L'eau d'Issey Issey Miyake for women

Hmmm... this perfume throws curve balls at u. When looking at its packaging u'll be fooled in thinking this will be an aquatic silent scent. Not at all! Its very much in your face... not like a sweet concoction that u can turn your nose at but in a very "passive aggressive" way. Ha ha ha...i'm serious. Women who wear this perfume are usually very strong willed and soft spoken. I know them, trust me...u can't throw a back handed comment at them without having your toosh handed to u...in a very Zen kinda way. LOL =) I admire women who can pull off this signature perfume... i am just not "humble" enough for it.

I do not care that this fragrance was super trendy in the 90s and everybody who's old enough to remember L'Eau d'Issey is soooo over it. I also do not care that many perfumistas--especially those who love big, heavy orientals or niche fragrances that smell like dirty underwear and cigarettes (and that none of their friends have heard of, much less own)--think that L'Eau d'Issey smells like melon-scented toilet bowl cleaner, or whatever. I effing love L'Eau d'Issey.

It's hot and humid where I live, like a giant sauna, and if I could get away with wearing something big, loud and rich I would totally do it, but I don't want to asphyxiate people. I just want to smell nice. And when I wear L'Eau d'Issey, people go out of their way to tell me that I smell amazing. But that doesn't even matter, because I'm wearing it now and I think I smell pretty amazing.

I don't find anything chemical or artificial about this fragrance. It's cool, fresh, and feminine, and it's not trying too hard. I think Issey Miyake and Jacques Cavallier achieved exactly what they were going for here. Bowls full of water and flower petals, enchanted springtime forests, magical waterfalls, etc.

As a novice perfumista, I feel obligated to try obscure fragrances that smell like armpits and rotten tree fungus, and usually I can at least appreciate what the designer is trying to accomplish. But seriously, if you just want to smell pretty, don't let the negative reviews deter you. Give L'Eau d'Issey a try.

This is one of my fragrances in high school. It was a gift from my auntie and I love it. I loved that I would spray it before going to school at 7AM and when I get home from school in the afternoon I still smelled great! It was one of my trademark scents. It might smell a bit overwhelming at first but I found that if you spray it just once, it won't be as strong.

on the first spray it's only a wilted flower vase, roses, carnations and others, with spoiled fruits. a realy marshy mixture that announce something nice that will come.
because this mixture is optimistic and well done and don't disturb. for patients after some hours a really nice fresh and feminine fragrance appears. very vintage and retro because single and not surprising. on the same range of pleasure or happy clinic: clean fresh and common even the smell is strong.

Lovely fragrance. I'd rather describe it as an aquatic, fresh, woodsy, and somehow musky as it dries down. Issey Miyake is one that stands out from the crowd since I almost never smelled this on anyone before. I saw it during the holiday sale at Macy's and fell in love with it since then, and the lotion does not disappoint!!! Only downer is that as the perfume gets older, it starts to develop a different smell. I can't quite describe it, like wintergreen rubbing alcohol maybe? Sadly, it started losing its originality after eight months. I recommend only buying it if you're going to be wearing it often or on a daily basis since a 50ml bottle lasts forever!!

very very floral. too floral for my taste, and doesnt go well with my chemistry, smells soapy on me. unfortunately alomst all i can smell is roses! Dies down to a more manageable slightly sweeter scent, but its very generic, too light, almost like fresh laundry.

Bug spray, it reminds me of camp for that reason not a great thing to smell actually. Will smell identical on everyone I think.

I just love to feel that in a woman. Very pleasant fragrance. You women should experience.

This is not a comfortable scent. I find it jarring and not at all warm or skin like, all I can smell is very sweet cantaloupe and very sweet flowers. Whenever I walk into a room and smell this, I know exactly what that person is wearing, I will then assume that they want very badly to be noticed and that they have very little imagination about it.

This is my current (for the past 10 years) "go to" scent. It's good day or night, summer to spring. I always get compliments from males. It's just a beautiful scent with great holding power.

I liked it very much - and millions of others too ;) You could smell it everywhere; but all in all it is a very good perfume and the smell is wonderfully fresh. Now I am tending to "tougher" stuff ;)

an old time favorite..fresh and watery.perfect for summer.Attention grabbing perfume, which is always a complement..

That is the top of the top! I wear it since 1992 and although many times i have tried to stick on another perfume, i always get back to it. It's simply the best. The only perfume on me that has gotten so many compliments! I have wasted so much money on other perfumes....Only on Miyakes perfume i feel that worth to spend money.

Very fresh, sweet and feminine, but perhaps a bit too sweet for my tastes. Still a great fragrance.

The perfect winter daytime scent, so fresh and white floral but not crisp. Very clean and refreshing, makes you smell like you just came out of a shower! Very love-able smell that most people would find pleasant. Have never received more compliments with any other scent. A universal scent loved by people everywhere = a must in everyone's collection.

Smells soooo good. Very fresh & light floral. Lasts a long time.

I bought this a couple of years ago after testing it on my skin - it seemed quite fine then and I used it a few times. My interest then flowed on to other fragrances and this one took the back shelf. I pulled this one on again last week and oh my! I had the *worst* experience I've ever had with any fragrance! This was so overpowering that I felt that it took me over completely, and made my nervous energy errupt! You know one of those eerie dreams where you feel all trapped and you are trying to run and escape but you feel chained on the ankles? Yeah, weird I know but that's what I felt. Trapped, frightened and helpless. Now, this may be an extreme reaction to some note - if someone can put a finger on what the hell that is, I'd appreciate it. This one went from the back shelf to the trash.

I bought this after loving the scent from the bottle/on the test strip. Unfortunately on me all the floral notes vanished and it smelled like menthol and toilet cleaner. It gave me a headache and is the first time I washed a perfume off that I had put on.

Fortuantely it smells fantastic on my mother. All the florals stay and there is none of the menthol/headache inducing notes. She loved it and wears it every day now.

So definitely try this one on, it is very much influenced by chemistry. I think that is why there are so many "dislike" votes. When this perfume works it is absolutely lovely.

Oysters? Very interesting.

It is very very true. I dug out some long forgotten toiletries, and found: sample spray of edp and a shower gel.

The shower gel never appealed to me but now it really has turned, it smelled fresh and lily like but now there is the unmistakeable odor of fish and seafood.

Alarmed, but still fascinated, I slathered a bit in the back of the hand while trying not to think how old this stuff is (ancient most likely) and smelled it again. Yep, very noticeable. Nobody in their right mind should bathe in this!

On the other hand I could not believe the picture it presented, it smelled of the sea, of salty minerals... I am down at the fisherman's wharf, right in front the sellers proudly displaying a variety of seafood, stationed in front of their moored boats. Sea gulls are present, circling above me.

I sprayed the edp over top and the scene changed. The edp which had truly turned to water almost, the top and some middle notes, completely missing somehow gave me some some distance from the sellers. I was at the spot where the cafes and restaurants are, near the entrance of the pier and I inhale clear, ozonic, marine air around me.

Wow.

I always thought there was a weird note floating around in this eau that would otherwise Make it smell like generic sqeaky clean fresh laundry detergent or shower gel. Honestly this is clever. It reminds you that sea water is not necessarily 'clean', that it contains all sorts of organic matter in there.

Btw I am allergic to oysters and I find it humorous that I can "wear" it in the form of a oerfume. And also, I discussed with a male acquaintance why on earth people think oysters are aphrodaisiacs. It's not difficult, considering how they blatantly Look and smell like certain lady parts!!! "even taste" he quipped. I looked nervously at the boyfriend. I remembered the vivid story he gave about an open demonstration involving someone's scornful wife and raw oysters.

Lol. Just like perfumery of yore, this eau has animalic tones. I've known civet, castoreum,ambergris and now i can put oyster to the list

I fully understand now why this won a fifi!!!

This is an unexpected startling fragrance. You think you know how it smells when you try it on, but the strongest notes surprise you again and again. This one is not for me, the lotus freesia mix makes me personally feel nervous, like im wearing someone elses perfume and not my own, if that makes sense.

I tried this and it seemed very strange to me. I had never heard of it till it was HIGHLY recommended by a friend who loves it. Maybe the tester at the store was old? I was expecting a very light refreshing scent. The smell I got (even on a piece of paper) was very woodsy and spicy with a harsh medicinal edge. But that hardly describes it. It was just odd. It reminded me just a little of my mother's L'air du Temps (if the bottle had gone sour).
OK, reading some of the other reviews, I've decided this is worth another try.
UPDATE: Tried it again, this time absolutely sure I had used fragrance-free soap. Dang, it still didn't work out for me. I got a very woody medicinal fragrance at first (maybe the "old flower-water" phenomenon others have mentioned) and then it faded to melons and mint. Very fresh but a little too cold. Just not for me.

yes Ralph laurent -POLO SPORT women !itsa exatly the same smell sombody mentionated and its trhu now i remember !i like its good frag long long lasting clean perfect clean smell.

