Reinvention

Before I forget – the Diaghilev winner (courtesy of Pickle and random.org) is LindaB. Drop me your deets and I’ll send off your sample as soon as I get my little scrab – should be any day!

okay – on to the story –

55 gallon barrel: 1

Musette:     0

 

Ow.  Last fall I wrestled a full rain barrel and lost.  Occasionally the old spasm rebounds to remind me that Barrel is Quing!  I wonder why it always happens at 5am, when you desperately have to pee.  And that 10 second walk to the bathroom is 10 minutes while you crab, backwards, on your turned-in toes, fingers desperately seeking any purchase to help relieve the shocking pain…holding it… screeching like a third-grade girl…holding it…panting..holding it…and you make it!

And the lid is down.

Bedridden for 3 days, hopped-up on Vitamin V, I spritzed old Coty perfumes and watched a lot of funky TV because that’s what you do when you’re zonked on painkillers, right?   TV can be very heartening, especially for those of us who are struggling to reinvent ourselves in our careers, personal lives or whatever… I have taken porky William Shatner as my personal motivation – from  the ancellation of Star Trek to the  downalator of ‘Big Bad Mama’ (hey!  I was illin) only to rebound to cult-love status via ‘Boston Legal’ (and, dare I say it, the Priceline Negotiator?  Bill is laughing ALL the way to the bank!)  – and the zoomerang of John Travolta: remember Perfect?  Of course you don’t.   –from teen star to nobody and back again –  platinum ever since!

So…Bill and John did it.  How come Coty can’t do it?  Roja Dove’s Diaghilev, with its respectful nod to Coty Chypre broke my heart.… Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy as a clam that Roja did it.  But it begs the question:  what happened to this once-illustrious house  (Chypre! La Rose J!  Paris!) that caused it to settle for pursue so many resolutely awful scents?  From its chilly-corporate website to a fragrance ‘brand’ list that makes me itch, the whole thing whimpers ‘mediocre’.  Every time I go into a drugstore I’m amazed that M. Francois hasn’t oozed out of his grave and scythed the entire Coty board into terrified puddles of bloody bits.   IIFRA and whales and cat-butts aside,  even with legal and ethical considerations other venerable houses have managed to keep their connection to what made them great.  Diorella doesn’t suck, I swear!  So.  Is there a gas leak at Two Park Ave that caused L’Origan to end up at Walgreens, a battered, miserable shell, while L’Heure Bleue wields the Mace of Majesty?  I would mention Emeraude…except I will start crying.

I think I’ve shrieked about this before.  But I’m shrieking again – and it’s Dior’s fault.  Yeah.  See, I have now tried all the scents in La Collection.  I’m not ecstacized (yeah, new word:  Ecstacized!)…but I am in alt that they took a determined look to what made the House of Dior as their inspiration for this collection.   Chanel thrilled us with Les Exclusifs, with the historical references to Chanel’s life and her perfumer’s inspirations.  Guerlain, Caron have held on to their jewels, even as they’ve had to tweak them for changing laws and customer tastes..…why does the list not include Coty?  Surely no ‘customer’ would deliberately buy the Emeraude you see, come Christmastime, in their tacky little cello boxes…(sniff.  I promised I wouldn’t cry)

 

I can’t be the only one beating this drum in the wilderness.  Coty spawned some of the greatest perfumes in history.  Wouldn’t it be great to see some of them back – and not at the drugstore, dangit!  PROPER reintroductions, with decent packaging and some history to back it up.

What say you?  If you could have one (or more) Cotys resurrected (as much as anything could be), which ones?  Or am I dreaming and should I wake up and shut up.    And if you don’t care about Coty and you still wanna play, what star/celebrity has done the best reinvention, in your opinion?

 

photo:  xnet.kp.org

 

  • Susan says:

    I have fantasies of being CEO of Coty and relaunching the classics.

    Coty definitely has the distribution framework. For example, they have the Chloe contract. They could do it if they want to – they could market it and make it profitable. They just don’t want to.

  • tania says:

    I’d like Coty to bring back Complice, which I loved as a girl. I have never tried any Coty vintage (I just daren’t…. I fear they would just sadden me.

    Best celebrity reinvention? Hugh Laurie. From not-all-that-known outside-the-UK comic genius, to huge (and probably very rich) star of ‘House’. Go Hugh!

    • mariekel says:

      Couldn’t agree more! From comical twit extraordinaire to curmudgeonly sex symbol in a hugely popular US prime timer.

