parfums de marly

Valaya by Parfums de Marly

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Valaya is a Parfums de Marly release that they came out with in 2023. I bought a sample of this perfume, as a part of a larger order, since I hadn’t ever tried this one out. Really, I had no expectations as to what it was or how it smelled, just a curiosity as to what PdM had come up with.

How does Valaya smell? Does it last long? Is it actually worth a try?

Valaya by PdM Overview

Notes include: aldehydes, orange blossom, peach, bergamot, mandarin, musk, vanilla, lily of the valley, vetiver, nympheal, mahonia, akigalwood, musk, ambroxan

Click here to try: Valaya by PdM 

My Full Review

Here’s what Parfums de Marly has to say about Valaya: a sensual and elegant fragrance opening with bergamot, mandarin, and sweet white peach, leading to a blend of white flowers settling on musk, vanilla, and woody base notes.

Valaya starts off with its fruity notes being prominent, but not completely dominating the early mix. Bergamot has a few minutes of run at the top, with some light mandarin, before the sweeter peach takes over.

The perfume has a rather sharp freshness due to that fruit accord and the aldehydes. For me, the aldehydes are slightly more heavily weighted in the opening versus the musk, but that will reverse.

Even in the opening, the musk isn’t weak. It feels very shampoo-like on my skin, at this early stage.

Valaya does settle down into something with a less ‘screechy’ aroma, after 5-10 minutes. Mainly, I think it’s the citrus quieting down that allows this one to become more pleasant.

Once I’m at this point, the floral notes become noticeable. I mostly get the orange blossom note, and the lily of the valley, doesn’t feel distinct here. It’s sort of orange blossom with a generic floral smell.

Maybe that’s what Nympheal is supposed to be? I’m not sure what that ingredient is. Perhaps that’s the somewhat odd synthetic scent that I pick up or just a mix with the ambroxan.

The middle act is a sweetish floral with a dose of musk and vanilla. On me, the aldehydes begin to really dissipate. There is some powder here, but it wasn’t too strong on me. Also, Valaya takes on a woodier profile in the base.

That’s really the final transition. Musk with some vanilla and woods, is the thrust of it. A general sweetness and floral impression remains sitting underneath.

Sillage, longevity, and versatility

Valaya opens up with some strong intensity. The result is a fairly far reaching fragrance that doesn’t need to many sprays to get attention.

It will settle down. I still find it to be strong, maybe on the upper end of moderate? Nonetheless, this isn’t a perfume that ever felt weak or insubstantial in any way.

The longevity is actually quite good. I got more than 9 hours of wear with this one, on my skin. Spraying it on clothes, Valaya is a fragrance that will just keep going and going.

Seasonally, this is for sure a spring and summer fragrance. Between the fruits, flowers, and aldehydes…the decision is pretty much made up for you.

Definitely a daytime wear, also. Something like a daily wear or something that you can just wear around casually when the sun is out. I don’t find Valaya to be sexy at all. Just clean and fresh for the most part. So, no romantic wear or nightlife with this one.

Overall Impressions of Valaya

Overall, do I like Valaya? Not really. If it were an inexpensive scent, it’d be okay. At this price? It’s a complete pass for me.

It started getting on my nerves during the wear, not completely headache inducing, but I wasn’t really enjoying having this perfume on either.

The opening is too sharp. The middle is somewhat better, but synthetic. The dry down is probably when I liked this scent the most.

Is it terrible? No, just nothing that really demands most people run out and buy it.

The performance is really quite good. So, if you’re one who really loves this for whatever reason, you do get some value in that respect.

This isn’t among Parfums de Marly’s best fragrances for women. It seems like one that I will forget about in a few months.

Perfume Comparison: Angels’ Share vs Oajan

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Angels’ Share and Oajan are two fragrances which fulfill a distinct role in the winter months. That of the sweet and spicy perfume laden with cinnamon and highly attractive. However, since both are expensive to acquire and have so much overlap, they can often be the final two options that people need to decide between.

Well, on this page, I break down each of these unisex fragrances and compare them across categories. Which smells better? Lasts longer? Is the better buy?

Tale of the Tape: Angels’ Share vs Oajan

Angels’ Share

Notes include: cognac, tonka bean, oak, cinnamon, praline, vanilla, sandalwood

Click here to try: Angels’ Share at Sephora

Read my review: Angels’ Share by Kilian

Oajan

Notes include: tonka bean, cinnamon, honey, vanilla, benzoin, musk, labdanum, patchouli, and more

Click here to try: Parfums de Marly Oajan EDP Spray, 4.2 oz

My Full Review: Oajan

Opening

Oajan kicks off with the cinnamon note being joined by benzoin and the tonka bean. Add to that, the continuing emergence of the osmanthus note, which adds the fruity-like sweetness to the mix.

