#jicki

[winnie-the-monster]

I forever say she deserved better than what happened to her.

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES | 1.01 Pilot.

[dozydawn]

Mademoiselle, October 1995.

Photographed by François Halard.

Model: Jicky Schnee.

[therunwayarchive]

Jicky Schene at Vivienne Westwood, Fall 1996

[rowenas-my-fave-child]

Ok this is so random but all of Jacob’s ship names are so funny like jillard?? Jemma??? Joor?? Imma start a petition to make hollow heart jenoch

[manitat]

Brigitte Bardot by Ghislain Dussart, 1960...

[byulyi]

and the thing about the hp tattoos is, people will still come up to me with the brightest smiles and compliment them and tell me how much they love hp, while I am just like yea well, actually I'm about to make this conversation uncomfortable for us both now,,

[parfumieren]

Jicky (Guerlain)

Léa de Lonval -- the wise heroine of Colette's 1920 novel Chéri -- had this to say about the primacy of style over propriety: "Naked, if need be… but squalid, never!" Being a celebrated courtesan, Léa knew quite a lot about being naked. And that she wore Guerlain's Jicky is a given-- for Jicky is her beloved Belle Époque in liquid form.

There is plenty that's naked about Jicky, but certainly nothing squalid. It is neither mad, bad, nor dangerous to know, despite the company it has kept. Colette elle-même; Sarah Bernhardt; Anita Ekberg and Brigitte Bardot; not one but two 007's (Sean Connery and Roger Moore). Jane Birkin wore Jicky before switching to L'Air de Rien, which amounts to a step down in the world for Jane. And Jacqueline Kennedy dabbed it behind her lovely ears, which may be construed as a step up for Jicky.

We cannot know if Alice Keppel -- Edward VII's discreet and congenial maîtresse déclarée -- ever tried Jicky. In Diana Souhami's biography Mrs. Keppel and Her Daughter, Sonia Keppel is quoted as saying that her mother exuded 'a certain elusive smell, like fresh green sap, that came from herself'. She did not say (as Virginia Woolf did of Katherine Mansfield) that her mother reeked 'like a civet cat that had taken to street walking'. If she had, Jicky would have undoubtedly been to blame.

Still, Jicky has more in common with Mrs. Keppel than a first glance might tell. Like "La Favorita", it's the perfect mistress, at once frankly suggestive and marvellously well-behaved. Assertive, heady, and rich, its comportment on skin suggests years of tutelage amidst the best society... and nights whiled away between the finest silk sheets. Finally, in its capacity to charm perfume-wearers of all genders, ages, and classes, Jicky employs the same "gift of happiness" attributed to Mrs. Keppel: "She resembled a Christmas tree laden with presents for everyone."

Jicky begins with a thousand acres of Provençal lavender concentrated into one crystalline drop. It stays there for exactly sixty seconds before transforming into the most remarkable olfactory hologram of a lover's body this side of-- well, the bed. Here is the intimate aroma of the one you adore. He or she is the person with whom you share your life, your heart, your secret inner self; you sleep together every night and reach for one another first thing every morning. With them, your secrets are safe as houses-- and before them, to paraphrase Millay, you are at liberty to "spread like a chart your little wicked ways".

The warm, animalic phase of Jicky's development is due largely to the generous amount of civet with which Aimé Guerlain anchored this composition of sparkling citrus, leather, and herbs. The result is a sinuous beast, delicate and decorous, who enters the room on tiny feet, lashing its tail. Close behind it comes its master -- a jovial, barrel-chested shaving-soap accord, rich with birch tar and vanilla -- who promptly pulls up a chair and offers you a piece of his mind. While he dominates the conversation (and a scintillating one it is, too), our civet sits silent and attentive, every so often yawning or giving its glossy fur a nonchalant lick. It never begs for attention, but it also never quits its master's side. Caught in the nexus between filthy and clean, you sense that you're the victim of a formidable tag team-- and you marvel at their effortless powers of persuasion.