      I want to shout out now to former flatmate Helen who laughed at me when I told her, back in the mid-80s, that I thought Hugh Laurie was fanciable. So there.

  • FragrantWitch says:

    Another member of the herniated disk club here with L4-5 and sciatic nerve damage. It is truly miserable and makes you feel ancient. I did mine when I was 23 and felt 83, my Grampa moved better than I did! Surgery finally got ‘me pretty comfy ( bless you Mr Marshall). Epidural injections help now and occasional good drugs- hope yours are making things niiice and fuzzzzyyyy…..:d

    I would bring back Emeraude in all it’s glory- the original more than holds it’s own with Shalimar. And L’Aimant.
    What has happened to Coty fragrances is criminal. Imagine getting
    The new Emeraude as a gift…shudder. Especially dice you could track down some vintage for about what you would pay in Walgreen’s!

    • Musette says:

      The V did me pretty good, thankee! I was in a swoon for a couple of days…actually it was kinda scary, how good it was…:-?

      Poor Emeraude. It must feel so naked and ashamed, stripped of its beauty and glory and stuck in that stupid plastic atomizer and that awful cello box…

      xo >-)

  • Heidi says:

    At an antique mall this weekend, I pushed away a bottle of vintage Arpege and a bottle of vintage Cabochard to get at a wee little unopened bottle of Les Muses. I plucked it up and wrapped it in my hands at my chest and said “THIS ONE!”

    I don’t regret it one bit (though I can’t reveal to you where this antique mall was because I am going back for that Cabochard, you better believe it!).

    There is nothing like vintage Coty. My little bottle sits with her sister La Rose Jacqueminot now, surrounded by several eras of Emeraude and L’Aimant. Les Muses on me is a sweet floral with something a bit soapy and maybe something a bit animalic in the base. There is an odd spice, maybe coriander or cardamom? Her topnotes a just a touch off, but other than that, she’s lovely.

  • Beth says:

    Oh Musette, so sorry to hear you’re in pain :(

    I’ve not smelled any of the vintage coty’s and now I’m not sure I want to… it will only make me long for something I can’t have.

    I agree with all the comments about Dior re-releasing their lineup. I’d love to see a bottle of Diorama, Dioressence, Diorella, that harken back to their roots. It’d be very neat to do a new bottle that pays homage to their black and white houndstooth bottles. And although the IFRA has tied their hands, I’d love to see a reformulation that as closely resembles the original as possible.

    • Musette says:

      Of all of them, only Diorella comes close to the original – and that’s still some distance away. However, it is the one that most stands on its own merits. I wear it (have a FB, in fact) without pining for the original. The other two, not so much..:-< xo >-)

  • mals86 says:

    I have some 50s L’Origan parfum (in its leatherette satin-lined case! with a rubber stopper!) that is just beautiful. The bit of La Rose Jacqueminot I have (re-release) is slightly age-damaged but striking. Coty Paris is a perfect “handkerchief” scent.

    And you KNOW what a ho I am for vintage Emeraude.

    It’s so sad.

    I’d love to see an upscale release of classic Coty scents, restored to life and given proper treatment. But I don’t think it will happen – Coty no longer has the distribution framework for the rollout it would take to get these beauties in front of noses with the cash to buy them. If only, if only…

    Take care of your back, babe. You only gots one. (Can you believe Bill Shatner is EIGHTY YEARS OLD?? Love the guy. He makes me laugh.)

    • mals86 says:

      Oh, and L’Aimant… I forgot about L’Aimant. Even though I wore some 80s pdt the other evening. It smells like hot peach pie to me. With vanilla ice cream. And a huge mixed floral bouquet on the table next to where you’re eating it.

    • Musette says:

      He’s EIGHTY!?!?!?!

      Holy Shatner, Batman! EIGHTY? ^:)^

      You’re right about the sad state of Coty…but it’s just a danged shame.

      L’Aimant smells like cold rare roast beef to me. Together, we could have a great meal!

      xo >-)

    • mary says:

      Coty Prestige frags include Balenciaga Paris,SJP etc right? They could give us what we want, only they are TOO LAZY. Coty, get with it. There is a market for good juice!!!

  • LindaB says:

    Hi Musette!

    YAY, I won the Diaghilev! Thank you and thanks to Pickle and random.org, lol. I shall send my info over on the Contact Us bottom over there on the left, k? If you need it to go somewhere else, please let me know…

    So sorry about the back – ugh, anything wrong with the back just about effects everything.

