Oak Moon

[inurbanus]

Live thy Life,
Young and old,
Like yon oak,
Bright in spring,
Living gold;

Summer-rich
Then; and then
Autumn-changed
Soberer-hued
Gold again.

All his leaves
Fall'n at length,
Look, he stands,
Trunk and bough
Naked strength.

Eternally evolving, blooming in power and grace: acorns, oak leaves, oak bark, and oak sap rising through a mist of traditional lunar oils.

I got my Oak Moon bottle today and decided I needed to test it ASAP. For the first hour, it's definitely wood. Not being exceedingly familiar with oak, I can't say if it's accurate. It's a rich, earthy wood that smells very slightly of cedar and has a subtle sweetness. I was worried that this would be too strong but it actually has the perfect amount of throw. It's deep but not overwhelming. What I really like about this scent is how naturalistic it smells. It's definitely does not smell like a shop with lots of oak furniture. You can smell soft earth and forest foliage along with the wood. This actually reminds me more of the Lab's other dirt scents than it does wood ones. As for the lunar oils, when they appear, they really enhance the wood - they smell fruity to my nose but I can't really identify what kind of fruit. Berries, maybe? Some kind of rich, round fruit. As a whole, this scent really lives up to its name. I predict that a lot of people will be very happy with this.

[WidgetAlley]

I know that everyone is just dying for reviews of this one, so I thought I'd go ahead even though my bottle just came through the mail and isn't settled yet. Here goes!

 

Bottle: First off allow me to say that this is some of my favorite label art in the history of ever. It's so pretty, you guys! Sniffing from the bottle, I get a lot of notes I'm not familiar with. Oak wood for sure, but dry, sweet, rounded oak wood, and maybe a hint of green leaves, and something approaching a berry note. There's also, at the very very very back, a slightly sour smell like split, wet wood that reminds me just a touch of cats. Mostly, though, this is sweeter and more airy that I thought it would be, at least in the bottle.

 

Wet: Hunh. Once again defying my expectations, Oak Moon morphs into a musky berry scent with strong hints of wood, smoke, and leaves. The musk is a soft, sweet variety, sort of similar to... oh... I'm really not sure. Buck Moon, maybe? The cat note has faded but this is very sweet on me, almost too sweet. I don't get acorns or damp forest from this at all! I do get a wood, but it's a lot closer to Tombstone in feel-- dry wood layered over sweetness-- than, say, Omen or another 'forest' blend. I wish this had more dirt and earth and tree to it.

 

Dry: This dries down as a very sweet, berry-like musk on me, with almost plasticky hints. And there's almost no trace of wood or oak or acorn or forest to be found! I am not at all sure what to think-- blends can certainly go crazy on me because they're still too stirred up from the mail, and I hope that's the case here. I'll test again and edit in a few weeks but for right now this one is just a puzzle.

[tdiym]

I get that kind of berry thing going on, too. It must be something in the "traditional lunar oils". I don't get as much wood as I expected and it's sweeter than I expected, too. I'm still on the fence about this one.

[dawndie]

In bottle: fragrant wood

 

On skin: nuts? Oh right, must be the acorns

 

Half-hour later: lots of creamy vanillaness with some sweet greenery -- it reminds me a tiny bit of the acai berry from Australian Copperhead

 

In conclusion: I don't know what combination is giving me that luscious vanilla, but it's dreamy and addicting -- I keep reapplying so I get more of a delicious cloud around me. I hesitated ordering at first, afraid of the OAK OAK OAK being too woody, but this is edible wood. I want to snap a piece off and chomp away.

[Sabir]

There is definitely something nutty in Oak Moon in the bottle and while it's wet on my skin, but this disappears on dry down. Otherwise, Oak Moon is a fairly "green" scent. I smell more of the sap and leaves than I do of the bark. I don't get any "berries" like others have mentioned, but I can see where a certain "edibleness" comes from. It's not quite vanilla, but there is something sweet to it.

[Heavenlyrabbit]

This is Brown/Green.

 

Smooth burnished wood, some leafy green (not much) and something in this that makes me think of grains and I also get a touch of creamy sweetness. Perhaps the Acorn/Sap?

