The Lurid Library

[gchris]

The incense-tinged scent of forbidden tomes and the musk-laden remnants of infernal servants.

In Vial: Ajax! seriously

Wet: smells like a cleaning product, but I kind of like it.

Dry: I don't know what to think about this one. I have honestly never smelled anything like it before.

[juniperus]

bottle: incensey, a little 'thick' feeling...like the thick feeling of stale air.

wet: incense and musk, balanced and neither too sharp nor too sweet. (and less thick - no musty, either)

dry: there is a little spiciness with the incense that makes this more exotic and less high mass. not quite foody, but I think the forbidden tomes journeyed in the hold of a spice-trade ship at some time.

later: this is my kind of library, all old books and spice and musk and wooden shelves study enough to support somone's weight while they...*blush* no, can't share that. nope, not finishing that thought. nooooope.

[nightbiscuit]

Dusty, woody, light musk and powdery incense. This scent has a golden, antique feeling.

[Dark Alice]

This is one of my all time favorite BPALS. Skin musk and incense....absolutely gorgeous!!!! The incense is not overpowering at all and it sticks to my skin like glue the musk....there are just no words to describe how this smells on me .I keep sniffing myself because I love it that much. I am so glad I have more than a bottle of this!!

[angelicruin]

In the bottle, I smell spicy musk. Sweet, but not too sweet.

 

Wet on skin, again, sweet & spicy musk. I am not getting any floral scent from this, which is good. I typically don't care for floral scents.

 

Definitely reminds me of a chilly, fall night. As with most of the Haunted House series, I love this scent too. A perfect embodiment of Halloween.

[delicate_fangs]

The Lurid Library

 

in the decant: This smells like aftershave to me. And dust.

 

wet: Whoah. Now it smells like mildewed books and a faint bit of aftershave. i imagine foxed volumes and a sinister librarian....

 

later: Eeeeuw. This is not good on me. It smells like bandaids and liniment and mildew. Oh, dear. My Lurid Library is not a good place to hang out. Wah! Off to swaps goes the decant and the full bottle too. (I got a bottle because I grew up in a library, and i so wanted this scent to work. Oh, well.)

 

Wait! No, it's morphing. Huh! Spicier now, and I can finally smell some incense.

 

Still not sure I need more than an imp of it, though, if that. And getting through the initial phases is hard.

[Juushika]

In the bottle: Difficult to pin down, but approximately a creamy parchment-colored incense.

 

On me: After some brief morphing when it first goes on, it dries down to—well, to a very close match to the description. Lurid Library is the first page of an old book: ivory parchment, thick and creamy to the touch, unmarked by bitter ink. Over the years the parchment has picked up the scents in the library: incense and a touch of musk, both dark, faint but present, seeped into the smooth fibers of the page, staining them to old ivory. The rest of the library isn't discernible—there are no woods, no leather bindings, just the bare, finger-worn parchment of the book's first page. The color is aged ivory; the scent is distinct despite a mild throw and the wear length is moderate.

 

Verdict: I picked up a bottle of this unsniffed when it was first released, confident that I would love it; I have not been disappointed, and continue to love and wear it a year later. It is one of my all-time favorite oils. This is a must-have if you love the smell of book paper and an ideal scent for curling up with some well-loved books. I adore it, and treasure my bottle.

[zankoku_zen]

I can see how people get that 'Ajax' smell. This is clean, lemon scented polished woods and dusty books. On wet, it is much 'dustier' but as it dries you can smell how solid the wood really is.

 

Pretty, if you like wood scents.

[milo]

Wet, this is what I would describe as a "dusty men's cologne". As it dries though, the musk comes out and what must be the incense appears, though it is much milder than other incense blends that I've tried. This is very nice, but fades fast on my skin. Luckily, the cologne stage disappears as it dries, and this is a very pleasant blend.

[femmefatale]

I have no idea how to dexcribe this one. I get a slightly sweet incense, a bit of dust, the barest hint of smooth polished wood, and something I can't quite pin down. It's actually not as masculine as I expected, and in fact becomes just a bit powdery as it dries down, but I really like it and need to hunt down a bottle.

[MCS4096]

I'm in search of my "perfect" library scented perfume, and I thought this was an appropriate place to start we'll see!

