Review & Recommendation: Haus of Gloi Yule Review (7 scents)

Haus of Gloi's (HoG's) Yule season is here and I'm freaking excited! I've finally finished reviewing the scents I got last year!

Anyway, like my previous HoG reviews (click here or on the Haus of Gloi tag on the right), I'm specifying what form I got each scent in, because I noticed Haus of Gloi scents can smell radically different depending on what form you got it in. That's why a bubbling scrub that smells amazing on you may not smell as great in perfume oil version, and vice versa.

There are 2 scents that will not be released in Part 1's release, but I thought I better add them here in case they come out during Part 2. I'm also reviewing a discontinued perfume (Wintervale) in case anyone's thinking of buying it from swaps. I'm only doing the perfume review blind, the bath products reviews aren't done blind at all.

For a review on how the pumpkin butters preform, head here. For a review on how the whipped soaps, bubbling scrubs and perfume oils preform, head here.

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HoG Controversy Discussion

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Before I go on to the reviews, there's an issue with HoG that I have to address. Someone found bugs in her HoG products, and apparently had a hard time getting an adequate response from HoG. After 15 days of silence, HoG finally addressed this issue and announced the changes they'll make to prevent this from happening again.

It took me a while to decide on this issue and I skipped their Autumn release because of this, but now that I've thought about it, I've decided that I will still shop in HoG. I haven't heard of this incident happening to anyone else, and I've had a lot of great experiences with HoG. Yes, some of my friends have already sworn off HoG because we've had our group orders messed up (not fun with international shipping), but HoG have always made things right. Refunds always arrived promptly without denials, excuses or delays (which I've experienced with 2 brands before). Replacements have been sent at no additional charges too. One time, Matt even shipped my group order before I even paid to make sure it gets to us on time. When I panicked and message him to tell him he still needed to invoice me, I guess he was so overwhelmed, he sent me the tracking number instead. It took me a while before I could finally pay him for the order he already shipped. I guess I feel like the mistakes were more due to 2 overwhelmed people who genuinely slipped instead of a lack of care for customers.


I also love their products and really can't find mainstream or indie dupes for a lot of them. My skin just loves their whipped soaps, bubbling scrubs and pumpkin butters, and I love the scents they come from.

I understand HoG isn't for everyone and I know a lot of my friends have sworn the brand off completely. I think it's completely fair if someone wants to boycott HoG for life over this incident, but personally for me, I'm still willing to shop at HoG. I will still recommend this brand, but I'll definitely let people know about this incident first so they can decide on their own whether or not they'd like to risk giving this brand a try.

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Pumpkin Butter

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Fancy Bread

"Ripe banana, roasted nuts and brown sugar folded into a delicious quick bread."

Omg, this smells so delicious! Yes, it's a bit of that artificial banana, but mixed with everything else, the banana doesn't smell too artificial, and kind of reminds me of Tokyo Bananas. Tokyo Bananas are banana cakes that look like this:

They managed to make that artificial banana flavour taste DELICIOUS.
Image courtesy of euminler.com

Every Indonesian visiting Tokyo is required to bring boxes of these back for their friends.

It's mixed with this delicious, stout-ish bread scent that's just so delicious. I've encountered other attempts at making this banana bread scent and it's hardly a unique concept, but this is the most well executed banana bread scent I've encountered. I can really see the warm, moist, brown banana bread in my head and it's making me so hungry. I need more of this!

TL;DR: Delicious, rich, brown banana bread.

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Whipped Soap

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Hearth

"The warm glowing center of home. Autumns last apple pickings, warm bread, orange rind, various fire roasted nuts, cracked black pepper all nailed down by an oozing sticky benzoin."

There is no end to delicious scents in this collection. This is a creamy apple scent, only it makes me think of a creamy apple oatmeal. I know there's no oatmeal note in here, but it just smells like that. As I rub it in, I definitely get the black pepper, which smells almost like a burnt smell, but it washes away fast, and I get a final burst of that artificial apples scent before the soap washes away. I'm wondering if I should gamble and grab this in other versions. I feel like the smokey black pepper may get amplified in heavier forms like perfume oils, pumpkin butters or hair oils.

TL;DR: Creamy apple oatmeal.

Parkin

"Brown sugar, black treacle, oats, a peculiar blend of white spices tossed with roasted nuts and coasted in the lightest of icings." 

When I first put it on, I get a sharp burst of spicy spices that smell more like spicy wood resin. Then the sweetness comes in and it kind of makes me think of ginger beer before the creamy part kicks in and makes it smell like creamy, spicy, gingery cakes. The ginger is definitely strong here, making me think more of Indonesian desserts, only there's that cake-y deliciousness that's not exactly Indonesian dessert-ish. It's so delicious! I get a fleeting hint of something off that I just can't place before the soap's completely washed off, but it's too quick for me to put my finger on it. The scent it leaves lingering on my skin is spicy wood. Definitely suitable for men!

TL;DR: Woody spices and ginger cakes.

Sweet Potato Treat

"The epitome of holiday comfort food: Sweet potatoes with mild spices, butter and brown sugar baked off with marshmallows."

Ooooh...another delicious scent. This smells like a Thanksgiving dessert table. It smells like pumpkin pies, pecan pies, and sweet potato pies all lined up in a row. I think it's because the main scent is that sweet, cinnamon-y brown sugar scent that's a Thanksgiving dessert signature, and there's that crusty, buttery pie scent too.  I know it's supposed to be sweet potato, but the scent makes me think of pumpkin pies a bit more than sweet potatoes. As I wash this off, I noticed that oily "fried dough" note that's often listed as donuts/waffles/funnel cake/etc. in blends. It's hardly noticeable in the whipped soap version and doesn't weigh down the scent the way it usually does, but knowing my luck with HoG perfume oils, I bet this is the scent that my skin will amplify if I try the perfume oil version.

TL;DR: Delicious, filling Thanksgiving desserts.

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Bubbling Scrub

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Eggnoggin

"The Haus 'nog! Cream, sugar and a shot of dark rum topped with fresh grated nutmeg."

Omg, this actually smells like eggnog. I know eggnogg scents are common and almost boring for this season, but this is so much better and definitely not that artificial "eggnog" scent. There's a richness in this that's just so creamy and delicious. I can't stop smiling when I'm using this soap! And yes, you can smell the booze. As it washes off, I definitely get hit by a strong burst of nutmeg, and it smells almost bitter and sharply woody. It disappears fast though, but if you really hate that sharp, wood resin sort of scent, be prepared for it.

