Oborot

[yeahbutnobut]

Oborot

Balkan fir sap, dark mosses, Greek Mountain tea flower, black pine, salty ocean spray, deep black earth, and a moon-touched magickal incense of sandarac, frankincense, and ravensara.

 

In the bottle: dark and earthy. It actually smells almost like asphalt here, but with evergreen notes over it. It also reminds me of vetiver's depth and darkness, without smelling of vetiver.

Wet on skin: green! This smells like crushed plant stems and fir needles, with a thick layer of tree sap.

Dry on skin: now I smell a bit of sea spray, and a lot of pine, as well as mosses. This scent is an intensely dark green scent, or dark green against black. It smells like crushed herbs and torn leaves, freshly cut trees (when the wood smells slightly green and wet as opposed to a more familiar dry wood scent) evergreens and a little gritty earth-not the same wet loam as the likes of Penny Dreadful though, this is darker, and drier. Unfortunately the pine and sea spray combine to give a soapy/pine cleaner scent that I'm not sure about.

After a while: this reminds me very strongly of another scent…I think it's by Propaganda Bath, I think it's their 'Orion' blend? That's a patchouli-evergreen-resin scent, and this smells quite similar. The evergreen notes of pine and fir (especially pine) are the most attention grabbing notes, but there's an earthy darkness behind it all which reminds me of patchouli or a darker musk. I get very, very subtle hints of frankincense and smoke wafting through on a sea breeze. The pine is a little too much like cleaner for my tastes but there's something intriguing to this scent, dark and mysterious and wild.

Eventually the loud pine calms down a little and the scent left behind is surprisingly good. No longer as green as before, the scent that lingers now is dark, yet warm and balsamic. I can now smell the incense, golden and slightly spicy, softly smoky, with a dry herbal touch of what I think is ravensara, over an earthy, mossy base. There's also a golden balmy resin to this which is different to the frankincense, almost like copal, I wonder if this is the sandarac? And I do get something almost vetiver-like after a few hours. Indeed, as this dries, I'm sure there is dark, almost metallic vetiver lurking at the base of the scent-it is unmistakable, but thankfully it's not a strong, all consuming vetiver.

Verdict: this is a very unusual fragrance that does transform and shape-shift into very interesting stages, from pine to sea air to moss to black dry soil and incense. It's very conceptual, very much evoking the landscape and mystery of its description, a scent that tells a story, a story that is entrancing and magical but also wild and unsettling. It starts off heavily pine and fir with sea spray (though in here it smells a little household cleaner-like I'm afraid) very fresh and green but with a very dark undertone of gritty earth, not the usual 'wet soil' note but something a little harsher. But once the pine fades, there's a gorgeous bit in the scent when the resinous notes shine through and a slightly golden incense scent winds it's way around the earth and moss and green darkness. This is really lovely, warm and intriguing, my favourite stage of this scent. this lasts for a little while before fading and leaving just the black-green and earthy notes behind, softened by moss, but with an almost sinister base that smells uncannily like vetiver. It's a very unique scent, strange and entrancing, but despite it's narrative feel and morphing complexity, there are bits when the scent smells a little too soapy or like pine disinfectant (the dreaded 'pine sol' reaction people talk of) and overall the scent is a little too masculine for me. I think I'll pass this on, but I really enjoyed experiencing this one of a kind fragrance, certainly not a perfume you'd find elsewhere.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Not sure. The soapy pine blast at the beginning is off-putting, but the drydown is intriguing and unusual. I'm not sure if it's a 'me' scent though so I may pass it on. (I'm being really harsh with my bottles these days!)

If you like this, try: Black Forest, Thanatopsis, Zombi, Danse Macabre, Omen

[themerrybaker]

I don't much care for wolves, dogs, or hyenas so contented myself with a decant of Oborot.

 

Darn. While I was expecting another "pine forest" winter smell, this is more of a dark "dirt" smell and I really dig Beth's dirt. This is more of a tarry burnt dirt (I could swear there was vetiver in here) than a loamy garden dirt, though.

 

Oborot is a surprise like for me.

[ilona]

I did NOT like this at first. Wet, this is painfully piercing and florally medicinal. Gah!

