profumi Di Firenze Essendo (2006): Another Homage (A Lost One) to Patrick Suskind {Perfume History & Facts}
When the movie Perfume came out in 2006 (see our movie review), one knew that Thierry Mugler had been concocting an ambitious project, that of translating Patrick Süskind's narrative into real perfumes created by perfumers Christophe Laudamiel and Christophe Hornetz. The Mugler coffret, with its 15 scents (see also First Impressions on the Thierry Mugler Coffret), was the talk of the town towards the end of 2006 (and I have yet to review it fully although I will eventually get there, if only to recapture that highly exciting period of discovery)...
Guerlain Vague Souvenir (1912) & Rochas Femme (1943-1945): A Note on Perfume History
The dominant interpretation, that I am aware of, regarding the origins of the celebrated Femme by Rochas composed by perfumer Edmond Roudnitska (1905-1996) has been one reported by Michael Edwards in Perfume Legends (1996). Last summer, I came across the summary of a very interesting conversation that took place over a business luncheon one day between Stanley Marcus of Neiman Marcus and Armand Petitjean, the founder of Lancôme. The latter drew a panorama of French perfumery for his colleague and at the same time interjected some precise footnotes toward his interlocutor's understanding of certain perfumes. The conversation is condensed into a 2-page summary in Marcus's well-written account of his single-minded obsession for the search of quality goods entitled Quest for the Best.
What immediately caught my attention was the mention of a link that I have not seen mentioned elsewhere between a Guerlain perfume called Vague Souvenir (1912) and the much more enduring one Femme de Rochas (1944), still in production today under its officially reformulated form by Olivier Cresp in 1989. What is even more interesting is that both accounts put central emphasis on the fruity aspect of Femme and Vague Souvenir, based on a plummy methyl-ionone and peachy aldehyde C-14 for Femme. The first one is showcased in the story told by Edmond Roudnistka to Michael Edwards. In Perfume Legends, this reportedly "unusual methyl-ionone" was found by Roudnitska in the factory in which he worked at the time. He wanted to compose a perfume for himself, it was the war and the perfumer was in the habit at that time of exploring whatever left-over materials he could find within the premises. He happened in this manner on a drum that contained a product with a very peculiar aroma reminiscent to him of candied plum...
Bespoke Fragrances by Francis Kurkdjian & A Historical Artifact: La Malle du Parfumeur {Perfume History & Facts}
Perfumer Francis Kurkdjian is well-known to fragrance aficionados worldwide for his work that encompasses both mainstream and niche perfumery. He is the author, among other things, of Jean Paul Gaultier Classique, Fragile, Le Mâle, Narciso Rodriguez for Her, Narciso Rodriguez for Him, Fleur du Mâle, Guerlain Rose Barbare, Ferragamo F, Ungaro U, Indult perfumes, M.A. Sillage de la Reine and more. He won the prestigious François Coty prize in 2001. He also owns a private company of bespoke perfumes about which you can find more details on www.franciskurkdjian.com
We are pleased to bring you some information, a glimpse into the perfumer's world, by showing the custom-made briefcase Kurkdjian carries along with him when he visits his customers to create a unique perfume for them.......
Andy Warhol Perfumes Before Bond No.9 {Perfume History & Facts}
Silver Coke Bottles, Andy Warhol, 1967
Joan Kron, contributing editor at large for Allure, wrote to WWD to inform readers that she was the first person to produce an Andy Warhol scent together with the artist in 1967.
You can also still spot some Andy Warhol fragrances that were released in the 1990s, bottled with his art on them (see pic after the jump). According to her testimonial,
"I personally produced the first Andy Warhol fragrance with Andy himself for a Pop Art Store called "The Museum of Merchandise," held by the Arts Council of the YMHA in Philadelphia (now the Gershman Y). The show opened on May 10, 1967. At the time I was the chairman of the Arts Council and a creative director (along with Audrey Sabol) of the Museum of Merchandise, which featured useful objects designed by artists......
Diagram: The Costs of Launching A New Perfume {Perfume History & Facts} {Scented Image}
On March 14 2006, the Committee on Competition condemned 13 fragrance and luxury brands (Chanel, Dior, Guerlain, L'Oréal, Yves Saint Laurent etc.) and three national distributors (Marionnaud, Sephora, and Nocibé) to an indemnity of 46, 2 millions of Euros for having agreed between 1997 and 2000 on recommended minimum retail prices in order to protect their luxury image. Smaller distributors were apparently forced to comply too. Both the commercial code and European legislation prohibit this type of practice. The magazine Challenges published a diagram that shows the average costs of launching a 100 ml eau de toilette in the mainstream market.......
