Fleurs de Bulgarie

This is pretty much as much a straight Bulgarian rose soliflore that is really not particularly sweet and is very comparable to a lot of the Montale rose unisex rose perfumes, so there is certainly no reason that this one would not be an excellent rose soliflore for a man as well, as there is absolutely nothing particularly feminine about it. The bergamot is there but I'm not sure what it does and it me the musk must also do its job behind the scenes because to me it's all about the Bulgarian rose that from the opening until well into the dry down. Then quite a while into the dry down the nice natural ambergris starts to emerge. It begins to be noticeable really close to the skin and then as it progresses it is noticeable further and further out from the skin until finally when the sun has set on the Bulgarian rose and it has faded away those of us who are ambergris lovers can savor the remains of the natural ambergris remaining that will be there to smell for quite some time. And yes, Creed does still use natural ambergris. I have actually confirmed this with the company, so it is fact, not speculation. To sum things up this is a great very neutral Bulgarian rose soliflore that works well for both women and men. It has a good degree of sillage and you will not need to freshen it up as it does easily last all day. It is a high quality Creed perfume and a great choice for anyone who wants a great classic Bulgarian rose.

Creed FLEURS DE BULGARIE is a beautiful rose composition from start to finish. The opening bears a family resemblance to BULGARI POUR FEMME, but FLEURS DE BULGARIE moves steadily ahead with roses dominating in the middle stage. Lots of sweet pink roses. The sweetness begins slowly to fade and the fragrance becomes progressively more soapy toward the drydown, which is very soapy, but it is still a rose-scented soap. Overall, I find this trajectory worthwhile and not at all old-ladyish. But it is all about roses, and a rose is a rose. This is better to my nose than YSL PARIS, but since I already have a 4.2oz bottle of Guerlain ROSA MAGNIFICA, whch is also all about roses, I won't be adding this Creed creation to my collection. I like roses, but I do not love or feel very comfortable in single-note rose frags, yet I find the soapy drydown of FdB quite wearable. Still, if I had a bottle of this, it would probably sit next to my Guerlain, largely unused. I am thinking about mixing ROSA MAGNIFICA with a solid leather frag such as CUIR DE LANCOME, which could be a very nice combination, a la JOLIE MADAME, but with roses instead of violets. ---------------------------- 2014 update: after acquiring a bottle of this perfume, I fell in love with it. Nothing like Bvlgari pour Femme (what was I thinking?). Rose, musk, ambergris. Simply beautiful.

MMMMMMMM? i wonder the coniving heroine from Honore de Balzac's Cousin Bette wore this when she intends and does destroy her extended family or Lola Montez the famous dancer and courtesen who seduced The Hungarian Virtuoso Franz Liszt Or Ludwig I of Bavaria the King of Bavaria; Satine from Moulin Rouge! Or the divine Sarah Bernhardt in her famous role of As Tosca the Diva a Perfume fit for a courtesan. The note of velvet red roses caresses your skin conjoures up deep burgandy curtians of brothels and opera houses circa 1848 a Parisian Brothal full of Loose women with revealing gowns of rich color low necklines tight curls cascading around the face men with there top hat long black wastcoats hair fashioned with sideburns and long hair playing Roulette getting drunk or dancing the can can. The Amber make's it sweet sort of a naive girlish quailties and musk makes it a bit Esotaric there's a secular and holiness about this fragrance a Contradictory of good girl and bad girl mentality which i enjoy perfect for church and perfect for sex and naughtiness. well everyone has two sides to their Charactor.

Is it possible this fragrance has been reformulated? I recieved a sample of this fragrance from a bottle at my local von maur, and the sample was the most beautiful rose soliflore I've ever smelled. It smelled like a fresh red rose with the stem, thorns, water and everything. Then the gorgeous ambergris came in softening the sharp edges and turning this scent into a gorgeous french milled soap confection. The drydown is what really enamored me, it was at once refined and slightly sweet but with a salty, animalic underpinning that made this perfume an exquisite combination of youthfulness and carnal seduction. Ive tried twice now to get a full bottle, but both times ive been foiled. The first time i thought i must've recieved a fake, because the scent was so synthetic, harsh and rubbery. The second time i went back to the store where i originally received the sample that lured me in, but the bottle i received from that store had the same harsh, synthetic scent of the previous bottle I'd assumed was fake. Does Creed ever reformulate their scents?