 

I'm glad I didn't wash it off. After it dries, the salty woods prevail! It's bitter and green, but rounder and earthy. I can't pick out individual notes, but then I'm not really good at that anyway. This is more masculine than many, but still wearable.

 

It's fading fast. Which is too bad because I like it more and more the longer it's on my skin. I can smell the sap now, and it's a little powdery but not at all in a bad way. It just gets softer.

 

I like this much more than I thought I would!

[emzebel]

On me, this is a lot lighter than I expected - there is definitely a scent of earthy pine, but the salt spray really lightens it, and the green tea makes it almost sweet with my chemistry. While the first few reviews made me think this would be too dark and gloomy, this is actually a wonderfully light woodsy scent - like the scent of a oceanside forest warming in the sun after a rainstorm.

[stellans]

Oborot was a good happenstance for last night, as I wanted something cool-smelling and evocative of cool nights. It's lighter than I expected, but still quite pleasant, and I fell asleep with my wrist close to my nose.

 

In the imp: This was much lighter, but the lightness was welcome given the heat of the evening. Anything heavier would have only added to my discomfort, rather than relieve it. The evergreen scent seems distant, as though I was standing beneath a very tall fir tree, and there is a sweetness that is not easily identified. I get no sense of 'dirt' or 'darkness' at all.

 

Wet on skin: The fir note is a bit stronger on skin, but still a very light oil blend. The sweetness is intriguingly anonymous. What is it? It's a soothing scent, rather than a scary one, which makes it perfect for my Lunacies nightly rotation.

 

Dry: I fell asleep before total drydown, and this morning there was no whiff left at all. Since I use these as 'take me into Dreamland' oils, there doesn't have to be a lot of throw or longevity -- just enough for sleep.

 

Verdict: I'm keeping it, and I'm glad I got a bottle. I'm also thinking this oil may be one of those which deepens with age. I will love it whether it does or not, but it would be interesting to revisit this review down the road a bit, just to see.

 

05/22/08 UPDATE: I wore this blend yesterday as a Scent du jour, and was totally blown away by its birchy, dirty, damp goodness! I couldn't stop sniffing my wrist all day, it worked well in my scent locket, and Mr. Stellans said, 'mmmmmm, you smell good!' when he came home. What could be a better recommendation?!?!

Edited May 22, 2008 by stellans

[Naamah_Darling]

Another description that has me looking up ingredients.

 

Sandarac is evidently a resin from a coniferous tree found in the Atlas mountains; from what I'm reading, it seems to be in the same scent family as pine and cypress. Ravansara is a tree that, while not a conifer, seems to have many of the same scent characteristics as pine; it contains a lot of pine and turpentine oils, and has a scent described as medicinal, camphorous, and fruity.

 

This is so very dark, and very woodsy. It's woodsy in a mossy, vegetal way, though, and not an aggresively pine-cleaner sort of way. I can smell a dark, moist scent, which must be "earth." What the Lab uses for "earth" I will never know.

 

There is a richness to this that blooms on the skin. The frankincense is there, a resinous scent with a slight tang to it. The aquatic note is here, politely, in the background. Not enough to make this a clean scent, quite. This manages to be either a dirty clean scent or a fresh dirty scent; it hovers right in between. I like it a great deal. There's something feral and dangerous about it, the way the various ingredients blend to make one smooth whole is like the way a knife tapers to a point. It's not a penetrating, headache-y scent, but it has a lot of authority.

 

The throw is sweetish, green, and slightly fruity.

 

I'd definitely put this on a man, and I'd recommend it for anyone who likes foresty blends. The addition of the aquatic note is what sets this apart. Fascinating.

 

As it ages, the piney smell comes to the fore, but it's paired with the frankincense, so it smells quite a bit like some sort of incense. The aquatic is still there, but way off in back. More like damp foliage than seawater.

 

I don't know that I'd wear it, but I'm trying it on the husband for sure!

[supremegoddessofall]

Lots of salt and dirt. Very strange. Not sure it's for me.

[Extispex]

My obsession with feral scents continues....

