doomsday_disco

I was interested in trying this one because of the beeswax rosin. Well, the beeswax rosin is present throughout wear, but it's delicate. I get a lot of teakwood from this, which ended up being too sharp on me, just as I feared it would be. The driftwood note (I can see this being like a somewhat salty sandalwood) is the second most prominent woody note, and the myrrh ends up being a powdery variety after several hours of wear. It ends up being like a woody cologne on me backed by some powdery myrrh. While I appreciate the beeswax rosin, I prefer The Mountebank and Thieves' Rosin over this one, as it has more oomph in those blends. The teakwood was a bully on me for too long for me to want to wear this again, sadly, even though I enjoy the other notes.

This is Kit clad in a well-worn, brown leather jacket that somehow has the scent of clove infused into it. The sweet Mysore sandalwood from Kit and Al-Azif is a main player here, accompanied by what I believe is the same brown leather note found in Outlaw and clove. The sweet tonka melds with the Mysore sandalwood beautifully, and over time, the brown leather comes out more. I think this is really nice. I am not sure that I need a bottle of it because I already own plenty of Kit. But this is my favorite sandalwood from the Lab, and I do love clove and that brown leather note, so I am not sure that my little half-decant will be enough.

In the decant, I smell the cherry blossom-infused cotton candy and a bit of clove. On me, I get more clove than I did in the vial, accompanied by the cherry blossom spun sugar. The clove is a spicy variety, but it does not manage to take over the cherry blossom-dappled cotton candy, even though there was a point when it threatened to do so -- they end up being pretty evenly balanced for a while, although the cherry blossom and cotton candy notes have become stronger after four hours of wear (with the cotton candy becoming more distinct). Nothing in here makes me think of blood or the problematic notes that are usually associated with it on me (no dragon's blood, anything metallic, or musk on me). I was also worried that the blue part of the cotton candy descriptor would be blueberry or blue raspberry or something, but it is not. The cherry blossom cotton candy and clove combo works, and I think I need more of it!

Elegant Vulvas features a strong wildflower honey note. It's a floral honey scent (mainly the wildflower aspect of the honey -- I get a touch of cherry blossom, though) for three hours before the golden amber, teak, mallow, and lotus show up, making it a resinous lotus honey scent with a touch of creamy marshmallow. I vastly prefer this phase of the scent, when it is not all about the honey. I do not need a bottle of this, because I would have liked the scent to become more complex sooner than it did, but I'll hang on to my decant for now and see if I like it more after it has had more time to settle.

I was going to blind bottle this. But I didn't, because I was trying to tell myself that I have too many bath oils that I need to use up before getting another bottle. Well, that was a mistake. THIS IS GLORIOUS. It's mostly fluffy, creamy marshmallow with a light touch of honey. (This is from a test on my arm -- I only use my bath oils as post-shower moisturizers.) I need a bottle. (Good thing I finished up two bath oils this week!)

In the bottle, I get Snake Oil and lavender. On me, I get the Snake Oil spices, followed by the lavender, oudh, and oakmoss, and then the violet leaf, with some herbal rose geranium trying to vie for the center stage. I get more Snake Oil from this than Snakes Slithering Through Stinging Nettle, and I'm glad that the lavender is next in prominence, as that is what I am here for. But I am also getting a little funk from the oudh in the background. Fortunately, that goes away! The oudh has become stronger, but it is smoother now, and the rose geranium remains confined to a background role, making it a dusky, lavender and oudh Snake Oil. Then it morphs into a sweeter phase, as if the violet leaf actually contains a bit of violet (which I amp), making me think of the lavender and violet combo in Lavender Wig Spray, but not as sweet, intertwined with oudh, Snake Oil, and oakmoss. Oakmoss and rose geranium are usually pretty strong on me, but that is not the case here. I can only smell rose geranium's herbal twang in the background if I go looking for it and sniff up close. This is a shadowy, purple Snake Oil. I wish the lavender had remained as strong as it was when I initially applied it, but I am glad the notes I was worried about (oudh and violet leaf) behaved (for the most part!). I am not sure how I feel about this one yet (aside from liking it more than Snakes Slithering Through Stinging Nettle), but I am someone that prefers Snake Oil aged, so I am going to set it aside and come back to it later, because I think it has potential.