 

Nothing resembling berries, not even faintly.

 

I think this would be INSANELY gorgeous on a guy.

Edited December 1, 2011 by Heavenlyrabbit

[HighPriestessIce]

This is a sweet, soft, spiced wood, with a bit of leafy greens and something that almost smells like really good cookies.

[wendyb1063]

I'm really liking this one. It is sweet and woody. I get no berries, thankfully (I don't really mind berries, but didn't want them here). This is a lunacy that I am very pleased I purchased!

[patina]

Ohhh, this is good. There's wood, but it's also almost foody. I can nearly smell spices and cookies.

I also see where the "berries" thing comes from. There's something down at the bottom that almost smells like tart dried cranberries. I assumed lunar oils would be white, but maybe lunar oils for this moon include berries and spices. It is yule, right?

 

Though considering I got Heavenlyrabbit's bottle, the berry effect may be all in the nose or skin chemistry.

 

I like oak and while this doesn't smell completely like an oak tree (like The Twisted Oak for instance) this is still very good. Aging will probably bring out the wood and cut down on the tartness (I hope.)

 

In the throw, I do get the distant scent of oak leaves.

 

Edit: As my bottle's settled down over a few days the tannins are starting to come out and it's become more like cologne. Still oddly foody to my nose. I know old paper can smell like vanilla, but this seems excessive. But it smells more like wood now.

Edited December 10, 2011 by patina

[Gateau]

In the bottle: green and nutty, I guess that's sap and acorns

 

Wet: The green sap and nutty acorn meat hover on top, while a rich wood scent emerges

 

Drydown: the wood is taking over, and the green and nutty scents are receding. I'm also getting a sense of dry leaves.

 

Dry: This has mellowed into a wonderfully warm and comforting woodsy scent. The leaves are a perfect representation of the last copper leaves clinging to the branches in November, dry, crackly, and aromatic. The lunar oils make the whole thing shimmer.

 

Bottom line: what a great exploration of a mighty oak tree in late fall. And the bottle art is just gorgeous.

[Zorra]

This was my first order directly from the lab (though I have been enjoying BPAL scents for about a year and a half now) and it was the first bottle I bought unsniffed. And I am glad that I did!

 

From the bottle I recognise the dry note that is also in Atlas, that must be the oak bark.

 

Wet on my skin I smell the oak bark and a woody note and something green and fresh.

 

When it dries a sweet note comes in, making the scent warmer and rounder.

 

I got the package in the evening because the postman delivered it to the wrong house, so I tried the scent not long before going to bed. During the night when I woke up there was the light, a little sweet, woody scent on my wrist. If it had been day I would have reapplied because it was rather faint, but in fact this stage smelled even better than the earlier ones.

 

The next morning I found out I had some of the scent on the sleeves of my sweater. And it smells wonderful! Not every scent still smells great the next day, but this one does. Wow! I am really happy I bought this one!

Edited December 7, 2011 by Zorra

[fiddlehead]

Hmm. This scent must really vary depending on skin chemistry. I can't find any oak or anything that smells remotely oak-like in this scent. I've tested it about 3 times now and what I get is vanilla musk, or something very like it. Maybe the oak notes will emerge with aging.

[AnyseLawsBray]

In bottle: Very woody and green. Has the tiniest hint of the same sharp wood that ruined The Changeling for me.

Wet: Sappy wood, green and splintery. I can smell the leaves now, they are really nice. Definitely alive, vs. the lab's more common note of dead or dry leaves. The scary Changeling wood has faded, thank goodness.

Dry: Sweet, creamy acorns and a bit of bark. Not getting any berry tones here, nor sugar. There is a vanilla-like quality, but this isn't totally unexpected- I recently read that there is a compound contained in wood that when aged, smells remarkably like vanilla of the highest quality. So for me, imagining a huge, ancient oak does not totally preclude a certain sweetness in the air.

 

Verdict: I do wish the greenness stuck around a bit longer, but overall I am very pleased with Oak Moon. It's a close, natural feeling blend, and not as one-dimensional as it seemed at first test (which had me thinking it was too sweet). After reapplication, I am getting in addition to the creaminess, pale translucent leaves & moonlit acorns.

