Maenad

[13bodies]

Orgiastic mayhem in the extreme: sweet strawberry and orange blossom distorted by carnation, black poppy and hibiscus.

At first this is a very dark strawberry scent. I"m not much of a berry person but this is nice.

As it dries, the darkness unfortunately goes away and it turns into strawberries. They're very nice strawberries and smell fresh and real as opposed to nasty fake ones, but it's a bit too berry-licious for me.

Update: On the drydown the strawberries turn tart which I like very much. So I like the beginning and end and the middle isn't so bad; I'll definitely use the imp. Edited September 28, 2005 by 13bodies

[slugbait]

In the imp this starts out tart and sour smelling, a bit like Akuma and Kuang Shi. But on my skin the tartness fades and I get strawberries and hibiscus. It smells a tad bit like strawberry incense. The more it dries the more I like this. Very girly and fun!

[shayelea]

In the bottle: Hm. Candy-sweet, but I'm getting some florals out of this, too.

 

Wet: Pez. Pez candy and...um, flower shop. I really can't get any more specific than that.

 

Drydown: Well, the Pez scent goes away, but then the flowers come out, and...well, they smell a little insipid on me, and then they go soapy. So. Also, for some reason this one left a red mark on my skin.

[Ancientgirl]

I ordered this because I am fascinated by all things Dionysiac, and I also like strawberries!

First on: I couldn't smell this at all at first, and then the first note I caught was oddly like a vegetable! Not any vegetable in particular, but just something that screamed out "I am green!"

Two hours later: This really reminds me of strawberry herb tea. It isn't like a strawberry candy, or even like fresh picked strawberries. It's a little bit like the strawberries my mom puts on shortcake or ice cream (now I'm getting hungry). For some reason, it reminds me of Bordello a little, but my closest association is strawberry tea.

I'll probably use up the imp, but I don't think this will be a big bottle for me.

Ancientgirl

[yeahbutnobut]

Maenad

 

In the imp: oh dear, this smells a bit scary. Like strawberries with something a bit harsh…

Wet on skin: hmm, this is better. Strawberries with a dark side…that could be the poppy? I'm not sure, it could be orange blossom as well.

Dry on skin: oh dear, this really is what I'd call 'evil strawberries'! I usually like strawberries-the note the Lab uses smells so real, capturing the tartness of the strawberry as well as the sweetness. That's in here, but there's a note here that smells a bit off on my skin, something's not quite right about it-it's dark, a bit jarring, it reminds me of a 'decaying plant' smell without smelling 'rotten', but it's not that pleasant either. I have no idea what that note is but it may be the poppy. I normally like strawberry and orange blossom, and I think I like hibiscus, but I'm not so keen on this. I wish I got carnation from here too…

After a while: this is Pink Moon's evil sister, I think. It has the same strawberry-carnation sugary sweet syrup scent, but with something dark and twisted to it. I don’t really like this note that I get here though. It smells wrong on me.

The drydown after a few hours is much more bearable though-a slight hint of strawberry left on the skin.

Verdict: this sounded so tempting-strawberry, carnation, and hibiscus too…but it turned scary on me. There's a note here I can't get on with-a dissonant, dark note that clashes with the sugary sweet strawberry scent. This really is a scent of 'strawberries turned evil' but I'm afraid I'm really not keen on it. I'm not sure what the offending note is but it may be poppy-which I'm not that familiar with. I t may be nice in other blends, but my skin doesn't like it mixed with strawberry, it seems. Another Diabolus scent that goes wrong on me…oh well. Off to swaps for now.

[ancilla_morte]

I haven't been able to test many BPAL scents as I am still relatively new to this. But Maenad is so far one of my favorites. I think in fact, it was also the first scent I tested.

 

in imp: very green smelling, slightly sharp with just a hint of strawberry. Smells like the young very fresh greens, but still a bit sweet.

 

wet on skin: powerfully sweet strawberry, but with slight dark hints underneath

 

dry on skin: the initial green and the sweet strawberry unite pretty evenly.

the scent here reminds me pretty accurately Coty Airspun loose powder. weird.

 

the scent lasts for a long while. It is not overpowering but still, it is pretty strong. and the strawberry is perfect! I am definitely going to have to buy a 5ml of this.

Edited October 29, 2005 by ancilla

[brownbear]

Judging from how it smells in the imp, I wasn't really sure how I'd like this one. It smells very fruity. It doesn't smell like the strawberry I've tried in Strawberry Moon or in Bon Vivant. I do get strawberry though. It is a very sweet scent. Then it gets darker and a bit musky. Nice. I never really got any orange blossom from it. I'm not sure how much I'll wear it, but I do like it.

