Tag Archives: lanvin arpege

L’Origine du mal (2022)

This beautiful shot is part of the closing credits of the film. We can assume all these bottles and miniatures belong to Louise, who’s got a problem with compulsive shopping.

It’s a very interesting collection of mostly French fragrances from the past and from recent years.

On the far left there’s Dior J’Adore, a white floral fragrance by Calice Becker launched in 1999.

In the background there’s the distinctive black bottle of Lanvin Arpège, a floral aldehyde fragrance created by Paul Vacher and Andre Fraysse, and launched in 1927.

The tall red bottle is Kenzo Amour eau de parfum, an amber vanilla fragrance created by Daphné Bugey and Olivier Cresp, and launched in 2006.

There’s another Christian Dior fragrance: it’s Dune, an amber woody fragrance created by Jean-Louis Sieuzac, Nejla Barbir and Dominique Ropion and launched in 1991.

Right behind Dune there’s Rochas Alchimie, a floral fruity fragrance by Jacques Cavallier Belletrud launched in 1998.

The dark blue bottle with gold detail is Dior Addict, a white floral fragrance created by Thierry Wasser and Christian Dussoulier, and launched in 2002.

Moving to the foreground, there’s a miniature of Yves Saint Laurent Paris, the iconic rose fragrance by Sophia Grojsman launched in 1983.

There’s a miniature of the lovely cork-shaped bottle of Yves Saint Laurent Champagne, a fruity/powdery fragrance created by Sophia Grojsman and launched in 1993. Three years later it was renamed Yvresse because of a lawsuit filed by the Comité interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne.

There’s also a miniature of Christian Dior Poison, the spicy fruity masterpiece by Edouard Flechier and Maurice Roger launched in 1985.

Givenchy Amarige takes the centre of the shot. This is a floral fragrance by Dominique Ropion launched in 1991.

Next, there’s a miniature of Balmain Ivoire de Balmain eau de toilette, a chypre floral fragrance created by Michel Hy and Francis Camail and launched in 1979.

Moving to the right, there’s a miniature of Guerlain Insolence, a violet fragrance by Maurice Roucel and Sylvaine Delacourte launched in 2006.

The tall bottle with thimble-shaped metal stopper is Madeleine Vionnet eau de toilette, a floral fragrance that Françoise Caron created in 1996 for the historical French maison.

Lancôme Hypnôse is sitting behind it: this is a floral fragrance with gourmand notes created by Annick Menardo and Thierry Wasser, and launched in 2005.

Almost hiding in the background, on the far right, there’s the blue version of Guerlain flacon chauve souris: it houses Shalimar Soufflé de Parfum, created by Thierry Wasser and launched in 2014.

Thanks to LePetitCivet for the Dune, Alchimie and Ivoire ids.

Vita da cani (1950)

Nino (Aldo Fabrizi) wants to propose to Rita (Gina Lollobrigida) and invites her to visit Como with him. He’s dressed elegantly and his outfit includes a scented handkerchief!

The fragrance of choice is none other than Lanvin Arpège, shown above in the boule noire with raspberry stopper in an advert from 1950, year in which the film was released.

Thanks to my friend Rocco for submitting this post.

Body Double (1984)

In one of the most dramatic scenes of the film Gloria (Deborah Shelton) is attacked in her own room by the “Indian”, a disfigured man.

When one watches this scene, all the attention is focused on the horrific violent act in it, certainly not on the furniture and objects in Gloria’s bedroom. But this is one of my favourite films ever: I have watched it a lot of times, so at a certain point my attention shifted to other details in the scene. That’s why I have been able to identify three of the bottles on the dresser. All of them refer to one fragrance – Arpége by Lanvin.

The black bottle with gold-accented stopper is the refillable atomiser.

The tall bottle with square black stopper contains Arpége Eau de Lanvin.

Last, the round bottle with black stopper contains the bath oil.

