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When I took the mail out of the letterbox two days ago and took out a large bubble envelope, I was initially perplexed. Had I recently ordered a sample? No, not that I knew of. Not knowing what to expect, I opened the envelope and suddenly the golden Creed logo shone out at me. Then it dawned on me: I had won! Almost overcome with surprise, I quickly grabbed a test strip and sprayed...

Creed... a house with history, with followers and also with enemies. Until now, I personally have not had any points of contact with this perfume icon, but I knew that Creed's fragrances are largely popular.

I was all the more surprised when I read the first reviews of this fragrance. Many thought it was too strong, too opulent, too synthetic. I can definitely agree, at least when it comes to strength. This fragrance is definitely not for queens who hide behind their king. No, the silk queen stands confidently in the spotlight with her head held high and presents herself in full splendor, and not for too short a time. The fragrance lasts forever on my skin and projects really well.

But what does our ruler smell like?
The fragrance starts with a strong osmanthus note and a magnolia accord. I can't really smell saffron here. There is an almost floral-exotic association at the beginning, underpinned by a hint of fruitiness, presumably passion fruit. The synthetics are perceptible in the opening and throughout, but they are not overly strong, as others have described here.
As the queen's life progresses, the tuberose comes to the fore and the osmanthus diminishes in strength, although the magnolia remains clearly perceptible. At the same time, the sweetness also recedes a little and a dark woody note, like a tragedy, emerges.
Following the tragedy, the queen finally reaches the end of her reign. She lies down to rest on a dreamlike, creamy bed of musk and vanilla, which will remain in the minds of her subjects for a long time to come.

Contrary to what some have described here, I find the fragrance almost prototypically feminine and would therefore classify it as feminine rather than unisex. At the beginning, Queen of Silk definitely smells similar to already known DNAs such as "Angel (Eau de Parfum) | Mugler", but develops into something very special as it progresses.

Many thanks again to Creed and Parfumo for the opportunity to be one of the first to test this fragrance!

If you ask me: "What is the most prototypical Christmas fragrance?", then one perfume is clearly ahead: Oajan.

I'm sure you've already read enough here about the associations with "Christmas market/fireplace evening/apple strudel". What I'm talking about in this review is a completely different, very exciting topic. When you discover a new fragrance, whether directly via Parfumo or via recommendations from YouTube and the like, you are quickly confronted with the fragrance notes, and this is where the mess begins.

I don't think I can just speak for myself: There are certain scents for me that I just can't stand. For me, these are sage, moss and, surprisingly, honey (as I sadly discovered when I tested "XJ 1861 Naxos | XerJoff". Unfortunately, it's not my cup of tea at all. Yes, I know, hate me :'D). But now you're asking yourself: "Yes, but the main ingredient in Oajan is honey, among other things, and you like that?". Yes! And that's what I want to get across with this review. Just because you don't like a fragrance note in one fragrance doesn't mean you won't like it in another. Features on Parfumo such as being able to state "I like" and "I don't like" on your profile unfortunately don't help at all with this topic, but rather exacerbate this kind of "black and white thinking". Of course, I'm not saying that you shouldn't like fragrances, but rather that you should continue to dare to try new things, even if you don't like them at first glance. As a result, I have always had great new discoveries myself, which I am very grateful for in retrospect.

Back to the fragrance, for me Oajan is simply the absolute dream of a gourmand. Vanilla, cinnamon, honey and amber are simply masterfully realized and beautifully interwoven. On my skin, I particularly smell the cinnamon and honey with a combination of amber. Unlike "Althaïr | Parfums de Marly", for example, Oajan doesn't undergo a particularly huge development, but it doesn't have to. The opening alone makes it absolutely unique for me and one of my favorites this winter.

This fragrance roars madness! Even among the other Parfums de Marly, which are already very strong, Oajan really takes the crown. Even on the coldest days, I didn't dare to apply more than 4 sprays. Even these were almost too much, so really be careful with the dosage! On the subject of longevity, I can also award the gold medal here. i can easily manage 11h+ in this weather!

I can recommend the Oajan 100%, even if it has its price, of course. In my eyes, it's definitely worth it!

I became aware of this fragrance through various Parfumo suggestions and videos on YouTube. What makes it so special? Many users write that it smells like "warm vanilla pudding". Ok?

So, as is so often the case, I first studied the fragrance pyramid. Personally, I love vanilla more than anything, and I really like saffron in most cases (not you "BR540"!). The "sweet" and "gourmand" fragrance categories are also my personal favorites in the fragrance world. So I was intrigued to try this one, so I just had a look in the souk to see what was on offer. And it's only now that I realize: it's so cheap! So (unfortunately), as is often the case, I didn't think about it and simply ordered a used bottle from the souk for just €20.

The fragrance arrives, I spray it on and... WOW!

