windbourne

This is a somewhat gritty rose scent, dark and viscous on the skin, with slightly smoky vetiver and myrrh that settle into your nose and the back of your throat. The roses are big and deep and heavy and definitely red and slightly punchy; they come out more as the scent dries. It goes on a rather dark oil, though it doesn't stain, and on me the throw is fairly mild, but it lasts forever. I could still smell it very faintly the next morning.

In terms of imagery, it certainly suits the painting depicted on the label.

...ah, who am I kidding. OFF smells exactly like you'd expect it to. Pulling out my favorite descriptive phrase: this oil does what it says on the tin. Vetiver, resins, rose. If that sounds good to you, then you are ...well, not really set, because of the approximate rarity of this beast, but the good news is that there have been a quite a few scents in the same family and they seem to come out at regular intervals. You could achieve something pretty similar to OFF by layering any of the really strong, nearly single-note roses like Peacock Queen or Rose Red or even The Rose, though that one is lighter and damper, with something with strong vetiver and myrrh notes. The Sick Rose was, IIRC, a little like this, but less dense, as well, and Elizabeth of Bohemia was brighter with oudh instead of the darker notes, but has a similarly strong rose note.

I think it's pretty great, and one of my two favorites from the entire line, but that really says less than you would think, as most of the line I found more interesting than wearable.

Seriously? I never reviewed this?

 

Anyway, I have both 2008 and 2013 versions, and they are rather different beasts.

 

On me, 2008 is all about warm buttery cookies and soft black leather that amps up as it dries, then a hint of licorice with a background dusting of coal. It throws like gangbusters, lasts forever, and has basically been one of my favorite things to pull out of my box, look at, and then mourn that it is the last of its kind. Mind you, I've barely made a dent in my bottle because VERY STRONG THROW APPLY LIGHTLY, plus I had a decant to work through before I even started on the bottle. Spoilers: I totally did that.

 

2013 opens with grasping black licorice, the really tough kind with a bit of saltiness, a niblet of shiny leather, then some hesitant cookies, all layered over with a dusting of coal. The throw is rather less intense and it doesn't last as long. It's still pretty great, but for me, 2008 is the clear winner (as if I were actually death-matching them LOL NO, they are both mine.) OTOH, if you want more licorice, then you are in luck.

 

So in my opinion, if you were looking to the new release to understand why the old one got so expensive, you're probably in the same theater, but 2008 has got the better tickets. 2013 might age to a similar glory, but might get stuck behind a pillar. A pillar made of licorice*.

 

Also, just as a statement -- try layering either of them with Butter Rum Cookie. Omnomnommity nom.

 

*I actually love licorice. If 2013 were my first experience with this scent, I would probably adore it completely.

I think that, to really love this, you should probably at least be able to tolerate and ideally enjoy galbanum and the peculiar greenish lilt that it adds to everything it touches. As it happens, I have ended up really liking it, so I find this melange of tree resins and the slightest hint of orange and clove to be delightful and very wearable. The galbanum fades after a while to a light and spicy haze, but the clove comes out a lot more after it starts drying, to the point where it's twinned with the quasi-wintergreenish olibanum for staying power.

 

That's where this ends up on me, a mild cool goldgreen scent that lingers quietly on my skin for a few hours before fading out. I don't think I need a bottle, but it's really lovely.

 

(As a side note, I can see where comparisons to Icon might occur, but the orange in that is wayyy stronger and it's a lot deeper on me because of the sandalwood/myrrh one-two punch. Similar families, though. Sweetish resinous goodness. Mmm.)

This is a strange beast. On me it starts as an intensely astringent (like, it made my mouth water slightly in the way that smelling really tart lemonade does) pink lime with a swirly underpinning of herbs and a slithering green musk. The wormwood and hinoki (which often reminds me of citrus-scented cleaning solutions) pop up later. The endgame is mostly green musk and a bit of cedar, but that citrus twist remains strong throughout. It's definitely an 'Alice' scent, in the curiouser and curiouser sense, but also slightly uncomfortable for me to wear.

 

It doesn't have a huge throw, but it actually got stronger after ~1 hour wear and I had to wash it off, so I can't speak to longevity.

 

The last thing that I recall having this strong an "errr, what -exactly- is happening on my wrist?" reaction to was Serpents With Glittering Eyes and Forky Tongues, which also had herbal, citrus, and green musk notes. I think, perhaps, that this is a combination I should avoid.

 

OTOH, if you think green musk is the absolute bomb or you love the aforementioned d/c'ed Serpents, Luna (moth), or maybe 51 (wanderlust), and think the other notes sound acceptable, then you should be hunting down some of this to try.

