Lola

Oh my... Calice Becker is a genius! Lola is by the same creator as 2 of my other faves - 'J'Adore by Dior' and 'Tommy girl by Tommy Hilfiger' I wrote a review for this about a year ago, and said that the perfume was okay but not spectacular and that a roller ball will suffice. Well, the craziest thing happened since then. I wore this perfume during the holidays 2 years ago, and found it was subdued and elegant enough, but nothing like crazy good. Fast forward another year, and I'm like, WOW. It didn't really smell different but I interpreted it totally differently. It is very exquisite and sophisticated, and maybe my skin chemistry has changed, but the way it smells on my skin is unbelievable and unlike ANY other perfume I've ever smelled. I get this aroma from that is so hard to put my finger on, but it actually reminds me a lot of one of my favourite scents in the world 'Neutrogena Body Oil'. It smells like the base is just like that but then there is just an unbelievable fresh and yummy quality that is definitely from the pink pepper (and vanilla). The rose may be what gives the perfume it's oily aroma, it smells like a hot, rich bath in a dark room lit by just a few candles. The bath is filled with red and black rose petals and there are slices of lemon and yuzu (the pear and grapefruit). Under these fresh bursts of citrus, rose, pink pepper, and a light and subdued peony, there lies a warm vanilla base that gives the fragrance it's slightly gourmand qualilty. I picture the vanilla as little wisps of vanilla bubbles in this bath of Lola yumminess. I just bought myself a 100 ml now that I'm done with my roller ball and have no regrets, just that I didn't realize how much I love this fragrance sooner! It's so original, unlike a lot of my perfumes, and I feel before the week is done this will probably become my new signature, as I never smell this on other people, and the fact that apparently it mixes not well with most people's chemistry makes it even more special and personal to me in a way, I think. Also, the bottle is a lot better looking in person than in the photo which was a relief! I used to be obsessed with Daisy by Marc Jacobs a few years ago, but never replaced my bottle once it ran out as the scent became too popular, so it's nice to have another MJ to replace it. The more I smell this perfume, the more I love it, this is something I have found is a rare but amazing quality that means you and a perfume are probably bonded for life, this has also happened to me with 'Dkny Golden Delicious'.

Very similar to the part in the first Harry Potter movie where Olivander tells Harry; "the wand chooses the wizard, Harry," the same concept exists with Lola; this perfume chooses the wearer. Alot of comments mention how this perfume smells "plasticky" or synthetic, and I can totally understand where those thoughts may come from. The first time I gave Lola a sniff it was straight from the nozzle and I had that YUCK! reaction. I thought to myself, why would anyone actually find this perfume pleasant to wear? I moved on and forgot about it. Fast forward a year later, to where Lola and I meet again. This time it wasn't at a perfume counter, but one of my best friends was wearing her. A few of us went out the bars and all night I kept smelling something amazing coming from one of my friends and I finally had to ask "who the hell smells so effing good and what are you wearing?!" When she responded "Lola...Marc Jacobs," my face was kind of like this -----> O_o I asked her to repeat her answer because there was no way the stinky perfume I smelled a year ago could actually be this beautiful on the skin. The next morning, I find my sample of Lola and spray it on my wrist, still in disbelief. I left my wrist alone for a few minutes so the spray could fully dry and then I gave her a sniff.... Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!! Beautiful....peppery...rose....vanilla...tonka...musk....PERFECTION. Lola was the perfume that really got me to start appreciating rose notes in perfume. The rose is blended together so perfectly with all the other notes and is so radiant and delicious. Lola is powerful without being in your face. The longevity? Could be better if you ask me, I usually get only 6 hours of wear which isn't that stellar compared to alot of my other perfumes. The bottle? Not really my favorite, I find it overly tacky for my taste but I'm willing to look past it for the juice. You HAVE to test Lola on your skin otherwise you will not get the full effect! On a tester strip and on the nozzle this perfume just flat lines.. My conclusion: no, Lola is not for everyone and as a poster mention above, it really shouldn't be. This is why I reference the HP quote. If Lola is meant to be...she will choose you and you two will have a beautiful relationship. If not, wellll then it's on to the next one.... :)

