La Petite Robe Noire Lingerie Mist c2013

La Petite Robe Noire Eau de Lingerie was launched in 2013 as an exclusive and playful extension of Guerlain’s beloved La Petite Robe Noire collection. Created by in-house perfumer Thierry Wasser, this limited-edition mist was designed specifically to perfume delicate fabrics—lingerie, silks, and dresses—bringing an intimate touch of luxury into a woman’s wardrobe. It was not merely a fragrance to be worn on the skin but a scented veil to accompany a woman’s most cherished garments, making the act of dressing a ritual of elegance and sensuality.

The composition itself is rooted in the signature La Petite Robe Noire fragrance, translated into a lighter, more ethereal interpretation suited for fabric. It opens with the juicy tartness of black cherry, whose natural aroma compounds like benzaldehyde and anthocyanins lend a fruity, slightly almond-like sweetness. This brightness is uplifted by a dash of bergamot, the prized citrus from Calabria, Italy, known for its refined balance of zesty freshness and floral sweetness thanks to naturally occurring linalyl acetate and limonene. At the heart rests the timeless rose, a cornerstone of Guerlain’s perfumery, releasing soft, velvety petals with notes of geraniol and citronellol that bloom against the air with grace and refinement. Together, these elements create a fragrance that is vibrant yet delicate, one designed to enhance rather than overwhelm fabric.

The packaging reflects the whimsical spirit of the La Petite Robe Noire line. The 100ml spray bottle is adorned with a charming illustration by Kuntzel + Deygas, the celebrated artist duo who also shaped the fragrance’s iconic advertising campaign. Their artwork captures the chic silhouette of the little black dress, evoking effortless Parisian style. Priced at 59 euros, it was positioned as an accessible yet sophisticated indulgence—an everyday luxury that elevated the simple act of wearing clothes into a perfumed gesture of allure.

More than a mist, La Petite Robe Noire Eau de Lingerie embodied Guerlain’s knack for weaving heritage, artistry, and modern femininity into objects of desire. It invited women to scent not only themselves but also their most intimate apparel, enveloping their daily rituals in a delicate aura of Parisian glamour.

Guerlain's Scented Flannel For Dali In Venice

In 1961, the avant-garde collided with the baroque when Salvador Dalí and Maurice Béjart collaborated on Gala, a ballet staged at La Fenice in Venice, later moving to Brussels’ Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie and Paris in 1962. Dalí envisioned it as a “théâtre total”—a work of art engaging every sense, from sight and sound to touch and smell. At the heart of this audacious experiment was perfume, employed not as a background flourish but as a central scenographic element. For this, Dalí turned to Maison Guerlain, who designed a bespoke perfume named Nébuleuse, its title alluding to Gala, Dalí’s wife and muse.

The staging itself was surreal. Gigantic barrels filled with Guerlain’s specially prepared liquid occupied the stage, releasing strange geometric soap bubbles infused with scent. These bubbles became a visible manifestation of the intangible—perfume made material, floating and dissolving into the audience’s space. Men in wheelchairs pulled the perfume through tall, crutch-like pulleys, blending theatrical absurdity with a sense of ritualistic ceremony. Guerlain’s fragrance was used not only for beauty but also for practical effect, masking the odor of a deliberately placed rotting carcass, one of Dalí’s provocative stage elements meant to jolt the senses into discomfort and contemplation.

This blending of olfaction with performance was unprecedented. It elevated perfume from mere adornment to an active participant in the narrative, embodying femininity and ephemerality as part of the ballet’s surrealist vocabulary. Guerlain, recognizing the publicity potential, embraced this unusual collaboration. Their luxurious product—ordinarily associated with refinement and intimacy—was transformed into an atmospheric device filling an entire theatre.

The experiment did not stop at the stage. Decca Records, which produced the recording of the performance, sought to extend the multisensory experience into the home. Though initially considering an olfactory tie-in that echoed the theatrical carcass, they wisely chose Guerlain’s more sophisticated contribution. With Guerlain’s cooperation, Decca included a scented flannel sachet infused with Vol de Nuit in the album packaging. The accompanying instructions—“In this envelope you will find a flannel to scent your lingerie”—linked the theatrical spectacle to private, intimate ritual. It was at once marketing, art, and sensorial immersion, reinforcing Guerlain’s identity as both innovator and guardian of luxury.

Shalimar Annees Folles 80th Anniversary Edition 2005

In 2005, Guerlain commemorated the 80th anniversary of Shalimar with the Années Folles "Crazy Years" Limited Edition Bottle, a celebration of both the perfume’s enduring legacy and the glamour of the Roaring Twenties. This special edition paid homage to the Art Deco era, reflecting the exuberance, elegance, and bold design that characterized the 1920s, the period when Jacques Guerlain first unveiled Shalimar in 1925. While the fragrance inside remained the iconic eau de parfum—unchanged and as timeless as ever—the presentation was reimagined to evoke the spirit of a century past.

