Misfit

The seasons turn to fall, and the mind turns to the melancholy,and wanting a perfume that's still has a hint of the sweetness of summer but ultimately has its mind on the upcoming winter. Arquist's misfit is somewhat misnamed, for there is nothing odd about this perfume, no hint of danger nor particularly unusual notes. This is a lovely, every day fall fragrance; it is not particularly powerful, but gives you a lovely huff of vanilla and sweet patchouli whenever you huff your wrists. Beast mode this is not, but it is office appropriate. There's a warmth to it, like sitting next to a particularly nice fire, with someone who smells faintly of pipe tobacco. The amber in the base notes give this a sweet and warm base, lifted up by the dirtiness of the patch, the woodiness of the balsam, and the sweetness of the tonka and a light touch of incense from the labdanum. If you huff deeply, you get a hint of the summer flowers -- mostly rose. The rose does not dominate here, as it so often can, only appearing in small light touches here and there. The patch, too, plays well with others -- this is not your dirty hippie patchouli. If misfit was a 60's wild child, it's now grown into an 80's yuppie; this is a perfume to sip coffee and check your 401k with. It is strange that Arquiste bases the promotional copy on this being a patchouli fragrance; the patch here is absolutely a supporting player to the amber, tonka, and balsam. There's also total sweetness here that makes it a distinctly feminine patchouli. I don't get much of the lavender here; it behaves well on me, without going soapy and giving only the slightest hint of a medicinal sort of scent. Overall I quite like this. It's a quiet perfume, pleasant; i associate the smell of it with leaves falling on the ground, which makes it a particular highlight for this part of the year. I'm not sure I would buy a full size of it, but I'd like to get a 5 ml decant. Super sweet, subtly sexy, and very high-class for a hippie.

I've tried quite a few patch fragrances over the years and I can't say I've been tempted to buy one before. A few I've noticed the quality of them but I never felt they were a good fit for me. Patch fragrances I've sampled in the past have always drawn negative feedback from my partner too. I think the nearest I've got to liking one before is probably Patchouli Nobile. Anyway I think we have established I'm generally not a fan! I decided to try this based on the reviews I'd read but mostly as I've liked all the Arquiste fragrances I've tried to date. Well I'd never thought I'd use sexy and patchouli in the same sentence, but I've got to say its pretty damn good! The opening I get all the top notes in the opening in particular the angelica which is a fave note of mine. After about 5 minutes the patchouli starts to come through sweetened by the tolu, tonka and labdanum. The rose follows and for me the main players are the rose and patchouli with the sweeter notes woven in. Its beautifully blended and very well done indeed. The performance is remarkable. I sampled this in London 2 sprays to one wrist. It projected quite heavily for around 3 hours, and didn't become a stong skin scent until around the 6 hour point. I could still smell the fragrance on my skin 18 hours and a shower later. Its seriously strong stuff!

I like this one more than I expected. I'm still trying to sort out if I like patchouli or not, and I'd seen a few reviews say it's very noticeable in this one, but overall I'm a fan. I feel like Arquiste was pretty spot on with Bohemian inspirations... all the patchouli, woods, musk-scented plant notes, and resins remind me of the same moody atmosphere of a Pre-Raphaelite painting. There's a slight sweetness and spice to it that I find pleasant, and I do believe it's pretty solidly unisex if you like dark, autumnal fragrances. If you're someone who enjoys "witchy" scents, this seems like a good option to try a sample of. The only personal downside I found was that it does take a few sprays to sell the complexity of the notes, but it has enough sillage that it'll fill a small room while you're doing it. If you have a more fragrance sensitive partner or roommates as I do, I recommend employing an open window and a little dry-down time.

I really love this one. There is a difference between the 1ml dabber I tested and the spray I bought, which is common I think, the spray is always a bit fuller and intense. With Misfit, the spray is sweeter. I get an almost rum-banana sweetness that is present until the dry down. It is yummy smelling. Maybe I just think patchouli is delicious. It then turns into a dry patchouli and the akigalawood is strong in this one. I think this is a super versatile scent and I have worn it day and night, fall through to summer. The bottle is nice, like an orb, and the "invisible" tube that connects to the sprayer is cool. The sprayer is great too, a nice strong mist.

Spicy Incense 🕯Dang, another herbacious amber for the win!!! This perfume is tickling a memory from my childhood✨️ I use to stop by after service in these eastern european orthodox church book shops. This smells like the books surrounded by beeswax, amber and ladan📖🐝 It feels so comforting to wear this perfume, and it suits my skin for the autumn time🍁I would definitely wear this perfume as a second skin fragrance. It is moderate for sillage, but I prefer it for most resinous fragrances like these because it would otherwise feel cloyingly pungent on the skin☝️. What a beautiful stroll on memory lane🚶♂️ Zodiac Trio ⬆️Leo☀️Sagittarius 🌙Virgo