Arpege by Lanvin c1927

Arpege by Lanvin: launched in 1927. Created by André Fraysse and Paul Vacher. Named after the musical term ‘arpeggio’ in honour of Jeanne Lanvin’s only daughter Marie-Blanche, a talented pianist.

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? It was created with over 60 natural ingredients and is classified as a floral aldehyde fragrance for women. It begins with an exaltation of aldehydes, bergamot and neroli, followed by an elegant floral heart featuring the classic pairing of Bulgarian rose and jasmine from Grasse. These precious petals are showered with vibrant blossoms of lily of the valley, lilac, Dutch blue hyacinth, camellia, ylang ylang, honeysuckle and tender narcissus. Tempered by coriander and the pungency of cloves, faded glimpses of dusty orris root, syringa and ripened peaches hide in the background with barely touched notes of vetiver. A deepened animalic base of powdery Tibetan musk and a dreamy amber note accent the earthiness of patchouli. Warm, balsamic infusions of vanilla, Mysore sandalwood and benzoin add a sweetened richness to the composition.

• Top notes: aldehydes, bergamot, Dutch blue hyacinth, neroli, Japanese camellia, coriander, clove, honeysuckle and peach
• Middle notes: Grasse jasmine, lilac, syringa, Bulgarian rose, ylang-ylang, camellia and lily of the valley
• Base notes: spices, vanilla, iris, patchouli, ambergris, benzoin, Tibetan musk, Mysore sandalwood and vetiver

Over the years, Arpege made use of some synthetic and natural aroma compounds such as:

• Ambrarome (amber)
• Ambrein (ambergris note)
• vetiveryl acetate (10%) (vetiver)
• sandalwood (8%)
• coumarin (1.5%) (tonka bean)
• ambrette (amber note)
• vanillin (vanilla)

Marie-Claire, 1937:

"Arpege by Lanvin: Warm and subtle. Dominant note: rare flower, jasmine."

Le Petit Parisien : journal quotidien du soir, 1941:

"Arpege, very refined, since it sits at your fingertips; a true accord of flowers, fruits, leaves and furs."

La Femme Chic, 1945:

"Arpege by Lanvin is difficult to describe: it smells of flowers, fruits, fur and leaves at the same time. It’s a real bouquet of fresh and warm notes; it has been defined as 'the living perfume that beautifies'; charming and fair definition, but which does not only suit him, because it would also apply very well to Requête for example, so fresh, so young, eighth but not last chapter of the true 'roman de la rose' written by Worth with its perfumes; Dans la Nuit, Vers le Jour, Sans Adieu, Je Reviens, Vers Toi, Projets, Imprudence...This sweet Request is sure to be very well received."

Combat, 1955:

"Arpege by Lanvin - Arpege of notes, tenacious without aggressiveness, which have the magic power of unforgettable celebrations. Exalted note of jasmine from Grasse. Haughty note, nuanced with oriental charm, of Bulgarian rose. More subdued but effective notes of the end, wild lily of the valley, ivory-clawed honeysuckle, Japanese camellia, Dutch blue hyacinth and dreamy ambergris... To this aristocratic and voluptuous arpeggio, a singular aldehyde serves as an organ, summer as for winter days."

Bottles:

Arpege was originally presented in a black Art Deco spherical flacon with gilded decoration (known as the Flacon Boule) designed by Armand-Albert Rateau and made by Verrières Brosse. A rare example is clear crystal with gilding. The earlier bottles have the gilded raspberry/pine cone shaped stopper, later examples have a gilded and ribbed spherical stopper.

Here is a quick guide to your bottle sizes if it is missing labels or boxes. Please note that this is a work in progress, more info will be added as it becomes available to me.

Raspberry stopper boule flacons:

• 1 oz bottle stands 2.25" tall
• 2 oz bottle stands 3" tall
• 3 oz bottle stands 3.5" tall.

Boule with ribbed stopper (original, not fully gilded ground glass stopper):

• 2 oz bottle stands 4" tall.
• 4.5" tall
• 5.25" tall
• 32 oz

Boule with ribbed stopper (fully gilded ground glass stopper):

• 0.25 oz = 2" tall
• 0.5 oz 
• 1 oz bottle stands 3" tall.
• 2 oz = 3 1/8" tall

Boule with ribbed stopper (fully gilded stopper with plastic plug):

• 0.5 oz = 2.5" tall.

Boule flacons, ball shaped, black glass or clear glass, gilded raspberry/pine cone stoppers, changed to ribbed ball stoppers in the 1920s as evidenced by some vintage newspaper ads. From 1925 until 1947, these had the Jeanne Lanvin name, from 1947-1958, they had the name Lanvin Parfums (though you may find some oddball bottles with the old raspberry stoppers, probably old stock), from 1958 onward they had the name Lanvin or Lanvin Paris (on some late 1950s bottles).

A limited edition was created by Sevres in 1927. This rare Boule bottle model "blue ball" in blue enameled Sevres porcelain, decorated in gold, accented with gold collar, with its gilded raspberry stopper. Monogrammed and dated November 1927. Stands: 9 cm tall. Photo by Drouot.

