Morocco

[nineveh]

The intoxicating perfume of exotic incenses wafting on warm desert breezes. Arabian spices wind through a blend of warm musk, carnation, red sandalwood and cassia.

Morocco was less sexy and dark than I had hoped for, based on the description. Instead, this is a very soft, subtle scent. The musk smells light but does not turn into dryer sheets on me, thankfully. There's a bit of spice here that stays in the background and doesn't overwhelm. Sometimes I think that I can smell vanilla.

Even though it wasn't what I had expected, I still really like this and will probably get a bottle.

[lokelani]

I absolutely *adore* this scent. It smells like I expected Silk Road to smell (Silk Road unfortunately just came out cinnamon on me). It's dry and spicy and a little bit sweet -- almost a vanilla-y sweetness. I can't really pick out individual notes because everything blends together so well. Oh, so pleased! I was a little concerned about this, because sandalwood has the tendency to overpower other scents on my skin, but here it's just part of the happy family of scents. How nicely they all get along!

 

I'm thinking this is almost certainly a big bottle scent.

Edited June 23, 2005 by lokelani

[telesilla]

Old Morocco went really sweet on me with none of the spiciness that most of the reviewers mentioned. I couldn't tell any of the individual notes at all and it just had a sort of generic perfume smell that wasn't bad but didn't wow me either.

 

Since it didn't change on the dry down, my initial thought was that I'd use the rest of the imp but not replace it, but then a friend offered to swap for O, so I'm sending it to her

[empi girl]

I can smell the same musk that was in Scherezade in Morocco. I like it in Morocco better, it balances really nicely with the spices. The spices are blended together so well they are hard to distinguish individually. I don't really notice the carnation much.

 

As it wears, the musk becomes stronger, and the spices dissipate. One hour in, I'm left with a faintly earthlike smell-sweet dirt, if that makes sense! I'm thinking it is the combination of the musk and the carnation. The spices are all gone by now. No sandalwood at all.

 

I have to say, the sweet dirt is interesting (I like earthy scents). I'm going to try it again another day and not be hasty on swapping this one!

[sarahjay]

I thought I had reviewed morocco long ago (but can't see it). I have a 10ml bottle of this & love it, but haven't worn it much lately as I've been wearing more spring like floral blends. I've got it on today & I'm blown away all over again by its loveliness - my bottle is 6months or so old now & it's aged beautifully

 

and it's fantastic when used with lush's potion

[Blood onmy hands]

I really don't understand why this is so popular. It smells like faint baby powder to me... it's the same in the imp, on my skin, and on other people. All I smell is baby powder. I definitely don't get any of the richness of carnation, red sandalwood, or spices.

 

ETA: This is one of those bpal scents that never smells the same, like it is composed of random ingredients every time I've gotten a new imp or bottle. I've gotten versions that are powdery, versions that smell like sour cedar, versions that smell like fluffy vanilla, and versions that are spicy. I ordered a full bottle after getting a recent imp that smelled vanilla-y, but then the bottle smelled like sour woods. Really irritating.

Edited July 9, 2012 by Little Bird

[Ailine]

I received a decant of Old Morocco in an imp lot off eBay; I don't know how much it's been reformulated but the descriptions are similar enough to give me hope.

 

I love this. I spent fifteen minutes sniffing my wrist and wracking my brain trying to remember what this reminds me of, and I finally got it.

 

Back before I found BPAL and was wandering in the desert of commercial perfumes, one of my favorites was Dior Addict. While I wasn't overly fond of the strong neroli and mandarin notes, they quickly faded leaving me with many hours of sandalwood and tonka goodness; things got especially good around hour 5.

 

This oil is like jumping directly to hour 5, nothing but sandalwood and vanilla and gentle spiciness, and no waiting for the yicky citrus to die away.

 

I feel the need to buy this in bulk.

[sitanpu]

Ooh, this is good. I received a 5ml of Old Morocco off of ebay, and received it today. Opened it, tried to apply, reducer makes it spill *all over* my leg and arm. Luckily, this is a glorious scent. On me it's lasted all day but is a bit faint. It's all warm vanilla and sandalwood(?) and spices..and smells exactly like I thought Snake Oil would. This is like a Snake Oil that works on my skin. A sexy, but beautiful and elegant scent, memorable but not overbearing.

[oceangirl]

In the imp: Warm musky scent. Slightly manly, but very exotic.

 

Wet: The musk really pops out on this one. I can smell the sandalwood too. It's still nice and warm.

 

Dry: Still musk and sandalwood. Smells faintly of vanilla as well. For some reason, it makes me think of Chanel No. 5. It has the same warm undertone to it.

