Eclipse

[desu]

All the glory, warmth and majesty of the sun -- darkened. A delicious blend of bitter almond, vanilla, frankincense and heliotrope, with a drop of cinnamon.

In the bottle: Delicious almonds. Smells like almond paste, acutally.

On my skin: Almonds, vanilla, and something a little spicer in the background. It's starting to warm up now from the vanilla and cinnamon. I'm really falling in love with this scent.

Later on: Vanilla-cinnamon almonds. This would also make a lovely room scent. Yummy! Edited December 28, 2005 by Shollin

[Fefferbella]

Marzipan and vanilla!

 

Almond notes turn extremely sweet on my skin, and Eclipse is almost sickly sweet.

 

This would be a delicious room scent!

[BlackDahlia]

In the Imp ~ The scent of almond paste hits me full on in the face. WOW. Sniff this one, gently... it is VERY strong in the imp/bottle!

 

Wet ~ More almonds... I was worried that nothing else would show up with my chemistry because in putting it on the almonds just come up and hit me about the head. And not gently, either...

 

On the dry down... Oooooooo very nice. (At ten minutes) I smell like cookies! I really like foody scents ~ so this one is one I will keep around. It would make an awesome body butter! Or lotion... or soap... or bubble bath...

 

Oooooo... I like this one.

Initially I was worried because OH! the almonds...

The drydown scent is fabulous ~ and long lasting, too.

The throw on this scent is not that great unless you really slather it on... so I will be getting a bottle of this!!

[PixieSkull]

In the imp: Sweet, like marzipan. EXACTLY like marzipan pastries. Bitter almond and vanilla, makes sense to the nose. The cinnamon isn't noticable.

Wet: Still marzipan and BEAUTIFULLY so... I love almonds. Can definately tell there is frankincense in here, it's underneath right now, hiding. Cinnamon just barely poking through.

Dry: The marzipan scent becomes a little darker with the frankincense, but it is still lovely. The cinnamon doesn't come out really much at all in this blend, and I like that.

Category: Foody/almond

Rating: 4/5, lovely and dark at the same time

Overall: Innovative blend and very delicious. I would wear it again, even though I'm not a foody scent person. I would use this as a room scent for meditation, though, clears the mind nicely. Better than the incense I already have.

[arabella]

First Impression: Bitter almonds - very strong - fleeting thoughts of cyanide entered my head.

 

Dries down to: Something creeps in and softens the almonds; a short while later they get sugar glazed and musk reins in the sweetness.

 

Additional Comments: I love this one. It doesn't stay harsh like some bitter almond blends, it's more like almond butter cookies. Checking the description, I see it's frankincense not musk in here, which probably explains why it works so well for me - I love frankincense in the right blend. The vanilla is giving it the creamy sweetness along with the heliotrope but I'm not sure where the cinnamon is hiding - which is just as well, cinnamon can be overpowering on me. This is definitely another one for the "big bottle" list - maybe even a top 10 - and, it's definitely a "must" or at least a "must try" for LUSH Snowcake fans.

 

Lasted: Several hours.

 

Rating: 5 out of 5

[populuxa]

In the bottle, all I could smell was marzipan - I was afraid the almond would totally take over. As it dried, the frankincense and heliotrope came out, followed by the cinnamon. Dries down to a warm, spicy blend - it really is a lovely scent! Not overpowering at all.

 

I'm really bummed out that I won't be able to wear it because IT GAVE ME A RASH! So if you have sensative skin or react to cinnamon this probably isn't a good choice.

[niter]

Imp

Very strong cooking almond oil--exactly like the McCormick bottles.

 

Wet

Once on the skin, the amond is overtaken by the spicy, sharp notes of the frankincense. I can smell the almond as a base and just a touch of cinnamon. It is as if it is baking, melding on my skin.

 

Drat! This went from OH my strong to lovely to Big Red. Please let this phase pass.

 

Dry

Fancy pants Big Red....only because I know what I am looking for I can catch the most fragile hint of almond. Pity..this went from creamy spicy version of Snowcake (LUSH) to Big Red.

[Heretic]

In the bottle: Almond.

 

On my wrist: wet: Sweeeet! Almond. Ugh.Cheap amaretto or a cherry cough drop.

 

After 20 minutes: Ah, that's better. That harsh sweetness is is gone. But wait...it's now toasted almond, vanilla, and cinnamon. Great, I smell like a coffee cake. I do not like smelling like food. No good can come of this.

 

After an hour: Eclipse never got past the "baked good" stage for me. Not at all what I was hoping for, but I'm sure someone else will like it. To the swap pile with you.

[Mary Mayhem]

Oh, I love the frimps! I get to try things I wouldn't have previously!

 

in the imp: Spicy Drink Cherries.

Wet: Same.

Drying down: it backs off some and I smell a tiny bit of vanilla. I never get the almond, or I just don't know what the heck almond is supposed to smell like.

