First became the first in many ways. It was the first fragrance for Van Cleef & Arpels, and Van Cleef & Arpels was the first jewelry brand to launch its own fragrance. (Emeraude doesn't count, as Coty had nothing to do with jewelry.) In 1976, this brand from Parisian Place Vendôme turned 70 years old, so it was a jubilee project.

The creation of the fragrance was carried out by Jean-Claude Ellena, then a young and talented perfumer of Givaudan-Roure. His application was chosen out of four different perfumers' proposals, and First was one of his first fragrance creations.

As Jean-Claude Ellena later explained, his proposal was a classic aldehydic floral fragrance built around an accord of jasmine, rose, and lily-of-the-valley. To avoid parallels with the floral-aldehydic Chanel No. 5 and Arpege Lanvin, he used several materials that were relatively new at the time. Thus, blackcurrant buds and narcissus absolutes appeared in the fragrance, as well as a rather large dose of Hedione, which supported the jasmine in the heart and enhanced the transparent brilliance and radiance of the fragrance.

Although First has a lot of different floral notes, the main flower in the bouquet is jasmine. Raised in Grasse, Ellena worked at the factory that produced Grasse jasmine absolute, which influenced his entire career in perfumery. Already in his youth, he could distinguish Grasse jasmine absolute from Tunisian, Indian, or Egyptian jasmine absolutes by smell, and the hint of blackcurrant in Grasse absolute forced the perfumer to intensify it in the fragrance (he used the same trick further, as well).

The sweet radiance of jasmine overshadows all other flowers. Jasmine graciously allows other notes to add additional shades to the overall bouquet — the softness and warmth of a rose, the freshness of spring lily-of-the-valley and hyacinth, the warm animal touch of narcissus, the powdery shade of orris and the soft spice of carnation. But it takes the lead in this fragrant masterpiece.