When I first tested this perfume, I was repulsed by it. I found it disgusting, synthetic and suffocating. Fortunately I never throw away sample vials.
Recently I tried it again and this time, I found it to be utterly beautiful.
It is very complex. It's a fragrance of ideas, of impressions.
There is an element of sadness in it, an idea of flowers that have stood in a vase for a little too long. An idea of slow decay. Rotting leaves on the ground.
But there's also crispness, an image of a japanese garden on a cold spring morning. Lotus flowers in a clear pond and polished stones in a circle around it. Nordic glaciers and fjords. The scent is light and transparant, but also heavy and persistent.
There's an ominous element in it as well. An approaching storm. The promise of rain heavy in the air.

I have come to love L'eau d'Issey. It seems like a perfect fusion of Scandinavian an Japanese impressions. And though it is very complex, it isn't luxurious, lush or rich. It's a fragrance of nature and buildings made of wood in straight, clean, flowing lines. A fragrance of light colours and soft sounds. A scent of pure calm.
It is so completely different from the scents in my collection, yet it seems to suit my personality better than any of them.
Yes, this will make a welcom addition to my small collection.

tested a sample of this on my skin it has more musky rose scent with the opening similar like L`eau d`Issey Eau D`Ete Summer Edition. although it's EDT, the scent it quite potent & may stab the noses. use sparingly.

It is pure white lily :) My mother has a white lily garden that blooms in Midsummer, and the perfume always strongly reminded me of that. It is clean, beautiful, almost godly...It feels like something a Greek goddess or Lucrezia Borgia would wear...It smells Mediterranean, pure and slightly overwhelming. Definitely something you walk into, not spray on skin or clothing directly. It isn't romantic or sensual, but it is beautiful: like the loved lady of a Petrarchian sonnet: unattainable, but perfect...Wearing the perfume doesn't shout: "Kiss me", it says "Worship me from afar". It is a favourite, but not something I would wear on a date

Killer mutant green melons are out to take over the world! Run for your life!

The alpha bitch at the middle school I went to wore this. It really suited her personality. Even if I didn't ascociate this smell with being beaten up and insulted, I'd probably still hate it.

Love at second smell! The first time i smelled this a very long time ago i was disgusted with this loud perfume it made me nauseous. The second time many years later i loved it so much i purchased a bottle right away. That proves how your preference of scents is changing with the years. I love this very loud, soapy and crispy perfume. A stayer in my collection although it´s a perfume used by many women out there.

I am revisiting this scent, after having owned it for several years, but not having worn it for the past few summers. Today is hot, slightly humid weather...the start of a REAL summer, though summer proper is more than a month off.. So I needed a fresh fragrance, to combat the early heatwave...and here we are, L'Eau D'Issey...perfect. Not too zingy, slightly floral, very noticeable, and lovely to wear.
How could I have forsaken you for so long?
On my skin, none of the floral notes is outstanding, rather almost citrus frashness with an allusion to the florals, even after 2 hours no musky notes, just pure freshness.
A faint reference to woodsy notes in the background after many hours. Not sharp at all on me. This suits me, as I don't usually look for florals during hotter weather, but this has a greater depth than just a pleasant cologne, aqua colonia, or such. Still delightful after all these years.
Will get lots of "air time" this summer.

Pure headache.... sweet, loud and heavy.

I have always loved this scent. On me, it has a 5-6 hour staying power, but is not overpowering. It reminds me of the beach, and is often a "go-to" summer fragrance for me.

I tried the tester, it reminded me of the sea, I could see the waves and the spray very clearly. I think the lilies give that strong sea-like scent...?

Fresh and clean fragrance. I always love it. It bring me memories of my first love. But i will never wear it again because... well, it reminds me of my first love.

Back when this was my everyday scent, I ran into a friend who said she "couldn't wear it anymore." I can relate--my nose seems to be permanently bored with it. That being said, I used to love the carnation that came out once it calmed down on my skin, and the woodsy drydown. Nice, clean, understated floral that eventually drove me to a hyper-sweet gourmand scent out of boredom.

I wanted to try the perfume version, but did not find it at Sephora, so I tried the toilette instead. I was expecting it to be short lived on the skin, but boy was I wrong! I sprayed in my wrists and neck at 11:30 a.m and at first did not know how I felt about it. It was very green, almost like the water you dump out after you have had fresh flowers in a vase for days. But after a bit, say half hour or so, it softened considerably and the floral notes began to come through. Almost smelled like lilacs to me. The smell was soft and pleasant througout the day, very aquatic, green, fresh. I thought it was pretty well gone after about 6 hours, but as I was standing outside at my son's soccer practice, I caught the scent in the breeze as it gently danced around me. It was so lovely! This was at apprix. 6:30-7:30 p.m now, 8 hours after spraying it on! Then we went to dinner and again I could smell a soft lingering of the scent in the restaurant. So after 9 hours, more beautiful than ever. I finally made it to bed around 12:30 a.m. So we are now 13 hours after spraying the EDT not the EDP, and I could smell it very light and comforting on my wrists as they were laying beside my face. I was shocked, and the lasting power alone may win me over on this one from the other one I love, Gucci Flora Gardenia, which is beautiful, but totally gone after 3 hours or so, unless I spray my clothes. It is 9 a.m the next morning, and if I really try I can catch a note or too, but now it is pretty well gone. Very impressed with this and live knowing that I smell good throughout the day.

very lovely floral scent...i will tell you that juicy couture by juicy couture smells so similar to this scent on the dry down and they both have a melon,lily note but i feel its the tuberose that connects the two and the fact they both focus on notes of white florals...i wanted to buy this but wasn't sure and i bought juicy couture thinking it was a more sweeter scent but it evolved into more of a white floral and then eventually the base notes of vanilla kicked in but overall it gives me the same vibe as issey...issey though has alittle more depth with the white florals because of the carnation that brings a slight creaminess to it..it's sillage is strong and will last a long time..it is a very beautiful scent for a floral scent...it comes off as a very feminine scent...it reminds you of the softness and beauty of a woman...her gentleness...

I like this scent, I wish it lasted longer than an hour.

This is aquatic indeed and for that reason alone it is not my type of scent. It is not a type of scent common amongst female perfumes, and for that reason it does smell to me very masculine. There is no sweetness here, it is a really harsh aquatic scent. After three hours, I find the dry down really nice though. Personally, I would never wear this, though. A very popular perfume, it seems.

On me this smells very similar to Calvin Klein's Eternity Summer 2011 edition (the one with the pink flower design)...this has a touch of melon but other then that they are almost identicle on me. Maybe Eternity Summer 2011 is a tad more green. Like them both very much!

I was introduced to this scent shortly after it first came out. A friend put a perfume card with a spritz of this in a bridal shower gift. It smelled so good I went and bought it. For years I tried and tried wearing it but it never smelled as good on me as in the bottle or just sprayed on clothing.
It's cool, fresh, clean and not overwhelmingly floral. I love the smell of this, just not on me.

I have this beautiful friend who I must have asked 5x what she wore. It was so distinctive. Finally she wrote it down for me and put it on my wishlist and ended up with two humongous bottles of the EDP for Christmas by accident. (Never put perfume on a wishlist as you will definately get multiple bottles!)

For some reason on her it was amazing and on me just weird overpowering chemical stench. Melon, cedar, melon cedar. Wet and dry and synthetic. Oh and it makes me break out but only in the sun. Boo hoo!

I've got to have this perfume again! I wore it in the late 90s/early 2000s and loved it. I started wearing white florals like J'Adore and then acquired more from there so I drifted away from aquatic floral scents, but now I want more! I love how it's so fresh and clean but strong and it has this nice musky dry down. I like the L'Eau d'Issey Florale version I got last year but I always remember how this smelt and how gorgeously intense the lily of the valley was. So simple and casual, not a special occasion or evening perfume, but a lovely, easy scent to wear in the daytime.

Wow a lot of bad reviews for this one. I absolutely love it! It smells wonderful with my chemistry & people are always complimenting it. It lasts all day. It's a beautiful, feminine, sexy scent.

Light, fresh, clean. Really everything you would expect from a floral aquatic, and this does feel well made. To me this is almost pure lotus flower, with a temporary twist of sweet melon and a hint of cedar in the dry-down. I can understand why this is so well liked. Though I would reserve it for warm/hot weather as I find it a bit of a chilly scent.

Apparently L'eau d'Issey is a classic from the 90s still going strong as one of the best(selling) aquatic florals.
Received a sample as a gift as I'd not thought to explore this house just yet (not a group I'm exceedingly interested in, unless I'd work with a ton of people and need an inoffensive scent).

The scent reminds me of the only other aquatic floral I own , Ming Shu Fleur rare and is stronger than anticipated.
Top notes are very promising: lotus and freesia (one of my favourite flowers) are recognizable and I'm thinking.. nice!!!
The other flowers in the heart (lily of the valley, carnation) are also among my favourites so I was expecting to be delighted wearing this all day long.
Imagine the disappointment when waft upon waft of some sickly sweet smell comes up to my nose which I reckon to be the melon note (not an expert yet, so can't tell for sure) and almost makes me want to get rid of that person wearing it ASAP if it wasn't that I am wearing it.. since I want to smell it until it disappears entirely.

Upon 2nd thought it isn't the melon but the water lily that puts me off, the same note is present in Ming Shu so that has got to be the cause of my dismay.

