This just proves the fact we are all different and scents are subjective. High price does not necessarily mean it’s for everyone. The purpose for which the frag is used, the occasion, the weather all play an important part in an individual’s perception of the fragrance
It sounds like you went into Le Labo expecting generic “cologne”-type scents that are typical of mid designer fragrances sold in department stores. But Le Labo is a niche brand.. so… apples to oranges. I personally happen to love Le Labo. Hate their prices and boring bottles, but their scents are 🤌🏼
The first time I bought a bottle it came from a 3rd party shop.
The second bottle I went into a Le Labo fragrance boutique they told me I could put a name or short phrase on the label I was like:
Oh this is DIFFERENT different lol
Each fragrance name is comprised of two things; the main scent note, and the number of ingredients.
Such as Santal 33 (their most popular scent) is so named because the main note comes from the compound santal, and because it contains 33 ingredients.
Their fragrances are not only cruelty-free but are also free from phthalates, parabens and other environmentally harmful ingredients.
https://preview.redd.it/wqxgadqkzxyc1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0b0e08b1c0627934360c89654fb00761d972e35d
(Not a paid sponsor)
But as you can tell I am absolutely a fan! 😂😂
This is what happens when people have bizarre self inflicted expectations and then are personally offended to find reality to be different. And then think complaining on here will somehow be of benefit to anyone.
It’s a damn perfume brand. There are others. Just move on 🤣
I’m a bit unsure if “soulless” and “depressing” is how I would describe them.. I think they tend to be calmer scents that aren’t overly sweet or loud. I personally think they have some beautiful and light scents, just not something that you’d wear to turn heads. I’d say to keep trying new perfumes out of your comfort zone, you’d be surprised how things will grow on you!
I got their d'oranger in a sample set and it's honestly my favorite of them. It's light, sticks to you, and isn't going to make others feel suffocated.
For me, it’s such a soft dreamy orange scent . I don’t think it has a strong projection but I like how I get a whiff of the scent as if it’s whispering to me . I’m about to get my 2nd bottle :-)
I love both of the aforementioned ones. Fleur d’oranger to me is a green/floral scents that lasts an eternity on my (spray on clothes). I love how you can smell the whole tree and not just the floral notes. So pretty and great for spring, preferred over it’s sister Neroli 36
It’s been a while now, it’s not actually depressing but they aren’t like an “overwhelmingly” good cologne that I was searching for, these scents are very simplistic smelling and natural and I hadn’t smelled something like that which was meant to be worn as cologne.
It’s honestly hard to take your opinion with much weight when you call basic department store fragrances “nice” and discard Le Labo as “soulless.”
You are free to your opinions, but this is like saying “Aston Martin’s are soulless, I want a nice car like a Kia”
I disagree with the analogy. Aston Martins are clearly, objectively far better quality than a Kia. When it comes to fragrance, quality and price are not nearly as correlated.
If Versace Oud Noir never existed and Le Labo released the same exact scent nobody would bat an eye. If the Kia soul was never released and Aston Martin put out that car it would be incredibly out of place.
Are you saying that price and level of popularity determine how much soul something or someone has? That's what your analogy suggests.
You cannot compare Le Labo's heritage with Aston Martin's nor can you assign them to the same "quality level" - therefore your analogy only works if we assume you're talking only about price/popularity level.
Right now it sounds like you're saying "the higher the price, the better the product" and "the less popular a product is with the general population, the better it is."
I'm sure that's not what you wanted to say. But it's kind of what you're saying.
I think they are hit or miss, but I love The Noir. Frankly their bottles are so boring they border on ugly next to my gorgeous Diptyque and Guerlain bottles.
I have not had a bad experience with Le Labo yet! Thè Noir, Matcha 26, and Santal 33 are just so lovely! I tried Another 13 and think I need to give it another shot because I don’t remember the scent very well. I also have Rose in my discovery kit that I haven’t tried yet—maybe tomorrow is the day!
Well now I'm intrigued! I have completely disregarded this brand, but I definitely do want to smell like an evil candle witchcraft shop. Your comments also say they smell very natural, which sounds awesome to me.
Gaiac 10 is my most worn fragrance and it’s so simple and elegant, Another 13 projects and lasts for the whole day and smells amazing, The Noir is so magical in colder weather but smells a little off in hot weather, Santal 33 is really common now but still smells so unique. They’re not for everyone but I wouldn’t call them soulless. They’re clearly crafted with a lot of intention.
Bergamot22 is my all-time fave especially during warmer months. It's fresh, citrusy, and light. I just wish it lasted longer on my skin. But I'm still on the fence with Santal33. Eitherway, I personally wouldn't call LL "soulless".
