Allegory

[viciousviolet]

From Bewitching Brews

 

A sinuous, vibrant scent, striking in its boldness and complexity. Juniper and white cedarwood entwined with orange and raw civet.

 

A very difficult blend to describe. This is the scent I would imagine Byron and Shelley wore as they drifted through opium-laced reverie. It is an earthy scent, not of pine, but of dark herbs and mahogany wooden notes with a sweetness and an almost languid feel. An “artist's” scent, or the scent of a poet's inspiration.

[Cinder]

Couldn't say it better myself; excellent description of this oil. It definately is complex; very woody. I detect a hint of sweetness to it -- overall it is reminiscent of lingering in a dark, wooded area on a moonlit night. One of my favorites!

[TygherRayn]

In the bottle: Curious. Woody .. and there's a hint of orange floating in there that I only catch now and again.

 

Wet: The civet comes out a bit stronger on .. I'm assuming that's what that musky, hot scent comes from at least. It's still toned down though by the orange. Not nealy as funky on me as Puck was .. which is the only other civet scent I've tried.

 

Wearing: I'm not sure if it was related, but my hand started itching where I applied the oil after about 45 minutes. Not a bad itch, just a minor irritation. The scent is nice .. a warm, manly, woody scent. Full of heat .. but not peppery, spicy heat. This is body heat.

[xoe]

This is a very interesting one. Very complex. The horrible problem that I have with civet only lasted for about 20 minutes, and didn't even compel me to wash it off! AS it's dried down it's quite lovely and nice.

[TheDarkMother]

In the bottle this was a crisp floral that just happened to reel the senses. I was thinking of walking through a floral store's cooler.

 

On me however, the smell only intensified until I had such a horrible headache that I had to wash it off. It was still that heady floral scent, but it was so strong that I couldn't stand it.

 

Oh well...its been the only one that I've found so far that I didn't like.

Edited July 14, 2004 by TheDarkMother

[hypothermya]

This was one of the scents that I was attracted to by the name, but I think the juniper scared me off... I only recently tried to get ahold of it, because it seemed like my boyfriend would really like it.

 

In the Bottle

 

It mainly smells of thick wood. There's cedar (you can tell it's white cedar, because of how light it smells), and then there's the juniper in there. The orange is what brings the two "woody" smells together. It smells very herbal/woody, with a bit of citrus (not sharp or tangy, just plain ol' orange rind citrus). This smells so similar to Jabberwocky, by the way; the only difference is that instead of the traditional cleaning products smells (eucalyptus/pine), there's the cedar and juniper. The orange is almost the exact same strength.

 

Wearing It

 

I only put a little bit of this on, since I knew what it would do. Sure enough, the orange went sticky/sweet on my skin, and it wasn't really very good smelling at all. The cedar turns out to be the strongest of the scents on my skin, which is nice, but the sticky sweet orange is a major turn off.

 

Fortunately, on my boyfriend the orange keeps it's scent without turning into a sticky dried juice sort of scent. On him, the cedar also is the strongest scent, followed by the orange and the juniper (which act like a musical chord, with orange being the high note and juniper being the low note/complement -- they both work together very well). I can't really distinguish the civet, but between all of the scents this turns into a very yummy masculine scent on him, with just a taste of dirt underneath to keep the very *white* cedar and the clean herbal/fruit scent from being too clean. Not only does it remind me of Jabberwocky, but in a way it reminds me of the cedar notes in Tombstone, but without the super sticky sweetness of the sassafras and vanilla (which turned way too sweet on him when we tried it out). This seems a bit more refined/gentlemanly than Tombstone did.

 

 

I think this is definitely a keeper, and one of the first of the more traditionally masculine/cologne smelling scents we've found that works on him. I was dissapointed that Jabberwocky disappeared so quickly on him, but with this scent it seems to be staying longer than that... Which makes me happy to have found a replacement (although this is almost better than a replacement) for Jabberwocky.

[Northernminx]

Received this through a swap and didn't know what to expect as it smelled very strong and earthy in the bottle.

 

Upon application, it was very strong in the musky juniper department but mellowed quickly.

 

If there's anything musky in here it's not finding me, which is fine. This didn't go strong or masculine as it seems to have on others. This has distilled into crystaline, sugar coated juniper. It's the scent of waking up in the tent on a chilly spring SCA morning in the middle of the woods. Sweet and refreshing and herbal all at once. I adore this one, it's utterly brightened my mood.

 

A definite buy-a-big-one

[Effluvia]

in the vial: A little lightbulb went on, but I don't know what it is. This smells so familiar! It's impossible to describe...it's BREATHTAKING, though. It's totally Kate Bush. I'm hearing "Cloudbusting" in my head right now.

