The Masque

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

... Honey and carnation, rich incense and rose accord, myrtle, red sandalwood, amber, jonquil and clove propel you through the revel, finally seating itself in the final, patchouli, tobacco and labdanum drenched darkness of the blood-tinged western chamber.

Love the story. Love honey, carnation, rose, and amber. Big hopes for this one!

The Masque glows red in the vial. On me, it actually smells incredibly similar to Gypsy Queen! Boy, was I not expecting that. But incense, florals, plus a sexy skin note (the honey and amber?)...yeah, it's the same scent family, if not identical. I think this is sweeter than the Gypsy, though--a full-on revelry of a scent. I really, really like it. I can't pick out the carnation as distinctly as in Masquerade (the name of course made me expect similarities), but there's a spiciness to the florals which probably indicates its presence. I will use up all of my decant.

[arabella]

First Impression: Sweet, creamy resin.

 

Dries down to: A rich, creamy dessert scent with just a touch of sweetness - like a peppery custard rather than sugar candy.

 

Additional Comments: This is a perfect symphony of notes and such a lovely surprise. Honey is almost always a no-no for me - it usually amps up and makes me feel queasy - and rose is very hit-or-miss. But here, in combination with all the other notes, the result is absolutely amazing. I think I'll have to get a bottle before it's gone.

 

Lasted: Several hours.

 

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

[Galen]

The Masque has a deep resiny smell from application through to dry-down, but that smell morphs distinctly - at first I can smell sweetness, richness and a hint of biscuits (cookies). On dry-down it's more a hint of soapiness mixed with the resiny depth. Unusual!

[LiberAmoris]

Boy am I glad I got a scent locket. Because I really like The Masque---it's a lovely complex incensey blend with woods and clove, and mouth-watering honey and carnation to boot---and on my skin it goes straight to powder. The first hour is ok, and then, powder. Rotten skin chemistry. But in my scent locket, it stays multi-faceted, yay!

 

As others have mentioned, The Masque bears resemblance to both Luperci and Gypsy Queen. The carnation and clove are really yummy together, and the overall feel is of something very rich. So far, my favorite of the Maelström.

Edited April 2, 2006 by LiberAmoris

[sophia_helix]

A warm, rich, red scent, well-blended with distinct stages of spicy, creamy crimson and smoky burgandy. It makes me think of scents like Red Phoenix, so I'll have to give it another try to two to see what makes it stand out, but it's a keeper for those who love this type of scent.

[gangstaknitta]

Oh yay, I got to try this!

 

In the bottle, it smells like honeyed sandalwood--very warm and a little musky. On my skin, the rose took over, and along with the sandalwood and amber, turned powdery on me. The honey starts coming through more when dry, but the powdery bit just isn't cutting it.

[mandragora]

In the imp: Dark, spicy and woody incense.

Wet on me: Ooh suddenly floral, carnation with a bit of bitter powdery background.

Drydown: A deep sexy carnation with honey and incense.

Verdict: A superbly complex scent that is sweet and uber-sexy. A tad too sexy for me though. On a scale of 1-5, I'd give this a 3.5

Edited April 4, 2006 by mandragora

[jidabug]

Right off this is dark and musky. Eventually a sharp citrus-like scent comes out before turning a bit soapy/powdery, which I blame on the rose because that's what it usually does for me.

 

Later, the rose has worn off, and now it's hello honey! Rich and deep with a touch of spiciness. This was a very complex and interesting morph from the deep musk, but survived the rose onslaught to become a rich scent of mystery. Probably my favorite of the Maelstrom scents that I tried, but it's a too dark to be a "keeper" for me.

[Em-]

The first time I wore the Masque, I could have sworn that it smelled like bloody chocolate. Which was nice, but not what I was expecting.

 

Wearing it again, out and about (and at a different time of month), I can smell much more of the wonderful honey spicy depth that is this blend, and none of the cocoa I was so sure was here before (must have been the honey and cloves playing tricks on me).

 

This is lucious...similar to Luperci, but sweeter and closer and without the feral muskiness. I am really taken with this one.

[aedes]

I was very surprised to read the notes in this one. I didn't realize all those floral top notes were in there. I get a warm, soft (yes, I think possibly a little powdery), smokey, dark, and perfume-y smell. Actually, my image is of lying on furs in a doeskin teepee at night on dusty ground, with a small fire curling up to the black sky. It's what I was hoping Coyote to smell like, actually! I need to focus on the Poe, I know, I know, but the soft, earthy, smokey notes still reign in my sensations of it.

 

And I'd also like to note that this is the only scent other than Old Scratch with patchouli in it that doesn't conk me on the noggin and drag me back to its cave of rotten dirt funk. That is to say, I didn't even realize it was in there. So all those folks out there afraid of patchouli like me, you may want to give this one a try.

