Chaos Theory V: Recursive Self-Similarity v3

[fiddledragon]

Penitence IX (9):

Bottle: something almost minty but juicier, something kind of spicy, and the resins beneath. Hard to pick out individual notes.

 

Wet: What *is* that smell?? High and cool and mintlike, but not mint. Almost sassafrass? There's a sweetness that's maybe tonka, but it might just be the resins. This isn't my normal thing, but it's very nice. It would be a nice meditation or study blend; it's very grounding, and will probably be more so once the resins age.

 

Dry: Still that high sweet herbal scent, now bordering on lemony and soapy. There's maybe a *very* herbal lavender or a hint of dry rose. I think age will improve this one.

 

 

Penitence XX (30):

Bottle: I'm honestly mostly getting the resins in the bottle.

 

Wet: Resins and cedar. This is a lot like Cathedral, but the woods aren't doing the Hamster Shavings of Doom thing yet.

 

Dry: Resins and sweet cedar, with maybe a faint hint of spice and a touch of vanilla. Very nice; a lot like Death Cap but not quite as sweet. Definitely a keeper.

 

 

Penitence XXXIV (34):

Bottle: Citrus! A delicious juicy sweet-sour citrus...not quite lime, not quite grapefruit. It might be a mix of several.

 

Wet: Still glorious citrus. This is less juicy on the skin, and now almost exactly the effect you get when you take citrus peel and squash it to make the oils come out. But it's very well-blended, so it doesn't jump out as one particular fruit. The Penitence is lurking under there somewhere giving depth, but is definitely less of a dominant presence than in the other two.

 

Dry: This is Moxie's more sedate, scholarly sister. The bouncy citrus is there but tempered by resins and doesn't have that cloying, Creamsicle edge that Moxie has on me. A good clean job-interview scent.

 

 

Penitence LVII (1007?)

Bottle: Another mystery! This is a heavy scent with a kind of doctor's office hint of latex to it. I can't place what the dominant note is and the Penitence is nowhere to be found. There's maybe a hint of black pepper...from the way my stomach is perking up, I suspect it is trying to tell me that this is a scent normally associated with food, but that I'm just not placing when it's in a tiny bottle of liquid. Some fruit or something.

 

Wet: This is a heavy, sticky oil that's actually mostly Penitence on. It's very similar to the old bottle of Midnight Mass I had, so there's something in here making it smell more aged and rich and sweet...for all I know, they just put some aged resin oil in along with the fresh stuff. The latex note has thankfully fled. There's a wood/smoke note in there, but it's not taking over like those scents often do on me.

 

Dry: More of the same as wet, with the wood becoming more defined and a spicy edge coming out that's one of those other resins I can never distinguish. There's that mystery note lurking around the edges...it's maybe a *very* dry vanilla or tonka? Either way, mmm... this is like curling up with a book in the corner of some cozy old theological library. I can even make myself get a paper note, but that might just be the wood and my imagination; BPAL's paper never works on me.

Edited April 6, 2009 by fiddledragon

[inurbanus]

XIV

 

In the bottle this is light and creamy, with a little bit of resin. Penitence is my favorite GC resin blend because of its gorgeous myrrh note so I was really hoping this would have a smoky element. No such luck. When I dabbed this on, I got something sweet and fruity / floral. It's one of those scents where you're not sure where the fruit ends and the floral note begins - just one big haze of sweetness. Luckily, I kept the Q-Tip I tested this with and have figured out that the sweet note is ylang ylang, without a doubt. Hmm... That's usually a note which doesn't really do anything for me but its nice here. I just wish I got some Penitence out of this.

[stellans]

XXXIX (39)
woo-hoo! I had high hopes for this, as I love the incense/resin of Penitence, and my CTV bottle didn't disappoint! Today's original scent didn't work, so I moved on the CTV series, and Penitence was first up. Again I say:

Incense and resin are among my favorite ways to smell, and this has both in spades. There's something just a little sweet in the drydown which is missing in the original Penitence, but that just sets this blend apart from its namesake, and in a good way, IMO. The sweetness seems to be floral in nature; maybe a deep red rose? I'm not sure. I am still not very good at picking out individual notes, but there is the requisite smokiness I associate with the myrhh and frankincense of Penitence plus that sweetness which just makes this altogether a lovely blend. Hooray for taking a leap of faith for a Chaos Theory...and it works out! I am going to enjoy sniffing this all the rest of the day...and in the future. I'll bet this is a blend which ages marvelously well.

[Heavenlyrabbit]

XCIII (93)

 

Penitence with peachy wine.

 

wonderful and very much a winner, for me.

