Monarch

[ami226]

King mandarin, red ginger, sugar cane, golden amber, mango, and pumpkin.

On the skin: Mmmmm! Pumpkin and orange! Wow, I like this one! Except for the pumpkin, this reminds me a bit of Two Loves (I believe?)

Will have to retest, but I think this one is a keeper as well!

[rayvn1]

Add me to the group of pumpkin-phobes that surprisingly liked this. Pumpkin Queen was a pretty big disappointment on my skin after I finally tracked down a decant and the Halloweenies need to have super strong ingredients to cover up the buttery pumpkin overload I tend to get. However! Here it's the pulpy, warm..squashy version someone else mentioned. The ginger is really kicking in now that it's been on my arm for 15 minutes of so and the sugar cane is coming in as well. Turning less foody and more spicy and aggressive Hopefully the powder I usually get w/ amber doesn't rear its ugly head..

[proserpine]

When I first put this on, the pumpkin, ginger, and sugar are very strong. My arm smells like baked goods, yum! As it dries, the amber comes out and turn powdery on my. Now, like other reviewers it does smell more like a candle and less like delicious food Once dry, I smell nothing but amber before it quickly fades.

[forspecial_plate]

This is a strange one, especially given the notes that are listed. I expected something fruity and juicy but first applied, it's more of a warm and toasty scent.......when I say warm, I mean a kind of sun-warmed, summery scent. It brings to my mind an image of a delicate drift of reddish orange pollen grains floating down from the butterfly as it flits by. I kind of like it at first.

 

Then, as it starts to dry, I smell something very honey-like, which I guess could be the sugar cane. I don't like honey notes in perfume (usually) so this is a total turn-off for me. After a while the honey impression takes over completely, and I just can't enjoy this, even though it's an unusual and interesting scent. To me it's kind of like a springy relative to Samhain. Please note that I'm not saying I think there's honey in this for sure.......there's none listed in the notes.......just that it gives me a very strong and lasting impression of honey. Maybe it's the sugar cane in combination with the pumpkin, I really don't know. I also want to mention I didn't pick up on the ginger at all, the 2 times that I tested this.

[Blood onmy hands]

Monarch smells similar to Pumpkin V 07 on me at first. I'm happy that the pumpkin here isn't buttery at all, and that the spices aren't sharp or overwhelming.

 

I get mostly a soft, sugared cinnamon, foodie ginger, and a dry, resinous warmth from the amber. I can smell the orange at first, but it disappears in the drydown, and then I can only smell the tiniest hint of tropical, fruity mango underneath the sugar, spice and amber.

 

Monarch makes me wish that fall were here... for me, it's a pretty, warm, spicy, foodie/sweet fall blend with the amber grounding it and keeping it more wearable and perfume-like.

[ModderRhu]

Monarch

In the bottle, this smells mostly like a delicious, savory, buttery pumpkin. On my skin, it turns into CINNAMON pumpkin. Maybe it's the ginger I'm smelling, because I wouldn't have bought this if cinnamon was listed as a note. I wish it stayed yummy like it was in the bottle.
Maybe with some aging the cinnamon-ness will calm down.
Also, I was very surprised at how light this is and how quickly it fades once on my skin.

[malibusunny]

My initial reaction was to freak out love it. after wearing it, I wasn't sure I really liked it as a perfume-- more of a room scent/candle scent than a perfume scent. K said it's too sweet, which means it's really, really sweet, because the boy likes sweet.

 

I didn't get pumpkin from it as much as a warm butter cookie and orange/mango. I did get ginger at first but it faded. I

 

[zankoku_zen]

I got LOADS of sugar cane from this (it actually smelled like caramel to me) and amber. Pretty and sweet.

[kelpsoda]

Mmm. I get sweet pumpkin and spices, wiht a hint of citrus. The amber makes it creamy and good. It dries down to spicy-amber, with a bit of pumpkin. Not a lot of staying power.

 

While not exactly like pumpkin queen, it seems similar.

[milo]

At first, this is quite orangey. The orange disappears as it dries, and we're left with a mild warm spice. Kind of like Gingerbread Poppet meets Pumpkin Queen. This blend is more suited for fall to me. I really wish the orange stayed, as was quite delicious while it lasted. Kind of a Pumpkin Queen lite. No need for a bottle, as I have PQ.

Edited July 21, 2010 by milo

[Dharklady]

In bottle this is a lovely sugary mix of mango and mandarin. Wet the ginger and pumpkin make themselves known adding a velvety, slightly spicy layer. The mandarin and sugar really pop over it. Definitely a bright orange scent and the citrus helps keep it from falling into the foodie category with all that sugar. Drydown is a lovely balance of sweet sugar, spicy ginger, and the mandarin and pumpkin. This will be a fantastic early fall scent.

[splendidissima]

In order of strength: amber, pumpkin, ginger, brown sugar/caramel, mango. Not bad, and I do like pumpkin in general, but really similar to one of the other pumpkins I've tried...Pumpkin Queen? something else? It's nice, but not sure it's different enough from my other pumpkins to warrant a bottle.

[ljaylh]

Mmmm... good! The mandarin and ginger partner beautifully and the mango is gorgeous - those are the main three things I can smell here. I was scared that the pumpkin might overwhelm everything, but honestly.. I'm not picking up hardly any pumpkin in here at all - what I can smell is very subtle and it's hard to distinguish the pumpkin from the ginger. And sugar cane can sometimes go horribly wrong on me (Pet Magah Bird, I'm looking at you!) - but nope, not here. I'm also not noticing much of the golden amber, there's nothing powdery in here at all - I must be amping the fruits much more, because amber usually makes a pretty clear appearance on my skin.

