Chibi Skull With Last Will and Testament

[Seajewel]

Bourbon vanilla, mallow flower, red patchouli, and cream mousse.

[Geminirubyshoes]

This is like a sweeter more mellow version of B. Beat/Revenant Rythym. Bourbon vanilla has not worked well for me in the past but this is like...heavenly. I can’t wait to see how it ages if the bottle makes it that long. Maybe I need to order another bottle.

[rhonorv]

Wowie!

 

Wet and in the bottle there's this juicy jammy element, but that disappears really fast. Once dry this is a very glorious, elegant vanilla patchouli with a light floral whisper going on in the background. It's quite sweet, and has the round, almost medicinal herbiness that to me is characteristic of a not-too-dirty patchouli. I love this a lot. A lot a lot.

 

(I've never tried Ba.nshee Be.at or Rev. Rhy.thm before, but if this is what they're like...)

[Kanra]

When this first came out of the mail, I opened it excitedly and was greeted by a smell of a heavy dairyed cream. There was the patchouli lingering on in the background, but it was so unexpectedly creamy! I wasn't sure what to think.

 

I gave it a week to settle and then skin tested. The cream certainly mellowed out from the mailing of it even in this short period of time, and is not nearly as prominent on my skin as it was when I opened the bottle. Don't get me wrong: there is certainly a creamy feel to the vanilla in this fragrance, but it doesn't overwhelm the rest of this blend.

 

It's absolutely gorgeous to wear and like others have said it is reminiscent of Banshee Beat to me, which is a top 3 BPAL of mine. The patchouli is a bit mellower than the patchouli in BB, and the vanilla is a bit sweeter and creamier, but fans of patchouli-vanilla blends like BB/RR would not be disappointed with this.

 

It is definitely a scent I know I will end up reaching for a lot! Am also considering a backup. The lab just really did amazing with this year's Weenies, I can't help myself to go back for more.

Edited November 14, 2021 by Kanra

[roseus]

In the bottle I get a soft creamy vanilla and a really smooth patch, with a touch of syrupy sweetness. The combo of the creamy vanilla and patch comes across as almost suede-y. On my skin it has a similarly warm, plush vibe. This one doesn't morph much on me, but the patch does deepen a bit and get a little earthier as it wears. 

[ramblingrambler]

In bottle this smells almost juicy to me. When I first applied, I wasn’t sure if this was going to work for me. It was musky and acrid, and I wasn’t sure where it was coming from. Dry down didn’t do much for it either—maybe a little more patchy vanilla came out, but it was still oddly musky. I let it rest a few days and came back. Interestingly, this has become a wooly, crinkly feeling blend. I don’t get any of the Banshee Beat or Revenant Rhythm those above mention, but the patchy vanilla is beautiful and understated. It isn’t the thick, chewy patch and vanilla of BB/RR on me. This is a crisp and round blending of the two. I almost smell popcorn and milkshakes if I stop thinking about it as its component parts. I’m excited to see how this continues to shape up over the next few days as it calms down from mail shock, and I can’t wait to see how it ages.

[Missanneshirleyofgg]

Lord help me, this smells like White Larry and weak Patchouli. 

 

Totally disappointed RR fan here. 

[Casablanca]

Have to agree with the previous review.

 

The initial burst on me is mostly movie theater butter oil -- that is, what I got from White Larry -- and a pretty but faint patch.

 

In early drydown, a heroic vanilla cream mousse shows up and tries to save the day. It billows out against the butter oil and tries to push it back, but, alas, the butter oil wins simply by continuing to ooze forth and soak everything. The butter oil's goosh is not to be denied, no, not even by a rich and luxurious cream. The mousse collapses back into a faint background vanilla and lets the butter gooze have the day.

[wolf_truffles]

I really adore this! I could smell it before I even took off the bubble wrap. The patchouli is the leading note, the mallow flower blooming around it lightly with the vanilla and cream taking away some of earthy harshness and adding delicious sweetness. I would not consider this a gluttonous gourmand at all although the milky vanilla is present. If you love patchouli, I'd recommend this! I could wear this daily. Not getting a popcorn butter note and patch is definitely front and center for me.

