The Laughter of Loki

[Lycanthrope]

Serpentine green musk with fiery red ginger, sweet basil, alder leaf, white patchouli, cistus, and mistletoe.

Quite an interesting scent. The oil itself is tinged with green, and is a murky, thick beast.

I really had no idea what to expect, since the notes are kind of all over the place. In the end, I would describe this as a smooooooth light patchouli, with less herb and spice than I would have thought from the description. Predominantly patchouli, but a brighter one. I don't recall that butterfly scent with 'white' patchouli, but this is reminding me strongly of LUSH's Jungle conditioner, if only for the style of delicious non-gritty patchouli that product has.

I will say, the ginger is present but not terribly strong, and the basil is NOT super herby, so I do not smell like food in that respect.

Not a morpher on me, but worthy of a try if you like patchouli, and it is very complex! Loki's laughter is not expected, smooth, a little fiery, and cool-ly malevolent.

[Balame]

This blend is actually very soft and pretty! I was concerned about the “fiery red ginger” since notes that are too spicy can end up burning my nostrils, but here it provides just the lightest touch of “oomph” beneath a delicately sweet basil and warm musk.

 

The cistus is very noticeable as well – it comes from rock-rose, which has a slightly fruity, honey-like scent. I’m not picking out much else. It’s not intensely herbal or even amping the patchouli, but overall this is a sweet, musky and happy scent. I definitely imagine it having a serpent-green color… mischievous but not too harsh.

 

My husband smelled it and immediately said “incense,” which isn’t a bad descriptor! It’s somehow both light and dark, but it gives off a gentler vibe than I expected.

[Atrous]

This is a hard scent to pin down; it's complex and full of contradictions.

 

The two main players are a slick, svelte musk with a lovely patchouli for a dancing partner. The not-so-fiery ginger has been relegated to the role of wallflower. Not certain what mistletoe and alder leaf are supposed to smell like but them, along with the other notes, blend beautifully in the background. They provide music and mood for the dancers.

 

This scent isn't so much light as it is deceptively nonchalant. It's debonair and a bit glib but peeking out underneath is mischief and wickedness ready to strike.

 

The scent whispers Trickster. It's fitting for Loki. I see myself wearing this when I need a confidence boost. It's intriguing.

a rating of 5/5.

[muhrrynn]

In the past, when I thought of Loki, it was to grin and a raise an eyebrow at the shape-shifty world ender, which morphed into a sly wink for Shadow's cell mate. This, however, is straight up Tom Hiddleston's lava hot grin and giggle as he brings you to orgasm.

 

Uh, okay, maybe not quite like that, but it sure as hell works with my skin. I smell amazing. So amazing that the hubs held my hand against his chest while watching tv just for the convenience of lifting my arm to his nose for lingering inhales. First time for that!

 

I know little to nothing of notes, but when I requested this, I was a tad worried about the patchouli, as it doesn't always work for me. Hah! Boy was I wrong. This is a teasing, sweet, mildly spicy scent worthy of its name. Two bottles for me, thanks!

[tziporra]

I wanted pesto, I got musky patchouli against a background of greens.

 

The herbal character of the description is really what called to me, but I do not smell like an herb garden. Instead I smell like a very clean man. I'm already half in love with the Loki of the Avengers, but if he snuggled up to me smelling like _this_ I would definitely be gone.

 

On my skin it is far too masculine (I wear "male" scents frequently, but this doesn't just smell like cologne on me - it smells like the man himself). I'd buy a bottle for my man if he needed more scents, but he's well set at this point.

 

Tzo

[lapetiteflower]

This one is beautiful...soft incense, just a hint of spice. Stays close to the skin, so I keep raising wrist to nose to inhale. This one may well be backup bottle-worthy.

[Magycmyste]

This is actually the scent I was most looking forward to trying. Let's see if it lives up to my expectations.

 

In the imp: Mmmm... a floral or musk sweetened by the patchouli and with a hint of ginger.

 

Wet on skin: Mostly the patchouli, light and airy.

 

Dried down: Soft musk, and soft patch. The ginger is gone, unfortunately, but this is still pretty.

 

Throw: This one has a faint throw.

 

Verdict: *** ...1/* I feel like this one needs a second test, when I'm not messing with everything else. Maybe I want to love it too much. And I like the musk/patchouli scent, just... I don't know how much. At the moment, not quite as much as I loved it in the imp. I might get a bottle anyway, and use it as a room scent or in an oil burner instead of on my skin.

[skyelyric]

I have to say, my Ragnarok decants changed character pretty significantly over the couple days since they were rescued from the mail.

 

Laughter of Loki started out as a very patchouli scent, but this is like the sexy smirk incarnation of patch. Smooth, sweet from the musk, with a slightly green herbal backdrop, absolutely gorgeous.

