Post-Mortem Laureatus

[AmyO'Shields]

POST-MORTEM LAUREATUS
Post-Mortem Laureatus, Loghi Kimon.
White sandalwood and twining ivy.

 

I seriously cannot believe no one has reviewed this yet! I loved this at Will Call and I love it in my bottle...this is one of the nicest fresh GREEN scents...all Ivy with just a touch of sandalwood underneath. It is kind of loud while it is wet, but the drydown is silky smooth. I detect a wee bit o musk in this while it is drying, kind of like the phantom musk in October...it's good. If you are a fan of green scents without mint, give this a try...it's a 9.5/10 on the Amy scale of love.

ETA: This screams Spring to me...even though it will be beautiful year round.

[forspecial_plate]

I like it too!

 

At first I thought I didn't like it. It goes on me like a powdery poof of green ivy. But you know.....sometimes I can be in the mood for a little powder. And a lot of times, when I don't like a scent, I know I should probably try it again.

 

So anyway, if you're familiar with the lab's green ivy notes, you will recognize the ivy here. When I sniff up close there's something kind of rubbery, like the inside of a balloon. Don't ask how I know what the inside of a balloon smells like. Just kidding, we all know that smell. But that is a minor part of this scent and not everyone will get it. Lots of times when I review something, people might read it and think, "Huh? Did he get a mis-labelled decant??" It's okay, don't worry. I just get weird impressions sometimes.

 

Not sure what else to say about this one. It's fresh and a little sweet, and I'm getting major powder, but it's kind of dandified and there are definitely times when I want that. If you have ever tried Habit Rouge by Guerlain, this reminds me of that same kind of slightly raspy powdery notes, only this is more stripped down and not woody.

 

I had written this off already but now I'm rethinking that decision.

[endlessrains]

I bought this one for the ivy. I totally did, and I don't regret it one bit.

 

In the bottle, it smells like white sandalwood with a dark green note, which it is. So far so good.

When still wet, the leatheriness of the sandalwood rapidly fades into a peppery spice, then warms up and brightens. The ivy's just kinda chillin', which is cool with me.

When dry, it's mostly the same, maybe a little more powder-ish, but not much. It's more pepper than powder on me. There's almost no throw, but there's plenty of scent hanging close to my skin. The ivy? Still chillin'. S'aight.

 

It's hazy, in a way, but warmer than the picture would suggest and overall really nice!

4.5 out of 5 sounds about right. I'm glad I grabbed a couple of bottles of this.

Edited October 17, 2011 by endlessrains

[Ghost of a Rose]

In the imp (decant): Oil is clear with a very pale yellowish-green tint. The scent in the imp is an unusually soft, sweet, sandalwood with what smells like flowers rather than greenery.

 

On me, wet: Ah, now the greenery shows up. There is still a bit of a floral note, but the sandalwood went into hiding. This is a delicate, understated, and quite lovely scent.

 

After 10 minutes: The floral note has also mostly gone now, and most of the sweetness along with it. Now it's pretty much all ivy. The ivy is a green note that is unmistakably something different than either grass or herbs. I don't like it quite as much as those - there's just a touch of sourness to it , or is it decay? - but I do like it, and also it is interesting and unusual.

 

After 30 minutes: The scent is still much the same, except that the white sandalwood and floral-like note that I smelled in the imp is now starting to peek out a little, bringing some of the sweetness back. I especially like it at this stage - the sweetness from the sandalwood balances that slight sourness of the ivy.

 

After 1 hour: Now the ivy and the sandalwood/floral notes are about equal.

 

After 1 1/2 hours: The sandalwood/floral is beginning to overtake the ivy. I like all sandalwood, but I think I particularly like the white. It is softer and sweeter than the others, and may have a floral-like note (unless there are flower oils in this blend that are unlisted.)

 

After 2 hours: All sandalwood/floral, slightly powdery.

 

After 7 1/2 hours: I can still smell the sandalwood on my wrist very faintly.

 

Verdict: An unusual and lovely, subtle, feminine, scent. I especially like it when both the ivy and the sandalwood/floral notes are present at the same time (30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours.) They balance one another beautifully. And I also love the white sandalwood drydown.

 

My rating: 4 stars

[strahlend]

I've been on the lookout for a predominantly sandalwood scent lately and I typically enjoy ivy as a note, so I was happy to try this decant.

 

In the decant: This is very soft and powdery as white sandalwood tends to be. I'm not able to smell the ivy. It reminds me a little bit of Death Cap but without the earthy almond feel.