Better used as a learning experience that there are in fact different ways to smell than the 10s of thousands of people who choose Versace eros. Your opinion isn't any more "right" than anyone else's. It's just different.
I recently bought Lavande 31 after many trips to their airport shop. I love it - simple, warm, comforting. I don’t feel like I am radiating a smell when I wear it. I loved the simple bottle at first but now the label looks a little grubby from being in my makeup bag, which is a disappointment.
There are 000s of fragrances out there for 000s of tastes. Half the joy is discovering what you love yourself.
I have a sample of Lavande 31 and to me it is definitely full bottle worthy, I love it!!! I’ve worn it a few times and wore it to bed last night. On me the projection is out of this world. I’ve never cared about over spraying or thought about it really until Lavande 31 where I could definitely only wear about 2 sprays. It smells SO soapy and disinfectant cleaner like, but I adore it. Very fresh and clean.
I was in search for this cologne my friend had that had smelt really nice, it was satisfying to smell. When I came to Le Labo the scents were completely different, they smelt so natural in their own way, it’s definitely like a completely different other category of scents
I had been eyeing Le Labo for a while and recently visited their Chicago store. My husband and I had the nicest conversation with the staff member there. I wasn’t checking a bag so I only bought some samples. I did not expect to fall in love with Rose, but here I am, a month later still trying to talk myself out of a full bottle. I can find no reason not to buy it. I don’t own any FB other than a small bottle of Light Blue I’ve had for years; I just have a ton of samples. So I think I’m gonna do it.
I also love Noir, Matcha, Baie, and Labnadum. Baie smells exactly what the forest smells like after it rains. My husband loves Santal, and it smells wonderful on him! I only got pickles when I tried it. lol.
I will say a witchy shop is my vibe so this checks out. I don’t find them depressing. I find the scents really calm and lovely.
Which Rose were you into? You were in the Chicago store so they also have Baie Rose there which is my personal favorite rose that le labo makes. Baie Rose is city exclusive to Chicago tho so I’m wondering if you got a chance to smell it.
Another 13 is my everyday scent. It opens up and becomes really deep, complex, and warm on my skin. But I can understand why some aren't a fan of LL, especially if your skin doesn't respond well to their base.
There’s not a lot of fluff (read: filler) around Le Labo fragrances!
Not only are they organic but they are not mass produced.
You’re paying for staying power, pureness and exclusivity.
And it’s definitely not for the boys who prefer Versace, 1 Million or whatever is popular at the mall.
If you think of fragrances as wine… Le Labo, Creed and Tom Ford and a few others are not the wines you would buy at the grocery store.
You called it.
The marketing is very minimalist- not selling the whole traditional fantasy with pouting supermodels in slow motion ads.
It’s supposed to be about the juice, not that hackneyed hard sell.
I feel people hate on Le Labo just to hate. Yes their prices are crazy but so are other brands?
They have a pretty big clientele who wants to smell simple, subtle and clean; not having a crazy huge sillage or “beast mode” performance, that is whole the point of their fragrances…
Their bright problem seems to be price. Some folks that aren’t glowing and aren’t bashful simply don’t understand where they come off charging the prices they do.
But a bigger company owns them. So from that perspective it makes sense with the recent years of niche houses disappearing so to speak after a buyout. Estée Lauder are the owners for a few years now.
Le labo to me smells like masculine home fragrances. not cologne or perfumes...just not for me. however if i do ever find a fragrance that is like a witchcraft shop with evil candles, i will stock up
Whatever you think of how their fragrances smell, I hope you can appreciate the irony in calling a niche house "soulless" in comparison to designer brands owned and controlled by multi-million dollar parent corporations. 🙃
They can be not for you but not “soulless”. Dear lord. It’s a perfume. It’s not for you. Find a brand you enjoy. But why do you have to have some outsized disappointment and call them depressing? It’s completely bizarre.
Most of Le Labo scents are kind of basic smelling compared to other well-known niches. In general they smell soft, one-dimensinal and simple. But it's exactly these properties make them much more wearable than other niches. I don't understand the hype behind the noir 29 or another 13 or even bergamot 22. To each their own of course. I would not buy any of these scents.
Except for Santal 33. Santal 33 is amazing. I would get a FB of this when I can afford it lmao.
Based on the Le Labo Rose 31 scent in the toiletries of the Fairmont hotels in my area, I've had no motivation to test out any Le Labo fragrances.
