Odin

[sarada]

Odin is highest and eldest of the Æsir: he rules all things, and mighty as are the other gods, they all serve him as children obey a father. The All-Father, Lord of Wisdom and War. Odin’s name itself translates to "fury", "excitation" and "poetry"and that is the core of His essence. He is the God of Victory, and holds sway over hunting, verse, war-lust and berserkers, magic, illumination, foresight, death, plots and machinations, and He dispenses the Mead of Inspiration to poets from his sacred vessel, Óð-rœri. He gifted mankind with runes, both sacred and mundane, and the ability to use them for both communication and magical work. He grants glory and madness, inspiration and courage, power and wisdom. He commands the einheriar of his Hall, Valhalla, and the Valkyries that claim the souls of valiant warriors. Lord Odin’s favored weapon is the spear Gugnir, which he uses to claim those chosen to die in battle. He is accompanied by his ravens, Hugin and Munin [thought and memory], and his wolves, Geri and Freki [the Greedy], and rides an eight-legged horse, Sleipner, that is, in itself, symbolic of death. His scent is dry elm bark, amaranth, warrior’s musk, and Odin’s Nine Herbs of Power.

Dry, but sweet. Musty/musky, but spicy. What an incredibly complex scent. You want to think it would be a masculine but this is very much at home on a female wrist (though, okay, I do favor masculine scents).

There's something in this that reminds me of Haunted. It's got this golden wisp of amber (could that be amaranth playing tricks on me? I don't know what it smells like on its own), backed up by musk, which pushes it forward and gives it some power. The herbs are a melange of sweet, fragrant and spicy notes, laid out in the sun, drying and slightly dusty. A pale wood base never dominates. This is very hard to pin down and I will have to spend some time with it to get a better idea, but it is a very stately, powerful, evocative fragrance with complex layers of dry, dusty wood, aromatic and spicy herbs (a 'spice rack' kind of feeling but nothing in the cinnamon/clove family, just a general dry and pleasant mixture of fragrances) and something sweet that makes me think of amber even though it probably isn't.

A fitting tribute to Odin, and I will probably need more as I keep trying my imp to experience all of its many facets and layers.

[nineveh]

This is a musk-heavy scent--black musk, from what I can tell. I agree that it smells like Haunted, but with green and wood notes underneath. It also doesn't have as strong a lemon smell as Haunted does to me.

 

Overall, a very warm, deep, powerful yet pleasant blend.

 

Edit, 8/25/06: Odin is now in my GC top ten, which is quite a feat, since I've tried nearly 400 catalog blends. It's confident, comforting, and I can't wait for colder weather to wear it.

Edited August 25, 2006 by nineveh

[harmonyfb]

In the imp, this was a warm, slightly masculine scent.

 

The moment it touched my skin, it shouted, "I am a MAN! Smell me, for I am MANLY!!!" Oh, dear. I don't really want to smell Manly - that's my husband's job. I couldn't scrub it off fast enough - and unfortunately, it really stuck with me, even after three washings.

 

Weirdly, when I took my kids to the park later, a raven (Odin's bird) flew into a low branch near me, and cawed until it got my attention. I acknowledged it with a tip of my head, and it flew out of the park. Huh. Wonder what that means?

 

ETA: On my husband, this smelled like a sweet soap. o_O

Edited April 9, 2006 by harmonyfb

[shelldoo]

in the bottle: just guh, sexy!

 

wet: musky slightly herbal but not green herbs more like dried herbal.

 

man this is sexy as hell, and i don't think it is neccesarily masculine (although i can carry masculine scents pretty well) musk is the main note, but there is definitely something of a woodish nature (assuming the bark mentioned) and something that reminds me of tobacco, fresh tobbacco. anyway it could pass as a male version of smut, and i think it would compliment smut if g would wear it when i wear smut, however i don't know if i can pass it over to him because hot damn i wanna wear this one!!!!

[filigree_shadow]

Very woody. I can't wear pine because it makes me think of cleaning products, and I can't wear cedar because it smells peppery on me. Odin smells like sweet wood with some kind of musky ... hold on, it's getting kind of a spice/herb twang to it.