I'm not the biggest fan of Creed, but I have to admit that this is an amazingly beautiful and unique fragrance. To me this is not so much a rose perfume as it is an ambergris and musk scent. Sure, rose is here, and after the bergamot at the top wears off, very strong and beautiful too. A blood red rose, deep and rich, that unlike most other perfumes using Bulgarian rose, is neither syrupy nor excessively sweet. But as the ambergris and musk gain in strength, they overtake the rose, adding a layer of animalic tones, like the musk and saltiness of fresh sweat on clean skin recently bathe in rosewater. That might not sound very appealing, but I actually find it intoxicating, though a little too rich and heavy to wear in warmer weather. But for cooler seasons or a cool, breezy summer night it's just perfect. I really wish I had tried this years ago when it was readily available and not so insanely priced. Fortunately, I have a travel sprayer that a dear friend gave me so that will have to suffice.

I am infatuated with Creed fragrances, the way they made from natural materials, have a great sense of humour, tell a story, and are very easy to wear, safely free of any allergic reactions to samples I've tried. (update: I had allergic reaction to Creed Royal Princess Oud) With Fleurs de Bulgarie I imagined a lush individual rose, or a very small bouquet of roses. No. It's as if standing in the middle of rose garden with rose scent wafting on breezes, then you bow down low for a deep in-breath of a single velvetly rose that is ripe with scent. The sillage is about 4 feet, this is a fragrance to enjoy for yourself or with an intimate friend. The fragrance lasted 7 hours then faded but was still noticable for 3 more hours. It stands vulnerably alone but with confidence of its heritage; so it makes me feel supported and even adored the way good family can. I'm really grateful this is clearly a rose fragrance. Recommended for those who have a sensative nose. (Sample from eBay) 10/10

It's strange and powerful and outworldly.... like you've been poisoned by a thousand roses that draw blood from you with their thorns, and you escaped undigested from the guts of a whale.... you're lying on a remote shore, the frozen water still caress your mangled body, you feel the rose poison and the ambergris with every sense that you have, and while the Sun is slowly warming you up you're wondering how come that you're still alive.... A unique experience, like an accident of giant proportions... if it doesn't kill you , it makes you stronger! An almost masochistic beauty, an assault to the senses I bought this unsniffed, and while I cannot love it, I enjoy poisoning myself with this stuff sometimes.... it is simply roses and ambergris, but in such concentration to remain forever remembered. Other's opinions may differ, but I lived to tell you mine!

I absolutely adore the naughty, grownup rose in this scent. It is simplistic, to be sure-almost a soliflore. The ambergris (heard Creed uses the real stuff?) is an incredible carrier for what must be damascone rose-a little dirty in and of itself. I imagine, and hope, that the musk is synthetic. In any case, it is used judiciously. There is some bergamot in the top that carries the heavier notes, but does not affect the final demeanor of the perfume. Longevity is at least 12 hours, thanks to the excellent fixatives. The rose is true, natural, and develops in tune with your individual mood, the weather, the time of year....nothing any synthetic perfume can accomplish. This is a scent that has been successful for 150 years (original version created in 1845 for Queen Victoria), and with good reason.

Impresive fresh lemon roses softened with amber. Fleurs de Bulgarie is something special. Reading all reviews below someone could think that FdB is a sinthetic and boring smell, but I would say the thing is completely opposite. It's fantastic, spirit-uplifting, very well balanced perfume. It's something special, very "loud" but not havy. It smells "important", "elegant" and "very sophisticated feminine". If you expected something sweet and cute rosy in this bottle, you were wrong. Due to havy sillage, you might find it agressive at the beggining, but later on when it settles down you should adore extremely well balanced elegance of Fleurs de Bulgarie. I love this perfume, I keep it for a special occasions and for a special mood when I feel very confident. The longevity is unbelievable.

