SophieCedar

This is a LOVELY scent, but something in here is going a little flat on my skin. I think the cassia bark and myrrh are doing a confuse-a-nose on me. Overall pretty and warms nicely in a honey/resin way. Reminds of a few shunga base notes.

Swwwwweeet mother of jeebus I need 100 bottles.

Heady rich deep vanilla with a syrupy dessert wine/cordial top note from the bourbon vanilla and oudh melding. Warmth not to be paralleled from the type of amber chosen. It comes across like skin musk but sweeter and deeper. Made of pure win.

Ooh! Non-burny cinnamon! 1st YAY! Deep frankincense and its the predominant note. 2nd YAY! the cinnamon is dry and woody, not the overly sweet baking type. 3rd YAY! I'll be getting a bottle.

I do love this scent. Its a little too similar to Hope and Fear Set Free (which I've been ab.so.lute.ly hoarding) for me to decide if I need a bottle. I'm sure I'll cave at some point. The rose is very subtle. I can pick up on the amber and balsam too. I would recommend this to someone who maybe thought the frankincense in Hope and Fear was too strong. This is much smoother.

This is gonna be a little analytical but I'm sure you can deal with it...

I preface this with the solid fact that I'm a former theater tech nerd. (set building and stage management as well as everything behind-the-scenes in between..)

Grand Guignol Thanatos is from the patron's perspective. In the bottle and wet, I got all excited because it smelled like musty costumes, dank corners, cake makeup, and drafty dressingrooms. I absolutely swooned!

Dry, its the faint wafting scent of the formerly mentioned notes perceived from audience seats, mixed with patrons' mindfully and dramatically chosen colognes and perfumes. As well as the *never warm* but atmospherically seductive intermission lobby.

I do see a YSL Opium similarity with addition of the scent of soft velvet or velveteen seats (that stuff that holds a lot of dust and smells lovely)

I love this in a completely different way than I had anticipated.

Oh and ps/eta: The bottle art is AWESOME. Favorite bottle art ever. One huge reason I wouldn't consider swapping/selling this lovely scent.

ETA March 2014: This smells much sweeter now that the seasons have changed a bit. Syrupy sweet Schwarzer Mond is what I've dubbed it, in my memory bank. Frikkin awesome. Hoard worthy.

Gun Moll is a signature scent for me as well.

It goes on a bit powdery.. but seductive and dark, like opium. The drydown and lingering scent is Oh. My. for sure. Dry but sweet, red, resinous, dark florals and fruits. This is eyesrollingintobackofhead good. Love the way it lingers on my clothing!

If you thought Red Lantern was a bit too sweet, give this a shot.

For anyone wondering how this aged... its GLORIOUS. If you love fig scents this is a must-have. The green edge and the nutmeg settled down. Its this warm, syrupy, chewy fig and myrrh scent with a touch of creamy spicy carnation. The green tea just keeps it from going flat and into straightup "brown" scent territory, I would say.

Sampaguita is so beautiful. Its very sweet and the best way I can describe it is: like jasmine, ylang ylang, green tea, and tiny bit of vanilla bean tea had a baby. Honestly it reminds me of Urban Outfitters circa early to mid-1990's, when they had all that incense, tapestries, and Suns Eye oils. Interesting thing is, it smells markedly different close up. Hypnotic and intriguing.

I was gonna recommed: Burning Vulva and The Soldier

but someone else beat me to it.

I totally agree with suggestions for Eat Me and Detestable Putrescence. Cockaigne is great. Comes across as maple syrupy to me. If you're looking for that light pink note for blending purposes, I would suggest finding Pink Phoenix. It pops up on the forum sales page occasionally. It smells like My Little Ponies and Strawberry Shortcake dolls to me

Now this might be harder to find, but:

Golletes is pretty awesome. Sweet sugary pink foody goodness.

Also you might like Beaver Moon 2010. Sweet sugary sticky creamy!

On the HTF impossible side..but I have to say it...: Cake Smash

I was hoping the carnation and milk notes would have more power over the pumpkin spices..but alas. This one is not really my bff.. I amp spices terribly. Oops. Stupid skin!

