Siren

[Sheyona]

Bewitching, tantalizing and dangerously seductive. A thrilling, exotic blend -- deceptively sweet, but spiked with malice. White ginger, jasmine, and a touch of vanilla and apricot.

in the bottle I smell the ginger jasmine and a whiff of vanilla. i didnt really like how it was in the bottle but i figured it was worth the skin test.

on my wrist it mutates to sandalwood. sandalwood with a whiff of nutmeg. like cookies baking on a wood stove without smoke. I don't get it but that is what it does. also the boyo actually likes this scent on me and has no adverse issues with it. this one for how it mutates is a definite keeper.

[mhickle]

In the imp, this is all sharp sweetness. When I first apply it, it's still sweet, and the sharpness disappears for a while. I am definitely getting vanilla out of this. It's not very floral, as the jasmine seems to blend right in with the other notes. Then, the strangest thing happens for the first hour or so of wearing this - every time I sniff it, I get the sweetness, but an unmistakable whiff of wax crayons. It's not like "hmmm, this sort of smells waxy." It is full on crayon. I thought I would be sending Siren to the swap pile. After that hour or so, though, it goes away completely, and I'm left with a blend of jasmine and vanilla that is so well done you just don't know where one stops and the other begins, with this sharp ginger floating on top of it. As we walked into our building, my husband commented on how good this one smells. It was before it had made the shift away from crayon, so I said "no, it must be the coffee someone just made." But then I had him sniff and then I sniffed and he was right! Guess I'll be keeping it, after all!

[jarvenpa]

My imp came from dear Odette Odile (thank you).

 

I now have confirmation that whatever is in a blend, if the blend includes vanilla I will be happy as a lark and sniffing my wrists and smiling. I obviously have simple tastes.

 

Since Siren is reddish, I figured maybe some dragonblood therein. Since Sirens are, um, water critters, I kind of thought "maybe it will be aquatic or salty or something".

 

There might be unlisted dragon goodness, but what I got immediately was warm vanilla with wafts of some other sweetness. To my nose the "other sweetness" didn't read out as jasmine, but my nose is notoriously foolish. The warmth, which I thought must be due to some sort of spice (and I figured cinnamon, because I guess these things wrong-)must be the ginger. It's kind of like...toasted vanilla, if that makes sense.

 

It settles into a long lasting vanilla goodness, and is quite sexy (if you like vanilla goodness). Nice.

[alsatia]

Expectations: No idea. I got this as a frimp with a pack of decants I bought, and tried it on prior to seeing the description. When I started gathering the information for this review, I was shocked at the list of notes because I remembered it being more of an incense scent.

 

In vial: Sweet with a touch of spice. If I sniff hard, I can pick out the apricot.

 

On skin, wet: Spicy and slightly powdery. I keep thinking there's a hint of sandalwood in it.

 

On skin, dry: Quite powdery, and it's already blended so well that I can't find the individual notes.

 

After time: This reminds me a bit of Aglaea (which is totally not the reaction I had to it last time I tried it on). I wonder if this is what it smelled like to my mom, who seemed to actually like it.

 

Conclusion: Not really my thing, and I liked Aglaea better, but if I was being forced to use this I'd probably make a body spray out of it.

[sookster]

exact replica of sonic death monkey.... your schnozzz may vaaaaaaaaaaaaary

[donnatron]

Imp: Ginger! Reminds me of an essential oil I used to buy.

 

Wet: Like many on the board, I was convinced there was patchouli in here. When I booted the site up I checked the scent description and was just like "Oh... are these the notes the patchouli is blended with?"

 

Dry: The patchouli scent goes away and is replaced by a heavy ginger essential oil scent. There might be vanilla in the background, but all my skin is into is the ginger.

 

Throw: My right arm is a cloud of ginger oil.

 

Overall: I learned a valuable lesson about what notes I amp today. This is nice enough and I'll use it up, but only when I'm in an identifiable single note sort of mood.

[iiinterstate]

Someone else described this as smelling like a crayon, and it kinda does.

 

Started out all ginger, and then I think it was the jasmine that came in and turned it into crayola.

 

This one isn't for me.

[pamplemousse]

I had indescribable love for this for the first hour I wore it. Sweet but not cloying, a beautiful mix of fruity apricot goodness, vanilla, and jasmine. Perfect, really. I wasn't so much of a fan of the apricot brandy in Grand Guignol, but I loved this apricot. Feminine, floral, fruity, FABULOUS. For the first hour.

 

Then... plastic. Or, as others said, wax.

 

I will definitely try this in a scent locket or in a candle or in my hair, though, because the initial phase is beautiful.

