Samhainophobia

[BoneBone24]

The fear of Halloween. Menacing Haitian vetiver, patchouli, and clove with a shock of bourbon geranium, grim oakmoss, and dread-inspiring balsams pierce the innocuous scent of autumn leaves.

 

(2013)

Wet: Vetiver, that’s for sure. But softened by something smoother, the balsams perhaps.

Drydown: Earthy, smoky, and smooth. Vetiver, balsam, and a bit of the patchouli, geranium, and clove. It smells very much like walking through the woods in late fall, with most of the leaves dry and brown and fallen upon damp earth. There’s a slight sweetness in there that I can’t seem to place, almost like a drop of apple or plum. The initial blast of vetiver has completely mellowed at this point, with only a hint of smoky earth lingering on.

Dry: Sweeter and smoother while still retaining the spicy earthy goodness from earlier. It does resemble Samhain quite a lot, but this I’d say is a bit more outdoorsy and doesn’t have that mentholated quality. It truly does smell like the woods in late fall with a slight chill in the air and a hint of spiced cider cooking somewhere nearby. Basically, this stuff is crazy good.



Samhain + Black Annis = Samhainophobia

9 out of 10 bones

[Gateau]

I wasn't planning to try this at all due to dread vetiver, but I dabbed some on to test. Was surprised by how much I liked the rich leafiness of it, almost a fresh tobacco leaf scent, and how little of the bad vetiver funk I got. This is more of the green leafy kind of vetiver. I did, however, get an odd sort of chlorine note, and eventually it dried into something strongly powdery. But while it was nice it was quite nice.

[tharsei-thanate]

2013

 

Hm. I got a decant of this hoping that it would work better on me than Samhain. While there is a striking similarity to Samhain that's making me frown, overall this indeed works much better. Instead of gross powder like in Samhain, Samhainophobia has smooth balsams and a gentle kiss of vetiver and a light whirl of soft leaves. It gets more leafy and sweeter as it dries, which I quite like.

 

This is nice, and I will definitely keep my decant. Not sure about a bottle at this point, though, since that Samhain smell lingers through every stage and I'm not a huge fan of it. I'll see what more aging does.

[CiaoBonefish]

Wet on Skin: Initially this is all vetiver all the time. I find vetiver to be very deep, earthy, and even slightly smoky with a hint of nuttiness about it. I am getting a hint of woods, the balsams I think which are smoothing the edges slightly and making the vetiver a little less feral. I don't get a hint of clove at all which is great because I'm not a fan of clove at all. This vetiver is surprisingly alright so far because usually I find vetiver heavy scents too overbearing.

 

Dry on Skin: As this dries the vetiver deeps into the background and relinquishes some of its nuttiness. I'm surprised by how much the patch and the balsams and the oak moss are coming out now! It smells like a lovely combination of deep leafy woods and vetiver. It is a rich warm scent without much dryness at all. I think the most prominent note is the patchouli on me with vetiver coming in second and hints of balsam peaking through here and there.

 

Overall: Wow! I love this more than I thought. It reminds me of Samhain without the apple and with added vetiver and woods. Samhain but deeper and more eerie, more feral. I don't think I will pick up a bottle of this, but I do enjoy it quite a lot, far more than I expected. In all honesty, any kind of variation of Samhain can do no long in my opinion, but nothing will ever beat the original Samhain!

[thekittenkat]

This is for the 2013 version.

 

In the bottle: Vetiver indeed, but gentled by a good mix of all the other notes.

 

Wet: Much as on cold sniff, but the leaves and balsam are moving around the vetiver, trying to tame the beast.

 

The dry-down: The balsam and the leaves are dominant now, but they rest on a bed of all the other notes crafted together. Just a wonderful evocation of walking through a mixed forest on a calm autumn day.

Edited November 24, 2013 by thekittenkat

[milo]

Strong, aggressive, masculine blend. I'm getting the vetiver and leaves right away. Doesn't change much. Reminds me a bit of Lush's Icon perfume, but maybe my nose is off. Slightly cologne, but not in a bad way. I would like to smell this on a guy.

[Aviatrix]

This is the first vetiver blend that has worked relatively well on me! Yay for that!

 

It's strong and smoky and would probably work better on a guy than on me. I'm mostly getting the smoke note, but it's somehow softer than I would have expected. Still strong, though.

 

I'm glad I got to try it, but it's not something I would ever actually wear. I can see this appealing to a lot of people, though.

[theredkilt]

It reminds me very much of Samhain and its medicinal vibe. I think it's more of a extension of the dark vibe revolving around Samhain: patch, mullein, fir, leaves and added vetiver.

[stubbornfire]

I read through 2-3 pages of reviews on this scent before deciding to pick it up from someone second hand, and while I'm not disappointed, I'm still not sure I'll be keeping it!

