Velvet Lilly

Infernal pacts always seem like a better idea after a few drinks: bourbon, sweet tobacco, brimstone, weed accord, and khus. This is adorable and we all had so much fun going through this delightful collection. In the bottle: An old, bustling Apothecary or witch's hut. Dried roots, resins and bundles of dry herbs, weeds and khus. I didn't get the boozy or tobacco notes those words usually mean. Instead it was more of a not-quite-sarsparilla fascination. We loved it. The weeds are a very neat, interesting note - it doesn't smell like a field, it's not "green" these weeds are dried. Reminds me of The Apothecary or Witch's Garden.

White oud and white sandalwood, iris pallida, blonde woods, and pink pepper. Oh, Karikkotsu, you gorgeous elegant, bony nightmare you! This is special. This is unlike any of the Shungas or lupers in the (huge) collection. This is high end chic. This..... is elegant, dry wood with a whisper of what seems to be Bay Rum and a touch of pepper. As if a perfectly dressed gent has arrived at the bar for drinks before dinner..... but it's so unique it's ungendered. Everyone who smelled it, even bpal folks themselves seemed surprised at and enthralled with it. Wearing this I feel.....grand....put together...impossibly chic yet laid back and comfortable. I think the iris is the key that blends all these notes together in a magical way that creates a soft, amazing, sleek yet relaxed scent. I. Love. This. ...Bottle bought.

This is a fun one! I first got whiffs of both creamy coffee and buttery, boozy rum. I know it should be whiskey, but my head keeps thinking....shades of hot buttered rum. There's even a faint whiff of toffee. As it warmed on my skin......the most gorgeous, fresh buttery sweet roll scent started playing just off my skin. Not like... "oh how nice... it's sort of sweet roll-ish", but honest to zod, if I didn't know it was perfume oil, I'd think I needed to lick buttery, warm, doughy sweet roll off my fingers. But this isn't too sweet either. It's not as sweet as the cookie scents. It's a real winner of pastry, foodie, cake sitting next to an Irish coffee. LOVE it. It did go away a bit fast on my skin, which is unusual for the gourmands, for me...... but very yummy!

Get thee behind me, kitty! Sleek, buttery brown musk, clove husk, frankincense, holy water, olive wood crucifixes, and hairball accord. (Just kidding: no hairballs.) This is going to sound brazen, but..... If you love the Lupers, and are a fan of the Dildos in the Shunga collections, you'll love this. As we passed this bottle around I got nods of " oh yeaahhhh" when I said this carries the same olive wood and oil, and pretty musk of those, yet the holy water and other notes, balance this out to be more elegant. (not a word you'd expect for a silly named scent) Elegant and refined and yet hinting at shenanigans. The holy water doesn't make this an aquatic scent, for me. It seems to balance out the rest. No hairball either, I'm relieved to say! Again, if you like the specific and fun woods and oils of the Shunga dildo scents, you'll love the elevated, not so in your face with smut, version this bottle holds. Meow. ❤️

I've loved this scent from the first moment I got to smell some. It absolutely does it's intended job.... mellowed me out.. a bit of cost, self comfort, a bit of gentle uplift. Heart healing, anxiety softening. Making everything a bit smoother and easier to handle. In bottle: I get tea roses, but also an equal first huff of furry, musk, like there's a familiar peeking up at you from the bottle. Right away, the violet leaf and benzoin, and frankinsence. Wet: tea rose, violet leaf, and amber and benzoin... everyone's playing so well together in the pool. Dry down: the amber ramps up and says hello for me, balanced by the honey and benzoin, lingering with the violet and tea rose as she fades..... Really lovely..... and really mellowing. I love this heart's ease of a scent.

This is a unique rose scent... not nearly as "rosy" and not at all "red"... These are pale, wan, wilted roses....leached of color and fervent with melancholy or embalming fluid..... (it seems like there's a whisper in the middle of the embalming fluid scent in here, tempered with pale honey....) Funeral roses left on the casket too long....their edges curling in the beginnings of decay...in this sterile, cool room. She may have once been a party girl, but now she's gone to dust, her tan long gone....even her roses now, a remnant of what they were in full bloom.