I was gifted this one for Christmas 2012 and I finished the 50 ml bottle. Prior to that I really could not decide in between this and Oh, Lola! In the end this one won my heart :) if today they sold this stuff again I would make a blessing altar for Marc Jacobs as my hero and run out to get a couple of the 100 ml bottle. I think I was not ready at age 22 to fully appreciate this beauty and it definitively was an important addiction in my love for rose fragrances. This is a dark floral. Take roses, add the pink pepper and a sort of berry jam with a slight tropical touch. LOVED this stuff. So somebody mentioned, this is a sort of punk concert in a bottle. But a pretty one at that. I imagine Debbie Harry from Blondie wearing this. It also screams Heroin Chic. So mix: punk, heroin chic, dark feminine vibes and the tropics = this :) Seems like the pink pepper bit horrified many, but that is what REALLY attracted me to it. This stuff is spicy. Spicy, flirty and seductive. I read that apparently this fragrance was inspired by vampires. I must also say I am inherently attracted to more bittersweet/bit tangy fragrances, so that “vampiric bite” of the pink pepper really sold it for me. You can also think when you smell this pink pepper like that is a bit of actual snake poison and then a dark blooming bouquet of red roses emerges. It still remains a bit tangy, a bit dry, a bit understated all throughout. This is one is for an archetype that has recently entered the modern media: the succubus chic (or vampire chic lol) This one is for all the women (and older teens) who are not overly sexual, there is a purity there, but who do like to seduce. They care less about the act and more about the seduction ritual. This one is also Ophelia floating in a lake surrounded by flowers. A dark berry lipstick note. Roses, exotic tropical flowers, dark earthy colors, lake water 💧 it’s so playful it becomes sarcastic. Some will dislike that... but for the brave one who likes that kind of vibe... oh boy... that person won’t be able to get away from you. A perfume before it’s time. I am kind of in shock how many people dislike this, maybe I was lucky it worked like magic on me.

This is my kind of perfume! The bottle may look tacky and silly with the oversized rubber flower stopper but it's an eye popping cute vanity table perfume if you're like me and are a very girly girl. I love how it looks in my bedroom. Lola smells a bit like a 1980s or 1990's vintage fragrance. It's not quite the same but it's giving off vibes of Ex'cla-ma'tion by Coty. It's a perfume one would have found in the wardrobe of Lisa Turtle from Saved By The Bell, or Molly Ringwald's room, or in cartoons, Fifi LaFume from Tiny Toons. It's got an innocent youthful girl vibe; but with a touch of maturity due to it's being a floral. When you spray it, the scent comes off as exceedingly sweet; almost sour, with a sticky and gooey floral oil type of vibe. The florals are coming through almost immediately with a distinctive geranium and rose pair. Not terribly fruity but there is a can't-miss-it grapefruit accord that is also coming through. The grapefruit and pink pepper give it a nice bite. This is still mostly more geranium and rose oil type of perfume. The scent is strong and lasts forever. The dry down reveals - at least to my nose - musk and vanilla. This is like a big flower has wrapped it's petals and sepals and stem all around you. Gorgeous and simple linear and sweet. If you like sweet florals and vintage style modern scents definitely for you. A fragrance to put on after you dress up in a pretty spring or summer 'retro' fashion, as in a real dress, not just a skirt, a nice cocktail dress, bold colors like violet, purple, pink or red, and with lipstick and high heels, make up. This is a very womanly dressy fancy scent but at the same time not too sophisticated, like a young woman who aspires to higher social status and is still learning and climbing the social ladder. It's also somehow innocent, cartoony cute like a dress for Minnie Mouse or Betty Boop. It's a colorful perfume. But you have to really like florals for you to like it.

I used to go to punk-rock concerts wearing Lola and a leather jacket. As a college student at the time, I mostly wore safe office-appropriate scents, but whenever I was mad at the world, it would be Lola. I like the pear, but I love the explosion of roses and peonies that Lola is after an hour or so. The musk, pear and roses conspire to give it a darker edge, almost like vinyl or hairspray, not sure what it is exactly. I didn't care. I always loved it and it's a quality scent, but it's not necessarily a crowd-pleaser. That was sort of the point. Fast-forward more than a decade and my husband still likes it on me, but it's not his favourite. I feel like I've outgrown the punk pears and peonies. Maybe I'll sell the rest of my bottle to an edgy tween (at heart). I was confused by a review down here that compared it to Modern Muse Le Rouge, which I associate with the mature, classy, happy, nice lady (not exactly punk-rock and black eyeliner). Then again, Le Rouge also has this odd quality that makes it a suitable scent for teens. I wore them side by side and went: 'Ohhhh, yeah...' I can see how you'd get there, they definitely are family at some point in the development. Both warm, both expensive-smelling, both fruity-florals that are well-grounded in their respective bases, keeping them from the usual fruity-floral screeching. They even both have that hint of vintage. I have to say that I think Le Rouge is better. Le Rouge is more well-rounded, more mature and more put together. Le Rouge gives me the same vibe as Idôle by Lancôme, but you wouldn't put Lola in that lady-like category. Lola is the younger cousin going through the grunge phase that Le Rouge has gotten over by now. We still love her though.