[Tilby]

Siren is a rich heavy scent, and while I did not like it on my skin I love smelling it. On the days I'm feeling naughty I wear it in my scent locket. The notes I most perceive are jasmine, vanilla and something akin to patchouli and it brings to mind images of a high priced bordello. The scent lasts forever on my skin and in my locket and while heavy, it doesn't seem to go much further than my skin. It is one of the few my boyfriend cannot detect unless he is right at the spot of application. Overall it is a beautiful fragrance.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Sharp, sweet, and almost earthy - a lingering warmth. It smells like a very specific candy, but I can't place it - maybe something with orange? Yes, orange peel. Spiced jaffa cakes?

 

Wet: Vanilla coming out, making me think of orange creamsicles. I can detect the jasmine in the background. The ginger adds a nice spicy freshness.

 

Dry: Really warm and spicy, still sweet but less strongly so.

 

Summary: Vanilla and ginger, spicy, almost smoky-incense-y warmth. This is a potent oil. At no point could I single out a jasmine note.

 

Not my thing, but an intriguing blend.

[savage_rose]

Ah, the jasmine that hates me. We meet again. Sour flowers, and body odor. Gee, I HOPE this is Siren....

[charisse]

Oh I definitely smell the ginger. Lots of it. I would venture to guess that it is the "malice" part of the scent, whereas the rest make up the deceptively sweet part.

 

Sadly, this one is not for me. The ginger is too strong; I can like the scent from a distance, when it's faint and the ginger does not overpower.

[ErinZ]

Wet in imp:

jasmine and ginger

 

Wet on skin:

jasmine seems to be asserting itself a bit… jasmine love

 

Drydown:

the sharpness of the ginger softens down so my result is a beautiful jasmine, warmed by ginger with a hint of vanilla

 

Wearlength:

applied before bed - it was mostly gone by morning, but I could still smell a hint of it

 

Final impression:

The siren has called me in to be dashed against the rocks. At least I'll die happy

[deprongmori]

I just received this as a frimp, which is lucky, since I probably wouldn't have tried it on my own.

 

In the bottle: a very watered down Ravenous.

 

Wet on skin: FRUIT OVERLOAD, and strangely enough - I LOVE IT. Fruity perfumes aren't normally my forte, but I would love for it to stay like this. A really rich, magnetic, spicy & tropical apricot bubblegum. Beautiful. I couldn't stop smelling my wrist.

 

Dry on skin: It's calmed down a lot, playing up the patchouli-ish note that reminded me of Ravenous. The vanilla has further softened it, resulting in a creamy citrus patchouli. The ginger is very light, but perfectly blended. I don't smell the jasmine.

 

Definitely a keeper! If only it lasted longer...

[darharper]

In the vial, I hated this. It smelled astringent, cloying, and not at all like the ginger I was expecting. I closed the imp and put it in the swap pile.

 

After reading descriptions, I finally decided on the skin test.

 

Wet: Ugh! This is disgusting. Gag. It smells like medicine.

 

Dry: What a transformation! It smells of spicy ginger tamed with just a bit of jasmine and the gentle sweetness of vanilla. I had my husband smell it and instead of his quick usual sniff, he practically buried his nose into my wrist and said, "That smells really nice! Sexy!"

 

Verdict: This is a keeper! The dry bit is wonderful! I am lucky that my skin warms the ginger and kills whatever was making it smell like medicine. I love ginger so I am now a very happy girl! I have never had a scent change so drastically on my skin! I am amazed!

 

 

ETA: A matter of 10 minutes after I posted this review, the scent turned into a waxy crayon smell on me (like other reviewers described). Now, I am terribly disappointed.

 

30 minutes after that, it disappeared and went back to the wonderful smell that it was before! And it has stayed there! The morphing is so strange, but, it is overall a gorgeous scent and I am keeping it. Definitely on the list for a big bottle.

Edited June 7, 2008 by smallpaws

[Suu4LC]

Damn-I like ALL of the notes in this one, but sniffing it in the imp, it smells kind of weird...I think it's maybe the jasmine in the blend. The other reviewers indicate that this is a morpher, so hopefully it will morph well on my skin.

 

Oof, ok yeah this doom on me. I'm getting a bad breath note and a plastic note... :D Oh wait...now pencil shavings...I have no idea what went wrong here, but this is just a mess on me! *barf*

[terrenity]

Generous lab frimp. Approximately 2 weeks old.

 

In vial: Something.. fruity?

 

Wet: Definitely fruity, a little candy-ish.

 

Dry: I still get fruit.. either apple or lemon, I think... and also a floral that really smells like rose to me. It's lovely, whatever it is. It reminds me of the floral department at Micheals for some reason, even though there are only fake flowers there. -shrugs-

 

 

Overall: Well, I really thought I had the rose pinned.. until I looked at the notes. Maybe the floral I'm smelling is jasmine? I've only experienced jasmine before in Mata Hari, and I assumed that was what went sour and awful on me.... At any rate, Siren is very feminine and beautiful, though not really my type of scent. I'll probably keep the imp, for days when I want to smell a little more floral and traditional.

