Best perfumes 2011

The probability of launching good new perfumes is opposite the rate of perfumes produced. And beware, I am an optimist, always hoping for new or old perfumes which will enchant me. But it seems the keenness of creating new scents is bigger than the ambition to create good ones, so in the end we all get what we ask for, new no matter if bad. So I watch with patience what's going on just hoping that by some accident I will get something good. Take 2010. Only two perfumes to remember and these ones are exclusives: Boxeusse of Serge Lutens and Mitzah of Dior. Go to Paris to get them.

2011, in the middle of crisis and big changes, confusion and despair, brought some wonderful surprises. And these are mainstreams. I was so shocked that I tried and tried them not believing my luck.

Bottega Venetta, Bottega Venetta . A beautiful bag dream. Since Weil in twenties, bringing perfumes to be worn with their expensive furs, the perfume world did not encounter such an experience. They didn't want only to cash in on the name but enhance the beauty. Soft perfumed leather, elegant and unique.

Tom Ford, Violet Blonde. I still can't figure out why this reminds me so much of last years Pradas. But while all Pradas end up by being too subtle and whispering, Violet Blonde is a full bodied creature, big character, powdery floral with a twist and days after spraying it on the scarf you will get some luxurious feeling.

Cartier, Baiser Vole. To me the Cartier perfumes are a very special story, something I can't really figure out. Most of them are quite anti-mainstream. Bit dirty, weird. Cartier de Lune from the last year is the only one I found boring and uninspiring. The new Baiser Vole comes back to the Cartier style, it's weird and special. I get some fish dirty feeling at the beginning to end up with a most wonderful combination of strong stylised flowers on a base of amber and musk.

Guerlain, Shalimar Parfum Initial. It reminds us why Jacques Guerlain perfumes are timeless. It's not about trying hard to be unique and special. It's about smelling good and smelling of perfume, a combination which is not the sum of the parts but something else. Shalimar Parfum Initial is made to surprise anytime when you wear it. Chic and noble.

There are also some good intentions in Prada Candy or Oscar Esprit d'Oscar. Or some new beauties in the niche line, with Serge Lutens De Profundis, Atelier Cologne Vanille Insensee, Annick Goutal Mon Parfum Cheri or Tauer Zeta but my personal choice for a niche masterpiece of 2011 is

Parfums MDCI, La Belle Helene. If a sweet eatable thing could be made in a sexy luxurious perfume, that would be. I appreciated Traversee du Bosphor, but La Belle Helene transcends the story of fruits and flowers and brings a scent composition made in heaven. Wearing it made me feel as a woman who could live in any given time in history and seduce with her perfume. A perfume which lets transpire the feeling of real skin you want to touch.

 And now I can't wait to be mean and have a list of the worst supposed good perfumes of 2011.

Shalimar Parfum Initial - perfume review

Oh, Shalimar.
The story goes that Thierry Wasser has a niece and the niece asked him to make something with Shalimar that it appeals to young generation. Mind you, that's the NIECE of THIERRY WASSER: That means she just has to reach her hand she will get whatever she wants from Guerlain. And there are some new girly ones, made for market, and there are the exclusives ones. But, no, she is a naughty niece and she wants Shalimar for her taste. That could sound ridiculous and this is what many made of it.

For my side I rather see uncle Thierry talking with his niece for the thousand time about the beauty of Shalimar. Yes, there are so many other Guerlains so many perfumes in the world but there is this only one, the PERFUME, and how she could understand this. It's the huge luck and at the same time the curse of Thierry Wasser to be the in-house perfumer at Guerlain. He is expected everyday to live up to the Guerlain heritage and LVHM expects him to sell well. And he adores Shalimar and has talks about its beauty with his niece. May be she loves Shalimar, too, but she tells him that her friends just don't get it and what could be done with it. Natalia Vodianova is not always enough to sell the perfume.

I think it is a beautiful story, a story of how art enters the lives of all who get around, in-house perfumers and nieces and what they made out of it. There is me and many other thousand who love Shalimar and there is a huge majority who just doesn't get it. Poor them. Thierry Wasser is really really sad about it. So he creates Shalimar Parfum Initial.

First, what is with this name? Let me know when you find out because my only idea, from what I read from others, would be a parallel with Chanel Eau Premiere. Silly, isn't it? The initial was almost 90 years ago. Never mind, I don't care about names.

