Red Lantern

[crescentwench]

A tribute to the opium den cum bawdyhouses of Shanghai in the 1930’s. Golden amber, blonde tobacco, Sudanese black coconut, rich caramel, black currant, white opium and delphinium laced with a sensual blend of Asian spice.

in the bottle: caramel coated fruit. not sure how i feel about it. but i'm definately not getting any coconut, which is a relief, because one of my roomates would have run out of the house screaming if i smelled even a tiny bit like coconut.

on my skin: caramel and more caramel. a bit of the fruity scent sticks around, but not for too long. after a while it stops being so sweet and warms up, a hint of florals show up too. It's not too foody, and it's warm so i'll probably wear it, but i'd hoped for more amber and tobacco. it's a great blend though. it all fits together really well.

overall: about a 7 out of 10.

[enderfem]

I bought this on a whim, and it paid off.

 

in the bottle: oh man, coconut and caramel. I hate hate hate the taste of caramel, but I adore the smell. There's something darker in it too.

 

Wet: This is probably the richest, most luxuriant non-chocolate scent I've tried. Just. Yummy.

 

Drydown: The coconut fades, letting some of the other notes mix with the caramel. Just lovely. Lots of the tobacco now.

 

 

I reapplied before going to bed, and wore it the next day, which is unheard of for me when I have a lot of new stuff to try. Just. So good. I hate I only bought one bottle.

[olympia301]

 

Oh how wonderful this scent is wet! I adored the boozy carmelly lovliness that it sent me. I was plotting how to aquire a lifetime supply of Red Lantern. When it dries down, it becomes much more or a perfume, and I think I detect a good deal of acacia in it in the background. I admit that I am reviewing it just as I put it on for the first time and should give it a fairer try, but that first shot of delightful sugar and alcohol was too much to let me be "safe and sane' about my review.

[valentina]

Red Lantern, in the bottle, is a very sweet, sticky, gooey scent to my nose, but I also detect that blonde tobacco note. Once it hits my body, the lovely caramel/buttery sweetness stays for a bit, and then... wham. The amplifiers get cranked up on the amber and tobacco. After about an hour, it's faded out to almost pure amber, with a touch of coconut. Since amber and my body aren't the best of pairings, it overwhelms all the lovely nuances of this scent. However, my bottle of Red Lantern is going to make a newly-minted Red Lantern junkie very happy!

 

valentina

[melia]

well, I recieved my red lantern yesterday and managed to hold off a whole 24 hours before tearing into it. from just sniffing the bottle, and during the initial application, it smells just like my urban decay caramel body dust, and that's a good thing. but I was hoping for more than just sticky sweet goodness from this scent, and it delivers. the tobacco and amber rose up within half an hour of putting on the lantern, giving the high sugar a lovely base on which to rest. I really like the tobacco notes I've come across in different bpal blends -- I had a terrible preconcieved notion that it would smell like old cigarette ash (in a perfume? certainly not) and I was so relieved to experience it firsthand. I'm also getting hints at fruit, which must be the currant, but can't pick out the coconut.

 

overall, this is delicious. I thought it might be too foody, because I have more than my fair share of the food scents, but the other notes thrown in offset the caramel and coconut enough so that I don't just feel like a big baked good. the multiple layers of scent make this a wonderful, mysterious experience. I guess like the opium den it's supposed to evoke. well done! by the way, I've snagged a second bottle off the boards already...

[arabella]

First Impression: Spicy caramel.

 

Dries down to: Almost immediately, mellows to a very soft, caramel-ly amber sprinkled with spices.

 

Additional Comments: I can sense rather than smell the tobacco, opium and coconut but I get no hint at all of the currant or delphinium. I had high hopes for this one - it has so many notes I love - but, although it's very lovely, it's just too faint on me. Within 5 minutes, I can barely smell it at all and it's gone within 1/2 an hour. I really had to resist ordering more than one bottle but now, I'm really glad I only ordered the one.

 

Lasted: 1/2 an hour.

 

Rating: 2 out of 5 (because it's so fleeting)

[alasindocs]

I wore this a couple of times just to really get a true feeling from this.

 

Upon first application: Definately smell the carmel, and the blonde tobacco is already present (lurking in the background) for me.

 

Inital drydown (about two hours into my day) On me this is very carmel/spicy, and the tobacco note is still quite present

 

Alrighty, several hours later, this is still clearly present, but it's doing a very intriguing morphing thing on me, at first sniff, I get the amber and carmel, but the coconut is ever so gently present..strangely enough, you can still smell the blonde tobacco, it's not intrusive at all, but definately there.

 

There was a movie with Johnny Depp in it called "From Hell" (based on the Jack the Ripper scenario) and there is a scene with him in an opium den, all wonked out and woozy.

