Penance

Preconceived notions:

 

What's there not to like about the idea of this?  I love Snake Oil and I've been loving the Lab's gingerbread note for a while now (all these new Gingerbread Cotillion scents use a lovely gingerbread that's not quite the same as Gingerbread Poppet; it's softer, more of a spice cake gingerbread than a heavily gingered, almost lemony one.)

 

First sniff:

 

All I smell here is gingerbread.  Not too uncommon for the Gingerbread Cotillion scents.  I was hoping for more Snake Oil, especially since this is old enough for the SO to have aged a bit.  Hmmph.

 

Wet on skin:

Slightly sweeter than usual gingerbread.  I would have just guessed a little extra vanilla or something, not Snake Oil.  That's disappointing, since I was hoping to get a pretty equal amount of both.  This is pretty much all gingerbread, all the time.

 

Dry down:

 

At first, this is more or less the same as when it's wet, but the longer it dries down, the stronger the Snake Oil becomes until it turns a 180 and ends up being almost all Snake Oil, all the time.  There's some gingerbread spices in the background, which is lovely, but it's mostly Snake Oil.

 

Final verdict:

 

I was thinking about re-homing this one just because I didn't feel like I needed another similar sweetened gingerbread scent, but I'm thinking it's going to stay.  It's not too dimensional or complicated, but it does smell good!  It would be better with a more balanced approach between the gingerbread and Snake Oil, but I like it as is, too.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I hate the smell of actual coconut and typically avoid coconut-scented things, but now and then a scent with coconut will call my name.  This one did.  I'm digging the Lab's smoked vanilla note they've been using lately.  It's pretty great.  And I do like fig.  I've been reading the reviews, though, and I'm not sure that this is going to really be for me.

 

First sniff:

 

So much coconut!  It's a very creamy coconut, very smooth, almost buttery.  The smoked vanilla just adds a bit of sweetness, no appreciable smokiness.  The fig is there, but that's just it.  It's...there.  It doesn't really have much of a presence.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Coconut, coconut and more coconut.  It's a coconut meat scent on me.  Very fresh, sort of creamy.  A little bit sunscreen-y in a good way.  I don't get any vanilla or fig, really.  Just coconut. 

 

Dry down:

 

The vanilla makes a comeback in the form of a sweetness in the background that melds with the creaminess of the coconut.  The fig just adds a faint fruitiness that's hard to pin down.  The whole thing reads kind of palleta-meets-lotion.  It's not perfumey or gourmand (though it is foody, in the sense that all three notes are foods), but it kind of has vibes of both creamy coconut ice pop and a trendy-but-mass-friendly body lotion/shampoo/body wash.

 

The final verdict:

 

I can totally see the Bath and Body Works comparisons, though this is better than any BBW scent could ever dream of being.  This is one of those "safe" scents that strays too close to mainstream perfume to really be something I really enjoy.  I feel like this could be at home at any bath and body store. 

It's nice, but not special.  Maybe aging will bring out more depth.  I'm not sure if it's worth it to find out, though.  It's a nice scent, just not one I necessarily need in an already over-full collection.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab (pretty well aged at this point)

 

Preconceived notions:

 

How could I not love this?  There's literally nothing here not to love.  I can't imagine this going wrong in any way.

 

First sniff:

 

Mmm, patchouli, sweetened by vanilla bean.  This is a particularly nice patchouli note.  Nice and deep, but not too overly "dirty" smelling.  The vanilla bean gives it a smooth, creaminess.  The hemp I can't smell (I had the same issue with Banshee Beat; in fact, this reminds me of BB in ways).  No cannabis, either, and I know the smell of cannabis.  That's a little disappointing because I wanted a weed and patchouli perfume!

 

Wet on skin:

 

Same as in the bottle.  It actually smells a lot like Banshee Beat did on me, which isn't wonderful, but not bad, either.  I like it, but it's not as amazing on me as I thought it would be, given the notes.

 

Dry down:

 

Sweet patchouli-vanilla with the same background note that I can't quite place from Banshee Beat.  That has to be the hemp, though it doesn't smell like hemp to my nose.

 

The bottom line:

 

This is lovely, but I was really hoping for something much more "hippie-ish," especially given the notes, but I do like this.  I'll be keeping my bottle, but I'm not sure I need a backup.

If you like Banshee Beat / Revenant Rhythm and can't find them, maybe give this a shot.  It's not the same, but they feel similar to me.  Might be worth a try!

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I love tea and tea scents and incense is always one of the safest of safe bet note families on me, especially in BPAL scents.  Cocoa dust?  I remain neutral at the moment.  I'm expecting this to be non-gourmand/foody since when I think cocoa dust, I think of the smell of a freshly opened canister of cocoa powder.  Dusty, dry in a way that sucks the moisture out of the air, slightly bitter...definitely not foody.  I'm curious to see how the three will play together.

 

First sniff:

 

I've been letting this one set for a while, since I figured, being a chocolate scent, that it would need some extra time to meld together.  Opening up the bottle, I first get something in a vaguely similar plane to Black Temple Buelesque Group, but only in that both are chocolate scents that aren't foody, but instead are built on a backbone of something unexpected (incense and black tea here, as opposed to tobacco and black musk with BTBG).  Interesting.

