Lux Obscura

I will start with a disclaimer that this scent is not for everyone, and probably works for me because my natural skin smell already trends sweet. Any gourmand makes me smell like I've been lost in Willy Wonka's factory. Perhaps this is the consequence for losing a friendly bet with the sídhe. Anyway. First spray smelled like walking into the Vatican Archives after tricking the Pope and smiting a platoon of Templar Knights. As it dries down, the feeling of being in a deep, dark, underground archive only intensifies. Feels like arriving in the Library of Alexandria on invitation of Aset. I can smell the blood notes as it continues to dry on my skin, and it’s really nice with my skin chemistry. Absolutely not medical. The woodiness and clay take the iodine and blood out of the hospital hallway and into the catacombs. I did a distance spray and this is where the top notes really shine. There’s the gunpowder and blood and ozone and rain and clay, but it’s so fucking good. It stings in a good way, like a sharp nostalgia that softens and settles in. It smells like ancient magic and bound stars. It smells like Hozier’s “Francesca", or perhaps De Selby (Part 2). It’s feral in an ultraviolet way. It says, "I am not a martyr, I'm a problem." I would wear this to dinner with Anpu. I would wear this to dinner with Azazel. I would wear this on any occasion where you'd like to subtly remind people that their application of manners may spell life or death by the end of the evening. On fabric, it's reminiscent of a tiny bookstore that’s actually a witchcraft store on Decatur in New Orleans. But better. Older. Darker. I’m so in love with this. Fabric holds the top notes for longer. As it continues to dry down, it’s really comforting. Grounding. But for strangers, there’s still an alluring “approach with caution, and remember that YOU chose this” feeling. It gives a “this bitch is older than my entire bloodline” aura. As a date-night perfume, my date would be seriously considering the possibility that the night ends in a remote forest, with them laying on an ancient stump with their ribs cracked open as I lick their beating heart. Perfection. This is not a scent as much as it is an olfactory allegory. In a sentence: You have awoken a gentle devil, and you have approximately fifteen seconds to apologize and make her a smoked Old Fashioned, else you may find yourself turned inside out. 10/10 adding to my regular wear scents. The forbidden light has breached the temple walls and is glowing.

This scent explodes like a gunshot of acrid dream smoke, gunpowder, and ginger tea. It immediately has a thick and marvelous intensity. It is leafy and musky and whiskey-tinged. A masculine fragrance. I feel it settling on me as if I’m walking into a cocktail bar in Ho Chi Minh City surrounded by mystery and danger, but with all my wits about me, and a paramour waiting across the room. When the ancient smoke of the top notes dissipates, I smell a heavy but delightful combination of tobacco, currants, and cabernet-infused wood. There are ghosts in this scent, and I want them near me. As the bass notes appear, it's a subtle but fragrant heartwood, and this fragrance continues to create a vision: the curves of a Vietnamese lover smiling in the shadows at the darkly lit bar ahead.

Hope through Sadness. Literally 😞. Lux Obscura opens with the scent of wet earth, smoke, and lingering metal—the quiet aftermath of a battlefield. Ginger and iodine add a sharp, almost medicinal edge, cutting through the heaviness. Dark, earthy warmth emerges from patchouli, black tea, and tobacco, grounding the fragrance. Then, a delicate poppy blooms, soft but resilient, reminding us that beauty survives destruction. The dry down settles into smoky woods and resin—haunting, reflective, and unforgettable. This is a scent to brought such deep, very deep emotions.

wow! i really like the notes, DL Jenkins did a great job as always. Looking forward to try it out