    All drugstore perfume makes me sad. It’s just terrible stuff and people shell out hard earned money for crap. My mom had a bottle of Emeraude on her dresser when I was very little and I wish she had kept it or I had smelled it and could remember anything about it. Sigh. Maybe someone will get them back to where they should be…we can hope.

    • Musette says:

      I can’t wait to get it – and when I do, it’ll be on its way to you…(rubs hands in anticipation)…will you report back and let us know how it does for you?

      xo >-)

      re: drugstore perfumes…as Tom and I remember, there was a time when the drugstore held some real gems. :-<

      • Olfacta says:

        I was introduced to perfume promiscuity at the local drugstore — a nothing-special independent with a soda fountain, a pharmacist who knew the customers, and a big display of colognes and EDP’s, with testers, the Cotys (Emeraude was still good, the Parfum de Toilette in the crown bottle), Heaven Sent, Intimate, L’Air du Temps, many others. My friends and I would go there and spray ourselves into trances and drink super-sweet fountain Coke. I try not to go to the “good ol’ days” nostalgia but I really do miss those places.

      • LindaB says:

        Thank you, thank you, thank you!! I will be happy to report back after I give it a go.

        I just thought of one fairly recent drugstore purchase – Musk by Alyssa Ashley. It’s such a simple little clean musky thing but it’s powers are extraordinary for me. It’s what my mom (my hero, best friend, motivator, etc.) wore frequently during my childhood. Is it the same juice? Probably not, but it’s close enough to trigger the ol memory bank.

        Anyhoo, I’ll be checking the mailbox ardently each day! :d

        • Musette says:

          well don’t check just yet….I haven’t gotten it yet (hope springs eternal and nobody hopes more than my mail lady, who is sick of me ambushing her. At this point I think she’d rather run into Pickle!

          But I hear it’s on its way!

          xo >-)

  • mariekel says:

    OWIE!

    I am so sorry about the back issues. I am dealing with pinched nerve awfulness, so i literally feel your pain. Hope you heal soon.

    Ah, Coty…MAJOR SIGH. From the old perfumes of theirs that have made it, mostly as tiny samples, into my collection, I can completely understand Luca’s sentiment that Francois was the greatest perfumer. Ever. Coty’s soliflores as, in my opinion, without parallel. I adore L’Origan in its earlier formula — the later versions I have tested have a weird burnt rubber note that ruins the fragrance. I have also sampled Emeraude from the 50s and now know why it was so immensely popular (don’t get me started on the horrific green mouthwash that is sold under the same name now).

    I say bring them all back! Pretty please?

  • Tom says:

    I’m sorry about your back.. Every once in a while I have a bit of problems and it’s hell. Can’t even get in the car and if O could I couldn’t get out.

    I hate to say it but I think Coty is just too far gone to resurrect itself. It’s been in the drugstore too many years.

    You don’t remember, but back in the day the drugstores actually had some fine fragrances available. That was back in the day before Walgreens or Rite Aid took over everything..

    • Musette says:

      Oh, no. I do remember (I’m older than dirt, Tom)….my mother bought a lot of her fragrances in the drugstore. In fact, I don’t remember Coty being sold anywhere else. But those were different fragrances, different times. Wonder if any of those drugstores still exist?

      Oh, baby! In and out of the car…I SO know that one. My mom had a bad back and got stuck, once, halfway out of the car. I was about 7 at the time but I remember that like it was yesterday. Then: =)) Now: :((

      xo >-)

      • Tom says:

        There’s still one in NYC- the otiginal C. O. Bigelow in Greenwich Village. I know they’re selling stuff at Bath & Body works, but they still have the place where you can buy fragrances ang get a prescription filled. If you could only get an egg-cream life would be complete.

        • Musette says:

          I love that place! I totally forgot about it, once BBW started selling their stuff (not on purpose – I think I just blended the two together). I’ve gotten some Very Fine Stuff there but no egg-cream, alas.

          xo >-)

      • Olfacta says:

        The first time I screwed up my back was before the NSAID’s came out, like Motrin. You were stuck with pain pills — not that there’s anything wrong with that — and bed rest. I couldn’t sit up for about two weeks. I mean at all. The DH had to take me to physical therapy lying down in the back seat of the car. (He wasn’t the DH then. This is why I married him.) I don’t think we’ve evolved yet to the point where we’re supposed to walk upright.