 

on my skin: I love the muskiness it has...someone mentioned Byron and Shelley and I think they've hit the nail on the head. It's flowy, poetic, romantic, hedonistic, scary, hallucinotory and wistful all at once. I really like this one a lot. A LOT. This and Glasya are the only civets I *really* like (this is nothing like Glasya, though). Wooooooooow. Glorious stuff.

 

On the more technical side of things, I can spell juniper that reminds me slightly of Black Forest, I can smell a civet that's calmer and subtler than any civet I've ever smelled, and I can smell pale cedar. It's so incredibly beautiful. (sigh)

[Astarte]

This to me has that strong chemical association when I first sniff the vial. Its reminscent of the smell of hospitals. Yet saying that, my body doesnt seem to get along with any of the notes, as it settles down it does seem more bearable as the intensity fades, but this just doesn't do anything for me.

[grrrlennyl]

allegory

 

at first: this was a freebie from the lab. i smell cedar, with something else. cedar isn't good on me, so i wouldn't have ever bought this for myself.

on: very strong and masculine. i can smell the orange, but mostly get juniper and cedar.

1 hour later: very sweet now, which is nice. however, it still isn't a good scent for me.

2 hours later: very odd. it's even sweeter. i wonder if that's the juniper or the orange changing. it's way nicer now, but i still get an odd scent, which is most likely due to the cedar, the civet, or a combination of the two.

3 hours later: still sweety, woodsy, and masculine.

overall: i'm glad i got to try this, but it is so far from being me that it isn't even funny.

[Ishtar]

When I first smelled Allegory in the vial, I thought my nose had gone crazy. All I could smell was... old-fashioned grainy mustard. I have absolutely no idea how my weird nose/brain connections came up with this, but that is exactly what it smelled like to me.

 

After applying, thankfully, Allegory did not make me smell like a mustard-coated roast, but it was still an olfactory riddle. The civet actually behaved itself, which was nice since it usually turns very unpleasant on my skin. I cannot really say that I was able to recognize any note in particular; this is quite complex. A little too masculine and moody for me to wear, but interesting. I am glad I could try it before it was discontinued.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Bright. The sharpness of juniper, the bright citrus note, the light white cedar providing a balancing wood note. The orange gives this a fruity feel...it's dominant, not in the background as I expected.

On me: Orange and cedarwood. Again, this is far fruitier than I expected. Unfortunately, it also makes me sneeze so it's hard to glean more than a quick sniff.

[laochodia]

in the bottle: all i smell, for some reason, is the mother of all evil peach teas.

on me: deep, warm and musky- this would be a great guys scent.

[blu°]

Bought an imp of this from somebody on the lush forums, and I'm so sad it has been discontinued. This and Kweku Anansi are my favourite bpal oils so far. I had a lot of people asking for the name of my perfume wearing Allegory especially. It's very deep, complex and just beautiful. I'll go learn some more English words now before writing more reviews.

[Eros]

Very dry and green upon opening bottle. Something patchouli-like about it, which isn't a good thing for me. Juniper is quite strong in this and as much as I like the way it smells, in a perfume oil, makes me sneeze Couldn't try this on, unfortunately...Its one of those that I just know is going to send my allergies into high gear. Very interesting(even if only "sniff tested") blend nonetheless.

[QueenFae]

Wow this is a strong one! It's a reddish brown, incense-y scent that reminds me of the inside of a head shop. This one works for me, because I can wear civet, it smells smoky and heavy and hazy on me. This would be lovely on a guy, too, definitely masculine enough. This would also be lovely in an oil burner.

[sarahj]

Allegory

 

In the imp, wet, and dry it smells the same to me: sharp cedar and juniper. Too sharp for my tastes. The orange never shows itself, unfortunately. I usually enjoy cedar scents, as long as they are balanced out with something sweet. This is not the case with Allegory. Fortunately it didn't last long on me (only about an hour or two).

 

Off to swaps.

[Lilithlefay]

when I sniff the bottle I get lots of the juniper and cedarwood. It actually puts me quite off. Very green!!

Wet on the skin it is still very juniper and cedar but I can alos smell the orange...very citrusy, very strong on my skin. I can't smell any musk or civet which is a shame because I love musk and civet!!!!

drydown has faded a bit and I can smell a bit of the civet now but the juniper and cedar are still very strong, mostly the cedar...the orange has all but disappeared

after a little whil the civet has mixed with the cedar and it is nice but I am just not a fan of the cedar.

 

This is definately a very green scent and I wish that the civet lasted longer or was a bit stronger. What can i say.....I am definately a musky/ civet kind of girl they work wonderfully on me. I'm just not into that cedar kind of scent. I will be swapping this.

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): This smells like fresh cut greens and something else.

 

Just On: Hmmm, fresh cut greens and animals.

 

An hour or two later: I'm gonna guess there is civet in this, but it's a good smooth one. The greens are not prominent anymore.

