Comparison Post: Pumpkin #7 vs. Golden Morning

In comparison posts, I compare indie scents with similar notes lists. This allows me to cull my collection so that I have no repeats, and it may also be helpful for other people to decide which sounds most appealing.

The Contestants: 

Nocturne Alchemy Pumpkin #7 (Amber Pumpkin perfumed with 7 rich exotic Amber notes to create the ultimate Amber perfume base for this Pumpkin infused scent. Spices of fig and raw pumpkin swim in a vat of decadent Sandalwood)

Cocoa Pink Golden Morning (Cool vanilla wrapped around honeyed, pale pumpkin gently grounded with white oak, tonka bean finished with the barest hint of copal.)

Scent Characteristics: P#7 is woodsy, smooth, pale, and warm like a house with a fire crackling in the hearth. It's more sweet-wood than sticky-resin, and the amber notes here are powdery and dry like finished wood, and they complement the sandalwood perfectly. Tiny bit of spice, but not edible spice. This is a slightly fresh smell, like fresh pumpkin and sawn wood, but not "raw" smelling. GM is syrupy, resinous, and slinky. It's mostly a very golden, sticky honey note with complementary deeper resinous wood notes. The pumpkin is there, smooth and non-spicy, but like cooked pumpkin purée.  

How similar are they?: Not very. P#7 is a lot subtler and more neutral. GM is vivacious, sexy, and sweet. P#7 makes me think of a buttoned-up but pretty librarian, and GM is her younger sister who dresses very scandalously. They're related but they don't really resemble each other. They do share a common pale, sweet, smooth pumpkin note that's delicious in both, and the wood pops out of both, but it's made more dry in P#7 and more wet/sticky in GM.

Sillage: Both have very good sillage. Something that's characteristic of NAVA ambers in particular is that they will strengthen the more they sit on your skin. Sometimes I can't smell a NAVA amber when I first apply, then 10 minutes later, it's surrounding me and filling my nostrils. I will say it's hard to overdo a NAVA Amber, and P#7 is no exception. It's so pale and smooth that it never screams, even if you overapply. On the other hand, GM's big honey note has POW sillage and really wraps itself around you immediately. You can overdose easily, especially as it's a sweet scent, so best to apply sparingly. I love strongly-scented perfumes, so I'm definitely ok with that, but use caution.

Longevity: Both have great longevity. P#7 lasts 8-10 hours, no problem, but it does dry down into a more subtle skin scent thereafter. GM will last until you wash it off, or 36-48 hours, whichever comes first. 

Destashing any?: Nope, they are different and both lovely. GM is the perfect cold-weather sexy scent. Not too foodie, but just sweet enough. P#7 is an amazing daytime scent, and even though it's a pumpkin one, it's not so bold as to be an autumn-only scent. 

Comparison Post: Cocoa Pink Strawberry Noel vs. Vampire's Lament

In comparison posts, I compare indie scents with similar notes lists. This allows me to cull my collection so that I have no repeats, and it may also be helpful for other people to decide which sounds most appealing.

The Contestants: 

Cocoa Pink Strawberry Noel (A perfectly balanced fresh strawberry that smells like real berries (not plasticy bubblegum strawberry), blended with VBN.)

Cocoa Pink Vampire's Lament (Luscious strawberry milkshake essence spiked with white amber, metallic white musk then finished off with a splash of creamy vanilla.)

How do they stack up? Strawberry Noel is very sweet, fruity in a fresh way, and a bit simple. It smells like you infused vanilla whipped cream with the essence of fresh macerated strawberries. Vampire's Lament smells exactly like strawberry ICE CREAM, which is missing from SN. It has a cold, creamy smell that is just exquisite. Less of a vanilla bean scent than in SN. VL also has a lot of musk and amber, which lend a more perfumey feel and make it feel a lot more sophisticated. SN is more of the type of scent a younger girl would favor, or maybe a good scent for a shampoo or bath product. It's very pretty, not synthetic or cheap-smelling, but less elegant. 

