Reviews of Parisienne by Yves Saint Laurent

I got this at an estate sale a while back for $1. It had only about 20% left, but that was OK, because I just wanted to test it. I usually like Grojsman's stuff and have worn several over the years, but this one I just can't like. I read that it was supposed to be softer and more appealing to a younger set than the old classic Paris, but I'm just not getting that. I find it much more projecting and cloying than the worst haters of Paris accuse that one of being. I can't get past the lipstick and vinyl notes, they just overwhelm everything else for me. If there is any resemblance to Paris, it pretty much suffocated to death in all that vinyl, which by definition makes this one super-synthetic smelling to me. So rather than spraying this one, I'll just keep dabbing on my vintage Paris and let the chips fall where they may.
15th January 2022
Light floral with fresh berries. Nothing bold, even for the eau de parfum. Not interesting, but I can't give it a negative or neutral review though. Sillage and longevity are just ok.
15th May 2018

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It opens with a handful of fresh red berries. Then comes the powdery rose blended with vinyl. The vinyl can be easily detected on me, and it's an interesting twist. I totally get the plastic makeup bag comparison. The red berries are still detectable, and add a hint of tartness to refresh the rose. However, I can barely smell the woody base. And the fragrance doesn't evolve much after then. The sillage is moderate and the longevity is around 8h on me.

Parisienne is chic and casual, an effortless elegance. However, I doubt if the vinyl note smells good to everyone. I suggest testing prior to blind buy.
29th December 2017
As a lover of rose perfumes, this one gets a pass from me. There are better rose fragrances out there. I regrettably bought a 1oz bottle as a blindbuy. I admit I was attracted to the notes list, the bottle design, and the lovely lavender/pink liquid.

There is a sharp synthetic note that drowns the rest. I think it is the "vinyl" accord, in what was an attempt at creating thorns on a delicate rose. This may have been better accomplished with the use of leather. Surely it was mimicking the personality of the original Paris and the 80's. With some effort, I can make out the watery rose behind the plastic. The blackberry note is faint, which is a shame as I love blackberry. If you want a more prominent blackberry perfume, try L`Artisan Parfumeur's Mure et Musc. Reviews make me think that Parisienne A L`Extreme is what I wanted Parisienne to be (and it lacks the vinyl accord). Like many a good fragrance, it is sadly discontinued.

It's not too offensive, and the synthetic quality fades in the drydown, so it gets a neutral rating from me.
16th February 2017
This has very similar qualities to the original "Paris", but it's basically a lighter version! I know the notes that are listed for this one are different from those that were listed for "Paris", but to my nose, they smell very similar! I said in an earlier review that "Cerisier en Fleurs" from Yves Rocher was the shy, sweet, quiet cousin of "Paris", and I just realized today that this one actually is too! :D Although it smells quite similar to "Paris", this one goes on smelling quite subtle and light by comparison, and almost seems more like a body mist (or EDT) in it's strength. It doesn't have huge sillage or projection like it's more "in your face" cousin. :D And, I will add that I sprayed it on from the actual tester bottle in Sephora. I wasn't dabbing it on from a test tube! This one actually is surprisingly quiet and subtle! I think it would be great as a warm weather perfume, probably. It also doesn't have great longevity, so you might need to re-apply throughout the day. It dries down to a very lovely, powdery sweet scent though, that I really enjoy a lot! Still, after a few hours it's almost entirely disappeared on me, so yes, this one will probably need more than one application. I still recommend trying it though, especially if you always liked the smell of "Paris" but thought it should be more subtle! :D I don't think you'll be disappointed!
28th November 2015
The opening is taking after forest berries, more blueberry-like, and developed in to a floral drydown with a fairly nice rose with a white-floral background taking centre stage. The rose is not of great quality but good enough in this floral blend. So far this is pleasant as a fruity-floral composition.