It’s clear Arpége is Gloria’s favourite fragrance – she keeps three different versions on her dresser. This floral aldehyde perfume was created by Paul Vacher and Andre Fraysse and launched in 1927.

California Suite (1978)

Diana Barrie (Maggie Smith) is a British actress who is in Los Angeles after getting her first Oscar nomination. While she’s sitting in her in-suite bathroom at the Beverly Hills Hotel, we can see several toiletries on the pink marble counters around her.

The yellow stick on her right is Jean Naté cologne stick.

On her left there’s the iconic boule noire of Lanvin Arpège, created by Paul Vacher and Andre Fraysse and launched in 1927.

Thanks to LePetitCivet for submitting this post.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel S04E06 (Maisel vs. Lennon: The Cut Contest)

When Miriam decides to meet L. Roy Dunham (Hari Nef), a journalist who has been writing scathing articles about her shows, the first comment she gets is about her perfume.

The journalist thinks she’s wearing Lanvin Arpège. Even if we haven’t seen so far what perfumes sit on Miriam’s dressing table, I think Arpège is a nice guess. Created by Paul Vacher and Andrè Fraysse and launched in 1927, this iconic white floral fragrance would suit the protagonist’s bubbly yet classic style.

The Party (1968)

Actor Hrundi V. Bakshi (Peter Sellers) is the epitome of clumsiness. After inadvertently blowing up a fort on a film set, he’s about to be blacklisted by the studio head,  General Fred R. Clutterbuck, but for a twist of fate he gets an invitation for an exclusive dinner party at the Clutterbucks. Needless to say, he causes trouble in every single room he visits.

This is the second bathroom he visits in the lavish mansion: there’s a small dressing table in it, so it’s probably used mostly by Alice, the general’s wife. On one shelf hanging on the wall we can see a houndstooth bottle by Christian Dior. The front label is impossible to read, so we can make some guesses: it could be Miss Dior (created by Paul Vacher and Jean Carles in 1947), Diorissimo (created by Edmond Roudnitska and launched in 1956), Diorama (another Roudnitska creation from 1948) or even Diorling (a chypre creation by Paul Vacher launched in 1963).

On the dressing table on the right there’s Lanvin Arpège in the classic boule noire bottle.

Le dernier métro (1980)

Marion Steiner is a strong woman: she’s the owner and leading actress of the Théâtre Montmartre in Paris during WWII. She’s also exceptionally beautiful and elegant, despite the harsh living and working conditions of that historical period. Still, it’s quite surprising to see an incredible array of Lanvin Arpège [1] products on her dressing table. This choice is historically accurate: the Lanvin perfume, created by Paul Vacher and Andre Fraysse, was launched in 1927.

Starting from the left, there’s a tall faceted bottle of Eau de Lanvin Arpège.

Next, two small bottles with square stopper of Arpège.

The only non-Lanvin product is Caron Narcisse Noir in the original bottle with engraved black stopper.

The black rectangular half-open box contains Lanvin Arpège soap. The packaging of the box seen in the movie is slightly different from the one above, though: the box in the movie has faceted – not rounded – edges.

The round box contains Arpège dusting powder.

Last, Arpège in the classic boule noire with ribbed stopper.

The same objects appear in a scene where Marion (Catherine Deneuve) is sitting at her vanity. In this case, another bottle of Eau de Lanvin Arpège can be seen in front of the mirror.

[1] Other Lanvin perfumes were launched before 1942 (year in which the film takes place) – Mon Péché in 1924, Scandal in 1931, Rumeur in 1934, Pretexte in 1937. The same bottles were used for most of them, so those seen on Marion’s table could contain one of them and not Arpège. Arpège was the most popular, though, so I guess it was easier to find in war times.

Ratched S01E03 (Angel of Mercy)

Mildred (Sarah Paulson) is about to meet the private detective Charles Wainwright in her room again. On her dressing table we see an old acquaintance and a new bottle.

The tall ribbed bottle – previously seen in the pilot – is Moment Suprême eau de cologne by Jean Patou.

