VILF

[theseagrows]

Vampire smut: patchouli-infused honey, red musk, red sandalwood, red ginger, pink pepper, Peru balsam, dark Eastern florals, Himalayan cedar, smoky vanilla, bitter clove, and leather.

the leather, cedar, musk and red sandalwood seem to stand at the forefront of this. especially the leather. cedar isn't one of my favorites, and it's pretty strong here, so mostly this smells like leathery-musky cedar on me. alright, but not quite what i was hoping for. i do like the leather a lot though!

[Esmeria]

Well HELLO Eric Northman crossed with Lucius Malfoy.

 

This is sexy, dirty and wild. As soon as I put it on, I get musk and peppers and spices. It makes me want to don a dominatrix outfit and round up the local hotties.

 

Unfortunately, this is short lived and it dries down to something soft and creamy, but with a hint of spice. But the initial hit is like woah.

[grrrlennyl]

VILF

 

On: Wow. So delicious. Sweet honey, tons of patchouli, musk, and dusty sandalwood. I'm worried about all of the "red" notes and the cedar, but we'll see what happens.

5 hours in: This is great. Incredibly sexy and earthy and delicious.

Overall: A keeper. I'm so glad I have a bottle of this.

[filigree_shadow]

VILF smells like... well, it smells exactly what you'd think those notes smell like. There are no surprises here. The patchouli and red musk are equally balanced on my skin (those tend to be loud notes on me), and the honey and sandalwood give it a smooth, slightly dry accent. It's not very spicy, it just smells complex. And maybe just a wee hint of leather. The red ginger, pink pepper, clove, and cedar are all behaving themselves.

 

It smells GREAT. But I don't know whether I want to smell like this myself or whether I want to smell this on my husband. Obviously I would like to smell it on Eric Northman (insert mental image of me biting my fist and making ah-OOOGA noises here), but I'll settle for run-of-the-mill human.

[Penance]

Origin:

 

1/2 decant frimped to me.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

Most of the notes here are favorites of mine, but there are some questionable ones. I adore patchouli (but honey is iffy), red musk, red sandalwood, cedar and smoky vanilla. I usually like balsam, ginger, pepper and leather. Bitter clove I'm not sure if I've encountered before. I have a bottle of The Smiling Spider coming, but I can't think of any other BPAL blend with bitter clove that I've tried. The florals are the most likely to trip me up, but I'm hoping that the rest of the notes here will overwhelm them...or maybe not since this was just discontinued and I'll have a very hard time finding a reasonably priced bottle if I end up loving this.

 

First sniff:

 

What the hell? Almond? Seriously? There's no almond listed here! I don't think it actually is almond, because I'm not feeling nauseous yet. Maybe it's the bitter clove? That's the only thing in here that I can think of that I'm not sure what it smells like (well, other than the florals, but I assume they smell like flowers). Either it's the clove or it's some combo of the other notes masquerading as almond. I'm really hoping it's not the clove because that means that The Smiling Spider will most likely be an epic fail on me, too, and I really want to love it for the other notes and for the awesome label. But anyway, back to VILF...

 

I get a vague impression of wood and honey behind the (pseudo?) almond, but they're faint at best.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Almond. Still almond. I wish I knew where it was coming from, because I don't like the smell of almond, even ignoring its gag-inducing effect on me.

 

Dry down:

 

I feel like a broken record. As it starts to dry, VILF smells like almond on me. VILF smells like almond to me. Granted, I despise that nutty evil so much that anything that smells even a little like it gets my hackles up, so I may just be responding to that. I don't feel like I'm even smelling the same scent that everyone else is.

 

Once it's had a chance to dry for a longer amount of time, I start to get wood (cedar more than pine, but not really "pencil shavings" cedar, more like old, dusty cedar planks), a bit of muskiness and earthiness and some sweetness. Now that the (faux) almondy evil has died down, it smells more like what I anticipated. Oddly enough, I'm still not loving it, in spite of the notes I'm smelling being good ones for me. It's not bad, it's just not OMG amazing.