Mmmmm....this perfume knocked my socks off. To me, this evokes the image of a very elegant, worldly lady, with tightly laced petit coats and sheer lingerie underneath. The woman who wears this perfumes exudes a strong, quite confidence, she is poised, she knows what she wants and she is fearless in pursuing her desires. This scent is not for naive young girls who still question their place in this universe. This perfume is a very musky, robust rose that has amazing sillage and longevity and which, interestingly, really has a lot of depth for so few notes. This perfume has the uncanny ability to transform and transport the wearer. I highly recommend this fragrance for when you want to feel exquisite, beautiful, sexy and powerful. You will get noticed with this scent.

I love roses and this is a truly beautiful representation. I did not find it especially retro or soapy, although it is certainly not modern a la Stella. I actually found that it developed with a little sparkle on my skin. It does open with a brief and scary acetone aroma but this passes and Fleurs becomes so soft, pretty, pink and dare I say, a little tangy, from the bergamot (unlisted). Fleurs holds up really well over its lifespan. While a lot of rose fragrances I have sampled tend to sour (a huge problem with wearing rose soliflores IMO), she seems to 'dehydrate' into the scent of real dried rose petals. I would definately consider purchasing if I had not *just* brought a full bottle of Ce Soir ou Jamais which is my go-to for those rosy days.

It IS a vintage smell but it's totally wearable. It's classic but not in a 'your grandma's powder puff' way; floral but not in a roadside flower shop way (it's more like a flower bouquet in a fine Victorian vase); clean but not in a soapy way; seductive but not in a flirty way; powerful but not in a overwhelming way. Fleurs de Bulgarie is not a sweet and shy housewife. It is a confident career woman who takes control of both her work and personal life, a true lady. My mom is a professor in physics who spends more time with numbers more than family but whenever she wears this, I feel she is a real woman in every way. On her it lasts all day but on me only about 5 hours. The sillage is pretty good though.

I don't even want to write a review on this one, because that's how much I love it... I don't want everybody buying it and jacking up the prices even more. Ya know what I mean? So, I'll keep the majestic story time/poetry/love song to myself, for me. ; ) ahhhh. My Rose... Only for me! But I will say that for those who love the smell of a true rose... this is as true as it gets for me. It's royal, for that reason alone. It has the depth and intensity that jasmine normally does, but this is a rose shining in all HER glory. She's not a powdery rose, she's a gorgeous rose in full bloom, floating on a crystal clear blue lake, at night. The most clean, cool, pristine lake... unsullied. Perfection.

This is a gorgeous rose perfume. It is big and bold. Roses and more roses they fill the house. They are also in the bathroom w/ you while you take a bubble bath in the most expensive rose bubble bath that money can buy. This fragrance is not only the rose perfume on your vanity but the bubble bath, lotion and the dusting powder all in one. This perfume is very Victorian in its character and style. This is worn by a grand dame who knows her own mind, is firm in her opinions, doesn't mince words and has seen it all. This is not a fruity rose for the young crowd. I love this one and since a full bottle is so expensive I have bought many samples to enjoy. If you love roses this one is a stunner.

I cannot speak to reformulations (I've heard it has been, from friends who own newer bottles) but no one from a Creed counter will admit it. I can't speak to that. This is such a piece of art, that I cannot bring myself to DARE even layer it with any of my other favorites, for fear of disrespect. This is a one of a kind mastery of a scent. I am speaking of my bottle from 2004. EDIT: I smelled the one at the counter (they had it hidden in a drawer), and it smells NOTHING like my 2004 bottle. Not even slightly. So a lot of these reviews are almost about completely different fragrances! MUST TEST BEFORE BUYING DUE TO REFORMULATION!

