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MischiefofRats

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Everything posted by MischiefofRats

  1. MischiefofRats

    Yucca Giant-Skipper

    I think this may be the power of suggestion, but something about this blend says 'insect' to my nose, like a prettier, more palatable version of that smell you get when you keep a bug in a jar or hold an insect in your hand. This smells buggy to me, but it is. So. Good. So my favorite of the Unicorns this year was Of The Unicorn, hands down, and this must have the same patchouli in it because it scratches that same itch. It definitely doesn't smell quite as fancy or expensive--Yucca has an earthier tone, but you still get the woods and the patch and the mild sweetness, plus that flat-out AWESOME buggy scent that keeps making me double-take. This SMELLS like a butterfly and reminds me of my favorite unicorn--I love it to bits.
  2. MischiefofRats

    Actual Lump of Coal

    Agreed on the above for sure. Lovers of Smokestack will recognize the coal note from that right away, but whereas Smokestack has some sweetness to temper it, Actual Lump amps the coal and adds a touch of fire and smoke for something that's definitely on the harder, more industrial side. This is not a pretty scent, but it's honestly pretty awesome. If I didn't already have Bonfire SN and Smokestack, I'd be really tempted by this one.
  3. MischiefofRats

    India Ink

    This scent startled a laugh right out of me. In the bottle, I didn't think much of it, but the second I put it on my skin, I just cracked up. I'll be honest--I couldn't even remember what India ink actually smelled like. I used it a ton in college, but before I bought this I even went and sniffed the bottle I had in my art supply bin and didn't get much out of it. But putting this on... This is exactly what India ink smells like. It came right back, because this is dead on. I had an instant flashback to college, sitting hunched over a worktable at ten PM in the studio building by myself, listening to weird music and jamming along to get things finished for deadlines. Totally cool experience for me, that this scent did that. As for the perfume itself, I don't get the printer toner vibe others mentioned, nor do I get a peppery hit. It's just.... Ink. India ink, a solid hit of paper, and on my skin since I amp it in any blend, just a itsy breath of sweetness. Shockingly wearable, and I am super glad I went out on a limb and got this bottle. It won't get a ton of wear, but it will get worn. I really like it. Beautiful work from Beth, as usual.
  4. MischiefofRats

    Silkybat

    (This is straight out of the mail, and my nose has a tendency to read 'dark and dirty' scents as fairly clean, so please take this review with a grain of salt.) So on my skin, this is oddly fruitier than I was anticipating--it's quite sweet and bright for a few minutes until it starts to dry, and it's got a bit of a juicy pop to it over the patchouli. I definitely see where the 'maybe lemon' comes from for Janel, and I concur. From further away, I don't get that fruity lemon note at all--that note stays pretty close to the skin, and the throw is all sugary patch with juuuuuust a hint of something darker and smokier, but more of an aromatic smoke than campfire. I hit kind of a wall with this scent somewhere in the base notes, and I can't really figure out how to describe it better. It's quite pretty, but unless that weird vegetal bluntness wears off, I'm not sure this will be staying with me. I'll update if my opinion on this changes. ETA: I still don't love the close to skin notes entirely, even though they've improved, but the throw on this is divine. This is a scent that's going to get you compliments for sure.
  5. MischiefofRats

    Outlaw

    I love this scent. I bought two bottles, and depending on how my wear goes, I may try to find a third. It's all root beer and cream on me, sweet like a root beer float but not cloying or sickly, and the leather comes in as this really beautiful warmth underneath. I love it and will wear it a ton, but mostly I bought a second bottle because I have a suspicion about how this will age. I had an imp of Tombstone that probably came from 2012-2014 or so, hard to say when, but it had a least a couple years of sitting around, and based on how that imp smelled, I bought a bottle of Tombstone. The new bottle smelled muuuuuch more strongly of root beer. I like it, but not as much as I liked that imp. Based on this, I'm guessing the root beer note settles down with age, which (if I'm right) might leave this scent as a beautiful creamy leather in a couple of years. I like it a ton right now, but I suspect I'll like it just as much, if not more, as it gets older.
  6. MischiefofRats

    The Gambols of Ghosts

    Okay so I really like this. It's beautiful and soft and chock full of beeswax--however, that said, maybe I'm just having an off skin chemistry day, but there is a stage between wet on skin and dry where this turns GROSS. Like I almost washed it off gross. It's like a cross between musty flowers and dust and BO, cloying and deeply insidious. And this stage lasts for like fifteen minutes. It's unpleasant. Buuuuuuut when it dries, it's back to being beautiful. It's a soft, warm, sweet beeswax that just barely toys with florals--nothing aggressive. Wear length isn't great but the throw is nice. I ordered a bottle based on my first experience with my decant, and as long as it doesn't keep doing the gross wet thing, I'll happily keep it.
  7. MischiefofRats

