White Linen by Estee Lauder c1978

White Linen by Estee Lauder: launched in 1978. The fragrance was created by the perfumers at IFF.

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? White Linen is classified as an aldehydic floral fragrance for women. It begins with a aldehydic, fresh flowery top, followed by a radiant floral heart, resting on a sensual, spicy, woody base. 

Top notes sparkle with a fresh floral aldehyde composition recalling the crisp air of springs first scents - lavender, Bulgarian rose, Moroccan roses, jasmine, orange blossom, lily of the valley and violet blending with pimento berry, orris and the clean, sweet sharpness of orange. Background warms the vetiver, moss, incense and amber.

• Top notes: aldehydes, peach, citrus oils, flower calyx note, honeysuckle, orange
• Middle notes: lavender, hyacinth, orange blossom, Bulgarian rose, gardenia, lily of the valley, lilac, orchid, Grasse jasmine, Moroccan rose, Nossi-Be ylang ylang, iris, pimento berry, violet
• Base notes: Haitian vetiver, musk, incense, oakmoss, cedar, amber, Ceylon sandalwood, civet, honey, Thailand benzoin, tonka bean

The New Romantics:

 In 1978, Estee Lauder introduced three new fragrances in a new line she dubbed The New Romantics Collection. The spirit of the times was layered fashions so she decided to make fragrances that would work the same way and could be worn two or three at a time to interact with each other. These new fragrances: White Linen, Celadon and Pavilion could be worn singly, but create a whole different fragrance aura when worn together. If you purchased all three, and layer them, you could create 27 different fragrances.

Estee stated that "Fragrance is an extension of the women who wears it, a reaching out to those around her. My new three fragrances are meant to be enjoyed with new freedom, I created them to work together through their floral notes...The ingredients are natural so that one complements the other. A woman will never mix them quite the same way. She will enjoy each one separately, but she will have almost endless possibilities to express her own creations, too."

White Linen was described as a "crisp spring-like fragrance." Celadon was described as a "light mixture of a flower garden" It combines jonquils and ylang ylang with other fruity and green notes. Pavilion was an exotic "sensuous sophisticated formulation." It features tuberose, narcissus and jasmine with patchouli and spices with mossy tones.

Estee went on to say that "Fragrance is not separate from living. Women have more varied lifestyles than ever before. They are more independent and more confident. They are showing more creativity. Now they can be as individual with fragrance as they are with their wardrobes."

Estee offered tips for wearing the new layered fragrances:

• Wear them side by side so that each fragrance can bloom by itself. The notes of each will come together as you more and your nose will perceive the combination just as your ears perceive quadraphonic sound.

• Layer vertically - using White Linen on your neck and shoulders; Celadon on the arms and weightier Pavilion behind the knees. The deeper scents will rise to meet the lighter notes.

• -Apply different fragrances throughout the day as your mood and activities change. Wear an early morning airing of crisp White Linen; change to Celadon in the afternoon and Pavilion for evening.

• Wear Celadon on one wrist, Pavilion on the other and White Linen on your neck and shoulders. The fragrances will drift across each other as your move your arms.

• Experiment with quantities - one short spray of Celadon, two long sprays of Pavilion and three short sprays of White Linen. Or use one spray all over, and then touches of the other liquid fragrances at the pulse points.

She advised that when you wear one fragrance for a long time, your senses become accustomed to it and you are no longer aware of the scent. If you wear two or three fragrances your nose will continue to be attuned to the scent because it is constantly perceiving new notes. She also stated that those nearest to you will stay pleasantly aware too.

Estee saw the entire concept as a fragrance adventure, however, White Linen quickly took off by itself as the star of the line, and the company decided to go with the winner and eventually dropped the other two fragrances. In a 1985 article the two siblings were noted as "moribund" compared to White Linen, so by that time, they were seen as struggling.

Though in 1986, according to Bob Barnes, then the president of Estee Lauder USA, the company was worried because the public saw the White Linen name as meaning that it was strictly a summer fragrance, but the company tried to quickly dispel that notion but adding the tag line "White Linen a crisp, refreshing fragrance from Estee Lauder to live in all summer long, all year long."

Today, only one fragrance from the New Romantics collection has survived, White Linen remains victorious while Celadon and Pavilion were discontinued around 1994. Perhaps women did not like the idea of layering several perfumes and thought that one spray was good enough.

1980 retail prices for the New Romantics collection (notice the different prices for each perfume):

• 0.5 oz White Linen Parfum Spray $8.50
• 0.5 oz Pavilion Parfum Spray $8.00
• 0.5 oz Celadon Parfum Spray $7.50
• 1.75 oz White Linen  Parfum Spray $20.00
• 1.75 oz Pavilion Parfum Spray $17.50
• 1.75 oz Celadon Parfum Spray $15.00

By 1994 the prices had dropped slightly:

• 0.5 oz White Linen Parfum Spray $8.50
• 0.5 oz Pavilion Parfum Spray $7.50
• 0.5 oz Celadon Parfum Spray $6.50

Bottles:

White Linen was presented in a bottle designed by Pierre Dinand and this same style bottle was used over the years with very little modification. Occasionally, limited edition bottles were produced usually for the holiday seasons.

The standard White Linen flacons:

• 0.25 oz Perfume
• 0.50 oz Perfume
• 1 oz Perfume
• 0.25 oz Signature Parfum Spray

In 1983 a limited edition called the Frosted Shell was introduced for the Christmas season. It was a frosted glass shell shaped perfume bottle with a goldtone cap ending in a silken tassel. The bottle holds 0.25 oz of pure parfum and had originally retailed for $40 at the time.

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