Bruja

[zillah37]

Menacing, bewitching and darkly sexual. A blend of myrrh, amber and lilac.

At first this is all powder on me with something slightly ... bubbly underneath. It reminds me of soda when the bubbles hit your nose. It's soft and soothing in a strange way. I'm not really getting any of the lilac which is not a bad thing for me. I'm much more an amber and myrrh kinda gal than a lilac one.

As it dries down, it because amber, but a dark amber because of the myrrh. The bubbly scent has become something sharp and dark almost like vetiver. It's compelling and fun to sniff.

I really wish I had more than an imp of this. It's *gorgeous*!

[Jettcat]

I bought this as an imp(ulse)!

 

In the bottle: Phew, alcohol and floral

 

Wet: This is quite nice, the alcohol stink goes away as soon as it hits my skin. Turns dark and smoky, must be the amber and myrrh amping up.

 

Dry: Finally getting a slight return of the floral, it's starting to balance nicely.

 

1 hour later: I'm glad I grabbed up this one and of course, I have to love it.

It's discontinued

[edenssixthday]

Bruja - the imp I received was an old-style tarted imp, and had apparently aged quite a bit. It’s a dark, thick oil, and I couldn’t smell the lilac in it at all, just the amber and myrrh, which were thick, and heavy, and dense. The scent lasted for hours upon hours. While I like resinous scents, this was too resinous for my taste. It may have been a bit lighter when it was new, but my guess is that it had deepened with age.

 

I have since received an imp of Bruja that is a much lighter oil and although it looks lighter and smells lighter, the scent is basically the same, except with the lighter oil I can detect a soft bit of lilac. I think the first imp was really old and the second one must have been much newer. Again, they were both obviously the same oil upon smelling them, but one had aged more than the other. I didn’t care for the darker/older Bruja as much as I like the lighter/newer Bruja, although the lighter/newer one doesn’t last on me skin as long as the darker/older one.

[absinthetics]

Resinous.. throaty... the lilac is the bubbably and vaguely powder smell that you pick up from the imp and detect on the skin.

 

This is definitely a vaguely floral amber... but a dark amber because of the myrrh. Bruja, to me, is golden-heavenly in the amber way of Jacob's ladder, but feminine and sexy in a way that is wholly its own.

[tidesong]

In the Bottle: Lilacs, musk, and incense.

 

On Application: Musky floral. After 5 minutes or so, it's fresh lilacs.

 

On Drydown: This is all lilacs, with maybe a faint hint of incense. The lilac is close to lilacs that are past their prime. Not quite, but there's a touch of the 'too sweet' smell you get when they're past their prime.

 

Comments: It's a lovely scent. I didn't think I liked it, but I've found I can't stop sniffing this wrist. It's floral, but light, and not headache-inducing at all. I don't get dark at all.

 

Verdict: I think it's a keeper. It'll have to be reserved for special times, though, because this one's quite rare.

[cranberry]

In the imp I smell warm amber. Myrrh adds a dusty note.

 

Once applied, it smells pretty much as it did in the imp – golden amber touched by myrrh. This actually reminds me a bit of Haunted but not as dry. I can smell the lilac faintly but it’s not as overpowering as it is in some of the other blends where it’s used. This is actually quite lovely, and that’s the correct term. Pretty, but ladylike and proper. A touch reserved.

 

I was thinking this was the same amber that’s in the Lion, or Coyote, because it wasn’t turning to powder, but this is the amber that’s in Haunted. It’s reacting how Haunted did on my skin – turning slightly powdery, like baby powder.

 

Despite the powder, I still like the scent but it does remind me of Haunted. It also reminds me a bit of O. Regardless, I’m thrilled to have gotten to try this, but I don’t need to hunt down more, which is good, as this is so hard to come by now.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Resin and lilac

 

On Skin: Oh, this is beautiful. Usually I am not a fan of lilac, but mixed with the beautiful dark golden myrrh and amber, we have a winner. This is a super sexy floral, “darkly sexual” hits it on the head. I love this!!! The resin and incense notes really ground the floral and make it soft but mysterious... lightly powdery but not enough to tickle my nose. A perfect night scent… not overwhelming but still intrigues you. This is gorgeous… I’m going to treasure my imp. I agree with Cranberry, it does remind me slightly of O... maybe it's darker sister... The throw is light but the wearlength is pretty good.

Edited August 17, 2006 by slave1

[Em-]

DC Circular swap -

Light and spicy, a sort of powdery scent. Not at all what I expected from the name.

[supremegoddessofall]

My skin's eating this, but mostly I get light lilac in a bed of amber. Slight spiciness that I presume is from the myrrh. Has a bit of a metallic feel to it.

[juniperus]

Bottle: deep myrrh with a hint of sweet floral

Wet: yes, sweet lilac...this the deep purple with the subtle fragrance my grandmother has in her back yard.

Dry: deeper, lovely. I can't quite get the amber in this yet, but the lilac and myrrh are so interesting together...I hope this might be a limited reissue at some point, I'd love more of it.

Later: finally the amber awakens - how beautiful.

[myoubi]

Thanks to Ah Xia for helping me get ahold of some of this!

