Chesed

[Longstofly]

Loving Kindness, Tzedek, the Benevolence of God, and the source of the 72 Bridges of Mercy.

Sniffing the bottle I get an overwhelming smell of cedar. Underneath there is some sort of fruity undertone, maybe lemon? It is definitely a light citrus. On me, even after the drydown I get a very strong cedar. It is very sharp and makes my nose tingle. It reminds me of opening up one of those old cedarwood chests that your grandmother kept her mementos in.

[clover]

Chesed

 

Sniffing out of the bottle: Very woody, indeed.

 

Upon first application: The only thing I can detect is some sort of light wood. Nothing heavy, just dry, salty wood. This, to me, is a very, very good thing.

 

After a few minutes: The wood mellows a bit and I start to pick up another scent - something just vaguely astringent and tangy. Like a very smooth lemon. (A smooth lemon? Where did that come from?)

 

Conclusion: I absolutely love this. It reminds me of Hamadryad, except instead of the slightly spicy background, the background is golden, and yellower. It's like laying on a bench made of freshly cut and seasoned wood. Beautiful. Will definitely be getting more!

[lorajc]

I just rec'd this the other day and my bottle was cracked, but I was able to salvage about half of it (which I have put up for sale/swap). This was a resinous scent on me and all I could get out of it was a cedarwood type smell. I couldn't really pick up any other notes, but I don't really care for it. I don't like saying that in a review but I'm sure it's just not me. It would really be nice for those of you who like the deeper scents like Penance! As a matter of fact, she is the first person I thought of when I sniffed this (her and Sarada).

[Penance]

Preconceived notions:

 

QS informed me quite a while ago that Chesed has one of my favorite notes in it and I'm guessing it's cedar. I've been waiting to read the reviews because I want it to be a surprise, but I'm getting antsy about finding out, so I'm glad this finally arrived!

 

First sniff:

 

Yay, cedar! I had a feeling that was what it was going to be, so I'm glad I was right.

 

It's not only cedar, though. Somehow it reminds me a little bit of Alecto. It's not raspberry leaf like in Alecto, but they seem to be in the same general vein. Whatever it is, I can't place it, but it softens the cedar and sweetens it, making it much less dry.

 

Wet on skin:

 

I still have no clue what else is in here. It might be fruit of some kind, but honestly I can't tell. It's semi-sweet, but not overly sweet. It actually reminds me a lot of Alecto, even though there's clearly no raspberry leaf in here. Whatever it is it's pretty, but I'm also feeeling a little bit sick to my stomach, so it may be something I'm allergic to.

 

Dry down:

 

Now Chesed smells almost like cedar and frankincense. That may very well be my nose pulling a fast one, but that's what it smells like. To me, anyway. It's a sort of sweet resin/something else (technical term) and cedar scent to my nose. I really like this, but it's making me a little queasy for no apparent reason.

 

The bottom line:

 

I really like this a lot but something in it doesn't like me.

 

It's been a while since I had a reaction like this to anything other than almonds and occassionally carnation, so I have no clue what's causing it, but it looks like this is going to have to go.

[ipb]

this somewhat reminds me of alecto with something herbal instead of the earthiness of vetiver.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Cedar.

 

On Skin: Pure cedar. Wow, very woody. Also something a bit spicy yet green. A herb or leaf maybe? Very outdoorsy. Again another scent that I identify as masculine. Not really me, but a pretty scent.

[cuervosueno]

Night before last I decided to try all the woody/piney scents I had so I could decide on a favorite. Then I got a couple of imps of chesed, while my woody scents were still fresh in my mind:

Cedar. Pretty much straight cedar on me--yes, the scent of a cedar chest. Its nice, but doesn't have the exceptional lasting power of some of the others I like. I'll use my imps but don't need a bottle.

[helarctos]

My honest first impression? Chesed smells like the salad dressing they use at the Olive Garden.