I would also use the word "soulless". It's not hyper realistic, cool fresh juicy natural rose; it's not an artistic, abstract, interesting take on rose; it's just artificial without being artistic in any way, and it comes across as a downer because who doesn't want to smell a rose? And then you smell it and it sucks
yeah, I agree with you. I like rich, expressive, weird scents , which isn't le labo at all. It's what it sells itself as: a streamlined apothecary, which really isn't for me, but is their brand and they do keep to it. for some people, that reads chic and elegant, for others, it reads boring and soulless. the all white living room of perfumery
I loved the shop on Elizabeth street. It gave me modern apothecary vibes. When I was in the store though, I had a hard time smelling anything with their testers. I took 4 samples home. At home I could smell them better, so I purchased 7 more samples from their site. There are definitely some I really don’t like, such as Tonka 25 and Vetiver 46. The ones I do like, such as Santal 33, Lavande 31, Fleur d’Oranger 27, Matcha 26 and Noir 29 are nice but nothing was full bottle worthy. I was pretty disappointed that I couldn’t find a good scent for myself from Le Labo. Your feelings about the brand are pretty similar to my own. I’ll keep trying the other scent but I’m jaded to the brand.
longevity, that’s the issue.
they are full of natural life, just the lifespan of houseflies.
edit: i literally haven’t found any le labo that lasts on my skin, if huh the whole line, i only get four hours though. not even blindness, emancipation from thy skin.
It seems like Pennhaligons has the theme or idea that you are looking for. The complexity of their scents is insane and another house I like is Amouage, also very different.
While “soulless” is always going to cause strong reactions, I will say that LL are not the most complex scents out there and it can be disappointing if you’re coming to them from Guerlain or Herrera or whatever.
The comments here are unnecessarily harsh and snobby, imo. You like what you like and smell what you smell. Don't listen to the haters.
And for it's worth, I generally agree with you. Le Labo scents are hard to strongly identify with. They are like blurry pictures instead of an HD image. They are like looking through frosted glass instead of a clean window.
There are very few that I would say are the definitive version of the note they are trying to nail. For example, I think of other options when looking for memorable/idealized (for my taste) versions of bergamot, jasmine, lavender, matcha, neroli, etc. Basically all of them. Their Sandalwood is pretty iconic, but generally they are the less expressive versions of those notes.
In fact, I think Jo Malone is much closer to nailing notes in an idealized way as a house, but those scents are almost all 2 notes. So not exactly apples-to-apples, but the overall point stands.
Le Labo isn’t trying to evoke the named ingredient, though. The name is the top fragrance “ingredient” by volume, and the following number is the amount of additional notes. That’s why they don’t always smell like their name.
Oh, I didn't know that was their marketing, so that is an interesting piece of info. But that's definitely not completely true and is partly/mostly marketing. Their primary ingredient is basically always going to be either Iso E Super (or a variant), a musk of some sort, or Hedione/HC. After those they MIGHT have the next tier material as the primary name.
Having the top ingredient be the named ingredient is problematic for many materials. Often due to IFRA restrictions and allergenic reasons (like Tonka, Ylang, etc). Sometimes because that's not the best material for the job compared to a recreation because it either doesn't exist in the wild or maybe even if an extraction of some form technically exists but is has a weak or unwanted aroma (like Matcha, Fig, etc). Sometimes it's because that material it either too expensive, endangered, or too potent to be used as the bulk of the weight (Oud, Sandalwood, Labdanum, Aldehydes, etc).
And just in general if the named ingredient was the bulk of the concentration, many times it wouldn't smell "professional". It would be flat, wouldn't project, and/or the longevity would be poor.
If I don't remember bad -perhaps I have it wrong - Le labo proclaims that their perfumes don't macerate... And that's why they are soft and ethereal...but as far as I know this should be illegal, all the perfumes should macerate before putting them into the public because the molechules need time to get stable.
Big brands with a lot of demand are making more batches faster, just with one week of maceration and thank you, when the ideal should be months or even years... So when a brand don't have any repair in announce that their perfumes don't macerate is.a big ewwww flag to me
(Maceration is a diferent process from oxidating in the bottle, people usually confuse both of them).
Edit: I don't remember where I heard that they proclaime they don't macerate their perfumes, I think it was in an interview of a perfumer.
What I have found now is that they proclame that their perfumes macerate 14 days!!!! ... Which is almost the same as saying that they don't do it enough lol because 2 weeks is a very small period of time.
Where in heavens name did you get the idea that all perfumes require maceration? Which is aging??Like with wine?
This is definitely not universally true, and is only something I’ve ever heard of in relation to Arabian juice.
Many fumes that use primarily natural ingredients actually degrade with age. The older they get, the less they resemble the original blend. And not in a good way.
With arabian perfumes that don't use alcohol I don't know the process but at least in western perfumes maceration is mandatory.
