Katharina

[DarcyPennell]

A strong, willful blend with a soft, utterly lovely soul: white musk with a trickle of bright, sharp apricot and orange blossom.

In the bottle: You know that flouride treatment you used to get at the dentist as a kid? (do they still do flouride treatment or am I showing my age?) They would put this gooey stuff in a tray and shove it in your mouth and leave you alone for a few minutes, and the goo smelled horrible, and the trays were always too big, and eventually no matter how much you played with the suction thing you would start drooling awful smelling goo? That’s what this smells like in the bottle.

I had put this into my swap pile without even trying it, since the bottle smell was so gack. But then I was browsing my DB and I noticed it has white musk, so I got it out and dabbed it on. Thankfully the smell of fluoride treatment disappears as soon as it hits my skin, leaving a nice, light, fresh scent. It’s a little sweet and fruity for my taste and is headed back to the swap pile, but really is lovely.

ranking: "like"

[Blood onmy hands]

I really thought that I would hate Katharina, since it has two of my least favorite notes in it (white musk and orange blossom ::shudders:: ). Thankfully for me though, the orange blossom never comes out on my skin and the white musk is very subdued under the apricot.

 

The apricot is very sweet on me, sort of like syrupy canned apricots. The white musk doesn't go bitter and just lends a sort of creamy scent behind the apricot.

 

It only lasts about an hour on me total and I don't really like fruity blends, but this isn't bad if you do like sweet fruity smells. Grand Guignol was a better and longer lasting apricot on me.

[Eros]

This is sweet, syrupy fruit. A combo of canned peaches and apricots. A very thick but bright scent. After a bit the musk appears, very subtle. No orange blossom and within about 30 minutes, has faded to almost nothing.

Nice but not *me*.

[gangstaknitta]

In bottle: it smells like a sweet floral. I'm not getting any musk from this.

 

Wet: very very very sweet apricots and maybe some orange. It smells very fruity, juicy and sweet--my mouth watered a bit.

 

Dry: All the notes just seem to run together and it is very sweet, kinda like juicy juice.

[mmcfa2]

I wanted to love Dorian, but the white musk was TOO much. I even have bought and traded bottles two times out of want to love it. That said Katherina does it! It takes the white musk and offsets it with sharp apricot in a way that is just divine! I just adore it and am soo happy about it especially since my nake is kathryn and Catherine was awful on me... So,,, I can see wearing this at work and in the home when i want to smell delicious but not necessarily sexay! Great smells!

 

Similar to : Dorian and white rabbit

Edited September 13, 2005 by mmcfa2

[wolfie13]

This one is pretty much the same in the bottle and wearing:

 

Sweet, syrupy - ableit nicely realistic - apricots (exactly another poster described) with a bit of musk. I don't really notice any orange blossom at any point.

 

This is not really my thing, but neither did it didn't inspire the deep dislike I thought it would.

 

I think it might be very appealing to fruity scent lovers!

[carolinachiquita]

Ooh very fruity, very tropical but soft at the same time. The site description is perfect for this!! I have a 5ml of this on the way and I can't wait!!

[angharad]

I really like this one, but it makes me sad, too. I mainly get apricot and orange blossoms out of it, which is beautiful, but it fades so quickly. Within an hour I can't smell anything.

[diabolique]

Mmmmm, Katharina!

 

Beautifully bubbly blend with juicy apricot. I don't get much orange blossom from this, thankfully. I get a tiny bit to balance out the sharpness of the apricot and make it well-rounded. It's fruity and slightly citrusy with a tiny touch of florals.

 

The white musk dry down is absolutely stunning. I love Beth's white musk, and I love what she does with apricot blends. Apricot isn't a note I've ever been particularly fond of, and the actual fruit isn't very remarkable, but these apricot blends are just so mmmmm-inspiring.

 

This lasted a pretty long time on me. I put a couple of wand-swipes on my wrist at about 10PM, a couple of hours before I went to bed, and I could smell it on my wrists until I took a shower the next day around 2P M. Yummmmm. I'm not sure how "me" it is for every day wear, but this one is a full-bottle purchase for the spring.