Despite its embrace by the so-called "souls" of that age, Jicky did not debut during the fast-and-loose Edwardian era. It is solidly a product of Victoria's reign, a fact which turns the entire concept of Victorian prudery on its ear. The Queen herself, though straitlaced as any monarch must be, is said to have adored perfume-- particularly Houbigant and Creed, from whom she commissioned Royal Scottish Lavender in honor of her beloved Highlands. The only thing separating Royal Scottish Lavender from Jicky is the sensual frisson of civet, a distinction which also sums up the fundamental differences in character and taste between the duty-minded Queen and her sybaritic eldest son. In short: same genes, but considerably more sex.

If, while sporting Jicky, you likewise experience an uptick in "action", do not be surprised. By the same token, do not believe for an instant that by accepting said "action", your standards have been lowered by one jot. Wearing Jicky does not diminish one's dignity; nor does it deny one's essential pleasure-loving nature. It merely clothes the mammal with art.

Whatever else you choose to wear -- or not wear -- is entirely your own business.

Scent Elements: Lemon, mandarin, bergamot, lavender, rosewood, orris, jasmine, patchouli, rose, vetiver, leather, amber, civet, tonka bean, incense, benzoin

[angelitam]

Jicky de Guerlain

Dans la collection Les Légendaires de Guerlain, un amour androgyne, Jicky. Jicky de Guerlain La légende d’un amour androgyne, dans la collection Les Légendaires, Jicky de Guerlain. Jicky de Guerlain Aimé Guerlain tomba amoureux de Jicky lors de ses études en Angleterre. En 1889, le parfumeur rendra hommage à cet amour avec un sillage si révolutionnaire qu’il fut qualifié de premier parfum…

[hotelbooking]

Jicky's Nest Parking is available and free, provided by the hotel for guests with their own transportation. The helpful staff at the front desk can assist you with services including luggage storage. If you want seats to city's best entertainment, you can get help through the hotel's ticket service and tours. The hotel's on-site laundry service helps you keep your favorite travel outfits clean so you can pack less. In-room conveniences include room service and daily housekeeping, so you can relax and enjoy your stay. Guestrooms are designed to provide an optimal level of comfort with welcoming decor and essential amenities. The hotel provides blackout curtains and air conditioning in some rooms for the benefit of guests. Keep your entertainment options wide, even in your room, with a range of facilities, including television available in select rooms. Knowing that bathroom amenities play an important role in increasing guests' satisfaction, the hotel provides toiletries in some select...

[capricornsister]

The sexiest fragrances that I especially like smelling on others, both men and women, are always musky (and animalic), spicy with lavender and citrus

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Some Perfumery Vocabulary

Absolute - An extraction from a concrete using alcohol. The essential oil of scented flowers and other aromatic plant parts in its purest and most concentrated form. It is extremely expensive. A few important oils used in an absolute form are: geranium, lavender, lily, and rose.

Accord - A combination of a number of different scents which blend together to produce a new fragrance.

Agrestic - "Of the countryside"; odours of heather, forest depths, and the meadow.

Aldehydes - Aromatic chemicals isolated for the first time in the 19th century, but that also occur naturally. Certain aldehydes provide an increased diffusiveness, sparkle, and lift to perfumes, most famously in Chanel No. 5.

Almondy - Bittersweet, soft, and nutty scent.

Amber - An accord in perfumery that is supposed to recall the qualities of ambergris. It is often constructed with labdanum, Tolu balsam, or Peru balsam. Often an accord in Oriental perfumes.

Ambergris - A highly prized perfume ingredient consisting of the oxidized excretion from a sperm whale. It is rarely used in its natural form in perfumery because of its rarity, exorbitant cost, and concerns about sourcing ambergris from live whales rather than from shore-found ambergris. It’s said to have an earthy, sweet, tobacco, and pleasantly animalic scent. It primarily works to bring out other notes in perfumery rather than to impart a particular scent on its own.

Ambrein - The primary scented molecule in ambergris, isolated and used in perfumery. It’s warm, sweet, vanillic, and ambery, with facets of spice and tobacco.

Animalic - Describes fragrances with animal ingredients in natural or synthetic form, including civet, castoreum, musk, or ambergris. The voluptuous, erotic, and sometimes disturbing quality of animalic perfumes can register in an olfactory way, as something “dirty” or animal-smelling, or as a feeling, a mood, or a quality. Sometimes, it can be both.

