We review Soleil Blanc, a beachy and luxurious white-floral Eau de Parfum (EDP) from Tom Ford’s Private Blend Collection.
Tom Ford
Having served as the Creative Director at Italy-based fashion powerhouse Gucci and, previously, at French luxury house Yves Saint Laurent, Thomas Carlyle Ford founded Tom Ford in 2005.
Ford opened an online store in 2006 and, the following year, his flagship boutique at 845 Madison Avenue in New York City. His clothing, eyewear, watches, and fragrances quickly became a favorite among celebrities. Fashionistas and frag-heads expectedly followed suit.
When it comes to clothing, eyewear, and accessories, Ford’s sense of style is undeniable. In 2006, he made his mark on the world of fragrances when he launched the iconic Black Orchid in collaboration with American conglomerate Estée Lauder.
A year later, in 2007, Tom Ford introduced the Private Blend Collection of luxury fragrances, and, with the addition of new scents, that collection has been growing since.
Soleil Blanc
Facts
| House | Tom Ford |
| Fragrance | Soleil Blanc |
| Concentration | Eau de Parfum (EDP) |
| Nose | Nathalie Gracia-Cetto |
| Released | 2016 |
| Family | Gourmands |
| Description | Solar, creamy, and floral in the most luxurious way imaginable. |
| Sizes | 0.3 fl oz (10 ml), 1 fl oz (30 ml), 1.7 fl oz (50 ml), 3.7 fl oz (100 ml) |
Ingredients
Denatured Alcohol, Fragrance, Water, Limonene, Tocopherol, Linalool, Benzyl Salicylate, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Hexyl Cinnamal, Farnesol, Citral, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Coumarin, Benzyl Benzoate, Geraniol, Eugenol, Citronellol, Benzyl Alcohol, Isoeugenol
Source: Tom Ford, last retrieved December 22, 2021
Our Review
Soleil Blanc takes you to a remote, private island where summer lasts all year long, the days blend seamlessly with one another, and indulgence is not an aspiration but the mode de vie.
The name means “white sun” in French. It describes the essence of this fragrance: if you were to spend a day in the sun, drinking coconut cocktails and lathering milky sunscreen on your skin, you would smell like Soleil Blanc.
Think of this Eau de Parfum (EDP) as a private jet that, no matter when or where you spray it on, will land near you and fly you, Tom Ford sunglasses and a tall cocktail glass in hand, to that sunny, slightly windy paradise of a place reserved exclusively for you, your lover, and the staff.
The top notes are bergamot, cardamom, pistachio, and pink pepper. The middle notes are Egyptian jasmine, tuberose, and ylang-ylang. At the base are amber, benzoin, sea coconut, tonka bean, Bourbon vanilla.
Soleil Blanc is the scent of a ridiculously rich woman relaxing under the umbrella of a golden beach at a seven-star resort. Her tanned, hydrated, and youthful skin, loosely covered by a linen sundress, is gathering sun in the shade.
Youthful is the key here.
While they are sophisticated, romantic, and elegant, white floral fragrances such as those with jasmine, ylang-ylang, or lily of the valley, are also very much mature. Finding a fragrance that can be labeled as young and vibrant can be a challenge, and yet here it is.
Images—memories, even—of calm waves lapping gently and continuously against the rocks on the beach in the background arise in my mind as I loll in white clothing, my face in the shadow of a floppy straw hat.
This solar and luxurious fragrance is perfect for wearing in the days of late spring, sultry summer, as well as the indian summer of early fall in certain parts of the world. An ideal fragrance for attending a coastal wedding, an engagement party on the beach, or setting off on a honeymoon in an exotic, Instagram-worthy destination.
Soleil Blanc is rich, luscious, and undoubtedly one of the creamiest perfumes our editorial team has laid hands on (I don’t say this lightly; we have laid our hands on plenty).
The opening is creamy, like the scent of milky sunscreen melting into hot skin, but also fresh, like a sip of coconut cocktail poured in a tall glass full of crushed ice. The cardamom and pink pepper notes add a certain warmth and spiciness that gives it sophistication.
