Empty Wishes Well

I’ve woken up from a dream that eludes me, yet its memory is fragrant on my skin. I stir in my soft sheets bring myself to an upright position, and rub the sleep from my eyes. My senses are stirring awake. It smells of petrichor. I peek out my bedroom window, just a slight lean over. The sky is dark, darker than I’ve ever seen it. It nearly resembles night. What a treat, twilight in the morning. I pick up my wristwatch from the windowsill; it’s encrusted in dried mud. My movements are hesitant and explorative, but my eyes are focused. As I flip the watch over in my hands, specks of encrusted mud fall onto my duvet cover. My eyebrows furrow in deep retrospective thought as I attempt to recall an opportunity for this to happen. Yesterday...yesterday was mundane. Wake, work, home, dinner, shower, and sleep. It’d been this way for years, hardly a divergence. I concentrated harder. My wristwatch fell slack in my left hand as I brought my right thumb between my teeth, the furrow of my brows grew tenser as I stared at nothing in particular. No, when I went to sleep my watch wasn’t this way. I was sure of it or maybe... I shook my head firmly as if to clear my conciseness of such nonsensical thoughts. I needed to get out of bed. I throw off the covers- mud.Thick, dried, caking my legs up to my thighs. My sheets, a mess. Where have I been? I was petrified. The smell of freshly turned soil hit my nose. No surprise there, for I was covered in it. I couldn’t move, well I could. But what was I to find if I did..? The detonating sound of thunder pulled me from my discovery. I shook, startled. My fingers instinctively gripped the covers. The rain began without hesitation. Possessed by something innate I rose from my bed and moved over to the window. My hands found the pane, fingers outstretched on the cool glass, my lips a whisper away fogged the glass hotly. My eyes are fixed on the scene beyond the window. A poignant feeling troubles me. No longer am I concerned by the mess of my legs or the state of my watch. My focus is honed on an unfamiliar sight, there’s a garden in full bloom, one of great extravagance. Flowers and vines, unlike anything I’ve ever known to exist. I’ve never known a garden in my front yard, let alone one so boisterous. Through the fogged pane and thrashing rain, I make out what appears to be a well in the middle of it all. From my second-story view, I see it. A gaping abyss among the false splendor. Bottomless. Waiting. No, I remember. Then–metal, stone, damp earth–it finds me. The dream that eluded me moments ago. Sharp. Unmistakable. I remember. Suddenly the smell of metallic and stone finds me and reminds me of this dream that has eluded me. Yes, I remember now. I can feel it; the rain down my face, my fingertips numb and blue, my skin adorned with goosebumps, the wet mud between my toes. Yes, I remember it all.

I love this perfume. Like, actually love it. This is one of the only niche perfumes I’ve tried where I went back immediately after sampling it and was like, okay, no, I absolutely need more of this. To me, this is a perfect rainy autumn fragrance. Not that I would only wear it in autumn, because I’d honestly wear it whenever, but it really shines on rainy days or cold fall days. It smells like petrichor, wet stone, soil, dried leaves, vetiver, myrrh, sage, and a little bit of spice. When I first saw the notes, I was a little worried about the metallic note. I thought it might smell like pennies or blood or something really sharp, but it doesn’t. At least not to me. The metallic part is more like cold wet air touching stone. Like old metal somewhere nearby after rain, but not literal coin smell. It blends into the rain and stone instead of sitting on top and screaming. The spice is there, but it’s not cloying or overwhelming. It doesn’t turn into a fall candle. It’s more like dried leaves, sage, myrrh, damp earth, and that cold rainy mineral smell all mixing together. It’s not sweet by itself, but it layers beautifully with sweet things. I love it with smoky vanilla, pumpkin, warm lactonic stuff, anything like that. It turns those sweeter scents into something more atmospheric and less one note. This isn’t a cozy gourmand fall. This is like walking outside on a rainy October day and finding an old stone well surrounded by dead leaves. The air is cold, the ground is wet, everything smells earthy and quiet, and there’s something a little ritualistic about it. Not scary exactly. More like memory, rain, stone, and something you can’t fully explain. I think what I love about it is that it gives me atmosphere without becoming unwearable. A lot of Toskovat’ scents are cool conceptually but hard to actually wear. This one still has that Toskovat’ storytelling, but it doesn’t feel like it’s trying to punish me. It’s sad, rainy, earthy, and beautiful, but still very wearable. This is probably my favorite Toskovat’ I’ve tried so far. It’s not loud, not sweet, not pretty in a traditional way, but it’s gorgeous. It is rain-soaked porous stone, autumn leaves, and unfulfilled wishes sitting at the bottom of a well.

