I got my Gloi autumn sampler today, the #2. I missed getting #3, I'm hoping it will restock, and I already have most of the scents from #1 (which I'll discuss later) as they are all repeats. #2 Seems to be the foodie selection, as everything in it reminds me of some sort of autumn treat. There's only one scent in this particular batch that's a must have, but they're all quite pleasant. The overall effect is very delicious and childlike, as if I were standing outside a sweet shop smelling all the wonderful treats waiting just inside. Not just any sweet shop, these scents all have a milky richness to them, that reminds me of something old fashioned; a shop in a Dickens' tale, or perhaps Honeydukes. If I close my eyes and sniff the various samples I can imagine a Halloween haul from another generation, before mass-manufactured candies and desserts, before fear, suspicion and crazy neighbors ruined trick or treating for everyone.
Ghost Puffs - (Buttery popcorn and marshmallow goo orbs, presented on a wooden stick.) I came of age in the 80's and the world of mall shopping. Back then, just about every mall had at least one shop that sold a variety of popcorn treats. Kettle corn, popcorn balls, cheese corn, buttered popcorn, caramel corn, candied popcorn on a stick, anything and everything sweet you could make out of popcorn. The buttery, candy-coated aroma would waft out into the mall, luring you in. Once you'd smelled it you had to buy some. I usually got the caramel corn. A whiff of Ghost Puffs captures the sweet, sticky aroma of walking into that store.
Pumpkin Eater -(Cream, glowing pumpkin, rich vanilla bean and the tiniest touch of nutmeg butter.)
Creamy vanilla and pumpkin. This smells like sweet frosted pumpkin cookies, or perhaps a pumpkin custard. It's got a very strong cream and vanilla overtone, very desserty but not any one particular dessert. Have you ever had Life Savers Creme Savers? They're a blend of fruit and creamy vanilla hard candy. If they made them in pumpkin, this is exactly what they'd smell like. It's a wacky description, I know, but that's what I get, ribbons of sweet pumpkin and creamy vanilla with just the tiniest hint of spice. Do they make pumpkin milkshakes?- I think a sweet pumpkin shake with a tall head of whipped cream might be another close match for this tricksy little scent.
Pixie Sorceror - (They look cute, but beware! Deceptive pomegranate candy floss, beneath that a spiteful blend of coffee co2, vetiver and myrrh.) For the record, this scent is driving me mad. It smells like...just like...almost...and then it's gone. Something, something I remember from years ago, but I don't know what and I don't know when. It's absolutely infuriating - every time I take a whiff the memory dances in to view and then out again, like a shadow in the mirror that I can't quite catch. I'm thinking it must be the vetiver, but I've no idea what I remember that has vetiver in it. Some sort of salve or cream that my grandmother had, maybe. That frustrated memory makes it hard for me to judge this. It smells brown to me, warm antique brown, like a piece of victorian furniture or an an old trunk in the attic. It's a good smell, slightly resinous, and very haunting. I'd like it even without the thread of memory tangled in it, but that association takes this from a good smell to a must have. Even if I never remember why, this fragrance gives me a powerful sense of goodness and old pleasures forgotten, but not quite lost.
Old Cider Haus - (Old oak, sweet drying hay fields, crushed apple pulp and vanilla bean husks.) Butterscotch. For some reason, Old Cider Haus smells like butterscotch to me. I wasn't sure I'd like this one, as I'm not generally fond of apple scents. I love apples, but apple-scented things almost never capture that crisp scent you get when you bite into a ripe apple. Instead it's usually the smell of apple juice or cider, or worse, that fermenty scent of overripe apples, none of which I like. Fortunately, the oak, the hay and the vanilla are blended in enough that the apple gives a just warm, slightly spicy note to the mix. The whole thing, overall, is buttery and creamy smooth. If you like Pumpkin Queen, you'll probably like this, it's the same sort of warm, goldeny sweet kind of scent, like autumn sunshine on a field of haybales.
I'm liking this particular sampler, although most of the scents are things I'd want in room fragrances or bath salt, which, sadly, are not options. They're generally a little too sweet to my taste for daily perfume wear. Pixie Sorcerer, however, will be finding its way into my shopping basket, and hopefully one day I'll remember what it smells like.
