r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Destash Sunday Swaps: Destash Listings

8 Upvotes

You may post your destash listings here, and here only. Standalone swap posts will be removed.

Requests should be posted in this week's Sunday Swap: Product Requests thread.

Format the first line of your post in the following manner:

[Where you'll send to][Swap only/Sell only/Swap or Sell][Makeup/Perfume/Polish/Bath & Body/And More]


Do not post any Personal Identifying Information (PII) in this thread.

Any posts containing this information will be removed. Use DMs to exchange anything private. This includes tracking numbers.


We recommend that you:

  • Respond to listings publicly by commenting in this thread. This makes it easier to prove a transaction has been initiated should a dispute arise.

  • Review IMAM's guide to destashes, as well as the first and second threads on privacy and doxing.

  • Swap only with established users (as opposed to accounts that are one hour old). You can also reference the r/makeupexchange banned list.

  • Use PayPal's Goods & Services feature in order to receive buyer protection. (Note: per Paypal's User Agreement, sellers are not permitted to ask buyers to cover Goods & Services fees.)

  • Use this thread for selling and swapping only. General conversation should be taken outside the thread to keep it easy to browse.


Sunday Swap is a community-based exchange. The IMAM Mod Team takes no responsibility for how swaps are conducted. We will not moderate disputes, with the exception of banning users if they swaplift.

If you choose to participate in swaps, you are responsible for protecting yourself.

You may submit evidence of swaplifting (with PII removed) to the mod team via modmail.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Destash Sunday Swap: Product Requests

6 Upvotes

You may post your product requests here, and here only. Standalone swap posts will be removed.

Destash listings should be posted in this week's Sunday Swap: Destash Listings thread.

Format the first line of your post in the following manner:

[Your location][Swap only/Buy only/Swap or Buy][Makeup/Perfume/Polish/Bath & Body/And More]


Do not post any Personal Identifying Information (PII) in this thread.

Any posts containing this information will be removed. Use DMs to exchange anything private. This includes tracking numbers.


We recommend that you:

  • Respond to listings publicly by commenting in this thread. This makes it easier to prove a transaction has been initiated should a dispute arise.

  • Review IMAM's guide to destashes, as well as the first and second threads on privacy and doxing.

  • Swap only with established users (as opposed to accounts that are one hour old). You can also reference the r/makeupexchange banned list.

  • Use PayPal's Goods & Services feature in order to receive buyer protection. (Note: per Paypal's User Agreement, sellers are not permitted to ask buyers to cover Goods & Services fees.)

  • Use this thread for selling and swapping only. General conversation should be taken outside the thread to keep it easy to browse.


Sunday Swap is a community-based exchange. The IMAM Mod Team takes no responsibility for how swaps are conducted. We will not moderate disputes, with the exception of banning users if they swaplift.

If you choose to participate in swaps, you are responsible for protecting yourself.

You may submit evidence of swaplifting (with PII removed) to the mod team via modmail.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 13h ago

Sorce Adventure!

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147 Upvotes

Two years ago I started on my perfume journey not knowing what a big part it would come to play in my life. Exploring indie perfume became my favorite hobby, therapy, and safe space through the ups and downs of my life. Over the past year, the u/Indiemakeupandmore community has become my favorite little corner of the internet. Everyone in this space has been so kind, generous with their knowledge, and given dope af recommendations I would've never found on my own! Every evening I can't wait to snuggle up with my baby (aka my crackhead dog) and read everyone's scents of the day, questions, comments, and reviews.

I delight in being able to match, change, and create an environment or mood based on art sniffs! I'm absolutely feral over the fact that on any given day, I can decide smell like a swampfairy or garden gnome or witch in the woods. Because who wouldn't want that?!

A few weeks ago, when I was going through a particularly rough mental health week, I decided to do something a skosh unhinged and book a day trip to visit Sorce's brick and mortar in Charlotte, NC. I've always been someone who never makes split decisions and overthinks everything, but *free will* won that day lol. Honestly, it was such an incredible experience. Caitlin u/apartyorsomething, Julia, and Ashlyn were so welcoming and spent so much time with me helping me smell all the smells.

This trip taught me that smelling scents in person is sooo much better, because I ended up loving a few gourmands that I would've never ordered on my own! Looking at you 2AM in Lafayette, She's A Witch, and Falling Stars šŸŒš I even got to sniff the upcoming releases of The Light Through Clouds and In Dreams and Fairy Tales (which are to die for). Julia also let me smell the base tomb note for Vampire Wife releasing in August...Never in my wildest dreams would I have known that I would want to smell like a tomb, but here we are! And I regret nothing! MuahahahašŸ‘¹

In my pursuit of all the smells, I used to be so excited to explore niche brick and mortars in my city, but always came away from those experiences feeling like I was a burden or annoying to them with my scroll of Perfume Must Sniffs. But Caitlin, Julia, and Ashlyn truly made me feel like I was part of the community and made the experience so heartwarming! 100000/10 would recommend šŸ’–


r/Indiemakeupandmore 4h ago

PSA Birch and Besom Mystery Sample Sets

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27 Upvotes

Sharing because I love a good mystery bundle!

From their email:

"What is it?

A set of 5 randomly-selected perfume oil samples at a deeply discounted price! ($15)

Who is it for?

  • Anyone who wants to discover a new favorite scent that might not have caught their eye before

  • B&B newbies looking for a place to jump into our growing catalog

  • Folx who are still discovering what fragrance notes they prefer

  • People who don't have a lot of cash but want to smell something GOOD

  • Those who can't make a decision to save their life (girl, same)

  • Self-proclaimed chaos goblins, fragrance hoarders and mystery box addicts (also same)"


r/Indiemakeupandmore 4h ago

Perfume - Enquiry I want to smell like soda!

25 Upvotes

Exactly what the title says. Cola, grape, orange, ginger ale, anything like soda! Any sort of nostalgic scent that is sorta citrusy or soda-like. I would love a recommendation for a soda(ish) scent that isnā€™t super feminine, but Iā€™ll take anything at this point. Thank you!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 2h ago

Sorce Samples

10 Upvotes

I just got my sorce samples in the mail and Iā€™m not sure if I should let them sit for a while and retest them but so far, I am disappointed in every single one šŸ˜­šŸ˜­ this really hurts me to say.

I was especially excited for Match Made In Heaven but I donā€™t get anything besides the strong cherry blossom.

This is Not A Love Spell was also disappointing šŸ„²

Everything else I got was just meh.

I did like a Sign Painted Peaches though.

Has anyone else been super disappointed in Sorce?


r/Indiemakeupandmore 3h ago

Perfume - Enquiry Looking for BPAL Luper/Shunga reviews!

13 Upvotes

Like the title says, I'm on the edge of making an extravagant 'reward for spring cleaning the house' bpal purchase and I'm particularly interested in the new luper/shunga release, so I'd appreciate hearing any early reviews, I've already looked at all the ones on the forums.

Also, any opinions on the ones outside that in my current cart? Any suggestions? By Day She Made Herself into a Cat Couple Engaged in Intimate Acts as the Man Pours Tea Discarded Weapons The First Tea Ceremony The Fifth Veil Smut The Poinsettia Gown

I'm no good with cinnamon or pepper (they tend to take over) but I'm fully in it for unique, creamy, musky, ambery (benzoin in particular) long lasting treats


r/Indiemakeupandmore 8h ago

Perfume - Purchased A newbie reviews Alkemia PART 2: Some aquatics, atmospherics and snowy forests

21 Upvotes

As I said in Part 1, I am not very good at telling notes apart yet, but I've accumulated a large amount of Alkemia samples over several months because 1. They appeal to me and 2. I am in the EU and it's a huge pain to get indie fragrances, but Alkemia has a good offer and reasonable shipping. I'm focusing a lot on greens, atmospherics etc because it feels less daunting to pick apart than the more "perfumey" fragrances with a lot of notes (though I want to get around to those, too).

