Dead Leaves, Marshmallow, and Pistachio Cream

[zankoku_zen]

No additional scent description.

[deadlyves]

Disclaimer- this has had less than 24 hours to sit from the mail.

 

I'm a little bit surprised with this one! I expected a lot of dead leaves, a little bit of marshmallow to soften it, and doubted I'd get any pistachio. Instead, it's all marshmallow and pistachio cream! There's a little bit of DL making it darker and a little warmer than other marshmallow heavy blends, but the DL note doesn't take over like it often does on me.

 

Its a thick, creamy, sweet, nutty scent with medium throw.  I hope the DL comes out more as it ages, but I'll still be wearing this one a lot even if it doesn't! This is still the cozy fall scent I'd hoped for!

Edited November 10, 2020 by deadlyves

[marared]

Mine is also 24 hours out of the mailbox. I don't like uber-sugary scents (at least not to wear), and this was exactly what I hoped for: the sweetness tamped down by the dryness of the leaves (although there is nothing definitively *leafy* here) and the warm nuttiness of the pistachio. And I can actually smell that it's PISTACHIO, too! I am pretty sure that this is going right into my fall/winter rotation.

 

It's moderately strong when my nose is close to my wrist, but it doesn't have a lot of throw.

[Madame Mew]

I just got my dead leaves, marshmallow and pistachio cream in the mail today! I just tried it on after giving it about 6 hours to rest.  The dead leaves are not present to me in the bottle, but they do come through as it dries down, about 15 minutes in. It’s amazing! It’s not too sweet, which is exactly what I had hoped the leaves would do for this. I'm not into gourmand scents and in general, but this still has a fluffy, creamy vibe, smells exactly like pistachio, and just the right amount of DL to keep it from full on foodie territory, at least for me. Blind bottle win!!!

 

ETA: I bought a backup of this. 

Edited December 1, 2020 by Madame Mew
needed moar.

[Alisha_SBC]

This is my very very first DL and... OMG WHY IS THIS SO PRETTY????
After seeing so many reviews of DL scents being cologney, I expected this to be more masculine, but to me this is very unisex and bordering on feminine due to the sweetness. I detect a nuttiness among the sweet floof, of marshmallow and a spice of crunchy autumn leaves.

 

As it dries down the nutty aspect is a touch more pronounced. I wouldn't necessarily peg it as pistachio, just a general nuttiness that's NOT peanut. This is so beautiful autumnal thanks to that crunchy, ever so slightly spicy, leaves note.

 

[melandie]

This is so different from my DLs from past years! The DL note is SO subtle here, that if it didn't say so on the bottle, I wouldn't even pick it up. This scent is soft, sweet, creamy and nutty, and I think the underlying dried leaves is what keeps it from being too sweet and foody. It's gorgeous, and maybe the leaves will emerge more with age.

[groovyrooby]

Dead Leaves noob here. This was my first foray. I think I might love marshmallow, so this seemed like a great first try! 
 

Feels like 3 distinct scents at once - dry crackly and bitter, sweet toasty marshmallow, and nutty pistachio akin to Pink Lovebirds. Reminds me of a Wer Opfer + Hunger combination I have been concocting at home, but not as complex as all that.
 

Overall, I think DL fans will love it, but for me, the bitter is a bit stronger and the marshmallow toastier than I would like. (I like pure confectionary sugar sweet.) Lasted a couple hours for me with the toasty marshmallow hanging on longest.

[slo]

This might be a gourmand for those of who don't like gourmands and a dead leaves for those of who don't like dead leaves (me). 

 

I'm getting a bit of a perfumey vibe from the dead leaves, but it actually smells clean - as others have said, it's not anything I'd peg as "dead leaves" if I didn't know. It's tempered by the creaminess/nuttiness of the pistachio/marshmallow, but keeping those notes from going too sweet and foodie. Its really wearable!

 

I'd be happy if it doesn't change much with age, but we'll see!

Edited December 6, 2020 by slo

[Marina Napoli]

I love this. I'm not a huge gourmand person, but this is so nice. I get a lot of marshmallow, not a ton of pistachio, but it's definitely there. I hope it becomes more prominent as it ages! The leaf note isn't as aggressive as other blends either. 

