Thanatos

[Shollin]

... Dry white sandalwood and soft Siamese benzoin over a lugubrious blend of myrrh, Moroccan rose, mastic, tomb moss and a thin whiff of Greek incense.

First sniff: Oh, how interesting! Is that benzoin, that vaguely slinky note right at the bottom? Wow, Thanatos is complex. I can’t pin down much except “wow.” I expect very strange things from this one.

Wearing: The primary impression is one of warmth. I get a tiny hint of rose once I know it’s there, but for the most part it’s a warm resinous aura. I like. Edited January 4, 2006 by Shollin

[undream]

i don't think i'm smelling rose at all with this one, but whatever i am smelling is positively singing on me. it is a warm, sweet, dusty scent on my skin, like incense & powder, very soft & calming. it is almost making me sleepy.

 

reminds me of old love letters found in a warm, sunny attic.

 

another winner! i'll definitely be wearing this one again.

[desu]

In the bottle: Sweet, spicy rose.

 

On my skin: Very complex! I can't pick out any one scent. Better yet, the rose isn't turning to soap. At least not yet, anyway. Thanatos keeps morphing on my skin; it smells spicy-sweet one sniff, and spicy-woodsy the next.

 

Later on: I can't pick out the notes now, but this smells like incense on me now -- nothing annoying or nose-searing, but something a little masculine and not overbearing. I can see myself buying a bottle of this one!

[Hawke]

Rose strikes out again.

 

In the vial: It's either vetiver or patchouli (ETA: or neither), I'm guessing. The sort of dirty, sharp smell on the wand. Maybe some citrus (ETA: benzoin?). Pretty sure this is not going to be my thing.

 

Wet: Ooh, bandaids! That's new and different. Spice-licked bandaids. And then a sort of rose scent under the bandaids, that just gets stronger with every sniff.

 

Drydown: Well, at least the bandaid smell is gone. Oops. Mostly gone. It's actually not as bad as I feared. The rose is not overpowering. The plastic note is unpleasant but not eye-watering. Still, this is not my thing.

[brownbear]

This one got drier smelling as it dried on my skin. Usually rose gets amped up on my skin, but I'm not getting rose from this. It is overall very dry, with woody and incensey notes.

[Meg]

In the bottle: myrrh and a very sharp-smelling resin, and probably moss.

 

Wet: the sharpness dies down immediately, it smells... like it's disappeared?! Then slowly that scent comes back out, I suppose it's the benzoin. I think I can smell some mastic, too. It's actually pretty warm. The rose comes out delicately, in the background, with a forefront of resins. Oh, and the moss comes out too...

 

Drydown: It smells very slightly like a light version of Zombi, without the earth and with tons of resin. I think it's benzoin and mastic, and a dash of myrrh that surround the rose. I think the incense is coming out because it's tickling my throat. A few hours later, the myrrh comes out at long last. But the blend is still quite resinous and slightly rubbery.

 

Overall: It's rather nice, and reminiscent of Zombi... and I think it's just not as good as Zombi. The rose is more subdued, and I'm not a huge fan of resinous scents. I can't smell the sandalwood, not really a bad thing because I'm not a huge fan of it. Enjoyable, just not really fascinating - it is quite majestic, though, I imagine this is how it might smell in a funerary chamber. If you're looking for Zombi with a warm, clean scent, this is for you. I'll stick to my gloomy earth notes, though.

[Heretic]

Thanatos

In the bottle, this seems quite "perfumey" to me, however florals always strike me as such. I don't mind a nice rose scent and I'm curious to see what this is like in action, since the description sounds so intriguing, what with the myrrh and incense notes.

 

On my wrist, wet: Wow- this is almost overpowering, and the rose is really strong but not too sweet or cloying. It reminds me a bit of opening up a closet or trunk that has been closed for ages and being hit with the smell of fabric that has been saturated with fragrance for decades and then put away, but much stronger. If this calms down, it will be lovely.

 

20 minutes later: Subdued rose, a little dusty, a little earthy. I can smell the sandalwood dancing around the edges-- I wasn't expecting that.

 

An hour later: This blend didn't develop in the direction I hoped it would. I was hoping the sandalwood would blossom, but eventually, the rose insisted on being the star of the show. It's a lovely scent and it does calm considerably over time. It's not the sort of fragrance I would wear on a daily basis, but I'll revisit this when I'm in the mood for a floral. An imp will suffice.

[sookster]

myrrh and benzoin are 2 of my fav scents.....

mix it with sandalwood and a touch of rose.....

oh baby!!!

yup....i got a big old bottle of this one......freaking love

it......works insanely well with my chemistry ..... painstakingly beautiful

and breathtaking..... ... wickedly.....

