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Alecto

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Olive leaf, raspberry leaf, vetiver and cedarwood.


Too much cedar for me in this one. At first it reminded me of my Grandma's back yard, but then as it dried all I could think was 'pet store. I smell like a pet store.'

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OK - after 26 BPAL scents, I think I finally have the guts for a review. *lol*

 

I received Alecto as a freebie in my Halloweenie order, and to be honest, at first I didn't like it. I am totally hopeless at picking out individual notes, but here is my best impression:

 

In the bottle:

Oh... dry? What IS that? Oops... on my fingers now, so I'll be wearing it today.

 

Wet:

Still dry-ish, but somehow sweet too. Sweet and woody, and I'm still not sure I acutally like it.

 

After a couple of hours:

I think I've changed my mind. It's MUCH more mellow now, and somehow softer. I does remind me of being in the woods, but I don't get an overwhelming cedar scent from it. What I think is the vetiver has calmed down, and the whole thing has gone deep and smooth, like a really good red wine. Yay! I think I like it after all.

 

Whooo! That wasn't as tough as I thought it would be. :P Maybe I should do more.

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In The Bottle

Raspeberry boiled candy. I can pick the cedar and berry. Nice

 

On Application

The cedar and vetiver immediately amp up - dirty and woody with a trace of the berry beneath

 

Dry Down

Pencils and berry scented erasers! Not unpleasant but also not something I want to wear.

 

Rating (0-5)

2

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In the imp and wet on my skin Alecto gives me this weird peanut-butter vibe that totally turns me off and makes me nauseated.

 

...however, after reading the reviews and learning more about how much some BPAL oils change from wet to dry, I decide to give it a try. After all, I love cedar, love olive, like vetiver and think I would like raspberry leaf.

 

Wet: Ok, all I'm getting is peanut butter, or maybe peanut butter on pencils, and I'm not loving it. :P

 

Drying Down: Ok, the P.B. vibe is starting to fade and my buddy cedar is taking over. This is really woody, crisp and fresh...but ARGH, there is still that weird P.B. smell way in the background.

 

Dry: I would like this if the P.B. smell would totally disappear. It almost disappears, but I can still detect it -- whether that's in my head or b/c it's still really there.

 

Regardless, so this is not a good blend for me. Stupid peanut butter.

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imp: olive leaf and raspberry leaf. there is not a hint of vetiver or cedar. plus, this reminds me of something from my childhood. i was simply flooded with memories as soon as i took a sniff of this scent. it's incredible.

 

wet: i'm getting a touch of cedar but it's so faint it's almost a general woodsy scent. the raspberry leaf is far stronger than the olive leaf and the vetiver is no where to be found. i'll be buying a bottle of this.

 

dry: the raspberry leaf fades a teensy bit so this is almost 50/50 raspberry leaf and olive leaf. which i'm loving. will be buying a bottle.

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A strange combination that I'm not really feelin', sorry : -( I get a weird stale peanut-butter vibe from this, as well.

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Swap test!

 

Smell alike: Old polished wood

 

Color impression: Smooth rosewood

 

On me: Huuum, this scent reminds me the product we use with my mother when we give second life to antics furniture! The blend really has linen oil accents (and I love this!)

 

Wearing: The cedarwood always makes me think of men fragrances. I will probably not wear this one myself (even if raspberry sweetened it nicely) but I really, really like it!

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Great scent. This was a freebie. I never would have thought to order this based on its components. I think it would be really yummy on a man, though I'll be using this imp myself.

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In the imp: BBQ? Seriously.. I think it's just the cedar mixing with someone vaguely sweetish, perhaps raspberry leaf.

 

Wet: Lots of vetiver, and cedar a close second. The subtlest sweetness. I'm not really sure what olive leaf smells like. This is a unsettling combo of woody, sweet and.. I swear, salty.

 

Dry: Egads.. dirty, vetivery cedar and berries. Not for me!

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In vial: woody, dry, herbal, and not as bad as you'd think! Like something from the health food shop.

 

Wet on skin: mostly cedar, but quite round and smooth.

 

Dry on skin: the same.

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I get this as raspberry and the cedar. The vetiver is very well behaved and is just a teensy bit smoky around the edges. It's basically the sweetness of the raspberry and the dry cedar smell. Oddly enough, it works very well. I like this blend more than I thought I would!

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This oil goes on my skin sharp-smelling and dry--it's the cedar in it. As it dries down, it becomes cedar and a deep kind of leafy green--the kind of green you get from geranium leaves, not like grass.

 

After a while, a sweeter note emerges with the cedar, hard to pinpoint, but definitely sweet.