Soon after—within a dozen minutes or so, depending on your skin and chemistry—the opulence of jasmine coupled with the voluptuousness of tuberose and the playfulness of ylang-ylang sets in.
The elegant character of this fragrance comes from the floral notes, and it’s what Audrey Hepburn would have smelled like in Breakfast at Tiffany’s from 1961 had the film been scened along the windy coast of the Côte d’Azur and not New York.
After half an hour, the scent has settled on your skin and starts to dry down with the creaminess of coconut, the warmth of amber, the oriental note of tonka bean, and benzoin’s resinous sweetness.
Longevity
The jury’s out on the longevity of Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc. Some say it lasts for upward of 10 hours on their skin. Others, me included, sense it for no longer than 3-4 hours before needing to reapply it.
Matters are further complicated by the fact that perfume lasts (and smells) uniquely on every wearer, largely depending on their skin type and body chemistry, as well as the humidity of the air, the outside temperature, and the time of year.
You asked, we answered: Why some perfumes last longer than others
Sillage
For the first 30 minutes to an hour on my skin, Soleil Blanc had massive projection and strong sillage—everyone could smell it on me. However, as soon as the scent settled, it became subtle, a little too subtle, and it slowly but surely dissipated within a few hours.
Simply put, this is a fairly intimate scent that, worn for prolonged periods of time, warrants a lack of physical distance and a degree of closeness to reveal its charm.
Sizes
Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc is an Eau de Parfum (EDP) that comes in four sizes: the mini, travel-sized 0.3 fl oz (10 ml) spray, as well as the standard 1 fl oz (30 ml), 1.7 fl oz (50 ml), and 3.4 fl oz (100 ml) bottle.
Soleil Blanc comes in an iconically-shaped Tom Ford Private Blend Collection bottle colored in white, with white text printed on a gold-tone metal inset.
The 1.7-3.4 fl oz (50-100 ml) bottles sit gorgeously in your dresser drawer, but they are somewhat inconvenient for travel. Frequent flyer card owners should consider getting the travel-sized, 03. fl oz (10 ml) spray and/or the 1 fl oz (30 ml) bottle in addition to the bigger sizes.
Read our guide: Which size perfume to buy?
Price Tag
On the day of publishing this review, the 0.3 fl oz (10 ml) spray sold for $65, the 1 fl oz (30 ml) bottle for $163, the 1.7 fl oz (50 ml) bottle for $263, and the 3.4 fl oz (100 ml) bottle for $360.
The price tag puts Soleil Blanc on the pricier side of Tom Ford’s Private Blend Collection. That said, we have reviewed pricier perfumes, such as the silky and luscious Lost Cherry.
Frequently Asked
Eau de Soleil Blanc, an EDT, is a lighter, fresher take on the original Soleil Blanc, an EDP. If you’re looking for a fresh, citrusy fragrance perfect for the summer, opt for Eau de Soleil Blanc. If you want a denser, creamier, sweeter coconut scent, opt for Soleil Blanc.
Soleil Blanc EDP is creamier and sweeter, making it more suitable as an evening fragrance for all seasons, particularly in fall and spring. Eau de Soleil Blanc EDT is a fresher take on the EDP, and a better choice for sultry summer days.
Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc and Creed’s Virgin Islands Water are genderless white-floral Eau de Parfums (EDPs) that share similar notes of bergamot, coconut, jasmine, and tonka beans. The former is on the floral, luxurious side, and the latter is fruiter and more adventurous.
Compared to Maison Margiela’s Replica Beach Walk, an Eau de Toilette (EDT) that smells like sun-kissed salty skin, Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc, Eau de Parfum (EDP), smells more sophisticated and more lavish. This is also reflected in the differences in the two fragrances’ price tags.
In Conclusion
Travel to a distant and private beach at a seven-star resort with Soleil Blanc by Tom Ford, no matter where you live and what time of year it is right now.
This fragrance, if pricey and unlasting, is worth the splurge for those on the hunt for the next signature scent in the white-floral category. Just be sure to not buy it blind; the travel-sized spray is a better way to determine if you would deem it full-bottle worthy or not.
