Baghdad

[wheresyourshoe]

Amber, saffron and bergamot with mandarin, nutmeg, Bulgar rose, musk and sandalwood.

In the bottle: overpoweringly musky incense. This makes me nervous that it's going to be too dark for me.

Wet: I put it on before I go to the movies. It is sweet and the incense is lovely, not spicy as I'd expected but powdery. My great-grandmother was very well-travelled. If somebody had forgotten to unpack one of her trunks after a trip to Baghdad I bet it'd smell like this when I found it.

5 minutes on: My roommate is as excited about this as I am. She says it smells powdery, too, which I'm learning here is generally a bad thing, but this does not smell like old people.

Now, 4 hours later, it smells the same. When I think of a spice market I imagine more savory fragrances. This had a distant sweetness. It could give me a headache, but it's heady and beautiful. Kabuki turned into a scent like this the morning after I'd applied it, and it really sealed the deal for that one. I'm still not sure about the powdery edge here. This might be nicer layered with Kabuki. At the moment it's beginning to give me a headache.

Conclusion: I'll have to wait a while before my next order anyway, might as well make up my mind about Baghdad in the time being. I keep wanting to call it Morocco because it smells just like the scarf my friend brought me back from a market there for my birthday. I didn't want to wear it for so long because it'd stop smelling like travel luggage. (How does a scarf spend all those hours in an 19 year old boy's suitcase and come out smelling like this?)

ADDED Aug. 21:

Very interesting oil. In the bottle it smells to me like a cloud of bergamot with a bit of powder around the edges softening it. It isn't that different on the skin. It has a lot of throw, which would usually bother me except that everybody everywhere I go says what is that smell? It's really nice! Even my dad noticed I smelled like baby powder and said it was nice, and my dad is not the kind of man who notices these things except when I make him. Many many oils become powdery on me after a while, and I refuse to acknowledge this in spite of all evidence because I like the fragrances so much that go with the powder even if nobody else can get them. Oh well, powdery seems to smell good on me and since I'm twenty-three it'll be a while yet before I can smell like an old lady, although I am kind of looking forward to that. I like the bergamot note a lot. It's sharp and musky but softened a lot by the powder. It still manages to smell a bit mysterious and exotic like an old traveling trunk though. I can see how people would prefer this on linens and stuff, but I like it quite a bit on my skin. I wish it had just a bit of floral. I think i'd like to try layering it with Morocco, and see how that goes.
Ahh I think it's the amber that goes to powder. It's still a bit sweet and golden and I do agree that it comes out mostly when dry and changes the scent a lot. I love all it's stages. It's just a lovely oil, which is why I bought a whole bottle of it. Edited September 7, 2009 by Shollin

[Lyrical]

In vial: each of the listed notes, nicely blended together.

 

Wet on skin: this has a unisex freshness which I like a lot. Gently musky amber, saffron and bergamot with nutmeg and sandalwood. The rose is faint, and I'm not getting the mandarin except as a certain brightness.

 

Dry on skin: doesn't live up to its early promise - at least not on my skin! The brightness is gone, and it's a dull, dusty saffron/amber/sandalwood scent. Shame!

[Mishinka]

In the imp I just get rose in a department store perfum kind of way, which sort of surprises me. The spices all sort of burst out when I put it on, but the rose overwhelms them pretty quickly and just sits on their heads like a six hundred-pound gorilla even after it's started to dry. The rose does die down after it's been dry for a while, but still all I get from it is powdery rose. I love like ninety-five percent of the notes in the list, but it just comes out plain rose on me. Sad face. So sad face it bears spelling out and an emoticon.

Edited April 20, 2009 by Mish

[Suu4LC]

This is an interesting sounding blend-it has some notes I love-saffron, bergamot, mandarin and nutmeg, and a couple that are usually doom on me-rose and woods. And then there is amber, which has the tendency to go to POWDER on me. Hmm....

 

In the imp this is mostly sweet saffron and woods-a little to heavy on the woods >_< I hope it won't amp on my skin! I like the rest though-the saffron and amber...the rose is just barely a whiff.

 

Hmm...rose is coming out on my skin...rose and woods. Booo! The sweet saffron is still there, but it is being pushed further back by the woods.