 

In the bottle: Mmmm.. clean musk (I think of the lighter musks as "clean" and the dark ones as thicker and dirtier) and definitely a dusty, dry note.

 

Wet: Totally getting the dusty books, this is the smell of sticking your nose into the middle of a library book-- spot on eh? BUT, there's like... someone kinda hot and sweaty standing behind you

 

Dry: This wears a little masculine on me (I'm beginning to think that cooler scents seem masculine to me, and warm ones feminine..) As others have said, this is very woody. I feel it captured the dusty parchment better in the bottle, but it's still very nice as it dries-- creamy and spicy, and it does begin to warm up a bit as the musk dulls

[TheOneTheyCallLuna]

Oh, I knew I would LOVE this one, and I do. I really do. But then again, I am a girl who actively lists "used book smell" as one of my interests, and this captures that fragrance in the best imaginable light. In addition to the used book aroma, there is a deeelishus glowing caramel note that is shared by blends like Odin. In fact, to my nose, this smells almost exactly like Odin, but with the addition of something dusty in the distant background. Yum. This is top ten potential for sure!

 

Bottle, please!

[meatcake]

Being a librarian, I felt compelled to bid on this scent on ebay. I read the reviews first and even though many were negative, decided to purchase anyway.

 

In bottle: Strong men's colonge, deep musk, extremely strong. Not what I wanted!

 

On skin wet: still very strong, but more incense-like, still very masculine

 

Dry down: thankfully this scent morphs into something much softer, "paper-y" with sweet incense notes. The throw is still very strong and it seems to last for hours.

 

It's not my absolute favorite, but it does morph into something interesting and mysterious, much like an old library.

Edited January 28, 2009 by meatcake

[crebbsgirl]

GAH! Hello musk! Wet this was all musk, all the time. It was a little disconcerting to tell the truth. I'm usually a big fan of musky blends, but this was a little much. As it dries, the paper and incense come out more and this does indeed smell like a library, but a sexy library. Further into the drydown I couldn't stop huffing my wrists. It just keeps getting better!

[Ceri]

In the vial: I'm not sure how to describe this but it kind of smells like cologne.

 

Wet: Incense and musk

 

Dry: Dusty incense and musk

 

Overall: This is a beautiful scent that's true to its name!

[Leopard403]

I wanted this to smell a little more like really old books. As it is, I get a sort of hot, papery smell on top of lots of incense. As other reviewers have mentioned, a little goes a LONG way.

[Monster]

I brought this with me on my last trip to Disney World since it reminds me of the Haunted Mansion ride. I can't believe I haven't reviewed this yet!

 

This is a dusty, papery scent with a little bit of a citrus feel to it. There's a note in here that smells a lot like amber on me. This is airy, chilly, papery, dry, and sort of clean smelling. I never thought this smells like OLD books but it does make me think of books in general...all stacked up in a large, cold room filled with spiderwebs, dust and ghosts. The Lurid Library is something you really need to let sit into your skin before sniffing. I feel like it's not quite right in it's wet phase (very strong and in-your-face which I think misses the point). Put this on, wait 5 minutes and then sniff.

 

I loved all of the Haunted House scents. I really hope they come back this year

 

[ahoythere]

In the Bottle: Dry with a light aroma of incense and musk.

 

Wet: Soft, light and slightly sweet. I can smell the musk, though its presence is very faint. There's not a very prominent incense aroma, but I am getting a hint of floral.

 

Drying: After five minutes, I start to get a little incense, but it doesn't last long. An hour later, I have a good balance of incense and musk with something faint that smells like flowers. It's sweetly dusty, an absolutely lovely smell. I'm imagining violets pressed between crumbling pages.

 

Final Thoughts: Aw dang, aw dang. After an hour and a half, there's barely anything but the ghost of a musky floral left. I'll probably hang on to my imp, but I won't try hunting down any bottles.

 

 

 

[MamaMoth]

This is a hard scent to describe. It smells a bit masculine to me, but not overly. It's still something I'd wear myself.

 

It smells like... like comfort. Something familiar. Your favorite chair, or blanket, or sweater. It smells lived-in and loved. It's completely and totally inoffensive.