In the vial, the apple, yuzu, and musk notes jump out at me. It makes me think of a citrusy Rapunzel in Ballpoint (which is a sparkly green apple musk). On me, the frozen green apple note is the strongest, followed by the yuzu, and then the crystalline musk. It remains this way for a long time, but the snowdrops do end up emerging after a few hours, making it a floral-tinged apple musk on me. It's youthful and feminine. I like this! I don't need to go hunting down a bottle, since I already have Rapunzel in Ballpoint and prefer that one, but I do think this is nice! I'll be keeping my decant to wear with my Snow Moon t-shirt.

I almost bought a blind bottle of this, but I restrained myself, since there have been several grapefruit scents released as of late. In the vial, I get the pink grapefruit, yuzu, a slight kick from the pink pepper, and a little salt from the seafoam. On me, the tart grapefruit and yuzu reign, but behind it, I smell the salty seafoam. The seafoam becomes more prominent as it sits on my skin, making the citrus sharper and verging on soap. (Aquatics typically do not play nice on me.) Ambergris usually takes a while to show up on me. I can smell it as it begins to dry, and suspect it will gain prominence later, but it is light at the moment. I also get a slight kick from the pink pepper, which is not like the one in High-Strung Daisies. After about an hour, this becomes more aquatic than citrus. The ambergris is now the star of the show, accompanied by the salty seafoam, and just a hint of citrus. It remains that way after a few hours, with just the barest tinge of citrus by that point. The lovely pink grapefruit and yuzu notes were too short-lived on me, sadly, making this a predominantly aquatic scent on me. I prefer Bellicose Clam for a pink grapefruit and yuzu scent, but I am glad that I was able to try this!

2010 version. Gingerbread Poppet starts off as a super spicy gingerbread scent, but it gets warmer over time, giving it a fresh-baked gingerbread feel. I swear I can smell the sugar and some brown butter. Smelling it is making me hungry! I hope this one returns in a future Yule update. It's a wonderful, true gingerbread scent.

I am always looking forward to finding more cherry scents to pair with my Dragon Bouffant HG, and I had hoped Monster Bait: Bloody Mary would be one of them. Alas, it was not meant to be. I do get cherry from this, but I get tons of currant and what I believe may be raspberry syrup (not realistic raspberry), as donkehpoo suggested. The cream is present, but this is far more fruit-dominant on me than cream-forward, sadly. The powdered sugar is more noticeable after several hours of wear, but the fruits remain the main players on me. I like the black cherry note, but I wish I were getting more of it and the cream, and less of the other fruits.

Monster Bait: Closet is a sophisticated cupcake scent. The bourbon blackberry buttercream is the most prominent aspect of the scent on me, and I think it is the bourbon that gives it that touch of sophistication. Behind that, I do get the red velvet cake, which smells realistic to me, crumbs and all. I like it, but I don't love it (because of the prominence of the blackberry -- it's rare for me to love something with a prominent berry note), and that's a good thing, because I feel like I just dodged a rare bullet.

2016 version. This does remind me of a gingerbread house. I get fluffy gingerbread and candy (the spice drops are the most prominent on me, and the chocolate is light and only stuck around for the wet stage). I do not get much frosting from this, but maybe that's because I tend to amp spice notes. After a few hours, it mostly smells like a candied gingerbread scent. This was frimped to me, and I'm glad that I got to try this! I never ordered a decant of this myself, as I wasn't sure how all of those different candy notes would mesh together, but I like this more than I thought I would.

