Smug Yale Alchemy Lab

[Casablanca]

Ivy League? Pshhh, the only book learnin’ you really need is the kind that comes bedecked with mythical beasts — preferably those armed with tusks, swiveling horns, and a totally unearned sense of importance.

 

Vanilla bean and wild grasses.

 

(This arrived just yesterday, so it hasn't settled much and this review is FWIW. I'll try to update here if there's much of a change.)

 

From testing Smug Yale, my friend and I are both head over heels for it. 

 

This goes on my skin as the grasses I loved in Great Basin Woodnymph (hay, grasses, cacao, tonka). I even smell a bit of that other perfume's dry cacao mingling with them, and I'm unsure if I'm imagining it just because I associate this grass note with the cacao and tonka in Woodnymph...

Behind these cacao grasses is a soft, creamy, and dreamy vanilla. Mm, this vanilla.

This blend went more grassy on my skin, and more creamy, cozy vanilla on my friend's skin. But the blend was otherwise pretty similar on us.

In drydown the grasses soften and vanilla comes forward. After the Smug has dried, the grasses are only faint and indistinct, and soon after that I just get the most cozy and creamy vanilla. Sometimes I wonder if I'm getting a little tonka hint with it.

I would go bonkers for an atmo of this to spray all over my bed. Mm.

[doomsday_disco]

In the decant, I get green grass sweetened by the vanilla bean.

On my skin, it's the same: green grass sweetened and softened by the vanilla bean, but the grass note here isn't like fresh grass clippings. I think there may be some dry grass in the mix as well, but for the most part, the grass in this smells like it is still living. It's a happy scent that makes me think of spring and summer, although I'm sure it would be great to wear year-round. The vanilla bean ends up gaining strength as it sits on my skin and eventually becomes the dominant note, so that after several hours, it's a sweet vanilla bean backed by the grasses, which are really soft by this point.

This is beautiful, and I am not sure if a decant will be enough!

[trinitysite]

Smug Yale goes on intensely vanilla, and then the grasses come out. The blend is just about perfect: green vanilla. It reminds me a little of Funerary Papyrus, although that was more spicy and vanilla-dominant. I appreciate it in December as a reminder that things have been green in the past, and will be green again (eventually.) It did fade after a few hours, and I wish I'd had my imp with me so I could've reapplied.

[zankoku_zen]

Sweet green gras that dries down to a green vanilla. If you love grass or vanilla, give this a whirl. Medium throw and wear length.

[Teaotter]

A sweet, almost chalky vanilla. More complex than I can put my finger on, but it stays true from application to drydown on my skin.

 

Settles into a skin scent after about an hour.

[Soupy Twist]

Sweet grass — almost a single note. There’s a breath or two of vanilla as it dries, but basically just the lovely sweet grass note from Nothing Gold Can Stay. I like it a lot!

 

ETA several hours later the vanilla has showed up, and it's very soft and pretty. a tiny bit powdery but not in a bad way — more orchid than foodie. has nothing to do with the grass but it's great all on its own!

Edited December 22, 2018 by Soupy Twist

[Lucchesa]

Smug Yale is lovely!  Green with soft vanilla. It's what Van Morrison's brown eyed girl would smell like, making love in the green grass, behind the stadium.  Light and carefree, sweet and kind of innocent and natural, not the least big smug.  I don't get much throw (which is normal for me) but the wear length is quite good.  

[Ina Garten Davita]

I allowed myself ONE bottle from December Lunacy and this was it. It's so gorgeous. It's spring in a bottle, and I really need that because I crave spring year round, but never more so than this time of year.

 

This vanilla may be the best I've ever smelled, considering the vanilla prices, I can't even begin to imagine how costly this ingredient was to source. It's sweet but not bakery sweet. It's how the interior of a fresh, thick vanilla bean when you slice it open and scrape out that rich, fragrant paste. The kind of vanilla that Ina Garten would shit herself over.

 

And the grasses, sweet, dewy, bright green grass, the kind you want to roll in if you didn't care about bugs or dog poop.

 

Love it, I wish the wear time was longer, but it's a delight to reapply. 

[LizziesLuck]

I cannot resist either vanilla or grass, nor can I resist a very simple blend with just a couple of beloved notes, so I was DOOMED the second I saw this to blind bottle it. I am trying to only get 1 scent per update (so haaard) and this was it for the anniversaries.

 

Wet: Ungh. This is eyes roll back in your head good. That vanilla!! And there is a gorgeous combination of fresh dewy grass (so realistic!) as well as a dried grass note (to my nose, the same one as in Tarantula Fascinator and Woodnymph). It's an almost perfumey, slightly spicy sort of hay note that I ADORE. It's gorgeous with the fresh grass scent and that rich, almost chewy vanilla. This. THIS.

