Hungry Ghost Moon 2006

[metaldog32]

Hungry Ghost Moon

... Offerings of ginger candy, sugar cane, smoky vanilla and rice wine mingle with a ghost’s perfume of white sandalwood, ho wood, ti, white grapefruit, crystalline musk and aloe. This scent is tapered by the presence of seven herbs, woods and resins used in the purification of the spirit and the purging of earthly concerns from the soul.

 

I bought a 5ml outright because it’s what I do..purchasing lunacies is a non-issue. However…this one I was particularly enamored because of the ginger candy. Ginger…I do love ginger…love to smell it, love to eat it. I love ginger candy. The idea that the scent was being coupled with sugar cane..SMOKY vanilla..my favorite kind and wood grapefruit and aloe??? This seemed like the perfect lunacy for me.

 

I bought it. I waited till last week to try it. I wore it for three days.

 

I wasn’t wrong. It’s genius.

 

Seriously. It is in the top 5 of my favorite all-time lunacies. In fact..I will say it’s in the top 3..the other two being Blue Moon and Red Moon.

 

That’s how good it is to me.

 

Let’s get down to the review:

 

Initial sniff from bottle: Sweetness…over a type of fruit. It’s citrus=like but not bitter..the grapefruit is sweet..as if covered in yummy white sugar. I was expecting sharpness from the grapefruit which I actually like..but the sugary version is a nice surprise too.

 

Applied wet on skin: This is where I knew I was lost forever to HGM. It’s the grapefruit..but it’s playing second fiddle to the sweetness. There is something in here that makes this blend very pretty and relaxed..I wonder if it’s the aloe??? I remember putting this on at this stage and just swooning…I couldn’t get over how good this smelled on me.

 

Couple of minutes on skin:Grapefruit settles down and it’s more…more green-like??? Almost like green tea..very serene feeling..and yet I can still smell sweetness..a faint tinge of kick to it..could be the ginger candy interestingly…I think there is a subtle waft of that smoky vanilla…I think it adds to the sweetness so it’s not cloying or overly sweet..no..this blend is well crafted..as usual…but in this case..it’s just..perfection.

 

Ten minutes later:Other reviewers have stated how seamless this fragrance transitions and I have to agree..it’s because of that seamlessness I find this particular lunacy genius. The grapefruit is still here..softened and sweetened..but it floats over the aloe/vanilla/rice wine base. The sandalwood..which sometimes amps on me is restrained here..lending a much more supportive role instead of leading..and all of this just radiates to me peace and serenity. The fragrance does have an asian feel to it. I am in love.

 

Two and a half hours later: It’s winded down to just wispy wafts of sweetness…the vanilla kind..with the ginger sparkling softly..over the base of sandalwood and aloe. I really love that candied/smoky sweetness that is STILL present..

 

Lasting power on me is about 3-4 hours..on my hair it lasts longer and the throw is soft to moderate.

 

Bottom Line: Hungry Ghost Moon is IMHO, an example of lunacy perfection. The juxtaposition of all those wonderful notes..sweet, spicy, smoky and wood…but re-interpreted so that the end result is a seamless fragrance that basically on me translated to a peaceful and serene blend blows my mind. I literally would smile when re-applying...because of how it made me feel. I wish I had tried this earlier..I would have definitely purchased a back-up bottle. I find this fragrance suitable year round..it’s that good.

 

Beth you are really a genius.

 

 

UPDATE: I underestimated wholly the lasting power of HGM…I wore it yesterday on one wrist while doing a review on another oil and as of this morning..I can STILL smell HGM’s vanilla waft..so actually..this baby lasted 12+ hours on me as well…outstanding!!!

Edited April 18, 2007 by Shollin

[bunnymcfoo]

Add me to the list of people not loving this one.

 

 

In the bottle, it was sweet with a slight bite to it, really a nice scent. Problem being, as soon as I get it on my skin, it turns to SHOCKINGLY SWEET. Seriously, all I get is Pixy Stix and then some. It's actually making me feel a wee bit ill.

 

Damn skin chemistry. *sigh*

 

 

ETA: after a half hour of wearing Hungry Ghost Moon, I realized that I had a horrible headache, and had to go scrub my wrists. >.< I think it's the cane sugar that's going so sickly sweet on me, but whatever it is, I need to avoid it in the future.

Edited April 23, 2007 by bunnymcfoo

[asciident]

Wet: Aloe and not much else.

 

First on: Hrm... with all those gorgeous notes listed, I thought this would be wonderful but...all I'm getting is aloe hand lotion. I mean, that's all right, but not really what I want from a perfume. I guess we'll see if it morphs.

