Le Labo Rose 31. Officially Obsessed.

Sometimes I forget things. Like the fact that my SuperBFF R has been telling me forever to myself to Le Labo in Los Angeles (and New York), assuring me how much I am going to love it. Or like the fact that this other very stylish friend of ours always smells divine, and she smells the way I have always thought suited me, and she told me to go to Le Labo.

I forget. But today, on a slushy, sunny late winter afternoon, I found the little lab that I have been urged to visit for 3 years. Le Labo is on Elizabeth Street between Prince and Spring in NoLita -- and inside I found a bottle of ME (as in moi, me, S.). Well, it's not really that unique.
What it is really: a 12 Scent store, full of perfumes which are comprised of lovely ingredients, that wear down uniquely on every individual. It has this fun gimmicky twist that every bottle is "made" for you by a lab-coated person, and your name is put on the label. Love.

The packaging is super simple- bottles with stoppers made to appear like potions in a modern apothecary.
The store itself has a warm, industrial feel, with dark walls and off kilter signs indicating the intended wearer of the fragrances. Ignore those signs.

There are unisex, femme and homme scents -- but I found one femme scent and one homme scent that I can't get off my mind. My perfume taste ranges from heavy and dry florals (my first perfume and eternal love will always be Quelques Fleurs by Houbigant) to the romantic cinnamon notes of Tocca's Brigitte.

Rose 31 is the one I have been searching for my whole life that mixes the two worlds. I imagine that the man of my dreams, this 6ft + Unknown who I fantasize will share my love of all things good-smelling will also fall in love with me because I smell like him. It is, afterall, a man's scent. The top note of rose wears down to a toasty wood finish that is deep and sensual. It's just so soft and important at the same time. I will spend the $130 for this little 1.7 fl. oz bottle, if it means I can feel sexy all day long. (PS- apparently there are notes of CUMIN, olbanum, cedar and amber in this scent in addition to rose. Hilarious if you know me because I consume loads of cumin. In everything. Which is why all my cooking tastes the same... it must be some animal instinct in me to be so drawn to this fragrance...). I can't get Rose 31 off my mind. It's gentle and delicate and doesn't overpower the senses.

And then there is the femme scene Labdanum, which has a scent trail dating back to Egyptian times. It is the resin of the rockrose shrub, and the resulting aroma is filled with robust, deep, mysterious notes that resemble amber, but have their own feral and musky qualities. I can't stop smelling the little paper sprayed with the scent. It evokes so many episodes at once- a room warmed by a fireplace, crisp nights, and lots of other things that are too R rated to discuss on a blog which my mother frequents. This scent would probably not translate well onto a man... or would it? Because I am so attracted to the smell of this little strip of paper which has been sprayed for my sniffing pleasure.

Enough already. I am in heaven because of these lovely smells. I am my own walking aromatherapy! Le Labo had also come out with signature scents per city. R was super lucky to get the Paris-exclusive (apparently the store in LA defied convention and carried it- the NYC store doesn't have it). Vanille 44 was simply divine on R- her scent for the ages, the epitome of what she stands for. Scent-wise, of course. The New York perfume, Tubereuse 40, smelled a little thin and citrusy for my liking. (Apparently this rebel Le Labo in LA also sold the Dallas scent, which R said smelled like hairspray and gasoline. hee hee And R is almost ALWAYS right!!).

I will be saving my milk money and getting myself a bottle of Le Labo without fail. Maybe then my Unknown 6'+ love of my life man will use his good taste to find me because he will recognize that we would be scent-sational together. I'll keep all y'all posted if this pie in the sky fantasy comes true.


Until then, Love Le Labo.
Romantic, dreamy, kisses...
S.

(PS they have a full selection of home scents, candles, lotions and other riff raff but I only have eyes for the perfume. Check out their website to get a fuller overview of what Le Labo is all about. And they sell the lovely things at Barney's) S.