 

Wet on skin:

Wasn't there chocolate in here?  There's no cocoa to be found within a millisecond of this hitting my skin.  The dustiness stays, but the cocoa scent disappears, leaving very strong, assertive, dry incense.  I'm wondering if aging will bring out the cocoa more.

 

Drydown:

 

The cocoa dust never does come back.  Instead, I'm left with Darjeeling Tea and Incense.  The incense is like if Rocky Mudd's found religion and held mass in their stores.  The tea is only there as the very fainest of whispers, like someone boiled a pot of tea in the next room over and carried it past me very briefly.  I guess, really, it reads as Incense at this point.  Just incense.

 

The verdict:

 

I never thought I'd be a little disappointed in such an incense-heavy scent.  I adore incense!  I'm all about the incense!  Any kind of incense.  And it's good here.  It is.  It's just lacking the other two notes that I was expecting, especially the cocoa dust.  In the bottle, it added an intriguing top layer.  I was hoping that when I put it on, the tea and incense would come out a little more equally instead of this being all incense, all the time.

Don't get me wrong.  It smells nice.  But I've got a ton of incense scents, most with more depth than this.  I'll hold onto it to see what aging does, but this one might be a rare strike out among the duets and menages a trois.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I'm not really sure why I'm trying this one other than it being so popular.  And because of my surprising love of Midway, which I hear is somewhat similar. 

 

The notes give me pause, though.  I can get on board with spun sugar and even meringue, but the Lab's strawberry and sweet cherry notes tend to do me dirty and smell fake and cloying.  As for the rainbow candies, I'm not really a fan of most foody scents, especially candy ones, but I'll reserve judgment for now.

 

First sniff:

 

I can definitely see the Midway comparisons!  This is definitely "pinker," somehow.  I don't smell candies or strawberry or cherry or meringue...or anything in here.  At least not specifically. 

 

This is so well blended that what I'm getting is something between a walk through a carnival's food trucks and Pink Sugar (the perfume).  

 

Wet on skin:

 

This immediately becomes sweeter, if that's possible, as soon as it hits my skin.  It's not cloying, but it's like walking through a cloud of multi-colored, multi-flavored cotton candy.

 

Dry down:

 

Sort of a cross between the bottle smell and wet on my skin.  The fruit notes come out and play, but they just add depth to the spun sugar.  It's basically a fruitier Midway, minus the funnel cake note Midway has.

 

The verdict:

 

I really like this!  I won't be needing another bottle, since I've got Midway, too.  But this is definitely a keeper!

 

I love it when a scent that I'm not expecting to like turns out to be a winner and Velvet Unicorn is the newest addition to that list.

ETA: The very, very late dry down on this one (I mean HOURS after application), I'm getting musky vanilla.  Slightly powdery, but not in a baby powder or old lady sort of way.  Hard to describe, but very pretty and, again, unexpected.  This unicorn is full of secrets. 🦄

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab.  I've had this one for quite a while and I'm just now reviewing it.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I don't know what to expect here, other than probably blueberry, because what else would you use to make a scent that I'm thinking is pretty likely to smell "blue"?  There were no reviews when I bought or tested this, so I went in blind, not knowing what to expect. 

 

This review is uninfluenced by those above, since they didn't exist when I originally wrote down my notes when I first tried this.

 

First sniff:

 

All I get is blueberry here.  It's very similar, if not the same as, the blueberry note in Bones Trombone and/or Blueberry Sufganiyot (can never tell if there's more than one Lab blueberry note; to me all Lab blueberry smells the same).  If there's something else here, which there must be, I can't smell it.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Fruity in a sugary, pie filling sort of way, but somehow doesn't feel like a foody scent.  There's maybe a touch of violet here?  Or it could be amber instead.  They both go a bit powdery on my skin and it doesn't smell floral.

 

Dry down:

 

As Smurf Essence dries, I get a little bit of a musky scent coming out.  Sort of a natural skin smell or a soft fur like in Ivanushka, something warm, soft and subtle.  There's a faint powderiness, that I'm still undecided on.  I'm leaning towards amber since I'm not reading this as floral, just sort of powdery.

 

The final verdict:

 

This was one of those bottles that I spend a lot on without knowing anything about, other than the name, and I'm glad I bought it, even though I won't ever need another bottle. 

 

Smurf Essence is a little bit one-dimensional since the blueberry is so strong, but it's still got character.  The combo of blueberry and skin/fur(?) and amber/violets does fit in with what I might imagine the Smurf's village to smell like. 

 

Origin:

 

5mL bought secondhand

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I love the smell of clove cigarettes and I've longed for one from the Lab since I first started buying in 2004.  I'm beyond excited to try this!

 

First sniff:

 

Hoo, baby!  That is one strong scent!  It's not exactly the smell of actual clove cigarettes, but it's damn close.  I really, really like this so far.

 

Wet on skin:

 

I only put on dab and this stuff is strong.  Like crazy strong.  My husband could smell it from across the room.  Awesome!

