Vanitas With Playing Cards

[Seajewel]

Blood red musk with lacquered vetiver, mahogany, and black labdanum.

[SeroSpu]

Very up-front mahogany, dry/grassy vetiver, labdanum is hanging out in the background adding the faintest flicker of sweetness. I might be amping the other notes, but the red musk isn't that noticeable or overpowering to me. I'm super happy with how much the lacquer is coming through. If I had to paint a picture, it smells like well-worn and polished wood. I had anticipated this being somewhat similar to Bloody Corridor, but this is tonally a much warmer scent. 

[frizzlechicken]

This is an extremely elegant scent, all of the notes are present and very well-blended. No one note dominates over the other on me. This smells like a super high-end cologne. I like it a lot and may consider a full size bottle to share with my spouse. 

[Rane.]

Something slightly spicy, a hint sweet, & creamy. But overall woodsy; a men's cologne. It has to be the vetiver & labdanum lending those sweet-wood qualities. I can get the mahogany coming out later with the musk.

 

A Fall scent for me.

 

It almost recreates a mallow smell, like In Dubiis Libertas. & it also reminds me of a mature version of the chocolate Axe Body Spray I was obsessed with at least a decade ago.

Edited November 27, 2021 by Rane.

[Casablanca]

Disclaimer: This is a friend's decant. Red musk is often dreadful on me, but let's give it a go. With that in mind...

 

Slightly spicy red musk. For me, that's the sole note on first application, but soon it develops some deep mahogany and darker labdanum.

 

At the freshly dried stage, I get a lot of lacquer, too, and a little warm leather, though none is listed. Possible that's how some notes are combining, or there could be a hidden thing that's bringing leather to mind.

 

This is a heavy scent, in terms of weight and gravitas. Woody, red musky, lacquery, perhaps a little leathery.

[groovyrooby]

My initial impression was dirt. The dirt note and dusty flowers of Zombi - which is not for me. As it settled down, the notes I don't care for tamed into a brown smell of old books, with just a hint of woody spice, like a balsam. No red musk, but definitely got the lacquer & mahogany. Faded quickly on me.

 

[Lucchesa]

I'm astounded by the reviewers who got no red musk and brief wear length.  As usual, red musk absolutely takes over on me and lasts all day.  Once it settles down, it's dry (not fruity) red musk with lacquer, vetiver that is more green than smoky, and polished mahogany.  I'm not sure I'm familiar with black labdanum, but I'm not getting the syrupy cola resin I love. This scent is highly polished, like a woman who always looks completely put together.  Very sophisticated and maybe even snooty.  She's a little out of my league.  I like this, and it might be an excellent power scent, but it's not really me.  

[Ennikar]

The first impression I got was red musk, wood, and very definitely lacquer. It stayed lacquered all the way through, with varying levels of dry woodiness and a touch of musk, like a drier, lacquered fenris wolf. It's actually a touch too dry and astringent for me to want to wear it every day, but it's got a time and a place - in this case, I'm thinking when I want to put across the air of someone refined who can very much handle themself. It's probably the theme that has me thinking "Bond villain during a card game", but that's the image we get.

[zankoku_zen]

Red and black musk, notes of wood and resin. This one is dark, and brooding musk. Medium throw, good wear length.

[DiZZysTARdust]

this is somewhat medicinal in the bottle. like leafy green medicinal, almost like the camphor of eucalyptus but i suspect it could possibly be the labdanum, which can sometimes read as more herbally to me. 

 

freshly applied the strongest note for me is the mahogany, which i love. it’s very smooth and polished as other reviews have noted. imo it’s almost like a very light, sweet almost-tobacco-like note. not quite as chewy but gives off the same cologne-esque vibe. for that reason this seems more gender neutral bordering on masculine to me. 

 

stays pretty much the same into the drydown, an ethereal polished mahogany. good throw on it. i’m not really sensing the red musk yet, and no vetiver at all to me, although this bottle is brand new to me so might need some time to settle and bring out more notes, but definitely lovely and sophisticated as is!

 

eta about 3 hours into the dry down i’m starting to pick up the vetiver. it’s very subtle and blends into the rest of the notes well, giving more of a grassy vibe than straight up vetiver

Edited June 7, 2022 by DiZZysTARdust