Kabuki

[TheDarkMother]

Compelling, complex, and utterly enigmatic: a luxuriant, exotic blend of cherry, red musk, and star anise.

In the Bottle: Kabuki smells like a bright red cherry lolipop that is ooey and gooey from being left out in the sun for too long.

On Me: Its more like a cherry cough drop than a lolipop, though its extremely candied. I say cough drop cause there seems to be a camphor-like smell behind the cherry, something that really makes me think of throat spray, for some odd reason.

But its a musty cherry, a deep cherry, not the candied bright cherry but the tangy, sour cherry that I smell. This is the taste of a cherry once you get towards the center, near the pit. I almost want to say that this dries as an "adult" cherry. Its more mature than lolipops now. More like...I'm not sure how to describe it. And its starting to float away and show off more of the musk already.

I like this. Not in a big way, but I do like it.

[VorpalBunny]

When it goes on, it’s smoky cherry. There is a little hint of cough syrupy cherry but not enough to be a bad thing. I like the cherry here better than Red Queen. It’s darker and more mysterious, and sexier. After a few minutes, the faint cough syrupiness fades completely, and I almost smell an underlying something that reminds me vaguely of Snake Oil, with cherry overlaid on top. Later on, the anise comes out more strongly, and there is still a cherry scent but with an obvious anise smell. I love this one a lot.

[Ailgwyn]

I'm with the cherry cough syrup-black licorice camp on this one.

We got this as a freebie from the Lab (thank you muchly) but after one whiff in the vial, I'm afraid I got a little biased. It smelled sort of like Red Queen to me-- that is, pure Robitussin. Smelling it a little further yielded a faint anise in the background, which made it not so bad as before, but though I love me some black licorice whips, it's not something I like in my perfume.

On me, it turned very licorice, and like I said, in my mouth it's good, in my nose it ain't.

So Kabuki...off to the swap pile with ya. I'm sure someone will appreciate you more than I.

[velvet]

i have a very vivid memory of eating a huge cherry lollipop that tasted like then when i was about 4 or 5! insane that i remember it i know...

 

wet- cherry... and something heavy

drydown- smells like rootbeer and im really glad its not scream anise at me cause its not my favorite

 

so far so good. thanks to the lab for this freebie! i would have never picked it out myself.

[ismene]

The first time I wore Kabuki, I thought it was the pure, unadulterated scent of cherry blossoms. After a couple more wearings I decided it was more like a cherry Snake Oil. Lovely. Unfortunately, it fades away in about an hour on me.

[Eoywin]

I got this as a freebie today... and it smelled (unfortunely) like a nasty grape cough syrup... and it was super strong, and unfortunely added to my headache.

 

Unfortunely, one of those instant dislikes in the bottle sort of thing.

[grrrlennyl]

kabuki

 

at first: the lab included this as a freebie with my order. really, really sweet. all i smell is maraschino cherries. fabulous.

on: really, really sweet. i love this. i smell the anise, too. this is really decadent and gorgeous.

1 hour later: still gorgeous. regal. it's a very confident scent.

2 hours later: not as heavy of a scent, but still wonderful. womanly.

3 hours later: i still love this.

overall: this just smells so assertively feminine to me. i may treat myself to a 5ml if i end up wearing this a lot.

[luxuria]

Smelled like cherry candies in the imp, with the faintest touch of something else underneath.

 

On my skin, it stayed cherry candies but the anise came out. I am ENAMORED with this scent at this point. It's a very sexy, but pleasant and sweet, smell. I couldn't stop smelling myself. This would totally be my ultimate BPAL if it weren't for the morphing.

 

About an hour later..the cherries were replaced with the red musk but the anise remained. This doesn't exactly smell BAD, but I don't like it at all. I find it slightly nauseating. Distinctive, for sure. It leaves a really funny feeling in my nose and the back of my throat.

 

Three days later!!! I can still smell that final phase on my wrist. I shower daily, wash my hands, etc. I even tried to wash and scrub it off that first day. Now THAT is staying power!

[shelldoo]

hmmm in the bottle ludens cherry cough drops

 

wet still smelling cough drops

 

dry smells like chloreseptic

 

off for trade

[any_old_actress]

FIRST SNIFF - woah cherries!

 

WEARING IT - cherries still. this is so thick and sweet. as it wears more musk comes out and the cherries, although still there, tone down a bit.

 

VERDICT - a little too adventurous for me, i'm not a huge fan of cherries.

[JazzieCazzie]

Like many on this page, got this as a freebie from the Lab ... and though cherry is my No. 1 no-no-note, I wanted to at least give it a sniff before I put it in the regifting pile ...

 

Nope. Still doesn't work for me. I'm firmly in the Robitussin camp on this, Red Queen, etc.

