Salina

Since beginning in 2010 with four fragrances, Italian perfume house Laboratorio Olfattivo has grown into an impressive niche line that now numbers twelve eaux de parfum with the release of Patchouliful in 2014. Far from marketing executives and focus groups, this company is dedicated to allowing artistic perfumers free reign when it comes to pursuing their inspirations and fulfilling fragrant dreams. In this exclusive laboratory, perfumers work in an idyllic environment that nurtures both the art and creativity while releasing modern scents that bring classic perfume structure into the 21st century. The elegant fluids in these flaçons belie the plain and simple packaging, yet all of them reflect the modern streamlined luxury of their containers. Inspired by what many call the "Pearl of the Mediterranean", Salina is an olfactory remembrance of a small island located in the Aeolian archipelago, north of Sicily. The invigorating temperate marine climate of its namesake isle is captured by a smooth and heavily salted citrus opening, tinged with the scent of lofty pines blown from the hills above by briny breezes. The most intriguing quality of Salina is the way in which perfumer David Mauritte captures the beauty of both the island and the sea, without any watery fruity notes, ultimately achieving the same clarity and aqueous aura with marine materials. Unfurling like a perfumed poem, this scent tells a salty tale of bitter herbs and hearty blooms dotting the coastline. Present also, underlying the entire perfume, are wafts of beach containing the gentle (yet undeniably odd) desiccated aroma of petrified starfish and brittle sea urchins, deposited by lapping waves of frothy lavender. The sunbaked sand mixed with saline spray is soon washed away by an incoming tide of translucent musk. Sun faded cedarwood drifts and dries, bobbing on the sea's surface, while bathed in glowing vanilla shimmers. The 15% concentration of this perfume projects just enough, lasting longer than almost any in the aromatic aquatic genre. Neither pretentious nor ubiquitous, Salina resonates a nautical elegance with an emphasis on both hesperidic and true oceanic accords. The delightful addition of myrtle flower and absinthe (wormwood) fuse everything into a sturdy and head-and-shoulders above "the rest" of the endless ocean of woody maritime fragrances out there. Sillage: average to good Longevity: above average Overall: 4.5/5 The truth be told? I'm an aquatics addict, in recovery currently. I used to love and douse myself with large doses of "calone colognes". The more the better!! (Sick...I know) After a decade of sniffing around my tastes are now more eclectic (nay, eccentric!) and well-rounded; yet this fragrance had me ready to "relapse" and take the plunge with pleasure... I've been there, sniffed that and lost the proverbial t-shirt; so to speak, never once thinking that I would find such a truly aromatic and rather unique aquatic in such a plain flaçon with such a simple name. Salina not only lasted how I expect a perfume at its pricepoint should (hour after delightful hour), it didn't smell the least bit trite and could feasibly cross the ever looming and somewhat pesky seasonal line in the sand and compliment the crisper sunny days of autumn as well as days spent basking at the shore. Notes: Lemon peel, sea salt, pine needles, wormwood, hot sand accord, myrtle, marine spurts, lavender, vanilla, white musk & cedar wood

I think it is the younger brother of Armani Prive Bleu Turquoise. You know, that brother who wants to prove he is worthy of respect and joins the army, while the older Bleu Turquoise builds a respectable image in politics. While Salina minces the dirt of no man's land (and Byredo's Rose is waiting to rescue him in case of God-knows-what) and throws grenades from the trenches, Bleu Turquoise decides on a tie knot for another soiree. Imagine them both meeting at a sea shore one day. The pampered Bleu Turquoise would look for a maintained beach - the one with a shower, sunbeds, umbrellas and at least two bars. He would put on sunscreen and barely step into the water not to affect his soft skin. It is not bad, we all can be moody sometimes. Salina would dive into the sea straight from the cliff. Even if there is no cliff around, he will find one. He does not care if the water is too salty or too cold. In fact, Salina is rinsing his nose with this water. Good for health, they say. He still is the brother of Bleu Turquoise, you can't ignore the genes. He can stand up for himself, but somewhere deep in his heart Salina is a sissy. A confusing but intriguing mixture.

