Sugar Skull

[pickman's model]

Vibrant with the joy and sweetness of life in death! A blend of five sugars, lightly dusted with candied fruits.

I was madly looking forward to this one, so I wound up opening it in the front hallway of my friend's place where it was sent.

In the vial:I think of making the sauce for baklava, madly sweet stuff. And a guy I worked with in a kitchen, sculpting pretty flowers for me out of melted sugar by hand. ( I loved when he did that) The same warm, sugary delicacy.
Andrew (the guy this was shipped to) says: Smells like baking desserts. Dead on.


Wet: The cinnamon amps like mad on me. Nothin' but cinnamon. Where's the sugar?

Dry: Ahh, there it is. The cinnamon calms down and is mingling nicely with the dark, sweet sugar. Take a fresh, extra-cinnamony cinnamon bun and throw it in a big bag of brown sugar. Stick your face in and inhale. The sugar is nice and dark and caramelly. This is sweet, but not too sweet. A teeny little touch of booze is in there, waving from the back.

My favourite scents: foody things, spicy things and dark things. Sugar Skull is yummy, spicy and dark. Ohhhhh yes. Edited December 28, 2005 by Shollin

[AngellicMystique]

I feel like I bathed in sugar syrup when I wear this. I love it! The sugarness reminds me of making candy with my grandmother.

 

The sugar is really strong, and I get a few whiffs of fruit.

 

I like it, but I woudln't wear it enought to warrant a whole bottle. I am, however, beginning to think I need more than an imp.

[silver_springs]

Sugar Skull is just that, pure sugar. Warm, sweet sugar that absorbs you in.

 

The smell reminds me of the taste of old-fashioned candy that's almost sickingly sweet but you still love it anyway and you savor every bite.

 

I really do like Sugar Skull. It's a nice scent to wear on a cold day. It's not an everyday scent. I think I'd get tired of it fast if I wore it too often. It's more of a "mood" smell.

 

8/10

[BlackDahlia]

Lovely.

Absolutely lovely.

 

In the bottle ~ Boozy candy. *sniffs again* Yep. Candy with a really strong, boozy kick to it.

 

Wet ~ Booze and something spicy. Slight vanilla tones, beautifully complex.

 

On the dry down ~ Sinfully sweet without the caloric guilt. I smell like cookies, warm from the oven. There is a very faint fruit-ish aroma that comes out after about 10 minutes.

 

This scent has excellent throw and is very long lasting. I put this on before bedtime two nights ago ~ and in the morning I *still* smelled of Sugar Skull ~ creamy, dark, spicy and sweet ~ all rolled into one very posh fragrance.

 

I do have to say the label really surprised me... I imagined a skull... made of sugar. Not a lady, arm aloft ~ standing amongst flames... with bars in the background (?)

 

Must figure that out...

 

Wonderful scent ~ I have to find more of this one!

Now.

[moon_lemming]

Reviewers kept calling "rum" on this one, so I was worried, because rum and my skin do not get along. I shouldn't have worried; I should have ordered a nice big bottle, because this is just warm sugary deliciousness on me. I'm going to try to find a few imps of this to fill my bottle at some point.

[Digital_Hypoxia]

When I tried this last year, all I could smell was the sickly sweet tinge of maple syrup, a scent that summoned up a world of Sunday morning breakfasts after church.

 

The 2005 version, however, is heaven.

Sweet, dark, rich, and altogether amazing.

Like burned sugar and vanilla liquor...

 

It has good throw without overpowering, is sweet without being sickly, and mainatins just enough edge to avoid the dreaded girlie trap.

 

I wish I'd bought more.

[gingersnapp]

This smells like maple syrup. Very sticky and sugary. I didn't think I'd like it, but it's very soothing and calming. So there ya go.

[AliBabble]

i've been wondering for a long time about this one...when i received it today, the first thing i'm struck by is that it's more subtle than i imagined. it's a dark, almost murky. burnt sugar, but not super-strong or sweet. the candied fruit it's supposed to have, i can smell in the bottle ( kind of like prune!), but not as much on my skin. it's smooth like caramel, and reminiscent of toffee or treacle. there's even a touch of a coffee-like aroma. a bit light, as i said, with just a drop of boozy punch...it's subtle, but the scent stays with me pretty well...getting slightly richer, the longer i wear it. it's definitely a burnt, yet creamy, brown sugar sort of smell, with that faint undertone of, well, prune or raisin... i'll be wearing this one a lot.

