Jeanne Lanvin My Sin

Elegance in a bottle. Powdery, gentle floral with civet notes was my first impression, but there is really so much more going on. My Sin begins with soapy overtones that burst with little floral explosions. But not in a huge way that are overpowering. It's as if you're walking in an English Garden and you stop to smell flowers along the way. You pick up different scents. The Ylang-Ylang, the Bergamot, Rose, Musk and Vanilla are all delightfully delicious. Civet comes into play amongst the flowers. I adore civet in my perfumes. Civet is a note that seems to border on a love/hate relationship with people from their description. We've all seen the wording that describes cats at their most horrible and I'm guessing that's not a civet lover. Some of the descriptions are quite funny to me. I've owned cats all my life and I can honestly say they've never smelled like any of the descriptions I've read that are so blatantly descriptive in a negative way. It's strong and delicious in My Sin. So are the aldehydes, which are quite prevalent. There are so many wonderful notes that pop up in this gloriously creamy perfume at times, it's difficult to pinpoint each one. Oh, but it's fun to try! This is a sophisticated perfume for a sophisticated woman. The type of woman who has chutzpah. That's the woman that can wear My Sin every day and every night if she wants. With so much talk about perfumes for the young, for the old ladies, perfumes only a mature woman can handle, in all honesty those are only semantics, mere words that people use to try and describe what they are feeling about a fragrance. People attempt to describe what they feel. Perfuministas give their best to describe perfumes to the discerning public. But a perfume that has stood the test of time and is still wanted by so many, is still used and revered...now that's something incredulous. Something to be in awe of the maker. Just imagine the generations that have delicately traced their earlobes with this glorious scent, dotted between their breasts with a scant few petals of this perfume, annointed their wrists and inner elbows? Yes, perfume is My Sin, indeed. And thus, I sin every day of my life. And I'm happy to do so. Be it with My Sin or some other fabulous juice that I've found to complete me, what truly matters is that perfume and fragrance is a very beautiful part of my life that I shall always nourish. And you should too.Lasts about four hours for me and sillage is noticeable with the right amount. They just don't make them like this anymore. Such a pity. This one is delicious and if you're able to score one, you'll know the delights of My Sin.

This reminds me of the movie Practical Magic. Of Sandra Bullock's character Sally in particular. Of the two bewitching (both in magical and personality) Owens Sisters, Sally is the more quiet of the two. Hiding beneath a curtain of shyness that blinds her to her own charms.She is naturally wise, sultry, and very elegant and her humility despite it making her more irresistible to men. A fact that the more gorgeous of the sisters, Gilly, envies in disbelief. This smells very old, yes, but a beautiful old. Like a woman who perhaps didn't have it all, but knew how to appreciate every moment in life. Her place to relax would be a wooden vanity, with her face powder, rose water, and a gas lamp. It smells just like those things too. It does have a teeny tiny turpentine scent, but that's mostly because at this point, most bottles are terribly aged. That's the aldehyde I believe. My great grandmother, Lydia, was an anglo-italian who emigrated to the Caribbean in the late 1920s with her brother. This was her signature perfume. She had strawberry blonde hair, a curvy body, dark green eyes and a personality that couldn't be contained. She lived a long, colorful life filled with ups and downs, and many, many lovers. My great grandmother's fame wasn't from any of this, it was for her generosity. Everyday until she died, she would make a big pot of whatever she planned on eating that day and bring a bowl or plate to anyone that needed it. It broke my heart and everyone around her to learn that she herself died of starvation, because she felt she could no longer eat. She left her house as beautiful as it always was. In her room, where they found her in her bed, was this perfume, a bejewelled hair comb, and a picture of her parents, who she was forced to leave behind when she moved. She lived to 93. I barely knew her, I don't think I ever got to meet her, as I was a child when she passed and she lived in the other side of the country. But I feel through this perfume, her journals and her legacy, I have come to make a picture of her that I feel is true: She was a woman, loved like one, and lived like one too.

