groovyrooby

Agreed with @Lyahdan - 13s can be chocolate heavy, which is sometimes lovely but also sometimes feels repetitive. This 13 stands out as dark, sticky sweet spices and red hot capsaicin. Always happy to have the suggestion of cinnamon without actual cinnamon, which makes my skin scream, sadly. Just a couple dabs on one wrist are plenty to give an aura of warm and hot spices that could verge upon desert heat except the bittersweet chocolate keeps it from being so dry. Yum! I always grab the 13s because it's now-or-never with those, and I need to try them all but they don't all stay in my collection. This one is a keeper! Love the radiating red ginger and red chili.  

Big win for this snek lover! It may be the orange blossom note that @doomsday_disco mentioned that makes this brick smell so floral to me. It's more a perfumey green start for me, but the clay of Life the Sculptor is there, too. I tested my blind bottle as soon as it arrived and then liberally dabbed on more for the evening. The other two recent snakes - Bouquet and In the Grass - didn't work well for me, but this is a delight! I am always surprised how much I enjoy a heavy scent like SO in steamy summertime, and I agree, the SO is not so obvious here, buried under clay and an earthy floral, so this snake wears exceptionally well for for summer, too. 

THIS conjured up one intense food memory!! Took me a minute to place it, but I finally got there. A college friend from Singapore's amazing yellow curry! He used to make it in mass quantities, his grandma's recipe, and I've never had another yellow curry like it since. But this is the distinct coconut milk base (he was super particular about no additives in his coco milk) with cellophane noodles. To me, this is a more savory than sweet coconut, and it's fantastic. I am also a huge fan of The Jeweled Spider, and this strikes me as a similar vibe, though far less complicated and much lighter than that blend. Still a tinge sweet, but nothing like the toasted coconut or sunscreen I often get from coconut notes. What a treat!

I have never smelled any previous versions of this - and I am now hooked on this. Simple and gorgeous. It's terribly surprising, because it strikes me as the best version of many notes I typically avoid. The bracing start, which I really enjoy, I'm assuming is the hemp note, reads to me like an herbal version of a leather note, which I typically avoid but I really dig it here, almost minty. My first impression leans in the direction of a cologne vibe, like Berlin Girls or Fem Dom.  There's a hint of a dirt note at the beginning, too, which I also usually avoid, but here it's minerally and I can't stop sniffing it. The first hour or so this reminded me a lot of the Ira bath oil, which is powerful and compelling in the same way as RR here. Maybe 'compelling' is the best overall word for it. It mellows out in about an hour to the most wonderfully wearable patch and vanilla. The final version is so alluring, I keep swooning over my own damn wrist and reaching for this bottle for all occasions. I am not one to buy backups - I've only ever even considered it once before - but I'm thinking I might need a spare bottle of this treasure. 

I just adore this! This has been a no-brainer go-to in sweltering & humid summer. I have tried the lab's tomato leaf note, and I know it's not listed here, but THIS is the tomato leaf note I have been dreaming of! I can smell the fuzz on the vines I can't really say I pick out any of the notes as listed, but the vegetables concept is legit here. Watery green - but not like Irish Spring fresh aquatic, this is more a chlorophyll of tender stems green. And surprisingly sweet! Like the sweet green of The Last Unicorn, which I always imagined to be sealed by the wild lettuce note, and I don't often come across. Or the cucumber in Sturgeon Moon. I would put this in camp with those two and Sirene Medievale, all my favorite wonderfully fresh & green summer scents. Just delightful. Upgraded my decant to full size and wear it A LOT. The sillage isn't terribly long, but I don't care. LOVE. Need to smell this and smell like this in the sweaty summer.  

It did! It arrived, got pored over, picked through, added to, and is ready to send on its next journey! Should be out early this week. 

HOW does the Lab make things smell wet?? I don't get it, but I also don't need to understand it to appreciate it. This is beautiful. It's not salt that's doing it, nor is it what i imagine when I think of 'aquatic' smells. It's more like the wet quality of The Last Unicorn or the most recent Sturgeon Moon. I imagine that's the wild lettuce in the former, akin to the 'sweet fresh water' in the latter. Dunno. And I wouldn't call this a green or blue scent as I normally think of those. The watery quality keeps the floral and herbal notes from feeling too heavy for hair. Nailed that diver standing seaside vibe. Delicate but not fussy. Gonna be perfect for summer hair. Getting a full bottle of this magic.