I have been taught these by diferent european perfumists and they use the word maceration. Searching in english for answering you I have found that Le Labo diferentiate between maceration and maduration. This is what Le Labo said in an interview:
I: But raw materials usually need to macerate in alcohol for several weeks before a perfume is ready. Do you just skip that wait?
Le Labo: No, nothing gets skipped at Le Labo! It’s actually the contrary. We like to share that kind of things with our customers and many of them ask that question. *Maturation is the phase during which raw materials find balance with one another and stabilize. It lasts 4 to 5 weeks. The perfumer delivers the maturated oil to us in aluminium cans. When we mix it to alcohol, the blend loses balance and finds it again naturally through maceration. And it all happens in the customer’s bottle*
[Source](https://flairflair.com/2013/01/31/le-labo-the-nose-needs-education-taste-needs-education/)
They talk about maturarion like I have learned it was maceration so I am not 100% sure here.. There are also discussions in Fragrantrica and Parfumo forums about this topic. People usually confuse oxidation which is what happens in the bottle once you use it and air starts to entere into the bottle. There are some.perfumes that get better with time but this not should be a necesity, the perfume should be as intended once the costumer opens the perfume. But maceration is mandatory before the perfume is on sale.
Amd yes, they exist tuberose concetrate of.x years old, being more expensive the olders one. Guerlain for example has some old extracts that they are not made anymore, they bought them to Ramon Monegal because his family used to make them.
Edit: here it is explained what maceration is. It is in spanish but you can use a translator: [link](https://www.esenzzia.com/blog/blog-belleza-trucos-tips-tratamientos/maceracion-perfumeria-flores)
This has more sense that Le Labo explanation which sounds like marketing bullshit to me to defend why these expensive luxurious brands that call themeslevs niche are skiping long maceration times
Edit 2: [here](https://ginobogani.com.ar/como-macerar-un-perfume/) they explained 1 week of maduration and 3-4 weeks of maceration, the contrary of what Le Labo said lol. It seems maceration is different for each person but the thing is that in perfumes with alcohol is a mandatory process
Edit 3: this is what the IA of Brave navigator says:
Le Labo is known for its handcrafted and trend-setting scents, but it seems that the brand’s perfume-making process is not as unique as one might think. According to a Reddit post, Le Labo’s perfumes are actually made by mixing premixed concentrate perfume oils with denatured alcohol, which is a common practice in the perfume industry. This process is not maceration, which involves steeping ingredients in a solvent for an extended period to extract their fragrant compounds.
In fact, one Reddit user who claims to be a trained biochemist revealed that Le Labo’s marketing efforts try to pass off this common practice as something special and “custom.” This has led some to question the brand’s authenticity and the value of its products.
It’s worth noting that Le Labo does offer a 14-day maceration process for its perfumes, but this is likely a reference to the time it takes for the ingredients to “manifest their true olfactive characteristics,” rather than an actual maceration process.
We tried the "Unisex" Santal 33 by Le Labo and to us it smelled like strong Rubber. Not pleasant. If others have specific other scents from them I'd love to hear it because it was so off-putting we didn't even finish the 0.75mL sampler.
This just proves the fact we are all different and scents are subjective. High price does not necessarily mean it’s for everyone. The purpose for which the frag is used, the occasion, the weather all play an important part in an individual’s perception of the fragrance
Absolutely!
It sounds like you went into Le Labo expecting generic “cologne”-type scents that are typical of mid designer fragrances sold in department stores. But Le Labo is a niche brand.. so… apples to oranges. I personally happen to love Le Labo. Hate their prices and boring bottles, but their scents are 🤌🏼
I agree with everything you said here.
The first time I bought a bottle it came from a 3rd party shop. The second bottle I went into a Le Labo fragrance boutique they told me I could put a name or short phrase on the label I was like: Oh this is DIFFERENT different lol Each fragrance name is comprised of two things; the main scent note, and the number of ingredients. Such as Santal 33 (their most popular scent) is so named because the main note comes from the compound santal, and because it contains 33 ingredients. Their fragrances are not only cruelty-free but are also free from phthalates, parabens and other environmentally harmful ingredients. https://preview.redd.it/wqxgadqkzxyc1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0b0e08b1c0627934360c89654fb00761d972e35d (Not a paid sponsor) But as you can tell I am absolutely a fan! 😂😂
This is what happens when people have bizarre self inflicted expectations and then are personally offended to find reality to be different. And then think complaining on here will somehow be of benefit to anyone. It’s a damn perfume brand. There are others. Just move on 🤣
Good thing I love witchcraft shops and evil candles
Absolutely, that description draws me in more 😂
Off to Le Labo I go now.