 

 

Edited October 30, 2023 by Heavenlyrabbit

[twilighteyes]

XXIX (29)

 

I have to admit that I've never smelled Penitence.

 

But this blend is very lovely -- frankincense, myrrh, vanilla rose musk. Warm, sweet, incensey sugared rose.

Edited March 23, 2009 by TwilightEyes

[sarada]

LXXX (80)

 

Penitence is a favorite blend of mine -- frankincense and myrrh are two of my favorite notes. So it's easy to please me with variants on this. In fact I shuddered at the thought of how many bottles I'd "need" in order to feel satisfied. My ultimate dream would be a piney Penitence.

 

The one I got is quite undefinable though. I don't really smell the base in it at all at first, though as it dries I get a hint of something resinous. I think after testing this several times over several days that the top notes are fruit. It's a wet fruit -- perhaps melon, or pale apricot, or just a splash of fruit cocktail. Then again maybe it's got a dash of a floral. But I am leaning toward a melony fruit. It's not really me but since it's got Penitence in there somewhere I'm thinking it could grow on me. It's surprising how well the deep resins can be masked by the lighter notes, but it does deepen and mature a bit as I wear it.

 

edited because I randomly inserted the word "not" where it didn't belong, completely changing the meaning of a sentence. SORRY!

Edited March 26, 2009 by sarada

[GreenSpine]

LXXV (75)

 

This is incredibly wonderful, fresh and lovely. The resins are present and form the perfect base, but they don't overwhelm the rest of the scent. There is a fairly strong musk note (though I tend to amp musk) that smells more like the lab's blue musk to me than anything else. Light, soft white florals are at the top; I'm not entirely certain which ones, although I think I can pick out a little bit of white rose. It's not at all soapy - the florals are very fresh. On drydown, a mild sweetness begins to rise, maybe vanilla bean or tonka - it's not as in-your-face as the vanilla in Snake Oil or Dorian.

 

It's a cool but beautifully grounded scent. If I could, I'd be hoarding this like mad.

[Eros]

XCVIII(98)

 

Fresh lemon in the bottle nestled within frankincense and myrrh.

 

On skin the lemon softens to just a touch as a beautiful honey emerges. Another few minutes and herbs make an appearance. Similar to the herbs in Anubis The frank & myrrh add depth and richness.

This is really lovely =)

 

Penitence with honeyed-lemon & sweetish herbs.

[greenranger]

LXXXIX

Sniffed in the bottle, this is powerful...a bit like Frederic or Tristran in some fashion that I can't pin down yet?

 

On me, this is bay rum and dark woods from Frederic...and possibly redwood, tonka and spices from Tristran? Plus myrrh and frankincense which are usually amazing for me. I'll need to wear it a bit to see if this actually has coriander in it...There is definitely something spicy. I definitely like it, and I know it will only improve with a bit of aging.

 

This one would smell totally and truly amazing on a guy, I think. I'll wear it anyway, but, on a guy this would be sexay as all get out. Mmmm.

 

Drying this is smoothing out a bit. I want to stroke it or rub up against it. Heh. It is truly and terribly sad that my husband can't do perfume.

[Merrill]

L

 

I've never smelled Penitence, and if I was smart, I'd have gotten an imp with this order for comparison sake. But recently I've discovered that resins work very well on me so I decided to give this a try.

 

In the bottle it smelled vaguely sweet and fruity.

 

On my wrist it smells like green apple bubblegum. Exactly like the green apple bubblegum I got in Greece on a school trip, and have never been able to find again. So it's great from a nostalgia standpoint, and it's growing on me, even if it's nothing like anything else I have, or was hoping for.

 

As I was writing this, I kept returning to my wrist to sniff. I think I like it <sniff>. I think so. Let me check again...

 

(Expect a second review sometime after Tracelina get home, that starts: "Merrill's crazy." She's much better at picking out notes than I am.)

[Tracelina]

L

 

I've never smelled Penitence, and if I was smart, I'd have gotten an imp with this order for comparison sake. But recently I've discovered that resins work very well on me so I decided to give this a try.

 

In the bottle it smelled vaguely sweet and fruity.

 

On my wrist it smells like green apple bubblegum. Exactly like the green apple bubblegum I got in Greece on a school trip, and have never been able to find again. So it's great from a nostalgia standpoint, and it's growing on me, even if it's nothing like anything else I have, or was hoping for.

 

As I was writing this, I kept returning to my wrist to sniff. I think I like it <sniff>. I think so. Let me check again...

 

(Expect a second review sometime after Tracelina get home, that starts: "Merrill's crazy." She's much better at picking out notes than I am.)

