The Unheavenly City

[fountaingrl]

Wow. This starts out smelling on my skin just as it does in the bottle, which NEVER happens for me. Never. It is creamy, sweet, spicy and floral.

 

As it dries, the scent goes through a neat morph where it deepens and it takes on an almost savory-spice note, almost food (but not sweet food, like very faint pepper or paprika?) aspect. The floral gets stronger too.

 

I like this very much. The one drawback that keeps me from sqeeling unreservedly is that it has a little soapiness to it about an hour into wear, and it doesn't stay as strong as I would like.

[noumenon]

Ditto fountaingirl's review right above mine. The Unheavenly City is the first scent that ever truly morphed on me - and each phase left me very, very happy.

 

The weather here was mild today, so the bottle had been warming in my mailbox all afternoon before I snatched it up. I think the warmth of the oil just made that first lush burst of gardenia and magnolia even more sultry. Many of Beth's perfumes have those flowers in them, but they often get buried in other things, or cancel themselves out into just a generic floral scent. Here, I think Unheavenly City does for gardenias what Rose Red does for roses. I can all but feel their blooms ticking my nose as I sniff the air around me! I know there's supposed to be rose in here somewhere, which doesn't work well on me no matter how hard I try to like it, but I don't pick it up at all.

 

The red musk is such an odd combination with gardenia. It's giving the scent its spicyness, and giving the perfume more depth. Most floral perfumes, while pretty, vanish quickly and stay fairly one-dimensional, but the musk here anchors the whole scent to my skin. I pick it up almost immediately out of the bottle, but then it really comes into its own about an hour after I put it on.

 

I got the soapy phase for a few minutes but the gardenias and musk were still shining through.

 

And then when the rest of it burns off and the perfume is no longer throwing itself around the room, the flowers vanish and the musk softens and the remaining scent is pure vanilla sugar. It's worth the wait!

[black*cat]

In the imp I smell dragons blood & florals, on my skin I get the sweetness from the drgaons blood, rose? & white florals. When it's dry it smell like a powdery, creamy white floral on me.

 

I'm not a fan of powdery florals, but once again, I'm happy to have had a chance to test it.

[dawndie]

Wet: slightly musky dragon's blood

 

On skin: more dragon's blood, which is a heady sweet floral on me, bordering on bubblegum

 

Half-hour later: something sugary has sweetened this up, so it's more like bubblegum Kool-Aid

 

In conclusion: very sweet for something as dark-sounding as The Unheavenly City, which sounds like the capital of Hell. Potent and long-lasting too, glad I got to try it!

[juniperus]

A sweet, almost foody, floral - red musk, gardenia, and something else...I want to say lotus, but I may certainly be wrong about that. There is a richness that develops over time that has an almost resiny quality (that I associate with resiny blends, that is). I daresay I can imagine this to be the anti-floral-lover's floral favorite.

[storme]

In the bottle: gardenia and rose and creaminess.

 

On me, wet: hmm, something slightly musty in here with those creamy florals, and I'm getting a sort of warm muskiness around the edges too.

 

On me, dry: gosh, that's become quite sweet now, in a foody-floral way. But that unsettling acrid note is still there, as if something isn't quite happy with my skin chemistry.

 

Verdict: Hmm. Oh well, I guess at least I can be sure of trading it without a problem.

Edited June 8, 2007 by storme

[wikkidraven]

musk and florals, with a trace of sweet lurking in the background. i don't get 'foody' from this at all, it's mostly musk on my skin.

[elspeth]

This is a very creamy floral. As it dries it gets to be really more of a musk than a floral. I think that this might be a really good floral for me. Usually florals don't work well at all. I think the musk must balance out the florals and keep them in line. I really have to find some of this!

[bifemmefatale]

Girly pink! Sugary-sweet florals with that creamy-spicy note from dragon's blood and a hint of musk on dry-down. This is as feminine as Pink Moon without smelling anything like it, really. Sadly, on drydown it starts to turn a little bitter on my skin, which has never liked gardenia. Still, fans of Pink Moon and Midway, take note!

[Jheya]

In the vial: Slightly sweet and creamy with a floral backdrop (rice pudding blossom).

 

On skin: It starts off rich and creamy, almost but not quite foody, with the floral notes making an appearance in the background. It's a bit of a strange combination to my nose, and as it dries I can pick out a sense of warmth and dryness.

 

I think this becomes more of a creamy floral than a foody cream as it dries, though it's proving hard to judge as it's wavering on an indistinct line between the two.

 

Once dry it's still an almost foody creamy floral. There's also warmth and something with a bit of a fiery edge to it underneath, which I suspect is the red musk.