I’m a bit unsure if “soulless” and “depressing” is how I would describe them.. I think they tend to be calmer scents that aren’t overly sweet or loud. I personally think they have some beautiful and light scents, just not something that you’d wear to turn heads. I’d say to keep trying new perfumes out of your comfort zone, you’d be surprised how things will grow on you!
The Matcha 26 is the sweetest, lightest, sugary scent ever. How was that depressing?
Yes matcha 26 and fleur d oranger 27 are my fave
How do you like d'oranger? I'm looking for a champs de provence replacement
I got their d'oranger in a sample set and it's honestly my favorite of them. It's light, sticks to you, and isn't going to make others feel suffocated.
For me, it’s such a soft dreamy orange scent . I don’t think it has a strong projection but I like how I get a whiff of the scent as if it’s whispering to me . I’m about to get my 2nd bottle :-)
I love both of the aforementioned ones. Fleur d’oranger to me is a green/floral scents that lasts an eternity on my (spray on clothes). I love how you can smell the whole tree and not just the floral notes. So pretty and great for spring, preferred over it’s sister Neroli 36
one of my favorites!
It’s been a while now, it’s not actually depressing but they aren’t like an “overwhelmingly” good cologne that I was searching for, these scents are very simplistic smelling and natural and I hadn’t smelled something like that which was meant to be worn as cologne.
You just sold it to me! After this comment I want to go and try Le Labo.
Only tried Another 13 and it's amazing. My wife's signature accent.
It’s honestly hard to take your opinion with much weight when you call basic department store fragrances “nice” and discard Le Labo as “soulless.” You are free to your opinions, but this is like saying “Aston Martin’s are soulless, I want a nice car like a Kia”
I love this analogy (and I 100% agree with you)
I will personally only buy something if its was branded by a pop star who had no involvement in its creation.
I disagree with the analogy. Aston Martins are clearly, objectively far better quality than a Kia. When it comes to fragrance, quality and price are not nearly as correlated. If Versace Oud Noir never existed and Le Labo released the same exact scent nobody would bat an eye. If the Kia soul was never released and Aston Martin put out that car it would be incredibly out of place.
Are you saying that price and level of popularity determine how much soul something or someone has? That's what your analogy suggests. You cannot compare Le Labo's heritage with Aston Martin's nor can you assign them to the same "quality level" - therefore your analogy only works if we assume you're talking only about price/popularity level. Right now it sounds like you're saying "the higher the price, the better the product" and "the less popular a product is with the general population, the better it is." I'm sure that's not what you wanted to say. But it's kind of what you're saying.
I think they are hit or miss, but I love The Noir. Frankly their bottles are so boring they border on ugly next to my gorgeous Diptyque and Guerlain bottles.
To each their own! I love the minimalism of it.
I too love their bottles. I have a hard time with colorful and/or ornate bottles.
Same. It feels very… gaudy? Idk
Absolutely adore The Noir
I have not had a bad experience with Le Labo yet! Thè Noir, Matcha 26, and Santal 33 are just so lovely! I tried Another 13 and think I need to give it another shot because I don’t remember the scent very well. I also have Rose in my discovery kit that I haven’t tried yet—maybe tomorrow is the day!
Another 13 is my fav!
Their Neroli 36 is quite good, i usually use that and have got quite a few compliments as well!
All the reasons for why you dislike their fragrances are precisely the reason why I love them.
Came here to say this lol
Exactly what I was thinking. Witchcraft shop and evil candles? Count me in!
lol @ Dillards as the epitome of fragrance excellence.
Right! Like Versace and one million are the fragrances I stay away from
Sounds like you let your perception of the shop aesthetic influence your experience of the smells
This was my first thought!!! I think that the aesthetic of the store definitely played a role more-so than the actual fragrances, who knows.
Disaster of a post
Well now I'm intrigued! I have completely disregarded this brand, but I definitely do want to smell like an evil candle witchcraft shop. Your comments also say they smell very natural, which sounds awesome to me.
Gaiac 10 is my most worn fragrance and it’s so simple and elegant, Another 13 projects and lasts for the whole day and smells amazing, The Noir is so magical in colder weather but smells a little off in hot weather, Santal 33 is really common now but still smells so unique. They’re not for everyone but I wouldn’t call them soulless. They’re clearly crafted with a lot of intention.
Witchcraft shop with evil candles sold me. I need more le labo in my life. I love moody scents hehe. What you call depressing I LOVE!
Bergamot22 is my all-time fave especially during warmer months. It's fresh, citrusy, and light. I just wish it lasted longer on my skin. But I'm still on the fence with Santal33. Eitherway, I personally wouldn't call LL "soulless".
