Hello and welcome to my blog, I do hope you will continue to join me for this exploration of the fragrant.

To be a bit cheeky, I figured I couldn’t go wrong  having my first post be a review for Van Cleef & Arpels’ First. It was quite by chance, one of the perfumes that was waiting for my return to Toronto after seven weeks in Montreal; and in the two weeks I’ve been back I’ve been wearing it every other day. Originally created in 1976 by Jean-Claude Ellena, who’s later body of work would be defined by a translucent minimalism couldn’t be more different from this outting; First’s baroque over-the-topness allows me to retain a pretence of dignity as I sprawl out  on the couch in leisurewear, sweating over my thesis and wallowing in that graduate school #husklife.

It’s notes are listed as being aldehydes, mandarin, black currant, peach, raspberry, hyacinth, narcissus, jasmine, lily of the valley, carnation, orchid, tuberose, orris, amber, tonka, oakmoss, sandalwood, vetiver, musk, honey, and civet.  Dont’t be fooled by the honey and multiple fruit notes, this is no sugary fruity floral, in First, the sprinkles of sweetness are simply counter points in thiss rich and complexe composition.The interplay between the sparkling aldehydes and buttery warm jasmine and sandalwood make it a perfect fit for these warmer winter days when spring has not quite arrived, but teases you with bright sun and mild days that sudenly become subzero as soon as the sun goes down. Though many of the reviews I’ve read highlight First’s animalic aspects, for me this fragrance is all about the jasmine, the aldehydes and especially the strange burnt sharpness of the hyacinth. It imediately reminds me of a bigger, orchestral version of Annick Goutal’s Grand Amour (1996) which is also hyacinth dominant, though First, true to its name, came first.

I have a bit of a complicated relationship with hyacinth as I find it simultaneously transfixing and repulsive, a jolie laide, it has a hint of bitterness that sticks in my throat and yet whenever I wear a hyacinth fragrance, I just can’t stop from gulping it in.  Maybe its  sharpness is the reason that Tania Sanchez called it “an ideal perfume for intimidation” in Perfumes: The A-Z Guide. As I haven’t left my couch or elastic waistbands much while wearing this, I have yet to test its powers of intimidation, however, it is certain that will be repulsive to those spoil-sports who hate perfume, as well as to the more committed olfactory avant-gardists. Make no mistake, First is an excersize in neo-classism, a radiating abstract floral so old school that on the right person it just might become edgy.

As for myself, I plan on spending many more productive days with First, letting its red lipstick and sucked-in cheeks glamour do some high femme heavy lifting for me.