 

I like this. It's nice and warm, and it would work well for a date. I'll keep the imp.

 

Fiance's opinion: My fiance said he smelled an undertone of baby powder. I don't know where he got that from.

[Carmencita]

In the bottle this smells to me like incense or a bohemian clothing shop.

 

At first application it smells like muslin and musk.

 

After it dries all I can smell is the musk and I don't like it.

 

Several hours later it mellows a bit but is still too musky for me and smells like white freshmint tic-tacs.

 

Overall, this scent is not for me, but some of you who like musks which are very apparent but not too overwhelming, will probably enjoy it.

[parrot_suspect]

I don't get a lot of vanilla, spice or any type of floral from Morocco (I'm testing a tarted imp of "Old Morocco."). What I do get -- soft, almost soapy, powdery woods. This is a dead-ringer for the fragrance Costes (by Hotel Costes). A gentle, clean, soapy woodsy scent, with a touch of musk and incense in the drydown. I detect cedar and sandalwood -- but again, these woods are soft and muted, not harsh and sharp. I'm thinking I need a 5 ml of this, because I do like the woodsy scents.

Edited July 11, 2005 by parrot_suspect

[olympia301]

 

Cigar smoke starts the action here. I happen to love cigar smoke, and there is this perfume dancing and whirling around behind it. Then it starts to emerge that you are in a room paneled in luan wood. Nothing else smells like that, it is wonderful. You must be blindfolded in one of the men's teahouses deep in Fez, can't see it but can smell the surroundings. Recline on the soft cushions, this is a great ride.

 

The cigar smoke disappears eventually, but the luan wood stays for the entire time. Very masculine and fine. This scent lingers and is very woody, warm, spicy in a woody way, real unique, it's a true winner.

 

The only drawback to Morocco for me is that it is one of the few BPAL scents which is too masculine for me to wear. That's saying a lot because I usually refuse to recognize the distinction between genders in scent, but I am making an exception in the case of Morocco. It would be gorgeous and tres sexy on a man, and on the right woman. I love this blend.

Edited July 13, 2005 by olympia301

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 4/5

Summarised in a word or two: Spicier Snake Oil.

 

In the imp/bottle: The first thing I notice is something like vanilla. This is very spicy, but aside from vanilla, I can't pick out any specific note.

 

On skin, wet: Oh, this is divine! It reminds me (as it seems to remind a few others) of Snake Oil, with less vanilla, and a bit spicier.

 

On skin, dry: No change from wet, thankfully. A very Snake Oil-like scent, easy on the vanilla and heavy on the spice.

 

Conclusion: I have to slather to get any potent scent, but I really don't mind.

Edited December 24, 2005 by Aredhel

[Dark Sparkle]

Initially, I get a lot of vanilla from Morocco but it is a soft gentle vanilla with some warm spices. On my skin it stays in its vanilla stage - I would have loved more spices though - it is also a lot sweeter than I would have thought.

 

I really like Morocco so far as it is a very warm, sensual and "friendly" scent, I only wish it would not have disappeared within one hour from my skin .

 

I have to try Morocco some more times before I decide if this is going to be a bottle or not, hmmm.

[coulrophobe]

How is it that I haven't reviewed this one yet? It's been a favorite for months, but I've neglected to write about it...

 

Anyway. Preconceived notions - I've always been interested in the country of Morocco (and North Africa in a more general sense) - so I was hoping I'd like this. I didn't order solely based on the name, the ingredients all sounded like things that would work on my skin (musk! spice! yay!) - but the name did play a part in why this was part of my very first order.

 

Wearing Morocco, I get almost no spice whatsoever. And though I do like spicy scents, I'm perfectly OK with Morocco being unspicy, because it smells so perfectly me. Warm, dry but soft, very comforting. I've noticed a marked differece between my imps and my 10 ML - the bottle smells much more cedary (or maybe it's just a stronger dose of sandalwood), while my imps are predominantly sweet white musk (very similar to Antique Lace, but with a bit less creamy vanilla). But both are gorgeous.

 

Morocco has become my all-purpose scent - I can wear it to work, for evening wear, to sleep in, or to just hang out doing whatever in, and it just smells like what I've always imagined myself smelling like.

[quimerula]

This is a very smooth and sexy perfume.

I can smell spices, carnation and musk when wet.

I has a light masculine touch on my skin, maybe because of the red sandalwood.

I like it very much, but I wish it to stay longer...

Maybe I could fix it buying 10ml!