The collector’s bottle is crafted from glass with a transparent gold finish, creating a luminous, sunlit glow that captures the eye and recalls the opulent visual language of Art Deco architecture and decorative arts. A gilded foil label further enhances the sense of luxury, delicately contrasting with the gold-toned glass to create a refined and elegant silhouette. This design evokes the shimmering sophistication of 1920s soirées, flapper fashion, and the era’s love of geometric, stylized motifs.

Offered as a 2.5 oz Eau de Parfum Spray, the Années Folles edition allowed collectors and admirers of Guerlain to hold a piece of perfumery history in their hands—a bottle that speaks not only of Shalimar’s timeless scent, but also of the exuberant, audacious era in which the fragrance first captivated the world. Through this edition, Guerlain linked the perfume’s olfactory legacy with visual storytelling, celebrating 80 years of elegance, artistry, and cultural impact.

Shalimar - Black Mystery Bottle 2007

In 2007, Guerlain unveiled Shalimar “Black Mystery”, a collector’s edition created especially for the holiday season. This release offered a dramatic reinterpretation of one of perfumery’s most legendary fragrances, Shalimar, not through a change in formula, but through the artistry of its presentation. Both the parfum and the eau de parfum concentrations were preserved exactly as they had always been, maintaining the enduring balance of bergamot, iris, vanilla, and amber that defined Jacques Guerlain’s 1925 masterpiece. What made this edition remarkable was the flacon—an object designed to be as memorable and precious as the perfume itself.

For the parfum, Guerlain partnered with Baccarat, whose crystal artistry brought the concept of “Black Mystery” to life. The resulting flacon was crafted in smoky black crystal, its sleek curves enriched with burnished gold accents that heightened the sense of opulence and drama. The bottle’s dark translucence seemed to conceal and reveal at once, echoing the sensual mystery of Shalimar itself. As a design, it took inspiration from Philippe Starck’s celebrated black crystal chandelier, bridging the worlds of fine perfumery and modern design while casting Shalimar as a jewel of rare, timeless allure.

Alongside the Baccarat edition, Guerlain also released the eau de parfum in a black glass spray bottle, ensuring that the mystique of this special edition was accessible in a more practical format, while still carrying forward the collector’s spirit of the release. Both flacons—whether crystal or glass—conveyed an unmistakable sense of modern luxury layered upon historical reverence. By cloaking its most famous fragrance in midnight tones, Guerlain gave Shalimar a new visual identity: seductive, mysterious, and contemporary, yet still inseparably tied to its legendary past.

Shalimar Secret de Parfum 2002

In 2002, Guerlain unveiled Shalimar Secret de Parfum, a limited-edition presentation that paid homage to its most iconic creation while offering a modern reinterpretation of its flacon. This edition did not alter the fragrance itself—the juice remained the timeless Shalimar eau de parfum, with its rich, smoky-vanillic accord beloved since 1925. Instead, the emphasis was on presentation, marrying heritage with contemporary design.

The bottle was striking in its simplicity: a tall, slim, cylindrical vial of sapphire-blue glass that radiated a sense of cool elegance and modern minimalism, a departure from the ornate curves of earlier Shalimar bottles. Its height and clarity gave the impression of refined architectural precision, almost like a modern column devoted to perfume. Crowning the flacon was the familiar fan-shaped stopper, rendered once more in deep blue, linking the new styling back to Guerlain’s historic visual language. This subtle continuity—modern lines balanced by an instantly recognizable stopper—ensured that the limited edition remained unmistakably Shalimar while still appearing fresh and updated.

Holding just 1 ounce (30 ml) of eau de parfum, the bottle was designed as a splash vial, evoking a more intimate and ritualistic application than today’s atomizers. Dabbing the fragrance by hand felt almost ceremonial, recalling the elegance of earlier eras when applying perfume was a private gesture of luxury. Though the flacon was limited, its contents—unchanged and eternal—reminded wearers that the essence of Shalimar’s sensual, oriental richness was too perfect to be reinvented. Instead, this edition highlighted how a change in vessel could subtly reframe the perception of an already legendary perfume.

