Going to go a little different than the usual today - my Little & Grim upsize order came in recently and:
1) It contained a ton of cut lil addins like candy and stickers and sPoOkY CoNfeTtI.
2) The whole thing looked so good together that I wanted to lead with a photo this time.
So I'm going to skip the methods and bottle reviews sections on this one and lead with the photo. I only reviewed one perfume and with the other products (the soap and the lotion) I just used it like standard - took a bath with the soap then applied the lotion afterwards. Little and Grim's dram bottles seem standard and non-leaky and I love her labeling.
What's being covered in today's review is
- Little & Grim's Lotion [ store link ]
- Little & Grim's No Frills Soap Bar [ store link ]
- Light as a Feather [ store link ]
Soap ( Aleuromancy )
Texture/Appearance: It’s a glycerin soap bar - so soft, smooth, almost gel-like in texture. It’s a little sticky to the touch fresh out of the packaging. I got the ‘no frills’ version of the soap bar and while a simple bar shape it does have a lovely glittery purple-sheen to the bar.
Performance: Seemed standard for a glycerin soap bar - nice lather both in the shower pouf and on skin (more fluffy from the pouf of course). Like most glycerin soaps it melts very quickly when in contact with water - I’d recommend indirect use with a washcloth or pouf to make the bar last as long as possible.
Official Notes/Scent Analysis: Almond cookies dripping with sweetness and secrets. Notes of almond, chocolate, tonka, sandalwood, musk, ylang ylang, bergamot, cashmere, vanilla, and caramel, in bed.
This is one where I tried the perfume version of it before trying the soap version. You can read my thoughts on the scent in perfume form [ here ].
I found this to be very similar to the perfume in its wet stage - though with a bit more of a cookie ‘kick’ to it. It smells a lot like rich, slightly salty caramel-almond cookie dough wreathed in a touch of florals and cashmere. After my bath with it my skin had a very, very, very faint hint of cookies to it.
Verdict: Exactly what I was hoping for from a glycerin soap! I think I’d like this even more as a cold press soap. I also got a bar of Tell Tale which I haven’t tried yet, but sniffing it it smelled true to the Tell Tale perfume as I recall it. Will probably be picking up more L&G soaps in the future in scents I like best in their wet stages or that I think will work best for bath time.
Lotion ( Ectoplasm )
As a note: This is coconut oil free (and in fact, free of most oils other than shea butter and sunflower oil). It does contain a silicone (dimethicone) for those trying to go silicone free.
Texture: Very thick and soft while still qualifying as a ‘lotion’. Think about the thickness of the dessert called pudding in the US. The lotion soaks in quickly leaving a slightly smooth matte texture behind but no oiliness.
Performance: So I’m trying this one on now, as we speak, as an after-bath lotion.
I liked the texture of it on my hands, dry (psoriasis ridden) spots and my face. A lotion that sinks in quickly while still retaining moisture is very important to me. It seems to be holding the water in well - but I’m not sure about the long term performance. The soft, buttery matte coating left on skin adds that bit of slip to the skin without it feeling greasy or oily - more just ‘smooth’.
Official Notes/Scent Analysis: pineapple, lemon, and key lime pies, made with buttery dough and topped with coconut vanilla meringue.
This is one where I tried the perfume version of it before trying the lotion version. You can read my thoughts on the scent in perfume form [ here ].
When it goes on it smells like the perfume does wet - cookies and ecto-cooler. On my skin the scent is present but quickly reduces to the subtle level I like in my lotions. That is, it’s there but it provides more of a base to layer scents on than dominating on its own. Up close to my skin - like, nose touching my skin - there is a slightly chemical, ash-like note. It’s very faint though and doesn’t impact my enjoyment of the lotion. I’m not sure if it’s part of the lotion itself or part of one of the notes (perhaps the lime).
Verdict: Presuming it locks in moisture well long term (it's locked it in well for the entirety of me writing this and getting the post up) I will definitely be reordering for L&G scents I think will work well as lotions.
Light as a Feather
In the bottle: A curious scent: At the top I’m getting something creamy and floral plus a citrus. The floral is not too sweet - a little astringent (maybe an orchid?). The citrus type scent is also a little astringent and bitter. The creamy scent is a little sweet - but not overly so. Think lotion, or maybe a white musk.
