forspecial_plate

Thunder Moon from a couple years ago is good for what you're describing, too.

Potter's Field is kind of a hidden gem. Dirt, grass, herbs and wood combine to make something really special. After the dirt note backs off a little, it starts to resemble a more traditional, somewhat masculine cologne, but in the best possible way.

Three scents came to mind when I read the title of the thread, but they're all limited edition. Nothing extremely rare, though.

 

November....."Autumn leaves damp beneath the first snowfall". Although not listed in the notes, I do get a distinct crisp minty note when I wear this, as well as some earthiness mixed with the leaves.

 

Usher....."This is Roderick Usher: a faded genteel light musk and fougere, heightened by hectic white mint, gleaming mandarin, ethereal tea leaf and gritty blackcurrant brushed by the scent of the tarn that surrounds the House, and the gloom and decay of the walls that hold him". This is actually less earthy to me than November, but more minty.

 

Green Tree Viper...."Snake Oil with four mints, bergamot, and green tea". I think it's generally accepted that Snake Oil has patchouli.

 

Also, I second Cathode...."A negatively charged scent. Ambergris, Spanish Moss, oakmoss and three electric mints". That's a good one, and not a limited edition. The moss does bring to mind an earthy quality.

Ended up wearing Blade Of Grass on Saturday, and Demeter's Firefly on Sunday. I was in the mood for light scents, not perfumey or too cologney. : ) Although they both do end up being somewhat cologney, IMO.

 

Gay Pride is coming up, and I'm trying to decide what to wear again. I was thinking about Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener, which is funny because I looked up this discussion and found that I thought about it last year too. I forget what I ended up wearing last year, though.

 

June Gloom is much more bright and cheery than the name would suggest! I smell mostly flowers, and I find myself thinking of Midnight On The Midway, without the incense notes that I like a lot in that scent. There's something marshmallowy and sweet about June Gloom, and after a while, there is also a papery note that comes out. It's subtle but I can't deny it, and I am not a huge fan of papery scents. Overall, this is probably not really my thing, but it's not offensive by any means. The reviews for the old June Gloom mention a lot more lemon, and that would probably be more to my liking.

Gay Pride is coming up, and I'm trying to decide what to wear again. I was thinking about Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener, which is funny because I looked up this discussion and found that I thought about it last year too. I forget what I ended up wearing last year, though.

 

The Gay Pride festivities are next weekend, and I'm already thinking about what to wear. It will be hot, sticky, and sweaty, and possibly raining. So that probably eliminates anything light or ethereal as it would be just sweated off in a short time.

 

Midnight On The Midway....this would be good because it's so strong on my skin. Would stand out in a crowd, for sure....also it reminds me of suntan oil that I used to love, so on a sunny/hot day it would be great.

 

Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener......even though this is on the lighter side, it's quirky and unusual, and I know I wouldn't smell like anyone else! : )

 

Ile De La Tortue....to me this is a humid and sultry floral scent, with none of the bad things that florals can do (no soap, no powder).

 

Scarecrow.....I wore this again recently. I had an imp a long time ago, but swapped it away. Something about the scent just stuck in my head and I bought another imp, and I'm glad I did. It's still slightly odd if I sniff up close, but the throw is amazing and unusual. Definitely the scent of a hot, dry day. This might be more of an August scent than June, but still it's good.

 

Death Adder.....or maybe Snake Oil.....something from that family, might fit the mood.

 

I think I'll put on Midnight On The Midway and see how I feel about it on a hot summer day. I haven't worn it much lately.

 

Manners Among Men & Women... from this year's Shungas has turned into a sleeper hit for my husband... On him, the sake & woods cut right through the apricot, and the end result is this clean, warm, freshly-laundered-shirt scent - very low-key & natural, but totally office-appropriate

 

Yes! This surprised me too. It's not something I want to wear all the time, but I definitely want to have it on hand. Not what I expected from the description/notes. The apricot is kind of dry, and reminds me a little of Ebisu....

 

I love the gender-neutral scents. I love the ones that have a feminine element, but end up working for me anyway. Metal Phoenix is a good example. It just works.

 

I do still love Baron Samedi, and I need to get a bottle of that soon.

I've worn this a few times, and it's really growing on me. At first I thought it was slightly powdery but I think that is more of a dryness, that is perhaps coming off as almost powdery.

 

I agree that it smells like clove, but this doesn't have the sourness that I often get from clove. For example, The Smiling Spider doesn't agree with me, because it turns really dark and sour. But Velvet Bandito is lighter and sweeter. That is not to say it has a light throw.....on the contrary, it has a pretty substantial throw, and lasts a good while, too.