 

The amber in this made it dry down SUPER powdery. It mostly sweet slightly saffrony powder and woods. Meh! Stupid amber!!!

[Tallen]

 

When I first opened the imp I couldn't really smell much of anything.

 

Wet, the musk and sandalwood really came through, with a hint of rosy sweetness in the background.

 

At the end of the day, all I can smell is a delicious sweet sandalwoody smell, with a hint of rose.

 

I really like this, definitely a keeper and I will definitely be getting more of this one!!

[liquidtrance]

Has a sort of sharpness to it when first applied, but begins to go more powdery as it is drying. I think the sharpness may be the bergamot? I can hint at the rose, the musk, and perhaps the amber. So far, there is a similarity to Peitho, almost. The same vein of the lily smell, but not quite. It seems to be dropping to the back as it dries, and is getting a bit softer. The mandarin gets a little bit more pronounced. I think I really prefer softer-spicy scents. This gets better as it dries, but I'm not sure it's a winner. The awkward sharpness just doesn't quite fade enough. Gets worse and worse as it wears. Really bothersome. Blah.

[fireflower]

On me, this is very musky and rosy. It's kind of powdery and spicy with that hint of floral from the rose. It reminds me of classic perfumes like Chanel No. 5.. really mature, heady, and full. This is something I could imagine being wildly popular during the first half of the 19th century. It's very strong and has a lot of throw. It's not really "me" though. I needed to wash it off after a while because it's too strong and heady for me. I prefer lighter scents, and I can't describe this one as such.

[Gin]

Baghdad

 

Amber, saffron, and sandalwood are what hit me first. The rose is there, powdery and faint, and musk. I can't find the mandarin or the nutmeg--two notes I was looking forward to. Overall, I like it, but I think the amber pushes it a little too far into baby-powder territory for it to be a keeper.

[tragedy]

At first there is something very unpleasant to my nose, I believe its the saffron since I love all of the other notes...

however it fades fast and out comes a beeeayouuutiful amber rose.

Its a very rich headshop incensey sort of scent.

Not at all what I was expecting, but lovely!!

[hkhm]

imp: very pungent bergamot.

 

wet: i was expecting the rose to be overpowering but it's not, it's the saffron that's ruining this scent on my skin.

 

dry: very different once dry. the amber is warm , sweet and golden. coupled with the saffron it produces a scent that really puts me in mind of magnificent autumn sunsets.

[sirensea]

When I first apply this, it's a warm, gritty sandalwood. Once it's dry, the rose is more prominent, but it's not overpowering at all. It sort of lurks in the background. Very nice, pleasant scent... the more I huff, the more I think it reminds me of the smell of fireworks. I approve!

[angelicruin]

Musky, dusty rose and sandalwood on the skin. Amber is stronger the more it dries. Very pleasant smelling on the skin.

 

[Banyangirl]

Ugh. Powdery, musky, old-person rose on me. This is so not a keeper.

[Venneh]

I get a spicy sort of cologne in the imp, and it's the same on my skin. It doesn't seem to have a lot of presence on me, either. ...And then it turns into soapy rose with doctor's office. Yeah, no.

Edited October 10, 2009 by Venneh

[jamethiel]

In the imp. Salty (which would be the saffron) and a distant sweetness underneath. Amber?

 

Wet: Mmmm. Spice! Nutmeg. AWESOME!

 

Five minutes: Gak! Musk. DNW. (I took a chance: I don't like most musks and I know I amp it, but I was hoping this was a skin musk or something)

 

15 minutes: WOOT! I amp rose as well, and it's battling the musk and winning! I can still smell the musk underneath, though.

 

The drydown: Musk and rose. I like the rose and don't mind the musk in combination, but WAH! I was hoping for something more spicy.

 

35 minutes: Oh hangon. The saffron is coming out. That's better. Still rose and musk, though.

 

In conclusion, rose and musk. I don't object to it, but I don't love it either. Maybe one for the swaps pile. It smells vaguely oldfashioned, like something my grandmother would have worn.

[imposterpockets]

I definitely get amber, a little rose, and sandalwood. These are all very good things. However, the whole combination reminds me inexplicably of this scented powder my mother had around when I was a kid called Charlie. Every time I get a whiff of this I am taken back to that Charlie powder from my parents bathroom. It's kind of weirding me out.