 

Dry: Sandalwood and aloe lotion. I guess it's okay, but if I want to smell like aloe lotion I can just...use that. :\

[TheIceMaiden]

The first part of Hungry Ghost Moon's description intruiged me, although I worried about the resins and woods mentioned. I also feared HGM might be too sweet. However, after reading so many positive reviews, however, I gave in to my curiousity and decided to try HGM.

 

Wet, its slightly sweet ginger and soft muted grapefruit. As it dries, the vanilla joins in along with a little bit of a woodsy note and a hint of musk. I don't smell aloe nor do I get any woods or resins, which normally don't work on me. Instead I get what I hoped for - an exotic citrus/ginger/vanilla blend with just a bit of sweetness. Whew, it actualy works on me! HGM has become one of my favourite lunar blends.

[GoldenRubee]

I was able to get a brand new bottle of this and I have been dying to try it! It is sweet smelling but not cloying, a little bit of spicy too, probably from the musk. It is a refreshingly light scent, the ginger is there and adds to the distinctiveness of this scent. I really love this and think that it just jumped to my new favorite everyday scent!

[copyshopclerk]

Oops, thought I already reviewed this one!

 

In the bottle: This is one of those scents that triggers a memory for me, and I don't know what in particular does it. But it's a very nostalgic, happy kind of memory when I used to wake up before dawn in college to watch the sun rise from rooftops. I wish I knew what's in the blend that triggers that memory for me! Since that's completely unhelpful in describing the blend for anyone else, what it smells like is fruit - the sweet and sourness of grapefruit in particular, but also a "clean" scent. Because of the nostalgia trigger for me, it just makes me happy!

 

On: There's a commercial perfume called Sake that I tried once (didn't work on me though - went sickly sweet). I liked it before it turned though, and HGM has some of the same notes in it that I liked - the ginger, grapefruit, musk, vanilla, and sandalwood. This wears much better on me than Sake did! This smells clean, with a touch of sweetness, but doesn't get cloying or overbearing.

 

Dry: It's very well blending and no one thing dominates - there's a warm vanilla, the ginger adds spice. Also the sandalwood, and aloe are noticeable, and there's something smelling of melons. Overall, it's just gorgeous.

[khiseer]

I'm so glad i managed to get bottles of this from lovely bpaladins

 

Sweet, Fruity and Creamy.. But not candy at all.

 

This is one my man often picks for me to wear when i let him choose.

 

The grapefruit in this was a note i was expecting to not like but it comes through perfectly, not too tart at all. There is not a note i would change in this scent. Sugar cane and smoky vanilla! just wow.... It settles so well on me and the throw is great, i am forever getting told i smell great with HGM.

[hackess]

It's sweet without being sticky and candy-like. I get a lot of aloe. If this scent had a color, it'd be pale green. It's very pretty - reminds me a lot of Tamamo no Mae.

[Miseraya]

In the imp: Sweet and fruity and thick. Like syrup.

 

On the wrist: Very sweet, like candy.

 

Drydown: This is a hard review for me, because I'm not getting individual notes here, no matter how I try. I just get an overwhelming feeling of sweet, poofy, fluffy pink smells. If that makes any sense. It smells nothing like cotton candy smells, but it smells how cotton candy looks. All fluffy and cloud like.

 

I like this, but it's just not me. I can't picture myself wearing it, so I am going to swap it to someone who will love it better.

[tasty]

My first impression of this oil was that it would be to citrus-y for my liking. Initially with me, that was the case. Coincidently, my boyfriend took a sniff and said "MMM, citrus. This is nice." Citrus? Nice? Nooo....

 

But as the day goes on, the sharp, tangy grapefruit has mellowed and now it's nice and smooth. No discernable individual notes, just an overall sense of good.

[Styx]

Hungry ghost moon (very pale greenish oil)

 

Imp: Smells like citrus without any acidity. Like a really nice room freshner?

 

Skin: YUM. At first it was strong greenish citrus, sweetened with vanilla and sugarcane, but once the oil dries the wood comes out and everything melds together seamlessly. Somehow the texture and sweetness of the scent gave me an image of a really fluffy smoothie. The citrus becomes very well behaved, and doesn't bite. When the scent reaches this stage, it stays stable to the end.

Just like copyshopclerk, I found this nostalgic too. The memory it triggered was making a roadtrip early in the morning, with all the windows of the car wide open.

 

A medium to light weight scent, breezy cool, for spring and summer.

[LadyCrow]

In the bottle: Fruit candy and ginger.