I'd also thought aquatic florals would not be so noticeably present, especially considering what I've read about this house: the designer wanting a fragrance that wouldn't offend and smelled like water with flower petals in them.

this was my teenage perfume. now i don't really like it. not it's fault but it smells alot like other stuff from calvin klein, etc. but the memories are good :)

Boy this is the 90's right here! Takes me back. I remember being a little girl and seeing this among my aunt's perfume collection, and smelling it almost every time I went to see her. Also my mom was given a sample of this as a gift. Every woman just about had this one back then! Ahhh! Those sweet childhood memories.

I would say that it's a light fragrance with the leading watery notes of lotus and melon. I used to like such kind of fragrances, when I was younger. And this one, too. But not it's not my cup of tea.

A classic. Liked it so much got a bottle of the aftershave for my husband who really likes it. It's true that I think it has had its' 'day out', however if you are looking for an an elegant, crisp perfume, try this.

Classically elegant, fresh and non offensive. I wear this to the office, I think it is a great casual perfume

I had this perfume at home,I dunno if my mom bought it or if someone gifted it to us. Honestly, to me it is horrible. not on my skin chemistry but just simply horrible. My mom used it as a refreshener for the bathroom and even then I disapproved of spraying it.

An all time favourite for me, clean, simple and elegant, I have never tired of this. One of the best of the watery fragrances as it nver smells too sweet.

This is very light and comfortable, i definitely like it. The problem with this for me is that everyone recognizes it. This was very popular with my big sister and her friends in the nineties, and i get this all-knowing rolling with the eyes from her when she smells it on me. A fragrance flawed by culture, apparently.

Beautiful. Simple, clean, pure and very well-blended. Gets lots of melon which I like a lot.

I guess I could've known...
But I like L'EAU D'ISSEY FLORALE, so I thought I should give this a try (and I had a sample).
I have to say that I do respect this fragrance. I realize it is a well blended scent (how else could there be so many people who wear it beautifully), on my skin however, it's a total mess.
Upon first spray I could smell toilet cleaner (I have that more often with aquatic fragrances, I told you could've known :)).
Later on the smell gets better, but then I get a lot of melon.
Or at least something that's supposed to be melon. Just like with peach, I have yet to find a fragrance that gives a good, true impression of what those sweet, juicy fruits smell like.
In the drydown the melon is gone and now I can smell lotus mainly.
Personaly I do not think this fragrance is fresh. It's watery, yes, but not fresh.

The bottle is very elegant and beautiful though :p

this is a gorgeous, pure, fresh scent. very enticing, and modern.

Oysters, you say?

A polarizing fragrance, L'eau d'Issey has been been crinkling noses and inspiring joyous frolics through meadows for many years now.

I've never been a fan of floral-watery fragrances, and L'eau d'Issey is no exception. Despite my typical dislike of floral-aquatics, I can appreciate L'eau d'Issey's status as a breakthrough fragrance. It has served as the model for many fresh floral fragrances that have since been introduced. Also, Frederic Malle, in his "The Fragrance Guy" column in Allure Magazine (May 2012), states that L'eau d'Issey was the first fragrance to use Calone, an ingredient that smells like oysters. So, @anne.haegen, you were spot on with your 'does anyone else smell oysters, or is it just me?' comment below! Quite amazing, actually. Maybe you have a career in the fragrance industry!

In the end, L'eau d'Issey is a notable fragrance that can be very refreshing. Though I might use it for practical purposes (i.e., to wake myself up), I don't consider it a personal favorite.

Age: 24
Skin: normal-oily. Medium brown.
Preferences: Fruity, vanilla, watery, sweet, citrus (Will update)
Perfume nose: amateur

best season Spring/Summer(for cooler climates)/autumn
day/night DAY!!
the age of the woman who wears it 24+
the persona of the woman who wears it Pleasant, relaxed energized

Hello from new zealand!

I dont know about anyone else but when i sprayed this perfume i thought of white! it smells super clean. i can picture a bed with expensive white linen and a woman starting off her day by opening a window. she has a white silk gown on and opens the window to reveal a slight breeze then there is a bouquet of flowers just catching her nose with the breeze. its smells floral and the watery notes give it a breezy airy note. She is a lover of cleanliness and crisp white shirts and well tailored clothing. there is no rush in life for this women she moves like the breeze.

not too much is what i like about this scent and when you smell it on others you think what was that? watery fragrances are for those IMO that have a terrible habit of over-perfuming themselves because it disappears and leaves only a little.

One of my favorite perfumes. My husband goes crazy when I put this on! I have had this since the day it came out and the bottle is awesome!

i LOVE this parfumes. People usually run after me and ask me what i am wearing when i wear this one. Gorgeous, aquatic, very expensive unusual smell. Simply sex in the bottle!

lance ,a brave guy wear anything he want.all the scents should be wearable for both sex ,2 hundred years ago this question was off.
i prefer the male version of L EAU, but adore the glass dearly.timeless,delicate ,luxe

@Lance- yes you can! I know some guys who wear it.

Can a guy wear this? Is it too feminine? Because I'm a sucker for Lotus!

I like this from a distance...It's the watery elements that bother me...they can be headache producing. There is something alluring about this scent. Unfortunately, it is just not the right fit for me and I will not wear this.

A fresh everyday perfume!

I don't understand why so many don't like this perfume but I guess to each his own. It's one of my all-time favourites and the only one I've ever re-purchased so far. I don't wear it as an everyday perfume but I usually wear it whenever meeting up with friends. It's a wonderful floral and aquatic scent and needless to say it's got fabulous longevity as I never have to re-spray it and the sillage is great too. I can say with certainty this is one of the few perfumes that will always have a place on my dressing table.

OK, OK, it WAS a hit. But havent't we suffered enough now from this watery stuff? I simply can't stand it anymore. If somebody walks ahead of me with this (and similar) stuff I change to the other side of the street. If somebody wears it in the railway I change to another car. I simply got enough of it. And yet, every year there are again some brands which try their luck with helional, azuril, calone, maritima, you name it. How boring! It is a plague, Jesus, please save us!

i really love this one...i have known it form a friend of mine many times ago but i never had it...now it has been given as a gift and i just love it...it makes me feel wonderul...

This is a lovely perfume, but not for me. I can hardly believe how 'watery' it smells! Very fresh, the florals are light and clean. A good perfume for hot weather.

This perfume putts you in a good mood. I do find it very artificial but I still like it. I like the way it is fresh and make me feel "clean". Its very refreshing and uplifting. The scent reminds me a swimming pool (full of clore) where someone putted lotus flowers and melon juice on, it is very nice, asian like and a safe choice for spring and summer.

This eau de toilette always reminds me of oysters. Has anyone else experienced this?

I love it. I used several years but after that i had a headache. i still have one bottle i try to use but i can not. : (( . if you can, it s a special parfume.

super feminine floral with musk, slight fruitiness keeps it from being too mature.

this one gives me a headache and looses all its freshness on my skin leaving me with a disgusting musky floral but i can see it being pretty on someone with a different chemistry. a bit too girly-girl for my taste, all sugar and no spice.

Love-Love-Love-Love!!..Despite wearing mainly niche fragrances, this one is always with me! Yes it does send you back to 90s, though i don't see any problem about it.. It's my university, first love, my best friend - she used to wear that..

I got a sample of this, and I have to say... it's very far from my favourite scent. I have learned from this tester that I do not like lily-of-the-valley scent at all ;) This is a headache for me - and reminds me why I love fruity/floral combo's.

There is nothing to hate about this perfume. It's old but smells great. To me it has a combination of floral and fresh scent. The scent is lasting too.

A friend of mine used to have it and I always liked it. Last week I bought a bottle and I absolutely love it. The smell isn't too strong bit noticeable at the same time. I usually prefer sweeter fragrances but this one is really fresh and flowery at the same time. On me it has a great staying power and I can still smell it in the evening after a long day.

This is one of my favorite perfumes still..Since much peoples wear it (of course not original, much oil perfumes shop have this Issey), I did'nt spray it daily anymore so I need 3 years to spend 1 bottle. lol. I don't know why my friends like to ask what my perfume is...and this one got much compliment and they bought through! what can I do..I also enjoying L'eau d'Issey for myself. Because the drydowns turns into lil' sweet on my skin.
It is similar with L'eau Par by Kenzo (softer), L'eau d'Issey is better for sillage and longevity I like to spray it for evening.

I do like this perfume, soft and sweet with a bit of bite. Keep going back to it. I tend to love perfume with a fruitiness more citrus usually and sandalwood, they just work on my skin.

This was a gift and at first I liked it but within an hour it turned into a flower drench! No melon, no wood just very strong flower notes which suites so many women just not for me, I tend to lean toward the sweet scents. I can definitely see me wearing this for certain occasions though.

