Gypsy Queen

[Nachtwulf]

A heavy-lidded perfume, the quintessence of beauty and power shrouded in mystery, swathed in a deep, velvet-clad cloak of dark omens: Romany incense and candle smoke mingling with an alluring, body-warmed whiff of bergamot, neroli, Bulgar rose, carnation, and amber musk.

I got this in trade for Snake Charmer, which I read the description of and thought I'd like, and which then turned into Assault with a Deadly Odor as soon as it hit my skin.

Gypsy Queen had a list of stuff that mostly, I wouldn'tve bet on, but at this point I've come to the conclusion that I can't hardly make a judgement without trying it. Because frankly... I -love- Gypsy Queen. Possibly even more than Freak Show, which seems odd.

It pulls no punches; it's a heady, thick, overpowering sort of scent (I underestimated it 'cause it's floral in the bottle and put a bit too much on), but it's not totally overwhelming.

Largely, it's what it says...smoke and incense. It's a warm, thick, sweet incense, though, mellow and not sharp or churchy at all. I pick up vanilla from it, though that could be the bergamot for all I know, and what I swear is cinnamon. It's a lot more mellow, and like some others have said, almost 'creamy', which is what keeps it from being ecclesiastical. It's a warm, inviting incense, and yes... I can totally see the fortuneteller's tent smelling of this. Come in, precious child. Have a seat...

[violetblue]

I got this gem in a swap from OriginalWacky and I am so pleased with it! It reminds me of Spellbound, but smells sweeter on me and more feminine. Incensey and sexy, it just really smells great on me I think. After application, I really smell the incense and neroli, and very light rose. Love it!!!

[Emu Nymph]

When I first tried this on I wasn't sure if I was going to like it. But as it dryed it got darker, smokey, and a touch sweet and I fell in love with it. The staying power it good too. I can still smell the sweetness on me I think this one rantks up there with Scherezade for me.

[metaldog32]

Gypsy Queen....the first and only Carnaval Noir fragrance I ordered...I have always been drawn to gypsies..and well...I just could not pass this up.

 

I have been wearing her for several days..and I don't understand why it has taken me this long to review..but suffice to say...I am now ready to do so..simply because All Hallow's Eve is tomorow...and I am so excited to try Devil's Night.

 

Anyway..onto the review:

 

Initial sniff from bottle:The incense is there in the forefront..and when I breathe deeply, I get some floral swirled in..but to my nose it's all incense.

 

Applied wet on skin:Incense is there all right..but now I do get the candle smoke...gorgeous..along with a spiciness which I am assuming is the carnation..this is all very dark...alluring...heavy...

 

Couple of minutes drying on skin: I am still getting the same notes..but now I think I smell more the rose and amber rounding out...this is really very mysterious..in a sexy way. I don't think I am registering any neroli..but no matter..I am still loving it.

 

Drydown: Traces of spicy/smoky floral with the base of amber softly radiating...oh my goodness..

 

Throw was impressive..not too aggressive but definitely had a presence on me. Lasting power was good too...when I moisturize Gypsy Queenlasts a good 6+ hours on me.

 

Bottom Line:A definite keeper for me. I actually wore this to work..just because it's how I am..but for people a bit apprehensive with wearing such a heavy pefume, Gypsy Queen is perfect for evening..especially when you have mystery and seduction in mind. This is a perfect late fall winter fragrance..and I am actually looking forward to wearing it again in the upcoming months. All black clothing, jangly gold earrings, dark eyemakeup and my Spanish shawl...this fragrance makes one want to ooze secrets and shadows...

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Sweet flowers.

 

Just On: Sweet, spicy flowers.

 

An hour or two later: Not as flowery now, more smoky and mysterious.

 

Around 6 hours: I get a little powderiness... but more darkness too. It's starting to fade away though.

 

12 hours: It's gone now, and I miss it.

 

Overall: This is really interesting, and I rather like it. Again, not my favorite CN scent, but up there a ways.

 

After reading other reviews: Okay, now I know which ingredients gave me those scents, and I'm pretty amazed that those all worked on me.

[TroubleDoll]

The rose, musk and incense are the dominant notes that come out of this blend on me. It is not really a "second skin" scent, as I had hoped. The dry down in a bit dusty.

[brownbear]

yum I knew I should've ordered this one. oh well.

At first it's just floral and frankly a little boring for my tastes, but after it dries it's another story. mmmm It gets all spicy and still slightly floral and warm and skinlike. I love this. I'll have to make this imp last.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Cool, mysterious floral. The fortune-teller’s tent is warm, but this chill is more than physical.

