clockworkcrypt

I really thought I'd like this, and in the bottle it's absolutely lovely, a peach forward blend, with some nice florals and bergamot lurking beneath. It's sort of like the love child of Peach Chypre and Ava if I had to compare it, but it's absolutely different enough in the wear to justify trying it if you enjoy either of the prior. I'm tragically not getting much of the Vanilla or the Tobacco on my skin, which is what drove me to it in the first place. As for me, if I want a peach kick, Peach Chypre dosen't go powdery on me as this one tends to do in it's late late stages, but I honestly could see a lot of people with slightly better chemistry really enjoying this, it's subtle, but in a really fun way, and def fits the inspiration. Not for me, but absolutely a lovely blend! 

If you're looking for a room spray, Think Snow For Me is a really nice one that's available year round. 

This is a gooey jammy strawberry on me, backed by gingerbread spice faintly in the background.

I'm also not getting any mint, but there's some sweet vanilla backing, and its. quite nice, it's a touch artificial, but in a pleasant way!

This isn't anything I would have picked out for myself, but an imp crossed my path, so I figured I'd try it. It's all ti-leaf on me for the first hour or so, but it becomes more and more cherry blossom dominant as time progresses, with possibly hint of ylang ylang creeping in there. It's snowy and springy, but the cherry blossom and I are not meshing together as friends, it's not me, and it all seems to be going straight to my sinuses. I'm glad I got to try it as it passed through, as it confirmed some of my suspicions about these sort of springy scents, and I look forward to being able to pass it on to another home. If you like cherry blossom, this is a must for you!

Unrelated, but when crashing with a friend a bit back I had the opportunity to test some stuff that didn't work for me on them and let me just say.... I see why y'all love honey now, it goes odd on my skin but on them? Pure bliss. Needless to say they got a few imps 😜

2019 version

This is a lovely note, and reminds me of the snow note used in 2018's Knecht Repurget a lot. Fresh on it's sweet snow, more towards the minty side of things than the snow white side of things, but sweetened up, like someone poured the snow note from Cloister Graveyard over a bowl of something sweet and creamy. There's a blast of fir, similar to older versions of Knecht Ruperchet as well, which calms down and fades behind the snow after an hour or so. It's more of a snow scent than a tree one, but I'd rather see the woods through the trees. I'm also picking up a sweeter kick, which reads a little bit like almond to me, and a trace of the birch, but it's all under a lovely creamy snow note. 

It's absolutely a cousin to Knecht Repurget, and a sister scent to The Country Gets Wilder as We Go, but it reads a little softer and sweeter.

I've had this for about a year now, and it's one of those rare scents I bought that I really just *have*. It needed another decant to make an order so I threw it into mine. 

It's a nice peach, but fermented, like a peach soaked in moonshine rather than a fresh peach off the vine. This immediately reads as boozy, but not necessarily brandy, or at least the cheap brandy I'm used to. Like zankoku said, this reads as an herbal moonshine, rather than a sweet brandy booze. After about an hour the booze burns off, but during that time it's very much like you've splashed a fancy drink on you, so beware if you're headed to a polite society function because you WILL smell like booze. After that it dries down into a soft, close to the skin peach scent, with a slight herbal underneath.

3 hours ago, Nightmare said:

Can anyone recommend scents similar to Theodosius?

 

I panicked a bit when it was sold out because I love it dearly and wasn't sure if it would be back. It is now, and I'm going to get an extra bottle or two when I have the $$, but I want to keep my options open, haha. It happens to be the only scent categorized under "white fougere," jasmine leaf, and one of two under earl grey (the other being a limited scent already sold out)... not even sure where to start.

 

Edit: I guess I mentioned this in the last post I made here, when it was sold out, and entirely forgot, lol. I didn't see any suggestions though, so still definitely seeking them.

This dosent help at all but I remember it being very similar to paper Phoenix on my skin, so much so at my 3 bottle collection at the time had me swap it away. It's probably not easier to get a hold of more of that either. I know Dorian is sort of a spiritual cousin to it as well.