 

OK, I think it's pepper that gives me that notion. Maybe more than one kind of pepper, even. I get no sweetness at all from this blend. It's very sharp. I can perhaps detect a wood base note, but really it dries down on me from pepper to a sickly sharpness that is like pepper mixed with classic B.O.

[JazzieCazzie]

At first it just struck me as very very clean (but not necessarily soapy). Like a young man rolling up his shirtsleeves to dig up a yard. Earthy, strong, wet, clean dirt.

 

Then the fruit starts teasing my nose, and I see yellow but not citrus ... believe it or not, I think it was banana! Maybe banana leaf? I did not get any of the cedar or frankincense others have mentioned ...

 

The drydown was slightly nauseating and I ended up taking a hot bath at 1 a.m. to wash it off. Oh well ...

[Barb25]

I absolutely love Chesed. Love, love, love Chesed.

 

I managed to get an imp of it. Maybe I got it because Chesed is one of the few words in Hebrew I remember. I'm not sure.

 

It is very cedar-y. It also has a fruitiness to it, kind of citrussy, but I'm not sure. I'm really not great at identifying notes - but I know this. Wearing it gave me a tremendous feeling of peace and happiness, and I could not stop sniffing my wrists. It is a really different, unique scent, and I am crazy about it. I ordered a 10ml the day after I tried it the first time.

 

This one is in right up there with my Bpal true loves. Fantastic!

[darkling]

In the vial, Chesed smelled like tree bark. It was very strong, almost overpowering.

 

On my skin, the bark mellows slightly and a lovely natural peach scent arises.

 

Chesed is a peach tree. It is absolutely lovely and very long-lasting.

 

I may have to buy a bottle of this one.

[Northernminx]

Once, when I was little, my father had an enormous vegetable garden with corn and tomatos and pepper plants all staked and growing. They were over my head in most spots and I used to trail after him picking tomatos off the vine to nibble at. Once I got "lost" in the mazes of plants and ended up sitting down under a rather enormous green pepper plant to wait for my father to "rescue" me.

 

This is exactly that smell.

 

Herbal and woody in the bottle the cedar on my skin, and whatever else is in it, softens into a green, earthy fresh goodness. This is pure happy memory for me, summer days and warm earth and cool green peppers.

 

I love this one.

[sookster]

i get a woodsy/ slightly apricot scent with this one.....really different......seems to be lasting awhile......i can't quite put my finger on the wood scent ...... maybe the teensiest touch of cumin

 

think i need the boyfriend to try this one out

[scourgeotheseas]

Chesed - from a swap with Muppetk.

 

In the bottle: Light wood with a touch of sweet fruit.

 

On me/wet: The first dominant note is wood, although I'm not so familiar that I can positively identify it. However, there is a sweet, fruity tang beneath the wood, (hopefully) waiting to jump out.

 

Drydown: This would be fantastic for someone who really likes a strong light or red wood note. It's very pretty, and on me there is an underlying sweetness, maybe that of a fruitwood. A lovely blend, however, I'm not a woodsy kind of girl.

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Woody and sweet.

 

Just On: Woody and sweeter.

 

An hour or two later: Sweet wood and possibly fruit?

 

Around 6 hours: Woody fruit.

 

12 hours: A bare hint of wood.

 

Overall: I like this one. I am considering trying to tack one onto an order.

 

After reading other reviews: Cedar is the wood. Heh. I see I'm not the only one to get some fruit out of this one.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: oddly fruity, with a hint of cedar.

on: cedar, definitely.

overall: cedar is my nemesis, so this is not the oil for me.

[inkstone]

Sweet cedar. Cedar does not play well with me, so this bordered on disastrous.

[quimerula]

This scent is sweet and very familiar to my nose, with a green undertone.

Green, woody and with a sweet edge.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Salty wood. Salty hard wood, like the bottom of a ship that's been sailing many a year. While I wouldn't call the fruit note a citrus - it is a musky sort of fruit to me, more reminiscent of plum or possibly lychee - it's definitely there.

