A question I get a lot is "Are vintage perfumes still good to wear?" and the answer is ABSOLUTELY. Provided they have been stored in a cool dry place, away from sunlight and the bottle has stayed sealed well enough to not let in air, a perfume can stay wonderful smelling for decades. There are some perfumistas whose wardrobe is made up exclusively of vintage because they just prefer those type of scents over the candy sweet ones that make up a large percentage of what is on the current market. They don't make em like they used to! Perfumes of yesteryear had serious personality that cannot be compared to modern. There is a fantasy aspect to them, taking you away in a time machine. It's a piece of history in smell form. There is a character and depth as they unravel in layers over the course of wearing them. Here are a few vintages that I absolutely loved wearing.
VOL DE NUIT by Guerlain
This was the scent that not only turned me on to galbanum as a note (making me chase things like vintage Miss Dior and Ralph Lauren Safari) but Vol de Nuit also turned me on to the world of 1930s woody fragrances. The smell of real silk stockings in a drawer with a stash of perfumed cigarettes. Perfumes like Angelique Encens, Sous le Vent and Tweed suddenly entered my world, all thanks to a little sample of Guerlain Vol de Nuit holding the door open. This just smells so classy and old school, like the beautiful star of a black and white romantic comedy.
ARPEGE by Lanvin
The first time I smelled Arpege I immediately thought "This one is going to need very careful wearing". Meaning light handed, meaning just the right weather, meaning just the right occasion. Not a perfume I would recommend to someone just starting out on a perfume journey. Not to sound like a snob but this is an old school aldehyde that to a newbie inexperienced nose will receive the dreaded "o l d l a d y" comment and scrunched nose. You have to know who you are and what you are doing in order to rock Arpege confidently. This is a lady, she knows what a finger bowl is for. She has monogrammed stationary. Her house is decorated in chintz fabric and everything is perfectly symmetrical. She is probably an Earth or Water sign. This is really musky and not at all light. If you are confident with your ability to pull off things like White Linen or even jLo Glow, you can handle Arpege. But yes, it takes a minute to "get" Arpege and it won't be everyone's thing. Smells shy but it's not for shy people.
FIRST by Van Cleef & Arpels
A fine aldehydic potion. Where White Diamonds uses aldehydes to showcase lilies and Ysatis uses aldehydes to showcase ylang ylang, Van Cleef & Arpels First uses aldehyde accord in the top notes to frame and highlight a green and fresh hyacinth. Very "ladies who lunch". I'm so impressed!
L'HEURE BLEUE by Guerlain
I consider this the quiet, reserved older sister of the more cheeky and vivacious Mitsouko. About seven years ago, I first sampled it and couldn't really forget it once my sample was gone. I saw a vintage bottle of it in a thrift store of all places but for whatever reason, went home without buying it. Regret clouded my thoughts. A few days later my sister called and mentioned that she was shopping at that particular thrift store. I yelled into the phone instructions for what part of the store I'd seen it, which shelf it was on, described the curlique bottle shape and promised I'd pay her back right away if she could please please find it and buy it for me. It was still there (how did the other thrift store shoppers never see it??) and once she brought it to me, I knew why it had haunted my mind so badly. It's a haunted perfume. Mitsouko is also a haunted perfume. Otherworldly, possessed by a spirit of an era, unforgettable, larger than life, having a personality that takes the wearer on a fantastic journey to another time. The standout notes for me are heliotrope, anise, vanilla and tonka. It's powdery in the very best way a perfume can be. Reading through the other reviews, you'll notice how it reminds different people of different things. Some smell the gourmand notes more strongly and some sense it to be more floral, but almost everyone finds it nostalgic. It's soft and comforting, elegant in the way of old Guerlain. Images of the twilight hour are perfect for this. L'Heure Bleue came out in 1912, the year Titanic sank. I always wonder how many fashionable ladies were wearing it on that fateful night. Some of them went to a watery grave, making it the last perfume they ever wore. Others perhaps wore it and survived but could not bear to wear it again, due to the painful memory associations that fragrance has on our hearts and minds. I suppose this could be a signature scent for some people. To me, it's not an every day mood. It's melancholy, elegant, romantic and feels like it is meant for the most special of occasions
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