Aromatic - Having a strong or distinctive smell.

B—E

Balance - A combination of different fragrance notes so adjusted in proportion to one another that none of the individual notes is more prominent than any of the others.

Balsamic - The resin from the bark of trees and shrubs (Peru, Tolu, styrax) that have a rich vanilla scent. Balsamic is a term used to describe perfumes with the soft, ambery aspects these resins impart.

Benzoin - A sweet, balsamic resin used in incense and as a base note in perfume for its vanillic scent and fixative properties. Also known as styrax because it comes from the bark of the styrax tree.

Bergamot - The essential oil from the peel of the nonedible Citrus aurantium fruit that looks like a small orange. Its sweetish, mellow lemony scent is a crucial top note in perfumery.

Calone - A synthetic “marine” note that is supposed to evoke the freshness of the ocean. It has a slight watermelon facet.

Camphoraceous - Describes a fresh, clean, medical fragrance.

Caramel - Sweet, rich, creamy, buttery scent.

Cardamom - An intensely aromatic, sweet spice from the ginger family, in the form of a pod filled with seeds.

Carnation - A smoky, sweet, and clove-like scent, the latter facet due to Eugenol, the primary component of clove.

Cassis - (or black currant bud) A sharp, fruity, almost cat-urine-like scented perfume note.

Cistus - (or Labdanum) A resin from the rockrose bush, traditionally gathered from goats’ beards as they fed on the plant. Labdanum is said to be the note closest to the scent of ambergris. Creamy, soft, vanillic.

Citrus - Fresh, light fragrance characteristic of citrus fruits, but also imitated synthetically.

Civet - In classical perfumery, the cream harvested from the anal gland of the mongoose-like civet animal, often described as cat like. Fecal-smelling when undiluted, civet “rounds” out other notes when used judiciously. Famous as an overdosed note in Guerlain’s Jicky (1889), it is considered one of the first abstract modern scents. Civet is primarily in synthetic form now.

Clove - An aromatic spice similar to cinnamon, but less sweet. Its primary component is Eugenol.

Coniferous - The fragrance note of pine, spruce, juniper and similar such trees, often used in men's fragrances.

Diffusive - A perfume whose fragrance quickly becomes apparent in the air surrounding the wearer.

Dry - The aromatic effect of perfume ingredients such as woods and mosses in contrast to sweet and warm fragrances.

Earthy - The subtle fragrance impression of earth or earth-mould which is found in certain essential oils such as vetiver and patchouli.

Equine - Notes of hay and leather.

F—M

Floral - The general fragrance of flowers.

Fruity - Citrus, berries, tropical, and other non-citrus fruit scents.

Fungal - Molds, yeast, and mushroom scents.

Green - General fragrance of grasses and green plant parts.

Harmony - A pleasing combination of fragrance notes.

Hayfield notes - Usually based on coumarin, which have an odour of new-mown hay.

Heavy - Denotes a fragrance in which the least volatile ingredients, such as mossy or animalic ones, are dominant, giving a very strong effect. Such fragrances are mostly used in chypre and oriental-type perfumes.

Herbaceous - The characteristic general fragrance of herbs and herbal medicines. Sage, rosemary and lavender are examples.

Honey - Used as an ingredient in early Arab perfumes and appears in later European ones (e.g., Honey Water). In modern perfumery a substance providing the sweet aromatic effect of honey and known as Honey (or Miel) is manufactured synthetically.

Indolic - The disquieting, ripe, animalic, and almost excremental facet of scents.

Leather - A perfume accord and category of perfume constructed from various notes, including birch tar, styrax, castoreum, and a variety of synthetic notes.

Light - Delicate, clean, and fresh-laundry scent.

Marine - Iodized scent.

Mellow - Soothing and calming scent.

Metallic - A fragrance reminiscent of metal, providing a clean, cool effect. Metallic notes are used in perfumes to assist in promoting an effect, not as main fragrances.

Minty - A fragrance reminiscent of mint, e.g., peppermint or spearmint. Such fragances are usually used to provide a special, fresh effect in a top note.

Mossy - The general odour of oils obtained from mosses and lichens.

