Stereoplasm: Chiptune 2020 Collection Review

Bringing to you the entire Chiptune Collection from Stereoplasm, released during the Spring of 2020! This collection is such a cute aesthetic and the concept behind it I really loved - to me this is equal parts Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley, and I have a real soft spot for Animal Crossing music for all the times they've taken me through last minute work deadlines. The collection has 12 scents, all of which are incredibly evocative of some amazing adventures that I've been enjoying purely through my Nintendo Switch during this whole -waves hand- y'know. 

While you read this, feel free to listen to an Animal Crossing/Stardew Valley ambience mix - that was my entire playlist while writing this review! It's also one which I unashamedly replay with a passionate fervor during all assignments, so I have a real fondness for this mix. 

Some notes about this collection: I found most of these blends relatively straight-forward with notes that were actually very easy to pick out during blind tests. Additionally, most of them had a wear life of 4-5 hours, and none of them were as quick to vanish on my skin as some other scents I've tried from Stereoplasm (eg. Orange is Technicolor). Most of them also had relatively linear wear, with some notable exceptions that have been explicitly listed. 

CHIPTUNE - SPRING 2020

Cotton Barrel - (raw cotton/cork/fougere/white oak) - Brushed and ginned cotton in a corked oak barrel (found behind the “Cork & Hammock factory” east of the white oak forest).

As someone who's never really been a huge purveyor of green scents, I had no idea what fougere was until this scent. As Google kindly informs me, fougeres comes from French, meaning 'fern' or 'fern-like', and typically has a dry, grassy profile to the scent. It's one of those scent families like 'florals' or 'chypre', and typically features notes such as vetiver, geranium or oakmoss. 

This scent opens up as one of those laundry powder scents, all starchy sheets and pressed linen, and the satisfying warm scent of smelling your sheets out of the dryer. I love how textured the cotton note in this blend is, which I don't often get with 'laundry scents', although about 15-20 minutes after dry down there's a mossy, green edge that starts to bloom. During the wear, I increasingly got this rich dark, emerald green tone splashed across a pale ecru sheet. This reminds me a little bit of Wasp (Nui Cobalt Designs), the same clean and green elements, although this is definitely much more like walking into a drying laundry, and then realizing you've stumbled into a rich tropical greenhouse. 

I think this scent would be a great entry scent for someone who's either looking to branch to greens, but aren't quite willing to wade into the corn fields just yet. I personally loved how vibrant of a picture I got when I wore this, which I definitely think is one of the best parts of this collection - everything just feels super evocative. 

Perfect for: Wandering in the woods with your freshly pressed cotton frock, clean apron, until you inevitably stain it with grass, moss and dirt while foraging for mushrooms. 

Sand Euspira: (sea salt/dried sea weed/ocean/shell accord) - Small, extremely fragile blue and white shell, fresh and salty-aquatic! (often found on Bearclaw Beach)

Despite not really being a huge 'aquatic' fan, I am always on the hunt for the perfect 'ocean' scent because I've always lived in coastal areas, near a lot of beaches and the sea. The scent of the sea tinged at sunset, when the breeze carries the scent of the ocean, walking along the beach, it's one of my favorite scents. Having brought this scent to the beach as well, I now have bits of sand trapped in the cap. 

Sand Euspira, however, is really all seaweed. The scent has a lot of similarities to Sea of Grey (Solstice Scents) but without the vanilla, with the same dark green seaweed drifting around lazily in a murky ocean, and the smell of seaweed that's been washed up on the shore. It also smells stale docks, brine, and incredible algae growth that threatens to overtake the wooden piers. There's also a slight saltiness, like the way your fingers taste after picking up broken white shells on the beach, with the stickiness of dried saltwater on your thighs. 

It's definitely safe to say, this scent is an aquatic, but it leans green because of all the heavy seaweed and algae notes - and definitely isn't quite as salty as Monster Parts. I enjoyed this scent, because it really felt like my favorite parts of Sea of Grey (which I have to admit, I really did not enjoy and ended up scrubbing). As a scent, Sand Euspira is a linear, cohesive blend that screams, "I dragged myself out the depths of the ocean". While it isn't exactly the nostalgic blend of sunsets by the ocean, I can't say it's not an eerie representation of something found on the beach. 

