Silky Woods Elixir

Silky Woods Elixir was launched in 2023, the same year the brand had already launched Island Lush. However, Silky Woods Elixir came as the first flanker within the Exclusive Collection called Botanical Series. Its fragrance offers a deeper, denser, and more mysterious reinterpretation of Silky Woods, elevating the woody signature of the original composition to an even more opulent and captivating territory. Inspired by the ancestral Daintree Rainforest, the fragrance explores the richness of Australian agarwood, one of the rarest and most revered raw materials in perfumery, revealing an exuberant and multifaceted aromatic profile. It was created by perfumers Olivier Cresp and Hamid Merati Kashani and reveals accords created by notes of fig, saffron, lily, guaiac wood, vanilla, Oud Assafi, Australian Oud, as well as balsams and cypriol. Before commenting on the fragrance, it is worth exploring the theme of elixirs in the global market. In the perfume industry, many people expect to find a pure perfume, a magic potion, when they read the term "Elixir" on the packaging. However, the industry doesn't work that way, partly due to tax issues. Generally, flankers in Elixir versions are created to sell the idea of a more concentrated or intense version of a fragrance, where some improvement in raw materials is expected, such as greater purity, for example. In practice, the elixir version doesn't always deliver better performance than its original version. Sometimes, the elixir even falls short of the Intense or Parfum versions of a particular line. That said, I can affirm that here the promise is fulfilled, and Silky Woods Elixir manages to deliver even better performance than its original version. The opening presents a fascinating contrast between the green freshness and succulence of the fig, sprinkled with the spicy warmth of saffron. This beginning combines an aromatic explosion and brings nuances reminiscent of the bitterness of cocoa, creating a sophisticated and mysterious opening. At its heart, the fragrance reveals a creamy and enveloping facet. There is a very present earthy floral note, which brings a powdery and refined touch, while the balsams bring a more oriental effect and introduce subtle smoky nuances, coming from guaiac wood. As it evolves on the skin, the perfume plunges into a very sensual base. Vanilla softens the woody edges, creating a sweet effect, while resinous notes and the intensity of Oud reinforce the feeling of comfort and luxury. The result is a dense, elegant, and hypnotic trail, where sweetness, smoke, and wood intertwine with masterful balance. Silky Woods Elixir has excellent longevity and projection, developing slowly and maintaining its presence for many hours. Darker, more textured, and intense than its original version, this fragrance prioritizes depth and sensory richness, offering an immersive and sophisticated olfactory experience. Without a doubt, it's a fragrance that retains the DNA of the original version, but is less creamy and more opulent. I dare say it has brought an Arabic approach and seems to be a response to the market trend regarding Middle Eastern ingredients. Can you imagine a very wealthy Australian executive expanding his business in Dubai? This is his perfume.

Silky Woods Elixir is the most recent release from Goldfield & Banks from late 2023 and a spiritual successor to the original Silky Woods that was released in 2021. My experience of it is dominated by a smoky vanilla accord, vaguely related to the boozy vanilla accord of the original Silky Woods, but darker, less acerbic, and more pronounced overall, with a robust fig note that pairs nicely with the vanilla. It has various resins involved as well, which give it a range of powdery, standardly resinous, smoky, and even a touch animalic bits to it, a lot of complexity and nuance overall, with plenty to be discovered. Performance-wise, it’s certainly denser and richer than the original Silky Woods, and is probably the strongest-performing fragrance in the entire catalogue. Fittingly, it’s at a higher price point than any other perfume in the Goldfield & Banks catalogue currently, at $295/58 for 100/10ml, a notch higher than the higher-end Botanical Series (that includes the original Silky Woods) and quite a bit higher than the main collection (that includes Pacific Rock Moss, Bohemian Lime, etc.). Still, $3 / ml is not absurd and I love the option of the 10ml travel size for more liberal testing, even if the travel size pricing is $6 / ml. Certainly better to have the option. Overall, I love it and it has the added benefit of making me appreciate the differences in the original, the more strident, sharp, lighter aspects of the original and the darker, smokier density of the Elixir. 8 out of 10

1st spray: WHOA, brace yourselves! A bomb of saffron, fig and amber that literally punches you in the face. Extremely strong and definitely masculine opening! "Not for me, but I'd love my man to smell like this, it's so rich and unique and wow". 30 minutes later: WTF, this is incredible! Why did I think this was a masculine perfume?!?! I can now smell vanilla, pralines and an extremely pleasant leather smell. All combined into such a unique, unconventional and surprising smell that can definitely become my signature perfume (there is no way this can be mistaken for something else, it's THAT special). 6 hours later: HOW can it still smell so strong and HOW COME it has evolved and developed so much? Now it's even more leather, even sweeter, saffron is still there but pralines overtake it, fig still present but a hint of rose also, WHAT IS GOING ON?? By now most perfumes have only a faint skin scent, while this one is still in beast mode. 12+ hours later: HERE! TAKE MY MONEY! TAKE IT NOW! *** P.S. Definitely NOT a safe blind buy! Definitely not a common scent! Definitely not the usual feminine scent. A dark, sweet, rich, intriguing, mysterious, sexy, alluring potion! *** Later Edit: What is weird though is that the final scent - what remains on the skin (after more than 14 hours) is the exact smell of Shaghaf Oud. Does anyone feel the same way??

