rivetted

doesn't list a "fur" note, but it really does smell like cats to me. it's nice, but i can't stop smelling cats now? strange, better with other people's skin i think!

(maybe the label art is trying to tell me something!!) 😺 👀

this one's pretty great actually? sweet, bourbon vanilla, hay. i like it but i never seem to grab it to wear. i'll hold on to it & see how it goes over time though!

i really thought i'd like this one more? i actually quite like it in the bottle, but i think it's maybe too feminine for me, since i never seem to grab it to wear.

really intriguing scent. not too heavy. i don't think it's quite for me, but i stay curious about this one, as the notes puzzle me, like a rubiks cube that i can't quite figure out.

i'll be holding on to this for awhile to see what i think over time.

plus the label art is frickin awesome.

WOW this smells awesome!  i want to eat it???

but smelling foody really throws me off, so i think it's not for me.

really glad i got to smell this though! it's like bakery in a bottle ❤️ 

edited to add: honestly, even though i have a hard time imagining myself wearing this, i think that EVERYONE should try smelling this, an imp even - the scent experience alone is SO worth it. what a crazy, unique, and lovely little scent. 

i really hate foodie scents, and i can't get this one out of my head. it's worth it. oh it's so worth it. just try it, folks!

seems to be just fancy grass to me.

super fruity & pretty!

feels kind of too "foody" for me at the moment, so i don't think it's for me.

it's nice!

but for me, this is really similar to "Travelers Under A Tree Observed By Foxes" from the same collection, and I think I prefer Travelers! 

smells really nice! i actually think of silk when i smell this.

but it seems to be too faint for my skin chemistry. i wish it were stronger!

i'll age it, but if it doesn't get much stronger than this, then it won't work for me. oh well. 

this wasn't in my top picks at first, but once i tried wearing it, the scent gets stuck in my head. really lovely. plus i love foxes.

light, pleasant, calming. not "too light" of a scent to disappear in my skin chemistry though. 

a keeper for my collection!

I am really loving Sea Salt notes lately, and this is a new favorite.

Extremely wearable, feels fresh & wet. Probably the most wearable "Sea Salt" note that I have, and I've been collecting quite a few!

Definitely grab this if you'd like to check out more Sea Salt/aquatics

Crusted driftwood planks & clean, beachy, kelpy goodness. 

Edited 3 weeks later to add: 

After going on an adventure to find as many salty aquatics I could - & Out of 14 different perfume oils I have tried that listed Sea Salt as a note, Alien/Siren is my favorite one. Hands down, a great aquatic. If you like aquatics, definitely try this. 

This one is fresh in a way that I cannot quite describe, not crusty-old-salt-wood-planks - the "High-end-body-wash kind of aquatic" described above is probably the most apt description, although the "Sunken-ship's-laundry-room-got-covered-in-seaweed" is, y'know, not wrong? in a way? haha

this is one of the things i pick often when i'm fresh out of the shower, to add that "fresh from the beach" feel

i think i kinda love Kelp as a note!

Smells really lovely in the bottle; like fresh, wet, bath salt water. Stepping out of a bath tub soaked in epsom salts or lightly rosy bath bombs. Tears, maybe. 

Unfortunately, this seems to disappear entirely once on my skin, until it isn't even discernable. This happens immediately, no matter how much i've slathered on my arms.

I'll hold on to it to see if it ages into any strength, but so far I'm bummed that it just disappears so completely, and so quickly. 

WOW! Smoke! Oh my goodness I knew this one would be an instant winner. This scent gets stuck in my head. I will likely need a second bottle of this. Or a third. It's simply that beautiful. 

I love amber, and I was almost worried about the smoke, as I wasn't sure what kind of smoke it would play as.

This is the scent of the jacket you wore out all night to the bonfire (but you were standing upwind not downwind), mixed with strong ambers. Love.

This one is just so much more.... fruity ? than I expected. hah

The blackcurrant seems to be the strongest note I get from sniffing the bottle (smells very plummy & delicious)

The fruity notes do not play as "gourmand" however - this is very much an Elegant Perfume smell, of the Dark Elegant Plum variety with beautiful background florals.

I think I was hoping for more of an "aquatics" experience from this perfume based on the scent description (having recently learned that I love salty ocean aquatics), but it doesn't play as an aquatic to me at all. Just strong florals & fruits, very perfumey. 

it's quite lovely, really. Just not what I was expecting from it, so I haven't grabbed it very often yet. 

However, I'm very happy with it as a purchase, and glad to add it to my collection. 

Interested to see how it ages as well - it seems like it could get much darker over time.

I wasn't sure what to expect - I think I was surprised when I first smelled it because I thought there'd be so much more resiny/heaviness to this.

Smells light and citrusy at first, but it does actually have a lot of heavy depth to it.

Floral, but shockingly wearable in the daytime for me (I typically have a hard time wearing anything floral in the daytime)

Those bright citrus topnotes keep it very "daytime" & "active"

Never becomes soapy for me - as some floral/citrus blends can do. 

I feel like this is the daytime citrus blend I've been looking for - every time I try a new one, I am disappointed that it isn't this one. 

& so I keep returning to Alice. She is wonderful. A keeper in my collection.

