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

So beautiful. For me, it gets better the longer I wear it. It lasts a long time, and is both complex and well-rounded. Different notes stand out to me depending on the day I'm wearing it. It's definitely a patchouli scent, but a very unique one—it's bright, a bit herbal, smokey, and creamy (probably from the tonka). This is the first perfume I've worn that I've had multiple people compliment me on and ask about. I bought a travel size of it, and likely will one day buy the full bottle!

This is incredible! Not a dirty scent to me- no skank or filth. Smooth, spicy, and sweet. Though it isn’t a listed note, I smell nutmeg; the opening is sort of a cake doughnut smell. A little peek of pine. I do not get overwhelming patchouli, but an earthy base of it. All balsamic, sweet, spicy, slightly herbal. I’m more of a fan of scents that lean feminine, but this smells very unisex to me- not masculine. I really really love this, and I will likely end up purchasing a FB!

Odd one this. The opening is bitter, leathery and animalaic. I didn't hate it but I wasn't mad keen either. The dry down on the other hand was delicious. I got a lot of violet (one of my favorite notes) but that's not listed so who knows 😅 The Tonka/ Patchouli blend is delicious. I wish the performance was better, the longevity is okay but there's no projection. Considering the price that dry down is not enough to make it FBW

This one put Patchouli on the map for me. Great Fragrance. Won't be for everyone. But its definitely for me! My only negative is that on me it doesn't seem to last too long. The opening lasts about 15 min. The mid in the 30-45min, and becomes a skin scent at 2 hours. Be advised that these are my results with my body chemistry. Your results may vary. Still, if you're a fan of Patchouli then this is an absolute must have.

This is patchouli and amber done in the most beautifully balanced way. The composition is so expertly blended and the patchouli stands out in a very smooth way. I could not stop smelling my wrists and thinking how amazing I smelled all day. The longevity, projection and sillage were moderate to high, but I wanted to bathe in this nonetheless. A masterpiece and full bottle worthy. 10/10 ❤😍

Very skanky patchouli. Strong, powerful, dirty, creative. This is an overcrowded Paris apartment in the ’60s leather-clad beautiful people smoking like it’s breathing, drinking like it’s going out of fashion, talking only about art, and constantly sleeping with each other. It’s that. Dirty and jazzy. It’s good.

I never knew I liked Patchouli until this fragrance. Its almost metallic. Very addictive. The kind of fragrance you put that extra spray on your wrist so that you can sneak sniffs here and there. Very well blended. Bravo.

it's filthy, it's edgy, but it's also nostalgic and refined. patchouli skank, warm balsamic drydown. well blended, lives a long life. big ups.

I love this one. What I smell is a modern version of patchouli and incense, plus warm spices. It is absolutely lovely.

A very warm spicy-balmy patchouli. A bit too light but very elegant and confortable.

Following upon George's review, and being on the search for the perfect patchouli, I was very excited to try Misfit. My sample arrived today, and boy, am I glad I did not blind buy this. I have to say, this was a complete let down. While this is by no means a "bad" perfume, it simply doesn't offer the patchouli I love. Patchouli IS here, but layered beneath piles of lavender, rose, leather, and smoke (a note I rarely find enjoyable to wear, outside of Memoirs of a Trespasser by IA.) Despite their marketing blurb about patchouli being the crux of this fragrance, it simply isn't. I'm tempted to even say that, above all, this shouldn't even be considered a patchouli scent at all, but rather an ambery, smokey, leathery fragrance with a subtle note of patchouli. Disappointing, boring, and unimaginative. It may grow on me, but as far I can tell, I'll pass on this one. That being said, I'll keep wearing Psychedelique and continue my search for other masterpiece patchoulis. UPDATE: Months after writing my intial review, I decided to give Misfit another try. Spring has just begun and in the Northeast we had a beautiful, 60 degree day. Sunny, but still brisk enough to wear something with some depth. I picked up Misit and gave it another chance. While, I still don't love this, it certainly has grown on me. If I had to describe this, I would suggest imagining a room full of old incense and wool blankets. A candle has just been snubbed out and it's slightly damp. The smell of Patchouli permeates the space, a ghost of those bohemian types that had once congrugated here. Only the ghost of their presence remains. It's a like, not a love, but worth a shot if the notes interest you. 7/10.

On my skin I got none of the openers, straight into the middle notes and base. It pulls warm and spicy, with the dry akigalawood and prominent Balsam. I am definitely testing this in the wrong season (summer), but it smells like the cozy inside of a wooden sauna while drinking cinnamon tea or walking through your Christmas-obsessed older Scandinavian neighbor's house when they get their decorations up at the end of September. I guess that's a Misfit. The patchouli rears up a little stinky after and the florals are a ghostly supporting cast (did I smell the Labdanum? was it there? did it go?). I'd wear this to a serious winter geopolitical conference, in an older private club. To me, it's very unisex, but for a woman who has an edge of masculine energy. Arquiste is always exquisite quality and I love the experiences of this house. Definitely going to try it out again. Unsure if I'll buy a bottle as I have a lot of fragrances with this DNA (Karat EG, Tiger By Her Side, VideCorMeum).

If you want a witchy, spicy, incense-y fragrance this is for you! I love that vibe for smells but struggle because I don’t like amber and most smells tend to turn very sweet and cloying on my skin. I don’t get any amber notes at all. Resinous, yes. Patchouli, absolutely. No lavender at all. But herbaceous? Complex spices? Incense? Totally. This is spicy and resinous, slightly botanical, with a nice blend of patchouli notes that balances into a wonderful magical scent. Seriously, this smells like a witches hut, dried herbs, something fragrant brewing in a cauldron, with a mesmerizing air about it.

This is a bunch of notes I don't often like (lavender, styrax, patchouli, carrot seeds) but somehow put together they make something really compelling. It's a LOT of patchouli, herbal and a little fruity. Thankfully the lavender and styrax take a strong backseat to the woody resins and fuzzy tonka bean. There is something harvest and vegetal about this, "witchy" like another commenter mentioned. Definitely bohemian in aesthetic and in method, throwing together an assortment of notes and knick knacks with the certitude that in the end everything will work itself out.

Phase 1 starts largely with a multitude of plant and tree resins vying for attention. There's also some straw, and a strangely pleasant honeyed and mildewy oud note makes a brief appearance. During Phase 2, a green patchouli briefly tries to overtake the resins. However, the resins win out in Phase 3, when a smidge of ambroxan lifts the cistus out to become the only star left shining. There’s certainly artistry here, but it’s not going to work for everyone.