 

Skin testing: This is working better on my skin than I had thought it would. Sandalwood is the main scent with the ivy providing a gentle green feeling. Some ivy tends to be sharp but this is different - it's softer, rounder, like green light shining through a stained glass window sort of green note. The sandalwood and ivy are fantastic companions. It's softly woody and completely enjoyable.

I put this on a little while before exercising and although the other scents I was testing wore off this one is still going strong and still not powdery.

 

Glad to have a bottle on the way!

Edited October 26, 2011 by strahlend

[patina]

I was interested in this one, but it has a sweetish, powdery scent that reminds me of hairspray mixed with dust. There's also the suggestion of the powdery insides of latex gloves.

 

After a little while it becomes more pleasant. The sandalwood, while still powdery, loses some of the sickly hairspray sweetness.

[Lethran]

In bottle: Much sweeter and juicier than I’d have expected. The ivy is dominent, but it’s a richer, wetter, livelier ivy than I was imagining. The sandalwood is soft and sweeter than I’d expected when combined with the ivy, and in this case, suggests dust as much as incense. Wet: The ivy is still dominant, but not as strongly as the skin warms up the sandalwood. I’m really liking this particular ivy. It’s beautiful and unusual, much warmer than I expected. Dry: A little odd on thedrydown, but still pleasant. Slightly dusty ivy

[Blood onmy hands]

I usually like the lab's ivy and enjoy white sandalwood if it's not too powdery, but something about this blend just isn't grabbing me like I thought it would. The sandalwood goes powdery/creamy and isn't unpleasant, but the ivy smells a little brighter and more sharply green than usual. Bright green ivy dusted in baby powder. It's not bad, sort of clean and delicate smelling, and I'll probably even keep my decant, but I don't love it as much as I thought I would.

[AnyseLawsBray]

In vial: Pre-BPAL, I associated sandalwood exclusively with soap. This brings back that scent-memory. Very soft and clean.

Wet: It's becoming fainter & more green. Not juicy or wet, but a quite dusty & powdery green.

Dry: Something is reminding me of amber - it's almost resinous, yet still gentle. It's reminding me of soap again.

 

Verdict: I just can't get away from that soap association when there is this much sandalwood in a blend. Glad I gave it a shot though.

[Jammies]

At first there was a hint of fruity greenery plus sandalwood, then just sandalwood. A happy-with-my-decant scent for me.

[edenssixthday]

Post-Mortem Laureatus - This is a very simple blend -- green ivy and white sandalwood, just like the description says. The ivy is a very thick, green scent with the faintest hint of soapiness. The sandalwood is dry and woody. I'm impressed at how nicely they smell together. So simple, yet so lovely. Ivy lovers should adore this one.

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant circle

 

Initial Thoughts: I think I was struck by the simplicity of the combination. It's been a while since a new BPAL had such a succinct description.

 

In the vial: Very green with a sandalwood base. Bright and crisp.

 

Wet: About the same as in the vial, with my skin causing a tinge of sweetness somewhere.

 

Drydown: The sandalwood wins out, dominating the ivy into a thin green background, but something in this is making my skin sting and itch.

 

Verdict: Well, this one obviously needs another home.

[angelamaria]

In tester: oooh, nice. Green and resinous sandalwood, somewhat smoky.

 

Wet on skin: sandalwood and ivy. Simple, somewhat smoky in feel. This is a very nice and uncomplicated blend, although I'm not yet too sure if I'd wear it.

 

Dry: a nice, soft, gentle green scent, grounded by the sandalwood: a simple and almost understated blend, uncomplicated (which is good!). It's green, but quite notably different from your usual green blends--there is no "brightness" or crispness here. Unfortunately, it seems the smokiness is amping quite a lot on me--it's bordering on powdery, although I'm not entirely sure which is the culprit here.

 

Verdict: I had hopes for this one, and I did retest to see how it goes, but it's ultimately a no: I doubt I would wear this much at all.

[milo]

This smells very green and fresh in the imp, nothing post mortem here! I'm not sure if I've smelled ivy before, but I do get an unfamiliar plant smell along with a powdery sandalwood. This is very pretty, but a bit too 'perfumey' for my liking.

[zankoku_zen]

Very green and planty, with a base of sandalwood.

 

Unfortunately, my skin eats this up. And after 10 minutes I can barely smell anything.

[Vega]

Sniffed: Dry sandalwood and leafy green ivy.

 

On skin: Here is a plain, no-nonsense blend, stark in its simplicity and directness. Post-Mortem Laureatus is a study of contrasts between dry, dessicated white sandalwood and fresh, bitter-green ivy. A thin, sharp scent with very little nuance, yet well-formed for all its straightforwardness. Colour impression is bone-white ivory versus dark green.

