It's no secret autumn is my favourite season and every year I try to seek out the most unique (but wearable) perfumes for the changing of the leaves, windy stormy midnight walks and workplace celebrations/events and I must say, Stereoplasm ended up sharing the title of rulers over my vanity this season with one other house of fragrance. Their blends were out of the box, touched on some personal nostalgia and even created some new memories with one specific blend. This is a shop to watch (they seriously somehow outdo themselves with every release)! From The Witch’s Complete Autumn Compendium Owl Eyes (Ancient Joshua tree, labdanum, golden amber eyes, a toasted sliver of rye bread, intoxicating sticky resin and Arabian myrrh) In the bottle, it's resins, myrrh and the realistic aroma of fresh rye bread that all catch my full attention as these notes conjure the vision of a golden-eyed owl perched in a pine tree. Applied, more of the bright resins amplify with the amber adding a distinguished warmth behind the bright notes and the rye bread has completely disappeared. On me, Owl Eyes has a vintage cologne streak that I wasn't expecting but I oddly enjoy it, I think I'll just tuck this one away in the "someday pile" as I think this would make a fabulous fragrance for a gentleman. Mandrake (Pumpkin vines and flesh, wet cobblestones, toadstools in soft mulch, cinnamon bark, decaying leaves, wild tobacco) Mandrake is grounding and comforting at the same time with realistic warm cinnamon bark and earthy mulch and autumn forest floor with mossy stones. This is the scent of a healer in the autumn woods and hiding in the background is a drop of vanilla tobacco [claps]. Who knew mulch paired with cinnamon bark would create something so perfect and addictive to sniff throughout the night. Also interesting to note the cobblestone accord is more like rocks found in the rich dirt with no overpowering sweetness that can sometimes appear with "stone" blends to jot down. I wore this blend this past Halloween and it matched my autumn forest spirit costume wonderfully. If you love the intoxicating scent of cinnamon broom, Mandrake is a must to try. Skeleton Polish (A quicksilver mirror reflects plumes of opium smoke surrounding sugared pears, a goblet of emerald-green absinthe and black silk) Fellow absinthe perfume collectors, rejoice and gather round because you're not going to want to miss Skeleton Polish. I don't know how Meaghan did it but this smells like pear licorice and smooth silk and I'm not afraid to admit, I fell hard for this bottle. Not only did it convert an indie perfume hater at my workplace (she never complimented my perfumes until I wore Skeleton Polish or asked about trying indies until that night) but this is also somehow "airy" in ways without being soapy and I swear I recognize a drop of violet from World’s Fair 1893 in this. Mmm so delightfully creepy and elegant at the same time. Batwing Brew (Delicate seeds of sesame, rich wood-smoked vanilla, buckwheat honey, crystallized ginger root, eye of plumeria and leathery wing of bat) This one has morphed quite a bit from when it first arrived and now I properly understand its name. The first week, Batwing Brew was sesame sticks, a hint of unlisted sandalwood with honey and more of a gourmand that wasn't as witchy as I was anticipating but still quite delightful and a pleasant bedtime fragrance. A month later NOW we are talking with some contrasting notes that have appeared, I get soft leather and warm honey that dries down to smoked vanilla that brings out the all hallow's eve vibes and is perfect for walking out into the swirling winds to embrace the final moments of fall (it's not over yet!). I'm not sure what plumeria smells like so I can't identify that note and I'm convinced now my chemistry eats ginger. Overall, I'm impressed and may have to start collecting leather and honey medleys because Batwing Brew is lovely with just that right amount of unexpected (have to keep them guessing;)). The Green Ribbon (Crushed velvet, roasted pumpkin seeds, creaking sandalwood floorboards, beheaded flower stems, skin musk, lies and deceit) I asked for a ghost story and Stereoplasm delivered one hell of a gorgeous scent story with this blend that opens with unlisted realistic ghostly lilac and then it shifts and morphs to salted pumpkin seeds with creamy sandalwood and finally dries down to the scent of the inside of a velvet lined music box with flower stems and a drop of metal. How in the world is this all possible? I'm floored to add The Green Ribbon to my collection and don't know what else to say except The Green Ribbon is the bottled treasured scary story I have been waiting for since I stepped into the Indie realm👏💀 Brava, my dear! Woman in White (Juniper, white sage, Heather, a blueberry bush drenched in evening dew, soft fur, sweet pea) In