The Lurid Library

[Penance]

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

Origin:

5mL from Mamacat.

Preconceived notions:

I love the smell of old books and incense. Musk is hit or miss but generally good, as long as it isn't powdery or pungent/animalistic. I'm hoping this is a winner because it sounds awesome.

First sniff:

I was about to write this off based on my first sniff when it first arrived in the mail. It was very, very powdery. In fact, that's almost all I could smell was powder. There was maybe just a slight touch of "old book" underneath, but it was completely drowned out by the powder of doom. But, since The Lurid Library had a long journey from Canada to the US, I figured it might need some time to recover and set it aside for a while (two or three weeks, I think, maybe a little longer).

Opened it again yesterday and talk about a turnaround. Gone is the powder and instead I get a fairly realistic "old paper" smell, combined with just a hint of musk and some very, very light incense.

Wet on skin:

Mmmm, this smells good! This seriously smells like old books (a good used bookstore specializing in antique editions, maybe), even more so than The Buggre Alle This Bible, probably because The Lurid Library doesn't have the fruity leather note that Buggre has. At first I get nothing but that old paper smell, but then within a few seconds I start to smell some very faint, sweet incense.

Dry down:

As this dries, the smells start to mesh more and more and I'm left with the smell of something that reminds me of a combination of an antique book dealer's store and a church. Maybe an antique bookstore specializing in the religious and esoteric. Old, dry paper infused with light, sweet incense smoke. The musk is very understated. It's very much a "skin musk" sort of scent on me, which is excellent, because that's my favorite type.

This is less intense than The Buggre Alle This Bible, which is good. I love a strong, intense scent, but there are a lot of days when I want to wear something that's a little more understated. The Lurid Library will fit that niche nicely.

The bottom line:

I really love this. Although I also have (and love) The Buggre Alle This Bible (and Aziraphale on the way), The Lurid Library is definitely staying in my collection (and in my favorites box). I think this might be my favorite "old book" scent yet. Definitely a scent I'd get a backup bottle (or two) of.

[Teaotter]

In the imp: Dusty leather

 

Wet: Dusty leather-bound books, with something sweet hanging in the background.

 

Dry: A powdery incense comes out around the books. It settles quickly for me, then fades into a faintly powdery musk. I like the first part, but it doesn't linger long enough for me to really love it.

[rayvn1]

paper, incense, and cologne. It's mellowed out well in the last few hours, but the strong beginning would be hard for me to get past on a regular basis

[CiaoBonefish]

I just realized I never reviewed this! A crime! Well to keep things short, sweet, and to the point, this is glorious golden musk, old dusty yellow parchment, with a light waft of incense throughout. Amazing. And SO evocative. Wet it is a bit sharp, a bit cologne-esque, definitely unisex leaning on masculine, but once this dries the scent melts into my skin and just melds together in the most beautiful of ways. It is a touch sweeter now but trust me this isn't a particularly sweet blend. It is all dry and musky and LIKE OLD WORN BOOKS. So so so so good. This would probably smell amazazing on a man (which means I need to test this out on the boy sometime soonish). For a lover of books like me, this scent is just pure love. Not to mention it is a bit sexy too

[sajiaidoki]

Darn, I really wanted to love this. I spend most of my free time in libraries and bookstores. I can't imagine a better comfort scent concept.

 

However, I get all sharp, dry white florals. No incense or musk, at least that I can distinguish.

 

It's not bad but it's not what I was expecting. I have too many imps that amp white florals already. Definitely mellows into a softer sweeter floral upon drydown. I might be getting a bit of crisp paper or binding glue. But still, this doesn't say "library" to me. Oh well, one less scent to hoard.

 

 

Note: I tested this on the same arm as Creepy 2009 and am really enjoying the way they are starting to mingle.

[calivianya]

I can't believe I have never reviewed this scent. It is an absolute favorite.

 

Dusty books, sexy musk, incense... what's not to love? It is just on the masculine side. The musk is the same musk from Black Lace, but where Black Lace goes slightly soapy on my skin The Lurid Library stays true. It is a wonderful scent and I am in love. I just wish it was a hint more feminine, because it would be my signature scent for sure if it was.

[WidgetAlley]

I have zero idea what to expect from this. Something like the background of dry wood and paper in Clemence? I hope so! I also really, really hope it's not leather.

 

Bottle: A sweet, baby-powdery, high-pitched... something. Musk overlaid with florals, perhaps? It's a little smokey, a little spicy. There's something in it that smells like floor cleaner to me (only other scent I've gotten that from is Glasgow, so maybe there's heather?) I get no bookshop at all. I want to say there's just a hint of lavender in there too, catching at my throat, but it's very subtle. Not even a little bit what I was expecting!

