Introduced in 1923 by François Coty.
What the heck is dusting powder?
Of curious note is that they show the range of prices from high to low instead of low to high like many of us these days are more used to. Perhaps to help seal the deal it was high-end stuff.
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Gay Diversion is brought to you by the same folks who made Menace, Enchanting Menace and Moonlight Menace.
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Pronounced RAY-PLEEK.
Réplique was introduced in 1944.
The original scent was discontinued in the late 1980s.
Via Cleopatra’s Boudoir…
“The story is almost too good to be true, but it is an acknowledged fact: The main “nose” of parfumeur Worth in Grasse had just created “Requête” in 1944 when he had a violent argument with one of the directors and left them in the worst possible terms. He was immediately hired by Raphael and created “Réplique”, the reply to a “Requête” in French legalese. It was rumoured that Worth did not enjoy the joke.”
I thought it read “perfume by Bryan” but I guess it’s Evyan, not Bryan. Sorry, Bryan. Now sold under the Elizabeth Arden brand.
White Shoulders was launched in 1945. It was Evyan’s first and only perfume. Evyan’s founder had a great name — by Baron Walter Langer von Langendorff.
Yes, you want to know about the history of opera glasses.
White shoulders may be a symptom of a serious medical condition.
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What does it smell like? “sultry, light, flippant”
The artist is Vladimir Bobri (Bobritsky). More of his work here.
Corday was named after Charlotte Corday, a female assassin best known for offing this guy…
Does anyone else smell… murder?
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Is he about to push her over the railing?
Or maybe he’s a chiropractor about to make an adjustment.
Bone shards:
“Aveu” is French for “confession”, so “Aveu Confession du désir” means “confession confession of desire”.
“It is a feminine floral, created in 1946. Just at the end of the war, women were looking for beauty, flowers, things that would cheer them up after years of hardship, and Aveu was launched for this purpose.”
I have been unsuccessful in tracking down information on the assumed artist, Cydney. If you know anything, please hook me up!
The sophisticated name for a railing is balustrade. The vertical thingies on a balustrade are balusters. Now aren’t you fancy!?
Check out that sweet ampersand.
I was hoping there’d be a fancy name for those fingerless long/arm/sleeve gloves. Alas. “Gants à manches sans doigts” is a bit of a mouthful.
A 50ml flacon of this vintage perfume could set you back over $300.
A flacon is a bottle.
A falcon is a bird.
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Bone shards:
“What the hell am I smelling and why is it so wonderful? …Whatever the notes are, they’ve converged to create a sexual flower, one that is at its peak of fragrance, like a meadow in full bloom on the hottest spring day, visited by the horniest, healthiest bees.” — from a My Sin review
Lanvin’s My Sin was formulated by a mysterious Russian perfumer named Madame Zed.
What is dusting powder (one of the variations listed at the bottom of the ad)?
Black cats are awesome. You should adopt one from a shelter.
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I’m mostly sharing this ad just for that one line of copy. It’s a beaut.
Bone shards:
Laughter was Germaine Monteil’s first perfume. It was later rebranded as Rigolade, which is French for “joke”.
Laughter took eight years to develop. “It smells good too.” — Esquire, 1951
“Beauty is not a gift, rather the combination of natural charisms, personal style and expert care.” — Germaine Monteil
Is laughter the best medicine?
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“Here’s to women who play with fire and the perfume that they can smolder in.” — from a review of this scent by Barbara Herman at Yesterday’s Perfume.
Fun facts:
“Poivre” is French for “pepper”, named after the fragrance’s hot spicy pepper top note and now I really want to smell it.
Caron’s Poivre squeaked in at #10 in this list of The World’s 10 Most Expensive Perfumes Ever Created.
You can pick up 90 ml. of this perfume on Etsy for the low, low price of $2,130! (used)
Parfums Caron is still going strong.
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Avon calling.
Fun facts: The first Avon Representative was Mrs. P.F.E. Albee in 1886.
There were one million Avon Representatives by 1978.
On a personal note, there are two perfumes that have seduced me at pivotal moments in my life. Avon’s Odyssey is one of them.
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