The sultry scent of Shalimar

Posted by Robin on 4 November 2025 1 Comment

Rita Hayworth and Simone Signoret loved it. So did Andy Warhol. But the sultry scent of Shalimar, the Guerlain perfume celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, isn’t for everyone.

“It’s really a perfume that not all women can wear,” said Ann Caroline Prazan, the French perfumer’s director of art, culture & patrimony. “You must be strong; you must be free; you must be self-confident.” And you must love the fragrance’s bold notes that include patchouli and incense as well as less emphatic ones, like bergamot and rose.

— Read more in The Scent That Launched a Thousand Seductions at The New York Times.

The daily lemming

Posted by Robin on 28 October 2025 5 Comments

I wasn’t interested in last year’s Guerlain Imagine, and this year’s isn’t doing it for me either…maybe you want one? (I’m holding out for 2022’s black bee.) French sculptor Géraldine Gonzalez has decorated the bee bottle with a metallic gold moon, plus a star done up in glass beads (see detail below the jump). 3,665 were made; 125 ml + 30 ml + funnel, €790. They will reportedly be in the US next month, around $880.

If you want more, there’s a one liter version on a light-up mirror base; 64 were made, reportedly €20,000 (shown with the artist, below the jump)…

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The daily lemming

Posted by Robin on 14 October 2025 4 Comments

Guerlain's Shalimar L'Essence, in a 1.65L bottle decorated by Franco-Brazilian artist Janaïna Milheiro and inspired by Frida Kahlo. "Adorned with flowers and feathers, the bottle vibrates with a flamboyant energy, echoing Frida Kahlo’s ‘floral portraits’. It’s an ode to the luxuriant landscapes and captivating soul of the Casa Azul, from which the Mexican artist drew an essential part of her creativity. With infinite meticulousness, Janaïna Milheiro arranges feathers and flowers one by one, infusing the timeless silhouette of Shalimar with an abundance of color. Each bottle is then sublimated by a traditional barbichage, a nod to the ancestral skills of the Guerlain workshops. A masterful fusion of substance and emotion." 66 were made, price unknown (probably if you have to ask...)