[Llanval]

LOVE THIS, yet also a little 💔.  Chibi opens up with a beautiful clearly distinct bourbon vanilla. I DO actually get bourbon and it stays for abt 30 min. Lovely, not fake, and with no odd butter goosh or popcorn butter oil. The mallow flower and cream mouse turn this into a rich, heady mallow pillow but unfortunately it utterly swamps the patch into absolute oblivion. Which makes me cry big sad tears because I love the Lab's patchouli note and I was desperately hoping for even a glance, a glimmer of smelling something close to Banshee Beat/Revenant Rhythm (now that one is my Storyville, lol!)

 

The patch dies a sad death on me and now I am seriously looking at that Patchouli and Canadian Balsam duet, it might be just what I need to salvage this scent.  I do genuinely enjoy this, it is beautiful, but I wanted the patch to really have a voice and Chibi desperately needs the patch to pull it down out of creamy vanilla mallow mouse paradise. Without the patch, this is sweet on sweet on sweet and I already have Silky Bat for my sugared patchouli needs. Grrrrrrr

[Amazonia]

Chibi Skull is like... if Boo and Silkybat had a baby. 

 

 

 

 

[doomsday_disco]

This starts off as boozy bourbon vanilla and red patchouli on me, and then a bit of creaminess joins in. It's really nice during this stage. While it is a sweet vanilla patch scent, I find it is more reminiscent of Départ Pour Le Sabbat (Aufbruch Zum Hexensabbat) (Bourbon vanilla, sweet red patchouli, oudh, goat's milk accord, and white honey) than Revenant Rhythm. This features a different, boozier vanilla and a red patchouli (I think Revenant Rhythm features a black one). Unfortunately, by the end of the day, it is a very strong, slightly smoky patchouli party on me with not enough sweetness.  I really wish the sweet notes had remained as strong as they were in the beginning! I'm tempted to see how this ages, but I don't think I'd reach for it, given how swoon-worthy Revenant Rhythm is to me.

[Madame Mew]

I was today years old when I learned: “The term "Bourbon vanilla" refers to the vanilla beans' provenance as being from the Bourbon Islands, most commonly Madagascar but also Mauritius and Réunion. The name comes from the period when the island of Réunion was ruled by the Bourbon kings of France and has no relation to Bourbon whiskey.”

 

I was a bit stumped because I don’t have a lot of vanilla forward scents, and this was so sweet and not a trace of bourbon to my nose and now I realize after a smidge of googling that the scents I’ve avoided because of this type of vanilla were not ones to shy away from at all.
Anyway …

I very much like this. It does start out almost sickeningly sweet, but give it half an hour and you’ll be in sweet patchouli land. 
 

I totally agree with @Amazonia ‘s review above. 

[torischroeder9]

In the decant:  Movie theater butter? No. Wax crayons. 

 

On my skin:

 

Wet, it's... um... a little like vomit. I actually gagged. 

 

This phenomenon does not disappear quickly. However, the scent does not have a whole lot of throw on me, so it's only an issue right now if I actually try to smell my skin. 

 

After an hour on my skin, this fades back, but it doesn't actually get any better. 

 

Clearly I am the outlier on this, but it is not working for me. Vehemently. 

[feyofthefellwood]

The mallow and cream combination reminds me a lot of the Poinsettia Gown, except this trades rose and jasmine for chewy red patchouli. Wet, this is a big cream/vanilla/mallow floof, very rich, buttery, then the patch emerges as it dries down and becomes more akin to other sweet patch scents like Banshee Beat/Revenant Rhythm and Silky Bat. This is definitely the most gourmand of the three. I really like it, but I love heady vanilla cream notes, so it doesn't surprise me. 

[theseagrows]

at first i get mallow and patchouli, quickly followed by the bourbon vanilla and cream mousse, which is a bit buttery. later on the patchouli gets kind of sharp and the cream gets a bit toasted, neither of which i enjoy. i was hoping for a cozy marshmallow scent but my skin seems to be projecting the other notes more. it dries down to a buttery creamy patchouli. it's ok but too intensely gourmand for me...i like my gourmands to be a bit lighter.

[Leopard403]

I get something spicy like cinnamon, on top of something like brown suede. *squints at scent description*

[artisjok]

Chibi Skull is thick mallow butter, spread on a wafer of patchouli and topped with a dollop of sweet cream.  It’s a thin granular sweetness, covered in a dense cream cloud. Super fragrant. Rich, yet not cloying to me.

