Vasakasajja

[Nidaba]

Dressed seductively and sumptuously, reclining in a bed strewn with glorious, sensual blooms, she awaits the arrival of her lover. Her breath is quick with anticipation, and her cheeks are flushed with passion: skin musk, wild orchid, champaca flower, amaranth, tonka bean, and French vanilla.

I can't decide what I think about this. It has a lovely and very softly sweet scent to it, but it is also very perfumey. It is like two different perfumes on me. The vanilla and soft fruit scent is great, but the rest of the florals are kind of giving me a headache. I'm not sure if I can deal with the sharp perfumey florals, but the tonka, vanilla, and whatever the fruity flower is are lovely.

I think I will wear this imp out before I make a decision.

ETA: Once I let it dry more the sharp perfume tang went away! I love this one! Edited February 10, 2007 by Nidaba

[jesvet]

In the bottle: sweet, bright tropical florals. The fruit tones down the floral aspect.

 

On: sweet and creamy, with a whisper of floral. I am not getting very much fruit at all but that must be the source of the sweetness.

 

Dry: The vanilla and musk come out. It is soft and close but lasts longer than most lighter scents on me. I was also wearing some vanilla scented lotion today, so I can't tell which to attribute the vanilla to- I'll have to do this again tomorrow. But if I turns out different, I will wear this layered combo and be beyond thrilled. This is really gorgeous- would have been perfect for a Hawaiian honeymoon.

[SmileCat]

Why helloooo jungle boudoir!

 

Skin musk is always great on me, I haven't met a flower yet that went bad, and I adore vanilla so this blend was a "well, duh" order. And how right I was! The orchid note is the most recognizable floral and the vanilla and tonka bean ground it to keep from being too heady. Lush, almost fruity florals and seductive musk.

 

This is a feminine scent. Not girly, but womanly.

[talula_fairie]

Ok, my opinion of this scent *might* be a little off since I SPILLED HALF THE BOTTLE while decanting it. I'd probably be sadder if I actually liked the scent, but alas, I really hate it. I got enough of it all over my hands, wrists, ect to give it a full test.

 

This smells almost exactly like Cutex nail polish remover (without the acetone smell, obviously). Whatever they used to scent their polish remover must share a similar note because they smell identical to me. I wish I could say that there was some fun morph on my skin, but alas, there was not. I don't even know where the heck the tonka bean or vanilla is in this scent, because I can't smell it at all. It's really odd because I love all the notes on this. It's not lush, creamy, fruity, or any of the above. It's just sharp and...well, smells of nail polish remover.

[emzebel]

Mmmm. In the bottle this smells a little sharp - like it is a little too candy sweet. But on, the skin musk and tonka meld with the florals (which have a definite fruityness as well), and make for a very sexay blend indeed.

[LiberAmoris]

Vasakasajja is definitely the kind of blend that blooms on the skin. It's pretty in the bottle, but on my skin it's like a tropical flower unfurling. Strangely, I get a melon note from this, and I'm not sure what combo of the notes could be coming across that way, but it's nice all the same. I love the tonka, vanilla, and skin musk here---they're so warm, like flushed skin.

 

Very pretty, very seductive, but eminently wearable to work. Definitely a keeper.

[zankoku_zen]

I got a sniffie of this. Thanks Arylkin!

 

In the bottle: Coconut?!?!

 

On skin: Coconut and florals. I'm pretty sure that coconut is not one of the components. It might be the mixture of the tonka bean and vanilla. It's very lush and tropical

 

On Drydown: Still tropical flowery. The smell of the coconut has disappeared and I can distinctively smell the vanilla now... and something else, warm and musky. I can smell the orchid after about an hour, still pretty in the tropical flower way.

 

Verdict: Jungle love. This is very bright and sensual. Very exotic. Very pretty.

