Corpalium

whilst on a trip last year, i visited an antique shop where i ended up buying an old tobacco pipe that was still in it’s original black leather purse. the owner of the shop said it was atleast 50 years old and belonged to an old man who was a life-long chain smoker. a few hours later, i opened up the purse to admire the pipe. i then realised that there was pouch of tobacco hidden inside a pocket. 50 year old tobacco. this perfume reminds me of the smell of that. dark, stale, antique tobacco that has been perfectly preserved inside it’s leather bag for half a century. no harmful chemicals, toxins or preservatives, just pure tobacco. it is a gorgeous fragrance. the opening is very herbaceous with facets of rooty, soil enriched orris. but once it dries down it transforms into slightly musty old wood, tinged with tobacco smoke and warm leather. there is certainly something antique about it. it’s unisex, but definitely leans more masculine. in my head this scent would be absolutely divine on a man with a cool shaggy mod haircut, who has a big thing for vintage leather jackets, death in june and william burroughs. loool

Nice and classy iris is a good way to describe it. The opening is actually my favourite part, when the herbs and castoreum and ambrette are all freshly fluffed and swirl together to give off sparkles of that signature Marlou dewy-skin toned ripeness. Once that fades (fairly quickly), a classy leathery-rooty iris hangs tight to the skin for a few hours. It's not makeup iris, or powdery, dusty-chocolatey like Dior. It's actually hard to describe. Just lightly radiant, pulsating, and rooty. I love it, but for the house it's light in projection and I often think it's disappeared until I go sniffing for it. So I wish it was stronger but I've found that spraying it under the shirt brings it to life and helps it cling, and I will probably accidentally buy a bottle some night soon when I'm half asleep and my defenses are low. Every time I wear it I get a hankering for Moschino Pour Homme, interestingly. I think it's the castoreum and iris combo, which is irresistible to me.

Gothic Harvest Deity When I saw a new launch from a brand I respect with a note of fenugreek, I blind bought immediately. Always looking to smell like a mysterious harvest goddess, and the earthy iris, hay-like tobacco and the fenugreek bring that to life for me. Add some smoky woods and subtle animal funk, I'm in heaven. In most mythologies, the goddess of the harvest also oversees the cycle of life and death, and there's a healthy dose of gothic darkness here to represent that. Definitely a cold weather scent, very intense. It's a total mood, but still approachable even though its not an easy reach. I know its supposed to be a "horse" scent which is a whole category but I'm just not familiar. Always liked this brand but their other offerings aren't for me. Can't wait to wear this more, it's so interesting. This is why we blind buy, for moments like this.

Beautiful. A very complex woody iris/violet (or woody iris/violet). The top notes are very soft, a veil of violet pleu, a caress, the scent of love and a body in close proximity. The heart notes, meanwhile, are perfectly mastered: soft ambrette, a hint of animal and musk that dances gently with woody, tobacco and smoky aspects. What follows lingers, awakens and dries out: some spicier aspects (fenugreek), brown/ochre tones, the crunch of leaves underfoot on an autumn forest walk. Very sensual, but genuinely sensual: a connection to the scent of life and to the bodies we encounter. A little something in the DS&Durga vein, a few points in common with Scent Society-type references. Personally, it's everything I like. A slight holding problem on my skin, but not really a big red flag.

First review here... Bought the tester pack from Marlou to test Carnicure since I like animalistic fragrances. Tested this and boy oh boy... This is the first time a fragrance makes me physically nauseatic. Brings back vivid, feverish memories from chilhood. Grandparents retirement party with lots of old women smelling something like this. Afterwards puking because of too much cake. Similar "memories" from teenage years when drinking cheapest dessert wine too much and puking. I don't know what this is made of but for me it smells like something overly sweet with gastric acid. Almost puked now 30 years later when tested this. 5/5 for how strong mental and bodily reaction this fragrance gave to me. However, also I hate it.

Opening was very medicinal to me, but the dry down makes this fragrance great. Beautiful iris paired with elegant tobacco, with an animalic castoreum. I also pick up on an unknown note, possibly fenugreek as I can’t remember trying a fragrance with it. It lasts long, I got about 10-11 hours on skin. The projection is average to below average, but this doesn’t take away from the beauty of this fragrance and in my opinion adds to its charm. Overall it’s a beautiful animalic iris, blending sophistication with wildness. Would definitely recommend purchasing the marlou discovery set, as I think that all of their fragrances are some of the best animalics.

Of the three samples I received from this brand, this is by far my favorite. Flickering iris, all at once buttery and sweet, against a backdrop of musks and smoky woods. Too sweet for me to wear in the summer weather, though, it is quite light and sits close to the skin (to be expected from the notes). I don't get much fenugreek, which is what I'd been hoping for--nor is it very green. This is a plush, lavender (the color, NOT the scent) hued fragrance. In a way, it smells like a freshly shampooed head. Compared to Poudrextase and Carnicure, it is the least sweet and the most wearable for me. Cannot way to explore this scent more in the autumn!