Perfect for: Something a little Lovecraftian, lurking in a murky dark ocean, slimy and drenched in seawater, seaweed and brine. 

Lavender Scarab: (golden amber/English lavender/blackberry/incense) - A lavender-winged and iridescent beetle encased in golden amber (traded for blackberry incense at the southern temple).

Those who are familiar with Moon Milk and Lights Across the Sky's lavender notes will be a bit surprised. Lavender Sacarb's lavender note is distinctly richer and warmer than their general catalogue offerings. For this blend, English lavender, unlike French lavender, has more of that 'stereotypical' lavender note, the type you might find in essential oils. I personally love this type of lavender as it's the one I grew up with, but as a general rule, essential oil longevity is always on the shorter side. 

Lavender Scarab opens with a burst of warm English lavender, all sunny and full bodied. There's also a touch of sweet fruity blackberry that dances along. This scent actually reminded me a lot of Frollino Lavanda (Kyse), due to the same lavender and blackberry combination. After about 10-15 minutes, I get a touch of almost spicy incense, and the amber which provides an indistinct warm, creamy element against a base of sweet blackberry and fading lavender.  

This scent was probably the one with the least longevity, and wore around 1-2 hours on me. This scent was also a relatively confusing one because all the notes weren't very easy to pick out, and at points this reminded me a lot of Frollino Lavanda because there's times where I swear I can smell a hint of simmering warm caramel. This is really a fruity-herbal blend, and I like the opening of the scent, so the longevity is the only let down for me. 

Perfect for: Take the scenic route. Walk around the lavender fields and smell the rich lavender oil from plucked stems. Why is there a slice of toast with blackberry jam on the ground? Who knows. Enjoy the sun. 

Toasted Matchimellow: (matcha/mimosa/cream/toasted marshmallow/humidity) - Bright green ice cream baked inside marshmallow meringue (usually found during summer months in cafe midi).

Okay this makes the gourmand fiend in me so happy. I purchased this because, I'm on the hunt for that perfect green tea note. While this isn't perfect, this is still pretty damn close! 

Toasted Matchimellow greets you with dusty, toasted warm marshmallows and bowls of whipped cream. There's a citrusy sweetness from the mimosa that cuts through the vanilla sugar, and there's a light dusting of bitter matcha powder. There's this amazing dusty, dry texture that I get from this scent as well, which really compliments the 'humidity', which is a little heavier and sticky. This is one of Stereoplasm's best gourmands for sure, with a simple blend of vanilla cream, soft, dusty, powdery marshmallows and a sprinkling of bitter matcha on top, and a mimosa on the side.

I actually really love this scent, and while the citrus mimosa was a relatively heavy note when I originally received this scent, the more I've let it age, the more the matcha really blooms on the skin (I would say around a month!). I honestly love the 'matcha' note in this and if Stereoplasm is listening, I'd love to see green tea ice cream as a single note, or this blend exactly without the citrus. I was worried the hype would let me down for this scent but I honestly felt really impressed by this matcha note! This one is hands down, the runaway winner for me in this entire collection for sure. 

Perfect for: The Green Tea Gremlin. Matcha Madness. On a hot summer day you can find me smushing my face into a green tea ice cream topped with marshmallows, and chugging down an icy mimosa. Sweet sweet relief from the curse of the summer heat. 

Potted Chiptunia: (petunia/leaf/fresh soil/clay/static) - A refreshing, inhibiting flower, grown and engineered in Chiptown. Be sure to follow the local traditional custom of telling it your fears and secrets (a non-negotiable gift from the town of Chiptown to all new and current residents).

Is that buzzing? This is a sharp buzzing static note, and reminds me a lot of the buzzing neon from Namba (Fantome). The scent itself an almost petrol like, gasoline-ish quality, but it really has this vibrating, high strung energy to it that's hard to describe. The sharp soil note from Wild Mayweed also appears here, but it's far stronger with the static. For me, the static is the sharpest note in this blend, but I see peeks of the clay pots underneath it, which smells so much like the earthy scent of the pottery room during art class. I don't really get much of the green leaf or petunia notes in this at all. The little peeks of clay I got were also strikingly realistic, and reminds me of the earthy scent of the pottery room back in art classes. 