TL;DR: Delicious eggnog.

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Butterbomb

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Sugar Cookie 

"Buttery. Sugary. Cookies!"

This, er...smells like marzipan. Obviously, it's as great marzipan scent because I could identify it immediately, but it's not the sugar cookies I was expecting. HoG also released a Marzipan scented butterbomb last year, so I'm wondering if this got mixed up.

TL;DR: Marzipan.

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Perfume Oil

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This review is done blind until I write the TL;DR. The overview's written if any of the notes surprise me.

Wintervale

"Snow covered blue spruce boughs, frozen woods, crystalline sugared violets and sharp wintery air, all wrapped around a minty mug of hot cocoa."

In the bottle, it smells like a toilet cleaner, but once I put it on my skin, it's better. I'm getting this clean, slightly tart icy scent. It kinda makes think of mouthwash on someone's breath since there's even that watery clean scent. It's still a nice mouthwash though, and definitely on the breath of a hot dude. It makes me think of the mouthwash they have in Singapore Airline's lounges & bathrooms.

About 40 min later, I'm getting a bit of a powdery sort of scent, and now this scent is more feminine than masculine. I actually really like it now! It's a more leather seats rather than floral sort of powderiness, lightened up with a crystal clear, watery scent. The powdery part makes me think of a more mature woman (mature, definitely not old), but it's just so clean and crisp as well, it makes me think of corporations with sterile offices as well. Both parts don't sound that tempting, but the juxtaposition just works. It makes me think of a woman who looks like this:

I'm guessing she's in her late 20s or early 30s? I suck at telling non-Asian ages.
Amazing pic by Anton Belovodchenko

Very corporate and efficient, but still feminine and alluring.


TL;DR: A corporate jetsetter.

Overview: I don't really get the chocolates in this. I'm wondering if the powdery part from the violets smell less floral and more leathery because of mixture with the woods and cocoa?

Review & Recommendation: Cocoa Pink Bath Products! 5 Products, 9 Scents!

Cocoa Pink is having an early Black Friday sale so I thought I better stop procrastinating and get this review out!

Minkishly, being an awesome friend and the best beauty blogger ever, passed me decants of her Cocoa Pink stuff for me to try out once upon a time. And that's how I got to discover one of the most awesome indie conditioners bath brands ever. After that, I just kept hauling from Cocoa Pink and here is one of my latest hauls:

Had to try everything! This is a group order, so it looks like a super sweet haul!

Cocoa Pink makes all their products from scratch and it shows! They now make some of my favourite products that I can't find mainstream dupes for. Their scents are not all original blends and some are stock scents, but Cocoa Pink is really open about this and denotes which scents are original clearly on their scent list. I'm a huge fan of their honesty!

The owner, Beverly, is also great at responding to all your enquiries promptly so I'm a huge fan of this company. I'm really sad my parents are getting rid of our place in LA, just because that means I'll have to haul less from Cocoa Pink!

So on to reviews! I'm avoiding reviewing scents that aren't in season, so I'm not reviewing everything yet (ok, and I haven't bothered writing up a review for a LOT of them >.<). Since I noticed that the same scent can smell differently in different forms, I'm reviewing the scents under the bath/hair product I tried them out in instead of all in one row. 

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Hair

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Argan Therapy Creme Conditioner

So...about this conditioner....

Beverly wrote this to me:

"Thanks Francesca! I see you really like the Argan now. :) So glad!
Enjoy,
Beverly"

Well....that may be an understatement, because this is my current collection of conditioners:

Yup. I really love these conditioners. The texture is very runny and doesn't look promising at first, but it's definitely almost as good as the L'Oreal hair masks I often use. It's as moisturizing as a very intensively moisturizing conditioner, but just the slightest bit less moisturizing than a L'Oreal hair mask. If you want moisture but hate the feeling of heavy conditioners, this is it. 

The gorgeous scent also linger on my hair until my next wash, so that's a bonus! So here are the scent reviews for the different Argan Therapy Creme scents I've tried:

Cake on Mondays 

"Delicious sponge cake made with almond extract, vanilla, and a hint of cinnamon, then slathered in cream cheese buttercream frosting.  May cause irritation due to the spice notes."

This is an absolutely delicious scent. It smells like cinnamon cream! I need this scent in everything! 

Note: The cinnamon in this is strong and may cause allergic reactions for some people so please spot test first if you're not sure.

Thai Red Coconut Tea

"Aromatic red clover tea infused with creamy Thai coconut milk, hints of ginger root and a delicate splash of bergamot."

I was excited for this because I looove the scent of Thai milk tea, but the scent I got is more of this creamy musky conditioner scent. I don't know if it's the suggestion from the name, but the musk makes me want to describe it as a red musk. It smells more like perfume than dessert, and makes me think of  a mainstream sort of conditioner. I'm sure the coconut's there, but somehow, it just blends together to smell like conditioner. It still smells great, but I was just sad it doesn't smell like I just crashed into a boba store and got drenched in Thai milk tea.

Violet Kisses

"A floral blend of sugared violets, magnolia and sensual sandalwood on a base of creamy vanilla."

This is a powdery sort of smell and makes me think more of scented powders rather than fresh flowers. It's a bit heavy, but I wouldn't really consider it "old lady"-ish. It's actually pretty nice, and makes me think more of a Korean scented powder that comes in very princess-y packaging and will be littered in texts telling you you're a beautiful princess and calling you "my lady" unironically.

Violet Pixie Dust

"Violets dipped in a sugary concoction of berries, plums, pears, strawberries and a hint of citrus sprinkled with sweet sugar crystals."

Oooh...this is the candied violets scent that I just love! If you've tried Conjure Oils' Succubus, it smells very similar. I'm a huge fan of this scent and need it in EVERY form!

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Soulmate Hair Rescue Treatment

The texture of this conditioner is more solid and similar to a soft body butter, so it's easier to get used to than the Argan Therapy Creme Conditioners. 

So this is supposed to be more intense than the Argan Therapy Creme conditioner, but surprisingly, I found it less moisturizing –it's only about as moisturizing as your normal conditioner. It's still good, and it's still moisturizing enough that my colour-treated & bleached multiple times hair stayed normal instead of going plasticky. However, the Argan Therapy Creme conditioner is just better since it actually makes my hair feel so soft! It's probably more than enough moisture for normal hair, and someone who's not a fan of Argan Therapy Creme's texture can go for this instead.

Vanilla on the Rocks 

"A rich buttery vanilla."

