The Tell-Tale Heart

[kunoichi]

This is a swollen, pulsating, thudding scent, heavy with dread; a steady, unceasing, throbbing harbinger of retribution and doom: blood musk, cocoa, black pepper, allspice, dragon’s blood resin and vetiver.

Now that I see the description, I can pick up the cocoa when I smell the scent from the vial. It's cocoa with something sharp through it, probably the pepper and all spice, because I've no real idea what blood musk (like musk, I assume!) or dragon's blood smells like.

On my skin the sweetness comes through the spice, and as usual the scent sweetens up. It is really delicious, a very good mixing of the cocoa and spices that become a touch musky that I really enjoy the smell of. It's not foody, but it's very lovely.

This fades on my skin too quickly! It's just so gentle and almost not there on my skin after a few hours. Perhaps just a waft of something subtle and slightly sweet, but I can't detect much else. Edited June 1, 2006 by Shollin

[ajcj213499]

I expected this to be a favorite, since dragon's blood+cocoa=yum! Unfortunately the vetiver ruined The Tell-Tale Heart for me- which is unfortunate because it was the first Poe story I ever read. ...sigh...

[themerrybaker]

Tell Tale Heart is dusty cocoa powder & curry powder on me. It is heavy on vetiver after several hours. I don't notice any dragon blood or musk, but consider that to be good news since neither is a favorite note.

 

 

 

So, TTH is a like rather than a love right now.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: mostly cocoa with a bit of sweet, red dragon's blood.

on: still mostly cocoa and dragon's blood. very nice and dark without being heavy.

1 hour later: red and brown. some sweetness. this is very nice. the notes are melding together into a heavy, deep scent. lovely.

3 hours later: sweet, but with a sharpness to it. i think the vetiver is coming out.

9 hours later: a soft, sweet, earthy scent. it's still very strong on the vetiver.

overall: this is nice at first, but there's just too much vetiver for me.

[mirutai]

On me, this is all sweet dragon's blood resin and spices (mainly clove). Warm and red, but hardly dark or pulsating! I don't get vetiver or any of the darker notes at all.

 

Not one for me!

[edenssixthday]

The Tell-Tale Heart is going to be one of my favorite BPAL blends. Sniffing it in the vial, it smelled very foody to me, but as soon as I applied it, I thought it smelled distinctly like BPAL's Blood blend, and I thought there was no way I would wear this LE if I can get Blood (a GC) so much more easily. However, as it dried down, I realized it isn't as sharp or strong as Blood, and it has a smooth quality that Blood doesn't have. While I can't distinctly detect the cocoa note in this blend, I think that's what is giving it such a smoothness and really helps it be pretty rather than just bloody, resinous, and spicy. It's a gorgeous blend and I will definitely be wearing it regularly. The blend doesn't have much throw, and at about the 90 minute point, it starts to fade, and at the 2 hour point, it's faint, but I can still smell a bit of resinous spice on my arm and it's gained a slightly creamy quality, as if there may be a touch of vanilla in it, as well. I love it. I will be hanging on to this bottle!

[Reedsong]

I was so excited when I received this imp because, in the bottle, it smelled a lot like The Great Sword of War - a perennial favourite and fantastic fragrance. I applied it, though, and on my wrist it quickly lost all of the Sword-y notes and dried down to a really weird talcum powder. The throw of "freshly powdered baby" was so strong that I had to wash it off after about ten minutes, and the imp promptly migrated to the swap pile...

 

...where it remained, pulsing discordantly near my other imps, maddening me with its presence before I finally found a swapper who wanted it. Imagine that.

 

I'd loved all of the DiMV scents I'd tried before getting to this one. It broke my perfect record. And I was sad.

[karengypsy]

In the bottle: Sickly sweet.

 

On me: Extremely sweet. The dragon's blood really amps up and is made even sweeter by the cocoa and allspice. I don't really smell any of the other notes, since the sweetness is just way too overpowering. I can detect a bit of the black pepper, and it sours the blend for me.

 

Verdict: Not for me at all. Selling this.

 

Rating: 1/5

[Naamah_Darling]

Well. Murky cocoa, pepper, and allspice front this spicy blend in the bottle. Despite the fact that it does not contain any ingredients that typically strike me as "dirty," it smells a little like rotten earth and moldering wood. It's not a bad smell, but it certainly isn't immediately pretty.

 

Oooh. The musk and dragon's blood warm up and it's much nicer, a sweet, spicy blend with a rich, dark warmth to it. I think it's the combination of dragon's blood and allspice that smells floral, almost rosy. Very interesting, an absolutely unique transition from the bottle phase to the wet-on-skin phase.

 

As it mellows, the vetiver and dragon's blood really take center stage. The cocoa and allspice, which at first promised a spicy richness, are very much in the background, barely there at all. This is in no way foody on me despite the many food elements, a fact which pleases and confuses me all at once.