Royal Bain de Caron by Caron {Perfume Review & Musings} {Perfume History & Facts}
The Historical Background
The story that is told regarding the creation of this seemingly eccentric perfume is that of a Californian millionaire who ordered it so that it would be used as a substitute for the real champagne that he liked to pour in his bath. The custom-order for the boozy champagne perfume was motivated by the strictures imposed by the Prohibition (1920-1933) but seems also to have been well in tune with the spirit of excess of the Roaring Twenties. So, if you would like to relive a Fitzgeraldean moment, pour some in your bath! One source mentions that William Randolph Hearst is the millionaire in question and that it was meant to be used by "his wife"whatever that might mean concretely (Millicent Hearst or Marion Davies?).
I said "seemingly eccentric" because apart from the fact that there was a pragmatic motivation for the creation of the perfume, the association of perfume and champagne was seen as a fairly logical one by perfumers as both offer an image of bottled luxury, exhibit similar colors, smell or can smell fizzy, and are festive gifts. Guerlain designed the bottles of L'Heure Bleue and Mitsouko for example with a cap whose shape is inspired by a champagne cork to reinforce the unconscious associations. Yves Saint Laurent did the same for Champagne/Yvresse. More recently, Mona di Orio has picked again on this tradition by designing her bottle tops with an explicit wired champagne cork design. Félicie Wanpouille who designed the Caron perfume bottle is the one who took the analogy to its maximum conclusion ....
A Comment by Will Andrews On TSS About Rock 'N Rose By Valentino, Some Thoughts on Authorship in Perfumery {Perfume History & Facts} {Scented Thoughts}
We got an interesting comment by perfumer William Andrews regarding Rock 'N Rose by Valentino. He turns out to be one of the creators of the fragrance and not its sole conceiver. In this case also we had initially quoted our information from Cosmetic News. Here is the correction that he added:
Greeting Card Perfumed With M.A. Sillage de la Reine {Scented Image} {Perfume History & Facts}
I just wanted to share with you the image of the greeting card that was sent to the employees of the Château de Versailles to express good wishes for 2007. It was perfumed by Quest International with M.A. Sillage de la Reine. It is a very large card folded in the middle. The base notes like sandalwood and musk were not surprisingly, particularly apparent.
Xpose by Christina Aguilera {Perfume History & Facts} {Celebrity perfumes}
After announcing that Christina Aguilera was preparing to launch her signature fragrance, I realized that she had already participated in a fragrance creation previously. Her perfume, Xpose, was launched in 2004 and exclusively distributed in the European market.
Interestingly enough, this fact was not mentioned in the recent press releases.
A Comment by Azzi Glasser on TSS Regarding The Creation of Maîtresse by Agent Provocateur {Perfume History & Facts}
Perfume designer Azzi Glasser recently left a comment on The Scented Salamander regarding details of the creation process of Maîtresse by Agent Provocateur. I wanted to call your attention to it. Her note is a response to a previous comment, also left on TSS, by nose Christian Provenzano which we already posted about. Christian Provenzano explained that he was the author of Agent Provocateur Maîtresse, not Azzi Glasser as reported by Cosmetic News and Cosmetics International, and Azzi Glasser the Marketing Director for the fragrance....
Christian Provenzano Is The Author of Maîtresse by Agent Povocateur {Perfume History & Facts}
We are writing this post to clarify the authorship of Maîtresse by Agent Provocateur. Christian Provenzano is the one and only author of the perfume.
We're very glad that perfumer Christian Provenzano took the time to let us know that contrary to the information we quoted directly from both Cosmetic News and Cosmetics International and which we therefore reproduced at two different times on the blog, Maîtresse by Agent Provocateur is solely his creation. Azzi Glasser is actually the marketing director for the fragrance, not the nose behind it.
Scented Thoughts: Patriotic (American) Perfumes to Wear on the 4th of July, Some Modest Suggestions
Patriotism on holidays which celebrate national independence is expressed through many semiotic activities and foci of symbolic activities worldwide. In America, manifestations of patriotism vary from region to region of the American motherland (or is it a fatherland we should be speaking of?) -- in Boston for example, people feel Bostonian by going to listen to the Boston Pops -- but we can rest assured of two things: there will be national barbeque-partying and fireworks illuminating the many corners of the sky all over the 50 United States tomorrow.