 

Um, wow. Holy crap. Excuse me, I have to go put this on my husband. Right now.

[wodandis]

This is my very first review (and my very first post to the forums at all, for that matter). I don't normally post a whole lot anywhere, but I had to join in reviewing this since I've been waiting for its release for more than a year now.

 

In the bottle: To be honest, the first time I sniffed the opened bottle I got a generic "perfume" scent. There are so many different notes in this I wasn't able to distinguish any of them. Upon subsequent sniffings, the generic impression of "perfume" resolved itself into being mostly musky and herbal.

 

On, freshly applied: There's a sharp, almost biting fresh green note, and beneath that, a blend of softer herbal notes blended with a skin musk and a hint of woodiness (the elm bark, I'm guessing). Every now and then, a hint of sweetness peeks out which is probably the chamomile. (And maybe the amaranth, but I can't say because I have no idea what that smells like.) It's very masculine, yet nothing that a (strong) woman couldn't wear.

 

On, dry: This is an incredibly rich, complex scent, and it seems to morph as I wear it; sometimes the sweetness seems to predominate, sometimes the musk, and sometimes the green herbal notes. After wearing it a while, it mellows and becomes somewhat powdery; instead of smelling freshly cut herbs, I now smell dried herbs. The musk and woody notes seem to linger the longest, on me.

 

I really love this, and it does remind me of Odin, even though it's not exactly the way I would have designed the oil myself. I would have included all the Nine Herbs, but instead of the amaranth I would have used a base of mead with a tinge of blood (which BPAL somehow manages to simulate remarkably in a few blends I've tried). I might have also substitued yew or ash bark for the elm, and perhaps ambergris for the "warrior's musk." (Although the "warrior's musk" is nice, too, whatever type of musk it actually is.) Then again, I'm not a perfumer, so who knows whether my own creation would have smelled as good?

[Fefferbella]

I have to be honest... I only ordered this blend because of the name. My 160+lb Mastiff/Great Dane mix is named Odin and he's my pride and joy. He was named after the Norse God because a big powerful dog needed a big powerful name.

*enough rambling*

 

This scent is devine. Truly sensual, manly musk in it's perfection.

On my wrist it takes on a sweet, spicey and darkly complex blend of woods and herbs.

On my fiance, it smells like delicious man-musk and darks woods. *drool*

 

This has deffinately become a "top 10" BPAL for me.

[Diana]

In the bottle: it's dry & powdery smelling

Wet: subtle, powdery. It smells of amber, really.

Drydown: still subtle, powdery. Like amber + dry herbs (or bark? I guess?).

 

I don't really get a lot of "woodsy" or "green" out of this at all. The musk must be a pretty light one, or maybe it needs time to age a bit? Musk usually stands out on me really well, and I'm only barely detecting it. This is a lot softer than what I expected. It smells almost like an amber oil that I bought ages ago to mix with other oils to make my own scent, one which I wore constantly.

 

It's ... pretty.

 

I was expected something heavier, boozier, wilder, scarier. But my Old Man is tricky one to explain, as is this scent. And no, he's not an Orisha.

 

One caveat: I had to put on a LOT to get any kind of throw off of this (which makes me glad I got a 10mL off the bat).

 

 

tiny fixing edits.

Edited April 11, 2006 by Diana

[LiberAmoris]

Odin is woodsy, dark and deep with something golden around it, maybe the amber and musk that draws parallels to Haunted (which I got as well). It's almost like Geek on steroids. It smells like tree sap in the best way possible.

 

This is one I'll be dabbing on the men in my life (boyfriend, coworkers, etc.). Yum.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Woody musk

 

On Skin: The elm bark is the dominant note. It’s a very earthy wood, not clean or soft… more sharp and dirty. The amaranth is slightly nutty and the herbs are spicy but soft. The musk is quite nice and probably my favorite note in the scent. It’s a velvety musk, not harsh and it helps soften the elm bark. Overall, this scent seems more masculine to me than feminine so I don’t think I’d wear it, but it is quite pleasant to smell. An interesting scent to place with Odin, I love Beth’s representations.

