Phasmophobia

[Invidiana]

PHASMOPHOBIA
Fear of ghosts. Whispers in the darkness and cold breath upon your neck: calla lilies, white sandalwood, snow rose, white amber, and iced wine.

If there was ever a beautiful way to interpret ectoplasm, this is it. I love white florals and the lily note alone makes it an absolute win. There is some rose in the background, but it's not a dry or dominant rose that shrieks its presence out to the world. Think more along the lines of velvety white petals mingling with the heady (but not cloying) calla lily. It's all floral in the wet stage, and then as it dries down something moderately sweet enters the mix--that must be the ice wine. As someone who has actually tasted ice wine I can say that it isn't nearly as strong a flavor (or smell) as red wine, and while sweet enough, it's not saccharine. Same goes for the wine note here. It balances the ethereal florals and allows them to maintain that ghostly quality while still adding something extra. If there was any phobia here it was the white sandalwood. Some types can go bone-dry on my skin but it turned out there was nothing to fear because it's very soft and subtle. Phasmophobia conjures images of spectres in flowing white dresses forever haunting an abandoned attic. I do believe any self-respecting phantom would approve.

[childdoll]

Bottle: A strong blast of white florals hit me. Almost overwhelming. There was also a scent in the background that somehow reminded me of lace.

 

Wet: The heaviness immediately faded in a lovely, light and subtle clean floral fragrance. It's sweet without being cloying. There is a very clean, almost soapy scent to it. Very light and delicate.

 

Dry: Dry it smells much the same as well, but a tad more subtle. A bit of a powdery smell comes through as well.

 

Overall Impression: I am in love! It is so wispy and light. Very ethereal and haunting. Feminine, soft, and subtle florals. A ghostly kiss for sure. So glad I picked this one up - it ranks as one of my top favorites.

[The Poison Queen]

This is just a GORGEOUS scent.

 

In the Bottle: White flowers with a sharpness underlying them, almost a green scent.

 

Wet: Beautiful white floral, I definitely get a whiff of the rose. This is LOVELY.

 

Dry: White flowers, soft and lovely, with a bit of dust. It brings to mind the image of a ghostly bride. This is one of my all time favorite BPAL scents. It's SO beautiful!

[sharkdiver]

This is stunning! It is a very ethereal white floral that I can only describe as "Haunting" - it has great throw, and every now and again you catch Whiffs of it here and there and it reminds me of catching the scent of ghostly perfume lingering in the air.

 

I can see a very fine line though for those who can't do white florals and that it may turn soapy on their skin. I didn't get soap, but I can see how some might.

[TheIceMaiden]

This starts off with lots of calla lily with a little dusty white sandalwood. At this stage it reminds me of The Atrocious Attic (minus that scent's lavender note) and Lush's Ghost/Lily Savon soap. The white rose comes in next, with the iced wine faintly in the background. The white amber comes in during the drydown and it mingles beautifully with the rose.

 

I was very much looking forward to this scent, and it doesn't disappoint at all. The throw is moderate and so far it's lasted quite a few hours on my wrists. This classic ghost photo comes to mind when I smell this.

 

I absolutely adore this scent, and plan to get a full bottle sometime soon.

[ObliqueRed]

Wet and in the early drydown, this is a lovely, ethereal, hauntingly delicate white floral. Almost as lovely as my late lamented Moon Rose. Sadly, it started going powdery/soapy on me after an hour or so.

 

I think I need another test before I decide whether to go full bottle, because I love the early stage SO MUCH.

[becca_s]

This is really pretty, the dominant note for me is the Calla Lily, which is ok with me because I like this note. It reminds me a little bit of the Queen of Hearts without the cherry note, I think that must be because they both have calla lily and my skin must amp it. I am really happy that the sandalwood doesn't take over and make this scent smell dry and dusty. The only other note I can really smell in this, is the wine in the background. The amber and snow rose don't really show up on my skin - I would have loved to smell more snow rose.

[darkeyedfran]

I. Love. Phasmophobia. I had put this on the first time while watching the corpse bride and I realize that I now associate this with Emily's bouquet. This reminds me of flowers with a chilling almost dusty dead quality. It's so hard to pin down. This starts off very sharp and fresh, I was disappointed with the scent at first because I wasn't getting that eerie quality, yet once this starts drying it is perfectly lovely and spooky. I would not reccommend if you don't like white florals, though...this still has a very distinct white floral scent to it. This is not a heavy perfume, it's very light and pretty and haunting all at the same time. This is one of my new favorites

[OctoberGwen]

PHASMOPHOBIA

 

Oh, this is...haunting. Lovely. Perfect.

