The Worst Pillow

[tarotgirl99]

Coffee and junk food room service: a fluffy coffee scent, all pillowy vanilla, caramel, and roasted beans.

My first first review.

The Worst Pillow is the Yummiest Coffee Scent ever. It's sweet and vanilla-ish and not-very-dark coffee. Yet there is a hint of the aforementioned roasted beans that are "keepin' it real."

I can not stop inhaling my wrist.

[aiobhan]

In the bottle - Cream, sweet, warm, like a very milky latte and less like a coffee with cream.

Wet on skin - THERE'S THE COFFEE OIL. Oh god. It smells exactly like I would smell when I used to barista - the rich, warm, nutty coffee oils against a creamy milkiness and just a touch of pure sweet. Not honey, not vanilla, just... sweet.

After a while - It's like Bah! but without any of the bitterness from the Turkish Coffee, and no hint of chocolate or booze. Just coffee with sweet cream. Oh god. I could eat my arm.

 

This. Is. The. Best.

[suki]

In The Bottle: All caramel and vanilla. The caramel is reminding me, ever so slightly, of Pinch With Four Aces. High praise indeed!

 

Wet On Skin: The caramel is still dominant, but now it's morphed into the variety found in well-aged Red Lantern. Again, sure not complaining!

 

Dry Down: Oh hai cream and sugar! Did you come to join the party???

 

In All: Low throw, though don't let it fool you that this scent stays close to the skin- it's really rich and heady, perfect as a beautiful autumnal scent. I personally appear to be getting zero coffee or bean, which is making me sad, but I'm also willing to let it sit and re-test to see if it changes. In the meantime, I have a super yummy all-caramel-and-vanilla-cream scent, and that's pretty good too.

[agirlnamedfury]

In bottle: Toasty, nutty coffee beans.

 

Wet on skin: very similar. This smells like freshly ground coffee, it's actually quite light and subtle and not as sweet or creamy as I imagined it would be. (That's a good thing because I have no shortage of sweet creamy scents!)

 

Dry: Like the others I've tried from this series, it stays pretty much the same and doesn't really morph. This gets maybe a touch bitter in the dry phase. I'm actually really pleased that this ended up being drier and nuttier than I expected, I can see myself wearing this a lot.

[Musamea]

Fresh from the Post, received 10/5, tested 10/6

 

In the bottle: Sugary, sticky caramel syrup, with a hint of vanilla latte foam. The "roasted beans" are less the scent of coffee itself and more something deep in the background that grounds the scent and keeps it from getting overwhelmingly cloying

 

Wet: I get an initial blast of dry, bitter coffee bean, which is then almost immediately joined by lightly spiced vanilla sugar – this is the scent of the bottom dregs of a flavored coffee drink or the lingering smell of coffeeshop on your clothes after you've spent an afternoon reading in one

 

Initial dry: The oil sank into my skin really quickly and I have to really bury my nose into the crooks of my arms and my wrists to catch it right now. The coffee note is still prominent in my elbows, but on my wrists I'm getting the faintest, teeeeeeniest whiff of pencil shavings (not unusual for me with the Lab's vanillas – usually it ages out of the blend really quickly) and the wet caramel note that was so strong in the bottle is warming up and making its presence felt

 

Full dry: the yummy caramel is most prominent and the coffee dials back and combines with the vanilla mostly to give the caramel depth and a slight foodie spiciness. I would definitely characterize this as more of a caramel-coffee scent than a coffee-caramel one. Throw is fairly light but this oil lasts for hours and hours.

 

Verdict: I'm so glad I blind bought a bottle! I can already tell this is a blend that will just get deeper and better with age.

[anaengel]

This is the closest to the dream coffee scent I have been looking for. And it lasts for me.

In the bottle, I mainly smell the foam. It's really airy and creamy, which had me concerned. In fact, I am worrying it will go curdled like some cream scents can go.

Once on, it is all fresh brewed coffee. This is the coming straight into the pot brewing. The cream is nonexistent.

