Venice

[AngellicMystique]

A complex, voluptuous scent that captures the robust beauty and of the Italian Renaissance: lemon, red currant, wisteria, red rose petals, heady jasmine, Florentine orris root, waterlily, red sandalwood, violet plum, and violet leaf.

 

This is gorgeous. The Renaissance in Venice is captured in this scent, particularly in the plum, rose and jasmine.

[LadyWilde]

The notes in this one all seem to be battling each other for dominance, but ultimately (surprise!), jasmine wins. Within minutes of touching my skin, this goes almost pure jasmine, with the barest hint of something fruity-sweet (plum, I suppose). I was hoping for the currant and lemon to add some tartness to the party to lighten things up a bit, but nope, didn't happen. The jasmine monster said no.

 

After a couple of hours, it went soapy. Very fancy jasmine soap, but soap nonetheless.

 

Damn jasmine. She'd be so pretty if she weren't such a vicious attention whore all the time. :angry2:

[coulrophobe]

In the imp: Sharp, sweet lemon floral.

 

On: Huh... all those notes, and all I can really smell is rose and jasmine. Stupid chemistry.

 

It's not horrible on me or anything, but it goes rather generic on my skin. I smell sweet heavy floral, but little else. I really wish I could get more of a sandalwood/plum/orris vibe from this - but my chemistry just likes the jasmine and rose too much. Pity my chemistry and I don't agree!

[Silverstrike]

Frimp from the Lab.

 

Initially, the jasmine was very strong. Eventually it died down and blended with the rest of the notes, but it still ended up being an overwhelming white floral. A soft, overwhelming (how's that for an oxymoron?) white floral. Venice is pretty, but not my cup of tea. If you already know Lab florals work on you, this is probably worth checking out.

[Julilla Regina]

I was totally looking forward to some waterlilly from this one, but my skin did not feel like cooperating with my wish. I think I'm falling into that "jasmine amper" category, because that is all I'm getting out of this. I wish I had the skin chemistry for this one, because it is really beautiful in the imp, just not on me.

[cupide430]

A fresh floral at first. Very citrussy with a fairly strong jasmine note and a touch of something violetty behind it. As it dries, it is getting fruity with a touch of something ozoney. This definitely has a ripe sweet fruity edge to it now and a violet kick.

[strawberry_star]

Sometimes you just can't help yourself to get a scent that you know will end up being a disaster on you, but you just have to have it because it envokes images of elegance or whatever else you may have on your mind. I did that with Venice. I've always wanted to go to Venice and that lovely city clouded my vision where I couldn't see ROSE and JASMINE.

 

Rose and jasmine smell terrible on me, that's all I smell in it primarily. Definitely not good for me.

[teaketcha]

i have the same problem with what i presume to be rose and jasmine. its very sad. i felt like i was smelling a flowery dill pickle on my wrist. so weird. im sure this is lovely on many people, its just not me.

[arabella]

First Impression: The canals of Venice.

 

Dries down to: The florals slowly become more obvious.

 

Additional Comments: The mental image I get is of gondolas floating down the canals past open windows with their windowboxes full of waxy flowers and heavy tapestry drapes closing off the rooms behind and forcing the scent to drift down. This is a very rich and heavy floral scent - it's definitely mature, not young, and full of secrets. There's so many notes in this one but the only ones I can readily identify are the jasmine, water lily and sandalwood. This is, also, another blend with rose in it where the rose doesn't amp up on me - a bonus.

 

Lasted: 3 to 4 hours.

 

Rating: 3 out of 5

[MistressTera]

Fresh From The Imp: This was the very first scent that I read about and went "OMG HAVE TO HAVE", so I was quite excited when my order from the Lab came in with it. Out of the bubblewrap and up to my nose, to find lots of citrus and a tiny base of florals.

 

Wet On My Flesh: I put it on my wrist and barely got the wand away before I was sniffing it, too. Surprisingly, I'm strongly reminded of lemon drop candies. Tangy, not too sweet

 

Drying Down: My first thought was that maybe I still had such a header from sniffing it straight out of the bottle that I was still smelling that when I sniffed my wrist, so I forced myself to wait five minutes to give it a chance to dry. So, I smell tentatively, and get... A citrus blend. Try as I might, I can't pick up any of the flowers.