 

Slightly spicy from the ginger, but beautifully fruity from the mandarin and mango. A really interesting blend, it's warm and earthy and overall quite tasty.

[Katherynne]

I'm getting the red ginger and buttery pumpkin. Not much mandarin, which is really disappointing. The sweetness is more defined as it dries down, so is the powdery amber note.

 

The more I try things with pumpkin in them the more I think I don't like it. Swap pile.

[likie]

Jack is like a big old pumpkin pie on me. Pumpkin Queen is like an incensey jackolantern in a garden. The Monarch, to me, has even less pumpkin than either of them, and as such is more ginger and more mandarin. I really like it a lot as a perfume. It's on par with PQ in my opinion. It's a little different, but also a little more perfumey. I'm really glad I got it.

[SophieCedar]

Wet: it's a mandarin pumpkin sandwich! mango and sugar cane are there too.

Drydown: gets more spicy and well-rounded. Ginger is well behaved and not turning it rancid or sharp. Lovely late summer early fall scent.

[megank4]

never would have guessed these notes. Well, maybe if I sniff hard and close my eyes, I can pick out the pumpkin, maybe some amber.

 

There is something about this that makes me feel slightly urpy.

 

It feels like too much going on, too many conflicting notes. Pumpkin, amber, mango?

Edited August 1, 2010 by Megank4

[steelgossamer]

In the imp: Fruity, wet, buttery

Wet: Very fruity, definitely smell the orange and ginger, and a little bit of pumpkin

Drydown: More of the pumpkin came through, the orange mellowed out, and the amber started to show up

Dry: Pumpkin, amber, a little something sweet, and a light touch of fruit under it

Several Hours Later: This has mellowed out over about 5 hours into a warm pumpkin scent with a touch of ginger. No fruit at all, and not super buttery.

 

I really like this one. It morphs a bit over time, and it definitely loses the fruity quality that it starts with, but overall it's very nice. I like this as an alternative to the spicy pumpkin scents I usually go for. It's a bit lighter and less pie smelling than say, Jack.

[Andrea912]

This is my 6th metamorphisis to try, and finally I think I'm in love!!! Let's see what happens...

 

Wet: Wow...I smell orange and gold. Fall. Every note listed is present, fully and totally balanced. It's all one harmonious blend...

 

What does banana taste like? Banana. What does Monarch smell like? Well...Monarch. It's all here making a new, glorious smell...the pumpkin, the amber, the mandarin, the sugar cane, all of it!

 

Dry: Less pumpkin, but still very orange and autumn and yum. I loves the Monarch!

[musichappens]

At first this smelled like walking into a Yankee candle store, which I'm suspecting is from the pumpkin. The ginger and amber seem to come out a little bit more once it's dry, but the more fruity notes are practically nonexistent on my skin. I think this will be nice to wear when it starts to feel more like fall outside, but I don't think I'll use it enough to warrant a full bottle; my decant will be plenty.

Edited August 10, 2010 by musichappens

[Ajila]

In the bottle - A glowing orange (the colour not the fruit) scents with hints of the ginger coming though

 

Wet on me - Soft, honeyed, slightly biscuity, slightly pulpy; a very rounded scent

 

Dry on me - A soft, dry, slightly honeyed, fruit scent; candied pumpkin would be my best approximation

 

Overall - I like it, but it fades quite quickly on my skin

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Ginger and pumpkin muffins, with a bit of tropical mango.

 

Immediately on skin: This scent is thick and almost buttery pumpkin and ginger with sweet, tropical mango. It smells like baked goods in fall, with some of summer’s mango tarts still sticking around. It also smells like a Yankee Candle scent unfortunately.

 

After a little while: This scent has a lot more pumpkin and amber after a while, and less mango to lighten it up. It’s not as spicy, but it’s still very thick and almost buttery.

 

Overall Impressions: This scent smells of fall baked goods, all buttery and thick and rich. It’s a bit too heavy for me, and the pumpkin is a bit too dominant.

[MerriAnneStowe]

This may well be my favorite of the Butterflies. It's very well blended; I can't really pick out any individual notes. If I had to categorize it, I'd probably label it ever-so-slight-foody. Some other reviews have compared it to a Yankee Candle scent, but I don't get that from Monarch (but from Spicebush Swallowtail, definitely!). It does seem to be fading rather quickly, though.

[V294]

So I have a bit of a head cold, but not enough to stop me smelling this bad boy.

 

When I first put it on it reminded me a bit of Shub, but with less spice. I think it was the sugar cane mixed with ginger. It then gets a bit lighter and more...no floral exactly, but airier, I think it's the Mandarin actually. I suppose if Shub is evil gingersnaps this is like...really friendly nice gingersnaps.

 

I will say the throw is really good, though less on the staying power. When I first put it on I got wafts of scent up to my nose from my arm, and this is me saying this when slightly congested so I think that speaks well to it's throw. I"m not sure how long it stuck around since I was running around work, but now it's practically non-existent, about 4 hours after I put it on.

[isisonearth]

Very mandarin and pumpkin in the imp. Odd yet very orange combination!

 

Very soft and powdery on. Sort of a citrus cookie sort of smell. It really does evoke the butterfly to me.