Shub-Niggurath

[Silvertree]

Iä! Shub-Niggurath! The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young, the All-Mother and wife of the Not-to-Be-Named-One.

The lust incense of a corrupted Astarte. A blend of ritual herbs and dark resins, shot through with three gingers and aphrodisiacal spices.

 

Source: The lovely chopchica sent this to me fresh from Convergence! Shub-Niggurath arrived in an amber bottle, with a light brown label decorated with the five-pointed star from this image. (See pictures in the LE labels thread.)

Preconceived notions: As soon as I read that this was supposed to smell of "evil gingersnaps," I was desperate to try it. I love spicy blends, and ginger is a particular weakness of mine. So I'm expecting this to smell quite a bit like the Gingerbread Man's evil twin.

In the bottle: Immediately I smell pure, fresh ginger- the scent that rises from the cutting board as you peel back the skin from a hunk of the root. It's fresh and juicy, and tingles in my nose a bit. There's also something herbal going on in the background- again, very juicy and fresh, as if there are fresh leaves stuffed into the bottle that are just oozing green. Not tree leaves, but spicy herbs that definitely smell powerful... that must be the ritual herbs.

Wet on skin: The oil is a pale gold, and not too thick. I close my eyes, and I am wandering through the forest with a woven basket and a knife to harvest the components I'm searching for. They're rare and won't grow in a garden- you must go into the woods and search them out if you need them. Only then will you be able to include them in your endeavors- that is, if they want to be found. The ginger and herbs balance out, and I'm chopping the herbs finely and mixing them in a big wooden bowl with the ginger. I'm not sure what the aphrodisical spices might be, but I think I smell cinnamon and- cardamom? Not certain, but it is a very exciting and invigorating scent.

Dry on skin: Dry, Shub-Niggurath is mostly ginger again, but the green herbal juiciness is still present. I'm wracking my brains trying to come up with which herbs might be part of this blend, as there's a nice freshness but also a little bit of something peppery. Chicory? Cress? I don't know what it is, but I know that I love it. This scent is very warm on my skin, but it's a gentle heat. Also, a bit of incense unfolds- warm and spicy, not smokey.

Final impressions: This is such a lovely scent! I'm sad to admit it, but I'm not terribly familiar with Lovecraft's work. However, the Springtime in Arkham line has inspired me to start reading his stories. I'm not too familiar with the mythology surrounding Shub-Niggurath, so I'm sad to say that the scent doesn't mean as much to me as it might to someone who has read Lovecraft more extensively. Having said that, this scent does not invoke corruption or anything dark- it's warm and spicy and fresh (all my favorites!) and I find it both energizing and comforting. I can't attest to its effectiveness as a lust incense, but I'll endeavor to do some research.

Those who love Three Witches and Gingerbread Poppet should definitely give this a sniff. There is none of the floury/cakey essence of Gingerbread Poppet, but I'm glad this scent is distinctive. I certainly plan to stock up!

 

[AlectoNox]

On first sniff I got gingerbread, which was awesome because I loved Gingerbread Poppet. Wet, this lemony tang started coming out. Lemon scents aren't the best on me, but after a while it turned into ginger. Fresh, raw ginger straight from the store. That was very interesting. After a while the two scents combined and I got gingersnaps! Yummy.

 

This review brought to you by chopchica's kindness in picking me up a bottle from Convergence. Thank you, chopsy!

[kmasden]

I am loving this!

 

At first sniff and without wearing it, I thought "oh, smells of citrus" but within a second of applying it i was intrigued and couldn't stop sniffing.

 

The ginger here is fresh and slightly citrusy sweet and the spices mix with with it in a way that that is totally fascinating. I wouldn't consider it super foody, yet the more i sniff it, the more i think that it smells of a citrus frosted gingerbread cake, warm out of the oven.

 

This scent is very unique. Even if you don't buy a bottle, try an imp and wear it, dont' just sniff it. The warmth and interesting mingling of the ginger and spices in this are really neat.

[Hellcat]

I have to agree with Kmasden. Fresh Ginger with a citrus scent. I usually go for more dark scents but this one really took me by suprise. I just want to keep sniffing it. It's a very fresh clean scent and not at all foody in any way. There are some spicy undertones which are wonderfull. This one is a keeper!

Edited May 6, 2005 by Hellcat

[dreadeddragon]

In bottle: Ginger & spice. What I wished Gingerbread Poppet smelled like

 

First on: Ginger, that hint of spice/bread like smells, and some sort of fruit. It almost smells like ginger layered on top of Luna.

 

Drydown: I was at work and didn’t get to distinctively sniff myself, but for about 30 – 60 minutes, I would get a faint whiff of ginger. After an hour, the only detectable scent was a faint trace of amber. Beth reccommended putting it in a lotion to make the scent last longer.