 

Wearing: Veils and smoke and candlelight. Alluringly sweet but still untouchable. The citrus (bergamot and neroli) warmed up beautifully on my skin and I found myself sniffing all night. Good stuff.

[Phaedra]

Wet this is floral and earthy. When first on it’s a bit fruity and floral with some musk too. After a couple of minutes a honey note comes out- yum! There is a smokey note too. This develops into a lovely floral blend, rich and sensual. On the drydown it’s a soft honey/vanilla. Another winner from the series!!

[Fefferbella]

Gypsy Queen was a pleasant floral suprise. Normally florals disagree with my skin and have a tendency to turn soapy.

However, the complexity of this blend prevents that from happening. There are warm rich honey notes. Dark heavy incense notes and a subtle spicey smoke note.

All these blend perfectly into a feminine, sensual blend, very fitting for a Gypsy Queen.

[Miss Lynx]

Wow -- this is powerful stuff! On my first try, I accidentally put on too much and it was overwhelming -- I had to wash it off, but felt there was a reasonable likelihood that I might actually like it if I put it on much more lightly the next time.

 

So I tried again, about 10 hours later, when my nose had had a chance to fully recover from the onslaught (and having tried the much-gentler Baneberry in the meantime. And sure enough, I find myself liking it quite a lot. Which is odd, because it's (on me at least) a predominantly floral scent and I am so not a floral person. But then, it's not a normal floral.

 

How best to describe this? I guess I'd say it's kind of like a cross between a floral, a musk, and a mind-altering drug. Or maybe an aphrodisiac. There is something seriously intoxicating about Gypsy Queen. It's got that warm amber/musk base that's in Fenris Wolf and Haunted and various others that I like, with some kind of flowers layered over it and yet perfectly blended into it, so that it's hard to pick out the individual notes. And it's also got an incensey quality, and an indefinable Something Else that makes it feel like it's doing strange things to your pheromones and/or brain chemistry.

 

This is one very, very sexy scent, but not in a conventional way -- it's sexual power, or maybe sexual magic. It's the sort of thing you'd wear if you were going to use sex as a weapon, or a ritual. You could case a spell of fascination with this. It almost feels like it should be a controlled substance. After a while, though it settles down to something subtler and closer to a skin-scent, though still lovely.

 

Needless to say, this is a keeper. It's not something I plan on wearing every day -- aside from the sexiness factor, it's more floral than the scents I like best tend to be -- but I have a feeling that very interesting things will happen if I wear this on my next "date night" with either or both of my partners...

 

Grade: A-

Edited November 24, 2005 by Shollin

[sarahj]

Gypsy Queen

 

in bottle: carnation, amber, and musk

 

wet: the rose begins to make an appearance

 

dry: a lovely blend...but it fades so quickly (in less than 2 hours)

 

verdict: very nice, but I wish it lasted longer on me

[SeaMonkey]

In the imp, it smells like.........pita bread??

 

when it dries, it smells like eating pita bread in a head shop. I had the same experience with Queen of Sheba, but it was eating pizza in a head shop. This is really heavy and perfumy. This is off to the swap bin

[voodoobaby]

In the bottle: The first sniff is pretty, creamy, and...wait, grape? Where did that come from? Not screaming grape popsicles like Urd, definitely more toned down and barely there.

 

Wearing: Ooh. Just slightly floral from the rose, very sweet, yet something sharper deep down--must be the candle smoke smell. It's a little heavier on the citrus that I was hoping, but that so doesn't matter. This is gorgeous. It's definitely a "second skin" scent, one of the only ones I've tried that has that effect on me. It blends so perfectly, you'd think I actually smelled this good naturally.

 

Later: Fades a lot, sadly. That's really the only drawback. It still smells, but only in that faded, dryer sheet way that some lighter blends get after a while.

 

Overall: Beautiful. Subtle. Sexy. A blend for a tomboy who feels like being girly for a day, but still doesn't want to overdo it. In other words, it suits me very well. I am pleased.

[merebrillante]

In the vial: Fruit with some incense.

 

Wet: More incense now, less fruit.

 

Drydown: Sandalwood, patchouli, maybe rosemary? I still don't smell any rose, which is a good thing.

 

Dry: I smell the neroli now. After five minutes, the incense smoke smell is gone and all I get is sweet-sweet-sweet in a powdery way.

 

Later: Powder.

[ArwenNightstar]

Gypsy Queen

 

9:13 In the bottle - Musky, sweet, tuberose maybe? Myrrh, I think as well as some amber. I am liking this ALOT.