How similar are they? Not very similar at all! Besides having the basic foodie/berry notes in common, one smells like a lovely simple fruity lotion, and the other smells like a sort of sexy fruity, grown-up perfume. The strawberry in both is nice, but the strawberry in SN is very fresh, and the strawberry in VL is more like the flavor of strawberry ice cream.

Sillage: I have both in Cocoa Pink's EDP format, which is very high in sillage. Equally good.

Longevity: Ditto for above. Love Cocoa Pink's EDPs, they last forever.

Destashing any?: If I were to destash one, it would be Strawberry Noel. I like it enough to keep it for now, but I might destash if it gets no love come spring. I would definitely repurchase this in a hair or body product, though, as I feel it would be well-suited to that format. I do prefer Vampire's Lament as it's more sophisticated. 

Comparison Post: Golden Corn Cakes vs. Potluck vs. Iowa

In comparison posts, I compare indie scents with similar notes lists. This allows me to cull my collection so that I have no repeats, and it may also be helpful for other people to decide which sounds most appealing.

The Contestants: 

Possets Iowa (this one starts out with a crystallized vanilla...then there is a hint of turbinado sugar, and a large dose of an accord based on wheat...and a small amount of a whiskey-like addition) Permanent Collection

Haus of Gloi Golden Corn Cakes (Corn cake baked to a golden perfection, topped with butter and honey) Limited Edition Autumn

Cocoa Pink Potluck (True Southern-style cornbread set out next to our honeyed, buttered oatcakes and warm zucchini bread.) 

General Catalog (Autumn/Winter) (N/A during Spring/Summer)

Scent Characteristics: 

Iowa smells like an overcooked, crunchy cornbread cookie with a ton of butter. I'm surprised I enjoy the butter in here- it smelled rancid in Cream and Mrs. Rabbit's Carrot Cake, but it fits well in here. Like luxurious fresh salted butter, not the unpleasant microwave-popcorn note I got in the past. This smells like the brown underside of cornbread- not the yellow fluffy middle part, but the crispy edge.

Potluck starts out with a lot of zucchini/banana bread character. On the drydown, the prominent zucchini bread smell goes away and it's mostly oatcake and butter with a hint of cornbread. Sort of like a not-too-sweet spicy oatmeal cookie scent.

Golden Corn Cakes is a very well balanced, full-smelling honeyed butter and cake/bread smell. It smells of cornbread in the bottle, honey in the initial application and early dry stages, and the cornbread pops out again in the later drydown!

How similar are they?: These are very different in my opinion. I think that Iowa is the least cornbread-y of the three. It turns into that brownish burnt-edge smell that baked goods get. It's quite pleasant except that it turns "thin" near the end of its life. Potluck is a mishmash of different baked goods, and the spice turns it into a bit more of an oaty biscuit scent. They all have quite a bit of butter in them, which is successful in all three. Golden Corn Cakes is unique in that it's completely scrumptious. I can't stop sniffing it. It does have a common vibe with Potluck, but is more luscious.

Sillage: Golden Corn Cakes has the highest sillage, and the most robust/full scent that carries. Potluck has slightly less throw and is a bit "flatter." Iowa is harder to smell at a distance, and after it's sat on the skin for a while it really turns flat.

Longevity: Golden Corn Cakes has the best longevity and ages on the skin the best. It smells just as scrumptious throughout its entire life. It lasts the whole day. Iowa sticks around a long time, but not in a wearable form. After the golden-burnt opening it turns flat and blackened and even though I can smell it when sniffing my wrist, the actual scent isn't great for the rest of its life. Probably 5-6 hours of wear. Potluck has similar longevity to Iowa in that I can detect it for 6 hours, but it changes so much from the opening that I'm not really interested in what's left after a few hours. Mostly turns into a spiced oat smell after the first hour.

Destashing any?: I only have a sample of Iowa and Potluck but I'll probably destash them. I can't imagine ever craving a "cornbread" scent and reaching for either of these over the beautiful Golden Corn Cakes.