When I wear Silky Woods, the original or Elixir, I just CANNOT stop smelling myself. Nose right up against my wrist. I keep going to chew on myself it smells that good. The first thing I notice is the beautiful soft sweet vanilla. Immediately! The wood notes are gorgeous, like having an old book open in your lap. Thin and papery. It works so good with the vanilla, so delicious. And under that I can definitely get the green notes. Just such a pleasant smell. It also lasts SO long!!! One tiny spray and I can still smell it on me the next day. I think it would be awesome to spray it on a cardigan or something, it'd soak the smell right up. If you're going for a kinda librarian vibe I think Silky Woods should be under consideration. I was so surprised to see a lot of people calling this a definite masculine fragrance, because to me it immediately feels feminine. But what is gender, anyways? That being said, if you're looking for something masculine yet soft and sweet, I definitely think you could find that in Silky Woods Elixir.

I haven’t tried the original version, so I can’t compare. But one thing is clear: this fragrance is balmy, creamy, and exceptionally smooth. How they achieved this effect, likely a rich blend of vanilla, fig, suede wood accords, and soft balsams on top of its agarwood and oud core, elevates it into a scent that’s both seductive and comforting. It truly lives up to its name; you are getting silky woods. The woods aren’t harsh or abrasive; they’re warm, embracing, and velvet-like. The fig and saffron in the opening create a textured sweet earthiness before the deeper base of Australian agarwood, guaiac wood, and balsamic notes takes over. What I admire most is that this perfume is sourced from Australia. The brand uses tropical Australian agarwood, giving it an exotic edge and a real sense of place. That connection to nature adds depth to its beauty. The atomizer is stunning, my first perfume from the brand and definitely not my last. A stately, sensual creation that deserves a perfect score: 10/10.

I’m so hooked on this dna! I’m surprised folks here don’t dig it as well as the reviewers. But my nose & taste change up from time to time so I get it. I do have the og but picked up hk perfumes version which is so close I can use it at work or around town and og for a night out. I put this scent up there with a Boss Bottled Absolu which is pretty popular. Anyway to the scent. It’s a creamy vanilla woody scent with a subtle leather and sweet fig mixed with with a clean musk to smooth it out. I would say blind buy safe because it’s so amazing however because of the rating and lack of reviewer hype perhaps start with a 5ml and 30ml of hk to compare it to. I paid $44 for the hk so it’s not a huge financial commitment but can give you a pretty good picture of how this works for you before dropping $200. However I do think the the 50ml size will show up at discounters soon, which will be around $130ish. Hopefully this will help someone with their decision.

I first loved the original silky woods but found it lacking performance or maybe it was just me going nose blind fast with it so I thought i’d go the elixir version since its a flanker meaning better performance but smelled way different at first comparing them side by side, so I was very hesitant. I fell in love with how soft and perfectly smooth the og is and the elixir was too harsh and oudy and mossy for me. I went with my gut and got elixir since I wanted that better performance and i definitely made the right choice it’s way more prominent and I can actually feel the subtle beautiful projection and amaaazing sillage. As it dries down you go through a really pleasant vanillic journey that smoothens out more and more and heats up well to your skin. Very happy with my choice and wouldn’t mind picking up the og too.

LOVE THIS ONE. smelt the original in store after the hype. put it down, was bored, disappointed (pls note i was in the harrods perfume hall so partially noseblind by now, will give the OG another shot later but to me this one wins hands down). i picked up the elixir by chance. sniffed it. liked it. sprayed it. loved it. went to floor 6 to try on more fragrances, it beat all the other fragrances id tried on in terms of projection and complexity (which is saying a lot because again, harrods ie some of the best in the world). thought about it all the way there and on the way down. had to grab it. my new signature i’m in love. ps i did not realise most considered this a “masculine” scent i find it to be female- unisex and beautifully expertly sweet and well blended with a bit of complexity

Butter smooth suede, vanilla, butterscotch musk, powdery orris, tame animalic oud, moderate ambroxan, woody base of guaiac and thick rich balsams. This is what I hoped the original would have been. This has so much more depth and density whereis the original was a one sided minimal skin scent. I really get the impression of butterscotch dipped in suede, the balsams really accentuate this vibe. This combined with smooth orris, Oud, guaiac, and ambroxan is really divine. The first hour reminds me quite a bit of the original but it does continue to evolve and simply gets better and better over time. This is a really beautiful composition with a lot of depth and dimensions. It reminds me of a combination of Guerlain’s SDV and Chiron from Terenzi but it still stands on its own.

