Calling All By Kilian Fans (And Haters): A 100% By Kilian Thread

Own and really enjoy A Taste of Heaven, so a thumbs up from me. Definitely made from quality ingredients.

If you don't want to pay for the packaging just buy the refill and decant into a cheap atomiser. Easy.


Want to sample Straight to Heaven, sounds great also. Wasn't impressed with Water Calligraphy or Bamboo Harmony though.

Just like most houses, they have their good and bad releases. Some of their releases like Incense Oud are heavenly, but they have some that are among the worst I have sniffed (I won't name names)... I definitely consider their prices high in relative terms and personally don't think anything they have released an outstanding value, but that hasn't stopped me from buying when warranted. I am far from a quality expert, but I think their quality is fine all around.

Well, I just want to say that I love A Taste of Heaven. You reminded me about it. Think I'll wear it tomorrow!

It's not a controversial house.

Count me in as a fan

been enjoying B2B and S2H and also been enjoying bamboo harmony for the recent spring/summer

have amber oud, incense oud and pure oud on the way, looking forward to those

Tried Back to Black and then ordered a bottle (with presentation, etc.). If I had to do it all over, not sure if I'd go for the whole presentation (which is nice enough) or just buy the travel atomizer spray set. But the fragrance definitely ranks up there with the likes of Tobacco Vanille in terms of quality, much better than the Creeds and Bonds that I've sampled/bought.

totally agree!

Like any fragrance, very subjective. I own 5 of his fragrances. Straight to Heaven, Taste of Heaven, Pure Oud, Amber Oud and Incense Oud, so yes I like Kilian. Most of his new releases have been less than stellar. I have a sample of his latest, Flower of Immortality on its way, so we'll see if things are improving, or just another in a series of duds.

In regards to value, sure there are fragrances in his price range. Granted, his packaging is superb, compared to others, but sorry, I would rather have a plain label with Sans Serif type, where the juice is on par or better, say Malle, then pay $100.00 for a box that will be hidden away in a closet somewhere never to be seen again. This is why I purchase refills for considerably less.

To me, his fragrances have lost their way, and I do not see adding any more going forward until they improve. Right now, I find his last 5 releases generic at best. Again, this is my opinion.

Like the fragrances, but the added expense of the packaging is not necessary. When compared to other high end houses I think his compositions fall short of the mark.

Who do you have in mind?

I have tried almost everything of theirs out there and there are many very good ones, however I don't own any and don't plan on adding any of this line to my collection. Respect the quality of this house.

I think they're a bit inconsistent with their fragrances. Some are great and the notes all play nice and others just seem like they are missing something or a bit odd smelling. I guess when I'm paying that kind of money I expect some consistency like Amouage, Malle, MDCI, or something from the more exclusive private designer lines. If I want something a bit different Comme des Garcons is good for that. I do like the travel and refill options.

Straight to Heaven is one of my favourite fragrances, loved it immediately and I think it's one of the best overall fragrances around. The longetivity is amazing (lasts all day) with just the right amount of projection. Can't get enough of it. It's the only one so far that has been bottle worthy to me, although I also enjoy Back to Black, Pure Oud and Cruel Intentions. Not a big fan of the Garden of Good & Evil fragrances, fairly average for the price.

I have no issues with the packaging, and I think it is great that they offer refill and travel bottles. Though, I generally prefer slightly more understated packaging like MFK.

All the one's that I have sniffed have a sort of powdery undertone to them, and I can't stand powder, but if it weren't for the powderyness, I think they would be pretty stellar. I actually think the packaging is really cool. I love the weight and compactness of the bottles, weird, but I think it's cool. But, because of the powder undertones, this house is a pass for me, unfortunately.

I am a huge fan of the house. Straight to Heaven, Back to Black, Incense Oud, Cruel Intentions, and Amber Oud are some of my very favorite fragrances. Also enjoy Rose Oud and Taste of Heaven. Looking forward to some of their upcoming releases.

I'd agree. Having sampled some nine different scents from the line, the only one I wanted to actually buy was Back to Black. There were two or three others I was tempted by or really enjoyed, but I didn't consider them worth the price point. But I could say the same about Malle or Amouage. So, to be fair, I don't think I've encountered any line from which I'd like to own all their fragrances.