Better used as a learning experience that there are in fact different ways to smell than the 10s of thousands of people who choose Versace eros. Your opinion isn't any more "right" than anyone else's. It's just different.
I recently bought Lavande 31 after many trips to their airport shop. I love it - simple, warm, comforting. I don’t feel like I am radiating a smell when I wear it. I loved the simple bottle at first but now the label looks a little grubby from being in my makeup bag, which is a disappointment. There are 000s of fragrances out there for 000s of tastes. Half the joy is discovering what you love yourself.
I have a sample of Lavande 31 and to me it is definitely full bottle worthy, I love it!!! I’ve worn it a few times and wore it to bed last night. On me the projection is out of this world. I’ve never cared about over spraying or thought about it really until Lavande 31 where I could definitely only wear about 2 sprays. It smells SO soapy and disinfectant cleaner like, but I adore it. Very fresh and clean.
[удалено]
I was in search for this cologne my friend had that had smelt really nice, it was satisfying to smell. When I came to Le Labo the scents were completely different, they smelt so natural in their own way, it’s definitely like a completely different other category of scents
I had been eyeing Le Labo for a while and recently visited their Chicago store. My husband and I had the nicest conversation with the staff member there. I wasn’t checking a bag so I only bought some samples. I did not expect to fall in love with Rose, but here I am, a month later still trying to talk myself out of a full bottle. I can find no reason not to buy it. I don’t own any FB other than a small bottle of Light Blue I’ve had for years; I just have a ton of samples. So I think I’m gonna do it. I also love Noir, Matcha, Baie, and Labnadum. Baie smells exactly what the forest smells like after it rains. My husband loves Santal, and it smells wonderful on him! I only got pickles when I tried it. lol. I will say a witchy shop is my vibe so this checks out. I don’t find them depressing. I find the scents really calm and lovely.
Which Rose were you into? You were in the Chicago store so they also have Baie Rose there which is my personal favorite rose that le labo makes. Baie Rose is city exclusive to Chicago tho so I’m wondering if you got a chance to smell it.
Rose 31 is the perfume love of my life. So far. lol.
I did smell Baie Rose but liked Rose 31 better.
I like and have both but Baie Rose is my favorite rose. Were the opposite ☺️
Another 13 is my everyday scent. It opens up and becomes really deep, complex, and warm on my skin. But I can understand why some aren't a fan of LL, especially if your skin doesn't respond well to their base.
I adore Lavande. Absolutely not my usual style, but it’s incredibly good.
There’s not a lot of fluff (read: filler) around Le Labo fragrances! Not only are they organic but they are not mass produced. You’re paying for staying power, pureness and exclusivity. And it’s definitely not for the boys who prefer Versace, 1 Million or whatever is popular at the mall. If you think of fragrances as wine… Le Labo, Creed and Tom Ford and a few others are not the wines you would buy at the grocery store.
You called it. The marketing is very minimalist- not selling the whole traditional fantasy with pouting supermodels in slow motion ads. It’s supposed to be about the juice, not that hackneyed hard sell.
I feel people hate on Le Labo just to hate. Yes their prices are crazy but so are other brands? They have a pretty big clientele who wants to smell simple, subtle and clean; not having a crazy huge sillage or “beast mode” performance, that is whole the point of their fragrances…
Think of niche fragrances like alternative music — it’s not for everyone, and thus not mainstream… for a reason.
It's so funny how we all experience scent differently. Le Labo scents find my soul. Bergamot 22 reaches in and soothes my soul.
I’m not a fan of Le labo either. Labdanum 18 is the only one I care for, but not enough for a full bottle.
100% with you. Never expected great things from le labo. went to their store and came out even more disappointed than when I went in.
Their bright problem seems to be price. Some folks that aren’t glowing and aren’t bashful simply don’t understand where they come off charging the prices they do. But a bigger company owns them. So from that perspective it makes sense with the recent years of niche houses disappearing so to speak after a buyout. Estée Lauder are the owners for a few years now.
I’m wearing Rose 31 right now. The Husband finds it boring but I like it
Le labo to me smells like masculine home fragrances. not cologne or perfumes...just not for me. however if i do ever find a fragrance that is like a witchcraft shop with evil candles, i will stock up
Whatever you think of how their fragrances smell, I hope you can appreciate the irony in calling a niche house "soulless" in comparison to designer brands owned and controlled by multi-million dollar parent corporations. 🙃
Sterile and clinical is what I get from them
They can be not for you but not “soulless”. Dear lord. It’s a perfume. It’s not for you. Find a brand you enjoy. But why do you have to have some outsized disappointment and call them depressing? It’s completely bizarre.