[LittleGreyKitten]

I'm having a hard time picking notes out of this one. Its definitely more masculine than I'd prefer- musky, quite woody, a bit herbal. I will probably try it on my man. It lasts very very well, though, so if you like it a lot that's always a big plus.

[Blood onmy hands]

I love Odin when I first apply it, it has a great greenish note to it that reminds me of really sweet limeade (I love anything that reminds me of limes) underneath some woody herbal notes.

 

Sadly, within 15 minutes, this starts to smell like nothing but dusty amber on my skin. And, as amber-ish notes always do, it turns to nothing but baby powder within a few seconds.

 

I keep re-applying this because I love the first 15 minutes. I so wish that it didn't go powdery on me

[provocateur]

in bottle: sweet musk

 

on skin, wet: This starts off as a very sweet musk for me. It evolves into a sweeter musk, (I'm assuming the that's partially due to the amaranth). The elm bark comes out and is balanced by herbal goodness.

 

on skin, dry: i'm pretty much left with the musk and the herbs, which isn't exactly horrible.

 

overall: I'll be using this in ritual purposes, given the role that Odin does play in my life, but I'm not sure if this would be a regular wear / daily use blend for me. 3/5

[SpinnyRoses]

Ooooh. This has the woodsy/herby scent in it that makes Yggdrasil so nice, but it's far, far more masculine than Yggdrasil could ever be. I rather like masculine scents, and I adore the wood/herb blend scent. When I have a chance, I am replacing my imp with a 5 mL bottle of this.

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 2/5

Summarised in a word or two: *sneeze!*

 

In the imp: Musk, herbs and elm bark.

 

On skin, wet: Woodsy, sweet herbal musk, and amber? Vaguely reminds me of Wolfsbane, but not quite as "green."

 

On skin, dry: This is strangely pretty. It's just a little too... dusty? I'm not sure. Besides that, something about it triggers a sneezing fit, and that just won't do.

 

Conclusion: Sneezing aside, as I said, something about this isn't for me. I can't figure out exactly what it is. I like musk, herbs and, at times, elm bark, so why don't I really like Odin? It's a mystery.

[desu]

In the imp: Musky herbs.

 

On my skin: On application, it starts to sweeten, rounding out the musk and herbs. It's starting to remind me of incense almost.

 

Later on: This turned to powder it seems. :/

[Miss Lynx]

An interesting scent - dry, woody, musky and eerily reminiscent of something that I can't place. I keep thinking I should know what it smells like, but i don't. I don't even known if it's another BPAL scent I'm thinking of or something totally different.

 

This is a rich and complex scent, and very interesting. Definitely a good choice for the deity it represents, who's a very complex and multifaceted entity himself. The scent is masculine without seeming inappropriate on a woman, if that makes any sense -- it doesn't have anything like the "men's scent" smell that Oblivion or Sri Lanka (for example) do, but it definitely smells like a God, not a Goddess.

 

I don't think it's something I would wear as a perfume, unless I were going through a period of trying to attune to Odin, but I like it, and it's definitely very successful at evoking the God it's intended for.

 

Grade: B

[grrrlennyl]

at first: very dark and earthy. herbal.

on: definitely herbal and dark.

2 hours later: sweeter now. i think the musk is more noticeable, but it's still mostly dark and earthy.

4 hours later: most woodsy and dry, with a hint of earthy sweetness.

overall: this just isn't the type of scent i can wear.

[Bagfish]

A very brown scent, it does remind me very much of Saturn (a good GC replacement?). There are no "green herbs" in Odin on me.

 

First on there is a strong dried herbs and woods sort of smell, its an almost bitter smell, but very pleasant to wear. I did enjoy getting wafts of it after I had put it on.

 

On dry down it mellows and becomes sweeter. There is a definite benzoin resin element to this scent, sweet, earthy and vanillic.

 

I would say that this scent has definite masculine elements and would not appeal to people that don't like strong, woody, traditionally masculine scents, but for those of us girls who enjoy the strong "brown" woody perfumes, this is a winner.

