doomsday_disco

This is also very different than I expected it to be. The first note that leapt out to me was yuzu. After that, I thought it could be white grapefruit, but yuzu was the first thing that came to mind. It's got that citrus note over the bright snow/ice note. I get a touch of mossy stones and a hint of smoke (really, just a hint) in the background, with the mossy stones being more noticeable with wear, yet never able to take on the yuzu or grapefruit snow. There is a 'watery' aspect to the scent after several hours of wear that is reminding me of another scent -- maybe Fuck This Heat or Kumari Kandam, but I am not sure. The water-like note has a touch of the sweetness of cucumber or melon to it on me. Although it wasn't what I expected, Im Tiefen Winter smells pretty nice. Since I love yuzu and grapefruit and like the citrus snow, I'll be hanging on to my decant. But I'm not sure if I need a bottle.

This one started off strong on the blueberry note on me, followed by the blackberry note, and then the black musk and jasmine. It's very fruity, with the berries darkened by the other notes. The jasmine and musk combo in the background are heady and also somewhat powdery on me. The licorice root, while present, isn't overly licorice-y, and while I'm not getting much of the black amber, I wonder if it is joining the musk in the background and contributing to the powderiness I'm getting beneath the fruit notes. This one isn't really in my wheelhouse, but it was nice to get a chance to try it. I would recommend this to someone looking for a dark berry type of scent.

I didn't know this scent was a thing, but I got to try this thanks to a tester from Lucchesa. The School starts off as dust, salty wood, and some stone on me. After a while, I get some sweet beeswax and some fruitiness that I thought could be due to red musk, but maybe there's just an unlisted berry note at play here. It kind of makes me think of a less sweet, less beeswax-y, dustier version of Two Westerners, but with that unexpected fruity note, which ends up dominating on me. This is not something I need to hunt down more of, but it was fun to get to try it.

The Fool is predominantly cool dirt (thanks to the peppermint combining with it) and apple blossom on me. The apple blossom is soft, but either it or the combination of the apple blossom and sandalwood make it end up somewhat sour smelling on me after a while, sadly. I was never able to detect the allspice. I was gifted a bottle of this perfume and was so glad to get to try it after only getting to sniff it at a convention, but sadly, it didn't work out for me. So I have gifted it to another BPALista who will hopefully have better luck with it.

This starts off very grape-y honeyed wine on me, backed by some resins, but over time, the wine calms down, and the resins come out more, along with some lilac, and it ends up smelling rather sour on me (not sure if it is one of the resins doing that on me or the resin/lilac combo). Eros ended up being a skin chemistry fail for me (I swear it doesn't smell sour whatsoever in the vial), but it was nice to be able to try it.

I tried this when it was initially released, but apparently never reviewed it. I ended up gifting my brother a bottle, who enjoyed it and sadly ended up spilling the bottle, so I wasn't able to smell/review it until a decant came across my path again. Humpback Whale starts off with the white myrrh and tobacco leaf being the strongest notes on me, but then the peppermint and a bit of the sea buckthorn berry join in (which isn't an overly berry type of note -- it kind of acts in the same manner as the berry in Coraline Jones) after a bit, making it a refreshing type of scent. Eventually, the ambergris shows up, giving it a cleaner, more aquatic feel. The myrrh remains prominent, but it is smoothed over by all of these other notes, which somehow make the scent smell cool and watery. While I don't love it, I'm really glad I got a chance to try it again. Aquatics don't typically work on me, but this is one of the nicer ones, IMO.

Odd to be the first review when this scent was released months ago. One of the herbs in this is lemongrass, so it is mainly lemongrass and incense on me, and it combines in a way that smells just like Lemon Pledge. I know that is a thing commonly said in reviews about lemon scents that aren't sweet, but this was the first time I have felt that a scent has smelled like that specifically. Over time, the scent softens manages to veer out of that territory, and it becomes predominantly incense, with some non-lemony herbs, a bit of concrete, and just a hint of sweetness from the honey ale. (There's also a touch of effervescence, but I'm not sure if that is from the ale or something else in this case.) But you've got to power through that early phase of the scent to get to that point. This isn't something I'd gravitate towards, but it was fun to try.

Bookcase Passage is more about the polished woods on me than anything else, with a soft leather note from the books and some dusty sandalwood in the background. Over time, the sandalwood gains strength and the scent becomes powdery on me, but the polished woods note is still there. It's definitely more bookcase than book, as the same suggests. I was hoping for more book from this, and less furniture polish, so it is not a win for me, sadly.

This is wonderful, and just like the description! It is extra sweet, much more so than Lick It With Consent (yay!), and more candy-cane like thanks to the extra powdered sugar and vanilla. The mint is bracing enough to leave a cooling sensation, but it's not as intense thanks to the extra vanilla and sugar. I haven't tried all of the Lick Its, but of the ones I've tried (Lick It Softly, Lick It Now, Lick It Vigorously, Lick It Til It's Sticky, and Lick It With Consent), I feel like it may be most comparable to Lick It Now, but even more sugary than that. But I can't be certain, since my bottle of that was used up many years ago. If you're a Lick It fan, you definitely need this one in your collection!

