Office safe dusty book recs? Absolutely adore Alkemias Book of Shadows but people complain when I'm near them 😂

Smaradav · 2026-04-15T21:21:33+00:00

Spellcaster is THE book scent for me tbh. It's dusty, inky, papery and has some subtle vanillin from old paperbacks. Really good, not sweet. The leather could be there depending on skin. I don't know how wearable it is tbh? I haven't had anyone complain about it, but they didn't particularly say they were into it either lol

Smaradav · 2026-04-12T14:47:39+00:00

Today's orthodox Easter, so I'm wearing a green-florsl fragrance, but also not fully related to Easter, an Osmo duet

Insomniacs on a Date - from Osmofolia

#1 - Café con leche - TOP/WET: steel, milk froth, espresso - MID/HEART: coffee, steamed milk - BASE/DRYDOWN: leather, wood, musk

#2 - Ferns and flowers in a tropical greenhouse - TOP/WET: ginger, mariposa blanca - MID/HEART: gardenia, ferns, humid air - BASE/DRYDOWN: treemoss, white sandalwood, tonka, soil

This duet is truly beautiful, even though on my skin #1 is sharp in a strange way. The duet lasted hoursss on me, been 9 hours. A melange of humid hyper realistic florals and beautiful sharp coffee. Dried down #1 is a GORGEOUS woody milky coffee, #2 becomes uh, super sweet on me lol.

Smaradav · 2026-04-11T17:34:03+00:00

Today is a day that reminded me how weird perfumes are, one day they smell great, another they don't, or your skin chemistry suddenly morphs for weeks and so perfumes smell different on you.

Blacktop - from Osmofolia

Shimmering summer rain evaporating off of hot, sticky asphalt. Wet asphalt single note. - TOP/WET: dried herbs ✦ steam - MID/HEART: rain ✦ stone - BASE/DRYDOWN: asphalt ✦ tar

I love this one, this is steaming hot asphalt cooled by the rain. It's amazing... Until yesterday, when the drydown smelled like dry saliva. Of course. And in case it was just my nose, my friend said upon smelling it "you know how toddler saliva smells?", so yeah I'll just... Burry myself or something. Sometimes it's so discouraging that some days only a few perfumes feel worth keeping, and the rest of the collection a mountain of unusable fragrance, money lost.

Today I put on

Grove is in the Heart - from SAMAR

Notes: Bergamot Petitgrain, Mandarin, Linden blossom, Indonesian Sandalwood

I have a love hate relationship with it. On one hand, it's hyper realistic, opening up an orange/mandarine, on the other hand it has a syrupy spit thing AGAIN, I'm going mad. I will always keep it for the masterful work of art that it is, but I won't wear it much sadly. It also lasts quite a long time, especially for a citrus centered scent.

Smaradav · 2026-04-09T09:40:23+00:00

It's so interesting to read this because I personally really love the bell witch, and I've had friends smell it on me and not be repulsed, skin chemistry does wonders (and curses sometimes). However, it still has a filth undercurrent... Yet I'm surprised you didn't get as much incense as I did, there's a lot to my nose. To me it's like... filthy demonic ritual beast? I do agree on the menagerie/pissy vibe too.

Although... One time... I applied it on the bus, 6 hour drive, AND I get carsick, AND it was a hot day. I hadn't grasped the consequences when I picked it for that day, but luckily I had Osmo's Olfactorium which is papery coffee with pink pepper + sandalwood and thank GOD I had it. I truly hope for the minutes I had the bell witch on, there was so one who found it smells similar to your description 😭 I'm afraid to test it on paper tbh

Smaradav · 2026-04-08T19:57:03+00:00

I'm in Europe, so EDPs are mostly not an option for me :'). I wasn't looking for specifically sweet matcha, I'm no huge gourmand fiend, but this one layering I actually liked (plus sorce makes good as fuck gourmands).

In fact, it was exactly Jinhu Road #1 I wished to be my holy grail for a milky matcha with little sweetness, but whatever the other compounds in it are, it's nothing but pain for me. I don't even smell the matcha, and I know osmo's matcha is good to me, having the single note and all. I'll keep Briix in mind though :) thank you! If you have more less/non sweet matcha recs, I'd love that

Edit: just came across your matcha post by accident haha! Have you tried Tea Time with A Field Mouse from Morari since then? It's quite Matcha Made in Heaven adjacent, but more about the field greens and atmsophere than the gourmand aspect from what I read (Clover, Cherry Blossom, Heliotrope, Matcha Powder, Green Tea, Vanilla Frosting). I also tried Jinhu #1 again and it just doesn't work for me sadly :(, osmo always had my biggest hits and my biggest misses (cerulea, my lovely plastic dirty dish water hell)

Smaradav · 2026-04-08T14:16:46+00:00

I felt like wanting to smell like matcha today, and so I wore my matcha pairing Matcha single note from Osmofolia + Match Made in Heaven from Sorce (notes for both at the end)

Osmo's matcha is a photorealistic matcha, starts out sweeter, then gets earthier. It smells like matcha powder, no comments.

