Black Lace

[strangemodegirl]

The embodiment of Victorian funereal elegance. A delicate sugar-spun vanilla cream cotton, stained by tobacco and incense, Indian musk, and drops of cognac.

 

This is just absolutely beautiful.

I don't get any sort of floral from it (yay), just wonderful vanilla, musky, incensey goodness. I am really looking forward to seeing how this one ages. Very thankful that I got two bottles of it!

 

Beth, you are simply amazing!

[blu°]

Just a mini review that basically boils down to chiming in with all the others who are raving about it.

 

One gorgeous blend, this one. And I'm not usually one for the tobacco-y, musky blends.

 

This is soft and fluffy with the cotton and vanilla-musk. I don't perceive it as "clean-smelling" at all. It's mostly warm and snuggly.

 

The vanilla-musk throws some inches around me while the musk and tobacco and incense, but especially the musk grow warmer and rounder, and more and more delish with time.

 

Glad to have snugged a bottle.

[celestia]

Black Lace

Grade: A (4/5)

 

(Outside): Dusty, smoky and of spirits and incense. Really strong, boozy note... Sharp but smooooth.

(Inside:) Wow... I usually do not favour heavy, dark and musky smells because it reminds me of ordinary perfume... but this is a wonderfully smooth, dark cognac laced with vanilla smoke. I can see where others fit Snake Oil into this. It's carries a wonderful, warm, lightly spiced feel and has the same sweet edge.

 

Chemistry: I can really sense the stained cotton in this because the notes feel like they've all soaked into each other. The tobacco, musk and cognac all turn mellow on each other and i'm left with this delicately vintage... vanilla smoke. I smell rich, creamy, elegant and refined. And somehow the whole thing smells smooooth because yes! like others before me have mentioned, it has been blended so very well! And when i wake up, the scent usually ends up smells like a really lovely, soft, vintage-vanilla-cream. Lightly sweetened.

Edited December 8, 2007 by celestia

[mamoyer]

Black Lace smells just like you came back from work/classes, changed into fresh going-out clothes and put on sexy oriental perfume, spent the night in a smoky bar, got a few drinks splashed on you, and then had drunken sex with a guy wearing musky men's cologne before passing out on the bed.

 

I like it.

[agnusdei]

The first thing that hit me when I sniffed the bottle was a strong booze-y tobacco scent with undertones of creamy vanilla. To be honest I was a tad apprehensive at this point because it was a bit sharper than I had anticipated, but of course that's not going to stop me from trying it out.

 

For the first ten or so minutes of wear cognac and tobacco are the dominant notes, but once it dries and settles it morphs into something different and completely amazing. With the initial sharpness gone, vanilla comes to the foreground and takes over in the best way possible. Creamy and sugary, but still with a darker, smokier side to it thanks to the musk and incense. Everything is blended wonderfully and keeps the scent from going too far off in any one direction; the sweetness of the vanilla is balanced by the deep sultry mix of musk, tobacco and cognac, and the dry spiciness of the incense adds something almost wood-y. And the best part? The throw on Black Lace is crazy! I put it on after my bath this morning and for the rest of the day I felt like I was in my own little bubble of rich vanilla incense goodness. This scent also lasted quite a while, 7 hours after applying and not only has it not disappeared, it even has some of it's throw still. Considering that most smellies don't throw well or last too long on me, Black Lace is definitely something special.

[edenssixthday]

Black Lace – I’d heard so much raving about this blend that I really had high hopes for it, and thankfully, it turned out to be as pretty as I thought! It opens up with a sugary-sweet vanilla, followed almost instantly by that incense smoke note, which smells a lot like sandalwood on me, and after about 2-5 minutes, I can detect a hint of boozy cognac in the blend. This is an exotic, sexy, and sultry scent, yet not entirely without innocence. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! It sticks fairly close to my skin upon drydown and fades somewhat quickly, but lasts longer than most vanilla blends do on my skin. Very pretty, and I’m really glad I got some of this. I do imagine I will wear it when I want to feel dressed up, yet maintain a sense of sweet naivete about me, too.

