Vintage Wise Man Blow Mold

[Failmingo]

Scent-wise, each of these new Blow Molds go in totally different directions than the previous Halloweenie ones. So while there is some overlap in terms of the glowing amber component, it expresses itself differently in most of these; some of these are sweeter than others, or remain foodier, or involve more of a "plastic" quality, etc.

 

In the bottle, lemon is the star of VWMBM. It reminds me of something from The Fool's Journey, probably one of the Fool or Magician scents: bright and golden and creamy thanks to the lift from the amber, which blurs out the freshness and sharpness. It's like... actually uplifting to smell it, reminding me of gleaming halos and rays of light in religious paintings. Here is the comfort and joy we are supposed to be receiving tidings of. I can't pick out any of the incense notes specifically quite yet, but I BELIEVE.

 

Fresh on the skin that lemon's got a bit more of a zesty zing, but the amber's got a broader range too, bringing a surprising sweetness that is not QUITE a slice of the lemon meringue pie they serve in heaven, but it's not NOT that. And I'm very grateful for that part of it, because otherwise I think lemon might go furniture polish on me. Instead they just kind of hum together. Here's where the frank & myrrh start to assert themselves, but not in a dramatic Catholic way. This is one of those small town congregations where people worship Good Times Jesus. For that reason I'd personally say this reminds me more of an Easter scent, with pastel yellows and cheery messages about how He Has Risen.

 

But that seems fitting for a scent inspired by these campy, cheerful Nativity blow mold scenes with their and blue-eyed Wise Men. It's like a serious religious experience that's been puffed out into something bright and shiny and filled filled with warm air. Glowing blow mold decorations have always been about defying the cold with cheerful sights and pleasant fantasies.

 

Over time the freshness of the lemon truly retreats until it's not even particularly associated with real fruit. What's left is just this smooth, amber-glossed memory of something vaguely lemon-scented. It's lovely! Not overly clean or incense-y, just a lovely pale-golden nimbus of good vibes, man.

 

[Jenjin]

A sun-faded plasticky shell of lemony gold, frankincense, and myrrh, illuminated from within by 40 watts of glowing amber.

Edited December 24, 2023 by Jenjin

[wodnesse]

I grabbed a 0.5mL of this from Ajevie to get into the Blow Molds and see how I jive with the "plastic" note. I had no idea this would be so... clean and gentle and fresh smelling! Something about the bright and clean lemon + amber combined with the frankincense & myrrh makes me feel like this is how an angel would smell if they were disguised as a human. just a like, very tiny touch at the edges of the scent of something really ancient and holy. I completely agree with Failmingo that it has a very "uplifting" aspect to it that is intoxicating. I've never slathered something like I am with this, and I have already added a Full Size to my order, depending on how much is left when it's time for Yules to come down, this could be my very first scent to earn a back-up bottle.

[samanare]

Lemon resin. Even as a lemon/citrus lover, this was a pleasant surprise. I would describe this as more of a lemon, frankincense, and myrrh trio as I personally don't get any amber. The scent is a very compelling duo of lemon and resin. The lemon slightly dominates, keeping the scent bright and light, but the usual tart freshness of lemon scents is mellowed out by the myrrh and frankincense. For me, this is noticeably different from the typical fresh lemon scent, and is more lemon resin, more yellow than fruity, but airy and light.  I'm surprised by how unique this is among my lemon scents, and this is a favorite of this year's Yules for me.

[OxfordComma]

Huh. I had a completely different experience than the other reviews! I actually ordered this based on the reviews too so...*sad trombone*. In the bottle I get... faint lemony frankincense. Like....reeeeeaaaalllly light frank with a mist of woody lemon. On skin it's.... really light frankincense. And within 10 minutes it's gone entitely. No amber to be found. If this was like...10 times stronger, I'd love it. But as is, its kind of a none with left lemon situation. 

 

Update: Tried it again because I'm stubborn. In bottle it smells like frankincense and lemon verbena. On skin it's about the same but still very quiet and the throw even while wet is about 2 inches. It may have lasted longer on my previous test than I thought, since I applied to my neck (as is my wont), but just couldn't smell it from that distance. It's nice but that nonexistent throw is not my jam.

Edited March 15 by OxfordComma

[wodnesse]

On 3/12/2024 at 7:35 PM, OxfordComma said:

Huh. I had a completely different experience than the other reviews! I actually ordered this based on the reviews too so...*sad trombone*. In the bottle I get... faint lemony frankincense. Like....reeeeeaaaalllly light frank with a mist of woody lemon. On skin it's.... really light frankincense. And within 10 minutes it's gone entitely. No amber to be found. If this was like...10 times stronger, I'd love it. But as is, its kind of a none with left lemon situation. 

 

Update: Tried it again because I'm stubborn. In bottle it smells like frankincense and lemon verbena. On skin it's about the same but still very quiet and the throw even while wet is about 2 inches. It may have lasted longer on my previous test than I thought, since I applied to my neck (as is my wont), but just couldn't smell it from that distance. It's nice but that nonexistent throw is not my jam.

This is so sad, but also very non-characteristic of the imp and full-size i ordered. Maybe you got a particularly watery batch, or a poor mix? I would honestly message BPAL if you have the energy, they might be willing to send you another bottle.