Lucchesa
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Everything posted by Lucchesa
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Good Morning, London was exactly what I expected on me: an initial blast of lovely herbal lavender which my skin quickly devoured, leaving an old-fashioned golden amber single note. The amber did go a bit powdery after a couple of hours, but I didn't mind as it was still really nice. It is in fact quite a gorgeous amber scent, but I have many ambers I love, and I think I will pass the decant on to someone whose skin will let them hang onto both the notes.
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Original Christmas Pudding decant. This is quite a morpher on me. It starts off perfumey, not foodie at all, but settles into a boozy plum. There is a stage where I can smell the suet accord, which freaks me out a little, but ultimately just adds depth to the holiday spices. I don't get a lot of custard -- it's not eggy or dairy-like on me, more like a rich boozy fruitcake. It lasts a long time, with a sugar-and-spice late phase. I don't wear a lot of foodies but this was nicer than I expected.
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2015 Rose Red. I don’t wear much rose but this is a genuine fresh-cut red rose experience, from back in the day when red roses actually smelled like something. At first it’s green cut stem and red petals. There is also a dewy aquatic aspect to this scent. It ends up pure red rose With medium staying power. I don’t get much throw but that’s normal for my skin. If you love rose, you need this.
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Ruhe means quiet in German, and Ruhende Ziege mit Kitzchen is quiet on me. All the notes are lovely, snuggly autumnal ones (except I'm not so familiar with the castoreum, but it seems to be right in line with the rest of them). I agree with doomsday_disco that there is a cola vibe to it -- I was testing Studie einer Ziege on the other wrist where I got the syrupy cola labdanum, and there seemed to be a family resemblance though the only shared note is the clove. The brown musk is lovely, though I'm not getting much leather; the oudh is nothing to be scared of. This sits right in the middle of unisex, neither male nor female. It wears very close to the skin on me, and the wear length is less than average, though that may improve with aging. It's nice but I have enough comfort scents that I don't need a full bottle.
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Suffragium was straight-up coca cola on me, and sure enough Studie einer Ziege shares that syrupy cola-like labdanum note, but Studie works much better on my skin. The tobacco and woods take it out of pepsico territory, into something a little richer and smokier, and the clove adds just the right amount of spiciness for me. I don't get much throw (which is normal for me) but it lasts a good while. This is very cozy and comforting. I like it!
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2016 Maison en Pain d'Epices is complicated gingerbread. Foodies aren't my everyday go-to, but I do love the gingerbread note; it was everything else here that worried me. But it's surprisingly good. Milk chocolate often doesn't work on me, so I suspect this is at least semi-sweet. Thankfully, I can't really make out the mint, or the nekkos wafers. I just get warm spicy chocolate gingerbread that lasts all day as a skin scent and isn't as ridiculously sugary as the description might imply.
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The first review on page 2 likens The Smiling Spider to spicy soap, and that is exactly the experience I had with it on my skin. Dry clove, bitter not sweet, with black musk and polished mahogany, and I suspect it's the furniture polish that creates the soapy sensation, which dominated the throw. The patchouli is very subtle on me. This one was a miss with my skin chemistry.
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Artisjok generously shared a frimp of Dark Chocolate, Black Tobacco and Vetiver with me, and I am in love. Dark chocolate, really dark, at least 70% cacao. The vetiver is harsh for about 30 seconds, then it settles into that dark smoky goodness that goes perfectly with the chewy tobacco. Although I rarely get much sillage with my skin chemistry, there is a smoky throw a few inches from the skin on me. There is nothing ethereal about this scent. It is all about hedonism, rich intense lust for life. It's not foodie, but you can taste it, almost touch it. The chocolate becomes less distinct after time and just melds into the dark deep sexiness of this scent. Superlative.