    Unicorn and Ram

    I don't have a lot to add that previous reviewers haven't mentioned--it's well-blended, subtle, warm, fuzzy, and woolly. I get the leather, but it's very tame. I wear this one to bed a lot because it's so comforting, but it's also incredibly light. This has ZERO throw. My nose has to be basically on my skin to smell it. I wish it had a louder voice, because I'd love a second bottle if it did. It's a gorgeous scent.
  8. MischiefofRats

    Lambs-Wool

    I'm actually a little mad I like this so much, given that it's a tad difficult to come across. I more or less liked it in the bottle. It was straight warm apple cider, the mulled kind with orange slices floating in, but with something just a tad deeper, and it seemed like it would be nice going on. Then I threw some on this morning on the way out... and I wasn't terribly impressed. It was pretty, very much rich spiced red apple cider (which was nice, but not something I was looking for), and for about a half hour it stayed that way.... And then the milk kicked in. This is drop dead gorgeous now. The milk is subtle but so beautiful and creamy. It calms this right down from delicious-but-aggressive apple cider into this beautiful melange of creamy-dreamy spicy autumn apple beverage. I'm so glad I have a bottle, and I'm going to keep an eye out for another. This may be a Weenie, but it's Christmas in a bottle.
  9. MischiefofRats

    Smokestack

    This scent has become a favorite for me. I find myself reaching for it even over Antikythera Mechanism and my beloved Unicorns. It's strong, and has good wear length and throw. It's all smoke and coal, definitely vetiver (but a nice one, not the super aggressive Haitian vetiver), and I definitely get something in the leather family from this. It's smoky and dirty, but in a fragrant way, not in a BO way. It is not the same note as Bonfire SN, for sure--this is far more industrial and complex, but it's coal. Don't think chemical or like, plastic. It's coal smoke. It smooths out beautifully on my skin too, sweetening and mellowing into something really gorgeous. Most scents I really have to be on the mood for, but this one is always stunning, in the bottle and with my skin.
  10. MischiefofRats

    Eros

    I didn't get any of the green/celery thing mentioned in other reviews. Wet in the imp, this is all two things: booze and grapefruit. There's no actual grapefruit in this, but I still smell it. There's also something indescribably red to it, but it calms down fast and turns into that honey wine note mostly, but the tea in this is STRONG. Ever walk into one of those Teavana stores at the mall? It smells like that, plus fizz and booze and sweet. Fizzy alcoholic fruit tea. I get basically no myrrh, which is cool with me because I don't love it. Dry on skin, it's pretty much the same but quieter, except with more lilac and just a little tiny bit of resin. Honestly, really interesting. It's not very me, but it is really pretty.
  11. MischiefofRats

    Devil's Night 2016

    It's so funny to me that you say this--my exact words describing this scent the first time I wore it were, "It smells just like the skewer after you pull the roasted marshmallow off it by the campfire." Needless to say, it's a total hit for me. Smokey and sugary sweet, to me a hint of hot metal -- very atmospheric. I'm fighting with myself on a backup bottle. Do I really need it? Probably not, but boy oh boy do I want it.
  12. MischiefofRats

    Recommending a BPAL pumpkin blend...

    Thank you, I'll see if I can find some Pumpkin Vines! That sounds lovely. I'm trying to hold off on Hay Moon until I get this month's lunacy, because it might have the hay note I want in it. If not, Hay Moon it is.
  13. MischiefofRats

    Recommending a BPAL pumpkin blend...

    Bumping this because I have fallen in love with Needle in A Haystack (hay absolute, sun-baked pumpkin rind, twisting vines, and the tiniest sparkle of gleaming metal). Since it was only ever available in imp form as a gift with purchase from what I understand, I would really like to find something close to it to replace it that I can get a whole bottle of. I love the lab's pumpkin, buttery or no, but I've tried Jack and it's too sickly-sweet for me. I adore the hay absolute note and just snagged the current lunacy for it, but I'm dying for something in the same family of warm, happy pumpkin. Any thoughts?
  14. MischiefofRats