 

It makes me sad, too, because it seems many of the scents that people I like are passionate about have the cherry/berry thing happening but it turns my stomach.

 

It also makes me happy, because I get to make said people happy by sending them impage!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[silverangel]

I love anise, as a food, but as a scent it makes this turn into a combination of coca cola and cherry cough syrup. I thought for sure i'd love this, I'm a cherry freak, really. But no, looks like not. So so sad. It just smells so medicinal on me.

[Soli]

in bottle: cherries galore

 

on application: more cherries! Oddly, when I wore this yesterday, I was reminded of cherry cough drops and syrup. Could be the whole start of winter thing.

 

Drying, the cherries linger, but the anise and musk are starting to come out. I am very curious to smell red musk on its own sometime to determine how it really is interacting with the other two notes.

 

This one ranks very high on my favorite list so far, and not just because I am a little nuts for things Japanese.

[Arafel]

Kabuki

 

In the bottle: Over-whelmingly cherry. I jerked back a little and realized why Jazzie thought this smells like cough syrup but swirling behind that smell was a beckoning finger of star anise and a whiff of red musk, so I journeyed on...

 

Wet: Such strong cherry, swirling in my mind's eye I see Okuni, kneeling in audience to the men who will become those to carry on her tradition of the dance. The cherry and anise drift from her kimono and obi. The musk is still in the background as the show is about to begin...

 

Dry down: The cherry has calmed with Okuni's demure smile, into that of the sakura blossoms during their prime season. Savored through sight and scent during both silent admiration and the joyous whisperings of awe. The red musk is cloyingly there, just barely, but enough to let it be known in the fashion of the word Kabuki, that which is a song and a dance, but done masterfully with art that will still one's heart with it's beauty. All of the actors are moving in and out of their parts; the cherry, star anise, and red musk. Okuni would be proud *soft smile*

 

 

Very pleasant, it's calming and beautiful, sweet in the gentlest of ways. The musk keeps the cherry and star anise in check, without letting it steal the show

 

Thank you Jazzie *bows* for the opportunity to try this

 

 

**Okuni ~ Kabuki was founded early in the 17th century by Okuni, a shrine maiden who brought her unique and lively dance style to the dry river beds of the ancient capital of Kyoto.

[rainbow]

I love cherries and I love anise so I was very excited about this. In the vial- my imp is wafting anise, musk and resin. It's very nice and quite sophisticated.

 

Wet on my skin- cherries. Big time. Bright cherry-red candies. It almost smells like I'd expect a cherry single note to smell. Then it starts to take on a cherry cough syrup feel (and I kind of like that).

 

As I'm wearing the anise gets a bit more oomph and makes the cherry scent darker and more complex. I mentioned in the similarity to Lush scents thread that this smells much like Jingle Spells bath bomb, but should clarify that I get that Jingle Spells scent (which is a darker, more musk and resin type scent) after an hour or two of wear, and you do have to go through a long cherry phase to get there. Not that the cherry phase isn't nice- I adore it- but it is a contrast to the darker elements of the scent.

 

Overall, this is a lovely adult cherry scent. Definite big bottle for me.

[LupaWulf]

This was from Larajc - what a sweetie for tossing this one in!

 

I totally didn't even have Kabuki on my list even to try an imp of. Not certian why...

 

MAN!

 

Sniffing the bottle made me drool. I can smell pear! And Cherry! And spices, like in spice cake! (Had to restrain myself from drinking the oil, and just put some on my wrists )

 

The fruits and berries in this one make me just want to go crazy using it as a room scent!

 

I tried it on (worried it wouldn't work since I loved it so much in the bottle). The wonderious fruits and spice stayed! All Day! I got quite a few complaments at work on my perfume too. It sort of changed to mostly cherries after a while, and by afternoon smelled like cherry coke. Not the fake in the can kind mind you, but the REAL kind you get at the old 50's style diners with the heavy cherry syrup in the bottem of the big glass.

 

*rapture*

 

I think I will get at least another imp of this one, if not an entire bottle.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Cherry cough drops. Something a bit musky in the background - it's different from what I am used to. I do believe this is my first encounter with red musk, which would explain that.

 

On me: Very true to the bottle. Red musk and cherry candy - it's quite pleasant. I didn't expect to much care for it, but I do! It's pretty and delicate. The musk grows stronger as the day wears on, but the cherry never fades away.

[nevermore]

I recived an imp of Kabuki from my wonderful swap faery, and I really like it. The cherry is all I can smell at first, but after a while, the anise comes out somewhat. Not terribly complex, but more simple and fun. It's not especially long lasting, but it's nice while it's there.