LOVE it. smells a bit deep and good for someone 30s and up. But im in early 20s and I wish I could wear this...perhaps in the winter or evening? top note smells very similar to fantasia de fleurs, but base note smells better especially because of the musk. Fantasia de fleurs smell powdery and I dislike powdery scent. Sad they only have 75ml...30ml lasts me quite long since i don't wear perfume that often,and even if I did , I don't like sticking to one perfume. Maybe I'll spray on my skin a couple times at the boutique and if I really like it will make a purchase

I was just on a search for a rose fragrance and this doesn't even come close to a soliflore; I smell candied orange blossom and other white & yellow flowers along with it.. It's sweet, powdery, very romantic (especially after realizing it's made for Queen Victoria) and very comfortable to wear. This fragrance matches Emily Blunt's portrayal of The Young Victoria perfectly! Definitely better than any of Oliver Greed's creation *BTW it's nowhere close to the citrusy tea-rose of Fleur de Thé Rose Bulgare; I feel like people just voted for fun based on the name

am in luv with classic creed perfumes i was looking 2 soft floral perfumes and i saw creed fleurs du bulgarie and i was like oh am going 2 give it a try and when i smeeled it the first word that said is am going 2 add it 2 my coliction its realy one of the best creed perfum if u want 2 go deeper 2 this house try vanisa anglic ecance wich sadly discoutenud and bois de bourtegal and there is new perfume from creed called royal oud and its one of the best oud scents i ever smelled an oh there is another creed perfume that i luv and its tuberose indiana

I'm extremely cautious when it comes to rose scents but Creed's Fleurs de Bulgarie goes beyond any rose fragrance I've ever come across. It is just beautiful, mysterious and uplifting all at the same time. I feel so feminine and elegant whenever I wear it and I get many compliments. The sillage is excellent and it lasts for hours. It is a special addition to my collection which I shall always treasure. It is the best rose I've ever experienced.

This is quite an impressive scent. It is so old, yet I think it can still be worn well today in small doses. The rose is regal and long-lasting. It really does seem like a fragrance fit for a queen!

This perfume is absolute Royalty in a bottle: rich, sharp, confident , classic, and very seductive. I would recommend wearing it for special occation as this perfume is very strong.

The best rose fragrance I have ever sniffed... Elegant, rich, soapy, very persistent... The kind of perfume you can't forget... Every time I wear it, I dream... Wonderful!

I am haunted by this magical elegant Rosy dry down and would love a bottle of this, but can I have it with out the wild,loud,strange opening? Yes -I want it

Gorgeous rosy fragrance with a subtle musk finish. Very feminine and romantic. However, it's not nice enough to justify the high price, in my opinion.

I fell in love! Delicate perfume for young princess. I feel like I'm in a fairy tale.

Charming, old-school rose. Very classy. Well blended. Beautiful.

Dark red roses, rain, soil and night.

The queen rose. Loved and hated by so many. Have you ever heard that you should not put Rose in vase with other flowers, because the rose would suck out all of the live from other flowers? The same thing is with this scent. All my sample drawer smelled like Fleurs de Bulgarie even before I opened the sample vial. It starts with old school Bulgarian rose which I hate as I stated in many reviews already. But then it settles to a sparkly rose scent which is not old fashioned or "grandma" like at all. It is beautiful. Very, very classy and strong, the silage is killer. I bet if you over-apply people will run away in fear. Do I like it? Yes. Do I wish to have a full bottle - no. Why? Because it is way too strong and I'm not a rose fan. But please ladies who are - do not be afraid of the fact that this is made in 19th century. After the first 10 minutes it is ultimate rose scent. Very, very daring. And remember about the stuff I said about rose and other flowers. The same with the lady. You do not wish to mess with a lady brave enough to cope with this scent in public and wear it bravely.

I was zipping through Niemans when I spotted the Creed counter. I've never seen this line before, so had to check it out. the very first bottle I picked up was this one, and at first whiff I thought 'Ooh! that's Rose Barbare from Guerlain!' Sure enough, Bulgarian Rose was front and center in the list of ingredients. I took a sample home, but unfortunately, the scent didn't translate well from paper to skin. Rose Barbare holds its note, but this one goes on wiht a strong alcoholic blast and then settles down into something wearably warm and pleasant. Creed, in my mind, competes with parfums de Rosine and Nahema, i.e, other very good, high quality rose scents. A half hour into wearing this you'll understand why it's been around so long, as it is very unique in it's beauty. Will it be a favorite rose of mine? Probably not, but I appreciate it's complexity and may purchase a full bottle out of respect.

