Monster Bait: Ventriloquist Dummy

[penemuel]

Menacing, maniacal, and slick with the one-liners ... this guy does it all with a wink and a smile! Savage apricot, depraved dry woods, and psychopathic patchouli covered by a disarmingly sweet mishmosh of caramel, brown sugar, hazelnut, and butterscotch. Be warned: this oil will instigate possession in most puppets, including some marionettes and the occasional finger puppet.

This is delicious and I'm sad I didn't order a bottle now -- delicious sweet dark woods -- I'm not getting any of the apricot unless it's just blending into the sweetness, but oh what a wonderful scent!

In the imp it's a little heavy on the dryness -- maybe a little of that dusty scent others are talking about -- and it does seem a little peppery/spicy.

The moment it touches my skin it's wonderful! The peppery/spicy scent goes away and it becomes a warm, sweet woody smell. I'm not getting much of the cedary smell others are, and I'm guessing the patchouli is grounding it somehow.

As it dries it becomes sweeter and more subtle -- the caramel and brown sugar is there mixed in with the other scents, but still no sign of the apricot. I may have to find a bottle of this somewhere...

[abejita]

I expected to like this one a lot more than I did. From in the bottle to the dry-down, all I get is a bundle of very dry woods of indistinct type, dry patchouli, and some almost generic sweetness. I usually like woods, nuts, and caramel, but this just doesn't smell right on me.

[vividdreamer]

Somehow, when I read the description of this, I completely overlooked the "woods" part. Didn't even notice it. I saw all the foody parts and went, "OMG! Need!" Threw it in the cart along with Bloody Mary and Tamamo-No-Mae, checked out, and then headed over to see if any reviews were up.

 

And. They were. And every one of them said...well, you can read the first page. Not a whole lot of raves for this Monster Bait. I felt like...well, a *dummy*. But I figured that it surely couldn't be that bad, and if worst came to worst, I could at least gift it to either my husband or one of my guy friends who love BPAL.

 

The bottle came today, and I was pretty apprehensive about opening it. I mean, I LOVE the smell of woods, especially cedar, but I didn't think I'd be too keen on wearing them, especially in summer. But when I finally managed to work up the nerve to twist off the cap, I was very pleasantly surprised!

 

I don't get any of the scrummy smells that I was anticipating, that much is true. No hazelnut, no caramel, no butterscotch. I definitely smell the woods and the patchouli, and there's a LOT of spice here, too. But it's tempered with a bit of sweetness--maybe the brown sugar?--that rounds it out really well.

 

I dabbed a bit on my shoulder, and went about straightening the house. I'd also put quite a bit of Bloody Mary on my wrists, because that's the one I was really interested in reviewing first. But I kept getting whiffs of Ventriloquist Dummy, and for some reason, I couldn't figure out why it smelled so familiar, and why I liked it so much.

 

Then it hit me. This smells--at least to (and on) me--EXACTLY like Lush's Blue Skies and Fluffy White Clouds bubble bar. I mean, DEAD ON. I've heard a lot of comparisons between certain BPAL's and Lush products before, but to tell the truth, I've never gotten anything besides a vague similarity. But this one...this one I get. It makes sense, I guess. Blue Skies has lots of patchouli and spice (cinnamon, I think), and I'd venture to guess that it also has some "wood" in it too, simply because I know that this oil does.

 

So...I definitely won't be giving this one away to anyone! Hell, I may even search out another bottle for this winter (when I like those BBS's the most) for layering and to add to my bath water. (Shouldn't be too hard to find, judging from the number of people who seem to dislike this oil.) However, if you're a fan of Lush's Blue Skies, you'll definitely want to give this a try. MAYBE it's just my pregnant nose acting nuts, but I don't think so.

[t_for_tau]

OH MY.

 

In the bottle: sweet, foody, spicey woods. Yum.

 

On my wrist: oh my dear god, this is divine. I've had my wrist jammed under my nose since I put it on, and it doesn't show any signs of moving soon.

