When I first heard it's name, Smuggler's Soul evoked quite a number of scent-combinations for me, none of which match up with the one that Lush chose to give it. It's quite an odd name for a perfume and comes from the story of Veerappen - a notorious sandalwood smuggler who killed over a hundred people during his time and was later shot in 2004 - following a long struggle between himself and the government.
When you read the full extent of the situation, you find yourself asking; 'how can you possibly create a scent that goes with this story?'. Yet, Lush have somehow managed to do this - creating a unique, complex and rather beautiful fragrance unlike anything I've have ever smelt before.
Much like the solid edition, this liquid perfume features two different types of sandalwood, both of which add a strong, smokey note to the fragrance. In the bottle, this element of the scent is somewhat thwarted by the lemongrass which gives the perfume a sickly and slightly sour citrus element. However, once Smuggler's Soul gets onto your skin, it offers a far richer and more complex woody aroma.
Alongside the smokiness of the wood, there is a definite layer of both vetivert and tagetes, which combined give this perfume a naturally sweet and slightly floral smell. The sandalwood compliments these two ingredients wonderfully - giving the perfume a far deeper and warmer aroma without being too intoxicating. The lemongrass is still very much present on the skin but it isn't as acidic as it is in the bottle, and instead enriches the perfume with it's fresh, uplifting and slightly grassy-green scent. What I love about Smuggler's Soul is that the scent continues to develop long after you've applied it to the skin. Within twenty minutes or so, I noticed that the woody notes had begun to disperse a little whilst the other layers remained vibrant and very much present. Over time, this allows the perfume to mature and when this happened, it reminded me very slightly of Dear John. Lush describe this perfume as being 'deep, dangerous and intoxicating' and claim that it will 'enrapture your heart'. While the fragrance doesn't incite any illegal activity out of me, it has cemented itself as a firm favourite, and here's why;
Despite the solid variation being a little weak in scent, the liquid version is long-lasting and far more charismatic. It's a wonderfully rich and multi-layered unisex aroma that I can see being signature scents for many people. I found that Smuggler's Soul stayed with me for a good 4-5 hours and continued to offer a light, refreshing yet equally comforting smell that brightened my day up immensely.
This is one of the most expensive Lush perfumes, coming in at £18 for a 10ml bottle. However, you really don't need to use a lot of this each use so it will last you a lot longer than other perfumes. This is a fragrance that just keeps on giving and one you'll want to encase yourself in during those hot, summer days. It's well worth the investment and I will be buying myself an extra-large bottle next time I visit the store.
Quantitative Ingredients: DRF Alcohol, Perfume, Indian Sandalwood Oil (Santalum album), Sandalwood Oil (Santalum austro-caledonicum vieill), Madagascan Vetivert Oil (Vetiveria zizanoides), Tagetes Oil (Tagetes minuta), Lemongrass Oil (Cymbopogon citratus), Benzyl Alcohol, Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Salicylalte, Citral, Coumarin, Eugenol, Farnesol, Geraniol, Isoeugenol, Limonene, Linalool, Methyl Ionone.
Vegan?: Yes.
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