[blood*rose*flowers]

In the bottle this reminds me of Trader Joe's triple ginger cookies (wonder if they are the same three gingers?)

 

On immediatly I smell fresh cut ginger instead of the sweeter tangier scent of it cooked in a desert. Almost a bit lemony. Definetly clean and a touch green in scent. But in almost no time I start to get the spice back.

 

Later the scent has traveled back to that ginger cookie scent with a really nice balance of spice and ginger but oddly doesn't smell overly foody.

 

I wasn't super sure about this oil but got lucky to get to smell it before buying. This was all I hoped Miskatonic would be and some more!!!

[shelldoo]

aaaaccckk i am thinking beth shall be the end of me, she made so many in this pack that scream for me to love them and for me to be their slave. this is one

 

in the bottle ginger and.....molasses? w/ a hint of orange?

 

on my skin OMG OMG OMG did i say OMG this is gingerbread poppet gone to hell in a handbasket, dark, yet still has that sweeteness to lure you in. it is spicy, it is fresh, it is citrussy but not like lemonheads the citrus is a supporting actor, it is just there to affirm the role ginger plays i adore this one.

 

eta i got it i know what this is, ya know in shrek 2 when they make the gigantic gingerbreadman, he is a bit evil/crazy he is this oil.

Edited May 20, 2005 by shelldoo

[Ailine]

Oh man, when y'all said evil gingersnaps, I didn't think y'all were being serious. I feel like the Gingerbread Army of the Goat with a Thousand Young is chasing me down. According to a co-worker, wearing this oil, I "smelled like a pumpkin pie that has gone through hell". Hee.

 

I...really don't like ginger, I've discovered. That's my main problem with this oil. If you love ginger, I'd buy this by the truckload if I were you. Me, I'm glad I got to try it, but it is just not for me.

[sarada]

Wow.

 

I can smell this through the bottle. This gingerbread man bites back...wow. Yum. This is incredible. I can see this being one of the most popular Arkham scents because I never thought I'd like something that smelled like cookies, but I adore this. This is the witch's Gingerbread House in the woods, enticing and frosted and beckoning at the end of the path...almost too good to be true. This is the scent that you follow through the dark trees, spellbound, entranced, and walk up the steps and into the cauldron.

 

That strong gingerbread snap smell entwines with the more familiar lemony ginger smell from some other blends, but it is always there lurking in the background.

 

I got this for the ritual herbs and dark resins, but it's the ginger that has me captivated. They must be there, deepening the mixture and swirling in the smoke...perhaps the witch in the gingerbread house is casting the ritual herbs into the cauldron and burning the resins to invoke the Black Goat of the Woods while she prepares me for supper. But I don't care, because I'm just munching away on the gingerbread walls, as happy as can be, while the dark shadows close around me.

 

ETA: The GC version is virtually identical to my memory of the original. There is the fiery ginger that burns my tongue in crystallized candy form...the lemony fresh ginger smell you get when you are grating the root...and a deeper, spicier one that never quite crosses the line into a doughy/batter type scent, thank goodness for my non-foody-scent soul. I am still searching for the herbs and resins but perhaps they are revealing themselves in the way this adheres to my skin, with ample throw and a dark, rich undercurrent.

Edited December 28, 2006 by sarada

[Aurelius]

Yum. Oh god, yum.

If Sugar Cookie was affectionately known as the Devil's Bake Sale, then Shub-Niggurath is Satan's Gingersnap. For the first few hours I smell like spicy ginger goodness. This blend is, quite literally, hot. It burns my skin a bit (nothing too overpowering, but it is a surprise since the only other BPAL blend I've had an ow reation to was Wrath, and that only seemed fitting.) After the inital pinch, it seems to soak into my skin and warm me up.

 

It also has the rather unsettling tendency to put me into a lull; I felt warm and cozy and, frankly, ready to be overpowered by whatever came my way. Almost like a "alright evil, take me." Heh. It's hard to explain. I don't feel wicked, I feel like something wicked is about to descend on me, and well, it can't be *that* bad, right? It's as if I've simply let down my defenses and the devil can take me however he likes. Odd. And yet, very nice.

 

After a few hours the ginger starts to back away and I'm left with a resiny scent lingering on my skin.

 

I'm sorry I can't compare it to Lovecraft's works, as I haven't read them, but I'm sure others will.

[pekeana]

Shub-Niggurath to me is sweet lemon and bitingly sharp ginger, and it's dethroned Gingerbread Poppet as my favorite ginger blend. It's warm and sexy without being overwhelming.