I have no idea how old this is, as I got a bit of a bottle from a lovely forumite, and it's absolutely lovely. 

It starts out very kettle corn, not so much a fresh in your face caramel, but more of a "you're at an outdoor event and you feel it drifting towards you on a hot summers day"

That is to say it's absolutely perfect, and has just the right mix of sweet and buttery notes, with a touch of popcorn underneath to really keep you grounded. An hour or two later this dries down and more of the vanilla comes out, miraculously on me with a hint of the labs elusive cotton candy note!

. I think the vanilla really helps to boost the sweetness of this, and ground everything together, it keeps the caramel corn note from going off into the deep end, and brings up the perfect amount of cotton candy to really anchor this into a final dry down of a vanilla cotton candy, with a salty buttery scent lurking underneath. The wood dosen't overtake this for me, but wood tends to play nicely on my skin, so I think it's doing it's part grounding the note and staying comfortable in the background, mingling in with the popcorn note. 

It's something I was intrigued with, but never would have gotten a full bottle on a whim and I am very much glad to be able to have a bit of it, it's fun without being too in your face for daily wear, and brings a whimsical fair vibe to whatever you're doing.

Oh this is not great. This is one of my first experiences with the "bad" oudh, and spritzing this around the room presents a strange combo. Heavy ozone & a dose of heavy oudh, combined with maybe a touch of something else I can't quite identify turn this into straight up choking baby wipes on me. It's chemically, slightly rancid, and terribly strong. Zankoku_zen has the right idea here, DND or halloween, something dreadful coming through the mist that you don't want to stick around long enough to see. It's absolutely not my thing, but if you're into oudh, or enjoy trying interesting scents, this might be the atmo for you!

Woah. 

I got this in a mini decant, so usually I give about 2-3 spritzes to equal a normal bottle spray. I misread my label, and used this as a room spray instead of a hair gloss. This stuff is STRONG. Like in a -oh god i might have just hotboxed the house- level. It's glorious, and oddly nostalgic. When I was a kid my brother had this stuffed moose that smelled of chocolate, and this is giving me a little bit of that, almost a weird warmed velvety vibe to an exceptionally dry chocolate, boarding on straight coco. This is a chewy patch, one I'd reserve for special occasions among special groups, or an evening out- the same category I'd put my bottle of Revenant Rhythm perfume. The patch only intensifies as it settles, and I have a feeling It would be even heavier in my hair. It's def something not meant for the casual wearer, and not something I'd classify as a daytime scent. It's teetering on the edge of being too strong for me, and I'd have to try it in a lighter dose, but something's telling me the teensy spray might be more than enough for my personal use, as RR already more than covers my heavy patch needs. 

If you love Patchouli, this is not to be missed, you will love this, hoard it, what have you. As for me, I'm more of a rounded patchouli sort of person, and that initial glorious phase of the dry cacao is quickly overtaken by the patch for me. I'll be keeping my decant for those occasional ren fair or night out when I need something to pack a punch for hours, but I think a bottle of this would quite literally last a lifetime for me.

Update: It's like 2 am and I cracked a window, since a person I'm living with detests strong patchouli and something started SCREAMING outside. I don't know if it was a squirrel or a particularly nocturnal bird but that's your review from the animal kingdom!

4 hours ago, alterosen said:

 

I love Paper Phoenix! I would try Spinning On Graves, Silver Lace & Tattered Lace. They all have a vanilla musk base with some brighter notes. I find them cheerful & comforting. 

Oooo, spinning on graves might just be the trick if the grass isn't too heavy! And the other laces sound lovely as well, it's good to know that there are others in the family

3 hours ago, forspecial_plate said:

 

I haven't tried Paper Phoenix.  However, I would suggest you try Rendezvous with Her Lover Behind the Rice Straws, from this year's Lupers.  I mention it because I get a pretty strong AL vibe, even though there's no vanilla listed in the notes.  And a few of the reviews do mention vanilla.  Worth a shot!  : )

Augh, I remember considering this but being worried about the Hay! I have no idea how long the Lupers will be up, but if this is still available by the time I make my next lab order (I'm going through a bit of a testing phase right now), I might have to get a bottle, the reviews seem quite favourable!