My original impression of this when it arrived was that it featured the same roasted apple note from Lambs-Wool, but this features a much fresher apple note than that one. It's very apple-forward and brown sugary, with some oats lingering in the background, but not very cookie-like on my skin, sadly. There also isn't much spice to it, so those with sensitive skin need not worry about this one being an irritant. I think those that are wanting apples and brown sugar will be pleased, but those hoping for more cookie than apple might be a little disappointed. I'm going to let this rest for a few weeks and retest it and see if it has changed with more time to settle. Because it is nice... but I was really hoping for more cookie.

This is my favorite scent that I've tried from the Yule update, but I knew that it would be. Anyone that loves the Lilith lavender scents need this. It has that lavender accompanied by white chocolate and the lightly buttery, soft, sponge-like madeleine. It's so comforting, and it could be used as a daytime or nighttime lavender scent. If I had to compare it to previous scents, I'd say it's most like Carry Me or Lilith's Love Low (a Lilith creation that rarely ever pops up since the recipe was lost). It's daintier than Two Frames, because the cake note in that one is much stronger. I doubt one bottle will be enough.

Peppermint and Pine smells like fresh pine needles backed by peppermint. The peppermint in this isn't sweet (it doesn't smell like pine plus a candy cane), and it's more pine than peppermint on both me and the boy. I tried layering this with Stekkjarstaur and loved it paired with Stekk's marshmallow-y goodness. I also tried layering it with a peppermint marshmallow scent from another perfume house, which took the peppermint up a notch. This is nice to wear on its own, but I am really excited about the layering possibilities with this one! The bottle is a keeper for sure!

This one is interesting. It's earthy, but not overwhelmingly so. The ginger and patchouli are the main players on me, backed by a touch of the realistic mushroom note at first, but I get more of the powdery benzoin and honey musk with those notes later on in wear. It's more pleasant than I thought it would be from the list of notes, and something that I think would be appreciated by patch fans in particular. But this is not something I can wear, because I think it may affect my allergies. The first time I tested it, I was sneezing so much that half of my nose became clogged and I had to take a break from testing scents for two days. Yesterday, I made sure I took allergy medication well before re-testing, and I didn't have that experience again, although when sniffing it, it sometimes gave me the feeling like I was about to sneeze if I kept at it. So I'm destashing it, but if you're looking for a unique patch, give this one a try.

Hymn is a strong rose + resin blend on me, with the rose and frankincense being the strongest notes. It starts off being somewhat sour, and I think that's due to the type of rose paired with the frankincense (it's not a deep, velvety rose; I think it's a tea rose or something similar). The lily is present, but can't hold a candle to the rose on my skin. It does become a little smoother as it becomes more resinous than rose-y with wear, but it takes a long time to get to that point. This one isn't really in my wheelhouse, but I'm glad I got to try it in my quest to try the GC!

This is gorgeous. It smells like Hag Grey Hair Gloss and The Air and the Ether had a baby. It features the same sophisticated white tobacco note from scents like A Vision of the Courtesan, Fake News, Hag Grey, Pediophobia, and Zorya P, which remains the star of the show on me throughout wear. I love the combination of this tobacco with the lavender. The white oudh in this isn't problematic at all (I never got an indolic quality from it), and the ambergris, while understated, becomes a little more noticeable later in the day. I'm so glad I blind bottled this. This is one of my favorite scents from the Yule update for sure.

Winter Scene in Little Russia is evocative of a landscape blanketed in bright snow. It starts off being pine forward. The smoke part of the pine is present, but doesn't become more prominent until later in wear on me. The pine is backed by the lavender and white tea snow, lending that bright, wintery feel. The Bulgarian lavender note isn't the lavender used in the Lilith scents, so like Tom and Galen mentioned in their review, this isn't a comforting type of scent. I wouldn't even classify this as a lavender scent to fellow lavender fans. Eventually, the smoke of the pine smoke takes over on me, which has some champaca in it. I'm iffy on the pine smoke due to the champaca, but those that aren't averse to it and are looking for a non-minty wintery scent with pine smoke wafting throughout should enjoy this blend.

With pie spices, whipped buttercream, and apple slices. THIS IS GLORIOUS. It's cider-like and also pie-like due to the apple and the pie spices, with the buttercream adding a creaminess to the scent without being rich. It makes me want cider. And pie. I was going to blind bottle this, but I ended up going for a mini decant so I could try more things from the Trading Post Weenie update. Well, I really should have just blind bottled this, and I fully intend to grab a bottle, unless there are other atmos from this update that call to me more, or the Yules hit me too hard. But right now, I am thinking I need than 4ml of this scent in my life!