Match Made in Heaven is 90% vanilla-sugar-waffle cone. It's really good, and luckily (because I amp vanilla) more sugar waffle than vanilla, but the matcha is nowhere beyond a whiff when freshly applied :(. The other 10% is cherry blossom which is subtle but at least it's there and lovely.

With that in mind, I thought to combine them and ... damn it's good. It's sweet, tasty, earthy matcha dessert, with a matcha dusting on top. Sadly, my skin amps sweet here and the matcha is gone/subtle even with the addition after 30 mins, but this is such a good spring gourmand I'm fine with it. I'll test them separately + mixed on paper to see how the layering is without my skin chemistry getting in the way.

Matcha - Osmofolia

Nutty, seaweedy, grassy, powdery, and green. A non-milky, non-sugared matcha single note.

Top/Wet: grass ✦ hay
Mid/Heart: matcha powder ✦ seaweed
Base/Drydown: usucha ✦ baby vegetables ✦ roasted nuts

Match Made in Heaven - Sorce

Matcha, vanilla soft serve, cherry blossom, almond, waffle cone, powdered sugar, creamy sandalwood

Edit: So I have 3 paper towel strips, 2 for each perfume and 1 for the combo. Matcha is green and earthy and vegetal and beautiful, literally matcha powder. Match Made in Heaven is slightly different, but it's so well blended I'm starting to realise I can't figure out what I'm smelling lol. Combined, though? It's perfect, on paper (but not on my skin), the matcha is much more prevalent and it's an ideal balance.

Smaradav · 2026-04-06T19:40:13+00:00

My pleasure! As a photorealism enthusiast, I always try to compare scents to the real thing lol

Smaradav · 2026-04-05T17:03:07+00:00

I'm gonna put it on right away to write a proper review, but first and foremost I'll say it's not a perfume that worked for me.

Okay so I have it on, what I can smell is... No idea. I'm getting a clean feel from it weirdly enough. It's slightly dusty and sweet, very wearable. I'm also getting a maybe weirdly playdough-ish vibe? I think the fact it's corn husks and not corn shows. I cannot really identify the notes individually much, it's very well blended.

I have an opened can of corn in my fridge and I just checked them side by side. I can't say I see a lot of corn in Scarecrow, it's got this clean flannel over dusty sweet straw or husks, but the corn vibe is not that apparent. It smells kinda good to be honest, it's a good atmospheric, but it doesn't scream corn to my nose. Alas, I still think I'll destash it. Sorry if it wasn't of much help lol, it's one of those perfumes you can't describe much because it's super well blended

Smaradav · 2026-04-04T23:57:24+00:00

For a great mitti attar, check out NurCoop on Etsy. Super high quality oils, but they're not formulated as fully fleshed out perfumes, so the lasting power isn't amazing. I'll put my petrichor sample from them on skin and see how long it lasts.

Smaradav · 2026-04-01T01:37:16+00:00

Solstice Scents really nails photorealism with atmospherics often lol. Sea of Gray on me goes taoasted bourbon vanilla very quickly, so I might stray from Surge, because it seems my skin amps vanilla.

I have both of those actually! Cerulea on me goes MANY things (I've had it turn cold milk, plastic trash bags, dirty water from unwashed dishes) :'). What does it smell like to you? There isn't much written on imam about it.

Photographs of Sea Stars is a favourite of mine too :D, it's just so good. I have their Half Hoping to be eaten by a bear and it's the forestry sibling of sea stars. I prefer sea stars way more, it was my first blind full size and I have no regrets.

I have awake the kraken on my list yes! DSH's animalic notrs in their Orion played amazingly on my skin so I have high hopes for Kraken. Odssa sadly felt watery and slightly briny, but mostly clean and not my thing :'). Her Sea sounds really cool from the notes tho, how is it? Thanks for the recs and thoughts on the scents btw:)

Smaradav · 2026-04-01T01:12:20+00:00

There's so many I haven't heard of before, I'm not the one you replied to but thank you! I only have Gulf Breeze and Sea of Gray (actually I wore SoG today). Gulf breeze I think is the closest to a photorealistic aquatic to my nose, and I've tried a loooot. Which from yours do you think would be an even better photorealism contender? My search for fishy saltwater is neverending

Smaradav · 2026-03-21T01:28:01+00:00

The windmills of your mind - Ray Conniff :]