Mmmmmm. Absolutely a wonderful beeswax & balsam scent. I almost feel like I smell sandalwood, but it's likely just the balsam?

I am liking how the beeswax feels "honeyed" without actually being that intense honey note. 

An almost subdued (but still strong scent) that feels very warm & wearable. 

the initial whiff i took of this bottle, straight out of the mail one week ago, felt un-blended, and a bit harsh still. i couldn't tell if i would like it yet, but i was curious.

it's been slowly growing on me, & after many sniffs from the bottle this week, curiousity struck. I tried it on finally this evening, and I love it.

this has been the best slow burn out of my box of shungas so far.

coy mermaid is somehow light, crisp, & refreshing, while also full of incense smells. The scent of the freshest incense that hasn't been burned yet. 

this is one of the first sandalwood scents i've found recently that actually smells strong - most of them i've found a bit too "tame," or "pale" maybe, as I typically like heavier scents.

this is a very wearable sandalwood, & feels feminine without being too floral or girly. 

really looking forward to wearing this more, & seeing how it ages. ❤️ 

Definitely candied sweet potato/yam.

This smells quite delicious, & although gourmands are not really my thing, I think I'll try holding on to this one for awhile - it may be something I enjoy wearing much more in the Fall.

I was so excited to smell this one after everyone's rave reviews here. 

Alas. 

I don't want to say I *hate it*, but there is some top-note in here that smells very pungent to me in a way I really dislike, immediately, so much so that I will not even dare try this on my skin.

There is *something* that is oddly banana-like to me, & I will say that I *hate* bananas.

I keep opening the bottle & smelling it again every so often hoping that the pungent note has left but it just does not go away for me, and it is seeming unlikely that it will.

Even though this does not work for me, I can smell the beauty that is underneath the note I dislike.

It makes me that much sadder to say that this one doesn't work for me, because if it weren't for that one note I dislike in it, it could be really lovely.

At least since everyone else seems to love it so much, I should be able to find this bottle a new loving home eventually! 

Edit::: many months later:::

this is just blending overall better.

this scent still isn't really for me, but i will say it's calmed down a lot & i get why a lot of people love it.

You may want to try out Discarded Sandal from this years Shungas!

Discarded Sandal: Beeswax, hinoki wood, Japanese black pine, juniper, tolu balsam, and muguet.

I think it is quite delicious.

The Witch/Strega may also be interesting to you - it doesn't list honey, though it has a sweetness to it. It's a personal favorite of mine.

The Witch/Strega: Leatherbound tomes and rose cream, flickering flames of twin ambers, and a cascade of shadows: black oud, teakwood, black beeswax, 13-year aged patchouli, cinnabar, balsam, sweet labdanum, tonka bean, and smoke.

Very beautiful while wet / in the bottle!

Fresh, bright, sharp citrus. Lovely.

On my skin, it turned into a soapy smell. A little disappointing.

I'll have to try this one again after it's aged a bit to see if there's any changes.

I'll have to agree with the above: wet, fruity, & steamy. 

There's a lot of sweetness to this, but it is overall a very clean & fresh smell.

I put it on last night straight out of the shower & proceeded to lounge around in a robe. It was perfect.

I kinda love the Bathhouse vibes of this collection, I feel like so many of these Shunga 2021 scents are reminiscent of a very expensive japanese spa (specifically thinking of the Kabuki in SF) and I am now falling in love with aquatics. Who knew I wanted to smell like a fancy bathhouse! I sure didn't. Maybe, I can even just imagine the massages now..

This is really refreshing. Like stepping out into cool night air. The sort of freshness you'd smell at an expensive spa. 

A hint of something that is peppery, with fresh wet river rocks & a trickling fountain, and a woodsy background with a slight apothecary/herbal smell.

I really adore Juniper, so this one was an easy win for me. 

Edited to add::: this has become my signature scent, my daily wear perfume. It's so incredibly easy to wear, I'm surprising myself with how often i reach for this one - especially with how many options i have! I really really adore this one, so so much more than i initially realized!!

I *love* the sea salt/body salt combo of this one. It plays like fresh salt air out of the bottle, with some background floral/woodsy notes.

I had to try nearly every Shunga '21, and this the second one I just had to try. Day 2 winner right here.

It does fade to a lightly salty skin-sweat scent after a few hours, but not a bad sweat / body odor type - more like the scent of a lover after a long day that you want to huff

It's a new favorite to add to my collection, as I do not have anything like this. It is both unique & lovely to smell (I also grew up by the coast, so there may be some nostalgia for me there!)

Edit update; i keep coming back to this one. It's delicious in a way that is extremely easy to wear, and feels almost sexual. Like sex on the beach vibes. I feel encrusted with ocean spray, a hot tanline, and sandy beachy curls

I have to admit, I ordered *nearly* every Shunga '21. Shunga-madness.

Cherry Blossom Vulva was the one I had to try first, right out of the mailbox. 

It is lovely & fresh, light but strong florals.

Cherry Blossom & Honeysuckle are the initial scents, and it fades into a beautiful Gardenia.

I usually do not wear florals in the daytime, but this one is great even for me (I usually wear heavier resiny/incenses)

Very springtime & bright, but not soapy/lotiony at all. Just Spring Blossom Freshness, right out of the bottle and on the skin.