L'Instant de Guerlain Eau de Toilette

I find this to be a very soft, gentle, elegant and feminine perfume well suited for day to day wear. On me the initial spray is somehow strong floral yet also soft at the same time, this is smooth, rounded, if it were an object it would be a white marshmallow (it doesn't really smell like a marshmallow, although maybe a hint later in the day, it just reminds me of one in that is it soft, white, a touch powdery...I don't know, it just somehow reminds me of one!) It smells quite grown up and sophisticated, I can't imagine teenagers or early 20-somethings wearing this, and I cannot imagine it appealing to the permatanned, bleached hair extensions type who, (and this is a gross sweeping generalisation) seem to favour much sweeter fruitier scents- to me it smells more like something you would expect to smell on a 30-something woman in a crisp white shirt and jeans with her hair in a casual bun, or a woman wearing a floaty dress or something. Even though I love this and am not a 30-something and I don't own a crisp white shirt or a floaty dress or hair that would go into a bun! I find this a beautiful comforting scent, something I can wear on a down day and be enveloped in its aura, or wear to a meeting or lunch with friends. I wouldn't turn to this for a night out as I prefer something heavier and spicier for those occasions but this is a scent that would fit most occasions in my opinion. I don't think it is likely to offend in any way, it smells clean and classy and very feminine. The opening for me, I get a strong muguet with amber initially with other white florals taking a backseat for the initial 20-30 minutes. The combination of muguet and amber can smell almost animalic, even slightly "dirty" initially on my skin and I must admit the opening of this fragrance is not my favourite part. And then suddenly after the first half hour or so the muguet takes more of a backseat, the amber softens and becomes more rounded and the magnolia and white florals take the fore. There is something in this that reminds me of high end expensive body creams and I find it pairs wonderfully with L'Occitane's Shea ultra rich body cream to give a super cosy winter scent. I find this soft and floral, not sweet, never cloying. I haven't worn this in summer yet so I am not sure if it would change - I imagine that perhaps the muguet and amber would be more dominant in more humid weather creating a more sultry effect, I shall have to wait a while to find out! I find longevity is good with this, it lasts a good 12 hours and the dry down is very soft and comforting. Projection is reasonable too - I don't think it projects overly much and it isn't intrusive, but as I sit typing this I can feel and smell it around me, through my thick winter woolies - as I said before it is like an aura. I am interested to try the EDP version as apparently it is a slightly different composition. I do love this beautiful fragrance, another newly discovered guerlain that I think will have a place in my fragrance wardrobe for a long time to come. Soft, feminine, comforting, elegant...beautiful.

Fluffy, Marshmallow MAGNOLIA with something a little dark in the background... Imagine a bouquet of magnolia, gardenia & marshmallows underpinned by something a little darker, on stems with green leaves in a vase of perfume, and a white fluffy kitten is sneaking toward it - that's what I get here. The EDT version is a 2005 follow-up to the first magnolia perfume released by Guerlain, L'Instant de Guerlain EDP 2003. Opens with a crisp burst of fruits that's well blended but leans to green apple supported by multi-faceted bergamot. This quickly deepens into the white-floral heart with creamy, powdery, vanillic, fresh, green, animalic & spicy nuances. It's hard to pick out individual florals, but altogether I get a powdery marshmallow white-floral blend with a touch of green and spice. This all rests on an amber base that carries and projects the rest. Over time you get a sweetening of the marshmallow vibe that leans to honey but continues the creaminess. While this is a magnolia scent, it's creamier and more animalic than other magnolia scents I've smelt, and it has a powderiness that comes close to nuttiness. I have an aged refill bottle of this, with juice the colour of vanilla extract (Batch Code No. 5H01 - 2005). Overall: Gorgeous powdery, magnolia & marshmallow white-floral with well above average performance. This works year-round as a signature scent imho. It's a love for me. Enjoy! Contrast to Cabotine Rosalie Gres: These are different, especially in the openings, where I get more of a Waldorf salad (apple, mayo, cabbage, nuts, celery, grapes..) from Cabotine Rosalie. As CR dries down it becomes more and more similar to L'Instant de Guerlain, to where I definitely think L'Instant de Guerlain was an inspiration for CR Both have excellent performance but L'Instant de Guerlain EDT outperforms. Contrast to Bvlgari Magnolia Sensuel: These are different, but there are some similarities in the rich creaminess of the magnolia. L'Instant EDT is a slightly fresher approach to the magnolia that may wear better is warmer weather, as Bvlgari's is heavier, although both could be worn year round. Both have good performance, but slightly stronger and heavier take in the Bvlgari. Contrast to Baiser Vole Cartier: These are different, but there are similarities with a delicate powder-creamy white floral. Baiser Vole is all about lily, and seems to dry down more like honey-tea on my skin, while L'Instant de Guerlain EDT seems to keep its creaminess through the drydown. Roughly equivalent performance, but maybe slightly better for L'Instant de Guerlain EDT. Update 07/18/24: Sprayed this on the back of one hand today and whatever it was I found dark & animalic before has seemed to have disappeared. Just fluffy magnolia-marshmallow-y goodness. This really shines in the summer heat. One of my favourite magnolia scents. 10/10.