[DangerInRed]

Black Lace is just on the border between being wonderful and making me sneeze. However, if you are fine with incense blends, then this shouldn't affect you!

 

 

It is sweetened somewhat musky/incensey, with a cool, clean undertone. I liken it to blends like Snake Charmer, but more vanilla-y and less musky. No wonder this is such a hit!

[Summerpixy]

Vanilla, musk, cognac.. This is sheer heaven. It manages to be a fairly light perfume with beautiful sugar and incense tones, sexy without trying to clobber you over the head. A Dorian perfume for ladies who like to be both sugar and spice, and not always nice.

 

I may have to buy a couple more bottles of this just so I'll never run out. It is just lovely and may well become my signature scent.

[pinkpepper]

This is SO beautiful - deep, dark, smoky-sweet toasted vanilla with a slight boozy edge. It almost reminds me of roasting marshmallows over a fireplace, but it's not at all foody. It's that sugar-spun note under all that darkness that I love. It's almost like a Victorian child at a funeral. It's so, so lovely to smell, but sadly, it's really not my style. It would be amazing on the right person, though.

 

ETA: I've been lucky enough to get a decant of Storyville, and I have to say it reminds me a whole lot of Black Lace. Or maybe it's the other way 'round? Storyville is, unsurprisingly, much sexier and sultrier, but otherwise very similar.

Edited January 4, 2008 by pinkpepper

[suileach]

Well...I feel like a weirdo, but I don't like Black Lace very much.

 

In bottle: Sour soap, wet cigarettes, and starchy cotton.

 

On: More of the same.

 

The vanilla and booze come out, hesitantly, after about 10 minutes, but they find it difficult to push past the other notes, which have morphed into some sort of generic, dry, incense-like smell.

 

At the 20 minute mark, I finally get more vanilla. The sour note is bugging me once again. I think it might be the tobacco; I've had bad luck with that note in the past.

 

After an hour, it's down to a smoky, sultry vanilla with a tinge of bitter smoke. It is incredibly faint on me by this point.

 

Reading everyone else's raves and predictions as to its aging (as well as the pretty, pretty label) made me hesitant to give up on it, but alas; I am brutal about only keeping bottles I love.

[zankoku_zen]

*sigh* This so doesn't work for me. At the beginning, the tobacco is way too predominant, and then it drydowns to an expensive male cologne, with still a hint of tobacco.

 

I might have to go try this on the boy. But its definitely not for me.

[minnalavender]

This is such a beautiful scent, nostalgic, sweet, and delicate. Vanilla is wonderful with my skin chemistry, as are most of the other notes listed. I'm so glad I splurged on a 5 ml bottle. Can't stop sniffing my wrists!

 

It's different than the other vanilla scents I love, like Antique Lace, Morocco, and Al-Azif: where they are round and rich, Black Lace is faint and almost delicate. I am going to have to get another bottle to age! Aged Antique Lace is the nectar of the Gods to my nose, and as this is a much more complex scent I can only imagine how good it will smell in a year.

 

I can only buy bottles of the absolute WIN scents this Yule, and I'm going to buy two of this one. It's that good, and it'll just get better with aging.

[valentina]

Well patooey. My body chemistry strikes again! Black Lace starts out perfectly lovely on my skin, and is indeed a very proper, almost austere fragrance, except for the undertone of sugary vanilla and a faint whiff of cognac. It's one of those interesting juxtaposition fragrances. After a few minutes, the cognac becomes a bit stronger, but I still enjoyed it. Then my body chemistry started amping the cotton and tobacco and it became entirely austere, with no sweetness. I'm guessing that the musk in this scent must be a very pale, white musk, because in combination with the clean cotton fragrance, Black Lace turns to pure powder on me about a half-hour after application. Nuts. If my body could have held the initial elements of the scent, I would have cherished the bottle, but instead it's going to someone who can fully enjoy what this blend has to offer.

[dixiehellcat]

I wasn't expecting this to work on me, mostly because the cotton note usually gives me terrible headaches. But I barely smell it, and what I do is very good in its place. The primaries I get from this are the vanilla and a whiff of tobacco (I hate smoking but tobacco notes work well on me. Go figure. lol) and the cotton balances them out beautifully. Beth is a freakin genius. Must have a bottle. Or two. Or...