This smell reminds me so much of that scene.

Sort of decadent, and a bit illicit.

 

Intriguing...I like it.

[jessiesquash]

My first sniff made me want to drink it right out of the bottle. Sweet incense, dripping with melted caramel. I can't stop smelling it.

 

On, the caramel scents fades a bit to the background and it becomes rich and smoky. It reminds me of that gorgeous amber incense you find in small import stores.

 

Dry down it fades to a more mellow earthy scent and the caramel comes out again. It's a bit too rich for everyday but this would be lovely to wear when I'm feeling decadent. It smells EXACTLY like it's described.

[wolfie13]

In the bottle: Oh god - sweet caramel, like something out of Jessica Simpson's Dessert line. I'm horrified.

 

Wearing: Caramel, yes, but wait.... While this note never totally disappears, the other notes join in. Yep - tobacco, amber, opium, black coconut (which can be a BIT plastick-y on me - I've tried the single note and know it's the culprit - but manages to not totally cross the line here) - they're all there.

 

For once in my life, nothing dominates and it all becomes this fascinating, terribly evocative blend. A little sweet, a little spicy, a little smoky.

 

This was the one I thought I'd like the least, if at all, and instead it's a keeper!

Edited February 11, 2006 by wolfie13

[sookster]

many humble thanks to kimmer for this very unexpected

and generous imp

 

on with the review!!!!

 

at first sniff, this reminds me so completely of a very subtle grog

 

but after i apply this i am in 7th heaven

the black coconut note gets amped up and i smell good enough to eat!!

then i get a creamy, carmel mixing with the coconut and a bit of tobacco...

slightly smoky....this is fantastic

 

i have finally found a bpal coconut blend that stays true with my chemistry

and does not turn all plastic!!! i am elated and thrilled that i ordered a big bottle

of red lantern!!!!

[malabar]

First whiff reminds me of Gluttony: sweet, buttery, completely unsuitable for me. I sadly put it in the swap pile.

[tempete]

Gah, I don't know what I was thinking when I ordered a bottle of Red Lantern... I should've been more wary of the caramel note (since I hate super sweet foody scents) and the blonde tobacco note (since I can amp up tobacco to the point where I smell solely of cigarettes). Naturally, when I applied Red Lantern, there was an all-out war on my skin between the cavity-inducing sweetness of caramel and the uber-smokiness of tobacco, and it was not a pleasant olfactory experience. Red Lantern eventually dried down to a not-quite-so-sweet 'n smoky scent that was more palatable, but I wouldn't be able to endure the initial caramel and tobacco blast every time I wore this scent, and it also doesn't evoke impressions of an Asian bordello for me, so my bottle has been passed onto a more loving home.

[xith]

I've only had this on for about half an hour, so I'll update it if it changes.

I was hoping for sweet and foody with caramel and coconut really showing up. What I'm getting, so far, is mostly a dusty scent. The only thing this has in comon with Misk U is the dust, but with Misk U it's more of an afterthought, and here it's the prominent note. It's hovering over a slightly sweet incensey kind of scent. I'm really hoping this changes for the better over time, or that I'm just having a bad nose day.

 

Edit for update after having it on longer and trying it out a few times: The dust smell does eventually fade away to a slightly sweet type of skin scent. It becomes very faint by the time this happens, however. If I want a sweet skin scent, I'll just wear O and not have an hour or so of dust before it gets nice, so, oh well, as much as I wanted this to work, it just ain't gonna happen.

Edited February 15, 2006 by xith

[GypsyRoseRed]

I bought a 5ml of this unsniffed, and was looking forward to it based on the reviews I'd read. In the bottle it smelled delicious - all caramel, amber and a whiff of tobacco, so imagine my surprise when it turned to dry, dusty soap shortly after I dabbed it onto my arm. I was disappointed and kinda forgot about it after 20 minutes then happened to sniff my wrist about an hour in and... it smelled completely different. No soap, no dust, just sweet, incense-y caramel with just the right amount of amber. I've never come across such a tranformation before, and I'm really, really glad I didn't just wash it off and consign it to the swap pile. This is a really sexy, complex oil and I'll definitely wear it. Lovely.

[Stumbeline]

I think if this didn't have the tobacco, I would love it. Honestly, anything with tobacco in it makes me smell like a pack of Marlboro Reds, something I have no desire to smell like. Every other note in this is absolutely gorgeous and it's such a sweet, sultry blend. Unfortunately, on me it turns into a sweet, sultry ashtray.

[sideviewhotel]

Mmmm foody. This is.. slightly caramel, I suppose. Very sweet.