I hate that this dosen't work on me!

On paper this should work fantastically, it smells great in the bottle, but I think that cream does weird things on my skin. While it's not bad per se, it dominates over the rootbeer note, and takes on that powdery plastic note that others have mentioned in this thread. Since I was able to acquire a bottle with a fairly good fill amount, I've tested this a few times over the past year or so in different weathers and times to see if there's any time I can get it to work on me, and tragically it seems it and my skin are not meant to be. I'll hopefully find this a good home, because I think this could be amazing on the right skin!

Apologies to necrobump this, but does anyone know of any vanillas that are similar in feel to Paper Phoenix, aside from the obvious AL and Dorian? I love the nature of Paper Phoenix, and would love to try more scents in a similar feeling

I've never tried TKO, and my experience with the lab's snow notes are quite hit or miss. 

This is a lovely scent fresh on, and I see why TKO is so popular, but I've found that do tend to stray more on the herbal and more natural lavender side of the labs lavender notes than the syrupy sweet lavender found in so many of their sweeter scents. It's very reminiscent of the lavender from Lavender & Gingerbread, but there's nothing to ground this for me. The snow note, while lovely, is the powdery coconutish note that I believe is the same as Snow White. It's not my cup of tea, so it's been rehomed to a friend who'se fallen in love with it, but if you're a fan of Snow White, or TKO, this is absolutely for you. 

This is a weird one. 

It starts off with an intense blast of almond-cherry, which I'm a big fan of. It moves into a peppery stage, which while nice completely dominates the fragrance. It than faded down for another half an hour to almost nothing. Than my skin makes everything go south. It started with a sort of dryness to it, a sweet musty smell, the cherry combining with something unknown in the background. A few hours of strange dry sickly changes later this has gone full play-dough on me, in almost the exact same way that amber does. I have no idea if this has amber in it or if I'm having a strange reaction the the cherry note, as I know the labs pink pepper works on me, but this goes from such a realistic candied cherry almond to something that is a dry slightly salty flour mess on me. I'll be sending this off to a new home, for someone who'se skin lets this evolve in the true candy dream it is in the imp. 

Sugary sweet pumpkin, and the glory of Miskatonic U. If you like the original Miskatonic U, than you'll love this! It's a nice version, like someone took the rattled teakwood of the library and tried to freshen it up with bundles of fall spices and a shot of pumpkin in their coffee. As for me it's a touch too similar to the original to warrant another bottle but it's a fun seasonal variant!

Alright alright alright. 

I'm here to join everyone else in agreeing that this is a mint party, on me it's almost pure peppermint with a sugary base. 

In fact it reminds me very much so of a certain scent from a brand very much like Grath & Corpse Forge, I'd say specifically some sort of knotted holiday treat?

Anyhow, it's very that, christmas in a bottle of sorts, with the labs usual sugar note backing it up, I believe the same one used in Gobo and Gingerbread & Lavender sugar.

Now I love apple scents, so right away this was a slight disappointment, but it's still fairly nice! Just not in my usual array, I wish it had something to ground the sugared mint a bit more, but if you love sugary mint, this is a great scent for you, that you can buy year round!

Ok, so I have no idea how to review this. This was a frimp, and I never would have tried it otherwise. 

Chaotic starts out as a men's old timey barbershop vibe on me. Than it quickly fades to a salty skin musk that's somehow still appealing? Than about half an hour or so after application I get a slightly floral red musk party, before it dies wayyy down on me. Or so I thought. I've been getting compliments on how good I smell ALL DAY. One of my friends walked in the room, walked over to me, and started talking about how good I smelled. I can barely smell anything unless it's pressed directly against my wrists, it's a pleasant whirl of sweetened musks, that seems to not contain black or arabian musks, two notes which usually stomp over everything else on me. But apparently to everyone else, this is a magical sexy wide appeal smell with decent throw? I might layer this with other smells, but just based on the compliments today I think this is going to end up to be an imp scraper.