It smells like plain vanilla, only there's a strong waxy smell to it. I'm guessing the waxy smell is the smell of the unscented conditioner. If anybody else have tried the Soulmate Hair Rescue Treatment in a different scent, let me know if there's any waxy scent so I know if it's this particular scent or the conditioner in general.

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Body

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Voluptuous Body Butter Review

This body butter is thick and doesn't spread easily, but it gets absorbed in about 5.5-7 minutes, which is not too bad for a body butter. As for the strength of the scent,  you can only smell it close to your skin after you apply it.  

Just Breathe 

"Fresh Vanilla bean, West Indian vanilla orchid, pink lilac blooms, lily of the valley, plump green cactus, exotic fruits softly blanketed in beautiful pale musks."

There's that cotton-ish smell I associate with baby rooms, only there's florals in this, making it smell like a baby's room after someone just placed a fresh bouquet of flowers inside. 

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Soft Bubbles Scrub

There isn't much bubbling going on, so it feels more like a normal scrub that you're using while your skin still has soap that's only partially washed off on it. It's perfect if you want more scrub than soap! Here's a gif of the scrub in action:

You will not believe how hard it is to shoot a scrub in action on yourself while keeping it SFW. Oh and if anyone knows a good app/site for making high quality gifs that lets you crop the video, let me know! 

Tahitian Monoi Cake 

"Vanilla cake batter injected with candied citrus, moist white cake smothered in whipped buttercream icing touched with nuances of Polynesian Monoi oil."

 The scent makes my brain confused...it's a floral yellow cake scent, and I'm not sure if I want to eat it or decorate my house with it. 

White Sugar

"Marshmallow, Vanilla Cream, Sugar Cookies, a drop of Pink Sugar."

I got this as a free sample and was dreading the scent since I noticed that artificial sugar scents often smell like that searing, sweet Pink Sugar scent I hate. This one has that searing artificial sugar scent in it, but the most prominent scent is this delicious strawberry shortcake sort of scent. I actually like it!

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Others

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Linen Spray

Well...you spray it on your linen and you can also use it as a hair & body mist. It's pretty straight forward. It's like spritzing scented water on yourself.

Footprints In The Sand 

"Cool waves of coconut water, coconut meat, Persian lime zest, just a touch of  refreshing peppermint leaves all accented by the soft essence of French lavender buds."

Now, I discovered you have to let this one sit. The first time I tried this 3 months ago, I balked. It smelled weird. After I revisited it 3 months later, omg, it's awesome. After 6+ months, it's still awesome but it changed again. So here's my scent review:

First Use: 

There is something off with this smell, that I just can't place. It smells like gumdrops and liquorice (that tends to smell a bit medicinal to me), with the slightest hint of lemons. It's a very refreshing spray and I actually used it on my model to make her skin glisten during a NSFW shoot. She loved the smell, but agreed there's this weird, slightly cough syrupy scent in it.

I honestly can't guess what's in it and got a surprise when I saw the scent description. I honestly can't smell coconut, peppermint or lavender in it. I guess the combination just makes this scent smell a bit weird. 

Left it alone for 3 months:

And there's the coconut! Now it smells like a coconut lime cocktail!

Left it alone for 6+ months:

The lime part got stronger, so now it smells like a beachside lime spritzy cocktail, with some coconut in it. Looks like this is a scent that just needs a LOT of aging!

Review & Recommendation: Paintbox Soapworks

I ordered from Paintbox Soapworks last year, but only got around to reviewing them now because I'm awesome at procrastinating and I wanted to wait until the summer scents are back out again (ok..it's mostly because of the procrastination bit). 

Not pictured White Cotton Sheets Luxury Glycerin Soap & 2 solid scents since they rolled around in my luggage and I couldn't find them at that moment.

My package got shipped in 7 days, so TAT-wise, it's not that bad for an indie company. Hayley, the owner, also replies within a day to any messages I send. She's also really open about her ingredients and production process, so I really feel safe using her products.

When I messaged her about the use of bases, she's very open about it:

Screenshot taken on 22 Aug, 2015

Hayley actually kept her promise and went into greater depth with her answer, so I end up with an unexpected and awesome interview on Paintbox Soapworks' production process & ingredients! She gave me permission to post the entire thing on my blog so here you go:

OK, Francesca, we're home for the night, dinner's cooking, & I'm happy to clarify further if you'd like :) 

I touched on glycerin soap vs. hot process on my blog a few years ago: paintboxsoapworks.wordpress.com/2012/02/01/so-whats-this-hot-process-thing/ 

Glycerin soaps from a base are awesome for several reasons: I can have soaps ready to ship in under 24 hours, which is a particular boon in the middle of the holiday rush; glycerin base takes color & fragrance with very few surprises - no seizing, ricing, or other shenanigans that plague hot & cold process soaping; and, most importantly IMO, as the fragrance isn't exposed to active lye, scents stay very true, without losing top notes or morphing unexpectedly.  

I get my base from both a distributing supplier & the manufacturer, depending on the volume I'm ordering. I am dedicated to using only "real" glycerin soap - stuff that is actually saponified oils, not the cheaper detergent-based bases available. 

My lotions & Goat Milk Cream are also bases that I order direct from the manufacturer. I work out of my home, & can't maintain the lab-sterile level of cleanliness necessary to, IMO, safely produce hydrous lotions from scratch. I know lots of soapers do it, but it's just not something I'm comfortable with - hydrous formulas will grow bacteria & mold like it's their job, given the opportunity. I prefer to leave that part of the process to professionals with the right facilities to produce it safely. The company that supplies my bases is the only manufacturer that I've found using paraben-free preservatives & not using mineral oils/propylene glycol in their formulas. They're west coast based, as are my glycerin base suppliers, so shipping costs me a bloody mint, but it's the only way to get the components that meet my needs. 

Fragrance oils are the backbone of my scent arsenal, & I buy a staggering variety from about half a dozen suppliers. Blending them is an exercise in matching the concept I have in my head with the components available; single-note FOs are irritatingly hard to find in affordable quantities, so I have to piece a blend together with existing blends from my suppliers. Sometimes I only have to add an extra note or two to an existing FO to make it what I want; sometimes I have to Frankenstein a dozen FOs in varying quantities to capture something really elusive or complex. A really good nose might be able to pick out familiar notes (some of my components are dupes of popular brand name scents), but there's always something more in the blend than a single FO (with the exception of Gingermilk & a few long-discontinued scents from when I first opened & had no clue).
My scrubs are a little harder to quantify, as I do use a pre-made cream soap base as an ingredient; there's a lot more to my scrubs than just adding sugar & scent, so I tend to think of these as from-scratch, while some purists might disagree. I look at it like making barbeque sauce at home - if your ingredient list includes ketchup, Worcester sauce & prepared mustard... is it from scratch? Yes? But no? But yes? I say yes. Some others might not, & I'm OK with that. 

