Haunted

[invisible iris]

A mournful, poignant scent, thick with foreboding. Soft golden amber darkened with a touch of murky black musk.

In the imp: Lemony ambery, with the slightly effervescent scent of black musk. I love golden amber, and black musk often works for me, and I hope to love this blend. But BTBT went horribly powdery on my skin, so if, as they say, this is the same black musk note, then I’m in trouble here.

On skin: It’s sharply resiny, I agree with the reviewer above who said lemon pledge. The effervescent quality of black musk has died a bit, but I think it may be going to powder.. yes, especially in the throw, I’m starting to get that harsh, empty, flat, nihilistic powder note.

Dry: Lemon pledge baby powder, and now I understand what it means for a scent to smell like a diaper. Not a dirty diaper, but a fresh, chemically, plasticky powdery diaper. Brings me back to the babysitting days of my youth. Yuck-o.

Verdict: A skin chemistry fail from a blend I really liked the sound of. Ah well, there are other BPAL fish in the sea (er, the G-sea ). I think I’ve done my due diligence and it's time to go shower.

(eta scent description) Edited August 27, 2011 by invisible iris

[gniwle]

OH MAN this is good. My descriptions will probably be a bit strange, but ... well.

 

To me, this is fuzzy and the musk is just a bit powdery (which I love)... it's like a powdery teddy bear. It also smells just a wee bit like a swimming pool- especially wet. I told you my description might be a little weird. but no, really, Haunted is a powdery teddy bear sitting poolside.

 

I need a big bottle of this asap.

[stellamaris]

After pushing this one to the back of the list so many times, I finally ordered my big bottle last night with my OMG NEED MOAR OF THIS WILF order.

 

Haunted to me has the same top note as Shalimar, one of my penultimate perfume loves. Unfortunately I could never wear Shalimar, as I have a sensitivity to something in it. Strangely the only BPAL that ever did this to me was Queen of Hearts (sob loved it so much). However I tried Haunted as an imp and was just fine with it.

 

My impression of Haunted is soft but strong, and very rich. I react to it in the back of my nose. The only other BPAL I can compare it to is Temple Viper. 4.5 out of 5 stars for me.

[OctoberGwen]

What a lovely and elusive scent this is! It started with a whisper of lemony amber on me and faded into a slightly powdery musky smell...then it's gone, only to reappear very softly in a little while. I keep getting whiffs of it and wondering what it is.

 

Haunting. Yes.

[milo]

I love black musk, and this one does not disappoint. I do find, however, that it tends to dominate on my skin, so it does end up smelling like a couple of black musk blends that I already have, Panther Moon especially. There is also a sweetness with the amber, warming it up beautifully. I'll certainly use the imp, but will not upgrade as it is just too similar to Panther Moon. I'd be curious to try a blend with black musk where it is not the main note just to see how it works on me, but I haven't run into one yet that I know of. I'm sure this is an aged imp as I'm not getting any lemon vibe.

[Morsigne925]

In the imp: Hmmm, hard to describe right now...it's pretty light, "clean" smelling, I think, with something stronger in the background. Actually no distinct notes I can identify atm

Wet: The scent got even lighter, it seems - now it smells faintly sweet and tart, with, like, a cool breeze of something behind it - very pretty!

Drying (~1 hour): There's a sweetness at the end of each sniff that reminds me of the taste of those valentine's heart candies (but not nearly as cloying); the musk comes out more as time goes on

End of the day: I'm quite liking this scent, though I have others I like better; I could see myself wearing this out to dinner with friends, etc. After I finish the imp I' decide if I want a big bottle or not - for now, I have others I want more 0:)

 

EDIT AUG 2014:

 

Imp: soap

Wet on skin: soap

Drying: It sort of becomes a lemon iced poundcake baby powder. I can't decide if I like it or not, honestly - it's not one of those headache-inducing baby powder smells on me, and I do keep smelling my wrist...But just not sure if it's one I would deliberately pick out to wear. I'll probably keep the imp around and figure out some other use for it, perhaps in the bath or something.

 

Hmm...the more it sits the more it grows on me, though. It's a very clean scent. Totally waffling on this one - will give it 3/5 stars for now.

 

Update: after a bit more time the musk very much takes over. I don't HATE that, but don't love it either, and there are other musk-y scents I like better. At this point it starts to smell "old" to me for lack of a better descriptor. Will probably stick it in the undecided pile for now.

Edited August 22, 2014 by Morsigne925

[KatharinaNordh]

Loved this - on me, it smells a bit like... ok, this will be hard, because I am Not good at this terminology. It's not a "foodie" smell, yet it sort of has the Spirit of the filling on a Good Lemon Cheesecake.

 

It does smell a bit lemony on me, and velvety and soft and Fresh.

 

The only thing that stops me from wanting a bottle is that it soaks into my skin almost immidiately and it doesn't smell very much Before doing that either.