Chypre de Paris 1909

Chypre de Paris by Guerlain was introduced in 1909, created by Jacques Guerlain, and represented the house’s third exploration of the chypre theme, following Chypre (1838) and Cyprisine (1894). The name itself, Chypre de Paris, is French, pronounced roughly as "Sheep-ruh duh Pah-ree". The word chypre literally means “Cyprus,” referencing the Mediterranean island historically associated with resins, mosses, and aromatic herbs used in early perfumery. The addition of de Paris (“of Paris”) fused the exotic allure of the ancient Mediterranean with the sophistication of the French capital — suggesting not only a perfume of nature’s depth but one refined through Parisian artistry.

The name Chypre de Paris would have conjured vivid images for early 20th-century women: the romance of faraway lands mingling with the cosmopolitan elegance of Paris. It evoked emotions of mystery, refinement, and worldliness, promising a scent that embodied both classical richness and modern glamour. The word chypre itself carried a sense of ancient opulence — sun-warmed woods, moss-covered groves, and aromatic herbs — but when paired with Paris, it implied a fragrance tailored for the modern woman of la Belle Époque.

The perfume’s release in 1909 came at the height of the Belle Époque (1871–1914), an era of optimism, cultural flourishing, and luxurious excess. Paris was the epicenter of fashion and art; Paul Poiret was revolutionizing women’s dress with free-flowing silhouettes, the Ballets Russes had begun to enchant audiences with its exoticism, and the idea of the modern woman — confident, cosmopolitan, and socially visible — was emerging. In perfumery, the turn of the century marked a transition from the sentimental floral bouquets of the Victorian period toward bolder, more abstract compositions that celebrated materials like leather, amber, and woods. Perfume was no longer merely a ladylike adornment; it became a symbol of identity and sophistication.

Although its name suggests a classical chypre, Chypre de Paris diverged from what would later become the modern chypre structure defined by Coty’s Chypre (1917). Instead of emphasizing a mossy, floral base built on oakmoss and labdanum, Guerlain’s interpretation was aromatic, spicy, and leathery — a reflection of early 20th-century tastes for textured and assertive scents. It may have carried notes of herbs, woods, and animalic leather, producing a dry, elegant warmth that mirrored the tailored fashions and bold spirits of its era.

For women of 1909, wearing a perfume called Chypre de Paris would have signified urban sophistication tempered with exotic intrigue. It suggested a woman equally at ease in a Parisian salon as in a daydream of ancient Cyprus — confident, sensual, and modern. In context, Guerlain’s Chypre de Paris was both a continuation of a historical perfumery tradition and a forward-looking creation that bridged the romantic past with the daring new aesthetic of the 20th century.

  

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? Chypre de Paris is classified as an aromatic spicy leather fragrance.

• Top notes: leather, spicy notes, lavender, bergamot, lemon
• Middle notes: jasmine, orange blossom, rose, ylang ylang, orris, nutmeg
• Base notes: calamus, opoponax, patchouli, Peru balsam, oakmoss, vanilla, musk and civet

Scent Profile:

Chypre de Paris unfolds like a sensory journey through early 20th-century luxury — a tapestry of natural essences and emerging synthetics woven together with Jacques Guerlain’s precise, sensual hand. Classified as an aromatic spicy leather fragrance, it evokes the texture of finely tanned leather gloves, the warmth of polished woods, and the languor of sunlit Mediterranean gardens. To experience it note by note is to trace its evolution from the brightness of the morning air to the dim glow of evening embers.

The perfume opens with the commanding scent of leather, smooth and animalic, recalling the supple gloves and travel trunks that symbolized refinement in Guerlain’s Paris. This leather effect was achieved not from true leather itself but through accords built with birch tar, castoreum, and isobutyl quinoline—materials that together conjure the smoky, slightly bitter aroma of well-worn hide. The addition of spicy notes — likely clove, cinnamon, or perhaps a whisper of black pepper — warms the sharpness of the leather, adding depth and a tactile sensuality. 

Then comes lavender, its essence distilled from the sun-baked fields of Provence, lending a brisk, aromatic counterpoint. French lavender is particularly prized for its balance of linalool (which imparts its clean, camphorous clarity) and linalyl acetate (which adds sweetness and roundness). The bergamot, likely sourced from Calabria, infuses the blend with an elegant citrus radiance, its volatile limonene and linalool molecules imparting effervescence and lift. A hint of lemon sharpens this effect — a flash of sunlight cutting through the smoke of leather — its aldehydes heightening the perfume’s sparkling first impression.

As the fragrance warms on the skin, the heart blossoms into a floral symphony that reveals Guerlain’s gift for balance and nuance. Jasmine, likely from Grasse, contributes its narcotic sweetness, rich in benzyl acetate and indole, lending both luminosity and a subtle, animalic undertone. Orange blossom, drawn from the bitter orange trees of Neroli, shimmers with honeyed freshness, a delicate interplay of linalool and nerolidol that lends a clean yet sensual transparency. 

