Malediction

[quimerula]

Evil incarnate. Revel in your dark side with this romantically cruel scent. Contains red patchouli and vetivert.

I'm in love (again).

Dark, misterious and incredibly sexy as viciousviolet said. And exotic, balanced and a bit dry too. Perfect.

Patchouli with the dry touch of vetivert, dark and smoky.
Unisex, warm and with an earthy touch. Wonderful. I need a big bottle (again).

[quinkel]

Not reviewed yet? hmmmm, and it's one of my fav's

 

I was crying over the discontinued Indonesian red patchouli, when Malediction came on my path To me it's almost the single note but with a bit of extra.

Very warm, comforting, uplifting. Great to wear on rain/storm days. it has a great lasting power too, and lovely to scent your hair.

[Nisaba]

I've just fallen big time in with this one.

 

In the bottle, I just get sandalwood and vetivert (although maybe I'm confusing sandalwood with red patchouli). On me though, I can't pick the individual notes but it's spicy and dark and just plain yummy. Has some real throw and staying power as well. Every time I've worn this out I've had compliments.

 

I need a big bottle of this!

[borealis]

The first scent my lover and I have agreed on. He thinks he doesn't like patchouli -- and I wisely didn't mention what the blend is. Though truthfully, on me the cedar-like scent came out to the fore, while the patchouli quickly faded. Is the cedar-like scent the vetiver? I'm not familiar with vetiver...

 

May 31st update: a couple of times since, Malediction has morphed into lemony citrus... not a Lemon Pledge scent, but like when you're zesting a really fresh lemon for a poppyseed cake. Not that it's sweet or foody at all. Lemon zest, bright and tart, under the woody darkness. I am fascinated how the same scent can be so different at different times of the month.

 

June 13 update: From what others have said, it's the vetiver that goes lemony. I really like this scent and have started trying it layered with others... today, layered over Snake Oil, it cuts the sweetness down quite a lot and makes for a more complex scent... the patchouli comes out more also. Interesting.

Edited June 13, 2005 by borealis

[VorpalBunny]

Malediction is smoky, dark, mysterious, and heavy. It's very heavy on the patchouli with a hint of an almost lemony scent. It's definitely not an everyday scent for me, but it might be nice for when one is in a dark mood.

[quikslvr]

Vetivert confuses my nose, and the patchouli tinge doesn't help. Heavily earthy, with a tinge of spice. Strangely enough, I don't hate it after it mellows some, before it hits the PATCHOULI! stage. Still, not for me. At one point, it does have a "bottled evil" stage.

[Witch's Dagger]

Malediction

 

I got this as a freebie in the order that arrived after I ordered it, but before the order with it came. Confusing, but the deal is that I have two imps - one that came as a freebie while the other was on its way.

 

Preconceived notions: It sounded dark, sexy, mysterious, woodsy, spicy, and perhaps something for ritual use. It means “curse” in French, though, so I might not want to use it for that.

 

In the vial:

Strong vetiver, nothing but.

 

On me:

Very strong vetiver, almost minty, but not really - like hair that’s so black it looks blue - this is vetiver that’s so vetiver-ish that it seems minty.

 

In 10 minutes:

Incense. A definite resin blend: frankincense, myrrh, maybe even some dragon’s blood or amber. Plus, dark woods. Actually, this smells almost exactly the way dragon’s blood smoke smells like when the resin is burning on a charcoal (which is not very much like dragon’s blood oil - it’s smoky, spicy, thick, and not cherry-like or blood-like at all).

 

In 30 minutes:

It still smells like dragon’s blood. This is amazing!

 

Overall:

This will definitely be used in rituals, especially any that I have dragon’s blood burning. Or if I want the scent, but don’t want to burn it. I’m definitely considering getting a bottle of this.

[darkling]

This is definitely a dark, evil scent. It is very musky and spicy patchouli with an edge of incense.

 

Malediction is a strong, consuming scent with considerable staying power.

 

As I don't like patchouli, it is definitely not for me!

[MsBraz]

Wet/ in the bottle: I smell Lush’s Middle Earth Turns to Rock soap. It is a very close relative. Like his brother but a little dirtier.

 

Drying: It is getting smokier. Heavy vetivert.

 

Very earthy and beautiful.