 

The bottom line:

 

The drydown on this is nice enough (I definitely like it once it's finally dried and lost that weird almond scent), but it's not a scent that I have to have more of, which is good because I don't need any more discontinued scents on my "must have" list.

[donnatron]

Bottle: Oh hai, leather. This is seriously leather-tacular in the bottle and a little terrifying. It smells like it will go the way of Western Diamondback and C. Auguste Dupin, both of which were a little too... saddle-y for my taste?

 

Wet: Leather and sweet tarts. I think that's the ginger and pink pepper doing its thing. However, this has a really long drydown and the longer it dries down, the more the vanilla and peru balsam emerge and add a really lovely, sexy sugared edge to this. It is complex. Very, very complex, but also very sexy.

 

Dry: It... uh, it lives up to its name. I'm not going to lie, the leather in this takes no prisoners. But that's kind of its charm. All the other ingredients combine to make it so damn kinky that the leather sort of twists itself around from being a weird, dominant/crazy note to being... skin close? Sexy? I don't know how to explain it. I put this on early this afternoon and was like "RIGHT! VILF! YOU HAVE NOT LEARNED YOUR LESSON!" Instead of washing it off, I was a big girl and ran some errands and then let it dry down further and although I am not a fan of the early stages, I dig the dry stage and the continuous morphing of this scent. It's a weekend date night scent. Something you can put on several hours before you actually meet your paramour.

 

Throw: Hella strong. Yes. Hella.

 

Overall: I like it. It's a very specific type of scent for a very specific type of occasion. It evokes its namesake like nobody's business. I've been testing this for around four months before I took the plunge into reviewing it. Definitely one that I would recommend you hang onto if you're not sure in the first few tries.

[cuervosueno]

It's odd that this and Tombeur smell so alike on me, given they don't share that many notes. Ok, we've got patchouli, sandalwood, vanilla and bitter clove (or does Tombeur have bitter almond? Yes, it is almond, not clove, in Tombeur), but this still has some other things Tombeur doesn't, as in the ginger, the particular florals, and of course the leather.

 

And it is leather I get from this. It's really pretty when wet and in the imp, a nice soft leather, something well worn as the most lusciuos and soft leather gloves (leather pants!), and it's not an overwhelming leather either. Because mostly what it smells like on me is Tombeur with leather. So while I like it, I don't have to go searching for something hard to find, because I kind of prefer it without the leather.

Also, Tombeur lasts way longer on me. This starts to fade quickly, and has little throw.

[calivianya]

I spied a bottle of VILF on Etsy and went for it! I had initially been a little intimidated by the pepper note, as pepper of any sort tends to go bad on me, but I couldn't resist the temptation because the other notes all sound wonderful.

 

For so many strong notes, VILF is curiously light on me. My initial reaction was a big sigh of relief as the pepper is definitely present, but not a huge player in this scent. What I am getting a lot of is LEATHER. This is a spicy, dirty leather with a little bit of woods hanging out in the background. The vanilla and honey are very quiet on my skin, as on me this blend has almost no sweetness at all. This is not exactly what I thought it would be. I do like it so far, but I did expect it to be a little sweeter than this. Maybe with some aging VILF will have more vanilla and will then be perfect.

[imaginepageant]

In the Vial: OH HI LEATHER. Wow. Okay. What else is in here? Honey, balsam, red musk, and maybe a bit of vanilla... and I could swear I smell something fruity, though there aren't any fruit notes in this. The more I sniff it, actually, the more complex it smells instead of just being slap-in-the-face LEATHER. It's a feminine leather, albeit a tough-chick kind of feminine.

 

Wet: The balsam comes roaring out (starting to think I amp it, bah) and, paired with the leather, kills all the sweetness this had in the imp. No more honey, no more red musk, no more vanilla, no more phantom fruit note. Just smooth leather and balsam. What the hell, skin!

