So, a month later, I'm ready to write about L'Origan, the turn of the century Coty scent that was supposed to have influenced Guerlain's L'Heure Bleue. I believe that, but L'Origan is less gourmand or melancholy.
L'Origan does not smell of this age. (And that is not a bad thing.) I would say it has a mysterious, rooty, dusty, sweet smell — like a Wiccan biscotti. A little bit of licorice, maybe Iris root, and amber, vanilla and dust.
L'origan definitely has a heavy, sensual, sweet and complex scent. From Bois de Jasmin: "Its soft powdery veil embellished with carnation, violet and helitrope calls to mind gloves and Edwardian silhouettes. A precursor of Guerlain L'Heure Bleue (1912) , L'Origan reveals the bittersweet anisic top notes..." And here's more: "The originality of L’Origan indeed resides in its combination of traditional essences such as bergamot, orange, neroli and ylang ylang with new floral bases and synthetics such as methyl ionone, heliotropin, vanillin, coumarin, civet, vetiveryl acetate, and nitromusks.* "
Floral, anisic, clove-like, gourmand. It's lush, like a Franz Marc painting.
UPDATE: Here are the official notes according to my Haarman & Reimer fragrance guide:
Top notes: Bergamot, mandarin, coriander, pepper, peach
Heart notes: Clove, clove bud, ylang-ylang, orchid, rose, orris, jasmine
Base notes: Sandalwood, cedarwood, labdanum, musk, benzoin, vanilla
I recently received 3 bottles of vintage L’Origan from Ebay. I smells glorious. One squirt lasts forever and develops into even more long lasting loveliness and anonymity. I have to agree that “it does not smell of this age.” (a wonderful thing). It is sumptuous, sensual, and very Je ne sais quoi. I had 3 compliments the first day I wore it and was asked what I was wearing. As opposed to say, Angel which I was wearing a few days earlier at the pharmacy, and the cashier asked if I was wearing Angel. (damn I hate to get busted on my perfume) …I do like Angel, but with L’Origan, or any of my hard to find vintages,… I love it that nobody recognizes it and wonders what it is. Of course, when someone wants to know where I got it, I have to go into the fact that it’s vintage and really hard to find the real thing- and with that being said- an old vintage isn’t always good. If it has turned, it’s really gawd awful- any perfume that had turned is a crying shame. Now with all that being said; I highly recommend this lovely floral Oriental fragrance- it is an asset to any perfume lovers wardrobe!
Posted by: Cathlyn | May 11, 2011 at 03:57 PM
It's been a while since I smelled L'Origan, Cathlyn, but I do remember it was velvety and wonderful. What prompted you to buy 3 of them? Perfume lust? (Hey, I'm no stranger to that.) And yes, there was a time when Angel could turn heads. Hell, I started wearing it because a beautiful girl I knew smelled amazing in it and I'd never heard of it before, but alas, it's going to be another century before it is not immediately recognizable by every Tom, Dick and Harry.
Posted by: Perfumaniac | May 11, 2011 at 04:03 PM
Well the L’Origan was in a lot of 3. Each squirt bottle is 1.8 oz. I emailed the seller and she promised that it smelled as good as I remembered. I’ve bought from her before and she has a 100% money back guarantee, so I couldn‘t go wrong. It amazed me at how good it is, and it stays on forever. Indeed it is perfume lust (God, someone should put me in rehab or something, I just can’t quit!) Hi, my name is Cathlyn and I’m an addict hahaha. As far as the Angel, I bought mine for the same reason you did, and it does smell good… but I put it in it’s box and retired it for a while. Yes, I did.
Oh, I forgot to make mention that the sillage from L’Origan is absolutely splendid and divine. I do believe I was being followed in the store...
Posted by: Cathlyn | May 11, 2011 at 04:17 PM
Please, oh please tell me where to buy L'Origan from. I've looked thru so many perfumes that claim that they are Coty L'Origan, but the bottles look all different and the price for some is less than $10.00.
Can somebody please share a link with me so I know at least how the real thing should look like. Please.
Posted by: Dina | May 13, 2012 at 10:32 AM
where can I buy it
Posted by: john | May 13, 2015 at 06:02 PM
where can I purchase it
Posted by: john | May 13, 2015 at 06:04 PM
Is L'origan not sold in stores anymore?
Posted by: Alicia Jimenez | July 27, 2015 at 01:30 AM