Velut Luna Statu Variabilis

[zankoku_zen]

A blush-warm mist of ylang ylang, pink vanilla, carnation chypre, and red benzoin.
 

[Lycanthrope]

Huh.

 

Though the 'saltwater note' is not listed, something about the combination of these notes brings to mind the somewhat (on my skin) tortilla-chip like salt note that is in some of Beth's oceany offerings.  I have no clue what's doing this!  Maybe a combination of the snappy carnation, or the benzoin rich resinousness, mixed with that slight high pitch indole of ylang-ylang.  Regardless initially it's a bit distracting but may be my own skin chemistry.  

 

With a bit of time, on me at least it still keeps that same smush of salt, which may actually be what happens when I get a lot of lush petals of the rose and carnation type together.  It's sidling a bit adjacent over time to me like a tamer Peacock Queen, or Pink Snowballs - all dewy, but then the dewy floral veers into vanilla, but then I smell only the buttery part - oh, that's it - I'm getting a bit confused with the interplay between slight foodiness, probably brought up stronger by the benzoin which is making it detour out of the road of foody and into the road-adjacent resin incense vendor.  But only slightly.  We still have the flowers from before.  They still read mostly as carnation, but the ylang gives a more indolic exotic bite on top.  

 

Clearly this perfume has a lot to say!  It is also complicated.  Over time it goes more towards floral than vanilla, and is definitely not sugary syrupy sweet, but maybe the pink part is tea roses.  I think with more wear, this most resembles the Yule Pink Snowballs, but with added oomph with the carnation pepperiness and the ylang.  

[Happicuppa]

This scent was a lovely, fresh floral that steers clear of indolic territory (at least on me). There is a nice depth here, probably the red benzoin and the chypre doing their jobs, and a subtle vanilla sweetness. It's a floral that doesn't go too floral on me. No soapiness, no poopy-jasmine note, no high-pitched 'white' scent that spells a headache for me. A little spicy from the carnation, a little sweet (but not foodie) from the vanilla. It is a perfect floral for when not wanting to go into full blown 'white floral' territory. I'd call this more...pink? Softer, more refined, and smoothed down nicely by the touch-of-resinous benzoin and vanilla. I love it. 

[ellocentipede]

I avoid benzoin because it usually smells like sharp chemicals on my skin, but this one so far is benzoin-less to my nose. I get lots of heady, waxy ylang ylang and the most beautiful pink woody chypre. Everything is wrapped in a beautiful, soft, pink vanilla cloud. 

[DiesMali]

Fresh out of the mailbox, so may revisit later!

 

In the bottle: Pale, sweet pinkness.

 

Wet on my skin: ...Pale, sweet, creamy pinkness. 

 

Dry: This was the biggest risk of my Liliths order, and oh man, I was a little worried about that ylang-ylang in particular. So, I've performed the Carmina Burana in full 8 times since 2004, and I NEVER get tired of it. It's my favourite thing to perform, especially since I'm a mezzo-soprano who can still reach all those fun high notes to sing soprano 1. So, when I saw this, I HAD to get it, no matter what notes were in it. This is a poofy, creamy, sweet cloud of delicate silvery-pink. It's floral, but definitely more of a floriental than a Western white floral, and sweet, but not overly so. Almost a little marshmallowy. All of the notes are there if you look for them, but mostly it's just that beautiful, gossamer cloud of poofy silvery-pink. Beautiful. ❤️ I'm so glad I got this. 

[zankoku_zen]

Ylang ylang, spicy carnation, and delicate chypre. Good throw and wear length.

[Seajewel]

I loved the initial wet stage of spicy carnation with something extra - deep and sophisticated, but the blend quickly morphed into a cousin of Red Benzoin, Ylang Ylang, and Tobacco, which just didn't work on me. Something about the Red Benzoin or Ylang ylang, or combo thereof, went sharp and slightly bitter and hurt my nose. The same qualities are here (along with those same notes), and a little extra indole. Sadly, not for me, even though my eyes lit up when I first applied. But fans of the Red Benzoin trio should take note! 

Edited November 8, 2020 by Seajewel

[donkehpoo]

Wet: Warm, heady ylang ylang, with spicy carnation. 

