Divine Folie

Is it a perfume for a mad god? Or is it a divine madness? Or perhaps, "It is folly."-- Boromir. In any case, how appropriate for me. It is a divine madness to think I could simply trade the sensual pleasure of food for the sensual pleasure of perfume, that my Monster Powers could propel me on a journey of fragrant weight loss. Except that it worked. So, Divine Folie: when it popped up in the auction listing, how could I possibly pass up the opportunity to purchase a vintage mini. The top note was worrisome. Sharp and acidic, I dreaded that my lovely and lunatic perfume desire might turn out to have turned. But no, it was merely the citrus note of neroli. A minute later, the scent was truly divine. Complex and "perfumy" in the way of all my favorite vintages. I detected floral notes, but they made room for something else, something deeper, probably vetiver. And then, while the florals stayed on stage, they were joined by a lovely vanilla that took center stage, like a prima ballerina as the White Swan dancing in front of some sort of floral Greek Chorus in hues of rose and iris, edging the Swan's lake with flowers blowing in the wind. A demented vision for a divine folie. There is no amber note in the note pyramid of this perfume and yet it smells ambery somehow, the vanilla note claiming its full exotic beauty. As she takes a bow and the dancers leave the stage, the divine scent of their performance remains, the perfection of their beauty transferred from dancers to audience, from flowers to nose to brain. What a divinely mad, god-touched thing it must have been to make the first perfume. This scent on my arm comes not from the deeps of time but only from the last century, and yet, in paying close attention to the messages it carries, I partake a little of the divine madness of the poet.

I have been collecting modern Patou's for awhile now and thought I should sample some of the vintage offerings. This is my favorite designer house fragrance brand and I am sorry to see them close their door especially since I have just discovered the beautiful perfumes this house had to offer. This reminds me of L'Heure Bleue by Guerlain which I own but this is better because it leaves out the anise note which I have trouble w/ in that one (at least it goes away after 10 mins) This is a beautiful, spicy, carnation scent that is a bit dry but not dusty. The vanilla in the dry down give is a sweetness that keeps it from becoming arid. I wish it was more widely available, all I was able to get was a mini. This is a beautiful old world fragrance that takes you back in time, to a time I didn't even live in but like to imagine what it would've been like. Things seemed so glamorous and enchanting. I know there was a war coming and a lot of heart aches and hardships that came w/ that time but there was a pride in ones appearance, a can do attitude and a common sense of purpose that I think we lack today. And the fashion! There were no sweatpants to be found that is for sure! I will wear this one when I want to feel glamorous and a bit posh...

Divine Folie seems to be the "premier œillet" from Jean Patou, a prickly and stimulating carnation that rivals that of Caron's Bellodgia, but leaning more toward the ylang ylang side of the accord, just a bit more sultry and humid. This is further punctuated by the sunny disposition of orange blossom. Be that as it may, what becomes evident over time is a delightfully powdered veneer from orris and what feels like some heliotropin somewhat recalls L'Heure Bleue or Vol de Nuit. What can I say? I love this. The color that comes to mind is that of a deep garnet red gem. It tells of a time when elegance was a sacrament, even in the most foreboding of times. [From 1984 Ma Collection mini]

"Oscar" by Oscar de la Renta (made 1977) almost copied "Divine Folie". I kid you not! They are very identical. This is 50% "Oscar" + 50% Guerlain "L'heure bleu". "Divine Folie" smells more expencive, sweeter, and much more rounded, and more well done than todays "Oscar" in those tall bottles. "Oscar" is my signature-scent. So this came as a big SUPRISE to me, as I've always thought "Oscar" is such a scent that stands out from the crowd! Fascinating ineed! I'd go for "L'heure bleu" instead of this hard-to-find $$$ discontinued one.

A fascinating medley of floral with warm oriental base. The spicy carnation opening reminds me of Caron Poivre and Caron Bellodgia Extrait. It gets quite powdery towards the middle because of the orris. Several of our members found it similar to Vol de Nuit but I think it is much warmer and less assertive. Quite a few of internet reviews considered this a sad perfume which I respectively disagree.

I'm seconding the "Oscar" similarity, I wore Divine Folie today, then read that and applied some vintage Oscar. O is lacking the spice note that DF has, but the floral aspect is quite similar. And Oscar is so much easier to acquire! Both are very nice, but I'm not sure DF is worth the extra bucks and hunt involved. I'm glad I have some, I probably just won't look for more.

