Vanderbilt (1982)
by Gloria Vanderbilt

I forgot how good this was!

I just acquired a vintage bottle from 1983, still in box with its Kmart price tag. Hands down better than 90% of the stuff in the mass market today ... and I'm not a floral girl!

Lovely, just lovely.

14th October, 2011.

No doubts this is a very romantic, dreamy and a bit old-school juice. We are talking about a floral-oriental with a sort of gummy soul and the capacity to evoke enchanting silvan worlds of animated cartoons lost in the time of childhood, fables and fairies. The fragrance opening is citrusy, a bit wet and rough with a blast of green notes, bitter fruits and lavender that hold on their crisp temperament throughout the evolution. In a while a wonderful link of aldehydes, orange blossom and intense floral notes starts working its romantic role with an airy strong projection ready to dive in a sink of resins, edible spicy (cinnamon) creams, musk and mild woods while a note of vetiver links itself with the permanent starting roughness. A note of civet enhances the edible trait of resins and creams in a blend that remains a bit too synthetic and rubbery under my nose. The rough and indented sort of wet role played till the end by citrus, green note, crisp flowers and bitter fruits, despite being those blended with the following creamy-edible notes, is the prelude to some upcoming future modern creations. 

29th June, 2011. (Last Edited: 30th June, 2011.)

I was not expecting to like this one, but I do. There have been many like it, but small details poke out of the structure in a forget-me-not gesture of brilliant subtlety. The pineapple in the opening is among these, and the base is deliciously attractive and a little smoky-leathery. I'll bet if you removed the floral heart notes this would be a killer masculine.
I'm wary of trying the current formulation, though...

1st April, 2011.

Yes, it's drugstore cheap, and yes, it was way overworn in the 80s, but it still smells so good - floral and soapy. Use with a light touch!

6th March, 2011.

As I see it, Vanderbilt lies at the juncture of two paths Sophia Grojsman pursued for decades: the antiseptic green soapy florals of White Linen, and the sweet fruity chypre style of Yvresse, Trésor, and Calyx. After a brief flash of sweet bergamot, Vanderbilt fires off a barrage of bitter green notes, crisp white flowers and intense aldehydes, which together smell a bit like Ivory soap – only much, much louder. Alongside these arise an array of spices and sweet resins, plus some vanilla and a hint of Grojsman’s signature fruity lactones. Though the aldehydes subside somewhat after fifteen or twenty minutes of wear, the green floral accord retains a starched, soapy quality that stands in stark contrast to the sweetness of cinnamon, opoponax and vanilla.

The construct is floral oriental, but in this case the “floral” and the “oriental” are not so much melded together as set side-by-side. The internal tension between these two unreconciled olfactory masses invests Vanderbilt with an enlivening interest, but I can’t help feeling that the clever idea is let down in the execution. The floral accord grows disturbingly chemical over time, eventually approaching solid air freshener in quality, while the sterile white musk, vanilla, and soapy rose drydown offers none of the warmth promised by the civet in the pyramid. The composition ultimately winds up smelling cheap, threadbare and more unfriendly than elegant.

23rd January, 2011.

Top notes: Aldehyde, bergamot, green notes, lavender, orange blossom, pineapple.
Middle notes: Carnation, Jasmine, orris, rose tuberrose, ylang-ylang
Base notes: Cinnamon, civet, musk, opoponax, sandal, vanilla & vetiver.

I mostly smell the luscious orange blossom, cinnamon and vanilla, and just love this Sophia Grojsman creation. I collect her fragrances and love them all, but this one I think I love most of all, despite it being so cheap. It doesn't smell cheap at all, it is very distinctive and beautiful!

That said, it probably is "old-fashioned", as I love all the big scents from the 1980's. It is worth knowing about, anyway, for reference if nothing else.

19th December, 2010.