Lancome Scent Search: Which one is right for me?

This is not a sponsored post. I purchased these fragrances on Black Friday, when Lancome had a huge sale on their website.

REVISION: Just a note, that six months after I wrote this post, I purchased another Lancome that I love. I have added that to this post at the very bottom.

Back to the original post...

You can't like everything, this I know to be true, so please don't be discouraged with the parts of this review that are not so great, and there are two parts that are not so great. I purchased 3 perfumes; one I had sampled in the store before and knew I would like, and two that SO MANY PEOPLE said over and over again were SO good, but for me, it turned out that they certainly were not. Remember when I said I would not blind buy again? Yeah, well that went out the door with Lancome's huge Black Friday sale. So much for my personal resolve not to purchase a fragrance without trying it first. Enter grim face.

Not all is lost though, because I have gifted one fragrance to someone who absolutely enjoys it and the other is sitting on my counter waiting for the perfect gift recipient to come along. I will miss the bottles that the perfumes are stored in though. The Lancome Tresor line has THE best bottles. 

So many people love these first two that I almost feel guilty writing my opinion about them, but here goes...

Scent #1 - Lancome Tresor La Nuit: This perfume has amazing reviews, is placed on Top 10 lists everywhere, and is mentioned favorably on YouTube OFTEN by frag heads who have smelled a lot of perfume! In fact, out of all the reviews that I read or viewed, which was a lot, only one person didn't like this, and she only didn't like it a 'little bit.' So, even though I said I would never, never, never blind buy again, I did, thinking 'SO many people love this, it has to be a safe blind buy, right?' The answer is no. And I just should have known better.

The heavy glass diamond it comes in is grandiose. I just love it, and I really wanted to like the scent for that reason alone. The perfume however, has a predominant incense smell that I just can't get over. I don't like incense, and although, I knew that particular item was talked about in the notes, I was surprised it was so strong. Why? Well because I'd heard over and over again that this was a rich, decadent gourmand fragrance that smells like chocolate, caramel and/or pralines, depending on what version/review you are listening to or reading at the time. I expected something rich and sweet to come out of that bottle. Nothing of the kind came out for me. I did catch a nice tart fruit note after the dry down that I enjoyed, but I can't get over the incense smell that gets lighter but never really goes away.

Projection and sillage on the La Nuit are fantastic (this is a very strong fragrance). It also lasts forever. Sadly though, this is not the fragrance for me.

La Nuit Tresor parfum by Lancome is a Oriental Vanilla fragrance for women. La Nuit Tresor was launched in 2015. La Nuit Tresor was created by Christophe Raynaud and Amandine Clerc-Marie. Top notes are Pear, Tangerine and Bergamot; middle notes are Vanilla orchid, Strawberry, Black Rose and Passionfruit; base notes are Praline, Caramel, Litchi, Patchouli, Vanilla, Incense, Coffee, Licorice, Coumarin and Papyrus.

Scent #2 - Lancome La Nuit Tresor a la Folie: Imagine reading review after review about fragrances, everyone saying this perfume is to die for, and you blind buy it (like you SWORE you wouldn't, yes I know I mentioned that above) because it has such a great Black Friday sale price (I had such high hopes that I would like this flanker). Then you open the bottle, give yourself a little spritz to test it for the day and you now smell like hotdogs. Yes, hotdogs. That is the case for me with Lancome La Nuit Tresor a la Folie.

A lot of fragrances change as they dry down, and this one had so many great reviews, so I wanted to give it a chance. After 20 minutes, I could still smell some kind of meat that reminded me of hotdogs...or maybe sausage? I waited some more. After 45 minutes, there was no meat smell left, just a soft (perhaps too soft for my tastes), but pleasant and really unique light fruit/vanilla fragrance. Perhaps this is the scent everyone was raving over? I ranked this perfume second because the dry down smell is pleasant. It's just not special enough to suffer through smelling like a hot dog for the better part of an hour.

Projection is not so strong, which isn't always an instant reason not to buy, but due to the lingering of the opening notes that I intensely dislike, this perfume is also not for me.

The composition is developed by perfumers Christophe Raynaud, Amandine Marie and Honorine Blanc.

Top notes: pink pepper, bergamot, pear, red currant
Heart: Damask rose, jasmine, peony, violet
Base: Bourbon vanilla, benzoin, tonka, patchouli, woody notes, ambroxan, nutmeg

UPDATE! I FOUND THE PERFECT DIAMOND, HURRAH!

I wrote this original post about 6  months ago. I was so disappointed that I didn't care for either of the Tresor La Nuit fragrances that I tried, especially after all of the hype on YouTube about how great they were (to each his own with fragrances, I know). Well, I tried a sample of the Tresor La Nuit Nude, and this is the one I was hoping to find... this one smells like a juicy peach or even a bit apricot-y to me. It doesn't have incense like the La Nuit did (I don't think I'm much of an incense fan based on my limited experience with it), and to me that makes all of the difference in the world.  That being said it is heavier in nature, almost sultry and not the light and juicy fruity fragrance you might think of when you hear the words peach or apricot. A lot of people online say it smells like coconut but I don't get that at all on me. 

The bottle is still beautiful (like the ones I talked about above). I do, however, like the color of the juice better in the two I didn't like (La Nuit and La Nuit a la Folie). When it comes down to it though, I'd rather have a scent I like (in a still beautiful bottle, but not AS beautiful) than an absolutely stunning bottle with a fragrance I didn't care for... and I know you 'get it.' 

According to the Lancome website, the top note for this perfume is Bergamot; the mid is Rose; and the base notes are coconut, and vanilla. I am super, SUPER happy to have this one in my collection.

I LOVE THIS PERFUME!

Scent #3 - La Vie Est Belle: Finally, one I can talk about that I enjoy: La Vie Est Belle. This is the scent I already knew I liked, and the reason I even went on the website. I was looking at Black Friday Deals and the price on this fragrance was too good to pass up. I LOVE La Vie Est Belle, though I have never owned anything except a sample up to this point (a sample I wore every day until it was gone because I enjoyed it so much). This fragrance is very loud, but still very feminine and endearing. It is a floral, fruity gourmand that I find myself intentionally smelling all day long when I am at work. In fact, I lift my arm to my face so often that my co-workers probably think I have a fragrance addiction (and happily, I do!!).

The lasting power, projection and sillage on this are all amazing. So well that some people describe them as being beast mode for this perfume, and I would have to agree. You can't spray too much or some people might be bothered, but honestly, you don't need to because a little goes a long way. This is a strong, long-lasting scent that I absolutely love to wear. 100% happy with this purchase. 

This gourmand yet elegant composition is developed by perfumers Olivier Polge, Dominique Ropion and Anne Flipo. The final formula is the result achieved after three years of probation and 5000 versions. Iris is the key ingredient of the perfume, surrounded by orange blossoms and jasmine in the heart. The composition’s opening provides fruity flavors of black currant and pear, while the base is warm, gourmand and powdery due to almond-like accords of tonka bean, praline, patchouli and vanilla.

To finalize, I would issue a word of caution to anyone who might be thinking of buying one of these fragrances as a blind buy. I don't think any of the above are 'safe' for that, because fragrance tastes are so personal, and so very different from person to person. Try before you buy (for sure). It's always better to be safe than sorry. 

Now if I could just listen to my own advice... I don't trust myself to do so anymore. I was truly convinced last time that I would never blind buy again, lol. What's going on over here?!??! I don't even know! I do know though, that I am still very much enjoying trying out new perfumes and I am so happy to have a great big bottle of La Vie Est Belle in my perfume collection.