Aphrodite by Soki London Floral Fruity Ruth Mastenbroek
Aphrodite was created by Sophie King a.k.a. Soki London, an indie brand and internet personality. After Empress, it is her second perfume. It is a completely different fragrance to Empress but I see Soki’s signature in it.
It is strong first of all. Highly concentrated. The juice is visibly oily. I wore it during a cool spring day and it made me feel nauseous. It is a niche smelling aroma, not for everybody again. I sniff mango, lotus and palm tree, not so much marine notes and coconut. It is heavy on the fruity and green earthy aspect.
Nonetheless, I realized it blends in better in hot weather. We had 31°C here in Prague, Czechia and I sprayed Aphrodite lightly and it was a pleasant companion. It cannot hide its tropical nature. I say time and place are everything in perfumery, and it applies to Aphrodite even more than to some other fragrances. I am happy I waited for a sunny day outside and did not judge Aphrodite too quickly. If you are looking for a unique islander forest-like scent, Aphrodite is not a bad option.
Empress by Soki London Floral Fruity Gourmand Ruth Mastenbroek
Empress is a first fragrance created by a perfume enthusiast and business woman Sophie King, also known as Soki London. Sophie has focused her YouTube on introducing and reviewing designer brands, new releases in particular. Her videos are informative, brief and to the point, focusing on perfume rather than giving out personal information about her lifestyle. Her taste in fragrances is fruity and sweet, one could argue, almost juvenile. However, her sense of perfume is fully developed, she has proven to be consistent in her fragrance preference over the years.
She funded Empress launch via kick starter and her personal savings. Her marketing is low-key, relying on social media which seems to work for her products. No matter if you love her or hate her; launching Soki London brand and releasing her actual first bottle, no collaborations whatsoever, is impressive. Keep going!
Empress the scent. Miss Dior Cherie from 2005 was the inspiration behind Empress. Miss Dior Cherie is Chypre Fruity. I had a chance to smell it and I liked it. It is a fruity sweet scent with a patchouli background. It has the Dior’s elegance and demeanor.
Empress is more on the gourmand side which goes hand in hand with today’s trends in perfumery. With Sophie being an advocate of fruity scents, I would expect Empress to be much more fruity, maybe even sour and zesty in the opening. It is not like that. Empress is not lifted up and goes right into the sweetness of toffee which smells literally like caramel.
It is a heavy highly concentrated long-lasting scent and you have to be a fan of sweet, candy-like almost synthetic aromas. We are in the territory of Mukhallat by Montale or Pure XS by Paco Rabanne. With that being said, Empress is not your regular mass pleasing light floral fruity but a unique niche smelling full on gourmand. I mean it as a compliment but it is also obvious that Empress is not for everybody, definitely not for the general public.
All in all, I think it is a good try. Sophie has produced an originally smelling fragrance on her own which has found its fans. I do not despise the perfume I could actually wear it every now and again when I am in the mood for sweet and cozy. Do I need a big bottle? I don’t think so. I already have solid and unique gourmands in my collection. I will be waiting for something more sophisticated from Soki London next time.
alexaperfumes 