Penny Dreadful

[mymymai]

Also called Gallows Literature. A dime novel rife with melodrama, horror, madness and cruelty; a ten cent analogy of vice and virtue in conflict. Soft perfume evocative of noir heroines over rich red grave loam.

 

ITI: I get gingerbread spice, mulling spices, apple, but something along the lines of a tart burner wax's apple, faint loam (but not in a bad way, but in a just rained damp earth way), and a faint creamy floral underneath. What an interesting combination of notes. Note: This one is very strong with lots of throw. I recapped it after my sniff and I can smell it strongly even though I'm sitting over a foot away from it. Actually, I would love my entire room to smell like this.

Wet: Yes, that's most certainly spiced gingerbread with earth. I'm still picking up on the creamy undertone, but it isn't incredibly defined, like the Lab's cream notes. I think it might be a subtle vanilla.

Dry: I had to reapply as I had an unfortunate encounter with expired lotion. After some time, it's lightly floral with a hint of damp earth and spice. I really like this, despite the odd notes.

[Teaker]

When first applied this smells like dirt, rich and faintly sweet. I'm not a big fan of smelling like soil but a couple of the labs earthier scents have been suprisingly lovely on me (thanks, Death Cap!) so I gave it a chance. I'm glad I did! It dries to a sweet warm perfume with the barest hints of spice and maybe vanilla? It's still faintly earthy, but no one who missed the wet stage would describe it as dirt. It stays close to the skin, but when I catch a waft of it it reminds me a bit of cherry vanilla coke. I don't know if I'd really wear this but it's one of the more interesting bpals I've tried.

 

This would be a good starter for those who might want to branch out into more unusual perfumes. It reminds me very much of Jazz Funeral, but where that is fresh and joyful, this is more seductive.

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Peanut butter toast (on wheat). Smoky and dark.

 

Drydown: Peanut butter toast with a smidgen of sweet dirt and a hint of something floral. It becomes muskier and less peanutty as it dries. A soft stone note comes forth as the last of the peanut butter fades away. Smoky and sweet with an almost frothy, semi-metallic dirt note as the base. … Ooh! A menthol-type note has appeared and I like it!

 

Dry: nomnomnom. Whoops, it seems I’ve just eaten my arm!

(In all seriousness, once dry this becomes an amazingly delicious mix of menthol and smoky dirt, with lots and lots of sweet lemony musk. Sort of how Dorian would smell after taking a long hike.)

 

 

And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why you always skin test!

 

9 out of 10 bones

[WickedSage]

Wet: A spicy dirt scent (like dirty gingerbread)

Dry: The dirt note fades but is still in the background and your left with a warm creamy sandalwood spice scent.

[sammy]

This was a total surprise. I expected dirt and instead I got spice and incense. Maybe the barest hint of that "perfume-y" note but mostly all spices and warmth and yummmm! YES! Ginger, maybe some sandalwood, maybe a bit of clove? It's tough to pick out the exact notes. Penny Dreadful is a wonderful cozy cold weather scent, totally appropriate for snuggling up at home in your favorite blanket. It's also got that beautiful sexy exotic spicy vibe, so it would also totally rock for a night out with a sexy outfit. A total winner. I see a 5 ml. in my future!

 

ETA: As it dries down even further, it has become a bit more sexy, mature perfume-y but still has the spice notes present. I really don't get loam or dirt at any point. I'll retest another day and change my review if it is any different.

Edited December 10, 2014 by Sammylynn929

[beakerwill]

This had a sweet, cinnamon spicy woodiness in the imp, that it retained wet on my skin. As it dried, it was as if I were wearing a faintly cinnamon scented bug repellant over a super sweet, heavy perfume. It almost reminds me of Poison, minus most of the grape. And good lord, it has staying power

 

Eta - autocorrect hates me.

Edited March 15, 2015 by pervs-toy

[Veronica]

Something soft and dry--almost like the dust from cookies. It smells almost hazelnut-y to me. Hazelnut dirt?

[paperdollsandbpal]

From the imp it gives off the same wet earthy scent that zombi has.

 

On my skin it smells like rain, wet clay dirt and warm vanilla.

 

I love this!

[LizziesLuck]

I have wanted to try this forever, and it has eluded me. So grateful someone kindly frimped it to me!

 

 

Wet: Dirt. And cookies! Wow. Foodie, vanilla, spicy, dirt. Wonderful.

 

 

Dry: This fades quite a bit as it dries. The hints of spice remain, and the earthiness, but I liked it better wet. Some of that foodiness remains as well. I do like this a lot, but am not sure if I need a bottle. It actually reminds me a bit of Eau de Ghoul (same sort of feel) which I already have, so I'm not sure I need this in my collection as well. So glad I finally got to try it though!

[joopjoop]

A frimp from the lab!

