Hetairae

[Coldfire]

The sublimely beautiful, fiercely independent, impeccably cultured, fascinatingly worldly and witty courtesans of ancient Greece. A seductive and dazzling blend of golden honey, fiery patchouli, sweet fig and clove, and a blushing touch of ylang ylang.

 

Imp: Sweet. Honey sweet
Wet on me: now I'm getting the Ylang ylang stepping all over the honey
Drying Down: honey fig over a woody note (patchouli?)
Dry: mostly honey on me. I don't do well with most honey scents.

[celestia]

♔ Hetairae

 

In the bottle: Honey wine and soapy white florals

 

Wet: It’s definitely a honeyed floral- but it’s kind of an ‘off’ or sickly sweet honey that’s been fermented and almost turned into a wine, it definitely does not start out as a fresh honey by any stretch. There’s also a whiff of dried fig, not the fruity creamy fig I get from Love and Sleep, I think this one has attached itself to the patchouli because it smells slightly greenier and a little dirty, though that could be the clove, which reacts horribly with my chemistry. It actually kind of smells a like the dirty green fig note in The Hanging Gardens? I also get stinky sweaty florals, which I can only assume to be the ylang ylang… probably also married to clove and patchouli ..of which they and I are not the best of friends. Alas!

 

Drydown: The drydown is more forgiving and kinder to me. I get a very floral dominant blend with a tinge of gentle, floral honey. It’s nowhere near as cocky and flamboyant as it opened with. I’m also starting to get a sweet rose note caused by the florals and honey reacting to the clove and patchouli.. how strange, that burns off quickly though, and I’m left with spicy clovey honey with a tint of fragrant ylang ylang. The clove behaves and only aides to keep the scent gently, and warmly spiced. This end phase is definitely much nicer!

 

TL;DR: Honey clove wine, dirty fig and sweaty ylang ylang.

Edited November 27, 2016 by celestia

[roseus]

The ylang ylang sweetened by the honey is the strongest aspect to me. The honey was very strong at first, and almost threatened to take over but then settled. I get just a little patchouli and clove underneath to ground the scent. Quite sensual and heady.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Nutty! And sweet, Quite yummy, actually. I had to look up the notes, as somehow this translated to nuts and honey on my skin. I think it must be the earthy patchouli combines with one of the other notes - maybe the fig? That makes this smell nutty. Really interesting. The floral notes from the ylang ylang are really nice. I like it.

 

 

Dry: I had forgotten how candy-sweet ylang ylang dries down to on me. Not unpleasant, but sweeter than I like. It's a strange combination with the patchouli, which is now dry and earthy rather than nutty. I can't detect any of the other notes, I don't even get the sense that any of the sweetness is coming from the honey, it's just ylang ylang and really dry patch. OK, but not my favourite.

[lizabelle]

This is gorgeous, and now that I'm looking at the notes I can't believe there's ylang in here. I like the note fine but it and my skin don't really get along--it usually amps heavily and drowns out anything else. In this blend the honey dominates, and it's the soft, floral honey of Les Bijoux. There's definitely clove, fig, and a flower (which must be ylang, color me surprised!) in here, but they're all soft and mild, tempered by the beautiful light honey note. The patch is also pleasantly honeyed, providing a great deep earthiness under everything. This is definitely getting a bottle purchase from me.

[freyasfae]

This has so many death notes for me, yet altogether it really works! It's well blended and surprisingly light - more glittery than dense metal. Sublime and cultured it is!

[sisterbastard]

First impression: Fresh, very female, confident.

 

Wet: I can really smell the honey and clove, with a floral backdrop (I suck at recognizing specific flowers). It's very spicy-sweet overall. I like it.

 

Dry: This is a nice one as it dries. The "fiery patchouli" combined with the clove is a really essential rebuttal to the heavy sweetness of the honey, which almost has an herbal quality. I would expect the fig to come out as it truly dries. After about an hour: First the patchouli and clove get even more hot, and then the fig comes out a little to lend it some nice raisiny-ness. As previously mentioned, this is an exceedingly confident and feminine scent. I'm on the fence about the heaviness of the honey, but I like that it's a very real honey. I want to put it in some tea.

 

I'll probably pass this one along, but I enjoyed testing it.

[ramblingrambler]

On me this is all honey and fig. Much too sweet and pronounced for me! I smell no patch or clove throughout wear. Somewhere into drydown it becomes slightly musty, which I attribute to either fig or honey since I get this reaction to both if they're prominent notes. For those into either, this blend should work for you!

[dementia_divine]

In the imp: Ylang ylang and honey, with just a bit of patchouli, clove, and fig.

 

Wet: Ylang ylang and honey, followed by the warmth of the patchouli and clove. After a bit, the fig starts to peek out.

 

Dry: The patchouli and clove gain prominence, and the fig also plays a greater role in this phase, although it's still a background note on me. Patchouli, clove, and honey end up being the main players after a few hours of wear.

 

Verdict: I originally wanted to try this to see if the patchouli + fig combo would remind me of A Moment in Time, and I like clove. This isn't unpleasant, but it's not really me, either. I'm glad I was able to try it, though!

[achildoftime]

I must say, I was expecting more patchouli in this, but all I'm getting is the honey and ylang ylang. Between the patch and clove, I was sure this was going to be spicier or more earthy. For me at least, i just get resinous honey. It's pretty and golden, but took me by surprise a bit.