I tried Shalimar Parfum Initial quite late, few months after appearing. I am from that crowd 'don't mess with my Shalimar'. Despite reading some perplexed good reviews I couldn't go past my prejudices and, of course, the pink juice (hey, I just saw yesterday a dead gorgeous pink dress from the last Chanel show in India, how I want that). When finally I tried it, with my mind full of good reviews but also horrified reviewers, I was ready for everything. My nose is a tyrant who stopped me from liking thousands of perfumes I would have put all my money on. My nose brought me to the situation that I didn't write anything on my blog for long because I assumed becoming a weirdo, I just can't wear anything anymore except two perfumes (almost 100 years old) and one of them in combination with a bit of a third one. While I try and try, buy big quantities of samples of everything. I like many of them but can't wear them. So on with my nose in the blotter it was pleasant and I dared to put it on my wrist. And let it there. And liked it again after a while. Now I am at the end of almost ten days of trying it on my skin and fabrics. I fought for and against all this time. It's morning and I didn't make it yet to the shop to put it on again so I went on and smelled it on the pullover from yesterday.

That's a scent that you want to smell of, a beautiful woman who just left her clothes down to go for a bath (see Natalia Vodianova, but why she stays like that, it's kind of unnatural and rather calls for care and warm clothes). Powdery and fruity in a subtle plastic way at the beginning, reminiscent of some girly perfumes but with a Shalimar background. All the way it can bring other perfumes into mind, may be a bit of Angel, may be a bit of Coco Mademoiselle or Dior Homme, but Shalimar is always there in the background. I hate patchouli and the mention of it made me suspicious from the beginning but here is in a luminous way, which is strange combined with tonka. And there is still the smokiness of Shalimar, a bit of incense and mostly I perfectly like the musk which is left at the end together with the vanilla.

I'm decidedly not good at describing notes and I don't care too much about it, actually. For me it's important the overall feeling, who is this girl who wears Parfum Initial (oh, no, it's not Natalia Vodianova, sorry). She is young, gothic, she will wear Parfum Initial to go to library and all day long. But at the party she will wear Bvlgary Black. She is intelligent but just a bit weird as she pleases, her gothic clothes are just washed and smell of clean. And she likes this Shalimar Parfum Initial which leaves a sexy trail and the librarian comes closer to her. Yes, how peredepierre noticed, there is a little dirty hint in it and she likes that.

I didn't read anywhere how the niece of Thierry Wasser felt in the end about Parfum Initial, I would be curious to find out. But I would be really really happy if the girls will buy this, no matter if based on the pink colour of juice and sexy add. The world will smell better. On the other hand, I like it so much that I might wear it a lot these months and I don't want to be just one of the girls there (mostly, I'm not a girl anymore).

For my part, Thierry Wasser did for mass market what they didn't manage to do for their exclusive Guerlain part. In a way is a step further Angelique Noire and Tonka Imperiale. I like both very much but I'm not in love with them. While Shalimar Parfum Initial is a strange cat I can't resist.

Reviews of Shalimar Parfum Initial:

boisdejasmin 

parfum shrine

1000fragrances

nowsmellthis

perfumeposse

I also always like to check the reviews of a perfume on makeupalley.com, fragrantica.com and basenotes.com.    

Shalimar Guerlain. No perfume review

Disturbing things about Shalimar:

• I shall start with: there was already so much said about Shalimar that is little left. I won't. Because it was not said so much about Shalimar. Google it and you will see. Of course, many comments on makeupalley.com, (where you find over 340 reviews and it is given 3.8 points. Vera Wang Princess has also 3.8 points but over 530 reviews). What you find is thousands of referrals like 'it reminds me of Shalimar'. It is not so much we know about Shalimar: the story of Garden of Shalimar (Temple of Love) in Lahore. The story of Vanillin that Jacques Guerlain dropped in Jicky. Most interesting the fact that it was launched at the Decorative Arts Exhibition as an antidote against The Great Depression. Here we could start a talk about the history and what Shalimar meant in its times and how it continued. But you don't find anything about it.
• I learnt little about how people received Shalimar, what was the impact on the moment and in the following years. Shalimar is a shock now. There must have been an outrage then. Or not? Roja Dove says something about not lady like Shalimar. But as much as I know about ladies at those times there were many who wanted exactly to break with the limits.
• It was always a little bell in my head saying 'You don't review Shalimar, darling'. As you don't give your phone number to the charming guy after the first meeting. You just don't, it's not chic and not proper. So almost nobody does it. Even Luca Turin does it in so general terms that you won't get any picture from it.
• I keep thinking for long that I should wear some fantastic new scent, some sophisticated intriguing one, that my children will say one day that their mother was wearing that x perfume that almost nobody did at that time because was so daring. I want so much to find that perfume. How will it sound my kids say their mother wore Shalimar? That is what the grandmother and the grand-grandmother used. Of course, it's ok to admire Shalimar but wear it. Luca Turin says should be worn between comas and with humour. Lost are days when Shalimar was for femme fatale. Hey, may be 20 years ago. Today, Shalimar is such a weirdo, much weird then all experimental niche perfumes. It smells so out of place, smells like nothings else. You go and try it. Try first some of new perfumes and then go to Shalimar. What the hell is that?

