Salamander

[yeahbutnobut]

Salamander

Sexuality :: Vigor :: Force :: Energy :: Will

Destruction :: Change :: Passion :: Courage

Enthusiasm :: Revenge :: Daring :: Domination

 

In the imp: sweet dragon’s blood, a bit of floral (jasmine?), a bit of cinnamon, and perhaps some smoke too?

Wet on skin: a smoky floral scent with spices, and I’m sure I get frankincense now?

Dry: mmm, not bad! The scent is a red floral warmed by smouldering frankincense resin, dragon’s blood and something that may be tobacco or a burning incense scent, and also some spicy notes, I’m guessing pepper and a little bit of cloves and cinnamon. The scent is smoky and warm in feel, I’m not sure what the floral note is but right now it reminds me of jasmine-it’s a red floral on the same lines as Fire Eater and Living Flame. The scent is a bit like Love Me or Fire Eater/Living Flame with hints of Djinn. Very red and hot, perfect for a fire elemental.

After a while: now the scent is mainly dragon’s blood and that floral note which I’m still unsure of…is it jasmine? I’m also thinking it may be lilac. I get a hint of something that may be dried rose, geranium, or maybe camomile? Yes, it’s probably dry camomile with a bit of geranium. I get a hint of dried straw or hay from this scent at times, as well as the red, strong floral. I still get the smoky, spicy, smouldering background to the scent.

The scent turns from red to purple red, a kind of velvety magenta scent, deeply floral and also very dry in scent. The dried flowers rest on a bed of lightly spiced smoke which now reminds me of a kind of incense I smelt in Tunisia, with hints of frankincense. The scent at times reminds me of an exotic rose scent, a desert rose, perhaps. The scent is so dry that even my throat feels parched, blimey. Must get a drink right away.

Verdict: deep red, warm, incredibly dry, and at times exotic, the perfect scent for the elemental of fire. The scent has many aspects…resinous (frankincense, dragon’s blood), spicy (cinnamon and probably cloves and pepper), floral (I’m guessing rose, jasmine, geranium, camomile, lilac, maybe all of these?) and smoky (either incense or tobacco). the overall effect is a scent which is incredibly RED, starting at bright scarlet and progressing to deep crimson-magenta, the scent is dry and hot, reminiscent of flames, smouldering incense, dried plants and flower petals scorched by desert heat. It smells very complex and unusual and though it’s not a favourite, I think it will be excellent for ritual, or for when I need some of the aspects of fire in my life (well, I am an Aries, so this is my element, baby!)

[Meg]

In the bottle: Violets and possibly neroli. It has a distinct cologney feel to it. And there's a woodiness from dragon's blood, I think.

 

Wet: The salt note again! It dominates but I can still smell a bit of neroli and violet back there.

 

Drydown: As it dries, the violet and neroli come out again, quite subtle - as if they're being muted by something slightly musky, perhaps white musk. I catch whiffs of a herby scent somewhere in there, quite bitter, but it only emerges from time to time.

 

Overall: It's mostly violet with a hint of white musk, and a salty note, still, but it smells clean and a bit soapy and powdery most of the time. Sometimes there's a dusty quality to it. Er... I don't see how that can represent fire. It's pretty if you like violet, but it doesn't evoke much for me.

Edited April 4, 2006 by Meg

[Court Analyst/Strategist]

I keep this bottle around mainly for its name and element representation. Earth may be my strongest association (chartwise) but I sure do love some fire. Also, the Salamander is the being I feel the most close to out of all of the Elementals.

 

When first applied, I can detect a strong light purple floral present that's quite pretty, maybe violet, and a sharp astringent note matched by an undertone of soapiness. There's possibly something reminiscent of eucalyptus in here backing the blend as well. During drydown, this seems to become less complicated, but that could be my skin chemistry's finicky habits when reacting to notes that have a tendency to be soapy on me right from the get-go. The astringency fades considerably, softening the violet and the soapiness (which I should proabably make clear is not the violet itself) to a pleasant blend with a cool, mild eucalyptus note backing. If this were soap, it would be lovely to use, for that's exactly what it reminds me of past drydown, well-made violet soap with cool eucalyptus giving depth to the scent. The Salamander is not really something I would wear, but the scent is enjoyable enough, if unexpected.

 

Broadcasting Strength: 7.0/10. The blend stay around for a while on my skin at a good level of broadcasting power.