so good. i’ve been smelling in search of something musty and abandoned, whether it be in a contemplative or slightly unsettling way. this one is definitely the former and it might be one of my favourites so far (more tormented than relique d’amour, more intriguing than olm) still figuring this harmony but i think the carrot seeds are perfectly balanced and set the tone of the whole perfume. there are several resinous notes listed which come back around in liturgical perfumes and empty wishes well does evoke a church, but it is 100% abandoned, overtaken by vegetation and the bibles left behind on the pew have grown severely mildewy. the carrot seeds i mentioned earlier linger at the base and have this strange grey green powdery and otherworldly nearly sweet quality i don’t know i’ve smelled in perfume before but reminiscent of suddenly getting a whiff of a bunch of wet moss on cold stone. not in a cute way, this smells like the bitter bite of time, oblivion and rural exodus. one day i want to visit the scottish island of st kilda. it was extremely remote and only yielded a very difficult life to those who depended in its land for sustenance. it was abandoned of common accord by its inhabitants in the 1930s and has remained frozen in time since. until i do, i’m gonna imagine this is what it smells like. edit: i unexpectedly found something that beats this one for me... it doesn’t have a page on fragrantica but if this scent profile appeals to you, you NEED to smell stone by liza pittard. fresh cold wet mildewy, an algae covered stone you pick up from a slow river bed. does away with the carrot seed/ leaf some perfumes of a similar ilk use, and even though i waxed poetics about its role here, i actually think that’s the best possible direction.

This was my first introduction to the house of Toskovat, and It did not disappoint. All of Toskovat's fragrances come with a small poem/description of the fragrance. While I initially thought they were a little tacky, they enhance the wearing experience. The best way to describe this fragrance is to put yourself into the world of the poem. Imagine walking through a wooded area in Autumn right after a storm had just passed. A gentle breeze around you carries all the scents of the forest in your direction. You can smell the leaves on the trees, the dirt on the ground, and the surrounding foliage. You walk up to an old wishing well, and the moss almost entirely covers each and every stone. You look into the well to find water, but there is nothing but a muddy puddle and some weeds growing at the bottom. This fragrance, to me at least, speaks to the quiet resilience of nature and the way it claims and heals over time. The poem makes me think about renewing and learning to live with what's left. It's like a deep breath after a storm in which you stop and reflect on what was and what might be, taking a moment to stop and slow down before the earth stirs again. It tells a story of time passing and nature persisting.

Absolutely gorgeous. I can’t stop smelling it. This is one of the most beautiful nature scents I’ve ever smelled. I’ll be honest, this is the one fragrance that made me rethink my belief that Toskovat’ was a total scam. (The other two decants I bought were extremely disappointing.) It is very simple, but it is perfect. This is an extremely calming and photorealistic forest fragrance. Nothing smells at all dirty in this to me, only clean, gentle idyllic nature. It feels like the background art from a Ghibli movie, or a still life painting of a serene rainy day. I swear I can smell moss, damp rocks, pine trees, and eucalyptus. It's neither foggy or heavy, but clear and clean, like a crisp rainy breeze across a field and mossy stones. Very feminine-leaning in my opinion, like a huldra lady sleeping peacefully in a glade, with stones for pillows. It makes me want to wander through European forests and breathe in their beauty. EDIT: smells like Baie 19 with the muddy notes taken out and replaced with falling leaves and the smell of water soaked rocks. Very very very patchouli, but I prefer this over Baie 19 in a heartbeat.

#1686 in my “Tour de Fragrance” Got this decant from scentsplit.com. When I see notes like “metallic”, “stone”, “earthy”, “rain”, “dried fallen leaves” I suspect it’s a bunch of chemistry set ingredients with toxic sounding names so the marketing folks came up with these euphemisms. But whatever the hell is in this juice, I like it. Heavy on the myrrh, patchouli and vetiver, which is just how I like it, combined with the scent of a wet forest floor. Better than moderate performance on longevity, thanks to the myrrh. Lasts 5-6 hours on the skin. Potently aromatic in the opening. Masculine leaning. I thinks this works as a formal business scent and date wear. If you over-sprayed then someone with you in close spaces might not appreciate it. This smells so familiar. I can’t place it, but I’d swear I have something like this. It puts me in mind of some of Jaques Bogart's greener scents, but nothing on my shelves matches these notes. I guess I’ll bite the bullet for a $200 bottle of this really nice scent. Good Luck and Good Hunting!

This scent evokes the sensory memory of late summer afternoons, humid but overcast and with an electric sting in the air due to an impending thunderstorm. Within the humidity are traces of earthiness, but of a domestic sort: viney growth on concrete or between cobblestones, or remnants of soil on fresh carrots. Opposing the balmy humidity--water on warm stone--is a coolness that is parallel to mint, but instead of herbal it's an inert metallic chill of worn coins. The coin-in-moist-air scent comes first in this fragrance. This was a surprise, as I'd been hoping to find a fragrance that evokes coldness, but not one that is minty, coniferous, or wintry. I'm entranced at the way the wateriness and earthiness are able to appear without negating the airiness of this scent, and the way warmth and coolness are balanced and seem equally inviting.

