The Clod and the Pebble

[sanachan1]

Rose otto, clove, patchouli, Indian sandalwood, nutmeg, and cedar.

The Clod and the Pebble was the Lupercalia blend I most wanted to try. I don't know if it was the poem, or simply the description of the perfume, but I was dying to try it. I am definitely not disappointed. I bought an imp of this as part of a pack from lorajc and it really is beautiful.

In the bottle: My first impression was that it smelled like a really beautiful rock. It was really an odd impression, but the scent just really fit its name. The funny thing is, until now I had no idea what sandalwood smelled like, but when I sniffed this a second time I went "Wow... something in here smells really familiar." And then I realized I used to own a sandalwood fan when I was younger, and I loved the smell. I'm so glad I like sandalwood, because it seems to show up all over the place in the lab scents.

On the skin: Wow, this is just lovely. Even my husband likes it, and he can be sort of picky about perfumes. Sandalwood is the strongest note, but I get hints of cedar, and what I think might be the clove and a touch of patchouli. It sweetens up a bit with wearing (my skin turns everything sweet, it could turn bleach sweet, and its really, really frustrating) but mostly stays quite woody, with the sandalwood staying strongest and the cedar keeping up a good showing.

I'm not sure I'm going to buy a full bottle, since I already have tons of perfume, but it really is gorgeous.

[septima_pica]

This is the one I've been most wanting to try out of the Lupercalias. It's got nutmeg (the only one besides Laudanum, IIRC) and clove, and I like all the other notes too. Managed to snag a decant of it (thanks, Apple!) and try it...

...OMG, it's AWESOME. Oddly, of BPALs I've tried, this most reminds me of Kostnice, now DC'd, but it's even better. The rose, sandalwood, and cedar make a strong showing first. Then it starts getting a tiiiiiny bit sweet, and just gets better and better. It goes way down in intensity after an hour or so, though, unfortunately.

 

Do I need a bottle of this? Maybe. It's pretty awesome.

[Epiphany]

In the imp it is dirty and spicy. Wet, I get this sort of befuddled rose/patchouli combination struggling against the sandalwood and cedar.

 

As it drys, the cedar wins. I now smell like a cedar chest. Hm. Not what I was hoping for.

 

I gave it two hours and went back for another sniff. It almost disappeared...very...faint note of cedar/sandalwood, with a bit of that rose and patchouli. The dirty spicyness from the imp, which suggested more nutmeg and clove, is no where to be found. I applied pretty liberally, but perhaps I need to test it again. Though...I'm not sure about that cedar thing.

[ravenfeathers]

in the bottle patchouli and sandalwood with a soft spiciness; can't wait to try this on

wet on skin something spicy, maybe the clove? and cedar. spicy cedar. and that's about it.

dry on skin despite the fact that this remains nearly a cedar single note, i find it interesting. more testing, i think.

later: more clove, less cedar, and something else that's spicy that might be the nutmeg. the rose is kind of icking the thing up, though. more testing again.

[Pendragon]

*sniff* mmmm *sniff* ahhh *sniff* yuuummmmmm

 

This is cedar and sandalwood and a touch of patchouli. My kind of perfume.

 

It reminds me of Pulcinella and Teresina, one of my favourite carnival diabolique blends.

 

As it dries the scent becomes 'drier'. The rose peeks out to say 'HELLO! HERE I AM MUMMY!!!' and the woods dry out significantly. *sniff* mmmmmmmm.....

[ceiswyn]

In the imp: An initial rose-sweetness is almost immediately overpowered by patchouli and wood, inextricably blended together. It's a little dirty, earthy, but still with that rose-sweetness layered over the top, that I couldn't smell last night (presumably interference from all the other imps I had out is to blame for that).

 

On the wrist: An earthy, warm rose, quite gritty. I'm sensing a lot of clod and very little pebble. The rose is stronger in the throw, the patchouli and woods close to the wrist. The clove and nutmeg are barely detectable, but as I begin to crave hot cross buns I begin to suspect them of sneaking in under cover of patchouli and just adding an extra richness and warmth.

 

One hour later: The rose is now faint, and no longer as fresh or sweet, and it's the gritty, earthy, dirty patchouli and woods that are the strongest note in this scent. It's rather faded, though, and has developed a trace of 'perfume'. Nice, but a little disappointing.

[jade_starlight]

On first whiff: lots and lots of cedar. And as it dries, still lots and lots of cedar. The rose tries to pop out, but the cedar is wearing its stompy boots and isn't afraid to use 'em. Sadly, this one simply won't work for me.

[Pika]

This was the Lupercalia I was most excited about too.

 

In imp: Just what I was hoping for! Lovely sandalwood, patchouli, a little sour - maybe cedar?, and a hint of soft rose. Not smelling nutmeg/clove yet, but here's hoping...

 

Wet on skin: Initially it just blossoms out with the same set of lovely scents. Beautiful rose and cedar, mostly.

