Givenchy L’Interdit, classic and new

Effectively I promised you a fragrance evaluation and also you’re going to get one. It will be an train in frustration, as a result of I’m making an attempt the classic model of Givenchy’s L’Interdit towards the brand new model which is offered at e-tailers all over the place. I’m certain all of you’ve gotten heard the story of L’Interdit and understand it backwards and forwards but it surely bears repeating: initially it was a bespoke scent, a love letter from Hubert de Givenchy to his pal and muse Audrey Hepburn. It was hers and hers alone for a number of years till it’s creator determined that he wished to launch it to the general public as his first fragrance. In line with historical past, Miss Hepburn stated “Mais, je l’interdis!” (“however, I forbid it!”) Cooler heads ultimately prevailed and Miss Hepburn agreed to the discharge of what was now referred to as L’Interdit, “The Forbidden One.” the place it turned an prompt best-seller.

Now I assume I used to be not maintaining with the fragrance information, however apparently the brand new and the previous are two fully completely different animals. For no matter purpose (trend, tastes, prices, rules of components) the model that got here out in 2018 bears solely a slight resemblance to the one from 1957. That one was a full-bodied, female, aldehydic floral with a surprisingly robust core of grasses, amber and musk- It’s not solely a ravishing scent however one that completely matches the lady it was designed for: elegant, a skilled ballerina of an aristocratic household who knew the privations and heartbreak of being introduced up in her Nazi-occupied homeland, who went on to make her mark on Hollywood and the world not solely by means of her magnificence, grace, and elegance, however by means of her good works for the much less lucky by means of UNICEF.

The brand new one, not a lot.

The Givenchy web site writes this about it “A white flower crossed by a darkish woody accord. L’Interdit Eau de Parfum for ladies — a fearless perfume imbued with the frisson of freedom. Transgress your limits with audacity and really feel empowered on the journey to self-discovery.“ Effectively okay then.

The factor is that the brand new model is ok. Very good in truth. If I didn’t have a good splosh of the actual stuff to check it to side-by-side I’d be fairly proud of it. It’s a fairly, office-friendly, don’t-scare-the-horses form of scent (sorry perfumers.) Facet by facet it’s like Dom Perignon and Weight-reduction plan Pepsi. Facet by facet lets me know that what the brand new stuff it isn’t is L’Interdit.

How I want some Indie perfumer would simply come out with re-dos of those classics, with warning labels if neccesary. They might name the road FU-IFFRA, they usually’d promote like hotcakes.

The brand new model is offered virtually on the moon at varied value factors. The previous one is in fact discontinued and I’m certain there are bottles on eBay which can be going for greater than black-market organs, however I didn’t have the guts to examine. My samples got here from Surrender To Chance.

Photographs: Pexels, Wikimedia Commons and my iPhone

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