 

The scent from the bottle doesn't change at all when I put it on.  Still a very nearly authentic kretek scent.  So good!

 

Dry down:

 

This stuff was very strong for a couple of hours and then slowly faded away.  But that was just one tiny dab.  Super stable, too.  No real change from bottle to skin to dry down.

 

The final verdict:

 

I have a couple other BPAL scents that (at least on me) have a nice clove cigarette smell (Velvet Bandito and Morven, the Strong Man), but Clove Cigarette is the closest of the three. 

 

I love all of them, but this one's the best of the bunch for an authentic smell (the other two aren't supposed to smell like clove cigarettes, anyway, so I guess that's not a surprise).

 

I'm sad I only have one bottle.  This one's worthy of a backup or two...or five. 😄

 

 

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab

 

Preconceived notions:

 

Truthfully, I've yet to encounter a BPAL strawberry scent that doesn't make me think of that strawberry-flavored pie filling gel that comes (or came, now sure if it even exists anymore) in plastic bags that you squeeze out.  Sort of a super sweet, artificial, cloying smell.

 

So I'm not expecting to like this, but I really want to because I love the smell of fresh strawberries!

 

In the bottle:

 

Yeah, that's the infamous Lab strawberry.  I don't get any green at all.  Just artificial pie filling gel.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Once I put it on, it becomes more realistic, with a tiny hint of green leaves and stem.

 

Dry down:

 

Mostly cloying, artificial strawberry again with just a hint of green.

 

The final verdict:

 

Fruity and fun, but artificial in a candy/syrup sort of way.  A bit childish.  Definitely needs to be worn on skin for me.

Origin:

5mL from the Lab

 

Preconceived notions:

 

There's a small part of me that's wondering why I ordered this...what I'm hoping to accomplish here.  I love the Lab's gingerbread scents (Gingerbread Sin is a particular favorite) and I like vanilla bean just fine.  Honey is something I'm indifferent to for the most part, but I'm curious about the "honey dust" here.  I've seen/tasted/smelled something with a similar name before, but I'm not sure if that's what I should be expecting here.  Honestly, I guess I'm just sort of expecting to get extra sweet gingerbread, now that I'm really thinking about it.

First sniff:

When I got this fresh in the mail, it was like someone took Gingerbread Poppet and toned down the intense spiciness.  That was it.  No honey that I could smell and a slight sweetness from the vanilla bean if anything.  After letting it set, the honey and vanilla bean do come out more, but the "toned-down Gingerbread Poppet" vibe I was getting continues.

Wet on skin:

Starting to get some honey here, but it's not like the "honey dust" I encountered in the past.  It's like regular honey: syrup.  But it's mostly gingerbread still.

Dry down:

The honey syrup turned into honey dust!  Depending on how heavily I applied this (some areas got more than others), I got almost a good balance between all three notes (though the vanilla bean sort of camouflaged itself a little bit behind the other two notes, adding a little sweetness to each without really standing out as vanilla) or nothing but a very faint hint of honey dust.  This one needs to be applied heavier than a lot of my other scents, but I wouldn't call it a truly light scent, either.  It didn't hang around particularly great, but it didn't entirely disappear, either.

The bottom line:

 

I like this.  I do.  But I have to seriously contemplate whether my collection has a place for a(n essentially) "sweetened" gingerbread scent when I already have a plain gingerbread scent and a couple others that are more complex.  I don't have any sweet single notes to layer over my others so for now it stays, I think.  TIme will tell if it's a long-term relationship.
 

Origins:

 

5mL bought second-hand, unknown age.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I'm not a big fan of honey, but I do love me some patchouli.  I'm hoping this is much heavier on the patchouli than the honey.  Liking the idea of a really dirty, dark patchouli with a smear of honey sweetness more and more the more I think of it, at least in theory.  We shall see!

 

First sniff:

Oh!  That's nice!  Definitely the deep, dark, dirty patchouli I love the most, but there's a rich, syrupy without being candy-like or cloying, lovely sweetness here.  The honey really anchors it and gives it some extra warmth.

Wet on skin:

Pretty much the same as in the bottle, maybe a little more honey-leaning?  My skin tends to really love to hold onto honey, so it could just be my skin chemistry already starting to work it's magic.  Or Owl Moon is just heavier on the honey when on the skin in general.

Dry down:

Pretty much 50/50 very dark patchouli and very golden honey.  I'm amazed there's no cloying undertone here.  Honey is so sickly sweet to me so much of the time, but not here.  It blends so beautifully with the patchouli that the two almost smell like one note, a sultry sweet lush darkness that's somehow snuggly and sexy at the same time. 

The scent hangs very close to my skin and has great staying power.  It even made it through a shower, though Irish Spring doesn't quite compliment it.  

The bottom line:

I'm glad I gave this one a shot.  I'm sure it'll get even more lovely with age as the patchouli deepens and the honey melds further and further with it.

Origin:

 

5mL from OlfactoryMaven bought on LJ

 

Preconceived notions:

 

The idea of this scent intrigued me when it was announced, but I didn't want to deal with the hullabaloo of finding an angel to get me a bottle and wrote it off as something I didn't need under the circumstances. I kept thinking about it, though. I read the reviews later and saw how many people either disliked it or didn't find it wearable and should have been put off, but decided to take a gamble anyway, because that's how I roll with BPAL a lot of the time.