[AlaskaSnows]

In the Bottle: Honey and orange blossom, maybe the slightest tad of a sweet, entirely non-tangy apricot.

 

Dry: Pretty much exactly the same. the fruit in this is very sweet, and as I said not tangy at all. It's gentle and soft and powdery and non-assuming on me. Pretty and tempting. A feminine foody scent. This could be very good.

[SevenSins]

In the bottle: VERY sweet - almost like orange marmalade with a touch of apricot

 

Wet: Not as fruity, but sharp and sweet at the same time. Nice!

 

Drydown: I really like this one, very soft with a sharp bite. Nice blend of apricot and orange with a hint of musk coming through to soften the sharp edges.

 

3 hours in: Sweet has faded and left a soft musk.

 

Throw: Average about the first hour. After that, it fades quickly.

[atomic*orange]

In bottle: Juicy apricots and orange.

 

Wet, on skin: Intense peach jolly rancher.

 

Dry, on skin: Peach jolly rancher with a hint of floral creaminess. I thought the bitterness of the orange blossom would balance out the sweet bright apricot, but it seems to amplify the juicyness instead. I never get any musk. Good throw.

 

Nummy but I really don't want to smell like canned peaches.

[melange]

Imp: apricot, a touch artificial to start out with, like Jolly Rancher apricot-or-is-it-peach candy. [i hadn't read atomic*orange's review when I first wrote this!]

 

Wet: veiled apricot, as the musk begins to emerge.

 

Drydown: the veil deepens and the orange blossom gives it more shape; the apricot starts smelling more natural now, as with Tamora's peach.

 

Worn: assertive behind the veil but still juicy. it lasts a couple hours on my skin.

 

Conclusion: I like it and I'm glad I got it. However, in the Celebrity Deathmatch for 'that kind of scent,' Tamora still comes out on top. I'll give them another go, though!

[LiberAmoris]

Katharina is so pretty! She's been on my wishlist forever, and the generous Lab threw her in as a freebie on my last order. I love white musk, and apricot has turned out to be a note that I find myself strangely drawn to. On my skin, it's equal parts apricot and musk until the drydown, when it becomes a fuzzy, second-skin scent.

 

Katharina's a nice change from my vampy BPALs, and it makes a wonderful scent for work, as others have mentioned. I'm beginning to think that when I see the words 'white musk,' I should just buy a bottle straightaway, no questions asked.

[Chrysantza]

I got this in an imp swap with one of my BPAL-addict friends, who thought it would be perfect for me.

 

In the bottle: A sweet/sharp fruity scent with a touch of floral.

 

On me: Champagne! That was my first thought - "I smell like champagne!" This is a very sprightly sweet white musk/fruit scent. The orange blossom serves mostly to round out the edges of the apricot.

 

I don't get "willful" from Katharina - I get "youthful" and "springtime." This made me think of sipping mimosas on a deck surrounded by flowering trees.

 

I would definitely get a bottle of this come springtime. This is a nice change from my usual resin/spice/incense scents and would be especially lovely for more casual occasions. The mood Katharina evokes is fresh and sweet.

[Nox Eterna]

I love this!

I have been hoarding my imp for so long that I HAD to get a bottle

First on it is very apricoty

Then it blends into a fabulous scent of the apricot, musk, and orange blossom.

None really stand out as overpowering above the others.

I guess the best compliment was my Mother who said, " What are you wearing?THAT ONE smells like you"

I put it on at 9 this morning and over eight hours later it's still going strong

 

[Thaleia]

First of all, I love Katharina as a character. The girl's got spirit, and when she realises that life's not all about being bitchy, she becomes sweeter, but still maintains her independence and girl power.

 

In the bottle: Sparkling peach, like a Bellini in a champagne flute. I know Beth used apricot, but it smells like peach to me, which is great.

 

Wet: Peach and orange blossom combine to make a fruity/sweet scent, peach and small pale peach-coloured flowers touched by honey, deepened a bit by the white musk. It still sparkles, like a champagne cocktail would, when you first pour it into the glass.