[t_for_tau]

On me, this could best be described as "Tezcatlipoca for girls". It's got that same deep bitter cocoa as Tez (which I love), but perfumey where Tez is leathery. I can't figure out what note it is - maybe the dragon's blood? It's really cocoa-y in the imp, then on my skin the perfumey note and the pepper really come out for a while - and then it settles back down to cocoa again after a while, just with a perfumey overtone.

 

I don't like it as much as my beloved Tez, but while my imp of that is missing (noooo! *freaks out*) this is proving a good substitute. If Tez was too leathery and dirty, you might like this.

[Orodemniades]

Cocoa is very hit or miss on my skin, and this is definitely a miss. Both wet and dry this was cocoa with sweet woods, and eventually turned into baby powder. Not just powder, but baby powder, which I'd not come across with before in the BPAL. And, of course, the DBR was...not my friend. My skin just amps it to the nth degree.

 

So! A miss.

 

Oro

Edited July 20, 2006 by Orodemniades

[ViolentKitten]

Ooooh, nice! At first, dark chocolate, musk, candied rose or orange (I think that’s my nose's interpretation of the dragon’s blood) and incensey…

 

Ten minutes later, oooh, very nice. No, scratch that, this is GORGEOUS! The cocoa reminds me the cocoa in Tezcatlipoca and Centzon Totochtin, but lighter. And I get a similar feel to The Great Sword of War too, I think that’s the orangey feel there, but The Tell-Tale Heart is less rounded. The musk is just stunning mixed with the dragon’s blood and vetiver, makes it a little powdery, but in a beautifully light way. The incense note is similar to the one in The Cracked Bell and Blood Amber, but moreso The Cracked Bell, that sort of airy nag champa feel. And I can softly smell it about me. Gah, all round, this is SO good, a wonderfully spiced, musky incense with a hint of the gourmand…a full bottle would be lovely.

[steffanina]

The Tell-Tale Heart-

 

In Bottle: A little chocolate, a little sweet and sharp.

 

Wet: A warm scent, and I think I can sense the pepper too.

 

Dry: Rich and warm. Not a foodie smell but warm and comforting, like a den with books and a comfortable leather couch in late afternoon. The pepper recedes but is detectable, and while this seems masculine to me it's certainly not too much so for my chemistry. It's not necessarily going to be a favorite of mine but it's pleasant.

 

When I make myself remember the name of the scent and the description and try to work that into the mood, I remember the protagonist of the story feeling happy and comfortable now that the deed was done and he was confident no one would know, and then I try to detect that little hint of terror that might underly that comfortable confidence, in the scent. Works for me!

 

Overall: I like.

[luna65]

Thanks to Ah Xia for the decant.

 

Vial: The cocoa is most prevalent, with the blood musk giving it a different character of sweetness: thick and syrupy.

 

Skin: The dragon's blood resin is the first thing I notice, this becomes more heady and spicy almost immediately upon application.

 

Drydown: The spices are like a bed that the resin sits upon, I can distinguish the differences between the notes, though I don't really get any sense of the vetiver, unless it's just meant to suggest a more earthy note, as others have mentioned. Although I don't really get a sense of dread from this blend, there is an evocation of secrets, and of a sort of delirious excess which is much more understated (again, like a secret) then with those scents that are meant to celebrate such decadence.

[nancybridget]

Scherezade with some delicious, warm cocoa laced throughout. Such a cozy scent.

[lookingglass]

The vertiver and pepper hit me first... I get a big wiff of cocoa, but then it gets veeeerrrry spicy...so brightly spicy it is almost floral. I had to check and see if there were florals in here!

 

Nooooo! I want spicy cocoa musk!!!

 

Nope.

 

Dried out, it is mostly fresh smelling...kind of soapy. The dragon's blood, vertiver and pepper combo have seen to that.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: Mostly chocolate with a touch of "sharp" - pepper?

 

On me: Starts off mostly chocolate. The dragon's blood starts coming out as it dries, as do the spices, and the chocolate mellows out. Not my favorite chocolate scent, but pretty good. Fades pretty quickly, moderate throw.

[Lionesse]

I received a decant of this in an enormous lot of imps I purchased. I knew nothing about it when I opened it....

 

OMG... spices, yum.

 

Wet, spice and um vetiver?

 

Dry, spice, vetiver, cocoa(?) sex, sex, sex, omg...

 

My husband took one sniff of me and I swear I saw his pupils dilate!

 

So then I came here and read whats actually in it, and I am very confused. Because typically Dragons blood is overly, sickeningly sweet on me. But this is not. Maybe its the vetiver and other spices that make it work. I don't know but its simply gorgeous on me.

 

I only have one complaint:

 

1. Its a limited edition, where will I find more???!

[Bangles]

When I first put it on, I couldn't pick out any individual notes, it was just very, very heavy. But that lightens up to something manageable almost immediately.

