Carven - Ma Griffe

1946 sexy and The Big Sleep

The couture house of Carven was founded in 1945 by Madame Carven. She was a novice in the industry, but soon became much sought after for her clean, fresh designs that epitomized French chic. Ma Griffe, which roughly translates as my signature, was released in 1946 and was named for Carven's signature green and white striped dress. The box design is still patterned in green and white.

Ma Griffe is a green chypre, but one that leans more towards a floral than the dry greeness of Givenchy III or Silences. It opens with aldehydes and citrus and blooms into a sheer, light gardenia with green notes. An interesting hint of cinnamon accents the gardenia and the whole thing dries down to a cinnamon and wood, resiny base.

I have the modern bottle, and I have a vintage sample, but unfortunately the top notes in the vintage have gone sour. The base notes are still there however, and it seems to me that the labdanum and styrax were much stronger notes once. There is an almost incense quality to the vintage. 

I think Madame Carven wanted something that combined freshness with self-confidence, like her dress design. It was a perfume to appeal to the new working girls, making their own money and their own way in the world after the war.

Something else was released in 1946 that put a spotlight on the new post-war, independent woman. The Big Sleep, by Howard Hawkes is as dark, rainy and complicated as Ma Griffe is light and playful, but its beautiful, sexually-confident young women remind me of Ma Griffe.

First is the troubled Carmen Sternwood, the sexually-agressive opium addict, victim of a pornography ring and possible murderer. She uses sex automatically with men, to get her way. After her first meeting with Marlowe, he observes drily "She tried to sit on my lap while I was standing up."

Then there's the star, Lauren Bacall as the sultry sister Vivian Sternwood Rutledge. A young widow, presumably from the war, Vivian is sexy, mysterious and, though Bacall was only 20 at the time, she always seems in control. Humphrey Bogart fell for her hard, both in real life and in the movie. Vivian plays a dangerous game trying to keep her sister and herself out of trouble from black mailers, pornographers, gamblers and thugs while keeping it all a secret from private investigator Marlowe (Bogart). Their sexually suggestive "racehorse" scene in the movie was just about as racy as dialogue between a man and a woman could get at that time. And just look at that gorgeous lamé jacket.

Besides those two leading ladies, the movie is full of strong, sexy women. There's my favourite supporting role ever, the bookstore proprietress, played by Dorothy Malone. Bogart steps into her shop to watch the store across the street, but quickly charms her. As a heavy rain begins to fall, he proposes that they have a drink of rye (from a bottle in his pocket) while he waits - with a suggestive line: "I'd rather get wet in here." The independent bookseller pulls the shade and closes an hour early, removes her eyeglasses and lets her hair down coyly: "It looks like we're closed for the rest of the afternoon." There are many femme fatales in film noir, but this sexy-geek librarian is priceless.

Even the taxi cab driver in The Big Sleep is a little randy.

Anyway, sorry for the long non-perfume-related post. If you've never seen The Big Sleep, I highly recommend you run out and get it right away. And maybe spritz on a little Ma Griffe while watching, to get the real authentic experience.

House: Carven
Nose: Jean Carles
Notes: Top notes are aldehydes, gardenia, green notes, asafoetida, clary sage and citruses; middle notes are orris, orange blossom, orris root, jasmine, ylang-ylang, lily-of-the-valley and rose; base notes are labdanum, sandalwood, cinnamon, musk, benzoin, oakmoss, vetiver and styrax.