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Whildedalay – :
So sad they discontinued this gem. Why did You do this Lush? What a disappointment
gennadii1945 – :
Beautiful and complex. A thick soapy and slightly cloying (which adds to it’s charm) fragrance.
The overwhelming smell of Lily in this is from Lilial which is a synthetic aldehyde used in Laundry powders. This is backed up with cinnamyl alcohol (natural or chemical based) which is also powdery, and has notes of hyacinth. Combined they create quite a punch.
The natural fragrances sit underneath these and I find them difficult to detect as the synthetics remain constant and very loud (which I assume is the intention).
The only way I have been able to unravel Death and Decay is to use it along side Arlesienne by L’Occitane only then can I pick out the Rose (Damascus) and the Tonka.
After quite some time the synthetics start to calm down but they take the natural oils with them so you never get to the stage where the perfume changes and the notes become readily identifiable.
I love Death and Decay and I’m really sorry that it’s been discontinued.
egor79 – :
I liked this a lot a few years ago when lilies were still my favourite flower.
It’s very… clear, stable, calming as some white florals tend to be.
Fits its description on the Lush site very well.
One day I just sort of forgot the dropper bottle at my cousin’s place and never bothered to pick it up, I think I was having a more masculine scent phase and I let her use it up.
I do like it, but it’s not very close to my heart.
I might give it another chance after some time has passed.
DrXoma – :
It smells just like lilies! I love lilies so I am totally into it. It is fresh with a little bit of baby powder. It is exactly the kind of scent you smell in funerals when there is a bunch of flower surrounding you. Overall it just reminds me of my family’s love her lilies. However, the scent is probably to “old” for me, if that makes any sense.
phx642InsuffBooni – :
It smells like public bathrooms, not sure if its an air freshener they use or a toilet cleaner but this smell is very much like it.
starostat.90 – :
I was hoping for indolic and challenging. Death and Decay smells of neither death nor decay but the pearlescent white soap in government bathrooms in the 90s. A positive is that the solid perfume is white/cream so it doesn’t stain your skin or clothes like some of the other pigmented solid scents do.
Angeloflight – :
I am not sure what indole smells like. This did not smell of death or dying flowers to me though. I guess indole is that strange background smell on the initial blast, that quickly turns into fresh cut spring flowers, very green with a hint of rose and tonka (almost marzipan like)in the background. The dry down smells very similar to the Mary Quant perfume in a tin from the 70’s or indeed, Lush’s own 1000 kisses.
I like it but see it as a summer evening or formal occasion scent. No black goth outfits or sexy siren red, more floral wedding guest attire or slinky pastel number. Different from the norm and quite strong. You will get noticed!!
dantistr – :
Absolutely love this perfume – nearly cried when I was told that it had been discontinued. Went to Lush to buy more, and was given the bad news. Tried to find more elsewhere without luck.
a19s69 – :
Just the sickly sweet corpse-like lily I was looking for. Nice goth gf aesthetic, obscenely strong opening, then mellows out to a bready smell close to a diluted red aoud. Amazing quality for the price. I got the dropper bottle because it’s stronger and more complete of a scent than the solid.
budda85 – :
I ordered the solid. Wicked lovely concept, but I feel it just didn’t hit its mark. I expected angsty, vintage-guitar-playing vampires in lacy cravats or whatever. Maybe if the other notes had played a more balanced role, but this was just overwhelmingly WHITE FLORAL. Obnoxiously so. No complexity. It reminded me of a funeral only in that I wanted to avoid it.
Way back in my tweens I had a bottle of some Yves Rocher number that was made with lilies and something spicy and the dichotomy was actually quite lovely, so I really feel like this one just needs to be reworked because the concept is just too cool to abandon.
….now I need to go figure out which Yves Rocher perfume that was. Dangit.
лорд666 – :
I have been told by a sales assistant that it is being discontinued… They are selling their last bottles.
DGQ100 – :
I just received the liquid version of this beauty. I loved the solid so much that after spending some time with it, thought it worth the expenditure in hopes for extra projection and strength. And it delivers.
How do the solid and liquid compare? The liquid is not as waxy/soapy from the container. It also has a bit of a boozy vibe to open, not like an inherent base alcohol blast, but like an intentional note of styrax or extra indole. It does settle down into virtually the same vibrant scent (see my first review a few boxes down), but with with more staying power and sillage.
I just wish that the dropper was a spray instead as I like to apply diffusively instead of on a concentrated spot. Easily fixed with a transfer into an empty spray bottle, however this stuff is strong and one drop from the pipette does the trick, so I’ll be spraying with caution or diluting with some perfumer’s alcohol.
zanozamv – :
I finally tried this today, worrying it would be too indolic, but I don’t find it indolic at all. Lush scents work well with my skin chemistry, I don’t get indoles, Lust is actually a compliment getter for me even from perfume haters! 🙂 Anyway, I found this disappointing because it was just soapy and clinical. Nothing dark, gothic, or even sexual. Just hospital bathroom soap. Oh well.
