The Premature Burial

[nancybridget]

Oppressive darkness, expressed through black orchid and patchouli, smothered by wet soil, a coffin’s teakwood, and the funereal gloom of cypress.

If you've ever had the pleasure to sniff Demeter Dirt or Thunderstorm, than this will be familiar. I could and would wear it often, because as a gardener, I adore the aroma of the earth. It smells of dirt, loam, etc. The problem, however, is that my better half claims earthworms and revolts.

[supremegoddessofall]

Whew! This burial wasn't premature, because something in here definitely died. Not getting anything in particular other than a rancid patchouli, but ick! Swap pile.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Warm wood and cold dry dirt. It’s a dusty scent rather than the moist potting-soil of Graveyard Dirt.

 

Wearing: So here’s the thing. I’m extremely claustrophobic. And there are few things that wig me out more than the thought of being buried alive. It’s happened on Buffy, it’s happened on CSI, it’s apparently happening next week on Bones… and inevitably, after watching said episodes, I have a really hard time sleeping for a couple of nights.

 

The actual scent of Premature Burial is rather nicer than I expected; I generally don’t do dirt, but this has just enough warm wood to be pleasant. But it makes me think about the reference, and as such, it’s far too creepy for me to enjoy wearing.

[kraken]

In the Bottle: It smells of wet, moldy dirt.

 

Initial Wet: I'm still overwhelmed by the dirtness of it. Slowly a sharp, green scent peaks out, woody and loamy. It takes on a sweetness, not sugar sweet, but the sweet of florals wilted in the hot sun.

 

Initial Dry: The patchouli comes through and it becomes a sweet, woody scent with an undertone of soil. The greenness is gone, replaced by dark tone.

 

Drier Dry: The dirtness fades almost completely, leaving a dark wood scent with the sweetness of patchouli and, perhaps black orchid (though I'm not entirely certain what that should smell like). It does remind me of dusty and wet wilted florals, just before the flowers either go dry or moldy.

 

This has to be the best dirt scent that I've tried--not overly floral or overly dark. It's something I might wear mid-winter to remind me of the warm, wet earth of spring or early summer.

[The Perfumed Ferret]

At first blech; plastic almost. I let it sit for a moment and then I'm whisked away into moist black dirt, warm, dry woods, patchouli, and a watery floral note (cypress?).

 

 

I'm really digging this one. I feel like I'm in turn of the century New Orleans when I'm wearing this.

[theseagrows]

omg i love this one! more than i expected too. but i shoudlve known, since i really love orchid and dirt/moss notes. this is the perfumeyness of orchid mixed with a hint of dirt. the orchid is strongest on me. the cypress is apparent, but the patchouli isnt much..yay! i think ill hunt down a bottle of this if i can.

[filigree_shadow]

I can't smell anything but wet soil in this. It's sweet, maybe from the orchid, but... yeah. Soil.

 

Unfortunately this happens to me every time I try any of this dirt scents. This one is not as oppressive and horrifying as Graveyard Dirt was, but it's still not something I could wear.

[aquazoo]

This is so much more pleasant than I thought it would be. Some pretty flower is coming through, I guess that's the orchid?

[Kimocean]

I picked up a bottle of this at Dark Delicacies today and put it on imediately. I love anything Beth creates with orchid and this is no exception. When this is wet it is super earthy. Dark, deep earth with a hint of pine wood. Then the glorious orchid blooms. It's a quiet orchid as most orchids are; their heady scent sliding slowly around you, whispering sweet sensual things in your ears, refusing to be ignored but not because it's loud or tawdry. This orchid is pushing up through the dirt, carrying the scent of the wooden box beneath. This is a dark scent as fits the name and inspiration.

[medvssa]

(from Dark Delicacies)

 

I love the darkest green note of cypress, and in this case, togheter with the wood and the patchouli, it saves the blend for me. The orchid, which generally I don't like, is obviously there, but it is not overdone, although it is very present, it just adds a moist, heady sweetness, a perfumey quality. You have to dress up to wear this.

 

The blend is damp & earthy but not gritty, more of a mature patchouli than a vetiver to my nose. Very dark, but somehow peaceful. It is not disquieting like for example I found Typhon to be.

 

It is opressive, the flower is heady in a way that draws the air out of your lungs, and the rest of the notes are dark. Actually the flower is quite dark, too. But well, I am not a claustrophobic person ;P so I quite like it, but I don't think I am gonna reach for it very often.

[hipslike___cinderella]

Well, this is quite frankly the most realistic "garden" scent I've sniffed. That's what it is to me, a real flower bed. Dirt note, but the dirt note I love best- the calmer, creamier dirt note like in Death Cap, as opposed to something strong like in Zombi. Orchid, cypress, teakwood, it's all there. A little light, slightly romantic, cool in temperature, somehow dusk-like. Nice!

[schackjj]

The epitome of an earthy/dirt scent. I put it on and put my wrist up to my DH's nose. "Here, smell this," I demanded. The poor, unsuspecting guy did. "It smells like must!" He wrinkled his nose. I laughed in delight. Sheer genius! I wouldn't wear it, of course. I mean, when would a person want to smell musty? Well, maybe on Halloween. . .

[pensarepink]

I'm in love.

 

In the bottle: night-cooled, saturated soil with a faint sweat note hovering on the breeze

Wet: humid earth, freshly dug; heady mourning flowers but a hint of decay

Drying: much less of the earthen smell; the patchouli and orchid are combining nicely. I can sense a slight bit of branch or bark melding with the patchouli and orchid.