 

It does have a beautiful, dark, calm sort of smell - not feminine, but not really masculine either; beautifully androgynous. Unfortunately, something in this also smells a lot like booze on me. Like a cheap wine or margarita or.. something. I love the incense-y smell I get close to my skin, but the booze smell is very prominent and it's what people near me pick up first. Okay at a party, maybe, but not fine 99% of the time.

 

Will give it some time to settle on my skin a little more but I'm afraid I will be swapping/re-selling/just plain giving away my half-bottle.

[Malaena]

This smells just like the apple pie moonshine that I make. It smells EXACTLY like it! My mind is blown.

[sunlitgarden]

Samhainophobia 2011:

 

This is really not a scent I was expecting to like at all due to some of its more prominent notes - vetiver usually smells like either wet campfire or BBQ to me, and patchouli often smells like BO. I do really like clove and oakmoss, though. I acquired my low partial (probably a decant or less in there) from a traveling circular swap box a couple years ago; I sniffed it and was like "wow, this is awesome!" The main word I would use to describe it is "smooth" -- while the more "dirty" elements can be recognized in the bottle, on my skin it's a well-blended fragrance that reminds me of the smoothness I sometimes get from cognac/tobacco scents. It's not sweet, but the clove prevents it from getting too bitter or dark. I actually found the Haitian vetiver SN to be more smoky/rich/dark and less bitter/burnt/ashy, so it seems to be doing its thing here without ruining the blend for me. Good to know -- I may need to only try blends with Haitian vetiver specifically. Samhainophobia is a little more on the masculine side, though not overwhelmingly so; it kind of reminds me of Autumn Moon of the Mirror Stand (which I didn't love; I actually think I swapped it away in that same circular box).

 

I feel like Samhainophobia has a similar "base" to Samhain with the patchouli, clove and woods/leaves (which makes sense, really, if you consider them variations on a theme). It's similar enough to Samhain that I don't really feel like I need full bottles of both, especially since I like the sweeter notes in Samhain. Samhainophobia is not really something I feel the need to put on as a perfume (except I did for this review and am liking it) but I enjoy having my little bit of oil to sniff when I feel like it. It's a good reminder that my preconceived notions about a scent might be wrong.

Edited September 24, 2015 by sunlitgarden

[Lucide]

2016 version.

This is such a great smell and I am glad that I picked one up!

It is definitely related to Samhain, but it is a creepier, darker version.

 

At first it smells a bit cologne-y to me at first, and a bit manly (not that I mind that). A bit of a sharp scent, probably the vetiver (?).

 

On the dry down the sharp edge goes away and it gets smokier and smokier.

Later on it gets a bit smoother and a tad bit sweet on my skin and it is truly a gorgeous smell. It is indeed a bit like Samhain without the apple. Very evocative of taking a hike in autumn forests all by yourself, while there is some smoke lingering in the air.

 

I am not very good in detecting all the different layers and notes in a perfume, so I can not tell you much about that, but I can say that this will get a lot of use from me!

Edited November 16, 2016 by Lucide

[Kay Torres]

This one ended up smelling very men's cologne-ish on me. I'm not sure if it's because it *actually smells* like cologne, or if it's because the smell reminds me of the man - all trees, clean man sweat, and wooodsmoke... I put a dab on a pillow because it's an amazing scent to cuddle into for sleep, but I won't wear it. I'm a little too traditionally feminine for this one, and it doesn't feel unisex at all.

[lizabelle]

2016 version

 

This is very different than I expected from the notes--I was thinking sharp, green herbal but this is sweet, gooey patchouli on me. I think this must be red patch (my favorite); it's very similar to the one in Fake News, prominent and perfumey. I could have sworn there's honey in here, because whatever's tricking me into thinking so is a complete dupe for the one in Third Charm. In fact, if Fake News and Third Charm had a baby you'd probably get this. It's dark, honeyed patchouli that almost has a molasses quality. I won't be hunting down a bottle desperately right now, but the next time it comes around I'm definitely getting it!

[Lucchesa]

I got to try this today at a meet 'n' sniff - dripped a drop on the back of my wrist from a wandcap around 5, and it's still going strong at 8:30. At first it was a big bad vetiver-patchouli combo, and very dark in tone. No sweetness at all, just harsh vetiver and patch, definitely on the masculine end of unisex.

 

I can't say I paid attention to every stage in the drydown, but it softened and sweetened until at a certain point I thought I was smelling Samhain, which has kind of capricious, unpredictable throw on me. I'm a huge fan of Samhain, so this was a welcome development. Ultimately on me Samhainophobia transformed into a just slightly darker, more sinister Samhain. I have a bottle of Samhain, so I'm not sure I need one of Samhainophobia, but I'll definitely pick up at least an imp if it comes around again next fall. It's a fantastic experience.

[Cali]

I really wanted to try this, so it's MY fault that I now have to sit through a whaft of vetiver! 😂

It's the same soft pachouli as in reptoid dominion and the laughter of loki, but from the get-go it's mostly vetiver! Drying, it morphs to something softer and the vetiver goes a lil creamier (thank goodness). and there's something super sweet almost hiding behind a couple of bushes from afar, perhaps a lil scared ghoul. Which, I'm guessing is a mix of oakmoss (which is always kinda sweet on me), geranium and clove. In the end, it's a lot like Samhain on me.

