Van Cleef & Arpels SANTAL BLANC N°2694IFG

Van Cleef & Arpels is best known for its luxury jewellery, so it stands to reason that this perfume is an absolute gem…

Apt for the traditional bride, it plays with the impressions conjured by the colour white. Themes of minimalism, softness and balance came into play in its creation and the result is a velvety sandalwood scent with notes of fig milk and musk, enhanced by violet, mandarin and tonka bean.

It’s très chic to say the least, as you’d expect from the brand founded in Paris in 1896 and favoured by iconic beauties including Grace Kelly and Eva Perón.

And we can’t go past the packaging, its pure white indulgence with the Van Cleef stamp, silver neck tag and precision cut petals all held securely with a thick white petersham tape and enclosed in a heavy custom made card box with a drawer slider.

What Van Cleef says…

A velvety wood

This is a wood full of sensations, a precious ingredient that releases waves of scents as soft as a caress. Sandalwood joins the Collection Extraordinaire, reinvented by perfumer Michel Almairac.

Originating from New Caledonia, sandalwood is a rare variety discovered by Western perfumery during the 19th century. Since then, perfumers have not ceased to tire of its unique, warm and velvety aroma.

Pure poetry

This textured fragrance is intended to evoke a “white material”, enhancing the most delicate and cottony facets of sandalwood.

White for purity. White for softness. White for perfect balance.
For the first time, the iconic Collection Extraordinaire bottle is lacquered in immaculate white to reflect the refined olfactory structure.

“I wanted to recreate the sensation of a soft, soothing wood oil,” says Michel Almairac. “Sandalwood, with its creamy texture, was an obvious choice in my mind because it subconsciously evokes the idea of a pure and tender white. To accentuate this facet as much as possible, I added a note of fig milk and a powdery musk accord.” 

Lifted by lively mandarin, sandalwood and fig milk express their velvety notes. A mist of musks cloaks powdery violet and delicately almondy tonka bean to create a cottony, enveloping trail.

Available now at Smith & Caugheys

Photography by Greta at Together Journal and illustration by Studio Bon