Lover's Parodies of Sumo Holds

[naeelah]

Tangerine, pikaki, tonka, ti leaf, jasmine, opoponax, and benzoin.

 

I just kind of jumped on this scent without thinking much about how it would smell. I don't know why, it just made me go "grabby hands!"

Wet, it's quite strong on the tangerine and jasmine. Pikaki appears to be some kind of jasmine as well, so combined with the tonka, at first, this smells a lot like biggerCritters.

Once dry, the tangerine and jasmine calm down and are much better balanced by the resins and ti leaf. The resins are soft and smooth, and the ti leaf lends a light, green quality. The tangerine isn't as noticeable, but it doesn't seem to completely go away.

In the end, it's a slightly fruity jasmine blend with a soft resin base. A little sweet, but not gourmand. Where biggerCritters is cute and floofy, this is elegant and classic. Very nice, if you like jasmine.

[Eutectic]

Wet--The tangerine and tonka are right at the front.

 

Just on--Sweet earthy citrus. But not cloying, summer fruit sweet. The jasmine is hanging back but hints that it may be louder in a bit. Slight liquor note that my nose may be picking up due to the jasmine...

 

Dry--the ti leaf is coming through now. A subtle green interlaced with the sweet of the tangerine and the florals. Tonka falls back a bit and this stops being so sweet and ends up being far more complex than I first thought from smelling it in the bottle. I'm not sure what opoponax or benzoin smell like so can't pick those notes out. I'm likeing this one a lot. This would be a perfect night scent for a summer party.

[edenssixthday]

Lover's Parodies of Sumo Holds - This is 100% benzoin and tangerine on me and after about an hour on my skin, I can also detect the very lightest hint of jasmine. The benzoin reminds me a lot of honey in this blend. Even though there's no honey in this, it reminds me of Honey Dust and L'Occitane's Honey Cleansing Jelly. It's freaking GORGEOUS and sultry and an absolutely perfect blend. It's subtle - sticks fairly close to my skin, and it only lasts 2-3 hours on me, but it's definitely well-worth the reapplication. This is the third NIFSA I've tried and so far I'm 3 for 3 and very, very pleased with this entire line. This is a gorgeous blend.

Edited February 6, 2008 by edenssixthday

[hkhm]

bottle: tangerine and sharp fruits.

 

wet: tangerine and... tangerine. there is a slightly flowery scent which i suspect is the pikaki. this smells very tropical.

 

dry: tangeriney flowers. utterly sweet and light. i need another bottle of this.

[dawndie]

Wet: zippy citrus

 

On skin: perfumey citrus and white florals

 

Half-hour later: the citrus disappeared, replaced by a vague wax

 

In conclusion: I suspect the pikaki is turning to wax on me. Otherwise this was a fairly nice, tropical white floral blend. Good but not great.

[slave1]

LOVER'S PARODIES OF SUMO HOLDS

 

In Bottle: Tangerine jasmine

 

On Skin: Holy tangerine! This starts super tart citrus. I smell the sweet floral jasmine next followed by the slightly bitter ti leaf. The jasmine is very heady and strong, so very sweet but the tangerine offers a very nice sour contrast. The resins are very welcome because with both the other extreme notes, they offer a calm, solid but soft background. They take the edge off those notes and make the blend very cohesive. The tonka is also a nice rounding note that keeps the tangerine in check and becomes stronger as the blend develops on my skin. This scent is very complex, fruity, resinous and floral… it starts strong but really calms down and becomes beautiful. It’s warm, inviting and a scent many people could wear easily. Throw is average when it develops fully, wearlength is pretty short.

[alicia_stardust]

I can smell a touch of nectarine and jasmine while this is wet, but after it dries it completely changes into a light and slightly sweet blend. The nectarine doesn't dominate, and the jasmine merely adds sweetness but doesn't cloy or become too floral. The tonka adds a smooth and creamy quality that almost makes me think of a shea or rice flower sort of fragrance, especially when it blends with the resins.

 

This is one of those that's really difficult to describe because, to me, the notes all meld together to create an overall fragrance that almost defies words. It's sultry and sweet and I find it neither fruity, nor floral, nor resinous but rather, a melding of scent types to create its own category. There is an overall sweet honey dust sort of fragrance to it, and it also has a clean and fresh quality that makes me think of summertime scents. This is definitely worth hoarding.