 

This was the only Monster Bait I even vaguely considered buying, and I didn't because I thought it would be too foody. This morning I got a teensy bit in an imp bottle from a decant circle and OMG. This is the *perfect* masculine spice scent, to sit alongside Count Dracula in my bottle drawer. There's deathly-dry woods, and dark patch, and a note that I can only describe as "evil curry" (seriously, that's a good thing), and then the occasional wafts of sweetness from the caramel and yes, that hint of salt that some people have mentioned. On me this is less "possessed puppet" than "possessed spice trader ship". It smells like a wholefood shop had a punch up with a confectioner's in a really, really old wooden hall. I could go on about this endlessly, but I have to go and stalk the swaps forum.

[asciident]

Wet: Woods, apricot, nutty butterscotch.

 

First on: Woods amp up, with a subtle sweetness in the background. Apricot is all but gone.

 

Dry: Polished wood. Evocative, but I don't want to smell like it.

[Analise]

I'm getting pencil shavings and.....nail polish remover? I think. Yep, this is an absolute no, alas.

[alicia_stardust]

In the bottle: Sharp, bitter wood and patchouli.

 

On my skin: Whoa, there's a reason I can't wear strong patchouli. My skin amps the patchouli and the wood and I get absolutely nothing else from this. I was hoping to catch at least some of the butterscotch. The wood is very distinct in that it reminds me of wood shop where I'd be cutting or sanding something and the wood dust would get blown in my face. I'd feel it, smell it, and taste it. When I smell Ventriloquist Dummy I can literally taste it.

 

I have a skin chemistry that doesn't get along with patchouli except in rare cases. This is an oil that I would recommend to anyone that likes patchouli, woods, and heavier scents. I will pass this on to someone that will love it.

[PurringPulsar]

Monster Bait: Ventriloquist's Dummy

 

In the bottle: dark, peppered woody patchouli with a slight hint of nutty sweetness. Dusty woods are dominant here.

Wet on skin: peppery, dusty woods with patchouli, reminiscent of the Rat King, but sweeter.

Dry on skin: mmm, woods! This is a dark, rich, almost incense-like dusty wood scent with patchouli and sweetened by the sugary notes, with a hint of nuts. It's predominantly cedar, but there are some other fragrant warm woods here as well (oak maybe?), and they have an aged 'attic-like' feel to them, evocative of a wooden dummy that has been stored in the loft for years, covered in dust. The patchouli adds a deep, dark, shadowy feel. However, the sweet notes lighten the scent. It smells like lightly caramelised toasted hazelnuts, and the great thing about the caramel/sugar/butterscotch notes in here is that, unusually, they don't overwhelm the scent and turn it to 'all-consuming caramel of doom', they add the right amount of playful sweetness. I also smell the barest hint of dried apricots. I like this a lot!

After a while: the hazelnut, woods and patch merge together to give a dry, faded, dark, old and dust-covered scent, which reminds me of the Rat King, but not as sour. Instead, there's a covering of brown sugar and a hint of treacle, the perfect amount, not intense like Gluttony, but enough to add a sweet twist to the dry scent of attic-stored woods. This sweetness also prevents the scent from smelling too 'musty' or masculine. The apricot used here is certainly not the syrupy or freshly picked apricot of other BPALs, this smells uncannily like dried apricots do-it's like Depraved with more patch than apricot. In fact, over time, this starts to smell more and more like dried apricots, tart and fruity, with sugared nuts in a fragrant wooden chest. The wood notes begin to smell less grey/pale and smell a bit warmer, almost like sandalwood, over time. Warm and soft and dusty, a little ashy like incense, and with a lot more patch. There's a hint of burnt wood at the end, like the wooden dummy has been singed a bit.