[Eemia]

I have a new and profound love of orchid. I love it when it amped on my skin in Dark Delicacies, and I adore it in this. It's a nice change of pace for me since I'm usually and rose kinda girl. For being such a strong note, this orchid is surprisingly delicate. Maybe it's made softer by the vanilla and musk. I like that the vanilla isn't very sweet either, or foody. It's just smooth and light. I'd say the same of the fragrance as a whole....very sensual and light.

 

Not a lot of throw, but it makes a nice impact at close range. I have to say that I'm so glad I chose this one...it's beautiful.

[euterpe414]

This one is just gorgeous. I dont' know what I have to add that hasn't been said before, but this is lush, sexy and very exotic. I get mostly champaca flower with a light vanilla incense. The orchid is staying surprisingly timid on my skin. Sometimes I almost get a banana like smell, as well.

 

I think this scent perfectly fits the description. It is sultry, sexy, yet not screamingly loud- there is definitely a feel of anticipation and demureness rather than a predatory feel.

 

I really like this one, and I think i may have to slip in an order of an extra bottle. It's fabulous!

[abejita]

I got my Faces of the Heroine decants when I had the flu. Even though I wasn't very congested, my sense of smell was pretty much gone, so I was totally frustrated, thinking the blends were weak or insipid.

 

Thankfully, I'm better now. Vasakasajja has skin musk, which is always a plus. I have just discovered that I love orchid, though I am generally cautious about florals. I like champaca, but it's a note I tend to amp (not like Forspecial Plate, though). It's behaving in this blend for me, thankfully. The amaranth/tonka/French vanilla thing is working out in a very lovely way. The blend is heavily evocative of its description, the passion and flush of anticipation. It's warm, sweet, and creamy. It's a golden-white, sunlight, skin-warmed blend.

 

This will be a bottle purchase.

 

Fans of this may want to try Dark Delicacies.

[femmefatale]

This smells almost exactly like Cutex nail polish remover (without the acetone smell, obviously). Whatever they used to scent their polish remover must share a similar note because they smell identical to me. I wish I could say that there was some fun morph on my skin, but alas, there was not. I don't even know where the heck the tonka bean or vanilla is in this scent, because I can't smell it at all. It's really odd because I love all the notes on this. It's not lush, creamy, fruity, or any of the above. It's just sharp and...well, smells of nail polish remover.

 

:yeah:

 

That is exactly what it smells like on me.

[mimulus]

.

Edited August 28, 2016 by mimulus

[alliekat13]

I'm kind of dissapointed with this one, because I love vanilla, tonka, and orchid. I almost bought three bottles unsniffed because I was so sure that I would absolutely love this. But when I opened the bottle I got this strong tropical fruity smell, it reminds me of bananas and coconut. On my skin: tropical fruit smoothie, with a hint of incense. This is not what I was expecting at all. Maybe it will get better with age....but by then it will be too late to get more......

[ilona]

This is a really pretty fruity floral along the lines of Ulalume or Machu Picchu.

 

It's mostly floral in the beginning and I think it gets a lot better as it dries when you get just the barest touch of musk. I never got any vanilla, tonka or orchid. Doesn't have much throw and isn't much of a stand-out, but it's pretty enough to use up the imp.

[mooncityminx]

In the Imp: Really pretty floral. Reminds me of the tropics.

 

Wet: Intense floral.

 

Dry: Now I am getting a nice aquatic and the floral is blending. I wish I were smelling the sweetness of fruit that others are reporting. This is really nice, but it reminds me of something I must have smelled in a department store once. It seems to me like a good summer fragrance.

 

EDIT: I've worn it a few more times since this intial review and it has grown on me a lot. I may have to keep my eye out for a bottle. This isn't in my top ten at the moment, but it is really great.

 

EDIT2: It seems this stuff is addictive. I just bought two bottles and next time I update my top ten this is going to be on the list. The Champaca is so well blended with the tropical flowers and I am getting a slight aquatic at the end. I have never been to Hawaii, but in my mind this is what Hawaii smells like.

Edited March 14, 2007 by Tempest

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant from eviltemptressdq's circle

 

Initial Thoughts: For once it was the description that drew me in more than the actual notes. I haven't had much experience with orchid or champaca, and the few scents I've tried with tonka bean didn't work on me. But I have had good experiences with skin musk and vanilla.

