Mata Hari

[wikkidraven]

... Her scent is striking and bold with a delicate yet dark undertone: five roses with soft jasmine, warmed by vanilla, fig, tonka bean and mahogany, spiced with a drop of coffee bean.

stale coffee and amping jasmine...gotta get it off!

[ribcaged]

Goodness.

I was about to go nuts for not noticing the Jasmine note in the description and becoming overcome by the curiousity for the other notes by buying 5ml. Jasmine is overwhelming on me.

 

When I first sniffed the bottle I thought, "Oh no another powdery floral!?" and the same on my skin. Very very overwhelming. I could not smell anything else. However, I sniffed the bottle again which is when I found the coffee and after applying on my other wrist I could smell a dark undertone. It's bitter but still POWDERY. NOOO! I should have ordered that 5ml of Dragon's Milk instead.

 

I think giving this time to settle down and allowing my nose to recover.. I might stop smelling like an old lady. I wonder if I'd get compliments for this (edit: my mother says it smells of jasmine powder and my dad just insulted my fragrance. He doesnt like this but he likes how samhain smells and goodness my skin ITCHES I need to figure out if I have an allergy to one of the ingredients).

 

Bah.

Any takers...?

Edited May 21, 2007 by ribcaged

[crimescenecleanup]

This is the scent of a fearless, exotic, vivacious woman...who is beating me over the head with 2 dozen roses and a cup of Turkish coffee.

 

Again, Beth and the team take my breath away with another fabulously unexpected scent, but unfortunately, one that is too strong for my tastes.

 

I get no jasmine or vanilla with this one, just very strong rose with a strange biting overtone, like the taste of coffee grounds.

 

This isn't a soft rose, either. It's a strange, strong rose, with a tang to it. It's the smell of tea roses left to dry in the attic or to wilt in the sun, until their scent almost goes sour. And it it's strong...Even after letting it sit dry for an hour and then washing it off, the rose lingered.

 

This scent has such a kick to it. It's totally girly and feminine but it also gives the impression of being powerful and gutsy. Aptly named.

 

It's interesting, but the rose is just too strong for my tastes. I don't think I'll be able to wear this one undiluted.

 

On the bright side, when I washed it off, it left a lovely soft rosewater scent...maybe if I diluted it it would make a nice body mist, or something.

 

EDITED January/2008

 

OK this is a completely different scent after aging. Give it few months - it calms down and the notes blend into the loveliest, most complex floral - the coffee and tonka give it warmth and depth, the fig vanilla, and mahogany come more to the forefront, and the roses and jasmine turn into a really true, fresh, subtle scent of fresh blooming flowers.

 

Really gorgeous, but like many of the best BPAL scents, it needed to settle a bit.

Edited January 20, 2008 by crimescenecleanup

[Browneyes]

What an interesting scent combination at first... But ultimately all I get is floral notes that are a bit too heavy for me combined with a breath of stale coffee

[herbhealer]

I received an imp of this in a swap. I couldn't get past the strong urine-like odor coming from this one to try it on my skin. Maybe the jasmine? Or the combination of jasmine and roses? I love the others notes - coffee, mahogany, fig and vanilla, but sadly I cannot give this one a fair trial.

[Nia]

Wet: Jasmine. Lots of it. And they smell exactly like live jasmine on the plant, which is a bit different from the essence.

 

If Eos was "improved jasmine, only too mild", this is real, perfect jasmine, deepened by the other notes. It is as if the same woman had put on heavy make up, a tight black dress and stilettos. I would only wear this after dark.

[steffanina]

Mata Hari-

 

In Bottle: Jasmine does not love me; I smell dirty diapers.

 

Wet: Plastic dirty diapers.

 

Dry: Not an improvement on dry-down either. Sorry to be so terse about this, but this, I've learned, is the fate of jasmine scents with me.

 

Overall: Not for me.

[PersephonesChild]

This is pure jasmine on me, and nothing else. And I'm so disappointed! This had seemed like the perfect blend for me-- I love roses, I love coffee, I love vanilla, fig, mahogany sounded lovely... but this is nothing but the baby-pastel scent of jasmine.

 

So sad.