It’s a bold and spice heavy opening act. Fresh and dark, with a thick warmth from the honey beginning to come through after 5 minutes or so.

Angels’ Share starts of with its signature cognac, oak, and its tonka bean note. The cognac has an apple-like sweetness to it, which is great.

The sweetness is enhanced by the inclusion of vanilla and praline. Which all plays well off of the spicy punch of the cinnamon note.

Which is better? It’s actually a very close decision for me, as I really enjoy how both of these perfumes start off.

But, I might slightly lean towards Angels’ Share. It’s boozy sweetness is better balanced with its toned down cinnamon note. Oajan can be rather intense that way. Not a massive win for the Kilian, but it takes this category.

Edge: Angels’ Share

Projection

So, with older batches of Oajan, this would’ve been a fairly straightforward win for it.

Now, it’s closer to being a toss up. The opening act is stronger and heavier with the PdM scent versus Angels’. That projection still packs a punch. However, it doesn’t sustain it for as long as it used to before settling into something more in the upper moderate range.

Angels’ Share doesn’t start off as strong, but it’s also got itself a good reach. It too settles into an upper moderate level.

That being said, Oajan still has an edge with this one. Not as much as it used to, but it fends off the Kilian.

Edge: Oajan

Longevity

With Angels’ Share, I get 9-13 hours of wear on my skin. It’s a really good performer like most of these colder weather scents.

Older batches of Oajan used to last 11-12 hours for me. With my current bottle, it only seems to get to about 9 hours. Or, the lowest of what I get with the Kilian perfume. Those last few hours aren’t exactly strong, either.

So, Angels’ Share takes it, nowadays.

Edge: Angels’ Share

Versatility

Both of these are cold weather fragrances. Neither is for formal wear.

While each is technically unisex, Oajan leans more masculine, than actually being something that most women would reach for.

I wear each of these for casual to semi-formal situations. Lots of the time, it’s for nights out or when I just want something substantial and cozy to have on.

There’s not much distinction here, other than Angels’ Share being more of a unisex fragrance. So, I guess that I’ll give it the slight edge.

Edge: Angels’ Share

Overall Scent

Overall, which of these fragrances do I prefer?

Obviously, since I own bottles of each of them, I think that they’re both great scents. As such, it’s more like I’d choose one 6 times out of 10 versus the other.

I’d lean that fragrance being Angels’ Share. It’s not always my favorite between them, as sometimes I dislike the praline note and how it presents. But, that cognac is great with the oak and other sweetness.

I will say, for most men, Oajan might be the one to go with. It doesn’t have the same level of sustained sweetness as Angels’ Share, though, it definitely is sweet and has periods where that sticky honey note really pops.

Angels’ Share in its current form, just does most everything a bit better than Oajan in its newer releases. That might change again, at some point. For now, I’d opt for the boozy Kilian perfume.

Winner: Angels’ Share

Kalan by Parfums de Marly

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Kalan is a Parfums de Marly release, that I never got around to when it came out back in 2019. I’ve had the sample for a long while now, just sitting in a box, so I figure it’s high time that I gave it a full review. How does this one smell? Does Kalan last long? Is it worth a try?

What does Kalan Smell Like?

Notes include: blood orange, black pepper, spices, orange blossom, lavender, sandalwood, moss, woods, amber, tonka bean

Click here to try: Kalan by PdM

kalan marly review

My Full Review

Here’s how PdM describes it: Intense and subtle at once- Kalan surprises with a sparkling opening, blending black pepper and spices with fresh notes of blood orange. The fragrances is embodied through a heart of orange blossom and lavender, while it evolves as facets of white sandalwood unfold and drape into notes of moss and precious wood.

The opening is a blast of the blood orange note and the spices. The black pepper is going to be the most noticeable under the juicy and sparkling citrus. But, there are some other spices lurking about.

Two other notes that I pick up early are: orange blossom and moss. The mossy aspect of this really comes through in the opening act, on my skin.

The next phase will be a mix of the moss, lavender, and the remaining blood orange influence. For me, most of the spice has dissipated by this point in the wear. It feels like a woodsy floral blend with some sweetness and amber peaking in.

As we move forward in the wear, earthy woods that is softened by lavender, with hints of amber is basically what I get. Lots of sandalwood, moss, and just sort of damp and generic smelling wood notes.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

With Kalan, I do get a pretty bold start. A strong projection and solid scent trail in your wake for an hour or so.