 

In the Bottle: Um, ok. That's not promising. My initial impression is flowers planted in a bed of catshit...

 

Wet: Hm. I don't know if it's the orchid or the champaca, but I'm getting the same nail-polish-remover scent that someone mentioned a few reviews ago.

 

Drydown: It eventually settles down into a fruity floral with a background of the skin musk.

 

Verdict: I can see where the scent fits the description, but I don't think I like this one well enough to keep.

[Browneyes]

Imp: tropical floral, and some fruit I can't quite place...

Wet: still tropical floral fruitiness

Dry: musk and tonka are now faintly in the background, grounding the scent, but it remains a light tropical fruity-floral.

It's really pretty but I will have to test it out a bit more to decide whether or not I need a bottle. It's probably a really good summer fragrance

[fiddledragon]

In the bottle: weird, off-smelling fruity floral.

 

On me: Very fruity, almost lotus-smelling. Is that the champaca? I can pick out the vanilla and orchid as well. As it dries, the really sweet floral tones down and move into the background to let the other notes shine. The vanilla and musk (and probably tonka, though I can't pick it out by itself) warm it up. It's now all about the vanilla-musk-orchid, and possibly the other flowers; they're not notes I'm familiar with. It's a little sweet for my taste, but I think it might grow on me, and I want to watch it age at least a few weeks.

[juniperus]

Bottle: heady florals

Wet: sweet, heady florals

Dry: the orchid is, as always, lovely, but I think the amaranth is growing sweeter, and I'm noticing signs of vanilla ampage beginning.

Later: sweet floral growing sour, plus the amping vanilla. drat.

[cranberry]

In the imp: wow, this is a really sweet scent. Strong, sweet florals.

 

On the skin: Once applied the orchid and champaca are the most noticeable scents. This is so sweet and it reminds me a bit of the fizzy feeling I got from Sundew (though it doesn’t smell anything like Sundew). There’s a tropical smell here, maybe pineapple? I can’t say. Initially it reminded me of Khajuraho, but this is much lighter and much sweeter. At first I got a hint of musk but that’s gone now, and all I’m left with is tropical fruits, flowers and champaca.

 

Overall: At first I thought this was a keeper, but the tropical note throws me off, and it’s just a bit too sweet for me and doesn’t have the balance of resins or woods that I prefer.

[SeaLady]

In the decant, I too get the "Ooer, what is that nailpolish remover scent?"

But on: oh, wow.

BPAL has shocked me once again.

This is the only, only, only time I have ever wanted to wear something that struck me as smelling like perfume. This smells like a women's perfume, with a little vanilla, tropical fruits and flowers and a tiny bit of aquatic underneath. The fruits are most like a pineapple lifesaver to me.

I'll have to try it again, but this may be a bottle candidate - I really like

[yeahbutnobut]

Vasakasajja

 

In the imp: a sweet, fresh fruity floral!

Wet on skin: I now smell something grainy-maybe the amaranth? But it’s still sweet and fruity-floral.

Dry: this is very pretty! It smells like cool wet tropical blooms-there’s champaca here but it’s not taking over just yet-and hints of grainy and fruity notes all around. It smells like sweet scented flowers soaked by rain-it’s a very cool floral scent, and surprisingly wet as well. I think the orchid is the main note here, with champaca supporting it and an unusual ‘cereal’ scent, like oats (but it doesn’t make me smell like muesli/porridge). The vanilla and tonka are subtle for now but just add to the sweetness.

