Baghdad

[lilirose]

Amber, saffron and bergamot with mandarin, nutmeg, Bulgar rose, musk and sandalwood.

In the imp- a little dark and masculine, with no particular note sticking out.

On skin, wet- strong green note, reminds me of Allison Gross for some reason. Also slight bitter citrus fruit note, and sawdust note which I take to be the sandalwood.

On skin, dry: Sharpness and greenness go away completely. Ends up as a creamy, rosy, slightly spicy and resinous soft floral.

Quite pleasant, but it strikes me as being very similar to others I’ve tried.

[brsis]

Initial thoughts: ... huh.

 

Okay, look at the notes. Amber, saffron, bergamot, nutmeg, sandalwood, yup, wonderful... tentative on the rose... should be nice. Should be lovely, actually.

 

Except, y'know. It's called Baghdad. And that makes me sad because for as long as I can remember, Baghdad has been a warzone or something pretty close to it. And yet I know that once upon a time it was one of the greatest cities in the world. It's... weird, to say the least.

 

In the imp: Mandarin, bergamot and rose, with a hint of sandalwood. I don't get the heavier notes much at all from the imp.

 

On the wrist, wet: Pretty much the same - the sandalwood is stronger, the mandarin a little less. The bergamot and sandalwood are making this quite sharp.

 

Twenty minute later: Rose and sandalwood soap.

 

Verdict: It was never going to work.

 

Tl;Dr: Rose and sandalwood dominate, drowning the spices.

[Raqassah]

Wet:Johnson’s Baby powder, musk, rose and sandalwood. No bergamot or mandarin.

Dry down: Roses! Spices! Baby powder with sandal wood.

Final impressions: Roses! Initially, didn’t quite work with my skin. So near and yet so far! I really wanted this to work as I used to dance with a troupe called the Veils of Baghdad. I retried this after a few weeks... With aging this one got much better! Yay - works much better now. Still a heavy floral.

Edited June 30, 2008 by Raqassah

[thelaurenator]

wet: bitter, bitter saffron. OMG, is this going to be too sour/strong?

Two minutes later: beautiful saffron, amber, orange, bergamot and rose. Mmmmmm.

 

I love saffron... but only if it plays up the other notes. And it does here, though it smells scary wet.

 

EDIT: Talk about skin chemistry change! When I wear this during "that time of the month" this turns into the most beautiful oriental rose fragrance with that lovely saffron note playing up the dominant roses. LOVELY.

Edited July 30, 2008 by thelaurenator

[diamondstars]

This is a very masculine scent in my opinion. Unfortunately I couldn't single out any notes though.

 

Looks like this'll be going to a (hopefully) more loving home!

[inurbanus]

Whew! This is a lot harsher than I was expecting. The two notes that I can pick out are the rose and the musk. There's also a combination of spices that smells weird and kind of ashy. I think my skin reads this combination of notes as TOO MUCH, unfortunately. I can tell that it's one of those scents that could bloom beautifully on someone with a certain skin chemistry.

 

2.5/5

[hlinspjalda]

In the vial: Citrus (tangerine?), bergamot, and a warm base of amber and sandalwood. I don't normally like bergamot, but this doesn't seem too bad.

 

Wet: Very warm-spice. Amber predominates (notice a trend here?), with sandalwood and musk underneath. The citrus and bergamot are almost gone. This smells like it's going to go very heavy on me.

 

One hour: What a surprise: amber and musk. There's a hint of warm sweet floral, and something that's a little sharp, almost herby, so the scent is a little wider than most of the amber-plus ones I've tried so far. But it's still an amber scent. all those lovely tangy notes from the vial have vanished.

 

Six hours: It's gone through some changes, losing most of its scope, but it's stayed a pleasant light warm amber. Now it's amber and sandalwood I was hoping for something this light but a bit more complex; but I could wear this from time to time.

[WickedQueen918]

Got a 5 ml bottle of this from a swap.

 

In the vial: Something sharp and almost minty. Perhaps that's the bergamot? I'm unsure because that's not a note I ever remember wearing. The amber's pretty strong too.