I love the elements that were used in this blend so much, especially the clay, which is strikingly realistic, and the static, which just has this amazing movement to it, which, really shouldn't be possible in a scent but it is and I love it. This scent reminds me a lot of Namba (Fantome), but it's a lot sweeter and not aquatic in comparison. In terms of projection and longevity, Potted Chiptunia has a ridiculously large projection and a demanding presence, and lasts for 5-6 hours, a little longer because of the intensity of the blend. 

Perfect for: A blend of bright neons against a muted terracotta red. A sci-fi rendition of Rumplestilskin except it's a solitary spinning wheel with a lump of clay, seeped in trickling electricity from exposed wires and balloons stuck to your hair.  

Monster Parts: (tomato leaf/salt/camphor/ozone/Indica) - A mysterious and camphorous ingredient located inside the mayor's locked tomato garden) (powerful, ozonic and slightly medicinal although weakens your energy in large doses. Not for the faint of heart!).

A sprinkle of fine salt and ground black pepper on top of cherry tomatoes, stems and tomato leaf. The opening is almost salad-like in its savoury aspects, with crisp vegetables and a waft of salt - it smells like how salt tastes. After dry down, I get more atmospheric ozonic notes, with a metallic tang of a rusty sword, the scent of rain and petrichor seeped in woody camphors and soil and dirt. I don't really get too much Indica with this but there is warm, earthy and musky base to this, that just settled underneath the bright, louder tomato leaf and yellow cherry tomatoes. 

With the name and its atmospheric elements, I always end up associating this scent with Breath of the Wild, especially when monster hunting in the rain. There's something about the tomato leaf and salt that just feels like something I have to wear when I'm off trying to collect some Bokoblin fangs and guts, especially when it starts to rain in a field and you're halfway up the stupid cliff, out of stamina and slowly slipping down. I paired this scent with The Weird Sisters from Femme Fatale for that elusive spooky moonlit monster hunting experience. 

Perfect for: Whacking Bokoblins in a tomato garden on a Friday night with a stick. The moon looks suspiciously red... 

Star Trader: (silk musk/ground pearl/bing cherry/lemon zest/pistachio cream) - Tall, mysterious and elusive merchant. Will trade pearl star flask for cherry-lemon ice cream (sitting beside the indigo bush on top of the alps at dusk).

A confusing, complex and complicated opening. A jumble of sharp medicinal pistachio, cherry couch syrup, sharp cloying musk and toilet cleaner lemon. It's hard to say anything nice about the opening, because of my desire to scrub this off. Blessedly, this scent mellows out at the 20-25 minute mark. It's kinder, softer and sweeter, bringing out sweet threads of tart lemonade and cherry musk, like a neon popsicle on a summer day, but it takes its sweet time getting there (no pun intended). 

Although it sweetened up on my skin after dry down and mellowed out, I find myself largely befuddled by this scent, although I'm can only chalk this up to my own skin chemistry since I haven't tried this on anyone else. I really love the lemon and cherry notes, but the combination of everything felt a little jarring for me, although after half an hour of wear it's a nice mild fruity drink. 

Perfect for: Summer parties where the choice of drink is, anything great, and more of that makes it better.  

Binary Sonata - (vintage musk, forest berry accord, thyme, ether) - Arrangement of notes said to materialize rare or extinct fruit, herbs, berries and experiences (forbidden music node that disorients and causes general confusion).

For those who have tried His Heart to Drink, the same bright berry note appears here. This scent opens with a burst of sweet grapes, ribena syrup and a summer grape popsicle, all fun and refreshing. However, I don't really get much thyme on my skin. However, after dry down, the vintage musk here also provides this lovely blurry texture to the scent, over the various times I tried them, every time I went to pick out the tart berries, it was softened and squished by the heady musk. The overall scent after dry down is a relatively linear scent, with the musk as a soft comforting blanket over a bright grape candy, reminding me a lot of a fruity, fuzzy sangria. 

While it doesn't really register as a 'note' to me, I have to say my favorite part is the 'ether' note, or diethyl ether. Ether was originally used as a general anaesthetic, however you may more likely know it as a byproduct of the production of ethanol! The whole blend feels like an experience of intoxication, where the whole night starts out like a clear picture, until you're 7 Sangria's in and you can't figure out why your depth perception is absolutely shot and you're definitely not as close to the sink as you thought you were. I also have to give props to Stereoplasm for this scent, despite my general fear of musks, this actually surprised me with how easy to wear it was. 