Musk - Produced by the musk deer and excreted by the male during mating season. Musk deer were killed almost to extinction for their valuable musk glands, which were dried, and whose musk “seeds” were removed and steeped in alcohol to create tinctures for perfume. The scent of real musk is warm, with depth and a dark animalic aroma. Many synthetics now can mimic musk scent, but one of the most superior musk synthetics, nitro-musks, which were in Chanel No. 5 and countless other vintages, has been banned due to toxicity concerns. Musk can also be substituted with plant ingredients including ambrette seed and angelica.

Musty - Damp, earthy, or stale odor.

N—W

Narcotic - Exceptionally strong and heavy fragrances obtained from some flowers (e.g. jasmine and tuberose) and animalic ingredients, which need to be used with careful discretion in a perfume.

Ozonic - A perfume accord that attempts to create the smell of fresh air after a thunderstorm.

Peppery - Odour of pepper.

Powdery - Soft and clean scent.

Rich - Fragrances that have numerous layers, notes, and accords in all stages (top, mid, base), creating a multifaceted feel.

Rounded - The overall smoothness and fullness of a fragrance.

Sharp - A strong scent.

Smoky - The slight smell of smoke created in a perfume by certain oils such as Birch Tar Oil. It is used in men's fragrances to provide a leathery effect.

Spicy - Describes in general the distinctive fragrance of essential oils which have been obtained from spices.

Sweet - A sweet and rather sugar-like fragrance such as vanilla.

Tobacco - Fragrances resembling cured tobaccos, which are particularly popular in masculine toiletries.

Wintergreen - Has a very powerful and fresh, medicinal odour.

Woody - Fragrances reminiscent of wood. These fragrances are provided by wood oils, such as cedar, by essential oils from other plants having a wood-like aroma, such as patchouli, and by synthetics.

Sources: Perfume: The Art and Craft of Fragrance by Karen Gilbert ⚜ The Perfume Handbook by Nigel Groom ⚜ Scent & Subversion by Barbara Herman ⚜ Scent: A Natural History of Fragrance by Elise Vernon Pearlstine ⚜ Introduction to Perfumery by Tony Curtis & David G. Williams ⚜ The Big Book of Perfume

More: Word Lists ⚜ Notes & References ⚜ Describing Scent

[dreaming-tonite]

Batfamily members as fragrances I like

Dick

Literally my most favourite perfume of all time. The perfume that reminds you of an old school crush (you know which one, that one upperclassman everyone can’t shut up about who’s just so charming and so nice and smiles so wide), if there is a perfume for someone who you can’t help but like it would be this one. Bright citrusy top notes that aren’t quite as bright as him, subduing to the musky, warm scent lingering on your skin that your nose picks up when you almost forgot its there, much like soaring through the air on a summer morning before it starts to get warm. (Quercus by Penhaligon's)

Barbara

Everyone wants to be her but there is only one like her. First of its kind and an eternal classic, if being "it" is a scent then it is probably this one. Determined to a fault and tragically independent. You wish that she would need you but you are acutely aware that she needs no one. Soothing to the nose but keeps you at arm's length, the grassiness and woodiness almost make you forget that the herb and citrus are resting on the surface. (Jicky by Guerlain)

Jason

There is something odd (something inhuman, almost) about him that you cannot put your finger on and you are not sure if you have the bravery to find out. The product of what is real and what is artificial, the scent of someone trying to become human. Mossy, lactonic notes like someone who just crawled their way into the world with the boyishness of citrus threatening to resurface despite the other urges to contain it. Whether being near him would cause you your demise, you will never know. He is not bad, it is not his fault that he is destined to be a little twisted in every reincarnation of the story. (The Ghost in the Shell by Etat Libre d'Orange)

Cass

A half-burnt incense in the temple of a deity you do not worship. Smoke fills your lungs before you can look around to see if anyone is there and from the corner of your eyes, you swear that the lean shadow of a figure briefly flickers. There is no one there, only you and the gods above who may or may not have anticipated your arrival. Strong but not aggressive, warm but not inviting. The scent of wood and spices trailed behind the cuff of your clothes as you left. You could almost swear that someone is there guarding your every step until you finally disappear from their line of sight. (Serge Noire by Serge Lutens)

Tim

Charming and sophisticated but no one seems to grasp what is going on in his head. Such a complex scent profile that lures you in to keep testing it again and again even as the minutes start ticking away. Someone who always seems to be changing with the situation they are put in but also seems at ease no matter where you see him. Smart and witty, almost everyone who was asked would guess that he is way older than his actual age. Whether it is something intentional or not, the opinions are split. (Eidesis by Aesop)

Steph

I will literally die for her, actually.