The other bottle is the Lanvin boule, a special one: it’s made of colourless glass (and not of the more ordinary black glass) and its gold stopper has got a raspberry shape (and not the more ordinary ribbed ball shape) [1]. This bottle was used to house Mon péché (My Sin), originally launched in 1924, and Arpège, launched in 1927. I like to think My Sin is sitting on Mildred’s vanity: she’s a character full of contrasts, who is definitely hiding many secrets and sins.

[1] Later, the ribbed stoppers would replace the raspberry ones. The change didn’t happen before the 1960s, as shown by this 1964 advert for My Sin

Thanks to lepetitcivet for the Lanvin id.

Joan Collins’ Dressing Table (1950s)

Beautiful Joan Collins looked gorgeous in this picture from the 1950s. Some intriguing charm is imparted by the several bottles sitting on her vanity, too.

rochasfemme_vintage_bornunicornFrom the left, there are two Rochas bottles, one of which has the glass stopper. I’d like to say this was Femme, but I’m not 100% sure: other three perfumes – Mousseline, Mouche and La Rose – were housed in the same curvy bottle. All these fragrances were created by Edmond Roudnitska.

rochasfemmecologne_bornunicorn.jpgThe same can be said for the bottle with the plastic stopper: this one could be Femme eau de cologne, or one of the aforementioned scents.

The small square bottle with black stopper is the mini version of a Lanvin perfume. It’s unclear if it was Arpege or another scent (the same container was used to house different fragrances).

dior_dioramavintagebottle_bornunicornNext, there’s a bottle of Christian Dior Dioramaa chypre fruity creation by Edmond Roudnitska launched in 1948. Am I the only one who has always seen Dior’s signature bow-topped front label as the peak of Parisian chic?

worthjereviens_bornunicornThe fluted “skyscraper” bottle is quite unmistakable: it’s Je Reviens by Worth, a fragrance created by Maurice Blanchet and launched in 1932.

The round lace-printed box on the right is another product by Rochas, a perfumed talcum powder which, I guess, was from the Femme line.

A couple of words on the two of the four bottles I haven’t identified, starting with the bottle with rectangular stopper. It looks like Lancôme Bocages, but I can’t see the peculiar semi-circular shape in the stopper. Then the glass bottle on the right looks like a Chanel one, but have Chanel front labels ever been that rectangular? Any ideas on these doubts of mine are welcome!

Thanks to Scentimentalist and Le Petit Civet for the Lanvin id.

Judy Garland’s Make-Up Case (1968)

judygarlandtravelcase_bornunicornIf I think of all the make-up cases, dressing tables and vanities I’ve written about on this blog, I don’t think I’ve ever been excited like this time. The present entry is something special, because it features the make-up case of Judy Garland (circa 1968). Just from the picture above, you may see why I’m so happy: there’s a superlative selection of perfumes and toiletries! All of them are part of a lot sold at an auction: besides the make-up case, it included a sewing basket and a travel mirror, several make-up items and hair accessories, some documents, pictures and one Salvatore Ferragamo black suede pump.

Let’s see what perfumes she carried in her case.

carven_magriffessencepourlebain_bornunicornFirst, not really a perfume, but a bath fragrance. It’s Ma Griffe by Carven, originally created by Jean Carles and launched in 1946.

guerlainvoldenuittalc_bornunicornThe stunning white bottle with black label and gold lettering is a Guerlain talc; the fragrance is Vol de Nuit, one of the most famous creations by Jacques Guerlain, launched in 1933.

lanvinarpegenaturalspray_bornunicornIt’s not surprising that the perfume bottles she travelled with were spray (and not splash). The fluted one with black and gold stopper is Arpege by Lanvin, a creation of Andre Fraysse launched in 1922.

rochasfemmerefillableatomiser_bornunicornThe lace-like bottle is none other than Femme by Rochas, created by Edmond Roudnitska and launched in 1944.

I wish I could identify the make-up items too, but they unfortunately have no labels and a pretty standard packaging.

Picture source.