Fragrance comparison

Oriental Sans Souci vs Shades of Darkness

Notes, accords, longevity, sillage, seasons and community ratings, side by side.

Updated 5 Nov 2026 103 ratings analysed

Oriental Sans Souci

Le Jardin Retrouve

4.2596 votes

Rank #8,492 CitrusWoody

Full profile Similar & dupes

28%scent match

Clearly different

2 wins

Shades of Darkness

Nimere Parfums

3.007 votes

Rank #63,819 AmberWoody

Full profile Similar & dupes

Quick verdict

Which one should you pick?

Shades of Darkness takes 2 of 3 categories.

Oriental Sans Souci
Choose it for a citrus and woody character. Wins on fragranxe ranking. Best in fall, daytime wear.
Shades of Darkness
Choose it for a amber and woody character. Wins on longevity and sillage & projection. Best in spring, daytime wear.

Oriental Sans Souci1/3

Shades of Darkness2/3

Ratings & consensus: Not scored
Community sentiment: Not scored
Longevity: Shades of Darkness
Sillage & projection: Shades of Darkness
Value for money: Not scored
Versatility: Not scored
Note pyramid (duration): Not scored
Fragranxe ranking: Oriental Sans Souci

Head-to-head breakdown

Every category side by side, with the winner called out.

Fragrance

Oriental Sans SouciLe Jardin Retrouve

Shades of DarknessNimere Parfums

Winner

Ratings & consensus

Average rating and ownership split

4.25/ 5 · 96 votes

Have 40%Had 9%Want 51%

3.00/ 5 · 7 votes

Have 6%Had 9%Want 85%

Category winnerNot enough dataRating weighted by vote count

Community sentiment

How voters split from love to hate

57%Love

20%Like

15%Ok

7%Dislike

1%Hate

96 votes

14%Love

29%Like

0%Ok

57%Dislike

0%Hate

7 votes · too few to score

Category winnerNot enough dataMost positive mix (25+ votes)

Longevity & sillage

0–100 community performance scores

⏱ Longevity70

〰 Sillage52

♥ Love / hate81

⏱ Longevity87

〰 Sillage72

♥ Love / hate50

Category winners

LongevityShades of Darkness

SillageShades of Darkness

Value for money

How fairly priced voters find it

¤ Price value54

¤ Price valueN/A

Category winnerNot enough dataBest value score

Main accords

Strength of each scent family · outlined = shared by both

citrus100%

woody92%

aromatic84%

patchouli77%

fresh spicy69%

vanilla61%

amber100%

woody92%

warm spicy84%

green77%

aromatic69%

powdery61%

Scent match28%Clearly different · both woody and aromatic

Note pyramid (duration)

Top, heart and base, with how long each lasts when known · gold = shared

Top15 to 30 minutes

BergamotLemonBasil

Heart2 to 4 hours

RoseYlang-YlangVanillaNeroliJasmine

Base5 to 8 hours

PatchouliOakmossTonka BeanAmbergris

Top

GalbanumCarnationArtemisiaFig LeafBlack currant leafBergamotNutmegSaffron

Heart

Ylang-YlangNarcissusJasmineIrisTobaccoChampacaVioletNeroli

Base

IncenseTolu BalsamCivetCastoreumAmbergrisCedarVetiverBenzoin

InformationalShared notesBergamot, Ylang-Ylang, Neroli and Jasmine. Durations are only published for Oriental Sans Souci, so this is not scored.

Seasons & time of day

Relative to each fragrance's best season

Spring71

Summer26

Fall100

Winter100

Day100

Night80

Spring100

Summer33

Fall100

Winter100

Day100

Night50

Category winnerNot enough dataMost year-round

Who wears it

Gender appeal votes

Men20

Unisex62

Women18

Not enough votes yet

InformationalProfile onlyAudience is not scored

Ranking & credits

Fragranxe overall rank, nose and launch

Overall rank#8,492

PerfumerYuri Gutsatz

Launched—

Reviews17

Overall rank#63,819

PerfumerNikolay Eremin

Launched—

Reviews1

Category winnerOriental Sans SouciHigher overall rank

In a nutshell

Description & review snapshot

Oriental Sans Souci by Le Jardin Retrouve opens with an energetic splash of sharp lemon, bergamot, and herbal basil that feels brisk and bright. That initial citrus sparkle quickly settles into an opulent heart of jasmine, creamy ylang-ylang, and sweet vanilla. Underneath, earthy patchouli, oakmoss, and ambergris buil…

Reviews →

Shades of Darkness is a dense, vintage-leaning oriental fragrance that moves from sharp galbanum greens to a deep, animalic, and resinous base. Launched in 2015, this composition offers a complex journey for those who appreciate old-school, heavy, and artistic perfumery suitable for cold weather evenings or formal aut…

Reviews →

InformationalRead bothTaste is personal

How we score: ratings blend public fragrance ratings with Fragranxe member votes; longevity, sillage, value and sentiment are community vote scores, and season bars are relative to each fragrance's strongest season. Categories with too little data are shown but not scored. The scent match weighs accord overlap (60%) and shared notes (40%). More in the FAQ.

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Common questions

Straight answers from the data above.

Which is better, Oriental Sans Souci or Shades of Darkness?

Shades of Darkness takes 2 of 3 categories. Oriental Sans Souci is rated 4.25/5 from 96 votes; Shades of Darkness is rated 3.00/5 from 7 votes. Choose Oriental Sans Souci for a citrus and woody character. Wins on fragranxe ranking. Best in fall, daytime wear. Choose Shades of Darkness for a amber and woody character. Wins on longevity and sillage & projection. Best in spring, daytime wear.

Which lasts longer, Oriental Sans Souci or Shades of Darkness?

Shades of Darkness lasts longest (Shades of Darkness 87/100, Oriental Sans Souci 70/100), based on community performance votes.

Which projects more, Oriental Sans Souci or Shades of Darkness?

Shades of Darkness projects furthest (Shades of Darkness 72/100, Oriental Sans Souci 52/100), based on community performance votes.

Do Oriental Sans Souci and Shades of Darkness smell similar?

Clearly different: a 28% scent match on Fragranxe. Both share woody and aromatic accords. Common notes include Bergamot, Ylang-Ylang, Neroli and Jasmine.

Is Oriental Sans Souci or Shades of Darkness better for summer or winter?

Oriental Sans Souci suits daytime wear; Shades of Darkness suits daytime wear. Based on community season votes.

What are the notes in Oriental Sans Souci and Shades of Darkness?

Oriental Sans Souci has top notes of Bergamot, Lemon and Basil, heart notes of Rose, Ylang-Ylang, Vanilla and Neroli, a base of Patchouli, Oakmoss, Tonka Bean and Ambergris. Shades of Darkness has top notes of Galbanum, Carnation, Artemisia and Fig Leaf, heart notes of Ylang-Ylang, Narcissus, Jasmine and Iris, a base of Incense, Tolu Balsam, Civet and Castoreum.