Shanghai Lily

A lot more unisex to me. You’ve gotta be ok with florals at the top. The dry down has this clove incense shaving foam vibe. Really stunning!

This one has so much going on in the best way. It's Lily yes, but it's also woody and sweet and smoky and ambery... I actually really dislike clove, but there are so many other smells going on in this fragrance that I hardly even notice it. Devastatingly beautiful is right!

Reminiscing about this absolute gem - I miss it! To me this was like a spicy, luxury Coca Cola! It was fizzy and energetic while still being warm, syrupy and a little sweet. Airy, fresh lily and florals kept it from being heavy or sticky, while the spices kept it feeling deep, dark and mysterious. A whole mood. 🐉 I only had a small decant which I kept I my bag. One day it broke and my whole bag smelled of this forever. It seemed like if I accidentally fell into my bag, like Alice down the rabbit hole, I’d end up in a film noir where I was the only person in Technicolor. 💃🏻 Gorgeous. Tom Ford if you’re listening please bring it back! If you’re not listening, Amouage, Kayali, SOMEONE remake this spicy effervescent dreamscape please 🙏

This fragrance is pure poetry. Out of my entire Tom Ford collection, Shanghai Lily is the one I could never part with (alongside Violet Blonde). A true, unforgettable masterpiece.

this is a masterpiece. when i read the “devastatingly beautiful” remark on this i thought i must buy it. and i am so glad i did. it is dark, warm, melancholic and unforgettable. it is like a warm spicy incense. also slightly sweet. however it is not just sweet spice. it has a floral tone that lingers through it. this perfume does something to me like no other. it is cinematic, almost like a poem and deserves to be appreciated.

Got my hands on a sample and of course I had to fall in love. If anyone is selling a full bottle please get in touch.

If any of the copies that I have encountered are anything at all like the original then she must be staggeringly beautiful - tragic to know that she is so rare and horrendously expensive to possess now although perhaps that is how she endures now as an untainted iconic legend that we can dream about - immaculate original beauty perfectly protected from uninspired flankers and cruel reformulation! There is beauty in some of the copies - and we also have other divine creations to love like Amber of Yemen by Nabeel , Bengal Rouge by Papillon and Smolderose by January Scent Project - such beauty in perfume to scent our senses enrich our emotions and let stardust touch our skin!

Big fan of this joint. It's rich, spicy, and stupid smooth

I can't put in words what this scent does to me every time I spray it. I love it so much and cherish it like no other in my collection. I can not find anything like it and I've been searching. Somebody told me to look at Arabic perfumes and I will because I need to find something to replace it.

Knowingly referencing Marlene Dietrich's character from Shanghai Express was, of course, an easy grab at sexualized glamour for Tom Ford (himself). "It took more than one man (...woman, ...unisex wearer) to change my name to Shanghai Lily". Of course, with it becoming a rarity, finding a replacement requires the seeker to recall a now charmingly antiquated term: Floriental, ...and it seems the 'This perfume reminds me of' section has largely dropped the ball here. ...Furthermore, the most promising direction in which to search is farther back into the vintage realm. (Shanghai Express was filmed in 1932, nothing about this concept is screaming modernity). A few choice cuts to begin your seach (not necessarily end it) would be Spellbound, Oscar (De La Renta), and perhaps even Giorgio Red (...Did I just recommend Giorgio Red!?!) Of course, for those daringly creative types who can put together an outfit or even mix paint, there is another grand possibility: Layering! Experiment with adding together a choice Floral + a spice-laden Oriental (How intuitive.) Start with a standard 1:1 ratio, but later you might want to increase the floral proportion. ...and always remember, roughly speaking, notewise: cloves = clove pinks = carnation = eugenol.

