Grace Elizabeth Arnone Hummel
Independent Perfume Historian | Researcher | Writer | Antique Dealer & Collector
Welcome to My Shulton Perfume Archive
Welcome, and thank you for visiting my Shulton perfume website!
My name is Grace Elizabeth Arnone Hummel, although many in the fragrance community know me as Cleopatra, the founder of Cleopatra's Boudoir. I am an independent perfume historian, researcher, writer, antique dealer, and collector with more than 25 years of experience studying antique and vintage perfumes, historic fragrance houses, decorative bottles, cosmetics, and the history of the beauty industry.
Since establishing Cleopatra's Boudoir in 1999, I have devoted myself to uncovering and preserving the often-forgotten history of perfumery. What began as a fascination with antique scent bottles has developed into an extensive historical archive documenting thousands of fragrances, manufacturers, advertisements, and surviving artifacts.
I created this website to explore the fragrance heritage of Shulton, an influential American manufacturer whose perfumes and grooming products became familiar fixtures in households across generations. While the company is best remembered for its iconic Old Spice line, I am equally interested in its lesser-known fragrances, including Friendship's Garden, and the earlier perfume creations associated with Leigh Perfumers, which became part of Shulton in the 1940s.
As an antique dealer and collector, I especially appreciate Shulton's distinctive perfume bottles, decorative packaging, advertising campaigns, and vintage toiletries. I am particularly interested in tracing how its products reflected changing American tastes, social customs, and attitudes toward personal fragrance.
Rather than repeating the company's history, which I have documented separately, this page introduces the person behind the research.
My Research and What I Do
I often describe myself as a perfume historian and detective, because much of my work involves piecing together forgotten histories from scattered evidence.
I examine original newspaper and magazine advertisements, department-store catalogs, perfume trade journals, patents, trademarks, business directories, and surviving bottles and packaging. These primary sources help me establish fragrance introduction dates, identify original presentations, document historical scent descriptions, and distinguish early products from later versions.
My research extends beyond perfumes to include discontinued cosmetics, fragrant soaps, aftershaves, bath powders, deodorants, and other grooming preparations. I am especially interested in products that were once widely advertised but have since disappeared from public memory.
I also enjoy helping collectors identify and date vintage bottles, recognize packaging variations, and rediscover fragrances associated with cherished memories. My Shulton research includes investigating the company's related businesses and tracing the connections between manufacturers, distributors, and individual fragrance lines.
Another aspect of my work involves restoring, enhancing, and colorizing historical perfume advertisements and photographs, helping modern readers appreciate their original artistry. Where historical colors cannot be verified, these restorations are artistic interpretations.
My goal is to make reliable historical perfume information freely accessible, particularly when it concerns forgotten fragrances and beauty products that are difficult to research elsewhere.
My Work in the Fragrance Community
Over the years, my research has been referenced and appreciated by perfume collectors, writers, journalists, and historians.
I have contributed writing to Fragrantica and The Perfume Magazine, previously served on Sniffapalooza's Fragrance Advisory Board, participated in Allure magazine's Beauty Panel, and have been associated with the International Perfume Bottle Association (IPBA).
I have also authored more than 200 educational eBay guides devoted to antique and vintage perfumes and collecting.
My research has been cited or acknowledged in publications including Lizzie Ostrom's Perfume: A Century of Scents, Gregory N. Daugherty's The Reception of Cleopatra in the Age of Mass Media, and Mary May Robertson's The Marriage between Perfume and the Lyric Stage.
Cleopatra's Boudoir has been described as a "Temple to Ancient Perfumes" by Beauty Bible and a "gold mine about dating vintage perfumery" by Scent Grail. Amelia of The Vintage Perfume Vault has also generously recognized my contributions to the free exchange of historical perfume information online.
These acknowledgments are especially meaningful to me because my work has always been motivated by curiosity, a love of history, and the desire to share what I discover.
Preserving Our Perfume Heritage
Perfume is a fragile part of our cultural heritage. Fragrances evaporate, formulas change, bottles are discarded, and once-popular creations disappear from memory.
Yet an original advertisement, surviving perfume bottle, or forgotten catalog can reveal valuable details about the fashions, marketing practices, and social customs of its time.
Through this website, I hope to preserve the stories behind Shulton's perfumes and grooming products while documenting their original presentations, advertising, and historical significance.
My research is ongoing, and I welcome historical photographs, advertisements, catalogs, and information from fellow collectors.
Whether you are researching a discontinued fragrance, identifying an inherited Old Spice bottle, or rediscovering a familiar scent from decades past, I hope you find something here that inspires your curiosity.
Thank You for Visiting
I am sincerely grateful to the readers, collectors, and fellow fragrance enthusiasts who have supported my work throughout the years. Your questions, discoveries, and encouragement continue to inspire my research.
My greatest hope is that these archives will preserve the history and artistry of perfumery for today's enthusiasts and future generations of collectors and historians.
Thank you for visiting, and happy collecting!
Grace Elizabeth Arnone Hummel
Cleopatra
Founder of Cleopatra's Boudoir
Independent Perfume Historian, Researcher & Writer
Southern New Jersey, USA
Contact: reinedeparfum@gmail.com
Preserving the past, one perfume at a time.
This website is an independent historical and educational resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially associated with Shulton, Shulton Inc., Old Spice, their current or former owners, trademark holders, or any affiliated companies. All trademarks and brand names remain the property of their respective owners.
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