the bottle Woman in White dances back and forth from fresh blueberries to crushed juniper and a floral but alas on my skin, this oil turns into a soapy feminine version of Mothman. Perhaps there is a drop of sulfur in this that is reminding me of Mothman as I get that "metal buzzing" note in the background. Woman in White didn't exactly work well on my skin but it does smell enchanting in my locks. Another keeper for my unscented whipped soaps and argan oils. From the La Belles Dame Sans Merci collection Temptress of the Ancients: (Dried lavender, joshua tree, hanging gardens, magnolia champaca, camphor and fresh fig) In the vial, it's a bushel of dried lavender tied with a silk ribbon. When it applied the opening is realistic dried lavender that then morphs to this incredible floral forest mix that dances between ethereal and seductively addicting. I just learned to identify magnolia this past summer and it is indeed present adding a buttery lemon-like heart to this fragrance. I also get a hint of the camphor and joshua tree smelling a little like pine in the background. Overall, a very wearable fragrance for a night out or sitting at your desk staring out the window at the swaying trees. Rubies from your Lips: (Twilight musk, smoked woodsage, carnation corsage, holy water, green clove, damp soil and grave moss) I have a confession: I have a complicated relationship with carnation as when I smell it I go straight to a dark place and it takes forever for me to climb out of that place and lock that door again but at the same time, it's impossible to not to admire a perfect ruffled shaped bloom in someone's garden or in old paintings. Rubies From Your Lips, thankfully is more moss dominant on me with clove and a subdued sweet innocent floral that is still noticeable but not overpowering at the base (there may even be a hidden citrus or fruit dripped on the carnation petals). It's a pretty blend, however, it fades and disappears on me within an hour. His heart to Drink: (Sour blackberries, lodestone, deer musk, willow oak, copper, faded cologne and silver crucifix) Here is another scent potion that has been growing on me since it arrived as the first week it was grape jolly ranchers with metal and cologne but what a month of patience has done for this oil. The sour berries have given way to realistic metal and the forest elements on my skin. His heart to Drink (gah, I love these names and saying them when people ask what I'm wearing) stays close but conjures one seductive tale that is hard not to lean in more to learn about. Definitely another keeper and one to wear when I'm reading some spicy Victorian or Regency Era gothic romance. Unlisted Collection Lady in Roses (Freshly clipped Bulgarian and American Roses, Black Ink, Aged Leather Book Binding and Baby's Breath) *appeared in my order as a full 6ml bottle. Thank you so much, Meaghan! I think Stereoplasm has been secretly reading my dream perfume diary because ladies and gentlemen, this is the scent of Belle in her castle library! I'm over the moon that I have so many treasured films, book characters and special stories in scent form to slather and dab to my heart's content. For those possibly turning their noses up to an oil I say brings to mind an animated Disney character, allow me to explain and describe this gem. The roses are fresh, realistic and non-soapy nor do they carry the smell of hairspray. This classic elegant floral melds so perfectly with the unmistakable aroma of an old book that releases that wonderful crackling sound when you open it and inhale the dusty pages of knowledge. I usually amp leather to the heavens and can make myself quite ill, but not so with Lady in Roses, it's the perfect balance of floral and soft leather binding. It's a sophisticated rose perfume with baby's breath serving as a bookmark in an aged tome. I think I found the perfect rose combination to use for my future perfume custom (a work in progress). Stereoplasm Roses So Red "The children know." "Know what exactly Miss Colburn?" "They know about the dreadful cries in the night, the mysterious light outside my door and of my missing pearl brooch". A cold shudder ran through Evalyn Colburn as she mouthed those words she had been denying to herself for the past 6 months. The young woman sighed and leaned against the damp window as she confessed her thoughts to Mrs Phelps and let her weary eyes descend to the floor as she tried to contemplate all that had occurred ever since she entered Norworth Hall to an answer of a hurried advertisement for an accomplished governess for the two nieces and nephew of Mr and Mrs Merrill Norworth. The excitement and sense of worth that coursed through Evalyn that uncommonly warm April morning as she stepped with such conviction and composture from the travelling carriage now were replaced with a mere shadow of that