 

In the bottle its lighter than I expected it to be, with just a hint of fir and pine carried on a damp salt wind. It was nice, but I was looking for something headier, and I was prepared to be disappointed.

 

But of course I wasn't!

 

Damned if Oberot isn't a gorgeous beast! Wet on my skin there's this amazing depth and earthiness. In fact, its everything that I wanted Roux-ge-roux to be. Woods and mosses and damp earth. But the aquatic element in this has more clarity than Roux-ge-roux.

 

The dry-down is splendid beyond my expectations. All of the notes balance beautifully on my skin. When I try to pick out specific notes they elude me, like a shadowy creature that stays just beyond my sight in a dark forest. Its a rich scent, not cold at all, but damp and seductively menacing.

 

Despite its initial deceptive lightness in the bottle, Oberot is quite powerful on me. A little bit goes a long way, and lasts a good long time. And I must also say that after trying so many of the 'feral, wolfy' scents that its surprising how different they all are. Beth is a genius to be able to portray similarly themed scents in so many beautiful ways.

 

Another splendid scent; I love it.

[sarada]

Wow, I'm really behind on my reviews!

 

The description for Oborot was one of the most tantalizing things I've ever seen. I just LOVE woody, green, earthy scents and I love resins. This has everything! The 'ocean spray' was the only thing that I was a little put off by in the description, since I'm not wild about aquatics, but how could I ever resist deep black earth, pine, dark mosses, fir sap and frankincense? I think I was losing sleep in anticipation of this one!

 

It took me a couple of wearings to really find my groove with Oborot, since the sea spray does make this a bit lighter than I was expecting. I don't smell the deep earth, and overall it's a bit more green and fresh than the deep, dark mossy earthy incense I was expecting.

 

In fact, it reminded me a bit of the fresh Greenhouse candle I was burning yesterday. As I tried this over the past month, it really started to groove with the seasonal changes though. It is a refreshing, early spring scent of greenery sweeping over the cold earthen landscape, and brushed with cleansing rains. Vibrant, deep green touched with resins, but not quite the smoky, churchy ones you might expect.

 

I wound up reapplying this constantly the other day to enjoy a constant flow of this fresh, woodsy green scent. There are actually enough Lunacy blends now that I have a Top Ten lunacy list going mentally and this is definitely on it!

[Miss Lynx]

At first sniff, this one is really bitter and nasty - almost Malediction-like. Definitely doesn't smell like something anyone would want to smell like on purpose. But as it settles in, it gets a little easier to deal with. It's still a pungent dark herbal, earthy and a little on the bitter side, but it's starting to show some hidden depths - a touch of almost-floral sweetness, a bit of woodsiness, and traces of the promised incense.

 

After an hour or so, it evolves into a lovely, warm, dark, musky incense scent, a little reminiscent of Schwarzer Mond or Fenris Wolf, and if it was like that from the beginning, I'd be hunting down a bottle right now. But unfortunately, those early stages of it are not exactly plesant, and since I already have a half-bottle of Schwarzer Mond, and a full bottle of Fenris Wolf on the way, I think this wolf will be roaming off to a new home.

 

Grade: B

[Tess]

My skin amps pine, but people have been saying that it isn't the usual pine in here. Lets get lots of dirt going and some sea spray and we'll be good to go.

 

In the bottle - Gosh, I smell a lot of brine and pine and moss here. And... it's dark and so, so strong.

 

Wet - Fir kicks into high gear and the brine backs way off.

 

Drying - The fir and pine are really there (the pine isn't killing me like usual, though, so yay), but it's not meshing very well with the dark incense notes in the background. The salt is also making the fir really... hmm, it's hard to find the right words to describe it. Imagine a fir tree, only encrusted with salt so that the needles are sharp and jagged. It's like that. Sharp.

 

Dry (1 hour) - This has really even out. The fir is mush smoother and the moss has come out softly. It's very lightly now and not as dark as it once was. The incense makes it slightly smokey, too.

 

Overall - This is a nice scent for those who like dark incense notes or have good skin for the evergreen. However, I just don't think it's for me.

[girl_android]

I think I came to have this decant because I don't like having things feel lonely. It doesn't make sense to anyone really, not even me!