[sookster]

very dark and smoky .... overwhelmingly so!!!

just like sitting at a campfire and toasting marshmallows or diggity dogs....

 

the patchouli totally makes an appearance.......and the intense smokiness dwindles

down rather nicely....

 

in my honest opinion, if you are die-hard patchouli fan, this is a very unique perfume....

 

and without a doubt, NOT for the faint of heart

[inkstone]

A freebie from the Lab!

 

In the imp: I approached this blend with trepidation because it contains two of my least favorite notes: patchouli and vetivert. But I make it a point to try everything the Lab sends me. It smells like pure patchouli in the imp.

 

Wet: Pencil shavings. Sigh.

 

Drydown: Headache. Sigh.

 

Final thoughts: I even dabbed so very lightly to be careful. Time to wash this off.

[slugbait]

In the imp, this smells like vetiver. As it dries, I can smell some patchouli peeking out. It gives this an earthy kind of sweetness, if that makes sense. Unlike Brimstone, which is very similar to Malediction but a lot sharper, this is warmer and not as powerful. It fades very nicely and it doesn’t assault your nostrils. On me, this isn’t very smoky. Hmm. It isn’t as complex as Umbra, but still a good, low key vetivert blend.

[violetblue]

Smelling this made me immediately think of Lush's Middle Earth Turns to Rock soap, and their Rainbow Worrier bath bomb, both which are sadly now discontinued in North America. I'm happy to know now I can always use this to scent my own products should I need to. Amazing, deep, sexy, sensual, grounding! Not at all like Graveyard Dirt in its earthiness - more sophisticated and deep for sure. I am so glad I was frimped with this or I never would have known about this treasure!

[Miss Lynx]

I really thought from reading the reviews that I would like this one, but I was wrong. I normally like patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood, and earthy/incensy scents in general, but this one really did not work on me. I think that in fact, it ranks as my least favourite BPAL scent yet, and the first one that I felt compelled to scrub off before more than an hour had passed.

 

In the bottle, as many people have commented, it smellled exceedingly bitter and nasty, but I wasn't about to judge by that, because I know how much scents can change on the skin. When I opened it, it splattered and sprayed into my eyes, which in retrospect I suppose I should have taken as an ill omen.

 

But I persevered and dabbed some on, thinking it would probably change on my skin. Alas, it didn't seem to change much at all. If anything, it gradually got more bitter, and I wouldn't have thought that possible. I got no trace whatsoever of anything sweet, smokey, lemony, resinous or any of the other things people have mentioned. Just dark bitter sludge, like some kind of toxic industrial waste.

 

It actually reminded me a bit of the bitter note that rises at a certain point in Belladonna as it wears, but while in Belladonna the bitterness is balanced by other things and eventually sinks into the mix and becomes just a faint undertone, here it stayed intensely dominant, and inside of an hour it was making me slightly headachey and nauseous, and I had to wash it off. So, into the swap pile it goes.

 

It's funny - I never thought there would be a scent that was too heavy/dark/un-sweet for me. Usually it's the overly sweet scents that I dislike the most. I guess life, and BPAL, is full of surprises.

[Spastik_Kitty]

My husband acquired this from the meet'n'snif

 

In the bottle: Earthy, mossy, dankness, some smoke. Basically rank patchouli.

 

First on: It's very heavy and cloying, this reminds me of a sewer tunnel. Stone that's falling apart, stagnant mud, moss and mildew and old burned timber.

 

After a bit: It takes on a slight soapy note mixed with all the dirt and grime.

 

After a bit more: Hmm, this isn't as unpleasant as I first thought, rather masculine, and still very dank/woodsy, but there is the vetivert coming through that softens it.

 

Not something I will ever wear, or insist that my husband wear around me.

 

Edited to add: after about 15 minutes all I could smell was a slight smoke similar to brimstone, and this was very very faint. I'm rather glad my skin absorbed this.

Edited August 8, 2005 by Spastik_Kitty

[herdivineshadow]

This is very dark, bitter and smoky. It's quite a woody smell, but like the old wood you get on ancient church pews. I don't really like this one at all.

[bodegaselkie]

I like the simplicity of Malediction - the first thing I noticed was how thick it is compared to many of the other oils. It really clung to the imp wand and I wound up applying too much!

