Lolita Lempicka Eau de Minuit 2013
Lolita Lempicka (2013)

This contains something that's too harsh for me. It's especially prominent in the initial spray, and it dies down from there, but doesn't go away. On top of this harsh, almost health-threatening base, are some nice notes.

My ex-wife had the original of this, and I liked it on her. When she had finished it, and I suggested she might re-up, she shrugged it off as one she hadn't really been excited about. The moral of the story is that it might smell better at a distance than it does for the wearer. Wearing it feels like a trial.

I'm amused by the online kerfuffle over Lolita Lempicka, Mark One. I guess it scandalizes some perfumistas that The Guide (via Tania Sanchez) awarded LL 5 stars and hailed it as a masterpiece, seeing as it's made of inexpensive materials, isn't particularly strong, lasts less than a day, costs next to nothing, and seems to be everywhere. We fumies can be a snobby lot, and LL plays to the crowd that "serious" lovers of perfume like to diss: young girls. And LL is a little fruity, a little floral and bears a distinct resemblance to candy.

To understand why that rating happened, it helps to remember that Luca Turin confesses in the same book that he especially prizes novel compositions; and, from her reviews, it seems that Tania Sanchez agrees with him. And, whatever other merits it may or may not possess, Lolita Lempicka, to employ one of Turin's favorite descriptors, smells "legible." It's unmistakeable.

My only real gripe with Lolita Lempicka lies with its poverty of materials. I don't remember smelling it back in the day, prior to whatever reforms it has undergone; but in its present state, it strikes me as interesting but synthetic and rather short-lived. However, this particular Midnight flanker addresses that very problem. It adds a big dollop of luxurious iris, a material that classes up pretty much everything it touches. The result is exactly what I wanted from Lolita Lempicka from Jump street.

For one thing, the iris in this version of LL changes the overall texture of the perfume: where the original feels a little harsh and metallic, this flanker bears a smooth, matte, satiny gloss. Adding iris also tames the screech of the high notes, which makes the violet nitrile a little less fierce--you can decide for yourself whether that's a good thing or not. And since iris is such a superb blending material, it marries the perfume into a coherence that I don't find in the original.

In addition, I suspect that there's a little more red fruit in this version, and some more dark florals. The incense persists gently throughout, and that's what I smell the most as the perfume dies down. LL 2013 (or whatever you want to call it) seems like it lasts longer than the original, but it still doesn't stick around for more than 4 hours on my skin--which causes me no particular problems, since it doesn't cost much.

Overall, I still think that the house of Lolita Lempicka remains a rare bird--a house that offers fun *and* smart, unpretentious perfumes that are widely available and fairly priced. They also don't know a season or an occasion--you can wear these perfumes anywhere, from work to school to dinner to the bar/club/live show/whatever. Their aesthetic speaks to everyone's inner goth kid, but the perfumes aren't moody or mean. They remind me of a bumper sticker I once saw in Houston's Montrose neighborhood (one of the world's epicenters of young people in fishnets and black clothing, believe it or not): on the back of a car driven by an adorable creature in inky eyeliner and fuchsia pigtails, the sticker said "Perky goths have more fun." I can get with that. If you like clever iris perfumes, this one is must; if you think you don't like iris, that goes double. Cheer, humor, brains, a little sex and all for a great price in a ridiculously fun flacon--is there anything not to like in here? Get it while it's still around.

Most definitely a tad darker than the original Lolita. I consider it moody, gothic, mysterious in its mixture of ingredients. An embalming fluid for voodoo queens. Arcanum for an aging druidess.

Lolita Lempicka perfumes nothing like anything you've ever smelld before. The character and uniqueness of it makes it very worthy to hold the Lolita Lempicka title. This one is a flirty addictive scent. It's sweet but doesn't well into overload also becomes exciting with spices and the gourmand notes. A powdery delicious iris with a intensive sweet undertone, that lasts for hours. You can easily tell its Lolita it still has the lolita DNA. Dark, flirtatious, rich, mischievous, vanillic, balsamic, strong, utterly feminine and irresistibly sensual.

The iris contribute powder, the licorice and myrrh a slight spicy nuance, the benzoin sweet character, the jasmine a floral touch, flirty tones mixed with darker, sexier tones. She is cheeky but sexy. So sweet and it's not quiet, it likes to be the center of attention. Like a playful mischievous woman in an expensive black dress. If you don't like licorice this is not for you. Licorice made it smokier and more syrupy. Definitely it is a night time perfume in a cold weather close your eyes imagine yourself in a balcony, cool breeze in your hair and warm love in your heart and smile on your face when you're reading my reviews!