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- Today
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Note: The only Lab snow note I've tried is the one in the 2018 Frostbitten series. I've tried Frostbitten Snake Oil, Frostbitten Dorian, and now Frostbitten Jack. To my nose, the note is consistent across these blends (in this year). I would call it softly creamy and softly sweet. If I refer to the "snow" note in this review, it is the one I am describing here. In the decant: The snow note, as above, is most prominent, but I don't have too much trouble detecting the pumpkin, nutmeg, and clove underneath. They're in the background, but they're not absent for me. On my skin: Wet, it's snow, nutmeg, and pumpkin, in that order. As it dries, the snow is the portion of the blend that continues to have the most throw. However, if I bring my nose close to my arm to sniff, the pumpkin and nutmeg are most prominent. After about half an hour, the notes blend together more. The snow still has more throw, and the pumpkin-nutmeg is still prominent near the skin, but the balance is much closer. The snow is detectable close up, and the pumpkin-nutmeg is detectable sniffing further out. And there's a range of "sniffing distance" when the blend is pretty well equalized. As it wears on my skin, the pumpkin-nutmeg of Jack becomes more dominant at any sniff length. The snow note never becomes a non-player.
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wet: I smell everything in my decant that's listed in the description--lavender, bourbon vanilla, kinda minty, and amber dry: An hr later, I catch mostly amber with a hint of vanilla. I'm only getting a slight powdery note which has disappeared now that it's been 1.5 hrs since application and I can't find lavender! Nor mint! I'm so intrigued that my skin chemistry's so different. The amber that has my heart in recent times is Amber & Lace so if I'm buying something amber heavy, it won't be this 😕 Medium throw.
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2018 version Also worth noting: It's been a while since I tested regular Dorian. In the decant: Tea and white musk in the foreground, the same snow note as in this year's Frostbitten Snake Oil in the background. (I have also not actually ever tried straight Snow White or possibly any of the Lab's snow-prominent perfumes.) On my skin: Wet, the snow note gains more prominence so it's at least an equal player with the tea. The white musk has temporarily receded. In the early dry phase, it becomes so much snow that I also lose the tea. The snow is beautiful, though, so I am not complaining. After about half an hour, I notice that I'm getting a pretty good amount of throw from this. I wonder if it's the snow note itself or if one of the light musks (I often amp musk) is helping to boost it on my skin. It takes about forty-five minutes for anything like Dorian (or like my memory of Dorian, light musk and sweet light tea) to come through, and when it does, it's still well-balanced by the sweet, creamy snow note. I like this a lot, and it works better for me than I remember Dorian itself working (I amp musk but eat tea, so Dorian isn't balanced on me). The additional "frostbitten" notes give it more depth. On me, this is light enough -- in character; it still has good throw -- to be a warm weather scent.
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Immediately, I got smoked plum, the same used in Snake Charmer. It's very plum forward with red musk rounding out the lavender sillage. I don't get much leather. It's incredibly well blended and one of those classics. Highly recommended! (If you missed out on Snake Charmer, try this one to see the kind of feeling the other one had.)
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In the decant: Fresh ginger at first, followed by the gingerbread smell. I'm distinguishing "gingerbread" because there is an element of baked good, sweetness, and additional complementary spices (maybe brown sugar and allspice, just a bit?). On my skin: Wet, I get the gingerbread note first, to the exclusion of the fresh ginger I experienced in the decant. Through the initial drydown, at least, it stays the same way. I mean, it's a very gingery gingerbread -- and I like my gingerbread with a lot of ginger (and that's sort of why I got this scent) -- but I'm missing the distinct "more ginger" note I seemed to get in the decant. Aaaannd... yeah, half an hour after the previous paragraph, and it doesn't seem to be morphing at all. It's a very gingery gingerbread. It's a nice warm, gingery scent with some pretty good throw. It's possibly my favorite scent from the selection of Yule 2018 decants I purchased. I do want a bottle of this, but I might have to look long and hard at both my finances and my spicy, wintry perfumes to determine whether I really should get one. Definitely hanging onto this decant, though.
- Yesterday
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Wet: ... Potpourri. This smells just like a potpourri my grandma used to have. I wouldn't say it's foodie at all. Huh. Dry: Honestly, still potpourri. I can't really get over that smell memory. I still wouldn't describe this as a foodie scent, though it may have foodie spices. Foodie potpourri, maybe? Still, not for me.
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Wet: Lots and LOTS of lavender(more on the herbal side), with mint and ozone. Dry: Lavender(on the non-herbal side now), with a small hint of vanilla, mint, ozone. The throw is much, much weaker than the wet stage, BUT I do prefer the actual scent over the wet stage. I could see this as being more of a sleep scent. It's kind of like wrapping yourself in a lavender blanket after coming out of the snow. Really, really pretty. This one might be a big bottle upgrade.
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In the bottle: a sharp wood scent, with the patchouli heavily dominating. Wet: A creamy, smoky patchouli. It reminds me of leather stored in a wooden box. Dry: Soft patchouli, not harsh like it can be in some scents, mellowed out by wood and an almost subliminal hay scent. It lasts for a good amount of time, but isn't overwhelming. I'm not a huge patchouli fan overall, but this is a very nice take on the scent.