  • mary says:

    Feel better,Anita! I had a large bottle of the original Chypre,which I thrifted back in the early 80’s. It was fascinating, with a not quite harsh, unpleasant edge to it. I agree with you, the time is ripe for Coty to issue its own special edition series. No need for fancy bottles. Copy Serge’s look, paste on Art Nouveau graphic labels, maybe combining the name of the label with the year of release. The juice color will distinguish the fragrances ; rich red gold for chypre dark forest green for Emeraude, light gold for l’aimant, frosty silver for muguet. Etc! Coty !!Get with the program!!!!

    • mals86 says:

      They could call the series La Collection Original or something like that, and jack the prices up to Lutens levels, and I bet people would buy them. *I* sure as heck would buy Classic Emeraude.

      About four bottles’ worth. At $200 a pop. I mean it.

      • Musette says:

        Me, too! Hey Coty! Listen up!

        xo >-)

        • Olfacta says:

          How many people might there be in this Universe of Perfumistas? That’s who would buy Chypre. Seriously — when I first got into this I was swapping on MUA. For awhile I offered samples/decants of my early-80’s Coty Chypre EDT. I got NO inquiries. None.

          Maybe this speaks to the age of MUA’ers, or the obscure status of the Chypre name, but it would take one H*LL of a lot of advertising to make back the cost of producing vintage juice, nice bottles, labels, etc. Selling to a few hundred cognoscenti just wouldn’t do it, imho, unfortunately.

          • mals86 says:

            I think I said something of the sort lower down – Coty probably wouldn’t be able to swing it, financially.

            But, you know? I keep getting emails from Jean Desprez about a new fragrance due to release in the fall. They’re offering advance bottles now for “prerelease testing” (well, at $30 each. not sure I’m going to go for that). But that’s a pretty low-key, cheap release, and Coty could probably make back its investment bucks thataway, don’t you think?

          • Musette says:

            I think if Coty were to put some serious thought behind the reforms (and not just threw their old leftovers into the vat) and did a limited edition, they could do very well. Other, way less funded houses do it, why not them? It wouldn’t be a blockbuster (well, probably not but stranger things have happened)…but it would certainly bring the ‘brand’ back into the forefront a bit and give them back a niche they surrendered some time ago.

            xo >-)

          • Musette says:

            Olfacta,

            I’m never on MUA (too confusing and I only have about 32 seconds a day as it is)..but had I known….:o

            xo >-)

          • Olfacta says:

            well, hey, pm me! (olfacta at att dot net).

  • Tiara says:

    Oh so sorry to hear about your back but it appears your sense of humor is in fine form! I’m always amazed how slowly time passes when one is in pain. Hope you feel better soon.

    I have no idea how most of those vintage scents smell(ed). My mother wore only Youth Dew and I wasn’t into perfume so I tell myself I’m not really missing anything.

    And don’t try to tell me otherwise because I have my fingers in my ears and can’t hear you..lalalalala

  • grizzlesnort says:

    Ecstacized. I like that. I hope you will be mobilating without pain very soon. That will be ecstacizing in itself.

  • maggiecat says:

    Coty pruchased Philosophy? Oh dear – is that the beginning of a new beginning for Coty or the beginning of the end for Philosophy? I’m so used to associating Coty with cheap drugstore stuff that I think I’d bring back Liz Claibourne – as a clothing designeer at least – instead. As opposed to the undersized, fall-apart when you wash them rags that come out under her name now…. Musette, please feel better soon. As the scarred veteran of spinal fusion surgery, I wouldn’t wish back pain on anyone, much less a fellow perfumista!

    • Musette says:

      Oh, my darling! That sounds HORRIBLE! I hope the back is okay? Okay-ish? [-o< Francois might not've been the greatest 'guy' in the world but he was a perfume genius - it's a shame the name now only makes us shudder, as we contemplate the Emeraude Gift Set at CVS. xo >-)

  • Style Spy says:

    When I sniffed the vintage Chypre at Patricia de Nicolai’s lecture in DC last fall, it honestly and instantly brought tears to my eyes, it was so beautiful. It was like someone had tackled me – overwhelming. So, yeah. ::sigh:: That’d be nice.

