Scientific, Occult and Inexplicable

[Seajewel]

Do you dare smell one of the unsolved wonders of the universe? The bronze, brass, iron, glass and polished wood of Victorian scientific instruments obfuscated by a swirl of incense and a spatter of ectoplasm.

[starbrow]

I am drawn to all the steampunk-sounding scents so I had to blind-bottle this one! Scientific, Occult and Inexplicable is very true from bottle to skin. It is fantastically weird, a wild dance of lab smells from a forgotten era. There are definitely sketchy things going on in this lab. There is, perhaps, a handsome figure in a lab coat muddling about, wearing cologne....but any traditional fragrance is eclipsed by the wildness of the experiments around it.

 

So I smell primarily the polished wood - mahogany - and varnish, along with an unsettling note that is very appropriately creepy. Beneath it is a sparkly glass that I love. I get a metallic tinge of bronze/brass/iron, and as it warms, more than a hint; that metallic note really ramps up and makes its presence known. It's not necessarily a *pretty* note but it is fascinating.

 

I am reminded of a creepier Elle Est Heureuse from the Lilith Travelogues, with its Wrought iron lattice and sparkling amber lights. Ultimately that one didn't quite do it for me, and Scientific, Occult, and Inexplicable will also be rehomed I think, because while it isn't the scent for me, I think somebody will absolutely be dazzled by this steampunk lab, and deservedly so.

[Casablanca]

What smells like a roadside manor of Victorian attractions on the decant wand turns into a bit of a hot chemical mess on my skin.

 

At least on the wand, I get iron, polished wood, and a melange of odd background objects... I picture all manner of obscure instruments shaped from metal, glass, and wood. 

 

On my skin, it's like... let's call it a garage lab for making vinyl. If that isn't a thing in reality, it's at least being concept-pitched by my arm right now.

[zankoku_zen]

Green herbs, metal (bass/iron), and a whiff of woods. This one smells like it could be a Steampunk blend. Medium throw and wear length.

[Area51Fugitive]

The well-used but also well-cared for desk of a steampunk mad scientist who dabbles in magic every now and again for a change of pace.  Wood, metal, the herbs of whatever alchemical screwery the mad scientist is brewing up.  There's no leather mentioned in the notes, but on my skin something like worn-in leather pops up.  There's some sawdust as well.  I really like this, but not sure I would wear it enough to get a full sized bottle.  If you're into steampunk though, and like the other steampunk blends the lab has, DO GET.

[RoseThornAndOak]

Welp I thought this would do the hot mess thing on me too, but I'm pleasantly surprised. At first it goes on metal, a tiny bit acrid, strange, atmospheric, I don't even know, but it does have an old laboratory vibe.

 

After a while it softens up and the slight acrid streak goes away. I'm left with a soft, slightly powdered, gentlemanly blend of hard to pin down notes. Maybe slightly (ever so) metallic incense powder, maybe in the way tobacco is slightly metallic? Yes that's it, I think tobacco might be in this, lighter leaf color, not deep, chewy, or syrupy, but dried. It makes me think of something Professor Moriarty would wear. Steampunk vibes for sure, too.

 

A decant'll do me I reckon, yet it keeps getting better and better as it wears, so it's a tough call. I do have Lycan Lace and Antikythera that I enjoy more for this vibe (only slightly similar in scent, but very similar in vibe). I feel like many might miss a good tweeded, waist-coated, masculine blend with this one, it's worth checking out. 

Edited June 19, 2022 by RoseThornAndOak
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