[Heavenlyrabbit]

Vanilla orchid, Monoi tiare, gardenia, and light incense.

The Orchid is the first note listed and it's what was in the forefront. There's a touch of what might be the Gardenia. Is Tiare jasmine by another name? If so, it's not very prominent as jasmine usually is on me.

The incense is very light but an amazing counterpoint to some very beautiful florals.

This is much more refined than I'd imagined.

This is the Hawaiian version of All Saints.

Twilight Eyes kindly sent me this to include-
two of the Tiki blends have monoi tiare (gardenia in coconut oil)

This post has been edited by quantum spice: 24 April 2008 - 02:11 PM

[AliBabble]

orchid, vanilla, and the lightest touch of incense is what i get here...this smells very light and natural on my skin...not the strongest scent, but one that is feminine and mildly sensual...would be good for many occasions - work, sleep, and everyday use...

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Gardenia and deep orchids.

Immediately on skin: This is a very tropical and deep gardenia scent. The orchid is very thick and adds a complex sweetness to the gardenia. The monoi is more of a top note, wafting above everything else. There’s a subtle, light smokiness swirled through the entire blend.

After a little while: This quickly becomes very sweet on me. The orchid and gardenia blend together to create something thick, sweet, and floral that’s a bit cloying to my nose. The monoi tiare is kind of flowing through that weird scent, and the incense blends in lending a light smokiness.

Overall Impressions: I had very high hopes for this blend, but the combination somehow just doesn’t work right for me. The blend is subdued at first and quite complex, but after a few minutes everything blends into this sweet, syrupy tropical gardenia scent that’s a bit cloying and almost gummy. I think gardenia lovers will really like this blend though.

[slave1]

MARAE

In Bottle: Sweet and planty

On Skin: This scent to me has a very green and white tone. I smell the florals, but I also smell their greenery. When I was in Tahiti for my honeymoon, I noticed the air almost always smells like orchids and tiare. I get that from this scent right away, very fresh and very vibrant. The gardenia is sweet and milky and compliments the other florals very well. The incense is very light, just a nice subtle resinous base that softens the blooms and makes this a unique floral scent. Overall, a pretty scent but not as vanilla heavy as I’d hoped. Still, it reminds me of Tahiti and that’s a damn good thing! It has a light throw and short to average wearlength.

[Czarina]

In the bottle: pure Monoi tiare. Mmmmm.
Wet: orchids and gardenia.
Drydown: vanilla incense.

This stuff is DA BOMB. The vanilla takes on a faintly maple-sugary scent after a few minutes.

[alicia_stardust]

I pegged this one as the top of my must-try list for the Flotsam blends. I am not disappointed.

The monoi de tiare is most prominent at first, but as the oil starts to dry I get wafts of the vanilla orchid. Later still, the extra gardenia kicks in and adds an extra sweetness to this sultry floral and tropical blend. There is something about this that is both refreshing and sensual. It is very feminine and breezy. The incense adds just the right touch to finish this off.

[GoldenRubee]

This was the first bottle to jump into my basket and I am so happy with it. I love orchids and gardenias, I have them both in my garden, and this is the closest I have ever smelled to fresh, live plants. The longer I wear it, the sweeter it gets and the more muskier it becomes (I do love my musk too). It gets better the longer I wear it and I didn't need to slather it. It is a gorgeous oil and very alluring. This is one scent that I will be ordering more of!

[Honeygirl]

Bottle: Orchid

Wet: Orchid, gardenia and incense

Drydown: Reminds me of a lighter version of Midnight on the Midway, and more girly.
3.0 outta 5

[angharad]

Tropical white floral explosion. I'm no good at identifying flowers; all I can say is "floral." I never get much vanilla or any incense to balance out the flowers and make this something I can enjoy.

[AEris]

Loooooove it love it love it love it love it

I'm all over this one.

It smells like lush, dreamy gardenia, but with other gorgeous notes that defy recognition by me. It must be the tropical orchid and light incense that goes so perfectly with the gardenia. I can't even say how lovely this is on me! It's in my scent locket, too, and I've been loving every waft.

Gardenia is one of my favorite notes, so I'm not surprised that I'm gushing over Marae, but it surpassed my expectations. I can't wait to get my next lab order together!!

ETA: 5 out of 5, for sure.

ETA: Marae has become one of my favorite fragrances ever. I am so in love with this sweet, fruity gardenia blend - I feel like a tropical island princess every time I wear it! I hope 2 bottles is enough to last me!

This post has been edited by AEris: 02 July 2008 - 01:04 PM

[Sushi-n-Sake]

In bottle: Heady tropical flowers, with orchid in the forefront.
Wet: Sharply floral, with some greenery in the background.
Dry: Orchid, gardenia, and a touch of spiciness.

Verdict: Very much the scent to reach for if you need an instant vacation to the tropics. It will be a wonderful summer fragrance.

[Winterwind]

Wow. This may be the first heady floral scent I like. By which I mean I'm going to order a bottle of it.

Imp: Sweet flowers. Probably the gardenia.

Wet: FLOWERS! O HAI!

Dry: Very soft, sweet florals, reminiscent of Shadow Witch Orchid (the other floral I can wear.)

4.5/5

[BookGirl]

Both in the bottle and once on my skin, the orchid, Monoi tiare, and gardenia dominate and are truly lovely. I was hoping that the Monoi tiare scent would be stronger and a bit closer to Bath and Body Works' Tahiti Sweetie lotion, but it's softer and more subtle than that.