[carolinachiquita]

I liked this when I first put it on, the strawberry was really strong and yummy and I could smell the orange blossom behind it. It still smells the same now (a good 8 hours later!) but I think it is too sickly sweet - It didn't morph into anything else on my skin. Maybe I'd wear this again in the future but I wouldn't be too bothered if I didn't

[wingedcorset]

I'm getting mostly a dirty darkness from this. That must be the black poppy. *sigh* Why must my skin always amp the notes that I don't want to smell? The strawberry is popping out as well, and is amazingly painfully sweet. *sigh* Off to the swaps!

[jewelbug]

Imp: Berry. On deeper inhale, there is something….odd…it kinda smells like the berry is overripe.

There is a medicinal quality to it as well. My husband described it as a combo of bad fruit toothpaste at the dentist (not the minty sort) and tasting your novacane shot. I think he's being harsh, but he really doesn’t like it. That doesn't bode well for me wearing this scent (seeing as HE'S the one that will be smelling me more than anyone else). But I'm gonna try it anyway.

Wet: Berry, but something sharp, tart/bitter and green. As it dries, the bitter tart note (which I wasn't all that fond of) starts to mellow out.

 

Dry: This is ALLLL BERRY. This is going the berry air-freshner route that so many berries seem to go on my skin. Its sweet and berry and has a TON of throw. Too bad I don't enjoy smelling like jam and air fresheners. I actually think this is the same strawberry note as in pink moon, but my skin is amping it, so it has none of the complexity of pink moon (which I own and love). Everything in Maenad that isn't berry is sucked dry on my skin.

 

This lasts about 4 hours.

 

Overall: Too much berry, too little else. Damn my silly skin chemistry. I think I would probably really like this if my skin didn't amp the berry so much.

[Miss Lynx]

Now this was a surprise. It was a freebie from the Lab, and in the imp smelled weird and overly sweet, enough that I was initially going to put it on my swap list without even trying it. But the weirdness was just intriguing enough for me to decide to give it at least one try before dismissing it.

 

For the first few minutes, it didn't smell much different than the imp -- kind of cloying but with a sour note to it as well -- but then it began to settle into my skin, and really interesting things happened. The sourness (hibiscus, I'm thinking - there was definitely a Celestial Seasonings-ish feel to it) began to blend in and just toned down the sweetness instead of clashing with it. The floral and the fruity notes began to mingle together nicely and for a change the florals did not amp horribly on my skin.

 

All in all, it blossomed into a really nice, only moderately sweet, perfectly balanced floral/fruity/herbal blend. My reaction went from "Hey, this isn't all that evil" to "Hmm, it's actually kind of nice" to "OK, this is coming off my swap list now!" Yep, it's a keeper.

 

My only complaint is that it really doesn't evoke its namesake much. A maenad scent with no wine? And nothing much in the way of darkness... Still, name aside, this is a really pretty scent, that I think will be particularly good for spring and early summer.

 

Grade: B

[AlaskaSnows]

Wet: Hmm I smell something that is similar to celery and salt water on top of strawberry.

 

Dry: Delicious ripe sweet red berry, with a strange salty hint. Also a nice floral bed cushions this berry. This is fun, juicy and full of life. I find it sweet but not too sweet because of the salty tinge.

[AngellicMystique]

Initially, this smells like tainted vegetation on me. It mellowed out semi-nicely, but not a favorite.

[desu]

In the bottle: Luscious strawberry with a certain edge I'm guessing is the carnation.

 

On my skin: Sweet, hard to discern any particular notes. Strawberry usually turns into a sickly-sweet powder on my skin fairly quick, but not so now.

 

Now it's starting to sharpen up some. I can still smell some of the strawberry and florals, but they're not very prominent. Overall, this isn't very strong on me at all.

 

Later on: The strawberry has become more prominent, but it hasn't turned into sickly-sweet powder at all; it smells like a proper strawberry still. Nice!

[ABrokenAngel]

In the Bottle: Orgiastic? Yes please! It’s fantasticly sweet yet has that coquettish factor that I am just in love with.

 

Wet: Oh…..my……god. I MUST HAVE MORE! The strawberry is enchanting, the carnation at full bloom, the orange blossom intoxicating and the poppy as sumptuous as always I cannot find any hibiscus but it might be because I was just drinking hibiscus tea so my nose is numb to it.