[perpetua]

A fun fact: My bottle of sugar skull crossed the atlantic no less than three times before it got to me, due to postal issues.

in the bottle: Very boozey, spicy and sweet

on my skin: First, I smell the spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg, and a hint of clove. It's sweet, but the spices are taking over. This is not a bad thing.

On drydown the spices mellow and the blend becomes more sweet and creamy, with a lot of molasses, and a slight 'buttercream frosting' scent underneath. mmmm

Like others have said, love this blend, but you have to be in the right mood for it.

[ocicat]

This is absolute death on me

 

It's boozy as hell in the imp. Boozy with a base of candied sugar. My skin is bipolar with boozy smells. In Elegba, it turns into a beautiful butterscotch, in Hellcat, it turns into something sour and vaguely sinister. In Sugar Skull, my skin just amps the booze note and kills any sense of the candied fruit.

 

I waited impatiently for any kind of change on the drydown, but it just kept smelling like strong, strong booze.

 

Not for me

[Rhowan]

Sugar Skull 2005

 

I usually do a lengthy review on most scents going thru - in the bottle, wet, dry, down and conclusion. There is really no difference for me through any of these.

 

This smells like homemade maple syrup but a really old maple syrup that has gone to sugar and needs to be warmed up again. It almost smells burnt to me too. I get no hint of sugared fruit, boosiness, or cinnamon at all.

 

Curiously, I also have a weird taste on the back of my tongue and a weird smell/taste in my nose that started as soon as this hit my skin. The taste is like maple syrup, hairspray and licorice or even sen sen (yuk) - very odd, that.

 

 

I am really dissapointed in this. I was thinking that it was going to be a vanilla-y sugar with fruits like pears, plums and maybe some citrus. But all I can think of right now is getting this washed off my skin and brushing my teeth or doing something to get this taste out of my mouth.

[mdargen]

Sugar Skull is absolute perfection to me.

 

In the bottle, wet, and dry it smells like burning sugar. It is nice, warm, and sweet. It smells like the panadería I went into everyday while in Guatemala.

 

 

I am really sad I didn't get more than one bottle. Hopefully next Autumn will bring more Sugar Skull my way.

 

Thank you for this scent!

[Fyre_in_Winter]

Paperdoll was kind enough to let me try some of her Sugar Skull 05.

 

In the bottle I just smell booze (which is fine by me-bring it on!)

 

On my skin it becomes this warm vanilla scent with a hint of caramel to it and every so often a little booze will come wafting off. A gorgeous scent that is actually very adult. I need to see about getting ahold of some of this!

[em_h]

In the vial: Pancakes and syrup. Yummy.

 

Wet: There's just a brief moment of that burnt-wood smell that foody scents often take on me, but fortunately it doesn't last long. After a few minutes a very alcoholic note emerges, and a bit of apple, with spices and burnt sugar underneath. Interesting.

 

Drying: The boozy note is surprisingly persistent, though more sugar emerges. Fruity-sweet, rather lighter than I'd anticipated.

 

Dry: Sugary, with a hint of burnt wood; not much throw. My husband says it smells like fudge, and he doesn't really like it all that much.

 

I'm not sure buying a 5 ml was a great idea. I tested it beforehand but only a tiny amount, which I guess evolved differently. I like it, but I don't love it. This one may get swapped away; still, I'm glad I tried it.

[blaqpearl]

I finally broke out my bottle that has been sitting for awhile. This one was very sweet, but I rather enjoyed it. I kept sniffing myself all day trying to detect the notes. So all in all, sugar with a boozy edge to it, like homemade fruit wine your grandmother would make and share during the holidays.

[LittleGreyKitten]

Mrrr. There's something that turns horribly wrong on my skin in this. I suspect the fruit is the culprit- I'm betting on plums, and boy are they disagreeing with me (same as they did in one of the Yule blends described similarly- Midwinter's Eve I think). I do get sweet but I then get soouuur icky nasty pruny fruit. Bleh. Buttfruit is the way I described the smell in Midwinter's Eve, and it's definitely the same as in Sugar Skull. But I love the name!

 

On me, 2 out of 5.

[Neely]

In the bottle: a dark sweet sugar with something sharp, the plums maybe?

 

Wet: dark sweet almost carmelized sugar with berries and sharp plums.

 

Dry down: sweet sugar but the sharpness has intensified. Not liking it as much as I did wet.