Edited April 8, 2006 by aedes

[Nekomata]

Another trade.

I know it's not listed but I smell cinnmon, I think it's the clove and honey mixing. It's very yummy smelling! I know this is silly, but I also love the color. ;

[QueenFae]

There are so many ingredients in this one I'm honestly not sure what I'm smelling!! I think I can pick out the two florals, the carnation and the rose. I don't detect any honey, but the incensey notes are definitely there. No clove, thankfully, and maybe a wee hint of amber. There is unfortunately a note which is spoiling all the lovely ones for me, I think it must be the tobacco. It sort of stomps out all the yumminess of the other notes, and makes it go a bit too earthy on my skin. I had high hopes for this one, but I'm glad I tested an imp before I bought a bottle.

[wolfie13]

This one really does morph!

 

In the imp: I'm getting the red sandalwood, carnation and a touch of aldehydes, giving it a perfume-y quality. I like it.

 

As soon as I apply this: Bam! HONEY. And lots of it (no surprise as my skin amps it up, generally) But I'm also getting additions to the floral aspect - definitely some rose, and what I can only suspect is the jonquil.

 

It stays sweet and floral for awhile and I'm really not loving it.

 

But then the honey calms down a bit, and I get more of the carnations back (I love their peppery scent). And the sandalwood and incense play more of a part.

A touch of cloves.

 

Liking it at this point, but not entirely sold on it. But it sure is unique.

 

(ETA: Late drydown is more clovey and I'm liking it best at this point. But not sure I want to wait the hour or so to get there.)

 

(ETA: Okay, wait, now I'm getting more honey again. But it's a lighter version. Not swampy. (Yes I said swampy). It's rather like a spicier Alice, actually. With cloves.

I come close to actually liking it at this point.)

Edited April 14, 2006 by wolfie13

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Chocolate and something floral.

Wet on me - Sweet, spicy and earthy.

Dry on me - The patchouli takes over, it's dark and earthy. I like it, but I know from experience that others find it too heavy on me.

[Kittyflop]

On wet - chocolate (?) and carnation

 

Drying down - still a bit of cocoa with spicy florals. It’s warm and earthy with a hint of sweetness from the honey. Something wood-like in there, oh, that’s the red sandalwood. This is dark, hectic, bright, spicy and ever-changing. It is absolutely gorgeous.

 

Durations is quite long, throw is average.

[this machine]

This contains two danger notes: honey and rose. And yet...and yet...i put it on and i'm instantly enamoured. Swooning, more like. So heavy, so complex, so warm and musky and...well, way too complex for my untrained nose to break down. I think this particular honey (did someone mention beeswax? maybe that makes the difference for me) warms this up in a way that i love. The incense, the spicey carnation...

 

Wait, i got it! I think i finally figured out what this reminds me of as i'm typing this review. I knew it was something from my childhood, and i think it's some kind of cosmetic that was commonly used. Oooo! I know, it's this mary kay pink-waxy face goop (no idea what it was called, this is from 25-30 years ago) that my mom used to put on my face when i'd go out to play in the snow for a long time, to keep it getting chapped from the cold. It was a really heavy night cream i think, had to be terrible for the pores. But that's it! There's a similarity there that makes me gravitate toward this scent like crazy. Phew!

 

BUT. Sadly, after maybe 20 minutes the rose rears its head and goes soapy. Not a tolerable soapy either. Argh!

 

However, last night when i really slathered it on to give it a true testing, i think after an hour or so the soap might have gone away. But i was drifting off to sleep and not trusting my nose.

 

Current Conclusion: heavy, warm, very complex, perfumey in a good way. honey and carnation and incense. whether the rose will kill it for me remains to be seen.

[Diana]

 

In the bottle: it's powdery, sweet, mostly the sandalwood with a tinge of floral notes

 

Wet: ambery, sandalwood. It's warm and slightly powdery. There's a touch of the jonquil.

 

Dry: glorious ambery/sandalwoody/tobacco. Dry, warm, slightly incensey, with just a touch of sweetnest over the top. I can pick out the carnation a little bit better now, and just barely the rose. I'm not getting any patchouli really, so if you're afraid of that note, you might be able to wear this.

 

This is SO good. I want all the bottles I can possibly hoarde.

[Voleuse]

This is dizzying honey and mild incense to my nose, offset by a spicy floral note. As it dries, however, it tips over strongly towards incense. It's warm and a little sweet, and it gets caught in my throat.

 

After a while, I get a powdery musk that I dislike. Something with my chemistry, I suppose. Sigh.