 

Drydown : ARRGGGHHH WHAT HAPPENED?!?!!? I have no clue what happened but it’s got foul some how. I don’t know what it was, what note that was so horribly imbalanced with my skin but it hates me now. I’m going to give this one another try to see if later on in the week it will like me more.

[kettu]

I've been feeling adventurous lately, trying things that have notes I know probably won't work. In this case, strawberries. Fruits amp like nothing else on me. With orange, it's a good thing because it picks me up. With cherries or berries, I usually smell like a popsicle or lollipop. Lemon goes lemon drop, but fig is beautiful because it's sweet *and* earthy. Some work; some don't.

 

So now we try strawberry. Er, I mean Maenad.

 

Wet on: pungent green strawberry -- like I'd been chewing on the leaves and stem of an unripe strawberry.

 

Dry on: it's all strawberry. I'm wearing smooshed strawberries.

 

 

This is good for future reference, if ever I end up playing Strawberry Shortcake with my nieces or end up at a summer picnic. But really, it's not a me-scent. Great, if ever I want to smell like nothing but strawberries, but I don't really foresee that happening. This goes back to Lynxie's side of the stash.

[thedragoncharmer]

When I was a little girl my grandparents owned a strawberry farm. Just a slight whiff of this brought back so many memories.

 

Wet: A field of strawberries! Strawberries and greenery.

Dry down: Starting to turn into a darker strawberry. Strawberry incense??? Mmmmm....delicious.

Hours later: A good throw of warm dark strawberry. Definitely on the sweet side, with a very faint touch of spice & floral.

 

I layered this with some Dragon's Milk and the result was wonderful! Maybe a little like a less pink, Pink Phoenix.

 

Scale of 1-5 (5 = there's no doubt I MUST have a 5ml)

4

[strawberry_star]

When I first put on Maenad, I hate it. It smells strongly of carnations and oh so very floral. But within maybe 10 minutes once it dries, it suddenly turns into very sweet strawberry like magic! It isn't the freshly picked strawberry, but more of a lip gloss strawberry, but I happen to like lip gloss strawberry smell. So I end up with that sweet strawberry smell on top with a hint of spicy floral on the bottom and it turns out to be a lovely combination.

[valentina]

I got an imp of Maenad as a frimp in a swap with a lovely forum member, and when I first smelled it, my only thought was "ugh." It was kind of a musty strawberry, like a strawberry sachet in an old lady's musty drawers drawer. Eeesh -- not really the image I'm trying to convey via my scent, I thought.

 

But I got some on my fingers when I opened the imp to sniff it, and after a few minutes I thought, "hmmm...." So I put some on my arm and let it heat up. The smell from the imp to initial application changes right away, and is strawberry fresh, without being cloyingly sweet. Then, after a few minutes, it turns into strawberry incense. This may be a great springtime scent for me, because I'll get the best of both worlds -- the spring-like quality of strawberries, but still with my beloved incense overtones. Not too sweet, not too floral, just right!

 

I've had a lot of scents that have smelled great to me in the imp that go to hell on my skin, and this is the first one that I disliked in the imp that turns lovely on my skin. And I never, ever would have guessed that the components of this blend would work on me... so once again, the Lab can say to my snooty "I know what works on my body" attitude!

 

valentina

[miss_rynn]

It's… a little intimidating. Yes, it is very sweet, with the strawberry and the orange blossom blending quite well, but then a peppery smack in the face sneaks up on you. That must be the carnation and poppy. It is strange and a little off-putting, and not something I would like to smell like.

[sarahj]

Maenad

 

in vial: strawberry and orange blossom

 

wet: the orange blossom is coming on strong

 

dry: as it dries, it mellows out and becomes a wonderful blend of sweet berries, orange blossom, and a hint of carnation

 

verdict: need a big bottle!

[gingersnapp]

I am not a fan of the berries. Or at least, my skin isn't. This starts out as plastic strawberry and morphs into lip gloss and then (thankfully) disappears quickly. Not one single other note made it through the berry distortion, or lingered after it faded.

[zillah37]

Maenad is a very sweet, flirty scent to me. It's strawberries and orange with the hint of darkness to it. I got an imp of it and immediately fell for it, thinking it would be a great spring scent.

 

I just got my big bottle of it today and I was right. It's 75 out, sunny, beautiful, and I feel all ready for spring with my sweet Maenad on.

[Nekomata]

Wet: Tart fruit, very strong and fresh

 

Dries: Mmm, strawberries!

[jidabug]

Starts off with sweet, bright fruitiness. Definitely strawberries, but other notes are mixed in there. Unfortunately, it turned into fermented strawberries after a while. And then it disappeared very quickly, which is just as well considering the fermentation.