The Blockhead

[edenssixthday]

Back out on the Midway, a huge, leather-clad man leans against a post. He smiles at you, guilelessly, baring a mouthful of sharpened teeth as he hammers huge rusted nails into his skull.

Rusted metal, leather, and a pop of pink bubblegum.

The Blockhead - Where's the rusted metal? Where's the leather? In the bottle and on my skin, this smells like sweet, pink bubblegum and nothing else. I love it! It's so sweet and reminds me of the Big League Bubble Gum I chewed when I was a kid. It's a scent I probably wouldn't wear often, but it's so sweet and nummy that I know there will be times when nothing else will do but a super sweet, pink bubblegum scent.

[moderngypsy]

Oh, SQUEE. Arrived today in record time and I pounced on it for testing.

 

in the bottle: smells like bubblegum mixed with something weird. Go figure, since its lab desc is essentially bubblegum with somethingS weird.

 

first five minutes: All bubblegum, all the time. Has a similar scent to Jailbait. (Which reminds me... I need a bottle of that. Used up my imp long ago.) Like metallic preteen angst and hormone smoke.

 

as it dries: Bubblegum loses the fight to SomethingS weird. Not in a bad way at all. There's definitely something sassafrassy, and honestly, it smells like a manlier version of Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener to me. Less sweet, but still 'frassy. If my husband wears this, and I wear the SSS, we're going to smell like a bottle of sassparilla exploded in our house. And that's okay with me, because I LOVE IT. I love it so so so much.

 

I'm thinking I need a back-up bottle before September's disappearance, for sure.

[savage_rose]

In the bottle and wet on my skin, it's Bazooka bubble gum. And as it dries...is that men's cologne? It's like Jailbait's slightly older (yet legal) boyfriend. At first I thought, "I bought a bottle of BUBBLEGUM perfume when I already have and adore Jailbait?" But dry, it smells a little innocent yet sexy, the the yang to Jailbait's yin. I like it.

[forspecial_plate]

Wow, the Blockhead surprised me a little.......I think I was expecting a quirky novelty scent but this is really quite 'wearable'. I thought the pink bubblegum would be too much, but for me it's actually subtle.

 

This scent is reminiscent of New Year's Eve In Dogville, it has some of that masculine/feminine interplay. Kind of perfumey and cologney, at the same time, with a sugary element from the bubblegum that's almost effervescent. To be honest I forgot about the rusty metal note, when I first tried it. I knew it had leather but I couldn't smell that so much, either. Maybe just a little bit but nothing like Quincey Morris which is mostly leather for me. I'm also reminded of La Befana (which I didn't care for) and to a lesser extent, Sugar Skull (which I love).

 

I imagine that Bulgari Black might smell something like this (I never tried it), and that's one of the reasons I wanted to try the Blockhead. But I think the Blockhead is probably better!

 

Edit to add: I think some people will end up really liking this even though they wouldn't have expected to. I know that's how I felt! But obviously I had a hunch so I'm glad I have some.

Edited June 18, 2008 by Forspecial Plate

[Brianne]

This goes on like pink bubblegum - not the juicy, fruity types but the old generic staple bubblegum that we ALL know I don't get leather in this scent at all, which is strange because leather usually amps on me. I get a nice ambery/musky combo though which really brings the bubblegum into a very wearable stage.

 

I wouldn't think that I would want or need two bubblegum scents from CD, but I love Xanthe AND The Blockhead so looks like I WILL need two hehe!

[Josh]

Men's cologne and bubblegum. That is exactly what this is.

 

Even more surprising - it somehow works! Blockhead and Knucklebones seem like brother scents to me... they don't smell alike but they have the same feeling to them.. like a rough-n-tough masculine front with a playful (if not kind of dumb) demeanor.

[slave1]

THE BLOCKHEAD

 

In Bottle: Bubblegum

 

On Skin: Whoa! Hello Bazooka Joe! This is pure pink bubblegum. The kind that isn’t fruity… just pink, and has a slight minty aftertaste. It’s fun, pure Carnaval that’s for sure. After about 10 minutes, the metal and leather show themselves making this have a masculine cologne side. Such a fun contrast! Who would have known that this creates a very cool scent! My husband would probably not wear it, unless I totally fuss over it… which I may have to do. I really like the novelty in this scent and the fact it makes me grin. Light throw and average wearlength.

[mooncityminx]

In the bottle: Bubblegum, we all know it.