 

MM, I LOVE ME SOME CHERRIES!

 

Doesn't last as long as I like, but wow, it's awesome!

[fiddlehead]

Very very strong almond on me. I never really got any of the other scents except faintly and in passing. It sounded yummy in the description but I don't want to smell of almond extract all day. I'll try this again another day and see if anything else appears.

[ovxi]

WHY MUST IT BITE ME? I love it so much!

 

Eclipse starts out as painfully sharp maraschino-cherry doom. This amused me the first time I tried it, but I knew it would probably back off a little. And good heavens, did it. As it dries, the cherry disappears entirely and I get a fabulous spicy almond, slightly vanilla with only a hint of much calmer cherry in the background. I haven't used it since December, because when I gained a little confidence with my first imp order and started slathering rather than using tiny, tiny bits, Eclipse swelled my skin into huge red welts that itched and burned and brought me much sorrow. However, compelled by Forces Beyond My Control, I've tried it again tonight, and it seems that if I use it on less sensitive skin it doesn't do that as much. I still have to stay away from it in general, because the memory of the itching is making the skin of my inner elbows feel irritated again, but it's VERY good to know I can wear it sometimes, because it was in line for a big bottle before it bit me.

[tinyvulture]

Bitter almonds – at first, that’s all I smell. Very similar to Port-Au-Prince minus the aquatic note. Don’t be scared -- the bitterness fades quickly! As it dries, the vanilla and heliotrope are noticeable and it morphs into a sweet, warm, foody scent. The frankincense adds complexity and the cinnamon is hardly there at all – very soft and powdery, not too spicy or overpowering on me. Over time it reminds me a lot of a stronger, longer-lasting Bengal. I might have to get a bottle!

[bifemmefatale]

I'm in love. *Finally* a BPAL almond scent that stays on my skin! Very strong, sharp bitter almond throw straight out of the bottle, dying back as the vanilla and cinnamon rise a bit, but never become dominant, the heliotrope lending its exotic, almost bubblegummy sweetness to the almond in a really interesting way. Not for everyone, but I really like this.

[lunareclipse]

I have to admit I ordered Eclipse because of the name... some variation of 'eclipse' has been my tag since I was in my early teens. I wasn't sure I'd actually like the scent.

 

Boy, do I! In the bottle, it's almost all almonds. I was thinking I'd wander around smelling like marzipan all day. However, on my skin, the almonds calm down a little, and the subtle spicy/floral notes come through. It's pretty durable on me, too.

 

The scent is sweetish, but in a good way, not sticky-sweet or cloying. I don't think it's the most complex or sophisticated perfume, but I find it comforting - somehow the olfactory equivalent of my favorite snuggly sweater. This is my 'get out of a blue funk in 5 minutes or less' perfume.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Pure almond extract

 

On Skin: Another scent that reminds me of the icing I used to make as a child. It was basically powdered sugar and almond extract with a little water. This smells like I just opened the bottle of almond extract, super sweet. Yum. The vanilla intensifies the sweetness of course as does the heliotrope… two blends that turn into pure sugary delight on me. WOW! The frankincense is light but adds a slightly darker, smoky note far in the background, just enough to give it some oompf! The cinnamon also adds another layer, a slight spice playing with the extreme sweetness of the scent. Personally, I don’t like cinnamon and wish it didn’t have that note in it, but oh well. All in all it’s quite nice, but damn sweet. I like it a little more after drydown when it blends with my chemistry and becomes a more morphed form of itself. Sweet but sexy, smething that is nice to get a light whiff of, nothing you should breathe in deeply. After about 20 minutes, Big Red gum. Not my thing sadly. Moderate throw, but short wearing length, it faded super quick.

[cameroncrazed]

In the imp: oh wow, that's cherry. Just cherry - that's all I can smell.

On skin:

First minute - cherry, cherry, and more cherry

1-10 minutes - strongly cinnamon, the only thing cherry-like now is the skin on my neck and inner elbows where it's burning. Strangely enough, my wrists are fine and are smelling absolutely wonderful.

10-30 minutes - having washed most of the oil off, I'm getting a light cinnamon/vanilla/almond scent.

30+ plus - gorgeous foody vanilla/almond with just a faint hint of spice

 

Overally, absolutely lovely - will definitely wear again. However, I will be careful from here on out and not put anywhere except wrists or hair and will not apply directly after shower. I'm new at this, so I don't have the best nose yet - but I never did pick up on anything other than vanilla, almond, and cinnamon. Love the scent, but not masochistic enough to enjoy the burn. 7 out of 10.

[brownbear]

mmm It starts out spicy bitter almond. The almond kind of wavers between cherry and almond to my nose. After it dries it isn't quite as interesting on me. I'm left with mostly cinnamon. I wish it didn't change so much.

[erin.kogan]

So nice...

