Chimera v5

[suki]

A HUGE thanks to marsmomma for picking up this and some other goodies for me from the Trunk Show. a serious debt of gratitude!

 

Onto the review!

 

In the bottle: It has some of the creaminess of the standard GC Chimera, but there's also a spiciness that I strongly associate with Snake Oil. The two are a lovely combo right from the start, and I'm intrigued to see how this plays out!

 

Wet On Skin: Now a desert sand note comes into play, much like the dominant one in Tombstone. Sweet, arid and like the hard-baked earth you get out in New Mexico or Arizona near the Canyon. It's weaving in and out with the spiced, sugared Snake Oil note and the cream. This is going GREAT.

 

Dry Down: A cream-laden Snake Oil, being smelled whilst in the Painted Desert. With the drying also comes another note, that of pure sweetgrass, as one would find in the plains, weaving in and out of the others. In other words: gorgeous!

 

In All: Light to medium throw, sweet, spiced, creamed sugar, without being at all foodie, it's clear this will only get better with age.

 

I CAN'T believe this hasn't been reviewed before now- this is incredible.

 

:wub:

[saralaughs]

First applied, I totally associate this with Lush's Snowcake fragrance. It's creamy almond but dry creamy almond. After a bit, there is a note that I associate with menthol I think, so maybe a hint of eucalyptis? Anyway, there are spices as well, exact ones I'm not sure. It ends up being a very creamy (but dry ~ sandalwood, me thinks) almond. It reminds me of a heavier Snow White with a bit of a resinous quality.

 

Very nice. I wouldn't say no to more than the tester I have.

[cfrancesca]

I get a lot of creamy tonka and a soft, dry wood scent with a tinge of smokiness, I think it might be creamy sandalwood.

 

When it settled, I'm left with a lightly sweetened, warm, creamy vanillic tonka bean scent, which smells almost bourbon vanilla-like (I wonder if there's also a bit of vanilla in here or if it's just coming from the tonka) with hints of creamy almonds and soft spices, the dry sandalwood is still present but slowly blending in with the tonka.

 

The result is a warm, dry, slightly sweet, creamy vanilla-woodsy scent, it ends up getting kind of powdery/dusty on my skin. The scent is soft with low-throw, but it got little bit cloying after a while.

[zankoku_zen]

Creamy vanilla, hints of almond and tonka. The vanilla is the kind that doesn't always play well with my skin.

[mxtine]

This is amazing. It's what my aged Tombstone smells like: Warm vanilla-tonka and a dusty wood. It has decent throw but doesn't last.

[Teaotter]

In the bottle: Fake vanilla extract. Not in a bad way, just very clearly the vanillin of pancakes or store-bought vanilla frosting instead of vanilla beans. Very yummy.

 

Wet: I get a strong breath of sandalwood over the vanilla, and a hint of something like almond, maybe?

 

Dry: There is something in this that makes my skin hot, though I've never reacted to a BPAL oil before.

 

There is something hot and dry, like sand possibly (I don't know the sand note in Tombstone), although my brain is saying cotton fresh out of the dryer. Not dryer sheets, but the material itself. Still loads of creamy vanilla and the sandalwood, too.

 

It reminds me very much of a vanilla ice-cream cone. There is something vaguely bakery-spicy like a waffle cone or graham cracker, and then the creamy vanilla. Honestly, it smells like I wished Detestable Putrescence smelled on me (but that one goes to plastic).

 

The throw is mild and it fades quickly, but I have some hope that it will deepen as it ages.

Edited April 26, 2011 by TeaOtter

[Blood onmy hands]

I don't have much of this one to test, and it disappears within about ten minutes on me, but I do find this pleasant enough and kinda wish that I had more to slather. I get something that reminds me of white sandalwood - creamy, slightly powdery woods, and something warm and sweet, like a warm vanilla, and maybe a hint of sweet spice. It's like the scent of baking cookies + dry wood and baby powder. I like it, but wish it had better staying power.

