Lost Cause

Lost Cause is one of my favorite Phlur perfumes, and I’m heartbroken it’s being discontinued. From the first spray, it was love at first sniff, bright green, fresh, and citrusy in a way that feels vibrant yet gently damp, like a garden after a soft spring rain. It’s completely unisex, maybe slightly leaning masculine, but truly wearable by anyone. While not overpowering, it has a confident presence that’s noticeable without being offensive. Its real magic, though, is in the dry down: a soft, creamy woodiness that stays green, soothing, and just a little earthy, maybe like milk tea steeped in herbs never sweet but serene. It’s perfect for the office, a quiet spring or summer day, or just feeling at peace in my own skin.

I really like this, mostly because it is a good, solid, easy-to-wear scent. It doesn't have anything about it that's too cloying, and if I'm running late and don't have time to choose something, this is a good default. It's a little green right off the top, but by the time I get to work it dries down to a nice, slightly fruity floral that I would catch little whiffs of over the course of the day. Happy to have it in my collection.

Reminds me of a thrift store where they sell wild-looking outfits. You try one on, and get a whiff of this perfume. For some reason, it says "old clothing" to me. Not necessarily a bad thing. Every week I find different perfumes incredible and wildly disgusting. This week, I'm really feeling Lost Cause. I'm sure in a day or two I'll be repulsed by it.

An amazing aquatic green scent. Not nearly as floral as I would have feared, and super refreshing. It’s like a just-showered scent yet also a just-was-outside-in-the-sun scent.

This is not what I thought it would be. And wow, I like it. Earthy orris is enlivened by bright bergamot, rounded apple and tart rhubarb. Florals dance around juicy citrus notes. Subtly sweet and not at all offensive, vibrant in the most lovely and effortless way. Luminous is the perfect word to describe this happy green fragrance. Without obvious woods, it captures the jive of earthy ground and plants without feeling damp or dirty. And the florals, as obvious as they should be, are supporting players behind the more assertive fruity greens. I barely perceive the florals; either that, or I have no idea what I'm smelling. The grounding orris is assertive. Along with vanilla orchid, it resonates as a warm and cuddly invite. It feels comfortable and relaxing and refreshing. Definitely more intriguing than other PHLUR fragrances I've smelled; though it doesn't strike me as particularly adventurous. Rather, it's safe and reliable. As the brand notes, it does create an airy shimmer. Very tart, sharp and dewy, falling into a whisper of sweet smokiness (hello, orris). Not heavy or cloying. Reminds me vaguely of by/Rosie Jane's Lake; without the spice of lavender or fir needle oil. Instead, woods are traded for orris and sparkling mate. Easily a wear anytime and everywhere fragrance, and less of a cologne or aftershave than I anticipated. It almost perfectly straddles the unisex line.

Personal: 6.5/10 – It’s airy, green, and pleasant, but too sheer and forgettable for me. Mass appeal: 8/10 – Light green musky florals are safe, though a touch bland. Performance: 5.5/10 – Very light. Sits close to the skin and fades faster than I’d like. Value: 5.5/10 – Approachable Phlur pricing, but not enough substance to justify a bottle. Uniqueness: 5.5/10 – Green musky florals aren’t new. This feels very “done before.” SCORE: 63/100 Full bottle buy? NO, too thin and unremarkable. Blind buy? YES, it’s safe and inoffensive, but don’t expect depth. Recommend? YES, if you want a breezy, clean summer skin scent. Date night? NO, it’s too light and lacks allure. Office safe? YES, perfectly professional and unobtrusive. Pros: Breezy, green, sheer. Perfect “background” fragrance for someone who doesn’t want to smell perfumey. Cons: Weak performance, generic DNA, and too bland for enthusiasts. Lost Cause feels like Phlur’s attempt at a green, airy skin scent — almost like “Missing Person Lite” but with a greener, fresher twist. It’s wearable, it’s pleasant, it’s very safe, but it’s also very forgettable. A good starter frag, but not one to keep around if you’ve smelled more complex green florals. A clean, sheer, summer skin scent — pleasant but forgettable. Review #64 in my fragrance journey – this fragrance I own as a decant