Don't take this the wrong way, but the drydown smells like a comforting grandmother or aunt right after they apply their Oil of Olay... Relieved they don't stink of cigarettes and bad breath. Mystified by these secret Lady Potions that make me feel like everything's gonna be ok and growing up should be something to look forward to. Then you finally hit puberty and its all sugar flowers and Love's Baby Soft...you remember that mysterious feminine scent but can't help being a total over-obvious gimme attention geek about perfume.. instead of a sophisticated THIS.

Anyways, yes, I thought this would be more spooky, but pleasantly surprised. I bet if I skip getting a bottle I'll regret it. It translates as white and warm matte gold colors and smells like a warm hug.

This one has me the most perplexed. I cannot for the life of me figure out if I like maple boughs. Its cool, brown, green, red, and a touch of ozone.

This blend is full of not too spicy win. light pumpkin blended with dorian. Cute and a bit festive. I like it very much!

Completely evokes night air and pomegranates, for me. Sweet, broody, benevolent to the skin chemistry. Nice but fades quickly.

You know.. every time there's pumpkin scents, I freak for them and without fail realize the lab's pumpkin note is too spicy for my skin. This is an exception to the rule. The cinnamon etc spices are toned down, making this a wonderful sophisticated blend of Morocco and pumpkin. Just a warmer Morocco, if that's possible. Full of win!

Its SO alrighty. The pumpkin is spicy..and I amp spices.. so I'll just have to pass this to the hubby. He'll slather himself in it

You know, I got a ton of butter + sugar and a bit of marzipan. Its cute and I'm on the fence about getting a bottle. Drydown is all sugary buttercream with a pink note in the background for no reason. The pumpkin is very muted and not too spicy. Win!

Smells exactly like Honey Pumpkin Stout soap from last year. Its nice but I amp spices. Will use this as an atmo spray/drop in a candle.

You know, this comes across as warm musk and a touch of thin dry grass. Its not really overtly cologney or nature/earth reminiscent. Its my surprise like of the weenie pack.

This translates as warm and musky sandalwood to me. I initially thought there was brown musk in it but surprised to see the only slightly relevant note is ambergris. Overall, warm, creamy, woody, musky awesomeness. Well-rounded and calming. Its a hit...it only took a couple years for me to realize it.

Wet: pine, cypress, tea rose, dark aquatic note. Not the Oakmoss I'm used to.. but very intriguing indeed. The version I aged since I was a wee 16 year old was very leathery.

Drydown: mostly tea rose and a dark aquatic note with a touch of vetiver on me. Murky, sullen, contemplative, heavy, dark. It keeps getting muskier and muskier... and browner.. and deeper. Wade through the wet phase and you have a magnetic load of awesome...give it time. I'd advise any fan of the lab's Ambergris Accord SN to snag a bottle and age the hell out of this!

I'll say this in both As Above and So Below reviews: as a set, they're very complimentary and work well worn simultaneously on the body, given their own spots. They have a wonderful glowing duality.

As Above:

Its so close the the original Haute Macabre! Just slightly lighter, thinner, and more floral. The oak leaf and bourbon vanilla tend to dominate on me which I TOTALLY don't mind .. The throw is amazing and the leather very well balanced. I'm learning I love any blend with White Patchouli and happy to have a couple recent releases exhibiting this wonderful earthy melder. I call this a Daytime Haute Macabre. Worth keeping and I might get a back up.

I'll say this in both As Above and So Below reviews: as a set, they're very complimentary and work well worn simultaneously on the body, given their own spots. They have a wonderful glowing duality.

So Below is warm, meaty, and glowing. Well rounded, unexpectedly refined, slightly foody, pronounced warm patchouli that doesn't take over, and glowing dark copal. The golden musk and green cardamom pod notes surprised me. I see the representation of a basal scent, but it translates as higher-end than I was envisioning when I read the notes. Overall, I'm psyched about it. Unexpectedly awesome.

My imp leaked too because of the cocoa separation but when I warmed it in my palm, it was easier to get it combined again.

This could be a sleeper hit. When I popped the cap, I blurted "BOOMSLANG!" then during drydown "SNAKE CHARMER!" So, there you have it. Hoard away.