Lanvin Vetyver… Then and Now
Lanvin introduced Vetyver in 1964, at a time when many other perfume houses at the time were also introducing vetiver fragrances.
With the original Vetyver, Lanvin spiked the grassy green fragrance with a tenacious lemon note, but differentiated theirs with a suprising and woody nutmeg undertone. To my modern sensibility, Vetyver seems as if it were inspired by lemon verbena, because the lemon aroma is so unextracably twisted into the grasses. It is a scent filled with the cheery possibilites of summer, with the spiciness adding a layer of dressy sophistication.
From the grass-stained knees of playing on suburban lawns, to wearing the “Sunday best” during an afternoon stroll in the park, Vetyver would fit anyone’s idea of the perfect sunshine day.
In 2003, Lanvin definitively abandoned this bright but spicy version with the introduction of a “more modern” version. Via Lanvin’s official site, perfumer Francois Robert is credited with the work on the new Vetyver. (Lanvin’s site is shockingly… helpful, especially the perfume history timeline. Informative even, compared to some corporate sites.) To a certain extent, it is less “modern” and more “trendy,” sporting an aquaceous character, albeit with softly sweet florals in the heart. Only a fleeting glimpse of the spiciness that made the original so intriguing occurs. However, the base in Vetyver ‘03 reveals an nice, noticable musky cedar flourish in the dry down that the vintage lacks.
I rather do like this newer version, too. It’s the scent of heading into the garden on a blue morning, still wet from a night rain, and plucking up ripe cucumbers from the damp plants and spongey earth. Like most vetiver scents, I find it cooling and relaxing. I’m willing to bet it can be picked up for a virtual song at the discount online sites or eBay, too.
The two Vetyvers are utterly dissimilar, but both are easy and enjoyable to wear. Either one should make refreshing summer perfumes for members of either gender, just ignore that both are pegged as “masculine” scents. The funny thing with the new Vetyver is that if someone simply waved a scent strip of it under my nose without telling me what it was, and demanded I label it, I would totally guess that it must be “feminine.” There’s a softness and complexity to it that one doesn’t always encounter with men’s perfumes.
It seems a pity Lanvin didn’t choose to continue with the vintage Vetyver, and then offer their “more modern” Vetyver as a seperate fragrance. *Sigh*
And apropos of NOTHING, I present to you… the Top 11 Ways To Avoid Hamster Attacks.
Top two images from metmuseum.org, and are both details from paintings by Childe Hassam (one of my personal favorite artists, actually.) The one at left top is from his Central Park, 1892, and the second on the right is from his In the Park, 1889. Third image of my dog exploring the dense garden forest, and emerging from the hanging rainforst vines of tomato plants. Well, when you’re only “half a dog tall” (Dav Pilkey), it at least SEEMS like a forest.
June 4th, 2006 at 10:20 pm
I’m the first -tadida;-)
I love vetiver and finds it intriguing that different EOs from around the globe, smells so unalike. I know very well that it’s the same way with every natural material, but I think it’s even more predominant in Vetiver - some are dry, some are smokey, but my favorite so far is a organic one I have from El Salvador.
Oh - I’m envious of your veggie jungle;-) Here I have all my tomatoes, cucumbers, melons and hot chilis in the greenhouse to ensure that I get a crop.
Fragrant Monday to you!
June 4th, 2006 at 10:54 pm
Alas, that is my father’s garden. I like to “steal” from it frequently, though. He’s got such a green thumb, that no matter how sparingly he plants this or that, he inevitably winds up with excess of some things. Especially tomatoes, which is good for me, because I seriously have no idea how to cook anything without tomatoes. I am a tomato junkie, I guess :)
Weirdly, I’ve never sniffed at ANY straight vetiver EOs. Now I REALLY want to. Thanks Ylva, very interesting.
June 4th, 2006 at 11:29 pm
Althought there a uncounted vetivers around, I find it again and again difficult territory, and therefore, undiscovered so to say. Funny enough, Lavin states in the description of the new vetiver “Vetiverol” as base note. Which is incredibly honest. No marketing blabla like south-west-papa-new-guinea-little-island-with man eaters- vetiver extracted in a tribal honeymoon ceremony and brought to you by xyz.
Love your dog, still!
June 4th, 2006 at 11:49 pm
Andy, yeah, Lanvin’s site is quite informative in a way I don’t particularly see other big houses being. I LOVE that they mention “Vetiverol,” because while I can’t pretend to explicitly know what that smells like, it goes a long ways in terms of customer responsiveness, I think. There’s an honesty in mentioning it that I like.