 

Wet: I'm going to second what others have said before me. This is a very warm scent. Wet on my skin it's like a warm orange dipped in sharp, yet sweet spices. Not bad...very thick and a scent that for some reason reminds me of the color orange.

 

Drydown: Much softer. That herbal scent which I presume is the bergamot is dancing amidst the amber, musk and sandalwood notes. The rose note, which I hadn't noticed in the vial or when I frist applied this to my skin is finally peeking out a little.

 

Conclusion: It's very warm as I mentioned before...and spicy, but leaning towards the sweet side. Some other scents which have come across as being 'spicy' to me remind me of a bold red...but this spiciness is different. It's hazy and sweetened...orange. Not because it smells particularly citrus-y, that's just the feeling I get from it. It's nice. Not one of my favorites, but still nice.

[crebbsgirl]

I was very wary of this scent, as I have had a lot of trouble with mandarin notes in the past. I needn't have worried. This is a truly beautiful blend. It's a very complex scent, and I almost can't distinguish individual notes. It's a spicy, floral, sweet blend. The rose is predominant on me, but I'm actually liking it. (Which is odd for me, given my general distaste for all things floral). I think because it's deepened by the saffron and amber. All in all, I'm really enjoying this one.

[madeleine]

I tried this because I wanted to find a scent that blended amber and rose together. Also, I love the amber/saffron/musk combination - it smells delicious on me.

 

For about three minutes I got all the notes (or most of them) especially the amber. But once it dries down all I get is the rose. Like, only rose. And while I really like the sleepy way it comes through in Seraglio, in Baghdad it's just dry and overpowering. I may try layering it with something (Brinsingamen, maybe) to mute the rose note, but I'm not sure.

[llhorian]

It's soft, sandalwood with subtle flowers at first. Then after a while it changes a bit to something clean and a bit soapy. A bit like you're cleanly scrubbed with old (as in old-fashioned) floral soap, in a good way.

I quite like this one as a gender neutral scent (at least it seems that way to me and as a guy I'd have no problem wearing this).

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: it's...wow. spicy and warm and musky. definitely has a middle eastern vibe to it.

 

wet on skin: the clove is coming out a bit more now, but the -saffron?- is bringing out a warmness i'm really digging. like cassia, but less potent.

 

dry down:yup- saffron and amber win the day.

 

spicy and warm, with a lighter than expected throw. i'm Arabic and i have to say, this oil has a really beautiful Arabic feel to it. i'd like to wear this wile walking on a chilly beach to feel a bit warmer.

 

 

 

[cymbeline]

Smell alike: ??? It has Chanel n°5 accents but not as much as “Moscow”. It also reminds me another fragrance, I just cannot put my finger on the name !

 

Color impression: powdery beige

 

On me: Floral attack ! Citrus quickly disappeared : in the end it was just soft roses and round, powdery spices in the background. It just reminds me my grandmother’s house -that’s strange ^^;

 

Wearing: Not as a perfume but I think I am gonna use my imp as comforting linen scent…

[blacklacestatic]

In the imp, I smell a very spicy rose. When I first dab it on the rose jumps forward and the spice falls back, but it evens out quickly into the spicy rose from the imp. There is a subtle bit of creaminess in the background too, I'm assuming from the amber since most amber notes end up sexily creamy on me. It reminds me of a creamier Harlot. It's absolutely beautiful. Warm and exotic. There is a very brief period when it starts to go a little soapy, but it doesn't last long, and I think it's just the rose and amber kinda swapping places because the amber comes through much stronger on the drydown. I don't get any citrus from it at all and that's just fine with me. This is an excellent one for an amber or rose lover. Or if you're a lover of spicy florals. I want to slather more on. It's cozy and sexy at the same time, and those end up being my favorites. Thank you so much to the labbies for this frimp!

 

5 out of 5. Truly beautiful.

[FallDaze]

In the imp it's exotic and spicy, and I had a bit of a hard time distinguishing the notes. Definitely has a warm, sandy feel to it.

 

Wet it's musky. After a few up close sniffs, I find it slightly reminiscent of the shavings we used to line our guinea pig's cage with. Not in a bad way though! Fresh and clean and slightly musky. I guess that's the sandalwood taking over.