    • Musette says:

      You need to go sit by a certain Shelley! Chypre brings tears to her eyes, too! It is gorgeous, innit? And see, that’s what irritates me so much – to let such evocative beauty just….dwindle. I would love to know if Miss Sixty (or Miss Sporty) evokes that kind of response.

      xo >-)

  • Rappleyea says:

    I think I’m glad that I’ve never encountered the old Coty’s. It’s been expensive enough pursuing vintage Guerlains. I agree with others that the restrictions/prohibitions on ingredients would prevent their resurrection, even if it were cost effective. However, with that said, I think a talented perfumer could come reasonably close, updating those classics for modern tastes and materials.

    I’m staked out at my mailbox eagerly awaiting my decant of Diaghilev (man, that is hard to type!).

    Fabulous post as always!

    • Musette says:

      R,

      They really aren’t that expensive, the old Cotys. I’ve scored some nice ones on the eeeeB – way less than the Guerlains (trust me. I’ve emptied my bank account on Mitsouko more than once)…

      I’m with you on the Diag. My postal carrier thinks I’m a reverse-vampire, standing at the door at 9am with my teeth showing…hoping I could scare her into delivering the pkg before it even got sent out! =))

      xo >-)

  • Teri says:

    Many good wishes for a speedy recovery. Back issues are just awful. They hurt like heck and are too systemic to ignore and soldier on. You’re doing the proper thing — just giving in and pampering yourself.

    I’m behind you 100% on the Cotys. If I ran the universe (and really, why don’t I? lol), I’d want back Dame Emeraude (before she had ‘work done’), Miss Muguet des Bois, and my short-lived ‘scent’imental favorite from 1969-72, Elan.

    • Musette says:

      Ooooh! Teri! I’m voting for YOU! Empress of the Universe! I, too, loved all of those and…during last year’s Cotyfest, scored a bottle of Elan on the eeeB. Pretty, evanescent…but the bottle was the perfect trip back in Time!

      xo >-)

  • jen says:

    Hmm, once you’ve gone way downmarket, can you ever go back up? Im thinking Liz Claiborne at penneys, etc. I love the old emeraude-wore it to prom in 1968!

    • Musette says:

      I’ll bet your smelled Deee-lish! Yeah, Liz Claiborne did make some interesting decisions. I remember when the brand was a vaunted part of the Marshall Field’s lineup (back when Marshall Field’s still had some cachet).

      xo >-)

  • Nava says:

    Emeraude was one of my mother’s serial duty-free buys. I’ll take March’s word for how horrible it is now.

    I recently found out that Coty purchased the Philosophy brand. Since I’m such a big fan of that line, I’m curious to see what the future holds for it.

    Sorry you’re not feeling up to snuff, A. Here’s hoping you’re back to yourself very soon. xoxoxoxo

  • March says:

    Wait … I thought I was Quing?

    Emeraude seems like the biggest current fail — the stuff they sell now is criminal. Vintage Emeraude is simply amazing. However, my runner up would go to L’Origan. I have a vintage bottle which is probably still wonderful (opaque black) but, sadly, the sprayer doesn’t work any more. 🙁

    • Musette says:

      Well….you are..

      …as long as you don’t decide to wrestle a full 55-gal rainbarrel. That barrel laughed in my face as it fell on me, knocking me to the ground and then rolling OVER me (luckily by then half the rainwater had run out) and knocking me down the little hilly thing. It would’ve been comical, except it wasn’t.

      Can you pry the sprayer collar off and decant it? I’ve done that on occasion – takes a lot of patience (this is where Patty’s Xanax recommendation comes in handy) – but it can be done.

      xo >-)

      <):) (this is the Quing hat, right?)

  • Amy says:

    My top 2 candidates would be L’Origan and Chypre. I seriously doubt Emeraude can be properly recreated, legally. I have some of the old stuff, and I don’t smell it, I *huff* it. It’s like the perfume equivalent of absinthe.

  • Ann says:

    Hi sweetie, so sorry to hear you’re ailing. Hope you’re doing much, much better today. I only knew Coty late, and Emeraude at that, when it was a drugstore scent (being a child of the ’60s/’70s), but would love to have tried the original and also the grand Chypre in its early glory. Maybe when someone invents a reliable time machine, we can all go back and see what we’ve missed, eh? Hugs to you and hang in there!

    • Ann says:

      Adding a second to Mark B.’s comment above regarding Patou. What I wouldn’t give to have the drop-dead gorgeous Vacances readily available again (Anita, I know you and others are nodding along as you read this). In the meantime, I’ll have to make my sample of Lucien Lelong Pour Femme last as long as I can.

      • mals86 says:

        Oh, Vacances… sigh. I have a tiny sample, and it is so gorgeous. A tender smell.

