— fragrance —

Guerlain Champs-Elysees EDT Fragrance Review

April 26, 2011

Guerlain Champs-Elysees EDT  reminds me of a champagne cocktail sipped during an outdoor brunch. And depending on who you talk to, you may only be able to wear this outdoors! Champs-Elysees has a rep for being a loud fragrance. Maybe this is why I like this fruity-floral 🙂

I think of Guerlain Champs-Elysées as being like a mimosa version of YSL Paris. Both perfumes are “power” floral perfumes. They are floral, feminine, and yes, a little loud depending on who you ask. I have a higher tolerance for loud and I find neither too loud. Champs-Elysées opens up as a bubbly cocktail of champagne like fruits and girly violets. I get powdery violet and mimosa with a wee bit of anise spice that reminds me of Caron Aimez-Moi – a blend of violet and anise. The heart of Champs-Elysées is a powedery fruity-floral. I get heliotrope almond-like dust with cassis liqueur enhanced sparkling wine. I get a little tipsy from it all. The dry-down is a soft ambrette musk with heliotrope sweetness. This is a fragrance that I love to wear in the spring. It’s sunny and pretty.

Mucha

The bottle is supposed to be a homage to the female form, a strong silhouette, “triangle of life”, blah, blah, blah, according to the Guerlain website. I just know that it is a hefty glass bottle. It reminds me of of an 80’s silhouette, complete with should pads. Because of this, the bottle completely fits the fragrance. However, this formula was relaunched in the 90’s, but I remember shoulder pads still being chic on the runways then!

Champs-Elysées is long-wearing, especially for an EDT. I can smell it on myself all day. That being said, I’m generous with sprays, about 5… Beware of the trail that I leave!

Notes listed include: peach, melon, violet, anise, mimosa, rose, peony, lily of the valley, cassis berry, vanilla, almond blossom, and hibiscus seed. I must add my disclaimer than I can’t find from anybody that I trust a complete list of notes. So, I just kind of went by a few different sources and “guessed”. I can see how these notes are in this fragrance.

Give Champs-Elysées a try if you like feminine florals or perfumes like Annick Goutal Mimosa, L’Artisan Parfumeur Mimosa Pour Moi, YSL Paris, Bvlgari Pour Femme, Estee Lauder Beautiful Sheer, and/or the original Paris Hilton (yeah, I went there).

The 1.7 oz. of Champs-Elysées EDT retails for $71 at Sephora. And you can find it at discounters like Fragrancenet.

*DRAWING* Is Closed!

Winner is Elisa! I will be emailing you soon 🙂

I’m doing a drawing for a 1 ml sample of this EDT, decanted from my collection. To be entered, please leave a comment below telling me about your favorite “loud” fragrance or even your least favorite “loud” fragrance.

A random winner will be chosen on 9:00 PM PST on May 1st, 2011. I will contact you and hope to hear from you within 72 hours or I will select another winner. I will send this sample internationally, so international friends feel free to enter 🙂


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Product picture from Sephora. Mucha pic from Coup de Foudre blog.

37 thoughts on “Guerlain Champs-Elysees EDT Fragrance Review”

  2. I used to love this perfume. I went through two bottles of it before some stupid comment from a co-worker completely turned me off. Enough time has passes since then so I probably should give it another try. No need to enter me into the draw – I know how it smells and to try it I’ll need to spray it, so I’ll find it in a store.
    As to loud perfumes, I think I have a winner: I absolutely love Angel.
    Undina recently posted..Four Wonders of Hermès

    1. I love C-E, one of my favorite florals. I understand. I have stopped wearing perfumes before because of a stupid comment, usually from a co-worker. Work is one of those environments I try not to offend and because of that I get feelings of insecurity. Now my husband, he has to deal with my fumes!

      Oh, Angel. I love it so! Not even a snarky co-worker comment could turn be away from Angel 😉

      1. Have you tried EdP or pure parfum versions as well? Looking at the packaging I realized that I used to have EdP, so I’m curious if the difference is only in the concentration or in the composition as well.
        Undina recently posted..Four Wonders of Hermès

        1. There is a difference. The fruity “sparkle” notes of the top stand out much more in the EDT. It’s been years since I’ve dried the EDP. This is the best that I remember. Of course, both are pretty.