 

Overall if I had to sum it up, I would say lightly nutty marshmallows dropped on the ground outside. 10/10

[puellacaerulea]

I've tried a ton of the DL blends over the past few years, and this one's definitely different. It's almost more gourmand than leaves. The leaves are there, but they're a background player to the marshmallow and pistachio, and they don't have the cologne-y vibe you can sometimes get from the DL note. It starts out sweet, creamy, and a little nutty. After a weird sharp/powdery phase, it settles and gets nuttier, but the leaves keep it from getting cloying. Nutty sweetness with an undercurrent of dry leaves.

[Lucchesa]

This is the least dead-leafy of the DLs I've tried this year.  It's very much about the gourmand elements, with the dead leaves relegated to the backdrop.  Warm, nutty marshmallow -- I'm not sure I would have specifically identified it as pistachio if I didn't know what I was supposed to be smelling.  This is a nice warm hug of sweet toasty marshmallow cream and pistachio on a crisp autumn day.  

[Leopard403]

I agree with other reviewers: If I didn’t know that DL was in here, I don’t think my nose or brain would pick it up. There’s an ever-so-slight cologne-type note base note, and I think that is the leaves, but it is a good grounding point and not shrieking dryness as it often is on me. The other notes here are DIVINE. It’s like melty pistachio gelato (but not in a way that would make some idiot say “what smells like food?”) and I am HERE FOR IT. 
 

I also discovered that it blooms beautifully on warm, damp skin fresh from a shower/bath. Holy mama this is pretty.

[Laughing Seagull]

I really wanted to love this, but Dead Leaves and I don't get along.  Were it not for the cologne-y unpleasantness of the DL note, I'd dive into a swimming pool full of this stuff any day.

 

I recognize the pistachio note from How Doth the Little Crocodile, and the marshmallow registers in my brain as "whipped cream."  The overall impression is "yummy pistachio pudding plus that cologne your dad used to slather himself in."

 

It's fine, but the Dead Leaves part keeps me from going "omg it's amazing!!!!"

[Seajewel]

This one is very good. Mostly soft sweetness and pistachio cream with a hint of something bringing it into more sophisticated territory. The Dead Leaves note here is thankfully not the bell pepper one that I get from many other leaf blends. The downside is that the throw is very low on me. It seems to last well but is so quiet (and also not really the type of scent that I usually reach for) that I'm debating whether I need more than my decant. 

[zankoku_zen]

Foodie type of Dead Leaves this one. I got a ton of pistacho cream and leaves. But definitely pistacho cream. Good throw and wear length.

[Poenari]

This is not what I expected at all! I love the dead leaves scents and have several bottles of them, including the SN: Pile of Fallen Leaves, so I am very familiar with that note (or notes, as there is more than one kind.) This barely registers as a dead leaves scent. It's all creamy pistachio marshmallow, with the barest hint of leaves grounding it. My initial reaction was "mint!... no, soap!.... no, foodie!... no, uhhhh this is lovely!" It is pretty, and feminine, not too sweet, and reminds me of something way back in my memories but I can't figure it out. I keep sniffing my wrist. I want more. I can't wait to slather myself in this.

Edited January 24, 2021 by Poenari

[Kanra]

This is my first try at a Dead Leaves scent. I was a bit unsure because a lot of people have said that DL runs masculine and cologney and that's not my usual style, but I decided to take a chance on this because I love love love marshmallow and pistachio cream is unique to my wardrobe and sounds great too.

 

This is yet another time I'm glad I took a risk buying a bottle!! This is very creamy, from both the marshmallow ad the pistachio cream. It smells like a fluffy pistachio flavored marshmallow almost which I love. It has a sweetness to it, but the dead leaves keep it from getting overly sweet. I'm a fan of sweet fragrances with something darker lurking beneath and similar vibes, and the dead leaves adds to this atmosphere perfectly. Many marshmallows are all out gourmands, but this, while having gourmand elements, isn't strictly gourmand. It's an autumnal marshmallow and reminds me of eating pistachio ice cream (light on the sugar, high on the creaminess) with marshmallow toppings on a nice autumn day while sitting on a bench in the park, surrounded by leaves.

 

Definitely lovely. If you want a toned down gourmand and marshmallow that is more creamy than sickly sweet, cakey, or airy (and many marshmallow fragrances tend to hit one of these categories), this is it.

[MoonRayne]

I was a bit nervous after reading the reviews that mention a perfume-y scent because I can't wear certain musks and such scents. 

Luckily, I don't get 'perfume' at all.