 

9:14 Strong, something minty coming out but still sweet and dark.

 

9:16 Sonj says she smells chocolate but I smell orange now. Sweeter than I like, but not bad.

 

Ok, now I am getting some powdery smell to it.

 

When I run my clean wrist to the scented one to heat things up, oh heavenly!! I want to bury my nose in my wrists and run around like that all day.

 

This is a definite yummy one. When I get more scents under my belt, I may try to layer this with something.

 

Ok, on the wrists, behind the ears and in the cleavage and I am out the door. Will see what responses I get from this!

[grrrlennyl]

at first: all incense. pretty, but i'm not sure if i'll like it.

on: very smoky. i can smell lots of incense and rose. very interesting.

half an hour later: very powdery and perfumey.

1.5 hours later: powdery and much lighter.

2 hours later: pretty much gone.

overall: this fades too quickly on me.

[darklorelei]

I'm sorry this is so short, but this is from my notes taken way long ago in October at the Chicago Meetup. But any little bit helps?

 

I definitely got some nice spice from this, but the neroli really came out on me, and neroli and I aren't friends.

[LittleGreyKitten]

This one is major smokey on me, and thickly sweet. Very incensy indeed. I don't get much floral out of this, just sweet resins, and smokiness. I do like, but it's so very potent I don't reach for it a lot. It lasts a very, very long time, and it pretty much occupies a room. It is one that is best in smaller doses. Fun, though, and exactly like the description would lead you to expect.

 

I'd give it a 4 out of 5.

[jewelbug]

Imp: This has a very similar feel to Freak Show to me, though they are quite different. I wonder if they share notes besides bergamot?? I also get some orange in the imp. Neroli, I guess.

 

Wet: Sweet slightly creamy orange, with a biting perfumey floral underneath. Its sharp.

From far away, I just keep thinking this is similar to freak show with some note.

 

Drying: The orange fades suddenly, and there is a phase when the other florals hijack the blend—especially the rose and carnation. There is almost a distantly honeyed sweetness to this.

 

Dry: Spicy floral (assume that’s the carnation). The rose in this is very understated, which is good, since it usually turns to soap on me. No musk is screaming out to me, and I don't really get anything smoky outta this. I still get that unidentifiable similarity to freak show...

 

Overall: Lasted 3 hrs before bed, this strikes me as more of a skin scent than one with big throw. Mellows into slightly powdery floral, spicy from the carnation. No more orange, luckily not much rose (cuz that usually goes soapy on me). Its very pretty, very feminine. I can see how many people get incense from this, but to me it seems too light to be incense. Maybe the memory of incense, rather than the real deal. This is pretty, and I'm glad I tried it, but its really not a "me" scent.

[GypsyRoseRed]

This smells really overpowering in the bottle! To me, it smells like the Psychic Eye Bookstore times a hundred wet, but once it's on and has settled down.. It's very sexy. Incense and red velvet, with an underlying layer of dark florals. Maybe a little heavy-duty for me, but beautiful nonetheless.

[mandragora]

In the imp: Light floral with a bit of minty fresh background ... interesting.

Wet on me: Musky incense with light floral undertones. Very mysterious and alluring.

Drydown: Smells like smoke and candles surrounding a luscious rose scent.

Later: Alas, the amber musk turns powdery on me.

Verdict: Aaghh, I'm disappointed and Gypsy Queen had such a promising start too. That's 0-2 for the CNs. At this point I'm pinning my hopes on Freak Show.

Edited April 5, 2006 by mandragora

[Nekomata]

Got a 5ml right before the re-release.

 

wet this smells like something familiar, but I can't think of it! *goes crazy*

 

It dries to a nice sweet smokey scent. Very light!

[Diana]

Wet: This is a mish-mash of floral notes, but with something resinous and golden in the background.

 

Initial dry: The flowers are omnipresent, but they are all ones that I'm rather fond of. Something goes a little sour on me, kind of like Red Phoenix did, but that only last a few minutes.

 

Drydown: The incense aroma intensifies, and the floral notes are pushed to the side. This reminds me a lot of Sybaris, but without all the violet. Very nice!

[Magda]

Mmmm. This is how I like my rose--swirled with incense and musk until it's dizzy. I'm not a rose girl, but this is lush and luscious, heady and heavy-lidded. It makes me want to lounge in a velvet-lined room, eat ripe fruit off a silver platter, letting the juice run down my fingers. This scent deserves rich red wine and liquid eyeliner and slow kisses.