 

Dry: Okay, the leather and balsam have mellowed out a bit, letting the other notes back in, though faintly. The honey is back, I'm getting the florals and vanilla finally, and the red musk is shyly lurking in the background. There's also a general woodsiness about it. Still very much a tough-chick scent.

 

An Hour Later: The floral notes have gained steam, and the leather balsam has faded even more, while the honey and red musk have disappeared completely.

 

Overall: Not what I was expecting! I don't find this smutty at all - maybe sexy, but not smutty. This is a posh feminine scent, but the leather keeps it tough and edgy. Think Selene in Underworld: badass chick in a vinyl catsuit and leather boots, but soft and pretty at the same time. I'm not sure I like how strong the floral notes got, and I wish the red musk and honey would've stuck around more. This'll take a few wearings before I can decide whether it's for me or not.

[merinette]

Wet: ... Nag Champa Super Hit?... and leather. And something burnt. This reminds me very much of a nightclub I used to go to, which, incidentally, burned down. (Goths, Aquanet, lighters... probably should have anticipated that, right?)

 

Dry: Leather and smoke, warm and bittersweet. It's very androgynous, even with the champaca flower and vanilla. It's also softened a lot and I'm getting worried that I won't be able to smell it at all in a few hours. I like this quite a lot. What a bummer that it's going to be so hard to find!

Edited August 30, 2011 by merinette

[Lyanna]

I so much wanted to like this, but alas, it wasn't meant to be.

 

In the imp: whoa, predominantly leather, mixed with patchouli and sandalwood. Quite bitter.

 

Wet: Here come the musk and vanilla, but they are still dominated by the leather and sandalwood. It's a very masculine smell on me at that moment, but not bad.

 

Dry: my skin unfortunately eats all the sweetness and leaves me with a very strong leather smell. So much so that it made me nauseous, and this actually was the first BPAL smell ever that I had to wash off. meh So sad, cause I think the concept is awesome.

[claudia6913]

I knew going in that I am balsam to ungodly degrees, but I was hoping it would play nice in this blend. I was sadly mistaken.

 

Wet this is pure balsam with a hint of cedar and sandalwood. Under that is leather. And that is the sum total of what I can smell. It is a very dry smelling blend as well as it dries. Every now and then I think I can smell some of the red musk and maybe a hint of florals, but the longer I sniff it the more the wood and balsam drowns it out. =( I should just give up on balsam all together I think. =(

 

I'm sure this is a beautiful blend, as there's definitely a potential for it, but not on my skin apparently.

[subtlesiren]

In the bottle: Sharp florals and dusty resins.

 

Wet on my wrist: Virtually the same, though the notes are becoming more distinct.

 

Dry on my wrist: This smells good. Really good. The florals and incense create a classy oriental scent, but the patchouli, red musk and leather dirty it up.

 

This is a sexy, rich woman's perfume. A rich woman who was not born into wealth, but got to where she is through less than virtuous means. Did I mention she's sexy?

[detritius]

On me, this is a sweet red musk over leather with a touch of spice. I have to wonder, with a scent that has this many notes, if this is one that's going to be different next time I put it on, but for now, very sexy.

 

Edit: Ooh, this gets spicier as time goes on. I'm definitely getting the pepper and the ginger now. I like it.

Edited February 29, 2012 by detritius

[Andalei]

Every note in this one is a winner, except the leather, but I finally got a hold of a decant and was so excited to try it out.

 

In the imp: LEATHER!

 

Wet: That leather's still making its presence known, loud and clear. The red musk is peeking its head up, trying to get noticed.

 

Dry: Very leathery with faint red musk. I never noticed any of the other notes.

 

Sadly leather is one of the notes that takes over whatever it is in and makes sure I don't get to enjoy the scent. Rose and lavender are also guilty of this and the three of them have ruined many wonderful blends for me.

[amyw]

Unfortunately on me VILF becomes just vetiver and leather, but mostly vetiver. On me, vetiver is bitter and kind of BO-ish. After a while, VILF gets a bit powdery. Ah, well. VILF and my skin do not get along, I guess because I amp vetiver and what my skin does to it makes it not a great thing to amp.