 

It's an interesting blend, and I'm glad I got the chance to try it, but ultimately it's not really a scent for me. It works okay, and is pleasant enough on my skin, but nothing that jumps out and wows me. It's probably just as well, really. Not only would it be a mission to track down more of this, but I also suspect I'm sensitive to a component in this, as it tickled my nose which partially blocked itself in response. I'll probably keep my sniffie as it was a gift, but I won't be searching for any more.

[Blood onmy hands]

I get dragon's blood, a warm musk, and way too many florals from this blend for the first half hour or so. I really don't like the lab's dragon's blood note because it smells sickly sweet on me, like flowers rotting in a vase of old water. I get that impression strongly from The Unheavenly City – lots of rotting flowers. In the drydown the floral aspects of this seem to calm down, and I'm left with a slightly spicy, warm musk that goes more powdery over time. I'm kind of glad that I don't love any of this year's convergence blends, saving myself from hunting them down on ebay, lol.

[DangerInRed]

At first whiff, in the bottle and wet, my first reaction was "Eew." There was some sharp note which smelled very bad. I think it was either the Dragon's Blood or one of the florals.

 

I think this scent gets better the longer it's on. Thankfully, the horrid note disappeared very soon after application, and it continues to get better on my skin. I don't think the scent is wonderful, but it is nice. If it were easier to get, I'd say decant but not bottle. It has kind of a cinnamon frosting vibe, with definite floral-ness.

[yeahbutnobut]

The Unheavenly City

 

In the imp: soft creamy sweetness with gardenia, maybe some night blooming jasmine.

Wet on skin: oh dear, gardenia is turning harsh and gritty, but not overwhelmingly so. There's still that lush sweet floral aspect, like red musk and lotus, at the back.

Dry on skin: mmm, this is nice! It does have that gritty gardenia note to it but not too much, so it doesn't distract. I'm tempted to call this 'Sacred Whore of Portland' because it reminds me of Sacred Whore of Babylon. There's a wonderful red musk background and it's almost fruity in here, definitely floral. It reminds me of the red musk and lotus (and dragon's blood?) combo from Blood Lotus, one of my favourites, although the sweet white floral here seems more like magnolia than lotus. it also reminds me of Hollywood Babylon, maybe there's a fruity note to this as well.

After a while: oh, this is beautiful! The harsh 'evil gardenia' scent is gone now and I'm left with a beautiful, rich, sweet and creamy floral. It feels full and lush and plump and quite sexy, there's that red musk adding it's sensual depth. It really reminds me of Blood Lotus and possibly the Haunted Palace or La Belle au Bois Dormant, a heady floral, very feminine…the word that comes to mind is 'voluptuous'. This scent encapsulates that word perfectly. I don't get any of the roses that others get, nor do I get foody notes, but I think there's a bit of vanilla here making this sweet and luxurious-smelling.

The musky magnolia-gardenia glory sticks around, and it smells like a creamy, blushing, glowing flower in a cocoon of musk.

Verdict: at first I thought 'oh dear, gardenia of death! That's a good thing because it means I won't pine for this scent when it appears on Ebay!' but the drydown this has is wonderful. I smell the red musk, which bonds well with a bunch of heady, sensual white blooms like gardenia (which loses it's 'evil edge', thankfully), magnolia and jasmine, and a sweetness like vanilla. Very sensual and sexual-I agree with Beth's comment about it smelling like a whorehouse! This is rich and sexy and sinful in feel, it reminds me strongly of a few favourite scents of mine with that floral-fruity-musky-vanilla feel to it. The full-bodied floral scent becomes even nicer at drydown when it feels plush and lush with that sweet, raunchy red musk enhancing it. I really like this one but the harsh gardenia intro keeps me from loving it, and I find it similar to Blood Lotus and Hollywood Babylon, which I like better and are GC. At least my cash is safe-I'm keeping what I have and I'm fine with that.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? I don't need any more as I prefer a few other similar scents but I'm keeping my decant!

[Bain]

I was soooo resisting trying any of the Convergence scents. Because I didn't go, and I know I'm not going to get more if I like 'em - I was lucky enough to swap for 1/3 imps of this one

 

In the vial, it's a sweet, lovely floral, with enough spice to make me thrilled out of my mind and on the verge of looking for more.

 

On my skin, however, it all goes south. *pout* My skin picks up the sweet and does some yucky things - all I get is burnt caramelized floral. Ugh, I really wanted to love The Unheavenly City too.. Some days I hate my skin lol.

Edited June 14, 2007 by Bain

[anjimama]

It's good.

 

It sweetens up on my skin but it is tangy in the vial. Spicy sweet flowers, it's really pretty. Hmm, it dries down to a scent very similar to Haunted Palace, and I had an affair with Haunted Palace but when we were done we were done. I'd like to smell them side by side, I think they are a lot alike.