 

This is a weird one. Others have mentioned incense in here somewhere, and I think that has to be the case because about 15 minutes after application it starts amping up in the weird sweet strong yucky way that myrrh and some other resins do on me and I have to hold myself back from just washing it off. But then it calms down and I find it quite intriguing. I never get the floral, but it settles into s a sort of spicy warm dirty smell that is pretty nice, if not really my style. I'm intrigued, but not sold.

 

But I really appreciate the chance to try it.

Edited April 8, 2016 by joopjoop

[Mermaid-on-Land]

Wow whoever said peanut butter cookies was dead on, that's exactly what I smell on immediate application! The dirt develops into the dominant scent quickly after application and stays there pretty strong for about a half hour. The dirt reminds me of the red dirt note in Crimson Peak a tiny bit. About 45 minutes in, the 'perfume' note amps aggressively for a couple minutes. (I was standing on an escalator and thought to myself, 'Whoa the guy in front of me is wearing something strong!' Then I realized it was me 😂) About an hour in, it settles into a really nice scent, a pretty even blend of the perfume and dirt. The ginger note everyone mentioned in previous reviews showed up a bit a couple hours in but not strongly on me, and it didn't stick around long. This stays fairly strong on throw for a while, I was able to smell it easily while moving around. Lasts an average amount of time. I want to try it again just to get a better idea of what all is in the 'noir heroine's perfume' note, I really couldn't tell.

[Bassmastadroog]

Straight up earth in the bottle. I love it. On...it floats between fresh earth dirt and some sexy perfume that reminds me of penny dreadful ladies with their bust pushed up and their pantyhose strapped in. It's pretty straightforward in the description! This is actually one of the sexiest perfumes I have ever worn. It was just a GC I decided to check out randomly after years of bpal'ing. I'm totally in love. It leered in this tomato soup smell territory for a few seconds but I really don't care because it's absolutely sexy and incredible.

Edited October 9, 2016 by Bassmastadroog

[roseus]

A spicy, gingery dirt. Foodie dirt? The ginger is the fresh kind to me, not like gingerbread. It's kind of sweet, maybe some vanilla? But there is definitely an earthy dirt quality. A very beautiful scent, but not hitting the spot for my personal tastes!

[Lucchesa]

I should have looked at the reviews more carefully or I might have avoided Penny Dreadful. Wet, I'm getting the baked goods note that is so terrible with my skin chemistry, and I see other reviewers mentioning cookies and gingerbread. That is never going to go well on me. Once it dries down completely it is actually quite nice, with a sort of spicy soil scent (I really like the Lab's earth notes), but I will probably pass this one on to avoid the wet phase.

[achildoftime]

Earthy gingerbread pretty much sums it up for me. I wasn't really expecting a foodie scent from this, but that's exactly what it is. It's a bit sweet, a bit spicy, and a bit earthy. I don't really like baked good scents, so this is really not one for me.

[cassiejaynebunk]

In the imp this smelled so terrible to me i almost didn’t test it. But i am determined to test and review this massive pile of imps that are taking over my toom so here we go: in the imp, it’s vile. Like compost with a metallic tang. On the skin some sort of sweetness comes out and it makes me imagine a freshly buried frmale corpse the scent of the perfume left on her skin mingling with the wet earth she has been buried in.

[Juliamon]

This is a strange one indeed!

 

In the imp: old dusty books, ginger, perfume? Oudh? I swear there's oudh.

 

Wet: For just a second it smells the same as in the imp... and then it begins to morph. Spicy gingerbread is the main note, but gingerbread that's been dropped and ground into the dirt, along with some old tobacco and stale coffee. So far, so not great. But it keeps going: like time rewinding, the tobacco and coffee retreat, the dirt and gingerbread become less entwined. Further back, the gingerbread is still in the oven, and someone toils in the garden while they wait for it to be ready. And this is where it finally comes to rest.

 

Dry: There is a woodiness lining this scent, like an old worn bench. I think that's the 'dusty books' or the oudh I was smelling. The spices are light, the dirt is moist, the wood is comfortable.

 

It's not really a 'me' scent as it feels a bit too mature, but it was a very interesting experience and this is a particularly aggressive morpher. Definitely don't judge it before giving it a wear.

[DryFrogPills]

It's nice to see looking through the thread that others get gingerbread from this... I didn't on ME but my partner's kid put it on, announced 'I smell like gingerbread', we both looked at them like they were nuts and... THEY DID. The kid got to keep the imp.

 

For me though...

 

In the imp: Musty, earthy, dusty; the scent of age and neglect.

 

10 minute dry down: Smells to like dry dirt or dust on my skin, with a hint of something musky underneath, maybe a touch of chocolate? It's impossible to pick out anything specific, it's more about a mood, and that mood is 'midwestern antique-ing'.