 

Rating(scent): 6.5/10. Not really something I would consider wearable, and not especially evocative of the element the blend represents... Perhaps it was the odd preferences of my skin chemistry in particular that just didn't do with this blend what I had hoped, except that I really did not buy this for use of a perfume, but for the use of focus on the representation of the Fire Elemental. When I first tried The Salamander, I was a even trifle diasappointed that the blend simply did not strike me as personifying the energy of the Elemental in question, in smell or otherwise. Still, I've kept the bottle around for a while now, but will likely just decant an imp and sell the rest eventually.

 

Court

Edited April 4, 2006 by Court Analyst/Strategist

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Red. Wet. Cinnamon. It definitely doesn't seem firey - almost more like damp earth. I think there's some patchouli in here.

On me: Huh. On the skin, it vanishes. No staying power at all. Seriously, it's been all of five minutes, and it looks like I won't be able to do any sort of comment on the fragrance. BUMMER.

[Eunice]

Eucalyptus and cinnamon in the bottle and on my skin. This smells cold and hot at the same time. Once this dries down I can make out a bit of clove and a bit of woodiness. Salamander is very intriguing and while I would burn this in an oil burner, I'm not sure I would wear this. A little too medicinal for wearing.

[edenssixthday]

Salamander - When I first sniffed this in the vial, I didn't think I was going to find it pleasant at all. But it's a really nice, warm, and serene scent. It is really hard to pick out the notes, but my best guess is dragon's blood, amber, tea, cinnamon and earth. It's an earthy scent. It sticks close to the skin, but as I move my arm around, I'll occasionally get a waft of it. I doubt it'll ever be a favorite, but I can't say I remotely dislike it, either.

[filigree_shadow]

The oil in the imp is orange, and it smells like dragon's blood and purple flowers to me. (Lavender? Violets? I'm not sure.) There is a little bit of something cool in there, it's not minty though. I don't smell anything that seems muddy, and I can't smell any cinnamon either. It also doesn't seem astringent to me. It does seem to get a little spicier as it dries, but it's not overwhelmingly hot and spicy.

 

I like this scent a lot more than I thought I would after reading the reviews. It's a very interesting blend of warmth and coolness.

 

Also I am more drawn to this scent than usual. It's like I can't resist continually sniffing my wrist. In addition to simply liking the scent, I find it quite intriguing as well.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: Men's cologne and some herbals.

 

On me: Sharp men's cologne. Too strong.

[emzebel]

Wow, I cannot believe I have not reviewed this yet - this is my favorite of the elementals and the only one that is really wearable for me.

 

Salamander is, as expected, warm and firey. I get a light dragon's blood, some spicyness and a warm herbal florally note. I cannot really discern the notes in this, but that's okay - I like them.

[alicia_stardust]

Salamander is red and dry. I get a strong sense of spice like cinnamon but there is an undercurrent of something bitter and herbal. This has a magical quality to it. After a while there's a bite to the scent and it seems to sit sharply on my sinuses. It is a very accurately executed scent.

[alhbooks]

Hmmm...I just got an imp set of the Elementals and started out with Salamander before reading any of the reviews. After two years of aging, it may have softened, but I don't get the hot, harshness noted above. Definitely a dragon's blood feel to start and as it dries, I'm getting something like sandalwood and cinnamon, but not enough to overpower. My boy walked in, sniffed me, and said "You smell nice," which is praise indeed, as his usual response is "did you spill a bottle of that perfume in here?").

 

 

Not too sweet, not too hot; I wonder if I could find a bottle of this somewhere?

[zankoku_zen]

This has dragon's blood in it - which is soft and floral, with a touch of sweetness. It's either got violets or another light floral, perhaps a bit of neroli?

This is much .... softer than I expected. I thought it would be a more aggressive or elemental blend. Perhaps because I'm a Sag, and thus a Fire sign, this seems almost soft and cuddly, but then again, a fire might think flames are cute and cuddly.

 

ETA: Less floral, and more clove. It smells like dragon's blood and cloves. So yes, still cuddly.

Edited May 10, 2016 by zankoku_zen

[suki]

in the bottle: there is an astringent quality that i can see being read as medicinal. it DOES remind me of Tea Tree oil a bit, but there's something more complex going on here- it just hasn't emerged yet.

 

wet on skin: there's a eucalyptus note that's fairly strong, with a hint of something that alternately reads as cinnamon and wintergreen to my nose. it's weird, but i like it.

 

dry down: now i'm getting a touch of clove, a little wintergreen, and a whiff of red sandalwood. all the notes in this are fleeting and shift-like a salamander!-as other folks have noted.

 

in all: not an easy scent to pin down by any means! this oil morphs continuously, befitting the spirit of the animal it embodies, yet there *is* something "fiery" about it too. perfect elemental oil, i will surely use this when i feel sluggish and in need of some of that frisky, flitting energy!