makeupalley.com comments: (1 point)
´It smells ridiculous, old, obnoxious, offensive, foul... 
(4 points go to Jessica Simpson Fancy)
'for the first couple hours I smelt like I had rubbed petrol on myself. Its a pungent smelling scent, like men's cologne but even worse, like leather and petrol mixed. '
(5 points go to Hugo Boss Baldesarini Ambre)
'I too have tried to like it but it really is unsophisticated and cigar like. I was stupid to give into the sexy commercials and hype. Oh well you'd think I'd have learned by now. There's so many other scents to try that are new and beautiful.'
(5 points for both Curious and Midnight Fantasies of Britney Spears)
' the most OVERPOWERING, ATROCIOUS, and OBNOXIOUS scent that you can ever imagine.'
(5 points go to J.Lo. Miami Glow)

• Shalimar = Vanilla (they say Jacques Guerlain thought vanilla is a powerful aphrodisiac) What vanilla? I don't know any vanilla like that. And because it's vanilla that means sweet. May be their vanilla, the vanilla that you find in thousands perfumes, that juicy syrupy stuff. (actually somebody on a forum asks: where is vanilla?) Vanilla in Shalimar is not sweet, it's dark and smoky. They say Jacques Guerlain used an impure vanillin. In the end, very late you have some powdery feeling, but it is not necessary the vanilla, may be some musk and some tonka with vanilla. I don't buy the story with vanilla and sweet. You go and smell it.
• Nobody smells Shalimar anymore. Nobody smells it for the first time and wonder what it is about. Like nobody really watches Eiffel Tower. You look at Eiffel Tower and you see the image that you saw in so many pictures and there is no chance you really see it. You smell Shalimar and you smell the info in your head, vanilla, oriental, brunettes etc. And taking that, did they really hope that Natalia Vodianova face will appeal to young people and they will start buying it instead of last Paris Hilton? What is the relationship between her face and Shalimar?
• Everybody talks rather about Shalimar Light\Eau de Shalimar. Officialy it is called a modernized and weaker version of Shalimar. Shalimar Light should be called Shalimar Heavy. Lovely, great, but it is full of all prejudices of contemporary about Shalimar, lots of juicy lemon, lots of sweet vanilla. Put them side by side, Shalimar will be salty and heavy compared to Shalimar Light (let's say for now Eau de Shalimar is undecided but still something else). They are just different stories. Shalimar is not heavy, never was, it is dark and thick but odd enough has astringent sides which keep the darkness fresh.
• Who buys Shalimar? It is a big seller, for sure. I can see men going to buy them for their wives or secret lovers (yes, for some reasons most of the men love it), young men buying it for their big love because their mother smelled like that, old ladies buying their 50th bottle of Shalimar (though daily they secretly use Angel), or young strange girls (who wear also Bvlgary Black) and go back to the library. Who else?

There is mountain of snow outside and it's very very cold. Not a drop left of Shalimar (I keep my vintages for trying sake). Busy days, fighting with slow traffic, advent days, and all I can take as a perfume is Shalimar. Panic, I need Shalimar. In the shop the cute girl tries to get me in everything else, including Idylle, she loves it. She wants to spritz my wrist, I step back in the last second. Buy Shalimar. She offers me some samples, I want Bas de Soie, she moves her nose with disgust. Pour Shalimar over my wrists and scarf. Outside big Christmas Fair. At –10 Celsius degree Shalimar smells of smoky leather. I know Shalimar in and out but still strikes me as the strangest perfume ever. And I know it, nobody smells like me.