 

Wet: I.. what? Burning plastic? Burning plastic and incense overlaid with baby powder and dusty florals and definitely some lavender. I'm still not smelling anything even approaching old books. Somewhere way down there a really nice musk is trying to emerge, but it's being stomped on by the plastic and hand-wipe lavender. Now it almost smells like a super-sweet aquatic. I can sort of see the cologne-ish comparisons but only in a general way. No wood, no paper, just overly-sweet dusty floral-thick faint incense and a choking variety of plastics. From farther away I get the caramel comparison for sure but not in a good way. Ugh, I think this is giving me a headache.

 

Dry: This calms down into a lavender-tinged incense full of sweet powdery musk, caramel and... just a hint of white pepper? Blonde wood? It's very soft, close, and more baby-powderish than most BPALs go. The dry-down isn't too bad, but it's not something I'd ever wear, and the wet stage sure as heck isn't worth it to get there. This one will be finding a new home for sure.

[subtlesiren]

In the bottle: The first notes I smell are incense and musk, skin musk perhaps? In the background is a note that to me smells like an old book cover.

 

Wet on my wrist: Clean skin musk with that book cover smell. The incense is still present, but has faded into the background. Very different from any other scent I have.

 

Dry on wrist: This is such a unique scent. Freshly-washed skin and books.

 

Probably not a scent that will get much use, but unusual enough to keep.

[joyfulgirl]

source: an amazing frimp from the wonderful olfactorymaven!

 

in the imp: rich, dark incense...one of my favorite notes! it smells delightful and i can't wait to try it!

 

wet: very deep, rich, dark-woodsy incense with a bit of a sharp floral(?) note...or maybe an floral facet to the incense? almost sneezy, but i love this incense so much that i don't care even a little bit.

 

dry: at first i thought it was fading, but i think my nose is just becoming a little accustomed to the scent. it's a little bit elusive...when i smell my wrist, i don't get much of anything, but then when i'm moving around i get these lovely puffs of fragrance. it has morphed a bit from pure incense into something totally incredible...the musk is opening up and blending with the incense to form a really sexy, comfortable scent. filigree_shadow mentioned it feeling very lived-in and loved, and i am totally getting the same thing from it. very evocative, warm and grounding. i briefly got the scent/image of a single burning candle...plain wax and a little tiny bit of soot. it was a nice, unexpected addition to the whole sexy-library angle. there is a definite woodsy, masculine tinge to the incense, but then on the tail end of that i get this amazing sweet, creamy musk note that is decidedly feminine. i think the mix of the two is what makes this smell so much like hot sex. in a really, really good way.

 

bottom line: i LOVE this. damn, i wish this wasn't so old...i'd love to get my hands on a bottle! however, based on what i've read here, i will definitely be getting a bottle of azirphale and keeping my eyes open for any lurid library i can find.

[Lucretia]

This is amazing. I've been struggling to find a book scent that doesn't smell too dry (no pencil shavings, thanks) and masculine, and this one is perfect on me. I get leather and parchment and kind of a mild musk and sweet incense that blends everything together beautifully. I can see wearing this a lot this fall.

[Midnight Eris]

2012 version, fresh from the Lab today.

In bottle: Uck! Sharp and astringent, almost nauseating. I almost don't even want to put it on.

On skin, wet: same. Worried this could've been a mistake. I don't get incense, books or anything except really strong cleaner stuff.

On skin, drying: softening up. Patchouli? I recently discovered patchouli and I really don't get along...Also a dryness that almost makes me cough.

Dry, two - three hours after applying: mmmm...something warm and creamy, mixed with a scent that makes me thing strongly of old, dusty paper. There's virtually no throw; this is a scent to cuddle up with and breathe in deep. I can't pick out any individual notes, but someone earlier said vanilla musk. There's no sweetness like with vanilla, but I agree with the sentiment. It's beautiful. I'm happy to go through the somewhat icky phase to get to this gorgeous, warm scent. Makes me think of curling up with my favorite book on a cool autumn evening.

[stellamaris]

OK, I think I have to test this another day, it's going pouf right to incense on me, then vanishing. We'll come back to the Library another day then, it smells lovely, for a minute...

so, patience being a virtue that I am working on, I gave this about a week and it's turned into a very nice round incense scent. Actually nice for sleeping in, picking the kids up from school and not scaring the other parents, etc. I like this one a lot and will wear the heck out of it.

Edited October 24, 2012 by stellamaris

[Helas]

Sadly, all that I get from the Lurid Library is fruity red musk and smoke. The parchment and leather are nowhere to be found. The musk is very strong and has a bit of a coppery tang to it that evokes blood - neat, I suppose, but not really my thing. I wanted to smell like the sort of sexy librarian who sacrifices calves to Nyarlathotep in their spare time, but this is full-on fire in the slaughterhouse.

[OctoberGwen]

Note: this is the 2012 version.

 

Ugh, these Haunted House scents really fit the bill! There is something about Lurid Library that's slightly repulsive, despite the sweetness on its surface. I don't get 'old book' smell so much as 'nasty b.o. covered with cologne' odor, lingering with old newpapers and covered by sweetish incense.

 

This is one library I would not spend time in.