As it dries, it goes to heavy caramel espresso. There's a little bit of foam and someone added some cinnamon on top of the foam. It's balanced enough that it lets the coffee still come out.

Completely dry, it goes to coffee cake on me. I'm thinking it's the caramel, now thinking some nutmeg or cassia for the spice, and the vanilla blending together.

Like I said, it lasts. This lasted about twenty hours before it completely disappeared. I do like it and will keep this in the rotation.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

in the bottle, this has a generous dollop of that Misk U coffee scent. but with a dairy-heavy and yet bitter caramel thing going on, too.

 

 

now, i don't drink coffee, i can't stand the taste, but i love the smell. and i used to happily eat carob covered coffeebeans.

 

 

this turned... seriously odd on my skin. bitter-masculine and woody.

and while i was testing/sniffing this, i had one of the worst episodes of vertigo i've had in recent memory. i have no idea if the scent had anything to do with it, of course, but since my brain firmly connected the scent with the awful sensation, i never want to smell it again

so in trying to get the single drop of it off the top of my hand, i used three different Bath & Body Works soaps, acetone, and two hand sanitizer gels. after five hours i could still smell it so i wound up putting something i really can't stand the smell of on top of it, just to hide it so i could stop feeling queasy.

 

[Dark Alice]

This sadly smells like burnt Starbucks Coffee on me. I wanted to love this so much...but the coffee note overcame everything. Off to the PIF pile with ye.

[fundercat55]

Oh, this is seriously lovely on me. Cozy, airy, sweet, foamy coffee with a splash of vanilla. In the bottle and when first applied, it was sweeter than I liked, with less of the coffee note. But within five minutes on my skin, the sweetness has softened and the coffee has come out in a way that almost makes my mouth water. This scent feels like pulling on a soft, fuzzy, well worn sweater that you splashed coffee on. It stays very close to the skin. This is delicious, soft and comforting. I can see myself reaching for it again and again.

I also love the story behind the name, because "This is a Terrible Pillow" is a game I used to play with my son, too.

 

Edited to add- I didn't notice it at first, but as this fades a spicy, warm, woody note comes out. It reminds me of a quilt that's been stored in a cedar lined chest. Super, super nice.

Edited October 16, 2015 by fundercat55

[zankoku_zen]

I thought I would never say this but... OMG VANILLA YOU ARE RUINING EVERYTHING.

 

On wet, I got a big splash of coffee and coffee beans, and it has dried down to a pillowy foamy vanilla with caramel and just a whiff of coffee. Despite not having a cotton/linen note listed, I get a very strong impression of that.

 

I smell like the best pillow ever. Which would be great except for the fact that I wanted to smell like the best coffee ever.

 

This may amerit more testing. I refuse to give up after one try. I'll let it rest today and tomorrow, swirl it around some more and test it again.

[macabre_fae]

Yum!

 

Once upon a time Miskatonic U worked for me and smelled like a yummy coffee butterscotch dolloped with cream, but that soon faded and I was left with disappointment. This however, is everything I wish the aforementioned still was. Right away I get a strong wiff of caramel with hints of butterscotch, supported by those yummy french vanilla coffee beans. Any coffee lovers will most likely adore this.

[Haltija]

I completely agree with macabre_fae here.....

 

This smells like Café Mille and Miskatonic University had a child. Just take out the dusty tomes aspect of Miskatonic U and you have The Worst Pillow and it is quite glorious. In the bottle it's mostly the roasted beans and a heavy helping of vanilla. On the skin it's coffee and a sweet kind of coffee with a vanilla spice and a good balance of the caramel.

 

Love this!

[Numanoid]

In the bottle: OOh... a wonderful vanilla/coffee scent. Creamy and comforting!

 

On skin: Don't know what more I can add, but this is so amazing!! Very wonderful coffee. Very warm...rich, but not sharp like some coffee notes can be. I get the vanilla note out of this without losing the coffee!!