Guerlain will lose a shop. And I love Guet Apens\Attrape Coeur

Guerlain loves me, more exactly Jacques Guerlain. So it was a enormous luck to be able to try quite easy the Guerlain exclusives. In Dusseldorf there is a Guerlain shop (now I know the story of this exclusive Guerlain perfumerie in Dusseldorf, the owner is the sister of former Guerlain manager in Germany)


The big event was last winter, right before Christmas. I was in heaven. They have there all old Jaques Guerlain and there I smelled first time Attrape Coeur. The lady in the shop tried to get me into the new series of Elixirs and Art et Matiere like Angelique Noire, she insisted with it. All I wanted, except the extrait of Jacques Guerlains (Mitsoko, L'Heuere Bleue and Shalimar) was Attrape Coeur (and I am so sad I didn't try Vega, too, so sad). For some reasons I never got into Jean Paul Guerlain fragrances (now that he is in disgrace I can say this little dirty secret of mine). Mathilde Laurent feels for me much closer to Jacques, I love Pampelune and Shalimar Eau Legere. So I had Attrape Coeur on my hand for half a day in a frozen Dusseldorf, it smelled of honey and spices and I felt like a lady. Which it is not easy in Dusseldorf, two thirds of the women there wear fur coats and come out of luxury cars. the day was over soon and didn't purchase my bottle of Attrape Coeur but I knew I shall go back one day soon.

Two days ago I was on my way to buy fruits, didn't have any in the house. On the way I stopped at my friend around the corner, he has this little perfumery shop, carrying niche and special perfumes. I need to renew my L'Heure Bleue stocks, I finished my Eau de Toilette which I use for my daily wear, the Eau de Parfum is for winter and evenings out and the extrait de parfum when I want to go high. I looked a bit around in the shop, you never know what you can discover in this shop (last time I bought all the last bottles of Yohji Yamamoto men). So I always have to look attentively. I tried some Etro, some Caron, some Annick Goutal, the Lalique Pour Femme. I didn't see any L'Heure Bleue anymore (tried Nahema again, which I don't own) so I asked when it will come. He said it won't come anymore, he is done with Guerlain, they ask for a minimum purchase which means a lot of money and includes other stuff then perfumery which are not so well sold. So he doesn't want anymore. Which is so sad, he always offered the special Guerlains, not one of the new ones (Idylle or Insolence etc) and some of Aqua Allegoria line.

We mourned together the new LVHM policy, they don't care about perfumes anymore, it's only market and money etc. That is really sad, Guerlain will lose a really good point of selling. But my very nice old friend looked a bit around may be he finds for me a lost bottle of L'Heure Bleue, he checked behind the counter and he took one of this golden Guerlain bottle and put it back, it was not L'HB. Then in some drawers and it was so nice to find a vintage Vol de Nuit. He just gave it to me. Then again at the counter he took the golden bottle which was hidden behind some add poster. I took it in my hands, too, to check what it is. And there, in my hands I was having a 93 ml full bottle of………………..Guet Apens. I yelled, couldn’t help it. If an asteroid has fallen in my garden I wouldn't have been more astonished. For the last three weeks I was looking for Attrape Coeur around, thinking if I shouldn't call in Dusseldorf and order a bottle. A day before I found a Vol de Nuit Evasion on ebay Austria and thought of buying it (it is supposedly the Eau de Toilette from Attrape Coeur). I knew I could have Attrape Coeur at some point but Guet Apens was something as untouchable as moon for the rest of my life. And now it was there in my hands.

Needless to say, I have it. My friend would have given it to me for nothing. I told him that's gold and has fantastic prices on ebay. He asked me to tell him how much I offer for it and that's it. It was so hard, I blushed first time after long. I knew I had a miracle in my hands and I wanted him to be as happy as I was. I told him I would pay as much as he asks for, he insisted I give him a price. I thought he, as a nice guy, won't sell it for much more he sells Shalimar or Chamade. After an hour of conversation I offered him 150 euro. He said is too much and he made it 100 euro. And it's mine.

I still can't believe my luck. I'm not a lucky person, never won any draw prize, even if it was me and another person. If it was me and me I would lose for some technical reasons. So I don't understand how that comes. At few hundreds away from my house existed for ten years a Guet Apens bottle. And even more, it waited for me. My old friend told me he put it aside for an old rich lady who used to love Guerlain. But the old lady didn't appear for an year. He didn't know what happened to her. I am so grateful to my old friend and that old special lady. I hope she is well, too.