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Alecto

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Olive leaf, raspberry leaf, vetiver and cedarwood.


The first note I smelled was cedar-my closet is lined with it so I am very familiar with it. That was closely followed by crushed fern leaves. Both are very pleasant. There is a sweetness there too, a fruity sweetness that is very faint but there. I can almost detect a tobacco scent as an underlying note too mixed in with a mulchy, dirt odor. I think this is one I could share with my husband (if I wanted to) but I really hate sharing! :P

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Frimp from the lab - and one I'd been thinking of trying. I loved the "italian kitchen" description of other reviews, and hoped for something like that.

 

Wet, I really loved it. Sharp herbal smell with cedar.

 

On, the leaves played very nicely with the warm cedar with just a hint of vetiver. The cedar and vetiver grew stronger on the dry down and I was ready to give it a thumbs up and mark on my want list.

 

But dry, it goes raspberry bubble gum. With only a ghost of cedar and olive underneath.

 

I would have loved it had the herbal sharpness remained and the raspberry not amped unpleasantly.

 

Nope. Swap pile.

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Something is woody and smoky. Ew, there is a sour note creeping in, which is too bad because otherwise I was enjoying it. Time to wash it off.

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Not surprisingly, it smells like vetiver and wood. I think I would like this is there were maybe vanilla instead of vetiver. Like the death of autumn, it was so close to outdoorsy Autumnal goodness; like DoA, the vetiver ruins it for me, but just barely. so sad when they come close.

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I'm still working on my nose, especially right out of the imp. I wasn't sure from the imp how this owuld smell, so I put some on.

 

If you like herbally scents you will love this one. It's very green and feels a lot like running through an overgrown meadow with dirty knees and a frog in your pocket. It's a bit medicinal for my tastes though. The blend smells like no herb in particular but it's an herb no doubt. I don't get much wood from this blend. It's not particularly strong even when first put on but it lasts, I put it on over 8 hours ago and can still smell it faintly.

 

Honestly this is something I could see used to burn in a safe electric oil burner in an older kids room and telling them it's a mixture to help sleep (Placebo effect has been proven effective time and time again by science :P ) Also, ceder keeps bugs away.

 

I'm not a fan of herbally scents as perfume, they just don't strike me as something I want to smell like. I might consider burning this in my kitchen though, on an evening that I need to be reminded of summer.

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Alecto

 

Initially, very woody. Woody with some quiet dirt notes. It's slightly musky and a tiny bit sweet. Dry, it's evergreen with mild astringency and a hint of sweetness. Something about this reminds me of a (clean) stable.

 

[ 3 - Like ]

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In the imp, Alecto is minty and green - I definitely get the vetiver and the leaves.

 

Once it's on, the cedar comes out - there's almost a smokiness to it, which contrasts really nicely with sharpness of the vetiver in the background.

 

When it dries, it's VERY sharp and cool, almost medicinal - VERY unusual. I really like this scent, but I don't know if I like smelling LIKE it. I think I'll have to pass this along to someone who will appreciate it more.

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Bottle: dry, woody, earthy

Wet: dry cedar and leaves, the vetiver isn’t too smoky

Dry: this sweetens a little as it dries

 

A straightforward wood blend, the subtle sweetness is a nice touch.

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Hey, this is really nice! I am very pleasantly surprised. I avoided this one because of the cedarwood, but apparently I just never smelled cedarwood in the right combination before. It smells great with the raspberry leaf. I can't really smell any vetiver, and I can't say I know what olive leaf smells like, but the combination of those sweet dry leafy notes with the cedarwood is awesome.

 

It does smell a bit masculine, but I'd wear it anyway. It's great.

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In the bottle –Warm, slightly sweet green herbs – most probably the olive leaf

 

Wet on me – The same deep warm herby scent, but with the cedar wood rising in the background

 

Dry on me – Warm and dry herbs bathed in a sweet skin musk

 

Overall – With the exception of an odd tendency towards I was pleasantly surprised by this blend. However, I can’t imagine it would be one I would reach for.

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In the imp: Very herbal and 'green'.

 

Wet: Very strident and medicinal in tone. As time passed, it morphed into a really musty, sour odor; perhaps that's the vetiver? I've never worn anything with vetiver in it before, so I'm hesitant to pass judgement right away, but whichever component was at fault, it was not a very nice smell.

 

Dry: I was definitely throwing something sour and nasty. Which is a shame, because if I sniffed up close to my skin, I could smell the leafy components of it perfectly, as if I were bending low into a garden and letting the leaves brush my cheeks. If it *all* had ended up smelling like that, I would have liked it a *lot* more, as that particular feeling was lovely.

 

Verdict: I'm going to have to pass on this one.

