Himerus

[spark]

The God of Sexual Desire, Longing and Yearning; an attendant of Eros and Aphrodite. A passion-rousing blend of juniper, sandalwood, rosewood, red musk, orchid, bergamot and lilac.

How could I be the first one to review this? Didn't anyone else order it? Yikes.

I am not usually a "dedicated" reviewer but when I tried this I had to sing its praises.

Wet: Promising! It's mostly orchid but there's something a little darker too. After a few minutes I think I smell some rose(wood) but it's almost a little fruity here. I don't pick up any sandalwood, but I will assume it isn't white sandalwood, which has a tendency to go very pungent on my skin. It's definitely sexy.

Drying: There's a touch of something that could be jasmine but probably isn't, because (like the sandalwood) it's not exploding on my skin. I only applied inside one elbow, and the throw is quite good. When I sniff up close, there is a bit of an odd undertone, which I think is the bergamot. I don't smell bergamot otherwise. I'm not picking up any musk either, although I tend to be fairly oblivious to red musk.

This one is definitely worthy of the "slather test" and I will update accordingly when I do. Yum!

[lorajc]

Red musk does not usually do well on my skin, but I tried this despite that fact. I'm still not sure if it's a keeper, but from the testing I did, it is a rather pleasing scent. It's mostly rosewood, orchid and lilac on me with the sandalwood making it smooth. The red musk doesn't scream at me. This is a very nicely blended scent. Need to give it another testing. I will update when I do.

[shelldoo]

in the vial: juniper and sandalwood

 

wet: a floral bouquet w/ a hint of juniper

 

as it dries: wow this is well blended. i get a very light waft of musk every once in a while but is is brief and light, the rosewood is just barely there and adding a wee touch of depth and the orchid and lilac are twisted around each other so that it is almost impossible for me to distinguish between were one ends and the other begins.

[UltraViolet]

juniper, sandalwood, rosewood, lilac, orchid, red musk, bergamot

In the bottle

interesting, astringent, sweet floral

 

On

juniper and rosewood are primary on me.

I smell the orchid and lilac but they smell more vaguely "fresh".

I like it, as I sit here and sniff it it grows on me, the lilac is starting to lend just enough powdery sweetness and the orchid too so as to lighten and freshen all the dark greenery and woody spice. Truly a great blend. It doesn't really have a particular "scent". I think it would work for people that don't normally wear anything. It's just a lightly sweet floral with some woody/green backtones.

 

30 minutes

Hasn't changed. If anything it's just gotten a bit creamier. A mildly spicy/creamy floral.

 

Throw:

average

 

Scent category:

spicy/floral

 

Summary

It's so natural smelling and no one ingredient sticks out as to be offensive. I'd say it's a good one to enable new bpal users. He He.

 

Purchase again?

Yes. This leaves a pleasurable feeling.

 

1-5 rating (5 being best)

4

[cuervosueno]

Last night, as I tried this with Peithos and Zorya, I was convinced there was jasmine in it. There is not. But there is, to my nose, a similiar floral...orchid perhaps? Sometimes fresh orchids smell very similiar to lily to my florally -challenged nose.

In anycase, the juniper is very astringent on me, not unpleasing, but astringent. Then it goes floral....I suppose orchid or lilac....

I don't get the bergamot, which I enjoy...too bad. Sandalwood...not really.

Not a keeper for me.

It didn't alas, rouse my passion.

[SoapyRN]

Red musk and sandalwood were notes I got in the imp.

 

On me, this is so much sweeter than I expected. Really nice. Wet, I can smell that juniper and some bergmot.

 

Dry, this is a nice, spicy and creamy blend, I think helped out by the florals. Pretty.

[sarada]

I'm probably trying too many blends today, and they are mostly in the families of scent that I don't do too well with (florals) but I really wanted to try some of these new ones to make sure I wasn't missing anything!

 

Himerus contains red musk, which is one of my all-time favorite ingredients that the lab uses so I hope that it comes out on me.

 

In the imp: Juniper! I love Juniper and blends which feature it prominently (Burial for example) -- there's something sweeter behind it though and I hope that the flowers don't go nauseatingly sweet on me like so many of them do.

 

On my skin: still juniper, and then the red musk begins to come to life on my skin the way it always does. It warms, it practically throbs, and a radiant glowing aura of incensy deep warmth erupts.