 

Wet: Wet the bubblegum smell, although perfect, doesn't last long at all. Immediately it starts mingling with something that reminded me of a dentist's office or blood drive, but later I was able to identify wintergreen. The wintergreen didn't bother me much in this blend because it then morphed into a men's cologne smell. If you haven't tried the Blockhead, you may be frustrated with that adjetive, but it is seriously mimicking the aftershave of a boy I dated in highschool in this particular stage. I think the aftershave was called Black Suede? Anyway it wasn't a totally pleasant association for me so I distracted myself while I waited for it to dry.

 

Drydown: Now this is kind of nice, but very masculine. It isn't smelling like a hit-the-woman-over-the-head-cause-I'm-a-caveman-cologne anymore. It smells a little woodsy, a little like leather jacket, super masculine but in a slightly more civilized way. I tried it both on my wrist and the back of my hand to see if location could score me a longer bubblegum, but alas, they are the same. I also put some on a piece of fabric. The fabric still smells like bubblegum and wintergreen mingling. This might smell really good on my husband, but I don't think I'll get him to wear it. I'll let it age a while before I do anything rash.

 

Also, some are compairing this to Jailbait? I would love to single out that bubblegum note and cherish it. I've tried Jailbait before but I'll need to try it one more time to see if I can get the bubblegum from a GC.

Edited June 20, 2008 by Tempest

[MeiLin]

Imp: Just weird. Sweet and...odd

 

Wet: Pink bubblegum, big time

 

Initial drydown: The bubblegum fades fast and I'm left with a very smooth masculine but not too masculine scent. A little woody (heh), a little spicy, a little leathery--I really like it!

 

ETA: either this doesn't have much stay, or my nose gets inured to this very quickly...

 

Update: Put this on the hubby and INSTANT SWOON. Getting a bottle.

Edited August 19, 2008 by MeiLin

[sookster]

 

straight sniff from bottle is bright, pink bubblegum

 

once applied a touch of leather adds a unique edginess that is beth's exclusively...truly amazing...

like watching a blockhead performing in a sideshow act

 

i am thrilled to own a bottle

[iiinterstate]

I bought a decant of the Blockhead for the experience. I didn't expect to actually LIKE it, but I do! The leather note is the strongest, and it works with my skin much better than most leather blends have in the past. The bubblegum adds a hint of sweetness but doesn't overpower like I assumed it would. There's a teeeeeeeny metallic edge to it as well.

 

A beautifully balanced blend. I'll be getting at least one bottle.

[LunaLovegood]

Blockhead: leather and bubblegum *note to self, you amp leather like crazy, stay away from it!* Honeslty it was sweet on the bottle, but not overly so, however on my skin it was sweet leather, which I did not enjoy.

[filigree_shadow]

I only smelled bubblegum in this for the first few minutes, and I wasn't particularly thrilled with that. It didn't last, though, and the scent that came afterwards was good enough that I decided to do a bigger test. (I wasn't sure I'd like this one so I just did a tiny test area at first.)

 

Once again, a big blast of pink bubblegum at the beginning. (Not artificial-smelling at all -- very true to a bubblegum scent.) Then that fades out but leaves a lingering sweetness over the top of a slightly metallic scent with a hint of leather. On me, the throw on this is barely there. I have the crook of my elbow plus the outside part of my arm covered in this oil, and I can still barely smell it. I like it, but for some reason it's quite faint on me.

[alicia_stardust]

This is so freaking cool. I mean, it starts out smelling EXACTLY like those hard, pink Bazooka and Dubble Bubble gums that you could get for 5 cents as a child. They were rock hard and they all had that same distinct bubble gum flavor in an ungodly shade of pink.

 

After a few minutes the bubble gum scent is taken over by a smooth leather. Beyond that, it's the metal that I believe makes the leather shift into smelling like a man's cologne in a good way! And I'd say the leather is more of the hot and dark variety that tends to amp into a slight pitch.

 

I love the way the bubble gum and leather/metal play off of each other. It is the most bizarre combination and you know what? It works!

Edited July 9, 2008 by alicia_stardust

[Em-]

Wow. The Blockhead is definitely the sleeper hit of this round of the Carnaval for me. It has an almost green fruity scent to me nose - I can see where the leather comes in, but mostly, this is a fresh, slightly sweet fruity/green scent. If I had to pick anything it reminds me of, it would be my dear departed Mantis. Which makes me wonder if maybe my chemistry is just totally wack...and if so, if I can keep it this way!

 

ETA: I sniffed this again in the vial and now that I know the notes, I can definitely smell the bubblegum and leather in the vial. It is really a fabulous combination, though - not at all the novelty scent I thought it would be - instead it is a fabulous refreshing sweet fruity leather. A lovely, unusual summer scent.

