The Urns of Caron

Any perfumenista or lover of glass stepping over the threshold of the Caron Boutiques in either Paris or New York, could be forgiven for thinking that they have died and gone to heaven! Upon entering one is met by the fabled urns of Caron!


Caron that veritable Haute Parfumerie of Paris whose very name conjures up a world of luxury and savoir faire, is one of the few traditional style perfume houses still left. Founded in 1904 by Ernest Daltroff, Parfums Caron has a rich heritage in perfumery and is still considered a true fragrance house, a distinction very few companies hold. Caron is one of the great Paris houses to still remain entirely devoted to fragrance and one of the last perfume houses to still have an in-house 'nose' (Monsieur Fraysse).


Upon entering the boutiques one is met by towering Baccarat crystal urns of Napoleonic proportions filled with pure perfume. Yes it is a bit over the top, however for an hour or so you are in another world! Within these urns Caron have preserved some of their most famous and finest perfumes, to create an n olfactory and visual feast. Customers can choose between 12 of the perfumes and fill a bottle via a little brass tap. One can choose from a variety of bottles etc to fill and after filled it is loving tied and sealed with gold cord. Although not offering a bespoke service some customers have been known to mix perfumes under the watchful eye of a consultant.

With names like Tabac Blond, En Avion, Farnesiana, Alponia, Narcisse Blanc and N’aimez que moi, any visitor is whisked away to another world of luxury and savoir faire!

Lucky Savoir Faire

Weil, Paris that veritable French perfumery between the wars was specifically known for their “fur” perfumes named after, you guessed it fur. With names like Zibeline, Chinchilla Royal and Hermine, they were a symbol of subdued elegance and class.

In 1943 they digressed from the luxury and the elegance with Gri Gri which featured native African tribal art for the ad campaign. Literally translated as ‘lucky charm” nothing is really known much about this fragrance. However I just love the art work.

Using small African statuettes in a variety of poses to symbolise the lucky charm, they are fresh and full of fun. With a bit of luck, like the statuettes with some “Good Fighting”, “Good Hunting” you will have some “Good Loving” as well!

Savoir Faire in the Sac

I remember the first bottle of perfume that I had ever bought my mother. It was a bottle of Christian Dior’s Miss Dior Parfum in a little ‘atomiseur pour le sac”. When I was 16, my father had taken my younger brother and I to Hong Kong for a holiday, and it cost me the princely sum of $69 HKD which was about $11.50 AUD in 1978. I still have the bottle and the original box floating around somewhere, and it was exactly the same as the one pictured below.

I always think it is important whether you are a man or a woman to carry around some form of scent, for a little refresher during the day. The thing I don’t like is either having to carry around a full size bottle of cologne, or one of those tacky little sample vials that you receive gratis if you are lucky. Not only do you have to forsake your favourite scent and carry around a substitute, but invariably they get lost in the depths of your bag.

I like the idea of carrying around a little scent in a bottle or atomiseur specifically for that purpose. Major houses used to produce these ‘flacons pour le sac’ and every woman had one or two. Invariably they were paired down cylinders or replicas of the original flacon encased in a little fabric or leather pouch to protect them.

Lanvin pulled out all stops when it commissioned Cartier to design a little gold cylinder to encase their perfumes for the woman on the go. Simplicity within itself with its ribbed sides, Greek key design and Lanvin logo on the top.

Carven produced little ribbed glass cylinders, mimicking the stripes on the boxes, encased in green and white silk drawstring bags.

Bourjois for “Soir de Paris” added a black silk tassel to the bottom of their little midnight blue flacons, for an extra little bit of glamour.

Invariably these fell out of favour as time went on however Guerlain still produce little gold sprays as pictured below.

Missoni has issued these wonderful gold tone cylinders with silk tassels that give them the unmistakeable Missoni mark.

Chloe have done one better with this fabulous little leather carrying case for their perfume.

So, for some scented savoir faire on the go hunt these out and if they are vintage refill with your favourite perfume or cologne.

Fragrant Savoir Faire

Not long ago I blogged on my top twelve men’s fragrances. Now fragrance/perfume is such a fickle thing, with something being in vogue one year and then out the next. Sadly some of the perfume masterpieces of the last 50 years or so, which continued to top the best selling lists, are just shadows of their former selves or no longer available. These were masterpieces and classics. It is a fine line branding something a classic as the boundaries are always changing. These days, is something judged a classic because it sells or do we look further than that into the product itself dissecting it and then judging whether it is a classic or not.

Savoir Faire promotes finding one’s individual style and going with it. Setting yourself apart from the crowd with your own individual signature, and so should fragrance be a signature. One of my girlfriends used to raid my colognes and after shaves and a bottle of Monsieur Lanvin would disappear in the blink of an eye. She was incredibly feminine and once she sprayed herself with the said Lanvin, she would have men falling at her feet.

So not only is the following list for the ladies, it is also for you gentleman. I wear or have worn all of the following at some stage or another, and love them. Don’t be put off by the fact these are ‘women’s’ perfumes as ‘men’s’ colognes are perfumes with just different notes than women’s.

Here are some of my top perfumes which I think translate and work quite well on a man, taking on entirely different characteristics than if they were worn by a lady. As usual with the classics of yesteryear not all readily available, but out there!

Vivre by Molyneux

Shocking by Schiaparelli

Chanel No 19 by Chanel


Miss Dior by Christian Dior

Ma Griffe by Carven

L'Air du Temps by Nina Ricci

Je Reviens by Worth

Givenchy III by Givenchy

Diorella by Christian Dior

Cabochard by Gres