Red Lace

[a_llb]

Red musk, tobacco, red sandalwood, dried pomegranate, patchouli, dusty frankincense, and raspberry clotted over blackened sugar-spun vanilla cream cotton.

In bottle: Deep, sweet frankincense with a touch of sandalwood & berries.
Wet: Almost syrupy, but not overtly sugary. It's more substantial than your run-of-the-mill dry sugar. Luxurious raspberry vanilla bedsheets, shadowy, rumpled and warm.
Dry: The pom & patch give tart red depth, while the musk/tobacco/frankincense add an air of dusky romance. The end result hours later is a deep, dark & dirty cotton. Mmm.

Verdict: Such romance and deliciousness. It makes me feel like a character in an Agatha Christie murder mystery when I wear it- elegant, mysterious, & irresistable. I don't go for fruity scents very often, but the smoky raspberry and pomegranate are barely brushed with sweetness, so the creamy cotton balances it quite well. It's almost like a nocturnal version of White Rabbit at moments. Plus it gets better every time I wear it- her best years are yet to come. Edited June 8, 2011 by braybrigade

[filigree_shadow]

Very sweet red musk and pomegranate. And something... spicy? I kid you not, that's what I smell. Not sure what that's from.

 

I'm a huge red musk fan, and I have definitely liked red musk + fruit combinations (e.g., Mania & Hollywood Babylon). I don't, however, care for pomegranate, and I was hoping it would take a back seat for this one. It doesn't.

 

Honestly, I think this is a well-done scent, and if someone sitting next to me for a while were wearing it, I'd enjoy it. But for me, the pom would drive me nuts over the course of the day. I can only take very small doses of that note.

[biocarolyn]

Cottony and drowning in red musk on me, but then I think I amp red musk somehow. Tiny hint of sandalwood & pomegranate in the background. Interestingly, as many people described this as morphing, on me it stays identical, from sniffing the bottle through drydown. Really nice though...

[stellamaris]

Horrifyingly enough, yet another This One Goes to Eleven BPAL for me. I think it is the Red Musk that I love so much.

This one is fruity, I definitely get a raspberry candy thing, and rich, and round. Love it. It is a very heady and thick blend for me, but not oppressive.

Must have more.

My husband, whose nose is often better than mine, and whose mother was a perfumer, says this one is quite complex.

I think this one is gorgeous and sexy.

Edited June 23, 2011 by stellamaris

[claudia6913]

This was a SURPRISE! love for me. I expected something much drier (a la Mme. Moriarty) due to the red musk, patchouli, and pomegranate - but that's not what I get with this blend. It's sweet, and lacy, and sexy as all get out. The fruit make is a much more robust blend, the sugar-spun vanilla cream cotton give it that sweetness, and the sandalwood, tobacco, red musk, dried pomegranate, and incense give it a base to waft up from. I can totally see this as a red lace, soft, alluring, and deviously sweet. I was afraid the patchouli and frankincense would overtake this blend, but I can barely pick out their notes. I love this blend and want to get my greedy hands on another bottle!

[invisible iris]

In the bottle, I get a sort of boozy (what is that? weird, reminds me of Perversion) tobacco, red fruit and a faint cotton scent.

 

Applied fresh, it becomes sort of faint. Then it does that disappearing thing. Gone. It stays like that until the oil absorbs into my skin.

 

First to return is the tobacco note. It must be the tobacco plus raspberry that reminds me of Perversion, but sandalwood and a hint of frankincense soon show up and pull it back from boozy fruit in a slightly dryer, more velvety direction. The end result is neither fruity nor dry, but hits a good midpoint at soft, glowing, and warm. Vanilla cream cotton emerges and rounds everything out into a luscious and soft tobacco, sweetened by a touch of vanilla, and deepened by seductive red musk. This is a beautiful, sensual tobacco. I keep getting wafts of lavishly-scented air from the tiny dab that disappeared into my wrist hours ago. The sillage and length of wear is impressive.

 

Verdict: I’m not sure how "me" it is, but Red Lace is definitely a gorgeous blend, and I'm glad I have a bottle. Bold and lush, ripe red tobacco.