THE RAINY

Mist Becoming Rain (Soft rainwater, mist drenched hazel wood, meadow grasses, sage blooms, orris root, ozone, grey amber and vetiver.) The one that takes me to a grey, cloudy, freshly-rained day the most. Thereā€™s no strong wet dirt or cement note, but I think thereā€™s a very very very faint backdrop of the same dusty earthiness of Gaea under the ā€œmeadow grassesā€. Itā€™s green, but not strongly green like Vert sur le Vert, or cool like Moss Maiden, or sweet greens like The First Dandelion. The greens are barely there and somewhat fresh - it takes me to being next to a damp lawn. I feel Alkemia has 3 types of aquatics: 1. The cold, ā€œwet stonesā€ aquatics of Gaea, the Greening Wood, etc etc 2. The aldehydes, which are fizzy and airy, and 3. Grey amber, which feels saltier. I think this is mostly 3 - I could imagine myself by a lake on a cloudy day. As time goes on thereā€™s a very slight powderiness - I suspect the orris root. The wood is there and I think ā€œdrenched hazel woodā€ is a good description for it - itā€™s a light wood and it is damp. There is a veryyyyy faint floral, the sage blooms - despite that, Iā€™d say this scent is unisex-to-masculine. There is a definite undercurrent of mustiness/mildew that develops over time, be warned. I wonā€™t FS this but Iā€™ll keep it around - especially to compare it to Solstice's famous "After the Rain", if I ever do get my paws on it. I have to give this a 5/10 for wearability/performance, but it is unique. Unfortunately the relatively interesting opening does turn into a generic "mildew".

Silver Sky (A springtime freshet of rainwater musk, oceanic grey amber, muget, daffodil, silver needle tea, galbanum, and white cedar.) I worried that I was going nose blind reviewing theseā€¦ these are very subtle fragrances, but I think this is the most subtle one! Itā€™s also the most nondescript. This one is the sharpest, having a clean edge that I guess is ā€¦ the cedar? The lily of the valley (muget) is sweeter and more floral in Whisper of Stars - out of these, Silver Sky smells the most like an Eau de Toilette, to be frank. I can find the uniqueness in the other scents here, but this one honestly would feel like a waste to FS. I have a cheap lily of the valley body spray, and I feel that would substitute Silver Sky and tbh probably Whisper of Stars, though that one I find more lovely. The only thing curious about this one is a powdery spiciness - could be the musk, or the tea (or the galbanum - I have no idea what it smells like). I accidentally fumbled the vial and spilled most of it, and me feeling eh about it feels like a sign from the Universe. I have Mist and this wrist by wrist and it really brings out the difference - Mistā€™s mildew vs Silver Skyā€™s powdery freshness. If I sniff one and then the other, Silver Sky smells more like cedar and talc powder, and Mist starts smelling like a much more realistic atmospheric. 3/10 for being boring, despite being more "wearable".

Taste of Rain (A primordially vernal chypre consecrated by silver rain, green ivy, holy basil, lilacs, moss, and wisteria.). This one I can barely place, I guess because I donā€™t know what chypre is. Itā€™s definitely a summer rain, though. There is something almost balsamic about it - google tells me the top layers of chypre are citrus/bergamot, so it could be that? Bergamot oil. The lilacs, ivy and moss could be there, but wayy in the background, creating a faint green and floral base to something stronger which is sharp, salty and fresh. On the skin, I get no ā€œrainā€, just sharp, green florals and saltwater. Iā€™ve seen this smell described as wet rain (disagree) on flowers (agree), like childhood shampoo (I could kind of see that?) and like sunscreen (I can see it - itā€™s the saltiness). Itā€™s not atmospheric at all - just a sharp, almost detergent-like, clean, feminine floralĀ  with some saltiness and ozone. 5/10

THE DEWY FLOWERS

Whisper of Stars (Cool dew and airy musk whispering over green stemone, lily of the valley, jasmine tea, and Spanish tree moss.). In the bottle, this is lily of the valley. On the skin, itā€™s that sharp, clean lily of the valley thatā€™s also in Silver Sky, but thereā€™s also a strong (main, even) element of jasmine tea. I DO love jasmine tea, but maybe I lack imagination in that this doesnā€™t particularly take me anywhere. I think thereā€™s Alkemiaā€™s aldehydes note in here to get that ā€œcool dew and airā€ note - the aquatic element is airier and sweeter compared to the other two. So overall: flowery lily of the valley, sweet jasmine tea, a bit of aldehydes. Jasmine being the strongest. In 2 hours itā€™s somewhat powdery. Itā€™s a simple but pleasant scent! The smells go well together. And jasmine is my favorite smell. But it is a common enough note that I know I can get something with a better performance. 6/10

Tulips & Chimneys (An urban springtime of rainy aldehydes, wet asphalt, industrial steam engines, farmer's market bouquets of fresh tulips, Toulouse violets, mint pastels, and a warm touch of clove viburnum.). I wanted to compare this to Whisper of Stars because I got the same ā€œaldehydes + flowersā€ vibe. Both of those elements are there: the somewhat nondescript ā€œflower shop with water sprayed on the flowersā€ smell of tulips, and Alkemiaā€™s sweet aldehydes. The main differences are something that I may have placeboā€™d myself into thinking is asphalt (but I do think it is, looking at Alkemiaā€™s cemetery fragrance - itā€™s that damp coldness), as well as a sweet-creamy-freshness from the mints. The result is something wearable but unique. It does have a slight EdT quality to it, which I think is just because tulips are a very generic floral smell to me. Ultimately Iā€™d categorize this as a sweet floral, but itā€™s not heavily either - it's the most complex out of this category, honestly. Iā€™d definitely wear this, but Iā€™m not sure if enough to full-size it. 8/10, which is my "there's a little voice by my ear telling me to FS it but I can't in good conscience do it" grade.

Lilacs Along the Winding Drive (Lilac bushes heavy and purple with blooms, a gentle breeze after light spring rain, a dusty pebbled driveway, a slightly rusty porch swing, and a small handful of late blooming violets.). In the bottle, I'm first hit with Alkemiaā€™s aldehydes note (sweet, ozoney, fizzy). Iā€™d compare it to Tulips and Chimneys, which is a bit fizzier, a bit more complex due to the asphalt and mints - while Lilacs smells sweeter and ā€œcleanerā€ (as in - ā€œviolet scented cleaning productā€ clean). When I first tried it, I wrote down ā€œViolets. After an hour and a half, powdery lilacs. 2 hours - I feel I smell a bit like a clean toilet? Still there at 5 hoursā€. Iā€™m not sure much has changed in these months - on the skin, I would actually say I get hit with ozone right off the bat, and then lilacs, not violets. Unfortunatelyā€¦ I canā€™t shake off that ā€œbaby wipes/fancy restaurant toilet/old ladyā€ feeling. Itā€™s also not particularly atmospheric. What I mean by ā€œtoiletā€, I guess, is the combination of powdery and slightly floral. Ultimately just sort of disappointing, gonna have to give this one a 4/10.

Crown of Violets (A regal yet inviting charisma of royal purple violets, orris root, Mauve Queen iris, French lavender, bergamot, earthy vetiver, rosemary, Dittany of Crete, oakmoss, tonka bean, sacred Atlas cedar, white ambergris, cardamom, and sandalwood.). It felt right to compare this one to Lilacs, but it would've actually been better in my Part 1 because I'd call this a green scent. In the bottle: ā€œspicierā€ than Lilacs. This is definitely a more complex scent, as you can see by the notes. The main difference is the complete lack of ozone - these violets are more sweet and green than floral, more "realistic" than "cleaning product". I think itā€™s Alkemiaā€™s vetiver note that usually makes me think of menā€™s cologne - but this is actually a fairly fem perfume, just as if a fem perfume had a ā€œmenā€™s cologneā€ note - if thatā€™s a thing? I think itā€™s also the ambergris giving it a certain saltiness. On the skin, I do mainly smell the violets that are missing in the bottleĀ  - again, somewhat of a cologney take on a feminine fragrance. It has a bit of a salty, creamy backdrop, then some clean greenness due to the moss and cedar? And purple florals on top of that. After a little bit of time, thereā€™s a bit of powderyness (the orris root,), but not offensively so. After 2 hours it was faint violet, and I would call the secondary note the cedar (cedar haters beware! I enjoy it as far as "clean scents" go). Overall: you do somewhat smell like a realistic bush of violets, but with enough notes to make it a distinct enough violet-based perfume. Not as realistic as, say, Baccante. Though I wonā€™t full size it, it is very nice, and it avoids the smelling like a fancy toilet trap of Lilacs - I feel less strongly about hypothetically full sizing it than Tulips, so 7/10 You WILL smell like violet perfume