 

I've been seeing previews for a movie called Blood and Chocolate (which looks awful, though I'll probably go see it anyway 'cause, werewolves!), and this scent brings that line to mind: blood and chocolate. And somehow I'm reminded of cherries. Not that artificial candy flavor, but true cherries smothered in dark chocolate. It remains a very heavy scent; not in an overwhelming, too-strong sense, but in the sense that it seems to hover around you, almost tangible.

 

Definitely a winter scent. It was pleasant enough when I put it on, but when I was walking out in the freezing air, this was divine!

[asciident]

Wet: Spicy cocoa and warm musk.

 

First on: My skin, naturally, starts amping the dragon's blood. So it's that with a spicy cocoa swimming underneath.

 

Dry: The vetiver is coming out to play with the dragon's blood. It became a warm, earthy scent with an undercurrent of musk, spice and cocoa going in and out. This smell is so me. I have loved other scents, but nothing has screamed "me" until now.

[nikkoblue]

bottle: Warm cocoa'd dragon's blood.....this smells a lot like Freak Show to me in the bottle.

 

Arm: cocoa, spice, the merest touch of vetiver, and some dragon's blood.

 

Dry: Verrrrrry much dragon's blood with a hint of cocoa and spice. I love dragon's blood and it smells great on me, so I'm not complainin'. I actually get hungry, like a pure gut reaction, when I sniff this. MMMMMMMMmmmmm.

 

I'm actually pretty annoyed that this was an LE.....I got it off ebay and I know it'll be a pain to get more

 

I'll just have to use it sparingly......

[urbanruralferal]

This scent makes me feel super warm and cozy but in a very stand-offish way. I really feel like I am wearing a heavy velvet gown in deep deep red, and hanging out alone in a room with maybe a Yule tree and some candles and dark paneled walls. Very warming!

So, yes, red, and spicy, like Love Me is spicy. I don't smell cocoa at all, and that's okay. The vetiver is not very strong in this, but anchoring.

Like vetiver single note on my skin, this scent becomes "invisible" to my nose a couple hours after application, but I keep getting comments about it throughout the day. Good comments. Although my scent-sensitive librarian started snuffling when I got up to the counter...

 

Many of the red blends are too high-pitched for me but this is gorgeous.

 

It also smells REALLY REALLY good layered with 30 year old patchouli.

 

I refuse to be sparing with this. I am going to wear it every day in this cold weather, until the imp is gone!

[lightgatherer]

This reminds me quite a bit of Blood Kiss which isn't surprising given that they share a number of notes. I don't remember the vetiver in Blood Kiss being quite this strong, but it overwhelmed me for a while in this blend. Once the vetiver died down, though, I was ready to eat my own wrist I smelled so good. I really want to try to snag an imp of Blood - it has quite a bit of what I like in this blend and in Blood Kiss but without the nasty vetiver.

[LadyCrow]

In the imp: Weird, weird cookies. Not normal cookies -- something the narrator of Poe's story would eat. Odd, but enticing!

 

Initial application: Still with the foody, but the other notes are starting to come forward. I tested this without reading the description first, but on coming here, I'm not a bit surprised by the dragon's blood -- both because of the deep color of the oil itself, and because my skin really likes that note. With the vetiver to temper it, it's not overly sweet here in combination with the cocoa.

 

While Tezcatlipoca, which I also love, is "POW! Cocoa and SPICES," TTH is sneakier (again, befitting the story) and sweeter, while also having the kind of strong throw that I like. (Some oils which have notes that ought to work perfectly on me get eaten by my skin nearly instantly, e.g. Othello. This is not one of those oils.) As TTH dries, the musky and other notes continue to complicate the still-robust sweetness in an enjoyable way.

 

Foody, but not distractingly so, like Gluttony or a Monster Bait. Complex, but not as insistent as Mama-ji. I would wear this in situations where I wanted to be buoyed by smelling pleasant, but where I wouldn't end up sitting there constantly sniffing myself (except on surreptitious trips to the ladies' room for that purpose).

 

Dear Beth: Please make this a GC. All I have of TTH is a quarter-imp for testing purposes. Now I want to roll in it! Thank you.

[valentina]

Having acquired a bottle of this fragrance so long after it was issued, I have the good fortune to relate it to scents that have been released well after this scent was available. Did that make any sense? Well anyway, The Tell-Tale Heart reminds me a bit of Boomslang, with its cocoa and incense quality, but with an added mysterious vetivert and dragon's blood undertone. For some reason the vetivert and dragon's blood smell like dark, purple flowers on me, like a really dark, evil violet. I love that combination so much. Somehow all the disparate parts of this fragrance work out and play nicely together, and while I thought it would be thump-to-the-head strong, it's really a very subtle blend, not prone to blowing up or acting crazy. After an hour or two of wearing this scent, it's really a very soft, musky-cocoa-incense scent, quite lovely and still rather cool and distant. I think it will be a wonderful scent to wear on a chilly autumn day.