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Highly agree that many, if not all, have that powdery undertone. But I think some have just the right amount, especially how they've been mixed, while others don't play so well with the other notes.

With regard to packaging and cost I think By Kilian has hit a happy compromise in terms of offering choice - go for broke with the boxset or metal travel tube, or simply order refills. You can actually have it both ways.

It does seem to me the line is now facing the 'what do we do now' thing that happens once a soild foundation line-up has been created and then the increasingly 'fashionable' nature of the business kicks in and stockists start asking 'what are you releasing this season?'.

As far as I can see only Malle has been able to shrug off the mandatory 'release schedule' thing, and proceed at a more self dictated pace - maybe by using candles and home scents to bridge the gap between perfumes he is happy to launch into the world.

The solution from By Kilian has been 'The Ouds', 'The Asian Duo' and now 'The Garden of Good & Evil Trio' (or similar) and I wonder a bit about this approach. Conceptually - it's terrific, and I applaud the creativity in coming up with themed mini-collections, the design and concept in both is great - but the risk inherent in this approach is what happens with the actual perfumes.

The Ouds seem to be doing okay, clearly a notch above some of the other flavour of the month ouds out there.

The Asian Duo may well be selling - dunno - but they seem to me to fall into the cliche that the (northeast) Asian market (let's say Japan, Korea, China) prefer wan, watery inoffensive perfumes and have been composed accordingly. Basically the result is a couple of 'quick freshen up' scents that almost fall into the EDC category. Nothing wrong with them but a bit of a let down (and I have the word from several young Chinese women to confirm it). I imagine there has been a bit of interest in the West, always a market for anything exotic evoking the orient, but these are Eaux, nothing oriental about them at all - and I have sensed a bit of disappointment from perfumista buddies in NA and Europe.

I recently received a sample set of the 'White' Trio and I hope they work - I suspect they will as they seem to have a contemporary fruity floral theme (with a twist) that should appeal to a wide audience. I am no expert of modern femme tastes or buying habits but my guess is that this will make some money for the company.

I'm not criticising By Kilian here, I 'get it', in terms of positioning etc., I understand the business realities and it's clear there is a vision at work, but I'm probably just old fashioned in that rather than hitting the market with these well put togther themed sets of stuff I think a more creative exploration of what might be possible in creating the occasional singular new work and leading trends a bit might work better in the long run, as opposed to knocking out "collections", where, if you're lucky, one might be the runaway hit and the others are just there as props.

Good luck to him - I enjoy Taste of Heaven and Back to Black for my personal use and am happy to own one as boxset and one with the nice black travel thing - I'm a happy customer - and I will certainly continue to keep an eye out for any standout compositions in the line.

I feel the same as mr.reasonable above.

They started out very well. Thoroughly enjoy the main line (Beyond Love, Straight to Heven, Sweet Redemption, Cruel Intentions) and the the whole Oud line is beyond excellent. But now, I'm asking , now what?

The Asian Tales and In the Garden of Good & Evil feel like fillers. If they're the silence before the storm, then please carry on but if this is where he's headed, I'm feeling disappointed.

Straight to heaven (IMO) is absolutely magnificent. The rest, i'd struggle to stump up the kind of cash they sell for for.

I would never have liked Taste of Heaven if I had never been introduced to Amouage Memoir. The absinthe accord in both of these (wormwood/absinthe) is a note that I absolutely thought I'd hate but are twisted in a way to smell absolutely great and extremely masculine and somehow dark.

Straight to Heaven but it's a great scent that will invariably stay in my collection.

I love Liaisons Dangereuses and like Back 2 Black and own them both.

I'm thinking about buying Beyond Love too.

I find the packaging to be very luxurious and classy but not necessary. The idea of the refill is nice.

I own Sweet Redemption, Liaisons Dangereuses, and Back to Black. I have several others that are on my wish list. Some of those were not love-at-first-sniff, but rather it took two or three times to become smitten. Funny thing, when I tested them I wore one a day for several days in a row. I received compliments every single day, even on the ones I didn't think I liked. I guess they wear well on my skin ... I'm not crazy about the Asian scents and the Garden Of Good And Evil scents were just OK to me. I will admit to buying the refills ... I'm on a budget. I would rather have three fragrances for about the same cost as buying one in a pretty bottle.

