Few fragrances are as closely tied to the house that made them as L’Interdit is to Givenchy. It was the maison’s first perfume, created in 1957 by Hubert de Givenchy for his close friend and muse Audrey Hepburn, and it’s a scent built around crossing the line. L’Interdit Elixir, the newest addition to their beauty line, is its most intense expression to date.
Givenchy calls Elixir “a true talisman of power”, an olfactory adornment meant to strengthen the confidence of whoever wears it, and the campaign leans on couture to make the case. Rooney Mara, the face of L’Interdit since 2018, wears a richly jewelled top custom-designed by the Givenchy ateliers under creative director Sarah Burton. The house describes it as a sculptural piece that radiates inner strength, and it is meant to show both sides of the L’Interdit woman: confident and deeply sensual, with couture and fragrance pulling in the same direction.
Dominique Ropion and Anne Flipo, who created the 2018 L’Interdit Eau de Parfum, return alongside Meabh McCurtin to reinterpret the signature, keeping its white floral heart and adding a gourmand twist. It opens on black cherry – juicy, vivid and sharpened with bitter almond essence – before moving into jasmine, orange blossom and tuberose, set against pure oakwood extract for depth.The outcome is a concentrated fragrance in which, in the house’s words, “the richness of the raw materials fully expresses itself through the trail”.
The bottle takes its cue from the ruby, a stone associated with strength and protection, and runs from incandescent red into black to recall the gemstone’s rarest shades – similar to the broken chandelier jewellery top in its talismanic quality. The case is dressed in vibrant red with a subtle silver touch, and as ever is steeped in power.
Photography courtesy of Givenchy Beauty. L’Interdit Elixir is available in 35ml, 50ml and 80ml, online now.
