Casablanca
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Everything posted by Casablanca
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Huh. I'm going through my friend's decants here, just applying and writing impressions. I throw this on last, with no mental projection first of how these notes might play together. All this to say... I didn't picture anything, but if I had, this probably wouldn't have been it. LTV is soft on me, but what I get is faintly leathery, and definitely salty, mostly clean skin sweat. I picture the soft leather cover of a journal stained from being held too long on a hot day, or soft brown leather stained with sweat from fighting in it, but none of this smells body odory, just salty. Salty, mildly sweat-stained (but clean) leather.
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"Heavy honey" is my first thought on applying this one. Then the dragon's blood resolves out of some of that weight or gravitas, and with him comes a cloud of not smoke, but musk. Lots of musk. Here there be dragons who breathe musk. Copal joins the party, too, hanging back a bit against the wall, but just with a "Hey," now and then. He always has a sacred feel, and is quiet in his connection to the universe... but also darkly wood-grainy and badass. This one is not for me, but it is interesting: a heavy and sweet honey coating a musk-breathing, red-resinous dragon, and his badass but sacred wooden rider.
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Apple Pulp, Amber, and Frankincense
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
Lush golden apples, freshly cut and juicy, with frankincense adrift in the background. This could be the aroma of the apples left to entice and distract Atalanta from winning her race --- they would certainly distract me. Amber doesn't stand out on its own for me here, but no doubt it contributes to the sunrise/sunset gold cast over everything in the blend. Despite the presence of incense, this is not smoky. (If it were, I'd probably give in and buy it!) But as it is, I have a lot of apple blends... and only because of that, I won't be carting this. If you love golden apple perfumes, this is one to try. -
Burnt Sugar, Cream, and Strawberries
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
First impression: Softly burnt strawberry. Like, bright strawberries just a little bruised and smudged with caramelized burnt goo. A bit later, but while this is still drying, it resolves more into burnt sugar specifically... but the strawberries are still Queen, and the burnt sugar but a lil smudge on their skins. Now and then, as this dries, it reminds me of strawberry pancakes: basically a plate drenched in strawberry maple syrup (and also fresh halved strawberries). I don't find any cream for a bit. But later in drydown, it becomes the pancake part of the overall strawberry maple syrup image I keep getting from this. And I like the blend plenty at that point! I wouldn't mind having these strawberry maple pancakes for breakfast this morning. -
Elder Blossoms, Champagne, and Blackcurrant
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
On first application, a delicate, lightly sweet (rather than dry) champagne fizzes up on my skin (and gets on my nose, oops). This is a pretty champagne note compared to some, with fewer nose-tickling fizz-bubbles and a little more sweetness. Elder flowers may be absent --- or they may be that bit of sweetness, since I don't remember smelling them on their own before? A lot of flowers bloom as middle notes, so I wait a bit... and then I think I may have them. They smell like a very light, almost playful, floral honey... nice. They play well with this spring-like champagne. This is a pretty spring blend that may (based on the silence above me) not be getting the attention it merits. But I'm a black currant ho, and where is she? I know she likes to show up late and sneak in. Eventually, I find a little shadow of black currant along the back wall of this party. Sneaking indeed. She is so lovely, and I wish she came into the light more here. But this is a pretty perfume, still. -
Lemon Peel, Jasmine Tea, and Honeycomb
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
O my, that's some indolic jasmine. Woof. I can find lemon and a little tea in the mix, trying to break free... but mostly this goes right to the nether-region odors, for both my friend and I. This is a shame --- it did sound pretty. Scrubber. -
I get a bright, bold burst of seedy strawberries from the time I even crack the decant. Those blends where you can even smell the skin of the fruit? That's a lot like this one is for me. I seem to smell the freshly bitten strawberry, but also the little greenish-tan seeds over its surface. Basically, this perfume smells like a strawberry closeup. It takes quite a while for any of the marble to slide out from under the bombastic berry. Once it does, it adds a little smoothness and sophistication. But mostly, this is a potent strawberry blend, suitable for anytime spring through summer's end.
