Mystique Shimmer

This is so good and unusual for a designer release, it smells much more high-end than it is. I'm actually neither a big fan of the Michael Kors brand, nor of the glittery, bright blue bottle. But I stumbled upon a short review on another site where Mystique Shimmer was compared to a mix of Vanilla Coke and black pepper, and got intrigued. I'm happy to report that I get just that and more, and I love it. This is sweet, spicy and indeed somewhat mysterious. The black pepper is intense, you got to like hot spiciness to love this. I don't find it overwhelmingly dry though, as it has a lot of creamy musk and vanilla in the base to ground the peppery blast of the opening. No idea why vanilla isn't listed as a note, it's definitely there. Saffron is another main player here, it adds a slightly bitter depth to the scent that is especially noticeable in the drydown. What I appreciate most is that this feels very smooth, not scratchy and harsh like many other, sometimes more expensive scents with a similar notes profile. And it still lasts over night. What a lovely surprise! I will get a bottle as soon as possible, as this seems to be a limited release that is already sold out at many bigger retailers.

I just blind bought this today. I got a 3.4oz for only $39 at Marshall’s. I only bought it because I had heard so many positive reviews about this line, I had not heard this one talked about much though. I am so glad that I bought it! It is another hit for me! Exactly what I love, a unique (to my collection anyway), deep, dark mysterious and alluring scent! It is very spicy from that black pepper in the opening, but it quickly fades to the background, but remains present throughout, then you get a sweet creaminess from the vanilla and the warmth of the amber, and the woody notes that ground the scent. The floral notes are very light, but definitely present, it they weren’t, I think this would definitely lean more masculine. This is a heavy hitter for sure! Pretty strong and very long lasting I am so glad to have found this fragrance and will definitely be checking out the others from this line, if I’m able to find them.

Blind buy win right here!!! Purchased from Marshall’s at only $39 for 3.4oz. You will not find this online for cheaper than that. It smells divine!!! It’s smooth and creamy yet bold and mysterious. This fragrance is very well blended to my nose. The black pepper packs quite a lovely punch upon initial spray. On me, it settles quickly, introducing the saffron (which gives a light spicy tingle and clean smell) and then diving into a gorgeous woody amber. I can smell this for hours on myself. I could have sworn the projection on this wasn’t crazy, so I’m always surprised when I receive compliments on it. I do wish it was just a tad more loud throughout, as it is in the beginning. Either way, I’m so glad I took a chance on this fragrance after being very disappointed by MK glam jasmine. This is obvi a totally different fragrance, but reminded me never to judge an entire brand by one product.

I’m so thrilled that I found this—that I blind bought it at sight of scent notes, alone. Thank you for your existence, Fragrantica! This is giving me all the hippie, desert dreaming, wish I could wander to the East- vibes that I need right now. Right off the bat, I smell a mix of smokey amber and spice. The saffron is bold enough that I could literally cry tears of expensive spice joy! The pepper, the smoke- it’s all right at the top, with a musky-velvety fallback. I feel like I left a hookah lounge with cone of incense in my back pocket and am ready to go get a tarot reading at my favorite local metaphysical shop. I’m one happy lady! Don’t sleep on this one of any of the aforementioned mental images make you happy, too.

I would've never guessed from the listed notes I would fall in love with this perfume. It has the most pleasing saffron and bergamont opening. It's spicy and fizzy. Sprayed directly on my clothes and it kept the opening alive for over 12 hours. Despite the spiciness, it dries down smooth and creamy. This is Ari's Cloud Intense with a kick. Another point of reference, a mix of Cream Soda & Spice! I've fallen under the spell of this perfume. I enjoy it way more than I expected. It's captivating.

Although in the comments people recommended not to blind buy, I still went ahead and bought it anyways. And I’m not disappointed! I know I like more of a masculine smell and been looking for a woody fragrance for a while. It smells completely different on skin and clothes. On skin it’s very smooth and woody, on clothes it’s more musky and sweet. It definitely is a nighttime and winter fragrance as it is quite heavy bodied, but I did not disappoint myself with this one! Love it!

Blind buy based on your reviews and I am not disappointed. I love this scent. It's very different to perfumes I usually go for. It's woody, sweet, creamy, very mystique. First spray reminded me of Decadence which I can't stand on me, but few minutes later magic happens. I can still smell it on my clothes 4 days later, can't get enough of it. I was told I smell amazing (and that's enough for me) So thank you all, I wouldn't discover this beautiful bottle without you

If you find this at Marshall’s/TJMaxx snag it it’s a steal! The smell so mysterious, my love of saffron made me take the dive with this blind buy and so glad I did. The black pepper in the opening is a nice kick, then the saffron follows and you get the lovely woody amber musk base. The bottle is gorgeous too for MK. Glad to have this beauty in my collection. Def need be a fan of dark florals for this perfume to be a good blind buy.

So ignore the pyramid lol, this is a deep, sweet, resinous amber scent. I do also get the saffron- as someone mentioned below. Similar to starlight shimmer, even twilight shimmer but no oud here. This is sweet in a way that would be complimentary for anyone. It’s a rich smelling fragrance. Best suited for cold months. I think it’s beautiful

Was looking for a new warm & spicy wintery fragrance & this is definitely it! On first impression it leans more unisex to me, with its smoky & woody aroma it also gives me Moroccan souk vibes. I think it smells quite expensive & complex, so for the price I paid (£20 for 30ml) im really happy.

