Seven African Powers

[Lucretia]

No description but a bit of online searching tells me that it is Hoodoo related and used for luck, protection, and power:

"The Seven African Powers image most often seen on hoodoo soaps and anointing oils consists of seven saints (sometimes given orisha names and sometimes saint names) surrounding a central circle in which is shown the crucifixion of Jesus, watched by a rooster on a pedestal.

In the early 1980s the Seven African Powers name entered hoodoo as an all-purpose power-enhancing magical formula, considered to be equivalent to John the Conqueror in its presumed effects, and used in much the same manner"

 

This is a very clean, herbal scent on me. I can't really make out any of the note, but I get a very sharp, not quite lemony scent. Definitly herbs and possibly grasses, i don't have a clue as to which though. If I had to choose another bpal scent like it, I'd have to say shroud mixed with snake oil (which smelled like angel cake on me) would be the most similar of the ones I've tried, except this is fresher and cleaner.

This makes me feel awake and clean, which I enjoy, althogh it's not really a scent I'd wear on a regular day.

 

the drydown ends up to be herbs, perhaps cedar wood and something else I really cant put my finger on.

 

I did use this to annoint a candle, which came to very good ends, so i think i will keep this for my rare uses of candle magick since this seems to be sort of an allpurpose good luck and power blend.

Edited February 7, 2005 by Lucretia

[divajen]

At first: it's woodsy and rich; I don't think this will be one for me if it stays like this.

 

After a few minutes: it's gotten lighter on me. It smells a bit sweet, even! This has turned into quite a neat scent. I guess I would say that it's green with some sweet florals and a touch of something a bit deeper.

[pekeana]

Seven African Powers is green, herbal, woody, strong, and slightly spearminty. Something in the combination has a similar scent to High John The Conquerer, but a slightly bitter version. There's also something light floral, almost powdery here.

 

It's dark and deep, but surprisingly light and pulls you in.

 

Alas, the woods are turning me off, and this bottle will be going away to live with a nice girl who invokes the powers and protection of the Orishas.

[cuervosueno]

I agree with everyone else's review....green, herbal....a bit minty. It has a very slight fizzy green note to it that I note in some of the tarot blends like the Fool. I like it--its very clean, and on me the wood notes didn't really come out.

But more to the point, I decided to follow Lucretia's lead and annoint a candle with this, to help further power of the other oils I'd already used...I guess I could say I used this as a magical "booster" and it seemed to work quite well--quickly, and in most unexpected ways. I'm impressed!

I only have an imp of this, but as I don't intend to use it except in terms of magickal/ritual use, I think that's just fine.

[shelldoo]

in the bottle...resinous

 

one yes resinous, and some vetiver it seems a bit sharp, and green but not minty green more like leafy dark green i get mostly resins and vetiver, no mint, nothing sweet, there may be a hint of muskiness here too but it is playing a supporting role

[Penance]

Origin:

 

I got an imp of this from Alectonox.

 

First sniff:

 

This is extremely familiar. It's one of those scents where it would be instant recognition if someone told me what was in here...somewhat herbal, slightly peppery, maybe some vetiver (it certainly smells like it) and maybe something floral (I'm not certain about that one).

 

Wet on skin:

 

Damn, this is familiar. I'd say there's almost definitely vetiver in here, but not too much. It's slightly herbal and slightly earthy and medium-dark in scent. This is more an impression than a definite scent picture for me, but I like it.

 

Dry down:

 

I really like this. My only complaint is that something in here is going a bit powdery on me. I'm thinking there might be well-hidden rose in here, which would explain the sudden powder. The final impression is one of powdery vetiver with a dusting of earth. I like it.

 

The bottom line:

 

I can't say whether this really does anything (I don't even know that it's supposed to, come to think of it) but it certainly smells nice.

[AlectoNox]

Hot dry grassy plains. A hint of herbs, maybe a touch of spice. Hot air and leaves crackling in the sun. For some reason I found this blend incredibly relaxing and soothing. It doesn't trigger my allergies at all, and much like Haunted it is one of those few blends I can always wear, no matter how ill I get. It's not something I thought I would want to wear as a perfume, but it's suprisingly a great skin scent.

