Smoke Alarm - Etat Libre d'Orange's Jasmin et Cigarette
I'm flabbergasted. Another fragrance with tobacco notes. Worse yet, "cigarette" is a part of the name. This month, a new French line of perfumes, Etat Libre d'Orange, introduced Jasmin et Cigarette. The description of this perfume on the website reads:
"It is the era of Harcourt Studios when Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich magnetized men with a Hollywood look in the eye, smoking a cigarette in a smoky black and white ambience. Jasmin et Cigarette is also the slightly jasminy smell of a women's skin when she exposes her freshness to the dark seduction of night. A hazy atmosphere. The reminder of a fantasy, of an indelible trail she leaves on a dress at the break of day or in the intimate memory of the man who made love to her. It is elegance seen by Gainesbourg, the woman from the 80s who smokes Gitane cigarettes and wears jeans and who, with astounding naturalness, claims her sensuality as a right. Transparency in sophistication, just a trace of jasmine mingled to the so far neglected smell of a cigarette. Jasmin et Cigarette is the twilight zone, the banned, addiction. Nicotine woman or heroine, she is an icon, the woman one longs for."
If suffering from lung cancer wearing 80s jeans and a Gitane hanging out of the corner of your mouth seems like a bright idea, power to it. If nicotine also helps you claim your sensuality, all the more power. Clearly, the world of Jasmin et Cigarette IS the twilight zone, one where feminity is somehow tied to a frankly disgusting and dangerous habit.
I don't know if it's a coincidence that both this and Fresh's Tobacco Caramel were launched (or relaunced in Fresh's case) during the same month, but something doesn't smell right. I earlier addressed the Fresh issue as well - read here.
I'm pursuing graduate studies in Public Health and so this is the expected response from someone like me. But one need not be immersed in PH issues to feel this way. More people should be troubled by the power of marketing/advertising and their implications for tobacco control, smoking cessation, and prevention of diseases and conditions associated with tobacco use. The more eco-conscious are careful about selecting natural products and support companies that don't use animal-testing. This is as, if not more, important, and people should be concerned. Particularly young people targeted by this kind of nonsense. Do you long to be like Greta Garbo and snag a man with your coffee and cigarette breath? I didn't think so.
I think a letter to both companies is in order. If you agree, let me know. I'll feel less like - one of those letter-writing people. Maybe we can get them to rename the perfume - how do "Toxic Rose" or "Carcinogenic Bloom" sound?