 

Dry down: Stays close with good throw.... If you love Bah! (and I do) this reminds me of it's softer, mellower version. If you love coffee/vanilla notes, you have to have this. I can see this getting better with age! A winner for sure!!

[Gwallahay]

I just got this so going to let it settle before I make final judgement but so far not getting too much coffee There's that dreaded plasticky -vanilla-y note that sometimes appears in foody vanilla bpals. Oh noes! Sometimes it has been known to fade away with aging but this isn't a good start. There's a faint hint of caramelly plastic in the background and definitely no coffee. So basically plastic caramel vanilla is my impression. Am so disappointed as I was hoping this would be my holy grail coffee scent and I just love the story behind this one. I am going to skin test again in a few days and/or try in my scent locket and remain hopeful!

 

ETA: Update: this scent is very strong and has good throw. Over the last hours I realized it reminds me a great deal of Miskatonic University - which I like but have never loved. It has that dusty smell that I guess is the coffee note. I always attributed Misk U's smell to the "dusty tomes" aspect but maybe it was the coffee. It's a little less plasticky than earlier and hints of coffee beans are coming through. I"m definitely going to hang onto this and stick it in a dark drawer for a while to age and then try it again. I still have hope it will grow into something lovely!

Edited November 6, 2015 by Gwallahay

[recklesslysober]

I was so hoping this would be the coffee scent of my dreams but on my skin it acted just like Miskatonic University and amped the sickeningly sweet caramel.. From experience with aged Miskatonic University, it will probably get worse.

[LizziesLuck]

There's a lot of caramel in the bottle - drowning out the coffee. Once I get it on my skin though, it's all coffee. Really strong black coffee, but sweetened by the Caramel. Not getting any vanilla.

 

 

As it dries though, I do get some "pillowy vanilla" which is almost like Marshmallow on me. Mmmm. Chewy. Oh this is good. Real good.

 

It goes a bit powdery eventually, but it's fresh out of the mail and my skin was dry and I threw on a sweater over it. I will test again, but I have a feeling it's a winner!

 

 

ETA: Several hours later this is the most gorgeous warm coffee scent ever...LOVE!! I think my favourite of the three coffee scents I own (Café Mille et Une Nuit and The Turkish Village)

Edited November 7, 2015 by LizziesLuck

[dottie_doom]

I have been wanting to get a sweet creamy coffee scent and The Worst Pillow is exactly what I was looking for. I first ordered a decant and immediately fell in love and decided I needed a bottle.

 

When wet the coffee scent is pretty strong, but not overpowering. Upon dry down the vanilla and caramel start to come through adding that sweet creaminess. I find that this has good throw and lasting power on me. It is a very comfy and cozy scent, just like a gigantic fluffy pillow!

[sarandipitee]

It smelled absolutely divine in the bottle... but was a massive fail on my skin. Caramel is not a great note for me and this time was no exception. I was hoping the coffee would be more prominent, but in the end it became very dusty caramel (like butterscotch balls and black beetles) and plasticky vanilla.

 

If I used an oil warmer it would be INCREDIBLE as a room scent. If Puddin ever makes this into an atmos spray, I'd get a bottle.

[dementia_divine]

In the decant: Coffee beans, sweetened by the caramel and vanilla.

 

Wet: There was a quick rush of the sweet notes, but the coffee note quickly declared dominion over all. It really does smell like roasted coffee beans. Hopefully the vanilla comes out more, because at the moment, this is too much coffee for me!

 

Dry: The scent has definitely gotten sweeter over time, with the vanilla and caramel making it seem more like a creamy, sweet cup of coffee as opposed to actual coffee beans. I prefer this phase of the scent.

 

Verdict: I'm not going to leap for a bottle because the wet phase is a little too intense on the coffee note for me. I think I'll hang onto my decant, though!

[Blood onmy hands]

Strangely dry and dusty, like the way heater vents smell in old houses when you first turn on the heat for the winter. And tons of very sweet, very dry smelling, perfumey white sugar. The coffee, I guess, adds a toasty, brown warmth, but I wouldn't be able to identify the coffee if I wasn't actively searching for it. This is a dusty, strange, chemical sugar scent on me.