Thanks to a Fragrantican Friend I had the possibility to wear My Sin in the vintage extrait formulation a few times now, and I think it's time to review it. As others described, it starts off with very pleasant, correctly dosed aldehydes underpinned by wonderful quality florals. To my nose extremely indolic jasmine and rose are the most prominent of these. In the first half hour My Sin is outrageous: it is dark, sexy, almost menacing yet irresistibly alluring to me. The amount of indole and civet balances on the verge of offputting, but never quite gets there (as it did for me in vintage Joy extrait and Narcise Noire that I had to scrub). In this early stage My Sin gives an impression of fur and cigarette smoke mingled with great quality perfume, immediately bringing a femme fatale from the first part of the 20th century in mind, holding a foot long cigarette holder, clad in mink and nothing else. In a while though, the fragrance pulls its claws back and starts purring: it develops into an absolutely lovely, soft, comforting soapy floral fragrance with - I must agree with lovingthealien - notes reminding me of cat fur. In this stage the fragrance is not sexy or sultry to me any more. In the later drydown the musks take leading role, making it even more pleasantly comforting in a way the scent of your lover's skin is comforting when you bury your nose in his neck at night. On the whole a lovely, interesing fragrance, maybe somewhat an acquired taste, from a time long, long gone, when perfume was a companion and not a commodity. On my skin both sillage and longevity are good.

I acquired an unopened, still wrapped in cellophane, bottle of this in the Eau de Lanvin concentration. My best guess places this in the 60s-70s. It was a steal! This is a gorgeous, sexy perfum. In my imagination, it calls to mind Ava Gardner or some other "movie star" that possessed old Hollywood glamour! Something a real maneater, a siren, would wear. First of all, the civet. I get nothing of the urine notes often detected in perfumes with civet. For something so musky, so animalic, this doesn't smell the least bit dirty on me. Everything is so well blended and truly difficult for me to breakdown, but if I had to classify it, I would have to say that on my skin, this comes across as a real floriental. I don't know if that is a function of it's age, though the bottle was pristine and completely sealed, but what I have is intoxicating. I decanted some into a spray bottle to get a full effect, and have to say, I prefer spraying to dabbing in this instance. As for the inevitable comparison with Arpege, I must say I prefer My Sin, though my main basis of comparison is the newer formulation. I have a few vintage bottles of Arpege, but it's unfair to compare them, as they were used bottles and have lost much of their former glory. I feel very fortunate to have stumbled across this and actually win the auction, and though I tend to wear whatever I want whenever I want, I think I will reserve this for those times I want to attempt to channel smoldering sex appeal. A true love!

My Sin. Review of vintage bottle 4oz eau De Lanvin. Good girl gone naughty. Its aldehyde civet opening is lighter than No.5 and much more enjoyable. The florals spring forth from the opening in classy ladylike fashion. Yhe drydown grounds you with its musk , woods and gentle civet. Not a harsh note to be found but rich smoothness through this journey. Soft, plush, and elegant. Real rose de Mai and jasmine, four authentic musks to attain its powderyness. The same template as joy but better arranged. Natural perfume at its best. The minute I smelled this I knew I was a goner and in love with it. Its softly sexy, not the roaring femme fatale, at least in the eau concentration. To me its a warm elegant purring sex kitten Extrait: Aldehyde naroli, clary sage, bergamot opening, then the lilac..my god the lilac!, jasmine, Lilly of the valley, rose, and ylang heart is just gorgeous. A faint hint of spice (clove?) peeks in through the flowers. The orris root, musks, vetiver, civet, vanilla, base gently seeps up through the floral heart. Gorgeous. Parfum Spray: Aldehydes, leather, black cat fur smell, floral notes seep up, then drydown..beautiful vairation. If you aren't into civet, get the Extrait. Its better blended into it than the Eau. But if you like animalics the Eau is just as beautiful with its florals, just a little different. Both together is magnificent..

