Kiracoluste

Lavender, kitchen herbs (rosemary?), floraled honey and beeswax. Woody notes begin to emerge, like damp paper. Perhaps a bit of hay, something that gives this a rustic touch. I love that the lavender doesn't read as too masculine or like laundry detergent. The honey is soft and sweet, not animalic at all. I don't smell any patchouli but I'm pretty insensitive to it so that tracks. The leather note also doesn't really stand out to me; it's there if I'm searching for it, but it's not prominent enough for me to make me think of libraries and old books. I love Athenaeum regardless!

Unisex and fairly wearable. Not cloying, but pretty good performance. I like this for rainy Spring weather, but it would work for any season I think. Jorum Studio never misses!

The image it conjures: Standing by the kitchen window in a cute little cottage in a hamlet with a river and a lumber mill (yes I am imagining Riverwood from Skyrim).

Sweet hay, rose, and woody notes in the opening. The hay + mushroom provides an intriguing contrast between "dry" versus "damp" notes. The rose is heavy and vintage, like wilted roses on an antique vanity. It smells expensive and dirty, long-forgotten. It's also kind of dusty, like if you took a broom and tried to sweep away all the dirt from the surface of a flat boulder that has been sitting in the sun all day. It's like a soil note, but not a dark, rich soil. It's a dry, barren soil. There is also moss, of course.

To be honest, I hated this the first few times I wore it. I'm very sensitive to oakmoss, especially in combination with rose. But eventually I realized, less is more with this scent. It's very strong and it makes me feel sick if I can smell it constantly. But a tiny dab on my inner elbow is perfect (I have the older non-spray sample vial). Rose Fantôme is beautiful and artistic. It won't be for everyone.

The image it conjures: You're wandering off the path, deep in an ancient, overgrown forest. It is mid-afternoon and sunbeams pierce through the canopy. You trip over a large tree root, nearly hitting your head on a rock. But wait...it's not a rock, it's a tombstone. It is very old and the engravings are illegible. As you brush aside the dried leaves and dirt, you see there are corpses of cut roses among the debris. Who is buried out here, so deep in the woods? And who has been visiting them?

In the first few minutes, this smells sweet and herbal (I guess that's the davana?). Then a damp airness takes over, like a salty cliffside sea breeze. It's a fairly tame as far as ocean scents go; I don't get ambergris, seaweed, or anything overly animalic. Certainly NOT evocative of "deep dark underwater". It's just sort of fresh and pleasant. And pulpy, like wet paper. As the salty note fades, I get more green and herbal elements. It's not like a bright/crisp green, it's very soft and muted. Soothing, like a lotion you might find at a spa. The dates and resins in the base are present, but not very loud. There is a subtle sweetness. I don't really get patchouli or any earthy notes.

It's very clean, light, and safe. Below-average performance. I don't really understand the dark and edgy marketing...there is nothing remotely dramatic about this. I expected something weird and experimental and was unfortunately let down. It's wearable, but forgettable. I might have rated this higher if I didn't feel so deceived!

Before checking the notes, I wrote "cinnamon hearts, rum, honey, earth, incense, violets?". There is a lot going on here, but after sampling this a few times I will say that it's mainly honey and violet I get in the opening. It smells sticky, boozy and sweet, but not in a gourmand way. The honey is thick and animalic. It makes me think of a rich, deep purple colour. It doesn't read as "dark" to me in the traditional sense, but I think it's meant to be more like mysterious/unknown/dark-side-of-the-moon vibes. Solidly a cold-weather scent in my opinion, this would be absolutely suffocating in the summer. Incredibly potent.

I wouldn't personally wear this (not a safe blind-buy!) but I can appreciate that it is a work of art and one of the more unique fragrances I've smelled...there's nothing I can think of to compare it to. There's so much depth to The Dark Side, so many layers. It makes my mouth water. It makes me slightly uncomfortable. I didn't like it but it's also kind of blowing my mind?

This is one of the few "dark and witchy" fragrances I've tried that I feel really lives up to the hype. I get mostly moss and galbanum, with a hint of warm vanilla that only really comes out when I wear this on my skin. Otherwise, this scent reads as very cold to me. Like getting lost without a flashlight in a dense forest on an unseasonably chilly and misty summer night. It smells very natural and atmospheric. And a little bit unsettling.

This has excellent longevity and projection. You will literally radiate forest witch energy. Baba Yaga-core. Not a safe blind buy.