Which I... wasn't expecting from where it started! Samhain, but a lil darker. Perhaps the horror-genre version of Samhain.
It's lovely, but I like Samhain a lil better.

[supreme_c0rt]

There was a ton of difference between trying this fresh and letting it sit for a few weeks. 

 

Fresh on, it's a little zap of pine, with that vegetal, sharp, dead leaf note (same one from the Dead Leaves line) with a pulsing heart of dry patch and vetiver. Mostly dead leaves though. Not too forest-y, which I appreciate.

 

After it dries, it's creamy wood, heavy on the oak (love!), with smoky patch and vetiver rounding it out. I would not call this sinister or menacing -- in fact this is smooth as black silk on me. I vastly prefer it over Samhain (that one turned into a sweet/boozy pumpkin spice candle bomb on me). This though --- a big yes! Dark, smoky, masculine, woodsy and mysterious. Perfect for fall.

 

 

Edited December 12, 2019 by supreme_c0rt

[starbrow]

Samhainophobia is the one scent (thus far) I collect every year of. I remember the first time I smelled it, feeling like it held everything that made me feel spooky down to my bones, and I still feel that almost every time I smell it.

 

Each year is going to have variations (see below!), but at its core, Samhainophobia takes some of the best parts of Samhain - the damp woods, the sharp herbs, the earthy gothiness of patchouli and clove - and injects the best vetiver in the world into it. This is the scent that made me fall in love with vetiver. Sticky-grassy-sweet, a little toasty, a lot smoky. My essential oil of vetiver is STICKY THICC. That's how this smells. The other strong note to me in the blend is bourbon geranium, which is this wild-and-witchy floral that shows up in some natural insect repellents, which I use all the time here in Florida for my outdoor Halloween activities, so I strongly associate that smell with SPOOKINESS. 

 

On days that I'm very sensitive, I can smell the jaggedness of the oakmoss in Samhainophobia. Sometimes that makes it a little rough. However, I can't do any of the Dead Leaves collection, ever, and this is never DL-level sharp. If you can handle the leaves in Samhain, you will probably do just fine with Samhainophobia. Just know that this is a strong and sternly sexy scent with big throw. I have gotten compliments on it before, to the effect that it's very appealing. I don't know what the magic is, but there is some seriously bewitching aura in this swirl of smoky resins and menacing earth. 

 

2006: The first year that I got to try (from a decant), and fortunately was able to scoop a bottle of. In my decant, it is EXTREMELY mellow and smooth, with something almost (ALMOST) fruity about it. In the bottle, it hasn't mellowed quite as much, but I think I smell a nice burst of the bourbon geranium which is giving me sorta-apple. This year is amazingly aged and potent, a good balance of all the notes, and lasts hella long. 12 hours later, beautiful smokiness was still hanging around on my skin.

 

2007: Whoa this is QUITE different than 2006! This time, it's all about vetiver, and a smoke-grey vetiver at that. It even turns ashy, not quite cigarette ashes but possibly bonfire ash. The other notes are so much quieter by comparison. If you're looking for a vetiver-dominant year that is not so scratchy on the woods/oakmoss/geranium end but has a shadowy slinkiness, 2007 is a good option.

 

2013: HMM I will have to come back to this one! An interesting one for sure! But...kind of love it?

 

2016: We're back, babyyyy! This one reminds me of 2007 but with a kick. Grey vetiver made a little scratchier with balsam. The bourbon geranium is low-to-medium here. This one is dark and spooky and a little growly. Like the skeletal arms of a thousand waving trees by moonlight.

 

2017: Ooo she smoooth. This year is almost creamy by comparison. Still has an edge, but a slight sweetness and poofiness too that makes me think that someone brought marshmallows to this dark ritual by the fire. Most like 2006. One of my favorites!

 

2018: YUM. Vetiver-dominant, but this vetiver smells brown, grassy, and sticky to me. Most like my essential oil bottle of vetiver. Very cuddly and comforting. Everything else is well-blended. Perhaps a sweet patchouli standing out a bit too? This one smells the most like essential oils to me, if you love the smell of vetiver and patchouli oils. This is your year.

 

2019: Oh. Oh no. What's wrong with her? Did some dead leaves sneak into this bottle instead of Samhainophobia? I really suspect it. All this smells to me like is a soapy cologne. That's it, that's all I get. Dead Leaves and Soap. No vetiver. AT ALL. Samhainophobia has always been one that's needed to age into its glory - 2018 needed a full year to speak - but 2019 has never emerged. After three years, it's still disappointing. Maybe someday?

 

I dearly hope 2022 brings us the return of a Samhainophobia much like 2018's, or really any of them except 2019. My favorite Weenie, come back to me!

Edited December 28, 2022 by starbrow