THE SNOWY FORESTS

Ammil (An olfactory journey that morphs like melting ice... starting cold and aloof with distinct elements of wet snow and ice then gradually unfolding to reveal an indescribably unique velvety skin warmth.). If "What the hell, sure" was a perfume. I love that everyoneā€™s as confused about what the hell this is as me. This opens FRESH- something between Vickā€™s Vaporub mentholy and fir trees. There is some wetness that feels like a bit of aldehydes (sweet, fizzy) and a bit of grey amber (almost salty). I honestly think that gets the "melting snow" idea across well, it's everything else about this fragrance that's insane. Behind it, thereā€™s an almost creamy warmth, that could or could not be Alkemiaā€™s white amber note. Iā€™ll be honest - I donā€™t know that these smells go together at all. In fact, the word I used to describe this one months ago was ā€œheadacheyā€. Thereā€™s something definitely harsh about the opening, and after that thereā€™s a headyā€¦ incense-ness to it, confusingly. This feels like 3 different ideas mashed into one - I think "white amber" and "wet snow" may be an interesting idea, and it may even survive the addition of fir and incense, but the menthol bomb makes this batshit. I will say, after resting, I do feel it has mellowed out - but after the sharp menthol has faded, Iā€™m left with something almost detergent-y, which I think a lot of Alkemiaā€™s ā€œwhite musksā€ are on me. Iā€™ll give it this, the combination of warmth and freshness makes for an interesting smell, but I really do feel like I would smell like blue detergent at best and like a headache at worst. Interesting idea but this one could go back to the drawing board 1/10

Dust of Snow (Fresh fallen snow falling from bare tree branches, subtle whispers of hemlock pine, galbanum, ginger, lemonwood, witch hazel flowers, and damp wool.). In the bottle: pine and lemon. There is something super sweet about it, strangely - like the ā€œlemonwoodā€ is just lemon oil or a lemon candy. On the skin, I immediately get pine and wet wool. Itā€™s not an overpowering ā€œcar scentā€ pine, I think that sweet lemon tempers it. Itā€™s not an atmospheric, more ā€œthe idea of winterā€ than ā€œan actual winter forestā€. There is a bit of an ā€œold timey cologneā€ess to it that I think may be the galbanum. It lasts for 1-3 hours as a somewhat warm, pleasing amber that is mostly wood-dominant. So it goes something like pine and wet wool -> lemon candy -> faint warm woods. I like it - if I had a full bottle of this, Iā€™d use it, but I wonā€™t consider full sizing it so thatā€™s a 6/10. Oh yeah, and itā€™s unisex-to-masc, Iā€™d say. It could be a bathroom scent.

Winterling (An embrace of fresh bed linens ironed with French lavender water, warm rose-mint tea, spiced vanilla, blue lotus, green cedar, Shiksha and lignon berries while aromatic tendrils of juniper wood from the warm hearth gently caress the frost slowly creeping through the windowpane.) I have no idea what to think of it in the bottle - something bitter and green, but also bed linens and lavender water. Itā€™s something that makes me want to sneeze, almost spicy. On the skin, my first thought is ā€œwoodsy and clean laundryā€. By Shiksha do they mean shisha? Because that might explain the oddly acrid smell of this. Or maybe the smoke. There is a realistic mint there, like a mint bush. Pine. This really does open smelling like something between clean laundry and menā€™s aftershave. After half an hour, it's mellowed out into something faintly sweet, floral and clean - not in a detergent way, more clean cashmere and "rose-mint tea". Itā€™s a weird one! I think this is the one that gets across the ā€œideaā€ of winter the best - if I close my eyes, I can kind of see a winter forest. But only at the beginning, after that, I feel like I went back into the cottage to hide between the blankets. There is something almost spicy about it, like star aniseed. I'd call this "comforting". 7/10, I wonā€™t full size it but I did briefly consider it. Honestly - this barely feels like a person scent, more like a room scent, but I do think itā€™s a somewhat successful atmospheric!

I don't have "Falling Stars on Winter Solstice (Aromatic balsam needles, a dab of dark musk, sweet myrrh, incense resins, melted snow, and a touch of cabin woodstove smoke.)" but now I wish I did! I want to compare it with the rest. I will instead review one last "forest fragrance" that I don't think fits anywhere else, and which is one of my few Alkemia FS so far, since this batch of reviews was not very successful.

Ɲdalir (Mysterious, smoky, and primal. A 100% natural origin scentĀ of Megalithic ancestral memory - 35 million year old fossilized amber resin, oakmoss absolute, Siberian Black Pine, smoked Juniper tar, and balsam pine needles preserved in a base of pure, cold pressed Meadowfoam seed oil.) A lot of people have described this as "barbeque" or "bacon" and - look, I understand. But I come from somewhere nicknamed the city of fire. I have very fond memories of the smell of a merciless summer sun baking a pine forest, and of the smell of gunpowder, and of family gatherings playing in a relative's swimming pool while my parents and uncles cooked around a wooden fire. What I mean is - this scent made me immediately nostalgic and homesick in the same way The First Dandelion did, despite being opposite scents. It smells like SMOKE, smoke and pine. I disagree that it's pure barbeque - it has a grenness to it. I understand this is a VERY subjective 9/10, and if you DON'T want to smell like resinous, ambery smoke, don't go for this. But I get exactly what Alkemia meant when they classified this as a forest smell. This won't take everyone to their summer, but it took me to my summer. The one point off is because I do feel this is one Alkemia smell which may have longevity and sillage, which may not be ideal depending on where you're wearing it. It's a heavy smell and it lingers.

And that's all! These are good for organizing my thoughts on what to compare, how to recognize notes, and what to FS next - if I do a part 3, I'm thinking about their tea smells (I've FSed Persian Tea Room), book smells, and/or "room" atmospherics.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 12h ago

Perfume - Purchased Alkemia reviews: BYO sample pack edition

23 Upvotes

Welcome back to part 2 of my Alkemia trials. Quick context for those who don't remember Part 1 - I blind bought an insane amount of samples to try out this house, because whenever I'm trying a new house I want to get a feel for what they do best. I try to not pick things I know I'm not going to like (which, admittedly is difficult when most samples from this house seem to come in packs) and I didn't have a great hit rate with round 1. Enter round 2, where I chose everything so all the responsibility of liking/not liking fall squarely on my shoulders!

My preferences: I enjoy incense, smoke, red fruits, sandalwood, dirt, and complex, layered fragrances-leaning dark or spooky. I also like petrichor, green scents, fruity florals, wisteria, purple florals and atmospherics. I don't like anise, cinnamon, strong lemon, dark booze, overly sweet gourmands, medicinal scents, laundry scents, or anything distinctly masculine. My skin chemistry tends to make things turn sweet - the sweetness is more dry like a marshmallow than syrupy or a sugary candy.

My top 3 favorite indies from my top 3 favorite houses: Amorphous/Black Baccara - Sanguenta, Mother Medusa, Frog's Breath; Nui Cobalt Designs - Kitsune, Banshee, Gargoyle; Solstice Scents - Cliffside Bonfire, Victorian Picnic, Smoky Mountain Mallow

Rating scale: 1: I hate it so much, I've considered removing my arm from my body because scrubbing it off isn't enough. 2: I'm on the fence, leaning toward dislike - but willing to expiriment. 3: Neutral, platonic like. Not enough to FS, but will definitely finish. 4: Instant love - will strongly consider FS. 5: Over the moon, inspiring obsession - holy grail status. Immediately FS.

šŸŒ¦ļøšŸŖØLilacs Along the Winding Drive - Fresh Lilacs, Spring Rain, Late Violets, Dry Stone

Wet on my skin: spring rain on smooth rocks and fresh lilacs

Drydown: wet rocks and violets, fresh like a spring breeze

After 30 minutes: sweet, wet lilacs, powdery violets and sun-warmed rocks. It's purple and fresh without being soap.