 

However, I would like this blend more if it didn't give me big, painful, red welts where I apply it. It only does this some of the time (maybe half), so I can wear it some of the time. Since I can't wear this whenever I want, I won't buy a bigger bottle, but certainly another imp after the one I have is gone.

[aimeceleste]

This one smelled very cherrylicious in the imp. I thought I would really like it, I like red fruits a lot.

 

But as it dried, I started to smell a sort of sugary ammonia smell.

 

I didn't like smelling like sweetened cat piss.

 

Luckily, near the end, it just smelled sweet, like powdered sugar.

 

Not something that I want to repeat, overall.

 

EDIT: tried it with different clothes on. That made a big difference. I think the first time the scent somehow reacted with my angora sweater, and turned foul.

Edited January 7, 2005 by aimeceleste

[LunaSea]

I realized last night that I hadn't written a review for Kabuki yet. And as it is one of my absolute favorites, that is just wrong.

 

This was one of the first imps I ordered, and I am another one who doesn't like to read reviews until I've sniffed, so by the time it arrived I didn't remember the notes. But even my newbie nose could pull out the two main notes of this one - cherry and anise (yeah! that's why I ordered it! Oh, and my love of all things Japanese.)

 

In the bottle, cherry comes out first. But in the bottle, on my skin, and many hours later this one stays true. Beautiful sweet cherry and yummy anise. And being Italian, smelling like anise is a wonderful thing indeed. Now, I absolutely HATE black liquorice. Disgusting stuff. But genuine anise is lovely, and that's the anise in Kabuki. Pure anise oil. Mmmmm. Reminds me of many years of pizzelle baking, or watching grandma or mom make them.

 

And Kabuki is definitely sexy - the first night I tried it, I was sniffing my new batch of imps and had my hubby sniff O, which I said smelled like sex. When I opened Kabuki and sniffed, I had to put some on and said "Now, THIS is sex oil!" He practically gnawed off the presented wrist! My 5ml is on the way, and I'm wondering why I didn't go for the big bottle!

[darkitysnark]

Kabuki

 

(**Accidentally posted in bpal dot org forum, updated here. My apologies if this turns into a repeat if/when the forums merge.**)

 

Another lovely gimp from the lab, thank you! I was not sure how cherries would react to me, so this was low on my list, but I'm glad I got to try it. Actually, one of my best food memories is of eating pounds of black cherries on the Fourth of July and spitting pits into the field as we watched the fireworks.

 

In the bottle:

Dark cherry syrup.

 

Wet:

Cherries! Not the bright red of marachinos (sp?) but more of the ooey gooey center of a high end confection enrobed in the darkest chocolate. I just keep thinking "darkity dark dark dark"... which is probably heavily influenced by the color of the oil in the imp. This is one of the darkest blends I've tried so far. I can even see it on my wrist when I first apply it. This is strangely satisfying.

 

Drydown:

The anise is turning this into Twizzlers on me, very candy-like, but there's still darkness (which I have since dubbed the musk) lurking, keeping it from being full-blown candy-shop.

 

Later:

It's been about four hours and this one is fading fast. I'm not getting any waft, but can still pick up the dark candied cherry when I sniff my wrists.

 

Conclusion:

I am really straddling the fence on this one. This will probably go up for swap, but I feel like I've given her short shrift due to my on-again, off-again head cold that has really interfered with my imp testing. I might give her one more go just because the dark luscious color is so compelling.

[paschat]

I wasn't even going to give Kabuki a second thought, as it contains anise, which is an ingredient that I cannot stand in a fragrance. However I received a sample with my order, and I am so glad I did! This is a lovely cherry oil, that is not too sweet. The anise is very subtle, and tames the sweetness of the cherry nicely. A note of red musk compliments these two notes, creating a lovely, dark, rich cherry perfume oil. Very nice!

[Shimmershadow]

In the bottle: SPICY CHERRIES!! WHOA!!

 

On me: More cherry, less spicy. Dries down into a more licorice scent, smells kinda weirdly plasticky.

 

And so... Foody scents, even something as reasonably innoccuous as licorice and cherry, just don't excite me. I was hoping this might be more Japanese-incense-y, but nope...licorice. *sigh*.

[Gin]

Kabuki transforms very quickly on my skin. It goes from bright red cherry to cherry cough syrup to licorice at a dizzying speed. I love the initial burst of cherry, but the licorice is not so good on me.

[sh1mm3r]

Thanks to velvet for throwing this in with a swap.

 

Wet: Cherry, cherry, cherry. Like I stuck a sticky cherry lollipop to my wrist.

 

Drying down: starting to smell the anise

 

Dry: Cherry still very strong, but the red musk has poked his head out to temper it. It's not bad, but it's not really me.

 

Actually, it might be a great Valentines Day scent. *ponders*