S

*Price: 20 - 30 $ for a full size. Not an extremely cheap perfume, but not too expensive at all. *Bottle: I personally consider it is a beautiful bottle resembling Aladdin's magic lamp. I have no problem with the stopper, I consider it looks beautiful, but it makes an annoying sound everytime it hits with the bottle, which is all the time. *Smell: In the first minutes it casts a noticeable scent of citrics, peach and passion fruit, which are notes that are not listed here, but they are in the perfume, and you can definitely feel them. They quickly fade away and jasmine appears. Jasmine is very noticeable and it gives a sort of "clean" scent to it, a little bit like soap or a floral body lotion. I can also feel a light trace of the cinnamon, making the perfume a little spicey, but you really need to smell it closely to feel it, it's almost imperceptible. Then, it develops into an amazing oriental vanilla. I can understand why some people say it smells like cookies or stuff like that, but for me, this is definitely not a gourmand vanilla, its sexier than that, not a regular vanilla from Victoria's Secret or Bath and Body works. Vanilla and benzoin (which smells kind of like vanilla too) compete on a par with jasmine, even though the vanilla is a little more noticeable, but the jasmine breaks the sweetness of it, and that's something that makes it different from other vanilla perfumes. Either way, it is a sweet perfume. Amber is also present, giving a sort of "heat" vibe to the perfume, as if it were embracing you. And finally, sandalwood, GOD, this is the most delicious note ever, it provides a powder scent. I have read comments in other websites about this perfume smelling like baby powder, and yes, it does, but not in an unpleasent and overwhealming way, it's more like a mixture of body lotion or some sort of soap, vanilla and baby powder. Delicious and comforting. *Ocassion: Even though it has a mixture of notes as for being a winter or fall perfume, it's soft enough for being perfectly suitable in summer and spring. I personally like to wear this for work because it's not too casual, not too formal, neither childish nor classic. *Age range: 15 - 110 (haha, yes). It's not too juvenile, not too mature, simply suitable for all ages. *Lasting power: long lasting, 12 hours on skin (timed). It lasts way more on clothes. *Sillage: weak, 1 hour top. Then, it stays close to the skin. This can turn out into a negative or positive thing, depending on what you're looking for. If you want a killing perfume, something to blow people away, this is not for you, but if you want something for the daily basis, something not too strong and intoxicating, something that guarantees that you're not going to sofocate yourself or anybody else with your smell, this is perfect. It is not a compliment getter, but it's with this one that I received the best compliment of all times.

Apparently I am on a celeb fragrance testing spree, and Shakira S is my most recent encounter. Looking at the design of the flacon - the actual glass part is nice enough, but I think the gold matte metal looks tacky. It wouldn't necessarily keep me from buying the fragrance if I enjoyed it enough, and being that the fragrance itself isn't overly pricey I guess I couldn't expect a whole lot of money/effort to go into the container... Fragrance wise, I don't find this one to be an overly seductive, original scent, but I do like it. It seems very simple to me, a basic vanilla-jasmine blend, not overly woody or complex. For the price, I think this is an enjoyable enough fragrance, and I think it would be a scent for daily use when you just want something simple and comforting. The lasting power is decent, but sillage is next to nothing. It would take close quarters to be able to smell this on another person, which makes this ideal for office environments. At least on my skin, any comparion to candy or sweets is, thankfully, misleading. While "S" is somewhat sweet, which is to be expected with prominent vanilla, it isn't edible. The jasmine is just strong enough to keep the vanilla in check. I also don't find this overly woody, and is definitely feminine - no masculine vibe here! I wouldn't say to expect spectacular performance from "S", but it does the job. UPDATE: Interesting.. as I am wearing this, I am getting a slight woody note that is almost cedar like... I really have to try to discern it, doesn't stand out, but it is interesting... I kind of like that! UPDATE #2: I have worn this a few more times since reviewing and I have to say, each time I wear it I like it more and more! It is a really simple, linear perfume. There is something really "zen" about this perfume - it is relaxing in an interesting way, and I find myself really enjoying it. :)

I just noticed that those of us who blind bought this scent loved it. With no expectations or preconceived ideas about what the scent notes were, we really enjoy it. ***I came on to add that if I use baby oil [Johnson's] after my shower in the morning, it prolongs the life of this perfume a HUGE amount. It went from 4-6 hours to over 12. Johnson's Baby Oil has a pretty neutral scent, and I wish I could find out what the "fragrance" in that is, but either way, it did not change the scent of the perfume. I have a sneaking suspicion that the insanely over chlorinated water that we have in my town may be partly responsible for perfume's changing on my skin, in addition to whatever my chemistry does. This was somewhat confirmed over the summer when I used a perfume after being in a pool that uses a salt-water filtration system. The scent was beautiful! I think the salt provided a barrier to or somehow neutralized all of the chlorine from my shower. Just thought some of my fellow Fragrantica reader's might be interested in seeing if this helps the longevity of their 'fumes, or neutralize the effects of chemicals in public water supplies. :)

I got mine just few minutes ago. I bought it by 45 USD from eBay and from one hand I truly think that S is worth its price but from the other hand I'm still a little bit disappointed, because I expected a bigger quantity by this price. Really, I LOVE this smell! It's perfect for me. While Beyonce's Heat is for a naughty girl in my opinion S by Shakira is for a kind, good girl. Or that's just the spirit I sense when smelling this and seeing Shakira's official TV commercial. Might sound strange but I think this a BEAUTIFUL smell. And it's not too strong to my nose but unfortunately the scent fades a way little by little. Anyway, S smells so wonderful that I would have bought a bigger bottle. Really, now that I have this unique smell I don't want it to end... And it will still take too long until this fragrance arrives in the Finnish market (got mine from Spain). A romantic smell that reminds me of the summer sun... so does this luminous goldish colour of the bottle too. This bottle's shape resembles to Aladdin's magic lamp. A very pleasant fragrance.

Shakira has managed to produce one celeb vanilla base fragrance that I DO like. You know, this fragrance matches her well, too, with her incredibly sexy moves & provocative songs with their rhythmic heart. She oozes smoldering Latina sex appeal in her own uniquely mesmerizing way. The simplicity of this fragrance is astounding in it's ability to seem more complex. I think the benzoin is what I always detect that helps add to it's unique appeal. The jasmine is seductive as always & the pronounced sandlewood scent is strong enough to keep this from being just another vanilla scent. The vanilla is soft, not too sweet, & what sweetness evolves on me is the jasmine. It does manage to pull off my favorite of the florals---the orientals. This is a drugstore treasure at it's affordable price & works well as any time go to staple.