HerbGirl

This amber-patchouli-vanilla is very well blended and takes a while to bloom on my skin. The amber waft is truly incredible. Gorgeous.

My bottle arrived today and I love it. In my book, this is the perfect 'straight up' vanilla. Doesn't get any better than this. (For nava lovers - this reminds me most of moonstone with some creamy crystal thrown in and a hint of kobalt.) Eta 25 Jan '23- the marshmallow has become stronger and I am very much enjoying this today. Still extremely light with no throw but that's just fine.

I don't know how I never reviewed Snake Oil in the 12 years I've been loving it! This review is for the newest version, the 'It's back!" version, that arrived just today. I am so happy to say that Snake Oil is indeed back. This is what I remember smelling from fresh bottles in 2010, and from 2012-2016 when I was buying it. Gorgeous dark chewy spiced musked and patchouli-d vanilla. I am soooo excited. This is the good stuff and I am already slathered in it. May '22 Eta: there are differences, it isn't the same but it is still gorgeous and I know how difficult it must have been to get it this close! There is a more perfumey lift to this newer version but I love it. Dec '22 eta: I have been wearing this (the newest incarnation) for the past three days and honestly like it better than the original. I feel like there is a better blend of the musk/ vanilla/ patchouli etc, and am enjoying it muchly. Glad it is back.

Wow! The strawberry and lavender are beautifully strong! Within 5 minutes I can smell ylang ylang and just a hint of blueberry. I think there's vanilla flower that's helping remind me of Strawberry Moon '09 though, of course, this is very different. I'm smelling a hint of cream and lotus root but the strawberry is still the star 10 minutes in. I'm very curious to see how this develops - right now I am seriously contemplating a bottle. The strawberry calms down and I feel like the vanilla flower (which reminds me of a Henri Bendel perfume from years gone by) is melding beautifully with the ylang and honey dust. This is stunning and comforting and I love it.

Ugh. Why do I smell poudh??? I also smell mint but neither of these makes me want to ever try this again. I tried to bear it for almost an hour waiting for something good to happen but had to scrub it off, which took some time and effort. Glad it was a decant.

The name is perfect - this really is a whisper of spring. I had to apply more than usual to really smell it. Very rare to see freesia so I had to try it! The cherry blossom is definitely the most prominent note at first. I can smell the freesia and pear behind the cherry blossoms but I have to really try. I feel like the pear is giving this a powdery vibe? As this starts to dry, I think I smell plum skin and the bergamot, usually so lovably pronounced in everything, is emerging later in the game. I am curious how this will smell in an hour but honestly it isn't wowing me. Just a jumble of springy scents, but the waft of cherry blossom, bergamot and freesia is very nice. Had to come back for two reasons: 1. This IS wowing me now. The freesia and bergamot are truly beautiful. 2. This isn't sweet - it is truly a complex spring floral. If you are a fan of freesia, this might be worth a try. And the golden musk is giving an amber like support as this dries down which is dreamy... Eta October 25 2022- this is such a huge cherry blossom scent! Now I wish I had bought a bottle - sooo good.

2021 version. Sweet, powdery, vanillaic amber with a hint of lavender. I like it but it isn't a stand out. I changed my mind - this is fabulous.

The throw of cherry blossom from this is super intense! In the bottle, it just smells like dryer sheets. I expected that based on the notes. This is still very new and I want to let it settle for about 6 months to see how it changes, but right now I just smell lots of cherry blossom. That's fine with me ? If I try really hard, I think I'm smelling the woad because it isn't any of the other listed notes. It's a nice inky but velvety quality. This is going to be gorgeous and I am happy to have a bottle. Goodness. 30 minutes in, this is such a cherry blossom bomb! I bet the benzoin is doing a great behind the scenes support job because this cherry blossom sticks around. If you love cherry blossom, I hope you take a chance with this. ETA 10 Nov 22 the cherry blossom has intensified and yet folded itself into the scent. I don't know how to describe it but it is a pleasure to wear/ smell.

Oh, how lovely. This went on really light and has just been amping itself up over the past 20 minutes, wow. I decided to wait to test this on a Sunday ? This really smells like a super amped up version of Summer's Last Will and Testament and shares similarities with Red Moon '07 (to my nose), both of which I love. Very interesting - it does smell like sunflowers (or marigolds or mums). Very potent, very well blended, very sunny - like hope in a bottle. Love it. And...my throat is reacting to something here, which is interesting. I'm having the same reaction as when I'm in a room of mums or another related flower ? Stealth note???

Whoa. ? Milky, caramel Snake Oil. Wow. It's amazing. Very smooth, nothing abrasive, sharp or cloying. This may be my favorite Snake Oil variant yet.

What a red musk dream! It reminds me of Awake, but much heavier. Somehow, this is a really complex scent journey, all of the notes playing out over time but that creamy red musk remains the entire time and this lasts a long time. Big throw. Big love.

This started off promising with white chocolate and strawberry but it falls flat after barely a minute on my skin. White chocolate disappears leaving a very normal strawberry. I was hoping for the bright strawberry from Strawberry Moon '09...nope. Hopefully the chocolate will become stronger and stick around longer with some age.