I am convinced there is something wrong with a lot of people doing the ratings here, or maybe it's different demographics of people reviewing different things at different price points. I have seen terrible dupes given incredible high scores while something like this fragrance is below 4/5...it's either that or I have underestimated the long term medical implications of COVID on people's sense of smell. This is by no means a unique Portrait of a Lady or Amouage Interlude type of fragrance, but by all other measures it's a very pleasant, good performing, and comforting scent with very high quality. At least it is not room freshener quality LV Imagination (which gets super high scores on this site).

I sampled the OG Silky Woods and really loved it. Then I came across this Elixir. Man, what an improvement! The OG Silky Woods was already great in my opinion, but this one takes it that extra step. It takes the OG's vanilla and perfects it, adding balsam and fig, making this more unique, slightly more masculine leaning, and improving both the projection as well as the longevity. This is a very sexy fragrance on a man, especially in the air. I think if you're a woman the OG Silky Woods would suit you better. The only thing I can say against this fragrance, wait for it to go on sale, as it tends to go on the pricier side most of the time.

While my nose isn’t quite as snobby like many on here yet, I will say that my taste has always been in a class of finer things. With that said Silky woods elixir is bursting with dark yet sweet, seductive mysterious aromas. How some reviews on here say it’s flat and does nothing for them is beyond me. It’s Pretty wild because this perfume takes my nose on a journey. I will say i do not wear scents everyday or close to. I go months and years without wearing them so I think it’s very possible those that feel this is under class and muted need to take a break and reset cause this thing packs a punch.

This thing is just nuclear. One of the few perfumes from my collection which lasts 24h+ on skin. The only downside is the oppening, because its a little harsher compared to the edp version. After about 10 minutes the oud takes a step back and the elixir becomes almost 1:1 with the edp version. If you manage to find this for less than 150bucks this is a must buy imo. I would even say this is a safe blind buy if you look for a strong perfume, because the main notes are really well blended vanilla with cinnamon.

Oh my goodness this perfume is so so gorgeous. The dry down is insanely beautiful and it’s super long lasting and it creates a bubble of sent around you. I cannot stop smelling myself whenever I put this on. It just makes me so cozy comforting really, really awesome fragrance. I live in a hot climate, so I don’t really have a preference of wearing a summer or a winter perfume, and I wear this perfume throughout the year, and this is super nice.

Purchased this fragrance after testing it and I’m truly fascinated by it. It takes the OG which I personally love, and pumps it up while adding a little more body on it to make is more masculine, which I personally enjoy because it makes it more of a fun wear for me. Projection is very good and so is the longevity. If you’re in the market for a masculine vanilla fragrance that has a few fun twists and turns then look no further imo.

I never tried the original Silky Woods so I can't compare, but on its own, I think this smells great, lasts long, projects fairly well and is unique enough to stand out. Love it and super excited to wear this over the next few cooler months. It reminds me a little bit of Montale Arabians Tonka but this is less harsh and much easier to wear for most occasions. 5 out of 5 for me.

This fragrance is a fragrance with very extensive and complex smells, it is the fragrance that I have in my collection that I like the most for cold climates and for the night it is also excellent, this fragrance is the one that lasts the longest on my skin and on the clothes with a duration of 12+ hours in both. Overall it is an excellent fragrance and I give it a 10/10.

This smells like a cross between vape juice and a glass of ice lemon tea from a hawker centre. It's a very sweet tobacco scent that dries down deliciously on my skin. Probably won't be my first pick for a work day, but it's definitely a strong contender for a night out. Longevity-wise, this lasts maybe around 10-12 hours on me, but it lasts forever on my clothes.

I really love this scent. So Woody and Smoky. So inviting. I wish they remove the Rose and slightly reduce the Saffron a tiny bit. Then add Suede . Imagine that one. Overall 9/10 for sure. On me it sits closer to the skin than others. Which is just fine with me In comparison to the original, this is more masculine. The original Silky Woods is more feminine

This is sooo amazing, I get a very balsamic and vanillary guaiac wood with undertones of oud. Very mature, yet very youthful. The saffron gives off a nice hint too, and I pick up almost a powderiness, maybe the orris? Performance wise: Longevity is giving me around 10 hours at least, but sometimes even longer. With like 4 hours of very decent projection.