 

Overall it's spicy and sweet, but not like a cookie or anything. It's more like other people have been saying.....dry spices in a wood box, with tobacco. I mentioned this elsewhere, but it reminds me a lot of Demeter's Humidor, only this is stronger.

I've only tried Velvet Bandito once, but it reminded me a lot of Demeter's Humidor (except VB has some more 'oomph', and has a powdery element).

 

So if you like Humidor, but found that it didn't last long enough, Velvet Bandito could be just what you're looking for.

This is pretty much a winner. I recognize some notes that I've smelled before, but not in this combination. I smell the same pear note from Quincey Morris, and that stands out above the other notes. Overall this is somewhat sweet and fruity, with just the right balance of the wood, amber, etc. Nothing else really stands out. The oakmoss doesn't turn soapy, which makes me happy. And I'm glad this has fig leaf instead of fig, otherwise this might be too sweet. I would call it just right the way it is, and if I use my imagination I can pick out that fig leaf, just a little.

What I think of when I wear this is Mr. Jacquel, although they don't really smell alike, they are somewhat like cousins. This is probably my favorite of the three Le Mat scents.

I like this....it smells mostly like smokey toffee at first, and reminds me of scratch 'n sniff stickers from when I was little. Later, the woodsy parts come out, and I find myself thinking of Riding The Goat, but with some sultry toffee layered on top. I never tried Ventriloquist Dummy so I can't say how that compares.

 

I don't get a lot of coffee, it's mostly smokey toffee and woods. It had a teasing quality to my nose, it keeps wafting up and around me, reminding me that it's there (duh, I guess most scents do that). But it does smell a little different if I sniff up close, compared to the throw. It's a good scent!

 

Edit....I agree with the reviewer after me who was reminded of El Dia de Reyes. I thought of it right away when I put on Velvet Dogs Playing Poker, but just forgot to mention it in my review. It must be the sweet coffee!

Hmmm...guess this pretty much answers my question about the Perfumed Court too....here is where they are selling decants.

 

I wish I hadn't supported this business, but too late now. I won't, however, buy again.

 

I'm pretty horrified about the price---48.00 for eight imps?????

 

Not to mention, they shouldn't be calling them "imps" if they are LE scents. I'm not chastising you for using "imps", oceandreamer, I know we say it a lot around here. I'm just saying if they were authorized sellers they should know that.

 

[i know it sounds knit-picky, but it's something that the lab is pretty clear about, and it has been brought up in the past]

I had no doubts at all that I'd be getting a bottle of this. It's really great, but I like the opening 'wet on the skin' stage more than anything. It's fruity and dark like Faiza, almost reminding me of a deep, blood-red sangria or something*. The other notes are there, swirling around, and I think I can pick out violet leaf and anise, if I try.

 

As it starts to dry, the dark musk and vanilla come out and pretty much take over. The star anise reminds me a bit of leather, which it tends to do sometimes. The vanilla is the deep, smokey variety, and it reminds me of Snake Oil's vanilla. As for the dark musk, I've smelled that before, too. It calls to mind Iago and Haunted, like someone else mentioned. But smelling this musk and vanilla together might be a new thing for me. I can't remember that combination in any other bpal scent, but they work together really, really well!

 

As it continues to dry and starts to fade, the musk does start to take on a powdery aspect, which I thought might happen, and is pretty much my only complaint about this scent. Much, much later, I think the woods and vetiver come out a bit, and the scent takes on a more cologne-like quality, which is fine with me, but might turn some others off (assuming they have the same experience). The person above who said to try this in a scent locket is probably on to something here. It's that first stage of the scent that really grabs me, and I want that to last longer!

 

*Edit....."Sangria" may be misleading, because that fruity part is just one part of the scent. But I wanted to say, it's not a bright and fruity blend at all, the fruity part is more deep, if you know what I mean.

Yay, I got to try this today! When wet, this scent is very snappy and green, kind of peppery and slightly minty. It reminds me of rubbing fresh herbs between my fingers, almost like the scent that is left on my skin when I pick and clean fresh basil. Sometimes tea notes remind me of citrus, but I don't get any citrus out of V. Cthulhu. I didn't find this very juicy or aquatic at all.

 

As it dries, it becomes more dry and dusty. I think I'm mostly smelling the cedar, sage, and khus. Incredibly, it really does remind me of a very green velvet painting, kind of dusty and fuzzy, and with imagination you can even smell the incense that was burned in the room with the painting. It's a pretty neat scent and I can hardly wait to try the other velvet painting scents.

I love the way this smells....I can't keep my hand away from my nose when I wear it. Maybe not so gender-appropriate for me, since I'm a guy, but I don't care....I want to wear this to work, and other places. I like all the notes in Dia, and my only slight worry was that the scent would be soapy or powdery, and it has hints of both of those, but never quite crosses the line where it's too much.