 

I am only in the mood for white florals every so often; they don't usually go soapy on me, but I'm a dark resiny/musky sort of gal and the white flowers are often too ethereal. They also tend to fade very quickly and can sometimes feel a tad generic.

 

This is ethereal, but it has staying power. And it is...poised. Gently pretty. And so evocative. I agree with a reviewer above who said it's one of those scents you keep catching whiffs of every so often, which of course embodies the concept so beautifully.

 

I don't care for wine notes on my skin, and I get none of it. When wet, it is reminiscent of Moon Rose, but after a while the rose fades back and blends in with the other notes very nicely.

 

As a lifelong ghost story enthusiast, I love this one.

Edited October 25, 2013 by OctoberGwen

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant circle

 

Initial Thoughts: I've had pretty good luck taming some of my death notes by finding perfumes with the light side of the spectrum. Red/black/dark musk amps horribly on me; white/blue/crystal musk works pretty well. Most patchoulis turn into headshop in a bad way on me, but the white patchouli in Butterflies, Flowers, and Jewels Attending is amazing. So I thought I'd try white amber since it was mixed in with florals.

 

In the Vial: Fresh, chilly florals with an emphasis on a surprisingly sweet lily. Gorgeous.

 

Wet: Greenish lily, but the green isn't too strong and that sweet impression is still there.

 

Drydown: Hm. Perhaps if either the white sandalwood or white amber had been alone this would have worked. But both together are amping enough that they almost bury the florals.

 

Verdict: I'm definitely keeping the decant as it's lovely scent-locket material. I'm not sure that I need a bottle, though.

[Thimbleviolet]

This was the most appealing of all the decants I got and the first I tried.

 

Cool white florals with a touch of dry sandalwood. The rose is there, but it's a cool perfume rose and not a lush 'turkish delight' rose. This is a shadowy, soft but lingering scent. I have a LOT of white florals, and this one is colder, drier and more incense-y than the others. Closest comparisons would be Gossamer and Moonshine and Mist.

 

Masses of throw. I'm already wearing Brisingamen (not a wallflower either) and so I put the tiniest dot of oil on my wrist and I am now sitting in a veritable cloud of sheer white gauze and faded lace. This is what your grandmother's wedding gown should smell like (even if it actually smells of mothballs.)

 

Not sure if I need a bottle. Will have to compare it to Gossamer and Moonshine and Mist and see if it's different enough to warrant one.

[zankoku_zen]

Lilies, touch of rose, and soap. This smells WHITE. Delicate, white florals. It's wispy, ethereal, and very pretty.

 

But sadly, not for me.

[darahshawn]

Wow. This is just a gorgeous scent.

 

I'm terrible about picking out notes just yet, but this is such a gorgeous white floral scent. On me, it changes quite a bit on the skin...much sweeter (the iced wine?) but it's still so pretty. It has a lot of throw, as others have mentioned - this is the first scent I've tried where a little goes a long way. Let's hope it hast some staying power too! Very glad I have a bottle of this, as I'm sure I'd have gone through an imp too quickly.

 

Edited to add: I'm going on 6 hours now and I can STILL smell Phasmophobia. Prior to this, the longest a scent has lasted on me is about 2 hours and even then it was almost entirely gone. The sweetness had faded within 3 hours, but I actually like it more without. Color me impressed!

Edited November 10, 2013 by darahshawn

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Interesting - this is dry and sharp, a little bit woody, but not unpleasant.

 

Wet on skin: Same as before. I was expecting some sweetness from the iced wine, but I don't seem to be getting that, at least not yet. Maybe on drydown?

 

Dried down: Honestly, same as before. I thought I got a whiff of sweetness, but it disappeared pretty quickly.

 

Throw: Not much. I tend to find that drier scents don't have as much of a throw on me as sweeter ones

 

Verdict: ***?? I honestly don't know what I think of this scent. I actually do like it - a lot - but I don't see myself reaching for it often. But it's also pretty different from the other scents I have - most of which are sweeter and more incensey. So maybe the solution here is for me to keep my decant, but not order a bottle? (I have to admit, a half-bottle sounds perfect for me - oh well). I get the feeling that if I run out, this may be a very hard bottle to find in the future - but I'm not sure I'm going to run out. I guess we'll see how it plays out over the rest of the day.

