The Infernal Lover

[StrangeSniffer]

A creamy, sensual, honeyed red musk.

This was my first LE bottle. I took a gamble on this by the description alone. I think I won this gamble. <3

In bottle: Holy red musk! A knock-you-out-of-your-socks smell for certain!

Wet: Seeing as it was so strong, I decided to use it sparingly instead of just slathering it on myself as is my usual procedure. It was a good thing I did, the saying "Just a little dab will do ya." is definetly true for this one. For now, just pure red musk.

Dry: The red musk seems to calm itself down, allowing the honey and cream to poke through. I like this alot more on drydown for certain.

Overall: I'm in love with strong, powerful scents that refuse to be pushed around by my body chemistry. So this one was certainly worth the gamble. If it seems too strong, I suggest applying a little less, and give it a bit more time for the red musk to settle. I only wish I had had more money to buy a second bottle!

[theseagrows]

i tried this a few months ago, but totally forgot to review it, so i am trying it again!

 

this is a very sexy musk scent, but it's not very animal-like or strong. it's more subtle and on my skin, smells like a mildly spicy vanilla-musk. it's very creamy and soft, but still sexy. love this!

 

ETA: guess i have the version without the red musk, because this is sexy but subtle. hmm, now i am intrigued to smell the red musk one, because i might like that as well.

Edited May 23, 2011 by theseagrows

[Honey]

Imp: Sharp red musk and smokey honey.

 

Wet: Very much like O with a sharp, smokey and slightly acrid twist.

 

Dry: This is a sharp, sour and somewhat floral red musk that dominates the scent. The honey note is subdued in this one. Still, very sensual. I will use up the imp.

[subtlesiren]

In the bottle: Pure, unadulterated red musk. Soft though, not sex-deprived.

 

Wet on my wrist: Very creamy and now that the honey is peeking through, also a bit sweet.

 

Dry on my wrist: Becoming a bit powdery, but in a good, comforting way.

 

This is such a simple red musk, but that is what is so good about it. The first time I wore this, I didn't think it lived up to the character it was based on. But the more I thought about it, it actually seems to fit her perfectly. Disarmingly comforting, yet unmistakably sexy.

[OctoberGwen]

OH SWEET BABY JESUS. I love me some red musk.

 

This is....fabulous. Deep, sensuous and just delicious.

 

Yeah. Big, big win.

[sharkdiver]

This one was SO interersting.

In the decant, it smells like that lovely Red Musk that I know and love! not getting much of the honey at this point

wet on skin: Same beautiful red musk! Oh wait...what is this? It's a STRONG "gritty" dirty-ish scent starting to amp up, though it remains close to the skin. It's sort of really repulsive...As I lean back I keep cathing these whiffs of GORGEOUS red musk.

 

Drydown: The honey goes through this dirty pungent phase on my skin for about an hour, and then it FINALLY settles down into a "golden" sort of feel - The Red Musk comes back in all it's glory, surrounded by the golden vibe from the honey. The dry down is Beautiful, and the scent the sort of wafts around me while wearing it is AMAZING...it's just the 1 hour of awful dirty honey close to the skin that I'm not sure I want to deal with.

 

For now, I'm happy with a decant, but would consider a bottle should it come back...not going to go out of my way to find one now though!

Edited March 1, 2012 by sharkdiver

[ClareN]

I have both the red musk and non red musk versions, thanks to the lovely forumite Lilacea who sent me both to try.

 

The red musk is such a strong component of the recipe that the red version and the clear version smell nothing alike at all.

 

The red musk version smells like single note red musk, as others have said. Despite the description, I find it to be on the dry side rather than sweet, as red musks go. It's sweet but not nearly as sweet as, say, Mme Moriarty or Smut. More like the red musk in Black Rose or Spellbound (without the rose, obviously).

 

The non-red musk version is a sweet, delicate, creamy honey with some spice like cardamom - "sugared cardamom" was my first thought, the "spice" (which my nose is probably imagining) isn't overpowering. As you'd expect, it does feel like half a scent, like a base note is missing, but it's gorgeous on its own anyway. I much prefer this one, especially since I have so many red musk scents already. Too bad it's hard to find. The closest thing to it in the GC is Lady Una - I suppose it's the "honey musk" that has the same thin delicate sweetness.

 

As for the red musk version, if it were GC I might get a bottle, but as a rare LE I'll pass - the similarity to other scents means there's nothing that would make me crave it over, say, Scherezade or Spellbound.

[porcelina]

i was really surprised that i had yet to review the infernal lover. if you like red musk: this is for you. it is the smoothest, most glorious, sensual red musk imaginable. there is a creamy feel and it is quite sweet, with the beautiful honey note blending seamlessly with the musk. beautiful!