First time i smell is 14 years ago from a friend
At that time it smell so wonderful
so now I'm tested this legend perfume. I felt headache and cannot bare the smell
Metallic old smell. tried it many times still the same
it smell nice from others not me

i met l'eau d'issey when i was on elementary school, i took it from my auntie. this is the best scent (tillnow) i've ever tried, for the fresh-flowery scent category :))

Very delicate, summery, light, relaxing and elegant. Every time I wear it I feel like in a fantasy world :) I will always have 1 bottle in my collection.

this 's one of my favorite .
First time I spray to my self ,I feel confuse ..about the smell.caz it strong a little bit.but when the time went by in that day. (3-5hour later on)..I feel that ..it more smell sweet soft adorable .it not bother me.
I love this smell so much.May be it good for my skin .ohh.i am Asian Lady.

I bought this perfume on my first business trip to Asia. The scent inspired a sense of balance between fortitude and delicacy. Even the bottle, impression of the Eiffel Tower and the moon, made me think of dreams and the work required to reach them.

My aunt owned a bottle in the late 90's, I was 13 and used to spray and spray it on myself to my heart's content (much to her annoyance lol). I absolutely adored the scent! It was sweet and so cool and fresh...it made me feel like I was sitting by a cold gushing stream surrounded by spring flowers while eating melon balls!

Recently I tested it (a good 13 years later)...and BLEGH!! I was horrified because I was expecting the same cool, sweet watery scent of my youth. But I got slapped on the nose by something so sharp and synthetic! It even smelled sour and almost cat-pee-like after the first blast of alcohol softened, more of a rotting melon scent. Reading the reviews below, I've come to know that an EDP version of L'eau de Issey exists, that gave me some hope. From the strong alcohol blast, I'm thinking the EDT must be the horrible version! Also it's the one that's widely available these days, I haven't seen an EDP version being sold in stores. Strong likelihood I will buy if I come across the EDP (I just hope it will smell exactly like the one I knew in the 90's).

In 1992, this debuted and became popular if not trendy and still sells really well. It introduced that aquatic note for ladies. It could be detected everywhere in its time, and thanks to all of the flankers and clones its still around.

The million dollar question: "Is the entire composition synthetic?" I dont find anything natural about this fembot. In fact, this was the first time I encountered the tuberose that causes migraines. Indeed, my final verdict is "a chlorinated pool with some rosewater in it". It opened the door for Bath and Body Works endless sythetic florals. Messy and yuchy!

It's not my cup of tea at all. Too synthetic and harsh, may be it's my chemistry but still try on the skin before buying.

Ooh, how can anyone dislike this nice, clean, light, inoffensive floral?

This was THE scent back in the 90's. You could smell it all around, at least over here in Holland. And i couldn't get enough of it. Couldn't afford it then, so i wore Yves Rochers Ming Shu as a good substitute. Too bad my ex boss has totally wasted this for me. She's the double of meryl streep in The evil wears prada, and l'eau d'issey is the smell of "she's in the building, go hide!" Seriously i've had an overdose, can't smell it without getting sick. :( too bad, i know i used to like it...

Yucky. Disgustingly sweet. I couldn't wait to wash it off. It was exactly the opposite of what I thought it would be.

I have to thank my boyfriend for introducing me to this beautiful scent. So long lasting, pretty, fresh - just love it. When I hear the term 'aquatic' this one fits the bill - not the watered down definition that some aquatics seem to be. I adore freesias and really get this note tho I know others don't. Funny thing is this did not happen for me till I bought an old bottle of Dior's Diorissimo and got the lily of the valley note.

I'm still learning about notes but stumbling across this type of comparison really helps define them - at least for me !

Every year my husband buys me a new scent to try. Just couldnot get into this one.

i love this perfume cuz of its dominating smell

Hi.

Liberate your senses and celebrate the freedom of being both bohemian and chic.L'EAU D'ISSEY is a freshly crisp and yet light and watery floral bouquet scent.The fragrance is inspired by earthly beauty and the free-spirited. Luminous,Delicate,Aquatic, Lovely, Floral,Feminine,Delightful and Classic yet Modern.

The scent is a example of beautiful floral aquatic that manages to recreate the sensation of being near a tuberose,lily-of-the-valley,lotus and inhaling a melange of they are sweet scent,cool air and verdant foliage.It has a nice blend of floral and crispness and reminds me of a fresh spring rain with a hint of iced melon.

The dry down are so soft and lovely and makes it great for those with sensitive skin.The melon really stands out in this one.It is perfect for SPRING/ SUMMER and a excellent scent for DAILY wear.If you are looking for a super mild scent you can not go wrong with this one.

Sillage?Graceful.

Longevity?Surprisingly Good for a Floral Aquatic.

7.5/10

I had it long time ago!..... I have olive skin , strong perfumes suit me best!
This one smells like .......
.....i fell in a garbage bin , had a cat fight, and just got out of there safe but dirty,sweaty and smelly!

It's so awful on me that you want to wash me!

My Advice: try it before you buy it because it's highly expensive!

VERY similar to Ralph Lauren Polo Sport Woman and a little bit to Eternity. I felt a strong but good aroma of white flowers.

This is the ubiquitous smell of female suburban America during the 1990's. Just as every teenager was wearing CK One, every soccer mom was wearing L'eau d'Issey. While this is an undeniably pleasant fragrance, it is so rooted to a specific place in time that it is not wearable nor enjoyable for me.

Like Charlie for the seventies,this is a trademark for the 90's.It is aquatic,relaxing with a minimal essence in a beautiful bottle but it didn't suit me at all.

One of my favourite perfumes. I bought it when it first came out and then it reminded me of Escape by Calvin Klein but I soon grew to admire it independently and have worn it ever since whereas I no longer wear Escape.

I used to like this perfume a lot.
Too bad it became pretty popular on 2000 and all office girls smelled like this one, entire building wearing Issey Miyake. I found a note of cucumber, everybody disagree haha. But it's fresh and clean and for summer/spring time is great ! cheerful !

This is a beautiful fresh floral perfume.
I have nearly finished my current bottle and i think i will buy another at some point soon. perfect for those mornings where you'd just rather to lay in the sun. i spray this and use as motivation to enjoy the beautiful day.

Can be very strong, first time I wore it I didn't realise this and sprayed quite heavioly. i got a very bad headache. lesson learned- go easy!

I have sampled both the EDT and EDP of this and they are so very very different. They should have separate pages here on Fragrantica as they are not the same perfume at all.
I didn't like the EDP at all but the EDT is absolutely fantastic. A perfect feminine summer scent, sharp aquatic at the start, with melon and lotus prominent, passing through a soft floral to the woody base. It is fabulous when layered, wait for the first application to hit the woody stage then apply another spritz over it. Sensational stuff.
Longevity is amazing for an EDT, and sillage is impressive but not overpowering.

The EDP smells like some nasty sweet and sour concoction, it cannot possibly have the same notes as EDT???

Longevity - INCREDIBLE!!!

I bought this once and i regret it. i regretted the fact that i don't buy two bottles of this amazing perfume. :)) i loved the way it smells and its simplicity. i just LOVED it so much. :)

I don't own this one but after stealing a few squirts from my sisters bottle I'll definetly get it for myself.

It's a very elegant and clean floral scent. Wearing this, I feel I'm a big bouquet of lily. I haven't smelt a floral scent so simple, and yet not boring. The only downside is that I haven't quite figured out an occasion where I think it is ideal to wear this. I really like this scent though.

The first time I smelled this I was pleasantly surprised, maybe because i was expecting something awful like The Scent by Issey Miyake. And I almost bought it but then decided to consider a bit longer, since it's kinda expensive. And I'm happy I waited, because over time I started to dislike it. The scent just kept going and going, I wondered if it's ever gonna fade away on my skin... it was overly fresh and strong... I tried to wash it off but I coudn't... I just wish my favourite scents were this long lasting!

i have it..and i love it...my fiance love it soooo much!

Pure crystal: simple, but magical! I had it and i think i'll buy it again!

you should know that the edt and edp smell incredibly different from each other- enough so that they could be sold as two difference perfumes. i personally really like the edp, but do not care for the edt at all.

I really don't like this fragrance and there's some element in it that gives me a headache. It's very heavily aquatic and has a grassy undertone that I don't care for. Also, I get a very strong melon note that lingers and annoys me. It's one of those that I can't wear but it smells good on other people - fresh and elegant. Sadly, not for me.

Jacques Cavalier is ...! How can he blend divine masterpiece like this?
I'll give up other feminines and gonna buy this for my girl! The best feminine one for spring/summer.
I used to neglect it because of the shape. It's thin narrow and elegant bottle hides it among highly-ornamented and hue-colored feminine perfume bottles. Fortunately, a mastered sail person suggested it to me and I've just wondered how did I forget?!
It's exactly the same smell of its manly version with lots of flowers or better to say blossoms added. It's nor flowers because it's so smooth and pets my nose!
It opens and finish with a similar patter although there are lots of different notes in the pyramid. An extremely Japanese pleasant and silky smell, no no velvety smell, no no no... divine smell of fresh flowers in an Japanese palace escorts whole the presentation! It reminds me those multi-stories Japanese houses that are surrounded with pond and pink blossom trees! It's flawless, it's elegant, immensely elegant, it's silky feminine skin, wonders you when it touches. It's swan feather pillow. It reminds a perfects lonely walk into the grasses.
The more I smell, the more it penetrates to my brain! Flawless, flawless...

longevity 8/10
sillage 10/10
scent more than 10/10

The first bottle I Bought back in 1996 when I was young,I bought an Eau Parfum travel size 7.5 ml so expensive with metal case.The smell verrry bettter than EDT!!!,Very wood scent and aquatic flower stayed strong. Can't stop pick it up to smell for whole day. Sadly I miss this was lost on the bus tour :'( it's very rare because now i can't find it everywhere

I gave 9/10 for EP but for EDT 6-7/10

Sort of like Prescriptives Calyx, but without the excitement. More like synthetic cardboard.