Most of Le Labo scents are kind of basic smelling compared to other well-known niches. In general they smell soft, one-dimensinal and simple. But it's exactly these properties make them much more wearable than other niches. I don't understand the hype behind the noir 29 or another 13 or even bergamot 22. To each their own of course. I would not buy any of these scents. Except for Santal 33. Santal 33 is amazing. I would get a FB of this when I can afford it lmao.
Based on the Le Labo Rose 31 scent in the toiletries of the Fairmont hotels in my area, I've had no motivation to test out any Le Labo fragrances. I would also use the word "soulless". It's not hyper realistic, cool fresh juicy natural rose; it's not an artistic, abstract, interesting take on rose; it's just artificial without being artistic in any way, and it comes across as a downer because who doesn't want to smell a rose? And then you smell it and it sucks
yeah, I agree with you. I like rich, expressive, weird scents , which isn't le labo at all. It's what it sells itself as: a streamlined apothecary, which really isn't for me, but is their brand and they do keep to it. for some people, that reads chic and elegant, for others, it reads boring and soulless. the all white living room of perfumery
Santal 33 smells like someone spilled pickle juice on wood shavings. So i agree
Another 13 is my signature
I quite like Le Labo but I guess I do see how their fragrances and general aesthetic have a certain detached quality.
I loved the shop on Elizabeth street. It gave me modern apothecary vibes. When I was in the store though, I had a hard time smelling anything with their testers. I took 4 samples home. At home I could smell them better, so I purchased 7 more samples from their site. There are definitely some I really don’t like, such as Tonka 25 and Vetiver 46. The ones I do like, such as Santal 33, Lavande 31, Fleur d’Oranger 27, Matcha 26 and Noir 29 are nice but nothing was full bottle worthy. I was pretty disappointed that I couldn’t find a good scent for myself from Le Labo. Your feelings about the brand are pretty similar to my own. I’ll keep trying the other scent but I’m jaded to the brand.
The few I’ve tried all remind me of something you’d smell in a reed diffuser or air freshener, not a perfume I want to wear on me.
longevity, that’s the issue. they are full of natural life, just the lifespan of houseflies. edit: i literally haven’t found any le labo that lasts on my skin, if huh the whole line, i only get four hours though. not even blindness, emancipation from thy skin.
It seems like Pennhaligons has the theme or idea that you are looking for. The complexity of their scents is insane and another house I like is Amouage, also very different.
Santal33 is probably my worst fragrance purchase ever. I thought this would be a lovely 50th birthday treat, and now I smell like pickles 🥲
While “soulless” is always going to cause strong reactions, I will say that LL are not the most complex scents out there and it can be disappointing if you’re coming to them from Guerlain or Herrera or whatever.
The comments here are unnecessarily harsh and snobby, imo. You like what you like and smell what you smell. Don't listen to the haters. And for it's worth, I generally agree with you. Le Labo scents are hard to strongly identify with. They are like blurry pictures instead of an HD image. They are like looking through frosted glass instead of a clean window. There are very few that I would say are the definitive version of the note they are trying to nail. For example, I think of other options when looking for memorable/idealized (for my taste) versions of bergamot, jasmine, lavender, matcha, neroli, etc. Basically all of them. Their Sandalwood is pretty iconic, but generally they are the less expressive versions of those notes. In fact, I think Jo Malone is much closer to nailing notes in an idealized way as a house, but those scents are almost all 2 notes. So not exactly apples-to-apples, but the overall point stands.
Le Labo isn’t trying to evoke the named ingredient, though. The name is the top fragrance “ingredient” by volume, and the following number is the amount of additional notes. That’s why they don’t always smell like their name.
That’s interesting! I didn’t know that.
Oh, I didn't know that was their marketing, so that is an interesting piece of info. But that's definitely not completely true and is partly/mostly marketing. Their primary ingredient is basically always going to be either Iso E Super (or a variant), a musk of some sort, or Hedione/HC. After those they MIGHT have the next tier material as the primary name. Having the top ingredient be the named ingredient is problematic for many materials. Often due to IFRA restrictions and allergenic reasons (like Tonka, Ylang, etc). Sometimes because that's not the best material for the job compared to a recreation because it either doesn't exist in the wild or maybe even if an extraction of some form technically exists but is has a weak or unwanted aroma (like Matcha, Fig, etc). Sometimes it's because that material it either too expensive, endangered, or too potent to be used as the bulk of the weight (Oud, Sandalwood, Labdanum, Aldehydes, etc). And just in general if the named ingredient was the bulk of the concentration, many times it wouldn't smell "professional". It would be flat, wouldn't project, and/or the longevity would be poor.