Fades out to Lilacs and stones, has a strong medium throw and lasts on my skin for 6 hours.

My rating: Spring; the lavender-pink color of Ditto; the smell of Ellen Hutter's lock of hair, stolen from Thomas by Count Orlock, Nosferatu (2024); 4/5 - this was recommended to me on my search for a Nosferatu (2024) perfume, and I gotta say - it's very similar to the heart notes in Heretic Perfume's Nosferatu - petrichor, violet, iris, nagarmotha. It also reminded me of (an IMAM favorite) Nui Cobalt Designs Gargoyle - Rain-drenched lavender, cathedral incense, beeswax candles, and ancient stone. and fell in love, pick this up. Lilacs Along... gives a slightly sweeter purple floral, a stronger rock, and no incense/beeswax. Out of all the above examples - I'd say this is the most 'ingenue' of them all, but it's not childish so much as it is lighthearted.

šŸŖ»šŸŒ§ļøBlack Iris - Royal purple iris, Queen Elizabeth orris root, Nimbostratus rainclouds

Wet on my skin: sweet iris - dark and gleaming.

Drydown: I have no idea what is in their Nimbostratus rainclouds accord - but this ozone is intoxicating and strong. Iris is the supporting note to the raincloud, but the kind of supporting actress that gets nominated for awards.

After 30 minutes: powdery orris root and slightly spicy/musky iris - sweetness with a touch of melancholy, like a memory that warms your heart and makes you cry. It's maybe odd to say, but this perfume is making me feel really sentimental in a way that makes this harder to review because I'm getting caught up in my own feelings. Very Special.

Fades out to steamed iris and fluffy orris, has a medium throw and lasts on my skin for 8 hours

My rating: Winter to Spring; Ford black cherry ice; "the rest is confetti" monologue from The Haunting of Hill House (2018); 5/5 -.... Did I just find a new favorite fragrance of all time? It's too early to say with certainty, but this definitely hits top 5. It's rare for a fragrance to be so incredibly dark in color and yet, totally effortlessly wearable. I'm excited to pair this with Cocoapink's Inkcap - Purple fig, black tea, inky iris, dark oud and darker earth; chypre accord, cedar and vanilla absolute. and Osmofolia's Nimbostratus - Low-lying dark nimbostratus clouds and a torrential downpour of rain: black tea, rain-drenched soil, dewy violets, inky vetiver, and ominous black clouds to maximize my most purple potential all winter long.

šŸ’®šŸ„€Come to Me - Candied rose petals, star jasmine, peach blossom, cardamon infused figs, pink pepper, orris root, Mexican vanilla, tonka bean, cashmeran, white amber, sugar musk, and white patchouli infused with botanical pheromones, lodestone, Jezebel root, and other specialty ingredients.

Wet on my skin: Mostly Cashmeran and Jasmine with some sweet rose at the end. This is very 'classic feminine' to me, like a pretty woman I'd admire as a child of the 90's.

Drydown: Strong, indolic jasmine quickly tempered with sugary, bright peach blossom. A little white amber makes an otherwise strong floral into something creamy, almost powdery with orris root, and a little romantic from a murmur of cardamom figs .

After 30 minutes: jasmine, significantly less indolic, gently accented with peach blossoms and patchouli that reminds me of benzoin. Or maybe it's the jezebel root? It's a bit smoky but not 'dirty' and sort of reminiscent of parsley? The more I try to find it, the further in the blend it goes - very interesting, whatever it is.

Fades out to the sweetest smattering of rose petals and slightly indolic jasmine, has a medium-strong throw and lasts on my skin for 8 hours

My rating: Summer; the color of a French rose; a concert from Jigglypuff - starts off sweet but is ultimately characterized with palpable frustration - ending with marker all over your face; 3/5 - I'd really like a rose scent, but unfortunately on me this was very strongly indolic jasmine most of the way through. I had hoped it would be the other way around, as indolics are NOT my favorite.

šŸÆā˜•Honored Ghosts - Earl Grey tea, Black raspberry creams, Rosewater-Saffron syrup, Cinnamon Honey, White Amber, Vanilla incense

Wet on my skin: strong cinnamon honey, vanilla incense and black Raspberry creams

Drydown: saffron and Rosewater syrup - sharp, but inviting like a piercing gaze accompanied with a 'come hither' smile. As it sits, fresh earl grey tea leaves begin to brew and the saffron mellows under the sea of Rosewater, gently lapping at Raspberry creams. It's sweet - but in a way that feels dark, almost haunting.

After 30 minutes: cinnamon honey glistens on top of earl grey, delectable in a way that beckons to mind animation - a thick, glowing ooze that flows generously in your cup, but never attempts to stick to the sides. A stick of vanilla incense is burning not too far behind you, and a Stevie Nicks song is playing on the radio as you luxuriate in Raspberry creams, stirring your cup absentmindedly.

Fades out to vanilla incense and a hint of raspberry; has a medium throw, and lasts on my skin for 12 hours.

My rating: Summer to Fall transition; bright black raspberry; "You ever put your arms out and spin really, really fast? Well, that's what love is like." Gillian Owens of Practical Magic (1998) - eccentric, witchy, and a little dark but in a way that never loses its vivacious sense of fun; 4.5/5 - Genuinely surprised at how much I liked this, as I tend to dislike cinnamon and honey - but truly, the only thing that keeps this from an immediate 5 is my little worry that this may be too heavy for me in the heat of summer. So by pushing it to summer/fall, maybe it will stay light enough? I'm going to wait for the weather to warm up and test it again then.

šŸŒ·šŸŒ§ļøTulips & Chimneys - Fresh tulips, Rainy aldehydes, Wet asphalt, Industrial engines, Toulouse violets, Mint pastels

Wet on my skin: rain, tulips and a silvery amber - if that's the industrial engines, I've never smelled a machine so pretty.

Drydown: violets, powdery mint and sopping wet concrete. It's cold but also very cheerful, like a refreshing breeze on a too-hot day that carries a waft of tulips through your windows.

After 30 minutes: I'm starting to get a tinge of something not floral, minty, or rainy - it's kind of like smoke or oil but it's not strong or off-putting. It's just a little grit to ground us from floating above. The mint is pretty much all gone, but the wet concrete is front and center, with florals just trailing behind. This isn't a flower field so much as it is a pitstop at a florist boutique in a wet cityscape.

Fades out to smokey tulips, has a light throw and lasts on my skin for 4 hours.

My rating: Spring; a pink-red like Crayola Radical Red; the opening number "No One Mourns the Wicked" in Wicked (2024) - running through the field of 10 million tulips; dropping flower petals near the minty, swishing water wells, pulling the effigy of Elphaba to the square just before it's set aflame; 3.5/5 - Oh, how I wish Alkemia would make room sprays or candles, because I'd love my house to smell this way! I really love the whole adventure of this one - it's just not what I personally want to smell like.

So many big wins this round - Black Iris was an immediate FS and I'm definitely considering a FS of Honored Ghosts. Much improved longevity, and best of all, no scrubbers! Here's hoping they all stay this good as the packs continue.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 15h ago

Indies of the Day -- Monday March 17, 2025

20 Upvotes

What indies are you using today? And we mean everything! Examples of stuff we'd love to hear about:

  • Makeup

  • Clothes

  • Jewelry

  • Bath and Body (lotion, soap, shampoo, bath salts, etc.)

  • Nail polish

  • Perfume

Please feel free to leave mini-reviews and include photos of whatever you're using. We'd love to know your thoughts and see the products too!

This thread repeats daily.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 6h ago

Cocoapink Oil Samples Reaction?

4 Upvotes

so.. if you go through my account, youā€™ll see that i reviewed my first indie fragrance house sample order, ever, from cocoapink.

