Oxygene by Lanvin

I owe this review to patience; I’ve had it for two months waiting for it to mature and settle (it hasn’t, it remains exactly as when I bought it). I’m not saying this because I dislike it; on the contrary, it’s one of those scents I love: unclassifiable and different. Oxygene opens with fresh bergamot; the pepper isn’t smelled but felt, giving a tingling ‘petillance’ that surprises on the first spray. Then comes the gardenia… lots of gardenia (watch out if you don’t like that note), with an ozonic impulse that lifts it away from the mundane and into the stratosphere, giving it that mysterious, ineffable character that captivates me. The heart lasts between 30 minutes and two hours, the part I enjoy most, besides which the milky note weaves with the musk, grounding it for the delight of our nostrils. Then comes the dry-down… here I understand those who say it smells like an older lady, but a trained nose will perceive the iris, musk, and sandalwood, totally classic… It’s as if the perfume makes you take off, promises cosmic flight, and slowly makes you land in the arms of the family matriarch. Far from annoying me, that’s what I like: it’s not for parties, but for metaphysical and contemplative events. I see it well for a museum, a city stroll, or a picnic writing poetry by the lake. It’s not a simple scent… it’s the ‘freshness’ of the dense and deep, of philosophers. But if you don’t have these panoramas, it will also rock you to sleep after a busy day. Moderate trail, to be used in open spaces (with moderation in enclosed places) and remember: if you don’t like the iris and musk in the dry-down, this perfume isn’t for you. Kisses.

It’s a very strange perfume that doesn’t resemble anything… some find it similar to NOA but I don’t. It’s an androgynous scent, I imagine David Bowie wearing it with his 70s outfits. I love that it’s so particular, and I use it because in Chile we’re in summer and I can’t stand anything sweet at these temperatures. I love its packaging, it reminds me of the freshness of the ocean. I have the reformulated version and the original; for me, the original was still much more special.

A very special and different fragrance. To me, it’s a spiced floral, with citrus touches and powdery. I don’t consider it vintage or for older women. I perceive quite a bit of pepper and bergamot in the opening and dry-down, giving way to the floral aroma after a few minutes. In the dry-down, the powdery note is noticeable, but it’s a dry powder, something creamy. It has no sweetness. I like it because it’s unique; I use it in temperate climates. Its longevity is average, about 5 to 6 hours… in the last ones, it’s already skin-level. The bottle doesn’t appeal to me much; it’s uncomfortable to apply. Worth knowing at least.

I never thought I’d say this, but it smells like my granny. I associate it with the classic powdery perfume of a very old lady. I bought it with great faith and the opening I actually like a lot, it’s fresh but afterwards I can only smell talc. Pity I sprayed several times after realising this, I had to have a shower. Even though in my country it’s very cheap, anyway it seemed like wasted money. In fact, my grandma’s birthday is coming up and I’ll give it to her.

Oxygene was a rarity. At the start, it smelled like stale cologne. It was part of that late 90s trend of ozonic, transparent, ethereal fragrances, between aquatic, musky, and powdery. The cake was taken by Noa by Cacharel and Flower by Kenzo, both white and angelical but with that zen, futuristic relax of the 2000s. Oxygene wanted to be the third, but nobody bought it; perhaps the brand, which was languishing then (it would recover in the 00s to become a best-seller), didn’t have an important name for girls to leave money on a Lanvin perfume. Or perhaps it was so extravagant that people thought ‘no way, another thing’. To me, it seems a rarity worth noting. The opening was unusual, something with aftertastes of crushed banana leaf, wicker, and very spicy esparto, a strange idea between the synthetic and the herbal, like a thorny bush trying to live surrounded by concrete sidewalks, like Eau Torride by Givenchy. I think people thought ‘this is stale’, because it smelled like spiked cologne. However, shortly after, an aniseed sweetness appeared, a bluish, spicy air with a taste of stale camphor but curiously ozonic, synthetic, galactic and modern. To this party of strange notes was added lots of milk and lots of iris, both dense, heavy, creamy, velvety and musky… A strange mixture but that worked very well with the spiced, grey/blue colour of the first impression. Oxygene breathed air to Noa Cacharel when drying, but had its own personality; it was muddier, even masculine due to a background bergamot that doesn’t abandon. It didn’t succeed. Today it can be found for half a peseta in any online shop. I don’t know how it will fare with reformulations; when houses cheapen a perfume, they usually cheapen the composition too. Oxygene deserves for people to discover it again. I loved it, it was a sexy, virginal mess… comfortable, milky, dangerous, rare, unsettling… It could be the futuristic, crazy version of any family talc.

I bought it blind. I liked it. The opening is strange, strong, unisex. Shortly after it softens, you notice the milk, and after an hour it smells identical to Noa by Cacharel. I think it must be the musk mixed with certain notes. It doesn’t seem very fresh as I thought it would be for summer; I see it for any climate. The bottle is pretty but very uncomfortable. Quality/price ratio: excellent. Would I buy it again?: I don’t know, I prefer to repeat with Noa.

I liked this perfume; fresh, soft aroma, without great pretensions. BUT when I applied it to my neck, it gave me a terrible headache and I had to shower. It’s happened to me with other perfumes too, even some give me nausea. Fortunately it didn’t happen with my beloved Edén, Light Blue, nor with Ángel, O by Lancôme, nor Paris by ISL. I’m the delicate one; I don’t know which compound provokes these reactions in me. The same happened with Vanderbilt, Ungaro, JLO, among others.

It’s spicy, floral, aquatic and slightly powdery. The opening is surprising, like enjoying a sunny day and then a splendid storm breaking out; bathing in its drops and breathing in the warmth of the flowers. Highly recommended, it vibrates positively and relaxes. Watch out, like any good storm, it’s ephemeral and only remains in memory.

It’s a rare fragrance… that’s how I perceived it. It starts very fresh, pleasant, citrusy and woody (novel for me), then shifts to something floral, but the base suddenly changes to a very ‘granny’ smell, like old cologne, and that’s the scent that lingers until the end… quite heavy (the sample gave me such a headache…)