After a while: wow, the champaca isn’t turning to ‘banana blossom of doom!’ on me! It does have slight banana like tones to it but they aren’t all-consuming or cloying. This is a softer champaca, sweetened by vanilla, with a hint of something oaty or hay like, and with orchid on top, this orchid is probably gives the impression of a fresh watery floral. This now brings to mind flower petals floating on a crystal clear stream, and soft creamy pink coloured flowing silk robes. The champaca does threaten to make this scent quite cloying or over-sweet at times though, thankfully the scent’s gentle watery scent tempers the champaca nicely, and there’s an odd reedy/dry grasses scent which seems to have developed from the oat-like scent I got before. This floral scent does have a similar feel (but doesn’t smell like) Peony Moon, for some reason…it’s a very springy scent. The grain like note does smell a little bitter and strong at times, like harsh dry grasses (think Scarecrow), contrasting with the soft floral sweetness. But I do love the pretty fresh floral scent I get most of the time.

Verdict: at first this beautiful sweet floral gives me the impression of exotic blooms drenched by monsoon rains or floating on clear streams, and of billowing silk curtains. It’s a very cool, wet, fresh and clean sweet floral, exotic and voluptuous but also youthful and dewy. This strikes me as being so cooling and fresh, it feels like a fresh wet breeze after a heavy rain, it seems made for stuffy summer days. The drydown is when the champaca comes out a little more, but it never becomes the cloying sweet scent I fear. There is an odd note to this that smells like grain, sort of like oats or wholemeal…I’m wondering if that’s the amaranth (which is a cereal)? This note does seem to turn oddly straw-like at times, and I’m not so sure about that scent…but other than that, the cool sweet watery flowers sweetened even more by the tonka and a little vanilla is gorgeous. It’s a scent that’s made for hot weather, I think. I’m debating whether to get a bottle or not-the floral scent I get is so unique and pretty, I’m not sure about the oddly 'straw and oats' moments, but I definitely want to keep the decant at least.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Yes. Not sure if I need a bottle (I’m considering it) but I’m keeping the decant.

If you like this, try: Regan, Dr John Seward, Khajuraho, Peony Moon

[theseagrows]

this smells like melony-orchid with vanilla and skin musk supporting in the background, keeping it from going into total fruit doom. it's much sweeter than what i normally wear, but i confess i sort of like it. i have a decant of it, and i think i will keep it. probably not a bottle purchase though.

[faifai]

On me, the notes all combine beautifully and I'm unable to pick out any specific note from the scent. Vasakasajja is nearly all silky, luscious, jasmine/gardenia/plumeria, almost buttery; somehow its listed notes of "skin musk, champaca flower, tonka bean and vanilla" are combining to give my nose this impression. If made solid, it would remind me of the interior of a white chocolate Lindor truffle, in both color and texture. Like whipped cream, but even softer, so soft. It manages to have this wonderful smoothness on me despite having no milk or cream notes at all, which is just as well because those never seem to work on me. Vasakasajja is vanilla-sweetened, not sugary or fruity, which prevents it from smelling too girly or naive.

 

This, Black Moon and Abhisarika all smell like variations of the same glowing fragrance. The same lush, golden-creamy velvety richness is at the heart of all three scents. If I had to classify them, Black Moon would be the most crystalline, "fresh" and elegant of the three, Abhisarika the most intimate and delicate, and Vasakasajja the most playful and appropriate for everyday wear. I am very happy that I've finally found some jasmine/gardenia-"type" BPALs that I can wear, as they are some of my favorite notes but almost all the scents that include them as one of the listed notes...well, they all tend to smell kind of poopy (literally). These 3 blends are some of my favorites now, as I feel like I have one for every mood.

Edited March 3, 2007 by faifai

[edenssixthday]

Vasakasajja - This scent is predominantly orchid and champaca flower initially and the champaca is so strong it actually reminds me of a tropical version of Stardust. However, as it dries down, the creamy warmth of the tonka comes through and the sweet, warm scent of vanilla begins to swirl about me. While the amaranth is not a very strong note, I can definitely smell its earthy graininess enough that the first time I wore this blend, I had such an incredible craving for amaranth that I cooked some up for dinner the same day. This is a really pretty scent, but I don't feel the same way about it that most reviewers seem to. I'm just not completely nuts about it. I like it and I will wear it, but at this point in time, my one little decant is enough for me.