Those of you who are not interested in dropping $200+ on a bottle of Parfums De Marly Oriana Eau de Parfum might want to check out a dupe for under $40 bucks! We’ve already established that Lattafa’s Ansaam Gold Eau De Parfum Spray is affordable and a dupe of Oriana but hey, we can always use another budget-friendly option right?
Ok, so, yes, I am a little bit of a snob with fragrances sometimes, and I love me some Parfums De Marly, but I’m willing to admit some of the dupes out there are incredible. Several months ago, Zara introduced Velvet Shadow to their rather extensive collection of fragrances. I did a blind buy online of this when purchasing some other items. If you read other reviews about this from true fragrance connoisseurs, you’ll find the word “synthetic” thrown around a lot when people describe it. I didn’t get that at all. I think it captures that yummy marshmallow element perfectly. I think it does lack the strong citrus note that Oriana has in the first spray, but outside of that, it mimics the original juice very well. I originally purchased Oriana when it was first released, but I’d skip it now if I knew about Velvet Shadow and Lattafa’s Ansaam Gold before I made that purchase.
The bottle isn’t as whimsical as the original but it isn’t too shabby either. It’s a four-sided square glass bottle with a heavy metal cap. It’s simple in design yet looks and feels elegant. It’s $39.50 but feels 100+ dollars.
The original Oriana scent has the following notes:
Top Notes: Mandarin, Bergamot, Grapefruit
Heart Notes: Orange Blossom, Blackcurrant, Raspberry
Base Notes: Marshmallow, Ambrette, Chantilly cream, Musk
Velvet Shadow has some of the same features, like marshmallow, bergamot, and mandarin. They also add a bit of jasmine but my nose didn’t pick it up. It’s sweet with a warm marshmallow element but is, for the most part, a floral gourmand that has the same DNA as Oriana. I couldn’t tell the difference between the two once Velvet Shadow dried. If you like marshmallow fragrances like Love, Don’t Be Shy, and Oriana, you’ll love Velvet Shadow.
Sadly, Zara Velvet Shadow doesn’t appear on the website anymore but I’ve seen in stores if you want to grab this one. Has anyone had the pleasure of smelling it?
