Pefume Review of Marc Jacobs Lola: Girly Technicolor Florals

The bottle of Marc Jacobs Lola proudly flourishes a flower. A big, colorful flower. The juice appropriately corresponds to the bottle’s visual effect. With Marc Jacobs Lola, the latest perfume from our most-beloved quirky American designer, what you see is what you get. And those who are experienced with such things know that this is not necessarily a bad thing.

Marc Jacobs, a celebrator and reviver of all things fashionably passé, created Lola just as he did Daisy. Marc Jacobs Daisy first greets spectators with a daringly optimistic bouquet of white cut-out vinyl flowers. Matched with touches of joyous chintz-gold, the plastic-look is completely vindicated. If you don’t agree with me on the visual front, there is no doubt that you find the juice of Marc Jacobs Daisy quite formidable. The soft floral scent envelopes you on first spray with unassuming warmth and closeness that is akin to the sweetness of hay fields. In other the words, though the scent is not quite groundbreaking, it is far from uninspiring. Despite all pretentions of innocence, this whimsical floral perfume breezes up to levels of quiet and darling sophistication.

If Daisy celebrates 1950s sensibilities with vinyl details and light florals, then Lola nods to 1980s glam. But before we get carried away with this parallel, let’s take the era of inspiration into consideration. The 1980s brought forth to the perfume world a variety of intense oriental perfumes. Deliquescing fruits matched up with powdered and nectar-dripping florals. Intense sachets of spices were added to the equally impressive array of earthy basenotes: amber, ambergris, labdanum, wood, incense, and animalic notes. Fashionistas of the 1980s also witnessed a colorful spectrum of intensity through the medium of bold jewel tones and clashing colors. Marc Jacobs Lola adopts the visual assault of intense colors and confident forms a la the 1980s, but leaves the juice to modern constructions.

The official notes of Marc Jacobs Lola include pink peppercorn, pear, grapefruit, rose, peony, geranium, vanilla, tonka bean and musk. Inspired by the bottle’s rainbow-filled floral construction, Lola’s juice opens with florals and brightness--all to match the optimistic look of the bottle. Lola fades from florals into zing-filled fruity moments. Then, slowly, the floral richness appears. Notes of nectar and pink peppercorn spiciness bring an aura of vivacity to the fragrance. Once the fragrance dries down, musk and tonka bean instantly chime in, giving this fragrance warmth of winter-suited standards. As time ticks on, the sweet florals fade into the backdrop as vanillic musk takes prominence. While this is not a fresh perfume, Lola is of course not completely musky and dusky. It’s a fine balance of uplifting perkiness and wintry warmth. This fruit-adorned floral perfume is silky and soft.

Lola, in my opinion, plays the same chords as Daisy. These are both soft, breezy perfumes that convey a playfully daring mock-grownup purport. Marc Jacobs himself says that Lola is the older sister of Daisy, and responsively perfumistas have been agreeing that Lola is slightly more grownup than Daisy. On the other hand, I attempt to stand apart from the consensus and chatter to state that Lola is not more grownup than Daisy. Ok, the florals are more syrupy and rich, and the base boasts a bit of musk. But, all in all, none of this equates to adult-like sensuality and seduction. Marc Jacobs Lola, I would assert, is simply more warm and slightly more intense than Daisy. At most, it’s the perfect winter counterpart to Daisy.

If you enjoyed Daisy, there are chances that in a colder environment, or perhaps simply for a change-up, you could find happiness in a big bottle of the new Marc Jacobs Lola.

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Marc Jacobs fragrances are available for discounts at top discount perfume retailers.