Deadly Nightshade Honey starts off with a light, golden honey with an herbal, green tinge to it. There's also a soft minty aspect to the deadly nightshade note. The herbal note increases with strength during wear, and it ends up being a green, herbal scent backed by the light honey note after several hours. I never got any sharpness from this, although I suspect that could be because this imp is an aged imp. I like this more than I thought I would, but I'm not sure if I would end up reaching for it. That said, I think this and Hemlock Honey are the honeys I appreciate most from the apiary thus far.

Gomorrah is a very dark, dirty fig on me, backed by some currant (I may be getting more of it than others, as it's a note I think I amp). I think the herbs are dirtying up the fig. I wasn't expecting it to be this dark, and I'd say it's a darker fig blend than Nasty Woman. This one is not for me, but I am glad that I got a chance to try it!

My bottle of Happy Baby in a Long Dress is almost gone, so I was hoping this would help fill that lemony lavender void. The lemon verbena is the most prominent note on me throughout wear. The lavender is present early on, but this variety isn't nearly as strong as the lavender buds in Happy Baby in a Long Dress, and it fades over time, while the elemi, which I only got a hint of at first, gains strength while still remaining in a background role. It's a very bright and almost effervescent on me. I think the name matches the scent perfectly. This is not the lavender-y lemonade I love in Happy Baby in a Long Dress, but I do think it would be a nice pick-me-up scent. I'm going to hang on to this and see if I end up reaching for it during the warmer months.

A lovely BPALista frimped this to me, and I'm really glad I got to try it! At first, the golden amber, honey laurel, and sweet heliotrope are the main players, with the honey laurel being the strongest of those notes. It's rather powdery on me at first, but the cedar and saffron emerge after a while, adding more warmth and a little spice to the blend. The golden amber ends up being the dominant note after several hours of wear, backed by the honey laurel, cedar, saffron, and heliotrope. It's still somewhat powdery, but not as powdery as it was initially. I get more of the resins and saffron from a distance, with the honey laurel and heliotrope being more noticeable when sniffing up close. A solar blend, indeed! I will be hanging on to my imp.

In the bottle, the honey, buttered rum, and brown musk are the notes that leap out at me. On my skin, I get the notes mentioned above, and then the clove emerges, as well as a syrupy, sweet labdanum. These notes all mix together to create a honeyed, fuzzy buttered rum cider type of scent. The honey is a thick variety and is the most prominent note on me. I was worried that the buttered rum would be too sticky sweet and strong, and that the labdanum would give it this cola vibe that would clash with the other notes, but neither of those things were problematic. I seem to have had the same end result as Aveya: a thick, sweet, foody scent. It's kind of like a honeyed toffee on me, like if Winnie the Pooh were scooping honey out of a honey jar with a chunk of toffee. But I still get some of that cider vibe that other reviewers have mentioned. This is more pleasant than I thought it would be from the list of notes. It definitely makes me think of bears because of the prominence of the honey on me, and I'm glad that I got to try it since it is a Berlin scent! I will be hanging on to my partial, and I look forward to seeing how this ages.

Blackcurrant Glogg is a boozy blackcurrant scent, accompanied by zesty orange peel and sweetened with sugar, with some spices mixed in (they are light at first, but become more noticeable over time, especially the cinnamon and clove, but never dominate the scent). Fruity scents aren't really my thing, but I wanted to try this to compare it to the Black Cherry and Apricot Glogg scent I have, and I feel like that one is far more boozy (at least, on me -- I get ridiculous throw from that one with my skin chemistry). This is better than I thought it would be, but it's also not something I could see myself reaching for.

In the decant, I smell plum and custard. On me, those are the standout notes as well. This is a plummy custard scent, with more plum than custard, with some treacle that becomes more noticeable with wear. I didn't get much spice from this, which is odd, because I usually amp them. It's not something I would wear, as I am not particularly fond of plum scents, but it's a tolerable plum thanks to the prominence of the custard and treacle. I'm glad I got to try it, though, since I apparently never tried it the first time around!