[theal8r]

In the bottle this smelled like Old Man, so I was scared to put it on. Old Man generally turns into Headache for me, so you understand my hesitation. At first I got a lot of the old man smell, but it slowly sweetened and mellowed into a perfectly lovely, slightly smoky scent. It amped pretty nicely without becoming the White Elephant In The Room and also didn't fade instantly (I'm looking at you, eggnog)

 

I like this. I'm not certain it is bottle-worthy for me, but I do like it. I'll have to try it a few more times.

[jwhxtna]

I've never tried a scent like this before, so I was interested to see how it would turn out for me.

 

IN THE IMP: Hmmm. Very smoky, I can definitely smell the tobacco and incense, and they're mixed with the smell of cotton. And a teensy bit of vanilla underneath. Not sure about this, it smells really masculine to me.

 

WET: Woah, suddenly turned floral-ish, became a whole less bitter, and the vanilla jumped out. Now it's just a soft vanilla-y clean cotton. And very faint on my skin.

 

DRY: Ohh, yum. The tobacco comes back but it's not overwhelming like before, and it blends really well with the vanilla and what must be the cognac. It smells like the shirt of someone at a classy bar wearing a soft vanilla perfume. A dark, smoky, sweet vanilla with a hint of bitterness. It smells pretty sexy to me.

[l6l803399]

In the imp, the scent intimidated me slightly - it was overpoweringly smoky and incensy that just scared me off a bit. While wet, the incense and smoke still took center stage, but the vanilla and sweeter background started to come out. While dry, the scents just mellowed together heavenly, and I absolutely ADORE it

 

Another one for the 5mls, but probably not till later, due to lack of monies

[AEris]

Wow, I didn't expect this to work on me this well!

 

Black Lace starts out a little too strong with the cotton note; it smells a bit too much like a laundromat. I am almost relieved, because there's a little part of me that is hoping not to love something that is hard to get a hold of.

 

Then, it starts to dry down. The softest whisper of vanilla, the swirl of sweet tobacco and musk, it's an understated, lovely, drifting scent. I knew it. I'm getting sucked in....

 

It reminds me of Snake Oil a little bit, because of the combination of vanilla, musk, and that hint of smoky sweetness. However, Black Lace is not so bold. It's Snake Oil's laid back, quiet but not shy, even more mysterious counterpart. If Snake Oil has matched eyes with you from the bar and looked away with a sly grin, Black Lace is behind her, face masked in shadows, with just one sexy stockinged leg draped in candlelight - luring you closer....

 

This is very elegantly blended. It is difficult to pick out individual notes, and my brain doesn't want to. It's balanced so well, it's like every component is complementing the others. I just want to swim in the whole experience at once and enjoy.

 

This ends up being a very soft, sly, sweet, musky, smoky perfume. I am drawn to it strongly. It is sexy and stimulating without being in-your-face. I love the subtlety of it! So sexy! I want The Boy to come close....

 

4.7 out of 5

[SarahScent44]

In the imp, I get smoke - sweet vanilla smoke.

 

On my skin, it's smoke with a little cognac and vanilla - there's definitely a nice creaminess to it.

 

When it dries, it's mmm, smoky vanilla goodness. Definitely keeping!

[forspecial_plate]

This is much lighter than I expected, and starts out with a *poomf* of powder. The powder fades mostly away after a few minutes, though. The vanilla aspect of this reminds me more of Underpants than anything else I've tried. I was a little afraid of the cotton note because I find that I don't like paper/cotton/linen notes. In this case, it's not very noticeable to me, unless that's what the powder was. I can pick out the tobacco, but I don't think I ever did smell the cognac. I think the Indian musk is giving this an exotic flavor, and maybe that's reminding me of the saffron note in Underpants (combined with the vanilla).

 

This is a great scent that I will definitely enjoy wearing again. Very light and sophisticated.

 

Edit: I tried this again and it smelled very soapy, almost as bad as lily smells. : ( Will probably trade my decant.

