Hello and welcome! Please understand that this website is not affiliated with Coty in any way, it is only a reference page for collectors and those who have enjoyed the classic fragrances of days gone by.

The main objective of this website is to chronicle the history of the Coty fragrances and showcase the bottles and advertising used throughout the years.

However, one of the other goals of this website is to show the present owners of the Coty perfume company how much we miss the discontinued classics and hopefully, if they see that there is enough interest and demand, they will bring back these fragrances!

Please leave a comment below (for example: of why you liked the fragrance, describe the scent, time period or age you wore it, who gave it to you or what occasion, any specific memories, what it reminded you of, maybe a relative wore it, or you remembered seeing the bottle on their vanity table), who knows, perhaps someone from the current Coty brand might see it.

Also, this website is a labor of love, it is a work in progress and is always being updated with new information as I can find it, so check back often!

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

L'Effleurt by Coty c1907 vs. L'Effleur by Coty c1990

In 1907, Coty released a a floral perfume named L’Effleurt, housed inside of a Baccarat flacon with a Rene Lalique designed label.

Marketed with the slogan ‘Somewhere inside romance blossoms’ and "Fragrance of dream gardens - delicately accentuating the loveliness of flower women."


Fragrance Composition:


So what does it smell like? It is classified as a floral fragrance for women. I do not have the exact notes but I suspect it was a blend of jasmine, rose, lily of the valley and possibly heliotrope. It probably had a soft woodsy or animal base.

In the 1920s and 1930s, it was customary for perfume companies to introduce the idea that women of certain complexion or hair color would be better suited to particular perfumes. Incidentally, perfumers said, blondes should wear light perfume, brunettes, heavy Oriental perfumes.  

  • For Blondes: Paris, L'Aimant, L'Effleurt, La Rose Jacqueminot & L'Or.
  • For Brunettes: L'Aimant, L'Origan, Emeraude, Chypre, Ambréine, Fougeraie au Crépuscule, or Styx.
  • For Red-Haired Women: Emeraude, Paris, L'Origan, L'Ambre Antique, Iris & Cyclamen.


Other perfumers advised women to seek out perfume based on their personalities or moods rather than their looks. These marketing techniques worked and thousands of bottles of perfume were purchased, probably by those who needed to buy gifts for others or were unsure of what perfumes to wear.
  • For the Woman of Sunny Joyous Type: L'Effleurt, Muguet & Violette.
  • For the Woman of the Dreamy Elusive Type: Jasmine de Corse, La Jacinthe & Lilas Blanc.
  • For the Exotic Types: Chypre, Violette Pourpre, Ambre Antique
  • For the Mysterious Types: Ambre Antique, Styx & Cyclamen
  • For the Brilliant Sophisticated Temperaments: Emeraude, Paris, L'Origan


Bottles:


It may not have been popular at the time, so in 1912, it was repackaged and housed inside of a Rene Lalique flacon that featured as molded glass label showing a woman rising out of a swirl of vapor, which hearkens back to the origin of the word perfume, comes from the Roman, "per fumum", which means "through smoke".




The bottle below was created by Rene Lalique in 1910. Hand painted flowers on one side, not sure if this is original or added later. The embossed gold paper label on the other side shows a woman rising out of a swirl of incense smoke with the name Lalique near the bottom. The bottle measures: 2.5" wide x 1.75" thick x 7.25" tall.


The bottle below is an early Coty flacon produced by Baccarat. It has a colorless crystal bottle with a crystal lapidary stopper. The gold glass label shows the women rising from the incense smoke. Measures 1.5" wide x 3.75" long x 1" thick. This was the first bottle for L"Effleurt.







Lalique designed bottle with the briar stopper. From a 1923 advertisement.











Fate of the Fragrance:

This perfume seems to have been discontinued around 1938, probably because of wartime.



New Release:


In 1990, Coty released L’Effleur. It was produced in a cologne spray, foaming bath powder, body lotion, sachets, fragranced candles, talcum powder, perfumed soaps, dusting powder, keepsake boxes and special gift sets.


Coty Inc. developed the fragrance L'Effleur, influenced by the period revival. Victoria magazine contributing editor Cynthia Hart designed the perfume's packaging. Cynthia Hart used fresh flowers and authentic antique Victorian scrap diecuts and fabrics to create gorgeous designs that appealed to many women.



Fragrance Composition:


So what did it smell like? It's composition was based on its original perfume notes from 1907 but was reformulated with modern ingredients. What resulted was a crisp floral-green fragrance (notes of citrus, aldehydes, fresh cut flowers and greens).
  • Top notes: aldehydes, citrus, apricot
  • Middle notes: herbs, orange blossom, rose, Amazon lily
  • Base notes: Mexican vanilla, green leaves, Indian musk, Mysore sandalwood




Fate of the Fragrance:


This perfume seems to have been discontinued sometime around 1995-1996.


4 comments:

  1. I discovered this perfume when I was just out of high school (1995) and when it was discontinued...I was so sad!

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  2. I loved this perfume, bought it for all female family members one Christmas, wish they would bring it back.

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  3. I have been trying for years to find something similar to L’Effleur. I loved this perfume. I actually had men stop me on the street to ask me what perfume I was wearing multiple times. I have been trying to source old bottles on ebay but mostly you can only get a few half empty bottles. I would love to see this fragrance make a comeback.

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  4. My mother used this and i was looking for it for so many years, i wish i could smell it just one more time

    ReplyDelete