[fullforcegalesburg]

First sniff: Almost spicy? With caramel underneath, like cinnamon or clove.

Wet on skin: I’m really having to huff at my wrist to catch anything from this, there’s a soft caramel and these light spices, like spiced vanilla sugar or something. It’s not what I was expecting from this, that’s for sure.

Drydown: It smells like spiced caramel. almost like sandalwood. I’m not really impressed. I like spice, but this isn’t my favorite. The caramel is more thin smelling than I like and the sandalwood but is kind of dusty. It’s alright, but not something I’d get more of, or wear again. It’s okay, but nothing special.

Final thoughts: This is more spice than coffee; no coffee to be smelled, on my skin anyhow. I imagine this would smell different during different times of the month, but as of right now I’m not a huge fan. It’s an okay enough caramel scent but I was hoping for coffee and caramel, not heaps of spice. I’ll hang onto this and test it again in a couple weeks, but I don’t have very high hopes for this one being anything but spice.

[hushmesilent]

I just got a bottle of this, and I am soooo happy I did! When I smelled it in the bottle, I was very underwhelmed. It smelled almost like stale coffee, cardboard, and a hint of something sweet. I dubiously applied it, and went to bed. The next morning when I woke up, I thought that my husband might have started a pot of coffee for us.. Something smelled so cozy and sweet! I kept getting whiffs of coffee, a hint of caramel, and as the day went on, vanilla. It is very long lasting, and as time goes on, it seems to morph into an almost cappuccino scent. Very delicious, and made me happy all day!! It will be my fall go-to scent for sure

[Wilddog]

In the decant, this is nothing but coffee. Good coffee, but just coffee.

 

Wet is still mostly coffee. But now it's creamier, with hints of vanilla here and there. No sign of caramel or coffee beans.

 

Once it's dry the coffee is very creamy, and the caramel has become fairly prominent. Vanilla is still there, but it's faint. Still no coffee beans. It's a very sweet and warm smell - it makes me think of drinking Starbucks in the fall. The throw and staying power are average.

[renfair]

I pretty much loved the sound of all of the Fatherhood scents, so I gave this one a try.

First Sniff Impression: Coffee liqeuer.

Wet in Vial: An almost alcoholic (probably the vanilla?) sweet coffee, and I almost get this weird sweet banana smell.

 

Drying Down on Skin: Right off the bat, one of those warm, yummy caramel vanilla flavored coffees that you wish tasted the way they smelled. However, this seems to start fading really quickly. A few minutes later, I'm having a hard time locating where exactly on my arm I applied it. The sweet notes have almost all faded, leaving an herbal coffee behind.

Dry on Skin: Totally dry this turns into an almost coffee incense. It's lost its sweetness from the caramel, and maybe it's the vanilla that's giving it an almost musk. It's still really nice. Almost dry, like the clove smoke in Tag-Upon-Avon.

 

Conclusion: This scent surprised me because I thought it would be one of the super sweet ones, but the sweetness only lasted until the scent dried.

[ramblingrambler]

I was expecting a Guatamalan Coffee note tempered with cream and lots of sugar from the other junk food, but instead I got... honeyed tobacco? As it moves to drydown, it's still predominantly honeyed tobacco but with brown sugar and cinnamon mixed in. As it disappears into nothing, it's just a softer and softer version of itself.

 

ETA: Tested again today and thought "My goth, this is a strong tobacco scent! Is this a mislabeled bottle? I need to go check the forums to see what this was supposed to be..." and here I am, last review, so I decided to update. In the eight months it has been aging, it has not lost any of that honeyed tobacco, and, in fact, I think the tobacco might have even kicked up a notch. It's less a honeyed version now and much more a caramelly tobacco. I used to be a BIG fan of that note, but now it does funny things to me. As much as I wanted this to be a coffee I could love, I just have to swap it out.

Edited December 9, 2017 by ramblingrambler