 

Over the last couple days the dominant patch has mellowed, and it's shifted into an incensy musk, very reminiscent of an Indian import shop. Although I preferred the patch-heavy aspect, this is still really lovely on me.

 

I have noticed that a little goes a long way (like a light impwand swipe to the crook of my elbow and I'm enveloped in scent) and lasts forever. I can smell a sweet musky haze the next morning; even a shower doesn't completely erase it.

 

I need to snag a bottle of this one before it's gone.

[doomsday_disco]

In the decant: Patchouli and musk. I hope this isn't the case on my skin.

 

Wet: Well, the patchouli and musk aren't nearly as bold as they seemed to be in the decant. They are the dominant notes at first, along with the ginger, which is adding a nice spice to the scent. I am not usually a patchouli fan, but I don't seem to be minding the white patchouli note on my skin. I was also afraid of the fiery red ginger, since I have sensitive skin, but it is behaving as well. I thought this scent might be very green and herb-y, but that isn't the case at the moment.

 

Dry: It's still a patchouli and musk type of scent, but it's softer and sweeter now.

 

Verdict: This is surprisingly pleasant! I love Norse mythology, and I love Loki, so I am considering getting a bottle of it for that reason alone. This is not something I can see myself wearing very often, though, so I will probably only get a bottle if I can persuade the boy to wear this.

 

*edit* After retesting this, I have decided to pass on a bottle. A musk and patchouli dominant scent just isn't for me.

Edited April 3, 2014 by dementia_divine

[Allumina]

Ugh, I wanted so much to like this, but it just didn't work on me. In my decant, it's all intriguingly herbal with a strong note of patchouli. On, however, it quickly settles into a very powdery musk, and I'm not a fan of powdery at all. I'm going to gift this to a friend that loves Norse mythology.

 

 

The ginger never showed up, which for me is usually a good thing as bpal's ginger note goes weird on me.

[JazzieCazzie]

Purchased two imps from a decant circle.

 

IN THE IMP: Quite lovely, smoothe and velvety but there is something sweet lurking in the back that does not bode well for me.

 

Dabbed on one wrist.

 

WET: Oddly, for the first few seconds after application, I smell absolutely nothing. Then the musk and ginger gently rise to the surface.

 

DRYDOWN: As feared, as it dries and the notes become more prevalent, there is something here I can't put my finger on and don't recognize as being a known BPAL note, but it's familiar from my childhood. Whatever it is, it's just cloyingly sweet on me and is a dealbreaker on what would otherwise be an okay scent for me.

 

OVERALL: With a full box of BPAL and a finite number of years left to live, I'm at the point where I won't keep anything I don't think I'd actively choose to wear, and I can't see ever saying, "Hey, I want to wear Laughter of Loki" today, so both imps go onto the swap list. It's an interesting scent and a well-crafted one, just not for me.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 3.

[Astarial]

 

In the imp, this is a bright green musk swirled with basil, and perhaps a bit of the mistletoe? I'm not entirely sure, but I know it's green.

 

Once applied, it's still green. It's herbal, but not sharply so - more like a comforting whiff of a fresh basil plant. The white patchouli starts to come out, and it's glorious... like taking a dirty hippie and giving them a bath in a tub full of milk, sweetened slightly with honey (I think that's the cistus talking), tinted with crushed basil leaves. I'm not getting any ginger, which isn't surprising, as it tends to hide from me most of the time. For a while, this actually starts to remind me of one of my biggest BPAL loves - Green Tree Viper! I think it must be the combination of patchouli and uber green things, even though there's no mint in Loki and as far as I know, no basil/etc in GTV.

 

This is really really great. I love it even more than I expected!

[zankoku_zen]

Green musk, patchouli, mistletoe and a touch of basil on wet.

 

It smells like a green patch, with more touches of green from the other elements. If you were looking for a different take on a patch blend, give this puppy a whirl.

 

Green, patchouli, tricky.

[Zii]

ITB: Delicious green ginger.

 

Wet: Very true to my first impression, but the patchouli is much more in my face. Combined with ginger, this is just on the right side of too sharp for me.

 

Drying: Powdery and slightly herby, but still very patch dominated. It's not as sharp now, which is good because I'm not sure I could handle that sharpness forever.

 

Dry: This is gotten much closer to my skin, as patchouli heavy blends often do. I miss some of the sappy greenness from the wet stage, but there is a seductive sweetness (perhaps the cistus?) and I cannot stop huffing myself.