[MiasmaResonance]

In the bottle this is sweet red musk.

On, I smell the patchouli and frankincense, with maybe a hint of sandalwood and barely there tobacco. It is a very red scent. As it develops to becomes more musky but in a light way..in fact, the whole scent is surprisingly light.

[angelamaria]

In bottle: sexy! I'm getting vanilla, and faintly fruity, sweet, and musky notes. I started writing "yum", but decided that this isn't "foody", but it IS almost yummy. Very nice, and promising!

 

Wet on skin: I'm able to get the fruits better now--the pomegranate and raspberry are out on top, and a bit of the tobacco and sandalwood rounding the blend out, giving it depth. I like the sandalwood here. Very sexy, quite creamy, and spicy-sweet. As it dries, I'm getting a bit of powder, but so far so good; the sandalwood, red fruits, and vanilla are coming together really nicely, a sexy spicy-sweet vanilla.

 

Dry: aha, there you are, patchouli. It's come to the fore now, with a good dose of pomegranate to sweeten it up, and the tobacco is giving it some of that spicy feeling. Pretty, sexy, and those fruity notes are love, but it's getting more and more powdery the longer is stays on my skin, until it's pretty much powdery patchouli and spices. Where are the fruits?

 

Verdict: maybe some aging will do this some good? But I daresay the patchouli will just get even more prominent. I'll give it a shot, but this isn't very promising, what with the powder and all. I'm sad, I did want to have this work on me.

[ami226]

On the skin: Oooooh! It smells.... root beerish to me. A very sweet root beer though. The root beer impression fades pretty quickly though. Now it smells... pretty amazing! Sweet vanilla plus red musk with a hint of pomegranate. Maybe a slight feel of caramel? A surprisingly airy/light scent. Not overpowering at all!

 

This is a very sexy almost foody scent. I think I am in love and now feel totally justified in swapping for three bottles! Reminds me slightly of Sin, only Sin is a bit stronger and a bit less sweet!

[valnillarose]

I missed out on AL and BL, so this is my first Lace scent. I'm so glad I ordered unsniffed. At first I get a sort of mild sweet wintergreenish vibe, and I think that's just my nose still not used to these sophisticated blends. That disappears quickly, and I get that awesome tobacco note that I get from Perversion, sweetened with what I take to be the pomegranate and vanilla. It's not a juicy fruity pomegranate, more like as if the tobacco had been soaked in the juice before drying. I don't know if I get the cotton note or not, as I'm still not familiar with that note, but I do get the red musk that I've fallen in love with, and the raspberry peeks out well into drydown. Fantabulous!!!

[Invidiana]

I knew what I was doing when I bought two bottles of this unsniffed. It is SEX.

 

I am a red musk maven and the gorgeous red musk in this doens't disappoint and remains at the fore with the raspberry and patchouli which are a really senual combo in themselves. I also love how the raspberry is true and juicy and not cloying candy like BBW's Sun Ripened Raspberry which still haunts me with memories of junior high. Besides the raspberry note being delicious on its own I think the pomegranate is balancing it out in terms of tartness as well. The vanilla is prominent as well, adding a sweet creaminess to the blend. As it dries down it takes on a smoky aspect from the frankincense and tobacco, and the sandalwood warms it up for even more sexiness. Absolute LOVE.

[Dominique]

I took something of a chance on this bottle. I like vanilla, and tobacco is usually a good note for me, but patchouli invariably ends up smelling like powdered hippie on me, even when it's not a primary note. Still, I had the opportunity to buy it in a decant circle, and being a greedy little bugger, there was no way I'd pass up the opportunity.

 

In the bottle: I'm getting a vaguely fruity scent with a side order of something almost artificial. I'm not overly worried, as I've yet to find a scent that smells the same on me as it does in the bottle.

 

Wet: Still with the vaguely fruity. No musk and, thankfully, no crazy patchouli. No vanilla either. Of course, it's possible that I can't pick out notes to save my life, but Red Lace is lot less aggressive than I was expecting.

 

After a bit, the musk and patchouli begin to make an appearance as the fruity notes fade.

