A Medley of Vulvas

[Seajewel]

Bourbon vanilla, pink labdanum, pink pepper, honey, and bushman’s candle absolute.

[Ria]

LOVE!!! On me, this is a gorgeous vanilla with just a hint of incense, due to the bushman's candle I think. This is going to age magnificently!

[marared]

Fresh out of the mailbox: absolutely delicious honeyed vanilla with just a slight bit of effervescence from the labdanum and the pink pepper. I've never smelled bushman's candle and there's nothing in this that hints at something different from the rest of the scent. The honey is NOT overpowering or sticky, but it does develop an aspect that makes me think of vanilla flavored hard candy.

 

It's not the same vanilla, but this is what I hoped for from Love's Philosophy back in the day - I had to sell it off because it just didn't work right with my chemistry, but this is niiice.

[Teamama]

When I sniffed the bottle right out of the mailbox & chilled, the honey was very indolic (like, toddler underpants level indolic.) I knew it needed at least a short rest.

The next morning: wet in the bottle, it's a vanilla & honey blend, with incense.

Wet on my skin: the honey & pink pepper are forward, with a touch of smoke & vanilla. No labdanum, alas.

On dry-down: it's got very little throw. Vanilla, honey, & incense. No labdanum & no pepper.

I'll try to come back with further impressions, because I suspect this blend could change a lot with age.

I like it, but it isn't rocking my world.

[saralaughs]

From a well rested bottle;

 

Wet: waxy spice. The pepper here isn't bubblegum-ish at all.

 

The labdanum is slinky and resinous; I don't get cola, just a warm background that helps blend the pepper, which calms down fairly quickly but doesn't disappear.

 

The honey isn't a star for me, but it's definitely present. It's a deep, clover like syrup that coats the blend in stickiness, but that's not bad. I feel it's a counterpoint to the kick of the pepper.

 

There is a smooth, warm, amber like resinous backdrop that moves forward. It's slightly woody and creamy. I'm supposing this is the bushman's. It's glorious and I love it.

 

All together, this blend is a very creamy, sweet, woody with a bit of wax lending a stable background, holding it together.

 

Hours later, I'm left with something reminiscent of beeswax, but not as rich and deep. It's a clean yet golden and warm wax. 

 

I'm in love.

[elissamay]

This strikes me similarly to Horses from 2021 Yule (an absolute favorite), but with honey. It's resinous in a way that feels radiantly warm, but instead of just an amber resinous warmth, it's a honey-vannilic amber resinous warmth. The Bushman's candle is what I'm guessing I'm reading as emphasizing that vanilla note and feeling "amber-esque," and it's gorgeous.

 

I agree that it moves toward beeswax, but to me it never quite gets there. Maybe the warm puddle of melted beeswax as the candle burns, since there is an ever so slight touch of smokiness, too--that may be the pepper. But if it's wax then it's warm wax, liquid wax, not a dusty candle on the shelf.

 

So pleased with this one, and what I tested I could smell all day and into the next morning. Can't wait to give it a full application and wear.

[feyofthefellwood]

Lush, pink, honeyed vanilla. Very lovely. I adore honey scents but have so many that I'm picky about the ones I add to my collection now, but Medley is certainly worth the addition. This makes me think of O meets Vasilissa, but the Bushman's Candle note is unique to my nose. To me, it smells like a dry amber incense, but there is a sweet, heady edge to it. 

[MamaMoth]

sorry, i'm about to get wordy. this is just so ridiculously good, i'm kinda gobsmacked.

 

this right here is what i think of as a benchmark scent. like, sometimes i'm so indecisive about whether i need a bottle of something... i may really like a scent, even love it... but am i really just appreciating the artistry? do i actually connect with it? then something like this one comes along, and it's suddenly very clear. this is how i should feel about a perfume. this is my benchmark. 

 

ok, that's all very interesting but can i describe it?

 

i can try. 

 

it opens with some particularly pungent honey and lots of pink labdanum, which i was wary of. labdanum is one of my very favorite notes, but red lab has been recently giving me pause. it has such a harsh, almost medicinal tone... right on the cusp of being something i could love but never quite getting there. but this pink lab, this is the goods. this delivers. it is absolutely the little sister of red labdanum, but it's toned down and softened in such a way that suddenly it just clicks with me. i'm in love. gimme ALL the pink labdanum plx.

 

bushman’s candle? i still couldn't tell you exactly. there is a creamy, candley tenor to this. but it's different, not one of your standard candlewax/beeswax notes. it's so softly waxy that it has fingerprint-whorled indentations where you handled it. it has a hint of glowing warmth to it: the candle is lit, but smokeless.   

 

this bourbon vanilla deserves a special shout out too, as it is has a lot of presence here. it's so very creamy and perfumey and not the slightest bit gourmand. 

 

pink pepper? just a little dryish rasp, a cat-tongued swipe that helps to temper all that lushness.

