Review - Shalimar (Guerlain)

Originally posted at Dreamwidth on January 19, 2010

First introduced in 1925 by Jaques Guerlain, Shalimar means Temple of Love in Sanskrit. Shalimar is an Oriental fragrance with top notes of lemon and bergamot; middle notes of jasmine and May rose; and base notes of iris, incense, opoponax, tonka bean and vanilla

In the 1920s it was said that there were three things a lady did not do - smoke, tango and wear Shalimar. That in itself was enough to make me want to wear it.


First hit is all citrus and bergamot (the thing that makes Earl Grey so gorgeous). Very soft and powdery. Its a very warm, sensual scent, that absolutly exudes class.

After an hour though, it seemed to have disappered? WTF? This is the Eau de Parfum? COME BACK! So I reapplied. Yum... citrus, bergamot, powder.... (Faun said "it smells like baby powder! And she has a point, it is very powdery indeed.)

After a couple of hours this is all about the vanilla and tonka bean, the powder has disappeared and it sits very close to the skin. It's utterly delicious and beautifully warm.

Bad news? After 4 hours it had almost completely disappeared again. Maybe my skin is just eating this up because it's so scrumptious. Maybe I need to be a *bit* less frugal with it, or maybe an atomiser rather than a little dab from the sampler would give a better spread. I'm not sure. But this is a fantastic scent, and once again, like the Chanel no 5, I understand it's enduring appeal.Best place to get a tester is from The Perfumed Court.