This one borders on being a skin scent on me after just 15-30 minutes, but it's actually surprisingly long lasting - nothing to write home about, it lasts in the region of 5-6 hours, but given its subtlety it's easy to be fooled into thinking Lost Cause will disappear after an only hour. It's somewhere between a "shampoo" and "gentlemen's aftershave" scent, unisex but leaning just slightly masculine. It's floral and fresh and a little green (and definitely a 'dew drop' feeling as the notes suggest, rather than an earthy bitter grass note), and in my mind it's like a traditional "blue" fragrance except dialled WAY back - think the likes of YSL Y, Dior Sauvage, Bleu de Chanel, etc but cranked back by about 80%. I adore these scent profiles on others but they almost always have that ubiquitous sharp "masculine musk" note that puts me off wearing them myself, which isn't present here thank goodness! This is the perfect solution for anyone in my position and though I do wish it was a LITTLE bit stronger I'm debating picking up a 10ml. My preferences usually lean very feminine so I'm surprised I want to add this to my collection but it's really nice!

This definitely took me on a journey. Initial drydown: Hmmm... marines and greens. Kind of scratchy. Are there even florals in here? Kind of missing any grounding to this, very light. 30 min later: Wow, this smells like bug spray. Maybe cleaning chemicals, mixed with your average aquatic freshie for men circa 2008-2012. No. 60 min later and onward: after dismissing it, I caught a whiff and came back to the wrist. Is this at all the same juice I had sprayed an hour earlier? The ambergris and vanilla come out and COMPLETELY change this one on my skin. I suddenly can’t pick out a note in the cacophany, besides maybe the base.. but whatever harshness I smelled in the top has completely melded into something very unique, subtle but austere, nostalgic. Not a warm scent, but comfroting nonetheless. Like taking a drive through a forest with your crush. It’s sexy and refined, a bit understated and not at all what my first impressions made it out to be. I haven’t had my nose anything like this before, and have nothing more to compare it to, but enjoy it and want to wear again to see how it performs. Not a lost cause, after all.

This is just SUCH an all around pleasing scent! If you're looking for an office-safe day time fragrance for the spring and summer, this is a great option. It is quite unique yet fresh and a bit warm and sweet on the backend. The bergamot and lily of the valley, supported by the ambergris, are really the star players here, and the vanilla orchid peeks out here and there, rounding out this very green and fresh scent, giving what could be a linear citrus a lot of depth and intrigue. On my skin it stays relatively linear, with the ambergris and vanilla orchid pulling through right in the end and stepping forward in front of the fresh greens and flowers. I would put this in the category of transparent, watery yet green and fresh, "clean girl" scents, easily sitting next to competitors like JHAG Pear Inc., CLEAN Radiant Nectar, and even Replica's Lazy Sunday Morning. These perfumes are not dupes but meant to show you what kind of feeling and category this one belongs in. If I didn't already have a solid collection of daytime perfumes, I'd certainly add this to the collection!

In College, I had a friend who always smelled delicious, but never told us what perfume he was wearing. Not one drunk evening went by without someone sniffing his neck by the end of the night. I've long lost contact with that person, but smelling Lost Cause immediately brought me back. It's incredibly close to whatever that guy was wearing. If falling in love with a friend had a scent, this would be it for me. It smells like adventure, but also like home. It smells like the moment you realize you might fall in love with someone you've known for a long time. You know their potential, but also their flaws. For now, it's heavenly bliss, but you also know that the chances of love becoming hate after one long car ride or hot day in the sun are not zero. Slightly masc leaning on me, sillage is ok, but longevity is really poor. This is delicious ambrosia on a rainy day during spring or fall, but is really cloying and somewhat scratchy on a hot and dry day. I love it though.