Perfect for: Sloshed on Sangria, vodka ribenas and petting the neighbour's dog in the middle of the day with only a t-shirt on. It' a fun summery Saturday except I have no idea how I got here or what I'm doing.

Mayflower Fleece:(spun sugar/light chamomile/candied ginger/earl grey) - fluffy orange clouds of sweet and zesty mayflower fleece (the official treat of the Mayweed Festival).

Walk around Lovesick Lake and you'll find Mayflower Fleece dotted around the area, all heartbreakingly sweet. For me, this scent is an intense, fizzy lemonade note, seeped in barrels of cotton candy, sticky and sugar sweet. This is all cotton candy, sour lemon squares and lemon popsicles, decorated with candied strawberries. The chamomile, ginger and earl grey notes here are very soft and understated under the louder notes of the spun sugar, but the bergamot from the earl grey is definitely flourishing in this blend as a tart citrus. This scent opens with a stronger lemonade note, and dries down to a rich sour lemon square and melted sticky cotton candy as the main notes, with linear performance until fading at around 4-5 hours. 

Your milage may vary with this because I tend to amp sweet notes in blends - for me, this scent already starts sugary sweet and it is morphed into a real sticky syrup scent. I like gourmands but this occasionally bordered on too sweet for me, but I love how bright and sunny this is. 

Perfect for: The sickly sweet sister of Lovesick Lake - if Lovesick Lake is the Pink Magical Girl, this is the Yellow Magical Girl, she's always cheerful, probably has the power of the sun or sunflowers, 

Enchanted Dew Drop: (dew/jade/light smoke/stone moss) - A glowing vial containing healing dew from the misty peak of treacherous Mount Eumedes (will appear in rain during spring equinox if an acceptable offering of fire is made).

Much like its cute little green label, this scent is all green, mossy, drenched in petrichor and a drizzle of rain onto wet soil. The stone moss here is really just like a vibrant green house, tangled vines crawling up grey, cracked stone, and a little ethereal glowy quality about the moss. The smoke has this amazing shifty quality, where it ebbs and fades like a mysterious cloak of fog around the bright green moss. While I don't quite get any dew or humidity with this scent, the smoke almost goes mildly savoury which I love. 

While this scent was made for Dewdrop Forest Farm, I can't help but be reminded of the Lost Woods before you emerge in the Korok Forest (Breath of the Wild). The evasive, shifting clouds of smoke and fog on a drizzly night before you emerge in a sunlight forest of gorgeous greenery - again, it's SO evocative. It's not one I'd usually reach for, but I love how authentic this feels as a scent, and the artistry in it. I stamped Swept Across The Sea from Femme Fatale on Blue Suede from Orly to bring out the shifting fog on top of glowing moss and humidity. 

Perfect for: Hunting for Hestu in the Lost Woods, farming dew drops in the Forest Farm, whatever occasion calls for an 'enchanted forest' and the next level of immersion is smelling like one. 

Sensation Vulgaris: (jasmine/lilac/skin musk/sage/white pepper) - Intoxicating night-blooming shrub, traditionally oil-pressed in herbs and musk (a local hybrid that blooms every year during the true love festival).

If you sneezed, it's because you've just been hit with a cloud of white pepper! I was actually shocked by how much this smells like a pepper shaker, with little grains of rice in it, shaking out powdery white pepper onto soup. The scent also opens with a light wreath of sage, a delicate little dash of herbs. While it's oddly savoury, a little green but mellows out after around 15-20 minutes, before re-emerging as a gorgeous white floral. It's not indolic at all, but it's a sweet and clean scent with jasmine, and a touch of tiny lilacs dotted around the display. I love that there's an almost creamy, buttery quality to this scent, and the skin musk just adds to the delicate feeling. 