I'm not sure what's wrong with me, why I like Creed's Fleurs de Bulgarie, despite it's somewhat chemical and simplistic makeup. I smell both sexy and cheap, gothic and gaudy, rich and fey, masculine and decorous while wearing this perfume, crafted from one supposedly prized ingredient to the next. The musk is gorgeous. So is the rose. I want to be in jeans and a t-shirt in the heat of summer. I smell clean, like I've just gotten a haircut. But it wasn't a barber but my grandmother who leaned over me, heavily-scented, as she snipped away. How I relate this story in the same breath as talking about sexiness is beyond me, unless what I'm really trying to talk about is soap. I would buy this as a soap and invite my lover to bathe with me.

A very pretty rose with an animalic underlayment with a hint of smoke. I think it's lovely but I can't think of the right occasion to wear it to fit my day to day life. I have only tried a few rose frags so can't offer expert comparisons about rose quality or naturalness. My go to rose was Stella which seems more of an easy daily reach for me. I just acquired a travel size of the newer formulation of Stella and think it is reminiscent of the original version and I like it. I tested a sample dabber of the Fleurs de Bulgarie which I transferred into a spray bottle. The bergamot isn't very present to my nose after it dries down, which is ok to me. I can imagine a beautifully attired Edith Wharton character at the opera wearing this.

(sample review) I wore this and as soon as I was out walking on the streets, I felt this fragrance is so "queenish". It is weird but this is the word that came to my mind. It's cold.(how could they have made amber so cold?). Unforgiving. Dignified almost arrogant. With a touch of animalistic lure and unattainablity. I felt like if this fragrance spoke it would say:"bow down, queen is here!" Then now I read calvini's comment that it was made for queen Victoria and it made perfect sense!! I am not sure this is my mood today. Or that it would be something I want to ever smell like? But maybe I'll keep it for days I feel like I have to be cold-blooded and lure at the same time.

It is a beautiful and mature perfume. But it didn't beat my favorites roses which are, for now, the Annick Goutal’s Rose Esplendid and Rose Absolue. This is more powdery and soapy than my favourites. I think I'm going to make a quirky comparison, but I can't avoid it: Yardley’s English Rose. Although the Lutens is much more refined, here it is the same musky rose of it’s poor cousin. That's not a bad thing, because I like the English Rose very much. However, unlike Yardley, Fleus de bulgarie has long-lasting and a big projection. Few drops and you are ready Also notice that the Lutens is less acid, which, I believe, is due to quality of the roses.

At first it’s a bright, citrusy rose that quickly takes on some oily and soapy notes, then dries down to a soapy, slightly musky basic rose scent that stays pretty much linear. It’s strongly floral, but pleasant. Sillage is strong to moderate, and it lasts at least 10-12 hours on skin. I’m not big on soliflore perfumes, so this doesn’t have a lot of appeal to me, but I feel more neutral about it than anything else. Nice enough, well made, but not really my style.

This one smells old-fashioned, which makes sense when you realize it was created in 1845! For some reason, the knowledge that it is not just cosplaying 'old-fashioned' but was actually worn on the wrists of women for about a century and a half makes this very endearing to me. To me, this smells comforting and soft, like you are sitting next to an elderly relative at church service.

The drydown is quite nice with creamy rose and musky ambergris, but it took about 2 hours to get there while the first couple of hours smelled of candied rose and freesia, which I did not enjoy. Finally though, after the long wait, this ended up being a really nice, classic scent, but it took too long to get there.

There are two different things FdB before and after reformulation. I had a bottle in 2004 and I bought it already again. Two different things. Now it's more synthetic (like some reviews said). Before it was a masterpiece. It's a pity that nowadays perfumery is killing the scents and good formulas

Very old-school rose, light , soft, airy. If you like the conceptualization of this scent when scrolling here, you will like it irl, no doubt in my mind. The scent is very pleasant tho, so I gave it away to my girlfriend because it will smell great on her :)

A true classic rose scent. It starts out kind of chaotic, as an unlikely mashup of many of the notes listed- animalic and woody but yet clean and laundry smelling. At this stage all the facets of rose are apparent, from a young, fresh, lemony rose to an old, verging on moldy, rose. I have to admit at this point I almost got a headache and scrubbed it. But patience pays off with this. Eventually all the notes meld into a very true rose. There is a bit of smoke in the background and also some powder. It is quite strong but at the same time gentle and will last at least 8 hours. It’s interesting to experience because at times something completely unexpected comes through as well. I thought I smelled something purple. violets. Or the slightest tinge of heliotrope. I can see why this is a classic and inspires so much love. It’s really very pretty after it settles into itself.

