Morella

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

Sage with orris, Florentine iris and a drop of civet.

i don't get sage at all... which is almost a shame.

what i *do* get.... well, i think it was about 13 years ago that Suave discontinued what had been my favourite shampoo... it was the same shade of green (maybe a little darker) as their apple kind, but it was called something like Extra Cleansing. or Deep Clean (not Depp clean as i just typo-d and fixed mmm... johnny... ) and it smelled like this.
vaguely herbally (like the 70's Herbal Essence shampoo -- not the newly reborn ones) and clean, unisex but with a powdery tinge and the faintest hint of Ivory Soap. (99.44% pure and all that -- y'know it floats cuz it has airbubbles in it?)

i get no civet, very little of my beloved lillies... but alot of green.

[seamor]

I LOVE THIS SCENT!!! Love, love it, LOVE IT!!!

 

Unfortunately, even when I spilled about 1/3 of an imp on myself (which initially reeked), it only lasted on me for about fifteen minutes.

 

Ahhh, the bitterness of fate.

 

[ND¢]

In the bottle: Oh my god. Johnson's Baby Shampoo. Suddenly I'm remembering sitting in the tub with my mom washing my hair, wishing she'd fill the tub more so I could be warm, wishing there was any truth to the saying 'No More Tears.'

 

On me: Sadly loses the completeness of that smell, which becomes adulterated with floweriness. Far as I can see, orris is a root of some species of iris (Thank you, Wikipedia) so it's funny that this smelled like Johnson's Baby Shampoo to me, since according to WP orris root is 'the substance left out of products that are labeled hypo-allergenic.' All right. I freely admit that I am ignorant about scents and can't toss around the jargon that others employ (accurately or no), so I look up a lot of stuff.

 

Okay, but the review. It is iris-y. I now accept that iris has a smell. The sage would come out on its own if the iris wasn't stronger, but it is there behind, keeping me from going NO! A FLORAL! Not by much, though. As an hour wore on, it smelled more like No More Tears again. Would that it could have smelled like that the whole time. I'm going to trade this one off for another DC scent I think, because although I love the fact that this goes Johnson's on me, the twenty-nine year old me has passed into other pastures.

[nancybridget]

My skin becomes a summertime citronella candle at first touch, and then morphs into a heedy iris - fun and regal with exploding blooms.

[fiddledragon]

On me, Morella is all sage and civet. I *love* civet, and wish it were in a GC blend I can wear, so this made me very happy. It's like a deeper, sexier, fuzzier Oberon.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: Floral paint thinner...I hope it's better on my skin...

 

On me: Fairly indistinct florals that aren't impressing me overly much. Touch of an herbal feel from the sage, but not really getting the civet at all. Kind of has a baby powder quality to it.

[kraken]

In the Bottle: An odd scent. Soft green sage in the forefront and a hint of something that reminds me of a sweet musk (perhaps that's civet?).

 

Initial Wet: Initially very faint. Then I get a whiff of sharp citrus-like herbal, which must be the sage, though I initially thought it might be verbena. Underneath are wisps and hints of sweet florals. It's a very green scent, primarily herbal.

 

Initial Dry: The sharp quality fades and the florals begin to peak out. They're well blended and have a perfumy quality to them rather than distinctive notes.

 

Drier Dry: As it dries, the floral notes become more distinctive and wind up being a soft powdery (in a good way) orris over iris. A nice, simple floral that isn't too sweet or overpowering.

 

I don't really know what civet smells like, but the soft, good powdery note is something that I associate with some musks, so maybe that's it. It's hard for me to find a nice floral blend, especially a floral blend that mixes green notes into it, so I will have to horde this one

[lizzi]

In the bottle - Johnson's Baby Shampoo and a light floral. It reminds me of giving my children baths when they were little.

 

Wet - Very violet; I can't pick up the iris at all.

 

Dry - A very creamy, soft floral.

 

This is a keeper for when I my three teenagers are acting like idiots. I can use this scent to remind me of when they were sweet and little.

