Whatever Lola Wants
Monday, August 17, 2009 at 8:50PM 
The other day I took the fabulous Crosby Noricks of PR Couture over to my neighborhood Marc by Marc Jacbos store - apres an amazing pizzetta Chez Pizzeria Delfina, naturally. (I should mention that this sort of combo, Delfina + M x MJ, is de rigeur in this area, so I had to let her into the club since she was visiting.) Browsing the stacks of pick up items and lightly scanning the new fall collection, we agreed that the store is not anything if not a genius bit of merchandising
Then, my eyes fell upon the luscious-looking and fabulously cartoonish top of a small purple bottle of perfume. "Wow - a crazy rubber whatsit in the shape of a flower? This is so crazy and RED and I have no idea what it is, but I kinda love it." Or so said my brain. Little did I know that this mod sculptural packaging accoutrement is just the beginning of the new experience called "Lola".
Nabokov aside, the name and its candy-pop packaging are clearly meant to evoke that youthful exuberance (and ingenue sexiness) we have all come to expect from Mr. Jacobs. Skeptical, I thought this was merely another genius bit of merchandising, in keeping with the overall theme. But I'll try just about anything once.
Spritzing a card to take with me, I was delighted by the light fruity and floral scent, but I knew better than to declare a winner so quickly. I mentioned my initial delight to Crosby, who agreed, and then pocketed the card someplace in the deep recesses of my vintage Vuitton. Hours later, digging for my Shuffle, I was greeted by a light, luscious, and somewhat musky fragrance. "Ah! That must be Lola." The card had indeed aged well once the initial burn had faded, but this was just the first part of my assessment. If you're anything like me, fragrance is a very touchy subject, and one you simply cannot attack with reckless vigor. New fragrances must be evaluated in many ways; having very sensitive skin and a penchant for instant headaches should a fragrance be "too much", I always approach a new bottle gingerly. I definitely don't need it to cause a crazy reaction, nor do I want my day ruined by a bad cloud of stink.
So, if the card was good, that meant I could move on to an actual test-run. Returning to the store the next day, (it IS in the neighborhood after all,) I spritzed on one arm lightly and then ran a few errands. The scent was not only light, luscious, and slightly musky on the card, but on me too! "Miracle of miracles," I thought, "this may just work!" I have always HATED Marc Jacobs' Daisy fragrance, and was not only irritated by the smell but also the annoying mod daisies on the top, like it was trying to be Chanel in some way but not. Lola, with her crisp, bright, sexiness and totally fabulous packaging was obviously meant to be MY girl.
I returned to the store and treated myself to a small bottle. It's a nice, summery change from my usual, and let's face it, no matter how great your signature scent may be you do need to change every so often. If anything, it makes you appreciate your favorite smell even more once you return. But this is definitely a new favorite.
Lola now sits on my shelf looking very fun and playful in her jaunty cap of rubbery color. She seems to smile and say: "Go on, spray me... You know I'll get you into something fun." And so I obey.
Marc Jacobs, perfume in Latest Crush 
Reader Comments (2)
It was awesome seeing you last night. Picture will be up as soon as Elizabeth gets the red eye out. There was too much red eye for me to conquer on photoshop.com. :-( Everyone looks beautiful except for being possessed by the devil.