Bike rides home with your friends. Chilled pink lemonade on a hot summer day. Free sorbet sample from that nice lady who works at the gelateria. All the good things you associate with being youthful and carefree, this is it. The girl next door went away to the city and now everyone is dying to hear her story. But even in a crowd of people who are all waiting to talk to her, she could still spot you from far away somehow and flash you a big grin. Bubbly, cheerful, someone who does not have to announce their arrival but you know they are here when the air gets a bit lighter and the music gets a bit brighter. (Pera Granita by Guerlain)

Damian

(When I say I tried this in the stores and instantly felt poor…)

Warm notes of saffron fill your head until the vanilla takes over and it’s as if it was there on your skin all alone. The epitome of a warm, spicy perfume, the smell of someone you saw in the depths of your dreams once and couldn’t manage to push out of your head, who stood far away in your vision and disappeared the moment you tried to go closer. Someone who jostled you with the initial intensity before the sweetness and petals slowly creep out. You wonder if you look harder enough, would you find him in the waking? (Cappadocia by Memo Paris)

Selina

The fragrance of a heartbreaker who you can’t help but want to know. The alluring notes of roses announce her arrival before you can see her, intoxicating and dangerous. Your head gets lighter when she leans in to speak into your ear, whiffs of cumin and spice tickling the tip of your nose. But no one could have her for more than a minute, and all that is left of her is the cedar and smoke burning into your brain together with her figure as she sauntered away. 100% would leave you crying if you get too close, 100% would try again if given the chance. (Rose 31 by Le Labo)

Bonus

Talia Al Ghul

Try it once and you will never forget it. The smoothness in texture compliments the slight bitterness that comes from the almond milk. Rich, tempting, and elegant in a way that makes your chest ache. It feels like she is doing you a favour just by looking in your direction, and who wouldn't go insane just to be close enough to smell whiffs of vanilla coming from her skin, honestly. (Rolling in Love By Kilian)

| I feel the need to say that all descriptions are not character studies but imagery based on the scent. Some might be more in line with the characters themselves but ultimately, my goal is to convey my impression of the fragrances |

[laurapetrie]

do you know any other perfumes worn by historical figures like otma? 🩷

Elisabeth of Austria wore Creed Fantasia De Fleurs. Obviously we don't know what Anne Boleyn smelled like (AN ANGEL!), but there is some evidence that she had a fondness for rose-water and even had several bottles of it in her inventory. Marie Antoinette was mad for perfume (there are entire books about this), and you can still buy her custom blend of Parfum du Trianon by her very own personal perfumer, Jean-Louis Fargeon. She even packed it for Varennes! (Louis waiting for her to get ready like 😒.) Her beloved Le Jardin Secret has been repackaged as Black Jade by Lubin, and you can buy it here. Marie-Thérèse also wore Lubin. Napoleon had François Rancé create Joséphine for Guess Who. To absolutely no one's surprise, it's like an explosion of rose petals. Victoria was a big fan of Fleurs de Bulgarie by Creed.

Madame du Barry‘s favourite scent was Aqua Mirabilis by Giovanni Maria Farina. Creed's Jasmin Imperatrice Eugenie was created (shockingly enough) for my beloved Empress Eugenie. STARLET SCENTS:

Grace Kelly walked down the aisle in Creed Fleurissimo.

Givenchy created L'Interdit for Audrey in 1957, but she also wore Creed Spring Flower later on - another perfume made just for her! Carole Lombard wore Casma by Caswell-Massey during her flapper era.