 

After a while there's been little change, with the saffron moving up to the front with the amber and musk with the sandalwood kind of in the back. I don't get any rose or nutmeg in this at all. The longer I have this on, the more the sandalwood takes over. After a few hours it's almost entirely musky sandalwood with a background of spice.

 

Overall a very nice blend, exotic, warm and musky, and orangish-golden colored in my mind. However it's a bit too much musk for my personal taste.

[rayvn1]

I could barely smell this one when I first put it on, but now it's warming up ot a nice light yellow amber smell. The rose is a perfect level of just barely there. This is a big time keeper for me!

[toomuch]

Wonderful scent. I'm not getting any rose, which is good since rose goes soapy on me. My skin loves amber and I love spices. This may be the scent I've been looking for, for when I want to smell exotic. Arabian nights in a bottle.

[waternight]

In the imp: Quite resinous - amber and musk, with a strong rose undertone.

Wet: Ooof! Quite sharp. I think it's a blend of the amber and mandarin, with the rose adding a strangeness. Sandalwood usually serves to smooth out blends for me, but it's not really helping here. Ok, after a few moments, the blend does start to settle down. The sandalwood starts soothing everything, and the nutmeg shows up - I was afraid it would get lost in the heavier notes, and it IS soft and subtle, but it's serving to tie the blend together... like nutmeg mortar. There's still something about this blend, though, that smells "off" to me. Saffron? Bergamot? Mandarin? One of those mixed with the amber? Hmm.

Dry: Goes a bit powdery - thanks a lot, amber - and dries down to a powdery amber/sandalwood. ::sigh:: The Middle Eastern inspired blends never work on me.

[MCS4096]

In the Imp: This smells a LOT like something I can't put my finger on.. a perfume I had at one time or another. The combo of rose/mandarin and the sandalwood make it seem wet, and dry at the same time. It is a little sour, but I know it's good on because I already tried it

 

Wet: I can pretty much pick out every note, but no one note is dominant. I wish I could get a bit more nutmeg.

 

Dry: This becomes a really lovely scent! It's mostly warm, glowing and rosy.. but there is a slightly wet note, that I think must be the bergamot . I've been trying to pick a "rose and resin" blend to add to my collection, and this one is climbing the list of possibilities.

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Sandalwood and a touch of sweetness from the rose

 

Wet on me – Clean dry sandalwood with just a hint of the rose

 

Dry on me – A big, lush, slightly spiced rose

 

Overall – Nice, but not something that I would wear

 

[magikalbrownies]

yanno, i've been trying a lot of rose/amber scents or rose scents in particular and this one is one of the faves. its definately a bottle that i need to buy.

 

the amber is well balanced with rose and a slight bergamot. after it was allowed to like PENETRATE my being the sandalwood was a little more pronounced but thank god not so much so that it gave me a headache.

 

overall: this is going on the wishlist. its a like to have bottle.

[Clover01]

I had found recently that rose scents don't really work well on my skin.. BUT this was an exception!

 

Wet: I could smell a bit of a citrus smell with rose and something else but the citrus quickly faded away

 

Dry: my nose is really unsophisticated. But over time it smells like rose-scented incense. Which I think is absolutely lovely. I probably won't wear it much as a perfume, but for use in sleeping or meditating I think it will work really well.

 

It kinda makes me feel ethereal and feminine as I sniff it on me

 

[milica]

all the notes I love are in this scent: sandalwood, amber, musk, rose and bergamot, wich is on top of my list. and this scent is absolutely perfect for me!!!!

my imp is one year old and it is only getting better. wonderful mix of citrus, roses and notes close to skin = pure love!

 

I can picture myself as one sexy bellydancer trying to impress prince of persia when I'm wearing this.

[catatonic1242]

In the imp: Dusty roses.

 

On, wet: Very, very faint dusty roses. Seriously, this smell just melts into my skin and I have to sniff very hard to locate it at all.

 

On, dry: After just about 15 minutes, my test smear is pretty much gone. There's just a faint trace of roses -- not real ones, but the smell of manufactured rose water.

[catattack]

Wet: Spicey incense

Drydown: Never smelled the rose or bergamot. Something in the blend goes sour on my skin. It's not sitting well with me. I don't like this. Uh-uh. No.....