Fresh floral. Safe for office executive. Very long lasting.

A sexy and fresh perfume. I find it a bit suffocating sometimes, yet the others around me love it and say it's light.

Sampled this fragrance in a tester stick and it was okay. It started out jasmine-y (is it even a word?) and all white floral then it develops into something more sharper, deeper, and more mature. I can't really point out the notes in it but I think its more suitable for someone older and more mature. I would expect a woman in her 30-40 and at the peak of her career, confident and very independent. Not for a younger audience :p

Pure. Fresh. Clean. Floral. It's well done doesn't smell cheap and is perfect or any daytime occasion.

For the life of me, I can't remember if I had reviewed this one before or not...
Well, let me begin by saying that I love this scent. Yep, the flowery-melony-ambery, springy-summery, ladylike sweet scent... Call me crazy but, even with so many women wearing this one, I still do like it and still wear it. Even today, in a dead of freezing Canadian winter, I put it on and it makes me feel like there is hope - the cold is only temporary, and the lovely spring is coming. And it makes me smile...

I get absolutely nothing "aquatic" in L'eau d'Issey, just plenty of flowers, and mainly the lily of the valley, which I always loved. Also, a touch of freesia, peony, a drop of carnation, and some amber and musk, just enough to make me feel sexy without "pushing it".

Although I have heard L'eau d'Issey is best suited for a daywear in spring and summer, I often deviate from that "rule", and just wear what I feel like, and when I feel like - a definite "perk" of being of that certain age when you do what feels right to you, and don't give a crap what others think ;)

My all-time favourite, "clear as spring water" describes it perfectly. Grown up, sophisticated, neither too sweet nor too masculine, a composition of water.

Lasting beautifully, safe for the office (although it does turn heads), and modern - no old lady smell here. I couldn't name a single component scent within this, it's too well blended into a unique and recognisable fragrance.

ohhh, what's happened to this one???, it used to be so unique and had a beautiful long lasting natural smelling dry-down.
Now, on my skin, it is fleetingly "fresh", then morphs with a skid mark into a synthetic/metalic note. (a perplexing and still unidentified note which I smell so frequently in most modern day designer perfumes)
My search for purity continues.....

Is resembling "fleur d'interdit" , a bit . With less flower , much more melon and is much more synthetic to me . It's nice but i won't be mad if it's discontinued .
I didn't know it was such a big hit in the USA .

This pefume smells beautiful on other women. Unfortunatly, I had to give my bottle away. It sent me into a full-on migraine every time i put it on. Now, just smelling it from the bottle almost makes me ill. Still, it smells pretty on others. Its just not for me, i guess.

In the beginning it smells too unisex and cold (yet fresh) to me, almost like a clean fresh lake, but dries down to a beautiful musky and warm scent after an hour or so, on my body chemistry. I keep coming back to this one.

very fresh and clean but there is nothing special about it. something for a very young girl maybe. aquatic on melony and very long lasting.

Just never get enough..So exquisite

I remember the first time I smelled this...I thought of a garden of flowers, but the mixture was sour, complicated and unusual. Later I found out that I hated lotus...so, I tried to use it as little as I could. However people told me numerous times about how good I smelled, so I said to myself that my skin was probably enjoying this liquer much more than my nose. Needless to say that I didn't feel the aqua note that everyone here is talking about, only that cloying smell of rotten flowers that everybody seemed to love. I wore this scent in the winter, since it's powerful and lasting and I am going to buy a second buy a 2nd big bottle to see whether my taste in perfumes has or hasn't developed!
I'll give this one a 9 for sillage and longevity, though,

L'eau D'Issey is one of the world's biggest sellers, I know that much. As soon as I smelt this, I knew that I had smelt it on many women before, especially around Summer time.

I'm not a huge fan of floral aquatics. After smelling L'eau D'Issey I'm still not, but I do appreciate it as being one of the better ones on the market.

This fragrance opens very fresh and clean with a subtle sweetness. The melon is the most prominent note to my nose, with the rose, freesia and lotus giving this fragrance a slightly soapy feel.

It's not salty like some aquatics tend to be, rather it turns powdery and musky as it develops on the skin. It sometimes reminds me of the scent of freshly washed linen.

I think aquatics in general are an acquired taste. For some they are refreshing and clean, emulating the feeling of just stepping out of the shower. For other people, like myself, they tend to smell artificial, like chemicals fermenting in a test tube. L'eau D'Issey thankfully isn't as chemical as some I've smelt in the past.

L'eau D'Issey is a rather strong fragrance, with commendable lasting power. I find its crispness in hot weather very appealing, however this is a scent that I would particularly detest in a crowded space or during unsuitable weather.

I really like this one!!! I first got it when I was 16 and loved it , it made me feel sexy and fresh .to me this scent says beautiful.

it smelled so nice and youthful at first, fresh and froral, but later end, it smelled like my mom... (no offence, mum, or it was just my nose?)

One ingredient keeps this scent from being predictable. I read somewhere that it contains a yeast note and I imagine that that's it. Though it's what made me notice it, I don't like it. Yet I might dislike it even more without it. Crazy, huh?

i love this perfume..
smeel like watery, fresh(i'm very love fruity fresh floral perfume)
i think is best too..
clean, calm, soft..
long lasting..
try this...

It makes me feel like i'm in a garden; among the roses have just bloomed and grasses have just been cut,very fresh and very delightful.

In the bottle this scent is amazing. Very reminiscent of L'air De Temps and Calvin Kline Escape. Thankfully I sprayed it on my wrist before I purchased it. All I could smell was old moth balls.

While this smelled good in the bottle be sure to spray it on your skin before you purchase it.

My mom had this perfume for a while, and when I got a tester vial, I had to give it a try, mostly for old times' sake.
It did bring back childhood memories, but it did not fit my skin at all :/ I had to scrub it off with vinegar, because the scent sat as a heavy lead flower on my wrist.

I might give it another try in the srping, but it seemed too cold, too watery and flat for autumn.

I still consider it a true floral aquatic classic, very formal, serious, dignified.

I just discovered that while I really enjoy the EDP of this scent, I cannot stand the EDT! Someone mentioned the EDT smelling kind of like pee, and I agree, there's a certain sharp acidic tone to the EDT that I can't take, it smells odd and cheap on me. On the other hand, the EDP is just lovely, fresh, watery, sweet, very feminine and delicate scent but not too light, the staying power is impressive for an aquatic-floral scent...The EDP is like sweet flower petals swaying cheerfully to the soft wet breeze on a cool misty morning. Try the EDP if you didn't like the EDT!

One of the best fragance of all time, smell like a mature and exquisite melon. I'm crazy about melon notes, and this fragrance work them beautifully. You will fell the woods and the musk.

L'eau d'Issey for me is a powerful green fragance like Eternity by Calvin Klein. Is intense and long lasting and VERY feminine..

the fragrance is overall great, absolutely floral with an aquatic misty backing. NONE of the notes are dominating... it doesnt make sense for me to segregate each and every note... i'd rather focus on the total composition which is very good, fresh, feminine, cool, aquatic, like a dewy lotus floating on a pond...

its smells like so sweet and nice.Its every sexy smell.i love it

This one must really react with my chemistry because when I first spray it, I get tea. That fades away and I then get fresh light fruti & floral but soon it smells almost smoky or like tobacco, then it gets a bitter note, like tanin in tea that's been steeped too long, and it settles with tea.

It's so far off from what everyone described that I had to pull the bottle out just to be sure it was the same one! Strange how one's chemistry completely changes a scent.

I dont like this one at all. To watery and slight synthetic. rosewater with something added to it.

So this is the perfume i think I have worn most of my perfume-time. I have been bathing in this fragrance. Both the edt and the edp version. AND the bath products. I just loooooved the scent so much. I think I wore it for almost 14 years and almost didn't wear anything else. It was just such a huge part of my life. I still love it, but at some point the edt make me smell like pee =(
The edp is still lovely on me.
I don't wear this scent as much as I use to. But its like a good old friend, u haven't seen in a long time, when I wear it..

Classic clean and fresh scent. It's very aquatic and I smell alot of melon and freesia, cedar and water peonies. L'eau d'Issey is a very wearable and safe fragrance and is better suited for the spring and summer. I think it would be good for office or everyday use. I recieved this fragrance as a gift and I'm glad that I did. I certainly wouldn't buy it for myself. Yes it's pleasant and wearable, but it's a simple fragrance that could be smelled everywhere and it smells quite similar to oversprayed air fresheners that I use in my home. So, L'eau d'Issey is a big no-no for me.