 

1 hour: No real change. For me, this smells EXACTLY like the sort of antique stores you get in the downtowns or fringes of small towns in the midwest, where they're a maze of items in an old commercial building, and there's a fascinating blend of musk and dust and dirt and old paper in the air and always a treasure hiding somewhere. I don't know that I want to wear it as a perfume, but it's a fantastic way to evoke an olfactory memory. Good staying power, get faint wafts up to 10 hours later.

[monocainsheresy]

I haven't touched this since i got a full bottle in December (occupied with other scents) and my lord has it aged beautifully.

 

When i was little my mother would give flute recitals around Christmas in the ballroom of a Victorian mansion. The railings of the grand staircase were wrapped in cinnamon-scented garlands of glittery fabric leaves, candles were burning on the mantles of all the fireplaces, and in the dining room the museum staff would always set up an elaborate scene of mannequins with taxidermied deer heads having a lavish Christmas dinner while dressed in period clothing (don't ask me why). I would go off by myself and look at all the paintings and the ball gowns and the old books. Rumor has it that the original owner still haunts the second floor...

 

That is exactly what this smells like - Victorian Christmas, frozen in time.

[Dancing Raven]

Wet, it starts out as super sweet sugar cookies and butter. Within a minute, the loam mixes in with the buttery richness to create a very realistic vomit odor. I'm not trying to be gross, but I am an RN and mother, and I am uncomfortably familiar with that scent. If this would have been my first BPAL experience, it most likely would have been my last.

Luckily for me, I knew to wait. It did take me a couple of minutes before I was brave enough to sniff again. The loam was getting stronger, but the less pleasant aspect remained for about 10 minutes. I was rewarded for my patience in spades. The loam took over (spicy, almost moss like, wet earth). Soon, it was a wonderful cinnamony and slightly powdered scent. I wonder if there is carnation in here as well as amber. It's a creamy (thankfully not butter at this point!) spice. I think there may be some allspice, too. I get a sort of gingerbreadish impression. It's not particularly foody to me, and I am not one who likes to smell like baked goods. There's nothing wrong with those who do, it's just not my type of scent. It's a dry sort of spice, but not so dry you feel like you need a glass of water (sometimes dry scents make my mouth feel dry, too).

Throw is good for hours. At the end, it's a sweet, but not powdery amber with some spice lingering in the background. I really like it. I love Yorick, so I don't know what took so long to try this. Despite the very rocky first few minutes, this is full bottle worthy.

4.5 out of 5 stars because of the beginning. 

[queenshaboo]

First dirt perfume I've ever tried and 

In the vial: WOW it really is the smell of freshly turned loam (on a grave), I love it! All of a sudden I catch a whiff of cacao but it only lasts a second, more's the pity. 

 

Wet: it morphs quite quickly from that gorgeous red clay to a v powdery old school vintage perfume, something like Shalimar; peeking through I get hints of a lovely spice note, perhaps cassia? or Star Anise? it reminds me v much of the "soft ladies perfume" in Solstice Scents High Noon. The perfume is my least favourite part of this, something about the powder bothers me, would much prefer rose instead so will have to try to find a decant of Zombi, fingers crossed! I finally understand why some people love dirt notes, think I'm going to have to go down the dirt road myself for awhile  😏

[katharina]

In the bottle: I definitely get the 'soft perfume', seems almost grandma-y.

 

Wet: WTF?! Why do I smell caraway??? OK, that was weird. The caraway smell doesn't last long and soon starts to smell like dirt, I am guessing this is the grave loam.

 

Dry: Once dry the grandma perfume-iness reemerges. I don't hate this, but it's def not for me.

[bellumed]

Penny Dreadful has always been a real oddball of the GC, it just doesn't smell like any other blend I can think of. Copper-smelling without that metallic tang and earth-smelling without the typical dirt note. I do remember, as others have noted, the bizarre scent of peanut butter cropping up when I've used this in the past; however after 5+ years of aging that is totally gone.

 

I don't think I'll ever buy a bottle of Penny Dreadful, but it's always an interesting experience (and usually a pleasant one) to wear it. 

[LavenderCoffee]

I love smelling BPAL's dirt/earth/soil type notes, but I don't always love wearing them, so I was intrigued by the description specifying the note here as "rich red grave loam."

 

Testing from an imp of indeterminate age, I am getting just a hint of the spice others have mentioned, but the red clay-earth note is to die for (heh). I wonder if it has just a drop of red musk? The perfume aspect of this blend is truly very soft to my nose, I was concerned about an overly floral/powdery experience, but that is not the case. Overall I really like this, and I would probably reach for it instead of some of the other grave dirt/soil blends. I think it's also an excellent candidate for layering since it's quite subtle. 

[Lecter]

This is my favourite scent by far and one of the first BPAL scents I smelt. On me it’s a really smooth comfortable earthy scent.

 

I would describe the notes as:

Grassy

Fresh

Dirt

 

it doesn’t have much of a throw on me but it seems to settle down and last quite a while