The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Lavender Hills takes its name from the rolling purple fields of Provence, but filtered through a distinctly California lens. Skylar's founder Cat Chen built the brand on the idea that fragrance should never come at the cost of comfort, creating a line gentle enough for sensitive skin without sacrificing scent complexity. The concept behind this limited-edition 2023 release was simple: capture the romance of those Provençal fields, herbal, sun-warmed, slightly wild, and translate it into something that feels at home on a Los Angeles morning.
What makes Lavender Hills distinctive is its honey-orange blossom axis. Most lavender fragrances lean cool and herbal, but Skylar's version wraps the French lavender in a sweet, edible warmth that softens the edges without losing the herbaceous character entirely. The addition of freesia adds a crispness that keeps the heart from becoming too plush, a small counterbalance that makes the whole composition feel wearable rather than overwhelming. It's a fragrance that knows what it is and doesn't try to be anything else.
The evolution
The opening is the quietest part. Bergamot brightens, the orange blossom appears soft and immediately familiar, and then the blossom honey arrives, coating everything in something almost edible. Within ten minutes, the French lavender takes over, shifting the character from sweet to herbal-floral. The hand-off from top to heart is smooth, almost imperceptible, like watching fog lift off a field at dawn. The freesia in the heart adds a crisp, clean floral note that cuts through the lavender's warmth just enough to prevent the composition from going too heavy. Then the base arrives. Musk and amber create a skin-close warmth, and the vanilla adds a creaminess that lingers without screaming. The drydown is intimate by design, this is not a fragrance that fills a room. It's the kind of scent you catch when someone walks past you, turns, and leans in slightly. On fabric the next morning, there's a ghost of lavender and honey. Nothing else. Just the memory.
Cultural impact
Lavender Hills arrived in 2023 as a limited-edition release within Skylar's wellness-forward catalog, a clean, vegan fragrance house built around accessibility rather than exclusivity. The clean fragrance movement was gaining real traction by this point, with consumers seeking alternatives to traditional perfumes that could trigger sensitivities. Skylar had positioned itself at the forefront of that shift, and Lavender Hills fit naturally into a lineup that prizes breathable, approachable scents over dramatic projections. The fragrance doesn't try to compete with niche houses or classic designer pieces. It occupies its own space: comfort without complication.