 

On me: Cedar, surely. It seems more balanced and delicate than most other cedar blends I've tried - normally I loathe cedar, but something about this blend appeals. It's astrigent and a hint tangy. Fresher, too - cedar often smells like it is rotting to me, but this smells alive and living.

A cedar I actually like - I never thought I'd see the day!

[sarada]

I like this a lot at first...it's the first one I tried of the Sephiroth and I think it could be my favorite though I still don't know if I would use it as a fragrance...like all of the oils in this category it has a feeling that it should be used for something, but I would not know what for.

 

I definitely agree that cedar is what this is all about. Reminds me a little of Jupiter actually, which is the only other almost pure cedar scent that I've come across at the lab; I liked Jupiter too but straight cedar goes a little "hamster cage" on me, without darker woods to keep it down. This has something else in it though that comes out quickly, and I'd guess it's lotus. Something watery, slightly fruity, but still aquatic. Lotus is an absolute disaster for me so that kind of throws the cedar off.

 

I wish this stayed cedar longer, but still it's one of the closest to a wearable scent among the Sephiroth for me. Again, I truly admire the strength and artistry of this blend, I can definitely imagine dressing a candle with this oil or using it to create an atmosphere for meditation and reflection.

[Blood onmy hands]

Chesed is not my favorite Sephiroth blend. It smells like light cedar that is sort of dusty. In the drydown it also gets a bit of a lemony smell that reminds me of furniture polish.

 

It's not a green smell or a fresh cedar smell on me, it's very dry and dusty.

 

Overall this one only lasts about an hour on my skin. Very light and faded quickly. I can't see myself wearing this one.

[Lycanthrope]

Impressions: Sandalwood, a little citrus, mint, leather, fruit.

 

Immediately I get a burst of what I believe is galangal, a lightly herbal lemon scent that dissipates quickly. Then… leather… touched with a dusty, papery aroma. It’s like an old book. How very odd! There’s this dry element to this that brings to my mind ‘ancient,’ and ‘museum,’ and ‘old wisdom.’ There’s a note in this that isn’t quite floral, isn’t quite fruit… but I think of that light, fleshy and sweet aroma one gets after biting into a pear, that same crispness and lightness of the juice, particularly pears of the asian variety! This is definitely an oil to slather when getting ready for an anthropology exam!

[coulrophobe]

First impression out of the imp was "pencil shavings!" - definitely cedary. I don't like to smell like cedar all the time, but it is a comforting kind of smell... takes me back to elementary school.

 

On my skin, the fruity note emerges - peach or apricot (I can't tell BPAL's peach/apricot notes apart, but they're both gorgeous on me).

 

This reminds me of a more innocent version of depraved; the cedar adds a clean, earthy tone to the peach/apricot and keeps it from getting too overpowering. Even the non-fruity folks might like this one.

 

Final verdict - very pleasant and pretty without being to sweet or frou-frou. One of my favorites in the Sephiroth category.

[aidenraine]

Cedar plus candy! Is my first thought when applying Chesed. It's definitely woodsy, but creamy somehow as well, like it has some sort of "Milk Moon"-style undertone to it. I also smell a hint of pine.

 

 

The cedar quickly vanishes leaving sweetness and a sharp pine note. The pine is growing, and so is a woody aroma that isn't cedar.

 

It is becoming very much the smell of a clean wood cabin or an old wood box (not necessarily a cedar one)

 

 

Then, after about an hour I am getting straight cedar.

Weird!

[joseybird]

Ooooo dry, herby woods...like a branch lying on a forest floor must smell like after a rainfall...

 

There's a bit of citrusy tang here I can't pin down.

 

A nice blend, but it has the odd effect of simultaneously trying to calm me down and pep me up! The woods are soft and soothing, but the tinge of citrus keeps smacking me upside the head!