All products were purchased by me for my own use. My opinions are my own and always will be. Your mileage may vary. The candy shop is in Oamaru New Zealand. Image courtesy the same.
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| This is in New Zealand. Sadly, I am not. |
Ghost Puffs - (Buttery popcorn and marshmallow goo orbs, presented on a wooden stick.) I came of age in the 80's and the world of mall shopping. Back then, just about every mall had at least one shop that sold a variety of popcorn treats. Kettle corn, popcorn balls, cheese corn, buttered popcorn, caramel corn, candied popcorn on a stick, anything and everything sweet you could make out of popcorn. The buttery, candy-coated aroma would waft out into the mall, luring you in. Once you'd smelled it you had to buy some. I usually got the caramel corn. A whiff of Ghost Puffs captures the sweet, sticky aroma of walking into that store.
Pumpkin Eater -(Cream, glowing pumpkin, rich vanilla bean and the tiniest touch of nutmeg butter.)
Creamy vanilla and pumpkin. This smells like sweet frosted pumpkin cookies, or perhaps a pumpkin custard. It's got a very strong cream and vanilla overtone, very desserty but not any one particular dessert. Have you ever had Life Savers Creme Savers? They're a blend of fruit and creamy vanilla hard candy. If they made them in pumpkin, this is exactly what they'd smell like. It's a wacky description, I know, but that's what I get, ribbons of sweet pumpkin and creamy vanilla with just the tiniest hint of spice. Do they make pumpkin milkshakes?- I think a sweet pumpkin shake with a tall head of whipped cream might be another close match for this tricksy little scent.
Pixie Sorceror - (They look cute, but beware! Deceptive pomegranate candy floss, beneath that a spiteful blend of coffee co2, vetiver and myrrh.) For the record, this scent is driving me mad. It smells like...just like...almost...and then it's gone. Something, something I remember from years ago, but I don't know what and I don't know when. It's absolutely infuriating - every time I take a whiff the memory dances in to view and then out again, like a shadow in the mirror that I can't quite catch. I'm thinking it must be the vetiver, but I've no idea what I remember that has vetiver in it. Some sort of salve or cream that my grandmother had, maybe. That frustrated memory makes it hard for me to judge this. It smells brown to me, warm antique brown, like a piece of victorian furniture or an an old trunk in the attic. It's a good smell, slightly resinous, and very haunting. I'd like it even without the thread of memory tangled in it, but that association takes this from a good smell to a must have. Even if I never remember why, this fragrance gives me a powerful sense of goodness and old pleasures forgotten, but not quite lost.
Old Cider Haus - (Old oak, sweet drying hay fields, crushed apple pulp and vanilla bean husks.) Butterscotch. For some reason, Old Cider Haus smells like butterscotch to me. I wasn't sure I'd like this one, as I'm not generally fond of apple scents. I love apples, but apple-scented things almost never capture that crisp scent you get when you bite into a ripe apple. Instead it's usually the smell of apple juice or cider, or worse, that fermenty scent of overripe apples, none of which I like. Fortunately, the oak, the hay and the vanilla are blended in enough that the apple gives a just warm, slightly spicy note to the mix. The whole thing, overall, is buttery and creamy smooth. If you like Pumpkin Queen, you'll probably like this, it's the same sort of warm, goldeny sweet kind of scent, like autumn sunshine on a field of haybales.
I'm liking this particular sampler, although most of the scents are things I'd want in room fragrances or bath salt, which, sadly, are not options. They're generally a little too sweet to my taste for daily perfume wear. Pixie Sorcerer, however, will be finding its way into my shopping basket, and hopefully one day I'll remember what it smells like.
All products were purchased by me for my own use. My opinions are my own and always will be. Your mileage may vary. The candy shop is in Oamaru New Zealand. Image courtesy the same.
Methinks I need to try this sampler. Thanks for you great word pictures, especially "Buttery popcorn and marshmallow goo orbs . . . " I've always wanted to try a goo orb, but my mall didn't have them. Must have been a Midwestern thang.
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