Ваньшин – :
Buxom, thriving, flourishing. Death and Decay is a fully realized, optimistic flower in the height of its beauty; a truly superb operatic aria.
This lily is narcotic and mature, heavily laden with dark orange pollen and reeking with an indolic sap. A little spicy, like a hint of metallic clove accents this beauty. Any fuller and her petals would be falling and her pollen littering the stage with rust; right on the verge of decay.
I am madly in love with this scent. I had sampled a few lilies recently in my quest for the perfect one. And here she is, thanks to a beautiful Fragrantican who gifted this to me.
This is the perfume solid. I see chimidoro’s observation below that this is spicier than the liquid perfume, so I’ll be sticking to the solid because this scent is perfection. The texture also feels like waxy petals which adds to the experience. I think this lily-bomb will be fantastic for layering too. So pleased, I haven’t been so unexpectedly seduced by a fragrance like this for a long time.
yak_80 – :
I love this scent. I’m talking the liquid version.
I wonder why Fragrantica’s note list tells that it has lily, powdery notes and spicy notes, and nothing else. You can go Lush’s own page and see that it’s listed ylang ylang oil, tonka absolute,rose oil, jasmine absolute, and indole. Also there’s lily note ( not lily-of-the-valley) but I don’t know if it’s natural or not (go and look, maybe you understand better).
This is really really beautiful floral perfume. Im going to add that in my collection as soon as possible.
Edit, February 2018: I never thought that they would discontinue this beauty. Lush changed almost the whole collection, and I never got this. When I went finally to buy this, they said it doesn’t exist anymore. I’m so disappointed…
arthur 01 – :
a different scent. but it smells like rotten cemetery flowers. But I appreciate the aroma diversity.
sem97 – :
A gorgeous, delectably soapy, spiced & silken, moist & musky lily.
This scent is in the same vein as The Body Shop’s original White Musk oil (which I love), only cooler/crisper/more biting in character, with less notes & boasting a dominant, all-encompassing focus on the lily.
Striking shades of Donna Karan’s Gold are also apparent here, but I find that rather sickly sweet, too strong and too dry for my taste.
I smell no lily of the valley here.
(Appreciate & agree with Calvini’s review.)
Powdery, but not overly “tonka bean style” dry.
Soapy, though not overtly aldehydic.
Creamy, yet not overly vanillic.
The solid is a touch spicier than the liquid version.
I was actually put in mind of a good korma the first time I smelled the solid. (Please don’t let that put you off!)
This is one of those scents that I’ve often applied before bed. A classic, ladylike scent, I assume is intended for evening wear.
I often find myself opening the bottle to take a sly sniff of the dropper rather than to apply to my skin.
I adore LUSH’s Death & Decay & hope it remains available indefinitely. (Though I’m upset by the price hike….)
Skin close, initially with soft to arm’s length projection. Subtle but lasting.
vasyan_eagle – :
At this point you’ll have to admit that the Gorilla perfume house has no difficulties going even anti-marketing when they feel like. Presenting really non-conformist art concepts is already forceful, but look at how easily they’ve launched a product with this sinister name and such an awful smell. Similarly, launching a supposedly dystopian perfume describing it by words such as ’’unnerving, unsettling, disjointed, fractured” and “bitterness’’ (see: The Bug) – doesn’t this all go against marketing as we know it today? Still, these shelves at the shops can be sustained the way they are by the support of all the other popular products that they’re trading (as I figure). Anyways, all I can smell here is a badly scented floor cleaner version of pungent, unpleasant, artificial lily and nothing else. I like, however, the idea that at funerals a lot of lily is used, hence they present a lily perfume with this name.
TLDR: The worst of any Lush perfumes I’ve ever smelt and the biggest rock and roll concept of theirs.
sergio9977 – :
To me this is very nice and natural; it’s fresh, clean/soapy & dirty/musky at the same time, and not really sweet (unlike most other well-known lily fragrances). It feels rather serene as opposed to anything rotten, which is the true message of this fragrance: Acceptance and peace with death.
*BTW true lilies and lily of the valleys are actually quite different; they’re both monocots but are in different order & family… This is not an interpretation of the latter
makrushnik – :
Tried a sample. BLEECH!. All I got from this was a cheap, overpowering lily scent. It could have benefited from combining dank earth with a sickly sweet lily and violet scent; if it wanted to convey death. Be bolder with creating a fragrance that represents such finality.
hag266Unlogrere – :
A great lily fragrance. The opening smells just like inflateable plastic lilos lol It settles quickly and then its all about lilies but there is not a lot of powderiness on me. Im not getting much spice but there is some sweetness. Not too much though. Im sure I can detect musk which is stopping the lily from being to screechy. Moderate sillage and lasts for a good few hours. A nice fragrance for a summer evening.
maestrodog – :
Despite their names, Death and Decay is almost a mirror image of Lush’s Vanillary. While in Vanillary the dominant sweetness of vanilla and tonka is cut by the fresher but still heady scent of white flowers, in Death and Decay the white flowers are rounded out by vanilla and tonka.