A great everyday fragrance that is perfect for spring and summer, and even as a nice pick me up during the winter months. Green, aquatic, and slightly citrusy, it's right in the family of scents that I find myself reaching for again and again. The bright, zingy freshness is what stands out the most at first, settling down into something a bit softer with more florality. There's a very slight saltiness that intrigues me and keeps me smelling my wrist throughout the day. It's sadly not long lasting, so I usually spray myself after I've gotten dressed as it is longer lived on clothing than on skin. It might not be the most exciting or unique fragrance, but it's very easy to wear, and is a good standby whenever I don't know what I want to wear. 8.5/10 Update: Devastated that they discontinued this. RIP Lost Cause

This is my second favorite out of the phlur collection. This by no means is a fragrance you should wear by itself, because as many have said in this forum: It's very light and basic. This scent in my eyes has EXCELLED as a layering scent with my fresh/citrusy/green scents. It adds a subtle amount of sweetness to these scents that really make it super complex. I by no means think you should get this unless you have stuff to layer with it, but as a layering scent: 8/10. As a standalone it's an easy 4/10, nothing to complain about but it's not doing anything Bath and Body works hasn't already done lol. So please. Buy this if you have scents like "The Soft Lawn" by Imaginary Authors, "Salty Stares" by Snif, any fresh Jo Malone scent, or any fresh and clean scent. Trust me.

I picked up the Phlur sample set from Sephora a few weeks ago and just got around to this scent. It reminds me a lot of a cologne my dad would wear that I would sometimes borrow to wear(as a woman), though I can't remember if that was Nautica's Voyage or D&G's Light Blue Pour Homme. I would describe this scent as pretty unisex, not strongly masculine or feminine. It definitely has a marine vibe to my nose with a spicy sweetness, probably from the rhubarb. It's a comforting and nostalgic scent that makes me think of the days I spent on the beach as a child, but it's not something I'm drawn to enough to wear a lot. All in all I'd say I like this scent enough to buy a travel-sized vial (does Phlur have those?) but probably not splurge for the full-sized product.

Ambergris, vanilla, white flowers, green leaves and bergamot. Crisp lemon note, not reminiscent of a cleaning product. Best part here is the opening, unfortunately looses its vivaciousness thereafter as the lemony zest is suppressed by a suffocating aquatic essence. Longevity and projection leave a lot to be desired. Not loud; this is a subtle scent, unfortunately. Still a pleasant, summertime fragrance. Unisex, without nuance.

This doesn’t smell like the other non-toxic fragrances. Lost Cause is mainstreaming. It’s glossy, clean but also lush, sweet, and warm with a little sharpness. It’s well rounded and pretty. On my skin it’s a sweeter cousin of Bright Crystal. Less fruity and more sugary. Both have an unexpected slightly masculine underpinning. Not as radiant. It has a classic approachable feel.

Clean, professional, expensive-smelling (to me). There's something about this that triggers a memory for me of when I used to wear Prada Infusion D'Iris. That's probably why I think it smells "professional"; at that time I was working in a public accounting firm. It's nice. I don't think I would reach for it enough to justify a FB but I'm tempted to pick up a travel spray.

This fragrance starts out rhubarb forward. I think it quickly dries down into green leaves in a fresh and very slighty spicy and aquatic way. I like it but there's something synthetic about it. It almost could be that perfect "outside" scent that you can smell on people who have been outside.

This smells like a very masculine scent due to the green, aquatic, and spicy/zingy impression on my skin. I gave this to my Dad. Masculine/colognes learning smells often can give me a headache or make my eyes water. This is very fresh and reminds me of how a fresh, clean male would smell.

Fem leaning but advantageously masc wearable, if you know what I mean. Does not project too much, but I still smell it on myself in the morning after applying before going out yesterday evening. It's in a strange space where it's definitely fem office appropriate but is sexy on a man.

Sweet and fruity, but surprisingly complex. Because of that fruity sweetness, it kind of reminds me of Clean Radiant Nectar, but I like this one from Phlur MUCH more. Scent Description: Sweet Sillage: Intimate Longevity: ~5 hours Presentation: Blue Bottle

sweet and zingy. shampoo-y and clean but in the best way. I get bergamot in this the most but freesia really stands out as well. might not be a full bottle buy but I’ll definitely be enjoying my mini

Zingy fresh and green. Freesia is stronger in the heart but for me this leans male. Prob because it is so zingy. Reminds me of Henry Rose Windows Down a bit. An easy dumb reach green freshy.