 

Once in a while I try a blend with vetiver in it hoping that the other notes will keep it in check, and I'm almost always wrong.

 

ETA: I just realized vetiver is not listed. I wonder which note smells like vetiver on me?

Edited May 17, 2012 by amyw

[ClareN]

Freshly applied: Mostly leather - the sweet-chemical-cherry-dusty leather smell from blends like Western Diamondback and Quincey Morris. I like this note, so that's not a negative description. There's also cedar, honey, a hint of smokiness, and lots of rosewood - the note that is in Dee, Libertine and Seance - although it's not listed in VILF. I feel pretty confident that there's some rosewood in here but if not it must be the red sandalwood or the Peru balsam that my nose is interpreting as rosewood. I get no patchouli or musk. The oil is a light orangey colour so even without sniffing it's obvious that there's not a lot of red musk here.

 

Drying: Gorgeous at this stage - sniffed close to your wrist it's a bit too sharp chemical leather, but the throw in the air around you is a lovely sweet leather-honey-sandalwood. This lasts 10-20 minutes.

 

Dry: The leather backs off a bit, and you can smell more of the woods and a little of the pepper, ginger and florals. Smells like a Lush product, can't think of which one, maybe a combination of Lush products. It's quite nice.

 

Later drydown: Light, sweet leather and rosewood. I'm not usually a huge fan of rosewood or leather when they take center stage like this, and I feel like VILF needs more of a base note - some serious vetiver, patchouli or musk would do wonders. Glad I got to try it, though, especially for the early stages.

 

If you like this, try: Dee, Western Diamondback, Quincey Morris, Seance

[Wren12]

Holy Hell, this taught me the lesson not to judge BPAL by the bottle smell.

 

In the bottle: Mediciney, sharp, astringent.

 

On wet: This immediately blooms into the most wonderful leather scent I have yet experienced. The patchouli jumps up next, and it's the patchouli I like, thank gods.

 

Drying: OMG, this is sososososo good. The vanilla wafts up from the leathery patchouli goodness. It warms the leather, and makes it feel less cool, as I find leather can be. On further drying the cedar becomes marvelously pronounced, giving the scent a "beloved leather jacket, stored away in a cedar chest after being, anointed with patchouli and vanilla before storage," type of feeling.

 

I absolutely love this, and will treasure this bottle. One swap mate will be lucky I agreed to decant some before I actually skin tested it, but this baby is coming off the swap list, like woah!

 

Eta...on further drydown the patchouli backs off and the vanilla and leather mingle in a loving embrace. I keep loving this more and more!

Edited December 8, 2012 by Wren12

[yakiguri]

VILF pretty much stays true from wet application to drydown--spicy black leather dominates with a thick glob patchouli, all smeared over bone dry woods. In fact I really don't get much else aside from black leather, patchouli, cedar, sandalwood, and pepper. Throw is amazingly strong--this one's a dabber, folks.

 

Vampires in Kim Harrison's Hollows series are described as having a dark incensey scent to them and VILF is exactly what I imagined that to be. While indeed a sexy scent VILF is more sexy-dangerous rather than sexy-tempting (Tombeur fits that niche for me), and the blend is too dry and sharp for me to wear that often. I'm glad to have a bottle though and will gladly apply when I'm feeling a bit dangerous.

[mymymai]

ITI: Oh, that was a rush of complex notes. The honey is the top note in the bottle, but the leather comes on strongly after a fraction of a second. There is a bit of sweetness under it all from the sandalwood and vanilla. It's certainly an attractive scent.

 

Wet: On my skin, the woody and animalistic aspects are dominant. Rich leather and smoky sandalwood followed by patchouli, vanilla, and a smidgen of ginger.

 

Dry: Dried, the scent is a simply feminine combination of sandalwood, honey dust (powder), musk, vanilla, and leather.

[Winter_Wanderer]

-

Edited October 7, 2016 by Winter_Wanderer

[malibusunny]

I don't see a review here -- that surprises me.