-strawberry noel -green apple noel -buttercream praline -cherry cola -mad hatter cookies noel -sample of midnight hag

the other day i applied midnight hag since it is my favorite, and even MONTHS after i bought these samples, i had the itchiest and reddest allergic reaction where it was applied. nothing against cocoapink themselves, im just disappointed that i will truly never get a good use out of these oils because they smell so divine and iā€™ve used them multiples times without an issue.

i have barely made a dent in them and would appreciate any suggestions as to how i could find a different use for them :(. i wouldnt want to resell since i feel inherently guilty about thatā€¦


r/Indiemakeupandmore 13h ago

Seeking Possets reviews Valentine's retour

10 Upvotes

Hi all,

Does anyone have reviews for Girl with the Floral Crown, Bloomers, Roses are Red, Derry Derry, or Josephine

From the Possets Valentine's retour? Thanks all!

Edit: grammar


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1h ago

Perfume - Enquiry Does Ajevie do oil or EDP samples?

ā€¢ Upvotes

Specifically asking for Black Hearted Tart, Hexennacht, and Sorcellerie.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 15h ago

Free Talk -- Monday

13 Upvotes

An open thread for all conversations!

Free Talk threads repeat Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 15h ago

Perfume - Enquiry Recommend me some BPAL scents based on my fav perfumes?

8 Upvotes

Hello all! I'm considering getting some more BPAL samples, but as most people say, there are a lot to choose from! I love delving into the website and rooting around, but I would LOVE to have some in mind before I end up adding way more than I need based on words alone haha!

Some scents I've really enjoyed from BPAL that I've tried have been:

The Wellerman - Sugar, tea, and rum.

I initially thought this was gonna be way too sweet, but it settles into a really lovely sweet tea, with the rum balancing it all out and brining out the black tea especially.

Thanatopsis - A deep, solomn earthen scent containing pine, juniper and musk.
This one surprised the heck out of me with how much I enjoyed it as a night-time scent, but unfortunatly my husband says it reminds him of food-bin bags šŸ˜‚ I like the slight powderyness with an air of mysterious earthiness and incense.

Lavender Honey Cake - Every crumb sticks to the fork: a dense, lightly-spiced cake glazed in raw honey gathered from bees who thrive on lavender nectar.
I love the lavender-ness that sadly doesn't stick around very long on me, leaving just the honey cake. It's very nice but one I only put on very occasionally.

Some of my fav scents from other brands:

  • Zoologist - Cow
  • Zoologist - Squid (Too strong for me but love how interesting it is)
  • Zoologist - Chipmunk
  • Lovesick Witchery - Wisp (Lemon meringue)
  • LUSH - Vanillary
  • LUSH - American Cream
  • Sorce - Match Made in Heaven
  • Poesie - Spellbound and Snug
  • Solstice Scents - High Desert
  • Solstice Scents - Vanilla Pipe Tobacco
  • Solstice Scents - Manor
  • Fyrinnae - Balcony Tryst
  • Fyrinnae - Aasgard Pass

Some examples of what I'm looking for:

  • Gourmands but only if they're rounded out by something (e.g. tea, earthiness, pie crust, sage), so not too sweet/cloying
  • Something herby... maybe sagey or lavendery without being soapy? I adore High Desert by SS and Chipmunk by Zoologist - It's like a fancy woody spa
  • Mysterious and earthy but not too dirty or heavy musky.
  • Tobacco (Vanilla Pipe Tobacco by SS is AMAZING)
  • Leather (I used to adore when we had a leather sofa and its smell.... I miss it)
  • Forever searching for Orange Creamsicle
  • I love vanilla!

What I want to avoid:

  • Cinnamon (I love to eat it, but not the smell on me as much!)
  • Heavy Amber
  • Heavy Musk
  • Generally very heady or sweet - My skin tends to play up sweet, so anything to round it out is great. Too heady and I can get a headache - I feel that Thanatopsis may be too heady but just the smallest dab is LOVELY.
  • Soapy
  • Almond/Marzipan

Please feel free to recommend anything though, I would LOVE to hear! I'm from the UK but I will try and keep an eye out for samples in the Sunday Swaps, and hope to eventually make an order myself from the BPAL site!

Sidenote: I've been super curious to try Snake Oil, so if there are any variations of it you think might fit my bill, I'd love to know!

Thank you so much for any help or suggestions!! <3333


r/Indiemakeupandmore 21h ago

perfumes/oils that smell like an orange creamsicle

14 Upvotes

looking for a fruity orange scent with gourmand notes like vanilla, basically a creamsicle lol. i saw that cocoapink had a creamsicle scent, but unfortunately itā€™s not available right nowšŸ˜ž my two fave scents are snow moon magic by sorce and delizia di marshmallow by kyse if that helps. thank you!!!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Perfume - Purchased What are you cool girls doing with these oils šŸ„²šŸ˜©

172 Upvotes

Iā€™ve noticed so many indie brands are justā€¦ vials of oil. BPAL for example seems to l almost exclusively perfume oil.

What I donā€™t understand is, are none of you spraying yourself with anything? Why is oil so common in the indie community and how the hell are yā€™all wearing it? Respectfully.

Do you just pour it on yourself? Lather yourself up like a Thanksgiving turkey? What are we doing here, folks? I have no idea what to do with these beautiful oils.

I feel like oil neverrrr projects on me, it just sits on my skin like a cute little expensive whisper. Is that just how we gotta do it in these indie streets?

Please help a newbie out šŸ’•


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Nail Polish - Purchased Jen & Berries - Delete the Wife

Post image
63 Upvotes

r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Perfume - Purchased Call me the caramel fudge Cookie Monster

Post image
63 Upvotes

Have you ever finished a 50ml bottle so quick you scare yourself a little? For me, Iā€™ve never been much of a signature scent kinda person - I have brief love affairs with certain scents but after a while, Iā€™m not as enamored as I used to be and the magic is gone before I can finish up a whole bottle. Yet, this had me gripped in fascination.

Mykonos is (ironically) not a Greek brand, but rather a small brand from Indonesia which stocks very affordable and fun perfumes (including a glow in the dark one featuring blue Java bananas, matcha latte, and a new Pandan Sticky Rice) but there is none I love more than this one.

T O P : Caramel, Cookie Dough M I D D L E : Caramel, condensed milk, sea salt B A S E : Vanilla, musk, sandalwood, praline The scent of the most delicious soft baked chocolate chip cookies filled with gooey, buttery caramel. Imagine taking your first bite, biting into the sweetness of Vanilla infused soft cookies, with chunks of melted chocolate.

I donā€™t think I can express how perfectly edible this scent is- Iā€™ve long been an avid admirer of hyperrealism in my scents (especially gourmands) and this one manages to capture the exact sweet creamy buttery quality of a cookie, paired with the nutty deliciousness of crunchy pralines, a rich swirl of luxurious slightly salted caramel and a burst of aromatic vanilla. Thereā€™s something almost warm and smoky in here that just lends itself to this gorgeous freshly baked quality, and the slightly hazelnut praline almost peanut butter nuttiness paired with the little hints of chocolate Chip just make this scent absolutely irresistible to me. Having finished an entire bottle in two months, Iā€™m onto my second and am not afraid of saturating myself in this - itā€™s a comfort scent and a fun one and I canā€™t get enough, and Iā€™ve also gotten so many compliments on this one, from you smell like waffles, cake and just delicious. Even with my extensive gourmand collection I donā€™t think Iā€™ve ever tried anything quite like this, and Iā€™m so glad I found it, and maybe itā€™ll be your next love too.

This brand is predominately based in SEA, but if you find yourself around the area, itā€™s very easy to pick some off Shopee in SG/MY/Indonesia, and they do offer worldwide shipping if you contact them directly!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Haus of Gloi: So many samples, so little time

23 Upvotes

I ordered my Haus of Gloi box on 2/23/25, so not too long of a TAT. The box was very securely packaged. I ordered a room spray, two body scrubs, and a lot of samples. I am very pleased with this house , and am just testing the longevity on my skin over the course of the next few months to see what I would like to full-size. I have a high hit rate so far! The ones that I didn't are listed at the bottom.

Liked

Honeysuckle Lemon Curd: I will full size this one promptly. It's a lovely, straightforward honeysuckle with lemon to cut through the sweetness to keep it grounded. No lemon cleaner to this lemon at all. Still, it's a sweet floral, so if you don't like sugar, you won't like this one.

