It's finally mine!!! Thanks, mom!
Notes:
Top notes: Mandarin orange, Bergamot, Lily of the Valley
Middle Notes: Jasmine, Carnation, Myrrh
Base Notes: Vanilla, Patchouli, Opoponaux, Amber
Opium is an Oriental spicy that was born from Yves San Laurent's idea to create a fragrance inspired by Imperial China.
First marketed in 1977, the controversially named
Opium caused quite a stir, bringing accusations that Yves Saint Laurent was condoning drug use. In the United States, it provoked outrage among Chinese Americans who demanded a change of the perfume's name as well as a public apology from Saint Laurent for "his insensitivity to Chinese history and Chinese American concerns" and for representing "a menace that destroyed many lives in China."
However, the controversy only ended up fueling the perfume's publicity, and
Opium soon became a best-selling scent. For its launch party in 1977, the brand capitalized on the perfume's Oriental theme, renting the
Peking from the South Street Seaport Museum in New York's East Harbor. Draped in banners of gold, red, and purple, and decorated with white orchids, the ship was displayed with a thousand-pound bronze statue of Buddha with writer Truman Capote seated at its helm.
In 2003,
Opium was among the perfumes tested in a study exploring the relationship of scent to memory.
