Nocturne is everything: goth girl, grunge girl, 2am clove cigarette girl. It smells like rose petals left on black lace, like incense curling through vintage flannel, like your favorite tee that’s been soaking up record store air and mystery. It instantly takes me back to my 90s grunge days—dark, sexy, sweetly defiant. The rose here isn’t prim or polite—it’s moody, grown, and a little wild. Paired with plummy richness, a kiss of clove, and smoky incense, it becomes this vampy, lived-in scent that’s both nostalgic and edgy.
And then there’s that unexpected, addictive clean note—like laundry that’s been air-drying in a room full of vinyl, candles, and secrets. It’s not your fresh-out-the-dryer “clean girl” scent; it’s the cool girl who lives above the record shop, who listens to Mudhoney and Soundgarden, who leaves behind a trace of patchouli and mystery wherever she goes.
The patchouli in this? Sinfully good. The pink pepper, ambrette, and benzoin just wrap it all in a warmth that lingers like your favorite song on repeat.
Out of all the MDA fragrances I’ve tried (and loved), Nocturne might just be the one. A total LOVE love.
Interesting… I thought this was going to be more of an incense fragrance but it’s very plum forward on the opening, and then the rose. I didn’t get much incense until the dry down and you REALLY got to get in there to detect it. Dry down is also a bit…. grandma? It’s an interesting fragrance, I will say that. I will have to wear it a few more times and let it react to the weather plus my chemistry.
You have an idea of what you're in for with an incense-forward scent - but you won't be prepared for the ooooh that comes after. This one hits. Hard.
I could see Neve Campbell's character in The Craft, Bonnie Harper, wearing this. Or BTSO releasing something similar. Per the brand, "This is the taste of a clove cigarette in the back of the club. This is sexy goth girl laundry. Unique, dark, clean and also dirty.". This is a very accurate image. Immediately, with the first spray you get smoky plum, not clean smoke, cigarettes old and new and plum that is both fresh and almost over-ripe, a tinge of sour. Patchouli that is a little musty and a litte sweet, the dried sweat and cosmetics after a night of dancing. And somehow it works. The plum lingers under the spicy clove and changing smoke, not quite fruity, the gorgeous goth girl with a wicked grin. I'm quite enamored with the fragrance. Not blind-buy or office safe, unless you don't work in corporate/adjacent. Solid longevity and projection, not kicking you in the teeth or choking a room, but certainly noticeable.
This fragrance made me HAPPY! As a Goth kid back in my late teens and early 20's I can definitely say that this captures everything... including the cheeky nod to clove cigarettes! I am still attracted to dark/smokey scents and this didn't disappoint. I can't wait to try more of these fragrances! And I'm always happy to support small businesses back in my beloved Maryland.
Although this one didnt work for me, my friend lover it so much that i gave it to her. I am moving away and she will think of me when she wears it. To me it lives in the same genre as heretic perfumes- which i mean in a complimentary way. Although for me, this fragrance was much more accessible.
Stunning!
Been meaning to try this for months. The plum and incense go well together
These fragrances are just so haunting. I havent found one from this house that I didn’t want more of. I’ll be ordering full bottles of more of them. Beautiful!
It’s like if I bottled my years as a traveling goth anarchist dancer in my twenties but better.
Unique.. long lasting and highly recommended
Very incense heavy
goth girl is pretty spot on. I don't like the top notes, it has a pungent alcohol smell, like rubbing alcohol. Once it settles, the smell of unlit tobacco remains. I am surprised I like it, bc I was more interested in the rose qualities, and it really doesn't have that. It's pheromone tobacco. Like a 90s goth dance floor with underfed skinny people sweating - but it's appealing. I know my description is almost gross. I am really considering getting the full size.
This fragrance house continues to produce superior creations. Nocturn is excellent!
I had an image of this fragrance being my holy grail of rebellious goth scents, but it turned out to be one for rose lovers instead. It took a bit to get past the opening, which was a cacosmia of rose and bug spray, with hints of leather and food garbage. Luckily, the negative notes burned off, leaving me with a very green rose and cloves. The cloves melt away, and the rose changes a couple more times, first smelling like a Taif rose and then becoming more scratchy. Acquiring notes like celery and grapefruit, it started reminding me of what I dislike about Guidance. Honestly, for the right rose lover, this is going to be a love. My 2-star rating is for how it works for my nose and skin, but there is certainly artistry here.
Since I got this in my discovery set, I haven’t worn anything else. It is perfectly Smokey, heavy and thick. And the full size bottle is a MIST and I’m obsessed.
This was free in my sample pack. And I am HAPPY. Do you like smelling of old Catholic Churches on a High Holy day? That rich incense mixed with flowers? GET THIS. Its smooth, not the cheap head shop incense. I wear this at night before bed and smell it in the morning. Full bottle here I come
So I fell in total LOVE with Nocturn after trying it in a sample kit, and as soon as the sample ran out I went right ahead and ordered a full bottle. But...it's practically a different perfume from what I sampled. The smoky, rosy and clean notes don't come through at all. It's kind of just balsamic and incense-y, and it doesn't last even half as long as the sample did. I don't know if I got a dud bottle or what, but it seems like there might be quality control/consistency issues, which is a shame because the sample was an instant fave.
I had really high hopes, but was disappointed. This smelled like a patchouli mixture that those that partake in Marijuana to mask the skunky smell.
This is the goth girl perfume of my dreams
Dark plum notes with an ambrette tdf! Hinted by incense to give some resinous depth. This is a wonderful obscure gem
This is amazing. Seriously. Get a sample, blind buy a bottle, just get some. This is the goth perfume of my dreams, and I've been a goth a long time.
The rose doesn’t smell dirty to me. It’s very clean rose in fact. Seems like the scent is a little confused on the assignment. Opposites not playing well together. Maybe less fruity and more dark? Bump up all those dirty base notes and this might shine (like a black light though of course)
I got this in a group of samples. All of which smelled awful. Very disappointed.
Smells like black lights and neon, incense and nighttime. Love it.
This is a fragrance for Friday or Saturday night. Intriguing and addictive.
This scent, immediately off first spritz, made me, my mom, and my sister so so happy. My dad, who normally can't handle strong fragrances, enjoyed this one as well. It smells like incense during a pooja. It's definitely very strong and will float around you during the day, which I personally don't want in a perfume, but it was lovely, and if I didn't commit to buying only one perfume from the Winter Collection, I would have bought this one for my sister.
The balance between sweet vanilla, dark fruit, clean musk and warm resinous spicy goodness in Nocturn is sublime. The opening is really nice, the dry down however, is spectacular.
Better than Closer but still not for me.
Very unique and intriguing and I picked this up because of a comment about it smelling like "goth girl laundry. I completely agree. There is a very clean, almost soapiness to it, but with a dark side. Like Irish Spring just kicked a heroin habit maybe. To be honest, when I first sprayed it, I gave it a second and thought it was only okay. But the next day, I put on the shirt I had been wearing the day before and it smelled so good, it took me a minute to realize it was nocturn from the day before. I went back and sprayed it on again, and now I am spraying it compulsively. Will absolutely get a full bottle in the future.