 

First sniff:

 

I definitely see where the reviews are coming from. This is acrid and a little industrial, but definitely inky and a little resinous. I can see why people find this off-putting, but I keep coming back for another sniff. Strange.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Not acrid, but still somewhat harsh. Very true ink scent with hints of what smells like cumin and frankincense. It sounds like a bizarre scent and it kind of is, but it's honestly not as strange in person as it is "on paper" (which conjures up images of a pen and ink illustrator eating curry in a church).

 

Dry down:

 

Ink for sure. Not ballpoint pen ink, either, and not copier toner. It's been so long since I've smelled real india ink that I can't quite remember exactly what it smells like, but this definitely isn't your "standard" everyday ink. The cumin has eased up noticeably, but it's still there and the resinous vibe has gotten slightly heavier with parchment (or some sort of heavy stock drawing paper, maybe, not printer/copier paper) in the background.

 

The bottom line:

 

Completely unique and strangely awesome in that "only the Lab could pull this off" sort of way. My mom hated this (although she did agree that it was very unique and that it smelled like some sort of art ink), but I actually really like it. It's definitely not a crowd-pleaser of a scent, but neither is Rivet.Goth and it's a winner for me, too. I wear perfume for me, not for anyone else, so I'll happily wear India Ink even though I may not be popular for doing it.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab (eBay) and a decant (the basis for my review) from...somewhere. Keep in mind that both were well-aged by the time I got them, so my review isn't of the fresh-from-the-Lab scent.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I've had a decant of this one for quite a while and it took me a long time to get around to testing it. not entirely sure why. Maybe because leather (in perfume) and I have a complicated history (it's always had the tendency to be awesome or make me nauseous and that's even more the case since I went vegan a few years ago) or maybe because of the herbs and gravel mentioned in the description. I'm not a big fan of herb scents and gravel/rocks really don't work for me in Lab scents. There's something harsh about them to my nose and they tend to ruin otherwise awesome scents.

 

I'm hoping to love this because the Lab's leather is a hit more often than it's a miss and I love pipe tobacco and resins. Hopefully the pros will outweigh the cons.

 

First sniff:

 

Somewhat sharp leather, like polished but beaten up shoes, complete with a little bit of shoe polish (which is undoubtedly the chemical note that so many of us get from some of the Lab's leather scents), with hints of herbs and tobacco. So far, so good, although I hope the sharpness dies down.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Softer leather mixed with pipe tobacco and resins. I'm not sure what resins are here. It smells a bit like copal. There's a sweetness to the scent, but it's not just coming from the resins, it's in the tobacco, too. I'm not getting any dust or gravel, which is fine because I'm not a fan of either.

 

Dry down:

 

The Traveller dries down into the most beautiful leather/resin/tobacco scent. Seriously, so good!

 

It's masculine, but most definitely not unwearable for the ladies (in case that's not obvious since I'm wearing it and loving it). It makes me think more of Victorian smoking rooms than weary travelers with dusty shoes. It's soft, musky, leathery, resinous, sweet and a little smoky. Definitely a winner.

 

I only wish that I'd not been on my BPAL hiatus when this came out so that I could have bought a couple of backup bottles (assuming I'd been brave enough to try it in spite of the gravel, dust and herbs and the possibility that it would have been too sharp for me when it was freshly made). I'm just glad I managed to find a bottle because my decant won't last long.

Origin:

5mL from the Lab.

Preconceived notions:

There were a handful of ParaNorman scents I wanted to try when they were released, but had to narrow it down to one for budget reasons. Hippie Ghost sounded right up my alley. I love patchouli, suede and smoke. The only thing concerning me here is the "peasant blouse" part. Linen (I assume it's probably a linen-type note) and I don't always get along so well. It can be too harsh to my nose, so I'm hoping it's a soft, background note and not a main one.

First sniff:

Lighter than I expected, but I guess I should have anticipated that from a "ghost" scent!

I'm getting everything here. Soft, worn linen (not harsh at all and not super clean, either...sort of a musty linen, but not in a bad way), patchouli (not the super dirty kind, but definitely patchouli all the same), a bit of suede and a tiny touch of smoke. It's a nostgalic sort of scent. More antique store than headshop.

Wet on skin:

My skin loves linen (even when I don't) and it's staying true to form here, amping up the peasant blouse note immediately and making this all about the fabric as soon as it hits my skin. Usually, that tones down quickly, though, so I'm not too worried. I'm still getting hints of the other notes, but this is screamingly linen-like right now.

Drydown:

Mmm, better. The linen really dies down (and pretty quickly, too) and I'm left with a really evocative scent. It's soft, ethereal and smoky with an earthiness from the patchouli and a little bit of soft suede. It still makes me think antique store (although I suppose it should be a vintage clothing store, it has that antique store smell to me) and not headshop, but I'm really liking it. The smoke is just a tiny bit harsh at times, but it comes and goes and I really can't complain.