 

Wet: I got the rice wine here, and I almost wanted to say that both yuzu and lychee had to be present.

 

Drydown: As I have stated in other threads, I am a ho for ho wood. I get the musk and woods a bit, but the strongest and longest-lasting notes for me are the aloe and fruit, which outlast the very green herb-y notes that initially surround it. I can't believe I've found a fruity LE that likes me that isn't Mi-Go Brain Canister!

 

Strangely, like a couple of others, I want to put this in my "comfort" scent category with Dove's Heart and Water of Notre Dame. I felt feminine wearing this, in a very classy way. You would earn a lot of merit by dabbing a hungry ghost with this; it would probably feel much cheerier.

[greymatter]

This. Is. Gorgeous.

 

I love it. It's a soft, sweet, gentle scent that smells amazing in the autumn. I got a decant and I'm afraid I'm going to have to track down every bottle in existence - by force, if necessary. . .

[phantasmmysteria]

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this scent yet!

 

After hearing how similar Tamamo-No-Mae (my first BPAL love) was to this blend, I tracked down a bottle. I am so glad I did, as I actually prefer this to TNM (though they're close!).

 

In the bottle: Predominantly woods, but also ginger, citrus, and just a touch of sweetness.

 

Wet: LOTS of grapefruit and ginger! The citrus hits me full force at first, but quickly calms down. The ginger is gorgeously spicy and blends well with the citrus note, and after a while I can smell the sandalwood in the background (fortunately, it never gets too sharp). The throw of HGM is the most gorgeous sugared ginger and vanilla that I can imagine.

 

Drydown: This doesn't change much during drydown for me, except to become even softer and more lovely. The woods, sugar, and ginger all sort of blend together and make me smell oh-so-good. The throw for me is above average, and I continue to get whiffs of that fantastic throw long into the wear.

 

This scent gets heavy rotation from me, and with good reason-- it makes me smell fabulous.

[nightchild80]

In the Imp (wet): Bubble-gummy-ness! This is sweet and juicy, sort of golden syrup. But sort of chemically, rather than wholesome and natural.

 

On me: The initial dab is just bubblegum. But it gets so much nicer on the dry-down. The sandalwood is terribly delicate, but just right for me. And the smoky vanilla with musk is deliciously sweet. The tangy grapefruit lends a touch of crispness, but not enough to make a really strong impact at all.

[Jenesis]

This one is an odd one for me. First on, it smells like plastic. In fact it smells like a cheap doll I had as a child.

 

On the drydown it does get slightly better; more sweet and fruity, and the plastic note goes to the background.

 

I will post again later with how it managed long-term.

 

ETA: As promised, the long-term analysis is here! This goes lovely and soft on me after a while. It's a fairly sweet, skin-smelling (if that makes sense) scent with little throw. It's very cuddly and snuggly (The Boy was snuggling my neck all day!). It's hard to describe exactly, but it is very nice.

Edited December 4, 2007 by Jenesis

[AEris]

The blend of notes in Hungry Ghost Moon creates a crisp scent with quite a bit of complexity. The juxtaposition of citrus/spicy/herbal/woods (which is usually a complete scent on its own) with a swirl of warm vanilla sugar is very interesting and different.

 

The bittersweet grapefruit complements the ginger very nicely as well.

 

This experience fades fairly fast on my skin.

 

I love the concept and the execution is fascinating. I can see how this is a 'love it or hate it' blend. I am somewhere in between, because although I appreciate the unique combination of notes, I am not craving it as a wearable perfume. Definitely glad I got the chance to try it, though!

 

3.7 out of 5

[scarletgenesis]

In the bottle: Citrus and a sharpness that may be ginger. Also, a bit of sandlewood.

 

Wet/Once applied: Yup, that's grapefruit! But it is sweeter, maybe b/c of the vanilla and sugar cane?

 

Drydown: still a nice sweet citrus, but there's something else there. A bit of resin, definitely, and the barest hint of sandalwood. Interestingly, I have this in both a scent locket and on my skin. As it dries on my skin, it almost takes on a creamy note. It's very nice and comforting, like rice pudding or something (without the cardemom and other spices). Could this be the vanilla, or just my skin chemistry? I don't know, but I like it. In the locket, it stays pretty much the same as it smells wet, just applied to my skin. So I can compare this in two different states. I also put a tiny bit in my hair as it was drying. It smells somewhere between the two states listed above. Gorgeous and seemless!

 

Whether wet or dry, Hungry Ghost Moon is a winner. It doesn't have as much throw as I might like, but that's ok. I seem to amp citrus notes so that is promenant, but just lovely with all the other complexities here.