 

Dry: The fresh grass fades a bit as this dries, and the dried grass/hay comes to the forefront. The sweet vanilla is beautiful with the dried grass. This is simple and so so lovely.

[Velvet Lilly]

Gaiz..... GAIZ..... This lovely, dreamy scent is the base of Blueberry Picking, without the blueberries.

It's so swoonlicious and lovely.... If you loved Blueberry Picking.... do not sleep on this joyful happy scent. 
<3 <3 

[mishi-bear]

Sweet grass and sweet vanilla bean. Made me very, very sneezy unfortunately. Doesn't smell bad at all at least, but I can't handle the sneezing.

[astarinel]

Primarily sweet, green grass, with a touch of vanilla. I'm allergic to grass and this is so realistic it's twigging my allergy; I keep expecting to break into a sneezing fit at any moment.

 

As it dries, the grass fades a little and the vanilla comes out more. Very fresh and springlike!

[puellacaerulea]

Pretty much exactly what it says on the tin -- fresh grass notes and a sweet vanilla that doesn't morph too much on me. It's actually sweeter than what I imagined, but not overpoweringly so. If you enjoy green/grassy scents, definitely give this one a try.

[Little Bird]

My bottle has zero traces of vanilla anything in it.  It smells like a slightly soapy green grass oil and a little dustiness in the drydown.  Disappears by the two hour mark.  Really sad about this one.

[monocainsheresy]

Green grasses and vaguely coffee-y vanilla. Smells an awful lot like freshly ground mullein, which I am VERY happy about. 

Spinning On Graves's less complex baby sibling.

 

[Minh Scent]

I got this based on the majority of reviews that this is soft grasses and a nonfoody vanilla. That is exactly what I am getting and love it!

[theredkilt]

This smells like a delicious desert. Very fragrant vanillic grasses. It reminds me of the chocolate note from some of the 13 blends. Truly unique!

[clockworkcrypt]

Green Green grass, not exactly fresh cut but new spring grass being warmed by the first days of summer. 

It's subtle and green, with a light sweet vanilla lurking in the background, not foody, and not rich, but playful and light.

This is what some little forest fae would smell like, and while non-obtrusive and pleasant, isn't quite rich enough for my tastes.

If you aren't a foody vanilla fan but still like vanilla, go for this. If you like your vanillas on the thick and goey side, this might not be the blend for you, but I regret nothing about the decant, and will likely finish it, even if it is just to hoard the sweet grass scent for the cold days

[VetchVesper]

Delicately sweet, green grass in the imp, but it's mostly powdery vanilla on my skin, and it doesn't seem to last very long.  Still, it's a fun blend that I'm glad I got to try it.    It makes me think of pollen and sunshine.

[Alisha_SBC]

I managed to get a hold of a bottle and boy am I glad I did!

I love vanilla, but I wasn't certain what I was going to think about the grass. Even so, I took a risk to snag this limited edition beauty and it was well worth it. The vanilla is creamy and light and real, definitely makes me think of cutting open a vanilla bean, and the grass is just so pleasant. It reminds me of mowing day, with all the grass clippings scenting the cool air, or maybe lying down in lush grass as a kid. It's just enough to bring me back to pleasant memories without making me feel like I need to sneeze.

This scent feels so much like spring to me, but would be a nice reminder in the winter as well of what is coming back in a few months.

[artisjok]

Smug Yale is such a cheering scent!
A powdery, snuggly vanilla wrapped up with a humid fresh green grass. I love it in sunny days when I’m outside, or on day’s when I’m stuck inside longing to get out. 
Contrary to some above experiences, I get excellent throw and wear length, and that’s somewhat unusual for me.  
Smug Yale is smug because it smells simply divine and is a beacon of carefree joy for all who get a whiff on the breeze~

[tinyvulture]

Wild grasses, for sure! Sometimes they make me sneeze. I wanted to see if adding vanilla would help in this case. Plus, it just seemed like such an unusual combo! After giving the grasses a second to calm down, it really is quite different and oddly gorgeous. I feel it's a unisex blend, and the soft sweet vanilla floats in and does something magical with that everyday fresh green grass scent that we all know. Give it a try!

[alyelle]

Imp: Dewy grass.

Wet: Long grass and vanilla leaves. This might have gone through some bottle shock at first, because my initial sniff test gave me a colossal headache but this time round things were absolutely fine.

Dry: Vanilla-strewn grass, potent but very short lived! Barely reached 4 hours.

 

Stars: ★★★½