Kumiho

[edenssixthday]

Nine-tailed fox demon of Korean lore who transforms into the visage of an irresistible beauty in order to seduce men and lead them to their doom. A sharp, biting blend of crisp white tea and ginger.

 

Kumiho is supposed to be white tea and ginger, but it reminds me of antiseptic bathroom cleaning products. It’s a little too clean and crisp for my taste. It has a moderate level of throw, but the lasting power (on me) is poor.

Edited August 14, 2006 by edenssixthday

[steffanina]

Kumiho-

 

In Bottle: Oh, what a lovely scent. At first it wants to say lemon but then I realize it's the tea scent, not really lemon.

 

Wet: Oh, wow, is that pretty. I do smell the lemon, sweet lemon now,

 

Dry: This is a beautiful scent on me. The lemon is as subtle as can be; it's more like lemon tea, nothing like lemon furniture polish or even lemon juice. The ginger is muted, not like the intensity of ginger in Gingerbread Poppet. Beautiful, and with great staying power.

 

Overall: I love.

[sofiaviolet]

The tea and ginger make this refreshingly crisp, and it's a great summer scent. I couldn't picture wearing it in winter, though spring might work.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

Kumiho is a scent I've been meaning to get around to sniffing for ages; it reminds me of Macha becuase of her awesome story of the same name! On me, Kumiho smells pretty much exactly like B&BW's White Tea & Ginger, which is a scent I love! Clean but spicy, a wonderful summer scent. I would have to say that Sudha Segara is my favorite ginger scent, but Kumiho is a lovely variation on the same theme. It smells of Sudha's ginger crossed with Embalming Fluid's lemony tea. I'm planning bottles of the other two, so I don't know if I need a bottle of this one or not. I'll use up the imp, though!

[neuilly]

Reminds me of two things: 1) a green tea perfume I used to have and 2) the wet towelettes my mom uses to clean her hands. A very clean scent but something slightly anti-septic about it (which I think is purely because of thinking about my mom's towelettes...which do in fact smell good).

[kwsix]

Kumiho is the first scent I've worn that stays completely true through the drydown. It smells exactly the same in the bottle, wet on my skin, and until it fades away. It's very fresh, crisp, and bright. The tea and ginger are well balanced, and I pick up a citrus scent too. I really like this one. It's very feminine to me, but not in a delicate floraly way. It's more the scent of a strong, confident, and empowered woman.

[SoapyRN]

gift imp to me

 

I have over looked this for some reason. I like ginger and love tea so I was excited to try it.

 

I put it on before work from the imp and I might have been light handed with it. Not really supposed to wear scents.

 

Wet, it is very nice. The ginger is sharp enough and I had hoped that it would be sweeter. You can smell the tea also, the same blend nearly that is in Dormouse.

 

Thankfully, it does sweeten up and has a sucker like sweetness, not honey. I want to reapply next time with more and I will decide then, but I think I need a bottle of this great GC.

[fiddledragon]

On me, Kumiho is a wonderfully crisp, light ginger-tea blend. The tea smells lemony, but a very herbal, almost lemongrass scent. Something about it is almost, but not quite, a very light rose. It's the happy perky ginger of Sudha Segara without the warm sexy honey note. Kumiho is feminine without being at all girly...this is the fox demon CEO sitting perfectly poised behind her desk with exquisitely styled hair.

[Miss Lynx]

This is a very, very light, subtle scent. The tea seems to be stronger than the ginger - it doesn't really smell all that spicy at all, just clean and fresh and a little citrussy.

 

It's highly reminiscent of one of the hand soaps that we picked up from Bath & Body Works on our last trip to the US, which I think was white ginger & something-or-other. it doesn't smell soapy as such, but it does smell like something you'd scent soap or maybe lotions with.

 

Kumiho is certainly not unpleasant, but neither is it all that interesting, and what there is of it is fading away very quickly - it's only been 15 minutes and already I have to press my nose right against my wrist to smell it.

 

Really, this is far too timid and innocuous be make a good seductive fox-demon scent. I think Vixen does a better job of being that.

 

Grade: C+/B-

[LittleGreyKitten]

Laurel The Woodfairy said exactly what was on my mind: B&BW White Tea & Ginger things, which I've loved for ever. I like showering with them and then layering Kumiho over. Nice. I actually don't wear it often but if I'm in the mood for a good lotioning, Kumiho is part of the deal.