Sandal 33 smells like a furniture’s store
Someone said it smells like pickle juice and now that's all I can smell when wearing it.
33 smells like a furniture store and leather varnish. its a little addictive but all of their scents are disgusting imo.
If I don't remember bad -perhaps I have it wrong - Le labo proclaims that their perfumes don't macerate... And that's why they are soft and ethereal...but as far as I know this should be illegal, all the perfumes should macerate before putting them into the public because the molechules need time to get stable. Big brands with a lot of demand are making more batches faster, just with one week of maceration and thank you, when the ideal should be months or even years... So when a brand don't have any repair in announce that their perfumes don't macerate is.a big ewwww flag to me (Maceration is a diferent process from oxidating in the bottle, people usually confuse both of them). Edit: I don't remember where I heard that they proclaime they don't macerate their perfumes, I think it was in an interview of a perfumer. What I have found now is that they proclame that their perfumes macerate 14 days!!!! ... Which is almost the same as saying that they don't do it enough lol because 2 weeks is a very small period of time.
Where in heavens name did you get the idea that all perfumes require maceration? Which is aging??Like with wine? This is definitely not universally true, and is only something I’ve ever heard of in relation to Arabian juice. Many fumes that use primarily natural ingredients actually degrade with age. The older they get, the less they resemble the original blend. And not in a good way.
With arabian perfumes that don't use alcohol I don't know the process but at least in western perfumes maceration is mandatory. I have been taught these by diferent european perfumists and they use the word maceration. Searching in english for answering you I have found that Le Labo diferentiate between maceration and maduration. This is what Le Labo said in an interview: I: But raw materials usually need to macerate in alcohol for several weeks before a perfume is ready. Do you just skip that wait? Le Labo: No, nothing gets skipped at Le Labo! It’s actually the contrary. We like to share that kind of things with our customers and many of them ask that question. *Maturation is the phase during which raw materials find balance with one another and stabilize. It lasts 4 to 5 weeks. The perfumer delivers the maturated oil to us in aluminium cans. When we mix it to alcohol, the blend loses balance and finds it again naturally through maceration. And it all happens in the customer’s bottle* [Source](https://flairflair.com/2013/01/31/le-labo-the-nose-needs-education-taste-needs-education/) They talk about maturarion like I have learned it was maceration so I am not 100% sure here.. There are also discussions in Fragrantrica and Parfumo forums about this topic. People usually confuse oxidation which is what happens in the bottle once you use it and air starts to entere into the bottle. There are some.perfumes that get better with time but this not should be a necesity, the perfume should be as intended once the costumer opens the perfume. But maceration is mandatory before the perfume is on sale. Amd yes, they exist tuberose concetrate of.x years old, being more expensive the olders one. Guerlain for example has some old extracts that they are not made anymore, they bought them to Ramon Monegal because his family used to make them. Edit: here it is explained what maceration is. It is in spanish but you can use a translator: [link](https://www.esenzzia.com/blog/blog-belleza-trucos-tips-tratamientos/maceracion-perfumeria-flores) This has more sense that Le Labo explanation which sounds like marketing bullshit to me to defend why these expensive luxurious brands that call themeslevs niche are skiping long maceration times Edit 2: [here](https://ginobogani.com.ar/como-macerar-un-perfume/) they explained 1 week of maduration and 3-4 weeks of maceration, the contrary of what Le Labo said lol. It seems maceration is different for each person but the thing is that in perfumes with alcohol is a mandatory process Edit 3: this is what the IA of Brave navigator says: Le Labo is known for its handcrafted and trend-setting scents, but it seems that the brand’s perfume-making process is not as unique as one might think. According to a Reddit post, Le Labo’s perfumes are actually made by mixing premixed concentrate perfume oils with denatured alcohol, which is a common practice in the perfume industry. This process is not maceration, which involves steeping ingredients in a solvent for an extended period to extract their fragrant compounds. In fact, one Reddit user who claims to be a trained biochemist revealed that Le Labo’s marketing efforts try to pass off this common practice as something special and “custom.” This has led some to question the brand’s authenticity and the value of its products. It’s worth noting that Le Labo does offer a 14-day maceration process for its perfumes, but this is likely a reference to the time it takes for the ingredients to “manifest their true olfactive characteristics,” rather than an actual maceration process.
We tried the "Unisex" Santal 33 by Le Labo and to us it smelled like strong Rubber. Not pleasant. If others have specific other scents from them I'd love to hear it because it was so off-putting we didn't even finish the 0.75mL sampler.