Creamy peony and rose with something dark underneath. That's exactly what I had hoped for. I am sure it will show its complexities over the next year and I look forward to it but I would be happy if it stayed the way it is right now. Love it. Half an hour in, that broom note shows up - it must be - it adds a brushy complexity that's really neat. I think it is meshing nicely with the amber... Good stuff! Edited 26 Dec 22 - this has become a favorite. Beautiful, complex creamy rose-peony with a touch of amber. Gorgeous and very welcome after a rose monstrosity I had to scrub off!

This was the first Luper in my cart. For some reason I absolutely needed it. I was right. I don't even care that I have no clue what is going on behind the tulips (there is a lot subtly going on) because it is SO pretty. So tulip! So glad to have a bottle. Ooohhhh...I can smell the black orchid note now...wow!

Very simple. Very pretty. I always relax a bit when I first smell this. The plum seems to morph into not quite lavender (probably a good melding of them which is a foreign scent combo for me) and there's a nice center to it but not any kind of sandalwood I'm familiar with. Lovely for a nice afternoon lounge with a good book.

I wore this often during the winter. I really like the champaca in this, but the brimstone is fierce. Sometimes it borders on charred meat? Sometimes it plays nice. I never really smell the frankincense or sandalwood.

Plastic.Vanilla.Plastic ☹ It gets better ? The vanilla is good but I don't smell any lemon or cheesecake. I'm from NY and am familiar with the things I'm not smelling. But, still a good vanilla. And after reading reviews, I must have an odd bottle ? or it just needs to age. Eta: it must be my skin chemistry ? I smell everything in the bottle! Grrr...

Labdanum and vegetal musk. What a winning combo! I have let my bottle sit for quite a while because there was something sharp and stabbity early on that is no longer sharp and stabbity. I love this. A little bit of clove, a little bit of rose. ?

This smells like an upscale yet old school bakery. A bit 'bready', a bit of chocolate frosting and the almond paste isn't a marzipan note to me...more like a frosting note? I wish I could be more accurately descriptive. I might just go to the amazing little bakery around the corner and pick up something decadent because this is making me drool, lol. If you like bready pastries, this might be up your alley. I love it.

Yay! I finally get to try Books! It starts off heavy brown leather with a vanillaic quality and also a medicinal quality that I'm not sure I like. I think I smell a bit of ink but it isn't prominent. Very low throw and my skin just seems to eat it as it is almost gone within an hour. I have only let this rest for a week or so and am sure it will deepen as it ages. Glad to have some!

I let this sit for a while...all I could smell in the bottle was JASMINE. The story remains the same. In the bottle it is all JASMINE. I decided to go for it anyhow... I can tell there are notes behind the JASMINE but it is mostly JASMINE, and not the night blooming/sambac sort that I love, either. If I try reeeeeeally really hard, I can smell chamomile and rose. I truly wish any other note was the star of this show and I am hoping, with time, that the JASMINE will settle down. 30 minutes in, I'm smelling a very blue scent that reminds me of silk, lol (yay for imagery!) and now I am curious if the oud here is of the poudh vaniety or if the Jasmine is to blame...cannot tell. Oddly enough, I kind of like this. I just read the first review and had a chuckle - how different we all are! Fascinating. I wish I got patchouli and chamomile, which is why I went for a bottle and not a decant. I have hope. Another 30 minutes has passed and I can detect the salt. I have been thinking how this might layer really nicely with It Wasn't Just a Phase, which is one of my favorites. Still no patchouli yet! 4 hours on...I can barely smell it but what I can smell is a lovely shade of blue chamomile. Extremely complex wearing perfume and I am so glad I have a bottle. I can't wait to see how this smells in a year or two. Eta (24 July '22) this has smoothed out and is fantastic. It's the same jasmine but it blurs much quicker now. Silky, salty blue is the imagery. Very nice.

Fantastic for lightening the mood after doing Shadow Work or other intense workings. Plus, it smells like strawberry, red clover and passionflower- such a beautiful and definitely joyful ^^ scent.

I'm in love with Forget Me Not right now. The dried rose is balanced by the rice powder and grounded by the sandalwood. I am impressed by how smooth this smells...like a pressed powder. There's a semi bitter aspect to the scent that adds even more beauty and definition to it. Love it.

I worked with this oil and the Immortal Heart oil last night before bed. First of all, this oil smells fantastic. I can smell ALL of the notes, with the rose, chamomile, lemon and bergamot being most obvious and it is such a beautiful scent. This does not eff around. This shuts down any negative bullsh!t about your problems not being valid. This allows you to feel your problems in a validating way and shows any negative self talk to the door. Very powerful. I tend to internalize many things and feel the problems in this world very strongly. I will use this sparingly and in conjunction with Laughter- Loving to lighten the mood afterward. I feel fortunate to have this bottle and am grateful it was created. Much needed.

Chalky white amber and sweet vanilla with just a dusting of a light tobacco. I bet the cacao will be more present in a week or two. Light, ephemeral decadence. In the same vein as Zorya P., and Grey Columns but stands on its own. Absolutely beautiful. Eta: The cacao is much more present when I dabbed a bit more on just now. Yeah, this is stunning. Eta 2 When I wore this yesterday (April 9th) it had a horrible metallic overtone that was not there the last time...it took about 30 minutes to settle down.