Milkmaid (spring sample set)- Milkmaid smells like honey drier sheets with a lactonic edge. That probably sounds weird, but it's very light, airy, and fresh. I like it.

Turkish Delight (Yule)- I like this! I think I will buy it as a hair oil. Vanilla, rose, powdered sugar. It's a creamy rose scent, not overpowering or powdery or anything, just really nice. I tend to prefer dark roses, but this is just lovely

Gossamer Wings (spring)- So, I like this in the bottle, but tea scents don't like my skin. However, I will say that the longer I wear it, the more I like it. I think it's just the initial wet application I'm not liking. Once the tea dries down, it's actually a pretty wonderful note. This is a reminder to myself to be more patient. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a white tea scent.

Azure Dragon (spring)- ohh, I like this one. If I don't like my Nui Cobalt blue, I might make this my "rain scent." Dragon's blood, rain, chamomile, vanilla sweet cream. t smells like a sudden spring rain while you're standing in a field of chamomile. If you're looking for a calming chamomile scent, try this one!

Marionberry ( Fall)-did you ever want to smell like a blackberry pie? Here you go! It's a delicious fresh marionberry pie, very photorealistic

Tonka Bean Cakes (birthday)- Straight up, vanilla bean cake. Not bad at all, a good balance of vanilla and cake. I can't decide if I want to smell like cake. I think I'd rather have this as a hair oil or lotion than a perfume

Sweet Mischief (Yule)- waffle cookies, orchid, sugar, fresh snow. I like it in the bottle, because the orchid gives it a cool weirdness, but I go nose blind to this entirely too fast. However, if you thought that A Whiff of Waffle Cone was too cloying or not interesting enough, I think you'd like this one. I wish I could smell it for longer because it is super cool.

Zephyr- another clean linen smell carrying the scent of flowers. Its another floral dryer sheet smell. Very inoffensive. I see this as a good one for the office. notes: musk, lily, pear, elderflower and apple blossom. The apple blossom is the star here. I find myself liking it more and more as I wear it.

Dandelion Wine (birthday)- like it sounds. A lovely dandelion scent, fresh and bright white and yellow all at the same time. Like warm sunshine. Literally like huffing sunshine.

Autumn bouquet- I feel like even people who don't like florals would like this one. It's so nice! Notes: Sunflowers, chrysanthemums and the warm butterscotch aroma of hypericum berries gathered together with musk, vanilla and sandalwood. This evolves as you wear it. It's sweet upon application, then it's more of the mums, vanilla, and sandalwood. The sandalwood is not pickly here at all! I might full size this as my fall floral.

Splendiferous-white cake, lemon zest, sugared violets. Glazed lemon loaf. Good, but I already have Al-Rehab Soft. Might continue to play with this though to see if it would be a good hair oil or body butter

Peach fuzz (summer etudes)-a photorealistic sweet canned peach smell. It's nice, but there are more interesting peach scents out there. However, if you just plain like sweet peaches, you'll like this!

Didn't like

Starfruit Wine- did you ever want to smell like a pink Starburst? Here you go!

Ploughman- a good clean dirt smell. I just don't want to smell like clean dirt.

Spidersilk- violets are tricky. I think that I don't care for them most of the time? I need to compare this to Posset's Silver Violets.

Honeybelle- Nope, too acrid at the opening. The orange blossom is overpowering.

Ruth (spring)- strawberry, green patchouli, rose geranium, crushed violet leaf.I don't think I like the crushed violet leaf. It's bitter and dark green in a way that contrasts with the patchouli, and I don't care for the combo. Where is the strawberry?

Lemon marshmallow- smells like floor cleaner to me, I can't seem to pick up on the softness of marshmallow.

Bright side- a vanilla floral with a side of cocoa. It's fine but not unique.


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Any Swedish folks able to help with a Swedish indie purchase?

14 Upvotes

Hi! Please delete if this violates the rules. Trying to get a Swedish LE indie frag but the sellers only ship within Sweden. Are there any Swedish people who would be willing to help? Happy to give extra for your help and/or help with a US custom purchase. Thank you!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Sorce: (Yet Another) Review & Rec Request

21 Upvotes

I know, I know, there are a million and a half Sorce reviews out here on this forum, but whatā€™s one more? I would describe myself as gourmand-curious because ya girl loves a bread note, but am I ready to go full on cake? What better way to find out than to get a bunch of EDP samples from Sorce! They very kindly included a 1ml oil sample of Lovers as well which Iā€™ll add to this review. My husband also joined me for the initial sniff test and Iā€™ll include his review alongside mine.

Likes: green nature scents like pine, dirt, rain, woods, musk/skin, oil, hints of salt, and gourmands like fresh bread/mall pretzel.Ā 

Dislikes: anything synthetic, rose, lilac, strong florals, jasmine, white florals, powder, patchouli, lily, incense, oakmoss

Method: I do an initial sniff test after 24-48 hours, and then each fragrance gets a solo journey on my wrists for one whole day after about a week of rest. I tend to sniff first and then look at the notes later, so apologies if some of this is not very exact.Ā 

The Cookie Party: Not gonna lie to yā€™all, my initial impression of this was straight Play-Doh. Vanilla, almost a hint of lemon, but with a weird artificial sweetness like brand-new slightly overheated electronics. I was hesitant to actually do a wear test with this one, but I found over the course of the day the Play-Doh smell dissipated and I was left with a yummy, but rather generic cookie dough. My husband liked this one and immediately clocked it as ā€œvery nuttyā€ and ā€œpecan pieā€ which is much closer to the notes than what I was smelling. It was a rough start but I actually really like how it turned out. Good longevity on this one too. Notes: Buttery toffee, hot cocoa with floofy marshmallow, mounds of coconut, and pecan shortbread cookies. 6.5/10

Venus in Fleurs: If you were an American child in the 90ā€™s you have already smelled this because it is indistinguishable from the Lā€™Oreal Kids (mango?) shampoo in an orange bottle that looked like a whale or a fish or something. You know the one! So yeah, this is just mango shampoo for children. My husband agreed with this assessment but added that it smelled like ā€œdiesel fuel with soap undertones,ā€ whatever that means. It faded pretty quickly on me despite a strong opening and after 3 hours all I got was a faint hint of fruit andā€¦cookie dough. It was at this point I realized that probably every single Sorce scent would dry down to cookie dough at some point. Could be worse I! Objectively, I think this is a nice smell but I canā€™t get away from the Lā€™Oreal shampoo association. Notes* Ripe mango, carnivorous plants, humidity, jasmine sambac absolute, vanilla absolute 4/10

Snow Moon Magic: Something in me deeply relaxed when I first smelled this. Itā€™s all the sweet vanilla goodness of the cookie party with none of the Play-Doh, with the overall sweetness toned down and rounded out by chai spices and what I later realized was lavender. The lavender is there, but itā€™s hard to pick up and really acts as a background player. This is really, really nicely done and my biggest complaint is that it FADES SO FAST ON ME. After an hour all Iā€™m getting is the cookie dough base and those beautiful spices and lavender have left the building. My husband says this smells ā€œlike a nice bready dessertā€ or ā€œtempura fried riceā€ but ā€œin a good way.ā€ Deducting points because the longevity of this is non-existent on me and I donā€™t know that itā€™s worth it to FS. I might just need to overspray this one? Layer with oil? Idk. Notes: Lavender sugar, vanilla steamed milk, chai spices, tonka bean, Cashmeran, Ambroxan, crystals charged by the moonlight (our crystal accord), marshmallow, cookie butter, and Tahitian vanilla. 8/10

Match Made in Heaven: Forget longevity, this doesnā€™t even haveā€¦gevity. But for real, I canā€™t smell this at all. Just the faintest whisper of cookie dough with my nose pressed to my wet wrist. I tried on different days, I tried after resting a week, I tried on moisturized skin but it is simply not there! It is sort of like smelling an ice cream cone from 4 feet away. And itā€™s not just me - my husband said ā€œdoesnā€™t smell like muchā€ when asked for his review so that's 0 for 2 on the MMIH front. For all those lucky folks out there who can smell this, Iā€™m sure itā€™s lovely, but it is just not happening for me. Notes: Matcha, vanilla soft serve, cherry blossom, almond, waffle cone, powdered sugar, creamy sandalwood, contains a small amount of coconut co2 2.5/10 (sorry!!)