[oakmoss]

YOW! This scent really packs a punch... dark, spicy, sort of growly, if that makes any sense. I could see Worf wearing this one. I don't get the gingerbread flavor that others are getting, unless it's a very dark molasses-rich gingerbread without much sweetening. The undertone of some rich wood is there, like an old sandalwood box that hasn't been opened in a long time... a box that once held cloves... This would be a great winter scent, I think, very warming.

[paperdoll]

Initial Sniff: Gingerbread Poppet has done very very bad things. Unspeakable things. Dark things.

 

Wearing: This doesn't morph much on my skin. I smell like deeply evil gingerbread.

 

Final Impressions: I have to agree with Aurelius's assessment... I really don't feel like I am the source of the evil, but I am ready to embrace the evil with open arms. Very odd.

[Macha]

It's difficult to fight the temptation to compare with Gingerbread Poppet, so screw it, I won't bother fighting: Shub-Niggurath is ALL I had hoped Gingerbread Poppet would be. GP was too cakey for me, too floury, too tame, not sharp and biting enough. I love ginger, particularly when it has fire and heat. There are no safety words in my relationship with ginger.

 

From the bottle, I knew Shub-Niggurath could fulfill my ginger fantasies (Satan's Gingersnaps indeed! OMG SO perfect!) This is unabashedly sexy, naughty, dark ginger. The wonderful surprise of Shub-Niggurath was the way in which it morphed on me into the unmistakable smell of fresh ginger, of the finest ginger juice straight from the cutting board in the kitchen. That is a wonderfully bright and wide awake smell that I've never before seen reproduced in any ginger perfume, and I'm quite in awe that Beth managed it here. As the perfume dries, it goes back to being spicy strong ginger cookies, just loaded with cardamom and spices. All the stages of it are wonderful. Just smelling it makes my toes curl.

 

If you like ginger, this is GOOD (and if you don't like ginger, this probably isn't the scent for you.) That is just an incredible, dead sexy fragrance with great throw and staying power and I love, love, love it.

[cuervosueno]

So for once I'll be brief, because Macha has said everything I'd say about this.

Its ginger. Pure delicious ginger, even more gingery goodness than my beloved ginger altoids! Yes, also what I had hoped for from GP. I love this!

and thank you to silvertree for giving me an imp of this in a swap...and of course I'm going to buy a 5 ml. while I can.

Love it!

[wickedgoddess]

Oh. My. God. Best scent ever! I am a huge fan of Gingerbread Poppet, but it's too foody for everyday use. But this…this is incredible. Whereas Gingerbread Poppet is sweet and foody and innocent; the scent of baking cookies, this one is sexy and dark and twisted. It smells so similiar to GP and yet it's so different. Whoever described this as "evil gingersnaps" really nailed it. I recognize cardamom and am trying to figure out if there is myrrh or patchouli in this when it hits me, I know what this is. It's a cross between Gingerbread Poppet and Sin!! Now my only question is whether I need to order a third bottle before the 1st.

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being best, this is off the charts!! But in the efforts of fairness, I will rate it a 5.

[Ina Garten Davita]

First Impression: Hot ginger!

 

Second Impression: This is Thai-food ginger rather than baked goods ginger. It's hot, spicy, juicy and gorgeous. It dominates the scent until the drydown. The longer drydown reveals a beautiful ginger-amber perfume.

 

Final Analysis: Spicy and sexy.

[roesmoker]

Mmmmm, ginger.

 

I didn't even think I liked ginger, but this called to me right out of the imp, it's so strong & yummy, and not too foody. On me, I get about an hour of stale gingersnaps in a moldy cardboard box, but after that it gets sweet and delicious - like some kind of ginger-honey tea made with flowers - and stays that way for hours. I could still smell it the next morning (12+ hours). I don't think it actually has honey in it because honey usually smells like plastic on me. As previously posted, it might have amber.

 

Conclusion: For ginger lovers, this is a must-buy. Also for spicy/sweet/incensey types like myself.

 

Shub-Niggurath: It's all good - until the Black Goat comes to eat you. But you'll smell so yummy, you won't even care.

Edited June 9, 2005 by roesmoker

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 4/5

Summarised in a word or two: Ginger!

 

In the imp/bottle: As roesmoker said, Mmmmm, ginger!

 

On skin, wet: Warm, evil gingerbread. A much darker, strongest Gingerbread Poppet, almost!

 

On skin, dry: Warm, and almost sweet. Very spicy, with what I think may be a faint amber note way down beneath the ginger.

 

Conclusion: Definitely a keeper, after giving it another shot

Edited December 18, 2005 by Aredhel

[pkwench]

Shub-Niggurath:

 

PURE SEX. I have to fan myself when I get this bottle out. I love it in purely whorish and naughty ways. I was sold from the description. Ginger, incense, resin? Oh, yeah, honey. I'm so humpin' on that. It was everything I had hoped it would be and more. It's SO warm and so sexy that you just want to put on your slut wear and shake that thing until your mate jumps you. ROWR. So, everyone, put on your Shub and go shake your ass.