From an olfactory standpoint, we can muse on and say that the 4th of July smells in the base notes of gourmand smoky burgers, burning hot coal, gunpowder, tangy, sweet and sticky tomato ketchup, rich boozy beer and maybe sweet cotton candy and apple pie with spicy cinnamon and let's not forget, musky sweat. In the heart notes there are green grass, tangy-green citronnella, soft wheat, aqueous cucumber, sweet corn, iceberg lettuce notes, and a dash of car interior and car polish. In the top notes you might find fresh mint, tart pink lemonade, coca-cola, frosted ice cubes, and light, cool, and fresh baby powder notes. This olfactory rêverie may smell hellish a priori to some but since each year the same note combinations reappear and people still throng the 4th of July events, you might have a formula of success here.
Napoleon once haughtily remarked, "Impossible n'est pas français" (something like, "the word 'impossible' is not to be found in the French language.") This seems to be the motto of many a perfumer today and since many of them are French you might get a phenomenon of double-whammy hubris due to the fact that they are French and due to the fact that they are perfumers.
In any case, since no one has yet dared to combine these multifarious aromas of the Fourth in a single bottle, let's turn to alternative, ready-made solutions to express patriotism and love of the motherland through perfumes. How shall we convey that patriotic message? It is often said that olfaction is the neglected sense and hence, in our case, a clearly neglected source of rich patriotic symbols. As of today, it is not consciously tapped into by the vast majority of the population to express patriotism alongside with wearing star spangled sartorial signs. So if you contemplate wearing something more celebratory of Americaness than just deodorant, please read on and see what my practical suggestions are.
Fragrant Reading: Book Review of A Scented Palace by Elisabeth de Feydeau: The Intertwined Destinies of Marie-Antoinette & Her Perfumer, Jean-Louis Fargeon
This is a review of the French edition of A Scented Palace by Elisabeth de Feydeau. In French it bears the title, Jean-Louis Fargeon, parfumeur de Marie-Antoinette (éditions Perrin & Le Château de Versailles, 2004, 230 pages). It was published in the collection "Les Métiers de Versailles" which showcases such little-known yet critical personalities as the gardener of Louis XV and the wet-nurse of Louis XV. The English edition will be available in the United States on June 22. It can be pre-ordered now on Amazon.
The book retraces the biographical intinerary of Jean-Louis Fargeon, the scion of a dynasty of perfumers, from the time of his birth until his final escape from the guillotine. Elisabeth de Feydeau follows his career and professional relationship with Marie-Antoinette and leaves him on the day of his release from a revolutionary prison on 27 July 1794 (9 Thermidor an II), the day that marked the end of the reign of Terror with the arrest of Robespierre. He dies twelve years later, in 1806, still a successful perfumer and a fragrance supplier, amongst others, of Joséphine de Bauharnais, the wife of Napoleon...
Fragrance News: Marie-Antoinette's Perfume To Be Released in June & July 2006
Following its success as well as repeated requests from the public, a recreation of Marie Antoinette's fragrance by perfumer Francis Kurkdjian from Quest International called M.A. Sillage de la Reine (Marie-Antoinette The Queen's Silage) will be more widely available in June and July 2006. It was first created in January 2005 and offered to a select group of people at a party at Versailles on the occasion of the publication of a book on the original 18th century author of the perfume. It was also sold to some patrons in 2005 but at a very high price, around $2500. This perfume was originally composed by one of the perfumers of Marie Antoinette (Houbigant was one of them) called Jean-Louis Fargeon. It was originally named Trianon.
Elisabeth de Feydeau, a French perfume historian, has written this book focusing on the details of the relationship developed between Marie-Antoinette and Jean-Louis Fargeon. Her book has recently been translated into English in Great-Britain under the title, A Scented Palace: The Secret History of Marie-Antoinette's Perfumer and is available here. It will also be available on Amazon, here in the US, starting June 22; you can place pre-orders now.
One day, Marie-Antoinette asked Fargeon to come meet her at Trianon and showing him around she requested from him a perfume that would capture the charm of her beloved retreat. Later, Fargeon was to see her just before she attempted to escape from France through Varenne. He tells us that on the day of his last visit to her and as a sort of premonitory sign of her impending demise, the queen seemed to smell more strongly and almost sickeningly so of the tuberose found in her perfume Trianon
Elisabeth de Feydeau says that the perfume unleashes unknown emotions in people, something qualitatively different from what you experience with contemporary perfumes.
