Yule Cat

[wl552]

YULE CAT
The Yule Cat is a gargantuan Icelandic feline that feasts on indolent people who shirk their community responsibilities. Don't be lazy! - idle hands make for a very unpleasant Yule!

Malevolent musk, a drop of infernal civet, vetiver, club moss, birch, goosefoot, and rowan.

Make sure when sniffing Yule Cat straight from the bottle that you do the wafting thing you learned in chemistry class. I didn't do that at first and it's so strong, it burned my nose hairs and made my eyes water.
I don't know what civet or really any of the notes smell like, but directly from the bottle, it's very strong evergreen wood. It's sooooo strong, I was scared to skin test this.

But I did anyway.

On skin wet: pretty much same as the bottle, but not quite as strong. I'm definitely getting more of the graininess of the wood. It's very... hmmm.... hard to describe... organic feeling, I guess.

Drying on skin: It's calming down some, which is great, 'cause really. Yule Cat is potent. I think I might be catching some musk now, but still mostly a freshly cut wood kind of smell.

Seems to be fading pretty fast, which is pretty okay with me. lol Dried Yule Cat isn't completely offensive, but I might consider layering this with something that might lend it a bit of sweetness, but that just my personal preference.

Overall: very interesting, pretty potent and definitely NOT what I would normally wear. But it's actually turning out to be evocative of something that's teasing the edges of my conscience; I'm finding it inspiring in a way. Not because it's pretty or yummy, but there is a creepy darkness to it that makes me think of Hollywood villains.

[thekittenkat]

I've tried this twice now, and it's not bad. I guess I don't have a problem with the civet note, after all, or at least, not this one. The patch and the vetiver are present, and so is the musk, which I think might be a gray or ebony musk, not a black musk. Maybe the "veggie" notes are taming the civet? Much like catnip tames two-thirds of all domesticated cats? (NOTE: I am not saying that there is catnip in this.) I like it, but can't see wearing it that much. Will have to see what it does as it ages. The two dancing kitties on the label are super-cute!

Edited November 18, 2009 by thekittenkat

[MeiLin]

Dear me. But I like musk and civet and vetiver, so what the hell.

 

In the imp: Sharp civet, then musk, then the greens and woods, coming up strong in the back.

 

Wet: Weird! I got a quick hit of apple! I smell the birch first, heavy and spicy. Reminds me of birch beer. mmm...birch beer... Vetiver, moss, no musk or civet yet.

 

Dry: As it dries down the civet comes up, sharp but tempered by the moss and a juniper-y note I surmise is the rowan. (I have no idea what goosefoot smells like.) Still a lot of birch, which for me makes this quite unique.

 

This may be partial-worthy. It reminds me a little of a less-kapow version of Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener, perhaps only because SSS smells like good root beer and this smells to me like birch beer.

[angelicruin]

First off, I knew this was not going to work on my skin, but I just wanted to try Yule Cat. It starts off all vetiver on my skin (which is not a surprise with my skin). After a few minutes, it does mellow enough that I pick up the wood note. Still, it's pretty much all fire and brimstone scent on my skin from wet to dry.

[lothien]

This is about the funniest result I've gotten yet(caveat - straight out of the mailbox).

 

This smells like... ...brown cardboard?

 

I think I really really need to let this one sit for a few days. I wasn't sure I would like it, but cardboard is an unexpected note.

[RottenLullaby]

 

I bought this full bottle unsniffed.

 

I get herbal musk. It comes off really spicy and herbal at first and on the drydown mellows out to a nice winter-spice-pine musk. I like this a lot for upcomming christmas months. Its really a lovely scent i'm glad I wasent afraid of it.

[Invidiana]

The musk, civet and vetiver really kick this up and make it dark and sexy. A very night-out-wearing-a-leather-jacket type of scent. There really is something of a black leather-ish undertone, which only adds to its allure. Fierce and feline--amazing!

 

 

 

[IronMollyBlack]

Yum, vetiver! And musk and civet. This is one strong scent, a little bit goes a long way. Wore it out yesterday, and wasn't sure what the reaction would be. I actually got compliments on it. As the description states, this is no domestic house cat, this one is feral and dangerous. I'm liking it a lot now, and I bet that some aging will smooth the rough edges a bit.

 

If these notes work with your skin chemistry, you are in for a treat. However, if they don't, I imagine this would be an epic fail.

[strahlend]

First sniff – musky and green. I think I'm getting a bit of pine.

On my skin - musky, pine-ish green, and leather.

This scent feels heavy and dark. Like wearing a leather jacket in the forest at night.

 

[septima_pica]

Wow, this was an experience. Keep in mind that I really like civet, most of the time. Fire of Love is a permanent part of my arsenal. But Yule Cat?

 

Wet, it was pleasant amounts of kind-of-feral musk along with a lot of greenery, pine and wet mossa and yummy-smelling bruised leaves (yes, it's actually goosefoot -- never smelt rowan, couldn't pick it out). It was pretty good for the first minute or two of drydown. And then it went through an astonishing progression: Christmas tree with a raccoon in it --> Christmas tree with a wet raccoon in it --> a walk in the woods wearing a wool sweater that has been damp for three days. It stayed at that point for more than an hour -- thoroughly unpleasant but interesting enough that I didn't wash it off.

 

An hour and a half later, it's back to a random foresty smell, fairly nice but still not as good as Black Forest. But it was a hell of a ride.