The bottom line:

Ideally, I would have loved something more headshop-ish and more intense (although I should have expected what I got since it is a "ghost" scent), but I really like Hippie Ghost anyway. It's subtle and should go over well with people who don't normally love patchouli scents.

Origin:

 

2 x 5mL from the Lab. Thought I only ordered one (trying to be good in spite of my long-running history of immediately ordering at least 2 of any LE that sounds good), but apparently old habits are hard to break and I actually ordered two.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I'm so glad the single notes have made a comeback! I've been waiting, hoping that something my alley would make an appearance. I've got bottles of Sweet Clove, Redwood, Red Mysore Sandalwood and Blue Lilac from the first go-round and love them. I only wish I'd gotten a few other scents before they disappeared, so I'm glad I've got another chance to try some more out.

 

There was a time when I would have hated this. I can say that without even smelling it, sad as that is. I used to hate musk. And I do mean hate. Not as much as I hate almond or lotus or bubblegum or (most) flowers, but hate is still the right word. But I've learned to love musk and this sounds awesome even though I'm not sure what to expect. I'm a huge fan of red musk, so I'm hoping Siberian musk is similar, but it should be a hit regardless. There are very few types of musk that I don't care for, so this should be a safe choice.

 

First sniff:

 

Yum! Definitely on the more animalic side (which would have sent me running back when I was first getting into BPAL many moons ago), but still very wearable. It doesn't have that cat pee smell that puts me off civet, but it's still got a wildness to it. I'd say this is in the same family as red musk, although the two are different. This is like a less sweet, more "animal" version of red musk. I can tell a little is going to go a long way.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Pretty true to the bottle scent. No sudden "Hey, I'm cat pee!" vibe coming out of left field, which is a relief. My skin sometimes likes to do things like that. I only put on a tiny dab to test and I can easily smell it wafting up from my inner elbow!

 

Dry down:

 

Sexy, sweaty, dirty musky goodness. This is a down and dirty scent. It stays pretty stable from bottle to drydown, although it looses a bit of its pungency as it dries. That's not a bad thing, though. It's still a dirty musk, but it's not quite so aggressive as it is when its wet. There's something about this that puts me in mind of Snake Oil (minus the vanilla and spices I get from SO, particularly once its aged), so I'm with the people who suspect that this is one of the secret ingredients.

 

The bottom line:

 

I'm glad I accidentally got two bottles of this because I love it! I'm happy to wear a single note as perfume on its own, so Siberian Musk will be getting plenty of wear that way, but I can also see it layering beautifully. Snake Oil would be a natural partner for Siberian Musk, but I think there are going to be quite a few other scents in my (admittedly massive) collection that it would play nicely with.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I immediately put Uncle Matt on my "to try" list as soon as I read the ingredients. There was a time where I never would have tried this since I hated both chocolate and (most) fruit scents, but since my taste in scents has expanded, Uncle Matt was sounding pretty good. I've never smelled quince but I like fig and pear. Dark chocolate is my favorite type of chocolate as perfume and vanilla is usually a winner. I'm hopeful that this one's going to work, especially since I jumped right into a bottle instead of tracking down a decant.

 

First sniff:

 

Chocolatey in that rich, cocoa-ish dark chocolate way. I also get the vanilla, which adds a gentle sweetness and hints of the fig (rich, dark, bordering on cloying, but not in a bad way) and pear (sweet, light and subtle). I think maybe I smell the quince, but it could just be the pear. There's something almost like a cross between pear and apple lurking somewhere in there. Quince, is that you?

 

Wet on skin:

 

Uncle Matt smells the same on me as in the bottle for about 5 seconds and then starts to change rapidly. I'm guessing what I start smelling has to be the quince, because it's not any of the other notes. It has a sort of cough syrup smell to it (weirdly enough, it smells like prescription cough syrup, not the over the counter variety...I can't described the difference, but to me they're not the same creature), which I wasn't anticipating. I have a feeling it's my skin chemistry doing strange things to either the quince or some combination of the other notes.

 

Dry down:

 

Thankfully, the cough syrup phase doesn't last very long. Once it disappears, I'm left with a surprisingly soft chocolate and vanilla scent (comforting and sweet without being truly foody to my nose) with sweet, soft fruits in the background. Most of the fig disappears and it turns into a sort of golden apple/pear scent with only a tiny bit of the fig haging around in the far background.

 

The bottom line:

 

I like this one. It's not quite what I was anticipating (I was thinking it would be more like the box of chocolates scents; foody in an unexpected way), but it's nice all the same. I'm actually more apt to wear this than if it was a genuinely foody scent since I'm not a big gourmand fan (with some exceptions), so I can't complain about it going a different direction.

Origin:

 

5mL bought on LJ.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I'm beyond excited about La Mano del Destino. I adore patchouli, love tobacco and like virtually every other note here. The only things I'm unsure about are the unknowns that I've never smelled before: copaiba and pao d'arco. I did a little bit of reading online and it looks like both of those should work for me, though, so I've got very high hopes for this one.

 

First sniff:

 

Dark, earthy patchouli and something that smells almost like redwood mixed with cedar, which must be the copaiba. There's a faint hint of chocolate here, too, but it's not foody. It just adds a little mode depth to the scent. So far, so good!