[ljaylh]

I've had this on my skin for five hours now.. and it's only now that I'm enjoying it

 

Unfortunately, I'm finding that Chimera v5 has a strong overlay of something that smells like fly spray - it's almost a menthol kind of fragrance, not minty or sharp though.. just kind of menthol. There's a nice dryness here that I think is sandalwood, something slightly nutty, and a touch of sweet spiciness, but.. ick - fly spray

[ellebelle]

Vanilla and sandalwood. There must be a lot of vanilla in this because I tend to amp sandalwood (Tombstone smells like dry dry woods to me without any hint of vanilla) and this strikes a nice balance. There is something of a lack of complexity here, but it would be a perfectly nice scent to wear on a day when I don't want something too strong. The vanilla might be vanilla-cream because it has that ever so subtly unpleasant plastic note that I have found in other creamy vanilla blends (like Glowing Vulva and Chaste Moon 05) that is vaguely artificial smelling when I get up close.

 

No matter, I shall wear on my wrists instead.

Edited June 14, 2011 by Ellebelle

[tuesdaynexxt]

This stuff is pure love!!!

 

In the bottle it smells like O's spicy older sister. As soon as I put it on, though, I recognize the spice: on me, this is O over Snake Oil! Yummmmmm!!!

Better yet, as it fades...well, it doesn't fade so much as morph. And by the time a couple of hours have past, it's vanilla single note over the barest whisper of Snake Oil!!

 

This is an immediate Top 5, no question. LoveLoveLove!!

[fetish911]

OMG this blend is LOVE Its all warm creamy vanilla & tonka with some dry sandalwood thrown in, not too much, but just enough to cut some of the sweetness. It smells so much like my favorite vanilla scent of all time- Auric Blends Vanilla. When I first got this in the mail ((huge thank u to my pick up angel!!)) I was kinda like "meh" about it. So I let it sit for a couple weeks. I kept walking past it and smelling it, thinking I must get around to trying it. Today is the official wearing of it & boy am I glad I waited a bit. I wish I had a back up of this because its amazing on me.

 

5/5 !

[angelamaria]

In decant: creamy tonka and citrus, with some sweet spices and a foody vibe--the cake-y foody vibe.

 

Wet on skin: creamy, slightly resinous tonka. Hello tonka, I do love you. This is still slightly foody, maybe cinnamony, but it's missing the cake vibe now, which is just as well. Sweet but not cloying, and a more vanilla-than-tonka note is emerging. A hint of the citrus also remains, but it's definitely more of a spicy blend now than citrusy.

 

Dry: very sweet-spicy to my nose, cinnamony and creamy vanilla/tonka. Low throw. And...this rather reminds me of a softer, no-carnation Morocco: sweet and creamy spices, soft and inviting and mysterious. And...without the clove-y carnation, too, which is what eventually broke the deal with Morocco for me. As it ages on my skin, the blend gets softer, slightly dustier, but still very lovely.

 

Verdict: I finally tested this proto to see if I should get a bottle, and I'm glad I did. I love it, and it's different enough from Morocco v2 (which is Morocco with lavender, and something I already have) to justify getting it.

[ami226]

On the skin: Creamy slightly woodsy spice! This goes a bit powdery on my skin, but it is quite pleasant.

 

It's not really for me (the powderiness just makes it smell a bit fake on my skin).

[brilliantcat]

Sweet, creamy, spicy vanilla. Possibly tonka as I get a different, more resinous vanilla from tonka. Despite the sweet and cream, I don't find it foody. It's definitely a cousin of SO but not so close as to be sisters. The longer it's on, the more I love it! I liked the GC Chimera well enough but this is not even in the same category! True love! Thank you to my lovely frimper without whom I would not have been able to go gaga over this blend. Now to get a bottle or 3...

[Alethia]

Thoughts before testing: I love the released version of Chimera, and after reading the reviews here I had to track a bottle down!

 

Wet: Strong, woody note that almost smells like patchouli (but unlike any patch I've ever smelled).

 

Dry down: Ah, there's the sweetness. The woody note has calmed down considerably, and it smells just like a sweeter, creamier Snake Oil on me.

 

Dry: This dries to Snake Oil with a heavy dollop of cream and sugar. LOVE.

 

Final thoughts: This is just beautiful! Snake Oil has been in my top ten perfumes (regardless of company) since I tried it last summer, and this is a perfect variation for me. I love the extra sweetness and creaminess, plus it lasts for hours on my skin.

 

Verdict: Hoarding