[Prism]

in bottle - musk, woods, very dark, reminds me of Determination from TAL. This is not a good thing

Wet - well something is feral musk and gross. Dead leaves in here as well and pleasant back notes but the front note I'm not sure what it is, but go away. Yuck.

dry - the same. musky, feral, reminds me of licorice or other things like that and it's just downright ...no

 

If you like things like - Velvet Tiger, Determination (TAL), and

 

Rating - 2/10 . I've smelled worse on me, a few times. Maybe this works for some folks, more power to you!

[surlygurl]

Doing a little testing today......

 

Fresh on: EEEEK! It's Black Annis without the delicious anise parts!

 

Moments later I get a sort of yummy musk thing coating the outside of the feral core. When I move my arms waaay away from my face, it's wafts of yummy musk. Up close, it's *scary feral thing*. I can't help compare it to eating a rancid peanut m&m. The coating on the outside is tasty, but that big ole rancid thing is the middle is just..... no.

 

Once it's dry, the feral bit goes away and it wafts a sweet soft brown musk. Then it disappears. Interesting scent, but something I'll save for, um, special occasions.

[Diva Urd]

Huh, fresh, this smells like a forest floor in a predominantly coniferous forest. I quite like the smell, although I'm not so sure it's really perfumey enough for me to wear on a regular basis. As it dries, it ends up a slightly more musky "Kroenen", which I definitely approve of. I'll definitely hold on to the imp, even though I'm not gonna upgrade to a bottle.

[dluszcz]

In the bottle- very strong and liniment-y- and I do understand the reference to brown cardboard- wet brown cardboard.

 

On the skin- after it settles in- creamy silvery birch, patchouli, and musk. A little strange and a little sexy. Like any authentic kitty.

[zankoku_zen]

Yule Cat smells like an evil kitty to me.

 

It's darkly feral musky, with hints of the outside, untamed forest.

 

He also smells like the kind of cat that will pee on the couch. On purpose. And do it in front of you because you're too scared to do anything about it.

[Little Bird]

I like this, and I'm not exactly sure how to describe what it smells like, lol. I don't even know what most of the notes in this are supposed to smell like. I expected this to be herbal and too dark/harsh for me, but it's not. It's actually rather sweet smelling.

 

In the bottle, Yule Cat smells like sharp pine and something dark, earthy/resinous and sweet. I was worried about the pine note, but it really softens once it's on my skin, like the gentle, sweet pine note in Golden Priapus. Then there's a hint of warm, furry, soft musk, and something dark and sweet that makes me think of incense.

 

So... this is like Golden Priapus's cool, smooth pine note, Ivanushka's warm, furry musk, a drop of Satyr's dark, sharper musk, and an undertone of incensey sweetness on me. After an hour, I smell something like a hint of sweet, thick floral in the mix. It smells a little too sweet at times, but I find it interesting.

 

I think that I'll keep a decant of this one. This makes me think of my old cat, Lewis, who used to enjoy shredding our Christmas tree every year, climbing up it, knocking off ornaments, and rolling the Christmas bulbs around the house.

[ami226]

On the skin: Whoa!! Musk and vetiver! Eeeek! Strong earthy and slightly headache inducing.

 

This one doesn't work on me at all. Ouch!

 

Eeeeeeeeeeek! This one has sooooo much throw!

Edited December 12, 2009 by Catseyes

[musichappens]

That damn vetiver! Yuck, yuck, yuck! I do detect something else (not sure what) that seems to make the vetiver not so IN-YOUR-FACE, but it's still there.

[VorpalBunny]

From the notes, I wasn't sure if I would like Yule Cat, but I had to try it because of the Icelandic connection.

 

First sniff is kind of sharp and civet-y. However, once it went on, it transformed into a nice musky scent with an faint almost floral hint. I really like it. It doesn't have an overtly seasonal/holiday scent, so it could be worn all year long, and it isn't overpowering like some of the LEs often are. It's one I can happily wear without bothering my 10 month old, who isn't afraid of the Yule Cat because he is getting new clothes for Christmas.

[DeltaCat]

Oh HAI! I'm cedar. This is my friend vetiver. Together we are a mighty duo. Together we smell much like the chest at my grandmother's house where she kept important pictures and papers. Not terrible, but a bit strong.

[HamletsKeeper]

So glad I have a decant of this. I wanted to know what all the fuss about civet was. I’m happy to report that civet plays nice with me and smells pretty true to the imp on me as well. It smells like cardamon, tumeric and pine needles. And while this scent smells exactly on me like it does in the imp I really wonder who wants to smell like an Indian spice store in a pine forest. No matter, it’s not a great scent for me just good to know that all kinds of musk are ok with me even the evil civet.

 

[Lirion]

Oh hi Vetiver I see you are in your bully boy persona today, and you've brought civet with you to knock my nose around in case I possibly imagined getting anything else out of this scent.

 

I shall retire gracefully from the field.

 

Being punched in the sinuses by these 2 is a bit much really.

[bellevivre]

in the bottle, I thought this would be a sub for my much beloved Nephilim... they have the same earthy/woodsy/spicy thing going on...

 

Unfortunately for me, mid-dry, it smells like BO. Like sweaty man who hasnt bathed and is covering it wih perfume oil (I'm a Rennie, I KNOW this smell!)

 

as it dries farther, the salty sweat wears down, but it's too much there to make this one of my regulars...

[rayvn1]

This is happily my surprise hit of the Yules It's a clawed, musky swipe at your face at first. Once it settles down it gets richer and richer with the moss note. Fantabulous!

[voodoocatwoman]

I forgot how much I used to love civet! I get pine and moss at the outset with something sweet in the background and it settles into musky civet. Sweet with a bite.

 

Very nice.