Shalimar EdT by Guerlain Paris

Photosource: Scent Studio (own copyright)

Shalimar by Guerlain is the first blind purchase I made based on reviews and the hype that the fragrance has in the community. Though there were many options, the eau de toilette, eau de perfume and remakes, I opted for the eau de toilette hoping for the best.

Mistake.

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Reviews had me believing that Shalimar is a delicious gourmand vanilla, but though vanilla is the main accord, it is far from being the best gourmand vanilla I have tried.

If you are a 90's kid like me, you will know what I mean when I say that Shalimar EdT smells like the perfume that your mom and her friends used to smell like back when Trésor by Lancome was the fragrance everyone wanted to have.

I remember once offending a woman wearing Trésor; I was bluntly honest back then as I am now, saying she smelled like 'an old lady' when she gave me her wrist to smell. I might have phrased differently today, but hopefully I am not offending anyone if I say that Shalimar EdT is an old lady perfume, it has the same generic line up of notes.

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The dry down on paper is a very nostalgic vanilla, yet still with an old lady twist.
On my skin, Shalimar is much more sharp at first spray, but after dry down, it becomes more powdery and with notes of iris. It reminds me of how a Bourjois blush smells like, yet another nostalgic memory from my childhood.

I understand the appeal that this fragrance has, but it just isn't up my alley.

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Shalimar is the first perfume I blind bought based on reviews and I say 'never again'! Shalimar EdT is a perfume that smells like... well, perfume. Hear me out. This is how a fragrance would smell like if it had to sum up how fragrances smell like to someone who's never smelled one before (a strictly theoretical idea). It is so generic, it has vanilla in it as so many popular fragrances have and nothing about it makes it a fragrance someone wouldn't say is bad.

Mind you, I am only reviewing the eau de toilette version of Shalimar, but I will be steering clear from the others too. I just prefer my vanilla fragrances with a little twist.