Love's Philosophy

[Coldfire]

Vanilla, saffron, and cream.

Decant: vanilla cream with a tart note
Wet on me: more sweet vanilla cream with a tart note. Must be the saffron
Drying Down: the tart is gone…just smooth vanilla cream
Dry: sweet vanilla cream. Altho not a foodie scent fan this does not tip over into that realm for me. This is nice. Glad I received a decant of this.

[unlaced]

Yay! I just got my swap of Love's Philosophy! I'm so glad I got a chance to swap for this.

 

In the bottle it smells like cream soda... okay but not the lovelyness I'd expected.

 

Wet on my skin it's creamy and lovely and mmmmmmm... vanilla cream yummy. the cream soda thing went away pretty fast.

 

Dry I get some funky Vicks Vapo-Rub smell which must be the saffron acting up because cream usually works for me and so does vanilla but I can't remember trying anything with saffron as a main note... (or maybe my skin chemistry is just wonky right now)

 

Dry later... ahhh good, no more Vicks just creamy vanilla teensy bit spicy to ground it and keep it from smelling too super sweet. It reminds me of whipped cream with a tiny pinch of yellow spice sprinkled on top. Very comforting.

[Champagne]

In the bottle it`s fizzy vanilla, and on the skin it gets sweeter but not cloying thanks to the saffron. It stays long and the cream note is just delicious as time passes. Yes, I love it !

[vegasblueblood]

Simply delicious and lasts for hours. This is very foodie but is more of a sophisticated foodie. The saffron gives this a cool edge, almost minty, but the vanilla and cream are the prominent notes on me. This is not your typical vanilla scent. It almost reminds me of cream cheese icing (the kind you get on red velvet cake)--yum! I just can't believe how long this stuff lasts. It kept going strong on me for over 12 hours!

Edited February 4, 2009 by vegasblueblood

[anomie]

Bottle: Tangy vanilla, like the above review compares to cream cheese frosting. Nom.

 

Wet: The tang vanishes, and it's just mellow vanilla.

 

Dry: Saffron and vanilla. A really lovely scent.

 

 

[TheOneTheyCallLuna]

In the bottle, this smells like cheesecake or cream cheese frosting, or some other type of soured cream vanilla. I kind of like it, actually, even though it's kind of weird...

 

On my skin, there's the minty note, but it's definitely saffron. Within five minutes this is all creamy french vanilla with an exotic hint of saffron. My boyfriend says this one smells like "creamy exotic vanilla" and his eyes roll back in his head when he inhales the scent.

 

I might need more time to bond with this one, but I feel like this might be one of those scents (like Glowing Vulva) where I like it well enough at first, but after a little time to bond with it, it's genius suddenly smacks me upside the head one day and I start to hoard! In other words, this smells like one of those BPAL greats. It's lovely, exotic, romantic, and pretty. It also seems suited for year round wear (though I am particularly looking forward to having a halo of it's sweet vanilla saffron goodness wafting all around me in the sunshine this spring/early summer).

 

I'm glad I found this bottle of Love's Philosophy - I'm gonna hold on to it tightly with both hands!

 

 

ETA: Yeah, this one is rapidly growing on me, and steadily climbing its way up my LE top ten - just like Glowing Vulva. It's insidiously working its way into my heart. There's something about this scent, just like GVaRB, a certain je ne sais quoi - I find that I actively *crave* it when I'm not wearing it. I miss it...For me, that's exceptional!

Edited February 23, 2009 by TheOneTheyCallLuna

[WidgetAlley]

I have an epic headcold, but am starting to regain my sense of smell, and I'm tired of waiting!

 

Bottle: Holy crap. Cheap, buttery, boozy buttercream frosting, with a hint of lemon and mint (really saffron, but I can't tell yet). Rich and heady and oozing straight-up sugar.

