Midnight Shimmer

I waffled and wavered for what felt like forever on biting the bullet on blind-buying this one, but so many others have been singing its praises, and being the vanilla-lover that I am I finally gave in! I couldn't wait to get my nose on this, and I have to say, this is another love... BUT! ...to me this is an exact dupe of Cologne of the Missions Les Couvent des Minimes (and I already own two bottles of it!). It doesn't just remind me of it, it feels like IT. Now, I don't really see this as a bad thing, especially since LCdM is hard to find (at least in the U.S. these days), and although MS is still available online, it's no longer sold at Ulta as it's been replaced by it's fraternal sister, Twilight Shimmer (the praline version of MS's vanilla). I DID try on Twilight Shimmer in Ulta not too long ago. It was nice. Maybe at some point I'll get a 1 oz, but man it's expensive (so I'll wait for a 20% off coupon). Back to Midnight Shimmer. The vanilla in this is very much a Mexican vanilla extract, almost syrupy, but also has that "frosting cream" vibe. I actually really love this fact. It's a very smooth vanilla. Some other close relatives would be Laura Mercier Eau Gourmand Vanille Gourmand (another buttercream frosting vanilla) and Modern Muse Nuit (a much softer, subtler vanilla with not quite the same sillage, at least in my experience, but still most excellent). Midnight Shimmer is going strong after a good 9 hours of wear. HIp-hip-hooray! If you are vanilla crazy like I am, the answer is Yes. Get it. If you're trying to replace LCdM, well what are you waiting for???

This is such a beautiful creamy, milky vanilla with a completely addictive musky/woodsy dry down and I absolutely am in love with Midnight Shimmer... However, as other reviewers have mentioned, this doesn't really have any sillage or projection at all. This is a night time scent or a perfume for your lover (for their nose only!) and while the scent drives me wild, I just wish it was stronger and was more noticeable for other people. Then opening spray is a very strong nose-burning alcohol, but this moment is fleeting and is replaced with the sweetest, creamiest vanilla I've ever encountered in a perfume. I was madly in love! I mean, holy mother of moly, this is sex in a bottle! That slightly earthy woodsy notes mixed with the most luscious vanilla? Heaven! ... Then poof... It becomes a skin scent. A really beautiful skin scent, but a skin scent nonetheless. (How many times can I say skin scent in one sentence? A lot, apparently...) I personally love the bottle. I think the long, rectangular shape and the gold glitter is absolutely breathtaking and very unique. It feels heavy and expensive which is something I appreciate a lot. (I'm a sucker for a pretty bottle!) Overall, this perfume had a lot of potential to be in my favorite perfumes of all time list, but it's just so weak in comparison to say, Laura Mercier's Vanille Gourmande. I love the smell of Midnight Shimmer with all my heart but I wish there was an intense version. I'd pay a very pretty penny to smell like this and have it project and last.

This is an uncomplicated, sweet and slightly alcoholic 'vanilla extract' type of scent with some gentle woody notes and minor floral notes which help keep it fluffy and light rather than dark and boozy. As much as I love vanilla notes in perfumes, often they can turn dusty, plasticky, or piercing-sharp on my chemistry, but Midnight Shimmer stays realistic, and quite foody, which I very much enjoy!!! It makes me think of a cross between marshmallows and melted vanilla ice cream. I didn't detect much in the way of musky notes here, but that could be my chemistry. Sillage is low, but longevity is impressive, and it plays well with other scents. About four hours in, I became a little bored with how linear it was...it doesn't transform at all...so I layered a unisex amber scent over the top, and suddenly I was in heaven! This light, unassuming little kitchen vanilla fragrance can really hold its own!! It truly transformed my amber fragrance. Somehow, I don't feel that the bottle color or the name Midnight Shimmer matches the composition, but vanilla-based perfumes are known to turn brown over time, so this bottle might help to hide that!! EDIT: Okay, I do notice a tinge of plasticky sharpness in the top notes, but that disappears within 10 minutes or so, and afterward the scent is very smooth!

Without a doubt, Midnight Shimmer is one of my best-ever blind buys in terms of how it smells. It's sexy and unique enough to stand apart from other sweet vanillas. From the first spray I thought I smelled berries or plum, which made it like DKNY Delicious Night, but I guess it was the previously-unknown-to-me quince. Soon after this juicy blast came the wood notes, which here were not the least bit astringent, and then developed an ultra-warm vanilla, not sticky sweet, not overly boozy, but real vanilla. Soon, the balsam joined in and grounded the flowers and musk. After a couple of hours, I realized what makes Midnight Shimmer so appealing to me and it's that it smells so very much like Ghost Deep Night, which shares virtually all the same notes except the quince is exchanged for apricot. The one imperfection is Midnight Shimmer's lasting power, which without multiple sprays to the skin, hair, and clothes, is fleeting. On my next wearing I will be layering it over a vanilla-based lotion or cream or even an unscented body oil. This is so scrumptious and sensual it deserves a longer life.

Sooo good! Definetly a sexy, woodsy vanilla. Not overwhelming, really warm and attractive smell. So sad that i heard from sales assistants that it s discounted and they showed me Starlight Shimmer instead of Midnight Shimmer, but no, midnight Shimmer is definetly more attractive, cozy and balanced, and it doesnt smell as generic as others. This s definetly a very nice fall/winter or night perfume. It s the only MK smell i actually like. At first spray it smells Maybe nothing special But it just develops into a good vanilla perfume with a bit of powder and hint of wood. Longevity is not good as much as i expected but it s okay, sillage is okay too, it doesnt come across as a skin perfume on me. I have one perfume called Moattar Dahab by Syed Junaid Alam and those two really smell alike, i really love both of them but unfortunately i can not find neither one nor another anywhere. It s my to-go perfume espcially during winter; just a spray of it onto a fuzzy sweater and la la; i just enjoy this creamy, elegant vanilla all day.