This reminds me a lot of Peter Quint (the notes for that are: leather, balsam, ambergris, and bay laurel) at first, but instead of cooling off as PQ does, the cinnamon spices it up and makes this a warm, brownish blend, very homey and kind. The leather notes are pretty similar on me, though, and they both fade relatively quickly on me and lack much throw.

 

I have no regrets on ordering this one; it's a beautiful and rather comforting blend.

As everyone else has noted, it's really thick and sort of gloppy. I got a decant of this to test and it's a wee bit hard to apply only a tiny bit (unless you use just the end of the wand) because it just blorps everywhere. Pretty cool.

 

My impression of this is more piney and woody, with a vanilla-like sweetness. It reminds me a bit of sniffing the underbark of Ponderosa Pines. As it dries, it mellows a bit and some of the sweetness fades. The throw is not inconsiderable, but it did fade pretty quickly on me. Late drydown reminds me of sap or other tree-related gumminess, and it stayed sticky until quite late in the game. A bottle of this is not in my cards, but I'm pretty happy to have tested it.

I am not a tuberose fan, so my decision to try a decant of this was based mostly around the word "aniseseed" and hope. Oops.

 

That certainly is a mess of sweet white flowers blossoming off my wrist.

 

Tuberose is definitely the strongest note on me, followed by the lilac and carnation and then the benzoin (which is nice, but not a super-fave of mine, either) and way down at the very bottom end of the stack, a tiny hint of anise. It's quite a pale scent, but very rich, and reminds me of one of those really lush hothouse gardens where everything is just a little damp and it's almost too warm for comfort.

 

It's pretty strong, though not super long-lasting, and wow, if you like tuberose, please do engage yourself in a quick purchase of this perfume. I don't, so, er, I'll just be passing this along to my friend who does.

This is pretty gorgeous. Definitely a strong lavender at the start, but it does burn off as it dries down, allowing the oudh's spicy, woody glory to shine. The benzoin is not super-strong, but lends a vanilla-like, but nearly medicinal afternote. It is almost masculine, but I think settles in the unisex region and I think I need a bottle.

 

So, basically, what they said. ;; If it sounds like something you would like, you probably will. It didn't surprise me much at all.

File under: Does What It Says On The Tin.

Self-Portrait

First, I have to note that I love the Lab's new sticker material. It gives the art on this a somber, meditative depth that I don't think I've ever imagined in relation to magnetic particle art before. Pretty cool, guys.

Next, the scent:
In the bottle, the adjectives are very accurate, it is quite quiet, soft, gentle, and, while not exactly white (I find it evokes more of a cream color, almost to the buttery side, but really good butter, with no colorants added), definitely a pale scent.

On the skin, oh darling. The gardenia is fairly present at the beginning, giving this an initial floral bloom on my skin, but it fades gracefully after a few moments. There is a soft honey sweetness, but more like...atomized honey particles. It feels like the honey in Door but lighter, maybe powdered? The orris is very soft and cloud-like. I like orris, even strong orris, but for those of you who don't, it's not the rootiest orris I've run across. More like orris with the texture of spun sugar. The rice milk is there, carrying the scent along and making it, well, milky. But not like dairy-milk, this is almost translucent and sweeter.

The throw is minimal. This sticks very close to my skin, humming a lullaby like the one Wendy sings to the Lost Boys.

Light as morning clouds and comforting as feather blankets, fades peacefully into the distance after a fairly short while.

The closest thing I have to compare this with is Door, but this is much softer and less herbal.

Amaaaaaaaazing. I receive 0% strawberry, but all sweet marshmallow, whipped cream, and rose. It's like, I think my nose is falling off from this being precisely what I hoped it would be. I love rose, I love sugar, but I wasn't totally in love with Hope -- this is like Hope to the 3rd degree. Hope³. Sticky sticky sticky candied candy candy rose rose rose covered in marshmallow mallow mallow goo. Throw is moderate and inoffensive (except possibly to those sensitive to sugar and/or rose), dries to mostly dusty rose petals with an echo of cream.

 

Love³.

Happy Baby in a Long Dress

...Lemon-Scented Sticky Bat + lavender buds.

Absolutely does what it says on the tin. It will almost certainly remind some people of hand-soap or washing goo or laundry softener or other cleaning objects, because those products are often scented in lemon or lavender or rarely, both, and that is a strong association. For me, the sugar lifts it out of that a bit and it reminds me more of heavily over-sweetened lavender lemonade. Interestingly, though, the notes take turns being prominent. First the sugary lemon, then the lavender -- which is, somehow a slightly smaller, gentler lavender than many that show up, definitely buds rather than a full stalk or field of the stuff -- and then the lemony sugar and then the flowers again.