Ok, Merrill's not crazy. And I agree--in the bottle, this is very fruity. It smells like green apple, banana, and possibly melon to me--juicy, but rounded out with something like coconut. There's something lurking in the background keeping it from getting OMGFRUITY (probably the Penitence), but it's not easy to pick out.

 

I put a small dot on my skin, and it smelled exactly like Banana Boat sunblock. Again, the coconut/banana smell comes out. Unfortunately, it's accompanied by a base note that smells like baby wipes. It's utterly bizarre. And sadly, not my cup of tea. Now I have to decide whether to order another CT bottle and hope for something more resinous...

[gaai]

XXII

 

Uh oh..... .....chocolate.......or cocoa........and I cannot wear a perfume that's heavy on the chocolate (not because I don't like the scent, but it makes me queezy if I smell it for too long)......

 

I decide to put it on anyway, because I've recently discovered that I *can* wear some types of chocolate notes (White Chocolate & Sugared Violets = ), so maybe not all's lost........

 

Phew....the chocolate (which I now recognize as cocoa, it's 'dryer' smelling) only hangs around for 20 minutes and then the Penitence-base comes through strong.......the cocoa gives it a 'sweeter' twist (only it's not really sweeter, but it's the only way I can describe it).

 

This is actually quite good.....I can get my chocolate fix *and* finally have the bottle of Penitence that I've been meaning to get, but got pushed back with all the LE buying.

[surlygurl]

CVII

 

In the bottle, sweet myrrh and orange...... oil? Zest?

 

On the skin, the sweetness of the myrrh mellows the orange (or mandarin, or whatever). The fruit isn't citrusy or bitter; it even smells floral at times - like orange blossoms.

 

This is a beautiful scent. I don't get the frankincense, but the myrrh & "citrus" meld together beautifully. Almost like a love child of Bakenako & Priala, but without the spices.

 

 

[TheOneTheyCallLuna]

XLVI:

 

Resins of Penitence and bitter clove. Pretty straightforward, but pretty awesome, too. I ain't mad at it!

[aine]

My bottle looks like it says LXVIX but that makes no sense??

 

Truthfully, I don't give a rat's arse what it is called - I adore it! I almost don't want to review it because I will only do it an injustice by mangling its beauty with awkward guesses at its notes.

 

Since my mind runs quickly to Luperci, Midnight Mass and Parlement of Foules I am guessing it is resiny incense with beeswax and a touch of white rose. Deeply sexual beeswax and sweet smoky resins.

 

My husband's eyes rolled back in his head when he smelled my wrist. I've got to admit I feel the same way. Even sixteen hours after I put it on the dark and dirty beeswax was smoldering away.

 

The only way anyone else will get their hands on it will be by prising it out of my cold, dead fingers.

 

[marared]

LXVI (66)

 

An *extremely* full bottle, all the way up to the second twist at the top of the neck. I'm not familiar with Penitence proper, so I can't compare it against the base, but the short version is that this smells like really good incense. I can't pick out anything except the resins. I think there must be some wood in it from the scent in the bottle ... now that it's dried down a little bit on my wrist, there is definitely a little wood and ... there's a flower peeking out. What is that? It's not rose or jasmine, that I can tell, but it's a heavy floral like that, but it doesn't stand out very much because it's pinned down under all that resin and wood (which is a good thing). I kinda like this, but I need to sit on it for a while and see how it ages.

 

Edit: ...deodorant?

Edited April 5, 2009 by marared

[aedes]

LXXIV

 

Holy wow. Foody. Like CRAZY foody. Starts off with a heady berry bubblegum rush with chocolate along side. I liken it to Halloween night, just stuffing all the candy you can grab into your mouth at once. Then, a boozy note creeps up in the backgroud. Chocolate berry martini. Too bad I hate sweet drinks AND foody perfumes. This kinda makes me want to hurl. But I know there are some mad foody lovers out there who will think this is heaven.

[Little Bird]

I had a friend send me decants from her Chaos bottles, but she said that she couldn't make out what numbers they were. Sooo...

 

I think that I was most hopeful for a Penitence Chaos to work on me. I like resins & incense, but Penitence itself was too bright & simple for me, if that makes sense. I was hoping that some other notes would make it deeper & more wearable, but that it would still be mostly a resinous blend.

 

In the vial, I think that this smells like myrrh with hints of cedar & perhaps honey or beeswax.

 

On my skin, it smells like pure beeswax at first. A honeyed, waxy sweetness. As it dries down, it starts to smell like smoky incense, sandalwood and cocoa. It makes me think of Halloween. It has a cloying quality to it that I'm not loving, and it smells nothing like Penitence once it's on my skin.

[UploadedLobster]

Penitence Variant #: III (3)

 

Penitence is a bit player in this. It's very herbal, piney, and minty with the frankincense resin backing it up. There's a subtle rose note in there somewhere, which doesn't seem like it would go but actually really does.

