Hemlock

[Erinofhere]

This infamous herb has a long, complex history: it has been used in spells of death and destruction, was a principal component in traditional witches' flying ointments, and was the poison used to put the philosopher Socrates to death. We have created a dark, profound herbal blend to personify and honor this wicked little plant.

 

Frimp from the lab.

Herbal-ish or "green" smells never do too well on me. But I thought I would give this one a go.

In the bottle its a very pretty green color. Smelling it from the vial...WHOA! This smells exactly like Vicks vapor rub. Not a smell I would want to have around me at all. I'm getting a faint smell of pine but mainly it's Eucalyptus. At least my sinuses are cleared out now.

On my skin it did stay Vicks, but there is also a subtle herbal smell emerging. That part was pretty. Then I started to smell onions. Most "green" smells do turn to onions on me so this I was expecting.

After about 20 minutes all I am getting is Onions and Vicks Vapor rub. The pretty herbal smell went away. To make matters worse, this scent has some major legs, it's all around me.

No, this sent is not for me. I have a friend who just loves Eucalyptus so I think I will give this to her.

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: I'm getting pine with a hint of Vicks. And maybe a splash of patchouli.

 

Wet on skin: There's something a little soft and woody, but it's being overpowered by the Vicks scent (any eucalyptus in this?). I actually like the scent of Vicks, but I probably wouldn't pull it out for perfume purposes.

 

Dried down: Still reminds me a little of Vicks, but now I'm getting that smoky incense scent someone mentioned earlier, although it does morph back and forth into a mildly lemony, piney scent.

 

Throw: Not a whole lot.

 

Verdict: *** 1/2 Honestly, I'm kind of indifferent to this scent. I like it, but I don't see myself wearing it too much, so I think it will end up in the swap pile.

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Wow! That is some truly green oil! It smells of sweet lime and minty pine. Very ecto-cooler-like!

 

Drydown: Sweet pine kissed with zippy lime. Maybe some honey too? As it dries the lime is replaced by something that smells more like lemon balm. Or perhaps it’s a combination of other notes, I’m not really sure. Definitely citrus and something minty, in any case. Happy, fresh, and green.

 

Dry: Faded a bit. Soft pine, lifted by citrus and clouded by something darker...possibly a wood of some sort (balsam or birch or oud?). Still green, but more mysterious now.

 

 

 

 

8 out of 10 bones

[lazymerricat]

I just had to come in here to check if Hemlock turned to Vicks vapour rub on anyone else or if it was just me. Turns out it wasn't just me. I really, really wanted to love this because I'm a Keats fan and hemlock is everywhere in Keats. But agh, my chemistry and it just don't mix at all.

 

In the imp: medicinal, herbal, clean smell; nothing in particular stands out for me.

 

Wet: Instantly, Vicks vapour rub, with a suppressed note of sherbert. Weird.

 

Dry down: Peppermint and lemon start to come through, and pine, and the Vicks smell flattens into a general menthal. Then, about half and hour later, a very sharp white spirit smell happened. Luckily I was about to fall asleep anyway (I tested this just before bed), so I didn't have to reach for the wet wipes. But it was not good.

 

Ah well. I hope I have better luck with others in this line. I envy those who can wear hemlock, I really do!

Edited February 19, 2015 by lazymerricat

[Minh Scent]

Very, very green on application (pine, minty, herbal). Actually, a bit strong for me. However, gorgeous on dry down, pleasant and natural smelling. I am also picking up something sweetish. No wood at all, although a small tad of...incense?!)

 

Ah, the oil is such a pretty mint green. Best part about the imps- we can appreciate the color!

 

ETA- not long lasting. After two hours, barely perceptible.

Edited February 22, 2015 by Minh Scent

[batsy]

In the vial: Minty. Fresh. The oil has an actual green cast to it. Neat!

 

On the skin: This is a woodsy green, which is a "green" I can tolerate. I went into this without high hopes, so this is a nice surprise! It's certainly not strong in small doses, and you get a bit of spice in the background as it dries down. I got a whiff of smoke (incense?) as well. It's a sweet green, which is something I don't think I've ever said in any review! Overall, quite a surprise and I'll certainly keep this imp.

[Veronica]

A fizzy green scent, almost citrus-y. Pleasant, but not something I would reach for.

[brettashley]

Lab frimp. Pine nut Vicks. I have no idea what my nose reads the lab's "pine" as "pine nut" but it always makes my mouth water. As it dries down, the Vicks goes away but then I get a sharp, almost sour green herb. It smells like I'm trying to cook myself.