 

It reminds me of Alice, in a way - they don't really smell the same, but they behave the same on my skin; they lose their own scent and just turn into one with my own smell. Which is a good thing, except they never get stronger than that, and I like my scents to be quite present

Edited January 28, 2012 by Asinya

[Helas]

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one getting the cheesecake association with this scent. Haunted doesn't smell like cheesecake exactly, but like the crust I've seen on a lot of cheesecakes - sort of a graham cracker scent with lemon and sugar. I expected a moody, atmospheric scent with a touch of mesmeric sexuality, but this is pretty much a straightforward foody comfort scent. Not bad, but not a favourite.

[sharkdiver]

This is gorgeous, though it is a bit baby-powderish on me, at first, then I get a *hint* of lemon peaking out and then it sort of morphs into this darker version of snake Oil...except it doesn't have the red musk, it's like it's definitely one of the compnents of SO, with a vanilla-ish softness (coming from the amber). I really like this! I am testing this lab fresh by the way, I am thinking this will age Beautifully!

[becca_s]

This is really lemony! I can see how other people can compare this to Shalimar because they do smell similar. I like Shalimar so this is ok with me. It dries down to smell like lemon and amber, with a hint of musk. I expected this to become less lemony over time, but it stays. I like it though, and I think that it will probably grow on me even more. I'll be interested to see what this is like aged.

[sunstone]

"Soft golden amber with a touch of murky black musk."

 

In imp: Mostly the musk: furry, but sweet and clean. Reminds me a bit of lemon, or lemon verbena.

 

On skin: About the same. Amber notes in general come out nicely on my skin. Makes me a bit itchy, though. After a minute, the lemony-ness fades. Now I smell warm and spicy, like strong chai.

 

This has quickly catapulted to the top of my favorites! Will wear it as perfume tomorrow, and see how it lasts through the day.

[ACVail24]

Hmm, I really thought I had already reviewed this one....

 

HAUNTED

 

This smells like vanilla SN to me for several hours.

After it's been worn for more than 4 hours, I can make the distinction between the amber & musk - but the effect is very soft & gentle.

This is very comforting.

[sidhenecromancer]

Surprisingly my first impression of thins on my skin was "ooh fruity!" it goes on a mixed fruit scent and dries down to a light lemon candy scent mixed with baby powder. Strange but a bit of a relief to finally find a lemony scent that I can tolerate, considering my tendency to over-amp anything citrus.

[SkySamuelle]

At first, this smelled the same on me than it did in the imp - smokey and mysterious, with a strongly masked hint of lemon. Then the lemon takes over as the scent blends into my skin and it becomes nearly all I can smell.

Still, if I snuggle my nose to my wrist, I get the shadwyness again - it's subtle, but it's there.

 

Nice, but not really FOR ME. Or, strong enough to be smelled as anything else than lemon medicinal cabinet. bu others.

 

Oh well, this will get a second wear in a couple of weeks for safety's sake but I am not expecting big changes.

[littlesparrow]

This is just pure soap on me! How odd. I don't know what's going on with me , I really thought I'd love this. Maybe amber doesn't agree with me, considering I've had strange reactions to this and O...Yep. Just soap. Can't really say much more

[Mechanical Death]

I really truly love this. It's a classic dark insency amber scent. Simple beautiful and sexy.

It reminds me of the magic shop at the renn fair.

 

It is really true on the skin as it is to the smell in the bottle.

 

Dark amber, dusky and sensual, the musk has almost a sandalwood character and is sweet and resinous while being extremely deep. Outstandingly beautiful!

 

It sticks close to the skin but has a mighty throw-- I can smell it wafting around me. This stuff is strong!

And it got the approval from the fiancé. That's rare-- usually he will say is something smells nice if I ask, but he told ME I smelled irresistible. That is just fine by me!

I definitely need to get a second bottle!

 

Edit: wore it for a second time today. I'm picking up a candied lemon smell a didn't before, but I have seen many other commenters notice. Yum. It adds a nice sweetness.

Edited September 9, 2012 by Mechanical Death

[madscientistdh]

I purchased this ages ago, from Rhetoricians

 

In Bottle: Musk, but sharp- smells like it would fade to a rubbing alcohol scent, which worries me a bit. I must press onward though!

 

On skin: Becomes smoother, almost like... evil baby powder haha

 

Drydown: a lovely dark feminine musk

 

Verdict: I do love wearing this scent, though it doesn't particularly stand out to me among my stash.

[brilliantcat]

Imp: Whoomph, I get cologney black musk and no amber!

 

Wet: Inexplicably, I smell lime. I have no idea why, though after reading the other reviews it seems quite a few people got lemon so maybe my sniffer isn't entirely broken. I still get the masculine cologne that I know is the black musk. I hope the amber tones it down as it warms.

 

Dry: The black musk is not playing nicely. I do want to test this on the husbeast as these type of scents usually smell really, really good on him

 

Edit: I had forgotten I had applied this, took off my sweatshirt and something on my arm wafted to my nose and I almost swooned! Wow, rich amber and hints of musky darkness. I think monthly hormonal changes are playing a bit of havoc with my skin chemistry but I have to get these last Weenies tested so I can get my order in... but I digress. It smells as good on the husbeast so we need a bottle to share. If this is what ghostly apparations smell like, then I want to cuddle one!