A minute later: Oh no, it's already changing! It's going dry, dry, dry. Powdery rose, powdery cedar, powdery sandalwood. Never got any spices.

 

A few minutes later: It's fading, leaving only faint, powdery wood behind.

 

 

I can't believe my skin did this to this scent! I smell kind of like an old ladies underwear drawer, with an ancient sachet stuffed in the back corner. I don't have many instant-powder scents, and I really wasn't expecting this to be one. Do I blame the rose? Is it sandalwood? I'm so sad. I'm going to keep this and test it again in a few days, just in case... but

[megank4]

From the bottle- cedar, cedar, with a touch of cedar.

 

On me- yep, pretty much just cedar.

 

I don't get any spicyness at all. I think I will try this on my husband, see what he thinks.

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, this doesn't smell very appealing to me... sour rose and sharp clove. On me, it gets even worse. This morphs into a smell of dirty, unwashed, sweaty skin. The woods notes are funky, gritty & dirty smelling, and all of the notes seem to mesh together into a loud, sharp, sour mess. It's too harsh for me and doesn't work at all with my skin chemistry.

[Czarina]

In the decant: cedar.

Wet: OMFG CEDAR.

Drydown: the cedar moderates and up comes the sandalwood, rose, nutmeg.

 

Wish I could pick out the clove and the patchouli. Still, it's very nice once the OMG CEDAR part is past (about 10 minutes).

[PurringPulsar]

The Clod and the Pebble

 

In the imp: old cedar, rose and patchouli, reminds me of a mix of Wanton and Pulcinella.

Wet on skin: cedar and patchouli, with a hint of spice and sandalwood.

Dry on skin: mmm, now it smells a tiny bit spicier and the rose pops out a little more. this is a spicy cedar and patchouli scent with rose and a bit of sandalwood incense. the cedar note smells aged, it’s the note that reminds me of antique chests, a really rich wood note. The rose note is also gorgeous, as is the sandalwood and the hints of spice. The patchouli is also very strong, and the whole scent is earthy and dark but not dirty. This is a classic wood-rose-patchouli scent.

After a while: the cedar, so dominant before, has mellowed, and now the scent is a really balanced mix of woods, patchouli and rose with a sprinkling of nutmeg. Not as strongly clove-y as El Amor, but this is quite similar. This one is heavier on the woods and rose. It smells really nice, a shadowy woody rose with warmth and depth.

Over time it smells a tiny bit more like incense (I think that’s the sandalwood) and the patchouli becomes stronger as well. at times I swear I smell a hint of resin or smoke to this.

The scent does get fainter-or at least, everything except the patchouli does. The patch is tinged with hints of spices, woods and incense, but it is close to the skin.

Verdict: this smells like an old cedar chest full of rose petals, cloves, nutmegs and sandalwood chips. It’s like I’ve opened this ancient wooden box up after many decades or centuries of it being closed, and I’m inhaling the scent of all those spices and woods and roses that somehow have still retained their scent. It’s so rich and deep and dark and mature, earthy but not dirty. It’s a scent that smells a bit exotic, a bit antique, unisex and a bit like a scent I’d find in incense with the sandalwood and spices. It’s a lovely woodsy rose scent with the nutmeg and clove adding warmth to it. I like this a lot but I’m not sure if it’s a favourite in the woody-spicy-rose scents, I think I prefer Baghdad and Parentalia, or El Amor…I also wish this lasted a bit longer on me. I do like this one though…it’s a lot nicer and not as masculine as I expected it to be.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Maybe, maybe not. It’s a lovely scent but I prefer others on a similar theme.

If you like this, try: El Amor Y La Muerte, Wanton, Rakshasa, Pulcinella and Teresina, Parentalia, Baghdad

[savage_rose]

In the bottle, it's bracing and green smelling. On...oh my God...CEDAR, CEDAR, CEDAR. I smell like a damn rabbit cage. Ugh. Get it off, get it off!

[twilighteyes]

This was one that I was really looking forward to. I love sandalwood, patchouli, clove, cedar, rose... so HOW COULD IT GO WRONG??

 

But when it's on my skin I get mostly cedar. Then I start to get some whiffs of rose. I wish the clove would come out more, I love clove. Can't really smell the sandalwood or patchouli.

 

I put this on right before lunch and after lunch I can't smell it at all.

Edited April 17, 2008 by TwilightEyes

[Miss Lynx]

This, along with Anactoria, was what I was most looking forward to in this update. And yet, like Anactoria, I didn't end up liking it as much as I expected to. I don't dislike it, by any means, but it's just not the greatness I was expecting.

 

It smells a bit like an oil or incense you'd find in an Indian clothing store, which is generally a good thing to me, but in this case not quite so much. There's a sort of green edge to it that's not working so well for me, and a little bit of... harshness I guess? I expected spicy incensey goodness, and instead I have a slightly jarring cross between Indian clothing store and medicinal aromatherapy blend.