young woman who introduced herself to her employers and their cursed relations. From the moment she entered Norworth Hall, Evalyn's personality, interests and her posture had been altered to worst degree and as she let her pale eyes slowly rise to meet the gaze of the head housekeeper Lettie Phelps on that dismal October evening in 1839, the frightful realization that a glimpse of a smirk pulled at the older woman's wrinkled maw; she seemed to enjoy watching the torment that now plagued the governess. Or was that a play of the dancing lamplight? "I assure you, Miss Colburn, the cries you speak of are sadly master Bennet with his night terrors and the light in the hallway, that is me, miss. I check the doors and windows at night as requested by Mrs Norworth and to the whereabouts of your missing brooch, perhaps YOU misplaced it." The dead empty stare that now exuded from the ancient housekeeper emphasized by the hungry shadows seemed to pierce into the young girl's very soul and cause her to fidget and brush imaginary creases out of her drab muslin dress with her ashen hand. Evalyn despised that stare which seemed to be the only expression anyone in the household could muster when asked a question or was speaking to her. Another icy shiver ran the length of the governess's spine as she crossed the room, she then stopped and replied with a defeated sigh. "I apologize then. I have not been feeling well and I think it best that this to be my last night at Norworth Hall. I will send a missive to Mrs Norworth and be leaving in the morning." "As you wish miss". Upstairs in the small sanctuary that served as the governess's quarters, Evalyn stared into a small cracked looking-glass. Her face was so sallow from nervous weight loss and her stomach churned suddenly when the lifeless blank stare of Norworth Hall mocked back from the glass. No, she wouldn't the strange despair that seemed to seep from the very corners and floorboards of the house consume her. To break the oppressing silence she tried to laugh and allow herself a ghost of a smile, but the sound she uttered and reflection just taunted her, only echoing as unfamiliar. Was she going mad? Shaking her head she promised herself she would smile and laugh again just as soon as she left that horrid house. Norworth Hall was in itself irregular and its owners only added to its strangeness. The curious requests of her at first were endured and seen only as eccentric, but now they seemed to play into her concerns. There was the cutting of her long hair, the request of wearing the same dress every day, the notion that she drink from one particular teacup and of course the prompting of certain colours only viewed in one room every other day. What did it all mean? The need to rest triumphed over the clumsy attempts lifting then placing aside the missive that was started and scratched out half a dozen times. A blink then nod into an uneasy slumber was disturbed by a bizarre noise that caused her to abandon her little sanctuary and follow the interruption toward the children's nursery. "Glove, hood and thimbles of fox What pretty dress should we wear? What should we put in our hair? The jackdaws gather a shiny trinket for the king and sing Where is Odelia? Where is Edythe? Have you seen Hanna? In the garden, in the garden With roses so red! Should we tell Evalyn they are all dead? Shhh...." A chorus of giggles concluded the eerie song. Evalyn pushed open the door and hardly able to utter the question she dreaded, she choked. "What...what did you say?" With angelic smiles, all three Norworth children chanted together. "Roses so red Good evening, Uncle Merrill!" -EGP Comments are closed.
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In accordance with FTC Guidelines, I disclose how I obtained every title for review at As The Final Page Turns (whether that be by ARC, purchased (on nook, kindle or specially ordered hardbacks) Audible version or simply borrowed at my local library). Please note: titles reviewed that are ARCS (Advanced Reader Copies) are free review copies of books that are given by publishers (these ARCS can be found at NetGalley or Edelweiss). Categories
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28th of January 2023) NOTES/COMBINATIONS and Stones CURRENTLY ON THE HUNT FOR: Naughty Licorice/Star Anise Cardamom Cardamom Cake with Roses Smoky Honey & Leather Leather and Florals Pomegranate Colder Tuberose scents Smoked Florals with Cinnamon and Honey Graham Cracker and Incense Double strand of Rose Quartz or Moonstones or Black Tourmaline Chainmaille Jewellery Houses of Fragrance and Interest on the Horizon (shops that contain such temptations): LurkerAndStrange Good Spirit Wolf Rapt In Maille ToadStoolSoaps DSH Perfume Baphomet&Co Harvest Moon Haven Granny Hootenanny's Shop
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