 

as everything settles into place, it's like this:   

resinous chunks of pink amber incense and a malleable, creamy candle burning on a shrine dedicated to some plush, voluptuous, dewy-cheeked love goddess.  

 

it's absolutely gorgeous. 

 

Edited March 27, 2023 by MamaMoth

[emkathol]

VERY powdery, in a pleasant way. I get a candle wax type of smell, plus some vintage makeup powder, and a non-funky honey. There's a hint of something a little generically "pink" smelling that is quite nice. The powder/honey notes are by far the strongest, with a supporting note of freshly blown-out beeswax candle. This is an interesting scent but ultimately not for me, as the powdery, honey dust, and beeswax candle notes only get stronger with time on my skin. Those who love powdery scents or sweeter, gentler honey notes will like this.

[doomsday_disco]

This is a honeyed (but not overly honeyed!) amber-like scent on me accompanied by some sheer bourbon vanilla, although there's a slight medicinal undertone beneath the resinous scent, and I'm not sure if that's just my sniffer or if that's part of the bushman's candle absolute or what. It sadly never lost that undertone on me, although it did get slightly more powdery and amber-y with wear. Oddly enough, the pink pepper didn't stand out to me, nor did the labdanum (or if that's where the amberiness is coming from, it wasn't like the sour or cola-like varieties of labdanum that I've experienced).

 

I don't need more of this one, but I'm glad I gave it a try!

 

ETA: After more settling, the labdanum became much more noticeable, and I think that is what wasn't jiving with me.

Edited April 14, 2023 by doomsday_disco

[tinyvulture]

GORGEOUS. I’ve never encountered bushman’s candle before, but the internet tells me it’s a waxy/resinous bark with notes of amber, caramel and brown sugar. Like, YES PLEASE. So I would love a SN bushman’s candle, to really distill what I’m smelling here. But I get all of the above notes, heavy on the brown sugar. Plus creamy vanilla, warm honey, and I think I can pick out the labdanum a tiny bit in the background. I love it INSTANTLY and need large amounts! 

[theseagrows]

starts with a lot of honey with some vanilla and labdanum. it's a bit like incensy root beer with honey. i think it's the honey but something is going somewhat baby powdery on me. ok but sometimes honey goes wonky, and in this case it does, along with the bushman's candle. i think that combination is going strange on my skin. this isn't terrible on me but not great either.

 

[Llanval]

This one disappointed me. Tested from an ajevie slonk, I get beeswax and a thin dusting of what reads as brown sugar and then that's where the scent stays for the rest of the wear time. Like a "high-end" body lotion from Shoppers Drug mart 😔

 

Not much throw, and I can't comment on staying power because it became a faint skin scent that I caught whiffs of during the day but eventually lost around 4pm.

 

 

[Jenjin]

The Bushman's Candle beckoned me here. This is a non-gourmand soft and creamy scent, the vanilla is sugary sweet and flows into the other notes beautifully. I am predominantly getting a rich and thick waxy scent, topped off with a dollop of whipped honey. It's like getting lost in a beehive where the bees are so fat with thichoney they lounge around all day instead of working. Makes me think of "O" and I need to try these side-by-side because it seems very similar. 

Edited April 25, 2023 by Jenjin

[becca_s]

On me this is bourbon vanilla, thick beeswaxy honey and effervescent pink labdanum. The pink labdanum seems like a softer version that other types. Labdanum sometimes doesn't work on me but the pink variety blends so well with the other notes here. I also smell something unique which must be the bushmans candle - to me it is a slightly woodsy, dry and smoky scent. It's so hard to describe but blends perfectly with the vanilla and honey. This is lovely and definitely unique among my bpal collection.

[Minh Scent]

What a gorgeous perfume!  The dominant note on me is wax, supported by vanilla and honey.  It gets prettier and prettier the longer I wear it and develops a delightful powderiness. I cannot smell the pink pepper, but my nose actually gets a bit of a buzz from it- the same sensation as when you smell mentholated medicine, but without  the actual medicinal smell. One of the favorites of this year's lupers.

[Little Bird]

The honey and wax obviously make me think of beeswax candles and the pink labdanum doesn't smell pink to me, but does smell like a very powdery amber.  Beeswax candles drizzled in extra sugared honey on a base of powdery amber.  After a while, I can smell a bit of smoky incense as well.  I agree with the review that said this made them think of O, but I prefer O because it feels more well rounded, dark, plush, and sensual to me where this is waxy and a little too sweet and powdery for me.

[LavenderCoffee]

When I tested this yesterday the first description that came to mind was "toasted beeswax," which technically doesn't make any sense, but still seems correct to me today, after wearing it all morning. It's a rich, sweet honey scent accented with vanilla, but the additional notes add a layer of complexity - a gently toasty quality - that prevent it from going too cloying for me. This also hits my sweet spot for sillage and longevity, as I'm still enjoying my personal scent bubble 6 hours in. Glad I caught up with this lovely scent after missing it last year.