 

Hour To Integrate: An hour later, it's gone.

 

End Of Day/Final Report: This wasn't *anything* like I was expecting it to be, and I'm quite disappointed. I'd probably be heartbroken if I hadn't already found half a dozen other oils that I like, and two that I love enough to be plotting big bottle orders. Swap away, little imp with the name I can never remember. Find a good home with someone who loves you!

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is quite masculine to my schnoz.....

 

this is sharp .... very sharp..... citrusy and very jasmine......something

herbal as well......coriander perhaps??

 

meh.......this is an ok blend....nothing particularly mind blowing......

[mermaidrage]

I think I should preface my review by saying that I've been to Venice several times. I love Venice. This scent does NOT make me think of Venice at all, but I still love it.

 

From this scent, I get a lovely creamy lemon, a sharp tang of redcurrant, jasmine and plenty of rose. Oh, and the faintest hint of violet. This scent makes me think of waking up in a hotel in Florence and throwing the shuttered windows open. It feels like that perfect light felt, spilling across crisp white sheets and flickering on the canals.

 

This scent is rich and gorgeous and unlike most rich scents on me, is NOT overwhelmingly amber which is lovely because although I like amber, I like having a break from it as well.

[MistressTera]

Fresh From The Imp: Vibrant, slightly sweet.

 

Wet On My Flesh: Getting some lemon.

 

Drying Down: I'm hoping for some of the more complex odors, but I'm still getting mostly lemon.

 

Hour To Integrate: Lemon's died off in favor of the mirad of flowers.

 

End Of Day/Final Report: Really reminds me of The Unicorn, which I'm already keeping. Swap.

[feline.by.design]

I normally don't curse on the forums, but holy snickerdoodles, this smells good.

 

(See, I didn't curse after all, but you know what I really said to myself.)

 

Lush, lush lemondrops. That's what I'm getting on my initial sniff. It's fresh, refreshing, juicy and gorgeous. I love lemon and citrus fragrances, and for the moment, Venice is no exception. It really makes me want some lemonade now, after I've made myself some tea. Tsk.

 

I actually don't get any of the florals at first. Citrus notes are, by nature, not especially long-lasting, so I wasn't surprised to find the jasmine peeking her little head through the river of lemon juice, softly but slowly asserting herself more into the foreground. I like jasmine scents in general, providing that there are no other notes interfering and that the jasmine isn't too cloying.

 

After about three minutes into the fragrance, the jasmine has taken control of Venice, with the lemons quietly undulating in the far back. I can smell a little of the rose as well, however this is mostly a Jasmine Party, but Venice still manages to be gentle. The oil itself is easy to sniff, as it isn't fading, but I don't feel that jasmine and company are incredibly "in your face" at all.

 

Venice is nice. I definitely prefer the beginning lemondrop goodness to the jasmine takeover, but it's still a nice fragrance to have. Definitely a good choice for spring or early summer, and I will hold onto my imp while I contemplate on a larger bottle.

 

-doreen

[Brianne]

I'm sad to say this is one of the reviews that was lost during the forum down time, because I had written up quite a bit about it and now I don't remember half of what I said and I must retry it hah!

 

In the vial:

That herbally jasmine smell

 

On me:

Despite that jasmine was the first thing to jump out at me in the vial, on my skin it's a zesty citrus! It definitely has some lemon but I don't think that's the only citrus in here because it comes off as a general citrusy smell rather than just lemon. It's very bright and zesty! That zest is really tempered by a down of jasmine with lots of herbs, very earthy smelling herbs at that. So this is really unusual and refreshing, but in a spa like sense.

 

Final note:

Unique, this makes me think of something they'd massage you with at a high end spa, it has that refreshing aromatherapy quality to it

[brownbear]

From this I get rose and other unspecific florals. It gets a wee bit powdery on me. These are cool flowers. The jasmine doesn't take over as harshly as it usually does, but it still makes it a bit unpleasant with my skin.