The base adds touches of spicier notes, especially patchouli but I am also getting a light musk impression towards the end. The base notes are all right but on my skin somewhat dull and unexciting, as well as a bit too generic. I get moderate sillage, good projection and five hours of longevity. 2/5
23rd July 2015
I owed it to my husband again (he find this perfume lovely). I got this from my husband for my anniversary and i think it is indeed very sexy and delicate. Not offending at all, flowery, classy, lady-like, bit powdery but not to overwhelming like No.5 and not sticky sweet, as other pink flower fragrances, love the violet and peonies in it, and the first burst of berries is not candy like, almost natural. It is not a recommended scent for young girls. But perfect for seductive woman in the 30s like me. Would definitely repurchase any perfume that my husband love :)
9th May 2014
I love rose--- but never want to smell old lady. I love the watery rose quality of this scent that truly breaks out this scent. Yes, it is commercial and not niche but it is lovely
17th March 2014
There are two things I hate in frangrance: rose and vanilla. Rose reminds me of old handkerchiefs that belong to old ladies attending Sunday mass. Vanilla reminds me of cookies. And cake.

Parisienne is a rose composition, but a blah! one. Unremarkable in every respect. Too much focus group testing, and an appeal to the lowest common denominator?

As well, there must be something about bases used by YSL, because they all burn off very quickly. And, on me, they turn rancid. Was it something I said?

6th November 2011
One of my most decided negatives. I'm usually not so sure ... yes I know I could give it more of a chance, but ... I don't think it's worth it. It's wimpy and downright unpleasant ... smells like nothing at all conjurable besides boring, synthetic, and trite perfume ... yuck, yuck, yuck.
9th August 2011
Parisienne is yet another quintessential rose fragrance on the market today.

Unlike the original Paris by YSL, Parisienne is a much softer, more watery rose scent, excellent for wear in the warmer months.

The red berries and blackberry in the top notes, really adds a lovely fruity touch to the already dominant rose note. It gives this fragrance a subtle tart-like finish.

Parisienne is a modern take on a very popular scent; rose. In my opinion it is very chic and stylish. Kate Moss actually represents this fragrance well.

I was a little surprised that this was in EDP concentration. The way it rested lightly upon my skin with such little sillage strength, made me swear it was an EDT.

Like I previously mentioned, this is a very refreshing, watered-down rose scent with a slight greeness about it that makes for a very Summery and inoffensive fragrance.

Casual yet classy, Parisienne will impress you with its simplicity rather than its uniqueness.

