CluckingBell

Smells downright carbonated wet on the hair, like 7-Up, then dries down quickly to pure sweet-tart fruit---almost syrupy rather than bubbly, but the tartness keeps it from smelling too dense and cloying. The musk seems to waft and linger, so it's less noticeable in my hair than when I reenter a room I just left and get a soft hint of 51. After 12 hours, the scent is still strong, but the fruit has mellowed a bit so the musk has more room to play. Fun, festive scent that makes me think of (non-alcoholic) punch at a holiday gathering.

I think of heliotrope as a nasal prickle rather than an actual scent, so I may not be the best person to offer advice. :-) REGARDLESS...I like Fae (peachy) and Tamora (vanilla and sandalwood), but Hollywood Babylon (strawberry, vanilla, black cherry) may be more your speed. Dawn: Maiden (milk and honey) looks like it has potential for sweet and creamy. You can review all of the lab's heliotrope blends at https://blackphoenixalchemylab.com/product-tag/heliotrope/.

I'll try to update when I've given it a full day's wear, but my initial impressions are very positive. I definitely get "sun-baked" rather than "scorched" or "barren," and nothing nightmarish about it. On me, Scarecrow has the same full, rich, rounded, Mother-Nature's-loving-embrace quality that I get from Theoi Nomioi, but maybe with some florals and a hint of field stubble in place of the trees. It's a beauty with a nice, mid-range throw. That said, I got my imp secondhand, so it could have been a well-aged sample I tried. I'll know better once I buy a bottle brand new. ETA: After getting a lab-fresh bottle, I definitely understand where the banana and/or nail polish comparisons were coming from. Those elements diminish on dry-down, but this may be a scent that requires a little aging to reach its fullest potential, and I think it's worth it. CluckingBell

I've had pretty good experiences with patchouli so far, but Vixen showed me how it can go wrong. As soon as it hit my skin, it began to smell like musty outhouse toilet paper, which just got stronger and stronger as time passed. An hour later I was removing several layers of skin trying to get the smell off of me. Fortunately, I seem to be in a minority. CluckingBell