tinyvulture

at first sniff: fruity pumpkin. the extreme butteriness of this pumpkin note makes it a jarring match with the crisp pear and juicy white grape. it’s like the pumpkin is too rich to be paired with these light, refreshing fruits. i’ve had jasmine tea, and i don’t care for it, but that’s neither here nor there because i can’t smell a drop of it in this blend. not intolerable, but not my favorite pumpkin scent, either.

at first sniff, i get pumpkin and…pickles? there’s something sour, vinegar-like, and i have no idea what it is. it may be due to the age of this decant, now over a year old. luckily, it quickly fades, and the unmistakable sweet scent of sage comes out in full force. if you’ve ever had pumpkin ravioli with sage butter, you know that this little green herb has quite a love affair with the autumnal orange gourd. they complement each other so well. i couldn’t tell you what cactus blossom or sweetgrass smell like, so who knows if i’m smelling them, but the pumpkin and sage form a perfect duo all by themselves.

a resinous, woodsy, masculine blend. almost like a department store cologne. dry and spicy and slightly bitter. the sandalwood is the strongest element, with soft bezoin and opoponax, and a touch of rose popping up from time to time. very little clove or patchouli. it’s really nice, but it feels too masculine for me. i’m curious how it will smell on my husband – i’m thinking good!

in the bottle, this smells of incense (the one from Midnight Mass) mixed with pancake syrup. when i apply it, the coffee grounds pop out for a second, then quickly disappear. next the grasses become apparent. it’s a field of grass, yellowing and sun-baked, but patches of green blades still remain here and there. the dried grass’ slight bitterness is a nice contrast to the dark incense and syrupy maple notes. after about 15 minutes the grass fades. now it’s just incense and syrup. they go great together. lasts for a long time, too.

so much leather, like walking into a men's shoe store! oiled, smooth leather, with a hint of sweetness from the musk. i always approve of musk; it seems to enhance any other note it's paired with. if you're not a musk fan, you might want to stay away. my husband loves this, and i love it on him. suddenly, i don't regret foolishly swapping my bottle of dead man's hand quite so much.

ugh, this it not making me joyful. sickeningly sweet, cloying, like fake cherry candy flavoring. i have a feeling there's lotus in this. after a few minutes a heavy, creamy vanilla appears, making things more tolerable, but still not exactly pleasant. others seem to enjoy it so i'm sure it's a skin chemistry issue. off to swaps!

when i apply it, it’s equal parts lemon, lime and mint, with a little bit of powdery, sweetened dried coconut. it’s very strong. take a deep breath -- it really clears out your sinuses, without being all “eww medicine!” i’m usually not a fan of lemon because it overpowers everything else. but the mint is really holding its own here. i wouldn’t really call this “pretty,” but it’s very refreshing and invigorating. i think it would be good for working out. after a few minutes it does threaten to turn “lemon pledge” but the mint and coconut manage to restrain the wayward lemon and keep things pleasant-smelling.

plum, cherry cough syrup, and green herbal notes. it’s extremely sweet, fruity, and medicinal. i don’t know if they make ‘em anymore, but it smells like these cough drops i ate like candy as a child, called Sucrets. smelling this practically makes the back of my throat go numb, the way those cough drops did. but after a few minutes, it’s more like cherry incense than a sore throat remedy. still very fruity – reminds me slightly of Urd. i like it when it gets to this stage.

at first this is 100% vetiver. dank, musty and heavy. then the patchouli becomes noticeable, and it’s like the most raw, earthy patchouli you can get. there is nothing refined about it. the color this scent brings to mind is pitch black. it’s all woods and wet earth, being lost in the deep woods in the middle of the night. evil in a bottle, indeed! i love it.

my first reaction was, “hey, this is kinda girly!” but if i remember the Johnny Depp movie correctly, Ichabod was kind of a girly character the fruity floral muguet is the strongest note on me, backed by cream, slightly bitter tea, and the distinct scent of a wool sweater. the beeswax is also noticeable, although faint. i thought it might smell different on my husband, but it smelled of creamy muguet on him as well. a pleasant surprise, not what i pictured but a really delightful scent in its own way.

the softest, creamiest white rose. i’m like swooning over this. simple, yet perfect. the cream and honey smooth away any trace of the bitterness that occasionally happens with rose. i love BPAL’s honey note, but i’m actually glad it isn’t very strong here. it accentuates the rose rather than covering it up. this is classic enough to wear at work, yet cute enough for a date. it seems like it would work in any situation.

straight out of the imp, i smell that wonderful sweet honey note that i love so much in O, Hetairae, Kill-Devil, etc. it's actually very similar to O, except lighter and more summery. there is a slight sourness associated with fermentation, and a delicate floral/herbal note that i'm guessing is the sweet briar. the ginger is present, but it's light -- more like powdered ginger than raw ginger. i can't smell any of the spices at all, which is suprising since cinnamon and clove usually amp on my skin. the lemon, another huge amper, has also gone missing, which is fine with me! this blend doesn't have a ton of throw, but sometimes you just want something light and sweet and pretty. this is it. a MUST for honey lovers.

the leather/pumpkin combo is also found in The Shattered Pumpkin, but i prefer it here. this is a very spicy, sexy pumpkin! i can’t believe i used the words “sexy” and “pumpkin” in the same review, but that’s bpal for you, i guess. along with the strong leather note, i keep thinking i smell cinnamon. the tonka adds sweetness and the musk brings warmth. i don’t get any butter from this, as other reviewers did. just a whole lot of leather and spice. the only negative is that it doesn’t have a lot of throw.