This is unexpected and interesting and lovely. It's definitely sweet and sour, especially in the bottle on first sniff. But on the skin it's a unique morpher, for me. Wet: it's like a lovely soft, moon... the blueberries, from Blueberry Picking, are there but not in a gourmand sense, and they blend evenly with the creamy whispers of the lemon and bergamot. Dry: The white tea is also ephemeral and seems to be the note that morphs the scent on the dry down, as teas can do, into a hint of powder. The blueberries go away and the citrusy floraly notes come through. This is like....the little girl who went blueberry picking, grew up, came in and away from the grass, and turned it into a true young ladies perfume. So lovely.

A contraction: red musk seized by crushed mint, eucalyptus blossom, orange blossom, and bergamot. I bought two bottles this is so good. In the forefront is my favorite, juicy red musk, brightened up by muddled orange blossom and tempered by a flowing ribbon of mint and bergamot, but not "minty mint", I just know there's mint in here by the sobering effect of the musk...not cooling, just a shading to keep it less bright, but just as lush. This is almost a cousin of Dainty Sulphur - without the ash and brimstone All the parts of the heart are really gorgeous. Do not sleep on this beauty.

Yes all these notes together but also, it blends to make a gorgeous, refined (I know, what?) fougere. There's a hint of smokiness in the dark musk as well. I'd say this scent leans to a bit of a masculine slide of the dial, but everyone can wear it. (and should.) Gorgeously blended, less gourmand, more chic. In the bottle: I get the leather and smokey-is musk and gingerbread Wet: fougere... so well blended I don't smelll any notes peeking out in a forward way. It's a wonderful melange. Dry: The patch has a dry feel to it, the gingerbread has been eaten and the musk melds with the faint spices and leather.

A really fun, delicious hair gloss. I kept smelling it in the air at the yule Bazaar. Wet I get a bit of smoke. The dry down is delicious and sugar s'moresy.

Let the wild Holiday Rumpus start! In the bottle: Gingerbread in front of you, pumpkin egg nog in that skull next to it. Wet on skin: Hello holiday spices and moist, cakey ginger spice bread with a whisper of butter! Just a hint of skull. This is not a heavy throw kinda treat. Even with the spices, this is close to medium throw Dry down: Cinnamon spiced pumpkin egg nog in a weathered skull. (my skin amps cinnamon above all else, so others will definitely wear this one differently than I) I only know the skull/ bone note is there because I'm looking for it. It's there as a wonderful, savvy mellower, balancing out the notes. It's kind of brilliant. People are going to want to nibble on you, wearing this.

This one is complex! And amazing and several of us had fun trying to suss out the notes as it went from bottle to dry down. Wet: I get the maple branches and leaves first, the black currants are smushed on the ground within the leaves, and are tempered with the bourbon touched patchy root. I also get a bit of the green, smashed bud of the leaves, almost fresh mint-like, but not at all "minty" On skin, it blooms and the notes separate into a very unique, changing, whiff as you smell it. Not morphing so much as spreading out to tease out the notes. I think I smell pepper and sweet red pepper in there too. The geen leaf note peeks out farther and so do the black currants. Dry down: It fades evenly, not leaving one singular note behind as some scents do. This one is amazing.... it's Good Weird, in the best way. I'm so glad I got a bottle.

This is such lovely juicy Pomegranate that I bought it just for that great note. What I dint' expect, as a happy surprise, was that "Aveda product" note (what is that??) that morphs out and lingers after the dry down and I love it so much. I don't think it's just vetiver, because normally, vet has a bitter woody note I don't wear well- it can give me a headache. This is unique and lovely and subtle but present in such a wonderful way. So glad I bought a bottle.

Comfort and cozy, light hearted love. A bit of protection as well and friendship, if it's wanted. That's how this smells to me. It's always a balm to my heart. Creamy, sweet, heady....gentle and light hearted. I get the creamy honey first and florals wrapped around it. Like affection is luxury and happiness is its currency.