 

Anyway, not a huge favorite but nice in it's place. Light and bright.

[forspecial_plate]

Kumiho starts out with a sparkly ginger and citrus scent, sweet and fresh smelling. Reminds me very much of the ginger in Sudha Segara, which is kind of sparkly and bubbly to my nose. The citrus vanishes within about 15 minutes, and then the whole thing starts to turn too sweet. Once again, I'm not sure I'm 'getting' the tea note, unless that's what the citrus was. I'm not giving up on Beth's ginger, I have high hopes for Two Monsters, Count Dracula, and Dr Seward. Kumiho just doesn't work for me, though. I think it would smell great on a lady and this will go into the 'for mom' pile.

[porcelain72]

In the bottle: a clean ginger and tea scent, pretty much matching the Lab description.

 

Initial application: more of the same, with a bit of citrus to keep it from getting too sweet. It reminds me of a ginger body wash I got from Avon once.

 

Drydown: stays true to the original scent, with a light throw. Fading fairly fast, I will probably need to reapply at least once today. Not a top 5 favorite, but good, and notable for the fact that it smells exactly like you think it would smell.

 

Smiley rating:

[charmingdetails]

This is a light, sharp citrus at first, and then it fades into a more gentle ginger note. Clean, fresh, and quite gender-neutral, this would be a refreshing scent to wear on a hot day. On me, it doesn't have much throw and fades all too quickly.

[Miseraya]

In the imp: Exactly as the description says, but with one difference, the ginger doesn't seem "biting" to me, rather it seems very mellow, the tea is what really stands out. Oh lovely, lovely tea. Before I discovered BPAL my signature scent was B&BW's "White Tea and Ginger", which, true to form, they discontinued. (I bought three of the last bottles!) This is similar to that, but more complex, precisely as I had hoped.

 

On the wrist, wet: This is a very crisp, light and refreshing scent. A must for warm weather.

 

On the wrist, dry: Gorgeous, very clean and fresh. Sexy.

 

Final Analysis: I love this! It completely replaces (and exceeds) my love of the discontinued B&BW "White Tea & Ginger". Definite big bottle.

[yeahbutnobut]

Kumiho

 

In the imp: it's one of those refreshing white tea scents.

Wet on skin: ditto above.

Dry on skin: now I smell the ginger warming it all up but complementing the tangy, fresh tea note. This reminds me of Baobhan Sith, but also of other non-BPAL tea fragrances. It's nice, an uncomplicated blend which is quite a 'classic' in the perfume world. It's bright, moist, fresh and tart.

After a while: the sharpness does tone down a bit but it still smells the same, a soft white tea scent. nice and subtle, but with presence. It seems to be fading quickly. After about 3-4 hours, there's barely a trace of it left.

Verdict: this is a very pretty, fresh, light scent, it's not fussy or complicated, it's a classic light tea scent, but it doesn’t wow me. It does smell a bit too much like the usual tea perfumes I've smelt elsewhere. I've seen so many perfumers do their 'white tea and ginger' scent. It's nice for Beth to do a take on this theme though, and she does it well. It's just that now I prefer more complex, unusual and different tea scents such as Gennivre, Dorian, Tweedledee etc, this is more like the sort of scent I prefer in lotions/body mists/shower gels. It also fades fast…after a few hours, there's nothing left on my skin. I think I'll swap it. It's nice when it lasts though.

If you like this, try: Shanghai, the Dormouse, Spirits of the Dead, Embalming Fluid

Emoticon rating:

Edited September 28, 2006 by yeahbutnobut

[melrose]

I loves me some ginger, but I hate tea - the taste and the scent. This should be interesting:

 

In imp, and on, wet: Lemon candy. Yum.

 

Near drydown: I'm walking in a lemon grove. The air is cool and a breeze is sending me the faintest whiff of lemons, but mostly a sense of crisp, clean calm. I'm eating cotton candy. Love this.

 

Far drydown: First of all, this came quickly - there's little lasting power to this scent. If I bury my nose in my elbow, I get a faint whiff of tea with lemon.