[dcmo]

No words to describe this but Wow and Love it, can't be without it! Sweet, spicy, exotic, intoxicating, transports me to another country. I just love this. Perfect for fall and winter. I agree that it's similar to snake oil without as much vanilla. In the same sort of family as scherezade also, because of the middle eastern feel.

[judas_kiss]

This was gifted to me by a sweetie forumite.

 

In the bottle, this is very sweet. I cannot make out any notes really, but it is a sweet-woody scent.

 

On! Wow! This is just gorgeous. Very soft, a sweet/spicey woody scent. I really love the way these come together. I do not get any definitive carnation scent, but the musk (soft) is prevalent as well as the spices and woods. I think the carnation is what sweetens it up a bit. This is not the sweetness you find in Dorian or Alice, but more of a light dusting of sugar.

 

Overall, this is a beautiful scent. Definitely one I will buy as a big bottle. I don't know how Beth does it, but she's a precious, brilliant gem!!

[lissamc]

Wet: Warm wood and spice. Not too strong at first, then as it warms a tasty sweet-spicy scent starts to waft.

 

3 1/2 Hours later: This one has melded, and stayed subtle. I think it is gone, then I put my nose to my wrist and get a whiff of honey-gold warm spicy skin. I think I need to slather some more on to actually get a good feel for this one.

 

Later verdict: Very nice. This would be a good subtle day wear scent, for when I want something extra but don't want to stand out. Keep and use the imp.

Edited August 3, 2005 by lissamc

[Ms Density]

Not that Morocco needs any more reviews, but...

 

I never thought I would understand what people mean when they say something smells creamy, but now I do because I've tried Morocco. This morning I layered it on. I put some Morocco into my hands and rubbed it in with my lotion. Then I put some on my wrists, below my ears and in my hair. The scent is so smooth and it doesn't overpower, so it's perfect for this type of layering.

 

It's so perfectly well-blended too! I get hints of vanilla, musk, caramel, sandalwood, cedarwood, and spice. None of those notes overpower the others; they smell like they were spun together. It's the perfect balance of earthy, sweet, woods and spice.

 

I'm certain this will be my first catalog 5ml purchase.

Edited August 5, 2005 by Ms Density

[QueenFae]

A lovely, soothing, intoxicating blend. The carnation and the spices are the top notes on me. It's a feminine, spicey, musky, red type of scent. I think it perfectly embodies Morocco. It makes me envision exotic beautiful women in brightly colored garb. Very yummy, I will certainly enjoy my imp.

[stardreamer]

First reaction: This is a lot lighter than I was expecting, though maybe that's just because I had Snake Charmer on yesterday. There's some floral, but it's not overpowering; carnation is one of the few florals I really like. I can definitely pick up a bit of the sandalwood, too.

 

Drydown: Oh, this is nice! It's mild and sweet, very relaxing. I don't get any individual spice note, but I'll bet it's got mostly the sweeter ones -- cinnamon, clove, vanilla, maybe cardamom.

 

Long-term: The florals gradually fade, leaving the musk and spices behind. This will be lovely on a long, hot summer evening, maybe at an outdoor concert. It might be a good meditation scent, too; for some reason it evokes feelings of "relaxed and centered" for me. Staying power seems to be pretty good, though it's harder to tell because I touched it up several hours into the test period. Definitely a keeper!

[Krista]

This is not what I expected at all! It's so much better than I had thought it would be.

 

I imagined heavy spice, but instead, Morocco is a nice, light vanilla with a hint of musk and spices. It's gorgeous. I think this would be a really lovely fall scent, and it could be layered really well with a lot of vanilla scents like Snake Oil or Antique Lace.

 

I love this and I will be buying a 10ml.

[arabella]

First Impression: Creamy spices.

 

Dries down to: Doesn't change much; it just softens a bit.

 

Additional Comments: This is a really lovely, rich exotic blend. It reminds me of Snake Oil. I couldn't pick out any specific notes at all - it's very well blended. Unfortunately, it was too short-lived on my skin, so I'll have to use it in a scent locket or as a room fragrance - it's too gorgeous to give up on entirely.

 

Lasted: Less than an hour.

 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 (would be higher if it lasted better on me)

[Muppetk]

Wet: light, cassia/sandlewood and mild vanilla. Just this side of foody.

 

Drying: strengthing a little bit. Good. I don't really do subtle. If it stays this light, I'd have to slather. The carnation spicyness comes out a bit more here. This is reaaallllly nice.

 

Dry: The same except the mellow vanilla is abit more in the background. Stable scent, and addictive. I see why this one is compared to antique lace. Mild,mellow vanilla with lovely, also mellow spice. Pretty! And perfect for when I'm feeling less blunt. More mellow than my usual style.

 

I'm going to need more of this!