Where do I begin. It has been a bumpy ride with this one! It is so easily ruined by an over-sprayer you know, and I bet you know at least one given how madly popular this perfume is! A colleague of mine would atomise rather liberally during an unexpected heatwave, not realising that living and working in close quarters would result in everyone (or just me?) slightly gagging every time she passed. No offence, girl, if you are reading this – perfume is a complicated thing and most people tend to use too much instead of too little, especially if your nose has become used to it! Thank you for introducing me to this – ah, I am gonna say it – magnificent fragrance!
Yes, La Vie Est Belle is magnificent. It took me a while to get to know it, we have been through a long love-hate relationship, but once I started wearing it I did not stop for four consecutive months. This was literally the only perfume I used; every day, for four solid months, from October to January. Last Christmas my mother happened to fall in love with it too (what does that say about this fume?), and I gave her the remainder of my bottle, later on bitterly regretting it and getting a new one asap… This is how addicted I had become!
One thing, though: La Vie Est Belle only blossoms in cold weather. As soon as it gets warmer it turn into cloying sticky mess and can, in some cases, make you sick to the stomach. It once happened to me on the train. In the summer all you get is some loud, obnoxious pachouli that crashes the party, announcing herself with deafening chatter. The poor invited guests, Miss Iris together with Miss Orange Blossom and Mrs Blackcurrant, have to fall silent and only dare raise their voices after Patch has drunk herself under the table. Now it is their turn to try talk over each other, but at some point the convo starts flowing; Vanilla joins in and stays up late with her friend Praline, all the way till dawn when everyone else has called it a day.
I find that in autumn and winter the patchouli manages to remain quite well-behaved and the rest of the notes work so well together that despite the overall sweetness of the fragrance nothing really dominates or screeches; it is all soft powdery fruit and vanilla, comforting and elegant. And it lasts forever! Of course, both the sillage and longevity of this fragrance have become legendary. You really only need one spray in the nape of your neck or in the decolleté and you are sorted for the next 10 hours. The day after you can still smell it on your hair and clothes. Because La Vie Est Belle is so gourmand and just a little bit festive by nature, I think it is best suited for special occasions. If only we could refrain from using it on a daily basis! So many women wear it every day like I used to simply because it is too nice to be left waiting for better days.
Lancome really have hit the nail with this one. I have no idea what it is that attracts such masses from all ages and walks of life, but La Vie floats around the streets and subways of Barcelona like no other. It has been one of the best-selling fragrances in the past five years and shows no sign of relenting. This is not a passing fad, it is here to stay. Live with it, folks. This is the new Angel! The powdery sharpness juxtaposed with the sweetness of vanilla and praline creates an interesting contrast that just keeps you coming back, if only to figure it out. Actually, I feel like there are three distinct fragrances in one: first the earthy patchouli that some reviewers have called “old lady scent”, then in the middle notes the sharp fruity note combined with some vanilla, while the dry-down becomes more and more praline-dominated, until it resembles freshly baked chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. For real, this perfume is incredibly complex!
Last sping I got so sick of it that I started looking for replacement for the coming winter: I tried Flowerbomb, Valentino’s Donna, Lady Million and a few more but never got that kind of a kick out of them (and no, I do not thing Flowerbomb resembles La Vie Est Belle THAT much).
I have come to the conclusion that La Vie Est Belle cannot be replaced. If you are currently sick of it, wait a little and then come back to it. You will likely fall in love again. If you think too many women wear it… Well, I think so too and fun fact, I only like La Vie on myself, not on anyone else! But when I wear it I am happy and floating around in a comforting cloud of all things nice. Definitely going to wear this all through this upcoming holiday season as I think this is the perfect holiday fragrance! Get the hygge going!
Disclaimer: Image 1: Debenhams. Image 2: Escentual. Image 3: Groupon.