I'm Home

To me, this is a very dark cocoa liqueur with hints of black coffee. These notes then mingle with a sweet, warm and creamy vanilla as you get to the dry down. This is such a beautiful scent, but it was definitely an acquired taste for me. This was a blindbuy and I got interested in this perfume as I loooveee Lush's Vanillary, vanilla and chocolate/cocoa notes. People describing "I'm Home" as a cup of hot chocolate got me excited. Needless to say that it was far from smelling like a cup of sweet, hot chocolate on me. I'm a sucker for boozy notes and coffee in perfume too but I was not having this chocolate/coffee liqueur situation I just described earlier, at all. I'm Home felt too pungent, vintage and masculine to my nose. To my dismay, both projection and longevity were insanely powerful. I was super disappointed of my blindbuy and reflecting on selling my bottle. I nearly needed an entire year to appreciate it and then fall head over heels over it. I guess spraying it on paper from time to time help me appreciate its different nuances more and more. I would let a paper strip lay in my bedroom an get surprised by how beautiful and inviting it would make the entire room smell. Also, my mom would always compliment the way my bedroom would smell while the paper strip would be going strong, and she's generally not a fan of gourmand nor chocolate/cocoa notes. She would also compliment me when I would actually wear the fragrance on my skin, when I ended enjoying it. Believe me when I say I would never think about selling this beauty again, ever! I'm so happy to own it, it's one of my favourite and most precious fragrance now--- I've never smelled anything like it. The very dark, liquorish, unsweet cocoa punctuated with a distant, bitter coffee before opening to a sweet and creamy vanilla in the end. It's such a beautiful story unfolding on your skin and clothes. It completely blooms in the cold, winter weather and in the warmth of your home when you snuggle in your fluffy cardigan. It may not be a hot cup of chocolate, but it's surprisingly more complex and better. It envelops you with its warmth and incredible yet unsuspected generosity. No matter where you go, you're always home. You're loved, cherished and protected. It works wonderfully with Al-Rehab Choco Musk roll-on oil. The oil is much sweeter, creamier, more vanillic after you leave it to age a bit. Its more people-pleasing sugariness mixes perfectly with I'm Home's boozier, darker and more bitter opening and middle phases. It's a pity Lush doesn't sell it anymore, it's so unique among its current offerings. I have yet to smell more cocoa/chocolate-centric fragrances but so far it's nothing like I've smelled before. As a reference, I've tried: - CSP Amour de Cacao -> owned it, underwhelming and short-lived fruity milk chocolate - Montale's Chocolate Greedy -> owned it, realistic fruity and chocolate cake batter with hints of coffee and vanilla, but bears Montale's infamous synthethic DNA - Chabaud's Lait & Chocolat -> tested on a paper strip, realistic sweet milk chocolate, seems really yummy - HB's Private Accord for Her -> tested on a paper strip, a more conventionally-pleasing subtle, perfumey chocolate, but not bold nor gourmand enough for my liking - Akro Dark -> tested on a paper strip, a dark, dry, powdery cocoa, feels very unique and interesting but not as gourmand as I'm Home - Guerlain's Gourmand Coquin -> tested on a paper strip, a very elegant, delicate and romantic floral chocolate, but I didn't get to smell it for a long time so I have yet to witness the evolution of the chocolate note - Cacharel's Yes I am Delicious -> tried on skin, more gourmand and slightly bolder on the chocolate note than Private Accord for Her, more long-lasting than Amour de Cacao, but still, is a perfumey chocolate-scent + fades into a white floral perfume as time goes by Just wanted to add a recap of my references, in case it could help anyone deciding on whether to blindbuy I'm Home or not 😉

A nice, resinous gourmand, and one of my favourites from the Lush line. You can smell every note from the beginning, it's more that their intensity changes over time. The first spray has a bite to it, almost like citronella/bug spray (but in the best way!) from the benzoin. The benzoin also gives the perfume heat, which is where the 'cosy/fireplace' branding comes from, but I live in a warm climate and for me it's more of a burning summer scent. That's the beauty of orientals - in colder climates they are Christmas-y, and closer to the equator they are humid and spicy tropicals. I'm Home is not overly sweet and most of that comes from the vanilla (the same blend in Lush's Vanillary, to my nose). I don't get much cacao, and it's not a powdery chocolate scent by any means. The cacao notes are more in the periphery, similar to the way cocoa is used as a background note in Mesoamerican cooking to add heat and complexity; an Aztec cacao. Good longevity and moderate sillage. As the perfume wears on the benzoin mellows and you're left with a deep and lingering vanilla. This is a good perfume to spray in the morning that you can then layer with another later in the day/at night. I have the EDP, which I recommend, but it is one of the few Lush fragrances that translates well to their solid perfume format.

It's a real shame Lush decided to discontinue this beauty. I got myself a few backup bottles because I love it that much. It is so simple- cacao, vanilla, and benzoin, yet it smells so much more complex, probably because the perfume is natural and not full of synthetic materials. It smells so comforting- sweet, a tad spicy, a tad powdery, and very warm and inviting like rich vanilla bean ice cream with the real vanilla flecks in it. There is also an almost woody aspect. It gives me a Christmas vibe but without all the spices- in fact there are no added spices in this, but there is a natural spice that comes from that gorgeous natural cacao and vanilla. The scent is just heaven and even though I own over 200 perfumes, I find myself craving this over and over. I am so glad I was able to snag a 100 mL on eBay at a good price before it gets impossible to find. And if you like this, I think you will also love Cardamom Coffee, which is in a similar vein, albeit not discontinued, yet (they already stopped carrying the smaller sizes though, but still offer a 100 mL for $200).

I got the solid version of I'm Home yesterday. I wore it today to work, and I swear I received 3 compliments in under 15 mins. I could not believe it. Most days I wear Angel edP, Angel Muse edP, Opium edP, TF Tobacco Vanille or recently TF Lost Cherry...and a compliment comes in here and there, but LUSH I'm Home must work very well on my skin! I mostly smell a rich, deep vanilla and cardamom. On my skin, I do not smell any chocolate or cacao. Longevity on me is a good 3-4 hours, and then not gone, but a comforting skin scent. I can see layering this with their I'm Home spray parfum or any other boozy vanilla. I'm impressed.

The smell is overall warm, it smell mostly of cinnamon and vanilla to me but has under notes of an almost honey like sweetness to it. I’ve never found anything the hold the scent notes in the same warm way. The smell radiates that same warmth for hours at a time and carries on clothing just as long if not longer. If they ever bring this back I’d 100% recommend it I’ve actually had the solid perfume since 2019 and I actually only just found out today that it was discontinued. The smell has never changed or dissipated and I only just had the thought of buying a back up so this was a sad discovery to make