For those interested in the quality of this perfume a now no longer maintained blog - raidersofthelostscent My Sin did a chemical analysis of this scent and it is amazing what they found. They took a 1980s bottle of Eau My Sin edt and subjected it to Gas-Chromatography and Mass-Spectrometry (GC-MS) tests. What they found was amazing. The quality of ingredients used is incredible. This scent came out in 1924 and might have been the inspiration for Joy because, according to the notes, it is similar to Joy in composition, though different in the level of ingredients used. For example, not one, but three different musk's were used in My Sin. Not only that but the level and quantity of essential oils used to make this perfume was astonishing, especially in comparison to perfumes made today. They also found that while the bottle they were testing was from 1984 there was no degradation of the ingredients or the scent because of the stabilizers used to preserve the ingredients. There is also tons of other information that is discussed about this scent that is simply fascinating. You might think so too. Just google raidersofthelostscent My Sin Lanvin and you'll see the link where you can read the article and interview with perfume chemist Dr. Roberto Dario.

Holy Toledo, this fume smells good!!! I managed to get my hands on a bottle of Eau My Sin edt., same as was analyzed by raidersofthelostscent. Wow! I received it yesterday in the mail and tried it this morning and the scent is beyond wonderful. I had to control myself from running after the mailman and kissing him just for delivering it to me. It is that good. It is everything everyone praised about it and more. Amazing silage for an edt that works better than many modern perfumes, though the longevity isn't that great. While it lasted, I got lovely wafts of powdery incensey florals, and a sandalwood vanilla dry down is to die for. Nor can I believe I just fell in love with an anamalic scent. The civet is wonderful in giving this scent incredible depth and sensuality. This is how anamalics should be done - highlight the notes, not overpower them. This is definitely a nighttime fragrance and one I'll be wearing tonight. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!

I've been wearing Lutens' Clair de Musc for years, and have been drawn to its wonderful beeswax note, in particular. And also, I have an emotional reaction to it I haven't quite understood until today. Turns out, to my perception, Clair de Musc bears more than a passing resemblance to 1960s-70s My Sin, which my grandmother wore. Really similar aldehydes, quiet florals, declarative musk vintage profile. Whether natural or synthetic, this is how musk in perfumes used to smell. I'm predisposed to like it because of my context and fond associations. I can tie in No. 5 Eau Premiere here, too, because it's got a similar musk and aldehydes to the Lutens. Eau Premiere is so sparkly and joyous compared to (basically anything) my vintage bottle of My Sin, yet I suspect that the sparkle was there in My Sin when it was released. It's wonderful stuff, even when it's decades old.

Love, love, love, LOVE this! On my skin the LoV, lilac and narcissus are forward, as is the wood. Rich aldehydes and a touch of civet. Spring just got funky! In winter I yearn for the blossoms to pop. Starting in January, I pull out the dainty spring florals, just to give myself a little hope that winter will end. But by the time the blossoms actually pop, I'm always wishing for something with a bit more kick. I found my perfect Spring evening scent in Nacre, and now with My Sin, I have my perfect Spring day scent. Fresh, soapy, a little bright, a little crisp, and a little bit of "no, I'm not a good girl" civet. I am now ready to take on the world! They say spring comes in like a lamb and goes out like a lion? My Sin is the reverse. L-O-V-E it! (For the vintage formulation EDP)

To me more woody than aldehyde with undiscernable musk. The blend of the sage with the lilac, neroli and ylang-ylang comes off as classy yet intriguing, in a sexy way. This is a review of the edc, (you know it's vintage if it's edc), from an estate, not ebay. For me it's worn on misty, sweater days, but it could work multi-seasonally. On me it's a skin scent with great longevity. With all these reasons I don't know why I don't use it often. It may have to do something with my s.o.'s preference towards spicier scents. For that reason, I'd consider swap offers, but if swapped I'll probably kick myself for letting this one slip away.

I am super confused by the other reviews here. I can't smell any civet. It's not dirty. The musks are clean. It is an aldehydic white floral. It smells similar to Joy, but with less rose and more aldehydes and narcissus. Disappointed because on very first application I get whiffs of Narcisse Noir, but that is fleeting and it settles into just clean, light musky jasmine for me afterward. This is vintage extrait in hot, humid weather. Either my bottles is completely destroyed, which seems unlikely because it was barely used and stored in a box, or there's a lot of suggestibility going on about the belief that this is a civet bomb.