Stonehenge at Dusk is very strong on the grass, which is dotted with dandelions and springtime flowers. The grass and dandelion notes are the strongest at first, but it becomes more sharply clean floral with wear, backed by the lovely stone note. The first time I tried this, it was too sharp on me, but the second time, I got more dandelion and enjoyed it more. I definitely think it's a nice springtime scent, and I appreciate the dandelion and the stone notes enough to keep the decant (which was generously frimped to me ). But I, too, am in the 'wish this one were an atmosphere spray' camp.

2013 version. This version smells different than the 2019 version. There's no root beer aspect to it at all (alas!), just a ton of red musk backed by some leather and dust. The red musk is super strong out of the gate and never stops being the main player on me. I'm glad I got to try another version of this, but I'll be passing on my frottle to someone who might appreciate it more.

Severin is mostly about the dry black teas on me at first, backed by the bergamot-y Earl Grey. I wasn't sure the leather was going to show up, but it becomes more noticeable after several hours of wear and is somewhat sharp next to the tea. The leather ended up being too sharp for me in the end, which I wouldn't have expected given how light it was in the beginning. But I'm glad I got to try it (and that I didn't fall in love with it, since it is discontinued!)

This one was on my wishlist forever, and a very generous forumite frimped me some of this to try. It reminds me of Lambs-Wool (I think it's the roasted apple note), my favorite spiced apple cider scent from the Lab, but with the addition of orange peel, and with a touch of earthiness from the oakmoss and sassafras. I'll be hanging on to this decant and pairing it with my Apple Pie hair gloss in the autumn.

I predominantly get deep resins, cinnamon, and patchouli from this. I'm thinking it's black amber, black oudh, dragon's blood, and patchouli, with just a touch of the leather from the tomes. It is very dark and resinous on me. In the background, I smell the cola-like labdanum and a bit of the black beeswax, but they mainly serve to slightly sweeten the dark resins. This is a little too dark to be in my wheelhouse, as I was hoping for more books and beeswax, but fans of incense-y resins should definitely give this a try.

This is a clean, musky, dry, papery sort of scent. It starts off strongest on the fresher aspects of the scent (papyrus and musks), backed by some sandalwood, with just a hint of the vanilla flower. Over time, the dry, white sandalwood comes out more, lending that dry, papery sort of feel, but I feel like the musks are the star here. They're soft, powdery, and gentle. Mr. Ibis is a little too quiet for me, but if you're looking for an understated, non-offensive scent, this would be a good one to try.

Rich vanilla sandalwood elegantly distorted by oudh, labdanum, scarlet saffron, and pink pepper. In the bottle: The vanilla sandalwood and pink pepper notes stand out to my nose. The combination of the pink pepper mixed with the sweetness is somewhat reminiscent of High Strung Daisies. It's kind of like High Strung Daisies and Mouse's Long and Sad Tale had a baby (but without the floral notes). If I inhale really deeply, I can smell the saffron and a hint of the other resins as well. Wet: The vanilla sandalwood is quite prominent, as well as the pink pepper. (If you aren’t familiar with pink pepper, it’s almost bubblegum-like but with a bit of a peppery kick.) The other resins are present, but they seem to be content with background roles at the moment. (I can smell them more in the crook of my elbow than on my wrist.) Dry: The pink pepper and vanilla sandalwood notes reign on my wrist, but the oudh and labdanum are more prominent there now (and are quite prominent in the crook of my elbow). I also get more of the saffron note in the crook of my elbow. Verdict: I love vanilla and pink pepper like whoa. I also love it when vanilla is paired with resins, so I knew I would love this one. I plan on ordering a back-up bottle when the Yules go live. It is rather feminine and pretty. *ETA (edited to add): a description of pink pepper.

The Shining Ones: snow-spattered lavender, bourbon vanilla, white mint, and white amber. I am testing this before it has had a full day of rest, so I will update my review if my experience is different after it has had more time to settle. Schönperchten is a clean, cool scent. It's very lavender-forward at first, but it becomes more of a snowy scent over time. The white mint is present throughout wear, but this a light variety of mint that adds a coolness to the scent without being intense or having a burning effect on the skin. It becomes a clean, powdery scent on me (but not like baby powder), and I am not sure if that is due to the white amber, the snow, or a combination of those notes. The snow in this is not sweet, slushy, or pine-y, nor is it the really minty variety. I think there could be some white musk mixed with some ozone at play here... otherwise, the white amber is going powdery on me even though I haven't had that issue with it before. The bourbon vanilla just adds a light sweetness to the scent after a while and becomes slightly more noticeable after a few hours of wear, but it is not a main player on me. It ends up being powdery snow, white amber, and white mint with a very soft lavender note after three hours of wear. I really enjoy the lavender and white mint, and I think the scent goes well with Brian's photo. It conjures images of white furs and soft, powdery snow. I just wish the beautiful lavender note had remained as strong as it was initially! I am going to let this rest some more and see if the vanilla comes out more as it ages.