#Patou's Joy

[gatabella]

Ava Gardner by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1944

"The only kind of makeup she uses is lipstick, and she’s a big perfume addict. Perfume goes behind her ears, on her hair, at the nape of her neck, and in the crook of her elbows. Some days, she changes her perfume two or three times, to fit her moods. She likes “Joy,” “Blue Hour,’ and’ “Mitsouko.” Before a big date, she takes a bubble bath—Elizabeth Arden, usually—but her housecoat is tailored, coolie-style, and she owns only two strapless formals. They’re both black, and she wears them when she has to appear at publicity functions, premieres and so forth."

-Modern Screen magazine, July 1948

[chicinsilk]

Jardin des modes Octobre 1954

Marc Bohan for Jean Patou Haute Couture Collection Fall/Winter 1954-55. Joy Weston wears a cocktail dress with a puffy skirt in gold faille.

Marc Bohan pour Jean Patou Collection Haute Couture Automne/Hiver 1954-55. Joy Weston porte une robe de cocktail à jupe gonflée en faille dorée.

Photo Nicole Bukzin

[powdery-iris]

[parfumieren]

Joy (Jean Patou)

Believing firmly that more equals merrier, I recently invited a friend to join me in a decant spree. She pored over the Perfumed Court website in search of a likely first-time scent adventure, finding one in the "Old Hollywood" sampler-- three perfumes of your choice, each linked to a famous big-screen glamour girl. Among her selections: Jean Patou's masterwork Joy, the favored perfume of Vivian Leigh and Olivia de Havilland.

Created in 1930 by Henri Alméras, Joy condensed twenty-eight dozen roses and over ten thousand individual jasmine blossoms into every golden ounce of parfum. In its day, there was no perfume in the world more expensive to produce, and while costlier (and more conspicuous) fragrances have since arisen, few remain so indelibly linked to the mythos of luxury.

According to the keepers of perfume lore, Joy has been cherished by Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Josephine Baker, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Elsa Maxwell, Jacqueline Onassis, Joan Rivers, Julia Roberts, and no less a personage than Queen Elizabeth II. Anjelica Huston? Not so much. "Joy never did it for me," she once told an interviewer. Her preference: Jean Patou's 1000-- "Mille", as she properly and affectionately calls it.

Stoked by these tales of Joy's glamorous history, my friend and I waited breathlessly for our package to arrive. And when it did, you could tell for miles around.

Now, I've had perfume samples leak before -- notably Muscs Koublaï Khän -- but never have I experienced such a stab of uncontrollable panic as when I thought that Joy had burst open in transit. Its appearance in my mailbox was accompanied by a fanfare of jasmine-- immediate, unmistakable, and thoroughly discomfiting. A frantic examination showed no sign of breakage or seepage; simply put, Joy would not be contained-- not by the most tightly-sealed vial, not by the most careful packaging. I should have heaved a sigh of relief and enjoyed the free olfactory sample. Instead, my terror took at least a half an hour to shake, as I kept checking and rechecking for signs of a leak. Later that day, when I handed the vial of Joy over to its delighted new owner, I felt as relieved as if I'd managed to pass off a bottle of pure nitroglycerine.

Why all the fuss? Once again, fragrance had unlocked the warehouse of memory and pulled a long-forgotten incident into the light. I will tell it to you as I told it to my chum, and hope this puts it to rest.

In my review of Ralph Lauren's Polo, I wrote about my uncle's family and the ambivalent memories I retain of them. One such cringe-worthy memory involves the bottle of Joy De Luxe Pure Parfum my aunt kept on her bedroom dresser. I can't say whether it was the sparkly, cut-crystal bottle or its mysterious contents that drove my five-year-old brother to investigate; all I can tell you is that he knocked it over. A single ounce of the world's rarest extrait -- a fabled field of roses, a veritable jungle's worth of jasmine -- dribbled across the polished wood and spilled onto the carpet, sending hosts of hypnotic scent-tendrils spiraling in all directions. The disaster smelled heavenly-- and brought all the adults running. (It also stripped the finish clean off the dresser -- which says much about the strength of ten thousand jasmine blossoms.)

Paralyzed by terror, my mother stood trembling in the hallway. How could she afford to replace it? Not the dresser, not the carpet-- the Joy! Three hundred dollars! Who (besides my uncle) had three hundred dollars to throw away on a single ounce of perfume? She -- who bought her Jean Naté off the shelf at McCrory's -- burst into horrified tears.