 

Wet: At first, a faint plastic note, but that dies off really fast and leaves a clear, translucent, rich and not overly-sweet vanilla. The foodiness, the booze, the creaminess are mostly gone. Just pure vanilla. I'm not getting a whole lot of saffron, but there is a kind of waxy note in here, making the whole thing smell a lot like vanilla candles. I agree with the comparison to Tombstone. Still not getting any saffron or cream... in fact this smells pretty much exactly like Tombstone on me. Time for a side-by-side.

 

Dry: This is different from Tombstone-- sweeter, lighter, creamier, less herbal. That being said, it's pretty much a straight-up French vanilla on me. Not blowing my socks off, which is a pity, because I was REALLY hoping for a lot of saffron. It would be great for layering, but I think I'll just stick with Tombstone. I like the herbal, and it's GC.

 

Swaps.

[rayvn1]

What a surprise I was going way out on a limb when I aquired this one, because cream normally does bad, and I mean really BAD, things on my skin (White Rabbit... ) but this is beautiful! Sweet and thick and creamy with a touch of spice. Foody, but only slightly. Delicious!

[Kittenmorag]

I love the '08 Lupercalia blends, so i've been trying to collect all of them. I finally managed to get a bottle of this.

 

In the Bottle- Rich, creamy vanilla, almost overwhelmingly so. They weren't taking the mickey when they said that there was vanilla and cream in there, were they? It's a very childlike scent, remeniscent of a little girl in a white 'princess dress' at her first 'big kid's' birthday party.

 

On the Wrist- The sweetie sweet scent matures a little, and the slightly herby, bitter-but-not note of the saffron comes to the fore, the whole of which makes the little girl of this scent into an elegant, beautiful, highly educated lady. Does that make any sense? I didn't think so. Generally on the wrist it goes from being a crazy confectionary to something that isn't going to make diabetics sick, which is nice.

 

Overall- It throws far for the first few hours in that way that vanilla does, then settles in demurely behind the saffron for a little while after that. I must say I quite enjoy it for those occassions where I want to smell nice but don't want to offend the oversensitive olefactory palettes of my close friends and family, and for when I want to huff something that just smells vanilla-y and good.

 

EDIT: Wow... they let me review this twice? >.>

 

=^..^=

Edited February 24, 2009 by Kittenmorag

[Ceri]

In the vial: Slightly sour vanilla

 

Wet: Mmm, smell like peppermint candy. Yummy.

 

Dry: Saffron & vanilla.

 

Overall: I am definitely keeping the imp!

[aquazoo]

Oh, wow, pretty candy! Cream soda, I just want to slurp it up!

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Light yellow oil. Sweet, creamy, and golden. It reminds me of saffron ice cream I've had at Persian restaurants, shot through with vanilla syrup. Exotic and a little foody.

 

Wet: Vanilla galore, almost boozily - it reminds me a lot of vanilla extract, or vanilla syrup (like Monin or such for coffee drinks). It has an almost floral quality, too. Cream and saffron fainter.

 

Dry: Oh, this has a sparkling edge...and reminds me so much of vanilla cream soda at this point, with that almost root-beerish edge. Like, SPOT ON. Saffron, I miss you.

 

Later: Vanilla is doing that fake, plasticky amping thing, becoming more and more cloyingly sweet. The cream has come back a bit more, but the saffron is long gone.

 

Summary: Heady, artificial, vanillin-y, vanilla syrup spiked cream soda. A friend smells 'wintergreen' - and this is almost like that, it has a mentholic, sharp quality. Moderate throw.

 

 

[Andrea912]

I have two imps and I need a bottle...this is amazing! The saffron tends to take on a medicinal edge to it, but that is only temporary...lovely vanilla and cream.

[ShadowsDance]

In the imp it's sweet vanilla.

 

On my skin it's sweet and creamy, but not too thick. As it is drying, it seems to take on a plastic quality.. but that does fade after a bit of time. It returns to a creamy vanilla scent, with a hint of something slightly cool and minty. It reminds me of Tokyo Stomp, but with less mint undertones. Same type of vanilla.. Good lasting power as well, I'm at about 6 hours now?