[girlmadasbirds]

wow... there's so many notes hitting me all at once! the carnation seems strongest, but i can also smell the incense, amber, rose, and sandalwood. i don't smell the honey, but it does have an overall sweet scent.

i'm happy to have a decant, but a bottle would have been too much for me.

[Chrysantza]

I bought an imp lot from a friend of mine and this was in it.

 

In the imp: Rich, spicy (VERY spicy) incense and carnation

 

On me: This is a lovely warm, spicy scent. The patchouli does come out a bit (because I tend to amp the stuff) but fortunately is not overwhelmingly hippie head-shop. Mostly it's honey, amber and carnation.

 

I never thought I'd like this (I was a-skeert of the patchouli) but I do - it's really lovely.

[Mary Mayhem]

Bottle: Dark Berries, booze and tobacco.

 

On wet: Booze and tobacco.

 

Dark and heady sweet, but not overly so. I'm guessing that's the honey. Reminds me of a honey cigar? Very nice. (:

[gingersnapp]

Spicy honey on the skin once it's dried. The clove is very prominent when it's first applied, but mellows out quite a bit when it has dried. I would say the spice is a combination of this and the carnation, which is one of my favorite notes.

 

The patchouli is not as prominent on me as it is in other blends, which works for me. I do get a little bit of tobacco, but it's mild, as if someone is smoking a pipe in another room and you just get a whiff of it every now and then.

 

Very nice. Rich and spicy.

[Brianne]

In the vial:

Definitely getting carnation there - a spiced floral

 

On me:

At first this is like honey'ed carnation and smells like a cross between Alice and Dorian. Quite literally, it's like I'm smelling both at the same time - it's has that sweet, feminine honey floral vibe going on like Alice, but also has the spicey sweet note from Dorian.

 

After a while it starts to settle into it's own thing - it's still similar to Alice and Dorian on me, but it's become a little more heady now and incensey. It's definitely evocative of what it represents. There are notes in this that seem very familiar to me but that I just cant place because there is a lot going on here. It has a very incensey vibe to it, but in a sophisticated, decadent way - florals are definitely present, but not overwhelming.

 

This is one part sweet, one part spicey, two parts incense, one part sophisticated floral. It's very mysterious smelling to me, intriguing! It's also quite unisex I think, in the same way that I can see Dorian on a man or a woman, I can see this as being the same way.

 

Final note:

It's very nice, has a very intriguing smell to it. I think I can live without a bottle though, because it does smell similar to Alice and Dorian, so I'll stick to layering those

[chapatti]

First whiff: Oh bummer. This smells like everything I didn't like in Athens.

 

Drydown: Yes, that's Athens all right, thankfully without the sourness-turning-into-cat pee note. The honey note isn't sweet whatsoever on me, it's actually much more like beeswax than anything else, on a dark, masculiney note.

As it dries down, the carnation becomes more obvious... and Athens' sour note comes up, but thankfully goes away quite quickly. I don't know where that similarity comes from, I don't believe they share a note except for the honey and incense, maybe?

It keeps on being unsweet, strong beeswax on a dark background for many hours, without changing much. Nice throw and nice staying power, I must say.

 

Verdict: I thought it was going to be my favorite of the Maelström, what with the wonderful list of notes and the honey and all, but it's not "me" at all. I guess I was expecting something sweeter and "girlier" (which, ahem - hello, it's The Masque of the Red Death?! Stoopid me )

It's already gone to a more loving home.

 

6.5/10

[Miss Lynx]

I didn't really know what to expect from this one, since it has so many different notes. At least four of them are florals, and that usually spells doom for me, but it had so many other interesting things in it that I had to give it a try. And I'm glad I did -- this ended up being one of the two Maelstrom scents I felt compelled to order a 5mL of.

 

It's really hard to describe, because it's so complex. It's a deep, rich, multilayered scent that goes through all kinds of shifts and changes over time. It's definitely a lot sweeter and more conventionally "perfumey" than a lot of the scents I like, and the florals are prominent, but not to a level that makes it overwhelming for me. It's a really nice balance of floral and incensey with a warm honey overlay blending it all together.

 

If I had to compare this to any other BPAL scent, the closest would be Gypsy Queen from Carnival Noir -- they're certainly not identical, but there's a slightly similar rich and heady feel to them, of something sultry, feminine and mysterious... And they're both examples of that rare entity, floral scents that actually work on me!

 

It's pretty strong stuff, though -- excellent throw and staying power, but the second time I wore I got carried away and put on too much, and ye Gods, there is definitely such a thing as Too Much Of A Good Thing with this one. Must remember: Very Potent -- Wear in Moderation!

 

Grade: A