[agirlnamedfury]

Dark, herbal, medicinal. Something about this is very bitter and swampy, I'm not sure how wearable it is for me.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: Yep, that's some sharp, dark, biting greenery right there. Primarily I'm getting something sharp and probably coniferous - maybe yew? And there's something almost woody growling around the base; I'm going to guess vetiver or one of the darker woods. It's rounded out by some ineffable spices and/or herbs - I might say basil is in there somewhere, among others.

 

Wet: Almost definitely vetiver at the base, but it plays well with the other notes. The coniferous scent fades to a background sharpness, just providing an edge for the sweet, spicy herbs that come to dominate. Huh, I was not expecting this! I almost get a pomander-like scent - sweet and spicy, but with an herbal, green edge.

 

Dry: A sweeter, almost fruity scent. The spiciness resolves itself into almost definitely cinnamon, but the whole scent never leans quite gourmand.

[Casablanca]

This fragrance smells firmly wintery to me. It smells like a blackened, slightly unhealthy green color, like greenery trampled down into the slush of the season's first snow. That's not to say there's a snow note here -- it's just where I feel like I am when I smell this. I feel like it might have a little camphor and vetiver in it, though, among the heavy greenery. Or that might be part of what hemlock itself smells like.

As Hemlock dries, it takes just a bit of a nasty turn on my skin, leaning toward body odor country. But it never quite commits to stinking.

Not a favorite, but nice to try.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Green, a bit sour, almost citrusy? Slightly effervescent almost...and a bit like eucalyptus or menthol. Weeeiiird. Like rotting foliage. This is sinister.

 

 

Dry: Tart/sweet almost fruity green herbal scent. It's odd. It does smell poisonous. I kind of like it! I don't think it's very me, but totally unique!

[lizabelle]

Ooh, this is going to be perfect for summer! In the bottle it's peppery, and on skin it develops into a sharp green/woody scent that gradually dries to a bright green/lemony fragrance. Definitely unisex. The lemony note is almost sweet, like some kind of light summer dessert. I get the feeling I'm going to have a small collection from this line, because I have a slight morbid obsession with poisonous plants and they apparently smell really good on me!

[Mermaid-on-Land]

Cool! I was expecting something leafy fresh and super herbal but this has an underlying burnt smoky note that I can really get behind! A bit of darkness because this is an *evil* plant 😈 is it maybe creosote? It reminds me just a touch of Smokestack but more pleasant. There may be a sliiiight touch of eucalyptus which I haven't liked in similar scents but it's only ever very faintly there and only if I look for it so I don't mind it. It smells really good and I love the things that make it not 'just' herbal because I'm not so much a straight herbal person, I like other stuff added. Other than these impressions I have no idea, the description doesn't list notes and my nose isn't quite educated enough to pick them out with any authority. Not much throw sadly and doesn't last long even with slathering as much as I do

[achildoftime]

It's a big ol' pine tree with a twist of lemon for me. Pine doesn't usually go to floor cleaner on me, but I think the twist of citrus that I'm reading as lemon is making it the case this time.

 

After it dries the floor cleaner feeling goes away, which I'm grateful for. It's pleasantly herbal now and the lemon is gone. I still get a little pine, but it leans way more towards garden herbs that are a little spicy. It much, much better dry for me.

[dementia_divine]

In the imp: The oil in my imp is light green! The scent is also very green and has a somewhat menthol-like quality.

 

Wet: Yep, this one is very green, and the menthol-like quality I was getting from the imp is present, but softer on my skin. It actually doesn't remind me of mint, now that I think of it – it makes me think of the fresh needles of an evergreen.

 

Dry: Crushed evergreen needles, accompanied by some lemongrass and herbs. The scent is much softer than it was during the wet phase.

 

Verdict: I think I actually preferred the wet phase of the scent, because it was more evergreen and less herby. I don't think I'd ever reach for this, since it didn't end up being an evergreen scent the whole time, but I'm glad I got to try it. I prefer Hemlock Honey to straight-up Hemlock, though.

[Lucchesa]

Wet, Hemlock is aggressively evergreen on me, with a menthol-eucalyptus-type edge. Really strong, really not my cup of tea.

 

Two hours later I wouldn't have recognized it. Hemlock has softened into an absolutely gorgeous forest skin scent. This stage I could huff all day. I'm just not sure I'm willing to go through the wet phase again to get here, as there are other evergreen scents I adore all the way through.