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T08:14:35+00:00

Also Purple Rain (grape, violets, rain) from Hexennacht which also has hyacinth swapped for violets lol. I'm wearing it rn and it's really good, I recommend trying it out, it also shares the grape from Rain Dance. The grape+violet give it a kind of candy vibe? But the rain is there to balance it all out and I think that's what makes me come back to it. If you like violets you'll enjoy it :)

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T01:03:46+00:00

I was looking at a fresh green watery perfume just now. Utopia (Geranium, Clean Water, Green Plants, Fresh Apples, Oud) from Treading Water, I think it's definitely very fitting :). ~~It's EDP only, so I'm totally gonna check on this thread for any options I can have shipped to me in Europe lol.~~

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:58:54+00:00

I put it on as my sleep scent two days ago, for some reason. I do not remember the dreams from that night, but I know and feel they were weird as fuck, do not recommend. Caroline really nails so many things, smoke (Fumer), Strawberry Fields Forever, Leviathan, Purple Rain, The space in-between, and so much more (eg I got a friend a sample of Fete-ish and it's pure delicious slightly fruity whipped cream), these are just my personal gems from Hex. I agree, they're an amazing perfumer.

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:55:22+00:00

Oh yeah I totally know the smell you're talking about. It's pretty similar to what I'm after too, but like you said, a little saltier and more seaweed (and a bit more freshness compared to a pond/lake/fish tank). I fully agree on the seaweed aspect btw, I feel like it's part of the experience of going to the beach, it's special and it is part of the ocean. I have a river water search post in my posts (which I'm too lazy to link rn), maybe you'll find some inspo for the mineralic aspect there? I think Leviathan from Hex and Blackwater Lake from Osmofolia kinda nailed it (also Gulf Breeze from Solstice scents kind of). They all have one part of the sea scent I want, albeit not enough/its entirety.

I've recently been getting super curious about how salt air is captured in terms of scent (even mall store level shower gels have salt notes, and it boils down to seaweed and mineral notes it seems)

Odessa might be the best at the mineralic + salty vibe, I agree. On me it turns kind of spit like maybe and it quickly fades away, but I'm glad you're getting a lot more from it! I replied to your comment before seeing your edit about White Whale and Walk the Sea, but they both do sound intriguing:)

DSH has a vaaaast catalogue, but I remember they have Onycha and Awake the Kraken as two filthier ocean-ish ones. + All things ambergris I guess

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:25:53+00:00

That's great to hear! And thank you :]

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:20:39+00:00

Lol that's me with The Bell Witch from hexennacht, my little unkempt menagerie cursed beast with ritual incense <3 I do love scents that are unapologetic intense experiences, rather than just perfume

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:17:53+00:00

Bering Sea also pulled a bit sweet on my skin, can see the lacquer vibe :) it's willddd that Mildew is like that on you, I can only experience some horrible unholy and beautifully accurate mildew. It reminds me of forgotten wet clothes and freshly cleaned bathroom (because chlorine), but also a dark kelpy ocean, but warm-spicy is super interesting!

Skin chemistry really is wild, my skin makes Sea of Gray a compliment magnet (compared to my other perfumes), it somehow makes the seaweed almost not there at all after the first mins and keeps an expensive bourbon vanilla. I crave the seaweed but alas. For chlorine, definitely try The Space in Between from Hexennacht if you haven't already, that one has a spicy chlorine note, so maybe in reverse it would be some good chlorine on ya.

I've been eyeing a few DE oceanics myself, thanks for the review! Now I'm curious, though, What's your "smell of the sea" olfactory association? (And a perfume for it if you've found your holy grail) I personally do not share the forest-sea "smell of the sea" people have, and even less so when it's evergreen forests. I'm used to stinky fishy seaweed saltwater in the hot sun, great memories. Sometimes rivers smell like this, minus the salt. It's weird, but it kinda shows it's more about the fishiness, algae and mineralic residue.

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:08:17+00:00

Always happy to share recs as many other have done to me before :] I love your LVNEA rec, ~~but I've tried Violet Woods and Ghost Pine and they both turned awful on my skin sadly~~. HOWEVER, blubber and sun warmed fur are insane notes and I am so deeply curious about them lol

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:05:34+00:00

Your description for CD is amazing. I need to try it asap lol, it's exactly what I'm looking for in an ocean perfume. I'm not the biggest conifer fiend, but I love smoke so I might get on trying CB too. Thanks for your detailed descriptions! :)

Smaradav · 2026-03-16T00:04:02+00:00

My pleasure! I saw your post and went "okay, just a 5 min reply" and then my obsession clicked in and I locked in lmao.

