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356 community ratings
Guerlain

Cruel Gardénia

Perfumer: Randa Hammami

2008WomenClassic
7.5/ 10
Community score
356 ratings
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Guerlain Cruel Gardénia is a fresh, floral women's fragrance that most voters place in spring and summer, easy to wear through the day.

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Skunky's take: A card-carrying member of the fresh club.

How does it perform?

From 283 community ratings, all out of 10.

Longevity
6.8 /10

Keeps you company for a few hours, a quick refresh fits nicely.

Sillage
6.3 /10

Leaves a light trail and stays polite in a crowd.

Bottle
8.5 /10

Talks even from the shelf.

Value for money
6.1 /10

The price makes you think, so a small size is a smart start.

Blind buy risk

Low risk

77% of votes are positive and opinions barely differ.

Notes

They open one after another, from the first spray into the evening.

Top notesfirst 15 minutes

Heart notesfirst few hours

Base noteswhat stays into the evening

Accords

From most dominant to most subtle.

  1. Fresh
  2. Floral
  3. Green
  4. Sweet
  5. Woody
  6. Powdery
  7. Creamy

What does Cruel Gardénia smell like?

Its longevity and sillage are rated moderate. It leans towards daytime, leisure and office wear, and is picked less often for evenings and nights out. Most voters find it feminine.

It opens with Damask rose, peach and neroli, fresh and lightly sweet. In the heart, ylang-ylang, gardenia and white musk add a creamy, powdery softness. The base of sandalwood, tonka bean and vanilla dries down woody and sweet, with a green touch running through.

How it changes through the day

  1. First minutes

    • Damask rose
    • Peach
    • Neroli
  2. First hours

    • Ylang-ylang
    • Gardenia
    • White musk
  3. Towards evening

    • Sandalwood
    • Tonka bean
    • Vanilla

When to wear it?

Seasons and occasions, by user votes.

  • 35%
    Spring
  • 29%
    Summer
  • 23%
    Autumn
  • 13%
    Winter
  • Daytime
    25%
  • Casual
    22%
  • Office
    21%
  • Evening
    16%
  • Nighttime
    15%

Least picked for nights out.

Smells like this

The closest scents by notes and accords.

Comparisons

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Last updated: October 26, 2026