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Thursday, February 7, 2013

Vintage Mini Perfume Bottles: Some History & Insights

i love to go antiquing to look at and collect vintage items. today i want to talk about my current collection of vintage mini perfume/cologne bottles. i am really intrigued by not only the bottles themselves but the history behind them.


i will share what history or random insights i have been able to gather about each of mini bottles, although some of them i still know very little about.

not that this is all that surprising, but it seems like 99% of these fragrances have been or tried to be re-released and of course reformulated.....and i am seeing a pattern that its always horrible and insulting to the original.
(left to right)

Ebene de Balmain Cologne for Men (released 1983)

Ebene by Pierre Balmain is described as a masculine aroma.

Top notes are aldehydes, artemisia, juniper berries, mint, basil, caraway, anise, bergamot, lemon and thyme; middle notes are carnation, patchouli, cinnamon, jasmine, rose, geranium and pine; base notes are labdanum, leather, tonka bean, amber, musk, oakmoss and patchouli. 





Givenchy III eau de toilette (released 1970)

A classic by the house Givenchy, was introduced to mark the opening of a prestigious store by the brand. Located on 3 Avenue George V, in Paris.

The perfume opens with aldehydes with bergamot, mandarin, galbanum, peach and gardenia. The heart includes lily of the valley, hyacinth, rose, jasmine and iris root, while the base carries patchouli, oakmoss, amber and sandalwood.



Tzigane by Corday Parfum ( 1947) 
Tzigane(the gypsy violin) -gypsies were highly fashionable during this time in Paris. Inspired by the fields and the nomadic life of gypsies.
"The French have a sense of humor. They name their perfume companies for dead dandies (d'Orsay) and female assassins.

Founder Blanche Arvoy named Corday after Charlotte Corday (1769-1793) who is best known for curing Jean-Paul Marat's painful skin condition with a knife. Marat's death in his bathtub became the subject of a famous painting by Jacques Louis David. Corday's humanitarian gesture led her trial and execution.
Refusing the last rites at the guillotine, Corday asked, instead, if she might have her picture painted by a National Guard officer named Hauer. The artist obliged and was rewarded with a lock of her hair. Her head, now free from her body, was, apparently, preserved as a memorial and Lady Dorothy Stanley's (as in Stanley meets Livingstone in Africa) mother reported that she had seen it at a social outing some time later.
On a more serious note, Charlotte Corday's patriotic act of murder was aimed at ending the French Revolution's Reign of Terror. Unfortunately, her deed helped turn Marat into a hero and gave his supporters an excuse to execute more dissidents. They became particularly suspicious of women."Source
^SWAG!!
Top notes of the perfume is very aromatic with bergamot, orange flower, lavender, clary sage. Middle notes are geranium, carnation, gardenia, rose and orris. Base notes are soft cedar, patchouli, sandalwood, hay like coumarine, a dry jasmine-chypre accord, soft amber, musk, clover notes and a very light leather.


Galanos for Women by Galanos (released 1979)
Premier designer and personal couturier to Nancy Reagan, James G. Galanos’s signature perfume, aptly named Galanos was launched in 1979. It is classified as a Floral-Oriental fragrance for women.



The original vintage perfume is composed with top notes of lemon, orange, mandarin and chamomile, coriander, clove, bay leaf and cypress, heart notes of orange flower, jasmine, gardenia, ylang-ylang, muguet, rose, geranium and carnation on base notes of musk, amber, vanilla, Tonka bean, vetiver, cedar wood, oak moss, sandalwood and patchouli.



O de Lancome eau de toilette (released 1969)


O de Lancome is appropriate for summer and summer mood during whole year(i want this mood right about now, its freezing!). Its full of "sunbeams and refreshing notes".

Notes of citrusy aromas of lemon, tangerine, bergamot and petit grain blends with fresh flowers, such as honeysuckle, lily of the valley and jasmine. The Middle is bitter and aromatic, composed of rosemary and basil. The sharp base note consists of moss, vetiver, ambergris and musk. 



Fendi by Fendi (released 1985)
Was the 1st perfume for women by Fendi. Its described as a chypre floral fragrance with spicy and woody notes.
Top notes of intoxicating flowers, fresh spices, soothing woody notes and gentle musk. The base notes are: ylang-ylang, rose, jasmine, iris, carnation, nutmeg, patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood, cedar, amber, oak moss and musk.



Jean Desprez Bal a Versailles eau de toilette (released 1962)
Bal a Versailles, meaning "ball at Versailles" which is grand french palace of mirrors. The fragrance is supposed to recall decadent, candlelit ballroom dances from the past at the Versailles palace. Which allegedly they assumed would smell of powdered ladies exuding aristocratic perspiration aka a combination of flowers and musk. Known as one of the world's longest cherished and classically sensuous scents.
Notes of rosemary, orange blossoms, Cassia, Jasmine, Rose, Neroli, Bergamot, Bulgarian Rose, Lemon, Sandalwood, Patchouli, Lilac, Orris Root, Vetiver, Yiang-Yiang, Lily, Tolu Balsam, Musk, Benjoin, Civet, Vanilla, Cedar, Resins.


Omar Sharif Pour Femme eau de parfum (released 1990)
Omar Sharif who was an Egyptian actor, had this perfume produced under his name. This is one of several fragrances to which he lent his name. So i guess that makes this technically a "celebrity fragrance". Pour Femme is an oriental floral fragrance, created by Francoise Caron.
Top notes are bergamot, orange blossom, palisander rosewood and green notes. Middle notes are jasmine, orris, rose, tuberose, ylang-ylang and narcissus. Base notes are sandalwood, amber, and musk.





Misha by Mikhail Baryshnikov (released 1980)

Mikhail Baryshnikov is a russian contemporary dancer, choreographer, and actor. He has a daughter from a relationship with Jessica Lange (love her!). This fragrance is named after Mikhail's nickname and is described as rich chypre-floral.
Opening notes of bergamot, peach and lemon. Jasmine, rose, raspberry, carnation and cinnamon form the heart of the composition, followed by the base of vetiver, oak moss, patchouli and amber.



Beverly Hills by Gale Hayman (released 1991)
"Beverly Hills represents a softer woman "who doesn't have to apologize for being strong and also is very aware of maintaining her femininity. She can run a company wearing pink, if she wants."-Hayman

A beautiful, dazzling, feminine scent with jasmine, gardenia, amber, powder.





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