Leather

[butterbeer]

These are amazing! More "masculine" leathers are definitely welcome, not just unisex ones. I'm checking out each recommendation now, thank you so much!

[annemathematics]

I love Hatta, leather and cinnamon. it sadly fades on me rather quickly, but it's beautiful while it lasts.

[keileya]

These are amazing! More "masculine" leathers are definitely welcome, not just unisex ones. I'm checking out each recommendation now, thank you so much!

 

I'd definitely suggest Iago, then. (Leather, vetiver, and black musk.) I know a lot of people describe it as masculine, but my wife and I both adore it -- I'm female-bodied-and-identified-though-exceptionally-butch-presenting and she is female-bodied-and-identified-and-more-femme-than-me-but-still-not-total-femme, but neither of us think it comes across as a very *masculine* scent so much as a very earthy and physical scent, which many people read as masculine but is not inherently so. When I first tried it on, my first impulse was a stableyard without any associated horse smells: on me it's all dirt and leather and I could almost smell the steel of the D-rings on the saddlebags. I'd call it a powerful and challenging scent, but not necessarily outside the realm of a very confident woman who's not wedded to the feminine end of the gender presentation scale. (On me the leather note was not long lasting -- it went musk and vetiver in the finish -- and on her it stayed all leather and woodsy, but that's body chemistry for you.)

 

Dee on me is more the rosewood and vanillin from the "old parchment" than the leather, and when my imp of it was Lab-fresh, it was sharp and awful and powdery on me after half an hour. I let it age for nearly two months and tried again, and now I'm getting the leather a bit more, and the sharp and powdery is completely gone. So if your body chemistry is at all like mine, and you hate it right out of the imp and think "there's no leather in that!", age it a bit and see.

 

I likewise did not think Black Rider was masculine (our next order from the Lab includes full bottles of both it and Iago!) but I can see where people might. Still, on me it's more resinous and outdoorsy, and again, not *masculine* so much as very physical and a bit dangerous. I think that's colored by the fact that it finished as amber on me, though.

 

I liked Antony ("the green hills and grasses of the battlefields, the resinous incense from the prayers to his Gods, and a touch of the musky leather of his armor. Ambergris and frankincense with sage, and basil") on me, but it went funky on my wife. The leather and the resin combined really nicely, and were the notes that really lept out from it. One caveat: it went through 15 minutes on first application of smelling *solely* like damp licorice root. Like, the way actual licorice root, not licorice candy, smells like when you've been chewing on it and it's wet with spit. I thought I'd have to wash it off until the licorice burned off and the frankincense and leather bloomed!

 

It's a several-years-old-discontinued-LE, but if you can get your hands on a bottle or decant of "413 US 15 / Miller vs California" ("Leather, cognac, fig, ripe berry, and cream, stuffed into a plain brown paper bag") you should give it a try. It's probably my favorite BPAL scent ever, and it's a very unisex one: the leather and cognac and brown paper bag lean it more masculine, while the berry and cream are more delicate and feminine, and the fig holds it all together. (And it really is stuffed into a brown paper bag. I can smell the bag opening over the first 20 minutes of the scent!)

Edited March 15, 2014 by keileya

[non_boingy]

Despite the cacophony of notes, I always get straightup leather from Kubla Khan (Through sunlit caves of ice, roses unfurl amidst dancing waves of serpentine opium smoke and amber tobacco, golden sandalwood, champaca, tea leaf, sugared lily, ginger, rich hay absolute, leather, dark vanilla, mandarin, peru balsam, and Moroccan jasmine.)

 

This doesn't seem to be the case for most people, though, so YMMV!

Edited March 28, 2014 by non_boingy

[Mellifluous]

Dragon's Hide is also worth a go/ perusing, if he likes spicy scents. Its just Dragons Blood, smoke, and leather.

[Aviatrix]

I would like to add some love for Picture Books in Winter, which starts of very foody and almost pure caramel, but dries down to a very nice warm leather. I would definitely describe it as unisex, too.

[Erinofhere]

Has anyone mentioned Bensiabel yet?

 

On me it was very leather. It also has lilac and plum.

[Zii]

So I retested the snifflie of Loviatar that I have (yes, I cling to the empty imp for occasional olfactory pleasure) against Totentanz, my current favorite leather, and I really think that it wins out, as nostalgic as I am about Loviatar, which was my first BPAL.

 

And on a non-BPAL leather note, I found a super well priced bottle of Haunt Winchester, which everyone has been reccing all over the place to me but I've never been able to find. Here's hoping it's as glorious as promised.

[Zii]

So I retested the snifflie of Loviatar that I have (yes, I cling to the empty imp for occasional olfactory pleasure) against Totentanz, my current favorite leather, and I really think that it wins out, as nostalgic as I am about Loviatar, which was my first BPAL.

 

And on a non-BPAL leather note, I found a super well priced bottle of Haunt Winchester, which everyone has been reccing all over the place to me but I've never been able to find. Here's hoping it's as glorious as promised.

[doublehelix]

After reading back a bit, I definitely need to try goblin sack and jareth...

 

I whipped out U mutter mueseum tonight, any similar recommendations? One of my current fave leather blends currently is the horseman by morbid and the merrier! Gahhh.....

[annemathematics]

I've never tried U, but I wonder if quintessence of dust would be similar to it?

 

I love love love bpal leathers. le pere fouttard, HATTA (at century guild), picture books in winter, CROWLEY, dee, adam, ian, funnel of love, jareth, KROENEN, black rider, skekna, MARQUIS DE CARABAS..all so good! I know I love others, but i can't place them now...

[doublehelix]

I've never tried U, but I wonder if quintessence of dust would be similar to it?