 

Oakmoss is a note that I want to love, but I think that sometimes it becomes soapy on me. In this case, it's not too soapy though, which makes me happy. All the other notes just seem to blend together until nothing really stands out too much. I would agree with most of the other reviews, this is a light, musky floral scent. The colors I think of are white and pale green at first, then the amber warms the scent up a bit, and I think of golden/yellow threads winding through the white and green.

 

It's really great and it does remind me of Snow White, only there's no chill in this one, and it's not quite as floral. I love it!

I never reviewed this?? Inconceivable!

 

I really like Blade Of Grass. It is definitely realistic, and I can smell both the snappy green grass and the mellow autumn leaves. However, it's light and subtle enough that I can wear it to work and not make people think, "Why do I smell grass??". I read some other reviews that mention soap, and I didn't think so, but at least one friend of mine did say it reminded him of soap.

 

To me, it's like a lighter October, and I already have a full bottle of that. I think this could work for those that found October too cologney or after-shavey (if I remember correctly, that was a common complaint). I like both scents, though. This one has a light green and gold feeling.

DCVII

 

I got this from Supremegoddessofall. : ) She called it earthy and masculine, which I can agree with.

 

At first I was calling this 'Deep Purple' because when I first tried it, it had an odd purple feel, but not fruity in the slightest, and not really floral either. Now that I've had it for a few months, it's not quite as 'purple' as I thought, although there is still a slightly purple feeling when I smell it.

 

SO.....what does it smell like?

 

It's kind of gritty, sooty, dusty, and also dusky. It has a dark/night-time mood. I think there is vetiver, and it kind of reminds me of a toned-down On Darkness, without the sweetness/fruitiness of that scent. This one is really hard to pin down, but I like it a lot. It's possible there is some patchouli, too.

 

I think there could be something planty, maybe pine, because at times it reminds me of Jolasveinar. I still don't know what that purple note is, but it fades in and out of the blend. Far into the dry-down, I think I can detect vetiver. At this point it's reminding me of Devil's Claw, a little bit. I wish I could describe this better, I know I'm not doing it justice! : )

The numbers are a little rubbed off, but it looks like CCXCVII.

 

I first tried this with moonarcana, and we each wrote down our (very different) impressions without saying them out loud. It was fun!

 

Wet on the skin, I got the suggestion of black licorice, big time. Moonarcana smelled hay and/or grassy notes. As it started to dry, I began to think it might have a hint of leather. I smelled a very little bit of Snake Oil, and moonarcana didn't smell Snake Oil at all!

 

Upon drying down, we both agreed this scent changed a lot. I still smelled a leathery note, but I also picked up on a big metallic presence with ozone. Moonarcana smelled tobacco leaf, and some kind of wood note that she couldn't pinpoint. Something like mahogany. She eventually smelled the Snake Oil component, and I smelled it stronger than the wet stage.

 

SO.......after we shared our impressions, I can see where she gets a grassy note because something reminded me of Scarecrow, a little bit. And I agree that there could very well be a deep wood note. She agreed with me that there could be some leather in there.

 

To sum it up......this could possibly have: leather, anise, grass, hay, metal, ozone, wood, and tobacco, with Snake Oil. I think of it as the love child of Iago, Scarecrow, and Snake Oil [conceived at the Steamworks & Research Facility?]. When I tried it again the next day, the Snake Oil was much stronger. Definitely a winner for me!

I like this scent, and everyone else pretty much described it better than I could....or at least I'm getting the same impressions. Very light, marshmallow sweet at first, then a mixture of floral, musky, and a touch of verbena. I agree with the 'cold floral' feeling that others talk about, and also the delicate white metal, which is strange. It might lean towards feminine, but I don't care....it just smells good. Besides, one other reviewer considered it somewhat masculine, so I guess it's all subjective (or is it objective? I get those confused). Anyway, like I said, this JUST SMELLS GOOD, and I personally don't find it powdery or soapy (either of which might turn me off).

 

Chinese musk really drew me to the Phoenix scents this time around. I used to have a bottle of non-Bpal Chinese musk that I liked, but I lost it. I like it in all of these scents, although it's not so obvious in all of them. It's obviously a very light variety of musk, maybe related to white musk. If it were ever offered as a single note, I would happily buy at least a bottle and wear it on its own.

Starting out, this smells almost fruity on me. It reminds me of ginger blossom or vanilla flower....sweet and floral, and a touch fruity. At this stage it reminds me of Opuhi. Then later, as it dries, some drier notes come forward and it takes on more of a grass or hay aspect.

