Iris 39 Le Labo for women

If a dry iris is what you seek, look no further! It might be the first time I've smelled an iris perfume where iris was truly the star. This fragrance contains loads of iris, the whole bulb, said the saleswoman in the Le Labo boutique I visited today.

The perfume starts out very earthy, with woods and patchouli, which eventually become soft and clean, like an organic cotton undershirt fresh out of the dryer. I was impressed with how unisex it is and how dry, almost bitter, it remained. Only in the drydown did I detect something slightly sweet, maybe the cardamom.

I would highly recommend Iris to anyone who wants a true iris perfume and who is not looking for anything that seems perfume-y. This one is down-to-earth and totally unpretentious. It's no Chanel No.5, nor is it an Iris Nobile or Apres l'Ondee.

P.S. The sales lady also told me this is unisex, not for women as stated above.

A remarkably green iris composition with the addition of a consistent carrot note, some herbal patchouli and spicy undertones. Austere but elegant, well crafted and completely satifying. Iris and carrot are bonded together to create a quite unique earthy-rooty accord of considerable beauty while flowery patterns (mainly violet and ylang-ylang) provide sophisticated nuances. Not much to add but if you're looking for a unisex/feminine Iris composition this is surely among the best available on the market.

Rating: 7.5/10

Le Labo IRIS 39 is one of the most iris-rich iris perfumes I've smelled, rivalling even APRES L'ONDEE in the density of this beautiful floral note. However, IRIS 39 also has a greenish carrot-top edge. I'm thinking that IRIS 39 may actually be the strict inverse of HIRIS, with the proportions of carrot tops and iris switched, making iris much more dominant in this composition than the carrot. Another notable distinction between these two greenish iris perfumes is that the carrots in Le Labo 39 appear to have been triple washed.

I'm not one to get all bent out of shape by iris perfumes with only low levels of iris present, since I think that it is perfectly valid to produce metaphorical perfumes and also to use iris as a complement or as one among a number of other equally important notes. I really don't think that any perfumer is under some sort of obligation to use hefty dosages of any note included in the perfume's name, including iris, just because it is so precious. That said, it seems to me that, with regard to this Le Labo composition, no such complaint can in any case be made.

I am quite fascinated by the fact that some noses find this creation to be richer in violets than in iris, which perhaps corroborates my inchoate theory about variable note salience from sniffer to sniffer. Well, that's another story. Suffice it here to say that I've been wearing a lot of violet quasi-soliflores of late (some quite green...), and this smells nothing like any of those to me!

This creation is beautiful, bountiful in iris with a touch of greenishness, and smells less earthy and carroty and more clean than HIRIS. Less powdery than APRES L'ONDEE, and more light and airy than IRIS NOBILE or BOIS D'IRIS. Yes, Le Labo IRIS 39 has managed to carve out its own little corner in the congested category of haute iris perfumes!

Le Labo doesn't have shops in my country and because I don't want to spend that much money on a blind buy can anyone suggest me another which smells like Iris 39?

Oooh. I think that this is THE best of the Iris scents that I've tried! This is everything that I want from iris - cool, almost menthol fresh and cool, with a powdered, cotton softness. It reminds me of a little peep of green showing through frozen earth. On my wish list for sure. Extraordinary.
Sillage and longevity are good. Quiet but forceful!

A full-bodied yet youthful iris pefume. Sillage is excellent - I think this enters the room a good five minutes before you will! Initially extremely potent, it eventually dries down to a powerful concoction of very floral iris balanced by the musk and citrus notes.

I love how....
Iris, Lime, Patchouli, Rose, Ylang Ylang, Musk, Violet, Ginger, Cardamom, and Civet
can smell... so Unisex!
I have started to venture into IRIS based fragrances... yes, I do think Backwards..
Florals in WINTER?
but this fragrance is Unusual enough
that on a Cloudy Foggy Day.......
Can you guess? I live in San Francisco!
a Crisp Slightly Off-kilter Fragrance
makes sense.

There are perfumes that intend to seduce, well... this one doesn't. It's sharp, avant-garde and provocative. "This is what I am and you don't have to like me" - that's the message. I somehow detect camphor and a lot of patchouli, which are one of my favourite notes. I also discovered that I like it much more when sprayed on clothes, especially wool.

IRIS 39 LE LABO, is my second close to Number One Iris of all the irises around..Yes, it is green and fresh and earthy and clean and what has really surprised me here are some notes that reminded me of 3 of my other favourites: Take a good potion of your favourite Iris, SL Silver Mist, or HIRIS and mix it with the top notes of Dans tes Bras (yes! the unearthy beautiful violet)and the fat, sad carotty earthy Iris in the heart and then finally in the drydown it reminds me of the wild SL Borneo. (After an hour or two give a warm blow of breath to your wrist and smell instantly..you ll get Borneo notes..:) it is such a beuatiful Iris Composition.. maybe it is going to be my Number One soon!
By the way:Some of the notes in the description of fragrantica are missing, here they are:
Iris, lime, patchouli, rose, ylang ylang, musk, violet, ginger, cardamom, and civet
If you want an unusual accompanied strikingly beautiful Iris , then try this one! Nothing funeral here, but sparkling violet-iris life!! BRAVO, LE LABO!

Iris has been a new-found obsession for me as of late. I'm currently on a mission to find the best iris scent for me to wear. As with most iris-based fragrances, they tend to be more suited to the warmer months and Iris 39 by Le Labo, is no exception.

Iris 39 opens very fresh and light. There is a touch of greeness that gives this fragrance that natural feel. To my nose, Iris 39 is very close in scent to a bunch of freshly picked irises placed right under your nose in a perfectly arranged bouquet. There is also a very slight watery note which only adds to the freshness of this fragrance.

Many reviewers speak of a prominent earthiness in Iris 39, which I never managed to detect. I found that once the iris and lime in the top notes had softened, the scent took on a rather soapy, clean-like quality.

Still lovely, but more like iris-scented soap, Iris 39 lost all of its previous uniqueness. The fragrance also becomes very faint, almost non-existant to an extent.

Iris 39 is lively, dewy and delicate, however the soapiness and then the poor lasting power deterred me from falling in love with this fragrance. Iris 39 has however encouraged me to try more from the Le Labo line. I am rather intrigued by their simplistic bottles and seemingly interesting interpretations of particular notes.

Iris 39 is an iris perfume for those that seek a soft, green and refreshingly Summery blend. Also anyone that desires clean scents, I would recommend Iris 39 to you.

Iris 39 is dark, earthy and definitely unisex- It is evocative of Black March by CB I Hate Perfumes- I actually like how it smells much better than the actual smell of the flowers, which seem a little sickening sweet and funereal to my nose-

This is a sumptuous iris scent and I have gotten compliments when I wear it.