Pattie Boyd recorded in her Letter from London for 16 Magazine that she wore Jicky by Guerlain during her dolly bird days. (Also a favorite of Sharon Tate!) LITERARY LADIES: Zelda Fitzgerald wore Salud by Schiaparelli, describing it as "violets and lilies and pink beauty." And just for fun: the fictional Linda Radlett wears Après L'Ondée by Guerlain, and knowing Nancy Mitford, I'm pretty certain this means she wore it herself. 💐🩷

[partnersincrimesuau]

Im worried for your storage😭😭🙏

ITS OKAY, JICKY BOUGHT A NEW LAPTOP AT THE START OF THE YEAR!!!! This ones gonna be holding a lot of PIC so it better be prepared >:))))

Also i bought a new hard drive recently and it currently has ALL the data, stories, artworks, screenshots, photos and (definitely legally obtained) movies and tv shows from my TWO DIFFERENT COMPUTERS OVER THE PAST EIGHT YEARS - and still has 1.65 tb of space somehow!!!! so dont worry, we've still got plenty of storage for comics >:33333

[forthegothicheroine]

Hi! Lately I've been wanting to find a perfume that would be suitable for Willow MacGregor, and since you're not only a perfume connoisseur but a vintage horror fan, I thought I would ask if you had any suggestions for one!

I am a total dope for missing this!!!

I'm willing to bet someone on Summerisle- possibly Willow herself- makes some homemade floral perfume oils, like (my dearly discontinued) La Dolce by The Alchemist or Maiden by Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab.

On the other hand, it would also be adorable to imagine her with an ancient bottle of Jicky by Guerlain, perhaps brought over by the original, cult-founding Lord Summerisle in the 1800s. Lavender, herbs and hay, the smells of a farm but sophisticated, making her feel like a something between a country witch and a real big city femme fatale.

[sirenjose]

Vera Analysis

Vera was born in Grasse, France. This was a town where originally tanning flourished in the 16th century, but it dies out eventually. This was in part due to competition with Nice, France, but also because they switched to focusing on perfume later.

Perfume or “perfumus” in Latin means “through smoke”.

Tanning left a strong stench, and due to complaints, it became fashionable to have scented gloves. Grasse produced the aroma oils that were put into the leather gloves, and slowly their reputation as a perfume hub increased.

Eventually there was a surge in demand for high quality fragrances, leading to perfume workshops being built and artisans known as “noses” or perfumers being employed who could blend and refine scents. These were people with a natural aptitude for scent, highly trained, finely tuned olfactory abilities as well knowledge of fragrance materials.

It took time for the perfume industry to rebound after the French Reign of Terror, which an emphasis on personal cleanliness around that time helped with. Napolean himself actually encouraged the cultivation of flowers for fragrances, leading to creation of flower fields around Grasse. Flowers sent to Paris were used to create luxury perfumes for the French elite.

The 1st of 3 large perfumeries in Grasse was Galimard in 1747, with Molinard, the 2nd, founded in 1849 (the 3rd was Fragonard, built in 1926). More factories appeared with time, especially with new processes found to absorb scent molecules. In 1850, there were about 45, but by 1875 there were 65. There were also 3 types of factories: plant growers, flower brokers, and manufacturers.

Victorian ladies weren’t known for wearing excessive fragrances. At least initially, the belief was that perfumes should be so “delicate” and so “lingeringly fragrant” that no one could define it as more than the “ghost of a sweet scent”. Anything too strong or overly-lavish was associated with people like prostitutes. Back then, perfumes were generally simpler, consisting mostly of florals and botanicals. They also didn’t apply perfume to the skin, instead using it on gloves, handkerchiefs, clothing, and cosmetics. A predominant scent back then was Eau de Cologne, which was a sharp clean scent that cut through other smells, though it was later surpassed by Bergamont and lemon oil.

Queen Victoria’s scent was the orange blossom. She also loved violets, which were popular in Victorian toiletries.

The focus on singular scent fragrances (smell of a single flower) changed by the end of the 19th century. There were several reasons for this. Raw materials started to be imported from abroad, helping reduce prices, as well as caused Grasse to focus on perfume production rather than flower fields and growing. Another reason was the improvement to the techniques they used. The discovery of solvent extraction techniques allowed for the extraction of fragrant oils without damaging the essence of delicate flowers and enabled the creation of more intricate and nuanced fragrances. The 19th century was when synthetics were 1st made and used. Houbigant and Guerlain were the first to use synthetic products: Fougère royale in 1884, Jicky in 1889, which are considered the 1st modern perfume. Finally, due to synthetic perfumes becoming cheaper to make, wealthy ladies wanted more complex, unique, and as yet unsynthesized perfumes to distance themselves from the lower class.