Verdict: I like this one a lot better than I expected! I feared it would turn really masculine or really oversweet, I thought it wouldn't work at all. But it does work and it works wonderfully! It strikes the right balance of woods and sweetness with a shadow of patchouli. The woods really do evoke an old dummy stashed in the attic, dusty and faded, but this is a good dusty scent. the woods are strong and rich, fragrant and solid, but gender neutral. The sweet notes are so nice-I was expecting the 'million calories of death!' scent I got from Gluttony but despite three potentially over-sugary notes listed, they never take over. The nutty sweetness is just like a soft glazing of nutty caramel over the woods. the apricot, another note that can oversweeten, doesn't smell very sweet at all here, but smells like dried apricots. The patchouli shows up a little more after a few hours and the woods turn to a soft incense scent with a hint of dark sugary sweetness. This is a surprise hit from the Monster Baits, not my absolute favourite but definitely worth keeping a bottle, it's a new favourite in the 'heavily woodsy' scents…so far 6 out of 7 MB scents work well or wonderfully on me. I can't wait to see next lot of Monster Baits if there are more planned for next year!

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? yes! I like this a lot more than I though I would-a perfect balance of woods and sugar.

If you like this, try: Clio, Depraved, Rat King, Magus, Séance, Gluttony

[Shannihilation]

In the bottle this is very woody. Sharp but with an underlying sweetness that I assume is the caramel. Wet on my skin it's almost unpleasant. Very sharp and deep. It makes me crinkle my nose but at the same time, I end up sniffing it again. I'm kind of fighting the urge to wash it off. It's making me sad because I was sure that I'd love this.

 

Okay, I have been wearing this for about fifteen minutes now, and it's mellowed a bit. It's still mostly wood though with the sweeter components peeking through occasionally. It's also still slightly unpleasant. Which makes sense to me because while I think ventriloquist dummies are fun, they also weird me out. I like this, but at the same time, I hate it. My nose is so confused.

[ariosa]

Initially: pencil shavings.

 

As it dries down, it does warm up into something nice. The pencil shaving smell is still there, but I can smell the warm foody scents underneath, rounding out this blend. And after an even longer time, the foody smells take the forefront, with the woods taking a back seat. I love the foody scents.

 

Still, I really don't know if I'm going to be able to get past the pencil shavings smell, and that's disappointing for me! I'll give this one last try, but I think it's going to end up in swaps, as it's just not my thing. I never really know until I try wearing it for a whole day -- or if it's an obnoxious floral. Everything deserves a second chance

[windzswept]

Memo to self before review starts: if the description says Patchouli run away very fast.

 

In the bottle: Dry and woody, with a slight fruity tang.

 

On my wrist: Mossy and dry, like a forest just as it is drying out from a heavy rainstorm.

 

About 10 minutes later the mossy dryness has gone and the patchouli comes out and it started smelling like Tiresias on me but without the blackcurrant.

 

15 minutes after this the patchouli had run its course and I got the moss back, but with added nuttiness and sweetness.

 

I don't think it's for me, the strong patchouli scent gave me a nasty headache and I'm not entirely convinced I could survive it.

 

Still, I had to try all the Monsterbaits.

[funkmoppet]

I'm with Jenesis on this.

 

First whiff from the imp and the overpowering cedar was like a freshly cut slab of wood. Then on my skin, it just amped right up to hot, dry, unpleasant cedar shavings. It was suffocating, like being in a new sauna - with inescapable throw.

 

My first "scrub it off!!!" oil. And it's still there when I smell my wrist.

 

I love wood, but this is overkill.

 

Swap pile, Mr Imp. Now.

[LadyMedb]

This is an intense, spicy, foody scent. I really like the patchouli note, as well as the hazelnut. There is, unfortunately, just a little too much going on here - too many strong notes in synergy - and thus the blend ends up a little plasticky smelling, and a little cluttered, kind of the way Samhain does, but without the deeply sensual aura Samhain has. Still, I basically like this spicy, sweet scent as a treat once in a while, applied sparingly. I'll keep the decant, and that's it.

Edited June 28, 2007 by LadyMedb

[LadyCrow]

Okay, now I understand where W.C. Fields was coming from when he threatened to whittle Charlie McCarthy into Venetian blinds.

 

In the imp: Foody and woody. This is where I had all the high hopes.