At first, it smelled like a giant moth ball soaked in melon juice...Then, it calmed down, and smelled aquatic & fruity (not in a bad way)...I'm glad I only invested in a small spray sample vial because I would have been P.O.'ed to the max if I had invested in a big bottle of this...I don't know if it's the cyclamen or lilies that turn acrid on me...I should have read MandaShell's warning before considering this one...It's definitely NOT for everyone!

It's a rich floral acuatic scent. Smooth, sweet & lasting. What do you want more?
It's another option to take into account..

It's my signature scent for 10 years now. Most wonderful men in my life still identify this scent with me (one of them married a girl who used L'Eau D'Issey - and then he divorced her, because "she turned out not to be you", as he said. LOL)

It's going to be either your love forever, or your worst nightmare. Love it or hate, there's nothing in between.

-----
A hint for those of us who find some perfumes heavy: give them a chance, SPRAY ONCE ON YOUR NECK/CHEST AREA FROM REASONABLE DISTANCE. You'll be amazed how differently they turn out.

The first sniff was quite nice - melon, lotus and other flowers. But it faded away very quickly and then I didn't like it at all, it smelled like a cheap drugstore spray. I washed my wristle and it was still there. I don't like this fragrance at all...

L'eau d'Issey is a straightforward mix of melons and lilies. Upon first application, it slams you with the melon-lily combination before tapering away into a slightly sweet, powdery floral.

For me, L'eau d'Issey is definitely NOT a fresh fragrance. It's quite heavy and overwhelming, as most lily perfumes tend to develop on my skin. It feels cool, but overwhelmingly so, to the point of headache induction. The opulent melons and lilies remind me of a fruit basket sitting in an old church where heavy flowers line the aisles. A little too much for me, a foreign scent that fights my chemistry rather than works with it.

This scent is not fresh or acidic on me it is warm, floral and almost musky so I love it because it is a deeper fragrance on me than it seems to be on some others.

Funny story about this one: My (at the time) mother-in-law loved white florals. I tried this and it was NOT for me but smelled like something she'd wear. So, trying to be helpful, I told her one day, "There is a perfume I think you'd really like, it's by Issey Miyake," etc. etc. So what does she get me for Christmas that year? This perfume! Noooooo! I was like, "but i meant that I thought YOU would like it... I wasn't trying to drop hints for myself..." sigh.

Ok .. i've tasted it couple of weeks ago and still have it on my jacket sleeve .. its just quite sharp for me something strong, overpowering at 1st but after awhile it became nice..!!

i dunt know how to express that but is remind me somehow with Escape by CK ..

its nice perfume in general but if i have to select a floral aquatic fragrance it wont be on my top list at all, there is alot of aquatic fragrances seems more feminine than that one, its good but not my cup of tea.. quite masculine for me

The first time i tried it was so strong it made my mouth dry but i wasn't going to be cowed by that. I love the way it starts the juicy melon is wonderful. I smelled carnations and roses in the middle which i loved as well. It lasted long on me and it made me feel good and i got the most comments when i had.I would definitely have it as my signature scent.

on my skin it becomes my second skin and does the magic of projecting a sheer, dominating, stand-alone elegance. The scent is linear: aquatic white floral.

Oh I so remember this one! It landed on earth one day, originating from a far away plastic planet soapy-cucumber-honey-melon and everybody around me got addicted. I feared it may be carcinogenic, I found myself choking every few minutes. It does smell fresh and clean and the bottle tributes the scent in a way. It's just the all overpowering plastic-cucumber (in a honey melon dress) that makes me dislike it.

For me, this is the perfect perfume: complex, yet simple, fresh and modern, yet somehow classic. It is my signature.

To me, L'eau d'Issey is a really simple and linear aquatic perfume. Couldn't believe it actually has so many notes as listed. This perfume is like a show of lotus, aquatic/echo-y, then sharper/smarter, then creamier/cosy.

On me, and to my nose, L'eau d'Issey starts really aquatic, fresh and clean with a really dominant lotus. After about 15 minutes, I can detect something sharp and floral, some kind of white flower, along with the lotus note. Then it dries down with some cosy/creamy veil added to the lotus that has been here like forever.

Maybe aquatic perfume lovers will find L'eau d'Issey interesting and different from the nowadays' sports/aquatic perfume. However, I have tried this perfume more than five times, I really wanted to like it, however, the aquatic feeling here makes me dizzy and feel like vomit. Sorry, it's just not for me.

At first spray, I am overwhelmed by the resemblance to Coty's Ghost Myst (as it was my perfume of choice as a child. A bit too much alcohol and gourmand. Even on a bit of drydown, my brain screams "SOPHISTICATE GHOST MYST"
However, I'm glad to have it for everyday summer wear as it is light, refreshing and certainly outranks its ilk (Clinique Happy comes to mind.)
I know I am in a minority here but the connotation and the fact that it is quite linear troubles me.

Talk about inter(perfume)textuality! L'EAU D'ISSEY reminds me in oscillating waves of nothing else in reality but two other perfumes: L'ACQUA DI GIO and Calvin Klein ESCAPE. This is definitely a member of the aquatic family of fragrances, as forever defined by ESCAPE, created one year before, in 1991.

L'EAU D'ISSEY opens with juicy synthetic melon and then proceeds swiftly to essentially turn into ESCAPE. In the drydown, I find no discernible difference between the two perfumes. Both are strong. Both have this weird "je ne sais quoi" never existed before 1991 synthetic-aquatic feeling.

Unfortunately, as I wear L'EAU D'ISSEY today, I realize that my fondness for ESCAPE is purely nostalgic. I cannot honestly say that I like this scent. It seems too sweet to be oceanlike, which would be salty instead. So this is not even quasi-aquatic; it's pseudo-aquatic. But on the rare occasion when I feel like walking down ESCAPE memory lane, I still have half a bottle of that left, more than enough to make it through several lifetimes, given the strength of the composition.

Needless to say, I won't be adding L'EAU D'ISSEY to my collection. But I can say that those who like this fragrance would like ESCAPE as well. And those who don't would not.

Now, on to ACQUA DI GIO, which I had forgotten that I even possessed until donning L'EAU D'ISSEY today!

This scent smells just a like a clean river full of lily pads.
It's indeed a very beautiful scent but it confuses me. Because it is indeed a very serene scent but at the same time it is extremely strong.
Anyways it's extremely fresh and prefectly inoffensive once it settles.

A clean skin scent. Which means it stays oh so close to your skin. It's the eiptomy of the 90's in a bottle. When people were offended by scent, and therefore didn't want to offend anyone. Safe is so boring though... I like it, but it's not something I'd want to wear all the time because I need something with personality. In the Summer I would prefer a sweeter grass scent, like the Summer version for example. It's much easier on the nose!

Wow, what an oscillation between awful and lovely! Perhaps this is just an Issey thing, but most of his fragrances tend to do this on my skin.

For the first 1.5 hours of wearing l'eau d'issey it was Lysol-tastic! Why is it so difficult to make an unfussy, clean-smelling scent that ISN'T redolent of cleaning products and alcohol?

Eventually, however, my wrists ended up smelling quite understatedly clean, with the softest hint of... lily-of-the-valley, I guess? But what a bloody ordeal it took to get there in the first place.

Not recommended if you, like me, are one of those people who routinely ignore the "wait 30 minutes before exposure" label on sunscreen.

Que Horror!!!!! o.0 WTF is that stank?! LOL!! XD This is, hands down, the worst perfume I have ever sniffed with my 28-yr-old nose. When smelling this, the words acrid, sharp, nauseating, putrid, artificial and toilet cleaner really do come to mind.

If someone wore this near me then I would have to flee many feet away as if my life depended on it. This was so bad that it burned my nose and made me recoil in disgust. My grandmother dared to test it and suffered the same fate as I.

This an oldie but not so goodie that I implore people to test before buying. The good thing( bad for me) about it, is that it has an incredible lasting power and strong projection. Don't find this scent to be fresh, clean, crisp or any other seemingly positive adjective others have used to describe it.

Bottomline: I abhor this and you have been warned!! o.0

my best friend wore this in the 90's when everyone wanted to smell 'fresh', ie; like toilet cleaner rather thsn like women. Nasty stuff- funny, I always pulled in my cheap superdrug stuff while she was left out in the cold in this unsexy concoction.

I agree with some of the other reviewers....has a strong melon note (honeydew to me), but I find this appealing and it gives the fragrance a FRESH, clean and very feminine air. Perfect for daytime wear, this is one I favor for the office. It is noticeable, but not in a distracting way. Just smells confident and airy - like a perfect summer day!

This is my favourite. It's the parfume that makes me feel better, it's almost like I'm addicted to it :)I'll never stop using it.

L'eau d'Issey is the queen among aquatic scents. I still remember the first time I smelled it and the aquatic scent was completely new to me.

I must admit that it smells better on other persons than it does on me. On other people I smell the fresh, dewy melon note very clearly and the impression is over all aquatic. On me this perfume develops into a more floral scent dominated by lily of the valley on a musk base.
A cool, fresh and bright scent, very suitable for a hot summer day.

