The Lights of Men's Lives

[torischroeder9]

In the imp: At first, sweetness that I might read as honey, but after just a second, I get the beeswax note. I don't get smoke, the fear of which might have been the only thing that made me hesitant about this blend. 

 

On my skin:

 

Wet, the beeswax comes out right away. Again, it's not smokey here but rather tinged with honey sweetness. As it dries, the sweetness fades into the background and a gauzy, non-sweet note emerges. I wouldn't label this note on its own as smoke, but the overall beeswax candles gently burning, more like what I might imagine would happen in an open, ventilated area rather than candles burning in a cave. It's understated, but it's quite lovely. 

 

For me, it's in the same vibe but less sweet than V'al Hassinim but less... strident?... than Endless Corridors (where the vetiver and I are just not getting along yet). I may need a bottle of this. 

 

Edit: After several hours of wear, it does develop a faintly powdery scent that I associate with certain types of amber notes after a long while. It's pretty and pleasant, but it is a bit generic. I am going to let my imp age as I ponder a bottle. 

Edited December 18, 2020 by torischroeder9

[Llanval]

frimp, aged approx one year: a quiet honey scent, bright enough to smother any smoke or beeswax. To me, it has just a kiss of strangeness, a fuzz that isn't entirely due to the honey.

 

Wet: Nothing but sweet soft honey, soft as breath and just as gentle.  There's nothing bold or assertive about this scent - this wafts like a bouquet of snuffed beeswax candles, the sort you patiently hand-dipped as a kid while your Brownie leaders remind you to pay attention to the staff at the pioneer lodge teaching you how to make them. Gentle, sweet, and uncomplicated. I get no smoke from this in the dry down.

 

Dry: Sadly, this is a ghostly scent once dried.  On me, it vanishes in a puff of waxy honey sweetness.  I get no smoke note, but the scent is a soft, rounded thing. A curling up kind of scent. A memory. And for the vibe of the label and the perfume, that's a lovely expression of what the lights of all men's lives really are, no? A puff of smoke, and a memory. Also just the weirdest edge of baby powder adjacent softness invades the honey/beeswax and that makes me   

 

As time goes, the scent drifts and returns at odd moments, still soft and full of memories, but it lacks the complexity I personally look for in a scent. Because of the baby powder adjacent skin chemistry issue, this won't be a full bottle for me.  No doubt this is beautiful, soft and transporting on the right skin.

Edited July 16, 2021 by Llanval

[stwbrymlk]

This smells very much like a blown out wax candle. It's warm but cool and it's a slightly sweet, waxy vanilla. I picture it was a beexwax candle that was just blown out in the midst of a cold room. It smells very naturally sweet. I was surprised because most of the reviews say that this was sweeter than they liked and I was wishing it was more sweet! 

[Rane.]

Received as an imp. My wife really enjoys this, & I plan to get her a bottle. It smells like warm candles. I want to say there is a touch of vanilla in there. But it's all wax, & it's not bad at all.

[splendidissima]

New imp from the Lab! (Received 2022)

Mmm, this is nice: uncomplicated, warmly glowing vanilla beeswax. It's exactly what you'd expect, if you breathed in the scent of a lit hand-made wax candle, lightly scented with vanilla. No smoke, but warmth - the candle itself becoming slightly liquid and molten.

Good throw, and lasting for a couple hours so far!

[Fefi]

I really enjoy this.  Its not a scent I would have gotten a sample for myself, so I am glad it was tossed in with one of my orders. I agree with what everyone else has said about it smelling like wax, and wax candles but I also detect something else in there almost sort of woody like/ cedar like I can't quite pin point what it is, maybe its an amber of some type because I strongly feel there is one unlisted. I also feel there could be a hint of a flower in there as well. It doesn't have much of a throw for me, its a very close to the skin type scent, and overall I am really glad I was able to try it.

 

[Crow's Heart]

I had high hopes for this, but it just turned into sickeningly sweet vanilla on me, enough to make my stomach squirm. No smoke or even wax for me. I'm going to let it age and hope it mellows out somewhat.

[scentedbythesun]

Lights of men's lives is in my top five favorite bpals

[Lecter]

Iove this. Beeswax for sure, sweet. Honey notes 

[MolyH]

This scent just completely disappears for me. It smells like nothing at all except the faintest whisper of smoke. I have tried it on my skin, in a scent locket, in a scent diffuser, everything. I've used up the whole imp, and I still don't know what beeswax smells like. I don't think this is skin chemistry. It's gotta be smell chemistry or something. My nose just isn't processing this scent. It's like a blindspot, for the olfactory senses. This is bizarre.

[TheChamberlain]

Very photorealistic candle scent. Spot on for waxy, melting candles. I find that smell calming and comforting so I love this, it’s relaxing and puts me in a good mood. If you don’t particularly care for the smell of burning candles this won’t change your mind. But I’m happy that now I can tap into that scent memory/feeling wherever I am.

[mothknits]

Bought an imp of this recently to try out, as i was intrigued by the description. Smoke is one of my favorite scent notes, and i like the idea of the living wax bringing a sweetness.

In the bottle it smells soft and sweet and warm. On my wrists, that sweetness became powdery (which many scents do tbh). It wasnt unbearble, and reminded me of love’s baby soft body spray from the 90s in a very nostalgic, comforting way. 
after 12 hours, the powder scent gave way to a warm honeyed sweetness. 
No smokey notes for me, not even a “just snuffed out candle” whisper. I still liked it, and my try layering it with other scents

 

[Weirdgirlpilled]

Mmmm. Vaguely coconutty beeswax with just a tiny dollop of smoke or perhaps even soap. this has a very weirdly luxury feel to it. it’s a very clean-skin kind of smell. the dry down smells exactly as it does in the vial. I may consider getting a bottle of this, as it’s so gentle and yummy i could probably use it as a bed-time scent or for when i’m around my parents (who think the only good smells are floral and soap) 

[PumpkinGuts]

This reminds me of those natural beeswax candles with the honeycomb pattern. Sweet, honey-forward beeswax, slightly vanillic. This is not a smoky scent, and doesn't do much morphing. I prefer my candlewax with a bit of smoke, but this is still nice -- perhaps I'll use it for layering. Impressive longevity, low to moderate projection. 

[Tungerine]

It's mainly honey/beeswax on me, but it doesn't have the depth of real beeswax and it's much sweeter. There's a hint of candle smoke, but just a hint. It's too sweet for me.

[asoursweetsixteen]

~~frimp review~~

oh this is just lovely. it's beeswax through and through, with a hint of coconut and sweetness. i can only make out a bit of flame, it's much more like an unlit candle to me. simple but very nice

[AutoroboticTribal]

So, this is one of my Top 3 Scents by BPAL. The notes make it seem like it should be a simple scent, but once I received my sample vial--I was instantly smelling half-melted beeswax (the pale kind), smoke, and a tiny trace of burnt hemp. It's positively evocative, and I love wearing it while playing Bloodborne because it makes the playthrough very atmospheric.

 

It also never curdles on my skin, doesn't go sour, nor does it come off as plasticky. It gradually turns into a creamy 'my skin but better' kind of musk after 24 hours. I seriously wish I found this 5 years ago when I was hunting for a good candle scent!

Edited December 5 by AutoroboticTribal