 

I first thought it was a lot like Silkybat, but when comparing both, the patchouli is so much fainter that it’s hard to make that comparison. Probably the same type of patch, but buried the gourmand notes. 
 

This reminds me of DL, Honeycomb & Vanilla Cream, and scratches the same itch, so now I don’t feel the need for a bottle of that. Yay for satisfaction! 

[labugsy]

I get something shockingly red currant - like when wet, but it disappears quickly and mellows into a smooth, creamy vanilla patch. It is very much a more sweetly vanilla, less gnarly and dirty version of Banshee Beat to me. 

 

In other words, incredible and everything I've been looking for. 

[RoseThornAndOak]

I get wafer patchouli, too! Then some of the most gorgeous creamy vanilla fluff. I also got the red fruit jam vibe labugsy and others mentioned, same experience, gone like a flash. The patch is there but it's not like gnarly patch, its like a light buttery wafer, spice kinda vibe. The mallow and cream combo is reminiscent of Poinsettia, definitely agree, a bit less cloying than that can go sometimes (I just underapply that one to be safe, still love it). The toasty wafer vibe kinda reads cardboard cereal on my skin, but patch and sometimes cinnamon can do that, definitely not most people's experience. 

 

sidenote, absolutely love Madam Mew's note on bourbon vanilla. I never knew why it was called bourbon vanilla, but did note that the bourbon vanilla in one of BPAL's previous Yule blends (name escapes me) was very similar to the Madagascar vanilla used in Deep Midnight's perfumes. It's a little different here, leading me to believe BPAL's bourbon vanilla note may vary from time to time.

 

Although this ain't me, this is gonna be hekkin popular in the BPALverse.

[Jenjin]

When I first tried this, i'd forgotten the associations with BB and RR. Immediately thought of some berry cereal I used to snarf as a kid, drowning in skim milk--a chalky pink mess. Seriously couldn't kick the breakfast memories, reading the cereal box over and over, dumping it out early looking for a prize. Milk burps. Saw someone post about the patchouli reference and tried the bone chibi once more. The patch definitely blossomed while I picked up that lovely, sugared patch. I'm torn on this one, but hanging onto it to see if the fave scent memories of the beloved Banshee wins me over. 

[ND¢]

Writing this review for anyone else who occasionally but not always has a bad reaction to some but not all of the Lab's cream note. Smells like pee on me. And there are plenty of other cream or milk BPALs that don't trigger this association for me. If this does not work for you, Young Pine Saplings will also not work for you. 

[zankoku_zen]

I get mainly a sweet vanilla booze with a whiff of patchouli. It's got a smooth resinous edge to it. Medium throw and wear length.

[marared]

This was a hard pass when I first got the box, so I put it away for a couple months and brought it out to try again. Still a hard pass. It's gooey, thick and syrupy, reads almost like fig or raisin pastry filling. It's not sour or anything, but it's just blech.  Absolutely nothing like RR/BB to my nose.

[Tamarinda]

This smells very sweet in the imp, but it goes on rather bitter on the skin. It's a green bitterness with a molasses type sweetness to it that I think is the Bourbon vanilla or the mallow, or some combination of both. I can't be sure, I use Tahitian vanilla beans, not Bourbon so its hard to know. It's just not a distinctly vanilla smell, or not a "real" vanilla smell, but like the lotion you could get from B&BW in the 1990s. That, the "movie theatre butter" cream note that Tori mentioned, and the note that goes bitter celery on my skin makes this a very awkward scent. I do not get any patchouli.

 

This is another confusing Vanitas perfume. I really don't know how to feel about it. But I'm stubborn so I will continue to test this decant. It might do better during a different time of my hormone cycle.

 

UPDATE: 11/11/2022 Ok, so I picked up a half bottle of this ages ago. I continue to be confused by it and apparently, being confused is something that I enjoy?

 

Anywho. The bitter celery smell is now gone. I still don't get any obvious patchouli. Maybe my skin eats it? Not sure. But I do get a lot of the not-standard vanilla scent mentioned in my original review. I also get a vague milky smell with the vanilla. It's no longer "movie theatre butter," but it isn't distinctly anything else. It's just dairy-ish and vanilla-ish. Chibi Skull has excellent throw and lasts for well over eight hours. It makes no sense for me to like this as its so vague, but I kinda love it.

Edited November 12, 2022 by Tamarinda
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