I'll begin this review with a warning -- this one has been discontinued for a while and can be difficult to find/expensive. (Which is why I'm trying to avoid loving it, and resigning myself to just liking my decant instead. At least, that's what I'm trying to tell myself. How's that working out for me? It isn't.) This one opens with a distinct clove note on me, which is actually quite likeable, and plays with the gentle swirl of spices; my skin seems to amplify the subtle pepper note for the first half hour or so. Once it settles in, I am treated to a mix of still-spiced florals that calls to mind lilies, but doesn't imitate them precisely -- there are other blooms in play here (most notably, hints of jasmine and tuberose, but it may unfold differently on you). It feels like an idealized portrait of the flower, not an actual flower, with a hint of resins and smoke that is meant to enhance and doesn't overwhelm. This one stays fairly consistent and doesn't change too much throughout the day -- it merely grows softer and sits closer to the skin as the hours pass, leaving the wearer with a pleasantly spiced whiff of a deep, rich, bouquet that people might notice if they get close to you. I didn't find it to be a room-filling scent. (Others seem to have had different experiences, though, so test this out on a day off before wearing it out. Maybe I'm an outlier and my skin just eats this perfume for breakfast.) This is a nice quality for a perfume to have if you want something that feels opulent, but doesn't announce your presence before you enter the room. (I love vintage Opium, but there's a time and a place -- Shanghai Lily is more adaptable and less forward than Opium.) Fragrances often paint a picture in my mind, and make me imagine a place or a person. Shanghai Lily feels like a character in a film noir -- in fact, that's what the people in her social circle call her. She's an independent woman of means who has traveled extensively, and she fluidly incorporates the customs and charms of the countries she has visited into her own routine. She's warm, but you have to get to know her before you experience her softer side. On the rare occasion that she smokes, she uses a long, elegant cigarette holder made of bakelite. Her hair is smoothed and perfectly waved, her fringed lashes frame intelligent eyes, and her eyebrows are plucked and arched like a 1940s Hollywood starlet. Everything is in its place. A glittering brooch adorns her bias-cut black velvet dress. The private detective whose office she strode into is enchanted by her bearing and self-possessed demeanor; if, indeed, she does have a problem, she will solve it by hiring the right person and taking prudent action. Another thing to bear in mind -- the perfume itself is a vibrant color, so be careful when spraying!

To me this smells like a flower patch or flower boutique, the scent of assorted flowers and an undertone of forest (wood and cloves) with some slight pepper. It is beautiful and easy to wear, I would say it is a feminine fragrance, but it could easily be worn by a man. I would say this a spring and autumn scent; as it is now sweet enough for summer, nor deep and loud enough for winter. I find this scent enchanting and to be so authentic to the scent of a flower boutique, that I think I will always keep some of the fragrance. My only issue is that it is discontinued and that has affected the price.

This smells like when you enter a flowershop in the fall or Christmas. Heavy dose of cloves and spices hit your nose first, then a mixture of different florals as they linger in the air ready for bouquets. Super unique, can’t stop smelling my hand where I sprayed it. Love Tom Ford, especially the oldies. They are complex scents, not for everyone. This one is a beauty, glad I found a full bottle a a great price.

It's the clove that is too prominent for me here. My nose can't handle it. Weirdly, it reminds me of the dentist office.

I wish Tom Ford would bring this back. It’s one of my favorite scents.

This perfumscent is like the mix of Chanel no.5, Givenchy Organza and YSL Opium 😍 It's a georgeous masterpiece of perfumes ever.

This perfume reminds me of the scene in Sleepy Beauty where Aurora is spellbound and walking into the room where the spindle is waiting to prick her finger on her 16th birthday. Dark, gothic, musty, dense night blooming flowers and a single flickering flame. Terrifying yet mesmerizing in its intoxication, like you want to be cursed into a deep slumber, where your dreams are filled with the most enchanting smells you never want to wake up, even by a handsome prince.

Batch - A98 (2018) Shanghai Lily is a very soft floral fragrance super well blended and very smooth. Everything from the spices at the top to the ambery base is just perfect. You smell the florals the roses the spices the vanilla and the harshness from the peppers at the top. I get a little bit of a metallic smell but its not bad at all. Nice Longevity of 6+ hours and 1 to 2 hours of projection. Its perfectly unisex in my opinion. Another captivating scent from this house. Sadly they don't make scents like these anymore 6.5/10

I would like to sell my 50ml bottle (without the box). It is 98% full. https://photos.app.goo.gl/pFyaFfYyjsn1iQPJ9 If you're interested, please note that: 1. I'm from the UAE and couriers don't do air shipping for perfumes for individuals here. The only way I can think of is to send the bottle with someone you trust who is traveling from the UAE to your country. 2. I don't have a price in mind so reach out with your best offer please (after doing a market value research). Unreasonable offers will be ignored. Please email me: [email protected] I don't check my DMs here often.