 

I had no love for this at first but it has seriously grown on me. It's a lot like the Apothecary, but less overtly masculine and no hint of soap. Very bracing and clean-smelling, but with a little sweet to take the astringence off.

 

Wait, I got it. Juke Joint. This perfume is what happens when an Apothecary gets up to mischief in a Juke Joint and has to do a little Penitence afterward. That's the best possible description I can give for this thing.

 

A few hours later, everything else has burned off and it's lightly rosey Penitence. I love that.

Edited May 6, 2009 by Uploaded Lobster

[myth]

XCVI

[decant from circle]

Quick sniff: something deep, maybe another resin?

On skin: Hmm, now I think this may be a floral. As it dries more of a heady floral comes out. I don't smell much Penitence. Gah, on full dry has gone soapy ick. Bleh. No Penitence, just soap, which means some floral something.

 

[naeelah]

XLIII - I accidentally reviewed this one twice, so here is my second impression from 5/5:

 

notes: only a little Penitence + clover, heather, lemon balm, ozone, etc

 

This is similar to Host of the Air, because it has a distinct air quality, but it is notably different for containing a lemony herb. Otherwise, it has the same fresh green clover and cool, breezy wild flowers. I can smell just a little Penitence acting as a base, lightly smoky, but this is all fresh meadows.

 

I'm not getting much of the Penitence in this. It's a very light, clean, refreshing, outdoor kind of scent.

 

 

and this was my first impression from 4/9:

The strongest note is a salty aquatic. Next there's a fresh, bright, green quality (this is probably several notes) that has a light lemon edge. I think it has lemon verbena, but it isn't like sniffing verbena directly. Imagine standing downwind of a patch of it. It's extremely subtle. There are probably some light florals. After 30 minutes or so, some light resins emerge as base notes (there's Penitence!).

 

Sort of smells like a combination of Kumari Kandam and Embalming Fluid. (As of 5/5 I no longer smell salty aquatics.)

 

Edited May 5, 2009 by naeelah

[Rocannon]

CXIII 113

 

They put vanilla in my Penitence. In the bottle it smells like incense and candy, which is kind of awesome, and at first it reminded me of Mead Moon, but now it's edging closer and closer to turning into the same plasticky badness as every other vanilla scent I've tried. The resiny goodness of Penitence is all that is holding it away from the brink... It's wearable, but oh, why does vanilla hate me so?

[greenranger]

Penitence CXVI

 

First sniff-Lilies....and other florals but nothing terribly strong. Softly sweet florals.

 

Drying, grass and lilies. This smells like Easter.

 

I don't smell much of the myrrh and frankincense that is Penitence, but, I like this anyway. It will probably go into my rotation of soft florals.

[GhillieDhu]

CXXXVII (137)

 

Bottle: Soft. watery pale green scent. Cucumber? Very light, I can hardly smell the resins. The oil is thin and pale orange-yellow.

 

Wet: Cucumber or not-too-sweet honeydew. Skin musk? Just a hint of something tart and savory... green tea or maybe lemongrass?

 

Drying: The frankincense is starting to come out more. Still cucumber and a delicate creamy floral I can't identify... might be honeysuckle. It reminds me of something in Schlafende Baigneuse. (Edit: I think the floral is orchid. It's gone metallic on me in other blends, so I try to avoid it.) There's a little bit of a bitter edge that I'm pretty sure is green tea.

 

Dry: More frankincense, and a little myrrh underneath. The resins are combining with the floral to produce a bit of a beeswaxy edge. The throw is soft, vegetal frankincense. This is an oxymoronic clean, crisp resin blend. Unfortunately, as the myrrh creeps out, it combines with the greenery to smell a bit metallic/rotten at one point. (Edit: Pretty sure the metallic note is orchid, collaborating with something in the Penitence base. It's strongest close to the skin, barely present in the throw.) Hopefully this will pass.

 

Overall: I like this! It's unique! I was hoping for a richer, incensey CT, but this should be great for spring and summer. Don't know if I like it enough to keep yet, though.

Edited April 24, 2009 by GhillieDhu

[Gwydion]

In Bottle:  It’s smoky and burned… paper? Pumpkin? Leaves? Over incense. I know this note and it never goes well on my skin. It reminds me a little of shattered Pumpkin. Wet: Very smoky with the incense coming out better. Smells like rain and Indian temple. (Not “rain” scent, but actually rainy day with stone incense, and spices from India. Dry: Heartwrenchingly close to amazing. It’s simply too intense with my skin chemistry. This is sad as the rain on stone + incense is a very cool idea.