This fits with the vibe & crisp texture I get from Phlur's Missing Person, but with a little more of masculine tang if that makes sense. It's pretty nice. Inoffensive, musky, fresh.

Gypsy water but more floral and add in some stronger bergamot. Smells much cheaper than Byredo, a little cloying in fact.

Bright green and citrussy fresh. It is not overly masculine, in my opinion - it could definitely be worn by a woman.

Too straightforward and boring. It doesn’t come close to gypsy water whatsoever. Nothing to write home about

Smells like outside after the grass is freshly cut but I’m not mad at it

I didn't like the scent at first spray but as it settled into my skin it turned into this floral yet fresh clean scent that transports me to being nested a field of flowers. There's something achingly familiar yet warm about this scent. It makes me want to snuggle in it. Only downside for me is its poor lasting power which is around 3-4h. For the price I feel like lasting power should be longer. Edit: after wearing this for a couple of days, I realized the scent gives me a slight headache. There's something in there that does not sit well with me. Disappointed, def do not recommend blind buying!

This scent is a very green smell that reminds me of a quiet pound with lily pads. The aquatic notes and “dew drop” kind of smells are at the top alongside some white florals. It is a calming scent that I think would really work for some but not for me. There is not a hint of sweet and I do not smell any fruity notes at all! Lovely scent if you like green aquatic smells!

My first thought was, "Woah, its kind of like if someone squeezed a lemon in my face while I was standing in a corridor in my dusty old school". But now I kind of get the more aquatic masculine vibe they were going for. It's fresh and blue, and almost reminiscent of one of those Frutiger Aero images of water. But not quite.

Just okay. I can't tell if I like it because it's so faint on my skin. I THINK it's pretty in the way a garden is pretty when the scent blows in the window in the late morning when it's going to be hot outside. However the dry down is really powdery somehow and all the green gets overpowered. Nice, but maybe not for me.

I bought the sample set from Sephora, and this is the 7th fragrance I try. It leans masculine on my skin at first, but the dry down ends up more feminine. Anyway, it's not my type.

This is pleasant enough, but pretty bland and nothing special. There’s a $25 perfume at Target (Before the Rainbow?) that smells almost identical.

Clean, basic, forgettable. Probably discontinued because no one could remember what it smelled like and/or not great performance?

It's zingy, green, fresh. Like having fruit outside in the sun after cutting the grass. But not a love for me.

Not every perfume needs to be loud, but Phlur's Lost Cause is aptly named. It nearly disappears on my skin, except the freesia, which alone, smells old fashioned. Maybe Phlur interprets "aquatic" and "watery" as watered down. The top notes last for a few seconds - it's green and sour but no detectable citrus. Then it's just freesia, maybe some salt from the ambergris, but it's not a cohesive fragrance and there's no purpose or strength to it. Also, what even is "dew drop"? What does that even smell like? I really, really wanted to like Phlur. I loved the listed notes on every one of thier fragrances and the organic, authentic experience they promise. I've given each scent a week straight. It's just one disappointment after another. Very amateurish.

Very fruity at first, the bergamot comes across as lemon on my skin and it is strong. I applied this fragrance on my skin about a half hour ago and it's already gone! I didn't get a chance to smell the floral mid notes or the ambergris in the base. Maybe I just went anosmic and others will be able to smell this on me, I'm not sure. But, yeah, I smell basically nothing.

Unfortunately, this reminded me of AXE body spray almost immediately. The aquatic notes dominate from start to finish and the minimal florals fail to mask the chemical bite of synthetic ambergris. I normally like green scents, but this one smells too much like the body spray cloud by the boys' locker room in high school.

Smells like envelope adhesive with a breath of something white floral and cirtus/green. I can't really pin it down. It's less of a wearable scent and more of an ambient drop ceiling office smell - the cleaning crew is finshing up down the hall.

i get a lot of lime from this even though it's not actually a note. presumably from the bergamot. it's quite zingy and bright. green and fruity indeed. it is a bit cleaner adjacent though, so i can see why it's being discontinued.