 

I love love love bpal leathers. le pere fouttard, HATTA (at century guild), picture books in winter, CROWLEY, dee, adam, ian, funnel of love, jareth, KROENEN, black rider, skekna, MARQUIS DE CARABAS..all so good! I know I love others, but i can't place them now...

Quintessence sounds quite lovely, but I haven't tried this one either! In U, there are definite foresty balsam notes, though.

[zmulls]

 

Whip is actually my most favorite scent after Loviatar. I have 6 bottles and a ton of imps stashed away. But you'd have to like rose. It's no sissy rose like most rose notes. It punches you in the face. It's the only rose I want in my bpals.

"Punches you in the face rose" is just the best description of whip ever!

 

 

 

 

I just got an imp of Whip and couldn't agree more. It's like the flip side of Highwayman, where the leather dominates but the rose peeks through.

 

My own body chemistry just doesn't want florals anywhere. Whip would be horrid (on me), and Highwayman is acceptable at times. Scents like Crowley sound great but when I have tried Crowley the LILAC punches me in the face. Sad fail.

[annemathematics]

 

I've never tried U, but I wonder if quintessence of dust would be similar to it?

 

I love love love bpal leathers. le pere fouttard, HATTA (at century guild), picture books in winter, CROWLEY, dee, adam, ian, funnel of love, jareth, KROENEN, black rider, skekna, MARQUIS DE CARABAS..all so good! I know I love others, but i can't place them now...

Quintessence sounds quite lovely, but I haven't tried this one either! In U, there are definite foresty balsam notes, though.

Sorry I responded to you without having the decency to look up U and see what's in it!

 

Quintessence smells waxy, spicy, leathery...how I imagine the U would smell, never having been there.

 

But for leather and balsam try Hatta. There's a light dusting of cinnamon, but it doesn't smell like candies, more like the actual spice. It's a gorgeous scent. Found at the century guild site.

 

Another bpal at century guild with balsam is it doesn't matter which way you go, although here the balsam plays against woods instead of leather.

[Zii]

I adore the bpal leather note, it's yummy, I've tried (and loved) jolly roger, tried and like perversion... but the leather note isn't as strong as I'd like.

 

any suggestions? I've done the note search but am just looking for pointers from your experiences with these oils

Black Rider is a delightfully in your face deep, dark leather, and it's sister Red Rider is a wonderful spicy leather. A lot of people also really like White Rider, but there is no leather in that for me at all.

 

I'd try those three, or maybe the leather imp set.

[doublehelix]

So, I have fallen in love with badgers and Quincey Morris. Any suggestions for very similar blends which may not be as hard to track down?

[lamenteuse]

Paladin V3 is my favorite leather scent, but it is hard to find now.

I think Adam from OLLA is also leathery?

[annemathematics]

KROENEN

so good! I do love Dee, Crowley, Jareth, black rider, hatta, Ian, Adam, marquis de carabas, Leopold...but for pure sleek gleaming leather, anoint thyself with Kroenen.

 

 

Eta quintessence of dust is pretty good too, beeswax heavy, but amazing.

Edited September 27, 2014 by annemathematics

[doublehelix]

I've sadly fallen madly in love with Quincey Morris....

[Gwydion]

I've sadly fallen madly in love with Quincey Morris....

Haven't we all.

[doublehelix]

 

I've sadly fallen madly in love with Quincey Morris....

 

Haven't we all.

Someone told me to try Crowley, then, and he wasn't the same, at all! I also find him much more mild.

[Dusk]

I've had mixed success with leather. Iago was a great success, but the leather in Havana, Jolly Roger, and Les Infortunes de la Vertu was a pretty big failure, kind of sour and like an old boot. Any recommendations for blends with the same kind of leather as Iago?

[Balame]

I've had mixed success with leather. Iago was a great success, but the leather in Havana, Jolly Roger, and Les Infortunes de la Vertu was a pretty big failure, kind of sour and like an old boot. Any recommendations for blends with the same kind of leather as Iago?

 

All the leathers you've disliked are somewhat "dry" leathers, while Iago is "wet." What I mean by that is that the supporting notes are brighter and sometimes literally have a drier smell (like "dry woods" in Jolly Roger). So I would recommend leathers mixed with musks as in Iago, heavier resins/incenses (frank, myrrh, labdanum, oppoponax) and even dark fruits to avoid the boot association.

 

You'd probably like:

 

Black Rider - Black leather, oppoponax, tobacco, and black amber.

Kroenen - Shining black leather, gleaming metal, labdanum, and myrrh.

Rogue - Soft, well-worn black leather, hemp, and rosin.

The Magdalena - Frankincense, myrrh, leather, ti leaf, saint wood, benzoin, and labdanum absolute.

VILF - Patchouli-infused honey, red musk, red sandalwood, red ginger, pink pepper, Peru balsam, dark Eastern florals, Himalayan cedar, smoky vanilla, bitter clove, and leather.

Heroine - Nepalese amber, East African patchouli, dark musk, apple blossom, petitgrain, aged leather, skin musk, and rhubarb.

 

I think the first two are most like Iago. Kroenen doesn't list vetiver but it's definitely there.

Edited January 5, 2015 by Balame

[Dusk]

Thanks so much, Balame! I'll try to track those all down. Helpful advice too, about what kind of notes I might want to go with the leather.

[annemathematics]

Thanks so much, Balame! I'll try to track those all down. Helpful advice too, about what kind of notes I might want to go with the leather.

 

I wonder if Liz would work on you. do you like vanilla florals? it's a gorgeous scent if so. le pere fouttard (a past yule) has leather and licorice. also nice, if you like licorice!