Michael Kors Mystique Shimmer is clean, peppery, dry, and woody-sweet. It's weird because I'm mildly anosmic to the top notes (maybe it's iso e super or something?) and I smell the scent much more as it intensifies in the drydown. After 15-20 minutes, the pepper and sweet woods come forward and it smells linear and warm all the way through (4 hours or so -- not gargantuan on me, at least, unless I'm actually anosmic to it!). It definitely smells good but it seems a little one dimensional or something. I have several Michael Kors perfumes (Glam Jasmine, Sexy Rio, White Luminous Gold, and Michael) and, in my estimation, Mystique Shimmer is the least complex of all. Because of this total surface quality, where all is revealed, Mystique Shimmer ironically doesn't SHIMMER; it doesn't pull on my heartstrings or fascinate me either. This morning, I put it on next to another peppery one, Hermes Twilly Eau Poivree -- that I love -- and, to my nose, that one just has more going on in it than Mystique Shimmer. Of the perfumes I'm familiar with, Mystique Shimmer maybe most closely resembles Calvin Klein Eternity Flame, though CKEF has a more resinous quality while MKMS is very dry; what they do share, though, is a sweet warmth and peppery note (but Flame has more orange in it and less woods). While I do like Mystique Shimmer, I have other perfumes in the same basic genre that I like way more so I think I'll pass it on to my daughter who commented on how good it smells.

This is a review based on my first wearing of Mystique Shimmer. I applied this after bathing and I was a little disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, it smells beautiful but on me it’s a ghost scent. I won’t get rid of my bottle though as it’s gorgeous and like I said, it smells beautiful so I’ll give it another go in the future.

Quite nice, has a tobacco/ cigarette smoke hint to it but not too off putting and very balanced.

Freshly cut white birch tree that is damp from morning dew - that may not sound like a nice scent but this is a fantastic perfume. Sweet wood that projects swell. Shimmer Mystique, Michael Malul Candy and Christian Siriano Midnight Sihouette have the same type scent - and I like them all - this one may be a little sweeter than the others.

Smells smokey like a campfire slightly gourmand to me

Nope. All of the Shimmers smell the same to my nose...With the exception of Midnight Shimmer. All of them (except Midnight) have that bitter saffron/leathery/oud note that I detest. I accidentally ordered this once instead of Midnight and I really think that they all smell the same-except Midnight. Maybe a little variation here or there between Twilight, Starlight and Mystique but all 3 have that bitterness. This is NOT a safe blind buy. None of them are except Midnight but Midnight is too expensive for what it is...a barely there powdery vanilla. It's pretty but I wouldn't buy it unless I found it at a deep discount. There are too many other frags like it to spend your cash on. But about this one, Mystique, NOPE!!! 👎👎👎

Do not blind buy this.. I blind bought this and it smells like a christian camp made into a spicy perfume...

Spice and woods! A completely different fragrance than I expected from the listed notes. Opens with a massive dose of pepper, buffered by saffron (saffron doesn’t have the same feel as the vibe it gives in starlight shimmer, that seems to pull sweet and this is the more typical suede type saffron). I’ve been wearing this all day in mild temperature with high humidity and no bergamot or floral notes ever showed up, and I only got here and there hints of amber. This is easily unisex, the most “feminine” thing about it is the bottle. Previous reviewer is right, after the spices in the top notes settle, a sweet brown sugared vanilla and musk develop, and it’s linear from that point onward. The musk is sharp, and I normally would hate a fragrance for that, but I think it keeps this from turning into a typical vanilla scent. Not a huge fan of most MK fragrances, but the shimmer line has been full bottle worthy for me, and this is my favorite among the collection. A great winter fragrance with a spunky, almost niche personality that I’m happy to have (:

The notes make this one seem more intimidating than it is. It’s a lot more crowd-pleasing than I thought, and more tame than Starlight & Twilight (both of those are *loud* powerhouses!!). I don’t pick up much on the black pepper- it’s there, I guess, but blended so coherently with everything else that it doesn’t stand out much (which is a good thing cuz I don’t like spicy 😅). It smells like very sweet resinous amber, saffron, and dry woods with just a tiny hint of black pepper (but again, it’s not spicy). Something about the drydown reminds me of a lipstick-type scent, similar to Givenchy L’Ange Noir 🤭. It’s a beautiful fragrance on its own, perfect for nighttime and colder weathers. It’s cozy, soft, and intimate ☺️ and the bottle is GORGEOUS

This was not what I was expecting at all. I was hoping for something in the vein of Midnight Shimmer but this leans more toward the scent if Twilight Shimmer because there is a non listed " jam like" note in this fragrance. It's a persistent jam note too, it stays throughout the lifespan of the scent. I didn't like the jam note in " Twilight" and I don't like it in "Mystique Shimmer" either. This scent did not live up to the listed notes on this page...I didn't smell half of the listed notes. I would have loved to smell tobacco, powder and leather but those listed notes were nonexistent to my nose.