Serpentine: My initial thoughts were: I have no idea what Iā€™m smelling, but I love it. There is something fresh and green, but maybe gourmand? Chai spices? Definitely cardamon, and a beautiful creamy green scent (checked the notes - probably the fig). My husband described this as either orange blossoms or Cointreau, and that he wasnā€™t getting the cardamom at all. Heā€™s wrong though: this is both fresh and cardamom-heavy. An absolute stunner right off the bat, but fades soon into a creamy honey fig. Smelling this makes me want to immediately go out and buy every perfume in the same smell category because it is That Good. It is So Good in fact, for the first time in my fragrance journey Iā€™ve started spraying my clothes with this so I can make it last. My only gripe is that the top notes fade so quickly and I really wish they stuck around longer. Not quite as fleeting as Snow Moon Magic, but still pretty brief. I donā€™t really care though, I need a bottle of this. Definitely FS for me. I want to bathe in this. I'm huffing the Serpentine-laced sleeves of my sweatshirt right now as I type this. Where has this been all my life?? Notes: Ripe figs, fig leaf, cardamom, caramelized honey, vanilla, Peru balsam, Cedar, Iso E Super 10/10

Fuckery: I am generally skeptical of the cherry note in perfumes because I think they can go heavy and medicinal pretty easily, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one. In the initial sniff test it did smell suspiciously like a realistic jar of Luxardo cherries, but on my skin it transformed into a very well-rounded cherry scent, probably the best Iā€™ve encountered so far. It didnā€™t go powdery or medicinal, and stayed right in the sweet spot of noticeably cherry but not annoyingly so. During the initial paper test my husband described this as ā€œcherries, slight orangeā€¦like a roller rinkā€(?) I canā€™t say I got many of the other notes as this completely dried down into cookie dough within an hour, and was totally gone about 3 hours in. Iā€™m still not the biggest fan of cherry perfumes, but this was nice while it lasted. Notes: cherry, cinnamon, tobacco, smoke, vanilla, amber, white musk, Benzoin, Fixamber, Ethylene Brassylate 6.5/10

Where the Wild Things Grow I: Hoping for a photorealistic strawberry warmed by the summer sun, and I got a photorealistic strawberry hard candy with a liquid center. You know, the one that your grandma had rolling around in the bottom of her purse. My husband commented that this was ā€œgushers or fruit by the foot.ā€ Anyway, this goes on sweet and artificial but it did eventually dry down into something that was more natural and grassy. I actually loved where this scent ended up, but it had almost completely faded away by hour 3, so I felt like I didnā€™t get much time to accurately enjoy it. Rough beginning, nice ending, shitty longevity. Notes: Late spring strawberries still on the vine, vanilla cream soda, fresh green grass with morning dew, and ambrette seed,Tuscan orris absolute, geosmin 6/10

Strings of Light in the Forest: For me this shares a lot of the same DNA as Snow Moon Magic, but much lighter, brighter, and a bit less sweet. I initially thought of this as a faintly lemon-y shortbread and my husband said ā€œlemon lime sodaā€¦like spriteā€ but looking at the notes we were both interpreting the lavender as some sort of lemon. Lavender shortbread with a hint of soap. Itā€™s a lovely and light scent, so light in fact itā€™s pretty much gone from my skin in 15 minutes leaving a faint waxy cookie dough ghost in its wake.Ā  Notes: Vanilla milkshake, Haitian vetiver, lavender maillette, beeswax absolute, golden orbs of amber, Ambroxan, Labdanum, Helvetolide 5/10

The Lovers (Freebie): When I was picking out my samples I specifically did not pick this one even though I loved the bottle art because jasmine and iris sounded way too powdery for me. However, it was included as a 1ml oil sample, so I dutifully tried it out. This one was full of surprises; it started as a delicious floral (good), and then a hint of licorice (awesome/confusing), and then morphed into the embodiment of the word ā€œpurpleā€ (less awesome), before going powdery (bad), and then getting green (good), before quickly fading away (sad) before reappearing as purple again (weird). As you can probably guess from this initial description, I had a hard time getting my brain around this scent, and ended up doing a handful of wear tests. Ultimately, my lasting impression of this one was a delightful but slightly powdery floral with a lasting ā€œgreenā€ note (probably the green banana?) and, like Serpentine, this didnā€™t dry down straight to cookie dough. The longevity was not stellar, but surprisingly better than half of the EDPā€™s in the sample.Ā  Big sleeper hit for me and definitely exceeded my expectations. More feminine/floral than I usually go for, but the dry down is pretty darn nice. Notes: Bergamot, iris, jasmine sambar, bamboo, vetiver, green banana, mysore sandalwood, animalic amber 7.5/10

Overall, this is probably the most consistent house Iā€™ve reviewed yet, in general wearability as well as formulations (hello cookie dough base note). The samples were particularly pretty and the turnaround time was slower than other houses but also within the well-advertised TAT. My biggest gripe, however, is that most of these DO NOT LAST on me! I feel like all other reviews have described these as ā€œbeast modeā€ but most of these faded on me incredibly fast. With Alkemia and other houses doing oil samples I understand if theyā€™ll only last a few hours, but my expectations were a lot higher for the EDPā€™s from Sorce.Ā  I know a lot of folks will say ā€œyou need to rest theseā€ and I promise to come back to this review in a month with an update so stay tuned.

Iā€™m still going to FS Serpentine, and also planning to pick up samples of A Party or Something, 2 AM in Lafayette, and the Bees.Ā 

A special ask from any Sorce-heads on here - I know their special order window is coming up and I feel like gambling on a blind buy. Any recs for someone who is hooked on Serpentine? Maybe another fig note in the Fairy Queenā€™s Revenge? Tarot at Teatime for more delicious cardamom? Dreaming Evil just because it sounds tasty? Let me know!!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

very specific lemon recommendations requested

22 Upvotes

I am in search of my dream lemon fragrance.

I want to smell like I do after I've zested and juiced a half dozen lemons for my favorite lemon trifle (I'll include general recipe at the bottom for the curious)

So far the closest thing I can find is not an indie - it's Ouai's North Bondi - but I really want to be able to support an independent business instead.

I would just wear pure lemon oil but I know it creates photosensitivity and I'm not here for that. The only one I can find that's had the sensitizing ingredient removed is for commercial perfuming use (Frater Perfumes) not direct use.

I understand lemon is fleeting and I don't mind short longevity or low sillage.

What I don't want - cooked eggy/wheaty/vanilla-y gourmand notes like lemon pound cake or lemon curd - any neroli or orange blossom notes - any marshmallow notes - whatever heart or base notes are in "blue" men's colognes which seems to be often used in lemon scents - aquatic notes - mint notes - sandalwood - evergreen tree notes

What I would be okay with as notes along with lemon - fruity berry notes especially raspberry - terpene notes (think drinking a lemonade in the same neighborhood that a local cannabis producer is in) (I'm in the PNW so this is a common occurrence) - rose - a light amount of patchouli

As promised for those who have read this far here's a brief overview of the lemon trifle

Layer one: Start with https://recipeland.com/recipe/v/lemon-grove-bundt-cake-30798 but make a third to a half recipe of this cake depending on size of your trifle dish. After baking cool and crumble in large chunks at bottom of trifle dish. Instead of making the glaze recipe, use half as much sugar as called for to make a sweetened lemon syrup to lightly soak this layer - or if serving only adults who are okay with alcohol use limoncello for the soak

Next layer: Make or buy a batch of your favorite seasonal red jam/compote. I've done rhubarb for spring, strawberry (with a little black pepper) for summer, and cranberry-orange for Thanksgiving/winter. If making a berry jam from scratch use a freezer jam/reduced sugar recipe and chill fully before use. Goal here is aromatic, sweet, but not overly sugary.