[The_Witching_Hour]

In the bottle: What I recognize to be Iris (baby soft smell), beautiful iris with a faint smell of sage and something else (orris? civet? I'm not familiar with either of those, so I can't say).

 

Wet: Smells much the same as it did in the vial, but I have lost the sage all together.

 

Dry: Still smells the same. A beautiful, light, floral, green smell. Very nice. This reminds me so much of Serge Luten's Silver Iris, which I adore.

[aine]

This is predominantly herbal sage and violetty orris on me. The civet in Morella makes me want to use words like rounded, or deep, rather than musky or animalistic. It is a lovely fragrance but every now and again I get the tiniest whiff of something bitter that almost reminds me of citronella but not quite.

 

Despite liking the fragrance overall, I'm not sure I'll wear it often. That little whiff is just disconcerting enough to tell me Morella and my skin chemistry aren't going to be best friends.

[Jilara]

Based on the reviews, I took a chance on a bottle of the Maelstrom reissue that was on ebay. It seemed like notes that would work on me. Hmm, it's NOTHING like what I was expecting from the reviews. It's sooo much BETTER! I think I'm in love! Why do I have to fall in love with so many fragrances that are discontinued or LEs?

 

Wet, it's soft lemon. Or lime. Something between the two. Verbena? I think the softness comes from the orris. There's also a green herbal lurking.

 

Dried down, it's still got a top note of citrus in front, but it's given a sturdy backing of a soft muskiness (civet?) and the iris and orris, which reminds me gently of notes in my beloved Lady of Shalott. There is still that greenish herbal backing early on, but it drops out after an hour or two. I don't get anything definable as sage.

 

This would be a glorious scent for summer. It's light and fresh, but with surprising complexity. It does tend to stay fairly close to the body, but that's fine with me.

[windzswept]

In the Bottle: Sage, musk and flowers... odd mix, but not unpleasant.

 

On my wrist: A herb and flower garden. It has a musky smell, but after wearing Smut it's not unpleasant and I actually really like it.

[bibliophile]

This is a really lovely, soft blend. Iris and orris tend to work really well on me in general, but the green, herbal quality of the sage really lends an interesting aspect to this blend. Like some of the previous reviewers, I get a whiff of something almost citrusy or verbena-like from it at times, but not continuously. I tend to fear really feral musk notes, so I was wary of the civet... but to echo the majority opinion here, I would never have identified the nice, deep grounding note in this blend as civet without knowing that it was in there. This will be a nice, warmer alternative to Black Pearl and Gibbous Moon when I need an iris fix.

[JennyGardener]

This is such a soft, soft scent. Like sinking down into a very comfortable pillow encased in pastel flannel. It reminds me a lot of The Raven, but without The Raven's sadness. It's sweet and gentle - civet is certainly only a hint in this blend. Morella makes me want to cuddle in big deep comforters and feel warm on a chilly fall day. Yes, it's like staying in bed all morning with a good book. It's that comfortable.

 

Faerygirl's review: Very interesting. It's spicy. I like it. Thumbs up!!

[aiko]

I don't recognize the individual notes but this is a lovely herbal floral scent on me. It is calming and very comforting. I like it. Unfortunately, it doesn't last as long as the other bpal scents.

[Sealgair]

Got this imp through the Civet Evangelism Sniffing Circle!

 

in imp: water. faint, green, pretty... barely there.

on wet: 12:00 - faintly crushed stems. clean pond water.

drydown: 12:15 - shampoo, but a good smelling one. This is a clean, wet subtle scent. I like it, but I don't think I'd wear it often. Also - there's civet in this?

12:30 - this reminds me of my mom a bit. Maybe it smells like her shampoo? a nice clean damp smell.

12:50 - right, I know now why this smell reminds me of my mom: it kinda smells like Oil of Olay. I say kinda, because the Olay has rose in it and this doesn't. Whatever happened to the civet this is supposed to have? I like this, it's not something I'd choose to wear, and it's nothing like what I expected. It also doesn't morph very much.