[jasmine]

This is one of only two Lab scents that claims to have a coffee facet (the other being Miskatonic University.) I would love to smell like the inside of a coffeeshop; with this many floral notes, it won’t happen here, but I’m giving it a whirl anyway. It sounds like fun.

 

Fresh on, this is a bouquet of lush, thick flowers in wild magenta shades. Jasmine blooms out all over my arm, but the roses keep it from smelling white -- there’s far too much rose, and it’s not a pure, pristine white rose, but a sultry dark red one. Instead, it’s just brilliant and startling -- the olfactory equivalent of being eyecatching.

 

This is fantastic, and it has huge presence. I think it may be a bit overpowering for the summer, but it’s flamboyant and sensual and flowing and coiling -- perfect for a scent named after a dancer.

 

After a bit, the warmth and the jasmine vanish, which is sad -- I liked the humid hothouse flower fullness of it. The end result is surprisingly chill and distant. It’s still pretty, but... nowhere near as appealing. I was drawn to this smell for its wildness and warmth.

 

More time passes, and it’s almost all rose now. The jasmine is gone; the roses are white, if not silver, and quite cold. I can detect a trace of wood underneath, finally, but it’s only a trace.

 

The jasmine reappears after a while longer, which is a bit of a relief. (I swear half of the Lab's scents need buttons reading "I Metamorphose Strangely Without Warning.") It’s not as wild and overwhelming as it was at first, but much nicer than when it went all cold. I could live without that intermediate flash, which was such a sharp disappointment, but it lasted less than half an hour, and I’m perfectly willing to accept it for the beginning and end results.

[CrazyPretzel]

I hate it! I love it! I hate it! I love it! Wait...now I'm just totally confused. lol.

 

In the imp: coffee and burnt toast.

Wet on skin: sex, coffee and burnt toast.

After five minutes: roses and stale coffee. Burnt toast fading.

After ten minutes: whoa, JASMINE! Rose and coffee blending nicely now and sort of a backdrop to the jasmine.

After twenty minutes: vanilla over silky spicey dark notes (coffee, wood) with some full-bodied rose and jasmine happening. Dark and sultry.

 

This is frankly too bewildering for me to handle a full bottle of, but I'll definitely keep the imp

[labeth]

I like vanilla and coffee and jasmine, so I thought I'd give Mata Hari a shot-- also, I had to, just for the name.

 

Well, I'm not getting any vanilla or coffee-- just jasmine and rose, amping like crazy. It's way, way floral on me, which is decidedly not my thing. There is a nice rich background to this, which is pleasant, but I just can't deal with all that rose.

[Nimthiriel]

In the vial (initial impression):

Lush jasmine and a few roses, but none of the "exotic" ingredients. It's strong and vibrant, and very feminine.

 

Initially on (wet):

Jasmine, once again - but wait! Something warm - vanilla, figs? Mmm. More of that to come, I hope!

 

Wearing it (dry):

10-20 mins after application, it has turned warm and lovely. The jasmine isn't overpowering, the roses stay in the background, and warm spices mingled with softening vanilla seal the deal. It's alluring!

 

20-30 mins after application, it has turned very soft and gentle, but still warm, semi-spicy and alluringly seductive. Mmm.

 

An hour later, it has gone warm and gentle, and it's overall an incredibly sexy and pleasant scent. Yay!

 

Finally:

Gotta keep. I think this is my new Bast scent, heh - more so than Bastet!

[Naamah_Darling]

Mmmm! Roses and . . . is that . . . yes, it's coffee. Roses and coffee. What an odd combination!

 

This is rosy, but it's a very fleshy rose, not very floral at all but more organic. The vanilla and warm tonka and mahogany notes are lovely here, combining with the slight hint of jasmine and the subtle coffee aroma to create a scent that is light and sophisticated, yet fleshy and sexual all at the same time. Really, a flawlessly elegant scent, and very appropriate to the subject.

 

Now, a word for those of you who hate the smell of coffee: this is not a coffee blend. The coffee bean note here is subtle, rich, and once it settles it vanishes into the smell of the tonka, mahogany, and vanilla. After a minute or so I cannot smell the coffee at all. So give this a chance. Really, the coffee note is strongest in the bottle.