 

It's still doing battle with the florals, though admittedly there are some I like in here -- lilac sometimes works in blends for me, and even though it adds a bit of a powdery touch to the blend it plays nice with the other notes.

 

After awhile it reminds me of The Living Flame but with a strong note of red musk. It goes through a really brief but magnificent stage at one point where it's almost like red musk and dark berries...almost like red wine...but that is brief and fades quickly.

 

All in all I'm going to keep the imp, I don't think I'll need a whole bottle but this could definitely have a few more surprises in store. Morphing, complex, and the floral notes don't give me a headache.

[tempete]

I swapped for cuervosueno's Himerus imp thanks to the raves from UltraViolet

 

Initially, Himerus is mostly musk and slightly dry woody notes (perhaps the juniper?). It's masculine-feeling at this point, though not aggressively so; just assertive and energetic. The bergamot emerges as the scent dries down, and then I get a stage where I smell berries and musk, which reminds me slightly of Bewitched. The final drydown on me is a hint of bergamot, a whisper of red musk, the other florals and the sandalwood, which must be the red variety since it's so delectably smooth and creamy.

 

The drydown is surprisingly lovely on me, so I'm definitely keeping my imp and I would consider getting a bottle.

[stardreamer]

I ordered Himerus because of all the woods, and before I had made the connection about red musk being a bad idea for me. That note appears to be one of the primary things which produce the "ye ghods, I smell like a Newage store" reaction, and that's exactly what it did here, completely overpowering the woods and florals. This one goes straight into the swap pile.

[Ina Garten Davita]

First Impression: Mmmm, juniper.

 

Second Impression: Juniper is so fleeting for me, I wish it would stay around a bit longer. The woods are soft in this blend, soft and sweet. My skin always amps up sweetness and Himerus becomes a sugar coated wood/musk/floral blend. It's very nice.

 

Final Analysis: This fades really quick on me, but the drydown is very pleasurable.

[Orodemniades]

Wet: Fir or balsam...ah, it's juniper! In any case it's sweet and green and wet. Unlike Nocnitsa, this is very warm.

 

Initial Drydown: Reminds me of the Yankee Candle store at Chrstmas...and that's a good thing. Without the waxy and headache inducing overtones, of course.

 

Drydown 2 hours: Rosie McRose. I know there are other things in here besides rosewood, but on me it's all about the rose...with a little of the lilac.

 

Overall: Hmm, not sure I like it, but think an imp would have sufficed.

 

Oro

[LiberAmoris]

Himerus was really a surprise for me. It didn't leap out of the imp as something I immediately had to try on, so it's been sitting around for a bit in my to-be-tried pile. But on my skin, it really morphs quite a bit from the wet stage.

 

The juniper backs off (although I looove juniper, it's so fresh!) and the red musk steps up. The florals turn rather creamy on me, and although this begins as a super-woodsy blend on me, it turns into something very second-skin and sexy, like if Hexxenacht and Nocnitsa got down and dirty. The drydown is so nummy. I'd have loved more lilac, but this is very, very nice.

[Blood onmy hands]

I thought that I would love Himerus after a few minutes of wearing. I love the way juniper smells on me, so green and spicy. Unfortunately, the juniper is quickly fading.

 

About 15 minutes later the red musk here seems to be dominating with some florals-that-I-can't-name in the background.

 

Himerus has turned to all musky floral horror. I had to wash it off and take an excedrin before I'd even been wearing it for a full hour.

[jewelbug]

Bottle: Something astringent and also some berry type smell. A bit spicy and warm. But it's definitely "fumey", like Clearasil pads. Sandalwood and chemical (like perfume alcohol).

Him:

Wet: Alcohol (like in a non-oil perfume) Also, I think juniper--perhaps its smelling like gin. ;-)

Drying: Going "berry" very quickly. Also a hint powdery.

Dry: Sweet, slightly berry fruity, powdery, hint of sandalwood, and a tint of musk. Despite musk and sandalwood, a little girly on him, from the sweet berry like smell.

Late dry: Still there, kinda fruity powdery floral. Not much woodsiness. Pretty, but not for him. Lasts 4-6 hrs.

Her:

Wet: Sweet citrus(bergamot?), also something spicy and warm. Still fumey--I guess those are the wood notes.

Drying: Goes a little powdery (3 min), I think what few florals there are in this are taking over. I can't smell the woods or musks.