[evanescence]

morella is not something I need more of.... it was a light but dirty green in the imp and quickly faded to a nondescript mossy scent with something like a light lemon soap in the background.

 

I wouldn't say unpleasant as I can see the appeal to green/moss lovers, but just not for me.

[DogNPonyShow]

In the bottle: All sage. It's like green in a bottle.

 

On: Very soapy, but not an unpleasant soap. Very simple and calming. Drys down into a light clean floral.

 

Verdict: I seem to be on a roll with finding florals that actually work on me. This is nothing at all like I expected and I can see myself wearing it a lot.

[Inanna9]

From the Civet Evangelism sniffing circle, courtesy of Fatalbellydance:

 

wet - ooh! pretty! I recognize the sage from Sagittarius, one of my all time loves. I guess this makes it official that I'm a fan of sage.

 

The iris emerges and it is a lovely compliment to the herbal sage. Not too heady a floral. I thought I caught a whiff of something high and sharp like civet, but it's gone as the florals amp. I think it kind of comes and goes as I sniff. This is very pretty, but it gets stronger and more insistent - not overpowering, but maybe an eensie bit menacing. Which seems appropriate.

[SueDonym]

From Fatalbellydance and the Civet Evangelism Circle:

 

In the imp, faintly herbal. Pleasant. Unstrenuous.

 

On: I smell like my precious auntie! She has a lotion that smells something like this. Ummm...so maybe a little waxy (as some lotions will), a little fresh from the shower clean/soap (but not bad soap) and a little herbal.

 

I love the sage in Lear. I'm not getting a strong sage from this.

 

Kind of an early throw, but it's on a shoulder which might account for it.

 

Very nice lotion skin fresh from the shower, wearing a robe, sitting in her kitchen and talking to me. Put my nose against it and I'm getting a hug from her.

 

Awwwwww...I love my aunt!

 

Thank you BPAL and the Civet Evangelism Circle for giving me a "Love Teta" scent.

Big squishy hugs to you, hot tea, comfortable bedclothes and much love.

[moonarcana]

I'm rarely good at picking out specific notes unless they are totally obvious...

 

The sage in Morella is apparently undeniable. It provides a nice green herbal blanket thrown over a much deeper earthy melange. While Morella is distinctly dark and forboding, there's an element which lifts her underside up off the soil, brushes off the decay and crawling bugs and blows a bit of fresh clean powder up her skirt to help air things out a bit. I would imagine that we have orris to thank for this intervention.

 

Thanks to the Civet Evangalism Circle for giving me the opportunity to try this remarkable scent.

[CrazyPretzel]

Definitely floral and a bit soapy at first, but smooth and not bitter. I could learn to love iris if it always smelled like this on me! I'm not getting a lot of sage from this; perhaps it's softened with time. This isn't an in-your-face civet blend, but a quiet, smooth, slightly musky and sweet floral. Understated and sexy.

[zankoku_zen]

This one was a bit floral sharp, and there was a hint of musky something I didn't like (I think it was the civet), its a little soapy, and in general, my skin ate it up. Ah well, it wasn't meant to be.

[angelin05]

In bottle: amost a floral pine-sol. Ew... I have a whole bottle!

 

On: Pine sol smell goes away, thank goodness. I am left with a lovely floral.

 

Dry: It's reminding me of my grandmothers (the ones I like). I think it would be great to wear when I want to think about them, but not an out of the house type thing (Is that crazy?). I might keep it a while, just to see if the urge hits me to put it on again. Then again, I might trade it... hmmmm.

[Coldfire]

 

 

 

 

 

Imp: Flowers and something…dark and not flowers.

Civet maybe?

Wet on Me: mmm miris and orris…with faint sage traces….

Drying Down: the floral all blends and it’s soft with

a powdery base note

Dry: This gets very faint, very quick. Then it’s just a ghost

of light floral powder that haunts your nose if it gets too close. Not bad.