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zankoku_zen

Shadows and Light

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I could swear that I smell a good bit of oudh here—but it is of the rich, smooth variety and definitely not of the stanky sort. Honestly, this doesn’t smell like any of the listed notes to me at all, and I’m totally ok with that. It smells like the smoothest, most beautiful, hazy oudh ever, and I’m loving it!

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This opened on me as a smoky lavender cognac -- a lovely mix. The smoke, especially, drew me in. It's a note that resonates for me, and what a lovely trio for it.

 

But the blend turned perfumey and powdery on my skin after drydown. White musk isn't on such kindly terms with me as the other notes.

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The main note I am getting from Shadows and Light is smoke.  It combines with the white musk and lavender to make this a little higher-pitched blend than I usually wear.  I was hoping the cognac would balance out the other notes, but I'm not getting any appreciable cognac at all.  This has great staying power for a scent that just arrived in yesterday's mail. 

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Wet: Smokey cognac and lavender. Typing that out, I wouldn't think I would something like that.. but apparently I do! 

 

Dry: ... Smokey cognac and lavender. ;) I think the "smoke" scent has amped up on me quite a bit as it dried. 

 

This is the last of this year's Lilith's decants I'm testing, and is my favorite out of the collection! I think this may be a surprise bottle upgrade - this is really unique to my collection, and I don't think I own any other bottles I can compare this with.

 

 

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I definitely smell the white musk but I also smell what my nose interprets as black musk. 

Edited by HerbGirl

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This was an unexpected love. One of the reviewers mentioned smelling oud, and I agree that something in this smells a lot like true oud smoke. This blend is supported by a sparkling undercurrent of musk with a cheeky tang of cognac, but the smoke really is the star. The lavender is barely noticeable. This blend reminds me of Demeter's "Ocean" but better.

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Shadows and Light is lovely. Smoky musk. I can't smell any lavender, but that's fine! This is a super sexy scent, and has already gotten better with some weeks of aging. Glad I blind bottled this!

Edited by Madame Mew

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Oh hai there, Golden Champa Attar SN. That's what I'm getting for the smoke note in this. It's a smooth resinous champaca, and it doesn't smell like nag champa incense. It's joined by a touch of cognac, but I don't get much else. The lavender never showed up on me, sadly. It also reminds me of House of Unquenchable Fire Atmo.

 

This is pleasant, but not something I need a bottle of, fortunately (thank goodness, as there are several more scents I'd like to order bottles of from the Lilith update). I was hoping the lavender and cognac would be more prominent. I am thrilled I got to try this though!

 

Edited by doomsday_disco

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I got doomsday’s decant and totally conquer with her review. Silky champaca, the kindest iteration of the note I’ve ever had grace my skin. It’s a death note for me, so to be bearable is pretty cool. 
 

I jumped at the decant after reading comparison to oudh smoke (yum!), but I don’t get that at all. 
Ah well... glad I didn’t blind bottle, and glad to find champaca isn’t all raging corn tortilla rampage, even if most are. 

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I am SHOOK! This is the most divine oudh, the best kind: warm, glowing and exotic.
Some oudh fragrances can be "too strong" or "too anamalic" for my taste, but this is a different story.
Very much like burning actual oudh wood, sitting beside the smoky air in the flickering light. 
Dark and smoky, thanks to artisjok, I'm using doomsday's decant and I love it. 
The most heavenly oudh smoke of the rarest kind. Perfect cool weather wear. 

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This is a lovely, smoky musk. I get the references to golden champa, as the smoke note is similar. There is the barest hint of lavender. Stays close to my skin. This is lovely and I can't stop sniffing my arm.

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There's another smoky lavender scent that I cannot pronounce (I think it starts with a G? LOL) and I am obsessed with it, so I had to have this when I saw the description of lavender and smoke!

This is a much different smoke note, reminding me more of maybe Devil's Night? Or the Storyteller? Smells like bonfire, but with lavender thrown on. Marvelous! The musk is clean and bright behind the smoke and lavender. The cognac adds just a touch of sweetness. This is really something. I love it. Different than anything I own or have ever tried.

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Smoke, cognac, and a whiff of lavender. This one smells smoky, slightly boozy. Good throw and wear length.

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The lavender is pretty low on this, so it's mostly cognac and smoke. Sounds nicer than I thought it would be even though I love lavender. The smoke note isn't harsh, maybe the musk or other notes is softening it. 

 

I do wish the lavender was a little stronger, but I don't hate this! It's a bit different from my others BPALs, so I think I'll be using this for layering if I want a smoke or soft lavender.

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This is what I thought Smoke and Lace would smell like. The smoke reminds me of the drydown of Amaxophobia, like something almost mechanical. There is very little sweetness here, and I'm okay with that! I don't pick up strong white musk (which tends to have that clean laundry vibe) or lavender, just something a little herbal and fuzzy. I also get vetiver, for some reason! 

 

Halloween/haunted house vibes! Lots of shadows, not too much light? I think I prefer Amaxophobia because it really LEANS INTO that haunted car ride vibe, but for something you could wear a Little Black Dress in and feel like a goth femme fatale, Shadows and Light really pings that mood. I was iffy on this when it first came out, but I think I would like more of this and hope to acquire more eventually.

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White musk is usually nasty bitter sourness on me, but not here! Yay!! This is quite lovely - the cognac is warm and rich, and the lavender doesn’t really stand out on its own, it’s just snuggled up nicely with the musk and cognac. There is a smokey vibe but it’s not a burning smoke - it’s more like a foggy, hazy, clean smoke. Everything here just works beautifully together. 
 

Definitely something different from the usual lavender blends, and a different take on cognac as well - it really is shadows and light 🙂

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