I like it, but I also am not entirely certain where or when I might feel like wearing it. It might make a really nice room scent, however.

Pretty much what they said? It does remind me of Antikythera, except that AM has teak and I hate teak, it does have a slightly cologne-like aspect at first, but that fades after a bit, it's a wood and vanilla scent, and it actually works on me, so far at least. The throw is pretty distinct, but not room-clearing.

 

3 out of 5 noms, and I expect it to increase as it ages. Vanilla, oak and agar? Yes. Definitely.

Cykranosh

I am impressed at how accurate this is to the notes, at least on initial sniff and application. Seriously, slightly crunchy sour gummi bears with a gooey cherry blop and some sticky apricot on top. As it dries, the apricot and cherry execute a martial take over and the sour crunchy nose-feel (what) dissolves into a melted candy goo.

I'm enjoying this rather a lot, though I have to admit it seems to disappear awfully fast. I've noticed that with other apricot notes before, though; it's such a top note, and if it doesn't have something to ground it, the perfume just kind of vaporizes. After about a half-hour it's mostly sugary cherry candy, with about the throw of a scratch'n'sniff sticker. It's a little plasticky, but I don't mind.

If you were dressing as the cherry-themed Sugar Rush racer from Wreck-It Ralph, you would want to douse yourself liberally in this perfume.

Does what it says on the tin A+ x a thousand-thousand.

 

I love ambergris, and on my skin, if it's in a scent, this SN is pretty much exactly what that scent smells like on late drydown, absolutely regardless of what other notes are involved. It's pretty awesome to have that scent bottled and stronger.

 

Throws curveballs (now only I smell it, now half the room is looking around trying to figure it out), lasts for hours with minimal change.

Admissibly, I didn't really -need- this bottle, but I'm happy to have it anyway. :3

This bottle was not quite what I was expecting after testing it at Will-Call. That bottle was super-hempy with a noticeable beeswax note and only a little bit of honey and sweetness on the drydown. This one is like this:

 

HONEYSUCKLE, HONEY, black currant, amber, _hemp, beeswax.

 

The honeysuckle/honey one-two punch is sweet and pretty cloying. It's more summery than spring-like, a warm, damp, yellowy scent dotted with little deep blops of dark fruit. I kind of like it, but I was really hoping for a meeker substitute for Licwiglunga's herbal-hemp madness, not crazyface honeysuckle. That is not this perfume.

 

Drydown is a little drier, and the hemp steps up a little bit, but it somehow mostly still smells of honeysuckle on me. Dried honeysuckle. Hm.

I am sitting at home hours after leaving Will-Call huffing my wrist with a big stupid grin on my face. I really liked this perfume.

 

...It is tempting to just leave it at that, but I won't. What really sticks out on me is the coconut-rose combo, which I can't remember ever running across before*. The coconut is really accurately fleshy on me, and with the big fluffy roses in tow, this scent prances around like a lady on the town: some sublimely dressed society harlot with an enormous feather fan and a string of fake pearls that she really knows how to swing. The diamond earrings she's wearing, however, are not fake, and neither is the knowing grin she gives you. I never catch the tobacco tar, but the musk comes on strong after a bit, then the magnolia waltzes in and the whole experience is just amazing. Your life is changed, probably not for the better, but definitely for the interesting.

 

I have rarely made a special order so quickly. I am so very going to wear this to go see Baz Luhrmann's Great Gatsby. Ugh, perfection. :9 You can tell how much I liked this by my blathering on and mixing up all my metaphors. To be more concrete about it, this has a fairly mild throw, even after some pretty extreme slathering, is still going strong (though faded to mostly musk and rose) after about six hours, and may improve your love life**.

 

*A quick search turned up Gwyneth (Grindhouse Girl) and Nymphia, both of which contain death notes for me, and Roses Pearls and Diamonds, which I loved, but which is much less sexy than this.

**No actual results implied. No testing has been done on this. Pure speculation.

 

ETA: The released version has a slightly stronger magnolia note than the demo I previously tested. I am still madly in love.

Mine is full-on sludge, too; at least one imp's-worth of cocoa absolute, if not one and a half, if my experience is any judge. I kind of want to try a bottle that lacks it, just to see if there's actually a difference. But anyway.