[cricketshay]

This oil is one of The Black Broom exclusive Orisha oils.(I aim to collect them all) There isn't a lab description, but it is suppose to bring luck and power.(I could use some good luck!)

 

In the Bottle~Very clean and crisp. I like what I'm smelling in the bottle. It's clean without the lemony note that goes cleaner on my skin.

 

Wet~It tingles! All the Orisha's I've tried has this effect. Herbal, clean goodness. I like it very much. It reminds me of a grassy field on a warm summer day.

 

Dry~Still lovely. I would keep this one even if it wasn't one of the magical blends from The Black Broom. Different notes keep coming forward. I love complex blends.

 

I'll have to remember if I had a lucky and powerful day!

[phaedrine]

I agree with the above reviews!

 

In the bottle, it's very wet, green, herbal. On my skin, it gets almost a bit soapy, but that vanishes as it dries.

 

After a couple of hours, it's still a green scent, but now it's a dry, dusty, woodsy green. It makes me think of the desert here in New Mexico, and it also makes me think of the desert in South Africa, both high, dry, dusty places.

 

Whenever I wear things, THINGS HAPPEN, so it's voodoo/hoodoo aspect is wonderful, as well as it's smell.

 

Thank you, African Powers, for bringing the rain today, I needed that...

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Some citrus, and maybe a hint of something woodsy.

 

Just On: Still smells like citrus and woods.

 

An hour or two later: More woods, and less citrus, but otherwise about the same.

 

Around 6 hours: Lighter than before, but the same scent.

 

12 hours: Stayed true, and is pretty much gone now.

 

Overall: This only morphs a little bit, to change it's balance, and is a very pleasant scent. I have some *really* good ideas for putting this into ritual use.

 

After reading other reviews: I don't see where anybody else got citrus, though someone got 'not quite', so I can see that. The woodsiness is pretty nice. I'll probably keep this around to try out in ritual a couple times, and then gift it to somebody when I've used half of it or so.

[DameBecca]

The scent reviews have covered everything that I get from this oil. Mine stays very heady, incensy and strong on patchouli.

 

I want to review the experience I have had with it moreso than the actual scent.

 

I picked up my bottle at Black Broom and set it aside. I feel that these blends have thier time and place and I prefer to not use them as a novelty scent for everyday use.

 

One week, a lot of bad things happened and my job, which is already a steady 60 hours got heaped on by a co-worker leaving with no notice. That meant that I had to do her job, which was easily a 65 hour week, on top of mine while still being a good personal assistant to the owner of my company.

 

One night, I broke down in tears and basically fell apart from the stress. The next morning, I woke up, pulled myself together and was determined to make it through the day. It was going to be particulalry rough due to even more co-workers being out on vacation, leaving me with thier work. As I was getting dressed, I decided that this was the day to use SAP. I collected myself, grabbed the bottle and while concentrating on all of the power that I hold within me, I placed oil on my wrists, neck and temples.

 

That day at work could not have gone any smoother. I was deluged with outrageous tasks and I took everything in stride. I was organized, efficient and I really showed my boss what I was made of.

 

I know that a lot of this was all in my mind, but having that extra push from the oil made all of the difference.

[~AmusedMuse~]

My impression:Crisp, clean, herbal and grassy...somewhat like that of a summer day. It is like the other TA Oils I have tried very different interesting and uniqie.

I am not sure I would wear this often, but somehow I feel like it is more of a "special" occasion type of scent. Upon drydown the scent stays true and is quite lovely.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Very herbal and astrigent with the hints of a sweetness. Probably some vetiver; maybe but I'm not at all sure that there's a mintiness.

On me: Hot and dry grassy plains - I like that, and I think those words encapsulate the blend. It has a distinct Voodoo familiarity to it; I'm sure it must contain several of the magikal notes that all the BPAL Voodoo Blends see to share. It is not something I would wear; if it serves the same purpose of High John then I will have to try that blend next.