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Carnation is my favorite floral, and I love the Spanish Red Carnation SN, so this was a pretty easy bet. Dead Leaves and Red Carnations is a gorgeous entry in this year's amazing leaf pile, the earthy spicy carnation melding seamlessly with the earthy piquant dead leaves -- like kscha2017 above, I had never thought of them as similar, but they blend effortlessly. I could wear this cozy blend all fall and winter; it's totally work appropriate and I get minimal throw, which is normal for my skin. Wear length is a little less than average, but that may improve with aging.
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I retested Czernobog last night as I was pulling a neighboring imp out of my swap box and have developed much more tolerance for vetiver than when I first tried it. It is indeed dark and somewhat harsh at first. I too got the menthol note, probably mullein, which google informs me is used in cough serum. So dark musky cough syrup with harsh, smoky vetiver. One of the musks must be red or red-aligned because it and the vetiver just ganged up on me, as they have done in other blends. I wasn't really getting much myrrh; it was all red musky vetiver, with terrific throw, and I could still smell it on my wrist this morning. It's better than I remember, but I amp that musk-vetiver combination too much for my comfort.
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I was frimped Ice; it's pretty much a panoply of death notes, not something I would ever have chosen. That being said, it's not nearly as bad as expected. Apparently eucalyptus blossom is softer than just eucalyptus. The crystalline musk is not too screechy. The mint is contributing to an overall coolness without screaming peppermint. This is quite unisex, and I agree with the previous reviewer that it has a clean and sharp feel. Not something I would wear often, but I'm glad I had a chance to try it.
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There's something about A Certain Nameless Awe, not the notes but the general feeling, that reminds me of the GC Dance of Death. A dryness and paleness, an untouchable quality, elegiac. White sandalwood and ambergris are the main notes on my skin. I find it falls to the feminine side of the unisex spectrum. Throw is minimal (this is normal for me) and wear length is good so far. Hauntingly beautiful.
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I'm starting to think the hay note doesn't love me. Or maybe it was something in the wildflowers. Either way, Scarecrow Turned Philosopher was lovely in the decant, warm and golden with florals just floating lightly around the edges, but became too perfumey on my skin. Amber often spells old-fashioned, high-end perfume to me, but Scarecrow was higher pitched than the deeper gold ambers I groove on. This felt very feminine and pretty, which just isn't my thing most of the time. Wear length was average, and I didn't get much throw, which is normal for my skin.
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My first thought, when this hit my wrist, was that this was too much toffee and not enough bonfire. It wasn't until I checked the notes today that I realized there wasn't actually supposed to be smoke in here. I don't always love foodies, and this was too treacly for me at first. But it grew on me, and I imagined that a hint of smokiness eventually rode along with the boozy dark caramel. It had great wear length on me, and the late drydown is beautiful and mellow. The decant is a keeper, and if I foodies were more of what I wear, I would definitely buy a bottle.
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Cairo. Wet: Grape Hubba-Bubba. Early drydown: Lemon and grape Hubba-Bubba. Drydown: The grapey sweetness recedes, and things get interesting. Lemony incense, offered with a breath of red wine. And while it seemed like I had to get pretty close to my wrist to smell it, it actually had quite a bit of throw at a distance. I nearly asked the woman I was having lunch with what scent she was wearing until I realized it was Cairo I was smelling, and enjoying. I can still smell it faintly on my wrist this morning. This one is kind of intoxicating.
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I was the lucky recipient of a bottle of this in a recent swap. I am never going to travel without it again. It is magic on sore feet. I usually use the Body Shop's peppermint foot lotion. This is better. It may not smell as good -- eucalyptus is not a note I enjoy in perfume -- but it is extremely effective.
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I knew The Mock Turtle's Lessons wouldn't work on me, but I wanted to try it out of curiosity and because it's a Mad Tea Party scent. It was less bad than expected! Aquatics just go soapy on me, but the first notes I got out of this were apple and mint. A little booze, a little lime, with the aquatic notes, yes, blurry, not sharp and distinct and detergent-like. It's light and spring-like, and the apple is more sweet than tart. Ultimately it's soft aquatic with just hints of fruit and mint. Wear length is a little less than average on me.
