— fragrance —

Heeley Sel Marin EDP Perfume Review

August 1, 2013

HEELEY Sel Marin

As I mentioned in my Perfume Picks for Summer 2013 video, I was slow to warm up to Heeley Sel Marin. It wasn’t that I disliked it, but I didn’t exactly “get” it when I tried it in 2008. It read to me as some nice citrus-cucumber thing made for summer holidays. Keep in mind, I’m from a landlocked state. One of the many reasons I moved was to smell saltwater. Now I never see myself ever living in a landlocked area again…and not just landlocked, I don’t see myself living more than 1-2 miles from saltwater. It pulls me, it calls me. Primordial. When we first moved here, I spent a good two years spending every free moment by the water…breathing in the air, picking up weird stuff from the rocks and trying to identify seaweed with a field guide. The draw was strong.

Sel Marin definitely opens as an aquatic with a mineral citrus (mainly lemon) with a cucumber coolness. It smells like “spa” water – you know, that cucumber, lemon and mint infused ice water. Refreshing. I pick up a funk with kappa maki and pickled ginger. Sel Marin has captured the brightness of blue skies or turquoise tinged water and then it changes. It becomes darker and gets brine-y, lots of salt with slimy seaweed. Smoky, salty vetiver over mineral woods. Leathery clams. It’s lack gray, dulled driftwood or a low, lingering fog. Sel Marin pulls me in and gives me that sense of being that gazing out into rolling waves gives me.

This picture of mine from the Washington coast perfectly shows what HEELEY Sel Marin smells like.

Washington Coast

Notes listed include lemon, Sicilian bergamot, sea salt, seaweed, vetiver, birch and cedar. Launched 2008.

Give Sel Marin a try if you like salty fragrances or if you are looking for an excellent aquatic. Give Sel Marin a try if you like perfumes like Anu Essentials Seascape, DSH Perfumes La Plage, Demeter Sushi, CB I Hate Perfume Mr. Hulot’s Holiday and /or Bvlgari Aqva Pour Homme. Sel Marin is unisex.

Projection and longevity are average. I like to wear this one in warmer weather.

The 3.4 oz bottle retails for $180 at MiN NY. The cost is my only compliant about this scent.

Victoria’s Final EauPINION – The best marine/aquatic. It captures the exaggerated contrasts of brightness/dullness of saltwater. It’s more than a “piece”. It’s wearable art.

Want more reviews? Try…

From Top to Bottom – Perfume Patter

Mais Que Perfume

The Fragrance Guru’s Lair

Perfume Nerd

T Magazine’s Scent Notes by Chandler Burr

*Sample provided by MiN NY. Product pic from Barney’s. Photograph copyright Victoria Jent. It’s mine.

18 thoughts on “Heeley Sel Marin EDP Perfume Review”

  1. I like your new blog format, Victoria – it’s very clean (although I kind of miss your banner).

    This fragrance sounds quite unique, and all the more so if it matches up to that photo! That scene is otherworldly … is it a typical scene of the Washington coast, or an untypical, very unique spot you found on the coast? I’ve never been to your state, so I have no idea. It’s beautiful in a very surreal way, like something from a dream.

    1. Thanks. It’s still in the works. The banner has to be resized which is on my to-do list. I’ve decluttered my entire life, I needed to declutter the blog too.

      I love the WA and OR coast. Forest hits the Pacific. Usually it’s always gloomy, misty and there’s no sun. This day was like that and suddenly it turned blue for about 45 minutes. I actually prefer the gloomy, spooky skies. It’s dramatic, explains why I like it.

  2. So glad I stumbled on to your blog site a few weeks ago. I’ve enjoyed reading your opinions on the fragrances you’ve tried. It’s been very interesting and informative.

    As an ocean lover who lives in a landlocked state (Oklahoma), I like to sample marine fragrances so that I can be transported back to the beach for a short while. I recently ordered a sample of Sel Marin and ended up taking it with me on a family vacation to the beach in Florida. I was stunned at how dead-on its resemblance was to how my skin smelled after spending the afternoon in the ocean. It was uncanny!
    Now, whenever I want to re-live that afternoon all I have to do is spritz on a little Sel Marin. I think that’s the thing I love most about perfume, that one sniff can transport you to another time and place.

    1. That’s awesome! It is accurate, isn’t it? 😉 It really is a destination in a bottle but at the same time, it’s more than a scent. It’s something wearable. It’s great stuff and it should be in every landlocked’s arsenal…we all need that escape sometimes.

  4. I need to try this one again. I put a dab of my sample on two days ago, and I could not get past the “fish” smell. The photo you posted is so inviting and the way I wanted this to smell. Yes, I must try it again…..

    1. I mean saltwater does smelly fishy. I like this one because I get clams, lol. Gross, I know but it’s there.

      I’ve noticed that with some things that a spray is better/worse than a dab. I just had this happen to me with a L’Artisan perfume. I didn’t like it dabbed. I ended up spraying it and it was a completely “different” fragrance!

  5. Great timing! I actually have a sample of this on its way to me. I’m not usually an aquatic scent person but something about the descriptions of this one have made me curious.

    1. I’ve found that I rather like aquatics IF they aren’t the popular cliche 90’s stuff. I think the genre has room for growth and I love what the indies/niche houses are doing with it.

  6. Tried a sample of this recently. I agree it’s a work of art and I LOVE it on my boyfriend, but it has no longevity at all on him so he won’t be buying a full bottle. Such a shame.

    1. That is a problem, I admit. When David has worn it (and he loves it), he gets about 5 hours of wear which he says he’s fine with.
      *I do feel that if one were to let’s say want to buy this, to just buy a decant because of the longevity (or lack of it). You’re going to reapply it anyway, may as well buy a smaller size for travel.

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