The rest? Comes from jugs of oils, bags of wax flakes & sugar, tubs of butters, & my poor abused kitchen. 

Cripes, this really should have just been a blog post - sorry for chewing your ear off! I hope this clears up any confusion that might be circulating - know that I'm happy to answer any further questions anyone might have <3 

Have a great night!

I'd say they're amazing customer service-wise and I'm definitely a huge supporter of Paintbox Soapworks now!

Anyway, on to reviews!

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Bath Streusel Review

This is like a milky bubble bath and definitely fun to bathe in it! I really don't know how to rave more about this since bubble baths are pretty straight forward. It's something I plan on getting more of since the scent I got was so divine....

Avast

"Coconut milk, cardamom, coffee beans, musk"

This ends up smelling like a rich, dark chocolate chip cookie. I love it, it smells sooo delicious! Imagine bathing in chocolate chip cookies...but without the crumbs getting stuck in your butt crack. Sounds awesome, right?

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Sorbetto Scrub Review

I think after leaving it for a few months, the scrubs ended up settling in a weird way. So the top layer, I get mostly an oily scrub. Not a bad kind of oily though –it's like Haunt's scrub where there's a thin layer of oil that washes off easily, yet leaves your skin so soft that you don't need a moisturizer. As I get to the middle layer, it becomes more of a gently frothy scrub. Now it's similar to Cocoa Pink's scrub, where it's like liquid soap that bubbles quite a bit, with a dry scrub. I know the description said nothing about bubbling, but it does bubble:

Turns out my camera was out of focus the whole time, and stupidly, I used up my last batch of scrub. Wanted to create a gif file, but it became way too blurry that way.

The sugar granules are medium-sized and I found that they scrub as hard as Cocoa Pink's soapy scrub, slightly more than Haus of Gloi's soapy scrub, and slightly less than Alchemic Muse's soapy scrub. I like it and I'm thinking of getting the pack of 10 mini sizes when I'm in LA at the end of the year.

The scent's strong and lingers on your skin after the shower, so that's a bonus for me. Speaking of scents, here are the scent reviews:

Candy Floss

"Sugarspun blackberries folded into lush marshmallow cream & buttery vanilla taffy"

There's that typical searing Aquolina's Pink Sugar sort of sugar scent, but this one's rounded to have an almost creamy sort of scent. It ends up smelling like a creamier version of Aquolina's Pink Sugar.

Gooseberry Beach

"Balmy salt water, sea kelp & spirulina algae, crisp bamboo & a trace of coolness from wet, dark sand"

This smells like that blue ocean note, with that clean, green bamboo note you can find in L'Occitane's bamboo scents. There's also a fresh, grassy sort of scent in this. The scent makes reminds me of really calming, fresh spa sort of scents and I love it. Unfortunately, as I wash it off, I get a kind of waxy smell that I'm not a fan off. I'm definitely open to trying this scent in other forms though, since I find that the same scent performs differently in different forms.

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Solid Scents Review

The texture's hard and waxy (I thought I accidentally got a wax tart at first), so you have to dig in a bit. The throw's not bad and goes up to faux whispering distance for about 2h before fading. I find that the scent doesn't morph too much as I wear it and tend to be pretty straightforward. These scent reviews are done blind until the TL;DRs are written.

Candy Floss

"Sugarspun blackberries folded into lush marshmallow cream & buttery vanilla taffy"

This smells exactly like the scrub version, only it's slightly sharper. Overall, it's a still a flossy, creamy pink cotton candy, or a creamier version of Aquolina's Pink Sugar.

TL;DR: Creamy, pink cotton candy.

Pink Sand

"A sunset-beach blend of creamy rice flower & luscious fig awash in crisp white tea & sparkling surf"

It's a lotiony, pink floral that kind of reminds me of pink floral scented dryer sheets. It's nice enough, and I can see this as a popular Bath & Bodyworks scent, but just not interesting enough for me since my nose have gotten too jaded by trying out too many weird scents. As time goes on, the scent starts getting searing on me and it gives me a bit of a headache.

TL;DR: Pink floral scented dryer sheets.

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Body Lotion Review

This is a really lightweight lotion and has that "water-based" sort of feel to it so it doesn't feel oily at all. It gets absorbed almost immediately after you put it on, so it's a great lotion to use when you're in a hurry. It's personally not moisturizing enough for me since my skin gets pretty dried out from staying in an air-conditioned office all day, but I like keeping it around for the moments when I want to moisturize fast.

Btw, the packaging is not airplane-friendly since it's prone to popping and leaking. I placed it in my handbag while flying, and it exploded all over the place. If you're flying with it, tape the cap down and you're good!

Little Paper Umbrellas

"Luscious, ripe mango blended smooth with creamy lychee, lime, melon, red tea & a squirt of scarlet grenadine"

At first sniff, it smells like Black Violet's Red Lotus or Brambleberry's Lychee Red Tea, which smells like lychee and a cool, almost floral tea, but this is definitely an improved version that has more complexity. There's a creamy mango chewy candy thrown in and while you can't individually pick out the other fruits, they blend in beautifully with the scent.

It smells like some kind of tropical fruit punch you're told to throw together in a hurry for a party, and the results became magical and you can't replicate it.  It smells really great, with a bit of a chewy candy sort of creaminess.

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Luxury Glycerin Soap Review

I love the scent strength of this, since you can definitely smell the scent lingering on your skin even after you wash the soap off. Little Paper Umbrellas' scent is exceptionally strong, since I put it in a drawer and now my drawer smells like it. Like almost all the indie bar soaps I've tried, this leaves that tacky, dry feeling afterwards.

Little Paper Umbrellas

"Luscious, ripe mango blended smooth with creamy lychee, lime, melon, red tea & a squirt of scarlet grenadine"

This pretty much smells like the body lotion version, only the lychee bit is the most prominent and some of the creaminess got lost. It's still a great scent though!

White Cotton Sheets (discontinued)

"Breezy white florals, dry musk, hawthorn & a touch of ozone."

This just smells like dryer sheets. Nice enough, but kinda boring for me. 

Review & Recommendations: 4 Scents from HoG's Summer Collection

I ordered from Haus of Gloi's (HoG's) Summer collection last year but ended up procrastinating on the reviews since I rock at procrastination.