A very alluring salty, freshie fragrance that is also comforting. Lavender and vanilla mix so well in the blend. It is in the same time salty and marine, but also woody and herbal. It is an airy, radiant, fresh and aromatic with a base of vanilla and cedar. One of the fragrances that smells like you would expect when reading the notes in my opinion. Very beautiful done and super underrated. Salina smells like you're sitting on a rocky peninsula in the Mediterranean, sunbathing, surrounded by sea breeze and pine needles smell everywhere and stagnant rock-pools baking in the afternoon sun. There's some myrtle trees behind you, perhaps some pine trees or some eucalyptus. It's just incredible and I love it. I can see this becoming one of my all-time favourites for sunny days or for rainy ones, when I need something to lift my mood. Longevity and projection is great and on clothes lasts until next wash. The packaging is really nice and sturdy, but the bottle is fairly simple and plain. For the price sold, the quality of the juice is truly outstanding!

This one is very unique and stands out of the crowd. I like it more then it's either sunny and hot or rainy, because it is provides very naturalistic stormy sea aroma, which either goes on contrast with hot weather or emphasize the melancholic wetness of surroundings when it's rainy. On those two occasions the perfume has the deepest undertones and it reminds me of wild rocky beach with a lot of seaweed which stucked to rockes. It doesn't actually reminds me of Mediterranean island, but rather of Baltic Sea shores. On other occasions, for example, when it's around 20 degrees warm and cloudy, but no rain, it smells as an average (though, again, very realistic and straightforward) salty sea and might resemble Mediterranean. I mostly bought it for hot/rainy weather occasions, because I really enjoyed this somewhat depressive but powerful lonely stormy sea aroma.

Heard about this fragrance in one negative review with Megamare by Orto Parisi. As Megamare does not scent for me with anything unpleasant I was really curious to try this one. I am not a big fan of aquatic fragrances and Megamare is too aquatic for me in a very traditional way. But Salina feels very different. I smell those aquatic notes but they are less intense than it’s SALINITY. From all the tastes are prefer salty. So this fragrance goes beyond smell for me. It really triggers my taste receptors and I start remembering all salty dishes that I love — pickles, oysters, caviar, tuna tartar...But it does not smell like any food. I prefer to wear in hot weather as I get more of these salty, woody and herbal notes.

I first smelt this on somebody else, and the scent that pushes further off the skin is mostly thick, salty air with a the myrtle giving the impression of kelp. Closer to the skin one can detect more herbal, medicinal and citrusy facets, beautifully blended with those other notes. My points of comparison are Eau de Merveilles Bleu by Hérmes, which is very citrus dominant by comparison and Acqua di Sale by Profumum Roma (from a distance) but the myrtle note is much more prominent in the PR and (to my tastes) not as well blended, and at this price point, this is a far more attractive option. A beautiful fragrance and for me the ideal marine scent.

This scent is the essence of the mediterranean sea breeze bottled in a sincere and simple package, it is fresh and salty as the name says. It's a sensation, an emotion, it's not strong, high or incisive, actually it is so soft and evanescent that only who has been in Mediterannean Sea, specifically in Italy, can recognize in this juice the shadow of a memory. Beautiful as piece of olfactive art, but I'm not sure if considering this as a everyday scent.

This is my first wear of my sample and it is definitely reminiscent of the salty but slightly sweet smell of skin after a day at the beach. I haven't smelt anything like it - it's quite beautiful. It also has a density to it although it's not a heavy scent at all. I think this brand is really overlooked - so far I've loved everything I've tried from them.

Smells very familiar to me, nostalgic even. A cloudy day on the mediterranean coast. Cold wind is blowing salty air and pine needles infusing it's scent into freshly washed whites (lavender scented detergent) that are hanging below the windows of an old stone house. Fresh laundry marine fragrance. Beautiful.

Very much what it says - salty water, but with creamyness of the suntan lotion, but not the cheap one, the expensive one. Very warm, but breezy. Strong but gentle. I'm amazed how good this perfume is. Rather for women. Or feminine people. Or for layering! Their scented body balm is amazing.

