Hey friends!

Where I live, our Winter is an emotional roller coaster. One hour it’s in the 40’s, then by midday it’s 76 degrees outside. Then it’s raining and icing, then it’s foggy, then it’s a beautiful day, then it’s a hurricane. I don’t know. You wear lots of layers and hope for the best.

What I’m saying here is that since I don’t have the typical Winter climate or experience, I was really excited to try Solstice Scents’ Woodland Collection. First, I love their wood notes. Second, I planned to pretend I lived in a snowy, magical forest! Third, I love Solstice Scents. They have my heart. And my money.

So I grabbed a sample pack of the Woodlands Collection and a full size of Spellbound Woods, a scent they were discontinuing.

Was it a magical forest wonderland of smells? Read on!

So the technical stuff: I got this pack for $14, full sized perfumes are usually about $15. I ordered it on 1/17, and it shipped after MLK Day. I received my set on 1/24. Solstice Scents really sets the bar for turn around time, that is like lightning speed! Solstice Scents also always lets you choose a free sample, which I’m using for another post, so you’ll have to be surprised there.

Now for the good stuff: scents!
PS: I looked at the scent lists before I ordered because I was trying to see how successful I might be at blindly buying a full size in the future. Based on descriptions, I predicted I would love White Fox and Winter Dove the most. Did I? Read on to find out!

Grey’s Cabin-Smoked Cocoa, Cedar, Embers, Black Musk, Copal Bark, Tobacco, Spice
I immediately get cocoa and something old and musty, with a bit of cedar (it kinda reminds me of Gibbon’s Boarding School). As it dries I get a bit more of the smoke, and then finally dries to a soft wood scent. This is a super comforting smell. I put it on before bed and it definitely made me have warm, cozy dreams. I want to stay in Grey’s Cabin, people, let’s make this a real place!

Hidden Lodge-Dry Wood Blend, Oud, Woodsmoke, Spices, Castoreum (Botanical Interpretation)
I’m trying to use my fancy perfume sniffing abilities, but this just smells like really good, comforting, wood. Like I’m in another warm cabin in the middle of the woods. I’m not really able to get an individual notes other than, really cozy wood. On a weirder note, something about this smell reminds me of Mr. Danger? Apparently he smells like wood.

 

Monarch-Rich Red Musk, Fir, Juniper, Cedar, Frankincense, Labdanum, Moss
Oh my. I’m just going to type up what I wrote in my notes: “So good! Musky, masculine, woodsy. That’s some straight sexy forest man. Put that on Mr. Danger. YEAH.”
Sometimes I have these reactions to scents, NOT SORRY. That musk is the business. Then it’s all woodsy goodness. DANG. Since I’m a lady who also loves a good masculine woodsy scent, Mr. Danger and I have been sharing this sample.

Night Watcher-Forest Floor, Tree Tops, Bark, Mountain Air, Fir Balsam, Juniper, Moss, Oud, Dried Herbs, Cedar Tips
I love Solstice Scents’ atmospheric scents, and this one is super lovely. It smells like a beautiful, frozen forest. I feel like I can actually smell the cold ground and the icy trees. I love when scents can evoke these kind of images in my mind. It does sit pretty close to the skin, I wish it had a better throw so everyone knows I smell like a magical forest. (Sometimes after a month or so, perfumes have a better throw on me-I don’t know why, but I’m going to give Night Watcher a chance.)

White Fox- Vanilla Musk, White Fur, Wood Blend, Frozen Dirt, Snow
I get vanilla, soft white musk, and a creamy scent from this. It has a great throw on me, and since it’s so soft, feminine, and subtle I had no problem wearing it to work. It kinda reminds me of a creamier, less minty Snowshoe Pass, which I really love. White Fox has already sold out once on their website, and I understand why because it’s a very universally appealing soft scent. This one is a really safe bet if you want to jump into indie perfumes.

Winter Dove- Vanilla Crystals, Spicy Carnation, Nutmeg, Cream
This is a really well blended scent. I can pick out individual notes, but they merge together perfectly. This is sweet, creamy, and soft, with a hint of spices. Solstice Scents’ description does mention eggnog, and the minute I read that the creamy spice scent clicked-it does smell like eggnog! But not an artificial foodie smell, instead the carnation keeps it floral and feminine, and it eventually dries down to a sweet, flowery scent. (Although even then everything is well blended, so if you don’t like carnations, it’s very subtle.) I kinda imagine a fancy Victorian lady wearing something like this. Very random brain, very random.

Overall: If you love woodsy, atmospheric, or soft scents, you have to try this collection. There are so many beautiful, well blended scents in here. The Woodland Collection perfectly captures a lovely, frozen forest world. (And since I don’t have that firsthand experience, these are even more fun for me.)

So were my predictions on which scents I would love right? I actually think my favorites were: Grey’s Cabin, (it’s going to be my bed time perfume), Monarch, (for Mr. Danger, mostly), and Winter Dove.

I think the only reason White Fox didn’t turn out to be a favorite for me is that it reminded me of Snowshoe Pass, and I like the mint in that one a bit more.

So I was half right. I’m probably going to need more practice before I’m ready to do a blind full size buy. More perfume samples, oh what a world.

Bonus: Discontinued Full Size-
Spellbound Woods-A Soft, Incensy Blend of Vanilla, Sandalwood, Cedar & Amber

I got this for $9, so I didn’t really consider it a huge risk as a blind buy. I knew I liked all of the notes listed and since it was being discontinued, it was try it now or never.

I feel kinda rude reviewing it since it’s now been discontinued, but you never know when a perfume like this might pop up in a Swap or Destash so it might be helpful someday.

Anyway Spellbound Woods is just kinda meh to me. It starts off a bit weird to my nose, too. I think it’s just a lot of vanilla and incense all at once, and my nose interprets that a bit like wet dirt.

However, as it dries it definitely becomes more of a soft vanilla and amber scent. It’s sweet and pleasant enough. Spellbound Woods is just so faint and soft, that it’s hard to get really excited about this scent. I can see myself wearing it in situations where it’s probably not appropriate to smell like forests or smoke, but that’s about it.

I don’t mind that I bought it for $9, but I probably wouldn’t pay more than that for this scent. It’s just a bit boring to me.

Overall: Love you, Solstice Scents! That’s all I really have to say.

-What do you think of the Woodland Collection?
-Have you ever blind bought a full size perfume?
-What are your favorite work appropriate perfume notes?

Love,

Rebs!