      • Musette says:

        well, I would nod, but it makes my back hurt! LOL! Re Vacances, which I used to scent my sheets, back in the day….if I knew then what I know now….:((

        isn’t that always the way?

        xo >-)

  • Gator Grad says:

    Sorry about your back!

    I haven’t tried any of the vintage Coty frags, which is probably good since the good ones are so expensive and htf.

    Regarding the Chanel and Diors: I love so many from Les Exclusifs but they are so… wispy. So slight. Are the new Diors potent?

    And I know it’s heresy, but I think that some of the recent Coty frags are pretty good. SJP Lovely is just that (lovely) and though I wouldn’t count it in my top 10, I still think it’s well done.

    • Musette says:

      I totally agree on the SJP – in that case I think Coty used its powers for Good. As for the rest, it’s not heresy! You are right, there are some nice things in their pantheon, amongst the other stuff. I’m just pissed at the direction the House chose to take, is all. It’s just my opinion, which counts only as MY opinion. I’m certainly no expert, with my no note-knowin’ self

      xo >-):”>

  • Sherri M. says:

    You have my sympathy as well! Hope you get lots of rest (and good drugs) and are on the mend.

    If I had to pick one Coty to be resurrected, it would definitely be the classic Emeraude. It has meant so much to so many generations of women, I think it deserves to be treated with a little more respect, i.e. quality materials and some decent packaging. Also, with all the thousands of niche perfumes out there, I can’t name a single one that smells like vintage Emeraude. At least with the loss of L’Aimant and L’Origan, we still have L’Heure Bleue and Apres L’Ondee, which are at least in the same family. There’s nothing left quite like Emeraude used to be.

  • DinaC says:

    I’m another member of Club Herniated Disk, so I’m all sympathy. I did it to my L5-S1 back when I was 32, lifting my son in one of those infant car seats. Accupuncture is good, physical therapy is good, and steroid shots into the epidural space in your spine can help reduce the swelling that is putting pressure on your nerves, especially if you get sciatic pain. Yikes.

    I used to wear Emeraude back in the early 80s. I’m sure it was already a faint shadow of its former glory, but I’d love to sniff the original thing. Also would love to sniff the original Chypre. I don’t think I’ve come acoss any other vintage Cotys. I just remember the drugstore ones.

    • Musette says:

      Lands’ sake! It’s a wonder any of us are still upright! 😮 we have a farmer friend who did the same thing as you, lifting a calf out of a stream. and yep on the Dreaded Sciatic Pain. That’s what had me on my toes, with my knees knocked-and-locked. Luckily it’s abated somewhat but back pain is worse than anything, I’ve decided. Except having your vitals gnawed by a fox. Maybe.

      Of the original Cotys (what I consider ‘original’), L’Origan held up best – prolly because of the clove. Hard to beat down a clove. Emeraude suffered the most, I think, because it’s still around and lord help you if you sniff it now.

      xo >-)

  • Olfacta says:

    Ouch. I have a bad back too, and have to spend half my life at the gym because of it. L5/S1 — numbers most of us will be familiar with eventually, unfortunately, although mine happened early — age 38 for God’s sake! Try Voltaren gel (Rx) which actually penetrates and helps a lot.

    As for Coty…they’ve been sold so many times, Pfizer in the 60’s and who knows who ever since. I think L’Origan would do well now, it’s an amber/spice/oriental. (I collect old Cotys, parfum de toilette if I can find it.) They made a pretty stinky fruity floral called “Muse,” too, and that could be tweaked a little for the modern market. LRJ is gorgeous and smells modern but is probably full of outlawed stuff like nitromusks, and of course there is Chypre, so heavy on the oakmoss. I think that’s part of the problem — nitromusks aren’t just restricted, they’re prohibited. So the perfumes wouldn’t really smell quite the same. But I agree, it is sad. The Coty name, trashed for all time.

    • Musette says:

      I need to get back to the gym. Most of this is my own lazy-se’f fault! 8-|

      I would feel bad for Coty but…if you look at the current website it is a reflection of how they feel about perfume. They could (and should) be selling dish soap!

      xo >-)

  • pyramus says:

    I don’t see how you could restrict yourself to one Coty resurrection, but three spring to mind.

    I would want to smell the original L’Aimant, which is evidently their version of No. 5, only woodier.

    I would have to have Chypre, of course, because I am pathetically obsessed with old-school, oakmoss-heavy chypres, and this one invented the category.