Great idea! I have here an unbeloved decant of Love, willing to get used in fancy ways.

I like incense oud but the range is priced out of my reach. I don't object to that though (but with some other perfumes I do)

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I like incense oud but the range is priced out of my reach. I don't object to that though (but with some other perfumes I do)

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I like incense oud but the range is priced out of my reach. I don't object to that though (but with some other perfumes I do)

I own several of his perfumes, but there are others that I only like and that is not enough. I was disappointed in two of the three Garden of Good and Evil fragrances, but I am sure he will come back with other great perfumes in the future. The oud series is superb; I love them all, but my favorite is Incense Oud. I think all houses release perfumes that are not at par with their masterpieces, but in general I like Kilian's perfumes very much.

I would say im a fan of Killan but not the entire range, particularly less so those offerings of recent years. That being said B2B is still King.

love back to black..overpackaged for sure!

I like Beyond Love, but would certainly not consider By Kilian to be a controversial house at all.

I've tried several Ouds by By Kilian, but they can't pull them off like Montale or Amouage.

Amber Oud: A Lot of Amber, no oud. Vanilla, benzoin, slightly medicinal. Very very dry and Entirely forgettable.

Arabian Nights Pure Oud: Sawdust and oud, this is warmer than some ouds, and not medicinal. There is a peppery note that helps, but this is rather forgettable among a large assortment of ouds.

I did like their Water Calligraphy b/c I LOVE Penhaligon's except they disappear on me in 15min. WC reminds me of a Penhaligon's only better longevity.

Water Calligraphy: Very fresh aquatic, and floral. I love the mix of citrus and floral in the opening. Reminds me of something from Penhaligon's. They make light watery fragrances. Seems to have decent sillage and longevity so far, which is rare with light water citrus fragrances.

Back to Black for all it's hype is like Tom Ford TV plus a huge dose of...baby powder. Why did they ruin a decent frag. with baby powder? It conjures up a rich paneled room, full of rich men smoking cigars drinking brandy, and a baby sitting in the middle of the leather wing-back chair...

I own Straight to Heaven and it is a great scent. It grows on me, smells better and better each day. My second love is Sweet Redemption. Never smelt anything like that. Amazingly unique for me.
For example I don’t really like Back to Black, somehow it is just crazy sweet tobacco and honey on my skin, nothing spectacular.

Thanks for this thread MFfan310,
I have a question and am really relying on your expertise here !!!
A reviewer on fragrantica mentioned a fragrance called Soul To Squeeze from Kilian. It's supposed to be a limited edition from their Paris Exclusive range ??
I can't find any info on it whatsoever !
According to the reviewer, Kilian took over Jacques Bogart and Soul To Squeeze is supposed to be the classic Furyo, (originally Jacques Bogart) rebottled ????? !!!
Any help much appreciated.

I agree 100% with the considered, well thought-out post by Mr R.

Straight to Heaven wears amazingly well on me. The only reason I acquired the presentation box package is to display it in a LED-lit display unit. Would have opted for the no-rills refills otherwise. I've been very tempted to get the magnificent looking gold travel atomiser but its heft is not particularly desirable when you're travelling light.

Other favorites:
A Taste of Heaven, Back to Black, Beyond Love, Cruel Intentions, Incense Oud, Rose Oud, Sweet Redemption.

Without going throught the thread, I'll say this: they have several really good fragrances, including Back to Black, Straight to Heaven (which I owned in travel set form), and Rose Oud. I sampled Rose Oud, and was like wow! Great stuff! But I didn't recall the price. Went back to Luckyscent, and it said $395 for a 50 ml bottle. I could understand that price if you're giving me 100 mls, but not 50! I thought that was RIDICULOUS! HOWEVER, I'm just went back to their site moments ago and saw that you can get it for less with the Travel sets and Refill bottles. Those prices are a little bit more reasonable, so that Refill bottle for $185 just went on my to buy list. :-)

I'd love to see some pics of your LED lit display post pics!!!

Not the best I got but I'm browsing on my IPhone and this is the only one available (sorry about the orientation.) Of course it's nowhere near jrd4t's magnificent perfume shrine.

No work you picture flamediamond.

There is no doubt that Calice Becker does quality work.

I am a real fan of Pure Oud.

