These two get compared because they occupy the same shelf in the same kind of apartment — the cool, slightly androgynous, cold-weather scent worn by people who read about fragrance rather than just buy it. Both became shorthand for a certain aesthetic around 2015 and never left.
They also smell almost nothing alike. One is dry, smoky, and mineral. The other is sweet, warm, and edible. The overlap is cultural, not olfactory.
The short version
Le Labo Santal 33 — dry sandalwood, cardamom, iris, leather, and a distinctive smoky-violet accord. Cool-toned, unisex, and instantly recognizable to anyone who has walked through a boutique hotel lobby.
Maison Margiela Replica By the Fireplace — chestnut, vanilla, clove, and a guaiac wood smoke. Sweet, cozy, and unmistakably a winter fragrance.
If you want to smell expensive and slightly severe, Santal 33. If you want to smell warm and approachable, By the Fireplace.
Santal 33 in detail
The opening is not creamy. This surprises people who expect sandalwood to be soft — the first fifteen minutes are green cardamom, violet leaf, and a slightly harsh dryness that reads almost like burnt wood.
What settles in after an hour is the reason it works: a dry, smoky sandalwood with leather underneath and an unusual violet-iris thread running through it. It is not warm and it is not sweet. It sits in the space between wood and skin.
The ubiquity problem is real. Santal 33 became so widely worn between 2015 and 2020 that it functions as a signal rather than a scent for some people. That has faded somewhat, but it has not disappeared.
Performance: six to eight hours, moderate projection that drops close to skin after two.
Season: all year, best in autumn and spring.
Sample it properly before deciding — a decant costs a fraction of Le Labo's bottle pricing and the first ten minutes are genuinely not representative.
By the Fireplace in detail
Roasted chestnut, clove, vanilla, and a smoky guaiac wood base. It is a literal scent — it smells like the thing it is named after, which is the whole premise of the Replica line.
The sweetness is the dividing line. By the Fireplace is a gourmand in structure even though it is marketed as a woody. If you dislike sweet fragrances, you will not get past the vanilla.
It is also considerably less expensive than Santal 33, which matters when comparing them.
Performance: five to seven hours, strong in the first hour, then close.
Season: autumn and winter only. It is genuinely unpleasant in heat.
Side by side
| Santal 33 | By the Fireplace | |
|---|---|---|
| Core accord | Dry sandalwood, iris, leather | Chestnut, vanilla, smoke |
| Temperature | Cool | Warm |
| Sweetness | Very low | High |
| Smoke type | Dry, mineral | Sweet, woodsmoke |
| Versatility | Year-round | Cold weather only |
| Longevity | 6–8 hours | 5–7 hours |
| Office safe | Yes | Yes at 1–2 sprays |
| Price tier | Niche | Designer-niche crossover |
Which one to choose
You want one fragrance for most of the year
Santal 33. It works in spring, autumn, and mild winter, and it is dry enough to survive warm days. By the Fireplace has a three-month window.
You want something comforting
By the Fireplace. It is the more emotionally direct of the two and the easier one to like immediately.
You want to smell different from everyone else
Neither, honestly. Both are extremely widely worn. If distinctiveness matters, look at BDK Gris Charnel or Marc-Antoine Barrois Ganymede instead.
You have a limited budget
By the Fireplace costs meaningfully less. But a decant of Santal 33 costs less than a bottle of By the Fireplace, which is worth thinking about before assuming price decides it.
Better alternatives to both
If the idea appeals but the specific execution does not:
- Bois Impérial — dry woody, similar cool-toned effect to Santal 33, far cheaper.
- Chanel Sycomore — smoky vetiver over sandalwood; more refined than Santal 33 and less common.
- BDK Gris Charnel — sandalwood, fig, and black tea; soft, distinctive, and the best transitional option.
- Bianco Latte — if the cozy sweetness of By the Fireplace is what appeals, this does creamy comfort better.
- Escapade Gourmande — warm gourmand for cold weather at a lower price than either.
Our unisex fragrance roundup covers more of this territory.
How to wear each one
Both are commonly overapplied, and for different reasons.
Santal 33. Three to four sprays. Its projection drops close to skin after the first two hours, and people compensate by spraying more at the start — which makes the opening harsher without extending anything. Apply once, properly, and let it settle. It works on skin and on fabric equally well, and a spray on a scarf collar will still be there the next day.
By the Fireplace. Two sprays. It is sweeter and denser than the note list suggests, and the guaiac smoke amplifies noticeably in a warm indoor space. Three sprays in an office is too much; two in outdoor cold is close to perfect.
Neither needs reapplication during a normal day. If you feel like they have faded, that is olfactory fatigue — your nose has filtered them out and everyone else's has not.
The saturation problem, honestly
Both of these fragrances suffer from the same thing: they were so widely adopted that they became a signal rather than a scent.
Santal 33 hit that point around 2017. It was in hotel lobbies, retail stores, and on a large share of the people you would pass in a city centre. That has softened since, but it has not gone away, and there is still a reasonable chance someone will identify it on you within a sentence.
By the Fireplace followed a similar path a few years later, driven largely by social media, and it remains one of the most-worn winter fragrances in its price bracket.
Whether this matters depends entirely on what you want from a fragrance. If you want to smell good, it is irrelevant — both smell good, and popularity is evidence of that rather than an argument against it. If you want to smell like yourself specifically, it is a real problem, and the alternatives listed above solve it without giving up much.
The cheapest way to find out where you land is to wear a decant of one for a week and see whether being recognized bothers you. It costs a fraction of a bottle and answers a question no review can.
FAQ
Do Santal 33 and By the Fireplace smell similar?
No. Both contain smoke and wood, but Santal 33 is dry and cool while By the Fireplace is sweet and warm. They get compared for reasons that have little to do with how they smell.
Is Santal 33 worth the price?
The composition is genuinely distinctive and hard to substitute exactly. Le Labo's bottle pricing is a brand decision. A decant resolves the question without committing.
Can I wear By the Fireplace in summer?
You can. You will not enjoy it. Sweet gourmand smoke in heat is a difficult combination.
Which one gets more compliments?
By the Fireplace, in cold weather. It is warmer and more immediately likeable. Santal 33 gets noticed more than complimented.
Is Santal 33 unisex?
Yes, genuinely — it is one of the few fragrances where the split in who wears it is close to even.
Why does Santal 33 smell harsh at first?
The opening is heavy on cardamom, violet leaf, and a dry woody accord before the sandalwood settles. Give it forty-five minutes before judging.
Are there good Santal 33 alternatives?
Bois Impérial gets closest on effect at a much lower price. Nothing replicates the violet-iris angle exactly — that is what makes it recognizable.
Two decants and a cold week will settle this faster than any review. Both are in the unisex collection, and support@kissofaroma.shop will point you toward the third option if neither is quite right.