Not pictured, The Brier Path whipped soap & Komodo pumpkin butter because I stupidly finished them up before taking this photo.

 Then HoG announced Komodo's getting discontinued since the mangosteen note has been discontinued by their suppliers, so I thought I better finally write up the review so people can decide whether or not they should snap it up now.

So for HoG's scents, it's important to remember they smell differently across different mediums. That's why a scent that smells amazing in a whipped soap can smell completely gross in pumpkin butter or perfume oil versions. I love HoG's scents in their bath products, but the same scents in perfume oil version often doesn't work on me. That's why I'll mention which form I'm reviewing each scent in.

I only got these scents in pumpkin butter & whipped soap versions and for a more detailed review of HoG's whipped soaps, you can head here. I've discussed the pumpkin butters here and there, but I realized I never really went in depth with my pumpkin butter review:

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Pumpkin Butter Review

HoG's pumpkin butter has become my standard for all body butters. They leave my skin extremely soft yet they get absorbed so fast! They're usually absorbed within 3 minutes, 5 minutes max depending on how wet my skin is prior to application. I end up comparing every moisturizer, indie and mainstream, to these pumpkin butters, and so far the only product I like as much is Haunt's skin glossing oil.

Texture-wise, it's like softened butter, and spreads very easily. Before being absorbed into your skin, it leaves a thin layer of oiliness and a honey-type of stickiness. Real honey, not the fake kind. If you're buying real, pure honey, they're actually not that sticky. One way of testing your honey to make sure it's not mixed with sugar is to smear it on your hands then put tissue over it. With real honey, you should be able to peel the tissue off easily, without ripping it.

The scent's very strong –when I put it on my legs, I can smell it even if I'm sitting up. The smell lingers on your skin until the next morning. This has better throw than a lot of solid perfumes I have.

So on to scent reviews!

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Komodo

"Mangosteen, Tahitian vanilla bean, dragon blood resin and faded tropical blooms."

Whipped Soap

Oh my gods, this is gorgeous! It smells like the perfumed version of mangosteens (ie. more fragrant and none of that fruit sap scent actual mangosteens come with), with that scent you get when you cut thick, juicy plant stalks. If you've tried Fresh's Mangosteen perfume, it's that same mangosteen note. When I wash this down, the scent that lingers on my skin is this sweet, tropical fruit medley that smells so familiar. It's a scent I've smelled before as a child, and probably in some mainstream soap or shampoo version. It's a really gorgeous scent.

Pumpkin Butter

/u/minkishly gave this to me because she hated the scent no matter how hard she tried to like it, and that confused me. The whipped soap smelled so great! As soon as I tried it, I got it. The first clue I got was that I don't smell the same, fragrant mangosteen in the tub, and got more of the plant stalk bit.

As soon as I put it on, the most prominent smell in the pumpkin butter is this wood incense smell. It's the smell of unlit incense, which can be awesome for some people, but for people who grew up in Asia, it smells like an old, dank, dimly lit store that's often manned by an old Chinese man in a singlet or an old Chinese woman in shapeless short-sleeved shirt and pants. There's still the mangosteen, but it's not as fruity and fragrant as in the whipped soap and smells more dull and muted. The plant stalks bit also doesn't smell as fresh, and smells more like plant stalks that have wilted for a day under a hot sun.

I'm still a huge fan of this scent in whipped soap version though, and will probably buy it again in whipped soap version, and maybe even try out the bubbling scrub version.

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Sanctum

"Muskmelon, coconut water infused with bergamot flower, kaffir lime, polished ho wood and sticky benzoin."

Whipped Soap

I was wondering how watermelon and coconut would smell like, and somehow, it ends up smelling like a melon chewy candy. It's soooo delicious! As I wash the soap down, I'm getting this lime spritz sort of scent, only the spritz part is with a very sharp and dry in a wooden way.

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The Brier Path

"Sun drenched trail leading to a day dream of ripe berries and woods rose, rich forest loam, ozone, dark amber and cream."

Whipped Soap

If any of you reads Discworld novels, I thought this smells like what walking up to Margrat Garlick's cottage would smell like. It starts with this sweet flowering garden scent –a medley of berries and florals. There's a bit of a herbal sort of smell, which I'm guessing is from the loam. The herbal smell is more of an old English apothecary sort of herbal. As you wash it off, you get hints of this wood & thatch sort of cottage scent.

I imagine Magrat's cottage looking like a less manicured version of this. I first saw this on Pintrest, but can't find the original source  or the location of this cottage anywhere.

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Zazz

"Tart cranberry, pink grapefruit, sparkling champagne all shook up with crushed ginger root."

Whipped Soap

I'm getting that champagne note that smells like fizzy citrus, and the other fruits mixed into the scent makes me think of pink champagne. The fizz gets really, really spicy and even has a wood resin sort of bite to it as I wash it down, which I think is the ginger root at work.

Review & Recommendation: Haus of Gloi Whipped Soap, Bubbling Scrub, Perfume Oil & Butterboms Review in 6 Spring Scents

Haus of Gloi (HoG) just announced their Spring release is happening this year on March 15th, and their final restock is happening on April 5th. Out of all the scents they plan on releasing, I happen to have last year's spring scents in:

• Milk (butterbomb)
• Milkmaid (perfume oil)
• Ploughman (bubbling scrub)
• Ruth (bubbling scrub)
• Selkie (whipped soap)
• Splendiferous (perfume oil)

I haven't reviewed Ploughman before and will be reviewing it now. To make it easier, I'll compile my previous scent reviews all in this post, as well as write up a new review for the bubbling scrub, perfume oils, butterbombs & whipped soap now that I've spent a year trying way too many indie brands.

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Bubbling Scrub Review

For first timers: a bubbling scrub is basically a scrub that also has soap in it, so there's a lather when you use it. Think of it as a soap that you don't need a loofah for.

I don't know how to colour correct gif files. If you do, please let me know.

HoG's bubbling scrub is tied with Alchemic Muse's (AM) for my favourite soapy scrub. They're both equally good, but different, so your preference depends on what you're looking for. HoG's soapy scrub has smaller granules of sugar, so it doesn't exfoliate as hard. When you use it, it's more like using soap with a shower pouf, so it's suitable for daily use. When I go traveling and don't have time to wait for my shower pouf to dry between hotels, I bring HoG's bubbling scrub with me. It's now my must-have travel item.