In about 15 min, it's still powdery/floral, but now there is something sweet cutting through. It actually smells like a berry, even though there's no berry listed in the notes.

Late dry: Woodsy kinda berry. Nothing too exciting so far. Just a nice smell, but not something I must have.

 

Overall: I really don't know why this is berry to me. But its sweet berry with a bit of floral woodsiness. Actually, it reminds me enough of pink moon but a hint less sweet and lacking the lunar herb notes. Similar enough that I don't need to keep himerus. And it DEFINITELY wasn't flattering on him (despite me getting it for the woodsy man-ish notes)--made him smell girly to me.

[herongale]

preconceived notion: none, in that this was a freebie imp from the lab. The above description might have made me hesitant... particularly the "gender neutral" part... but there's a lot of good stuff in here too that makes me curious.

 

in the bottle: the oil is the colour of steeped tea, or of Pepsi with too much melted ice in it. I smell the juniper straight off now, but when I first sniffed this all I could pick out was something astringent and sharp. I've tried it many times since then, and my impression has morphed based on what I know will follow-- there is a thick warmth under this, but it peeks out in a very hesitant, almost hobbit-like manner... blink and its gone. This is what it smells like to be painting outdoors; a touch of turpentine and thick evergreen under a late May sun. And what you would be painting, of course, would be a portrait of your lover.

 

wet: Holly in the snow, greenness and an almost unbearable youth. Warm like the hands of a man, and rich like a kiss that you don't want to break.

 

drydown: this becomes... sweet? And almost honeyish? With a peppery tang of the juniper still sliding through the mix, this turns into something sublimely beautiful and nearly indescribable on my skin. This is the scent of hunger and appetite, of falling in love and almost immediately falling into regret, of feeling like there simply is not enough time or attention in this world to devote to what is most important, now that you can see it for the very first time. Fairly transcendental. I find myself slathering this on over and over again just to experience the change, and yet when it's there for a long time it continues to change and blend into something that is everything I want love to be. It's... a kind of honesty, I guess... sweetness in truth, and beauty in simple things. Gorgeous.

 

Verdict: Amazing. Seriously. I want more of this. I will get more of this.

 

post-conceived notion: what I know is that I know nothing... this scent arouses me and intrigues me and yet I cannot find in it any reason "why." Makes me think that there are a lot of scents out there that I've skipped over based on the description which merit a second look.

[AliBabble]

hey, i like this one. another lucky frimpage...i certainly never even noticed this scent before. it's kind of light, and natural on me...at first it's mostly the juniper - nice and woody, but still subtle. the other notes are very well-blended - himerus becomes rather sweet in a candy-ish way (i mean this as a positive thing) - it reminds me almost of candied violets, though i know violets aren't part of this blend..maybe it's the red musk and orchid making it sweet and soft...and the woodtones are a great balancing act for the sweetness. nice.

[amrita]

When wet, I get lots of juniper, herbiness, and sweetness from the orchid. This stage is my favorite (I love the juniper). About a half hour after application, this fades to an almost pure candy-sweet orchid on me, slightly sharp, with a hint of sandalwood. An hour later this has gone very, very sharp, smelling medicinal and perfumey. I'm not sure what the offending note is in this, since I have had success with all the notes listed in the description. Body chemistry, oy.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Musk and woods, and that vaguely evergreen note must be juniper. Another scent that smells skin-warm in the vial.

 

Wearing: I may have mentioned nine or ten times before that red musk and I get along very well indeed. And Himerus is no exception – a glorious red musk aura, a little bit of dry wood, and soft evergreen right on my wrists.

[blu°]

Oh, I love the review herongale wrote!

 

I can absolutely see all that she wrote being true for this beautiful scent. Myself, I tested Himerus some time ago, and though it's far from as lovely as herongale's review, I'll translate what I put down in my bpal testing file.

 

 

"Fresh, floral. Anne Bonny on my other arm in contrast with this. Very fresh and very floral, without drifting into something soapy-sharpish so far. Mmmhhh... powdery, too, yes. But light. Airy. Somehow sweet, but in a flowery way. I'd have imagined this to be warmer, but it's very bright, light and airy. A little bit of something sweet underneath, texture like marzibain somehow. This is flowery-sweet. No sugar or honey or anything like that. Somewhere underneath now a warmth is showing up. Must be from the musk, this should eventually develop.

A fine scent.

Reminds of very classic lady perfume as well. Maybe the orchid.