    And I would need to try La Rose Jacqueminot, if only to imagine myself in that department store where Coty, rebuffed by the buyers, casually tossed a bottle to the floor so it would shatter and was rapidly surrounded by women demanding to know what that extraordinary perfume was. It may be apocryphal, and if it happened the shoppers were probably hired by Coty, but damn, that’s a salesman. And it made him a millionaire.

  • Louise says:

    Ouch, rest the back!

    I have some nice L’Origan, Les Muses, and the second coming of Chypre. They weren’t difficult to come by for not so much on ebay. My one slight disappointment in the group is the newer Chypre-I have a drop of the very old parfum, and it sends me into full rapture-much sweeter, rounder than the re-release.

    I may with for Coty to come back, but am so leery of reformulations, that I think I’d be tragically disappointed. I’d be happier with accurate-to-older Weils, Moyneux, Houbigants and many more.

    Hugs!

    • Musette says:

      I, too, am leery of reforms but you know, Louise, it would be nice of them to at least TRY! They could put together a little, separate jewelbox of classics, done as close to the originals as they could, perhaps in their iconic bottles…marketed correctly I think they would be well received. And it would help revive the brand image which, imo, is circling the drain (if not halfway down it already

      I have some Chypre I got from Carol – don’t know the provenance but it is luscious. I would be afraid to sniff your voperfume, as it might kill me dead with rapture and that. would. be. bad.

      xoxox >-)

    • mariekel says:

      Oooooo! I have always wondered about Les Muses (and Le Vertige, A’suma and Le Meteor)! What is your take on it?

      • Musette says:

        there’s a very funny story about A’suma and Le Vertige….I’ll tell you all about it another time… 😉

        xo >-)

  • rosarita says:

    Owww! Oh, darlin, you have my sympathy. I’m dealing w/a bulging L5 right now, my dear husband has had a couple of surgeries and an on the job injury 5 yrs ago that left him only able to drive a school bus…..so I can truly feel your pain. (hugs)

    My older sister wore Emeraude in the 60s and I would love, love to smell it again. I think Coty, in backing all those celeb scents, has become a victim of the age old tug of war: art vs commerce, and commerce has won, big time.

    Celeb reinventions: It would be hard to top Betty White and her career resurgence at what, 86? Another favorite is Shirley Maclaine, who went from gorgeous ingenue in the late 50s/early 60s to crusty character actor bar none in her later years. Great post, A! Hope you’re moving around soon.

    • Musette says:

      Holy mack! BETTY WHITE! Ho, yus! What a reinvention, huh? And classy, too! Who would’ve thought an 86yr old woman could be so …sexy? (yeah, I said it. SEXY)

      Sweetie, I found an Emeraude edp in a thrift store for $3. Heartbreakingly beautiful. Come summah, I’ll share.

      xo >-)

    • odonata9 says:

      Vintage Emeraude can be found quite cheaply on ebay if you are so inclined to dig around there.

  • Marla says:

    L’Origan, definitely. I have some parfum from the 40s and WOW!! As for recents, did Coty do “Desperate Housewives’ Forbidden Fruit”? I saw it got pretty good reviews. I thought the name was hilarious, so I bought a bottle last week, but it hasn’t arrived yet. OK, I’ve been without a TV in Europe for 5 years, I didn’t know the perfume went with a TV show! Silly me. I wonder if the perfume is any good??

  • Datura5750 says:

    L’Origan for me too, I sometimes wonder if Coty’s creations were deliberately brought low to punish him posthumously for his evil politics and heartless treatment of his wife…
    Still, hardly a good business decision…

    • Musette says:

      When Bad Things Happen to Good Perfumes…:-?

      xo >-)

      btw – there are a couple of decent scent lines from Coty (most of the Calvin Kleins aren’t awful (I don’t know if they were responsible for the originals, which were quite good, imo) and SJP’s original was interesting…but mostly the
      ‘brand list’ (yuck) just breaks my heart.

  • Natalie says:

    Don’t hate me, but… Despite being the world’s worst second-hand shopper (that smell!), a few weeks ago I came across a killer-diller motherlode of vintage fragrances, and I’m now the owner of 5 bottles of Emeraude, 5 of L’Aimant, a big ol’ L’Origan, and a Muguet de Bois, among many, many other things. I’d only ever sniffed Emeraude before, but I think I’d opt to raise L’Origan from the dead first. And like Mark above, I’d love to see the Patous resurrected; man, those were good.