    The Two Old Men

    I have a decant of this that I got through a lovely forum member. Honestly? I'm terribly sad I missed it the first time, and I hope to find a bottle someday. I really love this. And it really, really smells like an old man. Two of them, even. And I am honestly shocked that I want to smell this way, but this is so gorgeous. It's all leather and tobacco on my skin, faintly sweet, almost no coffee, and the teak is a blending note that ties it together. The sillage is, as others have mentioned, very low, and the scent disappears altogether pretty quickly, but my skin seems to eat most things in four hours or less so I'm not surprised. Even with the short life, I want more of this.
  15. MischiefofRats

    Needle in a Haystack

    I got my hands on a decant of this, and I'm honestly heartbroken they never did this in 5ml, and that it has such a short life. It's a pity. It's wonderful. It's warm, sweet, grassy pumpkin autumn in a vial. This is such a comforting scent.
  16. MischiefofRats

    Single Note: Bonfire

    I purchased this bottle from a wonderful forum member here. Straight up, I opened this bottle, took a sniff, and laughed in delight. This is dead-on exactly what I hoped it would be. In the bottle and wet on, this is pine campfire. Aggressive, in your face, pine campfire. In other words, it's so perfect I could cry. I'm one of those people who hates to wash my jacket when I come home from camping because I treasure that campfire smoke smell that gets into my clothes. It smells like outdoors and warmth and adventure and happiness, to me, and I want to keep smelling that for days after. This bottle is exactly that, somehow captured in a perfume. I'm in awe. I love it so much. As it dries down, it calms down massively and gets a little less punchy, less smoky. More like being near a dying fire. It smooths out and sweetens, but it very much retains its identity. I suspect the wear length won't be tremendous, but I have to say I don't care. I'm more than happy to reapply. I thought I'd like this mostly for layering, but I think I'd wear this straight. I'm so happy I was able to get a bottle. This is perfect.
  17. MischiefofRats

    Samhain

    2016 version, out of the mail about four days. This is my first ever round of Weenies so I have nothing older to compare to. In the bottle: dead leaves, apple, spice, patchouli. It's a bit odd like this, but it's definitely promising. On skin, it's gorgeous in a matter of minutes. Leaves and apple are definitely the top notes for me, backed with spice and evergreen needles. The wood is just a gentle background warmth, along with the pumpkin, which I got almost none of. This is such a beautiful scent--it really is autumn in a bottle. My only complaint is I have to slather it on to get a good throw, and it's basically gone by six hours. The latter isn't so bad since I have to reapply most things throughout the day, but I do so love getting that spicy whiff of apple and leaves throughout the day. I hate to see it go. I'm not usually someone who buys multiple bottles of anything, particularly not a scent that returns every year, but given how lovely this is and the amount I have to apply, I'm considering a backup bottle, because I'm pretty sure I'd use it. ETA: also, I love patchouli and patchouli blends, but I have a hard time picking it out individually. To me, it just adds to the warm-woody-spicy blend, and I think it's absolutely gorgeous. Doesn't stick out at all.
  18. MischiefofRats

    Przeczucie

    As a note, on the bottle this is spelled Przecaucie. I do get the comparisons to bathroom soap, for sure. However, imo, it's not a negative comparison. If it's piney bathroom soap, it's the best possible version. Wet in the bottle, this is all menthol and pine. There's some wet soil/damp wood complexity in the first sniff, but by the second one, it's all drowned out by menthol and pine, and boy is it LOUD. Dry on skin, it really calms down. It's still very much the same, but that screaming Vicks note fades into a chorus of pine, rather than taking center stage like a howling banshee. I also lose quite a bit of that bathroom soap comparison at this stage. There's still something about it that could be construed as faintly soapy, but it's pleasantly so. It's very much a late evening, wet, misty pine forest, with fresh needles crushed into the damp black loam underfoot. It's fantastically moody. I get almost no fire or smoke though, unfortunately. I'm not sure I'd wear this much by itself, but I am completely fascinated with the layering possibilities because I think it's strong enough to lend itself beautifully to that end. I have a bottle of Bonfire SN coming soon, and I'm definitely going to try them together. I'd also be interested to see a tart-sweet red fruit layered with this--maybe a Christmassy berry. I tried a dab before heading out hiking yesterday and could still smell it on myself afterward, so I'd hazard that this has at least average wear and decent throw. I think I like it enough to keep, and I'm interested to see if the mentholy pine calms down a little between now and Christmas.
  19. MischiefofRats

