Dear Paris, where have you been all my life? I have long been a fan of rose-violet scents, but for so long, this beauty sat on the shelf at Sephora, ignored by me as I was too busy chasing ever rarer niche offerings. There was no need to do so! Yves Saint Laurent Paris is one of the best. It is often thought of as a prime example of over-the-top 1980s excess, but it doesn't seem that way to me. I find it more nostalgic and romantic, with its masses of bright pink, somewhat fruity roses and sweet, candied violets. I have read that Paris was created by perfumer Sophia Grosjman as a modern homage to Guerlain's Apres l'Ondee. While these two perfumes are not actually similar, they do have that wistful violet touch in common. Paris' lasting power is rather strange on me. It fades away rather quickly on my skin, but lasts for days when sprayed on my clothes. I have heard that this is a particular problem with the current version, and that the original Paris was stronger. I plan to try it soon, and will report back! UPDATE: Yes, it is more tenacious. They start out the same, but the older version (in the pink-and-black box rather than the pink-and-gold one) is deeper and lasts better on the skin.

Really looked forward to trying this as I am a lover of big, in your face, fragrances, if they are well done. For me, this one isn't. Just another boring floral. There are so many really good fragrances, I wouldn't waste another sniff on this one. If you love rose, consider Guerlain's Nahema or Montale's Aoud Queen Roses and leave this one on the shelf.

Honestly, I don’t know what on earth possessed me when I decided to purchase a bottle of Paris EDT during a sale 6 years ago. I mean, I’m a straight up fruity-floral/oriental/floral-oriental gal, which explains why much-maligned fragrances like Dior J’Adore & YSL Cinema that smell like, & I quote, “cat pee” & “booze/tobacco” on most women smell absolutely divine on me. Paris, on the other hand, is a classic old-fashioned rose/woody perfume that simply doesn’t gel with my body chemistry. Try as I might, I just cannot wear perfumes where roses are the dominant notes as they tend to make me feel matronly or granny-like. Hence, my more than half-full 2.5 oz bottle has been sitting in its pretty pink & gold box on my dresser gathering dust for the past 6 years. The funny thing is, every time I think about putting it up for sale on eBay, I open the box, catch a whiff of that lovely smell of vintage roses (which always conjures up images of Victorian-era or early 20th century Paris), see the beautiful faceted glass bottle & promptly change my mind. Sure, I can’t wear it on MYSELF, but darn, it smells good & the bottle’s too pretty to give away! In fact, it smells exactly like those rose-scented potpourri thingies you put in your lingerie drawer or closet to make your clothes smell nice, or even a sophisticated-smelling room spray. So, the perfume has finally found its use after all these years, though it makes me mad whenever I think about how much money I spent on it. >:( Oh well… at least it won’t go to waste. continued >>

The best fragrance of all time.

That is all.

When I was a girl I used to have pink stationary that I scented with rose and put away in a cardboard box with roses pictured on it. Paris smells like what this box would smell like today. It smells like someone scented paper with an undistinct floral fragrance and dust. On me this scent almost disappears expect for that paper smell and a faint rose or violet. It doesn't last long either. It's nice but forgetable.

I can't believe how much body chemistry matters! I've always loved this on my sister, lovely sweet/cool rose scent. On me: I only smell wood, in an old fashioned way. I can't stand it on myself. It's annoying. I have a full bottle of edp and half a bottle of edt. I'll just have to give them to my sister, she'll be delighted. And I'll just swoon when I smell it on her. : (

Very floral fragrance, top note is violet and bergamot. It is pretty strong perfume and staying power is great, but although I like the scent which is very classic, it seems more like something my mother or grandmother would prefer.

This is the one perfume that I have used over and over and over again for the past 20 years easily. It's one of those scents that just mellows on me to a perfect drydown. It's roses, it's violets, it's Paris in the springtime. Not only do I keep a bottle of Paris around, but I have a bunch of bottles of the yearly special editions that YSL does every spring. They all smell uniquely white rose-y, floral, soft and feminine. I don't know what I will do if they ever stop making this stuff!!!!

this is one that i carry around in my bag
since i bought the special limited edition love heart shaped bottle
i find this a pretty decent scent
light and really floral-y. really feminine. maybe too feminine?
the only downside i can think of is that THE LID DOES NOT STAY ON :(:(
which is not good since it sprays itself in my bag which is a total waste

on my skin, a very warm, soft and powdery rose. classic and feminine. i dont find this one all that complex, it doesnt alter that much on my skin. its a very lush rose scent, true to the flower - its not synthetic smelling at all. the bottle is pretty cute too.