[anomie]

In the imp: Lemon with something fuzzy underneath.

 

Wet: Lemon hand soap, like you get in restaurant bathrooms.

 

Dry: Great, now I smell like a honey lemon cough drop.

[lysistrata]

Lemony at first, amping to X-Treme Lemon; almost Lemon Pledgy, much stronger than Embalming Fluid. There's a sugariness to it, and a slight undercurrent of pizza; I could swear I smell oregano in this. As with all lemon scents, it fades fast on me, and the jasmine makes it sort of soapy. Oh well.

[HoneyHoneyNY]

I got this from a swap. It wasn't on my wishlist, it was just a giftie, so I was happy for the opportunity to try something that I didn't have expectations for.

 

The initial sniff from the imp was fresh and kind of half-lemony, slightly fruity and very lightly sweet. It's backed up with a kind of lotion-y scent, but I can't tell what it is really.

 

On my skin, I smell the lemony-fruitiness for a hot second before the lotion-y scent resolves itself into that perfume bully, jasmine. The jasmine elbows and stiff-arms it's way forward, and then squats in the forefront. I almost feel the need to beat it back. I love the scent of jasmine tea, and jasmine in flower, but on my skin it's rather loud and high pitched. Huddled behind the jasmine are some soft warm florals, but I'm not really enjoying them. It's too floral for me. All the flowers in this blend seem to be jumping up and down behind the jasmine shouting "Smell me! No, smell me!"

 

Later, dry on my skin the jasmine calms down a bit. It's still a bit too much for me, but now I can smell some of the notes that I just registered as "floral" before. I definitely can discern the wisteria and whiff of something violet like that might be the orris. This has also taken on a watery quality, which makes me like it a bit more.

 

After I've been wearing it a while, it doesn't seem quite as high pitched as at first. It has a kind of old-fashioned water garden feel to me, Like a formal garden with ponds and heirloom flowers. I think it's a bit too floral and lady like for me though. It's very traditional, with the ozone/water scent keeping it from being too old ladyish.

[Eunice]

This almost smells like lemon Pledge in the bottle. But on my skin it is more herbal and the jasmine comes out stronger. This is a very refreshing scent and reminds me of sour lemon candies. I love the smell but this isn't something I would wear. It is a total winner for burning over a tealight though!

[yellowrose]

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue circular swap.

 

This is one I've wanted to try but have been fence-sitting about. I have mixed emotions because of the lemon, which typically irritates my skin, especially when applied to the tender inside wrist.

 

Wet: Sandalwood, orris and jasmine. Promising. Oops! Here comes the jasmine amp.

 

Yup. Jasmine and nothing but jasmine. Time to get it off my skin.

 

 

 

edited for clarity

Edited June 9, 2006 by yellowrose

[HennaFairy]

bottle:

floral, jasmine, hint of lemon

 

wet:

jasmine and lemon

 

dry:

just a light jasmine now

 

overall:

not bad but I have floral scents I like better

 

rating: 6/10

[Supervixon]

In the bottle:

 

Jasmine-y, rose-y, a little lemony.

 

On my skin:

 

Nothing but rose, and it went rancid rose at that.

 

*sighs*

[edenssixthday]

Venice - With a description as lush and beautiful as the description for Venice and the various notes included, I thought it would be an unforgettably gorgeous scent. Unfortunately, it isn't. It's floral and powdery and pretty boring on me. There's nothing special about it at all. I'm not even going to bother trying this one in a scent locket, that's how thoroughly boring and unimpressive it is.

[shirasade]

This one was a frimp in my last order - since I love Venice (one of the most beautiful cities I've ever been to), I was curious.

 

Imp: Lemon with a spicy tang. Like cleaner.

 

Wet: Still lemon, but also something floral and a hint of spices. Fresh and lovely.

 

Dry: Lemon retreats further but is still present as a base to jasmine and rose (mostly the latter).

 

Overall: Doesn't remind me of Venice at all - starts out interesting, but ends pretty non-descript on my skin. Might be nice for clothes.