Clandestine Laboratories is the result of one artist's obsession with fragrance. It's a story of intentional obscurity and an uncompromising commitment to quality and creativity. Based in NYC: if you want the good stuff, we've got the juice. We are an artisanal brand, meaning all fragrances are mixed by hand by the perfumer and produced in small batches.

Our fragrances are distinguished by their wearability, originality, naturalism and lastingness. They don't shout, even the stronger ones, they're about making you smell good and leaving a lasting impression while being comfortable to wear and to be around. Many people with fragrance sensitivities or who don't like fragrances in general find themselves drawn to ours. Then again, so do people who love fragrance and appreciate the unique combination of originality, wearability, balance and performance.

Please note: Our gender categories are meant as descriptive, not proscriptive. While most are listed as “unisexy” and can comfortably be worn by anyone, we feel it’s informative to label some as masculine or feminine in style. Everyone is welcome here and we encourage you to wear whatever fragrance speaks to you.

“100% pure natural essential oils”

We’re not like other brands. We’re preternaturally good.

Many fragrance brands promote themselves and justify their prices on the quality, naturalness and rarity of their materials or by representing themselves as “made from 100% pure essential oils, blended to enhance the quality of the all-natural ingredients” - by which they apparently mean to say that their fragrances, like ours, are a mix of 100% pure natural materials enhanced by carefully-selected aroma chemicals, sometimes vice-versa. We’re honest about what we’re about, which is creating high-quality, lasting fragrances that don’t smell artificial and are pleasant to wear and to be around, but which are also original yet timeless.

The quality and purity of fragrance ingredients is important but this is simply a given for any competent perfumer. However, there are many different odor qualities of most naturals (and of many synthetic materials also) but there’s not necessarily one that is the best. At the end of the day, it’s the quality and originality of the composition that matters and that depends on both the selection of materials with appropriate qualities and on the skill and creativity with which they’re combined. This is one of the major advantages (and disadvantages) of handmade, small-batch fragrances: they can depend on materials that aren’t consistently available or are no longer available but have very specific qualities. Mass-produced fragrances also can’t generally use batches of materials like patchouli, vetiver or oud oils that have had years to age whereas we have a deep knowledge and inventory of aged wood oils from many small suppliers.

Our fragrances are composed with a keen awareness of the potential health effects of fragrance materials. Truth be told, some of the more iffy chemicals present in fragrances are only there because they occur in natural materials. No one can seem to agree on what ‘clean’ fragrance actually means, with some claiming natural fragrances are, others promoting fragrances made almost entirely of synthetic materials (including a prominent clean brand that uses Galaxolde, a non-biodegradable synthetic musk we generally avoid but sometimes use sparingly).

Our perfumer is inspired by the beauty and complexity of natural odors, but also and primarily by natural perfumery materials, which are often selected for their performance and uniqueness. However, we are not wedded to the idea of creating ‘natural fragrance’ or ‘clean fragrance’ which, in our experience, most people don’t actually want, even if they believe they do - and often aren’t wearing even when if think they are. PS: ‘unique proprietary extraction’ in commercial fragrance marketing generally means something created by a perfumer. Which is too bad because no other art (except jewelry) is sold on the supposed rarity or cost of the raw materials and respectable jewelers don’t sell fake gems. Real perfumery is the art of illusion, it’s about creating odors that weren’t previously imaginable. It’s not about curating valuable materials, particularly ones that don’t actually exist.

All fragrances are compliant with IFRA standards and EU regulations, which are far stricter than in the US. However, batches are currently so small that batch testing is impractical. Instead, maximum levels of restricted chemicals in natural materials are calculated based on information provided by IFRA and documentation provided by suppliers. While many perfumers say the restrictions stifle their creativity, we find they simply present an additional challenge in composing original fragrances and actually encourage creativity. So far it has been possible to modify and sometimes even improve fragrances in response to new standards. Just don’t come for our vetiver or frankincense.