 

[Soniadevi]

2012 decant from the wonderful Mellifluous! At first I just thought, "Lurid Library? What's all the fuss about? It's just a sharp incensey smell!" But that was before the drydown. To a wonderfully smooth, sweet, paper scent, like the paper that Shakespeare is busy writing a bawdy tale upon with his fluffy quill... There is romance in this scent, poetry, and a little musky spice. It can be anything you want it to be. I know I like it very much!

[yakiguri]

Of all my Part 1 Weenies, The Lurid Library baffled me the most. From application to drydown, it kept reminding me of something, but I couldn't quite place it...then it struck me. On my skin, this smells almost *exactly* like vintage perfume, especially Chanel No. 5.

 

The Lurid Library starts off with a powderiness that's both bright and soft, which to my nose is quite similar to the aldehydic opening of most vintage non-reformulated perfumes, but without the bubbliness--and sharpness--that some aldehydes tend to get. I want to say there's a floral or two in the mix, but I can't decipher what it could be--since my nose is firmly putting this in the vintage category, it might be some sort of jasmine. Leather makes an appearance during drydown, but it's the soft, worn kind of leather of well-worn gloves rather than spicy black biker leather. Lovely, and classic.

 

The Lurid Library is less of a bookcase full of infernal tomes and more akin to finding your great-grandmother's secret love letters, the faded remnants of her perfume and her lover's cologne unfurling as you unwrap the delicate papers from their soft leather satchel.

[opheliatrey]

She walks do the hallways, a lady with seamed stockings and a tasteful suit. Her high heels clinking on the wooden floors causing the rest of the room to look up. Her smile is awkward as she tip toes to where the book is hidden. Running her fingers over the spine of the book before she picks it up, a crimson blush across her face.

 

This scent is soft and creamy. It reminds me the most of a perfume that is inside of a vintage unlabeled bottle I have. I have been on such a kick of sweet vanilla scents this was a much needed change of pace. Its harkens back the old days of strong notice me perfumes of yesteryear, in the vein of Youth Dew but it doesn't smell a thing like it. The paper smell drifts in and out. Now I go play some swing music and put on a fancy hat.

[patina]

This is very sweet and, as another reviewer commented, something like an old perfume.

 

I get the powdery, woody scent of old pages and soft leather but it's more a tactile sense than a smell, if that makes sense.

Mostly I get perfume. The resins here are very sweet for some reason (they remind me of Mage) and I can detect tiny traces of the lab's warm brimstone note (as seen in The Hellgate of Ireland.)

 

This is a warm room full of aging paperback books that have soaked up incense and whiffs of brimstone over the years and were recently generously sprayed with old fashioned perfume.

[zankoku_zen]

2012 isn't like 2007 on me. In fact, the 2012 version smells more like... sweet raisins.

 

Yup. Raisins. There's something sweet, and kinda powdery and something that smells like raising to me.

 

Skin. chemistry. fail.

[boomtownrat]

This is the 2012 version. It's purely a smoke scent while wet on my skin, but as it dries, out come the red musk and a hint of incense. I've worn it on two different days and haven't noticed anything that makes me think of books. As much as I like it, I think the decant will be enough for me.

[milo]

This is a light incense on me. Something here reminds me of Temple Viper, so it's like Temple Viper, but without the Snake Oil, basically. It's kind of dry, dusty, kind of perfumey, but ultimately not really me.

[Spork]

sad, no book scent for me, all infernal servant!

[ajansuz]

2012 version:

 

In the bottle, kind of sharp men's cologne. I can't pick anything individual out of it beyond that.

 

Wet: MEN'S COLOGNE. Almost strong enough that I'm tempted to wash it off. It's a chemical sort of odor, something I associate with drugstore cologne. It's not boding well at that stage.

 

Dry down: This is where a little musk starts coming out and saves it from being completely cheap cologne. After about three hours I also start catching small whiffs of old books, the slightly musty scent of old paper. It's nice, though, evocative of some of the more interesting used bookstores I've discovered through the years. The tantalizing whiffs continue to surprise me for the rest of the day, and it's these that made me decide to keep this and see how it ages. I'd say this leans more toward a masculine scent than unisex.

[skyelyric]

This is bizarrely pretty on me--actually the first mainstream perfume-esque scent that has worked.

 

The book part of the library manifests as a soft powdery overlay and the rest of the scent on me is the vintage perfume thing. I know some people have mentioned Chanel, but on me this is a dead ringer for Shalimar, which makes me happy.

 

On me, this stays fairly close to the skin, not much throw at all, subtle and quite lovely.

[Monday]

On my skin wet: Whee it's the same sweet musky scent that Miss Lupescu has. It's more masculine than Miss Lupescu but that doesn't bother me.

Something sharply sweet and powdery is amping when The Lurid Library dries down. Stop ruining the scent sharp powdery thing!

On my skin dry: The sharpness has toned down a bit it's now reminding me of Pteropus Leucopterus, only whiter and fruitier. I like it.