Ylang-ylang and jasmine dominate throughout, from the opening to the dry down. Without the name, I’m not sure I’d have caught lily at all, unless the powdery base is lily pollen. Rose makes a cameo appearance in the heart notes, while vanilla and tonka bean add warmth and creaminess.
This scent is noticeably indolic, which is an uneasy combination with the gourmand notes, and goes some way to explaining why Death and Decay is so polarising. A smidge more sweetness and it would turn from slightly overripe to positively rotting.
I don’t associate Death and Decay with serenity, or even solemn funeral flowers. It’s more like a busy flower market at the end of a hot day, when some of the plants are starting to turn, and others have been crushed under foot.
This all sounds rather unpleasant, but in fact I return to Death and Decay again and again. Like a song that grows on you the more you hear it, this scent is intriguing and unusual. It’s another Lush experiment that manages to create an interesting, challenging scent with just a handful of notes – and a successful one in my opinion.
речной дозор – :
“lily with over-ripe tones of indole”
Basically…. lily (funeral scent) pumping out ripe indole (feces scent) accurately creating death and decay. If white florals work with your skin chemistry this might just be an interesting and soft scent. Very similar to demeter’s “funeral” which is an overload of lilies, but with baby powder and hints of rot.
White florals + me = literal death and decay
Gunalas – :
I’m very negative about this one. To me it smells like dove soap with a hint of pigeon. If I read it back is funny, but really I do smell pigeon with dove soap. I absolutely dislike it. I throw it away. Oh… I also don’t like the dropper, I prefer a spray bottle.
4ernij – :
I sniffed this at a Lush store and thought it was the most repulsive thing I’d ever smelled! No floral, no powder, just rot…
krivonosmu – :
Very indolic white lilies and jazmine. Reminds me of my beloved Jazmín en Crema by Vizcántar, with its oily, very indolic bottom. Also reminds me of some vintage floral scents by Myrurgia. It’s powdery, comforting, soooo vintage and intoxicating. Only for people who appreciate some dirt and indole in their fumes, not a clean, innocent or youthful floral. It goes rather strong at first but does not last long in my skin,only about two or three hours and it becomes a skin scent, like an expensive floral soap. I find this elegant and propper for a spring day, does not smell of funerals to me perhaps for the different cultural background (in my country the funeral flowers are chrysanthemums and carnations while lilies are more liturgical). It has a certain melancholic quality anyway. Love the packaging, sooooo much reminds me of a potion out of Harry Potter books, more so as it’s mainly a lily powerhouse. This could have easily been one of Severus Snape’s concoctions dedicated to the memory of his beloved Lily Evans. I’m not ashamed to admit I bought it for the Harry Potter connection and the lovely packaging. A bit too expensive, won’t repurchase as Jazmín en Crema de Vizcántar and Nebras by Al Rehab satisfy my taste for white florals at a much lower price and last much longer on my skin.
zhukovski ura – :
I’m torn about this fragrance. The first hour or so of wear is lovely, overripe lilies with a lot of powder, it smells very vintage without being “old lady”-ish. The overripe lily I feel can be polarizing, the note comes off very sweet and somewhat musky. However, I feel like you need to be careful while applying because this stuff is STRONG. Not only on skin, any fabric this touches will have the smell of Death and Decay for days, and this smell can easily can be overpowering, suffocating, and even nauseating in excess. After a few hours a note begins to appear that, to be blunt, smells like poop. Like, actual poop. When I first smelled this note I had no idea where it was coming from until I realized it was Death and Decay.
TL;DR It smells like a powdery floral at first, then morphs into what can only be put as flowers and poop.
deansam – :
To me this is a perfume a vampire would wear… narcotic and mesmerizing, so evocative!
vache2000 – :
Okay. This is just me being me, BUT, everytime I apply this from this little dropper applicator, and see the red and green label saying “Death and Decay” – I just get the strongest Harry Potter vibes. This is like the perfume I got from a shady perfumery in Knockturn Alley. This is a poison. This smells like strong white lilies and lily of the valley. This will make Severus Snape fall in love with me for sure. This is life.