 

Also, I love the amber bottle. It's my first.

[lorajc]

I read these reviews and I thought there was no way this could be as good as everyone says it is........cuz I didn't really love Gingerbread Poppet....I thought this would be so/so. Was I wrong. This is absolutely gorgeous and I want to get my hands on a 2nd bottle!! (PM me if you have one) This has already been described pretty well. It's ginger and spice and as it dries it lightens up a bit and turns just a bit sweet. It goes with my chemistry well and it is indeed a light enough scent for this time of year. It's not as bold as Malice or Vixen.........but it's ever so sublte ginger and spice sweetness. This really can't even be described in terms of how yummy this smells on. In my opinion, it is just too good to be for real. Good Job Beth. This is fantastic. I love it.

[ChupaChup]

I'm pretty shocked by Shub-Niggurath. I was expecting to love it as I love foody scents and I love Gingerbread Poppet. But what surprised me about Shub-Niggurath is how really pretty it is. Yes, it's very strong ginger at first, more reminiscent of Aries than of Gingerbread Poppet for me, fresh ginger juice as opposed to powdered ginger used for baking. But there are some lovely herbal notes, one I think may be lemon verbena, that make this a beautiful summer scent, much lighter and less foodie than Gingerbread Poppet. It seems to have some of the same spices, like cardamom and clove, but none of the doughy, buttery aspects. Once it is fully dried down, it's a gorgeous incense and spice blend. I think I'm getting the sweet smokiness of frankincense. Oh, I just love the complexity of this one, can't say enough good about it !

[blaqpearl]

When I read the description of this I expected this to smell like real ginger. Fresh ginger. The kind I would finely chop to put in asian food.

I was definitely wrong. This smelled of ginger snaps. The kind of ginger you bake with. And on my skin it didnt change. I had to wash it off. This is what I expect Gingerbread Poppet to smell like (not that I have tried it, but taking a guess).

[PurringPulsar]

Shub Niggurath

 

In the imp: YUM!!! Gingersnaps! With something creamy and buttery and sugary-the smell of ginger biscuit dough! Nothing dark or evil yet, it smells delicious!

Wet on skin: whoa, the ginger now becomes more hot, spicy, and fiery, it has a piercing quality. But it still retains a dough-like quality. Yup, these are gingersnaps from hell!

Dry on skin: now it's like raw cut ginger when the smell hits you in a piercing shock when you chop ginger. There's a sweet creamy-buttery-sugary biscuit dough undercurrent that tries it's best to soften this, but the ginger is screaming on my skin! It's like a fire in my nose…but that's no bad thing!

After a while: the ginger is still biting my nose, but tones down a bit. Now the sweet gingersnap dough smell returns-not as evil as before, but sweeter and with a hint of some other spices-possibly cardamom and maybe even some cinnamon or cloves. But the scent does have dark undertones. I think I can make out some herbs, not sure what though. There's also something lemony there. But that doesn't stop it from smelling yummy.

After an hour or so, the ginger overload has calmed down considerably, and some dark herbs/spices come through. There's even a smell that reminds me of damp soil, which is unusual, but strangely pleasant.

Verdict: I can understand why this has been described as 'evil gingersnaps' because this exactly what I get on my skin! There's a lovely sweet delicious biscuit dough smell, but then there's the ginger. Piercing, loud, fiery and vicious ginger. Like a little ginger demon biting my nostrils every time I sniff this. But I love it so much. It is very intense though, hot and with a lot of punch, but the smell of gingersnaps from hell is too enticing to resist! Now I want to make gingersnaps that taste just like how this smells.

Edited June 5, 2005 by yeahbutnobut

[velvet]

i got this orginally because she used the name
Astarte in the description
i was not a big fan of gingerbread poppet

but i LOVE this
like others have said before. fresh ginger. the sexiest thing ever
the resins and herbs give it a feel that i have only found before with the orisha oils. something sacred.
this is beautiful
thank you BETH!

 

 

Edit: 12ish years later...original bottle, original release.

So, time changes chemistry a bit, possibly from the bottle aging, possibly from me. This review is of my original bottle.

I decided to wear this today because I wanted something warm and comforting on a damp dark day. It started off surprisingly lemony, but very pleasant. Not what I was intending to wear but it was still nice wet stage. Then it got a little spicy in the initial dry down, closer to what I remember. I've had it on for about an hour and a half now and all the nice spicy/lemony smells are fading and leaving a very faint plasticy smell when I put my nose up to my wrist. Serious sad face moment. It's not quite as intense of a plastic note as... lets say, Snake oil, but it's still there in the background. I guess I need to pass this one along.

Edited October 29, 2017 by velvet