Meanwhile, AM's is like scrubbing with a really rough, exfoliating loofah/bath mitt, so you really exfoliate. It's more scrub than soap and definitely a tad too exfoliating for daily use, unlike HoG's. I also get more of that dry feeling from AM's soapy scrub, but it could be because I tend to go nuts with my exfoliating frenzy.

Scent-wise, you get more of a scent pay off from HoG. HoG's soapy scrub scents fills up the entire bathroom. Meanwhile, AM's soapy scrubs loses most of their scent as soon as you wet it, and what you get is this unscented soap scent, which I'm assuming is the base scent the soapy scrub comes with.

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Butterbomb Review

This feels heavenly. It doesn't fizz as much as other bath bombs I've gotten, and a more accurate description is that it gently froths. I'm so glad I didn't follow their suggestion of letting it crumble under running water, because it feels so incredible melting against your skin. It feels cool and silky and my skin feels amazing afterwards.

I was initially skeptical the tiny little bath bomb is enough for an entire tub, but yes it is! It's still good even as I kept topping up the bath to heat up the water. The scent is slightly more concentrated than the scent from bath products from Lush & Moonalisa, and waaaayyy more concentrated than Kiss My Sass. I personally like the smaller sizes of these butterbombs since they still last an entire tub while weighing less –which saves me on international shipping.

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Perfume Oils Review

I've mentioned before that HoG's perfume oils don't work out on me, but I still think they're amazing quality. Guess what? Turns out they do work on me! When I first tried out HoG's Milkmaid, Splediferous, Troika & Mango Sticky Rice, none worked out on me and I decided to destash Milkmaid. Now I really regret doing that. I have no idea why I forgot to destash Splendiferous, because a year in, it became amazing. Unfortunately, this means that I'm never, ever destashing any of my HoG.

HoG's oils have great throw and longevity and even after a year, it's still very potent. I can catch a whiff somewhere in between casual conversation & faux whispering distance for at least 2 hours. Afterwards, it goes down to intimate whispering distance, but it stays this way for about 7-8h.

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Whipped Soap Review

I've seen people ask what whipped soaps are and this is where it gets complicated. Different companies have different definitions of whipped soap. For example, Alchemic Muse, Debaucherous Bath & Black Violet have whipped soap that's more like a bar soap softened and mushed up after many, many uses (though Black Violet's starts off like frozen double heavy cream and but just hardens with time). Personally, the two brands that I think have what whipped soaps are supposed to be is Solstice Scents (SS) & HoG. If you think "whipped cream" when you hear "whipped soap", HoG & SS have what you're looking for.

HoG's whipped soap has the same texture as frozen whipped cream -fluffy but slightly stiff to the touch, melts easily once in contact with your skin.

This whipped soap is actually over 8 months old and still soft!

SS' whipped soap feels like actual whipped cream. Sticking your finger in it feels exactly the way you imagine clouds feel like. I loooove it.

My HoG whipped soaps have also passed the test of time –even after close to a year, as you can see from the gif, they still retain their original texture (maybe they got slightly stiffer, but I'm not sure if it's my imagination). My SS whipped soaps are only a few months old, but so far, they're still keeping they're original texture too. I'm mentioning this since my Black Violet whipped soap started of at just a bit stiffer and harder than HoG's, but after about 2 months in, it turned into the same mushed up bar soap consistency that Alchemic Muse's & Debaucherous Bath's whipped soaps have. So for international shoppers like me who like to buy in bulk and stock up for a year to save on shipping, HoG & SS are safe choices.

Both HoG & SS's whipped soaps has very low lather —almost like a slightly soapy shaving cream, and that's why they're great when you're having sensitive skin. 

HoG lathers a bit more than SS's whipped soap, but even then, this is the most lather you'll get:

Since SS has even less of a lather than HoG's, it feels like I'm just rubbing shaving cream all over myself. That's why as a personal preference, I prefer HoG.

Both SS' & HoG's whipped soap has the least drying formula out of all the indie soaps I've ever tried. They feel like a really moisturising, mainstream liquid cream soap.

Scent-wise, these two brands' whipped soap can definitely fill up the entire shower and leave traces of the scent lingering faintly on you skin after showering. I've only tried one scent in SS' whipped soap (Kitchen), so I'm still holding off my final verdict on this, but so far I find that HoG's whipped soaps are more "true to scent". My SS' whipped soap smells very  different from the perfume oil I got, and I still need to try more scents to figure out if it's that particular scent going wrong in whipped soap form, or if SS' unscented whipped soap still has a strong "base scent" that overwhelms any scent added.

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Scent Reviews

As I've noted in a previous review, HoG scents smell differently in different forms. That's why for each scent review, I'll state in what form I got the scent in.

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Milk Butterbomb

"Different from many of the milky notes that we generally use. This is a fresh milk."

Milk scents are always a high risk, high reward gamble for me. I love, love, love edible, creamy scents, but milk scents sometimes come off as a very milky, play-doh-ish scent that reminds me of certain baby formulas or cloyingly sweet Japanese milk candies. I was in a gambling mood and holy crap it paid off. This scent is gorgeous. I normally don't like soaking my face in very hot water and would keep my face out of the water until it cools, but as soon as the smell surfaces, I just had to sink myself into the water to drown myself in the scent.

It smells like milk and flowers, and somehow manages to maintain the perfect balance between the scents. It never became completely floral or completely creamy. As my nose adjusted to the smell, I also smell a note of something faintly metallic. It smells like old metal. You know that slightly salty, rusty smell you get on your hands when you rub your hands against aged metal? It's a scent some gourmands turn into and in this scent, there's just a hint of that –and it makes the entire thing smell so good.

This smell is so relaxing, I had to remind myself not to fall asleep and become a recipient of a Darwin Award. I normally get bored easily and can't stay too long in baths, but this smelled so good, I stayed in until the smell faded because I re-filled the tub too often. I didn't even read my book for the longest time, and just sat there sniffing and sniffing like I'm trying to trying to hide a runny nose at a fancy party.

TL;DR: Milk & florals

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Milkmaid Perfume Oil

"Fresh milk, clean linens, pale musk and pink sweet pea blossom."

Unfortunately, I dumped this in my swap pile, and now I'm regretting it since Splendiferous ended up being so amazing after being aged for a year. This was my previous review:

Oh wow. The milk smell is extremely strong, with a heavy, musky floral smell to make it even heavier. The milk scent also smells cloyingly sweet, like those milk-flavoured candies that end up tasting play-doh-ish. I know play-doh taste salty since I wasn't a smart child, but somehow I associate that artificial milk taste with what I imagine a pastel play-doh cake would taste like. It took nearly an hour before the cloying, artificial milk scent disappears and now it smells like over-baked candied roses with a faint smell of incense and something bitter and old. Reminds me of the heady smell of entering a crowded temple in India, during a religious festival where there's barely any crowd control. It's very heavy and I'm not a fan.