My aunt reacted with an unperturbable grace indicative of the natural aristocracy of her spirit. She shrugged, embraced my mother warmly, told her that wouldn't hear of us replacing what had been lost. Artie will just have to buy me more for my birthday, she said with a sly grin. Doesn't it smell wonderful? Now I can enjoy it all the time.

She wasn't kidding. For years, one could stand in the doorway to her bedroom and smell the ghost of Joy. And thirty years later -- even though my brother had knocked it over, not I -- the merest hint of this scent clinging to the outside of a sample bottle was enough to trigger an irrational feeling of culpability in me, as if I had committed some unknown, unseen trespass.

I recently expressed my unease with jasmine to a friend, confessing that in the past I have summarily rejected perfumes that listed "jasmine absolute" as an ingredient without even giving them a try. I've characterized the scent of this innocuous white flower as "cloying", "syrupy", "overbearing", even "raunchy"-- all to justify a baseless aversion which, if truth be told, is nonexistent.

Because I love the scent of jasmine. I really, really do.

That this love comes mingled with shame and mortification has not diminished it. No-- on the contrary; it's made it more powerful, almost to the level of a superstition. I believe it all stems from that spilled bottle of Joy when I was a child. Could it be that a three-decade-old family embarrassment has prejudiced me against an entire botanical genus? Will I ever be able to let go of my fear of this flower?

Putting all talk of childhood olfactory trauma aside, I will say now -- as I probably said then -- that Joy is gorgeous. It's the perfect marriage of heaven and earth, animal and floral, light-hearted optimism and down-dirty sensuality. I can see why someone would bankrupt themselves for one tiny ounce.

Most perfume notes conform to a simple pyramid structure: top, heart, base. Joy, on the other hand, employs a clever fulcrum-and-lever system to launch a jasmine note as big and dense as a planet into space. The tools needed to lift such an object must be formidable in their own right-- and so they are. Ylang-ylang, tuberose, and civet form a sturdy indolic base, while the lever -- forged out of a peppery-sweet rose otto -- fits exquisitely into an orris-root fulcrum.

And the elbow grease? An unusual green note attributed to the calyx-- that leafy structure which encloses the unopened flower bud and cups the full-blown blossom at its base. Its crisp, vegetal astringency gives the whole equation a strongman's boost, effortlessly launching that jasmine giant into the air as if it weighed no more than a beach ball. As it rises, you finally notice the sparkle of aldehydes in its wake-- the factor I believe most responsible for the "joy" in this equation.

The only useless reminiscences are those that spoil our forward view. Perhaps one day I will learn to love Joy unalloyed by the burdens of the past. It asks no more of me, and offers no less in return than the gift of beauty, which possesses the power to right every wrong, even in retrospect.

Scent Elements: Rose de Mai, jasmine, ylang-ylang, calyx, peach, orchid, tuberose, lily-of-the-valley, civet, orris, sandalwood, musk, aldehydes

[fragranceonthefeuille]

Hana lay across the futon, and Etsuko pulled a light comforter over her thin young body and turned out the light. Hana curled into herself; her eyes were still open, and she said nothing. Etsuko didn't want to leave her. Despite everything, it struck her that what she was feeling was a kind of contentedness. They were together again. Hana had come to her for care. Etsuko sat down on the edge of the bed and stroked her daughter's hair.

"You have this scent,” Hana said quietly, "I used to think it was your perfume. Joy, nee?”

"I still wear that.”

"I know," Hana said, and Etsuko resisted the urge to sniff her own wrists.

"It's not just the perfume, though, it's all the other creams and things that you wear, and it makes up this smell. I used to walk around department stores wondering what it was. The smell of mama.”

Eisuko wanted to say many things, but above all that she would try not to make any more mistakes. "Hanako—"

"I want to go to sleep now. Go to that boy's party. Leave me alone.” Hana's voice was flat but more tender this time.

From Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

Fragrantica page for Joy

[persolaise]

Creed Centaurus & Delphinus, Matiere Premiere extraits, vintage Caron Yatagan & Jean Patou Joy reviews - 2024

Have I finally found a Creed that doesn't make me run for the hills? -- Reviews of Centaurus and Delphinus, as well as the new extraits from Matiere Premiere, and vintage bottles from Caron and Jean Patou.

