Alethia

In the spirit of full honesty, I absolutely hated the way this smelled for the first full hour it was on my skin. The pumpkin rind was reading as green and sour, the lovely sweet orange disappeared within the first 2 minutes (literally, I timed it!), and it was just so weirdly unpleasant. But I got busy with work and at the two hour mark I started noticing wafts of something really incredible smelling and I realized it was this! It still smelled kind of unpleasant up close but from a normal distance was absolutely entrancing: sweet and musky and soft. It stayed that way well into the night and by hour 8 the skin smell matched the wafting smell. All this to say: I have no idea what happened here. It might be a pregnancy thing (although everything else in my order smelled like I predicted they would), it might be a weird bottle, I have no idea. Everything from hour 4 was a true delight so I’m willing to shelve the bottle to age and see what happens in a year or so.

I’ve been looking for a “my skin but better” perfume for a long time. Like A Girl was it for a long time but wasn’t available to repurchase when I finished my bottle (and I no longer have the patience/time to stalk swaps and sales). When I saw Like the Very Gods pop up in the 2025 Lupers, it was an instant bottle purchase even though I was worried about both the cedar and orris butter. I shouldn’t have been because this might be one of the best perfumes I’ve ever smelled across all the houses I’ve tried. All the reviews above are right: it’s idealized, sun warmed, summertime skin that’s just a little sweetly musky and just a little sweetly floral. This is a masterful fragrance and the only thing to do is debate with myself how many bottles will be enough.

I’m going through my BPAL box to see what needs to move on to more appreciative homes and found a bottle of Chimera that I purchased in November 2012. I’m exceedingly pleased to report that this nearly 13 year old bottle smells absolutely incredible and smells even better on my skin. I knew when I found BPAL that I was in it for the long game, but I truly didn’t expect perfume oils from 13 years ago to still smell so incredible. This is still mostly cinnamon to me but it’s a creamy, sweet, cinnamon without being foody or dry/dusty like some cinnamons can pull. A definite winner still!

Thank you both so much! Those both sound absolutely up my alley!

Necro-bumping to see if anyone has any recommendations for a white musk! I recently got a frimp of Fae which is lovely, but the white musk on the far dry down is absolutely enchanting. Any recommendations for something that’s heavier on the white musk that I won’t have to wait hours and hours for?

Thoughts before testing: pear is one of my favorite notes ever and I’m always on the lookout for a replacement for my long-gone Perilous Parlor. Wet: candied pear that still manages to be juicy. Crossing my fingers that this sticks around. Dry down: the pear is sticking around! It’s just losing some of that candied-ness and becoming deeper and more grownup. Dry: the vanilla finally shows up in a big way and it’s beautiful. The pear and vanilla are the stars here, and it’s reminding me a lot of a more sophisticated Perilous Parlor. Verdict: hoarding!

Thoughts before testing: this was a frimp in my most recent order and I can’t believe I’ve never tried it before! I love peach and white musk so my hopes are high. Wet: kind of soapy and herbal, not as sweet as I was expecting. Dry down: this almost immediately morphs into this really beautiful soft, sweet peach that isn’t candyish or cloying. The white musk is also pretty present and I think is doing a lot to rein in the peach and keep it soft and pretty. Dry: absolutely love this. It’s soft and sweet without being cloying and the musk/bergamot keep it grounded. Verdict: Full bottle in my next order!

I am generally ambivalent toward Snake Oil but last year’s Snake In The Carnations absolutely blew my socks off so I’m working to open my SO-scented horizons. This was actually really lovely! The plum is sweet and juicy and really gets a bump from the sweet/spicy/patch of the Snake Oil. I think I’m ok with just my decant but will definitely be on the lookout for more plum!

Sweet pea is a forever love note for me and the rest of the lineup is also stellar on my skin. Mouse’s LAST is my number one sweet pea but this is a close second! It’s a beautiful sweet floral that’s grounded by the sandalwood and almond milk. It never goes screechy or soapy to me but stays this beautiful soft sweet floral with just a hint of milkiness. Love it but I think Mouse’s LAST wins out overall for me due to its GC nature. Still, if you like sweet pea this is definitely one to try!

In the bottle this was so bitter I was afraid to spray it. Thankfully it mellows out pretty quickly to a lovely orange smell that’s more orange blossom than juicy orange fruit to me. I actually don’t mind this as it reminds me so much of my dearly beloved and long departed Oceans of Love, Millions of Kisses bath oil. This is a keeper!

This is definitely pomegranate sweet tarts on me. The first hour was weird: it was heavily indolic like jasmine snuck in. I also think it’s interesting that this is pure candy on me while Pomegranate Pastille (literally pomegranate candy) is just sweet, juicy fruit.

2024 version Thoughts before testing: I missed out on the original run of this and kicked myself for months after because it should be right up my alley. I love the Lab’s fig note and everything else is a love here too. Wet: the first minute or so is harsh and perfumey, but then immediately mellows out into a really beautiful milky fig with a soft incense on the back end. Dry down: This is pure magic on my skin. It’s soft and milky and sweet and has a really pretty incense tying it all together. It’s definitely not head shop incense, it’s soft and pretty and makes me feel so put together. Dry: If I were going to make a perfume strictly for me, this is what it would smell like. Creamy, sweet, slightly spicy, full bodied. This is an absolute love for me and it lasted for several hours before I had to try and smell it. Verdict: hoarding, definitely getting a back up bottle.

2024 version I’m with doomsday on this: I get no cookie, no almond, the barest hint of citrus, no sugar. This is 100% rum 100% of the time; I’m so disappointed!

I’m Snake Oil ambivalent (except for my beloved Snake in the Carnations) but this sounded too good to pass up. It’s strong SO with extra sweetness that my nose reads as almost maple. Nice and definitely worth a try but I’m good with just the decant.

Thoughts before testing: I don’t think I’ve ever tried a pomegranate perfume before. I’m leery of this turning into a fruity cereal or Sweet Tarts kind of smell, so I’m proceeding with caution. Wet: this smells exactly like a bowl of sugared pomegranate arils. Tart but sweet, realistically fruity without veering into the artificial. This is delicious. Dry down: I thought for sure this would be pure fruity candy but it’s layered and realistic and absolutely lovely. Dry: this lasted forever on my skin and was absolutely terrific the whole way through. I’m so glad it didn’t turn into fruity candy! Verdict: This is bottle-worthy for sure.