Bad Boy was a great success for Carolina Herrera. Thus, they were sure to follow it up with a flanker, which they did with 2021’s Bad Boy Le Parfum. I got a hold of a decanted sample of this fragrance, in order to give it a try, and report back with a review on the site. How does it smell? When should it be worn? Is it even worth a try?
What does Bad Boy Le Parfum Smell Like?
Notes include: grapefruit, hemp, black pepper, geranium, leather, and vetiver
My Full Review
First, if you’ve experienced the original Bad Boy by Carolina Herrera, Le Parfum is almost nothing like it. They share the black pepper note and both have citrus up top (grapefruit here versus bergamot).
The opening act of Bad Boy Le Parfum is the grapefruit and pepper note sitting underneath, a somewhat smoky cannabis. To me, it doesn’t smell exactly like a blunt or anything, but very reminiscent of the plant itself, maybe slightly cured.
On my skin, that note isn’t overwhelming, and it smells more like what you’d associate with weed when you apply it to clothing. Le Parfum is fresh, green, with an aromatic spiciness coming through.
The second phase, is where I start to pick up a lot of geranium and the leather (which grows in strength). It goes from being about the hemp note, to a split between those three. The pepper is still there and grapefruit begins to fade.
This is where it stands for much of the wear. Then, the final stage is vetiver and leather. Vetiver at the base is the strongest on me, in the final few hours. That, leather, and geranium. The cannabis is around somewhat, but has pretty much evaporated.
It’s actually a pretty standard fragrance, during this phase, and very familiar. I do like the vetiver and geranium combination, cold and fresh. Fairly intriguing scent, but doesn’t blow me away.
Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility
Bad Boy Le Parfum is at the upper end of the moderate range, in terms of its sillage. It has the ability to project itself pretty far with normal application. However, it does settle itself down into something much more manageable.
It’s not an absolute beast, but it does indeed have very nice performance.
On my skin, this Carolina Herrera fragrance hits the 8-9 hour mark, without too much issue. At the end, it isn’t super powerful but it’s there. It does die out before it hits that double digit hour frame. Very good, just short of great.
Seasonally, this one is pretty darn versatile. Le Parfum sits in that sweet spot, where it can smell great in the cold weather, but also hold up well enough in the warmer climates. I’d avoid spraying this in the dead of summer, outside of nighttime, that is.
Bad Boy Le Parfum is a nightlife and casual sort of fragrance. It’ll be a fit for most men up to their mid-30s and for those who just like something outside the norm. Not a scent for the office or for school, the hemp/cannabis note is much too potent, to really venture there.
Le Parfum actually is an attractive, and dare I say, sexy fragrance. Not the most seductive scent ever, but it comes across as masculine and playful enough. For at least part of the wear, it’s going to stand out as a unique cologne, so that can be a big plus.
Overall Impressions of Bad Boy Le Parfum
Overall, do I like Bad Boy Le Parfum? I enjoy it, but I’m not totally in love with this fragrance. I do like that Carolina Herrera took things into a completely different and unique direction.
It does end up being more of a vetiver and leather fragrance, than it would initially seem, but you do get a bit of a journey.
The performance here is great, even if the use case for many guys will be fairly limited. Again, sometimes you can’t afford to be smelling even remotely like cannabis, if you’ve got a job or are in school.
That being said, I can’t pick out one part of the wear that I didn’t like. The geranium is great, as is that hemp note, and the dry down. You might want to try it out before committing or have plenty of casual occasions to spray it on for.