 

Wet on skin:

 

Pretty much the same as in the bottle, only now I get a tiny touch of cinnamon in addition to the patchouli, wood and cacao. It's a dark, gender neutral scent.

 

Dry down:

 

Love!

 

Earthy patchouli, rich wood, tobacco (it smells like a cigar box with the combination of wood and tobacco) and hints of cinnamon, chocolate and vanilla. It's not foody in the slightest, but the chocolate, cinnamon and vanilla add some depth and complexity to the patchouli, wood and tobacco.

 

The bottom line:

 

I absolutely love this, although I can see patchouli-haters...well...hating this. It's definitely heavy on the patchouli (and on the copaiba). Luckily, that's very much my sort of thing, so I'm thrilled with this one and I'll definitely be getting backups before La Mano del Destino disappears.

 

This is what I think of as an "old school BPAL" scent because it makes me think of the scents I tried when I was first getting into BPAL in 2004. It's got that "BPAL Smell™" to it, which I love.

Origin:

 

Partial 5mL bought on LiveJournal. I originally had a bottle I received in the Inquisition but sold it years ago, so this is a retest of an aged bottle.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this, but evidently I haven't. In all honesty, I don't remember what Trick #2 smells like, just that I liked it back in 2006, but not enough to keep my bottle, even though it was the scent I wanted the most of the four possibilities.

 

There are good notes and bad notes here, but for the most part, Trick #2 is right up my alley. I love patchouli and tobacco and I like vanilla, pink pepper (in moderation), oak and pine pitch. The berries and pomegranate could go either way. Pomegranate tends to smell like gummy bears on me, but I can wear Mme. Moriarty without a problem, so since Trick #2 has some similar notes, I'm hoping that it'll go the same way.

 

First sniff:

 

Dark, woody and slightly sweet. I'm getting the oak first and foremost, then tobacco and vanilla and a hint of dark red fruit. It's a dark, foreboding sort of scent. And that's just the sort of thing I like.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Trick #2 goes through a very short stage where it goes slightly funky on me, just like Mme. Moriarty does (although Mme. Moriarty stops doing that with a few years aging and Trick is more than a few years old at this point), but then it steers itself back on track and I get a very autumnal scent that makes me think of burning leaves, oak trees and the faint scent of the last of the year's fruits wafting on a breeze.

 

Dry down:

 

Honestly, this is what I want Samhain to smell like, as weird as that is, considering that they don't share many notes. Trick #2 is one of the Halloween-iest Halloween scents I've come across, which I wouldn't have expected from the notes.

 

It's slightly sinister smelling, an weirdly atmospheric. It's like bobbing for pomegranates in a spooky forest mixed with dark, rich, non-foody vanilla.

 

The bottom line:

 

I really like Trick #2 and I'm glad I gave it another try.

 

Now I'm wishing I hadn't gotten rid of my first bottle because I'm a slatherer and I hate having to ration scents I love.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

This is one of those scents that got me more and more excited as I read my way through the notes. I was almost dreading a death note towards the end, but at the same time I was mentally screaming "Yes! Yes! YES!" All but one note in here is something that I either like or flat out love. The only thing I'm concerned about here is the hylichrysum. I don't generally do florals, but I've never tried sunflower and somehow I've got this idea in my head that it's going to be golden and lovely and somehow work for me. It's not going to ruin Hygeia for me. I know it.

 

First sniff:

 

Love in a bottle. This is like a softer, gentler version of aged Scherezade to my nose. It's got the sort of incensey red musk vibe that I get from Scherezade, but more rounded smelling somehow. I'm definitely getting the red musk, amber, sandalwood and incense and it seems like everything else is sort of swirling around in the background.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Lovely. Soft, musky and incensey. This is one of those "made for me" scents that the Lab does oh so well. I don't get any florals here, so they're apparently meshing seamlessly with the other notes instead of standing out on their own.

 

Dry down:

 

This is going in the favorites box. Yes, it's similar to Scherezade, but that's never stopped me before and it won't stop me now. Hygeia is a gorgeous, golden-amber-red scent that smells exotic and sensual, but down to earth. I love it.

 

The bottom line:

 

I'll be buying multiples of this one. No question. It's definitely in the same family as Scherezade, but less assertive and much smoother smeling. And the fact that the proceeds are going to a good cause is the icing on the cake.

I'm having a similar issue, findaghost, but with another scent.

 

I've recently gotten two frimps of Tamora from the Lab (in two separate orders a couple of weeks apart). I was planning on ordering a bottle after receiving my first one, but now I'm waffling because they're noticeably different.

 

One (the first one I received and the one I really like) is a medium-deep amber color and smells like sweet vanilla amber with a touch of fruity florals. The other is a pale gold color and smells much stronger on the peach blossom. I remember that I wasn't thrilled with Tamora the first time I tried it (years ago), but I don't remember why. I had assumed it was because amber wasn't one of my favorite notes back then (it turned sour), but maybe it was because I got one of the golden/fruity imps instead of the darker/amber-vanilla imps.