[surlygurl]

In the vial, this was soft girly flowers. I didn't much care for it. On my skin it started out soft girly flowers. As it dried, it became more rounded. The high notes smoothed out and something resembling a tropical flower came out. Something Hawaiian? Very clean and soft. I do like this, but not sure I can live with the girly smell when it's wet.

[asciident]

Wet: Sharp & astringent–lots of sandalwood.

 

First on: Still pretty sharp. Soapy. A little chilly.

 

Dry: Too much white amber, sandalwood. Too sharp and soapy on my skin.

 

 

[theseagrows]

well, i knew this one would be a gamble, and was hoping it would work with my skin chemistry, but sadly, it does not. it's a sour, soapy white floral on me. rose can be hit or miss, but i think white rose misses more often. also calla lily, usually a miss, i should'e known. oh well, it's off to the swap pile for this one.

[brilliantcat]

This is not typically something I'd gravitate to as I'm not a florally girl and rose is usually a death note, but I love lilies and ice wine, so based on those two notes alone, I figured I'd give it a try.

 

In the decant, I definitely get the white rose, but it's definitely not a juicy red rose. It smells dry and almost musty. On my skin, the calla lilies dominate. They're delicate and ethereal and I think the sandalwood and amber are adding depth. I do well with resins for the most part, though some amber can go powdery. This is not powdery. I might describe it as dusty but not in a bad way, it simply doesn't smell like fresh, living flowers. It's an old bouquet left to dry and the petals are slowing falling away and blowing off. I don't get any wine and over time I amp the roses, so this isn't for me, but it's very true to its inspiration and if you like white florals, you'd probably love this.

[thekittenkat]

In the bottle: Ethereal flowers in a base of white sandalwood, w/ a crystal cup of ice wine near-by.

 

Wet: Much as on cold sniff, but w/ a hint of the powderiness of the amber.

 

The dry-down: A sharp note appears, probably all the white notes going a little high-pitched. Scent-locket scent fir me, as the cold sniff is so elegant.

[dementia_divine]

In the bottle: Lilies and white sandalwood.

 

Wet: Lilies and dry, white sandalwood! My skin tends to amp white sandalwood, so hopefully it will behave. The lilies and sandalwood seem to battle for dominance for a while. The calla lily note threatens to impose soapiness if it doesn't get its way, while the sandalwood asserts its dry woodiness. Eventually, the white florals win, and the sandalwood is content with its background role (while still being one of the dominant notes).

 

Dry: Cool white florals (mostly lily), sandalwood, and a touch of something sweet. Perhaps it is the iced wine.

 

Verdict: This ended up being a lot better on my skin than I thought it would be. The lily note refrained from turning into a note of soapy doom, and the white sandalwood wasn't victorious in its fight for dominance. I prefer sugary florals, so I don't really see myself wearing this one often, but I'm glad that I was able to try it. I will keep my partial bottle for now.

[milo]

Oh boy, I was sure excited about the white amber, but this whole blend equals SOAP to me. A fancy, white floral soap, sharp, prickly and definitely not my style.

[Blood onmy hands]

Sharp, soapy white lily and baby powder from the sandalwood and amber. I can smell a hint of sour rose in the drydown, but no wine.

[angelamaria]

In bottle: white, cold floral. it's fairly faint, very well-blended, ethereal.

Wet on skin: oooh, this is so nice! Those lilies are just amazing. It's a cool, ethereal scent. However, it's turning very quickly powdery on me, and I am staring at you, snow rose. Please don't ruin this scent for me. It's definitely a very icy scent, without going full-on snow. I think this is something that can pass for a Yule scent.

Dry: the cold white florals are still around! Hurrah. I still need to wait for a while though, as the rose note HAS turned to powder, and there's a danger it will just completely overwhelm the scent. But regardless, the beautiful delicate flowers are just so damn lovely and pleasing, that yes, even the powderiness that has come on to the scent just adds to the charm. After about an hour, the powder has retreated, and the beautiful florals are still around: win! Stays close to skin, but absolutely beautiful.

Verdict: oh yes. Yes to all of this. Do I need yet another wintry scent? No, but this is ghosts, not snow so into my collection it goes.