I legitimately didn't expect this scent to be such a shifter, especially from the notes that were listed. I also didn't expect myself to actually enjoy this scent either, but the musk in this blend just adds this sort of, soft, lover's touch kind of warmth to the scent, like still warm sheets and butterfly kisses. Despite its very very unorthodox opening of punchy white pepper and savoury sage, the dry down smells like a white floral you might find at an expensive department store. While traditional white floral lovers might be a bit turned off by the opening, I actually love the tsundere like character it adds to this scent. Yes, it might feel snappy and rude, but once you get past the opening, it's very soft, shy and sweet. I stamped a thin delicate design in Ghost in My Machine from Deborah Lipmman on top of Smoke on the Water to reflect the punchy white pepper on top of the delicate jasmine and lilacs. 

Perfect for: That moment before a morning meeting where you really need a little wake me up, but when you walk into the room you've really got to look presentable, professional and not like you've just been inhaling 5 cups of coffee and safety pinned your pants on because you broke the zipper in a hurry to get dressed. Nobody has to know you only brushed your teeth 15 minutes ago, all they see is a fantastic, well dressed employee. It's all good. 

Wild Mayweed:(dew/chamomile/cotton/root & soil) - A bundle of dewy, wild mayweed wrapped in a clean cotton cloth (Root Intact)

Okay, AGAIN, this collection absolutely nails realism. I have no idea how they managed to bottle the smell of soil, but they did it. This opens with a zing, an oddly alcoholic tinge, which reminds me of the 'static' note from Potted Chiptunia, although its faint and fleeting. The scent is quickly tempered by the soft sweetness of chamomile, like a pot of tea, translucent amber and yellow petals. After dry down, it dries down to an earth, soft scent of damp soil, with a little cup of laundry powder and scratchy cotton. I love that this has the same 'stiff' texture to the scent, but it retains this wispy sweet softness from the chamomile. I don't garden, but if I did, I imagine this is what I'd smell, the feeling of soft soil under your nails, pressed under your hands, and the blossoming of spring around you. 

When testing these scents separately, Mild Mayweed and Cotton Barrel feel like similar scents, but on a side by side comparison, Cotton Barrel is a lot more of a 'laundry' scent, whereas Mild Mayweed stays very earthy, with soil, dirt, and is actually comparatively sweeter because of the chamomile note. I'm not sure what the 'static' zing I get from the opening is, which is probably my least favorite part of the scent, but I would personally prefer Wild Mayweed, because I really like the dry down phase of damp soil and sweet chamomile. 

Perfect for: Organic. Vegan. Potted plants and succulent homes. That one person decked out in their bamboo and cotton blend shirt at the farmer's market who insistently asks, "is this organic?" whilst bundling up fresh produce in their cheesecloth bags, and bikes everywhere for the low carbon emissions.  

Some information about the brand: 

There have also been some changes at Stereoplasm since the releases of this collection! Firstly, they've increased the concentration of all of their perfume oils, which will typically mean better projection, and longevity (which is an issue I've had with some of their scents as well.). As such, there's been a slight increase in price to reflect the concentration of the scents. All prices here will be listed in CAD unless noted otherwise. 

Previously, the sizes were listed as 1.5mL, 3mL and 6mL bottles, but these have actually been changed to reflect the actual fill levels, which are 1.8mL, 4.5mL and 7.5mL respectively. 

Additionally, individual 1.8mL bottles used to be available as samples (the Chiptune collection is still available for individual purchase), but all new collections in 1.8mL are only available through the 6 piece sample set, which is $40 for 6. 

The Chiptune (less concentrated) collection in 1.8mL are now $6.50, which is $3.62 per mL. 

New 1.8mL scents in higher concentration are around $6.60 for each, which is $3.67 per mL. 

4.5mL are $16.50, which is $3.67 per mL.

7.5mL are $26.5, which is $3.54 per mL. 

As you can see, there's no difference between the prices of the 1.8ml and 4.5ml bottles, and you'll be saving a little bit for the 7.5mLs. 

As the conversion between USD and CAD will likely fluctuate, I won't be converting the prices, and the Stereoplasm site also offers an option for currency which will automatically change the prices for you! 

And as always, Stereoplasm also always includes at least two samples in every order! 

Disclaimer: These scents were was sent for review with the exception of Toasted Matchimellow which was bought with my own money. I was not sponsored for this review or affiliated with this brand, and all opinions are my own, and do not reflect the brand's opinions or interests.