THE HOUSE OF OUD
WHITE PEARL
2024
PERFUMER
Cristian Calabro
YLANG-YLANG
PINK PEPPER
CARDAMOM
ROSE
IRIS
TONKA BEAN
aquatic notes
AMBERGRIS
‘White Pearl. The perfection shines. The precious Royal Stones collection by THoO discovers a new gem, the fourth fragrances, the luminous White Pearl. It is inspired by the magnificent Akoya pearls that enchant with the wonder of roundness and shades of colour, as well as the natural luster that makes them unique in the world.’ – The House Of Oud
This is an aquatic I guess? At least according to early reviews and the categories listed on sites such as Fragrantica. I would argue that this is a near-gourmand, feminine leaning floral fragrance, more than it is aquatic.
White Pearl does have a watery, perhaps sea breeze essence, but it’s completely overpowered by soft, at times powdery, sweetness. From the very first minute you get a mix of fruitiness (perhaps like a blood orange, but quite subtle), nondescript, soft and very generic, feminine flower petals and an overdosis of sugary sweetness.
Yellow florals, but overall in a more gourmand direction than most sun-tan lotion type fragrances. Ambroxan-like sugar and tonka bean dominate this and I would personally find it cloying to wear in Summer. As it dries, rather than aquatic, I find myself getting clean white musky wafts to combat the sweetness.
Frankly, it smells cheap and while I can’t recollect a specific fragrance, I’ve smelled similar scents plenty before and it feels like something you’d find in generally much more affordable categories. I mean no disrespect to the perfumer, but it has this air and quality of a generic fragrance that one can pick out of an oil companies brochure to create your own basic fragrance line. Notes don’t stand out, it doesn’t feel natural or distinctive in any way and it’s only texture is soft.
White Pearl will be pleasant to those that enjoy their sweet mass appealing fragrances, although the little hint of aquatics may be a negative in that case. It wears pretty nicely with its soft texture, but otherwise, I’m afraid White Pearl has little interesting to offer. Despite not being bad or unpleasant as a scent, it may be one of the more generic fragrances I’ve reviewed in a while.