Swank

[AliBabble]

Simply cool, the essence of Lounge: the scent of a crisp pomegranate martini.

oooh i like this. swank was a freebie imp, so i didn't know it was supposed to be a pomegranate martini (which it does smell like..) - my first umpression was citrus...lemon lollipops or sugared limes or limeade..it's really quite refreshing - would be great on a summer night. it's sweet/tart astringent, festive and bright. juicy! tho' not particularly boozy, it's making me crave an ice cold pomegranate martini in a sugar-rimmed glass. very nice.

[ice queen]

Really thought I was gonna like this but unfortunately it just didn't work for me.

Too sweet, and my husband said I smelled like "erasers" !!!!!

Once I had that in my mind, that was it !!!

[britton522]

Ooooh. Glorious. This one is an imp that FINALLY stays eternally true. And it loves me. It has the scent of a freshly broken open pomegranate--you can almost smell the juices dripping down your hands. Delightful and crisp for fall wear, but warm and seductively late night lounge at the same time.

[Belease]

Goes on exactly as it sounds, instantly gets transformed to sweet sherbet with a bitter edge to it, softened by a powdery sweet smell. A sharp, bitter note remains after a few minutes. Slowly disappears over the course of about ten mins, but a soft bitter note is still there and I don’t really like it! It’s not a bad scent, but I don’t think I really liked the martini edge. The fruit was beautiful, though.

[Miss Lynx]

This wasn't quite what I expected - a lot of the reviews emphasized the booziness of it, but I didn't get that from it so much. A little bit, but not like someone had spilled their drink on me or anything. And I've realized that a lot of fruity scents go at least a little bit boozy on me, or at least have that slightly rich and intoxicating aspect to them that I've come to think of as just how fruit acts on my skin.

 

Overall, what I got from this was fresh, tart and green. Sweet, but not overpoweringly so -- you definitely get the tartness of the pomegranate. Overall it's got quite a light and fresh feeling to it, and would be a great springtime scent, despite the more usual associations of pomegranate with fall due to the Perspehone myth.

 

There's a green/woody undertone to it that I'm guessing is juniper, which I presume is there to evoke gin, and balances the pomegranate nicely. And I think there are a few other notes, but nothing I can identify with any degree of certainty. There are ways in which it reminds me of Lampades, and also in other ways of Carnal and Baneberry, despite the fact that those three don't smell that much alike.

 

Overall, pretty nice, though not necessarily a candidate for my top favourites. And its staying power is pretty decent -- I put it on before going out for the evening, and could still smell it when I got home. I'll probably use up the imp, but don't know if I would get more, given that I have other scents that are somewhat similar to it. It does, however, make a fine room scent, as I discovered by accident due to a leaky imp.

 

Grade: B

[Celogrl]

This was a gift from the lab, one I may not have ordered otherwise. This is lovely! It's very 'sparkly' and tingly to my nose. The pomegranite is gorgeous- fruity with no overly sweet note, hence the 'sparkly' description. It has great lasting power and stays pretty consistent on me from wet to dry. I am glad this was included in my last order and I'll hang on to it!

[Cedar]

The good news: I love this scent. On me, there's almost no change from the way it smells in the bottle.

 

The bad news: It's nothing like its description.

 

I get the pomegranate, oh, absolutely. It's beautiful and warm and sweet with definite sugared overtones. It doesn't smell crisp to me at all, though, not the way 21 does. It has the deep, strong fruity scent like Baneberry, and it lasts forever, which is great. It's especially nice in the winter, when the warmth of the scent combats the outside icky. It's also very sophisticated, and a nice fruit scent to wear outside of the normal peach-raspberry-citrus.

[em_h]

In the vial: Okay, this is weird, but I get a suggestion of tomato juice

 

Wet: Luckily, the tomato juice is transient. Now it smells like a kind of fizzy grapefruit drink (definitely grapefruit, not pomegranate -- what can I say, fruit scents and I are just odd together). I have no idea if this actually resembles a martini in any way, having had very little to do with martinis in my life. It's kind of nice, quite crisp and clear and bright, but may not stay nice on my skin.

 

Drying: Settling down into a fairly clean citrusy scent, as the fizziness dissipates. It may be starting to do that sour thing that fruit often does on me, but I'm not sure yet. If that doesn't happen, this might be a nice scent for summer.

 

Dry: Damn. It's that yucky sour thing again. Fruit so rarely stays true on me. It's really kind of frustrating.

[Rhowan]

I was really looking forward to trying this one and luckily got it as a frimp!