L'eau d'Issey manages to be modern and classic at the same time.
To me this fragrance became the scent of the 90'ies

In 3 words: AQUATIC - BRIGHT - ICONIC

It' one of my friend's signature scent. On her it is really nice. Anyway, you have to like (honeydew) melon to like this fragrance. Many people hate melon so maybe this is the main reason they detest this fragrance. I like melon so...

I dont understand anybody not liking this perfume - I LOVE the smell!! - unlike some of the newer so-called 'fresh' smells around at the moment - this one DOESNT smell of citrusy toilet cleaner after a while.

Never ever buy that smell,you can better throw your money away in the water,at least than you cvan see it fload for a while.Sutch a dirty smell.

I understand that Japanese people are known for enjoying fresh perfumes, and this is definitely that. It does not smell cheap to me, only like a very simple cologne. The kind of smell you can find everywhere. Not so suitable for women.

Nice, fresh, elegant, clean, flowery. Just a very good well blended perfume to me. Perfect for every occasion.

oh god, its smell sour cheap, sharp not refreshing at all. just give me headache, i try several time at different stores to push mysef to like it, but i dun.how come this kind of smell ever existed

smells quite common if not cheap. plus, its price is too big for what it actually offers. just another cheap-boring fresh perfume.

At first it is repulsive to my nose due to the generic melon note I guess (I don't like melon). But after a while it "melts" and becomes quite comforting. It gives me a sensation of floating on clouds..Still kinda generic,but not in a bad way.

You gota love Issey! This is mos def my FAVORITE to wear lolz I tell my sister it brings the Boys to the Yard!

this is a very happy scent. makes me happy all the time! just imagine slightly sweet water. that's how it smells like :)

i loved the blue limited edition one, but when i finally wanted to buy it, it was no longer on sale! =( so i decided to give the original a try. i tried the edp and it didn't smell good at all! many months later i tried the edt by chance, and gosh it smells GOOD! :)bought it immediately this time, hehe. i guess edt smells better than the edp...

oh and for a edt, the staying power is kinda good. i sprayed only once on my wrist and after 4 hrs i still smell it :)

recommended!

I'll have to disagree with LadyJedi: this is not just best suited for ladies with light hair and fair complexions. (seriously??) I absolutely love this fragrance; it is so fresh yet seductive at the same time. I love layering it with the body lotion. I want to buy the men's version for my fiance as it smells utterly sexy!!!

I like it, it lifts up my mood. The scent will make you think of when spring has arrived and the snow is melting, or spring rain. It smells fresh and not over powering (except in the beginning because of the alcohol)

A gorgeous clean crisp smell. Reminds me of flowers after a spring rain. Just lovely.

This is becoming my most-used perfume for day. It's light, crisp, ethereal, and feminine. It smells like an early spring scent, but I've been wearing it all year-round. I've had complete strangers standing next to me asking what I'm wearing. A gorgeously crafted scent.

rainydaze i think you may have tried the same one but a slightly different version in the same type of bottle but in orange and blue bottles i cant find these versions anywhere i got them in austria years ago and it was sooooo good this one is nice but its just not the same as the orange version!! SAD
I miss this version severely does any1 else remember the pleasant scent??

I had this years ago...very nice clean smell, particular, modern, very easy to Recognize. I don't like the aquatic fragrances, but this one is diffrent... it has a long lasting power also, a bit expensive though...I think this one is not for everyone, i mean not everyone can wear it good !

My favourite part of the frag is definitely the midnote stage. Because when you first spray it on it's quite cool, distant, and frigid but then the carnation really "blooms", warming up the composition and it becomes a full-fledged floral [Once that awful melon is gone]. And yes, this bouquet remains sharp and ever fresh and clean. It's probably this sharpness that haters love to hate in the opening because of the synthetic chemicals in it.

Still I recommend the EdP, getting past the melon and waiting for the carnation is worth it, and it lasts forever. You can wear it anywhere/any time. It's never out of place. But I prefer wearing it on warm days, or when working in the office, doing job interviews, networking at events. Being an floral, the perfume is very feminine and ladylike but intense sharpness gives off that feeling of PERSISTENCE, unapologetic, no powder, no softness--which I suppose is a good thing in a business setting. But this fragrance, is inspired by water which is fluid and hopefully communicates that the wearer is open minded too. And if there's a classy function to go to after, it still does a fine job for the occasion.

The male version is wonderful too. I love the spiciness. I love men in it.

This may sound weird but...there was a time (about 10 years ago), when I would steal spritzes of this perfume from my mom's dressing table as a young teen. It smelled beautiful to me at that time and it smelled beautiful on my mom too. She has stopped wearing it, but recently I chanced upon a tester bottle at the dept store, and proceeded to take a few spritzes for the sake of nostalgia. But oh no, this time it smells awful! and sour! and sharp! And just odd and plastic-ky overall....Not the fresh and sweet watery scent I remembered it being...I wonder if the tester scent was from a bad batch or something?

A really classy and elegant scent with very good lasting power. The opening notes are dominated by melon, then comes the aroma of honeyed milk which is the most distinctive and special thing about this frag. I believe it will best suit ladies with lighter complexion and fair hair and it is deffinitely a daytime and officewear perfume. The bottle is too simple to match the complexity of the juice.

This is one of the nastiest, most horrible perfumes I've ever smelled. It smells cheap, artificial and nauseating. I really detest the smell of it. I can't believe it's so popular, but then some people just have incredibly bad taste! Ironically, the men's Issey Miyake cologne smells great so it's a shame the women's one is so vile.

This is my most favorite perfume ever!! I remember when it came out,a friend of mine introduced me to it.At first it was hard to find ,could only find it downtown.even though I have enough perfumes to open my own store on my shelves lol,this is my main perfume.I love scents that are fresh and floral (but not rose-hate that)I find it lasts all day too which helps.

on first spraying it had an almost citrus smell to it,clean & crisp as if i'd just got out of the shower.the fragrance of lily of the valley creeps through after about half an hour then afterwards i feel like i'm walking through a forest after a heavy rainstorm.beautiful.
my boyfriend has the men's version of this & i can't get enough of the smell of him.

i sampled it again today and i hate the way it starts out. the florals are too strong and there is nothing aquatic about it for me until after 30 minutes. the aquatic scent comes into play after its completely dried down and it becomes a subtle watery clean smell. i decided not to get it tho because of the intensity of the rose in the top notes.

finally sampled this today and i like it as i can definitley smell the aquatic factor. its dewy on me and i can smell the bit of melon that gives it the watery note. i may purchase this after i sample it once more... great for summer

even im a huge fan of anything non-oriental/woody/spicy frag, but this one give me instant headache right on the first sniff D:

i expected something light and refreshing,but absolutely not this one >.

Loved this perfume but had a hangover/migraine every weekend for 2 years before I realised it was down to the perfume! I would not have believed a perfume could have such a devastating effect. I can't even be in the same room as someone wearing it or else the headache and sickness returns.

When you're wearing just a tiny spray, you can't smell it, but it's so strong that other people notice it from metres away. That said, I think it's a very attractive scent, but too distinctive for me to wear every day (and certainly too strong to wear at work). One really good thing is that unlike most scents it doesn't smell like toilet cleaner after ten minutes or so on my skin.

After applying this one on my hand I thought " I have to wash it off this will suffocate me", but I lived to tell you this:
thers nothing aquatic in it, only flowers, flowers, melon and more flowers, then melon again; sometimes shy green smell appeared.

Its actually pleasant after 30min, awakes fresh flowery feeling, moderately sweet, great lasting power.

Not my type of perfume, but all you flower lovers should give it a try!

Yes it can give u a headache. Yes its articifial. yes it heavy on the melon,and i should hate it.
But i dont.
Its clear like springwater,its a modern lilyofthevalley ,and its soo soothing on hot days!

Must be the synthetic nature of the composition which puts people off (me included)... Melon rules here despite the big number of other notes. Reminds me of the glass cleaning liquid aroma.

I remember first hearing about this perfume. A very popular magazine nominanted the 10 worst smells in the world. L'eau d'Issey was on rank 2, just after the winner: rotten squid. (I am not joking!)

Well, I don't know if it was because of this but when I first tried it turned my stomach. Overripe fruit with flowers on the edge to turning bad mixed with that strong cleaner-like aquatic note. The powdery and heavy sweetness just did not fit with the overexaggerated aquatic...
A few day's later had a friend try it because I wanted to show her what an ugly fragrance I had found... Strangly the notes were still the same but on her skin the fragrance was quite pleasant! She loved it and even ended up buying it.

But one thing I still regret. It is a very strong fragrance in terms of being all around you. I can always tell if someone in the room (or in the next room) is wearing L'Eau d'Issey. So even if the fragrance smells good on some people it can be quite bothersome to the surroundings.

At first, i loved. But later, it made me sick. I have that use it in drops, because other way, i will have a headache. i think that is for other kind of people.

I jumped on the bandwagon a little late with this one. It's my latest purchase and I couldn't be happier with it. It took testing out the eau de parfum version before I noticed the carnation note (I never noticed it in the EDT). After spraying and for the first half-hour or so, I smell A LOT of carnations - and not the artificial ones so commonly used in perfume that smell more like cloves than the flower itself; the carnation in Issey is a very real rendition of the beautiful flower in its natural form. It's light, just slightly spicy, creamy, and smooth.