TL;DR: Offerings in a very crowded temple in India.

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Ploughman Bubbling Scrub Review

"Well worn leather, dirt n' dandelions, carrot, a pinch of tobacco and a light sheen of feral skin musk."

This is freaking amazing. When I first opened the tub, I thought this was spring in a bottle. It smells like young, budding green plants and dewy, wet earth. Once you rub in on your wet skin, it's a burst of dirt, blue and leather. The combination becomes this cool (temperature, not style), sexy masculine scent. The tobacco bit is definitely not obvious in the scent, but I'm guessing it's adding to the masculine bitterness in the scent. When it washes off, the lingering scent it leaves on your skin is a bit sweeter and heavier on the blue, but overall, it's still the same sexy scent.

Seriously, this scent is just so freaking hot...and kinda naughty. Somehow, I imagine it as a scent on that one hot fling you keep going back to even though you know it'll never work, just because he's so much fun and irresistibly charming about being a terrible mistake. So charming, in fact, that you'll happily make the same terrible mistake again with 0 regrets.

Any of you watched Into The Woods? Remember Prince Charming?

That kind of guy.

My cousin and I totally fell in love with this scent. My cousin couldn't really describe why she loved it besides saying that it smells like the kind of masculine scent she likes. When I prodded her with more questions, her opinion is that if it has nicer packaging, it'll definitely pass off as a high-end soap –the kind that cost ridiculous amounts of money and you'll only get for someone as a present that says, "I don't know what the hell you like as a gift, but I have to give you something expensive, so here's a soap that costs an ungodly sum of money. You use soap, right? Right???"

TL;DR: Perfect scent for an irresistibly charming, lovable douche.

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Ruth Bubbling Scrub Review

"Fresh strawberry, green patchouli, rose geranium and crushed violet leaf."

The herbal smell is definitely really, really strong. I blame the patchouli. It definitely smells clean, but I can't shake off the feeling that I'm putting on a clinical herbal salve. It's a more European herbal salve, which smells like a clean, cool sort of herbal, rather than an Asian one, which smells brown and ancient, though. The kind of herbal salves you get from an apothecary that looks like this:

The Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum in Alexandria
Image courtesy of tripadvisor.com

I faintly smell some strawberries once I started lathering it up, but it smells like one of those medicated salves that claim to smell like strawberries, but the strawberry gave up and drowned in the medicated herbs smell after putting up a brief fight. My sister described it as, "Burnt liquorice with ethanol" after I prompted her for a better description than, "Ew! Ewwww!"

And that medicated smell lingers! I still smell it on my skin even after slathering the Mango Sticky Rice body butter all over me.

TL;DR: Herbal salve that tires to smell like strawberries.

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Selkie Whipped Soap Review

"The break of waves, gurgling sea foam, kelp, rain tinged air, sand smoothed driftwood and wild sage."

Scent-wise, Selkie smells amazing. At first, I only got a strong wave of the blue smell crashing in, and I thought it smelt like the wild sea. It conjures images of high waves crashing into cliffs, sending sprays of water and earth.

I wonder if people actually work in that lighthouse and how frequently this happens.
Stunning photography by Robben Fordecay

Then a sandalwood scent that brings up romanticised images of old chests in forgotten attics emerges. Emphasis on romanticised...in my experience, old chests in forgotten attics usually just smell like mothballs and the various critters that called it home at some point in time.

TL;DR: Romanticized ancient wooden chest in a lighthouse by the sea.

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Splendiferous Perfume Oil 

"White cake, lemon zest glaze and sugared violets"

This is what I previously wrote:

First impression: I smell the lemon, but there's also that overly milky, cloying smell (what I was worried Milk would smell like). It definitely smells sugary too. 

5 min in: The overly milky, cloying smell isn't so strong now. I still smell it underneath, but it's mostly a balance between the lemon and sugary violets. 

15 min in: The cloying smell is back. I somehow associate this smell with play-doh, because it's what I imagine a pastel play-doh cake will taste like (I've tried eating play-doh. It's just salty). 

1h in: The smell settled and it's mostly the cloying, play-doh smell & something that smells like baby powder. I barely smell the lemon now. I'm not too much of a fan of this scent, unfortunately. 

3h in: The smell is still relatively strong. I can smell it wafting above my skin. 

I wanted to swap this but somehow forgot to. I decided to give it another try and OHMYGOD. It's freaking amazing. The play-doh note calmed down and aged beautifully. It's still there but acts as a quiet base anchoring the scent and stopping it from going too searing. The sugared violets are in the forefront now, and the lemon pound cakes are in the background. It now smells like the cutest tea party ever. Think this is cute?

This is by Elena Eremina and I really recommend checking her gallery out. It'll make you want to adopt a hoard of hamsters and porcupines. 

Well, this scent is even cuter. While it smells like something you can imagine sniffing in a scene from Alice in Wonderland or an Enid Blyton book, it's so, so refined and not kiddy at all. It's definitely an elegant, grown up interpretation of a tea party (the kind socialite moms throw for their kids and wonder why all the kids are so bored, they look more stoned than a guy on his 10th joint, when they're having so much fun) and so wearable as a perfume. I can go on and on raving about this scent. Now I've made up my mind, I'm NEVER destashing any of my HoG because it may smell good a few years into the future!

TL;DR: Adorable yet refined and elegant sugared violets and lemon pound cakes.

Review: Blooddrop's Flutters in 2 Scents, and 6 Winter Perfume Scents

I got decants of Blooddrop's Flutters (whipped body creams) in 2 scents and winter perfumes in 6 scents from Ajevie! You can find the Blooddrop collection here and Ajevie's decants here.

Let's get on with the reviews...

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Flutters Review

Let's go with the pros first:

• The texture is amazing.

Look at that! It's so fluffy and smooth! I wish there's sound in that gif file, because it made that cute pitter-patter sound of thousands of tiny bubbles popping (think eating a bubble chocolate bar like Aero) when I stuck my finger into it.

• The scent is definitely prominent. I can smell it wafting around as I apply it and you can definitely smell it lingering on your skin long after you've rubbed it in.