Under L'Instant EDP in the db, I wrote a review mostly of the EDT... Guerlain's ode to magnolia! In Canada, magnolia doesn't bloom in winter, so I wouldn't wear this fragrance then as it reminds me of summer. I've tried the EDP, though, and I can see myself wearing it in fall/winter. Like peachykeen, I detect vanilla sniffing from the bottle and on my skin at first. It isn't listed in the notes... an olfactory illusion? From the bottle, I guessed these notes: citrus/bergamot and apple/pear and(?) blackberry vanilla amber rose(?) or another similar flower jasmine a white flower Once on my skin, the "similar flower" was dominating and I realized it was magnolia from my experience with the real blooms. The apple note had hit the hardest out of the bottle but slipped into the background quickly and quietly. The drydown was jasmine mingling with the magnolia and a shimmering aura of gardenia/lily of the valley around the edge. I wasn't sure I smelled vanilla as distinctly anymore, but the currant/apple ever so subtley reminded me of pie. :) L'Instant EDT reminds me a bit of Stella by Stella McCartney because it's a modern composition of ambery floral with a citrus accent, except that it's also wilder, stranger (the magnolia is an underrepresented flower in classic perfumery) and closer to oriental, because of the magnolia/jasmine accord (Stella has rose). In comparison, the perfumes both have depth, but L'Instant is more complex, joyful, and fine. Magnolia doesn't usually star in perfumes, which might be why some reviewers haven't noticed it right off the bat. Unless you've been around the real blooms, the scent might be hard to identify or distinguish. Did I mention I love this?

L'instant EDT seems to be discontinued now, which is a shame. I had it when I was 19 and used it fairly often back then, but the last drops of the bottle stayed with me until I was 25 or 26 (I'm 33 now). This review is mainly based on memory, my empty bottle and a quick retest from the bee bottle in a department store. This is one of the creamiest scents ever. It's the plushest white magnolia on a magical honeyed amber base. At the same time clean and pure and sensual. There are some light fruity top notes that make it less heavy and more sparkling than the EDP, but I was surprised that green apple is a note here. Never in my life have I perceived this as an apple fragrance, I get more citrus. It's so feminine, soft, rounded and intriguing, the perfect blend of white florals and warmth, dense and airy aspects. There are not many fragrances that get this right like this one. Even though it's an EDT version, this has quite the presence. In my experience it gets stronger the older the bottle is, the liquid gets considerably darker too, so I think this is because of the vanilla content of the amber basenote. If you compare an old, well-kept bottle to a newer bee bottle, I'm sure it will be much more intense, but what I smelled in the dept store was very close to my memory of the original. I'm contemplating buying another bottle before it's gone, but I'm not sure if I'll do it. In my opinion this is truly appropriate for any age group, even for those who are more conservative about age appropriateness than I am. It's just that I strongly link it to my last year of school and feel like I have moved on from that time. But the scent is so beautiful I can't rule it out.

I could do without the grapefruit. I only got this because I couldn't be without the EDP for months in hot weather. That one is pure heaven to me. Classy, powdery, floral, honeyed heaven. I've had this for months and just felt it would do, mostly because of that blasted grapefruit, which always smells like an odd bitter weirdness to me. (Worst note to my nose.) But last night I wore it, like I do in these strange lockdown times, where I try different scents all day to see how they work in different temperatures and weather. A few hours later I was thinking 'What is that? It's so lovely. I really should buy it'. Then I realise I already have it. It's mine. It's L'instant EDT. I totally love it. I can't have too much powder. And I love vintage florals. There's something ancient and modern about this, thanks to its powdery floralcy. But it's very 'clean' which doesn't seem so natural to me. (Maybe I've been spoiled by vintage scents.) I never smelt a magnolia in my life. But if this is how they smell I'm totally smitten. Less honeyed and thick than than the EDP. Brighter and more airy, with an obvious citrus opening. The white florals are still as classy and timeless. This is one of the few scents I have both the EDP and EDT, because I never want to be stymied by the weather. L'instant isn't sexy, she has more like a girl next door vibe. A lady you want to get to know and spend time with. You want to make her laugh and introduce her to your friends and take her home to your parents. Very classy, very friendly, very ladylike.