Pretexte

Review according to 1950s EDT. Lighter than Sortilege. The real Lanvin perfume lives in that golden age that I can't go back to. Pretexte starts with a soft and sweet aldehydic floral, which I was very surprised by. Daffodils, gorgeous and bright daffodils! The background of Pretexte is of course Lanvin style, deep and dark. As always, in silence, thousands of words have been said, no promises allowed, this is Lanvin. On an oriental-inspired amber-woody base, graceful narcissus dance on top of which the ever-glamorous roses are eclipsed. The sweetness of hawthorn and the sourness of ylang-ylang are well balanced. Aldehydes give the flowers a chill, and then they are combined with eugenol, rose, narcissus, ylang-ylang, orris root...the micronized carnation fragrance is intertwined with the warm medicinal fragrance released by red myrrh and patchouli. Gradually, I can Analyze the structure, rosewood, cool cedar, dark smoked leather, plus sweet herbal elements, musk-benzoin is soft and smooth. The salty taste of ambergris lasts until the rose is no longer wet, and the texture turns to dryness. The mysterious floral fragrance... Pretexte just drifts away in the cold wind, which is very beautiful. The slow one is sandalwood, and as a supporting role is oakmoss. All the Lanvins are bitter, but Pretexte is different, it is too cheerful.

"eau " Pretexte concentration reviewed. Pretexte is my favorite Lanvin. It opens with aldehyde and a gorgeous narcissus and bergamot. The leather is very evident from the start, an herbal unndercurrent introduces the heart (hay? patchouli). A slight spice (carnation), Hawthorn (probably aldehyde), a starchy iris and rose (wonderful when it unfolds) keep this relatively soft , supple and dry. Its made with a different thought and age, no sweetness to be found, only upper class refinement. The ambergris amplifies the florals and makes them shine. A slight musky marine and the leather is courtesy of a well heeled castorum that does not come off animalic in nature at all. Oppopnax gives it a silky powdery feel and a strong wood note comes from the base. I feel Pretexte steers much more into leather-chypre. Theres a green undercurrent to it and the flowers bloom atop of it. Its gorgeous if you can find it

whatever @PookLucio said below, I agree... it is the best of the Lanvin quintet, period. However, the edit and the extrait are not the same perfume, definitely go with the extrait.

As with another reviewer, I wholeheartedly agree Pretexte is the Lanvin masterpiece and FAR OUTSHINES Arpege and My Sin .... IF you are of the opinion to prefer My Sin to Arpege? My 80 yr old mother is die hard Arpege & I was more a "My Sin" fan. Both of us sitting FIRMLY in the Vintage ONLY Parfum/Extrait strength as well. Pretext is sweeter and agree is a slightly more described as a FLoriental Chypre. I also find the sillage and longevity 2b the best among the Lanvin group. If you enjoy heady Vintages, DO try to get a hold of this one. Definite keeper! I've (now) over 2600 frags in my collection and Pretexte (Vintage Extrait) DEF qualifies among MY top 50 frags? I find it useful when reviewers provide info into which types of frags THEY enjoy if/when they include a frag in their grouping as a thumbs up: I seem to have a weakness for (heads up - ONLY use mostly parfum/extraits and USUALLY only Vintage or older) of the ones I enjoy in my collection that are NOT of the near impossible to find in no special order: Shalimar (well, actually, few frags come as close to my hear as pre-1950's Shalimar extrait & Weil Cassandra), Geurlain Parure & LIU, Crepe De Chine, Givenchy Interdit, Weil parfums (Cassandra my favorite!), Raphael Replique, Caron Belladogia, Caron Nuit de Noel, Caron Narcissus, Houbigant Raffinee, Borghese (most of em, lol), the OLDER Coty Chypres, etc .... & even some of the newer frags I DO enjoy: Vintage Hypnotic Poison, Opium (of course, lol), Rocher Venice & I DO like a few very recent frags too: Frederick Malle Musc Ravenger & Portrait & Replica By the Fireplace & sometimes Baccarat 540 even? Or and several Serge Lutens and V Canto Mirabile & Strichnia .... .... so many frags .... so little time, eh?

I have just lucked into a full unopened bottle of the EDT, or "Eau de Lanvin". An opening sniff from the bottle reveals PRETEXTE to be sweeter than either ARPEGE or MY SIN, with a head not only of bergamot and aldehydes, but sweet orange. Indeed an almost Cointreau-like note is felt; a slightly dusky hay-ey quality haunts it, pricked delicately by some black pepper. The rose and hawthorn bloom perfumily to give the scent a noticeably "happier" vibe than other Lanvins. There is a fleeting "varnished wood" note that one recognizes from ARPEGE. The base is rich with tonka, a ghosted patchouly, opoponax and vanilla, a combination which almost seems to confer a caramelized sucree hint beneath the hay-ey soft florals. PRETEXTE seems more festive and extrovert than MY SIN and ARPEGE. I confess, I do not pick out a leather quality, per se. I seem to read this as an "Aldehydic Fruity Chypriental" perhaps? This is a wonderful oldschool fragrance.