Oh my! This is Marlene Dietrich in perfume form. I got hold of a half-used vintage bottle (the design looks like a 1960s style or maybe earlier), and I think the top notes must have changed slightly. I don't get any neroli or citrus, but I get a lovely powdery incense with musk. The longevity is long and drawn out with beautifully smooth sandalwood and spice. Its exotic, its erotic, its seductive and its far too full on to wear at work! This is something to wear accompanied by silk or satin in the company of someone you want to tempt into coming closer. A gorgeous, classic, vintage beauty.

This smells fresh and clean but also like arousal. Like emerging from a hot shower all flushed and fragrant and glowing from a new expensive soap and an orgasm. The double entendre of péché/pêche (peach/sin) is a clever one and I believe Madame Zed and Jeanne Lanvin created and named this one with their tongues firmly in cheek! There is an interview with Erykah Badu that I found years ago and it always stuck with me. The interviewer kept mentioning a lovely aroma distracting him, something like strawberries. Ms Badu’s deadpan response?: “It’s my vagina.”

I reviewed this a while ago (My Sin Eau de Lanvin version). I had won 2 full bottles still boxed and sealed. I've only opened one of them and it really is something to behold. Anyway - the only reason I'm adding something is because who could possibly resist a perfume made by a perfumer going by the name "Madame Zed"!! It made the whole experience much more delightful and full of old school intrigue!! Here's to you, Madame Zed! Seems like there aren't any other fragrances attributed to you, but you really made your mark with this one!!

This was an all time favorite when I was in High School along with it's partner fragrance Arpege. I still have the square vintage bottles(they are splash on's) from long ago, and I have a small amount left in a spray on from 30+ years ago. They all smell divine still after all these years, perhaps a little weaker though. I do wish these would make a come back with the first recipes from way back. The remakes just do not smell the same IMO. These Lanvin fragrances have a special place in the true feminine history of women and romance.

I was thinking this perfume would portray the femme fatale leatherette, but it didn't. Instead, I got powder, ylang-ylang, vetiver and civit wrapped in orange blossom with a dry down of spicy, wood and some earthiness. Turns out that My Sin is enchanting, bewitching, sexy and mysterious. This was the vintage Eau de Lanvin which doesn't seem to last more than a couple of hours on my skin, so I also sprayed this on my clothes. After wearing this today, I am on the hunt for the extrait.

I have waited many years to get my hands on this beauty, and finally I can covet her fragrance. It is so naughty smelling! The general parlance is 'skanky' but this is too sophisticated to use that word. It really does smell like a lady that has been sinning, she lays on her silk sheets in the aftermath of an illicit affair, she combs her fingers through her lover's hair. She smiles devilishly, their body warmth rises and brings all the aromas of love into the air. This is my sin.

Outstanding perfume (vintage type). One of the notes not listed is costus root oil - it is very dominant from the beginning to the dry down. It fits perfectly into this amazing blend of animalics. Another note not listed but also very dominant (more so than the civet) is ambergris - after about 10 minutes of the dry down a very sharp salty sea ambergris note pops out. I can only imagine how much of the real thing went into the vintage version of this amazing perfume.

I interchange Chanel nr 5 eau première with My Sin whenever I tire of one or the other, because they both fill that classic, ladylike, statement slot in my everyday olfactory wardrobe, I reckon. Notes are pretty similar it seems, though if Chanel nr 5 Eau Première is (hope of) romantic love, then Lanvin's My Sin is the scent of romantic love bordering on and tipping over into lust. The pretty white gloves are off!

I was half expecting this to be a civet bomb, but it's not at all. Instead, it's an incensy aldehyde, with that bit of powder so reminiscent of vintage fumes. This becomes most beautiful after about an hour, when the true personality is developed. Although it doesn't smell like Chanel no. 5, it is clearly of the same era, and in my opinion, the same league. I like My Sin better because it has more mystery.