Edited July 15, 2008 by emzebel

[nightbiscuit]

Utterly unique! This is actually the cleanest metal note I have ever smelled, despite the fact that it's supposed to be rusty. On me, the leather note is so sweet and pliable that it seems almost like a skin musk. Gorgeous.

I would never have thought from the Blockhead's facial expression that he would turn out to be such enchanting company*!

 

 

 

*I do like his corset though.

Edited July 15, 2008 by nightbiscuit

[Little Bird]

For some reason, I had hoped that The Blockhead would be like Mechanical Phoenix with a smooth, sweet pink bubblegum added in. I wanted a masculine pink bubblegum, lol. I really don't care for The Blockhead though, because the rust note smells really awful to me. In the bottle, it's smoky leather, powdery pink bubblegum, and something oddly like spearmint gum. On me, it morphs into smoky leather, a hint of bubblegum sweetness, and an awful, decayed, rotten smell that just gets stronger the longer that it's on my skin. It does smell slightly like rust, if I try to imagine what that smells like, sort of metallic and decayed. I keep thinking that it smells rotten and off. After fifteen minutes, the rust is the strongest note and it makes me a little nauseous

[Rheliwen]

Absolutely awesome! I didn't even really think about this one when it first came out. I'm not a bubblegum sweet sort of girl. But then the reviews started to come in and I took a second look. Sweet and innocent combined with sinister? Now THAT's right up my alley.

 

To me, this is the kind of perfume the girl in Kill Bill with the ball and chain would wear. One who appears to be sweet but in reality is deadly.

 

This is all bazooka bubblegum and leather one me. The combo is outstanding. The bubblegum has a carnation vibe, which makes sense.

 

I might even have to get another bottle.

[twilighteyes]

Bubblegum!!

 

My friend (who I am slowly enabling with blends such as these) loves it too. She's also a jailbait fan.

[Iceblink]

I love Jailbait so this one caught my eye. It's bubblegum extreme! As it dries I'm getting a metallic note from it that reminds me of gum in shiny silver wrappers. And a bit of leather (odd, as usually leather is like WHOA CRAZY on me). If the leather stays under control then this is a winner for me--those metal/leather notes keep the bubblegum from being too preteen girl over-the-top sweet. Definitely a different blend!

[jehrichardson]

Preconceptions: I'm not particularly fond of bubblegum, so I don't see how I'm going to get past that. Not expecting much from this one.

 

In the Imp: Bubblegum.

 

On the Skin: Bubblegum. Gedditoffme! Gedditoffmeee!

 

After a While: WOW. Lovely leather! It's gorgeous! There's something almost imperceptible of the bubblegum left, but much of that must be my imagination. This is actually quite lovely - excellent rich lovely leather!

 

Verdict: As lovely as it is to have a leather single note - I can't get past the bubblegum. It's an intriguing idea, and I'm glad I got to sample this one. It's very well designed... I just don't want to smell like gum, if even for just a few moments. Pity, because I LOVE this leather. Mmmm!

[AEris]

At first, it's all Bazooka gum. It changes as it dries, and I can smell the leather, as well as something I can't quite identify. It smells masculine to me after a few minutes.

 

Really interesting. I agree with Rheliwen that it would be worn by Gogo in Kill Bill, that's a hilarious and accurate pin-down!

 

Weird, unique. Not my style, but I can see why people like it.

 

3.3 out of 5

[zankoku_zen]

So when I first opened this little vial, I got the giant waft of bubblegum (ah lotus). Upon application its bubblegum on metal, but thankfully now it's a masculine metal and leather combination. Very masculine and tantalizing, but playful. Very nice.

[Indigo78]

In the bottle: A gumball.

 

Wet: Fresh gumball after the first ten or so chomps.

 

Then...it gets complcated. The leather crept in with all the stealth of a window-boyfriend. Really good, and it reminds me of car leather. It smells like getting a ride home from "insert-teen-bad-boy-villain-here". The metallic note is what does it I guess. The only time one is likely to smell rust and gum and leather in one place would be in the aforementioned scenario. Nostalgic

 

Pretty fun scent, like no other BPAL I've smelled so far - but minimal throw. There is definitely more punch in the leather & metal than in the gum. Gotta try it on my SO before making a bottle decision!

Edited October 20, 2008 by Indig0

[femmefatale]

Oh wow, this is soooo odd.

 

In the bottle it's bubblegum. Not the super sugary Bubble Yum type, but the bazooka kind.

 

On my skin the bubblegum goes into the background and just about disappears and the leather and metal comes to the front. It reminds me so much of something my hubby used to wear, I just can't put my finger on it.

 

I do really like it. I think it's something both hubby and I can wear (me in my my locket, him on his skin).

 

I'm so glad I picked up a bottle.