Sage Machado- Onyx Perfume Oil

I mentioned last week that I'm on a weird coconut kick. It was about food, not perfume, but it did made me reach for the one and only coconut perfume in my collection, Onyx by Sage Machado (there's a coconut note in some other favorites, such as Hypnotic Poison, Un Bois Vanille, and Premier Figuier Extreme, but it's in a supporting role). It occurred to me that I never dedicated an actual review to this sweet gem other than a quick post from years ago about my realization that  most men don't like coconut.  Back then I talked about the "night in the tropics vibe" I got from the eau de toilette version of Onyx. But the one I love and wear nowadays is the original version, Sage Machado's Onyx perfume oil. This one is far less beachy and has no white gauzy dress whirling around in the nocturnal breeze.

What we get from Onyx in oil form is a darker, slightly bewitching vibe. It's lace and velvet, antique Victorian jewelry, all layered over warm and flushed skin. The gourmand facets are mostly when you first apply the oil (I usually go to town with it, just because it's so delectable). Coconut, toasted slightly beyond the edible point, so there's already some smokiness there even before the sweet pipe tobacco takes its place right and center. The latter is much more complex than you'd expect from a "coconut oil". The atmosphere is thick, and there's a very raw oakmoss note there that gives a strong tactile feel, like layers upon layers of plush fabrics. The vanilla base actually lifts the fragrance. It's sweet enough to cheer you up, but not quite puddingy, which is fine with me. I wouldn't want to lose the uniqueness that sets Onyx apart from simple vanilla-coconut oils.

As the hours go by (Onyx stays put for more than 12 hours), the fragrance develops a sweet muskiness. It's soft and comforting, far less sinister than steampunk mystery I smell earlier. It's fun  to wear, maybe somewhat of a guilty pleasure, and very sexy-- even the man who won't touch a macaroon likes it on me.

Notes: black coconut, tobacco, oakmoss, vanilla, amber, musk.

Image: Tropic of Cancer - The Sorrow of Two Blooms (album cover)

Onyx by Sage Machado ($45, 1/8 oz. roll-on) is available from Luckyscent and thesagelifestyle.com.