 

In the imp, it's dark green and earthy, and kind of salty as well. It's got that thing that ... rasps at the back of my nose, that I was trying to describe in another of my reviews, but probably confused the masses in attempting it. There's a lot in the description I have no idea what they'd be like, but some quick research tells me that sandarac could be frankincense-ish, and ravensara could be camphory, woody, earthy, maybe slightly licoricey. The first impression I get is ... dark pine. Unsophisticated nose for the win!

 

Wet on skin, it's got a watery scent-feel first up, but the green things and moist earthy things are still there... I'm not sure that it's something I'd choose to wear at this stage, but I reckon it would be swoonworthy on the right guy.

 

Once dry, it's woodsier, still green, and back again with the salty back of nose feeling. It's rather pleasant, but I feel I'm girlier than oborot smells like it should be... if I could enable the DH, perhaps he'd like to give it a go, but I might let this find a more appreciated home for now.

[Neely]

In the bottle: salt water and cedar. This is promising. I love earthy, scents. I love aquatic scents, so I love this.

 

Wet: salt water, cedar and wet freshly turned earth like I am standing on a cliff with pines after a rain, and the ocean is below me on a moonlit night. Very nice.

 

Dry down: salt water, cedar and wet earth. This is clean and earthy at the same time, combining two of my favorite BPAL elements, earthy and aquatic. Thank you Beth and the labbies! You're geniuses I tell you, geniuses!

 

30 minutes: salt water, cedar, fresh earth. This is the stuff.

 

Conclusion: clean, earthy, and definitely horde worthy. If you don't like aquatics you might not like this one. If you are worried that it is too masculine, well, the aquatics soften it so give it a try.

 

Rating 1-5: on my skin this is a 5.

[eternalargus]

In The Bottle: Awesome! Incense and trees, but no sign of Santa. This is definitely not a Christmassy tree scent, the the sea scent peeks up a bit to keep it light.

 

On Skin: The resins come out to play, but not overwhelmingly so. I really like this so far, it's warm and comforting but not cloying, so I was able to wear it on a hot day.

 

Dry: Very faint, but every now and again I get a whiff of that warm, inviting aroma. Wonderful!

[Bain]

I didn't read any of the other reviews, but my absolute first thought was "OMG! That smells like my friend Brent - cigarettes and Mtn. Dew!"

 

Then I was able to pick out specifics, mostly moss though. A little bit of the fir.. And Earth. *wrinkles nose* It's not as bad on my skin as it was in the bottle, but it's not something I'm going to wear a lot for sure, so off to the swap list!

[DifferentDances]

Bottle: Greenery with something nose-itchy.

Wet: Nose-itchy scent comes into full glory. Maybe this is the moss?

Drydown: Moss and perfume/powder. Ick.

Dry: Gag-inducing moss powder.

 

My rating: 1/5. Bah.

[slave1]

OBOROT

 

In Bottle: Earthy aquatic

 

On Skin: This scent is a dark unforgiving ocean hitting the beach of a densely wooded foreboding forest. But only briefly… quickly it turns mostly into an earthy incense. The aquatic edge is still there, but just as a crisp afternote. The base is mainly resins and earth. I see this on a man and is not a scent I’d personally wear. It is so dark it’s almost scary. The incense is spicy with soil and woody notes. The pine and fir cut through the blend with a sharp sour feel. The tea and sea spray do give it a very light crisp edge which is refreshing. I don’t smell anything sweet here and it really doesn’t work on me. Not that I dislike it, I just don’t feel it warms up to me. Moderate throw and average to long wearlength.

[samarablackcat]

In the bottle:

A cold sea breeze from the Pacific Ocean blowing through a pine forest, perhaps in Oregon.

 

Wet:

Pine, almost medicinal. Picking up some earthy aroma, like trees rotting and becoming loam.

 

Initial drydown:

Still has a foresty scent, but changing into...

 

Drydown:

What is that lovely scent wafting around me? Reminiscent of snuggling with my animals, warm and downy, nuzzling closer to inhale their aroma. On my arm, sniffing closely, it still smells foresty, but around me is an aura of animal...feral, yet inviting. I want to bury my face in the rough pelt, to reach the downy fur close to the skin, where the animal's true scent lies.