 

Could it be an aging issue? Maybe, if the Lab happened to throw in a well-aged imp the first time around and a fresh one the second time. I tend to think it's more likely to be a batch variation, but I obviously don't know that for a fact.

 

I'm nervous about ordering a bottle now.

I agree that they're not very similar at all.

 

Red Lace was a light, generically sweet, powdery red fruit scent with cotton and Mme. Moriarty is darker (it starts out relatively light, but still darker than Red Lace, and then gets much richer and deeper as it ages) and deeper. I didn't get any patchouli at all from Red Lace and I don't really get an identifiable patchouli note, but it does add a darkness to the scent and I can tell its there.

Origin:

 

5mL bought second-hand. I don't remember who I got it from, but I do know that I got it very cheap, which is why I took a chance on it.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I bought this before finding out that Battenberg cake has almond in it. Unfortunately, I loathe the smell of almond. Almond oil in perfume makes me horribly nauseous, so I'm nervous about trying this one out, although I've been told that the almond in this is virtually non-existent. I'm hoping that's the case. Everything else sounds...well, interesting. I'm not really going to say it sounds good, because I can't really imagine a perfume that smells like cucumber sandwiches and Earl Grey tea. It doesn't sound bad, either. Definitely interesting.

 

First sniff:

 

Foody, but not in an overpowering or cloying way. Teatime in Roswell is very mild. I get soft, faint cucumber, light cake and just a touch of tea. It's almost clean smelling in the way that cucumber-melon scents smell clean, not in a soapy way.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Uh-oh, is that almond I smell? I do believe it is.

 

It's faint and it's on the marzipan end of the spectrum (which means it's more tolerable than flat-out, in-your-face almond, but still not something I'm going to enjoy smelling), but it's there. I don't get cucumber or tea at this point. Instead, it's all light, white cake with marzipan filling. It's still a mild, gentle scent. I can see this being a great scent for a child or for an adult who can't or doesn't want to wear a strong scent but wants to smell nice.

 

Dry down:

 

Thank God, the almond has faded quite a bit. It's still there, but it's a lot like the pseudo-marzipan note in Snow White. It adds a touch of marzipan-like sweetness without crossing the line into true almond territory. Mainly, what I'm getting is a mishmosh of buttered bread (which is like a lighter version of Bread-And-Butterfly), cucumber (adding a light, watery greenness) and a touch of white cake. It's a very pastel scent. Pale green, yellow and white. The tea is nowhere to be seen. This tea party is all about the food, not the drinks.

 

The bottom line:

 

This isn't the sort of scent I typically wear and it's not something I would wear everyday, but I have to say that I actually like it once it dries completely. I could do without the wet stage, but it doesn't last long and (thankfully) it doesn't trigger my nausea the way strong almond scents to. It's just not a scent I enjoy at that stage.

 

This isn't bad in the end, though. It somehow belongs in the same mental category as TKO for me. They both have a sort of "little girl's fantasy land" sort of thing going on, although I'm not sure how many little girls fantasize about eating cucumber sandwiches at their tea parties.

Origin:

 

5mL from the Lab.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I was so excited to see that the Lab had a cicada scent. I love cicacadas! The notes sound intriguing. I love the smell of tree sap, amber and moss) and I like hemp and rice milk, but hay is touch and go and I don't know how I'm going to feel about the acorn (that note in particular has me very curious), corn stalks (I love the smell of actual corn stalks, but I'm not sure how well it's going to translate into perfume for me) and almond blossoms (I despise almond; the scent of almond oil makes me nauseous, but I'm not sure about almond blossom).

 

But, the Will Call reviews have me worried. I don't want a foody scent and I don't want lots of almond. I want something plant-like and sappy. I have a feeling that I might regret buying this one, but I had to try it for myself since the notes sound so interesting and I love the idea of a cicada scent.

 

First sniff:

 

Uh-oh. Do not want. I sniffed this when I first got it in, recoiled and set it aside, thinking maybe it needed to settle. Opened it up to sniff it again today after giving it 10 days to rest and it's still the same. I'm not even entirely sure how to describe this. Nutty hay mixed with something weirdly cookie-like would be the best I can describe it, I think.

 

Wet on skin:

 

No better than in the bottle. In fact, I think I might like it even less at this point. There's something coming out that smells like hay only greener. I suppose it could be the corn stalks, but it doesn't smell like actual corn stalks to me. This is such a weird scent. Now, I don't have a problem with weird scents, but this one's weird in a way that makes my stomach turn a little.

 

Dry down:

 

I really should have listened to the Will Call reviews, but I've been known to turn scents that other people don't like into something pretty awesome, so I had to take the gamble. Plus, the whole cicadas thing. Can't forget that.

 

Brood XIX is actually pretty nice smelling once it dries down (it loses most of the weirdness along the way), but it's just not my kind of scent. In the end, it reminds me a bit of The Chicken-Legged Hut mixed with some of the porridge from Halfling (but without the berry note I get from Halfling). It smells kind of like cookies, kind of like nutty grains and kind of like hay. It's definitely on the foody side on me, but it's not entirely foody.

