r/vintageperfume

This one of my oldies that came in a lot but I don't know much about it.

I know that I. Midgin was an old department store or West but apart from that I don't really know when these were made.

Anyone familiar with the manufacturer or the stores?

The scent has faded to almost nothingness.

I'm not sure if the title means much to anybody who isn't British but to everybody who IS and is over a certain age, they'll know EXACTLY what I mean. The 70s were distinguished by many things but one of them was that bathrooms across the land turned a certain muted, sickly green colour. It became synonymous with bad taste as well as the rise of the home owing middle class, thinking they were sophisticated ( those of us living in council houses bathrooms were white, enamel and very utilitarian !) So it became an object of fun and derision for a long time. Ironically things have turned full circle and you can hear of people paying loss of money at scrap merchants to put them back in. I personally always loved them and was quite sad when my mother-in-law s was finally taken out only about 10 years ago. She used to accessorised it with plastic faux tortoise shell bathroom set

Now, I'm not sure this was the inspiration for that lovely shade of green that they used for Alliage, ( though it may have helped sell it over here !) It went from a being that yellowy sage to something a bit more olive green later on ( see other images ). I imagine that and the rough hewn, linen-like texture were meant to represent natural fabrics and the landscape. Because this was the first outdoorsy "Sport" fragrance from Ms Lauder.

Created by EL in house perfumer , Bernard Chant along with Francis Camail. The story goes that inspiration struck while driving to her country club to play tennis. It marked a point where heavy, formal evening perfumes, were seemingly becoming a bit dated too. This was a fresh, casual, and very green chypre scent meant for daytime and active lifestyles. Ladies who played sports and walked, not ladies who shopped and lunched.

The name is always struck me as a bit odd. Like Azuree, it's French ( not uncommon, French was still the language of fragrance ) but in English it translates to alloy which is rather less appealing ( it's one I always laugh at when Fragrantica decides that I need the page in English, some frags do not sound great when translated, would you want to wear something called Green Wind 😆 ). It's also odd for a fragrance meant to smell of all things natural as opposed to industrial. Again the story that's entered popular culture is that it has nothing to do with metal alloys but was because the fragrance is a combination of masculine and feminine notes for the new emancipated woman. It's certainly unisex. I'm not sure if that's apocryphal but I guess it's as good a reason as any.

Also is it Aliage or Alliage? Again common wisdom appears to be that it was two ll's in Europe more so than in the US. I don't think it's that clear cut ( although I knew it as Alliage ). From what I can tell, in the US, Lauder’s trademark on Alliage expired in 1992. Whilst Aliage is currently registered to Estée Lauder, and that’s the spelling the company currently uses for the Classic version.

More importantly, what does it smell like ? Green. It smells green. They put in anything they could find in: not just galbanum and oakmoss but artemisia and vetiver. There is citrus there , a little rose, cedar and nutmeg even jasmine ( but not a great deal, I can't smell any tbh ). It's just SOO green, as to give the feeling of a meadow. It's grass. It's dry, parched sunbaked fields. It's the long hot summers of the 70's lying in the park, holding your hand to shield the sun and feeling the dry stalks tickle your bare legs. Not a care in the world It's a summertime that I think we've lost forever.

So many great green fragrances were released join the 70s and I don't think it's any coincidence that they seeped into my young consciousness and remained there. I love green fragrances. I can probably list a dozen I adore but maybe that's for others to add their favourites. Alliage is certainly mine.

Notes: images utilise AI backgrounds but all the products are genuine and my own. I've picked out what I feel are the oldest and more interesting examples out of those I own but I have included a couple tutorial pics for anybody who's interested in trying to date or wants to look for the older as opposed to the ( relatively ) newer versions. I believe most of the products here featured originate from the 70s or early 80s ( I mean just look at the price stickers.Yes "10-8" is pre decimal ! Which marks it as being from 1971 as you can see how they adjusted the price to £5 new pounds - and then reduced it to £2 because clearly it didn't sell 😆)

I've had this fragrance for quite a while, and every time I wear it, it reminds me why I love vintage perfumes so much. There's something incredibly charming and elegant about older fragrances that is so hard to find today.

