Happy winter solstice. We’ve now officially shifted from autumn and have another bout of gales. Not much rain and not a ‘named’ storm. Just wind. I remind myself to be thankful we’re now very slowly inching back into the light.
I thought of this originally as my ‘what will I be wearing over the hols’ post. But Arpege sort of hijacked that.
Am I going to wear this on the day? I don’t know. Maybe. But maybe VB 21:50 or Perfumer H Smoke … or maybe I’ll do some weird layering … or maybe I’ll do one for gift unwrapping/cooking (probably Smoke), one for eating (probably Arpège) and one for later in the evening with the wood fire and quiet time (probably 21:50).
I bought the mini of Arpège off ebay about a month ago. I can’t recall why Arpege popped into my head at that time. It just did. Another perfumista thing, like vaguely dreaming about Une Rose (or whatever its name is now).
(Sorry about the rubbish picture. No matter which angle I tried,
I couldn’t get rid of the shadow on the gold part of the bottle.)
This was never one of mine. In fact I think the last time I even tested this was at least 20 years ago. I recall the person with me saying it was sexy as hell. I didn’t get that at the time and I still not sure I get it. It’s other things.
This was originally released in 1927. Paul Vacher and Andre Fraysse were the noses. It’s got one of those close to kitchen sink notes lists: aldehydes, lily of the valley, peach, honeysuckle, neroli, bergamot, jasine, ylang, more lotv, iris, coriander, rose, lily, geranium, camellia; sandalwood, amber, vetiver, musk, benzoin, vanilla and patchouli.
To me, this is Classical with an upper case C and up the wazoo. Whether or not my version is ‘vintage’ (I’m sure someone will be able to tell from the little bottle and box – see pic – it was really hard, for some reason, to get rid of the shadow on the bottle) it’s certainly old skool.
The opening is the treat for me. I know I rag on aldehydes but in this they are perfection, along with a sigh of powdery iris, and a whisper of peach.
Onward, I get big white florals but so, so balanced. No one is shouty. They just all get along, like the best of friends. I believe I can discern the ylang and lotv, plus a bit of jasmine. Even the rose isn’t trying very hard.
And as in the open, there’s iris – a bit powdery, a tad scratchy.
I want to say there’s an herbal aspect, perhaps the geranium, but I may be talking myself into it.
Drydown is luscious sandalwood-vanilla, with a bit of powderiness. But none of this is ever raising its hand and saying ‘me, me, look at me’.
Longevity is … strange. Like I smell it and then I don’t. It really helps to get some of this on the sleeve when you dab on skin.
It certainly calls for a dab at the notch of your throat.
I do wonder how vintage this is and what anything newer might smell like.
My 5ml came from some guy somewhere in the north of Ireland who did label it as vintage. Oh, and it’s EdP.
And I wonder if this was a free-be from a Lanvin shop in France. Like Lutens did those mini bottles a good while ago.
Right. So, help me out. Is this ‘vintage’? Why might the guy have had it in his stock?
NB: I read somewhere that Balmain’s fragrance marque was purchased by (you guessed it) Estee Lauder and things are coming back (if they were gone? I’m not sure). Certainly the bottle design I’ve seen is different from the Ivoire I remember. I do see a sample of Ivoire in my future. I don’t know anything about the brand’s other perfumes. There is a decent sample set on the US site. I haven’t checked the UK one. I’ve got other fish to fry at the moment.
Pics: Mine, pexels, Wiki
Maybe Arpege is the daring blue stocking then?
L’Aimant, even in the current cheap as chips version, is beautiful.
Oh what a glorious fragrance. You’re making me want to go look for a bottle. I’ve always felt it was a bit too … classy for me, but there’s no denying it is an absolutely stunning fragrance.
I agree on classy but also hot in an unusual way. I don’t know if I need more than the mini. However if a bottle popped up in a charity shop here I’d grab it.
I have the currentish version of Arpege. Still glorious!
There were three floral aldehydic floral sisters born in the early 20th century. No5 is the tall, wiry, flat chested & achingly chic. L’Aimant is the bread baking, aproned, smiling, sister always ready to cuddle & soothe.