 

Oh Orobot! When reading the reviews, I was apprehensive of this, due to the pine-sol references, but I was intrigued by the shape-shifter concept. I think I have found one of my true loves, and will definitely keep this in my top-ten rotation.

 

Post-script thingy here: This bottle is almost a year old, so might I recommend those who tried this when it was first released give it a try again. Perhaps the aging has something to do with it, but to me this is heaven.

 

Post-post script: I am not very well versed in identifying notes yet; all I can do at this time is give you my interpretation. But, after all, isn't that what scent is for? To put you in a place either not attainable physically or to evoke a strong memory. Thanks, Beth, for making my world a little better smelling!

[alianthe]

In the bottle: has the same harsh sharp overwhelmingly green front note as October. This is both frightening (not a nice scent) and reassuring (October is one of my very favorite scents). Also somewhat spicy... almost reminds me of Bakeneko. Is that a werewolf or a weretiger?

 

On me (dry): musky, dusky, earthy, woodsy, swarthy, YUM.

 

Conclusion: oh, yeah. Just yeah. So perfectly me. SO glad I bid on that auction. I want to eat myself.

Edited January 21, 2008 by alianthe

[hkhm]

bottle: this has the same sharp, acrid scent as both october and november did.

 

wet: once applied this turns piney and damp, much nicer than either october or november were on me (phew!). this reminds me of something like old moon or moon of ice without the sweet, snowy scent. i think slave1 has it right when she calls this an "earthy aquatic".

 

dry: this dried smelling very damp and green. i seriously love this scent.

[MaeKitty]

I can definitely smell the sap and pine in this. It's dark and strange feeling...like, being in the shelter of earth and tree with the cold outside. It's beautiful and dark and magical. Perhaps good for a rit, but not something I would wear otherwise.

[tinyvulture]

Being a lover of forest blends, I was excited for the black pine and fir sap. But what I’m mostly getting is moss and saltwater, with sweet incense in the background. It screams “men’s cologne!” Darn, I should’ve known -- moss tends to do that on my skin. After a couple of minutes, the scent of fresh soil joins the party. It’s still very salty and mossy at this point. Truly a scent of the great outdoors, showcasing the variety of scents found in nature. As others have said, it is both aquatic and earthy. I don’t think my man would care for this, and it’s too masculine for me, so it’s off to the swaps pile.

[zankoku_zen]

Funny... I got a really fresh grassy blend from this. I got a touch of pine at the beginning, but little dirt, moss and florals. And yeah, I swear it was grassy. It had a green, fresh floral vibe to it.

[Coldfire]

 

 

 

 

Decant: Sharp bitter green

Wet on Me: I get tea, the fir sap and pine and salt spray. Dark, green and bitter/sharp.

Drying Down: Mosting biting green herbs. Sharp, dark, no nonsense, tiny faint traces of the incense underneath.

Dry: I like these kinds of scents. They keep you off balance. You don’t know what you will get next. I ended up with a nice blend of the biting, sharp, green and soft headiness of incense. To keep.

 

[fairnymph]

Sniffed: Yellow oil. Green, sharp, a little bitter - very planty with hints of soil and sweet resins. I get the fir sap and mosses and a light floral note.

 

Wet: More complex - I get some moss and a bit more sweetness; some black pine and a sort of pungent green floral note. I finally get some of the ocean spray, which is delicious but faint. More soil on my skin, alas, and more resins, with a smoky edge. A touch soapy overall, too.

 

Dry: Very slow to dry. This reminds me of another blend I've tested, but I can't place it. It's softening a little, becoming less acrid and sharp and bitter, more grassy. It's not going more soapy, thank god, and is definitely sweet with more of a distinct (but still light and very nice) mix of evergreen notes. The soil note has softened a bit, but the incense/resins have amped.

 

Summary: When it finally dries, it's quite pleasant - soft smoky incense and mosses, clean sea breezes, and light evergreens with almost no bite or trace of harshness. It's much cleaner and less sweet; a very comforting manly scent. Good throw & longevity.