 

Not bottleworthy at the moment as it is SO similar to Saturn, but will definitely consider if I ever run out of Saturn (which will be years the way I use it!)

[yeahbutnobut]

Odin

 

In the imp: dark black musk with herbs and evergreens, reminiscent of good men's perfume.

Wet on skin: this reminds me very much of Thanatopsis, Dracul and Black Forest-it's a foresty musk…

Dry on skin: this is really nice, though quite masculine. A deep, sweetish, slightly tangy manly musk which reminds me of good perfume, with a foresty note reminiscent of juniper or pine (is that elm?) and some dark herbal notes. I have no idea what amaranth smells like so I can't tell if I can smell it, but for now this is a deep, rich, fresh musk for the guys-but it's nice on me too.

After a while: the musk has become more pronounced now-it's a dark, deep, sweet musk with a touch of something amber or incense like, like the musk of Dracul…it still has that 'manly' feel to it. I like the feel of herbal-resinous incense this has, along with the sweet black musk. This would smell sexy on a guy.

Verdict: this is a lovely black musk scent-I really like black musk, it's dark, deep, sweet, swirling scent, very sexy and mysterious. This is one of those 'black forest musk' scents, along similar lines to Thanatopsis, Black Forest and Dracul, where black musk is paired with an evergreen like note or two. Odin is a tad more masculine but also grander, more sophisticated and refined, yet also with something incense like to it (amber and other resins seem to be in the mix), as well as dark green, balsamic herbs. It seems fitting for such a noble and important god, I think, such a well-crafted scent seems like a very appropriate offering-this is a scent which has presence and a lot of throw. I also think it would be very nice on a man (yum!) and I love the deep dark sweet musk with amber it dries down to, but I think this is a little to masculine on me to start with, so it may be swapped.

Emoticon rating:

[Rhowan]

I have been looking for the PERFECT woody scent for both me and my DH. Odin is it! It is woody without being a certain wood you can name. It is also green and herbally.

 

Odin reminds me of walking through a rainforest type place in Oregon where everything is dark, dark, green and you can't even see the sky through it. The trees in it that have fallen by themselves give off this fresh woody, green scent - Odin reminds me of that place plus spicy herbs. I love this scent!!!

 

Great throw but only so-so wear. It faded pretty quick on me. I don't know about a 5ml on this yet because of the fade factor but I will give it another try.

[edenssixthday]

Odin is a very masculine scent to me. It's woody, herbal, musky, and has a slight touch of a grain-type scent. It's the very distinct smell of an outdoorsman at the end of the day, coming home from the hunt, the fields, the lumberyard, etc. It's The scent is strong from the moment I put it on and it doesn't change over time, and still smells strong and manly at the 4 hour point. I won't wear this again, but I could see this easily smelling really fabulous on any number of men. I could definitely see this being an every day sort of men's cologne, and if only I could get my husband to wear BPAL, I'd love to smell it on him!

[Tesseljoan]

When I just pt this on, I got this dark, brooding wood scent, with green as well, but dark, dark, dark.

 

Now it's dried down to the perfect OMGHJDGVJYTGFYHGJH*&***&*!!!! musk. Musk is usually hit or miss on me, but this one hit the spot. So. Good.

[Diva Urd]

In the vial: Herbal, green. Can't tell any specific notes.

 

On me, at first, the herbs dominated, a slightly-bitter green scent that reminded me of woodruff (which might be in there, for all I know), with the musk underneath. After a short while, it dries into something almost-powdery, which reminds me of a note in Dana O'Shee (probably the amaranth -> "grain" note in Dana?), with the woodruffy smell still there.

 

It is interesting and morphs quite a bit. I never thought it to be very masculine, though, and the sweetish-almost-powdery drydown doesn't exactly scream "man", either.

 

ETA: 8 hours later, the musk is finally coming back and it is still going strong.

 

Current verdict: I like it, but I don't love it.

Edited August 30, 2006 by Diva Urd

[buzz23666]

ok - what is the heavy masculine note that turns to shaving cream on me!!!!!

 

wet - heavy musk and wood

 

dry - shaving cream - and a cheap one at that. My chemistry makes this way too manly!