    Hope you feel better soon — back pain is awful, and makes you feel so dang old.

    • Marla says:

      Ooooo, the perfume gods love you!

    • Musette says:

      No hate here! Only LOVE that you were able to saaaave them! I would’ve fainted dead away!

      And I’m with you on the secondhand smell – what IS it? No matter where you shop secondhand, it’s always vaguely ‘there’. Yet I have tons of vintage/secondhand pieces…and my closet doesn’t smell like that.

      thanks for the kind words – and yes, bad back really does = feeling old. It b-(

      xo >-)

  • Darryl says:

    Few celebrity reinventions in recent memory can rival Kathy Griffin’s, in my opinion. Going from nowhere (post-Suddenly Susan) to practically everywhere is quite something.

    I’d actually love for Coty to properly reintroduce Chypre, if for no other reason than to give youngsters some reference as to what the hell a “chypre” is when they’re reading Sephora’s descriptions of their beloved Coco Mademoiselle and Miss Dior Cherie. Also, Dior is one of my favorite houses, but I have to say that I detect more than a sliver of cynical opportunism in La Collection. If they can go all-out with a line of fabulous new fragrances that supposedly recall the glory days of Dior, why the hell can’t they maintain the quality of fragrances like Dioressence and Diorama that actually date from those glory days? Ah yes – because exclusive, niche-y “luxury” lines sell like hotcakes these days, while Dioressence sells to your grandmother. If she can find it.

    • Musette says:

      If they ‘reinvented’ the Dior classics, via marketing, I susepct they could blow them UP! The ongoing success of niche fragrances shows that people are hungry for quality and substance. No 5 and Shalimar continue to sell like hotcakes and most of the original wearers have gone to their reward. I suspect Dior has ignored a wonderful marketing opportunity here – it would be interesting to see how well those oldsters like Diorella/Diorama/etc would sell if they put a bit more quality in them and ‘reinvented’ them as niche.

      xo >-)

  • nozknoz says:

    I wish I knew why. It’s so maddening! Pass the “Vitamin V” – LOL!

    • Musette says:

      Tell me about it! 8-| Luckily I’m upright again – for the most part. Started my yoga again and already feeling better!

      As far as Coty goes, I’ll probably never feel better…:((

      xo >-)

  • Catherine says:

    I hope you start feeling better, dear Musette. And in the process, I hope they air your favorite episodes of your favorite shows.

    Powdery L’Origin would be the one I’d like brought back, but the Coty fragrances never thrilled me. The Dior ones, however . . . You’re making me wish I wasn’t completely out of it on the perfume releases, because I want to hear more about these. Should research, but really, I just want to hear you gush. Oh, and find out if Diorama is on our shores, even if in a bastardized form.

    xo

    • Musette says:

      Oh, there will be reviews of La Collection. They’re nice and def worth the review – just not swoonalicious, y’know?

      Diorama is here, and ….okay. I’ll do a review of that next week. In the meantime, you can get it from Rose. I’ll chat with you and give you the info.

      xo >-)

  • (Ms.)Christian says:

    No perfume comments, just my sincere sympathy. Herniated a disk at L5-S1 many years ago and it still plagues me. Try acupuncture if you have not yet done so and I wish you a fast recovery.

    • Musette says:

      Thanks! This wouldn’t have happened, had I not gotten off my yoga/massage therapy regimen. I love acupuncture! After a decade of pukey migraines (some 25 years ago) I came upon Dr Guo who, in the twinkling of 5 sessions and some really nasty tea, killed those migraines stone-dead! After that, I was hooked!

      I’m wishing you NO PLAGUING!!! [-o< xo >-)

  • Mark B. says:

    I agree with you 100% but instead of Coty I would replace it with Patou. At least there is still some vestige remaining of the Coty fragrances; wan and disappointing to be sure.

    With Patou the fragrances are just gone and the doubly troubling aspect is a very talented perfumer, Jean-Michel Duriez, is also caught up in the ongoing train wreck that is Patou.

    I know there is a business and not an artistic reason for these decisions but the loss of these fragrances from both houses and the history they represent is an ongoing travesty.

    • Musette says:

      OMG yes! on the Patou!!! Because of Joy and 1000 (and my drug-induced haze :”> ) I completely forgot about the vaunted Collection. I used to buy Vacances with abandon!

      A moment of silence, while I collect myself. 🙁

      xo >-)