If ever there was a set of videos that highlighted the stark difference between modern perfume releases and those from a few decades ago, it was the one I broadcast the other day, during which I reviewed new releases from Creed and Matiere Premiere, as well as classics from Caron and the much-missed Jean Patou. Here are links to all three videos in the set, followed by timestamps and a few…

[mariesrbouipochodian]

[excalisbury]

I used to be like “why would Marilyn Monroe wear Chanel N° 5 to bed.? Like what is the point? Who’s gonna smell it? Your lover I guess? But isn’t bed mostly for sleeping? Why be fancy?”

But now I Know. ‘Cause I wear Joy by Jean Patou to bed pretty often these days and I’m like “aaaarrrgh I’m so crazy so wild so intense I can’t handle it I am amidst a whole meadow of hundreds roses and 10000 jasmine blooms” and it sends me to joyous dreamland. This is not for my lover it is for ME 💁🏼

[kitsunetsuki]

Guy Bourdin - Jean Patou "Joy" Perfume Ad (Vogue Paris 1969)

[cleolinda]

A fresh pinned post: January 2025

Hello! You might remember me from Livejournal/Twitter, or you might just like what I post here. 2024 was a rough year health-wise, but we persevere. Here's what I’m doing as of January 2025:

Weekend Links: On Sundays I summarize the most interesting things I posted/reblogged that week, so check those or my archive out. Spine trouble laid me out for the second half of 2024, so those posts will return in February 2025, knock on wood. 

First look on Patreon: Mostly I’ve written about whatever strikes me, like not realizing I grew up in a haunted house, or that time The Ring nearly killed me. I have a Patreon tier where you can get longer posts—reviews, recaps, audio/transcripts and such—before I put them up here. A few things are even Patreon-only. That said, it’s primarily a free mailing list (and Weekend Links are always public), and I love having free members—so you can keep up with me no matter how many social media platforms crumble into the sea, and you can get major posts in your inbox so that you don’t miss them in the chaos of Tumblr. 

Gaming: Totally new endeavor. I fell in love with Silent Hill 2 remake playthroughs and decided to play it myself… even though I’d never played a video game before. I’m going slowly, but I'm actually doing pretty well! Commentaries in various formats (text, voice… video?) have begun. ETA: I finished! Video commentary will start the week of February 17th, hopefully.

Varney the Vampire masterpost: I have picked up with the Varney the Vampire recaps I did on Livejournal a million years ago; after a shorter hiatus, those will return in early 2025. I am gonna be real honest with you, whenever I’ve fallen off recapping Varney, it’s because I hit some chapter of repetitive, empty dialogue where nothing happens and I don’t know how to make it interesting. We’re just going to acknowledge that from now on and keep moving. 

Perfume discussion masterpost: I got interested in perfume—the history and how it's made and wtf is "white musk"—and so I write about that periodically. I had sinus trouble throughout 2024, so hopefully I’ll be able to get back to those now. For examples of my approach, check out Guerlain’s Mitsouko, Zoologist’s Tyrannosaurus Rex, Jean Patou’s Joy, or Aquolina Pink Sugar.

Basically I just pursue whatever I feel enthusiastic about, and people tell me that they like coming along for the ride. Feel free to follow along if you’d like. 

[dandyads]

Joy de Jean Patou, 1975

[forthegothicheroine]

Sleepover Monday asks! Do you have any perfumes you associate with any characters (specific fictional people or just general Types Of Person)? Do you have any headcanons about perfumes certain fictional characters might wear?

Lucy and Mina might have worn "flower water", lightly scented with one flower, probably rose, lilac or lavender. I understand the new Nosferatu associates Ellen with lilacs, which I highly approve of!

Any noir dame worth her pearls would have a lovely vintage scent. Margot from Decoy (1946) cites her expensive perfume as one of the luxuries that crime buys, and I imagine it may have been Joy by Patou which advertised itself as the most expensive, luxurious perfume on the market.

[chicinsilk]

US Vogue March 15, 1969

Michel Goma for Jean Patou Haute Couture Spring/Summer 1969 Collection. Bright smocked, rounded, raglan tops, gathered at the small necklines, cut in a deep U and buttoned high. Blue or yellow wool on matching suits. With white patent ankle boots. Gerondeau fabric. Andréa for the Patou ankle boots. Carita hairstyles, Perfume by Patou: pure Joy. Models: Kellie Wilson and Moyra Swan.

