forspecial_plate

Pretty champaca dominant soft incense scent. I don't get any floral. I have a little shorty decant that ended up on my work desk and stayed there. I recognize the champaca from Wynter Wakeneth, and in fact this scent is similar to that one IMO. Love it.

Sugar Skull 2021 This year's Sugar Skull smells very different to me, it smells darker, and I am really undecided on whether there has been a complete reformulation this year. I have several decants of Sugar Skull from years past and this ain't it. It still smells sugary with fruit, and I'm going to take a guess that I could be smelling blackcurrant? I got out my decant of Blackcurrant Pie to compare them side-by-side and I think I could be onto something. "Darker" is really the only word I can think of. It's like something brighter is missing this year. I've been putting off getting a 5ml of Sugar Skull for quite a few years, so I have to admit I was disappointed in this. It's not actually a bad scent, it's just really not what I was expecting. Luckily I found a 2015 bottle in a forum sale and it is the Sugar Skull I know and love (they seem to have slight variations over the years but in my opinion have always been basically the same scent - until this year). I believe that some people will really like this year's version and I'm curious to read more reviews! I wonder if it's a skin chemistry thing? Edit: 2 yrs of aging has done a lot of good for this scent, it's a lot closer to what I thought of as Sugar Skull and I no longer feel like I could have got a mislabeled bottle. It's lighter than what I'm used to from SS but I do like it more than I did when it was new.

Blackberry candy in the forest. More piney in the first few minutes, then musk and a little oakmoss come out stronger, but the berry stays constant, just sweet enough to remind me of candy. The oakmoss is behaving and not taking over everything else. The berry note is a little medicinal and....kind of sickly for some reason, but there is a time and place for this. I just have to apply very lightly. Cool forest with a berry cough drop.

This smells kind of sweet and savory at the same time, it's just totally well-blended and nothing really stands out, although I can pick out aspects of rose musk and toffee. It kind of reminds me of a Yule cousin of Bad Luck Woman Blues, without any dirt note. For such an odd mix of notes, it's really smooth and well-behaved. It also reminds me a little of one of the Halloweenies scents from the last few years - I can't remember the name but it's some kind of rose scent. I'm glad to have this! Looks like not many people went for it. : )

I get the popcorn note too - but there is definitely more to this, I am picking up on the crystalline notes as well, and that part reminds me of the old school Lunacy scents I've had the good fortune to smell. I actually was able to compare this with all of the other Buck Moons (a good friend has the first one, and I have the rest), and I think they are cousins, different scents but you can tell they're related. It also reminds me of Wolf Moon from '04 or '05, that one has a crystalline feeling too. I love this! It's cozy and comforting.

This smells just like the name says. To me the rose is stronger than the dandelion sap, but there is definitely a balance going on. Very pretty rose scent. Basically if these notes sound good to you, I don't think you'll be disappointed (haven't read the previous reviews yet, though).

Sweet, creamy, fruity and a little tropical. IF the Lab's cream notes disagree with you (specifically, turn to plastic), you might find that happening here. For me it is borderline plasticky from the rice milk but overall it's a nice sweet creamy scent. This was a nice contrast to some of the slightly soapy or woody scents I've been testing this week. I agree that it's happy and cheery, might be great on a dreary winter day to transport you to warmer happier thoughts.

For about 30 seconds when I first put this on, it smells like some kind of lightly spiced holiday pastry or something - but this doesn't last long. The scorched oak comes in, and it smells more like what I expected from these 2 notes. Over the next couple of hours it smooths out a lot and I think the tobacco comes out more. Overall this is a medium-throw scent that smells pretty much what you would expect. In other words it smells great! The scorched oak reminds me of Dead Leaves On Fire, a little bit. I'm not good at picking out tobacco notes but I think the other reviews so far are pretty accurate, the tobacco comes close to being a gourmand-ish note.

The oakmoss smells soapy on me and also kind of peppery like white pepper almost, not in a bad way. Mostly I'm getting the fougere vibe others mentioned. The lavender is actually pretty quiet, doesn't stand out a lot. I got this specifically as a substitute for Antiheros by Etat Libre d'Orange which is a clean soapy lavender, woods and musk scent, but I think it's discontinued. As a substitute this duo is fine (it's close but not exact), but it's really just a nice scent on its own. Since I got this I have decided oakmoss is a note I should avoid, but the white oakmoss here is pretty well-behaved. It doesn't turn into overpowering 70's men's cologne, like oakmoss sometimes does on my skin. For that, I am happy.