The marshmallow and pistachio cream blend to a sweet cream nutty scent and there is just an extra layer that keeps it from going gourmand or overly sweet. The dead leaves aren't obvious, but they ground the scent. Definitely need a bottle upgrade. This is my third dead leaves scent and I'm impressed with how different they all are. The note seems to balance all the other elements.

[fairybites]

This starts off as the smoky dead leaves scent with some marshmallows, almost reminds me of s'mores. The pistachio cream comes out when it starts to dry and blends in together with the marshmallow. After some time, the dead leaves scent completely fades on me and it's just the creamy pistachio marshmallow scent. It's sweet but not overly so, what little is left of the dead leaves scent on me keeps this from being completely foodie.

 

Not sure how I feel about this. I do like it! But I was hoping the dead leaves scent lasted longer. The throw is pretty low too, which is another reason that I probably won't get a bottle. However, I would suggest this if you love marshmallow scents with a bit of smokiness. 

[feyofthefellwood]

I feel like I might be the odd one out, because I definitely get the dead leaf note, which is a little peppery at first. I'm not sure if it's just my nose or skin chem, or if it's a batch variation or aging issue (for reference, I've tried a couple of more aged dead leaves blends and didn't notice the DL note being this strong). This is less sweet than I expected it to be, but I've still been enjoying it. First applied, I mostly get dead leaves and unsweetened cream. Over time, the pistachio joins in with its nutty/creamy quality and the marshmallow tiptoes in to sweeten everything up a little. It has a smoky quality from the leaves that complements the creamy/sweet elements. It doesn't have much throw, but it does have more staying power than I initially thought; it just dries down faint. I think I'll really enjoy this next fall, and by then I'll see how it's aging. It makes me feel like a feral autumn faery who likes to visit the human world for ice cream.

[splendidissima]

I really wanted to love this, and I'm so confused by it! It's my first Dead Leaves (I've been nervous about the DL note going cologne-y), and I do absolutely get sweet nutty marshmallow clouds...but under that is a waft of cologne that reads as very old-fashioned to me! I don't hate it, but it feels like it's clashing with the lovely pistachio fluff, and I'm not sure I want that note on *me*. Maybe something for Awesome Husband? (Awesome Husband comment: "meh. it's fine. kinda weird, not bad." So...whatever that means?)

[donkehpoo]

I'm so-so on the dead leaves note, but fuck if I don't love marshmallow and pistachio, so here we go...

 

Wet: The dead leaves are giving me a bit of that cologne scent - that's what I smell instantly. I can faintly smell the pistachio and marshmallow, but they're there. (More of a vague nuttiness/sweetness than anything at this point, though.)

 

Dry: The dead leaves/cologne are gone, and what's left of the pistachio and marshmallow are just as faint as the wet stage.

 

I'll hold on to the decant, but probably won't be tempted to get a bottle.

[Honey]

This blend goes on my skin as a somewhat nutty and fresh masculine scent.

It gets smoother with drydown, and I detect a soft dryness that I associate with sandalwood.

There is a sharp musk and/or amber poking my nose, and it overshadows the nutty creaminess a little.

I think this is a very nice soft cologne that reads as rather gender neutral in the end.

It reminds me of some beard oils or deodorants I have smelled in he past - pleasant but not as unique as the blend components would have alluded to.

[Something_Diabolical]

This is almost all Dead Leaves when you sniff the vial and right after application. After a few minutes I detect the sweeter components of the blend. I don't get pistachio from it. It's more like... Dead Leaves with sweet cream. It's a green and foody type scent. It's nice. I will do some more testing with it and then I'll device if I want to keep the bottle. 

[LizziesLuck]

Packing stuff to move and found a couple of bottles I ordered and never even tried! Instead of being annoyed with myself for forgetting them I have decided to think of them as a gift to myself tucked away for later. LOL. (that's me trying to convince myself I am not a hoarder)

 

This is so interesting! Quite gourmand in the bottle, almost spicy, which makes no sense. Once on my skin though it loses that weird spicy sweetness and instead smells more like a very high end cologne. This reminds me of something from my childhood. Very nostalgic. I want to say pistachio ice cream/pudding but it's not that simple. Whatever it is, it's glorious. I own absolutely nothing like this, it's so unique. I really really like it. I also love that the dead leaves is subtle in this one (on me). Usually I amp dead leaves.