 

Wet: Intense caramel, some woods, and what ho? Black pepper!

 

Drydown: For the next several hours, I had the most bizarre and unpleasant combination of apricot-caramel close to my skin and a really, really strong throw of black pepper. Now, the sheer purity of this note is nothing to sneeze at (sorry, sorry), but it totally wasn't what I wanted to amplify; if anything, I was hoping my skin would fall in love with the cedarwood, as usual, and the patchouli. Major points for strength and staying power. It's just that what happens to this on me is not anything I want to smell like.

[Naamah_Darling]

Patchouli and sugary caramel reign. This is a delicious scent, delightful, just a little wicked.

 

On, the wood really comes out – this smells like wood shavings and sweet sugar.

 

And, like a certain other scent I could name, it smells a little like pine shavings you use for rodent bedding.

 

This is musty and sort of dry on my skin, and has none of the rich, syrupy goodness the sweet wet smell promised! Fie! Fie!

[dragonrain]

I really, really wanted to like this. At first all I could detect was wood ... and patchouli, so strong that my eyes began to water. After some time it's died down, and now I catch a whiff of something nutty, presumably the hazelnut, and it's getting sweeter. This isn't remotely fruity on me, just sickly sweet. Perhaps it'll grow on me, but right now I can't imagine wearing this again.

[PurpleHeather]

In the bottle: Sweet, with a warm spicy background.

Wet: Instantly a long throw. Gorgeous woodiness up close, spicy at long range, and sweet too.

Later: Massive throw. Now very burnt, but in a good way; both burnt sugar and woods, with noticeable patchouli.

 

I love this one all the way through, but my boyfriend only really likes it at the very end. 8/10.

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Spiced patchouli, and strong

 

Wet on me – Spicy, woodsy furniture polish

 

Dry on me – Warm molten sugars

 

Overall – For a while it’s overkill on the patchouli, but settled it’s gorgeous. Like a melting pot of different sugars, which come briefly to the surface one by one

[lyndsayj]

I don't get any of the caramel, or sweetness. On me, this is really dry, hot spices with lots of woodiness in the background. It put me in mind of an Indian supermarket near the Fortitude Valley, Queensland, train station. Once you walk in there you're immediately hit with this "womph" of spices, all of their scents mingled into the air and permeating the hallway.

 

That's probably where I get the "dry, hot spices" part, because this smells just like that overall smell you get when you approach the supermarket. It's.. really different. Unlike any BPAL I've ever smelt before.

 

The throw is very strong too, just a light smidgen applied on the back of my hand lasted ages.

 

A keeper! Glad I was able to get a bottle.

[edenssixthday]

Ventriloquist Dummy - I'm not a fan of caramel, brown sugar, hazelnut, butterscotch, or many types of patchouli. I didn't have many hopes for this one, and it did not disappoint. It smells horrible on my skin. It's basically a really dry, almost spicy (from the patchouli, perhaps?) wood that oozes thick, syrupy sweetness. I smell none of the apricot, and the caramel, butterscotch, hazel nut and brown sugar are enough to make me run screaming. It's really awful on me. It's very strong, extremely heavy and rich and well...just not something I could ever pull off wearing again. It's just too much for both my scent preference and my skin chemistry.

 

 

ETA: Oh wait! It just hit me. That spicy scent smells like asafoetida/hing!!! No wonder it smells so awful on my skin...it would smell a lot better if it were included in some good East Indian food!

Edited July 26, 2007 by edenssixthday

[Ilex]

I got this as a kind frimp from a decant circle. I don't know how the gifter intuited that I'd dig it, but I do, quite a bit. Its so perfectly evocative of a crazy wooden puppet, its a little creepy, just in that sense. Initially it smelled like a generic wood plank soaked in hazelnut syrup, but after a while things come together and it becomes more like a really sweet pipe tobacco scent, with a dab of wooden something in it. I love wood scents, and normally nearly everything over powers the wood for me (why can't I amp wood and not florals?) and any sweet element is generally too sweet, but this is really really lovely. Such a pity its an LE and I'll have to struggle to get any more of it than the half imp I've got. Good grief this is good- I think its my favorite BPAL yet.