[LiberAmoris]

Red musk-dominant blends like The Infernal Lover only reinforce my belief that if there's red musk in a blend, I should always try it. The Infernal Lover smells like a whole lot of red musk, a dollop of honey, and a drop of cream. Totally uncluttered, totally wonderful. It feels red and gold on the skin and has a sort of sensual, Art Deco extravagance to it that I love. If this ever came back I'd pick up another bottle in a heartbeat.

[Teaotter]

I bought a bottle of this off Ebay recently expecting the red musk version, but as far as I can tell, this oil is completely clear and has no red musk to it at all. (It wasn't described by the seller either way, btw, just what I assumed.)

 

The bottle smells strongly of honey, and very mildly of spices.

 

Wet: Creamy spicy vanilla - Chimera, is that you?

 

Drydown: spicy vanilla waffle cones, and the barest hint of Egyptian musk. Not much throw, very much a skin scent.

 

Dry: Either my nose was just confused at the beginning, or this one grew some serious throw after fifteen minutes. I'm not getting a lot of identifiable honey, but it's definitely a honeyed, spiced cream. Gloriously foodie and luscious! The Egyptian musk is still hiding underneath a thick layer of cream, but it's definitely there.

 

This lasts about four hours on my skin and has utterly delicious throw. I may layer it with Snake Oil just to see what that smells like, but I'm not at all unhappy with the version I got!

[everanything]

One tiny drop, and I couldn't get it off of me fast enough. In the bottle, it reminded me of Smut; and I wanted that smarmy, swoonworthy musk.

 

This had intense throw, and smelled bitter and a bit...rank, honestly. Red musk doesn't seem to work on me.

[LizziesLuck]

I have no clue what to think of this scent.

 

I adore red musk. Like, love it. So I found a bottle of this. Tried it. Didn't love it. Wasn't sure what to make of it. I figured, hey, I bet I got one of the "non-red-musk" bottles people have been talking about! So I found another bottle which was advertised as the "red musk" version. It smells horrible on me too. WTF? They both smell fairly similar on me (I have one on each arm), but what they don't smell like is red musk, or creamy honey, or anything else that makes any sense to me at all. I am so bummed! There is nothing about this scent that should have made it this big of a disaster on me. You know what it smells like, is leather. Makes no bloody sense, but both of my arms, to varying degrees, smell like chemicals in a way that I associate with some of the Lab's leather notes that I can't wear. Boo!

[ramblingrambler]

Eight years later, Infernal Lover smells mostly like O, Scherezade, and Morrocco made love to Smut and Snake Oil. It’s a soft skin scent that is a little creamy, a little spicy, and a little powdery, but it retains a honeyed sweetness above all else. Understated, subtle, and just right for a laid-back day.

[thebarricadebabe]

Managed to snatch a little bit of this on eBay and I am in LOVE.

Me and red musk must get along really well, because this one just works super well for me. I'm a bit sad this relationship might be over a bit prematurely though, seeing as how this is an LE from like...eight years ago. But still, better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all.

[Lucchesa]

My Infernal Lover is definitely the red musk variant. I'm sort of ambivalent about red musk, whose pronouns, in my head, are she/her. I like her, but she can be a bully, turning blends into single note red musk, drowning out all the other lovely notes. And her voice carries -- red musk is one of the few notes I get reliably great throw from. All this is just to say that if Infernal Lover had been one of this year's Weenies, I probably wouldn't have taken a chance on a decant. But I was lucky enough to be given some.

 

I was really curious to see what red musk would do without a lot of other notes to dominate. What if she were the star and just had a little honey and cream as supporting players? It turns out that she relaxes, smooth and sweet and creamy. She's still sexy as hell, but she's not hitting you over the head with it, or grinding the other notes under her stiletto heels. If you get along with red musk, this is genius.

 

I tested Infernal Lover along with Sanguinem Menstruum, another red musk/honey blend I am quite fond of. SM has a bit of almost metallic sharpness from the opium poppies, and while both blends had good throw and staying power, SM lasted longer on my skin.

[torischroeder9]

In the bottle: Yep, that is honey and red musk. It smells like the first whiff I get of Third Charm, before I notice the patchouli. 

 

On my skin:

 

Wet, it's red musk first and honey... wait, no. Right now, this is 100% about the red musk, and it is glorious. As it dries, the honey also makes itself known, and it is also glorious. 

 

And while it does stay exactly that -- balanced red musk and honey -- and is simply amazing. While I'm wearing it, I forget why I have other perfumes. Of everything I own, it smells closest to Smut -- but this, with a single type of musk and honey and no booze, feels simpler and almost "cleaner" in scent profile. (Not that red musk is a "clean" scent, but the scent profile, while still powerful, has fewer notes swirling around in it.)

 

(Of course, I have other perfumes because The Infernal Lover will run out.) 

Edited March 2, 2019 by torischroeder9