At first I got the fresh and green notes, but then it dried down to Windex. Freshly misted on the window, ready for me to scrub it.

It is a hard pass for me. Reminds me of rotten vegetables or something similar.

green citrus & jasmine. masculine. circular and round

very masculine smells like a new car

This starts out smelling like lemon-lime, then another sweeter, changeable fruit slowly comes in, first orange, eventually peach. Now something very milky, creamy (lactonic if you prefer).... So it's peaches & cream? Delicious. Then everything begins to fade out, the sweetness becomes less distinct, more like candy, but still creamy. There is a woody-spicy note (sandalwood?) Now I'll look at the 'official' notes. They often have a completely different idea of what's happening. So bergamot, instead of lemon-lime, and an unspecified fruit note, maybe orange and peach. Green leaves, dew and rhubarb were not detected, but they might not stand out. Just a tartly fresh backdrop. The big discrepancy is the dairy cream. I can only surmise that the white florals listed have been done up in the creamiest manner possible. These, plus the orchid could also be providing the candy sweetness... There is no sandalwood listed, but there is amber, and the spiciness could come ffom the freesia. Freesia is a spicy floral scent, and if an assembled perfumery accord is going to successfully mimic freesia it should have that spiciness too. I'm a stickler on that point. Too many synthesised freesia accords fall short. So I'm going to describe Lost Cause as a milky, fruity, creamy sweet scent, even though that only marginally aligns with the pyramid, which suggests a lot more greenness, wateriness, florality than I detected. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree...

This is another one from the sample set that I am testing, and I really like it. Fresh and clean, which is among my favorite scent profiles. The projection is not the best, however, which is something that I have found with the other scents from this brand that I have sampled. It is never loud, but it goes to skin scent on me really quickly, even with quite heavy overspraying. That is a bit sad considering how much I like the scent itself. I will have to figure out whether or not it is full bottle worthy. A few weeks later - I decided to order a 10 ml travel spray to give this a fair shot and see if maybe it was just the sample that performed so poorly. It was not. I don't know if I go nose blind on contact, but I get an initial whiff and then pouf! Nada. Zip. Sad to say this one is not destined to become a permanent part of my collection.

Good stuff but I see why they discontinued it. It’s feminine cologne in short. It’s aquatic and woody, crowd pleasing, and reminiscent of the way Hollister smelled back in the 2010’s. It’s nostalgic, there’s something very high school about it, almost like when you made out with a hot dude with and his cologne rubbed off on you and mixed with your perfume like a cloud reminding you of your questionable juvenile choices. There’s something that screams “I wanna be a tomboy” about this - coming from a woman who prefers unisex and sometimes masculine fragrances - there’s something performative about this, I know that’s a stretch. The execution is inauthentic and it’s just a flanker scent.

Very appropriate name. There is something extremely inviting in the opening, how the citrus draws me in , like I wanna get inside it and behind it, but then there is not much to get behind. Like the morning of a day promising mysterious surprises, but then stuff gets cancelled. Is that the point, lost cause? In that case it is very clever, but indeed lost on me. I am around 20 min in and losing it. Gonna take a shower and put on something else, and revisit my sample on some bright and beautiful morning where I’m in the mood for lost causes and then overspray like a maniac.

This smells like very fresh and musky men's cologne in a really good way. I'm not usually inclined to wear men's cologne, but I like smelling this on both me and my boyfriend. Green notes honestly didn't jump out at me. I definitely get a very strong freesia note, which is fun because I haven't smelled a freesia-dominant fragrance in a long time. I also get the "ambergris" and the bergamot. I don't smell similarities to VS Bombshell aside from them both being fresh scents.

Fresh, and creamy at the same time. Very syron bergamot disappears after 5 minutes, then it's starting to smell a little bit like Father figure. Such an interesting smell, probably the only one from discovery set I would actually buy if it didn't disappear completely from my skin after 15 minutes and wasn't discontinued.