Guess I'll be the odd one out. I was disappointed by this one, and think it absolutely needs a test - it is NOT blind buy material. I don't know if I got a dud, but the sample I got is very different to what I expected based on the notes and reviews here. First of all, I wouldn't classify this as a 'rose fragrance'. To my nose it is an ambergris, animalistic musk and citrus fragrance with a very subtle rose undertone. The rose only features prominently for the first 5 minutes or so - then the strong citrus and ambergis take over, and the perfume stays this way until the end. In the latter half of its life the citrus also fades into the background and the ambergris reigns supreme. After the opening, it has a very strong 'cleaner' vibe, to the extent I thought it might be a citrus and/or lavender perfume as a lot of cleaners and polishes have that smell. It's almost overbearing and smells fairly harsh to me. Over a few hours it becomes less harsh and more musky, but it still has a strong, aggressively 'clean' and simultaneously marine vibe. The longevity was extreme on me - even on my 'fragrance vacuum' skin, a couple of sprays lasted 12+ hours, with me catching whiffs of the perfume throughout the day - I can only imagine how strong it would be to other people. Overall, I wouldn't buy unless you're into strong, marine-animalic-yet-clean fragrances.

I got a sample of this one purely out of curiosity because it's been around so long. It smells just like a rose soap, which was probably very desirable back when no-one took baths but isn't worth the Creed price in this day and age. I would think that with all the advancements over the years they would be able to make this scent a little more interesting and complex while still using natural ingredients. I can't imagine there's anyone out there who is really attached to the original smell. It needs to be updated and punched up a bit. Update: I mixed this with some musk oil I had and it's wonderful!!

To make things clear: to me creed fleurs de bulgarie definitely does not smell like cheap soap. How éver could it be with such high quality ingrediënts Creed uses? It doés have this bathroom touch though, but more like really expensive bath salt an aristocrat would poor in his or hers vintage bathtub with golden craines placed on a marmor floor. It's a rose perfume, but blended in a way it's a scent on it's own. So don't expect too much of a 'true rose'. Do I appreciate it? Yes. Do I want to wear it? No, due to the bathsalt idea.

Ambergris should really be listed in the notes here, because it is a very noticeable aspect of this imperial fragrance, giving it a pleasant, pervasive soapiness and underpinning the grandeur of it's style. Too grand for me - at least until many hours after application. The ambergris was still strong on the sleeve of my cardigan a week later!

this one is not what i expected somehow. i get a soapy rose with a clean musk that smells like laundry detergent. maybe the ambergris is adding that watery element, but normally ambergris works with my skin chemistry. this one seems quite different. it smells very fresh and light.

I am uncertain about what my chemistry is doing with this one....... I just tested this (86F) and all I smell is cinnamon. *blink* I had it down as a "love" before.........not sure what's wrong with my nose now. WAAAAAAAAAAA

