(Shelf) Love: An Honest Review of Le Labo Fragrances
Le Labo in the arts district
After testing and trialing Byredo, I had to test out every influencer’s fav fragrance, Le Labo.
I’ve always had a fragrance for myself but I think as we get older and grow, our style evolves and that includes our scent. I started off with Vera Wang’s Princess in high school, which felt and still feels to me, very high school. I still love the scent but I can’t disassociate it from me spritzing it on my wrists to impress my summer crush in senior year of high school.
I wore Dior’s scent for a while in college, which felt more mature and the next natural step for me in that phase of life, you can get it here. It definitely is a step up, sophisticated but still fruity and feminine.
Yet, I still wanted more, something that felt uniquely me. Enter: Byredo.
I tested out many Byredo scents, and ended up choosing Mojave Ghost as my signature scent. It smells heavenly, elevated and really feminine with notes of magnolia, cedarwood, and crisp amber. I ended up getting a full size bottle to myself and I still wear it daily. (ok, more like weekly in pandemic times).
You can check out my Youtube review on Byredo here.
Now that I’m basically a fragrance aficionado, I’d thought I’d head over to Le Labo for their discovery set and see if I found one that suits me. I had high hopes for Le Labo, considering they are a French brand [“Le Labo” translates to The Lab] and they did not disappoint.
I tested each scent multiple days to see how they wear on me and which one would be my favorite. See my honest review and notes below on Another 13, Bergamote 22, The Noir 29, Rose 31, & Santal 33.
ANOTHER 13
Background:
In 2010, Le Labo was commissioned by AnOther Magazine to work on an exclusive scent. This project was born thanks to Sarah of colette who initiated the creative collaboration between Le Labo and Jefferson Hack, editor-in-chief of AnOther Magazine. The result of this collaboration is AnOther 13, a hypnotizing and unique scent. [source: lelabofragrances.com]
Notes:
Ambroxan (synthetic animal musk), jasmine, moss, ambrette seeds absolute
Thoughts: A great alt option to Santal 33 if you want something that smells almost equally as nice, but isn’t a scent that everyone has. Definitely leans more towards a feminine energy, subtle and great for a sophisticated everyday scent.
Rating: 9 out of 10
BERGAMOTE 22
Notes:
Floral, amber, musk, vetiver
Thoughts: It definitely has a botanical feel to it, with some fruity and nice undertones. Overall, I feel like this is a neutral scent. It smells nice and is very subtle, not overpowering.
Rating: 6.5
THE NOIR 29
Notes:
Bergamot, fig, bay leaves, cedar wood, vetiver, musk
Thoughts: Was not my favorite. It felt way too overpowering and not the right scent for me. It also had a more masculine tone to it.
Rating: 3
ROSE 31
Notes:
Cumin, olbanum, cedar, a touch of amber, Gaiac wood
Thoughts: The rose scent really does come through here. I think overall it was not necessarily my vibe, but I’m also not the biggest fan of rose scents in general. This one starts off more feminine and ends on a more masculine note, in my opinion.
Rating: 6.5
SANTAL 33
Notes:
Cardamom, iris, violet, ambrox, sandalwood
Thoughts: Such a romantic and feminine fragrance, and makes me truly feel like a woman. I truly have never smelled anything like it. I also feel in general Le Labo’s scents are bit more potent than Byredo, so it makes for a lovely signature scent for everyday wear. I also feel like it’s pretty recognizable.
Rating: 10
SHOP MY FAVES
And of course if you wanted to see more of my opinion and more in-depth of my first initial reactions, feel free to watch my review video on youtube at the beginning of this post. And no, this is not sponsored at all, but I do use affiliate links which I could earn a little money from, which could also help me improve my blog and content. :)
Hope you enjoyed and let me know what’s your signature scent in the comments below.
xo,
s.