 

Wet, it's strongly patchouli and vetiver. As it dries, the two harmonize to become a scent much like cedar, as many others here have noticed. I would have liked Malediction more if it had stayed heavy, but as it moved into "cedary" the scent became thinner and sharper, rather than rich and earthy. Still a very good scent, but these are two of the base scents in Umbra, which I like much much more.

[dreadeddragon]

In the bottle: Patchouli & vetiver. It's basically like smelling dirt.

 

After 30 minutes: It does smell like sandalwood here, as some people have mentioned. Like the patchouli & sandalwood are combining forces to be earthy yet smoky & sweet, while the vetiver can't overpower but darkens it.

 

After 60 minutes: It hasn't morphed at all, staying a nice strong earthy scent. It's a very nice scent, but I think Sloth still holds more ground in my earthy category.

[sideviewhotel]

Oh, hello dirt! That is exactly what this smells like and I LOVE IT. I'm not getting any specific notes from this one.. Just dirt! Damp black earth from a forest floor. Yaye!

[Blood onmy hands]

I have a deep and passionate love for patchouli, so I thought that I would really love this one. I've liked a few blends with vetivert in them too... so I'm not sure why this went so funky on my skin.

 

For the first 15 minutes or so that I wore this, it smelled like burning wood and something rotten. Very sharp and acrid. In the drydown it started to smell a bit peppery, but also like sweat. Sweat in a bad way.

 

I ended up scrubbing this off after about a half hour. It doesn't smell anything like the earthy spicy patchouli that I've grown to love. This was just foul on me.

[pickman's model]

In the Imp: Grr! This is some seriously aggressive vetiver action going on.

 

Wet: Stronger, smoky and pretty intimidating. Like being grabbed by the throat.

 

Dry: Vetiver, all dark and broody makes a nice wood addition to the dirt of patchouli. It's like a dark forest, full of old, fallen trees and a sense that wolves are following you just out of sight. Cedary malevolence, dirt (I love dirt) and an animal note that's a little alarming.

 

Final: It makes me think of werewolves. Very aggressive and foresty. Evergreen needles crushed under feet like paws and woodsmoke on fur. Growly and masculine, but not quite right for me to wear. As a ritual scent, however...

[lady_pandora]

A friend of mine bought this. It smelled OK on her, if a bit overpowering. But it gave her a headache, so she had me try it on.

 

On me: Ew, ew, ew. Way too strong and aftershave-ish. I don't think I like vetiver. Also, my SO hates patchouli, so even if I could get over the vetiver, I couldn't wear this scent around him! I got a headache, too.

 

So my friend gave it away to a male friend of ours. The next day, we asked him what he was wearing that made him smell so deliciously woodsy and satyr-ish. He replied that it was the very same Malediction that my friend and I had so disliked on ourselves. So my limited anecdotal evidence would suggest that this scent is overpowering and heavy on a woman, but OMG delicious on a man. On a man this is a sexy, sensual oil that makes the guy smell great without making him smell perfumey or girly.

[aidenraine]

Well, this is a deeply dark, musky scent. It's absolutely knocking me over with Vetiver.

As I was thinking this was both too strong and too masculine for me, my husband grabbed my wrist and rubbed it on his neck.

 

He said the scent would suit him better

I have to say, he was right.

We also didn't succeed in transferring enough of it from my wrist to his neck.

I rubbed it on his pants to try and help the process along.

 

Then he stole the imp.

 

I won't tell him patchouli is in this.

 

It's very dark woodsy and spicy. Definitely delicious on him.

[ebbtide]

In the bottle: Strong and funky. Like unwashed hippie.

 

Initial application: Pronounced patchouli. And something else lurking underneath that I can't quite put my finger on.

 

After 20 minutes: Patchouli, a sliver of sandalwood, something a bit animal-ish, and wood smoke. So I smell like a group of hippies at a campsite. It's not terrible, but probably not something I would wear often. I do like patchouli, but the smoky note doesn't really agree with my nose.

 

The other posters have a point... maybe this would be better on a man than on me... hmm.

[angharad]

This was a frimp in one of my first orders from the lab. I wouldn't have ordered it for myself because I do my best to avoid patchouli...and even after trying it, I still wouldn't order it for myself. I'm not familiar with vetivert, but dear Lord, the patchouli nearly killed me when I opened the imp. I never noticed anything except the patchouli in this, and it was just too much for me.