 

Around 6 hours: This is fading pretty fast. I'm still picking civet out of it.

 

12 hours: That last bit of civet, and surprisingly nice to my surprise.

 

Overall: I'm really glad I found a blend with civet that works on me, and rather sad that it's a discontinued scent. Ah well.

 

After reading other reviews: I see I'm not the only one that found this to be a wonderful civet blend.

[melrose]

In imp: Sweet and green - hard to describe.

 

Wet, on skin: The juniper and cedar really pop out, but there's also a soft woodsy scent and some sweet spices.

 

Near drydown: So wonderful - it's terrible this is DC. Woods, spices, like the inside of an old church.

 

Middle drydown: Even better. It's as if I'm walking in an old-growth forest - clean woods, with a hint of sweetness from wildflowers in bloom when I kick leaves over.

 

Far drydown: Just a hint of sweet cleanliness. After reading the description, I never identified the orange or civet, but had no problem with the juniper and cedar.

[Blood onmy hands]

I'm glad that I finally managed to snag an imp of this one, in my quest to try out all the civet blends (I actually love civet). The civet isn't really prominent at all, just a sort of warm musk that lingers in the background, but Allegory is still very lovely.

 

First on this is a bit sharp, with the juniper playing a prominent role. Green and woodsy. Then the sharpness fades and the cedarwood is strongest. It has an alluring musky warmth to it, underneath the woods. This is very sexy, I'd love to smell this on a man.

 

Over the three hours that I had this on, it gets sweeter. The citrus comes out more, but it is a very sugary citrus on me. It was pretty light and disappeared quickly, but it was pleasant while it lasted. I'm going to be giving this one to my boy, as I think it would suit him better

[malanna]

Damned Internet Explorer and stupid touchpad, deleting what I wrote by randomly going back....

 

Basically, this starts out being all sweat, like O, but without the honey and amber to idealize sweat. It's rather icky and nauseating. Oh, hated civet. Fortunately, cedarwood comes out to temper the civet. The civet fades away at least, a half hour later, leaving a biting cedarwood. Cedarwood and juniper berry, perhaps? Then, the scent smells of cedarwood and vetiver, or at least something that has the same green quality that vetiver has. Vetiver gets stronger, but then, as the scent fades away after six hours, it goes back to smelling of cedarwood.

[yeahbutnobut]

Allegory

 

In the imp: I get an almost pine like scent. That may be the juniper. There's a hint of orange sweetness as well.

Wet on skin: the orange comes out more on the skin, it's a sweet orange scent, it sweetens the juniper-cedar notes up nicely.

Dry on skin: to me, this is along similar lines as Jabberwocky-a piercing evergreen/foresty note combined with orange. The scent is bright and sharp, almost like pine. I get piercing juniper against a solid cedar base with sugared orange, an unusual but very pleasant combination. I don't get civet yet. Maybe I'm one of the lucky folk who don't amp up that note to poo-like proportions!

After a while: yup, now I think I detect the slightest smidge of civet. It's enough to add a tiny bit of something animal but not in a repulsive way. It adds something slightly feral to the scent, it smells like a sunlit forest where you can detect the slightest scent of the animal life there. The scent is also a little bit sugary, which is unusual…but very pleasant.

At some points in the scent, I get a cherry candy like scent, reminiscent of Kunstkammer (that must be the orange, and something else?) and, strangely enough, Lush's Rock Star/Creamy Candy. Now that is bizarre! I think it's my pre-menstrual skin playing up…but if it makes orange, juniper and civet smell like Rock Star, that's a good thing!

Verdict: I think that civet isn't too bad a note on me. I hardly get it in this at first…this is very similar to Jabberwocky on me-a forest scent with orange. It's piercing and fresh, and quite masculine, but the orange is pleasantly sugary to my nose. As it dries, it does the strangest things on my skin…at times the civet shows up slightly to add it's feral touch, and at other times it becomes a cherry candy scent, like Lush's Rock Star! It's unusual, and my skin chemistry is obviously wonky today but I like it. This is a very nice scent but I'm not sure if it's me yet, and I'm letting a friend try it out…I'm glad I've tried it though. I may get more if it is brought back/resurrected.

[edenssixthday]

Allegory - Cedar and juniper don't ever, ever work on me, and this is no exception. All I smell are the dry wood notes of cedar that remind me way too much of pencil shavings and the sharp, green, wood notes of juniper that don't appeal to me. Neither the orange nor the civet are noticeable past the wood notes. The throw is slightly above average and the staying power is well above average (as most notes I dislike tend to last and last on my skin! Murphy's Law, I guess.)

[supremegoddessofall]

Very strange scent. I get all of the notes, and mostly it's the juniper and orange fighting for dominance. Not as bad as most orange scents are on me, but still not for me. The civet is making it very raw and animalistic.