[grashopper8]

I was most excited to try this blend from the Salon, because Pikake is one of my favorite notes ever and I have been wishing to see more of it in BPAL.

 

I have to say -

#1. I don't really smell pikake, and

#2. what I am smelling is intense for my brain!

 

This starts out as a sweet candied mandarin orange, but soon softens into something much more complex. At this point, it defies description (by me) and I have to defer to alicia_stardust's entire review above.

 

It's not quite fruity, or floral, or resinous...I don't know what the hell it is. It's very interesting. Not sure how much I really dig it, it's kind of reminding me of Givenchy Amarige for some reason.

 

It's a strange one, I bet there will be some die-hard lovers and some ack-ing haters.

 

3.7 out of 5

[ymmat]

The best way for me to describe the smell in the vial is... complex. It smelled of citrusy tea at dusk in the sunroom with the windows flung open as the scent of jasmine wafts on the breeze.

 

On, I initially get the scent in all its complexity but jasmine is not my friend and it knocked out the windows, ravaged the sunroom, and drank my tea.

[tarotgirl99]

On application, tangerine blast...but as time passes (and it passes quickly), the sharp edges blur into a jasmine sweetened citrus tea. It's what I would think of as orange blossom if I didn't know how Neroli smelled, and if I were getting married, I'd wear it at my wedding. It's a young, natural scent that evokes a beautiful, spunky bride.

 

Compelling and completely new scent...can't think of anything similar and I love it.

 

Definitely a bottle purchase. Oh, my poor bank account.

Edited February 22, 2008 by tarotgirl

[sookster]

straight sniff from bottle is tangerine and pikaki...

 

this is another very complex blend from this series...the benzoin is awesome and

brings everything together ... the jasmine is barely there for me...this stays

pretty orange-y and bright...superbly unique

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Tangerine and green plants. Something warm.

 

Wet: Similar, but the tonka has emerged so that this is slightly creamy, and sweeter. Still that grounded warmth, but it's a foundation not in the foreground.

 

Dry: A warm, soothing tangerine creamsicle - but not very sweet and not foody. The resins in this are very light but grounding. The ti leaf, tangerine, and tonka dominate. I'm not getting much floral.

 

Summary: The pikaki and jasmine have emerged, but ever so faintly. This remains a warm, creamy tangerine scent with herbal, resin and exotic floral undertones. Low throw and moderate lasting power.

[forspecial_plate]

This is so clean and very very light! I know benzoin is a light resin. This scent just teases my nose with little wisps of clean and slightly soapiness (not in a bad screeching piercing way). It's lovely and light, and I could wear this to work because it's so subtle.

 

Not much to say about the individual notes. I smelled the citrus at first but that faded pretty quickly. Now it's mainly light floral with a hint of warmth from the resin and tonka. I really like this.

[coldandsleepy]

In the imp: wheeeee tangerines! I am hit by a momentary urge to ingest this, then remember that perfume is poisonous and is meant for wrists and not mouths. So i decide to apply this now, and eat a tangerine later. Mmm, tangerine.

 

On me, wet: wha? Where did my delicious tangerine go? I smell some benzoin, and some jasmine, and an itsy bitsy bit of citrus but... the beautiful tangerine from the imp is gone, all gone.

 

On me, dry: same as wet. At least it's consistent?

 

Throw and duration: not much throw, but average duration.

 

Overall: I'm saddened by my skin's refusal to cooperate with this scent. It smells so good in the imp! And i normally do so well with citrus! But this just doesn't work for me. It doesn't smell bad, it just doesn't smell like very much at all.

 

Alas. I hope it stays tangerine-y and delicious on other people, because man, does it ever smell good in the imp.

[blktauna]

OMG I just got this today.

 

Bright orange in the imp and on me right to delicious honey and orange.

 

It's not sickly sweet or anything , it smells like fresh oranges drizzled with fresh honey. I'm drooling. Not much throw but it's sort of sneaky rather than overpowering. And the spare drop I put on is holding up well. I love this!

 

(do I need another bottle?????)

[prunesnprisms]

I really hoped I would like this, but on my skin, it smelled like I had been playing with a citrus Renuzit air freshener, the kind with the cone of sticky gel scent that dries into sludge over time? I used to have those in my house as a kid and thought they were great fun.

 

This did not work on me, but it wouldn't be the first Salon that did not. It smells very nice in the vial, and my guess is that it won't pose as many problems for others.

