Succor

[maijasu]

Relaxation, calm, finding center.

This scent is very quiet and calming. It's slightly green, although I don't get olives specifically from it. I think it would work well for its intended purpose, although it's not something I'd wear just because I liked the scent.

[PilotKitten]

Ugh... not at all nice on me. It's a very rancid spice musk. Blech. It has a very bitter quality to it on me and not at all good.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: I can't really smell anything.

 

On me: Vetiver and dragon's blood. Lightly spicy, fairly subtle.

[Mountaingrrl00]

Hm, I thought I'd reviewed this already ...

 

Scentwise, I get the golden olive oil others have mentioned. It then dries down to a smoky sandalwood. I like the scent very much - it's quiet and doesn't smell like perfume, but rather like something that would be healing, without having a traditionally medicinal smell.

 

Purposewise, this works. I don't wear it often, but it's my go-to oil when I've been thrown off-balance and need centering. It does just what the description says.

[filigree_shadow]

This is an odd scent, in my opinion, and I don't find it especially comforting or relaxing. There's some sort of burnt rubber smell underneath something woodsy. It vaguely reminds me of when something's on fire that shouldn't be on fire, which has the opposite effect on me than what this oil is intended for. It makes me uneasy.

 

I'm not having tremendous luck with the aromatherapy blends... perhaps I should try them in an oil warmer rather than on my skin.

[fiddledragon]

I get mostly olive oil and bay and a hint of something alcoholic which is probably just the very sweet fruity olive oil. This has an extremely grounding, calming, ritual feel to it. After half an hour or so it does go kind of sour and musty, so this feels like a better one to use in a specific short ritual or meditation to come back to earth rather than to wear all day for its effects. Alas. But so pretty! It's also not the WHOMP grounding of the deeply earthy blends. Much as I like those, this is gentler -- it just tenderly but firmly pulls you back to yourself, pats you on the head, and tells to calm down and everything will be all right.

 

So much love.

[xoe]

Pickles. I think that what others are describing as olive oil smells to me like pickles. but, it's a spicy musky scent underneath as it dries. Now I've got to find out if it works. I've had a rough day.

[zankoku_zen]

On Skin: Olive juice. Like the olive you get in a martini? Yeah, that's what it is.

 

Drydown: Still olive. There is something a bit musky about it and it makes me think animal-like and feral.

 

Verdict: This is not calming for me. If it had smelled like olive oil, that would have been neat. Instead, it smells more like an olive floating in olive juice... or a dirty martini.

[jmchau]

I get the resiny scent, but after about 10 minutes it reminds me of a chinese herbalist shop. Just too much and not relaxing. A bit later I get the incense type scent, but as I don't care for most incense that doesn't do it for me.

 

Not horrible, but not great for me.

[CrazyPretzel]

OK, let's get this out of the way first: yes, it smells like olives. In the bottle, it smells really, truly, and unmistakably like friggin' green olives. I can't even begin to guess what essential oils went into this.

 

That being said, it works.

 

A couple of days after this little beauty arrived in the mail I had a proper panic attack while I was trying to go to sleep: really stressing over upcoming exams and beyond that the end of my course and the huge horrible question of what to do with my life. Not pleasant stuff for night time and I was sobbing uncontrollably for a good 15 minutes, getting worse and worse and not at all able to calm down. Finally I sent my boyfriend off to my stash box to fetch the bottle of Succor -- opened it, inhaled deeply, got it all over my fingertips and rubbed it into my temples and under my nose so I could smell it really strongly.

 

Within about two minutes I was calmed down, breathing normally, and really truly not just chilled out, but actually at my 'center'. It's difficult to explain that in detail here; suffice to say there are parts of my personality at my very core that people don't usually see. When I had this oil on, I was in touch with that part of myself. It's pretty powerful.

 

Oh yeah, and when it dries, it smells better Like resins, yes. But this is one you buy for therapeutic properties.

[n3m3sis42]

I pretty much got the same olive smell that a lot of other people did. And also a slightly woody undertone. I can't say that I really like or disliked the smell, but I do think it's having a calming effect on me.