 

Color association: Deep orange-red

[brsis]

Initial thoughts: ... Wow.

 

In the imp: Warm, dark, hot fruitiness, sultry jasmine, a slight ginger tang... this is not actually very sweet, but it's veeeeery sexy.

 

On the wrist, wet: Apricot kernel, a hint of smoggy jasmine... my skin is drinking this one, but it smells like warm skin... only, y'know, sexier.

 

Twenty minutes later: It's hard to tell, because my skin DOES drink this so much, but there's something in there just not behaving quite right and the result is that it smells odd and slightly plasticy on my skin. Alas, this is not for me.

 

Verdict: Swap

 

Tl;Dr: Soft, dark and sultry - those who have trouble with jasmine and vanilla beware.

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Dirt. Sweet, spicy dirt.

 

Immediately on skin: This smells strongly of dirt on me. Not a nasty smell, but like dirt nonetheless. There’s a hint of ginger, and a little bit of jasmine, but there’s something very earthy going on here.

 

After a few minutes: The notes blending together in this strike me as a dirt scent, but I can pick them out individually as well. The vanilla in this one is turning to plastic on me, like the vanilla in Dragon's Milk and Perilous Parlor. It's not an overly sweet scent, and everything seems balanced well.

 

Overall Impressions: I didn’t enjoy this scent… the ginger, jasmine and vanilla blending together just struck a bad chord with my chemistry and my nose. It’s an odd combo, but interesting, but it’s not for me. I’d be too afraid of smelling like I was just digging around in the garden if I wore this.

[sweetsiryn]

Waxy, nutty, earthy, sometimes plasticky... I really wish this smelled better to and on me. It didn't change even after a day of wear.

 

Could it be this batch that's a bit funky? It seems totally NOT what I was expecting at all.

Edited July 22, 2008 by SweetSiryn

[Enferdame]

I ordered this thinking I would love all of the notes in it. When I tried it, I totally forgot what all of the notes were.

 

In the bottle- phew.... It smells like a litterbox to me. I'm so not happy about that.

 

On me- Like I said, totally forgot what any of the notes were. I was sure that sandalwood was in there, since on me it got very woody. In fact, it was sort of musky and woody, which made sense to me why I would order it then. Goes to show that my nose can't pick out a lot of scents yet, though it does make me happy to see that other people said sandalwood as well.

In subsequent tries, when it's wet I can pick out the apricot, it's really light, which I like, I can't stand super fruity scents, I've decided. Dry, I'm pretty sure it's the combination of the jasmine and the ginger that I'm interpreting as sandalwood, and I'm not picking out the vanilla at all, I'm okay with that as well.

 

After much internal debate and wrist-sniffing, and after getting my best friend to smell, I'm pretty sure I like this one. It's not love at first sniff like I had been hoping it would be, but I feel like I could fall in love with this one. Maybe just by keeping it around longer it may be my favorite. The Siren, frightening, but beautiful.

[kisha]

I just got an imp of Siren with my order, and my first impression was so strong, I had to come here and record it, so I can remember it when (if) I try it again.

 

This is one I've been wanting to try. I love ginger, all of my blends so far that have had ginger work wonderfully on me. This, however, was no ordinary ginger. There is definitely something sinister about it. At first sniff, I wanted to throw the vial away from me. I didn't smell any of the notes listed, instead it smelled like a well dressed elderly woman wearing a nice floral perfume had an accident on herself. It made my head hurt and my stomach churn in repulsion. Did I get something else instead? I don't care, I just wanted it away from me. That's when I noticed the vial was leaking something fierce. (Dear God! Did it get all over my SGA chapter book?????!!! No, it's safe. Whew!) This siren was not singing her song, she was shrieking in pain! I ran to wash it off, and amazingly, the "odor" tempered and became pretty. Odd! (I used Ice Blue soap from Lush, that what was in the closest bathroom and gave it a minty kick.) I'll have to try this one again later, don't know when, but I will. I'd hate to just be having an off day and miss on something I'd potentially like. After all, it has GINGER!

[gingiemay]

Wet in imp - White ginger very strong, light jasmine and slightly sour.

 

Wet on skin - More sour, still white ginger and light jasmine. Has a faint smell of public bathroom soap.

 

Dry on skin - White ginger and jasmine, and a slight musky scent.

[gchris]

In Vial: Strong and offensive

 

Wet:This is awful. I will see if I can describe this- bandaids, medicine, chocolate and stained wood. I am really surprised this is what I am getting considering the notes. Doesn't make sense to me.

 

Dry: This has gotten lighter but to me still smells terrible.

[DarthArwen]

I don't remember what I was expecting of this, but what I got was ginger. Not the kind of ginger that you get from a fresh ginger root, but the type of ginger you get with sushi. So basically all I could think of while I was wearing this was 'sushi! sushi!' and that was just weird and not something I wanted to smell of. Maybe my skin just amped it so that it drowned out the other notes..