 

Its final stages are cedary and woodsy, and quite understated. I will probably revisit this one in the summer. I love cedar, I'm finding, though it's a more rugged and outdoorsy scent than most of my winter favorites.

 

Recaplet: Cedar with fleeting traces of green and sweetness.

My rating: 3 of 5 (Nice enough.)

Color Impression: The rough red-brown of cedar wood.

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Imp: CEDAR. And heavy vetiver, and something a little fruity. Bears a very strong resemblance to Fire of Love on me, but without the black musk that makes that one so oppressive.

 

Wet: Oh, cool! Olive leaf! Smells like olive oil but greener and softer. Then-- WHOOSH-- cedar. A faint trace of subdued, pleasant raspberry, and lastly a well-behaved vetiver. I agree with whoever said that this works surprisingly well for the notes listed. Nice throw. To me, the woodsiness and earthiness and fruit combine into a smell that smells like the compost pile and the garden at home. Which is not an insult by any means-- in fact it's rather comforting.

 

Dry: So I expected to hate this because of the cedar, and I have to admit, it's not my favorite thing in the world, but this is surprisingly herbal and pleasant and, I think, would be great layered with something creamy-sweet. If wood blends are your thing, this would be great on you!

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In the imp, this was mostly dark fruits with just a touch of green woodsiness. Once it touches my skin, however, the cedar really comes out to say hello. On drydown, this one ends up being mostly green wood with just a touch of sharp fruit in the background. Thankfully, the vetiver never really made an appearance...I'm sure it's in there somewhere but it seems to be keeping it's barf-inducing character to itself.

 

Overall, nice, but not my thing.

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Imp: I'm not gonna lie here...cookies and cigarettes...that's what it smells like. From the notes I have no idea why.

 

Wet: I'm getting some of the olive but still some cookies and something musty and ashtray-ish.

 

Dry: It mellows...I might detect a hint of berry...the ash becomes cedar...but really not for me.

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Imp: Candy and woods

Wet: Fruity woods. There aren't any fruit notes (unless raspberry leaf counts), so, maybe my nose is broken? This is a really nice scent. It's not strong, but has good throw. It's not a distinguishable wood when wet.

Drydown: The scent begins to "warm up". After about 30 minutes, the cedar has taken center stage. I think many of the posters had the same problem with the cedar taking over. The cedar has smothered all the other notes.

Overall: I wish that the blend could have stayed in the wet stage. It was very wearable. A mellow wood note with a sprinkling of fruit. It wasn't sweet and cloying. It was a mellow comfortable scent. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll wear this because the drydown is too overwhelming CEDAR. :rantrave:

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Got an imp of this a few months back and figured I'd try it out today for the first time.

 

Let's see...my initial impression was that this was a very woodsy scent. Woodsy, with a hint of something fruity, which my untrained nose mistook for peach.

 

After a few minutes, the mild fruitiness fades away leaving the woodsiness which now takes a back seat to the olives, which seem to have come out of nowhere. Almost as if they were hiding behind a bushel of giant green leaves. These are briny, Greek olives. Kind of bitter, but kind of salty. It's a very refined scent. Different, but I like it.

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I got this as a frimp and wasn't expecting much from it, but it certainly surprised me!! It's wonderfully mellow and greeny with a touch of spice in the form of the cedar that isn't overpowering at all. The cedar note seems to make this one and tie it all together into a very calm green with a hint of spice. As it dries down, the cedar becomes much more noticeable, but so does the slight hint of fruit that keeps the cedar in check, but I definitely like it that way. I looove the smell of cedar and this form of it is so mild and not as astringent as cedar can sometimes be to my nose.

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Cool, sweet raspberry leaf with cedary undertone. The light scent of vetiver and olive leaf warm it up a few notches. Dries down to a forest-like berry richness. I really didn't expect to like this one, but it has a nice ground to it~like Middle Earth.

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This blend has a mellow, sweet scent that is trampled by cedar. The cedar in this blend overwhelms all of the other notes.

 

Rating - 1.5 out of 5

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It smelled promising at first, but after an hour it has faded to overly ripe raspberries and pencil shavings. I adore anything with olive but it's not coming through at all on me. Sigh. *moves to swaps*

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Imp: nuts and watermelon? some kind of fruit

Wet: fruity nuts

Dry: fruit; maybe berries. Fades out quickly. much later it gets a little woody and smells of the burnt candle vanilla that my skin chemistry just does not love.

 

This went through some interesting scent changes, but, due to the vanilla finish, I just don't see myself wearing it. I will find it a better home.

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First 10 minutes - I've remembered that I need to go to collect olives with my folks.. Don't like it.

After, cedarwood calms down entire situation.

It is very calm, I would recommend this scent everyone who is searching for some peace.

Very nice.

Too bad it disappears quickly...

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