 

Dry: It's softened as it dried, so that it's not the kind of bop-you-in-the-nose patchouli that Vixen was. It's just this gentle incense and musk.

 

Verdict: It's less horrifying than it might have been, though it's less awesome than I hoped for. I hate to give it a 'meh', but on me, it's an unexceptional musky scent. That said, I'll still wear it regularly, if only because it'll get confused for Red Lantern. (I pick out my perfumes early in the morning, and I am exactly the kind of person to grab a bottle without really looking at the label.)

[mistressfizz]

Sniff: Warm tobacco, resiny, a hint of sweet. I can tell I'm going to like this!

 

Wet: Surprisingly light, dusty and soft. The vanilla is not overtly sweet, it mixes with the fruits to keep the heavier components from taking over. I find this extremely well blended - no particular notes pop out too much, which is amazing considering there are some strong elements here. I keep waiting for the incense or patchouli to smack around the other notes, but they are behaving very nicely, grounding the scent just right. There's a core of delicious musk wrapped in warm woods, dirt and smoke, then sprinkled with light sugar.

 

Dry: Doesn't morph much on me - it stays soft and beautiful, becomes a bit more musky. This is definitely romantic, in a warm gentle way. It doesn't scream "sex" to me so much as it does "sexuality" - it's not throw someone into bed and ravage them, but more like a slow tease.

[Vega]

Sniffed: Dry, maybe resinous, definitely sugary and fruity-sweet.

 

On skin: A lovely blend of sweet sugar, juicy pomegranate and berries layered over gentle red musk and dry sandalwood, frankincense and tobacco. Mellow, dry, a bit dusty, and definitely "red". Red Lace would be a fabulous blend, if it wasn't so vanishingly faint!!! The notes are clearly distinguishable, but it took a lot of huffing to detect them. Red Lace is exactly its name: lacy, gossamer, so, so very light. Colour impression is crimson red bleeding into a deep pink.

 

Verdict: Ahh, I am quite crushed. I would be in love with Red Lace (and probably have more to say about it) if it wasn't one of the faintest blends I've ever tried. And my oil-drinking skin just doesn't help at all. Alas, this won't be staying.

[OctoberGwen]

I love this one - it's a gorgeous, complex blend. I think this is my first try with red musk, and I have to say, it's the only musk I can stand so far. I love that this scent manages to be both creamy and dusty; slightly sweet (I hate too sweet); a tad fruity (normally I do NOT wish to smell like fruit at all); with just enough spice to make it interesting.

 

It's also not too faint on me. Not sure of the staying power yet, but I don't mind reapplying.

 

This is probably my new "date night" blend!

 

ETA (April 2014):

 

Red Lace is one of my Top Five BPALs, I absolutely adore it. Grownup, sexy, classy, and utterly unique, it also smells terrific on me during red tide. I was thrilled when Dark Del put some bottles back up for sale recently...now I don't need to hoard this quite so jealously.

Edited April 13, 2014 by OctoberGwen

[carolsag]

I really like this, but i think it shares the same problem that some people had with BLACK LACE, 2 different scents, maybe due to different components, i have 2 bottles of this and one is thick and very strong, and the other one is thin and i can barely smell it.

[fetish911]

This smelled so generic & perfumey on me the first time I wore it. I actually had to wash it off. I just gave it a retry after the long aging. Annnnnnd.... I still don't care for it. Its better now than it was fresh, but I think its the pom. I didn't like any of the pom blends either- they just translate into sharp perfumey to me. The vanilla on the dry down turns to plastic on me too. I hate that particular vanilla, whatever it is. I have such envy of those that get all raspberry and sexy vanilla.. damn you skin chemistry. Does have killer throw and lasts some time though.

 

1/5

[n3m3sis42]

This is really nice on me.

 

My skin amps red musk like nobody's business, so that is the most prominent note I am getting. BUT! I can also smell the vanilla cream cotton, and the amazing part is that it's not going to plastic doll heads on me like a lot of vanilla and cream notes do on me. So on me, this blend is red musk, anchored by something (I think the tobacco) so that it's not totally out of control, with undertones of creamy vanilla cotton. I'm only getting the tiniest hints of the fruits in this, which is okay with me.

