monocainsheresy

Oh voyeuristic vetiver, where are you? This is mostly sweet and clean on me, which is nice, but not what I wanted! Surprisingly, the sugar is the strongest note on my skin, followed by meaty, ripe coconut, then something vaguely green (is that the vetiver?), and... orris? Maybe?? Gonna have to age this one.

A subtler, sweeter version of Dead Leaves and Vanilla Incense. Mostly the dead leaves note, a little warm and dry in this blend (maybe from the nuttiness of the praline), with a veil of lightly sugared vanilla. Very pretty.

I agree with the "fresh clean hay" and "body butter" assessments above. This is cleaner and smoother than I expected - creamy and cloudy rather than warm and fuzzy. Tonka is definitely the dominant note, followed by the beeswax and almond lending a certain polish. I can't smell the sandalwood or oak outright, but I can sense they're doing some heavy lifting keeping the rest of the scent grounded. There is a slight suggestion of green from the vetiver. Unisex, but leaning ever so slightly masculine in my opinion. It's like if you set Smug Yale Alchemy Lab out in the sun to dry. This is the coumaric hay scent I have always wanted.

This is reading as strong, sharp, rose(?)-carnation-peach on me, with a touch of raspberry leaf. Given that there are two bourbon notes in this, I'm surprised by the lack of booziness. A sour-sweet fruity floral with borderline medicinal undertones.

Strong herbal, but unlike any herbal I've ever smelled. I concur with the many reviews that say gingerbread, but somehow it's not foodie gingerbread, if that makes sense? Gingerbread if it was an herb? Also strongly incense-y, but not an incense scent. Overall I get a strong impression of coffee beans and perhaps even raw cocoa powder. I'm not sure what's happening, but I'm definitely very intrigued!

This is all floral on me, mostly jasmine with a cloud of generic creamy whites. My skin completely eats all the other notes, though there is the barest hint of a tickle from the dirt and incense that are allegedly in there somewhere.

I'm not well versed in identifying most of the listed notes, but I don't that really matters here because this reads as sugared lemon tea! As it dries the lemon backs off and something warm and musky comes out (definitely the "russet fur" from the description), along with a cozy astringency from the chamomile tea. Not nearly as herbal as I was expecting - hardly herbal at all, in fact. It's like if Embalming Fluid and Cheshire Cat had a baby.

Oh wow - I don't tend to like florals, but this smells exactly like a real lily! Wet, pollen-y, creamy. Dries down with the pollen note coming to the fore and a slight powdery musk.

A pale gold scent. Mostly amber and herbal myrtle, with a surprisingly strong creamy floral note from the apple blossom. The carnation lends a hint of spice when wet but disappears on me during the drydown. A happy medium between wet spa and dry forest.

This is pretty good general catalogue dupe for Practical Occultism. Fruity tobacco, ambergris, and a bit of leather and incense with some sort of booze. Masculine side of neutral, and not as heavy as one would expect from the description. Nails the fancy-old-timey-occultist vibe. Very nice.

Extremely similar to Lush Karma. Sniffing them side by side Masquerade is definitely heavier on the patchouli, making it earthier and almost fruity. The ambergris adds a bit of muskiness. Basically what it says on the tin. Lush's Karma but in a head shop.

I've never really liked GC Cathedral because I think it smells like wood polish, but I love foodie/sweet incense scents, so I went for this. The sugar cookie note is the main part of the scent, and the frankincense in Cathedral comes through with a little bit of wood. The effect of the sugar cookie sweetness with the notes in Cathedral gives this a hint of worn leather. A bit incensey, a bit more sweet, moderately warm and almost vintage vibes. Very nice, and deceptively simple. Reminds me of a lighter, watered-down The Other Miss Forcible.

Opens up with creamy coconut, with a hint of warm frankincense. As it dries the frankincense dominates, ending up as a wee bit of coconut cream under a lemony, sugar-crusted, raw frankincense. Medium throw, could probably work at any time of year. Sweet without being foody, incensey without being smokey.

2021 version Yup. That's dirt! Like opening up a fresh bag of potting soil.

Starts very strong on the motor oil, which is similar to the oils/lubricants notes in the Steamworks collections and presents like fancy, sharp cologne. As it dries the leather (black, I think), comes forward a bit, carrying soapy lavender and a hint of oakiness. Settled, it's a slightly dirty herbal soap. The motor oil and soapiness dominate. Was hoping for everything else to be stronger than the motor oil, which was probably silly of me, but I'm very curious to see how this ages and will be keeping it for that purpose.