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Desmonema is not a willful misspelling of Desdemona but a jellyfish species, if anyone's interested. With the exception of quince, which usually doesn't show up in large enough quantities for me to really judge what it smells like on me, and mimosa, which is iffy, all these notes tend to be reliably good on me. Wet, I get black vetiver and patchouli. It's dark and earthy, rough around the edges. It softens considerably on drydown, though I would not call this floral. Nor do I get much citrus. It's mainly vetiver-patch-coconut-myrrh, with some sweetness that's probably due to the fruit. (Again, I can't make out quince specifically; I need a quince SN.) I agree with zanzoku_zen that this is reminiscent of Goblin. But even with the coconut, it doesn't feel summery to me. Maybe a nighttime scent for summer, a daytime one for fall/winter. I'm going to test this again but I rather like it!
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I am no fan of ylang ylang or violet, but I am very fond of hyssop, frankincense and loamy scents. Plus I love the poem and thought the notes might capture it really well, as in fact they do. But I honestly didn't have high hopes for this because of the first two listed notes. The florals come rushing out of the gate together, but it's not an old lady violet, and I'm not actively disliking it because I can start to smell the frankincense and soil fending off the floral assault. I Died for Beauty turns into a frankincense scent backed up with flowers and dirt. I don't get a lot of hyssop, but I think it's actually interacting with the violet in a way that makes it more palatable to me. Much better than expected!
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Asphodel -- an obviously well-aged imp -- is a pale purple-gray floral on me. It's reminiscent of lilies and maybe wisteria or hyacinth? I don't wear a lot of florals, and I was hoping the gray in the description was code for ambergris, but I don't think so. It's actually quite pleasant, even discreetly sexy for a floral. It's not my usual kind of scent, but I may hang onto it to see if I ever feel like wearing it.
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The Orange Window HG is very, very orange, with lots of mandarin and sweet blood orange, like they've just come out of the juicer and been spiked with a dollop of honey and a little splash of cognac and rooibos tea. I kept trying and failing to find the leather until I looked up the notes and remembered the leather was in the atmo. I'm not getting much resin, and I can't comment on the honeybush. Not a note I know. Work friendly because your coworkers will imagine someone has just peeled open a clementine, it smells so realistic.
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It may be age, but on me the clove in March Hare is very subtle. I get lots of sweet apricot preserves and just a hint of clove. This is a skin scent on me (which is normal with my skin chemistry) and has average wear length. I am delighted I got to try this, but since I prefer Depraved or Grand Guignol for my apricot fix, I will pass it on.
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Predictably, my husband doesn't like Blood Red Window Panes. He pretty much hates red musk. So I will have to wear this one when he's not around. It's definitely dominated by the honeyed red musk, with some warm oudh and tobacco backing it up. I can't honestly smell the saffron. I just sprayed this one onto my dry hair straight out of the mail, but it's sticking around really well; I bet it will last even better when applied to wet hair.
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Valentine of Rome 2014 is a surprise hit on me. I was frimped a decant and would probably have avoided it because olive blossom has a history of going soapy on me. But I don't even perceive it here. Instead, it is mostly frankincense on me, a gorgeous frankincense with good throw. I can make out the myrrh too, and the blood is distinct on drydown, but the other notes jumble together in the background, making the frankincense sweet and warm and smoky instead of dry and woody. I like Penitence, but it's austere; I think Valentine of Rome is much more wearable for me.
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I was frimped an imp of Sympathetic Crone (as my decant is labelled) by a super generous forumite -- it had been on my wishlist for ages. It is a honey-dominant scent on me. Thick honey and something else that seemed foodie on my skin -- the acorn? It was almost yeasty, like there was bread baking with all the herbs hanging in the crone's kitchen. A little woods, some sage, a nutty quality -- these are all compliments in my book, and I loved this, but it lasted less than 2 hours on my skin, which obviously isn't due to lack of aging. I love this and am thrilled I got to try it, but my skin eats it up (very unusual for a honey blend), so I will swap it away because I'm sure others are eager to try it as well.