After that, it stays above average with its performance. I can detect it a good 4-6 feet from where I sprayed Kalan on a t-shirt, after a few hours. It of course will diminish into something more intimate, but it takes a while to get there.

On my skin, this will go up to about 9 hours. It may last a little longer or a tad less than that, but eight or nine is what Kalan seems to be capable of. Not too bad with its longevity.

Seasonally, this could be worn basically anytime outside of the height of summer. It’s fine when it’s temperate to warm out, but the hotter days wouldn’t be ideal for Kalan.

It’s spice, citrus, and woodiness to provide a good blend that can work in autumn and winter, while also being fine when things get somewhat warmer.

With that, Kalan can work in daytime and nighttime, but I don’t find it to be a particularly sexy fragrance. Again, it has the boldness to serve as a nightlife option, but there are better fragrances for that.

It’s not so heavy that it can’t work as an office scent. Though, I’d still go light with it, in that situation.

Overall Impressions of Kalan

Overall, do I like Kalan? Honestly, it’s not for me. It’s a pretty unique scent, isn’t going to have mass appeal, and this PdM isn’t one that I enjoyed wearing. It wasn’t terrible, but I never got into it.

Even as something with a unique style, there’s nothing about Kalan that I liked all that much. The lavender, amber, moss, and woods in the dry down is probably the best part to my nose and even that isn’t too exciting.

The opening feels messy and off-putting. Peppery moss with blood orange, isn’t all that appealing.

The performance does well enough for something at this price point. It’s not amazing, but if you do happen to enjoy the smell, it doesn’t just completely disappear in an hour or whatever.

This is a fragrance that I suggest testing before you buy, to see if you’re one of the people who will actually love wearing this. Most of you can skip it and not miss anything, though. At the high Parfums de Marly price, it’s not really one to blind buy for the majority of people.

Safanad by Parfums de Marly

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Today’s review is going to be of Safanad by Parfums de Marly. Now, I still have three or so fragrances from this house to do a write up on, from the samples I received a few months back. I’ve tried them all out, just need to organize my thoughts and post them on here.

Anyway, Safanad is our target for the moment. This PdM perfume was released in 2013. As usual, I will cover: what’s inside, how does it smell, develop, perform, and whether or not it is worth a purchase.

What does Safanad by PdM Smell Like?

Notes include: orange blossom, sandalwood, vanilla, pear, ylang ylang, iris, orange, and amber

Click here to try: Parfums de Marly Safanad for women Eau de Parfum 2.5 Oz./75 ml

Before we start let’s see how Parfums de Marly describes this perfume: Safanad “the Pure” Arabian breed, is personified through this Orange blossom note, leading to white flower bouquet, settling in a very sensual oriental base of sandalwood and vanilla.

My Full Review

So, the opening blast from Safanad is led by the orange blossom note and is flanked by ylang ylang and that familiar aroma of iris. It’s quite floral and does produce that bouquet effect that Parfums de Marly described it as.

The composition is dominated by the orange blossom, however, and the vanilla note emerges with is own sweetness to go along with the other floral notes. I do get a bit more of the iris than the ylang-ylang, but neither is particularly massive within the mix.

I’ve seen some other reviewers say that they get a lot of the ylang-ylang, but on my skin, it’s much less potent for whatever reason.

As it moves along, I do indeed pick up on a pear note in Safanad, it’s really not my favorite ingredient by any means but it is nice here. It’s there at the start, but gets overshadowed in my opinion, until things settle. A good little sparkle, but that’s about it.

About half an hour or so into the wear, it becomes a creamier sort of scent, with the iris and vanilla notes wrapped up in a warm and embracing amber.

It’s very well done and held together by the sandalwood base note. I’m not exactly sure what it is in this fragrance, but there is a very slight boozy element to Safanad, if I’m really paying attention. Can’t quite put put my finger on what is creating that vibe.

At the end, I get plenty of amber, vanilla, sandalwood, and orange blossom. Those are the notes that make it through and form the last dry down period.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Projection wise, Safanad has a moderate to strong sillage. I don’t find it overpowering, but wouldn’t want to go nuts with the sprays either. It’s exactly what it should be, not too powerful, but not wholly weak.

The longevity was decent on my skin, maybe 7 hours, but not more than that. Somewhat of a let down for something at this price point.

Not that you always need a perfume to go much longer than this. Though, it’s nice to know that it can when needed. I was expecting more, after it started off so strong.

Seasonally, this is a fragrance mostly for cooler weather. It’s like a comforting blanket, rather, than some airy fruity scent you’d find in the summer. It works for the autumn and winter. You could probably get away with it in springtime, also. I just wouldn’t like it in the high heat.