As another reviewer mentioned, this has light throw and below-average wear length. It's definitely one to slather, and it's truly beautiful if you're looking for a light tropical scent.

I really do love it, but am disappointed that it doesn't last longer on my skin. I've been putting it on since 7:00 this morning and it's 2:30 now, and I've already had to re-apply it three times, which I normally never have to do. Hopefully others will have better luck with the staying power!

This post has been edited by BookGirl: 13 April 2008 - 09:33 PM

[MeiLin]

I feel like Polynesia. *swoon* Incredibly heady monoi and gardenia, mellowing at the end to the vanilla orchid and incense.

My only complaint is that it doesn't have much stay on me, like under 2 hours.

[suileach]

This is a dirty, somewhat sour gardenia on me. It reminds me a great deal of The Unheavenly City, which smelled like roses dragged through mud on me. This one smells like gardenia dragged through mud! Oddly, sniffing it gives me an unpleasant taste in my mouth, as if I've just bitten into a hunk of soap.

I almost ordered a bottle unsniffed, because I love gardenia and orchid...but I'm glad now that I didn't, as for some reason this just doesn't smell good on my skin.

[savage_rose]

Oh my goodness, I think I'm going to love these Tikis...it's like a Hawaiian vacation in a bottle. :swoon:

Anyway. The incense is very light, definitely an undercurrent. This smells so lovely, like a lei of gardenias, interspersed with other white flowers. Sometimes gardenia can just be obnoxious, but this is soothing. Oh wow.

[DARKBEAUTY28]

When I first tried this scent I didn't think that it was that wonderful and figured that I'd get rid of it. However, about ten minutes later I put a little more on...wow, it's NICE! I'm glad I tried it on again! It is a beautiful white floral tropical scent. The gardenia and orchid stand out the most on me from what I can tell, but they aren't overly creamy or cloying. It is a somewhat sweet fragrance. Overall, the only downfall I find with this one is that it might not be strong enough. I am the type who likes her scents to have a nice throw to them, and this is sort of on the lighter side. I don't want it to be more cloying, but just a tad stronger...I want people to really smell this gorgeous fragrance!

I noticed something a little strange about it. It has a VERY tiny bit of the sweet scented baby doll smell to it, which I also get from Dragon's Milk, but in a different way. The crazy thing is, I LIKE the scented baby doll smell! I loved the way my Strawberry Shortcake and Charmkin dolls smelled when I was a kid. Anyway, try Marae because it is a great scent!

[Leopard403]

Hmm. I do love Marae. It smells lovely.
But I am a trifle disappointed because it also smells flat.
There are no different notes peeking around one another; no top notes that burn off and eventually change the scent on my skin.
This smells very nice, but it is not the sophisticated and complicated scent I expected it would be. To me, this is a one-note white floral. Very reminiscent of spring, but with no real depth and interest to it.
I will continue to wear it and remain glad I bought a bottle, but I won't buy more, and I won't feel sad to see it go.

[grrrlennyl]

At first: Sweet orchid.
On: The gardenia and orchid are strongest. Quite lovely.
1 hour later: This has a bit of a green feel to it that it didn't have wet. It's still a smooth, creamy scent. Lovely.
2 hours later: A soft, white floral.
3 hours later: Pretty and powdery.
Overall: This is so lovely. I'm a sucker for orchid and gardenia.

[gwynhwyfar]

This was another oil that I was really looking forward to -- it sounded like it'd be an awesome summer scent.

In the bottle, it lives up to its promise, being another great tropical floral scent.

On my skin, it's Gardenia Gone Wild. This is Gardenia that doesn't follow the rules, this is gardenia that stays up late, and pushes down little old ladies before running away giggling.

I like gardenia, but I don't like gardenia in need of adult supervision.

[hepkitten]

Lovely when wet, but dries with a weirdly sharp edge on me...I think it's the gardenia, which often is bad with my chemistry.

Grr...I really wanted this one to work!

[coldandsleepy]

Marae smells quite nice to me in the imp. I get a nice strong gingery gardenia smell backed up with the lovely light incense. Smells tropical and pretty, but in a much gentler and laid back way than Tiki Queen. Casually pretty, I guess.

On me, it basically disappears instantly. I get a bit of faint gardenia for maybe thirty minutes, and then it's just gone, never to be smelt again.

Lovely while it lasts, but it just doesn't last for me. Sad.

[galleywest]

This is the Tiki that works for me. It's just lovely! I was waiting and waiting for a scent that was 1950s glamorous, glorious, tiki-culture, Hawaiiana floral. The kind where, when you wear it, you can almost hear the exotica music and bird calls in the background. This is my scent.

Wet, in the imp: floral, very slightly sweet, very light touch of incense.

Wet, on my skin: Florals are playing up, they're sweet, humid blooms. It's almost fruity...but it isn't. The incense almost disappears.

Dry, on my skin: The incense comes back, but just wafting beneath the sweet florals. I adore the monoi, it's just perfect in this scent. It makes me feel like wearing a bright wrap dress and putting a flower in my hair. Bottle, for sure. *sigh*

[maribouquet]

Mmm, sweet and juicy gardenia! Gorgeous. I want to sniff myself to death.

[dixiehellcat]

It smells glorious, for about 15 minutes. Unfortunately, then it goes buh bye. I have a bottle & am happy to have it, but not sure I want to invest any more $.

This post has been edited by dixiehellcat: 21 April 2008 - 11:58 PM