Claiborne for Men Liz Claiborne for men

Just found a bottle of the original formulation. At first it's quite musky but not heavy. Within the first hour it settles down considerably. There is nothing that smells "synthetic" about it, thankfully (and no strong lavender either). Don't expect any strong notes in the drydown but it smells great, and is excellent for a warm day. There is clearly a bit of wood but I can't say I can detect anything that registers as leather. I look forward to wearing this one when the weather gets warm here, to see how it performs then. I don't think this is the kind of composition that does well with cheap reformulations so my guess is that it may now be a "chemical mess" kind of thing.

When I first bought this fragrance in the early nineties it was nice, fresh, clean and fairly natural. There was something innovative aquatic about it (not that this is an aquatic scent in the standard way - because it's not). I remembered a nice citrus, good lavender and even the oak moss note was smooth. All of it in a wet chypre structure that had stages of progression with a final dry-down of clear amber and smooth leather. I don't know how many reformulations it's gone through since then but wow - it now smells very synthetic and metal sharp - it's almost unrecognizable. The original initial wet freshness is gone.
I just bought a bottle a year or two ago and ended up getting rid of it. If you ever smelled Frank Los Angeles - it had that kind of freshness in the opening of the original formulation.
If you find a bottle from the early nineties - Lucky you!
Otherwise, I would stay away from it. Too bad, it was once something nice, original & even complex - now it smells like a typical although decent sports frag.

Don't let the low price and the fact that you find this in cheapie stores fool you. This is a great fragrance.

This is a strong, very long lasting dry, green, woody citrus scent, made before woody citrus scents became a fad. The citrus notes seem to last forever, buttressed by lovely green notes. The oakmoss and leather never weigh the fragrance down, but they provide richness and smoothness, and they give it the signature 80s smell.

This is versatile and can be worn any time of year, any place. It will also please both fans of 80s scents and fans of sporty citrus-based scents.

MY RATING: 8/10

This was my first signature scent, back in the early 90s, so I might be a little biased here, but I really like this stuff. It does have a synthetic quality to it, but its not a BAD synthetic quality. To me it smells like orange peels floating in soapy water. With a wildflower patch nearby (but not too close, this isn't really floral, but there's some depth to it with a green floral tilt) This fragrance also has a salty vibe to it if you smell it right on your skin - it isn't that pleasant. It is much better smelled indirectly.

It is good for about 8-9 hours on my skin. After that it is a typical leather/wood/amber base, which is fine, but not what I want.

I think this is worth a look if you see it cheap at Marshall's/TJMaxx. It is a good, fresh, clean scent for summer that isn't an aquatic at all.

Irish spring soap all the way.

this stuff is very common and basic. It's very clean and soapy, and I dont know why people hate clean soapy smells... who doesn't like soap? I like this and for $12 at TJ maxx, I will add it to my collection when some other things run out ( I have 46 others colognes). Very casual, every day masculine clean scent. It's good.

Now this is a walk down memory lane if you like strong/fresh chypres from the late 80's/early 90's. Along with others, it was part of my rotation for wearing. By and large, it wasn't bad.

But everything already said about it being a somewhat synthetic perfume with a bit of everything and a clear identity crisis...that aptly describes this scent. It's leather...no, wait, it's a fresh citrus...no no, it's a chypre. Heck, it was nice for whatever it was, suitable for daily wear, not overly strong or off-putting, inoffensive and good for office wear. It was well-balanced so that it wasn't as pungent as Polo Sport or others of the subsequent period.

In short, as artificial as it might have been, I liked it and it filled that niche of a fresh spring/summer fragrance despite it being somewhat quaint by current standards. Interesting department store frag that I do miss.

its really an out dated dry chypre 1980s category fragrance that is fairly outdated for todays standards

I Got This For Free And Still Didn't Even Wear It :(
I Used It To Spray My Trailor After I Smoked
Doesn't Really Have A Good Smell Anyways
It Kinda Starts Smelling Like Cheap 99 Cent Cologne After Like 30 Min

I had a vintage mini, which evaporated, but it didn't smell as bad as some of these reviews suggest, so my guess is that it was reformulated. Find an old bottle if you want to give this one a try is my advice !

it is a chemical chypre and a total disaster, the lady at the scent counter totally hated this smell when she got a whiff of it.

not reccomended!