Photorealistic forest smell. The first of my fragrances my girlfriend genuinely disliked, since it is similar to the smell of actual nature rather than a scent that would be worn as a perfume. That being said, this triggers so many memories for me and I love smell. Will continue to wear this when I feel like it matches my outfit of the day even though my gf did not like it lol. This is the type of scent I would wear for myself. If I were to describe it in detail, picture dry trees, wet earth and mossy stones laying on the forest floor. There is such a beautiful contrast/balance between heavy dry green elements and fresh ones akin to the feel of mist and petrichor that you would feel walking through the forest just after a period of rain.

Wow this is amazing. This fragrance is very interesting the sense of how it can morph into many different scent profiles over a period of time. This starts out to my nose almost identical to reliqvia however with the musty element turned green instead. This stays for around 10 mins and then it changes to the most incredible realistic coin smell you can ever imagine. I actually got goosebumps when i smelt this and i was truly amazed at how this fragrance not only shifted so drastically but also how david was able to create this scent profile. This stays for pretty much throughout the lifespan however with time the metal softens and the greenery grows, smelling almost like zoologist king cobra actually. wow

This is my favorite perfume, and I don't expect that to change anytime soon. The story behind this scent speaks of hope returning after a period of drought, it perfectly represents how I feel when I wear this, calm, hopeful, and confident. It's one of the more intimate scents in the toskovat line, but I still get eight or more hours of longevity and a really pleasant scent bubble for most of its duration. Rain is my favorite scent in nature, and this perfume presents an earthy and metallic take on that concept. The notes of petrichor, myrhh, patchouli, sage, and vetiver all combine so beautifully in a way that creates a truly unique experience, one I'll treasure my whole life.

beautiful beautiful perfume. i love perfumes that smell like rain and this is the only one i tried that lasts this long while maintaining it's photorealistic quality. cooler on the opening which i guess is where the "metallic" note comes from, then as it wears it opens more dimensions of pleasantly warm vetiver/earthiness, giving it a perfect "humid" feel. smells like how it feels to go to the Cloisters in NY to see the unicorn tapestries. it does smell like pennies in a well but mostly it captures this very beautiful sense of openness and waiting for something.

this might be my favourite of the toskovat range this is the most photorealistic fragrance i have smelt it smells exactly like an old well with still water that’s has been inhabited by mosquito larvae and moss its the best aquatic fragrance i’ve smelt the green components mix well to portray the slow rot and overgrowth of nature taking over but the metallic character makes you think of all the coins that have ever been thrown into the well and the smell of that looming in the water i’m in awe

Masterpiece. This truly smells like everything it want's to portray. I catch the airy wetness from the petrichor boosted from the help of the metallic-ness helping it feel cold. Mid notes including way more of the resinous myrrh, patchouli, and vetiver while the base carries the dampness of the soil. This mainly hits me with petrichor, vetiver and myrrh all of them appearing sharply throughout the whole fragrance. Beautiful, serene, and eternal I hope David never stops producing this.

I don’t even know how to describe it because I’ve never smelled anything like it. It’s like if encre noir and de los santos had a baby (sage and vetiver) + wet earth and leaves, but so pleasant and wearable. Albeit a personal wearing not to get compliments. It’s how I imagine the inside of a witches house in the woods on a rainy night to smell. A must try if you love testing out new smells. I feel like grabbing a chai and reading a depressing book

finally got my hands on this and yeah, its everything i had hoped. its like what i imagine the mouth of a damp earth temple in a zelda game would smell like, if instead of a boss at its depths, there was just a mirror, and a gun with one bullet. wistful and unrelenting, there is no happy here, only regret and decay. but also a strange comfort. we will all be dirt

An incredibly well executed masterpiece of olfactive art. Vividly nostalgic, photorealistic, and paints the exact depiction it intends to. Somehow well-water, stone, and pennies sit beautifully on my skin...A true feat in perfumery if you ask me. I love-love-love this fragrance! A new favorite that I will continue to look forward wearing. Bravo!

Beautifully executed fragrance. It evokes the scent of wet cobblestones and a damp shire after a spring shower. The comforting aroma of earth is perfectly contrasted by a sharp metallic note. The dry down is ethereal and ozonic. I didn’t think I’d enjoy this, as it’s outside my usual comfort zone, but it exceeded my expectations.

If you want to impersonate Samara Morgan then look no further! When I was a child, our neighbor used to place bricks on top of the rainwater drain in the garden (idk why). After the rain, we would always lift them up and discover all sorts of bugs and creepy crawlers underneath. This perfume smells exactly like that memory.

love it. there is space in this fragrance and it switches from a good masculine scent to the humid nature, the metallic note is almost bloody, the wet stone has some chemistry with my smell receptors. not that much of a rusty coin or dried leaves, more of a sage and vetiever. 9.5/10 thats how i’d like my man to smell.

i don't really know how to describe it. But if you go to Google and search autumn leaves on Google and you see the road full of maple leaves, that is exactly what it smells like. It makes you feel like you're walking on that road, is absolutely photorealistic, and smells lovely 10/10.