For the first 10 seconds I thought I had sprayed my arm with Secretions Magnifique. After those 10 seconds of panic, it becomes quite lovely. Not a love, but a like; not a safe blind buy for sure.

Unpopular opinion, but this is not a summer perfume. As much as I love it in cool weather, it is unbearable in the heat - all those "fruits of the sea" and fish bones come out.

9/10 Every time I use it it reminds me about the sea. It's super refreshing. Smells like salt , sand and sea breeze. Very natural scent.

My favourite summer perfume for years! Long-lasting salt and woody smell. Went to Rome to buy it!

ADDICTED. Less medicinal than Acqua di Sale and half the price. Such a gem.

Salina is a fragrance that surprises you from the very first moment. It has something magnetic about it—something that sets it apart from everything else. The instant you spray it, the first thing you notice is salt. It’s sharp, real, almost tangible. Like you’ve just come back from the sea and your skin, now dry, carries that briny film that tingles slightly to the touch. Soon after, eucalyptus emerges—fresh and balsamic—blending with the salt to create a truly unique sensation: a clean yet enveloping sea breeze. Not cold or icy, but more like a warm current of air suddenly drifting through open curtains. You can also pick up light hints of resins, an aromatic touch that evokes Mediterranean vegetation—perhaps myrtle, maybe pine needles—but always in the background. As time passes, Salina softens. That salty, sun-kissed skin accord remains at its heart, but now there's something warmer, perhaps a trace of soft vanilla or white musk, that adds a feeling of comfort and cleanliness. It never turns into a gourmand or becomes overly ozonic; it stays grounded—more natural and, paradoxically, more human. It’s a fragrance you can wear almost year-round, which is one of its greatest strengths. In autumn or winter, it brings the feeling of open air and wide horizons. In spring, it pairs beautifully with bright, breezy days. That said, during the hottest days of summer—especially under strong sun—it can become a bit much. The salty and balsamic notes may feel too intense or less balanced in high heat. That being said, Salina isn’t a fragrance you wear to be noticed. It’s more intimate, more introspective. You wear it to feel something, not to make others feel something. And once it gets under your skin, it’s hard to let go.

Tried LO Salina today, and as mentioned already Heeley's Sel Marin and CsP's Aqua Motu comes to mind first. Maybe a little Montale's Sandflowers. Yes, for a perfume they are tricky to carry, to some it will smell of the humid breeze of the sea carrying seaweed, salt, ozonic scents, but for some that humidity has somewhat a rotten egg-ish note, most likely a blend including synthetics like Calone and Scentenal. But this is exactly it, not every perfume is created to please crowds. In my opinion Salina is another amazing creation of what otherwise would remain as an abstract olfactory concept. But now it's there, you can spray it on your skin, and you can feel it. You may not like it, but it deserves an appreciation for sure. Salina to me smells exactly like how my cotton bracelets smell after summer. The salty sea water scent infused into the fabric, dried in the sun, then got wet with seawater again, and dried again, and so on.

A unisex version of Mugler's Womanity. Womanity minus the sweet figs plus a harsh, almost sour pine scent = Salina. I understand why it is a polarizing scent and it is not for me. Edit: I have a small test spray of this and I'm using it as an airfreshener right now to use it up. Turns out that it is kind of addictive. I'm really gonna miss it once it's gone. I still don't think I would wear it but I recently received 2 bottles of Rem by Reminiscence (Rem and Rem Coco) and they seem to capture exactly those salty, spicy, watery and this somewhat sweet aspects that I've grown to like about Salina. So, if Salina is a bit too daring and different for you, Rem might be a wearable alternative.

In my opinion this is a winter fragrance. It can be too strong and unpleasant in hot weather, smelling like seaweed and being a bit repugnant. But with cold temperature it has a nice feeling of mysterious salty ocean that has actually a cold and deep dark quality. Freezing breeze, sound of the waves crashing on the rocks, evokes a nostalgic sense of a tempestuous sea in winter.

I don't understand why this gets a lot of hate. It's really pleasant and it really does remind me of the sea. I would say it's in the same genre of Heeley Sel Marin but not quite as safe. I actually like this better than Heeley. Really peeps, you need to check this out. 9/10