KAYALI
The Wedding Velvet Santal 35

2023

jasmine
tea leaf

white musk
cedarwood

benzoin
sandalwood

‘Designed as an ode to everlasting love, Mona and Hassan created The Wedding Collection to wear on their special day. Aptly named after the silk gown Mona wore and the velvet suit Hassan wore on their wedding day. The Wedding Silk Santal | 36 and The Wedding Velvet Santal | 35 were inspired by and are bound by the strength of creamy Sandalwood. Also known as Santal, this hero note grounds each scent while also glorifying the unique blend of decadent ingredients found in each bottle. Timeless when worn alone yet amplified when layered together, these juices are made to be shared and celebrate love in all its forms. This fragrance captivates you with a magnetic blend of gentle Jasmine and White Musk, accompanied by the velvety warmth of Sandalwood, Cedarwood and Benzoin. The creamy and woody base is reminiscent of a lingering embrace, rounding out this sublime scent as a testimony to unconditional love.’ – Kayali

I was very curious about Velvet Santal 35 and I must say, this one didn’t meet my expectations, but not per se in how good it is, more so in what it smells like.

On first spray, I initially preferred Silk Santal over this, but within the hour, my thoughts on them changed completely. You can read in my Silk Santal review that it didn’t hold up for me. Velvet Santal is significantly more interesting.

I’m not sure if I get much of a connection between the notes and what I’m smelling, aside from the benzoin woody base. It’s a hard to describe scent and to give credit where it’s due, probably the most unique Kayali that I’ve come across.

Creamy sweet woody, with a hint of something… no idea what. Something dark and perhaps a tad fruity, but more like an imprint left of it. A lot of people seem to get cherry from this and I can see that. However, when compared to Lovefest Burning Cherry or even Tom Ford Lost Cherry, I feel like Velvet Santal only keeps an abstract hint. Specifically, I do not get any acidity and brightness in this.

I don’t get too much of a specific jasmine either, definitely not in any daring or indolic manner. The scent is generally warm and cozy. When smelled up close, I think it smells a bit off, but from a bit of distance (how you usually would smell it), it’s quite alluring and intriguing.

Much more sandalwood forward as the name suggests than its Silk Santal counterpart. A bit spiced sandalwood. I wouldn’t really compare it to a Serge Lutens Santal Majuscule, but that direction may give you some idea.

Completely unisex to me. The presentation fits it well and while versatile, I feel this one would work well as a date night scent.

I’m not sure yet if I think this is better than Vanilla 28, it’s definitely less mass appealing, but I’m leaning towards this being the best Kayali that I’ve tried. I have a feeling it will trail far behind Silk Santal in popularity, but it’s twice as good of a fragrance if you ask me.