Other bottles are the square or rectangular clear glass bottles, known as the Flacon Carre, with the black glass, bakelite or black plastic stopper molded or cut intaglio with the Lanvin mother/daughter logo. These were created in 1932 and were still being sold in 1980.  

In 1937, Lanvin face powder debuts.

In 1938, Eau de Lanvin and Eau de Cologne was launched in octagonal, ribbed crystal bottles.

In 1949, the Lanvinette, a cylindrical, gold tone purse flacon, designed by Cartier and holding 1/8 oz perfume was launched, it was often given as a gift with purchase.

Many people are not aware that the Eau de Lanvin is a toilet water/eau de toilette and that perfume (parfum) is called an extrait.

In 1950, the Traveler flacon was launched, holding 1 1/3 ounces of precious "Arpege" in Eau de Lanvin, is a cylindrical gold metal bottle, it is  the big sister to the Lanvinette flacon. (these were still being sold in 1976)

In 1953, the black and gold purse flacons were introduced.

Curiously in 1957, ---"Thought you would like to know that for the first time in automotive history the exciting and elegant Cadillac Brougham (which sells for $12,000) will come equipped with Lanvin's one ounce perfume in the atomizer bottle." This is fitted in the armrest of the car and is standard equipment - so here again is another first for Lanvin. Sincerely, Peter Fink.” The atomizer was especially designed by STEP for the House of Lanvin, it is only operational when inverted, is completely leak proof and spill proof. It will hold $25 worth of Arpege, and along with all of the other appurtenances will be standard, not optional  equipment.

In 1962, Arpege Perfume Mist (200 metered sprays, refillable) and the Arpege Spray Mist (1000 metered sprays, refillable), were introduced.

In 1963, the Arpege Natural Spray was introduced, in parfum and Eau de Lanvin. "It's all Arpege. No wonder Arpege Natural Spray lasts long after aerosol fragrances have been used up. No wonder Lanvin dares to bring it to you in a crystal clear flacon, so you can see exactly what you're paying for. Won't leak, won't spill — but it will refill."

In 1965, A Veil of Arpege, a fluffy lotion emollient, was launched. The boule bottle and square cut flacon were still being used. This product was still being sold in 1987.

In 1971, Eau Arpege/Eau de Arpege was launched, this was sold until around 1989. A line of bath and after bath preparations were also launched during that year.  The same preparations listed below for "Arpege" are also available in the "My Sin" line. The "bath & body perfume" is somewhat mis-named. Actually it is a metered aerosol spray of what seems to be a non-alcoholic perfume, to be used on the skin, not in the tube. Its strength is undisclosed, but is estimated lower than regular perfume.

The Emollient Bath Salts claim to be water softening and leave a slight film of floating bath oil on the water surface. This fragrance is of medium strength. Foaming Milk Bath generates rich suds and carries the fragrance at a medium strength level, similar to the bath salts.

If your preference is a plain bath oil, Arpege and My Sin also come in Perfumed Bath Oil. For a traditionalist on the go, Lanvin offered Arpege and My Sin fragrances in spray dusting powder, handsomely contained in a sleek 4 oz cylinder, perfect for traveling.

In 1977, the newly introduced Foaming Fragranced Bath Concentrate in either My Sin or Arpege would put scented bubbles in your tub, while the Fragranced Body Moisturizer, provided a satiny self-indulgence.

Also in 1977, the Arpege Bath and Fragrance Oil was introduced, it was a metered aerosol spray of perfume, meant to be sprayed onto the body and not in the tub.

Fate of the Fragrance:

In 1979, the Lanvin family gained its independence from its owners, Squibb, and tried to revive its dying catalog of fragrances.

In 1982, the return of the black boule flacon was launched (though it was available before 1982, but in very limited numbers), since then, all of the Arpege fragrances can be found in this form, even as an atomizer for the eau de toilette.

To give the fragrance an air of modernity, in 1987, a tall, amphora shaped, frosted glass bottle for Eau Arpege, an eau de parfum, was designed by Serge Mansau.

In 1987, Arpege Eau de Parfum (as L'Eau de Parfum Arpege) was released, presented in the black boule flacon. Lanvin wanted the new formulation to “make an art statement. Serge Mansau designed the vaporizer and he understood beautifully what we wanted. He looked back in Lanvin's tradition and re-interpreted the famous black ball bottle of Arpege in a modernized flacon.

In 1989, Arpege was not selling as well as it used to so the new chairman of Lanvin, Leon Bressler, wanted to put the perfume back into the limelight, and hopefully spark new interest in Lanvin fashions. "Arpege should be a much greater success than it is," Bressler said, describing the fragrances as being "underexploited."

Lanvin was unable to guarantee the high quality of their fragrances, and refusing to compromise, Lanvin closed its perfume factory in Nanterre, France and their international perfume subsidiaries. Lanvin discontinued production of all their fragrances except for Arpege, which was manufactured elsewhere. 

To boost sales of the Arpege fragrance, Lanvin began spending five million francs in a two-month advertising campaign that ran in general interest and women's magazines. The print campaign was designed to promote not just the fragrance, but also "the new Lanvin."