Came here to sing more praises. Radiant indeed! To me, this is a glowing, golden vanilla. Has an enveloping quality, similar to the incredible Peach & Red Bean Paste HG. Warm and sweet, but not warm with spices, more like an internal heat, or sitting in a beam of light absorbing heat. Bergamot (LOVE) gives it that extra ethereal quality. Lab's been knocking it out of the park with these hair glosses lately! Love my decant, definitely getting a big bottle of this treasure.

I would love to do this!

Love. I tried Seventeeth (soapy?) and Thirteenth (didn't expect so much mint) but this one here is for me! First test was no nutmeg just very cinnamony, and i worried because while I love cinnamon, it gives me the burns. And very pleasantly bitter chocolate. No burns! Wrists are clear! Second test was little cinnamon, more gloriously musky. Almost a wooly patchouli. Could've sworn it was a leathery Snake Oil (really one of the rare situations where leather works for me). Third test - i'm picking up the mysterious cumin now, too! It reminds me a bit of The Jeweled Spider, which I adore. This is like a wintery version. Bitter chocolate & toasted spices. Little dirty, nasty black musk, love, borderline work inappropriate but I would probably still do it. I smell so intriguing! Wonderful. 

I am just thrilled that this came back in 2024. I hoarded imps in 2018, this is such a wonderful, cozy lavender, one of my all favorite lavender blends. Starts out herbal & dry but warms into a soft, sweet lavender.

Got my 2 again in 2024 and wasn't 100% confident I would be giving away my second (wrong of me, I know, but as I said, I hoard)... attended a dear friend's service for her mom who just passed and knew exactly what to do with the second. Thanks again, Lab, for being so thoughtful & generous with us and, in turn, our friends & family.

@Teamama it's not just you! I tested a decant from a circle. My bottle did not smell like chocolate. Sprayed, however, that is definitely mint chip!! It's fantastic! I am a Don't Lick It fan - extra sweet version. I am also a mint chocolate chip fan - my fave flavor! This HG delivered the bracing-but-sweet mint blast plus chocolate rather than vanilla. ADORE! The mint doesn't last too long, as per usual with the Lick It blends, just enough to get a good eye-opening, happy face huff. But that chocolate lingers! Several hours later, I could still smell it when I removed my stocking cap (stupid cold & snowy in the Midwest atm) and made my husband take a sniff. First thing he said? "Mmmmmmm chocolate! Like the GOOD candy chocolate." So, it is confirmed, not just me or you, something here is singing sweet mint chocolate candy, and it's fantastic. Just what I needed to add to my HG collection!

ETA: final drydown is not chocolate candy. it's COCOA PUFFS. spot-on mf*ing cocoa puffs. I can still smell them in the carpet where I misted this magical potion. so delicious.

Gorgeous. Love the Blake illustration to start. I was looking especially for frank, amber, and bay laurel. That's exactly what I got! This reminds me quite a bit of Citrine, which I also love, though this is a more savory, less citrusy blend than that, so I can justify having them both! It's got a beautiful warm glow, pleasantly bitter, and good throw. I will wear this to the office in late Summer & Fall and other times when I'm trying to give respectable, upstanding citizen. Going to upgrade from decant to bottle before the clock runs out on this Painting of the Month. 

This stuff is potent! I received a partial bottle as a frimp, which was awesome because I was very curious about this one. It's a great traditional fresh aquatic kind of smell - not particularly salty as I was hoping. Very blue-smelling. And from first whiff it struck me as a familiar scent... My husband thought it smelled like something you'd pick up at a fragrance counter, very 90s hip unisex. Not my typical style, but you never know, so I gave it a go. Welp. This is a dead-ringer for something my dad used to wear, therefore it's a no-go for me. Not that it's unpleasant! Not that my dad is unpleasant!! But it's so spot-on, I just feel like the dad of my teenage years is getting ready to go out for a date night with my mom, and that is not a scent I'm looking to have on my head. :P For better or worse, the scent is incredibly potent, and I only used a single spray - half the HG I normally use. Husband could smell me in the hallway with the door closed. I sprayed some Totality on top to try to smother it, but it still hung in there. If this scent is your jam, and I am certain it will have lots of love, this is a brilliant creation! Just very viscerally not for me due to personal associations.