[crebbsgirl]

I think this is where I discover the lab's cream note and I don't get along. I usually like vanilla blends, and all things spice but something here went a little sour on me. Right before it did that though, the vanilla and saffron were just delicious and wonderful.

[Gin]

Love's Philosophy

 

In the bottle: What the hell? Why have I not been wearing this EVERY DAY? It's fantastic! On skin: The same. Lovely vanilla cream. I can't believe I've had this for over a year and am just discovering it now.

[marared]

I wasn't too sure about getting this as a bottle because sugary things don't do well on my skin. It's usually the sugar note specifically rather than naturally sweet things like vanilla - the cream, though, was a cause for concern. Happily, after 30 minutes there isn't a hint of sour!

 

I smelled cream cheese frosting in the bottle - my favorite kind, hands down. On my skin, I get cream soda - really rich cream soda, and in fact makes me want to go across the street for a four-pack of IBC. It reminds me just a very tiny bit of Mead Moon - the sunniness of the saffron has the same effect as the boozy honey. And it gives this *personality* - straight up vanilla and cream would be yummy, but the saffron gives it that exotic edge. I think I'll have to wear this a bit more and see how it grows on me.

[revinn]

In the Imp: Whoa, is that what saffron smells like? Very potent stuff.

 

Wet: Hey, this smells like cream soda! That's so weird, it actually smells carbonated.

 

Dry: One of the best vanillas I've come across. It's light and sweet and almost reminiscent of root beer. So good, I need a bottle of this.

 

Out of 10: 10

[cyanidenoir]

I don't expect to like this very well but I was surprised!

 

In the bottle, it has an indescribably synthetic and sickening. The scent isn't vanilla or anything I've smelled before. It was a little sickening. But I sucked it up and put a drop on. As it was drying down, the vanilla became more apparent. Eventually, it turns into a gentle root-beerish scent! I love it!

[pseedie]

neongreen,

 

really?? It did? I LOVE root beer, but I had the same experience you did with the smell in the imp....couldn't get myself to test it because it smelled sickening to me.....now you're going to make me push my limits.....(ok folks, if there's no review up here within the next week, feel free to harass me and call me chicken...) [=

[angelicruin]

Inside the bottle, vanilla cream with an underlying sourness.

 

Wet on the skin, it's vanilla marshmallow & something vaguely sour. Oooh, the more it dries, the sweeter and creamier it gets.

 

Sour note is entirely gone once fully dry and I concur with the reviews that mention this smells like a yummy root beer float when all is said and done.

 

Keeper!

[LadyLuckless]

Wow... this is delicious. I get the most mouthwateringly foody vanilla cream, dusted with the most subtle breath of spices. The spice is barely detectable, but it enriches the vanilla. My mouth actually waters when I put this on, and my heart absolutely ACHES for a bottle!

[topazphoenix]

I was really excited to get the chance to try LP from a swap. The reviews promised this lovely complex vanilla, and I love vanilla....

 

Once it hit my skin, it gained all the complexity of a yankee candle. In addition, I got the plastic/wax feel that was in Detestable Putrescence.

 

At least now it's going to someone who will love it..

Edited November 4, 2009 by AmandaKay

[Venneh]

Got this as a BPAL Santa gift from moonjelly on LJ; thanks again! In the decant, this smells like vanilla, saffron, and cream. Pretty straight forward, no?

 

On my skin, it's a faint vanilla saffron, maybe a bit of the cream smoothing it all out. We'll see what this does on the drydown. ..And it fades away to almost nothing pretty quickly, sadly. Well, at least I know there's a chance of this being better on someone else. Swaps/sales.

Edited December 18, 2009 by Venneh

[miaa]

In the bottle:Sweet but without being candy sweet.

On my skin: This is sadly one of the few bottles I from loving to hate. To me it has no vanilla smell only a sweet almost medical scent. The vanilla is so hidden that I would not notice it at least not anymore. The scent is not old or damaged in any way. I guess my taste has changed in two years Strange thing is that I love both vanilla and candy blends.