 

Reading more of the reviews/notes, the patchoulli is pretty mild on me, and I get zippo apricot. Which is just fine, actually. I'm glad those notes are leaving the sweet caramel wood alone. The sad bit is after a while it kind of descends into a powdery butterscotch, but oh what a beginning.

[Rhowan]

~*~ VENTRILOQUIST DUMMY ~*~

 

Try #1: My first go around with this scent earlier was absolutely horrible. I had applied it as soon as it arrived in the mail. I should have know, from practice to let this sit and come to room temp before I tried it - Unfortunately, I didn't wait and what I ended up with was Mens cologne, shellac and rotten apricots. I left it on an hour but finally had to wash it off as I was getting ill.

 

Try #2 (room temp)Ah! so much better!!!

 

In the bottle: Candy sweet wood! Yum!

 

Wet: When first applied, I get warm spices, cedarwood with a layer of caramel and brown sugar on top.

 

15min Mark: The cedarwood and caramel/brownsugar sweetness is starting to dissipate and the patchouli is starting to take over the whole scent. I can still smell just a hint of spices but no apricot,hazelnut, or butterscotch.

 

End Result: After about an hour the patchouli has finally mellowed and had decided to play well and share with the other notes in this blend to make it a sweet. warm, woodsy scent that has a bit of spice in it. I am getting just a hint of apricot that is adding to the sweetness of it!

 

Conclusion: I am glad I didn't let my first impression interfere with trying this again! Although the throw is only just average but Ventriloquist Dummy ends up warm and inviting, spicy and woody, all at the same time. I have no clue as to where the spices are coming from unless it is coming from the wood? I can't even tell you what kind of spice it is except to say that it is a warm spice -warm like cinnamon and nutmeg . (but it's not cinnamon and nutmeg!) I love this scent as it is so unusual and so warm and sexy! I believe that this will just get even sweeter as it ages!

Edited September 16, 2007 by Rhowan

[gwynethr]

I fell in love with this totally after the first try. So sweet, and caramelly in a way I could get into, not the way caramel as a scent usually makes me feel (I tend to get gaggy). The woods and the sweet, almost fruity quality really worked for me.

 

But then something happened a while ago and I can't even wear it anymore. I thought it wasn't agreeing with me simply because of that time of the month, but every time I've tried to wear it, it causes me such pain in my sinuses and is so sharp and nasty, I feel like I'm going to be sick.

 

So now I've had to give my bottle away, much to my dismay. I don't even know what caused it -- aging of the perfume itself, or something in me that's changed... my other wood loves, Tombstone and Hearth and some of the Salons, still seem fine on me, and I just fell in love with The Red Queen and that also seems fine, so maybe it is how the blend ages. Whatever it is, I'm sad.

[pkwench]

I love this scent. Love, love, lovitylovelove. I missed out on all of the Monster Baits because of money (Tokyo Stomp, I'm still coming for you someday, baby), but have been slowly collecting the ones that most sound fun to me. I caught a whiff and a dab of VD at a miniBpal eat n'sniff and couldn't get it out of my head. I finally caved and swapped for it and I could not be happier to have done so.

 

The same wood is here in VD that's in Tombstone. But this is Tombstone's super awesome bitchready friend (and, mind you, I love Tombstone!). The patchouli and brownsugar just make this blend so dry, so spicy, so gloriously unusual and sexy sweet on me. It's like being tenderly hugged in a warm, cozy wooden box and talked dirty too (in a good way). I just cannot express the depth of love that I have for Ventriloquist Dummy. Suffice to say that it just makes me really damned happy. But, if you don't like woody or patchouli scents? Yeah, steer clear.

[bulletslc]

Extremely woody! (with a hint of foody spice)

 

Too dry for me, but may be just the thing for a friend of mine who adores all things wood. If she doesn't love it it will be up for grabs/swaps.