Ach, poor Fred: he’s one of my favorite photo subjects since he’s so compliant about it. I think he gets annoyed with me, but he puts up with it since I’m part of his pack. This site will likely turn into the world’s first and only perfume/wiener dog sites ever, heh. Oh well. At least it’s unique in a way, though I’m sure folks might be getting sick of pictures of my dog. I hope you will be able to find a furry little buddy soon, too :) Since Childe Hassam so routinely sticks his little white dogs in his park and city paintings, I simply could not resist sticking my little doggie in this post ;)
June 5th, 2006 at 4:38 am
Katie,
I’ve got to send you some of the Russian vetiver fragrance I recently obtained, called Green Vetiver. I haven’t tried Lanvin’s Vetyver, old or new, but, reading your description, it seems to me, it was (probably in its new version) an inspiration for Green Vetiver :-)
June 5th, 2006 at 6:53 am
This sounds so fresh…like just what I have been craving as it heats up here in Atlanta. I’m very intrigued by vetiver fragrances, but unfortunately, the couple I’ve tried haven’t done much for me: Il Profumo Vetiver de Java (so fleeting I can’t even tell you what it smelled like) and Anthousa Fig & Vetiver (which should be renamed Anthousa All Fig & No Vetiver). Any others you can suggest I try?
June 5th, 2006 at 7:22 am
I shall have to try these vetivers. I just finally sampled Guerlain Vetiver Pour Elle which I quite like. I must say, your doggie upstages any perfume or any garden with his wonderfulness.
June 5th, 2006 at 8:18 am
I tried the Lanvin — the newer one — and could not get past the marine note. Will stick with my Guerlain :-)
June 5th, 2006 at 1:37 pm
Hopping on here to say I just tried the VTAE Green Grass and Sunshine you sent — it is absolute heaven!!!! Why didn’t I try this before! (Oh, Lordy, I need to get busy on those samples) I am deeply thrilled with the lemongrass.
June 5th, 2006 at 4:07 pm
Marina - I’d love to try, thanks. I love being able to sniff at these Russian goodies you have :)
Greeneyes, the one that seems to attract the most folks is generally Guerlain’s. But if you don’t mind low-end stuff, one I like specifically for summer is Provence Sante’s Vetiver. It’s not super long-lasting, but it’s only $25 for a big ol’ bottle, so you can keep it in the fridge and give yourself a nice refresher spray whenever you like. It’s reedy and a little earthy, and for the price I think it’s perfect for hot weather application and re-application. (Do you have a Wild Oats store nearby? The one I had near me puts their bath & body stuff on 20% off sales every now and again, which makes it even cheaper. Plus, you can test it first to make sure it’s okay on you. I didn’t care for the others in the PS line, but this one is a nice simple winner.)
Cait, will be interesting to hear what you think of them. I think you especially might like the vintage version - I’m not sure why I think that, though.
Robin, that’s okay, I wasn’t so keen on the marine part either, so I sympathize. But the dry down is nice and earthy, and I always seem to like that.
March, oh yay! It is really fantastic, and I do wish I hadn’t discovered only now that it’s been apparently discontinued. It’s really one of those scents that DO live up to it’s name, I think. So glad it found a good fit with you :) I don’t even really like lemongrass, but I make an exception for this particular edp.
June 5th, 2006 at 4:57 pm
Thanks Katie. I can definitely do low-end (after all, I bought Jovan’s Pink Musk after reading your review). We don’t have Wild Oats in GA, but we have Whole Foods, and they may have it. If not, I’ll find it online. :)
June 5th, 2006 at 5:12 pm
Oh yeah, I forget about Whole Foods, but they’d be likely candidate to carry the line I bet.
Do try Guerlain’s, though, too ;)
I’m curious, what did YOU think of Pink Musk, if I may be so rude as to ask?
June 7th, 2006 at 5:03 am
Not rude at all! I enjoy wearing it. It was so cheap, I really thought it woud be no loss if it ended up being to sweet or whatever, but it’s quite nice, sweet and a litle green, very refreshing in the heat. Every time I wear it I find myself sniffing my wrist…and then applying more, but it never gets heavy.
June 7th, 2006 at 3:05 pm
Thanks, I was hoping to hear you thoughts! :) Sounds lovely on you.