[amrita]

Wet, this smells like pickles and smoke. It took me a while to figure this out. (My first thought-impression was of smoky BBQs and hamburgers with relish. (Not to say that this smells like hamburgers. At all.))

 

I can smell dry, sharp sandalwood, and myrrh. I am not sure what mastic or benzoin smell like.

 

I'm not really interested in this; the pickle/rose thing is too weird.

[Christine Daae]

::eyes description warily::

 

::raises eyebrow:: Promising!

 

In the Imp: Hrrrrm, sharp, but with a warm undertone.

 

Wet on skin: Whoa, incense!! Not like Hymn or Seraphim (which both are very incensey on me), warmer...

 

Dry on skin: Very warm and dark - very incensey (the two things my skin loves are incense and roses), slightly sweet (probably the rose), but mostly the impression I get is "warm." I don't know how to describe it, it's...comforting. But still dark. Like...black velvet and candlelight? Mmmm. Definitely not something I would have picked for myself based on the description, but utterly lovely (if a tad masculine for my tastes).

 

Drydown: The rose and whatever this incense is are the strongest notes on me. (Again, my skin <3s incense-y scents.) Still warm, but sweeter. God, what do I smell like? I keep sniffing my wrist going, "what does this remind me of, other than church?" (Incense always reminds me of church.) I keep thinking this is something I want someone to wear when I cuddle with them. Or it is what someone smells like...? It reminds me of something and I can't figure it out! This is bothering me, because I feel like I ought to know! It's...funereal, really...dark, sad, final but beautiful. Warm like...like a coat or a cloak that someone gives you that they've been wearing. My imagery is going haywire here.

 

Final Impression: I figured it out, actually. I really like this, and it's a beautiful, warm, comforting scent for many reasons, but it's not me. I can see putting this on my pillowcase to fall asleep with, though. I'm definitely keeping it, if only for the memories it brings back.

[Bagfish]

This should work on me but it doesn't. I even have a second imp just in case the first wasn't what it said it was. But to no avail

 

I love all the elements of Thanatos separately, but put them together and it just becomes a bit of a sharp "meh" on me from wet to drydown. I think this is the rose in the oil. I love rose (Rose Red being a favourite) but in this blend the rose just spoils it for me. I smell no incense or benzoin, just sharp florals. Skin chemistry is a killer for me on this one.

 

Off to the swaps with both of the imps......

[emshort]

I love scents with white sandalwood, and this one may be my favorite so far: dry, restrained, makes me feel calm and controlled but not over-pampered. The smell stays pretty consistent on my skin over time, too. I got an imp of this at the same time as an imp of Oneiroi, and they stick in my head as brother and sister scents: Oneiroi's a bit sweeter with the lavender element, good for when I want something softer. But I have more respect for Thanatos, even though it's less forgiving.

[Myaru]

Before:

It was the image in the Lab's description that drew me to this blend. I thought it was mildly fascinating, and over time I became obsessed about trying it.

 

On:

On application I really like it; it's dry, and almost herbal, not terribly sweet. An insidious sweetness creeps in as it dries down which is definitely rose. This could certainly be cruel, mocking, and malignant, as rose always goes bad on my skin. It remains sweet however, even though it's by far the most powerful scent of the lot at the moment, to my nose. It's reminiscent of the scent of decay, without being cloying or unpleasant like the real thing.

 

Finally after maybe an hour, the sweetness is tempered by something else - maybe the incense? I like it much better this way, although I didn't actually dislike the other stage. I was ambivalent about the rose, but if it stays in this stage, I can live through that.

 

After:

Oh yes. This feels like the rose among thorns that the image in the description suggested to me. Vivid, deep, and beautiful if one can just reach in and grasp it.

[fiddledragon]

Scent in bottle: A very soft incense with a hint of rose. Lovely!

 

Scent on me:

Wet -- Sandalwood, incenses, and moss

Dry -- Incense, sandalwood, and rose again.

 

Conclusion: I like the rose note in with the incense and woods. I think I'll keep this for a meditation focus. It does evoke death well, but it's a merciful, gentle, sleep-like death, rather than the description's cruel one. It's more like the description for Wings of Azrael. (So don't worry about me using it for meditation!) I'm definitely keeping the imp, and possibly having this be one of my core incense-blends.

[juniperus]

Bottle: sandalwood, something sweet that I can't quite identify, and...moss.

Wet: much the same with less sandalwood.

Dry: The rose is stepping forward and the moss, thankfully, stepping back. I'm catching a slightly-sweet note that I can't decide is the benzoin or the mastic, but it's increasing in intensity..and the sandalwood is faded considerably.

