Catherine

[InaraRedCloak]

Named for the ambitious, vengeful poisoner Catherine deMedici, who used perfumes to perform her dark deeds. A sinful blend of orange blossom, rosemary and rose... allegedly the exact perfume she utilized in her work.

 

Age Unknown: Date: November 2016

In the vial: Bitter. The flower/floral scents all disappear. I get way more rosemary than anything else. The rose is hiding under the rosemary. The orange blossom is all but bitter. (which might be bitter because of age)

 

Wet on Skin: I finally get some rose. The deep rose hits first then the orange blossom mixed with the rosemary the bitterness is still there It gives a poisonous depth to the scent. I've scented conventional/commercial perfumes that have tried to create this scent. The rosemary lends a very herbal/alchemist shop mood.

 

Dry 30+ mins: The rose has softened and blended with the orange blossom. The rosemary is still grounding everything in the background However, there is a powdery quality I don't like. I've had rose scents/oils before and from the scent and viscosity of this oil, I'm guessing it's over a couple years old. I'm really curious what a "fresh" bottle would smell like.

 

Worn 3+ hours: A lot of the scent ha dried away. I still get a lot of rose. During this time, I caught a lot of rosemary. This oil smells like elegant poison, in a good way; the whole -don't eat this, it's dangerous.

 

Not for me. The rosemary makes this scent too herbal for me and it kills the rose.

[Lucchesa]

Catherine was a wishlist frimp from a generous forumite, and I'm so delighted to get to try it. Wet, Catherine is bracing, and I like it quite a bit. There's rose and orange blossom lingering in the background, but the astringent rosemary is the main player. It reminds me a lot of Bess without the Dimetapp grape interfering. Having been a Renaissance scholar, I have a soft spot for these Renaissance blends. My skin eats up the rosemary within 90 minutes or so, though, after which it is a soft orange blossom and rose blend which is far less interesting on me.