I don’t find this Parfums de Marly perfume to be particularly sexy, but it is attractive, and pleasant to smell. I’d say it’s a good daily wear, casual, or even formal.

It is definitely a more feminine fragrance and has a well put together vibe. Lovely, creamy, just not mouth watering.

Overall Impressions of Safanad

Overall, do I like Safanad? I do. It’s a nice floral scent for the wintertime and doesn’t go full on ‘green’ garden or bouquet the entire time. You get some lovely floral notes, amber warmth, creaminess/powdery, and a solid sandalwood peaking through.

This is a sweeter type of floral, without going full on sugary or becoming a cloying or immature mess.

The sweetness of the pear and the great orange blossom note are really a highlight. As is, the amber. I don’t have too many complaints with the way that this fragrance smells.

Again, maybe you’ll get more of the ylang-ylang than I do, but I also usually favor an iris note over that yellow flower. Just a preference and I also really enjoy orange blossom, in most fragrances.

The longevity isn’t amazing, but the performance here is pretty darn good overall. It’s a really pretty fragrance and one that has a unique-ish aroma, that will help one stand out from the crowd, while not being too in your face about it.

Safanad is among the better releases from Parfums de Marly. It gets overshadowed by Delina and some of the others, but is very good itself. If it sounds interesting to you, it’s well worth a try.

Akaster by Parfums de Marly

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Still moving my way through this box full of sample fragrances and also have a handful of Parfums de Marly scents to do write-ups on. Today’s entry is a review of Akaster, another cologne from the horse named French line, this one released in 2015. What does Akaster smell like? What are the notes? How does it perform? Is it worth a purchase? Continue below for my full take on this Parfums de Marly fragrance.

What does Akaster Smell Like?

Notes include: lemon, Bulgarian Rose, agarwood, sandalwood, cypress, and more

Click here to try: Parfums de Marly Akaster, 4.2 Fl Oz 

My Full Review

While there is a lemon top note to Akaster, it is very subtle and just a hint of citrus to what is otherwise a very woody and rose-laden fragrance. There is a crisp forest element and a bit of spice, just to change things up somewhat.

However, the two main attractions here are the rose and the oud notes.

I’m usually pretty hesitant with rose colognes, because it’s not my favorite note, and it can be absolutely too much. However, I think that Parfums de Marly really did a great job of blending this cologne.

The oud isn’t too powerful and the rose isn’t too overbearing, there is a firm balance between the two, and it makes this fragrance better than it otherwise would’ve been.

Akaster is a very straightforward, linear, cologne. You are going to get a oud base that is flanked by a fresh and crisp array of other tree notes. Other than the oud, I get a good deal of the cypress. Very green.

This is all surrounded by an air of roses growing in a garden and a squeeze of lemon. Simple, but actually quite effective.

Sillage, Longevity, When to Wear

Projection wise, Akaster is pretty strong. One spray was plenty detectable and any more than 2-3 would be overdoing it. Spraying this on clothes, it leaped across the room, with its projection and the trail on skin was also awesome. Great sillage. Well, at least for a time.

Akaster is one of the fragrances that I’ve come across, that has a massive projection, but the sustained performance just isn’t there. Burns twice as bright, but quiets down rather quickly.

The longevity is ok/good but not great, it seemed to not want to last more than six hours, both times I wore it around. Actually, it’s kind of disappointing, at this price point.

Seriously, after that massive start, I was thinking it’d be around for double digit hours like other PdM fragrances. Akaster just dies out, on my skin. Maybe other people get this one for a long time, but it’s pretty mid on me.

Seasonally, Akaster is one for the colder months. Think a crisp fall day and into the winter time. It has an airy freshness to it, but isn’t really all that ‘warm’ and enveloping. It is somewhat versatile, but not an every occasion sort of scent.

I like it in a dressy casual to dressed up scenario. Not a night club fragrance, but could probably be worn at the office. Pleasant, but not particularly sexy. More one to enjoy as a niche perfume, than a mass crowd pleaser.

Overall Impressions of Akaster

Overall, do I like Akaster? Yes, much more than I though that I would when reading the notes. It’s a simple fragrance from Parfums de Marly, but so well put together that it just works.

It does have some limitations in terms of its longevity and versatility, but it also smells quite nice. Almost a reverse of what I expected with it. I thought that the performance would be amazing and that I wouldn’t really like the smell.

Rose and oud have a great balance in this blend and I like the additional woody notes, like cypress. Not very complex, but still fairly enjoyable.

Is that good enough for the associated price tag? I guess that depends on your budget. I wouldn’t personally drop hundreds of dollars for it, but I enjoy wearing it well enough. It’s an well above average scent, but I wouldn’t put it among the best from this design house.