Michel Goma pour Jean Patou Collection Haute Couture Printemps/Été 1969. Hauts smockés vifs, arrondis, raglan, froncés au niveau des petits tour de cou, coupés en U profond et boutonnés haut. Laine bleue ou jaune sur combinaisons assorties. Avec des bottines vernies blanches. Tissu Gérondeau. Andréa pour les bottines Patou. Carita coiffures, Parfum par Patou: pur Joy. Mannequins : Kellie Wilson et Moyra Swan.

Photo Bert Stern vogue archive

[fruitchouli]

ok the ones this week that make me go Omgg this is soooooo good 😍 are Miss freaking AP, a rich intoxicating dreamy rose oriental, and Organza Indecence, the ORGASMIC 90s spicy woody vanilla… they don’t make vanillas like that anymore sister let me tell ya.. both make me feel very gwen stefani luxurious. i also love Van Cleef First more than ever.. it’s easily one of my favorite aldehydic florals, and it made me realize, u know what? Fuck Hermes Caleche!! i don’t need that SHIT!! First is cheaper and slays harder.. disgustingly glamorous.. u know what fuck Jean Patou Joy too

[elegancegrace]

Пaхнyть как cелебpити. Любимые аpомaты знaменитocтей

Oкaзывaетcя, неcмoтря на огрoмные зaпaсы и заcтaвленные туалетные cтолики, бoльшинcтвo звезд пpедпoчитaют быть пpеданными однoму тoму caмoмy пapфюмy! Гвинет Пэлтpoy пpедпoчитaет клаccику и yже мнoгo лет пoльзyетcя apoмaтoв Chanel № 19, кoтopый coздaн в 1970 гoдy. Глубoкий apoмaт oткpывается веpxними нoтами гaльбaнумa, гиацинтa, нерoли и беpгaмoтa, в сеpдце иpиc, кopень ириca, жаcмин, илaнг-илaнг, лaндыш, рoзa и нapцисс, a шлейф сocтaвляют кoжa, сaндaл, мycкyc, дубовый мoх, ветивер и белый кедp.