 

The bottom line:

 

I so wanted to love this and I'm tempted to keep it for the concept, but I'm trying to break myself of the habit of buying/keeping oils that don't work for me just because I like the name, concept or label art. I just don't like this sort of foody scent, so I guess it's going to find a new home.

Origin:

 

Near-empty tester bottle from Absinthetics.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

The notes in Velvet Cthulhu sound fascinating, but I'm having a really hard time imagining what it's going to actually smell like. I've smelled all of these notes either individually or in other things, it's just the whole putting them together thing that has me scratching my head. I love trying scents with weird note combinations, though, so I'm excited to give this one a try.

 

First sniff:

 

It's hard to pick out individual notes here. It's very much a green scent. The main thing I'm smelling here is the Touareg tea (which is a kind of mint tea served in parts of Africa; I had it when I was in Morocco and it's delicious and smells wonderful), but there's also a sort of bright citrus thing going on. It makes me think of the Lab's green tea note, which isn't listed here, but would fit in with the other notes.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Mint tea mixed with wasabi. That sounds disgusting when I look at it in writing, but it doesn't smell bad at all. It's a strange combination of minty sweetness and slightly spicy greenness. I think I'm starting to get the khus and coriander now, too. There's an almost herbal thing going on in the background.

 

Dry down:

 

In the end, Velvet Cthulhu dries down into a nice woody tea scent (I'm still getting mainly Touareg tea, but also a bit of the pu-erh) with faint hints of herbs and resins. It's still a green scent, but a muted green mixed with shades of brown.

 

The bottom line:

 

This is unique, but not as weird as I was expecting it to be. It actually smells pretty awesome in the end, although it's not necessarily the sort of scent that would appeal to everyone. I may end up getting a bottle of this one.

 

Edit: Spelling. I can't seem so spell Cthulhu right to save myself.

Origin:

 

Lagniappe from a generous seller.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I absolutely love the name and artwork, but the notes here are iffy to say the least. I don't do florals with very few exceptions (I sometimes like lilac and can tolerate osmanthus, honeysuckle and orchid in small amounts) and this sounds like a floral bomb. I do like grass scents, so it's not all bad. I'm going into this with an open mind since the Lab has a knack for creating scents that shouldn't work for me but do. Maybe I'll get lucky and this one will be a rule breaker.

 

First sniff:

 

First off, let me say that I'm terrible at identifying floral notes. The only ones I can reliably identify are lilac and rose. Others I sometimes recognize and sometimes don't. I can tell you if a floral scents is heady, tropical, creamy, etc. but I can't tell you what actual flower I'm smelling most of the time. So, keeping that in mind...

 

What I smell here is soft grass (not the intense, super sharp green grass note that sometimes crops up in BPAL scents, but a softer, springier grass note) and a mix of soft, gentle florals. It smells like a garden in spring and it's actually really lovely. For some reason, I want to say that it makes me nostalgic, but while we had a small flower garden when I was growing up, it didn't smell like this (probably because the only flowers in it were tiger lilies and roses). This is a very feminine scent. The kind of scent that makes me want to put on a sundress and sandals and sit outside with the sun on my face.

 

Wet on skin:

 

The grass is a little more prominent now, but it's still mainly a riot of different florals. While it's a very floral scent, it's not obnoxiously floral and it doesn't make me feel like I'm going to develop a raging migraine at any moment. It smells natural rather than perfumey, if that makes sense. There's a hint of something weird hanging around the edges, though. It's somewhat bitter and unpleasant. I've only had two other scents (One to Tie, Two to Win and Trachelophorus Giraffe v3) go weirdly bitter on me and while they were more intensely bitter than Garden Path, the effect is similar. The offending note in One to Tie was almost definitely the dandelion, but I'm not sure what it was in Trachelophorus. I'm guessing there's some sort of green plant stem note in here that's doing something similar.

 

Dry down:

 

The weirdness gets worse as the oil dries. It's a subtle bitterness, but it's enough to be off-putting. There's also a very faint pepperiness. I'm guessing it has to be coming from the nasturtium (big leap there, since it says right in the description that it's "peppery nasturtium"). I, unfortunately, hate peppery scents, so while it's subtle, it still stands out to me.

 

The end scent is a sweet, innocent spring-time floral blend with soft grass (and the faint bitterness/pepperiness I mentioned before). If those two party crashers stayed away, Garden Path would be very pretty.

 

The bottom line:

 

I have to say, I like Garden Path with Chickens in the imp. It's spring/summer in a bottle and it really brings out my inner flower child (as opposed to my inner stinky hippie, which gets indulged almost every day). But it doesn't seem to like my skin very much, unfortunately, so this is one of those scents that I have to wear in a locket so that my skin chemistry can't wreak havoc on it. Still, I like it enough that I bought a bottle after testing my frimp.

The first scent that comes to mind for me is Silas Ruthyn. It's not a scary scent, but whenever I smell it, I always think of a Victorian mansion that's fallen into decay, with heavy, deep purple velvet curtains and thick carpeting and a resident who wears old-fashioned smoking jackets and dabbles in the occult.

 

It's got a sort of atmospheric evilness to it, which I love.