To a Woman

[slave1]

TO A WOMAN

 

Thy fatal shafts unerring move,

I bow before thine altar, Love.

I feel thy soft resistless flame

Glide swift through all my vital frame.

 

For while I gaze my bosom glows,

My blood in tides impetuous flows;

Hope, fear, and joy alternate roll,

And floods of transports whelm my soul.

 

My faltering tongue attempts in vain

In soothing murmurs to complain;

My tongue some secret magic ties,

My murmurs sink in broken sighs.

 

Condemned to nurse eternal care,

And ever drop the silent tear,

Unheard I mourn, unknown I sigh,

Unfriended live, unpitied die.

 

Benzoin, cassis bud, patchouli, rose otto, and petitgrain.

 

In Bottle: Sharp spice

 

On Skin: The rose otto and patchouli are strongest on me. Sadly, this is not a good thing because both these notes tend to hate my skin with a passion. This scent is very sharp, very strong and very sour on me. The cassis bud is spicy, the benzoin is sticky and sweet, but gets run over but the stronger more dominant notes. The petitgrain is fruity and orange, it’s citrus note adding more to the sour tint. Overall the scent feels like a rose blend with a earthy citrus side. The throw is moderate to strong and seems to have a long wearlength on me.

[alicia_stardust]

I can immediately recognize the rose otto. The patchouli sort of grounds this out a bit; I find it to be a gentle patchouli and it goes well with the creamy, balsamic benzoin resin. I do pick up a hint of a woodsy-floral which might be the petitgrain.

 

The contribution of each of the above notes in lovely in itself, but the thing that truly elevates this blend to a work of art is that cassis bud! As the oil dries, the cassis (not to be confused with the cinnamon-like cassia) becomes a prominent factor in this blend. It is the young hint of what will become a darkly astringent, juicy blackcurrant. When that combines with all of the other notes? Exaltation.

[filigree_shadow]

I'm not sure how to describe this scent. It smells hazy but sharp at the same time. Not sharp in the way that herbal scents are sometimes described as sharp, but sharp like pointed. It's bold and not soft at all. No round edges.

 

The rose otto just gives it a little sweetness; it doesn't smell mostly like a floral blend to me. It's mostly patchouli and benzoin... you know, I think it's the petitgrain that is making it smell unique to me. I've had mixed success with petitgrain, but in this one I like it. Maybe because I don't smell it very often -- don't have any perfumes with petitgrain in them.

 

I'm not sure it's "my" kind of scent, but the more I sniff it the more I like it. It's strangely alluring.

[sookster]

 

straight sniff from imp is strangely vegetable-like to me

 

once applied the rose and petitgrain make an appearance...spicy and

sort of resiny...but not quite...hard to put my finger on this one...

but wait...oh, there is the patchouli in this; veeeeeeeery well blended

and not to be feared...

 

completely different than anything else i have ever had the experience

of trying..

 

i must agree with FS's review about being "strangely alluring"...'tis true indeed

[Miss Lynx]

This one is odd -- not unpleasant, but not exactly what I was expecting, either. The rose, thankfully, does not overpower it, and neither does the patchouli, though both those notes and easily dominate a scent completely.

 

It's sweet, but more green than anything -- I think I'm getting a lot of petitgrain (bitter orange leaf, kind of a greener version of neroli). There's definitely a bit of fruity sweetness from the the cassis (a.k.a. blackcurrant), and benzoin, which is always pretty subtle, sort of smooths and balances it.

 

It's not bad at all, but there's a slightly harsh edge in there somewhere that's throwing it off a bit for me. It's a bit like the way some natural essential oils have a slightly medicinal edge -- maybe it's essential petitgrain or something. So probably not a keeper after all...

 

Grade: B-

[savage_rose]

I tried this on in the BPAL section at Whole Foods Roswell and was freaked out when I realized that it smelled like my Mom. I don't even know how to describe that with all of the mixed, complex emotions I have for my Mom, but I was even more freaked out when I tested it and I swear I smelled a hint of tobacco (my Mom's a big smoker). It smelled nostalgic, and slightly sweet. Very much a morpher.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Citrus, sharp greenness, spicy patchouli and strong resin.

 

Wet: Sour-bright citrusy petitgrain leads the way. The patchouli and benzoin are just behind, and quickly cassis joins. But the rose is very faint.

 

Dry: The benzoin and cassis bud dominate now, although the petitgrain and earthy patchouli are still strong notes. The rose remains woefully distant. I'm getting a sexy masculine vibe.

 

Summary: In order of dominance: patchouli, then benzoin, with cassis and petitgrain following closely. It's a deep, spicy, slightly sour-fresh, herbal-earthy blend. Moderate throw, great lasting power.

[Blood onmy hands]

I agree with a previous reviewer in that this smells strange and vegetable-like to me in the vial, but not in the good way that fresh veggies smell. It makes me think of veggies cut up for salad with a vinegar dressing, if that salad were made with wilted, turning-bad vegetables perhaps. It's a strange, sharp fragrance. I think that I smell something rose-like and dry underneath that as well.

 

On my skin, I still don't really know how to describe this, and I'm not sure I can really claim to pick out any of the notes. It smells like a very dry, sharp rose. Powdery and extremely dry and light on my skin. It's very subtle, slightly dark, and gives off a vibe of being slightly medicinal as well.

 

Medicinal, dry, sharp, dark rose is all I get from To a Woman, and even that fades very quickly on my skin.

[djsiberia]

wet: medicine and woodsy

 

i wish i would get the rose & patchouli as these are 2 of my favorite scents. alas, i'm getting everything else but my favorite things.