 

I think this is slather-worthy. So glad I got a bottle!

Edited January 24, 2012 by n3m3sis42

[Incendiare]

A blend with patchouli that I actually really like. Probably because I can't smell it at all. In the bottle, this is like a musky raspberry. It remains as a musky raspberry through and through, whether it's in the bottle, just freshly applied, or two hours after. I'm happy with my partial bottle.

[Twiggy]

I've had such amazing luck with my chemistry working for ALL the Laces, but i was a little scared on this one because "fruit" scents can be hit or miss with me, and this was the first Lab patchouli blend i'd ever tried (despite the good things i've heard about them, i was still harbouring the Patchouli Fear ).

I shouldn't have worried, because it is AMAZING.

 

Right out of the bottle, i smell the red musk and red-smelling fruits, which i can't really distinguish but Incendiare mentioned raspberries, and that seems to hit me right. I also smell the linen, cottony note and vanilla, as with all the blends.

There is a bit of an earthy note, which i assume is the patchouli, and i LIKE it! Go figure.

 

Wet: No change from bottle. Really beautiful, really red but that wonderful Lace element grounding it.

 

Dry: This has a lot of throw on me, and being a slatherer, that might have something to do with it. It does soften a bit from the way it smelled in the bottle, but on me it definitely is not a morpher at all. It smells the same, just...softer. More integrated, i guess. There is a little bit of smokiness underneath it all, and the "redness" has backed off a little, but it is just as lovely as i had hoped! Truly a favourite, as with all the Lace blends.

[The Planet Queen]

In the bottle: smells like almond extract and possibly a bit of anise extract. Strong but not off putting .Wet: the red fruits are pretty dominate with some vanillaDry: sugary, vanilla and some raspberry I think very femine and sweet. It stays a bit closer to the skin than I would like, but it's still very pretty. I will be looking for another bottle.

[joyfulgirl]

in the bottle: uh...dusty...something? musk and berries. smells nice, but not very complex.

 

on my skin: sandalwood, sandalwood, sandalwood! somehow, this smells like nanny ashtoreth on me. i'm guessing the berries + wood combination? the wood smells "polished" like it does in nanny ash. and really dude, where is the patchouli? I WAS PROMISED PATCHOULI!! *pout*

 

bottom line: gonna give it a few days, maybe try it again. i'm putting it in the "maybe" pile. thankfully, based on this thread, if it needs to be re-homed, it won't be a problem!

[KittyHawk]

I've been on a bit of a red musk bender lately, so when I saw a bottle of Red Lace up for sale on LJ, I pounced. I was a bit worried about the raspberry and pomegranate, but the rest of the notes really balance them out nicely.

 

Upon application, this is really resinous and spicy, but it quickly dries into a really creamy and surprisingly foodie red musk/vanilla/raspberry. I wish I got more patch and frankincense in the drydown, but the lightness I get from this is perfect for spring and summer. Very pretty and a definite keeper!

[Monday]

Cotton candy, red musk, raspberry and tobacco, I get the 'lace' too actually. Very sweet and a bit perfumey it has a lot of throw on my skin. Sweet, sugary and smoky.

The only scent I can compare Red Lace with it Black Lace, Red Lace is truly the red version of Black Lace.

The tobacco is a bit too much for me in Red Lace a shame really because I like the rest of the blend.

[Alethia]

Thoughts before testing: I've been looking for the perfect red musk blend and although the pomegranate and raspberry worries me, I just had to try Red Lace.

 

Wet: Sweet, but not foody. This is heavy on the red musk, pom, raspberry, and the tobacco is providing the backbone of the whole show.

 

Dry down: The red musk disappears on my skin, leaving me with nothing but the pom/raspberry combination and hints of vanilla and sugar. The tobacco is non-existant at this point.

 

Dry: Red Lace dries down to a sugared vanilla smell with vague traces of berries.

 

Final thoughts: This was a disappointment, but I figured the fruits would take over. Sad day!

 

Verdict: Off to the sales!