 

Not my thing, but I can see how many people would love this. If only the near drydown phase lasted.

[theseagrows]

this is simple, crisp and summery. very light and fresh, it's definitely white tea and ginger, but the ginger is very subtle, and i thought i smelled citrus, but maybe that's just the white tea. very light and pretty, seems like it'd be perfect for spring or summer.

[batsy]

In the vial: Gingery florals...

 

On the skin: Sadly, this turned into something akin to bathroom cleaner on me. Oh lord... That's really sad. I can smell tea and ginger, but there's a tang that just doesn't agree with my senses. Bummer. The fox demons dislike me.

[supremegoddessofall]

Tried this at a meet and sniff. Honeysuckle!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mama want.

[jasmine]

Immediately after application, Kumiho smells very light and citrusy. (I use the word “application” loosely, because what actually happened is that I was impatient with my packing material when the imp was tangled in the bubble wrap. Consequently, the imp’s cap came off and my right hand is doused in the stuff.)

 

This is distinctly lemony. It isn’t a lemon that announces itself as floor cleaner or anything equally rude -- it’s too quiet for that. Oddly, I’m more impressed with it on my fingertips than my wrist, which must be related to the concentration of scent. Perhaps Kumiho requires slathering for any real effect on me.

 

As time passes, Kumiho gains a gentle warmth while still maintaining the citrus that I smelled earlier. This warmth isn’t actually spicy; it’s just... warm.

 

Now the citrus is fading out. Kumiho must not like me, because it has decided to vanish entirely, I think.... no, it’s now drifting back and forth in presence... but it’s remaining high and citrusy. It could grow on me, but I think I would need to slather in it to appreciate it properly. Ah, well.

 

I stood up, walked away, came back... and realized that my entire nook smells of Kumiho due to the spill. Of course I couldn’t detect anything special on my wrist -- but my nook smells wonderful! I feel rather silly now... and I do like it. It doesn’t wash me away, and I think I prefer Unicorn, but it is very nice (and, if I get into atomizing and so forth, I would definitely consider it as a room spray.)

 

I wrote this review mostly without reference to the lab description, and so it came as a surprise to me to see that there is no citrus in this blend. I think that the “citrus” note I perceived is the way that white tea reacts with my skin, and I’m pretty sure that the warmth was ginger, but it was still never what I would have expected. Very interesting.

[bettybaker]

In the imp's ear, Kumiho is sweet, bright, and sharp; a white glow.

 

Wet on my skin, she's an intense waker-upper, all confidence, sunshine, and intelligence. Kumiho is morning-person-style start-of-the-day exuberance. She gives me the same sensation I get when I drink that first glass of orange juice. Kumiho isn't citrus-y, but she has the same sort of energy. I can imagine putting her on just after a morning shower and radiating joy all day.

 

After about an hour, her sweetness and light fades, becoming milder and milder until she's a “come closer” scent.

 

Several hours later, Kumiho smells like baby powder; she's unoffensive and clean smelling.

[Monster]

I knew I was going to love this blend right away based on the two notes that are in this

 

Right out of the vial I smell a strong white tea

 

Wet on my skin this is a sweet, citrus, gingery scent. This is fresh and cool smelling. It almost as a very faint floral quality to it.

 

As this dries down it almost reminds me of a lighter, non-sickening version of The Apothecary. I love this! The white tea and ginger as a perfect pair and balance each other well. I can smell equal parts of each. it's sweet, pretty with just a dash of citrus ginger.

 

Yet another winner!!! I will be purchasing a 5ml of this one. it's something I could wear every day and stand out on it's own

 

[PilotKitten]

A crisp white tea scent. I barely get any ginger in this one on me at all. Nice tea blend but I prefer others over it.

[Lari]

I liked this at first but didn't think I'd wear it regularly... but lately I've found that I keep reaching for it when I'm looking for energy and clarity.

 

It's just a very clean, light scent... like lemon curd and ginger and tea. When it's wet there's something very sharp about it, but over time it blooms into something that's gorgeous and round and open. It's got great staying power, too, which impresses me for as light as it is.

[RaeiNarcissus]

I get primarily ginger form this scent. It's a very personal scent, it just stays on my wrist, for me to smell myself.

Edited December 4, 2006 by RaeiNarcissus