Island

I bought this bottle initially thinking that it would just be an occasional wear. I loved my sample and drained it quite quickly, but didn't know how well Island would really translate to the summer heat where I live. However, despite that beautiful "snuffed cigarette" accord, this is a gorgeous warm weather scent which you could wear well into fall or in the cooler parts of spring if you wanted to. That snuffed cigarette note is there, but it definitely isn't as bad or dominating as some people make it out to be, and it's nowhere near unpleasant. It's more like the idea of a snuffed cigarette filtered through a fantasy lens. Honestly the vibe that I get is being at a party and hanging out with your crush after they've had a cigarette. That smoky vibe is there but it mingles with their scent until it creates this hybrid amalgamation that just makes you feel comfortable, like you want to bury your face in their shirt. Maybe that's the white musks and vanilla in the drydown making me feel so comfortable. Combine this with some beautiful florals in the heart and that juniper note (juniper is quickly becoming one of my favorite notes, and the way it's used here is SO unique.) It's beyond gorgeous. And I'm not sure if it's the newer formulation I got, but that ashy scent tends to stick around for the entire life of the fragrance now, where I feel before it would eventually fade and let the florals and stuff dominate more. Not that it's a bad thing. That smoky aspect is what totally makes this one. This is infinitely more wearable than I can describe it to be. Maybe only Sanctuary, Pool Boy and Ceremony are more wearable from the house (yes I find this more wearable/mainstream than Silver even). No one wants to smell like cigarettes, but I can almost guarantee you you want to smell like this. If you're a fan of Santal 33 you might enjoy this, although the scent profiles are very different. Like if Santal 33 is the older sister who goes to events at the Met Gala and has a residency at a local jazz bar, Island is the younger brother who swears by dive bars and happy hours and gets back to the apartment at all times of the night and probably smokes cigarettes in his apartment while cooking dinner/breakfast at 3am. In a good way. Such an ecstatic fragrance. It captures that feeling of being in your early 20s when the night was young and you were hopeful for the future. When you had the hope and the energy to try and find where your dreams were hiding. When New York was (is) the most beautiful city in the world and you never wanted to be anywhere else ever again.

This is my favorite Clandestine Labs fragrance to date. To me this is the memory of going out in New York City without the glitz or glamour. This is the walk home feeling the cold marine air, the cigarette ash on every platform, and the subtle warmth and comfort of home. The fragrance can initially feel like just cigarette ash. As you fully breathe in the notes and let them settle you can distinguish the nuance of the notes, you smell juniper, peppercorn, yuzu and an the faintest ambergris giving the fragrance a woody, almost sour start, like the acrid cigarette ash mixing with the moist coastal air. Over time you start noticing the cypress, white florals, and clean incense sneaking in, before finally the fragrance closes with a fade to black with moss and flickers of musk and dry vanilla. Longevity is great and projection is just where I want it, distinguishing without being overwhelming. Truly a masterclass in storytelling through fragrance notes alone, all while smelling great.