Going back to Vera, the “Vera” we know in game, the perfumer, is actually Chloe Nair. The real Vera Nair was Chloe’s twin sister.

Chloe herself was initially a timid girl, the type who was easily frightened and lacking in self-confidence, but the 1 person she felt happy with was her twin, Vera, the only person who truly understood Chloe. Unlike Chloe, Vera was cheerful and confident. Despite their differences, they were extremely close and did almost everything together.

But she was the only one.

Adults in their hometown of Grasse, France unfortunately often compared the 2, in a judgmental, self-righteous way. So, it was no surprised they essentially labeled Chloe, who started working and experimenting with perfumes from a young age, as the negative, weird one who “only seemed to know fragrance” and how to make perfumes, while Vera was the “elegant and flattering beauty” popular with the townspeople. As a result of Chloe’s nervous and unlikeable character, they alienated the more fragile of the 2 sisters, which led Chloe to becoming increasingly negative, sensitive, and suspicious. Seeing just how popular her twin was in comparison probably reduced her own self-confidence further.

Despite how much this hurt Chloe and worsened the outlook she had on herself and others, and despite how much the residents loved Vera, Vera’s opinion of Chloe differed from everyone else. She knew the truth of just how skilled Chloe was with perfumes, and just how deep her knowledge was of them. Chloe’s skills were supported by her superior sense of smell and sensitivity to scents, which she saw as each “[telling] a story of nature”.

Not even the rest of Chloe’s family supported her though, as Craig Nair, the “Family Store Manager” (potentially her father, but we can’t be completely sure) told her “If you want your work to have a chance to appear in front of others, you need to cease your weird and comical endeavors”.

The title of this deduction is “Attempt”, followed by the line “Creativity is never liked before it has been proven successful”. This is a bit confusing as Grasse then was still a perfumery hub back then, so Vera being involved with perfumes at all shouldn’t be a problem.

Based on what we’ve heard about Grasse’s history and the development of perfumery, my best guess to explain Craig’s words is this was when simple scents, for that emphasis on personal cleanliness, were still the most popular, before the desire for more complex fragrances. As I said, there were negative connotations of any scent that was considered too lavish. If Vera was one of those beginning to experiment with something besides single scent fragrances, that could explain why he’d talk about her weird “endeavors”, as well as explain the title being “attempt” and the line about “creativity”.

Complex fragrances, like the deduction say, weren’t “liked” before they were “proven successful”. Craig doesn’t seem the type to want to take risks. He wants to stick with what has always worked. The townspeople are similar, though they also don’t understand how interested Vera is in perfume, or the “stories” tell from each scent. But it’s also possible Vera, least to the townspeople “only seems to know fragrance”, aka she pretty much focused all her time on perfumes, could’ve been more than just because she was interested in it. It’s also possible she leaned into it because it was the 1 thing she was good at, while everyone (likely including Craig) saw her sister as the better one. That or because everyone, especially Craig, never saw her as good enough, so she tried to stand out in the 1 way she knew how.

I think the idea Vera was experimenting with complex fragrances while most others, like Craig, were still focused on single scents could be backed up by deduction 5, which includes the line “Two roses, five parts sandalwood, one part geranium, one part rosewood”. Similarly, Vera had another quote in 2018 that involved multiple ingredients: “The secret formula of love: three sprigs of tuberose, one sprig of jasmine, one sprig of clove, half a sprig of chrysanthemum and hyacinth”.

Going back to deduction 5, we see that the fragrance she was developing there was for her sister. This helps show how close the 2 were, as well as likely how grateful Chloe was for Vera’s support. Vera was Chloe’s lifeline. The 1 person who was “willing to listen, take her seriously, and support her in endeavors that seem strange to others”. Vera was Chloe’s outlet, a way to help keep her sane despite how bad everything else around her was.