 

30 minutes: Less sweet more sharp with a berry undertone. I had a friend sniff my wrist, she liked it. But it isn't really me.

 

Conclusion: Not for me. I won't be reaching for this one like I do Devil's Night, Samhain, or Trick or Treat. I like it, but there is enough of the sharp smell to turn me off. Glad I got to try it though.

 

Rating 1-5 on my skin for me this is a 2, my friend thought it was at least a 3.

 

Off to the swaps.

Edited January 27, 2006 by atropos

[alicia_stardust]

This is what I wanted Sugar Cookie to be, but it wasn't.

 

In the vial: slightly boozy, sugars, and vanilla.

 

On my skin. What a throw! I need to use less next time. On my skin it doesn't change much at first, then after a short time it mellows out and I smell less booze and more sweet, sugary, vanilla. It reminds me of brown sugar or almost maple but without the tang of maple. I think I smell spices but they're very mellow if they're there. In some instances I get a slight whiff of vanilla-lemon under all the sugary scents.

 

Very nice.

 

I rated this 3.5 out of 5 stars. I'll keep my imp, but I'm undecided on a bottle.

[Ajila]

2005

 

In the bottle - Dark, earthy fruits. It's sweet, but not the teeth aching maple syrup sweet of the 2004 version.

Wet on me - Less fruit than in the bottle, sweeter and more spicy.

Dry on me - Dark cherries (which actually smell like cherries rather than almonds) drizzled in syrup . This is lovely, I still prefer last years, but this is a very close second.

[Precis]

Wet: It's maple syrup.

 

Dry: It's burnt sugar. After a while, it's softer and warmer and a little reminiscient of vanilla. Sometimes, I get powder too.

 

Nothing terribly original there, I know. At first, I wasn't too fond of this at all, but after a few tries, I realized why everyone on the forum fawns over this. I ADORE it!! No, I don't know what causes these sudden shifts of BPAL approval on my part, heheh. All I have of this one is a gift imp from my sister, and I have NO idea how I'll SURVIVE until it's rereleased (here's hoping!).

[mandragora]

In the vial: Smells like brown sugar or maple syrup.

 

Wet on me: Still maple syrup, but stronger and with a bit of a bite at the end.

 

Drydown: There's a bit of a tartness, maybe it's the candied fruits. But ultimately it's all sugar on me.

 

Verdict: I like sugar in cookies, in my coffee but not on me. Sadly this one belongs in my swap pile.

Edited February 13, 2006 by mandragora

[hologhost]

This is interesting.

 

I got my bottle in November. And I didn't think much of it. It mostly smelled like sugar. And it disappeared almost as soon as it hit my skin. So I stored it away thinking - well everyone has some now. I'll save it to trade later.

 

So I got it out again to think about swapping. What a difference some time makes. This has had more change over time than my other oils.

 

In the bottle: alcohol - sweet alcohol.

 

On me: much, much more complex. I finally smell the fruit. It's sugar and booze and spice. Actually it sounds kind of like how people are describing Smut, which I don't have yet.

 

I still haven't decided if I'll keep it. My Smut arrives in a week and I'll decide then. It's not really me. However, I have enjoyed the lesson. Don't swap right away.

 

Hubby thinks it smells like "cigarettes." The first one he's actually noticed the smell of, and he doesn't like it. *sigh*

[shadith]

wet: This smells like sugar and I also get the candied fruits- it's nice and light. I also have the impression that there's a hint of alcohol hiding behind the fruits.

drying: I soon get a caramel-type smell underneath it, yummy.

after 20 minutes: Oh oh, it's starting to get plasticy

 

Yep, from this point on it keeps changing between caramel and plastic. Too bad, it started out so lovely with the candied fruits, but something doesn't seem to agree with my skin chemistry

[Caltha]

Sugar Skull

A cosy burnt sugar scent in the vein of Elegba, Goth Rosary's Samhain or Atropas Cottage's Honeyduke's. It might dry a little more plastic, honeyed and fruity.

[urraca]

I can smell all five sugars in here at different times --- caramels, white sugar, burnt sugar, a touch of molasses --- and a touch of candied fruit and apple at the beginning, that I wish had lasted longer. But the drydown is Mrs. Butterworth's (not real maple syrup --- I suspect anyone who gets maple syrup from this hasn't tasted the real stuff in a long time) and it lasts waaaaay too long, I'm talking two days too long, notwithstanding baths, hand washing etc. There's no scent I want to commit to for that long.