 

Edited: and thus continues the saga of the ever morphing HGM. I was in my car when I kept getting whiffs of what smelled EXACTLY like Cinnabon. Now, I've not eaten at a Cinnabon in at least 15 years, so there was no chance I'd left something in my car. I smelled my hair, where I'd put a tiny bit of HGM this morning and THAT was what smelled of Cinnabon. Huh? It's absolutely wonderful, and makes no sense whatsoever.

Edited January 16, 2008 by scarletgenesis

[arabella]

First Impression: Fruity - maybe a watery peach.

 

Dries down to: Starts getting more complex, changing every minute. Settles down to a gorgeous, fresh vibrant scent.

 

Additional Comments: I really like this one. None of the individual notes stand out, they just all sing together beautifully. It's rich but not heavy, fruity but very fresh, with just a kiss of sunshower. The mental image I got from this blend was of that first second when the sun emerges from behind the clouds on a gloomy day - very uplifting and a new fave.

 

Lasted: Only an hour or so.

 

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (Would've been 5 out of 5 if it lasted longer.)

[theal8r]

This smelled wonderful in the bottle -- creamy, sort of soft but with a slightly spicy/sweet undertone.

 

Wet: ew. Something is amping that smells too floral -- old-lady perfume floral.

 

Dry down: This went to perfumey powder, almost exactly like this trashy Avon powder I used to wear when I was 12 because I thought it was sophisticated.

 

This bottle needs a new home.

[SarahScent44]

In the imp, I get grapefruit, sandalwood, and sugar cane.

 

On my skin, it's a sharp scent, yet warm - the grapefruit and sandalwood are still present, accented by the aloe. It's a cool scent; there's no heat from the ginger - but there is just a hint of the smoky vanilla.

 

When it's dry, the musk is the most prominent note - the smokiness of the vanilla is there in the background, and just a hint of the grapefruit and ginger. Very soft, but amazingly complex - 3.5 out of 5.

[jwhxtna]

IN THE IMP: Well, I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this! Not that that's a bad thing. Sweet, juicy fruit that I can't pick out. There's some citrus, but there's definitely something else, I'm tempted to say peach? And I catch a whiff of vanilla in the background.

 

WET: ... Oh my. This definitely morphed, and it feels like there's a lot going on, but I'll describe it the best I can. The grapefruit definitely comes out, but overall the scent becomes less fruity. The sweetness now comes from the smoky vanilla and sugar cane. And a hint of that ginger candy.

 

DRY: Mmm, soft and sweet and warm and really lovely. I honestly don't know how to describe it. The only notes I can recognize for sure are the vanilla and ginger candy.

[donnatron]

Bottle: Sweet, slightly spicy aloe vera.

 

Wet: This almost disappears when wet. It goes sort of flat and aloe vera-y and I get frowny.

 

Dry: And then my skin and the oil work magic. This evolves into a complex, spicy, woodsy scent with a sweet sugared vanilla and a beautiful ginger aura. Oddly, it smells best from further away. If I dip my head down and catch a whiff from my cleavage, I'm just like "mmm... a million times yes." Then I get up close and personal with my wrist and it smells just like aloe vera.

 

Throw: Really good. And, as mentioned above, the throw scent is better than the skin scent.

 

Overall: I just saw this on ebay and bid without looking at the notes because, dude, it was called "Hungry Ghost Moon" and I love me some hungry ghosts. I'm so glad I bought this because it is absolutely lovely and the label art is great. Definitely a keeper.

[icing]

Sugary, faint, ginger candy, with a juicy, wet, green depth I can taste in the back of my throat (I believe it’s the white grapefruit, aloe, and the woods, if they’re ‘green’).

 

Hungry Ghost Moon is quite unique from the blends I usually try (I don't dislike wet/juicy/green blends, but I don't actively hunt them out), and I really, really enjoy sniffing it.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Green and fruity. I can smell the vanilla, ginger and grapefruit.

 

Wet: Wow, really sweet - sugary. Quite foody. The sandlewood and musk add nice depth as they emerge. The vanilla is not cloying, and usually I find vanilla does not work for me - so I'm very pleasantly surprised. It's a very natural vanilla.

 

Dry: The sweetness is fading a bit, it's not so overwhelming. I really like the musk in this. It's a particularly delicious musk.

 

Summary: This is definitely one where I keep sniffing my wrist. It's a wonderfully complex blend, and it holds quite well. It's amongst the most delicious foody/sweet perfumes I've ever smelled. Unfortunately, it's not really what I'm going for, but it IS very nice.

 

If only it were a touch less sugary-vanilla-foody.