 

I find this blend to be in the same vein as Tombstone, Sonnet D'Automne, and much more distantly related to Brood XIX & The Changeling (ie, Oak Moon is how I wish the last two behaved on me!)

[boomtownrat]

In the bottle it's a bit like a woodsy men's cologne, in a good way. When it's wet on my skin the smell is green and russet, a bit sharp, and unisex. As it dries it's like a living tree, green and slightly earthy with a faint sweetness like sap. It softens over several hours, but I never get much if any of the creamy or vanilla smell that others have described.

 

I like this and find that it suits my Taurus nature. Still being new to BPAL, I think this might be one of the most complex fragrances I've tried so far. What I find strange is that I carried it in my wallet yesterday in case I needed to touch up during the day and the smell it left behind makes me think of curry.

 

ETA: Now that this is almost two years old, it's time for an update. It's a stunning scent that's unlike anything else I own. The wood has mellowed now and there's a faint sweetness, but it's extremely well blended. At his point it doesn't have massive throw. Oak was one of the first notes that I learned is a great match for my chemistry, and that's even truer now.

Edited October 19, 2013 by boomtownrat

[Caper]

i grew up in california and oaks are a huge association from my childhood. i couldn't pass this up and i'm so glad. i actually want a back-up bottle after testing this one.

 

i'm glad someone mentioned the changeling because i find the same wood note too. however, i _loved_ the changeling (back-up bottle loved) and i was really happy to find a hint of it here. where the changeling makes me think of fresh oak hardwood floors in a sunny room, oak moon makes me think of moonlight in an oak grove. it is a softer, greener, more luminescent scent.

 

this one is a very powerful growing scent. i keep trying to describe it and all i can come up with is tree imagery. there is a passing thought of berries, or vanilla, or sweetness, but if i close my eyes, i see a small sapling with growing patiently into a gnarled old oak. it's timelessness and patience, not vanilla or berries.

Edited December 10, 2011 by Caper

[Caper]

dp. sorry!

Edited December 10, 2011 by Caper

[verbranden]

This scent really drove home the importance of skin testing for me, and what skin chemistry can do for a blend. When I sniff the bottle, the wood notes seem really sharp, bitter and generally unpleasant, but after application and a few minutes of drydown, the sharp bitterness fades to the background and I getting is a rich wood and berry scent that I love. The berry note isn't at all foody either, it's more like, well, like you would expect, being outside in the woods and smelling the trees and the wild red berries growing there. Whatever was causing the sharpness in the bottle is still there, beneath the smoother wood and berry, but it's more balanced and plays nice with the other notes and tones down the brightness of the berry.

 

I absolutely adore this scent, which is a pleasant surprise considered that when I first sniffed it from the bottle, I was sure that I would hate it. To me at least, this scent embodies the idea of winter more so than even many of the snow based scents. I'm looking forward to seeing how this one ages.

[Ghost of a Rose]

In the vial: The scent is herbal and green - oak leaves - with wood.

 

On me, wet: Right at first, it is sharp, medicinal, and camphoraceous - like eucalyptus. With a whiff of vanilla in the background.

 

After 15 minutes: The eucalyptus quickly disappeared as the oil dried. It now is already completely gone, and with it, the sharpness and medicinal smell. Now the fragrance is sweeter and warmer. Wood, vanilla, hazelnut, a little earth and decay (just a touch of vetiver?) The wood note here is fairly soft. The hazelnut and vanilla are the primary notes.

 

After 30 minutes: Pretty much the same, a bit more smoky. The notes are beautifully balanced. This is a lovely scent for cold weather.

 

After 1 hour: Vanilla, earth, and wood; in that order of strength.

 

After 2 hours: Same as above, but rather faint.

 

Verdict: I really like this a lot, it is my favorite of the Lunacy blends so far. There's just something about the way the notes combine so beautifully together. And it keeps getting better and better as time goes by on the skin, until it wears off. I didn't any of the berry note at all, that some reviewers have mentioned. Which is a good thing - I don't think I would like that in this blend.