Rose, velvety and slightly spicy, bridges the gap between the floral and the leathery, while ylang-ylang—harvested from the Comoros Islands—adds a creamy, tropical languor. Its unique composition of benzyl salicylate and p-cresyl methyl ether gives the heart a smooth, narcotic quality that blends seamlessly with the cool, powdery orris root. Derived from the rhizomes of the Florentine iris, orris lends its subtle violet-woody nuance, rich in ionones that give the perfume its haunting, cosmetic-like softness. Nutmeg, from the East Indies, punctuates this floral heart with warm spice, its myristicin and safrole molecules lending a sweet, resinous heat that lingers and deepens the transition toward the base.

In the drydown, Chypre de Paris becomes shadowy and intimate, resting on a foundation of resins, mosses, and musks. The presence of calamus, a warm, woody-sweet root, brings an earthy bitterness reminiscent of damp reeds along a riverbank. Opoponax, or sweet myrrh, harvested from Somalia, introduces a resinous, balsamic warmth, its complex mixture of sesquiterpenes and furanoids imparting a soft amber glow. 

Patchouli, likely sourced from Indonesia, grounds the composition with its inky, camphorous depth; rich in patchoulol and norpatchoulenol, it provides both structure and sensuality. Peru balsam, from El Salvador, adds a silky, vanillic sweetness with undertones of cinnamon and amber, while oakmoss contributes its defining chypre character — earthy, damp, and green. Containing evernyl and atranol, natural oakmoss binds the elements together, adding complexity and an almost tactile mossy texture.

Finally, vanilla, musk, and civet create the lingering trail that defines Guerlain’s sensual signature. The vanilla, derived from Madagascar pods, rounds the base with comforting warmth through its vanillin content, while a trace of synthetic vanillin amplifies its creaminess. The musk accord — originally derived from the musk deer but recreated synthetically by the early 20th century — lends a soft, skin-like radiance, amplifying the perfume’s warmth and depth. The addition of civet, sourced from the civet cat, provides an animalic purr — intimate, slightly dirty, and profoundly human — binding the florals and resins into one living, breathing whole.

To smell Chypre de Paris is to inhale the turn of a century: a world suspended between natural opulence and modern chemistry, between the elegance of tradition and the boldness of invention. Each ingredient tells its own story — of earth, flower, and animal — yet under Jacques Guerlain’s hand, they merge into something ineffably Parisian: mysterious, refined, and alive with warmth.

From our friend Monsieur Guerlain: " Frédéric Sacone tells us that Jacques Guerlain reused Chypre de Paris to make his Cuir de Russie in 1935. Upon researching the handwritten formula for Cuir de Russie, Frédéric Sacone found out that it lists Chypre de Paris, as well as Mitsouko, among its ingredients."


Evening Star, 1913:

"Mere names of perfumes give no idea," said Zinda Brozia. "You must smell them. As many makers, so there are as many "'chypres'. There is no such perfume, though Walter Scott mentions it, and Houbigant had a 'cypris" in 1775. Guerlain has a 'cyprisine' and a 'chypre de Paris'. The original 'Chypre' was a very successful mixture of Atkinson, years ago; and as he did not protect the name, everybody took it up. Now Guerlain's 'Chypre de Paris', although of the cheap $1.20 series, is a sum total of perfume value, distinction and lasting qualities. I imagine it would be impossible to repeat, hein?"

Bottles:

Presented in the Carre flacon.

Fate of the Fragrance:

Discontinued, date unknown. Still sold in 1913.

Shalimar 60th Anniversary Flacon 1985

In 1985, Guerlain commemorated the 60th anniversary of Shalimar with a truly distinctive creation — the Shalimar 60th Anniversary Flacon Paperweight Award. Designed as both a celebration of the house’s enduring success and a tribute to one of its most iconic perfumes, this exclusive piece was presented to top-performing sales leaders of Guerlain products that year.

The award features a factice bottle filled with colored perfume simulating Shalimar perfume, forever suspended within a solid block of clear Lucite. The transparent casing magnifies the flacon’s graceful lines and the golden hue of the perfume, transforming the classic chauve-souris (bat-wing) bottle into a timeless keepsake rather than a functional fragrance. Sealed completely within the Lucite, the bottle cannot be removed or used—preserving it in pristine form, like a captured moment of Guerlain’s history.

The cube itself stands 4 inches high and 3 inches wide, its base discreetly engraved to mark “60th Anniversary”, commemorating six decades of Shalimar’s legendary status. At once a symbol of achievement and artistry, this paperweight embodies Guerlain’s ability to merge luxury, heritage, and innovation, paying homage to a fragrance that had, by then, enchanted the world for sixty years.