Edited June 15, 2007 by angelam

[halcyon_flight]

I can't believe I'm the only one who's comparing this to Snake Oil. The second I put it on it's got that patchouli/red musk/cream that eveyone loves and I HATE. Cue heartbreak. But wait, my skin is doing something useful for once! It's amped the rose and slayed the evil evil Snake Oil vibe. JUSTICE AND GLEE FOR ALL . There is a momentary caramel thing, but that dies and in the dry-down this becomes the rose-centric musky creamy scent that I was hoping Abhisarika would be. Lovely lovely! I'm just going to have to avoid sniffing this right out of the bottle, and I should be fine.

[bibliophile]

I was lucky enough to snag a bottle of this in a swap (thanks, GoldenRubee!) and am so glad I did. Red musk and dragon's blood are very friendly with my skin chemistry, and this blend is no exception. The overall effect is that of a soft, fuzzy, spicy musk blanket through which I get traces of creamy gardenia, but never a full-on floral blast. The overall effect is a sophisticated one -- not as overtly sensual as some of the other red musk BPALs tend to be on me, but still quietly alluring.

 

The Unheavenly City doesn't have much throw on me, which surprised me a bit, since I tend to amp some of the individual notes. I don't have to use this nearly as sparingly as I would a blend such as, say, Dragon's Heart (but given that I will never get my hands on another bottle of this, I almost wish that that were the case, so I wouldn't be tempted to slather it on!) The longetivity of the blend is impressive -- I applied it last night about two hours before bed, and could still smell it this morning. Eventually, it turns into a natural "skin scent" on me. I must say, I really like the idea that my skin scent is unheavenly.

[LadyCrow]

In imp: Deep, sweet, spicy floral -- so spicy as to be almost astringent.

 

Wet: Magnolia, check. Jasmine, check. It's... The Blood! Squee! It's a dragon eating caramel in a flowerbed!

 

Drydown: Thankfully for me, the rose stays tempered by the other florals. There's the strong throw I'd expect of any blend with dragon's blood; the hot fuzziness of musk; and that creamy sweetness. Eventually, what it turns into is a foody caramel with spicy musk around the edges, which almost takes the blend in a Monster Baits direction over the life of the scent.

 

I can see this scent being oddly uplifting. It's a skin scent -- something you'd put on privately to cheer yourself up over a particularly difficult day at work... whatever the nature of your work.

 

Subtle and excellent.

[midnight_aeval]

Thanks to the person who gifted me with a testable sniffy on this one Straight out of the vial, no, no, no, not one I even wanted to test on my skin!

 

When I did gather the courage to test it out on my skin, I still got that not so pleasant smell as I did in the vial - too much red musk - the kind in Smut that loathes me. But, in about 20 minutes it dries down it turns into the most beautiful, sweet, creamy scent.. I know that if my husband tried it he'd be begging for a bottle because he loves anything with Dragon's Blood.

 

I'm really hoping I'll be able to find a bottle of this!

[themerrybaker]

The Unheavenly City inspired a pretty heavenly perfume. The gardenia and other flowers remind me of some of my favorites: Dark Delicacies and Black Moon. Maybe it's the red musk, but I also detect something woody (that is either a bad pun, or the note that brings the flowers indoors to evoke Cat House). Much love for this scent.

[blueskiesinside]

In the bottle: Gardenia and spice. Num.

Wet: Gardenia, musk, something creamy and dragon's blood.

Dry: Spice, sweet, musk, lovely!

[asciident]

Wet: Mmmm gardenia, rose? and musk!

 

First on: This is gorgeous and I love it already. Sob.

 

Dry: OMG. It's just so gorgeous, I can't get over it. Musky, lush, juicy. Warm and spicy and floral. The gardenia here is amazing. Plus, this is a scent to make a rose lover out of a rose hater! If I could ever get more of this without selling half my limbs, I'd jump at the chance.

 

ADDED 2/21/09:

 

Wet: Floral and musk.

 

First on: Dragon's blood? Creamy, floral, fruity.

 

Dry: Dries down to the same. It's beautiful.

[wichapi]

Okay... I'll take everyone's word for it, but I don't get gardenias at all. Rose, sour-cream accord (as my skin turns it,) maybe some musk... But for some reason, I'm picking up... is that redwood? That would account for the mixture of spice and wood I'm detecting. I think Lydia totally messed with my sniffer. I need a nose crutch.

[forspecial_plate]

Spicy musky floral. Smells somewhat creamy, too. This is a unique scent. It's not mostly floral, musky, or anything else....just a blend all its own. It almost has a foody feel, but not quite. Later I can smell the musk really coming out. I know this isn't a great review but it's a hard scent to describe!

[moonarcana]

It is very hard to pick out a particular note in this scent. It is creamy sweet with a spicy bite. It flows effortlessly between a brash floral note and a smooth peppery musk bridged by a sweet vanilla note. Everything just blends together beautifully. I like this one a lot!