 

Dry: Remains true to the wet stage, but with a bit of a powdery note (not surprising - florals can go soapy and/or powdery on my skin fairly often). The red benzoin never made a noticeable appearance.

 

Overall this is a warm, heady floral blend. Not overpowering, or headache inducing. If you enjoy these notes and they work well on you, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

[doomsday_disco]

This one is all about the carnation chypre on me. I'm not surprised, since I amp carnation and oakmoss. The ylang ylang cozies up to the carnation chypre for a while. The scent has massive throw during this stage and makes me think of more classic perfumes. Eventually, the oakmoss in the chypre becomes the dominant note, swirled with the carnation and a bit of benzoin.

 

I was here for the pink vanilla, but alas, I didn't get any of that on my skin.  If carnation chypre sounds good to you, though, you should be pleased with this.

[supreme_c0rt]

I'm getting the same saltwater note that Lycanthrope mentioned. This really puts me in mind of the Lupers that came out this year that had that shimmery mermaid-musk vibe (Awake and Abalone Vulva specifically). As a salty person, I can dig it.

 

After it dries down I'm getting a lot of carnation cyphre and vanilla. The ylang ylang isn't shouting here, which is impressive given how extra that flower can be. I love that this feels almost like a foody floral, and almost like a pink musk, but isn't really either. I'm surprised at how throaty it is, and it has this slightly powdery "welcome to my boudoir" feel about it that feels moody and sexy, but still pink and fluffy? But still salty and tousled? There's really a lot going on here!

 

This would be a great femme blend to try for folx that don't really gel with "femme" scents (I really dislike gendering things, but I think you get me). I usually avoid them because they don't feel like me. But this one is winning me over. There's a sneaky growliness to it that, I dunno, is just working for me. 

 

Edited November 19, 2020 by supreme_c0rt

[astarinel]

This is very pretty! This was my "risky pick" of the Lilith scents, I wasn't sure how the notes would combine, but it's quite nice.

 

On wet, the carnation is soft and more gentle than it can sometimes be, with a darker background from the oakmoss in the chypre. This gives me a very classic perfume vibe, a silvery-pink scent with soft warm florals and gentle spices. I personally like ylang ylang, but I find very little of that here, it's really about the carnation chypre with a little bit of the benzoin and vanilla floating around the edges giving some sweetness and softness.

[Ythik]

Wet I'm definitely getting that carnation first. It's a little bit spicy, but still quite floral. That may also be the ylang ylang mixing in. This feels like a less spicy version of There Is No Bliss Like This, which was one of my favorites from this year's Lupers. This is soft and pink and gently misty florals. I think, for me, I don't like it quite as much with less spice to it, which was one of my favorite parts of TINBLT. As it dries, I think I'm getting more of the ylang ylang and it is veering a little into that indolic territory. The indole proceeded to get more pronounced over the day and went into that fecal-adjacent territory over longer wear.

[theseagrows]

damn, this is even more beautiful than expected. i love all these notes and to see them together is just perfection. this is primarily a creamy vanilla ylang ylang with hints of carnation and benzoin. this will be especially gorgeous in spring and summer. 🌸 if you love creamy white florals, this won't disappoint.

Edited December 21, 2020 by theseagrows

[fairybites]

Oh, this is lovely. I'm getting a lot of vanilla with some of the ylang ylang and carnation. It smells slightly foodie to me, which was a surprise but I guess I'm just amping the vanilla. It's sweet and creamy with a touch of florals. I kind of wish the vanilla wasn't so strong on me because it's hard to pick out some of the other notes. So if you tend to amp that note but are wanting more of the florals from this, I would probably avoid this.

[tinyvulture]

I’m not sure if there has been another mainly ylang ylang/vanilla scent? I’m sure there has but it’s not coming to mind.  I do love vanilla/sugared florals!! The buttery vanilla perfectly cuts the sharpness of the ylang ylang and lets it sweet, spicy loveliness shine. I’m not really picking out any carnation.  But I think this is my favorite ylang ylang scent now!  Also, there’s a note that sorta smells like weed -- just making note so I don't wear it work lol!