 

My rating: 4 and a half stars

[cheshirecat]

This dries down to a soft vanilla with only a whisper of wood. I love it

[zankoku_zen]

So Oak Moon suffers from a super bi-polar personality on me. On wet, its this uber-strong and masculine OAK note. It's like Oak King on steroids.

 

And dries down to a woody vanilla. Which moves from masculine to almost feminine.

 

Still too woody for me overall, but deliciously beautiful.

[yeahbutnobut]

Oak Moon

 

In the imp: the cologne-soaked autumn leaves from October, and wood.

Wet on skin: piercing green cologne with mushy wet leaves and sweetish wood.

Dry on skin: this is transforming. The dominant scent now is the oak note from Antikythera Mechanism, Haloes etc. it’s a pale, greenish, sweet wood almost like teak, but with more of a barky, leafy scent. Like sappy wood, freshly cut timber. I also smell a nutty scent that I’m sure is the acorn note, because it reminds me of Brood XIX. There’s also a weird, boozy note that reminds me of whisky (or whisky barrels) that I’m not keen on, as well as a hint of the cologne from before. But it seems to be developing a hint of vanilla.

After a while: there’s still a hint of that boozy scent (now reminding me more of cognac than whisky) but now this has turned into a glorious vanilla wood! It’s like a lighter version of Tree of Life, lacking the cocoa and mandarin, it’s a sweet wood scent that’s almost creamy. The acorn here reminds me of hazelnut, it’s smooth and rich and a bit gourmand. It’s just a shame there’s that cognac-y note getting in the way. I never get any of the berries mentioned in other reviews.

Verdict: this one started off smelling rather strange and unpleasant but this has such a fantastic drydown. At first it smells like dead leaves preserved in whisky and cologne with a hint of sweet wood, but then the boozy elements fade gradually to reveal the perfect smooth woody sweetness, like vanilla extract stored in oak barrels. The acorn provides an almost creamy nut scent. It smells almost like an edible tree, if such a thing were to exist. It’s not perfect because of the lingering odd booze note, but the sweet nutty vanilla infused oak I get from here at the end is worth the wait.

Is it a keeper? I will keep my decant.

If you like this, try: Tree of Life, Antikythera Mechanism, Brood XIX, How Doth the Little Crocodile, Haloes, Sonnet D'Automne

[sarandipitee]

In the bottle this is very much TREE. Pure Oakness, almost harsh. Once it's applied and the drydown begins, it smooths out into a lovely soft wood with a sweet undertone. Very vanilla like without being feminine. I don't get any berries at all. It is very faint on me though, stays very close to the skin.

[Blood onmy hands]

Oak Moon reminds me of Tree of Life, Atlas, and The Antikythera Mechanism. It smells like dry wood / tree / oak with a toasty, comforting, roasted vanilla sweetness and a hint of something clean and cool (snow note? a touch of eucalyptus?). I like this, though I prefer the other three blends for something similar.

[strahlend]

At first this came across as being pretty nutty. Like, nuts that you eat. I was reminded of Mount Misery and Sweet Hollow Roads, I think because of the combination of nuts and dry leaves.

 

After the first stage has time to mellow out this becomes a woody, somewhat sweet, and slightly cologne-ish scent. This might sound crazy but it's reminding me a lot of Black Lace. I think it's the musky and sweet (vanilla?) notes together that seem similar. This ends up being a fantastic woody vanilla scent that has decent but not overwhelming throw and great longevity.

*edit* after reading the reviews above mine I think that what's coming across as cologne and reminding me of Black Lace is what yeahbutnobut pinned as cognac. I totally agree.

 

Although this is totally different than I thought it would be, it's also much better. I'm so glad I caught a bottle of this, I think when people get the chance to try Oak Moon it will gain a following.

Edited January 9, 2012 by strahlend

[porcelina]

yummmm.

 

i swear i get a faint spice note from oak moon, somewhere.

 

mostly, though, it is gorgeous, living greenery, magnificent oak wood and a hint of nutty acorns, bursting with sweet sap. the lunar oils smooth everything out into a glorious perfume.