 

Verdict: Definitely not a scent I'd wear, but it's a fine specimen of its Salon image, an excellent contrast of stark death and bitter freshness.

[cinnabar]

At first, on my skin this smells overwhelmingly of something sharp, kind of... tickly and arid. I'm not very experienced with perfume and perfume notes (in fact, this is the first BPAL imp I've ever tried), so I don't know whether this is the ivy or the sandalwood. At a guess I would say sandalwood, but other reviewers seem to be smelling ivy first. While it's not unpleasant, it's kind of sterile-smelling, like an air freshener. Or a new wooden box, which I suppose is the point of the title.

 

After an hour or two, though, it smells very different. Not as sharp or astringent at all: softer, a little bit sweet, still very fresh. More what I imagined a 'green' scent should smell like. Whatever the first note was, this must be the other one. Or maybe it's the 'powder' that others have noted, although that seems to be a complaint and I quite like this. Either way, I didn't like the first part and do like the second, so if I can learn which is called what, I'll know what to look for or avoid in the future.

 

Overall, I don't think I'll keep this vial, but it's been instructive.

[brilliantcat]

Very herbally and green on me, not a whiff of sandalwood to be found. A very fresh, planty smell. I like it well enough but no bottle for me.

[hlinspjalda]

I missed the Pickman Gallery scents when they came out. Later I swapped for a decant of this because the notes looked really good for me.

 

In the vial: White amber and a green balsamic note with some herb. This smells delicious.

 

Wet: Nice. Reminds me of Ded Moroz, Euganean Hills, and Hermes Trismegistus (three of my best green scents), only with a more creamy-earthy base.

 

Half an hour: The creamy note is stronger and more floral now, with a touch of crittery musk. There is also a dark, bitter green note. But I also still get the very white amber/balsam impression. I really like this.

 

Hour and a half: I swear there's more to this scent than wood and ivy. However, I really like the green note, so I am going to try looking for ivy in other blends and see if that's what it is. As for this scent, I could do with a bottle. It's a nice change from all the sweet blends that do well on me.

 

Three hours: This one is lovely, all right. It has the impression of dry leaves I get from The Wild Swans at Coole, but there's something smooth underneath as well as some really elegant, lean sandalwood.

 

Five hours: Still very nice.

 

I eventually tracked down a bottle of this. I can't generally wear straight sandalwood scents, but I love them when there's a strong compensating note. This makes a lovely change from my more usual floral-sandalwood scents.

[yewberry]

In the decant: cucumber sandalwood. I'm intrigued.

 

Wet: the same immediate blast of cucumber sandalwood...but then the florals creep in.

 

Dry: florals overpowering the sandalwood and the green cuke. It's all flowers now. Very pretty, but very not me. Off to the swap box with you!

[ObliqueRed]

I really disliked this in the bottle, but on skin it settled down really nicely into a warm woody green scent that was nice on me but I think will be amazing on my husband.

[Balame]

I'm surprised this one isn't more popular - more for me, I guess!

 

It was actually my husband who initially got attached to this one. I was decanting the Lupers in '13 and enjoyed it. I mean, I'm a sandalwood freak so that goes without saying.

However it just seemed like white musk + sandalwood which wasn't anything new. Went on brightly green, like fresh spring grass, then settled into the creamy white sandalwood I enjoy.

 

It goes on a little powdery and almost medicinal. The Passionate Shepherd to His Love did the same thing to me where the grass/ivy almost made me sneezy.

Give it some time though and PML becomes very interesting. I was testing several things that day and kept (unknowingly) coming back to this one, until I finally had to figure out what it was again.

 

What was once unimaginative turns into a smooth sandalwood that's nestled in the softest, dew-touched grass you've ever smelled.

It's vaguely floral for a time (and I usually hate florals, so that speaks to its delicacy), then becomes a misty, hazy, slightly green sandalwood.

 

It also has an ozonic quality which makes it feel wet and clean. "Your skin but better." A great unisex blend both of us enjoy.

PML also vaguely reminds me of Michael Casts Out All of the Fallen Angels. It's lighter, not as smokey, but the smooth sandalwood/musk combo is still there.

Edited January 29, 2015 by Balame

[Nicnivin]

I love the lush greenness of this scent!

 

Although sandalwood was dominant in the bottle, the ivy takes centre stage on my skin, but its damp brightness is grounded by the rich sandalwood in the background.

It's a soft, quiet scent that reminds me of ancient swathes of ivy crawling across castle ruins.

[Cali]

Really faint on me but in it's subtlety, even in it's notes it's fresh and very pretty.