Unfortunately, this didn’t last. When Chloe sees the news about Vera opening a new perfume shop, and the admiration and fame she gets from it, Chloe feels betrayed. We can see her anger and her losing control of her emotions by the way the newspaper is described to have been “shredded and pasted together”, as well as how deduction 6 includes the line “Incredible: These should have belonged to me!”.

Then there’s deduction 7, titled “vengeance”, which also includes the word “resentful”.

In this same deduction, as well as the next, we essentially learn that Chloe killed her sister (with a dagger) then took her identity. By becoming “Vera”, and taking ownership of the perfume shop the real Vera started, Chloe finally gets the attention and admiration she’s wanted for so long, as we see from deduction 8’s line “So that is what it is like to become the focus of the masses”. Her life now feels like it is finally “on track”.

To everyone else, Chloe seems to have just “disappeared”, though Chloe doesn’t think anyone cares. It doesn’t matter. “Vera” is enjoying the fame and status brought by stealing her sister’s identity, as we see from the line “there seems to be a disparaging look in her eyes and she is enjoying it”. Chloe is now “Vera”, and her personality changes to fit her new identity, as well as a result of the reputation and admiration she is now getting, as she is now described in the early version of the artbook as “arrogant, hypercritical, and graceful”.

We don’t see any immediate thoughts or feelings from “Vera” regarding her killing her sister, but we do see her guilt and regret when she learns the truth upon reading the real Vera’s diary. How Vera had started the perfume shop and everything that went along with it to ensure Chloe’s talents wouldn’t be “buried” to “prove to those biased people”. We also learn as part of this diary entry that the reason Vera didn’t tell Chloe in advance or why she was doing this because Chloe was “proud” and “wouldn’t want me helping her this way”.

Which implies, if not for Chloe’s pride, Vera may have warned Chloe in advance. Or she could’ve just out right asked Chloe more directly if she (Vera) could help.

I at least partially think Chloe’s pride developed similarly to Edgar’s about painting, which was a combination of self-confidence in their skills as well as I think a semi defensive mechanism to help deal with the unhappiness around them (for Chloe this being the way she was looked down on by everyone in town and by her own family besides Vera) as well as try to prevent themselves from being hurt. Unfortunately, by closing yourself off, it also means distancing yourself from those who genuinely care about you, and for Chloe that was Vera. Maybe Chloe and Vera were a bit more distant when they’d grown up, compared to when they were younger. This potentially could’ve contributed to the build up of emotions in Chloe, with the day she made the assumption that her own sister, her last lifeline, had betrayed her, being the metaphorical straw that broke the camels back.

But as deduction 9 says “Not all mistakes can be corrected”. Chloe had made her “choice” by killing “the only person in the world who truly loved her”. Even worse for Chloe is the fact she had gotten used to living as “Vera”, which had given her the chance to finally achieve her desires and receive the compliments and praise from others she had felt she deserved for so long.

As we see in her 3rd letter, she is described as trying to “escape reality”. This same letter seems to confirm what was likely parts of Chloe’s real personality, as it describes her as “alert and oversensitive” and “mentally fragile”, with the 3rd note, being she “has a conscience” fitting with Chloe’s feelings over killing her sister after she learned the truth. The manor owner states Chloe suffers “something close to a mental breakdown”, which is likely why she wants to forget, but also I think is a term that would fit with how I think Chloe was before. I think Chloe was already close to snapping before she saw her sister start the new perfumery, while her sister’s actions were just the thing to tip her over the edge.

 Vera knows she can’t bring her sister back to life, but she also is unable to deal with the complicated tangle of feelings she now has, which are a mixture of sheer guilt, pain, regret, sadness, and devastation. This all combined with Vera’s happiness at living as “Vera” complicating this mess further. As a result, she seeks to forget what happened. Specifically, she wants to forget that she killed her twin, the real Vera. She gets her chance when she receives a “mysterious perfume recipe from an eccentric black marketer”. Using this recipe, she is able to create “Euphoria”, which is described as “anyone who smells this kind of fragrance will be immersed in it and forget everything. But the second note of the perfume is so short-lived that no matter how much she improves it, it cannot be retained”. So, in her desire to perfect the recipe and make it longer lasting, she heads to the manor, which was wear the recipe had come from.