    1. I haven’t tried Boudoir. I keep hearing about it (Eyeliner on a Cat recently wrote a review). I need to give in and try to find a sample!

  6. It has to be Drakkar Noir, the original
    formula! That stuff is so powerful, silage is intense and so utterly masculine with all the pine and other dark earthy notes. Definitely up there with the top intense scents ever!

    1. I “remember” Drakkar Noir a certain way. I liked it and one of the reasons is because it was loud and earned its “noir” title. I need to buy a little bottle for the “library”.

  8. I have used this perfume for years. I
    spray 2 tiny squirts in the morning and it
    lingers gently all day. Have had many
    comments from people saying how soft and
    elegant it smells. I hear it has been
    discontinued and don’t know what to replace
    it with. Can anyone help with suggestions.

  14. Beautiful fragrance, Champs-Elysees is like taking a 6am walk in a local flower market. Victoria, were you able to smell Jasmine top note, as I smell white jasmine for fist
    5 minutes, and its one of the best Jasmine compositions.

    1. I get more jasmine in the EDP than the EDT. Right now I own a large bottle of the EDT which is more mimosa-ish.

      1. I was sampling Champ Elysees, with my mom, and she wasn’t picking up the Jasmine note. She didn’t like it much, as she felt it was too synthetic, and not Guerlain’ish. Seriously??? Also, Luca Turin and Tania, Seriously! They describe CE as the second worst Guerlain.. Crazy!! I like it, and for me it’s a Virgin Mary fragrance.

        1. I think many people got burnt out with Champs-Elysees in the 80’s. Maybe they’re getting it confused with all the excess hairspray of the era 😉
          I don’t always agree with Turin and Sanchez! When they write a review like that, I just go “more for me!”

  15. I agree. I respect Turin and Tania, but describing CE as 2nd worst, blew my mind. The empty floral base, made CE less interesting, as people nowadays crave Floral + flavor, such as YSL Cinema. I was reading a piece by a fellow basenoter (virtualprincess), and she describes CE can never stand tall against, aldehyde offerings from Chanel, sad truth. Chanel’s are awesome, but I don’t feel the same floral intoxications as these oldies. . I hope to smell vintage Guerlain Après L’Ondée and CE, 2 great mimosa offerings from Guerlain.

    1. I never “got” Chanel No. 5 until a few months ago but I was sampling a vintage from the early 1960’s. It is absolutely nothing like what you can go buy now. The vintage had this lushness paired with the aldehydes, almost fur-like. After trying it I finally understood why Chanel grew such a fan base. That stuff was perfume! That stuff would make you speechless.
      Unfortunately the new No. 5 that I’ve sampled doesn’t work for me, very rigid and doesn’t have that purring base. It’s such a shame.

      I should be sniffing vintage AlO and CE soon. I’ll let you know what they’re like 😉

  22. Thank you for your review! I feel now more confident to order Champs Elysees EdT blind. When you mentioned YSL Paris, Bvlgari pour Femme and Estee Lauder Beautyful…. all of them in my top5. Can’t waite for my bottle to arrive. I’ll update later.

    1. I hope you like it! As you know, everything wears differently on different people. BUT, the ones that you like/wear also smell so beautiful on me (I love Paris and Bvlgari so much), that I’m hopeful that you will like Champs-Elysees too 🙂

      1. Unfortunately Champs Elysees EdT was not my cup of tea. Too delicate with bitter undernote. And that was both on a blotter and my skin. Maybe my nose is the one to blame. Oh well, that happens sometimes, maybe a bad bottle. I’m happy I have so many good favorites and hang on to them.

        1. Sorry to hear that. I have seen many talks that it has been reformulated 🙁 My bottle is over 7 years old (review is from ’11). I *hope* it hasn’t been reformulated because that is going to make me hoard my bottle.

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