In addition to the ad campaign, Lanvin sponsored several promotions to reinvigorate Arpege's image. Lanvin gave its first annual award for excellence in the arts, called L'Art d'Etre Arpege (The Art of Being Arpege), on November 16, 1989 at a gala dinner for about 300 persons at the Ritz Pool in the basement of the Hotel Ritz. Bressler presented the award to ballerina Sylvie Guillem. 

Parfums Lanvin also reissued a limited edition series of Arpege for Christmas in conjunction with Paris' Musee des Arts Decoratifs. the series featured 60 ml of Eau de Toilette in the familiar boule flacon. Of the 1,000 flacons in the limited edition series, 30 were numbered, with the numbers engraved in gold. The numbered flacon each sold for 700 francs, and were only available at the museum's boutique. The unnumbered bottles were sold in selected perfumeries around France and in Lanvin's boutiques for 550 francs each. I am unsure if the fragrance was reformulated at this time.

In 1992, Relance d'Arpege was released, a reformulation of the original perfume. The reformulated version was developed by.Hubert Fraysse  The fragrance is a combination of orange blossom, honeysuckle, rose, jasmine, ylang ylang, sandalwood, vetiver and patchouli. It comes in a flacon inspired by the Art Deco original. The Arpege Fragrance and Bath Collection offered 11 products including 1.7 oz Eau de Parfum and 1/2 oz Parfum. It was at first, only available in France and Belgium, then released to the United States in 1995 and found in select specialty stores and upper end department stores like Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom and Bloomingdale's.

• Top notes:  aldehydes, bergamot, blue hyacinth, neroli, coriander, honeysuckle, clove and peach
• Middle notes: orange blossom, Grasse jasmine, Bulgarian rose, ylang-ylang, camellia and lily of the valley
• Base notes: ambergris, benzoin, musk, sandalwood, patchouli and vetiver

Also in 1993, Eau Arpege was relaunched

In 1994, it was reformulated and relaunched. "Top notes are fresh, brisk and jubilant. They are comprised of bergamot and neroli. Middle notes are tender and feminine, a bouquet of roses, jasmine, ylang ylang enhanced by aldehydes. Bottom notes are comprised of sandalwood, patchouli, and vetiver with a lingering vanilla note."

In 2005, a version of the Arpege Extrait was released.

In 2006, a reformulation of the original 1927 fragrance was launched which resulted in a sweet floral fragrance, contains more than 60 rare and precious flowers. Presented in a 100 ml black 'Arpège' bottle.

Limited Edition Bottles:

From 1993, the Arpège Parfum de Collection limited edition, had only 1560 copies, the black glass bottle is entirely decorated with gold, except for the base. H: 6.5 cm.

Launched in 1996,  Nuée d'Or (Golden Cloud), limited edition of only 2500 copies, black glass with powdery gilding, created by Van Lith.

Introduced in 1997, the Sortilege (Spell or Hex) presentation bottle, its neck adorned with a jewel made by the designer Hervé Van Der Straeten, limited edition of just 2000 copies and was sold exclusively at Harrod's in London for 190 pounds.

From 1998, Jardin D'Or (Golden Garden), designed by Pascal Mourgue, bottle holds 15ml of parfum, limited edition of just 1500 copies.

After 1998, more limited editions followed. The juice remains the same, only the bottle is different for all of these limited edition collector bottles.

In 1999, Arpege was sold in a limited edition "Grand Deluxe Edition" published in 499 copies, created and designed by Serge Mansau: Presented in a modernist cardboard box wrapped in glossy black paper and yellow embossed siglé and titled, bottle sculpture colorless crystal solid rectangular cubic etched sandblasted on one side of the symbol of the house decor, gold banded collar, pearl gold lacquered cap, set in a frame of black plexiglass and brass. Stands 15.5 cm tall.

In 1999, Olivier Gagnère designed a limited edition parfum bottle for Arpege, called Arpege Intimite (Privacy), it was made up of blue and gold. It was a limited edition of just 2000 copies. It holds 15ml parfum.

Also in 1999, Reflets D'Or (Golden Reflection), limited edition of just 3500 copies, designed by Van Lith, in clear glass covered in gilding. The bottle holds 1/2 oz of Parfum.

From 2000, Reve Bleu (Blue Dream), a limited edition of just 700 copies,designed by Eric Halley, the bottle had blue feathers adorning the flacon.

Limited edition eau de parfum, 50ml, age unknown, 1990s era. Bottle is just under 3.25 inches tall.

In October 2009, to celebrate their 120th anniversary, a limited edition of Arpège in 50 or 100 ml Eau de Parfum, called Arpege 120, was released along with sketches by designer Alber Elbaz on the outer box. This is the same reformulated fragrance from 1993, albeit with necessary tweaks due to IFRA restrictions on ingredients.

• Top notes: aldehydes, peach, bergamot, orange blossom, honeysuckle
• Middle notes: jasmine, iris, rose, ylang ylang, coriander, mimosa, tuberose, geranium
• Base notes: sandalwood, vetiver, patchouli, vanilla, musk