 

It's a very golden scent, from start to finish. Starts out with a 'roundness', if you know what I mean. But as it dries it becomes just a little flat on my skin. I think I'd like more cinnamon, more amber incense. I think it's the vanilla that goes just a little flat on me. I don't hate it, but I admit I was a little disappointed. I wanted something sultry like Mum Moon, and to me this is more like Hay Moon.

What, I've never reviewed Geek??

 

I loved this at first sniff, a couple years ago. It's kind of wild and....almost elegant, at the same time. Cinnamon bark is what stands out most, but even that is so well-blended it's more like a hint. Everything else is just seamless. As it dries, it actually gains strength, and lasts and lasts for hours. It's borderline too butch for me and not something I wear all the time. But when I'm in the mood, nothing else will do. I get a big golden/resiny backdrop to the spices, and hint of leather. It might be the dry grass combined with opoponax giving me the 'ambery' feeling. But there's no powder, like you might find in really resinous scents like Minotaur.

 

It fits in with the mood of Doc Constantine, and Fascinum, a little bit. I may be going out on a limb with those comparisons but they seem to be in the same family. Doc C. is the most subdued, Fascinum is the most brash, and Geek falls somewhere between them.

I really like this. It smells kind of high-class and sophisticated to me. It's light and clean, like others have mentioned, and dry, dry, dry. I was expecting more sweetness or juiciness from the apricot, but not so. I am reminded of Ebisu and also Men Ringing Bells, the best parts of those scents, but the woods make this entirely its own scent. There is something sparkly, almost minty, which I guess comes from the sake? For some reason I was expecting something like Carceri D'Invenzione, but this is much drier.

 

This seems so simple, but everything comes together, harmonious, and just works really well on me. Even though it's a light scent, there is a surprising amount of sillage. This is just great, a big surprise from the Lupercalia scents. I knew I might like it, but I wasn't really expecting to like it this much!

I really love this, and it totally doesn't match my personality (or gender, really...), but I just love the way it smells on my skin. The first day I tried it, it was less foody and almost hair product, like conditioner or something. But since then, it is always light, creamy plum blossom, pretty much as others have described. It's like some fabulous, creamy plum dessert. Just light and fruity and yum! I agree that it doesn't have a lot of throw. When it has dried on my skin, after a while, it deepens and becomes something like plum tea or maybe even plum wine (is there such a thing? there must be...).

 

I also agree that there's something Underpants-y about this scent, although I couldn't describe exactly how. And if you like Tamamo-No-Mae, you may also like this, although they are different. But this is just great, my favorite so far of the whole Lupercalia update. Oh and I wanted to add, this reminds me very much of one of the 4 Fat Cats wax tarts, but I can't remember which one. Maybe White Plum Chutney? That would make sense. Or maybe Basmati Rice. Anyway, it brings back good memories and I think I may need more of this scent.

 

Edit: I also want to add that this isn't totally foody. The sandalwood doesn't stand out a whole lot, but it must be supporting somewhat.

biz4brent, another thing I thought of is are the bottle labels the same? I would guess that the ones from the LE and GC would be different, at least saying 'Springtime' or 'Picnic' even if there are pictures that are the same.

 

Yeah, the labels are the same - I'll have to check next time I'm at will call which one is out. I really do prefer the golden one more, it's a little softer and more Storyville like than the red variety. They really are different scents!

 

From our handy-dandy Label Image Gallery.......

 

The original label, from the Springtime In Arkham series

 

Resurrected bottle

 

.....I bought the 2nd bottle of those two as soon as the scent was resurrected (somewhere around Nov of '06), so it's possible the label has been changed again, since the other GC labels have been revamped. It's also worth noting that before it was brought to the GC, this was one of those super-coveted-by-many scents that was really hard to get a hold of! To me, the original and newer GC versions look and smell the same.

How strange, but interesting......at first I smell some fruits, kind of clean like the apricot in Ebisu. But the slightly buttery pumpkin is there too. After a while, I would swear that I smell nuts, maybe pecans. I don't think it's the coconut, but I'm really not sure....maybe just a combination of the pumpkin and myrrh, doing something strange? I don't know, but when I read this:

 

......

 

DH review ( cuz I love hearing his 1-2 word impressions): “sweet potatoes”

 

......that association got into my head, and I would have to agree! It's like a sweet potato casserole with brown sugar and pecan topping. Wow. I really don't smell coconut or myrrh, even when I try.

 

So, bottom line, this is yummy and sweet, but not quite what the description says, to my nose. And jewelbug, I totally agree with your DH. : ) Sweet potato casserole with nuts. Maybe it's a guy thing.