[Gwydion]

In bottle: Very patchouli, with the musk edging it towards sexy. The ginger supports the patchouli and musk well. The basil, alder, and mistletoe give it a green, woody/herbal feel. The Internet tells me cistus is a flower. I’m guessing it’s the delicate vaguely floral not softening the edges of this. Wet: Softer on the skin. It remains patchouli dominant, but less emphatically so. The musk is still sexy support. The ginger pops more on the skin, as does the cistus of all things. It is still delicate, but stands out more from the background, much as the Alder leaf does. The Basil and mistletoe remain understated, with the mistletoe the stronger oif the two. To be honest, my skin is eating this. There is very little throw and the whole fragrance is dim and muddy compared to how vibrant it is in the bottle. I’m going to have to blame my skin. Dry: Really pretty green musk mostly.

[Mokiefraggle]

In the bottle and on my skin wet, this is a musky, patchouli-laced green scent with a spicy ginger undertone; on the whole, it comes off as smoky green with a lurking quality of gingery heat. Definitely not the sharpness of basil I was expecting, much more mistletoe and what I can only assume is the alder than the distinct pungency of a fresh basil leaf.

 

It seems to pretty much stay there, in this balance of musky, slightly woody green, with an earthy, gingery note in the back as it dries. Very nice, especially since well-and-truly green scents and I are a bit hit-or-miss at times. Some go very odd on my skin, not necessarily bad, but strange and unexpected and just incredibly GREEN. The Laughter of Loki, on the other hand, is a nice, earthy, slightly spicy green that seems to hit just the right notes to agree with me.

 

Like it, definitely. It's a keeper, though I'm still not sure what specifically I'll wear it for. Not a date-night perfume, not an evening one, not really a springtime or a summer...oh well. Until I get a feel for it, it'll just have to settle for being a scent in my general roster, I suppose.

[milo]

Green musk at first, a little sharp, green and masculine. After a bit, the green musk fades, thankfully, as I'm not really a fan of it. Getting more smoke, with a touch of the green musk. I can barely smell it after an hour. I think this would smell great on a guy, but with the quick fade factor, not worth it. I'll keep the half decant.

[imaginepageant]

I bought a bottle blind, because it sounded interesting, I was making an order anyway, and, well, Loki. I've not had much success with blind buys in the past, so while I was hoping I'd like it, I wasn't expecting an out-of-the-park hit.

 

Well, that's what I got.

 

The Laughter of Loki is what patchouli should smell like. I can't distinguish a single other note in this blend; they all swirl together seamlessly to create something singularly beautiful. It's gritty, musky, sweet, and green in all the right amounts. It's outdoorsy without smelling like a forest, and it's pretty without smelling like perfume. It's balanced right between masculine and feminine. It smells good in the bottle, but it truly blooms on my skin and keeps getting better and better the longer I have it on.

 

After a couple of wears I realized this was going to be a favorite. I actually tried not to love it so much just because I didn't want to decide what to kick out of my top five to make room for it (yes, these things are important to me). But I failed miserably, and now consider it my #3.

 

Try this blend if you like patchouli but not dirty patchouli, green but not astringent, sweet but not foody. Try it if you don't like smelling girly, but you don't want to smell quite like a dude, either. Try it if Tom Hiddleston makes you weak in the knees, because this is sexy and mischievous enough to evoke his impish Loki grin. Try it if you don't fall into any of those categories, because it's just damned gorgeous!

Edited July 31, 2014 by imaginepageant

[Jangzonrice]

love this! green musk made spicy with ginger, the white patchouli complements it beautifully! It smells like you are in a mystical forest!!

[BeyondBad1313]

I managed to get my hands on a bottle of this after hunting for some time. I am not disappointed. The green musk acts similar to red musk on my skin and creates a wonderfully heady scent, but obviously this blend has a greener more herbal quality. Am I crazy to say that this smells like krampus, but minus the leather and add more greenery. I am loving this and will hoard my bottle.

[Cali]

I finally tracked a bottle down, and while I've never spent so much on bpal before, lemme tell ya that it's worth it. From the bottle to drydown, this is absolutely lovely. The fir is most appearant on first application but it's just-not strong enough for it to be irritating. It fades a bit almost instantly and It's almost a creamy mix of herbs. The same patchouli (are there more? idk) as in reptoid dominion that my skin wears so well, soft ginger and sexy green musk. It reminds me a bit of my favourite insence 'forest' by HEM, but this is more... human. All in all, loving this.

[sarandipitee]

Oh this is gorgeous. I was frimped 1/2 a decent and let me tell you I will treasure this one as I’m sure finding a bottle will be impossible. 

 

It’s just a beautiful musk blend. I can pick out the ginger but on a whole it’s very smooth on my skin.  Stays close, too

[Soupy Twist]

yep, that there is sweet patchouli, all right. I feel like I just opened my sister's Like a Prayer CD and took a big whiff.