Straight out of the bottle, it's a little bit straight cinnamon, but the almost appear to round it out fairly quickly. It's a warm, spicy, comforting scent that wakes me up.

[themerrybaker]

Fresh out of the bottle: Extreme mouth puckering Cherry Lollipop.

 

After about 15 minutes, Cherry Aftershave -hmm maybe the thing to wear for a Brazilian?

 

After about 30 minutes:Soap.

 

 

 

This one does not like me at all.

[kayte]

Eclipse is so rank on me.

 

In the imp it's strong almonds with a dab of cinnamon.

 

Wet...umm. Not promising.

 

Dry is pretty much... yeah, no. I tried Eclipse twice; the first time three friends told me I smelled like an "old woman" and I thought I smelled like a man - either way, that's pretty doubleplusungood. The second time was a bit better, with more almond and a dry-down to a sharp cinnamon that I liked much better than the first time I wore it; however, the "old" smell of attempt #1 was definitely still present. I don't know if it is the frankincense or the heliotrope (not sure what they smell like on their own, but I suspect the frankincense), but it is so not working for me. The smell is really familiar to me, but in a horrifically nauseating way. It's strong and powdery, and Eclipse has the dubious distinction of being the first BPAL I have washed off. Twice.

[Ciircee]

I can't believe I forgot to review this one! It's SO beautiful.

 

Imp: Almonds and vanilla.

 

Wet: Oh, oh the sweet-spice of heliotrope and almonds. A bit of a cherry scent? Which I know is the frankincense mixing it up with the almonds.

 

Dry 10 minutes: It's such a warm, sweet, creamy scent. The cinnamon isn't really apparent to my nose but I'm pretty sure that it's what is keeping the vanilla and almond sweetness tempered down. It's a very nice compliment to the heliotrope (oh, I love heliotrope).

 

Dry 30 minutes: The sweetness lightens a bit as the frankincense warms in. The almond (yay!) is hanging in there and the cherry scent is gone.

 

Dry 1 hour: And it's really fading (not a surprise on me). Still very sweet but also warm and with a spice to it--not getting cinnamon, but I'm such a heliotrope huffer that I'm not surprised. Besides, heliotrope always smells like cinnamon vanilla to me anyhow.

 

Dry 2 hours: It's very close scent and I can't really pick out anything beyond 'sweet and warm'. Could be that I've been huffing myself to closely.

 

 

Later notes from that day: Hey, it actually stuck around a good six hours (and normally my skin just eats light scents) and stayed pretty much like heliotrope and almond incense. And everybody in the house loves it. I'll have to remember to get myself a big bottle.

[emz83]

This smells sweet and sharp-pink, but it's not a 'cutting' sharp like Kumiho (it's not astringent), it's a rounder sharp, like fork tines. It makes me think a bit of cherry, but not so sacchrine and it's possibly the almond rounding it out. Very nice.

[Concupiscentia]

When I smelled this in the imp, I thought "Ugh, sharp almond essence" but my curiosity got peeked when I read it smelled similar to Dana O'Shee, which worked brilliantly on me. Well, this worked very well, it grew warm and comforting on me, with a hint of sexy in it. It's a foody, spicy scent, a bit heavier than Dana, but light enough for spring or autumn, very comforting.

[ariesathena]

This is one of those scents that when I first smelled it in the vial, it almost went straight to the swap pile. But I grabbed it on a whim this morning and forgot about it until about halfway through the day. At first, I get the same sharp almond scent on my skin that I sniffed in the bottle. It's way too much for me and I love both foodie scents and almonds. But this was, as the description says, bitter almond.

 

As it started to settle in, the cinnamon came out next. I'm not normally great at picking out notes in scents, but it's surprisingly easy with this one. The cinnamon takes it from a bitter almond scent to more of a spicy almond scent and I think if it stayed like that, I'd be happy, but it keeps changing. The vanilla seems to come out next and it finally settles into what I can only describe as a warm, spicy vanilla. But the thing is? I should like a warm, spicy vanilla but there's just something about this scent that turns my nose off and actually makes me a little queasy. I'm guessing it's the frankincense, although I'm not really certain what that smells like. Oh dear, and now that rather unpleasant note is getting stronger. It smells like...vanilla armpit. *sigh* Off to the swaps pile.

[blueroses]

This is one that sounds so absolutely delicious it's a shame that I don't like it better.

 

Eclipse goes on smelling of almonds and cinnamon, like a delicious cookie. The cinnamon is not strong or overpowering at all. There is hint of vanilla as well, a little disappointing because I love vanilla and wanted it to be a stronger presence here.

 

Then ... dun dun dun ... the frankincense. I have an unpleasant scent association with frankincense. I don't know what it is, but it also reminds me of herb rubs, like something I'd rub on fish or chicken. The frankincense gets stronger and stronger. And the the almond morphs into cherry cough drops. No no no. Get it off!