Raw pumpkin, like sniffing the inside of a jack-o-lantern, combined with rich soil and a touch of leather. I also smell something kind of damp and mildewy – the water weeds? I don’t smell the pine at all. The pumpkin note is nice, not the usual foody pumpkin. But after a few minutes, there is an almost cloying sweetness coming from the soil and leather, which strikes me as strange. This indeed smells like a pumpkin that’s been shattered on the ground by mischievous kids, and left there to rot on a rainy day. Is that a good thing? You decide. I really liked it at first, and will hang onto the imp for the sheer uniqueness of it, but the sweetness is too much for me to consider a bottle.

a gorgeous foody scent! the buttery cake is comforting and rich, and the orange rind adds just the right amount of sparkle. i can see the orange hostess cupcake comparison that others have mentioned. there's also something that smells like spicy root beer, which must be the anise seed. i like this better than eat me or any other cake scent i can think of. it has a variety of notes which all come together to smell delicious, and it doesn't turn to plastic or play-doh as foody blends occasionally do on me. i had to try a decant because i thought, "do i really want to smell like a dessert?" the answer is yes!

thanks to bpal, i’ve learned that i love florals combined with cream or sugar. here, the soft rose and orchid are nicely enhanced and smoothed out by plenty of sweet cream, and the gentle musk is just the icing on the cake that brings it all together and makes it ever so warm and fuzzy. it does seem youthful and innocent – it’s very feminine and pretty, but it’s understated, not trying to be sexy. i think it’s charming.

on first sniff, this reminds me a lot of glowing vulva at ryogoku bridge – it’s the strong lotus note that they share. the bold fruitiness of lotus matches perfectly with the copious, heady red musk. this particular grindhouse resident is definitely not a shy lady! i’m surprised, after seeing mimosa and bergamot on the description, that i don’t get any citrus out of this. really, the lotus and red musk pairing seems to overshadow all of the other notes. it’s a vibrant, sexy scent. but, i actually love red musk so much that i’m up to my ears in red musk blends and need some variety in my collection. it’s nothing personal, marianne.

a vibrant bouquet of roses and other cheery florals. i suck at describing floral blends, but i'd say there's something resinous about this, and also waxy. think of a candle that smells like rose incense! there's also a light dusting of cocoa, but i can't really pick out any of the other notes at all. it's really pretty, and has a moderately strong scent without being overpowering.

this reminds me of one of my GC faves, kill-devil. it’s got that same treacly molasses/caramelized brown sugar scent, only with the addition of a subtle fruitiness in the background. not like fresh fruit, more like fruit-flavored hard candy. if you don’t like extremely foody scents, you may find this too syrupy and sugary, but i think it’s happy and comforting.

This is such a dark, ominous blend. The full-bodied fruitiness of the wine comes out first, but is immediately muted by the spiciness and slight metallic tang of the blood, and the acrid smokiness of brimstone. And then there’s the familiar charred, earthy note of vetiver. If you enjoy burnt, smoky blends, then you should love this. I think this is such a perfect combination of notes to produce such a creepy, yet intoxicating, overall effect.

A desolate scent, dusty, bleak, and withered: old wood, burnt brown sandalwood, and twisted vines. there is something about this that reminds me of Darkness. it’s the scent of a candle flame being extinguished. waxy, smoky, and also slightly soapy. i think there’s a bit of ozone, which i’m really picky about, but it’s lovely here. and then there’s the natural, green scent of the vines. a quiet forest path where vines are growing over the wood, a mist hangs in the air, the smoke from a campfire in the distance. i love that all of this year’s Halloweenies are so evocative of a certain time and place for so many of us. i know my decant of this won’t be enough.

Mellow fruitiness and hazel shells, as the poem says –- an understated apple note combined with rich hazelnut. Hazelnut, so lovely in Wezwanie/Hold, is fast becoming one of my favorite notes. Yet the woodsy tree bark, raspy dry leaves, and mist keep this scent from being totally foody. You’re on a hike in the woods on one of those chilly autumn days where it hasn’t rained yet, but a cold moisture seems to hang in the air. you stop to enjoy an indulgent snack of crisp apples and nut butter. I may need a bottle of this.

what i mostly get from this is the sweet fruity citrus scent of white grapefruit. then there’s just a hint of ginger, and more citrus in the form of neroli. i can’t smell the tea or any of the floral notes because the grapefruit is so strong. i like how piercingly sweet it is, like a slice of grapefruit covered in sugar crystals, or a piece of grapefruit-flavored bubble gum. but, as with most citrus blends, it’s way too strong for me.

i like the sweet grains and the sort of metallic, sort of resinous blood note (the same blood note as in the cracked bell, maybe?) but the whiskey and beer are too much. i enjoy the authenticity of these notes, but smelling them on my skin reminds me of bad college hangovers, and makes me feel slightly ill. there’s also an odd lemony note that isn’t helping. off to swaps you go, mr. barleycorn!

a perfect, idealized green grass scent. so bright and bold. a lawn full of healthy green little blades soaking up all that early-autumn sunlight. there is a slight sharpness or bitterness in the background that i guess might be the autumn leaves. it certainly doesn’t seem like the same sweet autumn leaves note from samhain. to me, this is a more unisex version of last year's october, which was too masculine and cologne-like for my taste. a lovely tribute to nature and Indian summer.