Does anyone else own this perfume or remember it? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I'd also love to know which vintage fragrance you'll never let go of. ❤️

As the token Brit on the Mod team, I thought it's probably behoves to me to wish all our US members Happy Independence Day ! ( yes, we've gotten over it 😆 ) Both that and this Post https://www.reddit.com/r/vintageperfume/s/XtyQBI0aWp then got me thinking :

🇺🇸 WHAT PERFUME SAYS ALL AMERICAN TO YOU ? 🇺🇸

We know that there was always a tradition of European, especially French, perfumery certainly in the decades leading up to and immediately after WWII. It was only with the rise of the teenager in the 50's ( I've seen Grease, I know 😂) and London beginning to swing in the 60's, did young, fun, affordable perfumes begin to emerge. British as well as American offerings too. These became the thing to wear. Then the European brands joined in too.

Certainly when I started getting into perfume it was what I call the "New World" perfumes that I could see/smell my (just a bit) older relatives wearing. My 20yo cousin, 25 yo SIL and 30 yo aunt. They didn't want what their parents had worn. It was Smitty ( made me do it !) not Shalimar; ( sexy-young ) Charlie not Chanel. We wanted a piece of Americana, the TV shows ( I wanted to be Rhoda ) and the fashion ( you saw far more US flags than union ones on T-shirts ). We might have got a bit cool during the punk/ new wave era it but during a lot of the late 70s and 80s, America was where it was at. Later in the 80's it would me the Italian's turn with Armani and Gianni Versace and we know that French perfumery never died, we know that Guerlain and Chanel in is still the top of most people's lists, but for a period things were a little different. The young, brash upstarts had their time in the sun.

So, for me, my coming of age fragrances in the late 70's were Alliage, made for being out in the country playing tennis. Azuree while going to the beach and getting tanned and freckled. Halston dancing the night away at Studio 54. It's Lauren as seen in the linked Post. These ( and Smitty and Charlie of course !). THESE say All American to me. I guess if we go forward a little, it's something like Tommy girl....Young, fun and full of hope. The world is your lobster and the party never stops.

It doesn't even have to be an American brand (we all know Coty was French) it's just what to you FEELS like an All-American fragrance. What captured that glorious time when there really was an "American dream".

Take it away, Tim Petty: 🎵"She was an American Girl" ( or boy !)

This is my first post ever and oh boy it’s a doozy!

I’m so excited I had to share this with people who might appreciate it.
After a long search, I finally found an exceptionally early, exceptionally preserved Warner-era bottle of Lauren by Ralph Lauren, complete with its original box. Finding one like this turned out to be much more complicated than I expected. Over the years there have been different formulations, concentrations, bottle styles, hardware changes, and packaging revisions. EDTs get confused with Colognes, Extraits get mislabeled, and many sellers simply don’t know exactly which version they have. Finding an early bottle with excellent provenance and a knowledgeable seller is surprisingly rare.

One of the things I love most about Lauren is that it was marketed to young women, yet it’s an incredibly sophisticated fragrance. Bernard Chant didn’t simplify it or make it feel “young.” He created a beautifully balanced green floral with real depth, elegance, and structure. It feels like a perfume that trusted its wearer to appreciate complexity, and I think that’s part of what has made it so enduring.

What also strikes me is how different that philosophy feels today. Lauren isn’t trying to impress you with one loud accord or one trendy note. It’s beautifully composed. Every material feels like it’s there for a reason, and nothing is trying to steal the spotlight. To me, that’s what makes a truly great perfume.

I wore this perfume almost every day in high school and I’m beside myself with excitement that I can wear it again. To me, it’s a piece of American perfume history and a reminder of a style of perfumery that simply isn’t made very often anymore.

If anyone here wore the original Lauren when it was released, or has experience with an early Warner bottle, I’d love to hear your memories and impressions.

Hoping the VP collective consciousness can riddle me this: When is White Linen, not White Linen, when it's White Linen Estée.

I feel a bit foolish asking this as I always considered myself pretty knowledgeable as regards to vintage Lauder but I'm into YD, Alliage, Azuree, PC, Estee and Cinnabar etc. The ones I had at the very beginning. White Linen I wore for awhile in the late 80's/ early 90's but tired of it quickly and never liked the modern version much ( to much of a in-your-face Persil washing powder vibe ). However, I occasionally still fancy wearing the vintage, and like having a complete Lauder back catalogue, so have bought the odd one. This was one such purchase.

From the off I really couldn't decide: fake or real ? On the one hand the box design looks and feels real, it has a slightly ribbed texture ( can't get the pic to pick this up ) and the older sand dollar motif instead of the later scallop shell. Well detailed, foiled and embossed. A simplified motif is moulded onto the glass on the back, too. On the other hand, I've never seen one of that shape; with a black top and just Estée as opposed to Estée Lauder.