 

Drydown: The scent remains the same, but intensifies. I feel like I'm standing in a peach orchard with blossoms still on some of the trees. Sweet/floral but fruity, very light and the fruit isn't foody at all. It's sweet, like the scent of when you're biting into a ripe, juicy peach.

 

Dry: The peach gives way to the sweet smell of the orange blossom. Not very much musk left. It's light and airy, and STILL sparkling.

 

Throw: it's overpowering Euphrosyne on my other arm, but that could be because the Goddess of Mirth has dried down completely.

 

I was surprised that Beth chose to portray Katharina with such a sparkling, pale scent. I would've thought that Katharina was something edgier, maybe rose (but that's because I'm partial to rose) that dries down into a sweeter floral that's captured perfectly in this scent. The drydown is perfect, because it shows the process whereby Katharina the 'shrew' is 'tamed' throughout the course of the play.

 

Rating: 5. God, I LOVE this scent.

Edited December 23, 2005 by Shollin

[mayhap]

Mmm, I adore this. It's like pale golden sweet syrupy fizzy sunshine in a bottle. It's not particularly long-lasting on me, but I don't mind slathering it on and reapplying.

[voodoobaby]

This goes on very apricot-y at first--pretty, but kind of nondescript. Then after a while, poof! It's gone, except for a very faint, almost aquatic white musk smell. It's so subtle, I have to really sniff to smell it. If you're looking for something subdued and barely there, this is great. However, I like bolder scents, so it will go to someone with different preferences.

[AngellicMystique]

This is complex. The apricot smelled like coconut on me before my nose distinguished the differenced, easily misunderstood, but the outcome was sweet with mellow overtones, but really strong underneath. This has a spine,

[llachlome]

This started out as a bright, sparkling fresh apricot scent, with the other notes adding themselves one by one. Early on in the drydown, the white musk asserts itself, smoothing out the apricot and making it a warmer and mellower scent, with all of the glitter gone. It's still lovely, but I preferred the intitial smell. A little later on, the orange blossom comes through. Orange blossom has a tendency to smell like disinfectant on me, and Katharina is no exception. Pity.

 

It doesn't quite work on me, but for those who can wear orange blossom and like softer fruity scents, it should be worth a trial imp at the very least.

[The Perfumed Ferret]

This is the second scent that smells just like the description on me. This girl has staying power. Orange blossom balances the sharp tang of apricot, and finishes with a light white musk.

 

 

This is the scent of a perfect summer day.

 

 

edited for spelling errors

Edited January 18, 2006 by Shollin

[sideviewhotel]

Mmm this is all apricot & musk on me. It's very similar to March Hare on me, though. Just less spicy, since there's no clove in this one. When I first put it on, it was really strong (but, hello? slatherer here!) and now I really have to sniff nosetowrist to really smell it.

 

I like it, but I prefer March Hare's spicy clove to Katharina's mellow muskiness.

[Alchemy21599]

I received this as a frimp from the Lab.

 

In the vial: sweet floral with a spicy undertone.

 

Wet: Sweet floral and white musk. Kind of tropical

 

Dry: Tropical floral softened by white musk. Very Pretty! Lots of throw and very long lasting.

[PirateMaggie]

I absolutely loved this in the imp and when wet: it smelled of apricot, a ripe, full, almost effervescent scent, like fizzy apricot juice. Sweet, but not cloyingly so, with a tart edge that must have been the orange blossom, and the musk lingering far in the background keeping it from smelling like I was wearing preserves. This smell reminded me of Beltaine and picnics on the grass in an orchard in late spring. Such a golden, happy, beautiful blend, this one. Oh, how I wanted it to work on me!

 

On the dry-down, however, the musk clobbered the apricot and orange into submission. My skin really amps musk, and while I do like the white musk in this blend, I really preferred the more fruity wet smell. The fruit faded really fast and the fruit was what I liked best. I guess I'll have to try March Hare, which hopefully does not contain musk. I really liked this one before my skin chemistry got in the way; perhaps it would work in a scent locket, or put on cotton buds in my dresser drawers so that my clothing will pick up the scent.