In the decant, I smell creamy, spicy porridge, and I totally get the popcorn vibe zee_zee mentioned. On me, it's much more spice-forward than it was in the imp, with the ginger in particular standing out, and I am also getting some currant now. It is still buttery, so I can totally see the Bread-and-Butterfly comparisons. The ale note gains strength once dry. It retains its butteriness after a few wear and ends up smelling like lightly spiced sugared porridge on me with just a touch of currant. I am surprised my skin didn't run away with the spice and currant notes for once. This is better than I thought it would be on me, but I don't think I'd reach for this over the other breakfasty scents that I own. If you want to smell like breakfast, though, you should try this!

This is the only Luper that I blind-bottled because I am a sucker for honeysuckle. (When I was a kid, I did the same thing ellocentipede mentioned in her review, so this flower has a special place in my heart.) I knew it wouldn't disappoint. And it didn't! If you're a fan of honeysuckle, you need this in your life. There's far more honeysuckle than honey, to my nose. This is a stunning sweet floral scent that will be perfect to spray around in the spring and summer, or when you need to remind yourself that there are brighter days ahead. I am so glad that I bought a bottle!

Usually, I will test a hair gloss on my hair twice before making a review (once on wet hair, once on dry). For this one, I didn't test it on my hair at all. I sprayed it on a paper towel (and it still smells strongly of it the next day). So maybe treat this review as more of an impression than a proper review. Pumpkin Latte smells mostly like pumpkin syrup, milk, and spices mixed with some sugar and vanilla (the vanilla is not particularly smoky). Although espresso is the first note listed, I get very little of it here, in the decant or once sprayed. There is a bit of bitterness from it in the background, but I had to search for it. This is much better than Pumpkin Latte perfume oil, which was a fail on my skin chemistry. I was hoping for more espresso from this, as I was looking for a hair gloss to pair with a few coffee scents, but this would probably be better to pair with pumpkin scents, IMO.

Gingerbread and More Ginger is exactly as described! It's more gingerbread-y and smells deeper than the other gingerbread scents I tried from the 2018 Yules (Gingerbread and Lavender Sugar and Gingerbread, Coffee Bean, and Smoked Vanilla). After a while, I do get more of a candied and lemony ginger mixed with gingerbread type of vibe from it. I have sensitive skin, and the ginger in this warms my skin, but does not burn, fortunately. Smelling this is making me hungry! This is much nicer than I was expecting it to be, and those that are looking for a thin, crispy gingerbread with candied ginger should get some of this to try.

I agree that the coffee bean note in this has a cocoa-vibe to it. I got a whiff of it in the vial, but didn't get much of it on my skin. On me, it feels more like a sugar-crusted crispy gingerbread (the gingerbread does have a lemony aspect in the beginning, but that goes away) with a little vanilla bean, which doesn't smell particularly smoky to my nose. The vanilla bean note becomes more prominent over time. There's a just bit of the cocoa-vibe from the coffee bean in the background, which is nothing like the coffee bean in Destructive Vagina of the Fox Spirit (I love that note in that blend). I can still smell it after a few hours, but this one stays close to the skin. I think this smells nice, but I was really hoping for a strong coffee bean like in Destructive Vagina of the Fox Spirit mixed with gingerbread and vanilla.

2013 version. In the decant, I mostly get oakmoss, followed by a little patchouli and a hint of beeswax. On me, the oakmoss takes the center stage, but the ambrette seed and musk aren't far behind, and I also get some patchouli. The musk and patchouli become more prominent with wear, and the patchouli is a red variety. There is a bit of beeswax in the background, but the earthy notes (moss and patchouli) and the musk are the stars here. The description of the patchouli made me avoid trying this during previous years, but it's not a super dirty patchouli, IMO (or maybe it became a lot smoother with age)? There's still not enough sweetness from the beeswax and honey for me here, but fans of moss and patchouli should give this one a try.