 

This one doesn't change much on me, and for that I'm glad -- because it's beautiful. I get mostly creamy amber and dark myrrh, but it's saved from being heavy by what must be the lilac -- a gentle florally scent that smells almost like lavender when intermingled with the amber. This is a scent I could wear every day, if I had enough of it. The myrrh makes it warm and sexy, but it's also a scent I could wrap myself in like a blanket on cold winter days. I'm glad I have a half-bottle, and would not at all mind nabbing more.

[filigree_shadow]

I haven't liked most of the discontinued scents all that well, but this is one of the few that I like. I'm barely getting any lilac from it; it's mostly just myrrh and a wee bit of amber. It's not a dark scent, though, and I imagine that's the lilac being sneaky in the background and sweetening it up.

 

Very pretty. I won't go out of my way to find more of it right now because I don't want to pay and arm and a leg for it, but I'd definitely buy a bottle if it were resurrected.

[hadaverde]

In the vial, this is a nose-tickling floral with a dark subtext.

 

Upon application, the lilac is at the forefront, but the amber and myrrh become somewhat more apparent as well, tempering a bit of the "ticklish" quality of the blend.

 

The lilac remains prominent, unfortunately in a rather powdery incarnation. The backdrop of amber and myrrh makes it tolerable, but I have a feeling lilac may be headed toward my personal "notes to avoid" list. Finally, after a fairly lengthy stretch of time, the amber overpowers the lilac -- this is a sweet, golden-orange sort of scent, which would probably work a bit better on someone whose chemistry is on friendlier terms with the lilac note.

[wikkidraven]

i am waffling between thinking bruja is gorgeous, or awful. for some reason i keep getting a strong FUNK note from this, it smells plain musty. but on another sniff, it will smell delicate and spicy.

 

definitely weird. i've not made my mind up on this one.

[cuervosueno]

I swapped for an imp of this, not so much because I thought I'd love it, but because I've been wanting to try as many of the discontinueds as possible.

 

I like it, but probably will try to swap my imp for something I like better. On me, it is lilac and amber, which means soft, but very very sweet. There is a dark undercurrent in it, but not enough to keep me interested, unfortunately. I like that Beth's lilac notes seem to be what I consider true lilac--I mean it smells like I'm sniffing a lilac bush, not like an old-lady powder or perfume--but as much as I love the flower, I don't particularly want to smell like them.

 

It's a little more interesting to me in the imp, when I get a whiff of the myhrr too, but on it's more sweet floral. Lovely, but not for me.

[butcherbaby]

bought a partial imp of this.

 

i can't believe it was discontinued! it's a beautiful scent, reminiscent of "haunted" yet lighter and with a sweeter incensy touch which i am sure is the lilac. more of a daytime scent that seems especially nice for hot days when the heavy ones i prefer are too much. a lighter throw but a good wearlength. i'm going to have to track down more of this, or hope the lab brings it back for a spell!

[crebbsgirl]

Oh Bruja, where have you been all my life?? This is a wonderfully sexy blend, with just enough throw to get noticed. The lilac was pretty prevalent in the wet stages but the drydown was all myrrh and amber. The lilac became just a hint of a floral at that point. This is delicious, and I'm more than a little sad that it worked quite so well on my skin.

[zankoku_zen]

Oh lilac, you do strange things to my skin. At first it was a myrrh/amber blend, and then it dried and the lilac came to the fore and then WHAM. I smell melons. I swear, it's a weird lilac/melon scent on me. And a little soapy.

 

Full.of.lose. Damn my skin chemistry.

 

On the other hand, at least I'm not coveting this!

[ifinena]

Bruja - the imp I received was an old-style tarted imp, and had apparently aged quite a bit. It's a dark, thick oil, and I couldn't smell the lilac in it at all, just the amber and myrrh, which were thick, and heavy, and dense. The scent lasted for hours upon hours. While I like resinous scents, this was too resinous for my taste. It may have been a bit lighter when it was new, but my guess is that it had deepened with age.

 

I have since received an imp of Bruja that is a much lighter oil and although it looks lighter and smells lighter, the scent is basically the same, except with the lighter oil I can detect a soft bit of lilac. I think the first imp was really old and the second one must have been much newer. Again, they were both obviously the same oil upon smelling them, but one had aged more than the other. I didn't care for the darker/older Bruja as much as I like the lighter/newer Bruja, although the lighter/newer one doesn't last on me skin as long as the darker/older one.

 

I am swapping away my two imps of Bruja, to someone for whom is her hg scent. So I wanted to review her before she left me. Edenssixthday's review above, from 3 years ago(!), could have been my own review, down to the comma. It's weird!

 

I also have two imps of that, one is darker coloured and "heavier" smelling, the other is lighter coloured and "lighter" smelling. The darker one is sexier and lasts longer, the lighter one is more flirty. It's like two pictures of the same person, taken at different points in time.

I love both, but they are going to a home that is desperate for them.

[milo]

At first, this is a strong, musky floral. As it dries, the myrhh balances beautifully with the florals. Normally, Bpals lilac smells pretty floral fake on me, but this is more softer. Maybe because this has aged much more than the lilacs I have tried. At any rate, a beautiful blend, sexy but soft. Kind of dark, but bright at the same time, if that makes sense. Ill certainly treasure what little I have left!

eta: This is more and more reminding me of Hod. The amber is coming out, and the florals are becoming more spicy. Still Love!

Edited September 18, 2010 by milo