Instead, try curve soul or claiborne sport and you will be pleasantly surprised

One of those cheap-smelling laundry detergent musk scents. The jasmine stands out the most, penetrating a thick heart of chemical citruses and spices. The drydown gives way to a raspy black pepper and musk accord. Everything is thin, artificial, and poorly-balanced. I recall buying a shirt made by Liz Claiborne, and wearing it to work. It lasted an hour before it ripped. That's the same kind of quality craftsmanship on display here in this scent. Save the pieces.

Hi,
I bought this scent when I returned from my 1st deployment overseas in 1989.Encountering this scent, I noted the top notes, which to me was fresh and clean, like linen. Then afterwards, the bottom notes were rather earthy and alive. This stayed with me and it caused me to enjoy this scent more.

If you want something to wear to the office or to some daytime event, then this is it. It's not over powering, but alive and fresh. I know some will not agree with me, but maybe their nose isn't quite in tune with this.

Most people I encountered like what I was wearing and most times this was it. Cheers!

A stunning late eighties male chypre from Liz C, my first encounter with this was at Marshalls and I think it must have turned or something; because, it smelled like a 20 year old bottle of Avon's Weekend (EEWW!) to me. However, when I ordered this one from Midtown Perfumes on the strength of the reviews here, it was a wonderous light men's scent that grew on me and got better as it went...

This begins with an effervescent citrus and faint fruitiness accented by greens (fresh and slightly bitter)and soft lavender note. My first impression was 'ginger ale'-because of it's light bubbly scent and overall smooth sweetness and surprisingly there is no ginger in this! As it starts to dry the juniper becomes apparent, the refined flowers bloom and the myrrh adds a resiny incense-like feel that is just out of this world. Perhaps the myrrh and juniper had 'taken over' in the one I tried at Marshalls. This is different from a lot of eighties scents, and the bottle is peculiar; though, I find the three different shapes and colors an excellent metaphor for the three distinct and seperate phases of this juice. This changes alot on me and each time I get a whiff of it it's slightly different, and I dig that. The ultimate drydown is manly with leather, musk and oakmoss and despite the patchouli, amber and cedar never gets TOO aromatic and finishes very clean on me with an ever so sensual earthiness. Very nice and much less intense than the listed notes would have you believe...

Sillage: good
Longevity: above average
Overall: 3.75/5

If you want something that has a little bit of everything and not too much of anything, Claiborne is for you. I am so glad I found this one after my tastes became a little more refined. If I had smelled this 5 years ago, I would have left it behind and missed out on a quirky and unique fragrance...they don't make them like this anymore!

This one holds sentimental value to me. Was my very first fragrance when it was released in '89. Fresh and enjoyable to wear, haven't smelt anything else like this one. Might have to buy it again just to have in my wardrobe.

One of the first fresh scents that didn't rely too heavily on citrus (YSL PH, Eau Sauvage, Armani PH, etc. just smell like lemon water). A surprisingly well composed fragrance. Great lasting power I might add. What were they thinking with that flacon?

Claiborne for Men stands out for several reasons: a) it is one of the few bergamot-heavy frags I really like, b) it receives little attention on Basenotes, probably because of its modest price,c) it has superb longevity, d) it has wonderful sillage (strong but not "crazy strong"), e) it always garners me tons of compliments and, finally, f) it's the only offering from Claiborne that doesn't bore me to tears and/or make me want to retch.

A very nice late Eighties/early Nineties cheapie -- snarf it up before it all disappears from the shelves forever.

This was my first adult colonge and I do miss it.....I wore it well into college until I could no longer find it. It is very fresh and refreshing with the citrus notes, but they are toned down by wonderful leather, patchouli and oakmoss.....Too bad Claiborne doesnt make anything now that isn't "hip". SUCH A CLASSIC!