I decided to revisit Marlou after seeing a tiktok from Scout Dixon West, I'd previously stumbled on the brand in 2018/9 while questing for a leathery unforgettable something and have fond memories of what was then called L'animale Sauvage (now Carnicure) but I digress. On first test Corpalium reminds me of Cuirs Velours by Naomi Goodsir - though they don't seem to share many notes apart the tobacco theres a certain upper-back nose punch quality on the opening that I can't stop sniffing. Drys down sweeter and muskier which I like. I used to think I didn't like iris notes but this could be a changer for me.

Dry golden herbs starts you off, more on the aromatic side. There is a very powdery almost vintage furniture vibe - soft woods with fading varnish. The iris note here is very rooty and dry but in a very pleasant way. Slightly sweet tobacco, which I'm partial too, with a hint of animalic - more fury than organic discharge - you know what I mean. I don't pick up on the dampness or sweatiness some reviewers noticed. Quiet sillage, as it sits very close to the skin from the onset, but longlasting (6+ Hours), this is a really well blended modern version of a vintage perfume.

They really meant it when they said equine sensuality. This is like falling asleep on a pile of hay in a barn and the old farmer waking you up standing over you smoking his pipe. It's warm, dry, and woody, with a calmer animalic twinge. It's not animalic in a way that screams at you, but it sort of just sits there, like the animal's asleep. Slight bit of BO twinge, but it works so well with the other facets of the smell that you either won't notice it, or you'll like it anyway. Lasts a good while, my only problem is how low the projection is.

Sexy horse but in a way that is more artistic than literal stable. I get new leather, old books, fresh purple florals and blond tobacco. It gives a bright androgynous spin to the more heavy traditionally masculine scent profile of woody leathery tobacco. I wore this to the library and couldnt stop sniffing my wrist. Such a delicious and surprisingly complex little juice.

A very bitter, medicinal, dry wood. Poor ventilation in a tiny trapper cabin while burning thick logs just soaked with sap and resins. I get that damp iris a bit more on dry down. Its very aromatic and well blended with a strong, paper dry tobacco with not an ounce of sweetness to it. Smells incredibly old and decayed almost. Very lovely and quite a stand out.

An elderly centaur stuffing their pipe at a mate's funeral, the herd around breathing out little hay-flavored clouds in the chilly morning air. Shuffling of dozens of hooves among fallen leaves, orris root incense burning behind the last crying foal. Pale sunshine dawning upon a freshly dug grave, the dead and the living. Quiet equine dignity.

cold, waxy... cling-wrap salt, almost sweat-like. chic smoke break iris. something you'd spray on your jacket to keep you thinking rationally as you wait in the rain for your friends to finish their virginia slims. transitional scent, late summer-fall. very winter. too heavy for spring/high summer. blind bought and couldn't be happier

The smell of your beautiful corpse bride after you dig her up from her resting place near the stables of a mysterious gothic mansion, where she was buried under a bed of irises. Separately, it reminds me of the haylofts at my father's New England farmhouse. Very nostalgic, a little haunted, and strangely sexy. Absolutely love it.

Skin pressed to skin, creamy sweet and warm; a little dirty, but subtle and sensual like leaning into the heat of a secret whispered. Then dried down, becomes a bit more ghostly, a humid memory of dew and irises crushed into dirt, as you lay hazy beneath a mirage of sweet sepia light.

love after first spritz. the first taste of a lovers' sweat. beautifully human. commanding and cleansing. perfect for those who love a whiskey stained kiss. raunchy but sophisticated and, lucky for us smokers, it mingles well with the scent of cigarettes.

Закат. Пастух возвратился домой после жаркого дня на лугах. Пропитался запахом сена распадающегося в сотнях мокрых коровьих ртов. И земли. Cтоит на еще теплом, солнцем прогретым деревянном полу. С возвращением!

This reminds me of smoke sticking to your hair and clothes the morning after a night beside a campfire. There's a hint of salty sweatiness to it, too. Interesting and lovely.

The sour smoke of a lit cigarette, the suspended ash on the edge of crumbling, that must be flicked; a nylon handbag and taupe pantyhose; a ferocious defect in attitude mistaken for charisma—these all come to mind with Corpalium. In a fit of hysteria, she exits her back door and runs through the dry grass, throwing her kitten heels off, wiping her face as lipstick smears her cheeks. She spends some time alone in the woods, lights up another cigarette, and asks herself some serious questions. This smells like the "come to Jesus" moment for this protagonist (or antagonist?). She sits at the foot of a tree, opens her compact, begins to cry, her tears mingle with her rouge. She rummages through her makeup bag as the aroma of her cosmetics, their ionones and powdered detritus mingles with the mild forest air. Touching herself up seems hopeless and she pushes her feet into the falled oak leaves and pine straw, with particles embedding themselves into her tights. She stares into her Eve Lights cigarette box, getting lost in that ribbon of flowers and foliage illustrated along its margin, and wishes she could transport herself into its lush paradise. She lights yet another cig and after one large drag, makes smoke rings. She imagines them as black holes and she tries to jump into them like she is playing double dutch as a girl. She is tired of trying to be glamorous.