 

I experience this scent as a lemony-fresh custard blob at first, with some mildly soapy florals, followed by the skin musk, and a deep whiff of oudh appearing after about ten minutes. The cocoa is very strong in the bottle, but even well-rolled (and the bottle does turn practically black with sludgey cocoa goodness), it doesn't stand out on my skin. The oudh gives it more depth and longevity, but I can never decide what I think about skin musk. I have a whole discussion about it skittering around in my head, as it's so distinctive and not quite like anything else, and it can practically ruin (Ebisu; Beanman & Beanwoman) or make (Tamamo-no-Mae) a scent for me. Clearly I have strong feelings about it.

 

BUT I DIGRESS.

 

In this scent the skin musk is lithe and creamy and, I think, is acting partially as a foil for the custard and vanilla while accenting the flowers and oudh. It kind of toes a line right between the two, between the sweet and slightly sour, and I think it's pretty perfect. After a while (maybe an hour?) it all settles down into a mildly sweet skin scent, and I think previous reviewers have been right on the money about it being an excellent early date perfume. The waft is gentle and on me it lasts about four hours before I feel like I can't smell it at all. It's a very bright, adorable perfume.

 

A++ would wear again.

Like ladymeag, I tested this at Will-Call and bought the bottle post-haste, and I REGRET NOTHING.

 

The notes are lovely: the ambergris is warm and musky, the leather is soft and inviting, the bay supports everything, and the balsam sweetens it up. It is seductive and warm, somewhat masculine, but not so much that it howls "THIS IS A DUDE PERFUME" across the moors. Surprisingly, it doesn't have the touch of creepy that I expected it to have, it's just beautiful, spicy, leathery, marvelous.

 

The progression for me was:

In-bottle: balsam and ambergris; hint of leather

Wet: Heeey leather~ 'ssup? You're pretty sexy. There's a nice ambergris shimmer here, too. The laurel and balsam are present but not excessive.

Drying: Leather mellows out some and the spiciness ramps up.

Drydown: Soft balsamic ambergris* with a soft whisper of leather.

 

*Ambergris, if it is present in a perfume, nearly always completely dominates the drydown on my skin.

Antihero + Sara Pezzini (from the Witchblade collection) = AMAZE.

 

Sara = "A hint of leather and an understated vintage musk layered over the scent of lightly perspiring, honey-dusted skin."

Antihero = "Well-worn sweaty leather, the acrid smoke of cigarettes, and a soft side of honey and vanilla."

 

Any questions?

Got to be square with you, kids, I cannot bring myself to test this one on my skin. A)It is a gift and that would be a little tacky (though clearly I am curious enough to sniff it, so I wonder how far that excuse goes.) and B)It is chock-full of death notes for me; the only thing here that I actually like in my perfumes/on my skin is the honey. But I'll tell you how it smells to me while safely remaining in the bottle, and I'm betting my peep will love it, both as a mori girl fashion fiend and as a lover of most of these notes.

--

From my nose, politely: a haiku

 

sweet floral mosses

grace the spring forest floor

bowers of pale blooms

--

From my nose, honestly: a tanka

 

reeking of tuberose

I cannot sniff but to wince

jasmine assaulting

moss and AUGH WISTERIA

this perfume is not for me

--

 

I sure bet this one would be beautiful on someone else, though. If you are aiming for it, be sure you like slightly woodsy florals. It's pretty suitable for the style, too, a little fairy tale and a little forest and a lot vague and pastel browns and greens. If you like your perfumes spicy, foody, or resinous, please look elsewhere.

 

This batch was pretty nice for variety, I have to say. A little something for everyone. Except me.

Urghgghghghgh *sigh* Okay, copal. You win again. This starts out lively and resinous and a little sweet, and then turns into tobacco-y flea shampoo. There is a slight import-shop thing happening with the sandalwood and incense notes, but it never becomes overwhelming. The scent it wafts as it dries reminds me a little of the tobacco in Variety of Pleasing Amusements or Ruddy Daggerwing, but then I lose everything else to the copal. I can easily see how this would be gorgeous on someone else. Just not on me. Fortunately, doesn't stick around long. Fading starts at around twenty minutes, and it's gone entirely by an hour.

 

I hate you, copal resins, I hate you so much. If you are someone who adores Snake Oil or any of the other resinous/sweet class of scents, plus has a firm liking for tobacco, then you are aces and should hunt this down like the furriers responsible for the frequent fur accessories involved in this style. It is warm and amber and burnt sienna and you will probably love this. I can say that it does remind me of browsing Dolly-kei tumblrs for hours, and the imagined scent of the vintage shops, slightly macabre accessories, and the often warm colors involved, so if you are a fan of this style, you should probably check this thing out tout de suit.

 

If you are not a fan of these things, or cannot deal with resinous and slightly goopy scents, do look elsewhere for your perfume needs.

