MAISON GUERLAIN

MAISON GUERLAIN
THE
EXCLUSIVES
DANDY, VOYOU
Aristocratic, ardent and amorous. He is the ultimate cat burglar, stealing an object as
he would a kiss. And when he robs women, who often wish he would take a little
more, he is sure to send them flowers. An incorrigible seducer, a boudoir thief, a
perfumed bandit. In his wake, he leaves regrets, sighs and his card…
Everyone loves Arsène. Literature diehards, who devoured the Arsène Lupin books
by Maurice Leblanc. Music fans, as how could anyone resist the combined charms of
our hero and Jacques Dutronc, who sings the hero’s theme song for the French TV
adaptation and who perfectly incarnates his rakish dandy style? Children, who dream
of becoming a gentleman thief. Men, who would have dreamed of being him.
Women, who delight in men who give them a thrill.
A smart heart swindler with a seemingly eternal life: French-Canadian singer Garou
has just added the hero’s theme song to his repertoire and it’s as popular as ever.
It’s a sign that we are bored stiff, that we are drowning in banality, that a rebellious
man is worth his weight in gold and that we would love to run away with him.
Arsène accepts the most daring feats – and always with the utmost elegance. He is
Robin Hood in a tuxedo. A delicious consolation!
Jean-Paul Guerlain loves books and women and followed Arsène’s every adventure.
He drew inspiration from his legend and made it into a fragrance. Or rather two
fragrances. Because one should always be prepared when dealing with Arsène Lupin!
You wait for him in a sitting room and he sneaks away on the rooftops, his loot under
his arm. You imagine him with a hand in a safe, while he is seated nonchalantly on a
sofa, holding the hand of a lady.
Two fragrances – extraordinarily grand and extraordinarily Guerlain – tell the story of
this hero with two faces. Dandy and Voyou. But when it comes to Arsène, you must
watch your step: the “voyou” (“scoundrel”) plays the perfect dandy, and vice-versa.
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THE
EXCLUSIVES
CRACK THE SAFES
To attain the unattainable, there is only one method: his own.
Step 1: find the location of the safes and, if possible, open them. Destination: Orphin,
where the House formulas are jealously guarded. Treasure troves of jewels. Guerlain’s
inspiration knows no bounds: almost 800 fragrances in just under two centuries. And
the same unequalled creativity, know-how and high standards. The Exclusives, the
diamonds on the crown, dazzlingly illustrate the genius of the House: a nose, a raw
material and the loving work of a goldsmith.
There are other combinations to find: those that open the paths to the most beautiful
flowers, the juiciest fruit and the rarest wood. Those that Guerlain has explored, from
one generation to the next, to discover the essences that will give its fragrances all
their quality, mystery and identity. For Jean-Paul Guerlain: “A perfumer must seek out
scents”. He leads this treasure hunt with the rigour of a researcher and the frenzy of
a conqueror. His two Arsène fragrances are exclusively composed of noble and
natural raw materials.
So, let us steal the combinations, pilfer the maps and release a rich shower of
Calabrian bergamot, lavender from Haute Provence, sandalwood and patchouli from
Indonesia, beech from the great Northern forests, French violet and Bulgarian rose…
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THE
EXCLUSIVES
COVER YOUR TRACKS
What does a gentleman-perfumer do upon meeting a gentleman-thief? He sees, or
rather smells, double… Because Arsène is both roguish and valiant, a man of the
world and an anarchist, a noble lover and a lovable flirt, here yet always elsewhere.
So, we move on to step 2: covering our tracks. Jean-Paul Guerlain plays his hand at
a stunning olfactory three-card trick. With dizzying talent, he shuffles the herbs,
flowers, wood and balms. He deals them up and down, to the side, in opposition and
in harmony. And then, the double portrait of Arsène Lupin miraculously appears.
Heads: Dandy. A violet bouquet left on the suede cushions of a vintage Rolls
Royce. The extremely chic, yet unexpected, blend of dark, powerful and slightly
smoky leather with a powdery velvet flower. Refreshed with bergamot and bitter
orange, exhilarated by pink pepper and cardamom, enveloped in sandalwood and
patchouli, oils of rockrose and olibanum… The shadowy side and delicate
character melt together to reveal a single substance, one that is smooth, warm and
golden. Arsène was a robber and now he is a capturer of the fairer sex. But how
elegantly he works his magic…
Tails: Voyou. A joyful breakout that becomes a great escape. Arsène No. 2 gallops
off through fields and forest floors. On the way, he whisks away innocent bitter
orange and makes her hide with him in aromatic herbs. Delighted, she discovers the
character and mystery that artemisia, coriander and slightly piquant pepper can add
to her own temperament of a beautiful fresh-cheeked girl. The air is crisp and the
pace is light-hearted, but as the woods draw near, our Voyou gives in to the warm
vibrations of sandalwood. A moment of headiness, one step further… and he falls
for the trick: patchouli, benzoin, rose and white musk catch him in their perfumed
traps. They tenderly surround him, inviting him to new faraway, sensual adventures.
They embrace him. How can he not surrender? After all, he got caught in the most
delightful way…
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THE
EXCLUSIVES
LEAVE YOUR CARD
Arsène Lupin leaves his card just as a woman leaves a trail of scent in her wake.
Jean-Paul Guerlain has engraved two unforgettable cards for him.
With his own distinctive writing style, infused with the most beautiful elements of
Guerlain tradition, the freshest creativity and an immediately identifiable trademark,
he signs a sumptuous leather oriental, Dandy, and a vibrant woody aromatic,
Voyou. In pure Lupin and Guerlain style, both have the elegance that casts away
limitations. Both boast a noble family bearing. Both are equally seductive: the dandy
style of enlightened amateurs who know what they like and the jaunty “voyou”
character of young gentlemen in search of a beautiful olfactory proposition…
The two claim their rightful place in “Les Parisiens”, a Collection that includes the
men’s fragrances Derby, L’Ame d’un Héros and Chamade pour Homme… All of
these fragrances must be deserved. They are sold exclusively in 50 points of sale
worldwide and in Guerlain boutiques in Paris.
As for the more material detail, the bottles, Arsène would have never left it behind!
Because they have everything he could dream of: beautiful glass shapes simply
framed in wood – darker for Dandy and lighter for Voyou: pared-down, minimal,
cleverly powerful… But let’s play fair and close our eyes: for the double pleasure that
he gives us, we will forgive him almost everything…
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