How feminine is this fragrance? Could a guy wear this comfortably?

sweet orange, clove, and pepper. orchid salicylates and the airy quality of lillies. sour under-ripeness of flowers. smooth/supple. stem notes and frankincense hidden in the background as support and to bolster the lifelike floral impression? the incense gets stronger as if gradually wafting in from another room! it sharpens and defines the scent over time. while the juice has sweetened and lost some of its fullness (soapier than i remember in ~2017), it still unfolds on the skin and blooms into a dark, spicy scent cloud

This is an incredibly smooth and beautiful fragrance. It has spicy notes and I mostly feel the spices and amber. I actually barely feel the florals. Instead it's smooth, vanilla-like cozy without the sweet undertones, dark and creamy. It even feels slightly creamy like some people feel. I fully agree with them. I like that it does not possess the common rose and oud combo. Instead, it's more Eastern and enticing.

Tom Ford's Shanghai Lily is a beautiful blend of spicy florals, rich vanilla, and creamy lily. It’s a warm floral oriental that radiates an alluring and intoxicating air that lingers languorously. A great night time or special occasion fragrance for cooler weather.

It's Sunday, December 31, 1961, 10:30 pm, and eight year old you just stepped into the elevator in a Manhattan apartment building. Six women in furs are among those in the elevator on their way from the final performance of 'Irma la Douce' to a party, dressed in extravagant chic and perfumed with spicy rich florals. You lean into the throng, inhaling drowsily, and this is what you smell. Love it.

If anyone is interested I have a 50ml bottle batch code (AC7) just sprayed it twice so its new. Im in saudi arabia

Oud Satin from Ministry of Oud has a similar profile to the Shanghai Lily, those who miss this scent profile should check out the alternative I suggested. Oud Satin from Ministry of Oud is more rose-heavy but the earthy nature and the balsamic notes match with Shanghai Lily with a similar powdery soft dry-down.

An enticing (and perhaps clever) blend of YSL classic Opium, and YSL (Tom Ford era) gem Nu. The experience overall tends to favor Nu EDP in terms of the comparisons. SL starts out ambery, almost humid, which the others do not. I like this about it. Opium is drier, spicier, softer (at least 90's and earlier versions) but it's definitely a cousin in this first phase. SL loses the rich roundness, but not totally, and later the spice is more like Nu. I actually think Nu gives more outward vanilla than this, though vanilla isn't a prominent note in Nu (it's said to be Orchid). Floral makes a small impression, but it's there and compared with the other notes, makes it lighter. But this is elegant but verging on loud, reminds of when perfumes did that, and I loved that. I love Tom Ford when the man was actually involved, and it wasn't just his name. I might eventually want this. But at this point, all of these: vintage Opium, the original Nu (hockey disc version), and Shanghai Lily are long gone, with resale prices to match.

Man. I'm a sucker for Tom Ford, let alone the names of his fragrances. Plum Japonais, Rose de Chine, Shanghai Lily?! I mean, come on! I bought a 8ML decant off the internet, just fascinatingly curious about how these old school TF releases really smelled. That being said, this one is a bit complicated for me to break down, I'd just defer it to others. But! The longevity and sillage are bonkers. I work from home and always spritz myself right after a shower and getting dressed. This hands down has some bonkers longevity. I sprayed myself maybe once or twice around 4-5PM, went outside in Florida humidity to run errands and pulled up Shanghai Lily on here just to leave this review, it's still going!

It's a masterpiece, perfectly blended and absolutely well balanced! One of the best if not the best of Tom Ford. The spicy oriental lily accord is rich and realistic but at the same time tender and sophisticated. The vanilla and rose notes give a delicate undertone to the main solo of the lilies enriching the floral sound of the scent. Resins, being a natural and inseparable part of the whole, ground but do not weigh down the composition. Generally, Shanghai Lily sounds very monolithic despite the fact that it consists of many various notes of different registers. Jasmin, cashmere, castoreum, citrusy and woody notes and many others play one beautiful melody - an oriental song of the lily, heavenly stunning and unforgettable.

Spicy hyperrealistic lilies, the spice and floral accords do a sort of tango; vanilla and benzoin may switch partners but the spice and florals are the stars of the show. Very lucky to have been gifted my bottle years ago, I don't think you can find this anywhere for any price these days. Major projector, emanates in waves off the skin, definitely leaves a trail. Best suited in cool/cold weather, major compliment getter.