The midnotes are a little green, but not overly so. Maybe an aloe or something? Below that is a bright resin paired with a tiny bit of dark incense (reminds me of a nag champa).
The whole scent is a contrast between light not-too-sweet scents layered over creamy and a bit green… and then at the base you have resin and earthy incense.
Wet on my skin: Oh, there’s the sweet. Very sweet, sugary candied fruit at the top. Pineapple and apricot hard candies. Very sweet, very sticky. Beneath that is the slightly-green aloe-like scent and just a whisper of creamy. Maybe a tiny edge of the floral. At the base you have the resin blending with the fruits to add to that candied quality and just a faint hint of that earthy incense.
Overall it’s dark, very sweet, fruity candy framed by other light scents and sitting atop a resinous and earthy base.
Drydown: The fruit dies back, but still remains stronger than it was in the bottle. I’m getting the pineapple and I think apricot - it’s not a citrus type fruit, more rounded and dark. Beneath the fruit getting that creaminess, and the floral is back. There’s that bit of green and I feel like I’m now getting just a touch of mint? Or maybe that’s cross contamination from something? It’s tangy and a little ozonic.
Still got a bright resinous base with a touch of earthy incense.
Overall a dark-bitter fruity scent tempered heavily now by that creamy scent and the floral. A whisper of green is in there that kind of reminds me of a mint. Underneath it all is a resin and a tiny bit of earthy incense.
After 45 mins:
So I did a couple of stupid things. Though I swirled the oil before I put it on I was like “hm, I wonder what happens if I shake this” and I shook the bottle and it went cloudy and I was like ‘OH NO was it blended enough on application??” so I applied it again to my skin about three inches away from the original application site with nary a thought of cross contamination running through my head.
So, to report on what I learned:
This smells about the same, with maybe some more vanilla nuances coming out, when applied after being shaken.
When it’s fresh it is stronger… which made me kind of scent blind to the OG application site. By taking breaks and checking it seems like the OG application site is wearing fainter than a fresh application but certainly hasn’t completely faded. I’m getting a scent cloud 3-4 inches away, and at least some throw. I don’t know if the throw is from the fresh or the totally dried down.
As for how it smells: At the original application site, from best I can tell it’s roughly stable to the drydown. Maybe a smidge less fruitiness and less of the green scent.
Official Notes: Cherries, black currants, Granny Smith apples, mulberries, and white peaches, vanilla marshmallows and strawberry cotton candy, roses, jasmine, and freesia, and a dusting of cashmere, musk, and sandalwood.
So, all the berries and fruits blended to the point that it smelled like pineapples and apricots to me. The Strawberry cotton candy must be that sugary-sweet scent that comes out when it’s wet but fades as it dries down. I can see the jasmine with the word in front of me it’s golden and part of what I was reading as resin. The other floral I’m getting is the freesia… and I also wonder if that’s what I’m reading as green.
Of the fruits the ones that stand out are the apples, mulberries, and peaches. Knowing they’re there I can pick out all three of them. The black currants might be in the base (more on that later)... but I don’t get much of the cherries.
The cashmere is also another one I can see with the word in front of me: It’s what I was describing as creamy… but it’s really obviously cashmere when it’s described. If any note dominates this scent it’s this - where it blends with the fruit it gives it a dark, rich character. It also blends with the rose in a way that reminds me of orchids.
The vanilla marshmallows are that little bit of vanilla I’m getting. The sandalwood is the bright resin at the base. The nag champa scent I think is a combination of the earthiness of the black currants combined with the musk.
I wish I knew what in here smelled a tiny bit like mint. Honestly I’ve got no clue.
Over all a dark, sweet (though perhaps not as sweet as you’d expect), cashmere-fruity-floral scent with some resinous and earthy nuances.
Verdict: This was a far darker scent than I expected. Appropriate given the theme (Stiff as a Board, Light as a Feather 2 spooky). I see all these notes and I expected ‘Bright!’ but no, it’s a spooky twist on traditionally bright notes. It’s balanced - and I recommend it to fans of cashmere scents or dark fruity-floral fans. I think if you really like houses like Hexennacht or Sixteen92 that this one might fit well with your tastes.
For me it might be a smidge too dark without an edge/something sharp in there to break up the slightly-sweet-bitter-darkness. It’ll probably be one that goes into my swaps/resell pile.
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