I fall into a nostalgic coma. The summer of 2023, a dream of mine and my family finally came true: a trip to Japan! There, and especially throughout Asia, the convenience culture is huge. You can't walk 10 meters there without coming across the nearest セブンイレブン (7/11) or a ファミマート (Family Mart). And there, in the refrigerated section, there are these ready-made puddings everywhere. I'm really not a big fan of puddings in general and certainly not of ready-made ones. And yet... When I smelled this scent, I found myself right on a hot summer night at around 1:00 am on the outskirts of Kyōto. I'm sitting by the river, just happy, and my brother is sitting next to me with this very pudding in his hand. How I miss this moment!

So now to the fragrance: it could have just been called "Replica - Afternoon Dessert" and I would have bought it.
It opens strongly vanilla-like, the saffron slightly flattering in the background. Musk also joins in quite quickly, the result: a very sweet, incredibly delicious vanilla pudding that I would just love to eat.

Longevity and sillage are rather poor, as described several times and can also be seen in the reviews. The fragrance is only perceptible close to the skin after about 2 hours and only lasts for about 5 hours. I wouldn't generally wear this fragrance when I leave the house. I think it's really beautiful, but I can't think of an occasion in everyday life when I would want to smell like vanilla pudding. But it's all the nicer for the colder days when you can just sit at home in the warmth and relax in front of the fireplace.

The price is unbeatable! I have yet to find a gourmand that costs so little and that I like so much at the same time. Excuse my cheesy story, but this aspect makes this fragrance one of my favorites. A clear recommendation for anyone who loves vanilla!

I think most would agree with me when I say that Herod/Oajan are truly masterpieces of Parfums de Marly, and even as niche fragrances, are very crowd-pleasing. Pegasus Exclusif is just the opposite here. I have never smelled an edgier fragrance anywhere. Unfortunately, this is not meant positively.

Since I had already tested "Pegasus | Parfums de Marly" and know the other fragrances in the pyramid of "Pegasus Exclusif | Parfums de Marly" quite well, I thought I could roughly estimate how the fragrance smells. But far from it!

The fragrance starts with a cardamom accord that really overshadows EVERYTHING. Heliotrope I smell unfortunately not at all or if then only slightly out and also the bitter almond is unfortunately quite late in the dry down perceptible. If I were to really compare Pegasus and Pegasus Exclusif, I would say "they are two completely different scents!". The only thing the two share is a HINT of bitter almond in the later accord (in the Exclusif), otherwise they are like yin and yang:
"Pegasus Exclusif | Parfums de Marly" is strongly spicy, woody, no hint of sweetness in the opening. For this, it becomes later all the more flattering.

"Pegasus | Parfums de Marly" on the other hand scores with its insanely good ("metallic") opening and then later becomes quite unspectacular.

So why is this fragrance so ambivalent now? The course that this fragrance makes is really amazing. As much as I loathe the Opening, the more I like the Dry Down. Starting with pure spiciness/earthiness, it later becomes almost a gourmand prototype. The opening is so incredibly spicy that even for me, a cardamom fan, it's really too much. I just miss a little variety here, like a slight sweetness for example. The "Nuit d'Issey Polaris | Issey Miyake" does that wonderfully, for example. Both have this incredibly spicy/earthy opening, but the Polaris combines that with a great, gentle sweetness and rounds the whole thing off very nicely.

So what can be said about my rating? The opening is really "unique", for that the dry down is really wonderful. Durability and sillage are really out of this world. I got a sample of which I was told, it would still be from an old power batch, I believe that gladly! The fragrance lasts on my skin easily over 10 hours. To the bottle I can not say anything about this fragrance specifically now, but have myself a Herod and can conclude based on it, I think, quite well on this: Very well processed, valuable, heavy especially (thanks to the massive cap) and a great sprayer to it!

This Marly is for me personally nothing, but that does not have to apply to all. Tests him calmly anyway times, even if my review was so "devastating".

... and suddenly, a whisper. Only slightly perceptible and yet present, just like this scent. I walk along the corridor with my book in the direction of the whisper. Suddenly it falls silent. A smart-looking girl/boy, "Dark Academia" style, scurries past me. And suddenly the scent of the library around me, coupled with vanilla, hits my nose. Dreamlike!

"Whispers in the Library" is, in my opinion, a very unusual fragrance. For me, the opening really smells one-to-one like the remote corridors of the law library where I always cram for university. Old, papyrus-like and musty, but not badly musty. Somehow homely. There's also a little pepper and benzoin, which round off the top note perfectly.

The fragrance has a great progression. The top note lingers for quite a long time, relative to the fragrance's longevity, and only gradually fades after around 2 hours. Instead of orange blossom, vanilla is now added and the patchouli is replaced by great woods. As others have already mentioned, this fragrance becomes a little spicier/woody in the dry down, but I still find it more than suitable for both sexes.

Unfortunately, the longevity is really the only thing that doesn't make the fragrance "perfect". On my skin, it ends after a maximum of 6 1/2 hours. The fact that the sillage is so "weak" is also a shortcoming that is often reported. However, I don't find this so bad, because I prefer to wear a more subtle fragrance in the library anyway, one that doesn't project so strongly so as not to disturb others. Only the longevity could really be better.

Otherwise, the usual things you would expect from a replica fragrance: high-quality bottle, good spray head and I think the price is more than reasonable.