Light fruity floral, I agree there's a hint of apricot, with a sheer wood backdrop. I had a very brief peep of something spicy like clove. I did want more of an incense note, I think of agarwood as an incensey wood. Still, this smells good. It's very light. Would be a good scent if you just want to smell yourself and there's a chance someone else around you might be sensitive. Can't imagine anyone being offended by it. There are definitely times I wear bpal just for myself. Edit: I wrote my review too soon, this does smoothly transition to something more incensey after a while. Still very light. The fruity part receded more into the background.

Clean, slightly fruity, a little salty and beachy (but not the Lab's famous "corn chip" salt note). Over time there is more orange blossom coming forward. This conjures up a very specific memory for me, it reminds me of the smell of gay men in 1992, when I turned 21 and started going to my first gay bar, The Dock in Cincinnati. I loved the newish cologne some of them wore and found out it was Eternity, and bought a bottle right away. This isn't an exact dupe but it's close enough that it takes me right back to that time and place, and it's such a nice memory, I'm grateful for it. Not much of a morpher on my skin. I'll be wearing this in the summer and thinking of drunken sweaty nights on the dance floor.

This doesn't stand out as "fruity" to me, kind of like the other reviews mentioned. I guess I mostly smell the pumpkin floss because it reminds me of Mischief hair gloss, except with pumpkin. Long into the dry-down it does something different - it's like dark sugar or something, lasts and lasts for hours on me. I expected a lot more fruit or berry, maybe that will come out stronger with age, but I do think this is a great fall scent and I'm happy with it.

I just got this yesterday, so it's possible it will change after resting longer. But in the interest of those waiting for reviews, here are my first impressions. This smells more like a Shunga scent to me than Halloweenie - in a good way! Yesterday the mushroom note stood out more, very realistic, the scent of cutting up fresh mushrooms. Today that's more in the background. Basically it's a soft ambery glow with a hint of rose, and the leather and mushroom are more supporting notes, stronger if I sniff up close. I don't think rosehips = rose but someone else mentioned it somewhere and I agree. It's a hint of rose, on my skin. I recognize the ambrette from the Ambrette Seed and Prune duo. Leather doesn't stand out here, but that could come out stronger with age. Again, "soft" is the word I keep thinking. I really like it. Edit: wore this again this evening, this time there's no rose, and the leather is stronger. Smells more like an expensive men's fragrance now, but still a quiet scent. I think it's a stunner.

What I'm smelling is pretty much what I expected, just a little bit more raspy and earthy, which could be the tobacco wrappers, coffee, or both. Might smooth out with age. It's the lab's familiar pumpkin, with coarse ground coffee, tobacco, sweet and a little spicy (I would agree the cinnamon is more subtle). I don't really pick out woods specifically. This reminds me of one of the Nutcracker 'Dance' scents, whichever one had coffee. I only had a decant of OG Pinched and it has now faded to almost no scent (decants age a lot faster than 5ml bottles in my experience). It's interesting to me that the reviewer before me noticed a creamy note. I used to get that from Pinched and it's what I loved most from that scent, but I'm not smelling it in Pinched w Four Pumpkins. I wonder if that will come out more with age. I still like this, though.

This is a soft, golden scent, beautiful for fall. When I first got it I thought it smelled like baby powder (which isn't necessarily a bad thing to me), and I thought it might need to rest for a little while. It's still borderline powdery but there is a hint of metallic gold about it also. I can't tell any of these notes apart and not one note stands out strongly. It does change a little after it's on the skin for a while, but I still couldn't tell you which notes I'm smelling. Maybe the vetiver comes out a little more. It's almost like Death of Autumn's ghost, just soft, soft, soft.

Smells like delightful fruit and spice, mostly apple at the beginning but then the apple note fades to the background after just a little while, and there's not any one note that stands out.. Not much else to say. Very nice spice scent, on the softer side (not harsh).

It's unusual for me to like or even be interested in any chocolate scent but the reviews drew me in for this one, if I remember correctly it was a last minute Yule purchase before they went down that year. I really like it. It is a rich scent but there is a savory thing going on, I guess from the stout, and not much sweetness, just rich and dark chocolate. I don't wear it a lot but there are times when it's the perfect cozy scent on a cold day (like today).

Something here is not working for me, and I blame the smoked balsam. It overwhelms the other notes and ends up smelling like....I don't know, plasticky wet dog or something? I thought it might smooth out and right itself with age ...nope. My skin just isn't having this one.

From the list of notes this could have gone either way - I love the idea of these notes but it's just a little bit too mossy on me. That's my one complaint. Otherwise it is zesty with a nice amount of citrus. On my skin, mossy scents often come off as......your uncle who still has his hair style from the 70's, and not in a good way. Sorry I don't know how else to put it. There are times I am in the mood for this kind of thing, and my decant is just the right amount for me. Edit: wearing this today. It's not like a mossy dated aftershave any more. Now I'm smelling something like citrus, herbal, white musk. Also it reminds me of Apostrophe of Time. Still not great on me but at least the 70's aftershave feeling is gone. Gives me hope for some other scents I set aside for the same reason.