 

Nice. Very, very nice.

[SarahScent44]

In the imp, this is all soil and wood for me.

 

When I put it on my skin, I get soil, wood, and the overlay of cypress tree - it smells exactly like laying under a cypress tree after a rain.

 

This is amazing, artistic, but not how I want to smell.

[500ml]

I've found that very few dirt/earth notes really work for me, most are too sharp or generally just yuck on my skin. The Premature Burial is all slightly sweet freshly upturned earth, not too heavy and with a hint of slight decay. This brings back memories of growing my own flowers and rooting around in the dirt of our garden, such an incredibly nice scent.

[azhriaz]

I bought this scent because I was hoping it would smell like wet earth and I am certainly not disappointed!

 

I have to be careful not to apply too much of this, because it can be almost too overpowering when wet... it kind of makes me panic, like I've just stuck my head in a bag of potting mix and the Legionnaires’ disease is invading my lungs. Okay that makes it sound bad but it's really fabulous, in moderation!

 

At first all I can notice is the wet soil and cypress, but the drydown is lovely. It gets softer, a tad sweeter (I think that's the orchid). The smell of soil remains, it's just less prominent.

 

Premature Burial has great staying power. I was still getting whiffs of it at least 9 hours after application, which is unusual for me. This is definitely my favourite acquisition of the last few months!

[waternight]

In the bottle: DIRT. "Wet soil" indeed. Oh good god, that's amazing. It smells like a baby garden, just beginning to sprout, that's just been watered. A dark floral thread throughout, a glowing, polished dryness from the woods.

Wet: Subdued orchid and wood. The orchid is very muddy, clumps of soil still cling to it. This is a very humid scent, very langourous. The patchouli lends a slightly dusty quality to the blend, amd the teakwood is still glowing and polished - a very refined, sophisticated wood. This is amazingly evocative.

Dry: The orchid amps and most of the dirt falls away. I'm going to experiment with layering dirty notes with this - Destroying Angel or Worm Moon (when it gets here) perhaps...

[Lavada]

I think this is sort of beautiful.

 

Wet, it's very soil - I find it sort of soothing. It's cool and damp, but not really dark. I'm not sure what's lurking underneath, but it's sort of woody but in a peppery way. It might be cypress, but it's probably the patchouli. As it dries, a non-sweet floral adds a velvety touch to the whole experience.

 

The throw is below average, the staying power around average... and I can't seem to sniff at it too closely, or I shiver just a little.

[lilacea]

On me, this is mostly soil and deep perfume. The soil note is fairly present, it's uber mossy, almost like potting soil kind of smell. This is tempered a little by the rich orchid, which sweetens the whole thing up and makes it a little less confronting. The teak is very close to the skin, I'm having to stick my nose right up to my wrist to huff it. In fact the whole blend is very close to the skin. The dry down is quite wodsy. Smells like I've been working all day in the garden (minus the sweat).

[maribouquet]

Ooh, I like the orchid and dirt combo, and the wood notes are lovely, though they drydown a bit sharp. And the patchouli isn't working very well with my skin - sweet decay! Glad I got to try this one, though.

[dzurlady]

Original release:

Predominantly dirt in the vial and wet on the skin. It stays mostly dirt, but gradually hints of flowers peak out and gradually become more perceptible, and it almost smells a little perfume-y (in a good way) mixed in with the dirt. I may be getting a little teakwood but I'm not too familiar with the note, and I can't comment on the cypress at all. Wet, it's too overwhelmingly dirt for my tastes; and while I like the smell of it dry it's not very me. I suspected as much, but it's cool to be able to try it.

[zankoku_zen]

I definitely got the orchid and dirt combo. The orchid is much more predominant when wet, and as it dries, I get some of the dirt and teakwood to it. It's much more floral than anticipated, and much more muted. I don't think this is creepy, as so much a muted and somber scent. I can see this being used as a funeral appropriate blend - soft, somber, respectable.

[crebbsgirl]

At first this is a chokingly thick earth scent. Suffocating almost. Indeed, this is a very aptly named blend. The black orchid appears quickly and the blend becomes a dirt floral, and a little perfume-y for my tastes. After an hour or so, it settles down and the teakwood really smooths the scent out. The patchouli adds a depth to it, sweetening and taking the DIRT note down to an enjoyable level. Overall this is an extremely evocative blend, but not one I would reach for very often.

[tragedy]

Lucky me scored a bottle of this, intrigued by the "dirt".

 

Wet: earthy, a wet dirt, woodsy... very light hint of orchid. My skin doesnt pick up any of the other scents.

 

Drydown: Nothing else but a real nice dirt smell. Exactly what I wanted... exactly what I expect from the name.

 

Obsessing over dirt blends now!!!

 

 

Edit: in a locket this retains its same wet scent for nearly 24 hours!!! This has become my favorite all time scent!

Edited April 28, 2009 by tragedy

[stellans]

At the end of my Poe week, I saved a old favorite for last: Premature Burial, the original release. This has aged wonderfully: in the bottle, one still gets the strong orchid with only a hint of the graveyard, and upon application, the orchid steps back to let the patchouli and dirt come forward. I really love this scent, because it smells to me more like what the floor of a deep dark forest smells like, when you dig it up a little. The deep, sweet loam, the slight wildflowers, the herbal resiny patchouli: it's all there, and it smells wonderful in my locket as well.

Edited October 12, 2011 by stellans