I'm completely at a loss to recall the exactitude of this, but one of the famed Ma Collection scents was purportedly the only comp ever specifically created for natural redheads: It was either "Adieu Sagesse," or this one. I'm inclined to think it is this ine as not only is the 80's re-do by Jean Kerleo colour-coded in varrying shades of amber, saffron, tangerine, chartreuse and hot pink, what would arguably the perfect colour-scheme for any redhead's closet, but the scent, also, seems tailored to the specifically acrid smelling red-headed skin. I know for certain this much: Amour Amour was specifically destined for natural blondes, and Que Sais-je? for brunettes. This is obvious in their scents, but the remnants of advertisements all clearly indicate this bifurcation. The red head piece--It has to be "Divine Folie." Adieu Sagesse is far too subtle and not nearly as strong as is required to masque the red headed natural body odour. Anyone who is or has dated or is married to a true blue carrot top will know precisely what I mean: The red-headed musk is so sharp, you can cut it with a knife, and its characteristics are very singular, notably there is a sourness born of low-filled oil glands: Redheads typically have very dry skin. This scent, then is appropriately pin-prick tight, and dense beyond belief: It is a very expertly blended comp: No specific scent can be detected, save perhaps for a brooding resin in the base that almost smells like cough sirup. I would imagine this scent coming out today under the Comme des Garcons umbrella and none other, for it is weird in that winning way that only CdG seems to master nowadays. The minute you put it on, you know you hae something exceptional on your skin: It sort of has that Kenzo Jungle Elephant 'WOW!" factor in the flight, where you are pretty bowled over and wonder if you will or will not have the nerve to leave the house smelling like that. Once it settles down, there is a bit of a medicinal air to it, a la Comme des Garcons Original. Obviously, there are cloves in this front row centre that never fade, but it never gets sickening the way Caron scents do. Interestingly, Divine Folie is very "Caron" in structure, minus the vulgarity: Patou scents can be many things but they are never "easy" the way Carons are, in that "come and get me" kind of way. There is no such thing as a patou that doesn't quietly whisper "keep your distance," and all were designed to be experienced mostly in sillage and not upfront and personal. This is how they came to be so enchanting and sought after by so many members of royal families, movie-stars, and grandiose dames and gentlemen. Today, Divine folie could conceivable by worn by a man, or a woman. Being a scent of the 30's it has that gender-confusion in spades that in those days was in such vogue. One can easily imagine that on a natural redhead with sparkling green eyes and transparent skin, this would be irresistible. Unlike some of the other "Ma Collection" series, it seems perfectly modern today: So modern in fact that one wonders what the reaction to it was in the day of its launch: It was never a huge hit, neither in its time, nor in the Ma Collection series. It's not that it doesn't smell appropriately "divine;" on the contrary--it's very "divine." It's the "Folie" that is disquieting. Folie means act of delirium. Just as Comme des Garcons Original shocked everyone when it came out in the 90's, using a barcode as a logo and smelling light dental numbing ointment, I would imagine many today have that same shock when faced with "Divine Folie." It's very heady but in a controlled way: Very sexy but not in the least bit tawdry. As for its treatment of leather, which is a theme that runs through it begining to end, it is masterfully handled: We have here no butch biker jacket: Perhaps a pair of well worn unlined goat skin or calf hand stiched gloves in a pale colour, like peach or rose-bud pink. Those of you who find "En Avion" by Caron to be "all that" will think differently after experiencing this, as, being somewjat the same type of fragrance, this one makes the other look cheap and frankly desperate.

Ooh, how nice that they added this. I recieved this as an added bonus when I purchased from Rie Rien.com. What a lovely gesture, I must say! If you ever have a chance to try this, please do, it is worthy of the term 'classic'. My thoughts: I didn't swoon over this the way I have over other 30s fragrances, but I appreciated the soft, overall effect. This wears 'heavy and dusty', which probably comes from age (I'm not sure how fresh my sample was). This is one situation where I'd like to see some aldehydes added, to bring in a little sparkle. That is what I felt this needed. The middle phase was my favorite, warm, earthy florals. Longevity is average,4-6 hours. Another good, solid fragrance to come out of the 'depression' years.

In the parfum form, at least, Divine Folie is a warm, mildly spicy carnation over a floral-oriental base. I don't know why carnation isn't listed on the Fragrantica summary of notes, but it stands out throughout the composition. Divine Folie is not a soliflore—the other florals murmur politely in the background—but carnation is in the starring role. The fragrance is floral but never too sweet, the way so many floral orientals can. Unlike most of the (all now sadly discontinued) Ma Collection scents from Patou, this one is also reasonably easy to find, at least in the EdT version.