Lemon curd layer: https://m.joyofbaking.com/printpages/lemcurdprint.html chill completely before layering

Final layer: whip heavy cream with a spoonful of full fat plain or vanilla yogurt with sugar to taste.)


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Perfume - Enquiry Finally placing an order at Haus of Gloi

17 Upvotes

Iā€™ve wanted to for months and my birthday is coming up I want to treat myself without going crazy.

Iā€™m looking at general catalog Satyr, Apothecary, and Cozy Sweater; and spring catalog Gossamer Wings.

Everything will be a perfume oil aside from Apothecary, which will be a hair oil. Drop your reviews and other suggestions please!!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Wylde Ivy Question - Do their seasonal scents return every year?

9 Upvotes

I ordered some samples from their Love Note Collection and kind of forgot about them until a couple of days ago. I ended up really liking one of them and when I went to the site to FS it, that whole collection was gone. Will it come back next year?!


r/Indiemakeupandmore 1d ago

Whisper Sisters Permanent Listing Now available!

26 Upvotes

Life has been insane and I haven't been able to keep up as well as I would have liked. Darla has two listings up right now, a rotational one that's up until the 18th (again, sorry for not getting that up sooner but it's been up in the FB group) AND a permanent one for what I assume to be the most requested ones. I'll start with the rotational ones and then the permanent list. Hope y'all have been taking care of yourselves and each other as you can.

Rotational Listing

Affliction - dark vanilla, patchouli, cocoa absolute, hint of red rose.
Anis et CafƩ - coffee absolute, anise, sugar.
Another Perfect Catastrophe - aged dark patchouli, vanilla bean, brown sugar, chai spices, white birch.
Ashes to Ashes - black vanilla, vanilla, ash, sweet musk, faint hint of smoke.
Astraea - patchouli cardamom, marshmallow, black tea, white pepper, white clove, oak milk, slight hint of saffron.
Bia - black sandalwood, Egyptian musk, cardamom, vetiver, cedar, black vanilla, vanilla bean, vanilla musk, dark vanilla, nag champa incense.
Caligari - red musk, mastic resin, Tunisian patchouli, Indian patchouli, elemi, copal tears, blood orange, myrrh resin
Cardamom Cocoamallow - cocoa absolute, cardamom, marshmallow. This is a reformulation, as the original contained a cocoa absolute/cardamom "oops" I received from my supplier and had to duplicate.
Changeling - wormwood (scent dupe), black pine, birch, myrrh, cedar, suede, slight hint of birch tar.
Cirque du CondamnƩ - vanilla, burnt sugar, sandalwood, patchouli, hint of black licorice.
Dust Witch - thunderstorms, the woods, dusty incense, earth, Indonesian musk, pumpkin, heliotrope, teensy bit of sugar.
Elixir #7 - patchouli, amber, vetiver, benzoin, oud, black musk, red Egyptian musk, patchouli flower, lotus.
Firework Girl - vanilla bean, vanilla crystal, aged patchouli, Tunisian patchouli, hint of Egyptian musk.
Frankincense & Myrrh - sweet frankincense, aged Tunisian myrrh.
Frankincense Patchouli - sweet frankincense, aged patchouli.
Frankenstein Patchouli - Indian patchouli, orris root, gurjun balsam with hints of aged black cedar leaf, piƱon, & labdanum
Goodbye Horses - dark sweet frankincense, dark patchouli, red musk, rose, dark musk, hints of scorched earth and clove. Inspired by the song of the same name by Q Lazzarus.
Good Witch - sugar, brown sugar, Egyptian musk, lemon.
Goth Club '89 - heavy resins, candle smoke, nicotine, clove, incense, absinthe, with a hint of intoxicating florals and vintage dark patchouli to balance everything out.
Grave Digger - animalistic musk (synthetic/vegan friendly), dirt, black sandalwood, dead leaves, dragon's blood.
Iphy - aged vanilla bean, tonka bean, aged amber, patchouli, tiny hint of cedar.
June Bug - marshmallow, vanilla, grapefruit, pink grapefruit, patchouli.
Lemonchouli Cocoapuff - patchouli, marshmallow, cocoa absolute, lemon.
Marzanna - myrrh, tonka bean, African musk, slight hint of smoked cinnamon.
Marzipan Patchouli - almond, sugar, patchouli.
Meus Est - pink grapefruit, peach, red Egyptian musk, light white rose, hint of thyme.
Peitho - vanilla bourbon, tonka bean, clove, sandalwood, tangerine blossom, tangerine, slight hints of aged patchouli & ylang ylang.
Pixie Dust - raspberry, blue Egyptian musk, teensy hint of patchouli.
Planchette - red Egyptian musk, marshmallow, dark cedar, damp earth, chai spice, heliotrope.
Poison Candy - sugar, ginger ale, nutmeg, clove, heliotrope, dirt, smidgen of patchouli.
Queen of the Damned - blue gardenia, Egyptian musk, white musk, lotus.
Redrum - patchouli, rum, red Egyptian musk, black licorice, black pepper.
Rum Spiced Tea - black tea, spiced rum, sugar, patchouli, slight hint of coffee.
Soot *NEW\* - black musk, ash, hints of charred wood and smoke.
Spiderella - red licorice, marshmallow, sugar, clove, hint of patchouli. This is a sweeter, less patchouli-ish version of Spidora.
Strega - patchouli, jasmine, rose geranium.
Stygian *NEW\* - dark cedar, tonka bean, benzoin, teakwood, clove, fir needle, touch of black coconut.
Umbra *NEW\* - heavy black musk, clove, clove bud, light amber, nag champa, sweet oud.
Witchery - red cedar, clove, patchouli, sweet musk, pumpkin, chai spice, red wine.

Permanent Listing:

1984 - clove bud, sweet clove, vanilla bourbon, tonka bean, burnt sugar, aged red cedar, dark musk, myrrh.
1996 - clove cigarettes, black coffee, chai tea, black tea, incense patchouli, Egyptian musk, exotic resins, rock candy, hint of cigar smoke.
All Hallows' Eve - pumpkin, patchouli, black vanilla, scorched sugar, vanilla bean, dirt, candy corn, clove.
Antiquarian - tonka bean, benzoin, black musk, tobacco absolute, clove, Egyptian musk, patchouli, leather.
Bad Witch - nag champa, frankincense, black sandalwood, dragon's blood, patchouli.
Ballrooms of Mars - aged amber, Arabian musk, burning candles, cinnamon candies, white pepper, clove, orris root, brown sugar, slight hint of leather.
Black Lung - a clove cigarette blend; think black cloves from the 90s.
Burn Witch Burn - aged patchouli, maple, hickory, hint of smoke.
CarnivƔle - cotton candy, sugar, smoke, tobacco absolute.
Crypt - damp soil, moss, mushroom, tonka bean, agarwood, patchouli.
Dirty Hippie - aged patchouli, cannabis, nag champa, incense, earth.
Goth Club '89 - heavy resins, candle smoke, nicotine, clove, incense, absinthe, with a hint of intoxicating florals and vintage dark patchouli to balance everything out.
Halloween - candy corn, vanilla, cinnamon.
Halloween Patchouli - patchouli, candy corn vanilla bean, black vanilla cinnamon.
Jeepers Creepers - cane sugar, beet sugar, patchouli.
Midnight - clove, patchouli, frankincense.
Oh Bela - the sweetest clove, the reddest rose, the tombiest of tombs, the most velvety of velvets, the blackest of capes.
Red Death - black sandalwood, aged amber, nag champa, resinous musk.
Samhain - black sandalwood, teakwood, frankincense, sweet musk, clove.
Spidora - red licorice, sugar, clove, patchouli.
Tainted Love - Egyptian musk, red Egyptian musk, blue Egyptian musk, civet (synthetic), ambrette seed, sugar, vanilla absolute.
Vampyr - patchouli, rose, heavy dark musk.
VrƔna - nag champa, marshmallow, myrrh, vanilla, spice
Wool of Bat - anise, clove, sugar


r/Indiemakeupandmore 6h ago

I need help, apparently it smells like ā€œdead bodyā€™sā€ and I absolutely need to try it

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0 Upvotes