Arpege is the youngest who is happy go lucky, dancing in the rain, skinny dipping, hop on a plane just for the hell of it sister.
All three have shared characteristics but each have these different personalities.
Interesting. I’ve never smelled l’Aimant — at least that remember. No 5 has always seemed to me older but indeed very chic and sort of unapproachable. Arpege to me is sort of what you describe but a deep thinker and an enigma.
L’Aimant (along with L’Origan) was my mother’s signature fragrance(s) for eons! Her aunt was a high-class madam and my mother never wanted to be connected to the ladies who doused themselves in the high end Chanels/Carons/Guerlains etc – so she went with Coty.
’twas her (my mother, not her aunt) who coined the term “smells like a whorehouse on payday”
Arpege was my first perfume. I was 7 or 8 and my parents made their first trip to Europe together, my mother loved the illustration on the bottle and got Arpege for me. It was a squared off clear glass bottle. I’ve managed to have some in my collection over the years, I love it. Once upon a time, I had the bath oil and powder, too. Thank you for your lovely review, cinnamon.
Squared off and clear. I have never seen that in pictures. Always the black one. How has it changed over the years?
I’ve worn Lanvin Arpege for 39 years and love it. For many years it was my signature scent, and I wore it on my wedding. I have a tall black refillable metal column flacon that held glass spray bottles, and I went through scads of those bottles in the 80s and 90s. I’ve got one of those little black mini boule bottles, too. I think they are vintage back to the 80s or 90s. Truly old bottles of Arpege are boxy squared-off bottles. The gold emblem on the front of the bottle is a mother giving a gift to her daughter. (Lanvin My Sin is really good, too.)
I’m still hoping a vintage bottle of ‘something’ will show up in our local charity shops. So far, no joy. Will have a look for a sample/mini of My Sin.
I have a couple of the vintage, squared-off bottles. Juice is still pretty spectacular!
I love Arpege, especially good vintages – and I have a vintage-adjacent dusting powder, too! The extrait I would sell my very soul for came from StC but it looks as if it’s gone. O.M.G!!!! It is GLORIOUS!
I’m just from the shower – I think I’ll dust up and put a bit of that extrait on!
Happy Holidays!
I’m not quite there on love. I think it’s beautiful and I’ll certainly wear my mini (and then hang on to the bottle — it’s quite beautiful). I’ve noticed Etsy sometimes has interesting minis too — I saw one of Balenciaga Quadrille recently. If it’s still around after the new year I might grab that.
I remember trying vintage Arpege a long time ago. I expected it to be something special but was disappointed. I looked to see if I still had some to try it again but must have passed it on.
I don’t think this will become ‘one of mine’ the way some things have after taking two or three sampling goes.
Funny you should mention Arpege Cinnamon. A girlfriend just bought a couple of bottles and didn’t like how the new one smelt so she gave me the unopened one. I’m yet to try it but there are a couple of vintages here in Ed? and extrait that I can try it against. Probably not in the heat of summer but maybe as autumn arrives.
Portia xx
Be very interested to hear what you think once you crack the bottle. My next ‘job’ with it is trying to parse the flowers for clearly.
I got a small bottle of his a while ago and really loved it. It’s not me, but it sure is pretty..
It is indeed pretty, but not in a cutesy way.
I have a very similar bottle of Arpege that I found in the House of Fraser sale a decade ago. I hadn’t worn it in years but your post made me seek it out. I’d forgotten how lovely it is. I’m a sucker for iris and powder. It might end up being my Christmas Day fume. Thank you for the reminder.
See, I’m not that into the powdery aspect of things but this is just gorgeous. It’s so well balanced — never tips over into blousy or cute.
Many happy memories of Arpege, as both my daughter (40) and I (70) wore it in decades past, this time of year. I loved your deep and detailed description, Cinnamon. I am so, so grateful Perfume Posse is still here. Happy Holidays.
Thank you. I am already a bit weary of the demands of the season (strangely, I am sanguine about cooking this year). Reading about perfume always lifts my spirits and I’m glad you enjoyed the post. Happy hols!