 

Update:

It's been on for a while now, and the former weird nostalgia smell has changed into something fantastic. It now smells like what I had expected from a scent called Baghdad. The warm sweet spices combine exceptionally well with the round wood notes. It makes me think of browsing at an outdoor bazaar in the evening with gold lights illuminating the streets.

Edited January 18, 2010 by imposterpockets

[Finch]

In the imp: cedar and spices.

First few minutes on my skin: perfumed dusting powder.

After a couple of hours: powder with a bit of spice.

 

It has decent longevity and a great throw. If only I could pull off the sleepy softness of amber.

Edited January 20, 2010 by Finch

[CitizenBree]

Another imp I got in a lot. Though the description sounds interesting, it's not one I'd pick up to buy.

 

I get the musk more when it's in the imp and wet, but I think maybe it's the sandalwood that goes straight baby powder on me when dry. The baby powder seems to fade a bit over time to bring out more of what traditional sandalwood smells like but this is still not a scent that I'd seek out wearing. I'm more a floral or foodie type.

[childoftime]

Oh yes, the amber is definitely there. I had to try this after discovering that I can wear some amber blends, but this one went straight to baby powder in record time. It completely overpowered any subtlety or complexity this blend may have had.

 

If you usually have problems with amber, stay well back from this blend.

[Dymphna]

IN THE IMP: I mostly smell the amber and rose. They smell good, but in a powdery perfume sort of way. It reminds me of some kind of perfume that I remember smelling when I was a kid, but I can't figure out which one.

 

WET: Wow, yeah, really powdery. I was expecting this to be spicy and sexy, and instead it smells like a floral powder. Oh! This smells like my grandmother's bedroom. When I was growing up, she had this crystal dish of dusting powder on her dresser, with a big puff, and her whole bedroom smelled like that powder.

 

DRY: Okay, so…this joins the very small group of BPAL blends that remind me of my grandmother and make me cry. Not what I was expecting at all, but I love it anyway.

[wvgemini]

Woah! So disappointed in this one. Very harsh, VERY sharp (the bergamot, maybe?) in the bottle. I was almost afraid to try it on but I wanted to like this one.

 

On me it became even more musky/sharp/bitter. Very bad. I could smell spice under all of that but not enough to overpower that bitterness. Still, I waited.

 

After about ten minutes, I rushed to wash this off. This does not smell like Baghdad. Smells like Hawijah. Or maybe Kirkuk when the oil field was on fire. I really wanted this to remind me of the markets that I went through so many times over there. But alas, it goes in the "find me a new home" bin.

[grnwoodtree]

turns into thick powder and stays that way - headache! It must be the amber.

[mari4212]

In the imp, I get a touch of saffron and a light rose.

 

On me: for some reason, this turns into department store perfume, the kind where you smell the alcohol and the chemical undertone before you get any of the real notes. Darn it, I was hoping for the sandalwood, amber, and the rose to be wonderful together.

 

Off to my swaps box, I guess.

[voorishsign]

Frimp from the Lab, another one from my wishlist. Thank you, Labbies!

 

In the imp - lighter than I thought it would be; faint mandarin and nutmeg, and pleasant saffron and amber.

 

On wet - oh, lovely This scent practically shimmers. Saffron, amber, mandarin, and just a hint of nutmeg. So pretty!

 

Drydown - very light and pleasant. This is a great summer scent! Saffron, bergamot, mandarin and nutmeg are the prominent notes for me, though I also detect a slight hint of musk. I really like it and am very grateful from the frimp

[FelicityTwitchell]

wet: rose musk barely pick out the mandarin, sandalwood in the background but sharp rather than smoky

 

dry: baby powder very sharp smelling greenery? musk and id I sniff really really hard slight tinge of wood and sweetness

 

verdict: I don't know if I'd like this on anyone else but it doesn't seem to turn out well on my skin

 

Note: I spilled a drop or two on my finger and that area is very much smoky sandalwood and a tiny bit of sweetness. I adore the scent of smoky sandalwood, even if I prefer it mixed with other things. I'm not going to keep this just to wear on my fingers though, lol