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Airy and floral aquatic-blue musk with a brush of warm leather and, at first, only a lil pinch of salt. At first, this is quite floral, refreshing, and blue. As time passes, it grows some powder on my skin --- still blue, but becoming blue-powdery, like the dust of sea fairies on coastal blooms. After it has dried, it grows a lot more salt on me, and it starts to remind me of the salty residue on skin after the seawater has evaporated. This clearly evokes its art.
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Crane Moon is surprisingly soft and subtle on me. Primarily, it's vanilla orris, suggesting pale feathers --- and also the pale powder of a cockatoo. I find a suggestion of white cocoa powder, as well, but just a tease. In drydown, some warmth builds from cedar and cardamom, though again they are soft. This phase makes me think of nest-building, and by extension homemaking... But then, I already associate cedar with the idea of Home. This one is a soft, delicate, powdery-pale bird with hints of dry warmth.
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I amp balsam, and the balsam here is in line with that. Mary Magdalene is hyper-balsamic on my skin, shrill and a little acidic, bringing to mind balsamic vinaigrette. Somewhere past the heavy balsam clouds, I can make out a golden sandalwood and frankincense and, later, the redness of the oud. Back there, past the salad-dressing swamp, is a land that suggests contemplative serenity. I just can't quite get there. I need to stop sniffing this, because down that road lies headaches.
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Thicc fudgey-brownie with some rich, smoky black coffee beans somewhere nearby in this kitchen. I catch little whiffs of cardamom and caramel now and then; they come and go. When Muffinhead dries, she brings almost as much coffee as brownie. These roasted black coffee beans are amazing, and a thing I want more of. I wouldn't normally need a bottle of fudge brownie, but Muffinhead tempts me to upgrade, anyway, through her coffee.
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Vanilla Cream, Pistachio, and Macadamia
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
I don't usually get cherries from nuts, but this one goes there with bags packed. After a few minutes, the cherries settle down and I can focus on the other friends. Pistachio (I can only see him with a mustachio), dapper fellow, is both a little nutty and a little like melted green pistachio ice cream when arm-in-arm with his associate Vanilla Cream. They skip together in perfect sync, in sepia, twin moustaches and Victorian carpet bags. But later Macadamia shows up and turns the scene toward a more tropical thing... time for vacation, boys. I try to pull away from these associations and just think of nuts, not tropical nuts versus dapper nuts, just nuts, because it's getting a little disjointed. Nuts. This is very nutty, and also creamy, and I'm good with it. -
Delicate, creamy coconut. The coconut has a bit of a tropical coconut-water vibe to it, but it mingles with the cream into more of a milky note ultimately. The fig is present but almost untraceably light. Subtle and clearly summery.
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For a long time, this is just a sort of more orangey peach on me. The bay rum-fougere vibe is mellow and takes an hour or so to develop. Sometimes I think I get a small suggestion of frankincense, but that's all. I don't find a lot of depth to this, but it might settle more into that.
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Musky, musky peaches. For a good while, it's just hyper-musky peaches and something of a deep resin vibe. Then during drydown, suddenly, yeeps. Funk? Mingling in each whiff, it makes me think of civet. The funk comes and goes. I'm sure others will have better luck with this.
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Peaches with a bright, cold glint of silvery steel. This is car chrome, painted peach and freshly waxed and polished. As the blend shifts toward dry, I catch a little whiff of motor oil? Here we have a quirky little springtime garage scent... except that it's more of a driveway scent. This could be a concept scent for handwashing your peach-painted, vintage pinup car in the driveway on a sunny spring afternoon.
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Pomegranate plastic or vinyl. I recognize the latter as a vodka note, and it does grow more overtly alcoholic on me as it starts to dry. But at first blush, it's mostly vinyl, chemical, thin, and tinny to my nose. The pom isn't as loud on me as it often is as a note; the peach is softer but present. Later on, I get more of a fruit-syrupy booze. I can see Fruit Nyquil at this point. Note: I'm testing my friend's bottle. Vodka notes haven't worked on me before, and I don't think they start to here. That is okay.