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2017 edition In the imp: As classic an amber as you could wish for - light, perfumey, and just a little powdery, with a lovely, subtle floral note as an accent. Wet: Soft and subtle amber and resins. This almost smells like one of the RPG scents meant for layering - it's so soft as to be elusive on its own, but I'm worried that actually layering it with anything would overpower it. This smells like something out of a cut-glass bottle on your glamorous grandmother's vanity. Dry: A little warmer and dryer, but pretty linear overall. It's amber all the way down, with some tonka and benzoin also notable, and less rockrose than ITI, but still present.
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So, on initial application, this was very strong in the red-musk front for me. Very dark, very deep, slightly dry, but def. musky. A big whallop of Clove for me as well. After a few moments the anise poked out for me, in this 10 min. marker is when I get the "mint" vibe that others mentioned. I think it's more of just anise + clove + maybe opium. It's got that high-note feel in your nose like mint but not quite there. Personally this is a lovely scent. I'm going to get a bottle and stash next to Le Lethe -like scents. Round, robust, I want to say almost heady. Warm and dark at the same time. I was worried about red musk because that one seems to be a hit or miss with my skin, but it's a hit in this one! Also - I'm in love with thick deep dirty patchouli scents, and that's not a front runner in this blend. It's in there, but it's not WHAM in your face like other blends can be.
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This little gem has quickly become a favorite. A whiff of the bottle reveals juniper and spices. on the skin I’m swamped by the smell of sandalwood and patchouli. When this dries down I begin to notice that warm vanilla scent, which clings to me and my clothes and makes everything smell wonderful. This is absolutely perfect for my skin’s chemistry. Decent throw, incredible lasting power when dabbed discreetly beneath the shirt collar. My bottle is a partial >10% purchased from a forumite, and I went through it in a matter of days. Fortunately (no pun intended) I was able to scoop up a nearly full bottle on EBay. Feliciter!
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Sticky coca-cola with a twist of citrus, served in a birchwood cup. The powdery orris root is there in the background, and who knows where the leather is hiding? Pretty unisex, and pretty distinctive. I don't really want to smell like soda, so no need for a bottle for me, but I'll probably keep my imp to remind myself what these resins smell like! Coke with lemon-lime, ~weird.
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This is perfect,. I'm not a big fan of the individual components, but together they are exquisite. I smell the vanilla, lavender, and sage and they are all very cuddly and airy, like fresh linens and fluffy towels. Not bitter, not astringent, not medicinal, not sweet. Just soft and lovely. I don't detect the patchouli or honey, and I suspect that it offers a gentle warming and grounding note. I really hope something very similar to this pops up in GC someday, because it is simply beautiful.
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catwoman30 changed their profile photo
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Another bpaler thoroughly happy with Thought Photography, here. Starts out smelling like commercial perfume, but changes into quite a unique sweet airy blend that smells like....mint tea? Really. There's something in the notes cascade that smells like sweet mint tea. Maybe its the mercury suggestion. Its true, this is airy, ethereal and refined. End of drydown, it settles into an even balance of all 3 notes and is sparkling, golden, refined lavender perfume loveliness. Don't expect the palo santo to scream. Its accompanied by 2 notes of equal strength. Its how I wanted my aunts to smell, but they couldn't think outside the Oil of Olay box.
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I know I reviewed this, but I must have forgot to enter 'post'. I love the dead leaf note, and here it does not disappoint. Fresh, airy leaves with a touch of vanilla. I think the incense part of the blend is meshing with the leaf note, so I'm not really getting it. I hope the vanilla comes out more with age, but so far, I'm liking this blend.
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This is a huge 'No'. The classic leaf note with nauseating fake sugary caramel, the kind I would definitely NOT eat. Glad I didn't blind bottle, the two do not mesh well at all together, and the FAKE.
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Raspberries and tart currant make this a luscious, fruity blend. I'm getting a touch of cream, but this is mostly about the delicious fruit. I've kind of grown out of fruity scents, but I'm *really* liking this. I had a chaos Snake Oil that had this note in it, and I gave it up because I thought it was too similar to Australian Copperhead. I regret that decision, but this is a nice substitute. It seems a bit musky to me, it remind me of a Luper more than a Yule actually. I like this, for a change, but I'll probably just use the imp on occasion, or put it in my body butters that I make. It would make a great soap or shower gel scent.
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Wow....this is gorgeous. Creamy, tropical vibe coconut with the slight sweetness of almond milk and the white musk gives it decent throw. Ambergris typically doesn't play well with me but fortunately in this blend it seems to work! Seriously, this is wonderful. I feel like this is the sleeper hit of the Yules this year.
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This smells on my skin like The Black Rider, only gentler and less leather. I'm impressed!
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Hello chrome! You are one persistent little fella! This turns into a clean sweetened metallic musk.
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The white fir needle note is the main start on my skin and it reminds me a lot of The Old Goblin.
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It's a floral milky coconut on my skin and i get no tropical vibe from it. Over time the almond mil/ coconut combo takes center stage.
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Normally I'm not drawn to dirt/earthy scents but the clay in here is very gentle and pretty. The rose tobacco smells like a strong dried rose with just a bit of cologne-y tobacco underneath.
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I got some delicious honeyed, buttery goat milk and then plastic-y bubblegum? Chemistry fail!
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Mmm definitely sweeter than the atmosphere spray, and with no spice. Just buttery pumpkin and chewy tobacco.
