Storyville

[moonarcana]

I read a few reviews which commented on the complimentary balance between Voodoo Queen and Doc Buzzard - but I put more of a connection between VQ and Storyville. It's like the same woody resin incense note, but where Voodoo Queen goes dry and dusty, Storyville gets soft and creamy. Enticing.

 

This one is quite fine indeed and since it's so hard to come by, I'll just be ever so grateful for this opportunity to try it out - thank you Gypsy Rose Red!

[Miss Lynx]

At last I got to try some of the fabled Convergence scents! And I am almost relieved that I did not fall in love with this one.

 

Storyville is a heavy, sugary, musky scent that's strongly reminiscent, to me, of Smut, and a bit of Devil's Night. It's almost foody, but not quite. A little boozy too... Other scents that would seem to fall into the same family are Red Lantern, and Monster Bait: Underpants.

 

But I have mixed feelings about that sugary note that's in all those... it always smells slightly wrong on me. Like it wants to be lush syrupy goodness, but falls a bit short and smells kind of like -- well, fake food. It's not as bad as the buttery note that's in things like Jack and Grog and Gluttony, which actually makes me nauseous, but it's still a bit off-putting.

 

Still, once it settles down, that element fades a bit, and it smells more like genuine raw sugar and musk. I kind of like it at that stage... But not enough to be determined to hunt down a bottle of it by any means necessary, thank the Gods. Now, Voodoo Queen, on the other hand... But that's another review.

 

Grade: B

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp this smells like a sugar cookie dough

 

once applied it is still foody...and something like earthy musk....turns

sourdough after a minute

 

after 15-20 minutes...resinous, a bit of spiciness and that cookie note...

as others have said time and again, this has a snake oil/smut/snake charmer/

eat me sort of feel

 

very lovely and i am soooo grateful that i was able to sample a drop of this

much coveted convergence blend

[supremegoddessofall]

On me: Baby powder. Yay, an expensive LE I'm not in love with!

[sarahmarie]

I was gifted with an imp of this one and am very grateful to have been able to try it!

 

Storyville and I, however, were not meant to be best buddies. It's nice in the imp - very red musk, very alluring, vaguely fruity and vaguely spicey. On my skin though, it's oddly flat. The red musk smells warm and delicious, but it just lacks some dimension on me, and despite the musk, it doesn't last long. I'll probably still wear it from time to time, and if not I know someone else will be very happy to recieve it. Thanks to ivyandpeony for giving me an imp to try!

[lookingglass]

Mmmmm...is that ginger? It isn't cold like ginger usually smells on me...it's warm...like gingerbread....immediately followed by a sweet, boozy vanilla/honey musk. It is like the love child of Sed Non Satiaita and Smut! It smells just like sex. This is how DH likes my BPAL.

 

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to the wonderful, kindhearted forumite that FRIMPED me this golden droplet! FOREVER GRATEFUL!!!!!!!!

[sofiaviolet]

Ugh, this is doing the typical Nasty Foody Thingy. Where it smells like burnt birthday cake. I haven't liked any of the C12 scents!! My skin chemistry is sooooo annoying.

[harmonyfb]

Thanks to the amazing swap powers of Nursekins, I got to try this.

 

It reminds me a lot of Scherezade. Unfortunately, that's not a compliment. It starts out kind of sweet-spicy, a little like Morocco, but somewhere in there it takes a turn for the head shop.

 

Dry, my skin turns it to a sickly dirty hippy smell. ::sigh:: Off to swap.

[em_h]

I am *very* glad I managed to get a decant of this.

 

Musky-sweet and herbal/woody sharp at the same time. As it dries, the sharp note tones down quickly, though it doesn't disappear; gets more incensey and rich. Like a less sugary Smut, maybe? Or a slightly sweeter Madame Moriarty? Gets creamier as it dries. This is SO GOOD. It's the hints of resiny smoke scent that sort of twine through the musk which make it really wonderful.

[Shollin]

First sniff: The very first whiff is dark, slightly sweet and warm… and it makes me think of chicory coffee. It lightens up a little during the inhale and develops an almost floral overtone, but the dark, dark base reins it in.

 

Wearing: Darkly sweet and warm and wonderful. It’s so fantastically rich.

[jarvenpa]

Kittyflop (blessings on her generous head!) recently sent me a bit of Storyville.

 

So I wore Storyville all Thanksgiving. Oh, my.

 

I had no idea it was a Convergence only scent, or anything about it whatsoever till just now when I looked it up.