Edited September 26, 2007 by n3m3sis42

[The_Merf]

When I try Succor, the descriptive phrase that comes to mind is 'cotton-wrapped.' This is soft lavender, herbalness, with the olives that others have mentioned, but it is wrapped by something nearly transparent, something that obscures and dampens the full olfactory power of all the notes. I think Succor is meant to work by inviting its user to imagine being wrapped like that, being sheltered and defended from the world in that way. The image it evokes is very strong for me, but unfortunately when I visualize myself like that I feel trapped, not protected, and I struggle to break away mentally--it becomes very difficult for me to relax and be still. I don't care for the scent enough on its own to keep the bottle, so I'm going to swap it, but I must say that there is a strong mental connection and image-making ability with this oil, and it is most impressive.

[hkhm]

imp: this smells wet and very faintly smoky. it's like i can't quite place what this smells like.

 

wet: i sorta get a smoky olive scent. very unique smelling.

 

dry: this gets much sharper as it dries in me. like a sharp, smoky musk.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

i've had this for awhile and have tried it a few times for the intended purpose...

and also for simply the smell.

 

i don't like pickles. and i don't like olives. and this smells like pickled olives and nursing homes.

 

as far as the relaxing/calming/finding my center...

it doesn't help me in that respect at all, i keep getting distracted by the stench and it makes me uncomfortable all the way down to my bones.

[girlygirl]

Olives from Provence! Not something I'd wear for perfume but a pleasant scent memory that relaxes me.

[theseagrows]

it kinda DOES smell like olives...i realize, after reading reviews above. it's green and kind of herbal. it smells strange, i really cannot place what notes are in this! i don't think i like it enough to try it again for its purpose. it smells almost slightly metallic, but not in an ozoney way. very strange scent, i wish i knew which notes were in this!

[ErinZ]

This smells like a sweet, slightly smoky, spiced tea I've had before, but I can't remember exactly what it was.

 

I'm not sure if it worked for me. I was relaxed as it was, but a bit emotional. I was feeling a bit weepy a little while after I put it on, but that may be unrelated.

[kittycatpurr]

In the imp: A strong olive, sour and attractive.

Wet: Still has the tangy brightness of an olive. Very good on my skin -- until it gets to a tarry, blacktop smell.

Dry: I like olive better when it's in Banded Sea Snake.

 

In terms of effectiveness, other Panaceas worked better for me.

[Sarah]

Thought I'd revisit this scent after a few years of owning it. In the bottle, smells like a base oil. I had recently replaced a bottle of grapeseed oil and the bottle I'd thrown away smells like this. It's a fairly thick aromatherapy oil. I definitely get a kind of olive oil smell out of it, but as time progresses the scent morphs into a light grassy resin. A little sweet and smokey. Not much throw, either. I don't know if I would find the scent calming, per se, but it is nearly 5am and I've been up since 1:30pm, heh.

[redward]

Succor

 

I put this in my oil burner the other day when I was going for a nap, so I can't say how it is on my skin. Green olives and a little bit of smoke. I woke up and sniffed the air at one point. It made me think of when I am doing a show and sometimes take a spoonful of extra-virgin olive oil to sooth my throat. It really smelled just like that - extra-virgin olive oil. It even smelled oily, not really sure how that works.

 

It is not an unpleasant smell, but it is not exactly pleasant either. I don't think I will get more after I use up the imp I have. I find lavender much more effective in the calming department.

[fairnymph]

Sniffed: Slightly cloudy yellow oil. Sour, heady florals. Jasmine and ylang ylang?

 

Wet: Same, very evil florals, with maybe a nasty sort of resin or incense?

 

Dry: Yeah I get a sort of sour smoky note now which reminds me VAGUELY of Gypsy Queen, bc it has a candle/beeswax undertone.

 

Later: I agree with the 'green olives' someone gets. But I think a sour straw/hay note is more likely the actual source of this sour-earthy scent.

 

Summary: It fades greatly with time, like all of the Panacea blends I've tried, but it's never something I like. Too sour/acrid/sharp with that vague smokiness.

[Gin]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that gets olives/olive oil from this. That, and something burnt. Very strange and not relaxing in the least.