 

Wet, dry, this is very buttery caramel. The fruit is coming up a bit, but not much. Apparently I amp the buttery note very well, except not, because I think it's one of the notes that gives me a raging headache.

 

So, unless something fights that butteriness into submission, I might have to pass on this imp of Red Lantern.

[Emu Nymph]

In the bottle I could only smell the caramel and was about to cry because the caramel and sugar scents just turn out horrid on me. But being the glutton for punishment I am I dabbed a little on the back of my hand just to see if I would have to give this away or not.

 

And sure thing the caramel came through, but there's something else too. Something darker and smokey. Something that makes sure the caramel knows it's place and doesn't sugar out on me.

 

I'm not sure what it is but it smells like caramel and smokey leather. And after a while the caramel dies down to just a sweet after note and the smokey darkness comes out. Like a tall dark stranger in a leather duster eating a sugar daddy. This one is a keeper.

Edited February 12, 2006 by Emu Nymph

[judas_kiss]

I knew this would work for me by the description. Oh be still my heart, this is gorgeous!! This one's a morpher, though, so be prepared! Anyway...

 

In the bottle: This is, as many have said, very sweet. I thought of dulce de leche when I first sniffed this. Mmmm, I know I'm gonna love this.

 

On (wet): Oh wow, coconut and caramel and something underneath which keeps it from being too-too sweet (I think this is the tobacco).

 

On (initial dry phase): Oh, now I get a tobacco/leather/coconut concoction which is just like Perversion's drydown w/o the booze note. Oh, I'm loving this, believe me!!

 

Final drydown: The amber comes out to play and, as Macha says, makes this scent very pretty. However, this is not a powdery amber, nor is it an overly resinous amber. It is a very light, a little incensey amber and it is sweet enough to combine with the other notes and play nice. I get a touch of the opium and that spices things up a bit, but not too much! All the notes comes together to make a smokey-sweet perfume that is just heavenly!!

 

Overall: This is a KEEPER! This is a lovely, full-bodied scent. Elegba eventually went too much the tobacco way for me whereas this does not. It's just gorgeous. I would advise that lovers of Perversion check this one out b/c it it has similarity to the Perv, yet it is more mysterious and devine!!

[grrrlennyl]

at first: ooo...lots of caramel and tobacco. this smells amazing.

on: all caramel. really sweet.

1 hour later: lots of tobacco and other dry notes.

2 hours later: spicy and darker.

overall: this is a bit too sweet for me at first and the drydown is a bit too dark. it just isn't me.

[Inanna9]

I adore the drydown of this--a dark, sweet incense with the perfect balance of spice. It's so sophisicated and sexy, but dude...making it through that caramel note to get there is a killer. It doesn't help that foody is not my thing, so I'm sure this is bound to be heavenly from start to finish for the sweets-scents types. And I must say, it lingers and lingers, smoky and languorous, and it really is evocative of an opium den--or at least how I would imagine one to be. Very well done.

 

But, oh that caramel note...

[Summerpixy]

In the bottle: Strong caramel... very foody.

 

Drydown: residual sweetness of carmel and deep spices. It reminds me of some other scent... I just can't place it though.

 

the verdict: Too heavy and dark for me, sorry!

[QueenFae]

Yum!!! Oh I love it! The top notes on me are the tobacco, coconut, and currant, with just a touch of caramel. It's perfectly blended, and it was actually pretty tough for me to pick out notes. The tobacco is smooth and sweet, and smells amazing over the combination of coconut and caramel. Sort of like someone is smoking a fragrant pipe in a sweet shop. There is a hint of underlying spices, barely there but just enough to give it a sexy kick. Absolutely fabulous!!!

[pekeana]

Red Lantern makes me smell like I spent days wandering around a Yankee Candle shop. Literally. It smells on me like what happens when you open the door to Yankee Candle and first step inside -- a huge rush of all kinds of conmingled scents. And it just... it smells like Yankeeland.

 

Alas, not quite working for me.

[AlaskaSnows]

I pretty much get only light sweet caramel and a touch of non-smoky tobacco. Yummy, fun, and I am glad I got a big bottle!

[pennydreadful]

In the bottle - Yankee Candle Halloween candles. Heavy caramel/spicy smell, very cloying.

 

Initial application - Still the cloying caramel smell. I'm trying hard to pick out the other notes, but the caramel is overwhelming it.

 

Drydown: Sadly, still the caramel smell. The tiniest bit of the coconut and opium are peeking thru, but the caramel still overwhelms.

 

This was the first LE I've ever purchased and I had high hopes for it. The description sounded fabulous, but alas, the notes I was really interested in weren't amped up by my body chemistry. I was hoping for more coconut/tobacco goodness. Better luck next time!