Now comes the unfortunate cons:

• It's very, very thick and oily. To give you an idea of the texture, when I first applied it, I had to quickly check again to see if I've made a mistake and mistook a whipped soap for a whipped lotion. It really feels like applying oily liquid soap on your body and leaving it on.

• It takes forever to absorb. Let's just say it's been 2 1/2h since I put it on, I really need to sleep now but I'm still sticky.

Now for the scent reviews...

Candy Cane

There's hints of peppermint here, but the main star of this scent is this balsam or eucalyptus sort of piercing icy sent. The eucalyptus/balsam bit reminds me too much of one those icy oils my dad loves to use, so it's a huge turn off for me.

Marshmallow Eggnog

I have to say, this is one of my favourite marshmallow scents ever. It actually smells like melted marshmallows. The problem is the eggnog bit. It's that Starbucks eggnog flavouring sort of eggnog that I personally found cloying. I can ignore it because the marshmallow's so good though!

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Perfume Oils Review

For my previous Blooddrop perfume reviews, you can click here or on the tag on the right. As always, reviews are done blind until the TL;DRs are written, if any note surprises me, I discuss it in the overview.

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Creature Comforts

"Certain necessities. You know, like vanilla sugar cookies, mocha cookies, rum cookies. Those sorts of things."

This is a boozy creamy coffee scent. The coffee is the kind of slightly tart coffee syrup sort of coffee scents though. The weird thing is, after about 3-5 min, the coffee tartness started morphing into bananas. It now smells like a boozy banana mocha milkshake. Everything disappears on me surprisingly fast though, and  by 5-10 min, it's just this sweet bitter scent lingering on my skin. The bitterness is the bitterness of leftover grounded coffee. I have no idea why this disappeared so quickly on me.

TL;DR: Whirlwind of boozy creamy coffee that morphs into a boozy banana mocha milkshake then crashes and burns into bitterness in 5-10 min.

Overview: Yup, I knew there weren't any bananas in this. I wonder if it's the rum bit?

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Milk & Moon

"This is a gentle, soothing, and milky blend of moonflower, Tahitian monoi, vanilla, German chamomile, and skin milk."

Oh this is gorgeous! It's definitely a more skim milk sort of scent, but it's not a gourmand. I say skim milk since it's milky in the way that it's more watery, yet has still has this rounded, almost creamy edge to it. It's mostly this clean, slightly tart and rounded florals that are thicker though not heavy. There's also a clear, "tinkly" quality to this scent. It's really magical. It starts getting kinda too sweet on me (but a lot of scents like going very sweet on me) after about 25 min, but it just makes me think more of an Escada sort of sweet scent.

It's hard to describe Blooddrop's florals since they're typically so complex, so if I'm picking a picture to advertise this scent, it'll be this:

It's a tinkly, rounded florals type of sweet scent, and makes you think of magical scenes in pink and purple light.

TL;DR: Perfect scent when you're a woodland fairy planning to dance on a fantasy lake spilling with flowers, on a moonlit night.

Overview: I think I'm starting to be able to identify Tahitian monoi. I just realized why the floral part of the scent's so familiar –it's the same floral as Cocoa Pink's Tahitian Monoi Cake.

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Peppermint Hot Chocolate

"Peppermint with cocoa and whole milk."

Ok, definitely getting the peppermint & chocolate, only the chocolate is more of a chocolate powder sort of chocolate (as one of my friends called it, "protein shake chocolate"). Something also went terribly wrong on me and there's this weird, chemical scent underneath this. The weird chemical scent is a cross between plastic melted and blown into a balloon, and whiteboard markers. It's giving me a headache.

I tried to destash this when I had my indie lovers gathering, but after letting 3 other girls try it, it's still a resounding "nope" from all of them (including from those who didn't dare apply it on themselves). And yes, the chemical scent is strong in all 4 of us.

TL;DR: Protein shake chocolate powder, peppermint, and a cross between plastic melted and blown into a balloon and whiteboard markers.

Overview: No freaking idea what's causing that chemical scent.

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The Quiet of Winter

"This is the scent of that sweet quietude; tonka bean, wild rose, violet leaf, and glistening, frosted plums."

This is a clean, soapy scent with hints of red candy. I love it, but there is something  slightly off hidden in the background. I have to sniff hard to catch it, but once I caught it, I can't ignore it. It smells a bit like the way a rag in an art studio that's been used to clean/wipe various substances & surfaces end up smelling. It's definitely very faint in the background, and the scent is mostly this soapy red candy scent, but I can't seem to ignore it.

TL;DR: Soapy red candy.

Overview: I have no idea what's that faint chemical-ish scent. Maybe this has whatever is inside Peppermint Hot Chocolate?

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Thine Maiden in Red Velvet

"Pomegranate, apple blossoms, honey, myrrh, cardamom, nutmeg, beeswax, carnation, and blood orange."

There's that soda that has gone flat sort of scent with hints of red candy and that dry, acrid tea note. The soda is that kind of these sort of soda Japanese soda candies tries to imitate:

Anybody ever tried whatever soda they're trying to imitate? I've always thought of them as "blue soda".
Image courtesy of tofugu.com

I'm betting there's some fruits in this. Blooddrop's fruit notes just go highly artificial on me and there's definitely that cloying, artificial touch to this.

TL;DR: Red candy plonked into soda that has gone flat with hints of acrid, dry tea.

Overview: Yup. Blooddrop's fruits hate me. The tea bit could be from the carnations, which often smells like tea on me.

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Winter Ale

"Gently hopped, golden wheat, and a light blend of seasonal spices including clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice."

Oh my god this is such a sexy masculine scent! Yes, there's that boozy sort of smell, but it's that masculine, bitter type of boozy that's so clean and sexy. Makes you think of a guy in his mid-thirties who's often in a suite, drinking in a really chic lounge. There's a tartness that comes from the slightly fizzy part of this scent, but it goes kind of citrus on me and adds to the whole, clean, crisp image.

I smell a bit of that Baygon (a popular Indonesian insecticide) scent  that perfumers often label as "concrete", "stone", "asphalt", etc. in the background, though. This note also appears in Alkemia's Prairie 66, Blooddrop's Moonstone, and Black Violet's Apparition & Komorebi. If you like them, you'll like this. Unfortunately, by 15 min, the Baygon scent takes over and I smell like I got sprayed by insecticide. I'm really sad about this because the initial scent smells soooo good.

TL;DR: Sexy, boozy masculine scent turning into Baygon.

Overview: Guess they don't list the Baygon note in this, or the combination of all that just turns into Baygon.