 

In the bottle: Someone mentions "sparkly" and they hit the nail on the head. Swank smells tart and almost tickles your nose! How does Beth do this?

 

Wet: I am smelling "Sweetarts" a very sweet/sour scent

 

Dry Down: As Swank dries down, the very sour, sparkly scent is mellowing. The sweet pomegranate is coming forward but not quite rounding out the scent. I can't catch any alcohol scent just the pomegranate.

 

Conclusion: This is a bright sunny scent which would be a very uplifting oil to use in the spring. I expected this to mellow even more but the sweetart smell never quite dissappated. I would never want a whole 5ml of this. I think just the one imp will be enough to sate me for awhile as a little goes a long way on me and it has a pretty good throw.

[valentina]

Swank, in the imp, to my nose smells fruity -- I really didn't detect a lot of booze, or even crispness. Once applied, the initial drydown is also almost overwhemingly fruity, but after 5 minutes, an edge starts to appear on this martini. And the "booze" is more how fruit smells when it's mixed with gin or vodka -- the sweetness of the fruit takes on a razor edge, rather than the smell of the booze coming to the forefront.

 

The scent doesn't morph a great deal upon further drydown, but has incredible "throw." The first time I tested Swank, I really didn't like it because of the fruity aura. The second time I tested it was after I'd received and used Beaver Moon and had become more accustomed to fruity scents. I liked Swank a lot better the second time, and I'm increasingly convinced that some of my scent preferences are based upon what I'm accustomed to. Fruity scents may fall into the category of a learned preference, and as long as they have a bit of an edge, they're fine with me. Swank may be something I really grow to love.

 

I must add as an aside, that Swank is the last name of a drag queen in my hometown (not his stage name, his actual name), and whenever I think of Swank, I do picture a 6'4" Ric Ocasek-like man who is utterly gorgeous in drag, swanking about in stilettos and an evening gown, a martini in hand, knowing that he/she is more beautiful than anyone else in the room. Swank the scent should be worn with that attitude, I do believe.

 

valentina

[hangingfire]

Frimp from the Lab!

 

In the imp: Sweet and fruity, with a slightly floral note underpinning the fruit.

 

On, wet: Strongly fruity pomegranate base note that smells a lot like the pomegranate soda that I get at Central Market. Aquatic top notes, and a slight green-ness reminiscent of Twenty-One.

 

Drydown: Less intensely fruit now; much more of the green and aquatic notes. Not that the fruit goes away; it lingers, and grows more berrylike.

 

Ultimately, when it comes to fruit, it looks like the more tropical and citrus notes work better for me than berries. While Swank doesn't go all Jolly Rancher on me the way that Akuma did, the berry-like aspect of it is just a little too strong for my tastes. It's a lovely scent, though, and if you like the berry-type scents, this will be dead perfect.

[jazlyn]

Swank ooo. At first, I could smell a bit of the alcohol, but now that's mostly gone. Swank smells kind of tart and crisp, although I'm not sure if this really smells like pomegranate (like the pomegranate in Persephone for instance). Maybe this particular martini was made with some kind of citrus (I swear I smell something like a tiny hint of grapefruit/lemon) alcohol? Anyhow, mmm. This smells of high class!

[sideviewhotel]

This is.. very tart. But, I'm not sure if this is a keeper. I can't get much more out of it, other than 'tart'. At least it doesn't do the 'hair coloring smell' that Persephone does. I was afraid that it was the pomegranate note that did that. I'm not sure.. Eh. This doesn't strike my fancy, so I think this is a swapper.

[Voleuse]

Sweet and juicy and intoxicating. Wow! I love the pomegranate note--it makes my mouth water. Underlying it is a bit of booziness, not enough to put me off, but it adds a bit of sparkle to the blend.

 

As it dries, it gets less juicy, but retains the sharp sweetness I liked on first application. Yum.

[mandragora]

In the vial: Smells like slightly sweet berry that's a bit tart. I'm guessing that's how the pomegranate smells

 

Wet on me: Still mostly tart berry with hint of booze coming forward. Almost like a fizzy cocktail drink.

 

Drydown: It softens as the notes blend together. Fizziness gone.

 

Verdict: Would make a great room scent.

Edited January 26, 2006 by mandragora

[ABrokenAngel]

In the Bottle: Mmm Pom….damn I love this fruit.

 

Wet: I think I just fell in love with martini’s all over again. It’s sophisticated, smart, sexy, exotic and intoxicating. I’m sold.

 

Dry Down: Perfect for that night out on the town with the girls where you know you’re going to get plowed and want to fit in. It’s fantastic.