this is easily one of the most fabulous perfumes in the world, one of the most exquise perfumes of all times. I have the two (first three) flacons since I think the early 2000s. (with that other masterpiece Irisia) and I can still exactly remember where and when I sniffed this perfume the first time. I discovered the first 'niche' perfumery in the Netherlands in the Hague and since, (already in the late 1990s so it can just as easily been acquired then), I traveled to the Hague and walked along the Government Buildings toward Celeste perfumery. at first I wanted to buy Jean Patou Joy [they stocked that up for the Minister's wives and foreign dignitaries, and me] and I did, several times over. and this perfume reminds me also of Joy from which I still have several flacons for back-up. but then Creed's Fleurs de Bulgarie. this is such lavish, elegant, heady, sophisticated, chique, masterfully concipiated and swelteringly undulating perfume that it, then and there in the space of that perfumery, did make my universe topple for ever. that happens never more. really these perfumes, after my impressions in 1974 of the still authentic Chanel No5, No19, Cristalle (only just), the old and famous Guerlains (shall I call them), the still authentic Christian Dior's (as he was still called then) Miss Dior and Diorella and Dioressense (etc.) and my still more intensive and Life Altering impressions in the 1980s with all the vile Hookerperfumes of then, but of which I shall only name four: Giorgio, Poison, Obsession and Chanel Coco, it was with Creeds Fleurs de Bulgarie and Irisia that my whole Perfumial Universe forever changed with this festive, abundant, Classic as well as Regally Enchanting, exuding the true handicraft of Superior Perfume Making, that I stood as nailed to the floor and have bought that sweet nichiste perfumery out of their Floral Creeds (not in one Haul) and went in three quarts of an hour home to Schiedam next to (or one with) Rotterdam and gal, boy, did I have fun unpacking the beautiful and very chic boxes from their jewels. and as I am a Rose Lover this was the one which impressed me the most. this perfume contains such fine Roses, Roses surfine, with the I would say Citron Pique they waft in the beginning. that is the famous Creed bergamot and thát I am able to smell a Hesperidic opening alone is a revelation. because I almost never detect fruits (while I am one ... ) in perfumes, save for Peach, Plum, well often I can smell the Citron (Lemon) for instance in Versaces Eros Pour Femme Edp along with Lemon Blossoms the Lemon there sticks its sourness directly deep into the nasal .. enfin, soit. but here it belongs to the sheer capacity of only the fullest Bulgarian Roses. I also detected that the Creed perfumes contained Ambergris which only enriched their perfumes with a solidifying I would almost say 'emollient' ingredient with a brush of Animalic Depth which only still enheightened the whole experience. and these are Perfumes. that is why then, it never was stated 'eau de toilette' or 'eau de parfum'. at best it was a Millesimé, like contrived as a Good Wine in the best of circumstances and with the Noblest Ingredients. which is simply true while I am still smelling this fine, Superior and Exceptional perfume in the same state as it was then. I have written enough about the controversial Time Tables of Creed, which I do not so easily doubt, bc I really did my research and discovered their ancestry (even before) 1760. standing in the Niche Perfumery Celeste I could also smell several of Floris's creations (Blennheim Bouquet, Nightblooming Stock [or Jasmine], plus a Rose perfume of Floris) and well, what I smelled was ... nothing. nada. the same with Penhaligon's and the same with all those other 'venerable' English perfume houses which produced for their Royalties. I am sorry but also Creed has several (seven if I am not mistaken, and which I translated out of German, Spanish and French and transscripted out of Victoria's Anglais, English) Royal Warrants. but they were 'Haberdasher's', 'Linen Drapers', 'Drapers of Cloths to the measure of the Real Body' and they made Victoria a Riding Habit as it was called. from which an image and the very Clothing still exists (in Kyoto's Textile Museum). so even with Gieves & Hawkes as 'Chic Clothier' (1, Savile Row) and the other diluted, inept, aquiline perfumes of fucking Floris, Penhaligon's, Atkinson's et cetera I never find them real Contestors to Creed where THEY created such Heavenly and Overwhelmingly fine perfume that lasts and lasts, through the Ages ....

I really love Fleurs de Bulgarie in itself, not too much as a scent for me. It's impressive, massive, royal, somptuous and un-apologetic. The first time I tested it years ago in a perfume shop I almost fainted! It smelled terribly strong and awfully stoke-like, like a thick brown broth with lots of meat and a rose of top. I went out of the shop and wanted to go to a toilet to brush it away. After 30 minutes I smelt a beautiful trail in the air. I was in the street and thought that someone passed by and try to follow that smell! I walked for 10 minutes before realizing that I was following no one than myself! Tricky FdB! I read somewhere that it was a favourite of Queen Victoria. I have no doubt it can be true. This is a very old school fragrance with all the perfection and intent of old school. A perfume meant for a great lady. I can understand how it may be perceived as old stuff these days, but it’s not really the case. It’s not a matter of perfume rather of people. At that time only rich and noble women used perfume. Nowadays almost everyone owns at least a bottle of some perfume bought or given (only my father is out of game), but most people look for a scent that might please theirselves and others around too, the kind of pop fragrance that pleases the crowd because they understand it. I own a few samples of FdB, it smells good on my skin but when I wear it people clench their nose and I ask me if I’m wearing my granny’s heavy stuff. I swear my sweet grand-mother never even knew about FdB by Creed and for sure she was not aristocratic! This is an animalic rich rose that lingers for hours , not a confortable cosy scent you wrap yourself in search of confort rather a scent that drives you to be bold and unique. Only not the right choice for anyone and anywhere.