I haven't tried Storyville either but this. Is. Beautiful. I am getting the same impression as the reviewer before me. Basically I smell light and airy, slightly cakey/bready, hint of floral (ghost of jasmine is exactly what I thought too - slightly indolic), incensey musk. Sooo smooth and light, and not the spicy/earthy (in my opinion) red musk I was expecting. Is there more than one red musk accord? This fades and after a while I think more of the spices are coming out, but again very light, and elegant. I'm not sure I need any other pumpkin scents after this, it's that good. I already ordered a backup bottle and I very rarely do that! I can't stop sniffing my wrist and I find myself reapplying often so I can relive the experience. : ) Edit: I want to add, I do smell the pumpkin at the beginning then it fades somewhat, which is in line with my usual experience with the lab's pumpkin note Edit again: I read starbrow's review, she mentioned oud - is that where the indoles are coming from?? Oud is another one of those notes I don't always recognize. Somehow I'm getting jasmine with my chemistry, but just a slight hint, so don't worry too much if jasmine isn't your thing! It might just be an olfactory illusion.

Yep, if you want sandalwood, here it is! I have a 15 ml bottle of sandalwood essential oil, half full now, that I bought in the 90's, back when it was cheap and not over-harvested (or so I have read in perfume books and blogs). That's what Pyramid of Skulls reminds me of, smooth, deep, and somehow a little sparkling. Also it's pretty strong. Might make a good sandalwood layering note if you're into that kind of thing. I detect some earthy tobacco around the edges. I usually can't pick tobacco out in a blend and also can't really tell the different tobacco accords apart. But I will say this one seems to be similar to the tobacco in the Patchouli & Tobacco duo. Edit: almost a year later, the tobacco has come out more, it's definitely present now.

This is so, so yummy and has always been one of my favorite pumpkin scents. I don't think I ever reviewed it (I looked, sorry if I missed it). I don't get a whole lot of citrus. It does smell like the same pumpkin note as Pumpkin Queen and Pumpkin Cheesecake, with a little sweetness and a little spice. I usually just wear this at home as a comfort scent and it fades really fast on me, and I don't really care, I just reapply it. Simply fall joy in a bottle. : )

This scent didn't work out for me. It's very loud and high-pitched on my skin. Reminds me of a cleaner or air freshener. It doesn't smell bad, but it's way too strong and I'm picking up on the floral impression that others got. It smells more like a plum blossom note than plum. I don't get lavender at all, maybe the lavender is contributing to the floral/detergent feeling I'm getting. Sandalwood? Can't really detect it. I might like this more if it was about half the strength it is. Later as it dries, the plum comes out more, but it's not sitting well on me. It's more of that air freshener feeling. Maybe I should disclose that I'm learning more and more that I often like softer, quieter scents, not the very strong ones. I find many to be just too strong and this particular scent has a very "perfumey" quality. (I do realize, they are perfumes, they're supposed to be perfumey! 😆 I was hoping for more of the tranquil incense part).

#56 Smells like fresh turned soil, and a hint of dead leaves. It's photo-realistic mulch on the forest floor. #82 This is a pale aqua seafoam kind of scent. It's very light, even lighter than my #40 reviewed above. There's a very light hint of dead leaves. All I can think when I smell this is that pale sea-green color, I don't usually have that synesthesia thing going on but with this scent I do. Edit 3/2/22: I smell juniper now, not sure how I didn't notice before. Light perfumey juniper.

The number is partially rubbed off the bottle, but I think it came that way. It looks like CXX_ _ or something. Lab etsy purchase I forgot I had. This starts out with a blast of pumpkin I think, it totally reminds me of a pumpkin patch scent. The pumpkin retreats pretty fast though and what comes out is soooo familiar but I can't quite identify it. Is it tobacco? Soft spices? Light wood? Patchouli? I just can't tell, but it's very much a Halloweenie type of scent and I'm crazy about it. There is not much Snake Oil coming out (it definitely has "Snake Oil Series" on the label). The closest comparison I can think of is Hellhound On My Trail but that's not quite it. I must not have liked this when I first got it, I think I put it away for aging and forgot about it. Edit: I wore this today and my other Snake Oil Chaos Theory on the other side, and I realized this one has woodsmoke in it, a light touch but it stands out in comparison with the other one. Snake Oil, pumpkin, and a little woodsmoke.