Edited November 24, 2012 by brilliantcat

[Erinofhere]

This is a strange little scent.

 

In the imp I smell amber and a resin/musky smell. I really didn't think I would care for it at this point because the resin smell was just so strong.

 

Wet. It smells like an older mans after shave. I am positive there is an after shave out there that smells just like this because as soon as I smelled it, that was all I could see.

 

Dry. Wait this is nuts. It is starting to smell just like my lemon meringue strawberry shortcake doll I had when I was a kid. I smell that and powder so now it's sort of like a lemon Meringue powder smell. Odd. I also find that I can't "smell this" all around me anymore but every once and awhile I get a whiff and then it's gone. Where I placed it on my wrist is still going strong but I find this to have very low throw.

 

After a few hours it's back to the after shave smell. I actually am very curious as to how this would smell on my husband.

 

I don't care for this one. I did enjoy the fond memories of my childhood that this invoked but I won't be buying a bigger bottle.

[jamcde03]

What the hell? Fruit Loops? this has never happened to me with either black musk or amber before, so it must be some absurdity about them being alone together... "hey! no one's chaperoning! let's get fruity!"

[KakashiMorph]

This imp was gifted to me, so I am not sure how old it is.

 

In the bottle: Musky lemon.

On my skin: Wow, the lemon comes out fast to play. It reminds me a bit of Shub-Niggurath without the ginger goodness right now. I can make out a bit of musk underneath, but it is mostly husky lemon wipes at first. About 5 minutes later the musk is slowly making it's presence known while the lemon slightly subsides. I can't get any hint of the amber so far. About 20 minutes later, the musk is much more stronger with the lemon having withdrawn to the background.

Drydown: Lemony musk.

[alyelle]

In the imp: A fizzy, amber/lavender scent that is somehow earthy and ozone at the same time.

 

Wet: Two small swipes - it smells quite strong - and that fizzy scent amps up beyond belief. It's replaced quickly by a gold citrus (not lemon though!), then a rich, warm amber after a minute or two.

 

Dry: Initially an amber scent similar to Mouse's Long and Sad Tale, but with an orange or satsuma undertone. (I'm coming to the conclusion that I amp amber, because anything even vaguely ambery ends up smelling like Mouse on me.) After a few hours, it's pure amber. And very potent - I definitely won't forget I've got this one on.

 

End of day: A hint of musk finally starts to come through at the 6-8 hour mark - I assume because the amber is slowly burning off. It's fainter by bedtime, but on the whole, this is one powerful scent. It lasted through three sinks worth of dishes and was still definitely discernible without too much sniffing for it.

 

Stars: ★★★★½

Edited February 4, 2014 by alyelle

[Vickery]

My imp has aged for a year or so, laying softly in a dark wooden box. Waiting.

 

My initial sniff smelled something like cough syrup, a bottle of opium perfume, and ammonia. I was hesitant to put it on.

 

GLAD I DID! My impression -

 

Imagine walking through a desert in a dense warm fog. In the distance a torch burns through the fog, a path to somewhere. A funeral pyre? You smell smoke in the distance. That amber fire melts the darkness around it, you take a step forward.

 

Smokey resin meets a sultry note of amber. No citrus to be detected. Bottle me up Scotty!

Edited January 30, 2013 by Vickery

[JazzieCazzie]

Working my way through all of my sniffies, old and new, alphabetically ... my imp of Haunted was, I believe, purchased from the Lab in impapalooza last month. I never reviewed it before but am thinking I must have bought it at one time or another because I do love amber and musk so it seems a natural.

 

IN THE IMP: Simple, strong, resiny. Seems like a WYSIWYG ... dark, and sinuous, it lives up to its name in the imp.

 

Dabbed on wrist and in crook of arm (I find the slight bit of perspiration in the latter gives me a truer feel for how a scent will work overall but I only do it with notes that I am generally pretty optimistic about).

 

WET: For the first few minutes, the two notes listed play together nicely, even adding a fizzy little kick like a cauldron bubbling. Then ... oh no. I sniff the crook of my arm and literally recoil. I smell like a stinky guy's locker room (and yes, as a sportswriter for 25 years, I do know what stinky guys' locker rooms smell like). Why? Whywhywhywhywhyw? These are both notes that I have always (or almost always had success with or, at least, not failure).

 

DRYDOWN: I am determined to be patient and see if the wet sweat smell dissipates as it dries. But it really doesn't. However, the Johnson's baby powder smell others have mentioned rises up like a stinky athlete who covered his stinky sweat in powder instead of showering. Within about 15 minutes, thankfully, the sweat smell eases a little bit. The wrist never gets THAT bad and the crook dries out. But I have never liked the smell of Johnson's baby powder either.

 

OVERALL: Sad face. I did have hopes for this but somehow it didn't have hopes for me.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 1.5. Luckily, it's bathtime.

[child of drought]

In the bottle: Sweet amber but kind of soapy, with a hint of salt.

 

On wet: Thankfully the soapy smell has disappeared and now it's a nice dark amber with an undertone of musk.

 

On dry: There's now a hint of honey in this scent but overall it's staying very amber musk like the description