 

It does occur to me that that harshness is the sort of thing that might be able to be mellowed by aging - possibly putting it away in a dark place for a few months might improve it. It does smell like there's the potential for it to be lovely; it's just got this certain raw, harsh edge, that maybe time will temper. On that hope, I've optimistically sprung for a bottle -- I guess we'll see how it fares.

 

Grade: B

[tartchef]

Rose & I have a historically bad relationship, stemming from the childhood summer I spilt a bottle of eau de toilette all over my bedspread & carpet & had to live with the stench of Avon's Tea Rose for months after... But the promise of clove, nutmeg & cedar was too much for me to resist, and I snuck the Clod & Pebble in on my last Lupercalia order...

 

In the bottle, it's all soapy rose & pencil shavings I waver. I seriously consider selling the bottle on the spot. But that would be beyond lame, to be cowed by a perfume, and so I persevere...

 

Wet, it's much the same, but with traces of clove & incense smoke... I keep bracing myself for screaming rose, but miraculously, it never happens. There's a really interesting frisson between pretty sweet pink roses & deep sticky resins & spice... It's been so long since I've left anything this rosey on my skin, and I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the scent... The throw is quite lovely, with the sweeter aspects of the rose & spices coming forward. Up close, though, there's that sharp soapiness & graphite that puts me on edge a bit...

 

Miss Lynx is right - Clod & Pebble has a harsh edge to it, but there's the potential for greatness here. Worth cellaring for a bit, I think, to see if the cedar & rose calm down & let the sweeter spices come through...

[djsiberia]

in the imp: roses clove patchouli and a small dash of cedar

 

wet: this is just lovely, a nice light rose scent with cloves, patchouli and sandalwood.

 

i'm glad the cedar isn't getting amped up.

 

dry: can't stop smelling wrist. it's delicious...everything is balanced. i'm certainly curious how this will age. still pondering if i should get one more bottle?

[cybra111]

I get rose, a cloying floral. It's true that rose does amp on me, but I was hoping for a nice blend of the other scents. Especially cedar and sandalwood!

[VioletChaos]

in the vial: like fresh-tilled earth. very nice!

 

wet on skin: the clove is starting to come out, but that earth smell remains. maybe it's the patchouli, though this isn't the usual result...

 

dry down: the clove and the rose combine to create this earthy, deep and sensuous animal. it makes me think of sitting in a small room, the walls covered in heavy tapestry, no trace of natural light allowed to enter, nothing but the scent of ancient oils and dried flowers that dizzy the senses.

 

in all: this oil is for worship, who ever and how ever you define it.

[lilirose]

This is an odd one. As others have said, it’s a big morpher, and in the end it’s a pleasant surprise.

 

In the bottle: I couldn’t smell much of anything.

 

On skin, wet: OMFG cedar! Argh, how did I fail to notice before buying this that it has cedar?

 

Beginning of drydown: Dry cedar and sandlewood with just enough patchouli to make me think, in total, that this smells like dust. Not like the Lab’s usual dirt note (which I like), and not totally unpleasant, but very…dusty.

 

After an hour or two: The cedar damps down to a tolerable level and the rose start to come out. This becomes quite sweet, feminine and almost creamy- or, at least, less dry and dusty than it started out.

 

Verdict: probably about a 3.5 of 5. I’m going to see if it improves with age before I decide whether to swap it.

[lainevierge]

In the imp this smells like dusty pebbles. On my skin I get rose right away and then something that resembles housepaint.

 

Luckily though, when dry this is just dusty roses. Glad I only have a decant though.

[lefthandmade]

Oh man this one is gorgeous all the way.

I expected the cedar to be sharp, but in the bottle and wet on my skin it's very woodsy, yet still smooth, with a whiff of spice in the background.

 

When drydown starts the rose comes to the foreground with the spices and it's so very very beautiful.

An instant love!

[edenssixthday]

The Clod and the Pebble – This is nothing if it’s not a dirty hippie scent. It’s heavy, heavy, heavy on the patchouli and woods. It’s a highly abrasive scent and something I’d expect to smell when walking into a head shop or when getting my fortune told. I don’t care for this blend at all, but I imagine those who love patchouli won’t be able to get enough of it. Throw is average and staying power is quite long.

Edited April 26, 2008 by edenssixthday

[windbourne]

Uff. This was my second wash-off scent. I'm not sure what's in both this and Black Lace (maybe it's the Indian varieties in specific of sandalwood and Musk?) that do this, but like my first wash-off, it gave me an instant headache. Otherwise, it smelled very lightly of rose, and extremely violently of cedar. I'm learning to avoid cedar -- on me it's almost always rodent cage shavings and sadness.

 

I think it would smell lovely on someone who can wear this sort of sweet woody scent, and I think I might like smelling it on someone (provided that it didn't give me an achy head on someone else!), but it's really not for me.

[fairnymph]

Sniffed in imp: Patchouli, cedar, clove, sandalwood, a wee bit of rose. Dry, dusty, earthy and woody. A little spicy.