Old fashioned, elegant, but somehow almost a candy smell underneath. Something that you'd want to catch with your tongue tip.

Huh, maybe this could inspire oral sex? Wow.

 

It's fairly strong now, but seems to hold the balance. Something is a little off/overloaded smelling, but that might be Anne Bonny or the combination of smells.

 

Himerus reminds me of something Lush. Butterball or Sex Bomb.

The Soft Touch! This 70es feel. Himerus without smelling like some aunt or neighbour lady.

Gets very warm. Still floral. White florals. Intensive, to be applied carefully.

 

2nd test: without Anne Bonny in contrast this doesn't really come across as a floral. Rather herby-woodsy with a floral vibe to it, as predictable from the ingredient listing. The orchid almost fruity, but the whole of the scent light and airy. Delicious."

 

 

Reconsidering what I wrote then, I don't quite see how I connected this with the Soft Touch anymore, but can confirm the butterball impression. That must be the orchid, I suppose, though I'm not aware of orchid being a butterball component.

I have to add that I'm completely untrained as far as commercial perfumes are concerned and might forward this as an excuse for drawing a line towards classic lady scents that might never have existed anywhere else but my imagination.

[Celogrl]

This one is very interesting- however, it's confusing to my nose! I am having a hard time picking out individual notes in this one, but I must say that this is beautifully blended, and the overall impression I have is of a sultry floral. I need to work with this one more!

[yeahbutnobut]

Himerus

 

In the imp: sweet, woody notes with hints of musk and lilac.

Wet on skin: ooh, I like this. It’s very sweet, I get the orchid and lilac, but also the sharp fresh note of juniper and dry sandalwood/rosewood.

Dry: this is a very nice scent! I don’t find it too masculine, it’s very wearable on women. The musk note is strong, sweet and deep, almost fruity. I get lilac and orchid adding their sweet floral touch, and the woody notes of juniper, rosewood and sandalwood are also there. I’m surprised at how sweet this is on me-I think that could be the musk and orchid notes.

After a while: (20 mins) it’s so sweet, almost syrupy! That may be the orchid pairing up with the sweet red musk, but it’s a pleasant sweetness. I don’t get as much of the juniper now, I do get hints of lilac and sandalwood/rosewood in here though.

(1 hour) This becomes even more floral, and softer as well. I’m not sure, I think this has a slightly soapy throw but it certainly doesn’t smell like that near the wrist-there it’s a musky floral with a hint of wood-a pleasant scent.

After a few hours, I get a smooth creamy musk with a sweet floral and something golden and fruity, and a little hint of something woody and smoky reminiscent of autumn, I get this in a few other BPALs, it’s a drydown that I’m very fond of, but in this, I’m not sure what notes are producing this lovely drydown!

Verdict: this is a nice scent, which to me doesn’t seem very masculine-I find it quite feminine, myself. It’s a sweet musk-floral scent with a hint of juniper at the beginning, and with a woody undertone. The scent sweetens a bit after drying on the skin, but eventually settles down into a soft floral-musk scent. I like it, but not enough for a bottle-I’ll keep the imp though.

[populuxa]

Fresh and tangy in the bottle. I got this as a freebie and was surprised to see all the woody notes listed, because, on me it definately is a fruity scent. The bergamot is the strongest note, followed by lilac, with the musky-woody notes subtly resting in the background. A sensual but subdued scent.

 

I'm really surprised this particular oil seems to have been overlooked! It is beautifully balanced and complex, and seems like it can really show unique characteristics depending on the wearer.

[lookingglass]

The floral combo reminds me too much of Ouija, which is one of my signature scents, so I want to pass it along. Rosewood always gets a little "pencily" on me. The juniper is nice and bright and clean, and mixes well with the florals. It is a little masculine, but a little sweet too. We'll see how DH likes it.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: lots of bergamot and juniper. i'm not sure i'll like this one.

on: wow. lots of bergamot. very fresh.

half an hour later: fresh, but sweet, too. lovely.

1.5 hours later: sweeter and still citrussy. a bit floral, too.

2 hours later: very soft. powdery and floral, with a hint of fruit.

overall: this is ok, but not very interesting on me.

[urraca]

There are lots of things I love in this kind lab frimp, but I think the juniper is messing me up. I believe it is the juniper that is making it smell a little like cat pee when it first goes on.

That scent does fade, but than is stays kind of sticky sweet. It makes me feel a little queasy.