In the bottle: it's a serious sucker punch to the face of sharp blousy, white florals like honeysuckle/jasmine/gardenia. Wet: Still strong! Yet, It's a nicer play date....that starts to mellow as it dries. A little goes a Long way. I bought it for the charity it supports, and figured I'd use it to toughen up the super candy scents like Poppa Monster, or liven up juicy scents like Midwinter's Eve. The dry down and the way it lingers gets lovelier...,much like gardenia on me... I like it a lot when it's going away and melds more into my skin. This flower's got Guns! And pecs... and a six pack..and an attitude. I think on cold days this would be too straight forward and overpowering for me, but on really hot sweaty days, I think it'll break down on my skin faster and give a tropical air to anything i mixed it with.

This is so elegant and lovely! It's' so chic and luxe.... like wandering through the Bellagio lobby and garden topiary displays. The orange blossom is tempered by the violet leaf, and seems almost aquatic, but not exactly, just, lush. The pine needles are there, but gently, and not at all in a pine tree way. Just an awareness there are trees outside or the tatami mats beneath you. This is high end, airy, chic, indoor -outdoor elegance. Yum.

What a Fun gorgeous scent! This is a juicy, tropical party in a bottle, under stormy skies. Three of my favorite scent notes in one bottle is all kinds of yes and they play so well together! The coconut and blossoms lead the way to the bar, while the dead leaves linger overhead like storm clouds, but not too strong.... Still, it's sheer on with a medium throw and lingers close to my skin. I love it.

One of the sweetest, light and lovely scents I've ever put my nose to. She's Graceful and young, but not naive. She's strong and feminine. I admit, I love this more than Antique Lace. Soft dainty sandalwood, vanilla and knowing musk. I love this princess that can save herself.

Ahh Cotton Phoenix, my beloved sweet dream of a scent. All lovely and in a white dress.... sweet snake oil and almond milk with a kiss of Snow White and maybe coconut husk giving it a playful happy air. Along with the cotton musk... I just want to twirl with this scent in the sun on a clean wood floor.........

Ahhhhh there she is... my favorite leather rawhide note from the lab ever. So sexy and real. The Leather puts it's hand on the small of your back, and gently leads you into a dry saloon, wafting you with dry wood and spices, well oiled gun metal and the promise of adventure and protection. A strong lover in a black hat and a true heart. My favorite of the Anniversary Phoenixes.

Bamboo and Walnut surrounded by juicy clove spiced figs framed in sheer lace curtains.....(the chamomile I think) Gentle and deep, soft and enigmatic while still being tender. So much love in these scents. I love the story of this collection and reading all of them made me misty.

I love this and love that it paints a picture of the man and the whole room. In the bottle: The wood bar, a bit of dust on shelves, musk, the faint barrel and nutty scent of bread & beer, There's a sweetness in here as well... vanilla It's light yet the light through mullioned windows gives this a clear picture in scent. It SMELLS like golden hour..... amazing. Like Kvothe is sitting, as Follis says, quietly in the empty Inn. So gorgeous.

A living summer day in a bottle. In the bottle: fresh green grass crushed by happy feet after dewy sprinkler spray, and a 3D smelling apple pie in your face. It's amazing how she can do that. Wet: Apple pie and dewy grass in the back ground. Dry down: apple notes don't love me.... but the spices come up a wee bit which is lovely. (I rarely amp sweetness) An amazing creation that I'll happily huff if I can't wear.

In the bottle: Cherries, almond and metal something... a hint clove way down in there somewhere. Wet: A bit more spice on top of the cherry almond. And something else I can't place. The metal goes away or morphs. Dry down: The rose comes out and tempers the softer cherry and almond. It's wonderful with Come To Me Boy.

In the bottle: Hello civet! and shades of dirty diaper with honey and florals... On: Whew! <3 Civet goes away and so do the diapers..... a honey, creamy-ish floral with a whisper of citrus that leaves a trail for others to follow as it beckons..... I can see how this works...