Later: A re-play of the moss as time wears on, and with the sweet-whatever-it-is I'm just not wearing this one- too much working against me.

[HennaFairy]

bottle:

floral

 

wet:

light musky floral

 

dry:

more musky now.

 

overall:

not crazy about it!

 

rating: 5/10

[Diana]

Wet: murky, herbal, dark (mmm)

 

Drydown: lightly spicy with a hint of softer ingredients. The rose note in this adds just the right amount of sweetness/lightness, without being super floral. The other notes maintain a deeper, almost woodsy-spiciness. I really like this a lot. It's really well balanced. It's soft without being very girly, and spicy without being uber heavy.

[karengypsy]

In the vial: Sandalwood and benzoin.

 

On me: This is surprisingly light, for an incense blend. I do smell the incense quite a bit, along with the sandalwood. I smell the rose in here, but the myrrh really overpowers it - it overpowers nearly everything except the incense, actually... so it's much darker now after just a few minutes. An intriguing blend, indeed.

 

Verdict: I think this one's a keeper. It is certainly a unique scent. I like it and want to give it another try.

 

Rating: 3/5

[moon_lemming]

Wow, most of the pieces that make up this blend are things I couldn't pick out if you paid me to. My overall impression of Thanatos was "pleasant men's aftershave." It's way too masculine for me and alas, it doesn't work with my husband's chemistry.

[septima_pica]

The immediate whiff is absolutely wonderful -- dark, incensey, sweet and dry. However, something in here makes it go unfortunately very sharp and floral -- I suspect it's the combination of sandalwood and rose, both usually lovely but together rather overpowering. The benzoin and myrrh are warm enough to keep it very pleasant for a half-hour or so, but in the spots where I applied a couple of hours ago it has become rather tart and not so interesting as it was. The moss, much to my chagrin, never showed up at all. It's nice, but (on my skin, which tends to eat my favourite notes) nothing to scream about.

 

Blast. And I was so looking forward to this one, too. I thought it might turn out to be a more complex version of Zombi. Oh well.

[trins-ravengirl]

Right off the bat this scent is almost all sandalwood and myrrh, sweetened by rose.

 

Upon drydown I get more of the incense and benzoin, making it almost a sharper scent.

 

I'm going to have to try this one later...it's many notes are almost confusing me right now. I'm not sure yet if it's a keeper, or if it is too "perfumey" for myself.

 

*shrug*

[edenssixthday]

Thanatos is a strong, heady scent with a very "perfumey" quality. I would guess there is sandalwood and something mossy in this blend. It's dark and has just a touch of what smells like dust, which could be the incense in it. As it dries down, the myrrh notes also move to the forefront, and it’s not nearly as pleasant as it was when it was wet, but I really like the scent, which is unusual for a sandalwood and myrrh blend. This blend has really amazing throw, so a tiny bit goes a long way, and it lasts for several hours, as well.

[Eunice]

This is lovely!! I cannot pick anything out of this unfortunately. Thanatos smells somewhat incensy with a citrus note, maybe bergamot? Very clean and refreshing with a bit of a bite. Very very lovely!

[supremegoddessofall]

Another description that says I'll probably like it. *sniffs* Yup, I like it! Sandalwood is pre-eminent, but it's somehow...darker...the rose is subtle. Not really getting the incense or myrrh, and I have no idea what the other things are. It's kind of delicate.

 

Score: 5 out of 5

[forspecial_plate]

When I first tried Thanatos, I didn't get very excited about it....and yet...I knew there was something going on that I wanted to explore further, so I just set it aside for a few weeks. It stayed in the corner of my mind and then yesterday, I knew the time was right to try it again. I quickly realized that I love it, and I don't know what changed, maybe just that I've smelled a few more scents now and I'm learning what I appreciate more.

 

Thanatos is really wonderful.....deep, sexy, dark, smokey sandalwood, but more than 'just' sandalwood. If I sniff up close, I can smell rose. Other than that and the sandalwood, I'm not getting much in the way of individual notes....just a smooth, quiet, incense-y yumminess. This has definitely entered my top 10 and I might need a bottle.

Edit I love Thanatos, still. I think I still have that same imp that I first tried. Now the notes have kind of flip-flopped....the rose is stronger, and the wood and resin come out in the dry-down. It's heavy, strong, and nearly powdery, which is usually a turn-off for me. But this scent is so great. I don't wear it much, because it has the feel of a solemn, formal occasion. I'm wearing it now, though, and I just can't stop sniffing up close, trying to pick apart notes. Beautiful.

Edited May 9, 2008 by Forspecial Plate