Crepe de Chine

Last night, as I sleepily reached to turn off the overhead bedlamp, my eye caught the tender, wrinkly folds of skin that sag (a little) from my underarm. Yikes.....

Immediately there sprang into my mind the words, 'Crepe de Chine'. It's not that I haven't noticed this disgusting phenomenon before, but it's the first time I had looked upon it with some favour and had the wit to associate it with a dearly loved fabric, and a precious perfume.



In the ancient days, when Husband wired his arrival from Overseas in New York Harbour, and we set a wedding day for twelve days hence, I was full of romantic yearnings for lovely, extravagant lingerie to grace my trousseau. My Mother's commonsense prevailed (you will be living on a farm) and my lingerie was plain jane and durable.

However, shortly after our marriage I guiltily bought myself an elegant black dress (for $25.00 - extravagant on our budget in those days) to please Husband and myself.

And I wore Crepe de Chine Eau de Toilette by Millot - always. Until some years later it was discontinued, to my great chagrin.

This quick bedtime glimpse of the vulnerable underarm, with its soft wrinkles, awakened nostalgic memories of the days when the underarm was firm and shapely. (I am not given to often examining this mostly hidden part of my anatomy.....)

And I thought how nice it would be if I could find some Crepe de Chine Eau de Toilette to waft through the last years on its lovely fragrance.

An online search took me to the website of Irma Shorell, who has the North American license for producing this Long Lost perfume, but alas, when I placed it reverently in the cart and tried to go through the check-out I could find no place to put my Canadian address.

To find the information about its qualities and the products that blend together so classically was only tantalizing. The base of the perfume is made up of Benzoin, Labdanum, Musk, Oakmoss, Patchouli and vetiver. The middle scents are Carnation, Jasmin, Lilac, Rose, and Ylang,Ylang. The top is a light Fruit Notes, Lemon, Neroli and Orange.

There are other perfumes that are forty percent similar, but none with the delightful middle that combines the fragrance of Carnation, Jasmin, Lilac, Rose and Ylang Ylang - makes me just want to swoon at the thought of being able to wear this lilting scent again - and feel young and surrounded by memories of those early years..

I have not given up the search. And perhaps I should include in my searching exercises to banish my own personal crepe de chine.......