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Peach, Lemon Peel, and Sugared Blackberry
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Event Exclusive Oils
Sugared blackberry in the house! 🤩 I'm reveling in just how much jammy-ass sugar this holds. The scent nearly sparkles with fruit-jam white sugar, and I'm here for it. This reminds me of a childhood day of collecting raspberries and then making raspberry jam... and marveling at the quantity of white sugar going into the mix. The fruits themselves are bright, bold (even bombastic), and balanced. Blackberry led the trio when freshly applied, but all fruits were present, and as the blend settles, its fruits even out. This is one for devotees of sugar and fruit. -
Sweet, lightly syrupy golden peaches cozied up in hints of soft milk. The milk is a mild and creamy one with some creme brulee hints. I'm not quite getting the toasted condensed milk from Snek Milk, but that note took some rest to really come out on me... so that may come later. This awaited me on the doorstep yesterday along with a new "fresh milk" lotion I'm trying. I wore them together to bed and they're a beautiful pair. 🤗
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Peach, Coconut Cream, Marshmallow, and Nougat
Casablanca replied to Seajewel's topic in Event Exclusive Oils
This baby has rested a day. Primarily peach coconut cream, with a healthy, homey whiff of almond nougat. Comforting and kind, this Peach leans into summer with its peachy coconut, but the nougat hints at early fall. I feel like this scent's prime time is June through September, and I'm so happy to have a bottle. -
Obsequies smells like a complex relic of the ancient world... and also like spiced, earthy cacao. Resinous resins and saffron, pepper, and patchouli mingling with dry cacao. Most of the latter note's strength fades quickly on me, leaving peppery, saffron-laced resins and earthy, dusty patchouli. I'm surprised to never quite find the rose in this tomb. This is a conceptual scent for digging in ancient, dusty tomb-earth for relics, but without quite seeming to have a literal dirt note. I appreciate.
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I've been waiting for another good, cozy cedar scent to come along, and this comes closest to that for a while now. Creating the World is woodsy and cedar-dominant, only slightly charred, with a potent bergamot musk/cologne vibe wafting out alongside. Red fruits and indigo soon combine with this to add sweetness and complexity; later I get a touch of leather that works well with the cedar. I'm appreciating what's going on here -- at the same time, it feels like a bit of a wild jumble. Ultimately, this one settles into a likable vanilla-cedar on me, but there's too much musk and cologne happening first for my preferences. I'll keep waiting.
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As others have said: watery lilies, green parsley, and cilantro. It's a bit cypress-swampy, too. Lilies generally go soapy on me, and this does as well, cascading like falling water into a soapy, herbal-green swampland. It's clean rather than murky. I don't notice any redness, cedar, or palo santo: just clean-soapy-green.
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Eep. What's going on with my skin and this one? At a glance, I'd imagine this would be similar to Abduction of Persephone by a Unicorn (white sandalwood, black currant, and pomegranate). I finished that bottle long ago, so I can't compare... but this is nothing like my memory of it. At first it smells like fruity, raw stomach bile on my skin. And I'm queasy. Who the, what the? Over time, the bile thing calms down. Mostly... Something here that isn't like any pom or sandalwood note I've tried is repelling me, unfortunately. It reminds me of wine trying to come back up? As more time passes, this aspect keeps settling. But it's a lot, and I'm going to set this aside now.
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At the earliest blush, this brings a golden-honeyed honeysuckle with a backing of shrill jasmine on me. After a moment or so, I find a pale, powdery thing I associate with white musk, and the flowers start to veer soapy. There's a soft, pleasant greenery trying to come out, like the fresh green touch to the jasmine of The Bindle. But I struggle to get past the strong, soapy flowers and powder to enjoy it. I rarely wear florals anymore, so I'm not really the audience for this one. But it's also not the norm that a perfume gives me a headache... and this one is trying hard to buck that trend.