5th July 2011
The bottle reminds me of a grenade made out of crystal. I think this dichotomy is reflected in the scent. It's a edgy but has a bit of a classic angle to it. I love the modern cranberry note (but I think Givinchy Ange ou Demon le secret does cranberry better). It doesn't strike me a 'teenage' or 'old lady'. I feel very comfortable wearing it at my age (28).
2nd June 2011
As other reviews have indicated, this does indeed veer between that tart cranberry note & a sweet, sugary violet. One minute l almost like it, the next l definitely don't. l felt very self-conscious wearing this, as if it was wearing me, & as if l was trying too hard to be 20 years younger! The sillage & longevity are off the scale, but this is aimed squarely at the teen market, & it's very poorly blended. Not for me.
13th September 2010
This bipolar scent is a mysterious floral with a woodsy base that has damask rose, peony violets on the top and then goes on a freefall to the base with patchouli and vetiver , a bit powdery and kind of sexy, it's a safe bet for those who want to look vamp without really being one and then discovering that they really are afraid of the consequences of being so. While pleasant, I think mystery has been done in a better way.
9th August 2010
Love the perfume, it's the perfect mixture that I so uniquely love but... hate how quickly it fades away.
17th July 2010
I was initially attracted by its jewel-like bottle and pretty lilac liquid and so bought this EDT almost blind in a rush through a duty free shop for my wife - on the assumption that you couldn't go wrong with YSL scents. Yes you can. The fragrance starts off smelling nice enough if a little synthetic and uninspiring, based mainly around tart berries...and then it very quickly fades to nothing. To say that its longevity was a major disappointment is being very kind, lasting 1 hour at the most with several sprays. For this reason alone, I can't recommend it.
13th May 2010
Creepy scent,very unstable. Shrieking aggressive assault on the senses one moment, sulking scented petulance the next. I hated it. Now i don't mind plasticity in my scents. Anything weird will arrest me for a while, but Parisienne is unoriginal and dull, without a single whiff of anything running through it to suggest it was anything but a chore to compose and throw out into this loveless world. Who is wearing it? The romance of the ad is nowhere to be seen, the roses drowned by neon chemical fruit notes. Like a pretty girl choking on exhaust fumes in a crowded city street, a few people might notice, but not enough to really care.
28th April 2010
Parisienne is the second ficklest, most unstable fragrance I've ever smelled -first being The One. One minute it's sweet and nice, the other minute it's artifical and sharp. I liked the first burst of rosy fruity smell; then after 15 minutes I said "Now I remember why I didn't like this fragrance. It's ugly". Then, it became a creamy, sweet and luxurious scent that I liked a lot -in fact it resembled Ultraviolet, even though there isn't any similar note. In short, if I could find a way to skip first 15 to 45 minutes and directly transfer to the third phase, I'd say Parisienne is a great fragrance, instead I say, "You can do better..".
1st April 2010
Parisienne is a big disappointment. It is created by the same female perfumer who created the great and iconic Paris, and it has some of the same notes (Rose and Violet), and yet it does not even come close to its older and revered sister.Parisienne's top notes of violet and rose are wonderful, but they quickly give way to (what can only be described as) a watered down but somewhat sharp plastic / acetone smell (which must be the "vinyl accord"!). The intention was obviously to create a MODERN fragrance, but it just doesn't work. YSL needs to get back to the drawing board.The best thing about Parisienne is its beautiful bottle, its beautiful lavender colour, and the Kate Moss marketing campaign.Unfortunately, knowing how much I had loved Paris in the 80's, my mother bought me the comfret (with shower gel and body lotion) for Christmas, and it sits unused in my cupboard......
17th March 2010
Tried this one again and still not too thrilled about it. It settles down after awhile, quite nicely only to be re-awakened every so often, this would be a good thing if the notes that re-appear weren't so sharp. It didn't last long either which I suppose was a good thing. Ah, well the bottle looks cute on my dressing table.
14th March 2010
Never mind Kate Moss-she is somehow inappropriate for the ad...this is more an"Age of Innocence" era fragrance. I can just see Countess Olenska leaning back on the divan, and she is probably wearing this.Despite all the marketing baloney ( vinyl accord, etc) , I really like this one..it seems to me to have much more violet than rose, and violet is my favorite floral.I also like the bottle and the pale violet color of the juice. Wish it lasted a little longer, but maybe I'll layer this with Apres L'Ondee by Guerlain, just to round it out
10th February 2010
A tart yet bitter-fruity note which fades away all too soon is probably the only distinctive part of the scent for what's left - powdery florals over musk and sandalwood - is something that has not only been done before but done better. Look no further than Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle. And what the heck is a 'vinyl accord'? To 'evoke the gloss and varnish of a spiked heel'? That's probably just some marketing B*S* to create a 'novelty' buzz or hype, a tactic presumably employed to draw attention away from the fragrance's shortcomings; synthetic and uninspired just to name but two.Still I find PARISIENNE a pleasantly wearable and safe option, especially for young women new to fragrances.Notes:vinyl accord, cranberry, blackberry, damask rose, violet, peony, patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood and musk
3rd February 2010
Sickeningly, sickeningly sweet... for me this was cotton candy in a bottle, and we're talking about a YSL, not an Aquolina. An nst review said it's geared toward women in their 30's, older than the target age for Elle but younger than that for Opium and Paris. To me that is just... wrong. I much prefer Elle to this. The best thing this fragrance has going for it is the ravishing-looking Kate Moss in its ads (who incidentally also launched a fragrance in 2009).
7th December 2009
wwww