One thing that's convincing is the smell. Well kind of. It lacks the really overwhelming soapy aldehydes of the modern version; it's actually far more floral, crisp lilac, hyacinth, lily and iris. It's better. It smells more like it used to do. Maybe more so. Then I started thinking - what smells kinda similar but florals than aldehyde ? Estee. Could it be ?? Am I just smelling what I want to smell. So I tried to reason it out -

How often do you get older versions of Estée called Estee Lauder ( the solids especially do this); that are called Estee, Estee Super, Estee Extract, there's a few versions. Then I thought of how Cinnabar was once called "Soft Youth Dew" ( third pic ) and AE was once called Clinique Aromatics and occupied an EL hexagonal gold collared bottle ( fourth pic ). I always thought Dazzling Silver was a play on White Linen, an attempt to update it for the Pleasures generation. Does Lauder have form with kind of thing ?

Then how WL was part of the New Romantic trio with Pavilion and Celedon ( if the universe ever gifts me them, I'll be one happy old broad ). How we have adverts of the original splash bottles. How we know sprays existed too, at some point. How the others fell by the wayside but we know very little of how long they lingered. It wasn't exactly before my time but I wasn't standing at Lauder counters aged 12. WL is just cited as circa 1978 same as Celedon and Pavillion. When did it go solo ? Did the others stop after a year or was it more like five ? I don't remember them on the shelves but see above 🤷🏼‍♀️ Did WL just carry on fully formed as the other pass beyond the veil. Could it have been an intermediate stage ? Was there ever a missing link ? A flanker ? A crossover ? A SOMETHING

It's an oddity for sure. I certainly can't find another. Google Lens can't get past the motif and the name, it just thinks it's White Linen. Which points more towards fake. I mean it would be out there somewhere. Wouldn't it. Then I remember a couple of others such as the Balmain one I mentioned not long ago I was told that it had got to be a fake, it didn't come in that bottle. Til I did some research. I've had this twice with the same perfume actually and it turns out both of them were just rare versions, there WERE others and explanations about where they came from, too. So, despite being a natural pessimist or cynic at least, I don't like to assume either way anymore !

If it IS fake bad one. Or an odd one at least. Because if you're going to do it, why replicate the motif perfectly but omit the Lauder. Most later ones have a gold top but some had white, especially the early purse sprays, none has black though. Yet the smell. That's FAR from bad. They managed to recreate it SOOO well or even do a better version.

In the end it's not a massive deal. I didn't pay much. I've got something I'll definitely wear. Yet, I'd love to solve the mystery ! So, help a Mod out 😉🙏💜

The Chinese Export Labels 😱

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Does anybody know if this is worth anything? It’s vintage.

I found this bottle locally and bought without sampling it because I couldn’t open the stopper. I finally managed to open it and omg it’s so potent and feminine floral bouquet but a piece of history regardless. Just one tiny swap on the skin and the scent is in your face. Now I get why people were banned entering cafes in Paris if wearing this fragrance. However, I’m curious if knowledge people can help me in identifying its production period? I suspect it’s from the 80s.

my boyfriend found this on one of his jobs while digging up the garden, it is made of thick moulded glass with a ground-glass stopper. If anyone knows anything about this, it would be appreciated 🥰

I unpacked a handbag that I hadn't used in years, ( but unable to discard)

Society........

still smells like the day I purchased it, in London but unable to remember where.

Interestingly the word's on the box confuse me.

"" This article may be sold by authorised dealers.""

Society Parfums

Ref. 030101

A 1071

Same number A1071 is on a tiny sticker on bottle.

Hopefully someone can enlighten me more.

I found these at an antique mall that sits in what used to be a post office. I got a bargain! I’m beyond stoked!

Need help dating this Rochas Femme bottle

I recently bought a second-hand bottle of Rochas Femme and I'm trying to determine approximately when it was produced.

The box has the reference "Réf. 01.0180", and is stamped with the code H147.

I've attached photos of the bottle and box in the comments. Does anyone recognize this packaging or know roughly which production period it belongs to?

I am always surprised by the range of styles they had.

The seller’s pic was so blurry I thought the 460 ml bit was a typo, until I picked it up. I guess I’m all set for the next century or so! 🫠

This is the only version of Habanita I’ve tried and it’s so addictive. My dream is the Lalique bottle someday.

Would love to hear about other versions. What’s the modern EDP like?

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I'm currently wearing Eau de My Sin by Lavin.