Fire and Cream

I am really loving this natural perfume. It starts out very smoky and reminds me of the beach bonfires I've been to. At first it was hard to imagine it would turn into anything resembling cream...oh but how magical when it does! It doesn't smell like coconut, but I kept smelling an intense creaminess similar to coconut as I sat on the bus this morning. Not necessarily vanilla, but more like woods mixed with a sweetened nut butter, like Brazil nut or kukui nut. I also smell a good dose of tuberose, very real and buttery. In time it became less smoky. No lavender, which is cool because it can smell masculine on me. I find projection to be moderate and lasting time to be a good 8+ hours. I can pull this off year-round, but I can't wait to enjoy it in the colder months. Update: One day when I was wearing this, I was taking a nap and kept thinking I was smelling steamed milk. I really smelled pure hot milk, but there was none in my house. It took a while to realize it was my perfume. I've seen lots of perfumes with milk notes, but this is the first one that actually smelled like the real thing.

It’s fairly assertive for an all-natural perfume, starting out like wood drenched in spices and orange oil. I like the opening very much, but wish it lasted longer. As it dries down, I find it to be a skin scent in which lavender dominates, along with a bit of vanilla. At no point is it floral, probably a good thing, but I’m not crazy about the lavender drydown. The scent lasts for a few hours, gradually fading away in a lavender haze. This is one of those fragrances that I love in the beginning, but the honeymoon is over quickly.

woody and vanilla-ey. Strange as apparantly there is no vanilla among the notes. I do not get any lavender or flowers though. Reminds me of Tokyo Milk's Dead Sexy. Quite nice but might not be worth the price tag.

Ok, smokey and spicy at first application. My first thought was it had cumin in it. Weirdly alluring. Takes a few minutes for the orange to come forward. I really don't smell any floral notes at all until the scent has been on my skin quite a while and even then, orange & patchouli pretty much dominates. Not overly long lasting. It's not horrible as in I'd rather have a tooth pulled then wear this fragrance but it's just not for me.

Certainly an aptly named scent, due to the stark textural duality between the two stages of the scent. It opens with a slightly harsh, smoky vetiver and patchouli, with a bit of incense and oily orange in the background. I remember trying this scent and HATING it when I received it in my absolute first sample order after setting out on my perfume "journey". Perhaps my chemistry has changed since then or maybe my tolerance for vetiver and patchouli (still not favorites, but I can tolerate them now when well blended and natural).It seems much warmer on my skin than I remember, and I find myself liking the drydown, especially when lavender joins a bit later. There is a touch of animalic floral cream from the tuberose. As much as I enjoy L"Artisan's Seville a L'Aube, I wish that it could incorporate the lovely smoky/orange/lavender that's going on in Fire and Cream - the L'Artisan has a tendency to go too sweet and fruit-loopy. Though the L"Artisan has much better sillage and longevity. My final verdict on Fire and Cream? It might be a bit too natural for me but it's certainly interesting.It needs something. I might not wear it, but I'll keep it to sniff as a reference.