Shocking You Elsa Schiaparelli 1976 Eau de Toilette

Shocking You (Eau de Toilette) by Elsa Schiaparelli

Bottle Design:
Eleonore Fini

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7.8 / 10 10 Ratings

A popular perfume by Elsa Schiaparelli for women, released in 1976. The scent is spicy-woody. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Spicy

Woody

Floral

Earthy

Chypre

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Hyacinth

Aldehydes

Galbanum

Bergamot

Neroli

Heart Notes

Clove

Jasmine

Iris

Lily of the valley Rose

Rose

Ylang-ylang

Raspberry

Base Notes

Oakmoss

Benzoin

Leather

Musk

Cedar

Sandalwood

Ratings

Scent

7.810 Ratings

Longevity

7.29 Ratings

Sillage

7.010 Ratings

Bottle

6.912 Ratings

Submitted by Sniffer, last update on 01/19/2025.

Variant of the fragrance concentration

This is a variant of the perfume Shocking You (Parfum) by Elsa Schiaparelli, which differs in concentration.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Shocking You Parfum

Reviews

2 in-depth fragrance descriptions

10/22/2024

8
Bottle 7
Sillage 7
Longevity 7.5
Scent

Minigolf
562 Reviews

Translated Show original

Minigolf

3

The good old "Elsa"

Controversial fashion designer, surreal collections, artistic streak, "Amazon" in her own sense, acquainted with painters, poets and many who had rank and name in the "weird" art world. "Shocking"?... too. Absolutely!
Fragrances were "only decorative accessories" to the fashion creations, but there was no shortage of "shrillness". The last fragrance, shortly after her death, is a "civilized" perfume that, in contrast to "Shocking | Elsa Schiaparelli" and others, appears quiet and deep. A wonderful chypre, spicy in its very own way, clove-galbanum as the main players, clearly slightly "animalic" flowers in larger supporting roles, woods, including the REAL sandalwood, round everything off in the base. A soft "soapy" note hovers above it - the light aldehydes, without overdoing it. Fine "glove leather" throughout, setting casually elegant accents. The only "flaw" for my personal taste is a "fleshy" hyacinth, the scent of which occasionally grazes my nose. Like all "numbing" floral fragrances - lily, tuberose, lilac, etc. - a clear hyacinth also gives me a "headache". Otherwise a "non-shocker" vintage chypre of the great kind!

07/31/2024

8
Sillage 8
Longevity 9.5
Scent

ElAttarine
71 Reviews

Translated Show original

ElAttarine

Top Review 35

50 Shades of Green - shockingly erotic

"There was a lot of activity in Paris at the time [1919]. You only had to take a few steps in the evening to meet people like Cendrars, Darius Milhaud, Aragon, Man Ray or Fernand Léger," writes Claire Goll in her must-read memoir "I forgive no one. A chronique scandaleuse". She was at least friends with Rilke, Dalí, Isadora Duncan, Joyce, Picasso, Malraux, Breton, C.G. Jung, Gertrude Stein, Helena Rubinstein, Chagall, and so on... In other words, she was at the heart of classical modernism, surrealism and Dada. She will certainly have met Elsa Schiaparelli, because both were born in 1890, lived in Paris from the early 1920s, were part of the pretty crazy art and Dada scene, migrated to New York in 1939 and came back to a very changed Paris after the Second World War. Both were absolutely bold and, for me, gorgeous female figures.
-----
Elsa Schiaparelli launched the perfumes "Shocking" and "Si". Her creations were elegant but never restrained, always eye-catching, colorful, glittering, surrealistic, dada... It was also she who first introduced the zipper to haute couture in 1936. After her return to Paris, however, fashion had changed; Coco Chanel's "simpler" creations were new, and Elsa's style was no longer modern. There is also a lot to read about the competition between the two and good documentaries here. Elsa died in 1973 - "Shocking you" was the first fragrance to be launched by the new owners of the brand in 1976. 1976 was also an interesting year in fashion: Yves Saint-Laurent was the first to integrate Eastern European folklore and thus trigger a trend. Gaultier presented his first collection. Overall, there was a resurgence of more expensive materials.
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The fragrance "Shocking you Schiaparelli" perhaps came at the right time to bring the Schiaparelli brand back into play. However, it is not a variation of the earlier Shocking fragrance (which I also really want to get to know), but an independent design, a green floral chypre. In this respect, there is nothing shocking about it at all - there were already some green chypres at the time, such as Quartz by Molyneux or Chanel No.19. But for me, "Shocking you" is much more than just a green-floral chypre. You can take a look at how perfume users categorize it, which shows just how complex the fragrance is and how it is perceived.
I really like green fragrances and I love galbanum. But often green fragrances are quite cognitive-botanical. Not this one! It starts off aldehydic-elegant, slightly brittle-soapy, and then unfolds a wonderfully fresh green with an almost intoxicatingly fleshy, sensual hyacinth. Other flowers are added, but they are blended together and do not stand out individually. I (fortunately) do not notice the raspberry individually, as is often the case with such vintage compositions. But it will contribute to the fact that I perceive the green as almost fruity and juicy, especially in the middle phase; this creates an almost erotic green that I have never perceived before. In this respect, it is shocking in the sense of: a sensation that I have never experienced before! I have the Eau de Toilette Concentrée here. Especially in warm weather, it seems to me that cumin is also present, and I could bet that civet is also involved. Some sources also list narcissus, civet (ha!) and vetiver in addition to the notes listed here, which seems plausible to me. Much later, the whole thing becomes a little softer and more balsamic with benzoin and sandalwood on oakmoss (the good old one!), and yet the fragrance remains fresh the whole time, never even a hint of mustiness.

So: it goes with glittery green eyes... high suede sandals... low-slit floral dress...
or all in black... with zippers as a tribute to Elsa... and Palladium boots.

And thanks again to Can777 - you know how to inspire me!

Shocking You Elsa Schiaparelli 1976 Eau de Toilette

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