[Thaleia]

Swank was recommended to me by a friend of mine, along with Twenty-One. In the bottle, I already like this one better, probably because as a matter of personal preference, I prefer Cosmopolitans to straight gin martinis. (Yeah, I realise The Hamptons is the Cosmo, but Swank smells enough like a Cosmo to me to pass as one.) I love the pomegranate berry-scent. Very fresh, very ... well, swank.

 

I sniffed my arm when I put it on and had to say "Whoa!" It smells like one of the sugary lollipops in the clear wrappers that I used to have as a kid. The yellow one, that's lemon, or maybe the pink one, that's fairly neutral sugar-berry, but has got a citrus bite to it as well. When it mellows down, it leaves an elegant and yet really fun scent, perfect for parties, whether it's a party out with friends or a formal event. It's sweeter than a Cosmopolitan, but that's probably due to the pomegranate, which I love, and which my skin seems to like as well. (This means I can try Persephone now.)

 

Great! I might wear this to my friend's bachelorette party tomorrow. A swanky 5, darlings.

[populuxa]

Fruity and Tangy! The "boozey" notes from the lab turn out really fresh on me. In the bottle, it seemed a little too sticky and astringent, however as it dried, it mellowed out to a sparkling, refreshing scent. Very much like The Hamptons, but simpler and less spicy - I'm not getting the slightly piney tinge I smell in The Hamptons. It's awesome! It lacks the sugary-sweetness of some fruit notes and combined with the twist of alcohol it's sophistated and, well, swanky!

[kettu]

This is pomegranate love! So crisp and clean and uplifting! I have a tenuous relationship with fruit scents, but this one worked out very very well. Such an excellent scent! Definitely a keeper.

[abbycomix]

Awesome! This is what I was hoping for in Bon Vivant (which turned to oversweet, powdery/strawberry incense on me). Fruity, sweet, light, and bubbly. Love it!

[MistressTera]

Fresh From The Imp: Strongly pomegranate.

 

Wet On My Flesh: I think I might be detecting a hint of gin, which is odd. The fruit is still prominent, though.

 

Drying Down: The pomegranate isn't quite so clean now, muddled with another note that I can't put my finger on.

 

Hour To Integrate: It's got a strange tang to it that I'm not caring for.

 

End Of Day/Final Report: Oh dear gods, I'm smelling BILE. Not a keeper. Excuse me while I go wash m'self now.

[couscous]

Egads, this is sweet. I'm not getting any booze from this, gin or otherwise. It smells like pomegranate and oranges, and maybe a drop of cherry, as well. Juicy in the extreme.

 

Swank belongs to a scent family I just can't get behind. The connotation of 100 percent fruit is too summery, too teenaged, and too bright for me. Still, fruit purists and fans of Persephone are going to love this one.

Edited February 11, 2006 by couscous

[ladynoah74]

In the Bottle: I'm in love. If I could drink this, I would - it's all juicy pomegranate.

 

Wet: Oh, yum! Sweet, juicy, tangy, and crisp. I'm trying to resist the urge to lick my arms, because it's so. good.

 

Dry: There is a 5mL of this in my future! Stayed true to scent and has a good throw. I can smell bits of it wafting up at me as I type. Definitely something to wear when I'm in the mood to be nibbled on.

 

It's definitely fruity, so those who don't like that scent class would probably want to avoid it. For fruit lovers like me, it's pure heaven.

[smallvoice]

I got Swank as a frimp from a swap with CapricornSister, which was entirely generous of her, as I initially asked about it, but didn't have a swap for it. On to the review:

 

It smells pink, sparkly, bubbly and crisp straight away, to me. How appropriate that I got this on Valentine's day, because it's perfect. It doesn't smell boozy in the sense that the person sitting beside me will think that I'm a drunk, but it has that edge that keeps it from being too sugary on my skin. I can kind of get the citrus that others have commented, but it wasn't my first thought upon applying/sniffing- I definitely smelled the berry; but with an undertone of lime, to be sure. This is going on my bottles wishlist/to-buy list.

[strawberry_star]

I love boozy scents, so I jumped all over this. It didn't turn out how I was expecting it to at all.

 

I can't smell any booze in this. It smells nothing like a cosmopolitan on me and even more it doesn't even smell like pomegranates. Instead it smells like a very sweet orange. Do you remember those powdered sugar candy in the fruit shaped plastic container? I haven't seen it in year, but they might still sell it somewhere. Well this smells exactly like the orange one.

 

I love fruity scents, so I do like it, but it just wasn't what I thought it would smell like at all.