 

This treads the border between floral and powdery without ever spilling into old lady or baby territory. I like it really well. Worth invstigating if you're looking for a floral that's a little different, but still traditional in approach.

[IBrokeIt]

This smelled like diaper on me. I think it's a mix of the baby powder scent someone else mentioned and the coffee. Too bad, from the notes I figured I'd enjoy it.

[stasha]

Oh gosh. Stale coffee in the imp and wet then dirty diaper on the dry down. This is the only BPAL scent so far that I've almost scrubbed my skin off to kill the scent. I don't know what note it is that made it go so sour on my skin but eeeek. Off off!

[Eucatastrophe]

Smelled lovely in the imp. Unfortunately when I put it on it immediately made me sneeze and I didn't really care for the smell. I didn't get any coffee, vanilla or jasmine. Just a very strong floral mess that my nose hates.

 

It does seem to be very long lasting though. Two vigorous soapy scrubs later and it's still lingering, though much softened.

 

I really wanted to like this too. Oh well.

[Babylon]

Mata Hari is... sitting in a garden of roses and jasmine, drinking a cup of coffee.

[Delirium1009]

When I first put this on, it smelled absolutely horrid. I could smell roses, and dirt/cigarette smoke with a baby powder undertone.

 

After a little while it faded to jasmine and musk with a touch of rose and a bit of coffee in the background. There was a fruity undertone as well. Unfortunately, the combo of the coffee and florals just didn’t work on me.

[Mixxi]

Wow this is such a strange combination!

 

In the imp: Dark ground coffee backed up by rosy sweetness.

 

On skin: When dry the coffee settles down and this is mostly roses with a touch of ground coffee spinkled over. I don't smell any jasmine, vanilla, fig, tonka bean etc. Just roses & coffee.

 

Overall: This is such a strange scent but I think I do actually like it! Will hang onto my imp and wear it a few times I think.. I don't think it's going to turn into a 5ml but it's a fun scent.

[Ceasg]

Mata Hari has been my first big disappointment. As an older teen, I loved Mata Hari's story and semi-idolized her. I wanted very much to love her scent namesake, but we just didn't agree.

 

Wet, she's all coffee and roses. Like others have said, the coffee is sour and made me a little sick at my stomach. Dry she becomes another too-heavy rose scent without many other identifying notes.

[amyw]

Oh, how I wish I could do jasmine. I really like all the other notes in this one, so I hoped the jasmine wouldn't take over.

 

But it does, every single time so far. This time it's a little more toned down than usual, so something else is grounding it a bit. Sadly, other than that, it got very soapy/diaper wipe on me. Somehow jasmine always ends up either old lady soap or diaper wipe on me. Sadness. I never get any other notes with this one either.

 

Someday, jasmine. Someday! *shakes fist*

 

(um, I don't know what will happen someday with jasmine - either we'll have a deathmatch or I'll be able to wear it, one or the other...)

[Severuslovesme]

I was initially nervous about Mata Hari because I don't love strong coffee smells on my skin. I smelled the coffee quite strongly in the bottle, but once it dried down the jasmine really came out. It's a lovely scent and it evolved very nicely - after a few hours I mostly smell vanilla and tonka with a hint of rose.

 

It's one of my absolute favorites!

[hellomoonglow]

Reading the description, it seems like I'd like this. But it kinda smells like nuts and nutty cereal and something else.....rose. Not for me but please, feel free to indulge yourself and swap me!

[Christine Daae]

In the imp: coffee!!

 

Wet on my skin: still coffee!!

 

As it dries, this is still mostly coffee on me, with only the teeniest hint of something floral (the jasmine, probably) and a bit of the tonka bean turning it into sweet vanilla coffee. I was wearing this a while ago and when someone hugged me they said I smelled like Starbucks. Which is fine with me!

[Torrain]

On me, this starts very floral, but sweet not soapy (I have a problem with roses sometimes turning to floral soap on me). I'm picking up some vanilla, and a little coffee.

 

This one's always floral on me; within an hour, it smells like nothing so much as Crabtree & Evelyn Rosewater soap. I realize this is a nice smell, but it doesn't move me.

 

Love and coffee,

Frances