    The Lights of Men's Lives

    This scent makes me smile. I'm coming to learn that I adore the lab's beeswax note. Like the honey note, it's harsh and a little unpleasant while wet. The beeswax goes really plasticky, and I'd even use the dreaded play-doh comparison for about a half hour. I, being of faint heart where unpleasant scents are concerned, start thinking about washing it off at this stage--but patience has its rewards. Dry, about an hour in, this is GORGEOUS. It's pure, honey-vanilla beeswax. I get a hint of smoke from time to time, but it's not woodsmoke--it's candle smoke, the same scent you get from a freshly-extinguished candle. It's really remarkable, how accurate it is. And the best part? The staying power. Holy crackers does this ever stick around. I put some on my wrist last night before bed, and nearly a full 24 hours later, through an entire workday, which included digging in the dirt and layering another perfume (long gone) on top, I can still smell this. And it's got throw, too. I have to say, I suspect a bottle of this is in my future. This is basically vanilla beeswax candle single note and I love it.
  20. MischiefofRats

    Dead Leaves, Raw Leather, Bourbon Vanilla, and Clove

    God, this is beautiful. I really do love it, with one problem: I can hardly smell it. In the bottle, I get almost nothing. There's a faint warmth and a slight vegetal note, which I presume is the leaves. On my skin (fairly generously applied to an area about the size of a half-dollar on my hand) it picks up a little, but even on the dry-down I have to get my nose within two inches of my skin to smell anything at all. When I do get a solid whiff, it's swoon-worthy. It's a warm, unisex scent that just smells like FALL. The dead leaves note is beautiful and blends with the clove like a dream, while the leather and vanilla add a beautiful background warmth that doesn't stand out as one note or the other. The vanilla doesn't come out much at all on my skin for about the first half hour, but even when it does appear, it's fairly muted. I seriously love this. I just wish it had *throw,* because I don't want to shove my wrist up my nose to get a whiff. Maybe a heavier application would help, but the fact that it's so quiet even in the bottle makes me think it's not just my skin or application--or heck, maybe I'm just nose-blind to this one. It's definitely worth revisiting to see if it changes. Unfortunately, a half hour in, it seems to be fading already. The caveat here is that this is about three days out of the mail, and I'm still recovering from a cold I had two weeks ago, so I'll try it again in a week to see if it's any different. Fingers crossed for more throw! EDIT: As an update since this has settled a bit now, it's gotten a little stronger, but it's still on the weak end for me. It's still gorgeous and I love it, but this is definitely one to absolutely slather.
  21. MischiefofRats

    Day of the Skulls

    I just purchased this one from a forum member recently, sniffed it once in the bottle, then threw it on on a whim this morning on my way out the door. In the bottle it's a bit confusing to my nose, mostly harsh floral. Wet though, the incense and florals amp like crazy, and there's a somewhat plasticky note (from the beeswax, I think, though I'm still learning my way around the lab's notes). These are not fresh flowers--they make me think of the bowls of dried roses my mom kept after she received bouquets. Dry, crumbly petals, faintly dusty, which might also be the frankincense coming to play with the flowers. I have to admit, I almost washed this off at this stage. I'm not huge on florals and it was all I could smell, to an almost sickly degree. On the drydown though, the sandalwood is much more apparent and the beeswax mellows out and loses most of the plastic note. I have to admit, I cannot smell chocolate in this at all, and the tobacco is overtaken by the frankincense. Several hours later, this is all frankincense, sandalwood, and beeswax. The florals are very faint. Huge throw--I've gotten several comments asking who's burning incense, from several feet away. One compliment, though--asking what I was wearing. Overall, it's actually a lovely scent for the frankincense and beeswax lover, but I'm not sure it's for me. This may go into swaps, but I'll give it another shot first. Edit to add: this is the 2013 version. As the day has gone on, it's turned into mostly beeswax on me, which I'm okay with.
  22. MischiefofRats

    Snake Oil

    I have to say, I get it. I do. I totally understand why people are raving about this scent. It's sweet and complex and deep, and the dry stage is gorgeous. I can understand the attraction and the cult following. That said, for me Snake Oil is just noooot in character. I tend towards spice and wood and incense, golden amber, herbs, and certain florals. Even though honey is a seriously hit or miss note for me, and sugar is almost always right out, you'd think this would work... but. For me, this is a somewhat psychologically unsettling conflict of innocence and sex, and far, far too sweet for my taste. It's beautiful, but I just can't see me ever wearing it. I tried it once before, about a year ago when I got it, but I didn't like it much then either. I'll give it one more shot next year, when I'm not in "PUMPKIN SPICE ALL THE THINGS!!!!" autumn mode, but I think this is a pass for me. Pity. :/ Editing to add, a year later, I've tried it aged, I've tried it fresh, this stuff VANISHES on me in under an hour. I don't know if I'm just completely noise blind, but I think my skin just drinks it
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