Very well put.

 

I like this very much. It reminds me of a masala type incense, (where the scented materials are ground up and made into a paste, and are rolled onto a core to dry. a la Nag Champa) which is my very favorite kind of incense.

 

There is a dry powderyness to it, but I can't say I immediately identify it as a "book" smell. I can definitely feel that association, but I can't say for sure that I would have made it on my own without the name and description being known to me.

 

How can I say this without it sounding bad? It's not a spectacular, ZOMGMUSTHAVENOW kind of scent. It's very subdued, but lovely nonetheless. It's an oil I see myself reaching for when I don't want to smell like anything in particular, I just want to smell good. See, I'm making it sound bland and unattractive, but that's really not the case. Sometimes it is something I crave, and this is the first BPAL I've found to deliver that.

[Schmoozy]

 

Light musk, incense and smooth polished woods. For an incense-y scent it has a clean feel to it rather than a hazy smoky feel. All in all, its ok. Nothign I would really wear but I do appreciate the chance to smell it.

[Aldercy]

Anyone who loves musk, you've got to try this. It's the same kind of sinuous, golden brown musk I get from Hunter Moon 07 and Ivanushka, and it's really good.

 

The Lurid Library starts out kind of cologney, but not for long. It's soon all musk and warm antique wood. Very scholarly, but not musty. The musk brings in a little of the outdoors to this library.

[glcastil]

This one is so crazy on my skin.

Wet, it's aquatic, and smells like...Dirty, maybe? Or Embalming Fluid? Something about it gives off that BPAL smell...the one you get when you have a pile of imps in front of you. It also has a cologne kick to it.

 

Then, as it dries, it turns into a light, airy fragrance, with a faint dust behind it. Skin musk, is that you? Still has that cologne kick.

 

And finally, it becomes my favorite. It smells like teak! It's glowing and creamy and wonderful, and in the background, there's a tangy wisp of something..is it supposed to be smoke? No idea, since I haven't gotten a BPAL scent with smoke in it, but I love this part, and this is now one of my favorites.

 

As far as throw goes, it stays closes to the skin, but that musk/woodsy part carries it nicely.

 

Also, throughout all the stages, this scent has managed to remind me of several other scents, as in, distinctly matching something else...weird, but I kind of appreciate the quirkiness. I got Dirty/Embalming Fluid, Love's Philosophy, and Glowing Vulva. In that order.

 

ETA: I can now also share that hours later, LL becomes very similar to BPTP's Trinket minus the syrupy sweetness. Very dusty, dry and woodsy. LOVE.

Edited January 30, 2010 by bluberyapulsaus

[donnatron]

Imp: Soft is the best descriptor. I think there's probably white musk and maybe a touch of vanilla but it smells very cottony. Like linen.

 

Wet: Directly on the skin this smells like Antique Lace with no florals and a reduced vanilla note. Also reminds me of Morocco and Parliament of Monsters.

 

Dry: Powdery. Very dry and powdery. Smells like... rancid dusting powder? There's something in this that doesn't sit right on my skin. It's a very dry, powdery, crumbling sort of scent. There's a soft vanilla scent in here--maybe a vanilla musk? The incense is there but it's very indistinct. Mostly this smells like fancy dusting powder that has sat on a vanity tray for fifty years.

 

Throw: Moderate.

 

Overall: Not really agreeing with me. I'm glad to have tried it but I'm starting to realize that for some reason scents that smell like books never work on me while parchment ones are usually pretty decent. Weird.

[lamenteuse]

I wanted to like this one, really, I did. However, this scent just didn't work for me. It was just a light musk scent with...how do I explain it....with the scent of what the back of my television smells like. We always have to fiddle with cords and plugs back there to make everything work, so I'm always reaching back and inhaling a bunch of dust. And that's what this smells like to me. Musk sprayed over the back of my TV.

[Lavada]

This one doesn't change too much on me so, for the most part, it's a dusty incense with the musk giving it a perfumey/cologney throw. I do get the impression of books, but only because there seems to be some sort of shared note/s with The Buggre All This Bible.

 

I don't dislike it, but I don't see me wearing this either (and that's okay because I bought the bottle for a friend ;D). Low/Moderate throw and long wearlength.