[Wwindy]

Fascinating! When I first put To a Woman on, it smelled much like I had expected The Clod & The Pebble or maybe Pulcinella & Teresina to smell. Both of those were a little too harsh on me, but this is lovely.

 

I don't generally do well with rose notes, but whatever's going on with the rose otto in this blend, it works for me -- not too overpowering, not old-ladyish, not heavily perfumey, just pretty! The throw for some time is very much rose and what I would have sworn was cedar. The rose and whatever is doing the cedar impersonation are definitely predominant for a good long time.

 

After a couple of hours, I can pick up the benzoin (I'm learning to track benzoin by that faint breath of hairspray-like smell!) and a tiny bit of faint fruitiness. It is a "purple" sort of fruit note to my nose, but very delicate; I'm not detecting any of the citrus reported by some people. I'm also not picking up any overt patchouli, and I'm a patchouli lover whose skin usually brings that note out! I think it's just working in the background of this blend.

 

I keep coming back to that one overall impression: Rose and cedar, but soft, rich and well-blended, with a warm, intriguing depth. I'm excited to have a patchouli blend I can wear to work without worrying about overwhelming people!

[soonyi]

origin: lab frimp

 

well, i must say that i hate patchouli, in large part cos when i smell it, it's all i can smell. and that is basically what To A Woman is to me, with a little rose on top. thanks but no.

Edited May 6, 2008 by soonyi

[Quinara]

Wet, this is all cassis to me. In fact it's almost exactly the scent of crème de cassis, which is quite lovely - a very dark, slightly heady blackcurrant. As it dries it lightens up a bit, with the rose and the petitgrain cutting into the blackcurrant with a hint of floral-y dryness.

 

Eventually it ends up with with a patchouli/benzoin woody-dark scent that's familiar from Goblin, but instead of coconut over the top there's a lovely memory of the sweet, blackcurrant-y beginning.#

 

All in all, why isn't To a Woman getting more love? As time goes on, I can imagine the bezoin, patchouli and cassis just getting deeper and sweeter and tastier. Give it a go!

[MeiLin]

I smell nothing but wood--on the cedar end of things, not the sandalwood end of things, which makes it deadly on me. This rates a "meh."

[Indigo78]

Imp-to-nose, To A Woman has something that really reminds me of a vial of Cypress oil I had as a teenager. Melancholy and wistful, not to mention sort of repellent (hey, at fifteen you can pull anything off)

 

This smells "off" when first applied, but morphs very quickly. The woods are in the background, pressing toward the front, and after twenty or so minutes they become the strong point. I never get strong Patchouli here, which is fine by me.

 

Sweetening constantly, this blend improves the longer it is on my skin. Not the type of scent I would wear, but will hold onto the imp for a novena or sachet.

Edited June 16, 2008 by Indig0

[zankoku_zen]

At the beginning, this was very green, like green shoots. I definitely got a mix of rose/blackberries with a lot of green sap on wet. But it's dried to a very bright woody berry. It's lighter than I would have expected when dried. Very intrigued.

Edited July 8, 2008 by zankoku_zen

[theseagrows]

eh, i get a sharp rose and patchouli from this with something else that i can't quite place. maybe benzoin? except i thought i liked benzoin, and i am not much liking this scent. it's kind of sour and unremarkable on my skin. rose often works, but this is one of the roses that just doesn't work. perhaps it's because it's mixed with patchouli, which is also hit or miss? i can't be sure.

[Iceblink]

I'm getting tons of cedar from this too. I guess that's the petitgrain? It's just very, very woody with some patchouli in there too. I'm sad that I can't smell the cassis.

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Faint petitgrain and that's it

 

On Application

Dry and dusty faint rose. Nice

 

Dry Down

This is a nice soft, earthy rose thanks to the patchouli. The rose doesn't amp up for me. I really like it. Will have to do a full wear test before deciding on a bottle.

 

Rating (0-5)

4

[mylogicsaysburnsendmeaway]

A lovely frimp from the lab,

 

On me this is patchouli/ rose sexy bliss. I don't really get anything woody or green. Those notes must be underneath and supporting the patchouli and rose otto. This is one of the richest, smoothest least dirty patchouli I have ever smelled. Comforting and sexy at the same time- that's the best kind of perfume.

[LauraB]

This is very, VERY woody. There is a bit of resin in there, but no cassia or rose at all. I smell like a chest that was bought from a hippy shop and then heavily varnished - not really what I was expecting!

[Czarina]

Lab frimp.

 

In the imp: cedar and cigarette ashes. Weird.

Wet: patchouli.

Drydown: Hm. Much better. Woody with a hint of rose.

[sirsaber]

this is indescribable. It smells floral but not overly. It smells very green but yet not overly so. I am inclined to agree that though I am not sure about this, it is strangely alluring. It even has a mildly aquatic scent. Its all unusual but good.

[rayvn1]

Since I didn't have the lab description around when I tried this one on I was surprised it wasn't floral or feminine. Surprised in a good way though! I love the patchouli spiciness of this blend. Keeper!

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

i used to love the Body Shop's "Of A Woman" scent, and for some insane reason i was hoping this might be similar. i dunno why, i knew better. but still hoped.

 

petitgrain is Bitter Orange, and that's the main thing i smell out of this. bitter orange and bad patchouli. back off to swaps you go!

[hkhm]

imp: patchouli and benzoin.

 

wet: moderate patchouli and a bit of rose otto. this is nicely different from most "rose" scents in that it doesn't go soapy instantly. rose otto seems to smell more floral rather than rose-y or soapy.

 

dry: it's dried down back to patchouli and benzoin.

Edited December 28, 2008 by hkhm