 

What I did know was--well, you know how some fragrances you sniff and you are "okay, this is interesting, let's see what's in this" and you go into intellectual search mode: "my, this must be...lemon.." or whatever. Or you think "well, what an intriguing concept..I'm not sure if I'll like this on, but I'll try it".

 

And then there are those that you sniff and think "OMIGOD, this is my holy grail of scents!"

 

Yeah, Storyville was like that. (and then I find out it was Convergence only, and so on.)

 

I inhaled deeply of sweet carmellized smoky vanillic pleasure. I put it on, and it lasted through the day, and I felt warmly embraced, wickedly sensual, and supported by a beneficient universe, which is quite a feeling while you are trying to thaw the tofurky you were supposed to have thawed the day before by putting it in a toaster oven on low.

 

It's in the same general family as Snake Charmer, another favorite of mine, and somewhat like the aged Snake Oil another dear forumite so generously gave me a bit of. And yes, perhaps there is hint of coffee in all the delight.

 

Did not know the New Orleans connection till I read it here, but yeah, I'll accept it (I love New Orleans).

 

I am delighted to have a bit of it. Truly beautiful.

[sh1mm3r]

I sniffed this at the Atlanta Meet n' Sniff and immediately went home to begin the Great Search. In the bottle it was ginger and vanilla and I swooned.

 

On my skin, it starts out spicy but then sweetens up to vanilla. But unlike most vanillas, the sweetness is not cloying or powdery, it has some kind of clarity to it, which makes me think it has boozy notes that I can't identify. It also reminds me of cooking extracts or carbonated drinks somehow.

 

Then thirty minutes later, poof! The longest this has lasted on my skin is 45 minutes. Oh woe, or sadness, oh why couldn't it smell like it did on the bottle forever.

 

And before anyone asks, this decant already has a home.

[Em-]

Mmm...musly, boozy, rich and sexy. Those are really the best words I can come up with for Storyville. This is a lovely rich scent - probably the sexiest foody scent I've ever sniffed, but with all of its fabulousness, it is just a tad too foody for everyday wear for me...

[little_galaxie]

Holy. Crap.

 

This is delicious. This is smoke and vanilla, glorified. Like Dorian minus the Victorian gentleman, or rather, TAKE said Victorian gentleman and throw him in a dingy nightclub with good old-fashioned jazz in the backround and slow sultry dancing.

 

This is way too good to use on a daily basis, especially since I only have half an imp left.

 

ETA: Am I the only one who sees Dorian? Both of them are understated, grown-up sexy.

Edited January 30, 2007 by little_galaxie

[chrisann]

I got a sniffie of this from the wonderful myoubi (thank you!!)

 

When I applied this wet, it was creamy vanilla, nutmeg, cinnammon bark, rum toddy goodness. I was estatic. "this is the one!" I yelled to my girlfriend. Thrusting my wrist under her nose. She actually stopped what she was doing, grabbed my wrist and stared huffing away. "oh, yes, I love this one! Get more!" I gave her my sad bunny eyes, and explained it was an old convergence blend, and near impossible to get a hold of. She gave me a look that said," I know that will not stop you from trying.." I can be incredibly determined, the Aries in me.

 

But wait... where am I getting that B.O smell?? No. Not my wrist!! 30 minutes into this, and I get Angel. Well, something like it. There is this good B.O smell that Angel has in the drydown, that I'm getting here. However, it's too much on me, and it becomes acrid, smokey, and sharp. I'm so crushed, and start moaning, "Oh no! Oh, no!" My GF comes over to see what's happening, I have her sniff my wrist. She furrows her brow, and says," Ugh! that smells rank on you"

 

Sigh. I guess on the brightside, I do not have to spend anymore time doing an exhaustive search on it, and I can save my wallet the crazy amounts of moolah I see it going for. I am jealous of those of you that have the chemistries that pull this off, because I can see where it could go so beautifully right!

 

Another rare off my WL

[QueenFae]

Ahh, a gloriously dark vanilla blend!! First impression is definitely a baked goodness scent, but there is a gorgeous under current of sinfulness. The undertones seem to be a dark musk with a thin line of a spicy, cinnamon note as well. This reminds me of a combination of Snake Charmer and the original Sugar cookie. But, this is definitely sexier than either of those blends, and the darkness of the undertone really gives it an X factor. On the dry down I can detect a hint of dark cocoa. This is beautiful, and I could swim in gallons of this. I wish I could get my hands on a bottle!

 

I know there were a lot of comparisons to Smut, but this smells NOTHING like Smut on me; Smut smelled like burnt rubber on me and I hated it. But I LOVE this!! Storyville has medium throw and I imagine will be pretty long lasting on my skin. This is perfect!!