[zankoku_zen]

I tend to think of myself as a citrus lover. On wet, this is tangerine and tonka, and it dries to a tangerine flower. It's bright, cheery and citrusy. The jasmine has a sharp edge to it, but you have to really, really be sniffing to get at it.

 

Guess what?

 

I don't think I like tangerine that much! I mean, I love to eat it. I eat tangerines a deux because one is never enough.

 

... And it does make me sad because this is a very beautiful scent.

[evanescence]

this is so pretty in the vial - bright, light tangerine. It's like bottled sunshine. In the bottle, that is.... on my skin, it just vanished. Gone without a trace. I had to reapply it and look for the shiny area in order to know where to sniff... and still nothing.

 

I'm so disappointed and mystified.

[Summerpixy]

Bright tangerine, benzoin, and jasmine. I think I may be in love, this my favorite of all the Shunga scents. As I wear it it softens into a tangerine honey scent. I'll have to check on how long it stays on my skin but if it turns out to be more than a few hours I'll have to buy a bottle before it leaves.

[the_cat_goddess]

Reviewing without looking at notes or prior reviews.

 

In vial: Oddly, not much. Like there's a strange absense of smell with a little swirl of citrus in the back.

 

Wet: Still smelling citrus, but stronger now.

 

Dry: Citrus and something that smells kind of wrong. Like salty meat mixed with citrus. Hmmm... salty meat?

 

20 mins later: Scent is making me sick. Must wash off now.

[Honeygirl]

Bottle: Citrus

 

Wet: The tangerine and pikaki are mixing very well. I'm a little scared of the jasmine, but so far it's staying away!

 

Drydown: I like this scent a lot. It's citrus and very happy, but the opoponax and benzoin tone it down from being 'mary sunshine'.

3.5 outta 5

[seamor]

Wet: Strong, but not sharp, citrus. Grapefruity.

 

Drydown: A faint, kind of standard sweetish musk (?) Is it the jasmine?

 

Dry: I thought it had gone, but I suddenly realize ... Oh! Oh my goodness! This is SOOOooooo yummmy! The citrus has come back - definitely tangerine now. There's something flowery with the tangerine - Ah! Pikaki! I can't seem to pick out the other notes, but no doubt they're in there.

 

The overall effect is light and bouncy, while at the same time seeming somehow luminous and rare. What an amazing combination! It's even got a nice little throw. Yes, yes, YES! I want to smell like THIS!!!!

 

If this should by some miracle last on me at all, I will have to order two bottles. I have never done that before.

 

Ah well ... two hours later it has faded. Is that a faint burning rubber scent remaining? Has this incredibly attractive scent ravished me, only to peel out, leaving tire tracks on the driveway of my soul?

 

I reapply, and this time I slather, hoping to make the magic last longer. But no - now I have Lemon Pledge with a hint of stale tobacco all over me. I guess you just can't reproduce that initial glow of attraction.

 

In about 30 minutes the chemical/tobacco reek has calmed down to something reasonably pleasant, but somehow I am just not enjoying it as much. I have fallen out of love so quickly! It was beautiful while it lasted, but I guess it was only infatuation. Reality behaves undependably and is sometimes harsh. *sigh*

 

Twenty minutes later the beautiful, fun-loving scent I remember is back, begging forgiveness, charming me again. But I can tell it's been smoking and I still have the tire marks on my driveway from the last time.

 

I'll think about it.

Edited March 15, 2008 by celtimor

[Blood onmy hands]

In the vial, I can smell the citrussy tangerine and a honeyed floral. The honeyed aspect is a bit sickly sweet, and it's rather cloying on my skin. And then this scent quickly goes *very* wrong on me. It's a bit like burnt rubber and something like rotten meat, covered in sugar and honey .

 

I had to scrub this off after 15 minutes because it was making me nauseous. Lover's Parodies goes sickly sweet and then incredibly off on my skin.

[alhbooks]

I've been yearning for tangerine and that's what I get, rather like sliced fruit drizzled with honey at the end of a sushi bar repast...I love my bottle. I may need another.

[SarahScent44]

In imp, this is light, sweet, and fruity for me - the tangerine is definitely the top note, but it's not the only thing here.

 

On my skin, it's very light and subtle - there's a sort of secret sensuality about it, a light warmth to it. I can't get any individual notes from it, and the tangerine has faded.

 

Thirty minutes later, it's completely disappeared!! I get the slightest hint of *something*, but nothing I can identify. So disappointed.