Starts brutally, tooth-achingly cotton-candy-fluff sweet with a slight rosy tinge, develops into a dusty (violet on my skin = dusty, like orris but purple instead of greyish lavender in tone), sweet frilly nothingness. Smells a little like one of those powdery violet candies, Chowder's I think?, but if there were rose in addition to the violet. There's a slight grape-like note, too, which is probably some variation on the black currant, and the musk is present, but pretty subdued. On me, this faded after about an hour, with a moderate-to-minimal-throw.

 

I actually found this to be a pretty solid interpretation of the Hime-Gyaru style, really, so if you imagine one of those girls, totted out to the nines with huge hair, frilly skirts, plenty of makeup, strings of pearls, and way too many ribbons, all of which cost her (or her boyfriend, or someone else who supports her in her fashion/lifestyle) $$$, then try to decipher the waft of sugar-sweetness, money, and hairspray coming off of her, that's not a bad description of how this smells.

 

Not really for me, but if you like yourself some expensive sugar, it'll probably be good for you.

Really? No one else? Okay, then I will go second. This is based on a very testable 1/4-ish decant sent to me by my rad fairy.

 

All of these have death-or-otherwise-notes-I-do-not-enjoy-wearing in them. This was the one I was most hopeful for. In the vial, it smelled pretty pleasant, fairly light and peppery, with a notable patchouli haze and slight citrus-esque tone. On my skin, it was pretty nice for a few minutes, the pink pepper was the strongest note, slightly leaning sneezy and subtle dustiness from the orris. However, after about ten minutes it becomes Patchouli Pink Pepper Cologne: THE RECKONING, and actually amped up strength after almost an hour or so. I almost had to wash it off, as patchouli is not really my kink.

 

It is quite dapper (though rather than particularly EGL-style aristocratic, it reads to me like one of those upstart-new-money-types, the kind who are just a little more posh than their actual means, and read the newspaper as a display rather than because they have interest, but who have impeccable hair. There are definitely spats involved, and probably linen suits.), reads to me as tolerably masculine, and on someone else, might be seriously gorgeous. It's really quite straightforward, barring the relatively quick burn-off/invisibility of the bergamot note. If you think you like it, you probably will. If you are fond of a bright, cologne-ular patchouli, by all means, seek a bottle of this posthaste. If you like none of these things, don't torture yourself with it. It will not surprise you.

...That pretty much sums up my response to this. Well, seriously.

 

It's a gorgeous soft, creamy, wet, rose petals in the bath like that scene from American Beauty only with some pink and white mixed in with the red petals rose. I tested by way of slathering it all over, and as the day wore on, the cream got creamier and the rose toned down a bit (though it never disappeared) and a slight almost honey or beeswax-like note popped up. It never seemed to inflict itself on the people around me, so the throw, even being used as a moisturizer, was not heavy.

 

I'm sorry, I'm actually having a hard time figuring out how to describe my response more effectively than ISDHGAKAJKHAKAJHRKJER AMAZING GKAWKRAWJGRGAWKFNDS.

 

I think that pretty much covers it. I initially bought one bottle, took it back to my hotel room with the rest of my loot, sniffed it, and immediately went down to buy another. And contemplated buying a third. I have been on the hunt for a soft perfect rose like this for ages, and I have it, and it is much larger than a 5 ml bottle and I'm still not sure I'll have enough. Does that make sense?

 

I think what I mean to say is that it is awful and no one in their right mind would ever want it, right? Right. Settled then.

 

(as always, your mileage may vary, and you had darn well better know you like roses at the outset before buying a bottle of this, because if you don't and buy it anyway, you are very silly. because roses.)

 

As a side note, there is something very satisfying in a hilariously visceral way about walking up to Puddin' and asking for a bottle of Virgin's Blood. *cough*

Despite having two Usual Notes of Death (cedar, black pepper), I liked this one. I credit the ambergris, which, as is usual for me with scents in which it appears, takes over and rules the scent with an iron fist. I mean, there -are- other notes there -- I can tell that it contains benzoin because there's a sweet, vanilla-like-but-not-exactly note, and I can tell that there's some cedar, some balsam, and some incredibly lovely oudh, and late into drydown, some mild black pepper, but by and large, on me, this is AMBER_{everythingelse}GRIS.

 

Awwww, yeah.

 

I really don't know many other people for whom this particular peculiarity of chemistry holds true, so, er, your mileage will almost certainly vary. I find this to be a soft, silvery, fuzzy scent with a teeny bit of creamy-woody shading. Kind of makes sense, I guess, for a silver-haired bat. :3