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It must be the cedar and vetiver.

 

In the imp and wet: I smell erasers and the way your paper smells after you've erased those math calculations for the 5th time...

 

Dry: I must have had to sharpen the pencil because all I smell is pencil shavings now. There's a little sweetness in the background but it's not enough to overcome the ick.

 

I had such high hopes for this one too. *sigh*

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All I can smell is the cedar, vetiver, and olive leaf. I smell like furniture. Furniture that you find at Pier One Imports, or World Market...made out of some wood you've never heard of. Not unpleasant, but not great either.

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Oh gawd, I know this is going to be doom on me. I can't stand vetiver and any wood scents amp like me on crazy. But I must try everything so here goes...

 

In the imp all I smell is wood. Fresh cut wood. Gah, on my skin it turns to wood shavings. Kind of reminds me of a hamster cage O_o Yep, that's what it smells like. Not for me at all!

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Gah. Alecto turned my stomach and then gave me a splitting headache that lasted for almost 2 days.

 

and I COULDN'T GET IT OFF. :P

 

I frimped it immediately.

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I got this in a swap; I was interested in trying another vetiver scent to see if that was why Bluebeard smelled so terrible on me. Must have been something else, because while I can smell the vetiver straight out of the imp, its presence is not nearly so dominating on my skin. I can still smell it, but the cedar keeps it in line. I can smell greenery behind it all, and I'm not sure whether it's the olive or the raspberry - I'm leaning towards the olive.

 

It's not a favorite, but at least it didn't turn vile on my skin.

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This made my stomach turn. Perhaps I have just been testing too many lately, but the raspberry leaf and vetier made me want to, um, be sick.

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Well I would have sworn I've reviewed this but apparently not.

 

It's an unusual scent, mostly woody with a heavy undercurrent of green-fruitiness. Not a whole lot of throw, more like teasing little wafts of wood. I think the fruitiness comes from both the olive leaf and raspberry leaf, and it's almost like a deep red wine. And of course the vetiver flirts with the cedarwood. Cedar can be too sharp sometimes but it's softened up nicely here.

 

Overall, yet another scent I will hold an imp of and let it age. I could definitely be in the mood for this from time to time.

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Initial thoughts: This was an unexpected frimp, and I rather don't know what to expect - no fruit? No flowers? No spice? Where's my frame of reference? Vetiver is likely to be most prominent in this because it always is on me, but I could do with a 'green' vetiver for when my other vetivers don't suit. It might end up being too similar to things I already own... ah, decisions.

 

In the imp: Well that's unexpected! It's sweet and wet and like juicy crushed leaves, with a hint of bitterness from the vetiver. I'm already dreading what this is going to do on my skin - I'd really love for it to stay just the way it is, but that never happens with vetiver.

 

On the wrist, wet: More of the grainy almost-bitterness and a slight astringency, still the crushed leaves but they're darker, dryer. This has got the earthy cedarwood and the almost-smoky vetiver, but also the fresh juiciness of the leaves keeping it bright and light. Very promising.

 

Twenty minutes later: Hmmmm. The fresh, wetness of it has died down, but the vetiver is still nowhere near as prominent as I would have expected. There's still the green, slightly sweet slightly astringent loveliness of those leaves. It's not very like a 'perfume' as such, but it's a fresh, simple scent I could happily wear to work. Very often.

 

Verdict: I forsee a bottle of this in my future.

 

Tl;Dr: Slightly sweet, slightly earthy, green, fresh and gentle; a calming scent.

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This is a very outdoorsy, natural scent. I can definitely smell the olive leaf and raspberry leaf, and just a hint of the cedarwood. The combination of scents is very autumnal, like apples and hay. Very nice.

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Wet: Pickles WTF? Oh right...there's olive leaf in here. Carry on...

Drying...I smell a LOT of cedar, a faint herbalness, and I don't think I can smell the vetiver at all. That's unusual. I get a hint of fruity/raspberry floating around in there too. This smells more masculine than not to me--earthy, woody...and the olive leaf is interesting and keeps me from thinking of houses under construction. OK but I don't see myself wearing this.

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Wet in imp - Cedarwood an olive leaf. Fresh and woody.

 

Wet on skin - Cedarwood and olive leaf with an undertone of something else, maybe the raspberry leaf. I’m not sure if this smells like perfume per se, it might be better in an oil burner.

 

Dry on skin - Cedarwood with olive and raspberry leaf. Very light and unusual. I actually really like this as a perfume, as well as an oil burn!

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I was quite liking Alecto, but further testing was canceled because DH recoiled in horror and announced that it smelled like rotting plants.

 

(Don't listen to him. I thought it was a really nice, soft warm woody-green scent.)

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