I don't view by Kilian as a particularly controversial house -- certainly not in the category of Creed or Bond. Seems to me it hasn't aroused the ire of the community like those two.

Personally, the only fragrance it makes that I'd consider buying its Straight to Heaven, but it's not bottle worthy to me for the price. The packaging doesn't bother me, nor is it a plus; it's immaterial to the scent. I liked Back to Black at first, but it does a weird number on my skin after a while.

For me Creed and Chanel probably have the highest number of fragrances I enjoy. I'm sure some would say Kilian is their favorite house, too.

Why are Kilian so secretive about their Paris Exclusive Line. When you look on their website there is just an image of about 20 bottles arranged in a circle. No info or even a list of names of the fragrances.
Does anyone know anything about them ???
Thanks.

Very nice thought and I can parallel your sentiments.

Just their standard fragrances from the discovery set arranged around the travel atomizer. If you look closely, several of them are repeated.

The only thing I find that may have been exclusive, some of the regular fragrances were in special bottles that are not the regular bottle.

I do not find any secretive fragrances that are not available anywhere else.

Thanks PalmBeach. They definitely have what they call "Paris Exclusive Line", (which I believe are limited editions ?). Are these limited editions perhaps the ones you refer to as not being in the regular bottles ?

Pure oud is my favorite from this line. It smells exactly as called. My second favorite is straight to heaven ( unique) and back to black. I own samples of the rest . It is high quality , no doubt.

Has anyone else tried the new Gold Oud from the Arabian Nights line? The SA said there are only 500 bottles worldwide with 250 in the UAE (rest I don't know where). Supposedly a more concentrated version of Rose Oud. I've tried it twice now and absolutely love the dry down it seems somewhat similar to Amber Oud. I am still debating a FB purchase even though it is ridiculously expensive....

These are the only thing I see that appear to be limited:


But the fragrances are part of their regular line. Love, Straight to Heaven and Liasons Dangereuses.

I am recently loving the honey drydown of Back to Black. It lasts more than 24 hours.

I love the Pure Oud, It just isn't worth the money for me only b/c its longevity isn't great...there are several other frags that smell close with much better longevity. If I found a really good deal, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

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Nice Picture....thanks!

I like STH but feel Clive Christan V is far better.

The name of the house is Kilian. What's with the uber-affected "By" Kilian? By is not his first name. We don't go around calling Guerlain, "de Guerlain" even though many fragrance boxes or bottles may have "de" written on them in front of Guerlain. Just seems weird that this is the only house that has spawned people to call it that way.

And yes, they do have some pretty decent fragrances, and one very good one.

I have no tried Clive Christian V, is it similar to Straight to Heaven? On another note, I refuse to buy any Clive Christians due to their snobbish and pretentious marketing ie "the world's most expensive perfume". If you resort to how high your fragrance costs to sell your product, it's pretty much the epitome of snobbery.

Anywho...the By Kilian line is kind of up in the air for me. Any personal experience with the owner of a line would most certainly create a strong bias for the line. Regardless, their price is a bit too high overall I'd say. They definitely have quality stuff and it tends to last quite long as well, but for those prices I'd have to absolutely love them. I do agree with the OP that they're not too far off from other niche houses (and I have the same gripe with them).
I've sampled all of them and the only one I'd consider purchasing at this point would be Straight to Heaven. I enjoy Incense Oud almost equally, but $400 for a 50 ml? COME ON!

Their line would be far more appealing if those prices were for a 100 ml instead of 50. Since they're discontinuing the refill sprays, the line lost more appeal. So far I find many of the scents enjoyable, but none are getting my money yet and more than likely in the future either.

I am doing a side by side at this very moment. V is a clean spicy cedar; a bit peppery. STH is almost dank with the rum, cedar, and patchouli but to tell the truth, I'm leaning towards STH, actually. I do detect a faint hint of vanilla and white musk but just enough to smooth out the patch.

I'm definitely digging STH!

Longevity and projection is outstanding. I get 10 hours easily.

How many sprays are you spraying?

I agree with this. Projection not super but good. Longevity very good. I'm sorry I can't agree with Danielstripedtiger though that there are several other frags that smell close. Pure Oud stands alone for me.

The only fb I wouldn't mind having from this house so far is Amber Oud. Good stuff.

honestly I get compliments all the time I am wearing STH. there is something in it that is liked by the ladies.