Come on a journey with me. 

The year is 1936. You're sitting in a restaurant waiting for your food. There are roses on the table. Your date comes, a beautiful starlet. She smells wonderful, so wonderful. You can't quite pick it out, but sweet and intoxicating, and not at all rosy, yet impossibly rosy. You sit there, she smells divine. It's a touch old fashioned, and just a wonderful cloud. You lean in to kiss her. You taste salt. You taste salt? Skin surely. Skin can be salty musk right? You break away, eyes open, and she's melting around your hands. She's soft and.... muted... and doughy. She's made of Play-Dough. You push back your chair to leave. It falls to mush play-dough. You stagger back, knocking over the roses, which flop limply, and collapse into play-dough. You try to run, but it's an ocean of play-dough, and you fall deep down under, to the play-depths bedough. 

I received Western Small Foot Bat as a lil 5ml decant as a frimp in a swap, and didn't think much of it. Amber NEVER works on me. Patchouli only sometimes works. Roses are heady, and drown out everything. It wasn't until months later I accidentally grabbed this and sprayed it on my sheets, and oh lord. It's DIVINE. Not bad at all, not even individual notes, but a blend making something that smells a little old-fashioned but absolutely lovely and indescribable. It's a shame that my hair and skin do this fun thing where Amber turns to baby powder or Play-Dough on me. This just smells salty in my hair, but honestly? I don't regret owning this, this is FANTASTIC as a linen spray, and I'll gladly use up the tester making my pillow smell like the sweet scent that I wish I could have. 

Does anyone have any idea if the Crew Neck option tees are fitted? 

Alright, so this is not the best review, but I refuse to try this out again.

Sherlock Holmes starts off surprisingly promising, oddly smelling like one of the greenhouses I went to as a kid.

This burns off into a brown leather fairly fast, not the best note on me. It mixes with a clean slightly aftershavey scent. 

However this burns down to a bit of tobacco and oddly... honey? Granted I've never smelled rosin, but I swear this is honey.

Hours later, this is honey, honey, honey, with an underlying whiff of tobacco.

Tragically due to a chemical spill at work, I never got the long wear, but I don't think this is worth a retest, I know this isn't my scent. 

UGH. I fricken love this!

If I die. When I die. Toss whatever remains of this into my coffin, because this is one of those scents that was love at first sniff. 

In the bottle I get deep pomegranate and chocolate, like some outrageously expensive candy you can only dream of having the luxury of having a box full. There's also a bit of chewiness to it, possibly the tobacco. It's a rich deep chocolate, almost a bakers really, not the sickly sweet kind that some perfume takes on but something rich and full and intoxicating. On me it goes a bit odd for a few moments, the cognaic jumping out before being reigned back in. Chocolate and Pomegranate reign over the rest of the blend, lasting well past the 8 hour mark, a surprising win for putting up with a commute, summer heat, and grueling workdays. It's complex and chewy, and one of those scents I keep lifting my wrist to my nose throughout the day. The throw is also surprisingly good on me, it stays close but pleasantly strong, in a way that feels powerful but not overpowering. Tragically, I only have about a decant dregging in the bottle, so I think this will be saved for when I really need that extra vavavoom. It's sexy, it's mysterious, it's an absolute win. Now please, do excuse me while I go back to huffing the bottle. 

This is a deep woody pumpkin spice that dries into mostly pumpkin spice with a hint of incense. Maybe some Frankincense in there too? It's pumpkinney and woody and quite interesting. However, this gives me a super pumpkin spice barnyard for the first half hour or so on me, to it keeps this blend tied down in decant land. 

Fresh on me this is nice florals, a little misty, a little spicy, lots of carnation. They aren't overpowering and I can smell the frankincense beneath. This mellows down into a carnation heavy scent on me, and over time fades into a blended frankincense carnation duo. It lasts shockingly long on me for a floral, it's made it through 9 hours of work. That being said as much as I love frankincense, I don't think carnation and frankincense is something I'll reach for much, but I'm glad I have the decant, as it's tame enough for the rare occasions when I wish to wear a floral.