Джулия Рoбертc любит цветoчный арoмaт Joy oт Jean Patou, кoтopый cтoит нa пoлкaх кocметичеcких мaгазинoв yже пoчти 90 лет! Верxние нoты тyбеpoзы, илaнг-илaнгa и бoлгapcкoй рoзы, в сеpдце жаcмин и мaйская poза, a в бaзе cандал и мycкyс. Ходят слуxи, что британский пapфюмерный бpенд Illuminum выпycтил aрoмaт White Gardenia Petals специaльно к кopoлевcкoй свадьбе Kейт Mиддлтoн. Hедaрoм cе��чac пaрфюм, кoтoрый переводитcя кaк «Белые лепеcтки гаpдении», считаетcя apoмaтoм пpинцесc. B кoмпoзиции pocкoшногo apoмaтa – лилия, беpгaмoт, лиcт чеpнoй cмoрoдины, кoтopые выхoдят в нoтаx сердцa – жacмине, ландыше, гapдении и илaнг-илaнге. Шлейф в коpoлевcкoм aромaте cocтaвляют aмбpa и блaгopoдные дpевеcные пopoды. Дженнифеp Эниcтoн любит клaccичеcкие и еcтественные apoмaты, тaк чтo yже мнoгo лет ее выбoр пaдает нa Comme des Garcons 2. Hеoбычный apoмaт пpинадлежит к грyппе шипpoвые цветoчные. Bерxние нoты пapфюмa – aльдегиды, мaндapин, чай, ангелика и мaте, cеpдечные нoты – муcкатный oрех, мaгнoлия, кoриaндp, кoрицa, индийcкий лавp, чернила и тмин, a в базе пачyли, белый кедp, ладaн, ветивер, aмбpа и лабданyм. Блейк Лайвли yже пoчти пять лет пользyется apoмaтoм The Beat oт Burberry. Bыпущенный в 2008 гoду aрoмат oткpывaетcя в нoтаx poзoвoгo перцa, мaндaринa, беpгaмoтa и кapдaмoнa, сеpдечные ирис, чaй и кoлoкольчик пеpетекaют в ветивеp, белый кедp и белый мyскус. Звездa «Зачapoвaнныx» Aлиcсa Mиланo мнoгo лет являетcя пpедaннoй фaнaткoй аpoмaтa Happy oт Clinique. Coзданный в 1998 гoдy apoмaт нaпoлнен нoтами яблoкa, сливы, бергaмoтa и cвежегo вoздуха. B сердце аpoмaта нежные цветы: фрезия, poза, лaндыш и yтренняя oрxидея. Бaзy соcтaвляют нoты aмбpы и муcкyca. Oдна из caмыx утoнченных aктpиc Летиция Кacта пpедпoчитает культoвый, cтapейший apoмaт oт Guerlain – Shalimar. Boсточный аpомат нaчинaетcя в цитpуcoвыx нотах, мaндарине, беpгамoте, лимoне и кедpе, перетекая в cеpдченые пaчyли, иpис, жаcмин, рoзy и ветивеp. Шлейф Летиции cocтoит в oпoпoнaксе, циветте, ладане, кoже, вaнили, мycкycе и сaндале. Эмма Уoтcoн пpеданa аpoмaтy, лицoм кoтоpoгo сталa в 2011 годy. Tresor Midnight Rose раcкpываетcя рoзoй и мaлинoй, пеpетекaет в жacмин, пиoн, лиcт чернoй cмopoдины и poзoвый пеpец, а завершаетcя мyскyсoм, кедpом из Bиpджинии и вaнилью. Тaкoй вoт древеснo-мускycный бyкет. Hеcмoтря на тo чтo Дженнифеp Лoпеc выпycтила coбственнyю парфюмеpнyю линию Glow, oна пpедпoчитaет pед��ий aрoмaт Pheromone Marilyn Miglin. Цветoчный, зеленый паpфюм нaпoлнен веpxними нoтами cпеций, рoзмapинa, зелеными нoткaми мяты и лиcтьев пaльмы и лoтocoм. В cеpдце кoмпoзиции – жacмин, aпельcинoвый цвет, иланг-илaнг, иpис и poза, а шлейф cостoит из дpевеcных нoт, вoдки, сaндала, пaчулей и дyбовoгo мхa. Анджелинa Джoли мнoгo лет oтдaет пpедпoчтение cексyaльному apoмaту Black oт Bvlgari. Унисекc-apoмaт oкyтывaет дpевеcными нoтами. Bерхyшкa бyкета – зеленый чaй, беpгaмoт и poзa, в cердце – caндал, белый кедp и жacмин, a базa cocтoит из кoжи, aмбpы, мycкyca, вaнили и дyбoвoгo мxa. Ким Кaрдашьян нa cвoем тyалетнoм столике имеет целую кoллекцию paзнooбpазных aрoмaтoв, нo ее фaвоpит – Michael oт Michael Kors. Дpевеcно-мyскyсный пaрфюм c верхними нoтaми белoй фpезии, лaдaнa, китайскoгo ocмaнтyca и тамapинда, в сеpдце тyбеpoзa, ириc, пиoн, кopень ирисa и каллa, a в шлейфе – тяжелые муcкус, кашмиpскoе деpевo и ветивеp. Еcли вы не знaете, кaк звyчит ycпех, тoгдa любимый aрoмaт Мaдoнны вaм пoдcкажет. Hypnotic Poison oт Dior – мистичеcкaя cмеcь cливы, жacминa, poзы, сaндaлoвoгo деpевa, миндaля и ванили – пленил oбoняние (и cеpдце) Maдoнны

[ansonghq]

MEET RESIDENT HAN JINSOL.

✽ ✎… ( kim minjeong/winter, cis female, she/her ) — we hope ansong has found you well, han jinsol. you know yourself to be 22 years old and currently reside in unit #05 on floor #03. while you have been here for 15 years, you seem to remember a little about your former life. currently you’re employed at ansong community hospital as a nurse. you recall that some people consider you to be resilient & nurturing, but sometimes you seem to be overbearing & sensitive. we hope you find everything you’re searching for, and maybe a little bit more.

in their box sits five notecards, they read:

notecard #1: a hand drawn image of what appears to be a woman and child holding hands, accompanied by a big, bright sun.

notecard #2: a full week's work schedule written down neatly.

notecard #3: thoughtful handwriting that reads: "i can't wait to see you again."

notecard #4: an address scribbled down in a hurry; messy and illegible.

notecard #5: the scent joy by jean patou.

in their tote bag sits three memento(s), they are:

a single vintage jade earring

a small diary book, left blank and empty with the exception of a preserved carnation flower pressed between the middle pages.

a gold heart shaped locket, engraved with the letter 'G'