[GoldenRubee]

I was very fortunate to receive a bottle of Storyville along with two other BPAL LE bottles. I expected Storyville to be a very strong, foody scent. I was pleasantly surprised after applying it to smell that it was more mild than I has anticipated. It was slightly vanilla, with a lovely dusting of cocoa with a touch of cinnamon-almost like a snickerdoodle cookie! I really thought it would be similar to monster pants and be more potent but was actually quite happy that this was a more subtle, reserved, sexy scent.

[fountaingrl]

I found a decant of this and was beside myself, so excited I didn't know what to do. Snake Oil smells great on me, and Smut smells like good dirty sexplay (seriously, I wear it sparingly). I heard that Storyville was in that same family but mixed with sweetness/food.

 

I do not know what is with my chemistry. There is no point in drawing out the review. On me, Storyville turns to earwax. So disappointing.

[Naamah_Darling]

Named for the famous Storyville district of New Orleans, this scent smells like snickerdoodle cookies – all cinnamon and vanilla. Yum! There's a wash of perfume under it, and a dribble of patchouli, perhaps, very foody and earthy. A hint of cola that is possibly musk and possibly a trace of cocoa. I like it a lot. Time to try it on!

 

On, it becomes smoky; blonde tobacco perhaps, and definitely patchouli or some dark, woody incense. It shares a cola/sassafras note with Doc Buzzard, and some spice with Voodoo Queen, making them all part of a delightful trio of bawdy, earthy, dirty scents. There's a hint of birdseedy roundness, a grain scent that I have smelled in Silk Road and The Lion; that might be saffron, I'm not sure. Or it's a very soft and feathery ginger. Whatever it is, I love it. Adore it. And this is the note that comes out and wears on me as it dries – this lovely, dry, warm, round, sweet, golden note. Beautiful!

 

This is delicious, and much less foody than it at first came across.

[lyricalwaters]

In the imp, it smells very foody - like gingersnaps! On my skin, it mellows right away, making me think more of oatmeal cookies with a touch of cinnamon, and there's definitely something smoky in the background. It dries down to a sort of creamy spice with a dusty, smoky background.

 

This isn't really my type of scent - a little too strong - but I can definitely see why people love it.

[alicia_stardust]

Storyville is a sweet, dark vanilla with a heft of naughty musk, smoke, and a side of muted spice. This reminds me of decadence and pleasure, bottled into scent form.

 

The vanilla seems to wear long and strong while the other notes come and go as they please. Overall this is a very evocative scent. It has a nice throw, then after a couple of hours it fades off into a dusty sugar-like scent.

[ForeverLastcXs]

I received a sniffie of this and I have to admit that I'm relieved; Storyville smells just like Underpants on me, which I've already got a partial of. I'm extremely happy I got to try this out, but I'm even happier that I don't need more.

[500ml]

It smells perfectly fine: sugar, toffee, foody, even a bit like cheesecake (there's a sour-ish note) and after a while some tobacco creeps in and at the very end, a musky woody note. It's truly all fine and dandy, I'm just not that impressed. I'm very glad I got the chance to try this out, but I have to say that I'm also quite glad that it does very little for me.

[CrazyPretzel]

Courtesy of Ahania's int'l C13/C12 sniffing circle

 

In the decant: red musk, sugar.

 

Wet on me: strong, almost sickly sweet booze note; a slight chocolate scent, strong wood like mahogany.

 

After a few minutes: cocoa, woods, musk, and tobacco. This is really quite sickly when it's wet and takes some time to settle, at least on me.

 

Drydown: There seems to be a strong base of chocolate and wood at first, which is really not to my taste. However, there's a sweet musk, like red musk and sugar, which is very good indeed and made my boyfriend perk right up. Storyville gets better as it dries. What I've ultimately ended up with is much lighter wood and chocolate - like sandalwood and cocoa - combined with a sweet, sensual musk.

 

I won't be mortgaging my house to track down a bottle of this baby, but it has convinced me of the occasional goodness of chocolate and woody scents combined. When I'm feeling rich I'm going to have to hunt down some chocolate and sandalwood body butter or something.

[Emma2403]

I'll make it short because I really didn't like it... it's musky, foody (somehow), very strong, and somehow a little incensey... I honestly find it quite sickening and wonder why it is SO chased for (probably because it's rare).

This being said, I'm happy I finally got to try it (thank you Ahania ) and well, it's better not to fall in love with this one, isn't it?