A soapy, beautiful floral, as others have described. On my skin there is nothing at all watery or very feminine about this bold beauty. She is handsome, rather than pretty. Strong and unapologetic and moderately long lasting, the dry down lingers forever on fabric. Interestingly, the notes on fabric smell more like sandalwood and oakmoss in the base - a chypre feel! I asked a very observant friend what she thought I smelled of, and it was of a soapy rose with sandalwood - a big woody floral! The top notes are more geraniol/rose on me, and the heart more ambiguously floral/woody. To me (and I hope no one will consider this a put down), Fleurs de Bulgarie smells like a less beautiful E. L. Beautiful! I realize that is not what she is trying to be, but that's what she reminds me of on my skin. This is stronger and more grounded than the current iteration of Beautiful, alas. Even so, add some pretty florals and fluffy powder and a touch more PINK, and you have it. Beautiful is a large bouquet of sumptuous florals with PINK roses as the front and center theme, done in the old-school, soapy fashion. Not surprisingly, Beautiful is literally heavenly on me, and that may be why the comparison is so compelling. Thoughts: I'm not a Creed girl, but I can see why one reviewer bought multiple samples. I will either (selfishly) use all of mine to the very last drop or (selflessly?) send all the remaining sample to a friend who likes vintage florals as much as I do. Yet which is kinder, to use it all, or pass it along to another person for whom Creed is just a TAD out the price range of accessibility?! ;) For old fashioned soapy-floral lovers ONLY.

If you imagine Quelque Fleur by Houbigant overpowered by deep, crude red rose, you might imagine Fleurs de Bulgarie. It’s frustrating to wear Fleur de Bulgarie because there is a hint of loveliness, which I compared to Quelque Fleur in the paragraph above, that tries a very weak attempt to emerge. Fragrance was never meant to smell sexy in Victorian times, it was supposed to make you smell clean and hygienic. Queen Victoria seemed to be against anything vaguely sexy which this fragrance reflects. It smells about as sexy as strong, very chemical soap marketed toward people who (sadly) need to be able to buy very cheap soap. However, I gave the fragrance a proper chance by letting it sit on my skin for the rest of the day and it evolved into the scent of cheap rose incense sticks that might be bought from a newsagent. The drydown was a bit nicer, a gentle soapy rose. Some of the quiet loveliness that is in the background has finally managed to emerge. The problem is, 12 hours after applying the fragrance - when the drydown appears - is too late in the day. I’d rather smell gorgeous from beginning to the end. To be honest, I was very disappointed. Rather than luxury and grandeur, this fragrance smells like deprivation.

OVERALL RATING: * Pros: powerful projection Cons: synthetic, cloying, and harsh I'm searching for a wearable masculine rose, and my research suggested that Creed's Fleurs de Bulgarie would at least be worth a sample. I imagined it would be a crisp, light, air-puffed rose with underlying hints of green wood. Instead, I found it to be harshly synthetic, similar to pine-sol or melting plastic. The rose note is there, and it is certainly powerful, but it is competing against something sharp and rather nauseating. Over-ripe gardenia, perhaps? As with Tom Ford's Black Orchid, I couldn't get this off my skin fast enough. When a water and soap scrub in the men's room didn't work, I resorted to coffee. That only managed to make it angry, as the rose cleaning chemical smell fought through the French roast. While Creed advertises this as a unisex fragrance, I'm hard pressed to imagine what sort of man would want to wear it. Not recommended.