Le Sillage de la Reine has been recreated using 18th century techniques and 100% natural essences. Its notes include orris, rose, jasmine, tuberose, orange blossom, cedar wood, sandalwood, Tonkin musc and ambergris. 10 prestige copies of it, bottled in Baccarat crystal bottles will be available in June; the price has not been divulged. In July, 1000 limited editions copies will be released in crystal bottles made at the crystal manufacturies of Portieux (founded by Marie-Antoinette's grand-father) and will be available for between 300-400 Euros for a bottle of 25 ml. You can reserve a bottle of M.A. Sillage de la Reine here. Proceeds will go towards the remodeling of parts of the palace that were historically linked with Marie-Antoinette.
Visitors to Versailles can currently smell the queen's perfume in Marie-Antoinette's bathroom through June 2006.
Photos are from the Château de Versailles and Osmoz.
This year, in April 2006, the Guerlain perfume house released an extremely limited edition of a new fragrance called "Muguet" (Lily of the Valley) created solely for the purpose of marking the celebration of the 1st of May 2006. It is a reinterpretation of the original "Muguet" by the same house which was introduced 100 years ago, in 1906. Only 190 bottles were released for just one day, on April 29, and were exclusively sold in the Guerlain stores in Paris. The price was 130 Euros for a 30 ml bottle. Muguet was composed by Jean-Paul Guerlain. The bottle was made in a Louis the XVI style.
Notes include lily of the valley, jasmin, Turkish rose, lemon, and sandalwood.
You can still be part of its history; a bottle is available on eBay for $299-350.
Perfume History & Facts: Fragrances Inspired by our Saliva, Tears, and Sweat.
Philippe Di Méo is a French designer, the founder of the RESO Multidesign agency and R'Aliment. In 2005, Di Méo undertook an innovative project in association with Quest International which aimed at creating three different perfumes based on three different excretions of the body. This line was called "(My) Liquid" in reference to those particular bodily fluids we excrete such as, in this case, sweat, tears, and saliva. These very intimate liquids were selected as they were viewed as being the most emotional of our bodily fluids. Philippe Di Méo has said that he had grown progressively tired of the tabooization of body odors and liquids that he felt one was subjected to in contemporary society and that he wanted to counteract that mainstream orientation with his creations. He is therefore inviting us to think differently about these physiological regulative events that are the natural expressions of human emotions and that we usually try to tone down or hide in public.
As stated by RESO, "(My) LIQUID, reveals an intense olfactory state, a biological juice related to an experienced emotion. Mixed with one's skin, it becomes a unique emulsion, a human and intimate perfume, of one's true nature." The three perfumes called Larmes, Salive, and Sueur were conceived as three different types of "water", each having a different emotional attribution. Tears represented "eye water" and constituted the perfume of Being Moved, saliva was "mouth water" and was the perfume of Lust, sweat was seen as the "body water" and constituted the perfume of Excitement.
The perfumers for Salive are Christel Bergoin and Jean-Pascal Osmont; the perfume was evaluated by Caroline Dulon. For Larmes the team was composed of Frédérique Lecoeur and Alexandra Kosinski and Karine Dupas evaluated the scent. Sueur was created by perfumers HeeSoon Oh and Sébastien Lienhart and evaluated by Bibiana Lim.
Notes for the Sweat perfume are, among others, cumin, spices, and smoke...
Philippe Di Méo was also considering producing perfume patches of these scents.
Jicky was created in 1889 by Aimé Guerlain. It is not only considered to be the first modern fragrance through its invention of the now classic 3-tiered structure comprising the head, heart, and base notes, as well as the introduction of the combined use of synthetics and natural essences, it is also a perfume that attempted to reverse a trend that rested on the rigid codification of gender categories. This conservative trend emerged in France after 1820, during the Second Restoration, when the bourgeois mentality imposed its mark more decisively upon society, moralizing the use of perfumes and deriving its ideas about the propriety of certain scents from the triumphant hygienist movement. In this context, Aimé Guerlain is reported to have said that he wanted to create,
"an audacious, vigorous, and quasi revolutionary perfume: the perfume of an amazon, difficult to decipher, of which you wouldn't be really able to tell whether it was meant to be for a man or a woman."
And so it was; disconcerted by the novelty of the concept, women started adopting it en masse only after 1910 while men, meanwhile, decided it would be theirs. Today, despite Aimé Guerlain's efforts at creating a unisex fragrance, Jicky is still not considered to be gender-free and in a new historical twist, has mostly come to be considered a feminine fragrance and marketed as such.
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