I never would have chosen this for myself. Silk? Leather? Wine? So many things that I never would've expected to work for me. But I was frimped a sniffie and lo & behold this is wonderful stuff! Goes on sweet & fruity in a resin-y way, almost bubble gum, like Thieves Rosin. It's rich and sweet tart. It seems the dark fruits + frankincense + labdanum combo is a winner for me, because this reminds me of a lighter, more floral version of The Wish, which I also adore. I went ahead and ordered myself a bottle and thanked the frimper for the surprise. I LOVE being surprised! And this defied my expectations. It dries to a powdered sugar-y dark fruit incense. And none of my usual troublemakers are causing me any trouble here. At best, they blend with the versions that I love - leather with the frankincense make it aromatic, wine with the dried cherries give it that rich fruitiness, and silk with the rose petals makes it a sensuous floral. Gorgeous.

I love & collect black licorice blends. Same with grapefruit, my favorite citrus note! however... black licorice + grapefruit = celery?? Eventually faded to a chewy licorice candy, like I can almost see the yellow/green tooth marks in a bite of that good Australian licorice. Aniseed & molasses. I will have to give it a few more tries before coming to a final verdict on this one. 

Just adore this. I love citrus scents in the morning, and this is a great addition to my current selection. It is uniquely floral citrus - the violet is sweet and not at all soapy - and it lasts longer than most of my favorite citrus blends - including the grapefruit note! Wonderful and a must-have for me. Upgrading from a decant to a full size.

I just adore this. I was so sad there were no Liliths this year, as they are easily my favorite collection. But this will tide me over! Herbal lavender and sweet floral incense - nothing smoky, just really cozy and soft. It's got great, gentle, lasting waft of warm and snuggly lavender. I can't decide when I most enjoy wearing this - in the afternoon with a fuzzy sweater or at night to send me off to sleep. The name is really apt: close, like second skin, effortless and gracefully haunting. Wonderful & the most reached-for bottle I have right now.   

Put this on after swimming laps at the YMCA. Husband walked in the room when I got home and said - Ooh! Smells like candy in here! Life Savers! Red Life Savers!!

I have been searching for a way to overpower the chlorine aroma from the pool. Slathered this on immediately post-shower in place of lotion, and the clothes I wore afterwards still smell like delicious red candies. We have a winner!!  

I am just loving BPAL's honeyed red fruits scents! And this one with rose!!

The Triumph in My Song scents have been overwhelmingly winners for me, and this is no exception. On me, this is very rose, the kind I like, velvety and sweet right on the bush, not dried. The honey makes it extra resinous and rich, and the fruits give it yet another layer of sweet-tart sweetness. It ends on the red sandalwood, a nice lingering sweet incensey note. Really beautiful. Blind bottled like a freaking boss and patting myself on the back for it!

Well this is a win! Lemon marshmallow! No plastic!! Mellows out to faint sweet lemon with a little toastiness, not unlike Boozy Lemon Bars on me, but with sweet marshmallow cream rather than cookie.

Coconut! Not at all tropical. Cozy and snuggly. This actually reminds me of an old imp of Brown Jenkin that I've been hanging onto forever. I got myself a fresh big bottle of Brown Jenkin, because I love that imp so much, and I've been patiently waiting for it to age to the same point as that imp... It's taking forever, and I'm still enjoying the sweeter, more potent coconut for now, but this THIS is like fast forwarding to the aged version! Just what I wanted!

First bottle sniff was a bit rough - green banana acetone, to my nose. Super aromatic. But it ended dry, scratchy and a hint sweet, almost makes me think this has cocoa, but I think it's just the combination with coconut. I don't think I get any red currant so far, but this was a fairly fresh-from-the-mail test, and it's really nice as-is. Glad I went for this.

Oh boy oh boy this scent is a dream come true. It's like they took all the best parts of some of my favorites and rolled them into one magnificent blend! The rich, resinous fruits of Like the Very Gods or The Wish, plus the candy-sweet red musk of Heartshow, with an extra kick of spice from The Sky Quivered Red Like Flames of Fire HG. Up close, it's dry and toasty, red hot desert spice musk. But the waft is all honeyed fruit. Candied fruits, red musk, and pink spice. Gorgeous. Delicious. Tested it first thing in the morning, just a couple dabs on a wrist, and I could smell it all day while doing yardwork, under my gardening glove, above the sage bushes and the dirt. Exceptional. So glad I blind bottled this. It is love. 

This reminds me a lot of one of my favorite Labors of the Months: And I Wede My Corne Well I-Know. The cardamom is gorgeous and the balsam gives it a spicy even-greener kick. The honey sweetens it to an almost maple-like effect. Husband describes it as a honey-musk. And the patchouli gives it that cozy, scratchy wool feel. It's earthy-sweet, green not dirt, spicy warm, dry, rich and delicious. Love this. definitely a keeper!