[sihaya09]

Seven African Powers::

(Origin: TAL circular swap.) This one is hard to describe, because of all of the blends above, I'm the least familiar with this one's ritual uses. It makes me think of the colors green black. I smell pepper and darker herbs. Intuitively, I sense that this is a protection blend, and a potent one at that. Admittedly, I only have done little research on African shamanism, and I'd be interested in doing so because this blend intrigues me. It has a draw to it, and I want to be able to more fully understand it.

[wickedgoddess]

Look like I forgot to post this one!

 

Origin - TAL circular swap

 

Wet - bitter and astringent. I'm supposed to wear that?

 

Dry - as it dries, it becomes much more pleasant. I smells woods and a touch of vetivert. An hour or so down the road this has morphed to all patchouli

[aidenraine]

This is definitely herbal- and it smells nice, but definitely as a working oil rather than a perfume. It's clean and lemony, with something like fresh-cut grass in it. It smells like a clean kitchen on a spring day with the windows thrown open and the smell of blooming plants wafting in off the fields. It's very fresh-green-herby as opposed to floral.

 

A fresh, clean smell that doesn't come across as synthetic.

[laochodia]

Heat. This smells like a hot sun shining down on some fresh-picked herbs, with a strong base of lemon that doesn't overwhelm.

 

As to the use- I put some on just before bed, since I've been having problems controlling energy during my dreams (waking up to find everything in my room has been shifted slightly is really creepy), and promptly fell asleep. No dreams, but I woke up with a horrid headache and I feel full of energy. I feel almost like if I had to stop a semi from hitting something, I could.

[Northernminx]

Grassy herbals and a touch of resin, I am unable to review this one in terms of use as I'm both unaware of how best to use it and haven't been particularly full up on luck lately. The scent was clean and earthy but not overpowering. Pleasant but given my lack of use for this, not something i'll be seeking out.

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 4/5

Rating (efficacy): N/A

Summarised in a word or two: Herbal!

 

In the imp: A warm, citrusy herbal.

 

On skin, wet: Spicy, earthy, citrusy herbs. I get no vetiver as others did, but something earthy that might (or might not) be patchouli.

 

On skin, dry: A second-skin kind of scent, meaning it mellows out quickly (unsurprisingly, since its intended purpose is not as perfume). I absolutely love it -- it almost strikes me as a mixture of Tarot: Strength (herbal, earthy) and Sol (citrus, spice); as I love Sol and Strength, I love this.

 

Conclusion: I've added Seven African Powers to the list of "Things to buy when the TAL site opens" list. When I do, I'll then give its magickal properties a whirl.

Edited January 12, 2006 by Aredhel

[Blood onmy hands]

First on, Seven African Powers is soapy citrus and a grassy herbal scent. Green, a bit sharp, and soapy.

 

After a few minutes, the soapiness fades away and a bit of something like dry cedar begins to come out on my skin. Over time this morphs from an astringent green scent to a dry, almost dusty scent on me. Like the grasses have dried and a warm cedary scent takes over. It becomes more grounded and earthy.

 

This isn't a scent that I'd wear, really, but I found the transition that it went through on my skin to be rather interesting.

[emzebel]

Origin - TAL Circular Swap (I'm a little behind in my reviews )

 

This is a very sharp musky, dark blend, much as others have said. I can see how it could ver a very powerful blend for spell work, but it is certainly not something I would be inclined to use for personal annointment. I think it would be a good centering agent for object annointing, however, at least for me, although I have not used it in that manner.

[500ml]

First sniff cleared my head and calmed me down. This is actually the first TAL blend I've tried out and I wanted to give it the respect it deserves. I think this would be perfect as a candle anointing oil, but I also really like the way it smells on me. A bit woodsy, I can definitely get some vetiver (but not the strong in yer face kind, it's still quite soft) plus something else that I can't quite figure out - herbal grasses? Either way it's calming and very grounding so there's not much chance I'll part with this.