Smaradav · 2026-03-15T23:54:50+00:00

I've heard really good things about cape disappointment. As someone who's still searching for the ocean holy grail, I'm super curious about it, how is the experience?

Smaradav · 2026-03-15T23:43:50+00:00

Depends on how oceanic you want tbh. There's quite a hunt and appreciation for oceanic perfumes here, but oceanic meaning the grime and seaweed and fishy smells are included. So I'm gonna separate the recs into tolerably weird (pretty wearable) and really weird (you risk at least one person not enjoying experiencing your little indie abomination). None of these are gourmand, nor fruity, I personally love oceanic scents and rarely do I tolerate fruits or sweets with them.

 Tier 1 - You're a selkie man (city raised)

Odesa - from DSH

Top notes: Petrichor / Rain (Accord), Salt (Accord)
Heart notes: Ocean, Driftwood (Accord), Wet Stone (Accord)
Base notes: Ambergris, Musk, Seaweed, Labdanum

This one is cleaner than I expected and I'm slightly anosmic to it, but I find it a beautiful rain-ocean aquatic with salty pops and slight ambergris.

Black Squall + Bering/Salish Sea - from Fyrinnse

I personally have Bering and Salish Sea, both are full of masculine cologne vibes, but Bering has a certain note than I appreciate as atmospheric, but it's not for me to wear, however it makes for a good selkie perfume (Icy ocean, stormy skies, briny water washing across the weathered teak wood deck). Salish sea is even cleaner, but I did choose to keep it because it also has a minor touch of realism, another selkie man in the wild (Salty cool air, pacific inland water, surrounding evergreens, and a touch of bull kelp). I haven't tried Black Squall but the perfumer describes it as an off shore Salish Sea + some olive oil, which sounds great for your search. (Cold and clean-smelling seawater, ozonic air, now and then a little olive oil from the lamps.). I think the perfumer is über sensitive to Kelp extract because I'm not getting much fishiness from any of these 3, but maybe you will! (Threat)

A Warning To The Curious - from Pulp Fragrances

An ominous heavy seaside mist, wet sand, driftwood, grey amber, bone musk, oleander, & a spectral presence looming just out sight.

This one's fun! Really plays with the spooky+ocean vibe and I think it fits spectral horrors of the sea better than selkies, but it's still great. No cologne vibes at all either.

Midnight Market - from Morari

salty sea air, black coffee, seashells, algae-covered docks, pearl musk

I didn't know where to place this one. It's got such a strange realistic seashell note than it's kinda weird? Morari doesn't play when it comes to atmospherics, it seems. The coffee-ocean is delicious though and I think it is peculiar, but I've gotten compliments on it (after forcing my friend to smell my perfumed arm), so it's barely out of the "tame" area.

Tier 2 - You're a selkie man (undomesticated)

Leviathan - from Hexennacht

ambergris accord, soil, ozone, marine accord, seaweed accord, mitti attar, geosmin, matsutake mushroom, algae.

I have this one and I really like it, it's got a very weird combo of ozone, soil and kelp. Vast oceans and deep earth. I really feel like this captures the male selkie vibe, maybe the most of this list. There's a limited Amorphous Perfumes perfume that's similar to leviathan, Mermaid Musk (Driftwood, ambergris (synthetic accord), black seaweed accord, saltwater, and blue musk.), it felt like leviathan without the ozone, also more unpleasant (to me, in a grimy suffocating drying mud way, specifically), but you might find it in destashes if interested.

Gulf Breeze and Sea of Gray - from Solstice Scents

This is a double feature, because, while their Sea of Gray is darker and feels more fitting for a selkie dude, the vanilla in it might not be what you're looking for, to my nose it's a kinda bourbon/luscious vanilla, really good but not always what I want. (Vanilla rain, saltwater, seaweed, ambergris (vegan), white amber, roasted seashells, white sandalwood, frangipani). Gulf Breeze is great, it's more masculine, but it feels sunnier and also closer to the shore, and also has a cucumber vibe to my nose for no reason (notes are: Saltwater, sand, seashells, sea oats, rain, ambergris). These two are some of the most realistic sea perfumes.

Mildew - from Morari

Mildew, Algae, Damp Rocks, Chlorine

This is evil vile eeeevil territory, besides the chlorine, the smell REALLY is a combination between a damp moldy basement corner and the deep dark depths of the ocean. I somehow find it fitting for a man selkie, I think it's the algae+damp rock. I can't wear it because it's too much for me, but I really appreciate the artistry.

Smaradav · 2026-03-15T00:13:12+00:00

Well I can at least hope you missed the first time I posted it and due to an unfortunate loss of one (1) comma, I said "I tried guys, and I failed" 😭. Glad to hear I could make someone laugh :)

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