I almost apply this with a screeching laughter…. “Almost”
sata – :
I wrote my previous review of Death and Decay last year. Then life (and death) happened, and I was caring for a dying person I was very fond of, often wearing this scent while doing so. After she’d passed away, I swapped my bottle, as I did not bear to smell it. Too many associations. I promised myself, though to wait and buy it again in due time. The due time came today, but this time round I went for the solid, as the liquid perfume is of monster strenght.
I do not want to write another review here, just want to share something interesting I heard in a podcast with Carla Valentine, curator of Barts Pathology Museum in London. According to what she said, indole, the chemical we all know so very well from jasmine and other white flowers, can also be found in coffee, chocolate, semen, poop (we also knew that one, right?), of course all kinds of perfumes and last but not least decomposing bodies! Call me morbid, but I find it somehow touching and beautiful. This faithful little aromachemical accompanies us from our conception via all the delights and necessities of life till death and beyond. How nice! From now on, I will officially think of indole as the bridge between this side of the Styx and the Big Unknown Beyond.
Hm. I am happy to own this little beauty again!
Ymid – :
A discreet and beautiful scent with fresh smelling dewy lilies and narcotic sweet ylang ylang, with a tiny amount of spices in the background, something like cinnamon. Together it creates a calming light white floral scent with chamomille tea in the evening. Light and non-offensive, yet suitable for winter and fall as well as the spring and summer.
acendflense – :
Death and decay is a true winner. I did not realize this was such a polarizing fragrance!
Death and Decay (as explained to me by a store rep in Tokyo, Japan) is not being interpreted correctly. It is meant to represent and highlight its main note of Lily of the Valley in all of its stages of life from vegetative, to floral, to full bloom and then into decay.
The funeral flower (lily) is alive and well i assure you. This is a lush green floral, a beautiful and new idea that carves its way into my heart through its use of natural oils, its balanced and well blended composition and its polarizing affects on people.
Namesake aside, this awesome fragrance is long lasting, stunning stuff.
I’m enamored. I call it a winner in my book!
Amigo1964 – :
Death and decay is a lovely thick floral with an overall feeling of lily-of-the-valley, reminiscent of both Idylle and Diorissimo, but less dry and more juicy vegetal, perhaps due to the fact that this one contains some true essential oils (not all natural).
The name is weird and not nice, buut an SA explained the personal experience behind this name. Being lilies typically a funeral flower, one could be mislead, but if you step over this concept you will have a nice thick floral with a fresh edge and quite contemplative. As for many Lush perfumes the final effect and performance are different from mainstream. It smells more of a vegetal smell rather than a trendy smell.
It’s an oil so very longlasting, but not very projective.
lucifer25bkru – :
Smells a bit like a florist shop, lilies and roses, carnations for the spicy touch, and may be jasmine, sliglty wilting flowers….may be wreaths. Indolic flowers.
I can see where the name come from, my mum never liked lilies flowers because “they smell like a cemetery”. Well…I really like the smell of florist shops, but I know where this comes from.
Liked it, actually, just tried it on paper, but it’s good.
aspepDipnem – :
This is a sad perfume. It smells like flowers on a casket. It’s like an old lady perfume, only the old lady has died
Zoneg – :
Powdery lilies! Strong yet intimate, like a very perfumey floral body lotion on a sunkissed femal skin. Intense, longlasting. Death and decay? I would rather say HEAVEN.
Divide et impera – :
If you want a perfume smelling of a decaying corpse, gravedirt and slow decomposition, search elsewhere. This is not it. Death and Decay is a lovely, quiet, meditative, melancholy floral. In its mood I could compare it to Lutens’s De Profundis, althought they are very different fumes. D&D features powdery florals, probably lilly, ylang-ylang, jasmine and rose. It does remind one of a funeral parlour with large bouquets and wreath of lillies and roses, but the flowers feel somehow muted and distant, as if looked at through tears. I would only wear this fragrance for myself on long autumnal walks, when one contemplates the impermanence of everything, remembers departed loved ones and looks forward to long, long winter evenings. Interesting and beautiful perfume!
Update (15/8) I bought a bottle of this perfume yesterday in the lovely little Gorilla Perfumes Shop in London, and I must slightly amend my review.
Probably I put very little on the smelling strip when I tried it at the launch, because it is not muted at all! It is a rather strong floral perfume, and a rather realistic one, too. It is strong and vivid, one drop is perfectly enough for the whole day. It lasts and lasts forever. I applied my drop at 2 pm, and now at 10 pm it still goes strong. The Death and Decay subject may be expressed by the fact that what I am experiencing is the fragrance of lilies at the precise point in time when they are just about to start wilting. They still look wonderful, but…you know that fragrance of flowers when they’ve reached their peak and start to slowly turn towards decay. This perfume captures just that moment. Beautiful!
ZelinkA – :
agree that the prices are a bit on the high side even here at my place in asia
this is a must try for me though, im curious how they do lilies.. hope it reaches Lush shops here