I'm testing VILF against WILF today, and finding that I like WILF better, which surprises me greatly, as I initially felt just the opposite. This is a well aged sample, since I bought it when it was first released three years ago...

 

VILF is worn leather (like red rider), a bit of vanilla sugar, and cedar. It goes to pencils on me, which is typical of cedar. Like WILF, I've lost the smut of this, and am left with the remaining notes on my skin.

[spiralmissy]

Well, shit! Unfortunately, I LOVE this! Since it is so coveted and hard to find, I was really hoping that the patchouli and the florals would make this a less than stellar fragrances for me. No such luck, and now I have another addition to my "must have"s.

 

In the bottle - Leather and Musk. mmmm.

 

Wet on skin - oh, I smell the spices now! yummy - but a safe distance from foody. cloves, honey, vanilla, pepper combined with sandalwood and the leather completely fades into the background. Like, you are wearing a leather choker, not a leather jacket.

 

Dry - The musk comes back out to play and the pink pepper gives it extra bite - taking it from sexy and comforting to sultry and kinda dangerous. Faith from Buffy/Angel would wear VILF.

 

Between this and Madame Moriarty, I have learned that I do not need to eliminate a fragrance just because patchouli is a component - and that will make me 1) happier and 2) more poor.

 

Now, where can I find a bottle?

[JazzieCazzie]

Before I continue onto my review here, I want to thank Penance for HER review because it kept me from thinking I was going crazy.

So, like many people, I had VILF on my wishlist based on an amazing list of notes, of which virtually every single one (except, sadly, leather) is on my "like" list. And while I know that won't always guarantee a winner, it certainly made it worth trying to find out. I happened to win a bottle on eBay but, a few days before it arrived, I was gifted with a half-imp from an amazingly awesome forumite with whom I had done a swap so it's from that bottle I tested (I am going to also test separately from my other bottle to see if there is any difference based on aging, etc.).

So this is from the decanted imp and I'm not sure of the date.

IN THE IMP: ALMOND? Absolutely almond. NOT what I was expecting. Almond and leather, medicinal leather, and plastic. (Will explain that below).

Dabbed on one wrist and in the crook of one arm.

WET: This is super-sweetness crossed with resinous sharpness. It's not candy-sweet but rather the sweetness of something like almond which is apparently not almond. There is also a definite "comfort scent" in it for me which I find in the medicinal resins. The leather is also predominant and I'm not a fan of leather. The over-riding note for me, though, is the "plastic" scent and I use that for lack of a better word. It's not necessarily a BAD scent. I think a lot of the vanilla-y notes have this for me ... it's more that it evokes the smell of new toys, either still in the box or just opened.

DRYDOWN: Sweet. Resinous. A little too cloying for me. It's not super strong or in your face, not a lot of throw. But the combination of the plastic scent and the almondy-sweetness isn't a bad thing. It's like having a wrapped gift and a plate of cookies. It's like being the guest of honor at a 5-year-old's birthday party. It smells like dolls and a toybox and childhood.

OVERALL: I'm on the bubble about this. I want to give it one more try, and decant an imp of my own from the full bottle before I decide whether to add this to my swap list. Given how popular and hard to find it is, I would only keep it if I find that I really, really love it. And I'm just not sure. I feel like I SHOULD love it but I'm not sure I do.

On a scale of 1-5, right now about a 3. Gonna go apply some more for the rest of the day and then decide.

[pharmgirl]

I picked up a nicely aged bottle on Ebay. I've been wanting this for a while but was afraid the leather would be too strong. I enjoyed the scent of Western Diamondback but it was too masculine for me to wear. VILF has the Eastern florals which do not stand out, they just balance out the masculinity of the leather. The leather is more of a brown leather than a black one. Once completely dry the woods, clove, musk and vanilla make this a very wearable leather blend for me. I am happy with my purchase especially since VILF has been out of stock at the lab for quite a while. I hope that does not mean it will be discontinued.