Edited April 13, 2008 by Forspecial Plate

[ceiswyn]

There are times when I wonder whether I have the same sense of smell everyone else does, and this is one of them. Because on opening the bottle, all I can smell is slightly sweet ethanol. Not overwhelmingly so, but still; ethanol, like the commercial perfumes I avoid.

 

On the wrist: It still smells of ethanoly perfume base. Wait; there's something a little musky coming through. And just a hint of vanilla.

 

One hour later: Faint and musky, with smoky tobacco, and sweetened by vanilla. A subtle and sophisticated scent but not, I think, for me.

[amyw]

I just got my bottle from Dark Delicacies today, so I was excited to try this. I love vanilla blends with things like musk and incense.

 

In the bottle it's pretty sharp, so I hoped it would mellow out on me. It did, but it immediately amped up the tobacco and for a while that's all I could smell. I waited, hoping that would fade to the background at least a little bit. It's not that I don't like tobacco, but it's not my favorite, and I prefer the other notes listed.

 

It did fade and then went through a very incense-y phase. Now the vanilla and cotton have come out more, and ultimately it reminds me of Snake Charmer + tobacco. It morphs a lot, or perhaps it has "levels" in the throw, if you know what I mean. It seems to go back and forth between more vanilla and more incense and tobacco.

 

I don't know that it would ever displace Snake Charmer and Mme Moriarty out of my very favorites, but it could join them in the top ten. I think with a little aging, it will. Very glad I got some.

 

 

I'm back to add that the first time I tried it, it was almost all tobacco with a bit of incense. Sometimes the other notes would come out, but then eventually all I could smell was tobacco. Then the second time it was all intense incense through every stage, enough to give me a bit of a headache. That day I wore a sweater I haven't washed yet and that sweater still smells strongly of incense, several days later. I remembered that it was very cold the day it arrived and the box sat outside for quite a while, so I thought perhaps there was some separation. I don't know nearly enough about perfume oils to know if this is possible, but I still let it sit and then gently rolled the bottle several times. This time, it seems better blended and I can smell most of the notes.

 

I have noticed that each time, I needed to apply once and then again after about 15 minutes or it completely faded. Some oils are just like that for me.

Edited December 29, 2007 by amyw

[Brianne]

This musk is not as sweet as I was expecting or hoping for - it's a more pungent (for lack of a better word) musk. It mingles with the incense and creates a rather strong smell, that almost teeters on the precipice of "old lady" smell, without actually going over into it. The tobacco is the saving factor on my skin here - it takes the musky incense and pungent odor and turns it more spiced and slightly warm and exotic. This is a very mature perfume - I see this as being a woman's scent - slightly sophisticated and sexy but refined.

 

I do like it, though I can't seem to make up my mind if I just like it or I REALLY like it. Every sniff I take, I seem to think something different. It's very lovely though and I'm glad I have a bottle!

[lookingglass]

My darling husband bought me a bottle of Black Lace for Christmas! Awwwwh! I love him! He knows what I need...

 

Wet this really reminds me of Sed Non Satia, which must be the cognac and musk. It's a little nutty but I hold on, because I know that note blends well on the drydown. TRUE. This scent is Antique Lace's sexy sister. PERFECT. A little darker, deeper, and boozy-er. I LOVE it!!!

 

Edited to add: DH is putting a few drops of Black Lace into his beard oil. It is delicious on him as well...

Edited May 26, 2008 by lookingglass

[zenvodunista]

I can't wear Antique Lace as it turns to powder on me, but my BF wears it and it's a lovely soft musky vanilla on him.

 

I got two bottles of Black Lace - one for me and one for him.

 

On him it's reminiscent of Antique Lace with a hit of floral and I can smell the cotton as well. It's musky but refreshing if that makes sense.

 

On me, Black Lace is a combination of Sed Non Satiata, Perversion, and Lyonesse. Musky, warm, incense & smoke filled, honeyvanillasex. This stuff is *fantastic*.

 

I only wish I'd bought FOUR bottles! Three for me, and one for him

 

N.