The melon notes also stand out quite a bit, though they don't show up on my skin until about an hour or so after application. This perfume dances between powdery and green - but never quite feels like an aquatic because it's lacking any harsh artificiality.

I read that this perfume was inspired by water and I can see that - it's very pure, very fresh, very natural. It's what I'd expect to smell if I dipped my nose into a bowl of cool, pure mountain water that carnations and lilies had been soaking in, with a few melon slices at the bottom, smiling up at me. I also want to say it's almost lactonic, a rice milk perhaps, but it's not really that, exactly. There's something indefinable - that note that I can't quite figure out that guarantees I'll end up loving the scent because it offers something I can't express with words.

Despite the light tones of Issey, it's quite a thick fragrance with a lot to say and it sings at the top of its lungs to make sure those around it don't miss its beautiful song. Though it's strong, I'd say it's relatively inoffensive. The EDP lasts all day on my skin and through the night, as well.

I was looking for something fresh, yet natural, for the summer heat and I found it in L'eau D'Issey. Instead of something fruity or "fresh" that just smells clean, Issey blooms in the warmer weather and smells like a garden bathed in light. It makes me smile and puts me in a brighter mood! =)

I simply adore the male fragrance....but, try as I may, my chemistry just doesn't work with the women's one :(

I get the freshness, the melon, the crisp florals.....but then it develops into a sour affair....there is an 'off' smell to it, almost rotting leaves! I can't put my finger on it....but it's definitely not pleasant.

When I was at uni, all my friends wore this scent & it worked well on them. I think you really need to try this one on your skin, in case you are disappointed.

Really special, a perfume to get lost in. He reminds me to one day with rain in a small place and the soft smell of the wood.

wow! after reading all the reviews seems like people absolutley love it or absolutley despise this one! cant figure out why but i just love it..i used to wear this about 8 yrs ago and have been craving something clean and fresh smelling so i went back to issey :) i can understand why some say they can get a headache from it because a little goes a long way..it has a spicy-ness to it that definitely could result in burning of the sinuses if sprayed too much!
but i still love it!

This is my all time favorite of floral aquatic. I think this suits the younger age group.You can wear this perfume all year round. The long lasting floral aqua fragrance gives you that feeling of relaxed, joy and freshness of summer delight!
Update: This EDT version will linger and last over 5 hours which is surprisingly good in terms of quality and value for money.

generally I don't like fresh and clean parfume...like White Linen and so on but this one!!!I like it!!!!and it's longlasting on me!.

A co-worker of mine wears this and it remains me of old socks….. :-(

Although, it is considered an "aquatic" fragrance, there is something in the fragrance that smells old and rotten…..like something you forgot in the laundry basket…hmm….like old socks…..maybe it’s the melon….?..who knows…?!….

sometimes i feel it smells good...
but not for dating...the smells pricking your nose til you get flu..hahaha~

Its a sharp and common watery scent. Nothing special for me. A rare mediocre fragrance of the Issey Miyake 's stock

The presence of light, delicate flowers combined with rose and lotus notes reveals a fresh aquatic floral with a fragrant, woody aura.
A sharp, aquatic fragrance. This feminine scent possesses a blend of fresh water florals including lily. Along with a touch of carnation.

erm... i guess it must be the melon, as i really hate it -thats what bothers me in hillfiger's true star and anna sui's fragrances :(

I like all the Miyake fragrances -except this one. I tried to like it but there is something very annoying in it. Dunno which note(s) but makes me feel sick and gives me a headache.

at first, i hate it. It's too fresh and it just gave me a headache. But the scent grows on you. Now, I like it. Although I only have to spray it once a day because it lasts all day long. :)

@ katyas: You're right - it seems to be based on the same "idea" as Ming Shu. BUT: In my opinion, Yves Rocher copied this structure and now produces a similar fragrance, just with cheaper (maybe more synthetic) ingredients. I wouldn't prefer Yves Rocher's perfume - Issey Miyake might be more expensive but it's worth that. I think that you can definitely "smell the quality".

White floral explosion. What I call a tea-party fragrance, because you can wear it anywhere, with anything short of evening-formal and offend no one. Last forever, too.

**EDIT 6/6/2010 I tried the scent again today with a more lavish application and have changed my mind - I have decided that I like this scent and will definitely get a large bottle once my trial size is gone, if not before. Why the turn-around? Upon the more lavish application, the scents are more free to come through and I am able to discern the subtle differences that I was not able to with the light application I used before. For some reason, although it is not a note, the initial scent I smell is almost like lilac - a very nice and sweet, but not overpowering, floral. As it moves into the mid-range, the florals all combine into a lovely mixture where the scent smells like a spring garden in bloom, the smells mingling to create an intoxicating and heady scent that is lovely without being overwhelming. The aquatic notes are in the background, adding a touch of misty morning, or rainy afternoon, to the garden delight. Whereas Ming Shu is an aquatic scent with some floral notes, l'Eau de Issey is a floral scent with some aquatic notes. Thus my change of heart. **END EDIT 6/6/2010**
I tried this, and discovered that, on me, it smells EXACTLY the same as Ming Shu by Yves Rocher. I put a drop of one on one arm and the other on the other and neither my husband NOR I could tell the difference. Ming Shu lasted longer and had a more pleasant dry-down, which is the only difference I could tell. In future I will save myself money and just go with Ming Shu.

it opens strangely,misterious,without leaving you the ability to guess the compositions,but you can just smell some fresh aquatic notes,which is not sweet,neither bitter.how can I describe it?it's all about lotus,mixed with some light notes of other flowers.I can hardly smell any fruity notes and that's strange,because I'm into fruity fragrances and yet I can't get enough of it.I love all of Issey perfumes and this one is unique.just smell and imagine you're swimming.

Love this. I started wearing this in 1992 when it first arrived on the scene, my mother in law started to wear it this year..so I stopped......

The lotion is divine, stunning. I would often use that and not the EDP/EDT

I try it a few times, but on my skin it's too fresh; on the others skin I like it (annoyng, don't you think?); definitely not for me

I like this fragrance. It is very fresh and clean.

I like it very much.Feminine and fragile.

My mum loves it. But it always gives me headaches.
One perfume that I don't like to wear or smell.
On me this one's top notes are definite melon and it fades away very quickly. Leaving just a smell of honey and flowers. Long lasting and fresh, but not watery on me. It's like juice with honey.
Er!

its such a clean scent, people like it on me, but they say it has quite a strong lilyofthevalley smell, but i cant detect its so strong, for me its very harmonized

it's too strong but the scent of it is very classic.

This perfume was the first designer perfume that i had.i still remember it; it is floral and fresh and long lasting

smells sour to me and it reminds me of Ralph Lauren Polo Sport woman. Also the bottle is very simple but not in a pretty way, looks cheap, smells cheap. No offence please.

Years ago I used to like it a lot. Now all that I can smell is melon, melon and melon... and something strong and sharp. I also do not like the Lily of the Valley ingredient. It smells too ordinary and reminds me of soap. I look for something more sofisticated and unique in perfumes. Well, I am definitely not a fan of aquatic fragnances, at lest not this one.

the smell of rose and rose water are very dominating. the scent is fresh tho.

buenisimo perfume, es excelente

My best friend wears this, but I dont like it. Something sharp in here that I dont like. My boyfriend like it. How annoying!

I'm looking for a feminine, fresh but unique summer fragrance for a very long time. OK, now it's September, I can wait for a while.... but could you help me? I have one favourite: Jesus del Pozo Duende (not Essentia Duende), and i'm looking for a similar styled scent.

Issey Miyake L'Eau Issey is definetely not for me, it's nothing classic in it, it's somehow sharp and annoying on my skin:(

This scent reminds me of EA Sunflowers and CK Escape. Very aquatic feeling and almost captures summer time for me. I know for many it's an HG scent anytime of the year. For me, the citrus I smell has such a cool heady tone that it's almost too much. I wish this were tweaked a little to bring in some interesting warmth. All the LE summer editions are all the same usually alcohol free.

It's so over-rated. I honestly don't think it's that nice at all. Well to each its own I guess. Definitely not for me.

I used to love it and wear it all the time, but I so did everyone else at the time! I guess I got bored with it. When I smell it now, I still like the freshness of it, I'd recognise it anywere.

I wear this scent as a jewelry. I Have no words to describe how wonderfull I feel myself wearing it! It is one of my favourites!

I like this scent. It's fresh and light, but not teen, it's very classy and feminine. Staying power is great. I also like the bottle, it's simple & unique.

I love how it wears on my skin - floral but crisp with the water notes nicely pronounced. I prefer the EDP; the EDT is noticeable lighter and doesn't last as long.

It's very fresh and clean for me. So modern. But not for me. I didn't like it when I smell it.

My mother wears this and it seems very safe and fresh.

Very nice and fresh on my friend. Not for me, I preffer warmer perfumes.

Brings lasting freshness with sweet flavors, and explosions of joy. One of my favorite for a good mood :)
Better during Winter and at cold weather.