Entangled

[iiinterstate]

Kudzu vine, raw honey, ginger cream, and gingergrass.

At first, Entangled is all sharp kudzu with the occasional hint of sweetness that I assume is the honey. After a few minutes, the spicy ginger comes through and neutralizes the kudzu a bit. It dries down into a very fresh, cool scent, with very little of the initial greenness. I don't get much more of the honey, but think it's there as a subtle grounding note. At first I didn't care for it, but I can't seem to stop sniffing my wrist now. The longer I have Entangled on, the more I like it. I'd like to see how it smells on my boyfriend as well.

[AmyO'Shields]

This may be one of the most interesting/beautiful scents I have ever smelled.

 

On wet, this is the nicest Vetiver scent I have ever smelled. Not the dank, dark vetiver but the feathery green vetiver. Something about the "kudzu" and gingergrass notes translates as vetiver to me...and oddly enough, I really like it.

 

Dry, the ginger becomes more pronounced, but not the kind of ginger I'm used to - it's a ginger powder instead of fresh ginger, but it seems to verge on the ginger from a good ginger ale without the sweet or the carbonation! I don't get anything creamy from this. I also don't smell any honey.

 

Up close this threatens to give me a headache, but the waft is divine. Definitely a keeper...very unique. The three Lupers I have tested so far are all very unique...I can't compare them to anything: Gathering Wild Mushrooms, Playful Wooden Mallets and Entangled.

 

After about 2 hours this really smells like gingergrass. I think I have to give this a 9/10. If you love Ginger and are wavering on this one, please don't...and I would strongly recommend that you let it sit on your skin for at least an hour.

 

Edited because "strongy" is not a word.

Edited January 29, 2012 by Herb Girl

[Alia Kaitan]

This is sumptuous, gingery excellence. I had this on one hand and tested a couple other Shungas up my other arm, having a happy sniff-a-thon. It was sweet blooming kudzu vine at first, nice, but didn't really grab my attention. Like a very nectar-y flower.

 

Well. About 40 minutes later, I was no longer huffing my arms, but still sitting at my desk. I kept getting these whiffs of something absolutely incredible. Sweet and robust and smooth and spicy all at once. So, naturally, I re-huffed all the perfumed spots on my arm, and it was Entangled!

 

Gingergrass! Ginger creme! Ginger honey! Ohhh it is delectable. Very unique, and difficult to describe. If this were colours, it would be a swirl of pale greens and earthy yellows. I can definitely tell that there is honey, even if I can't smell the distinct note. In fact, I can almost taste that combination of warm ginger and sweet honey in my mouth... mmmmm....

 

This is sensual, warm, cozy, grounded and strong. This is a scent that has excellent manners, oozes charisma, has an unflappable and gentle demeanor, but you do not want to piss them off. Not that Entangled would ever stoop to the level of revenge; she is far too graceful.

 

I had a Lunar New Year dinner to go to tonight, so I decided to wear this. Even with all the fresh, spicy chinese foods floating around, I could still smell my own creamy ginger awesomeness.

 

Many hours later, it is still going strong.

 

This one takes a little time to unfold into it's full glory, but is soooo worth the wait.

 

Bottle, for sure! Maybe back-ups.

 

Emoticon rating:

[izile]

In the bottle: A Vetiver punch in the nose. After that fades away, I'm left with a little nasal tingle that reminds me of pickles, I'm assuming that's the gingergrass.

 

Wet: Where did you go?? I just put you on? Hello? anyone? oh, hi! OK, ginger cream, that's nice. But man, that vetiver pickle is hanging on in the background.

 

Dry: fades FAST and I end up with something that smells like a slightly pickled/gingery wet, rotten, wooden stick.

 

Oh, and for the record. I am well acquainted with kudzu. It is endemic all over the area I grew up. Kudzu does not smell at all like vetiver.

[calivianya]

Oddly enough, while this scent is wet I am also getting something a little like vetiver. I am guessing it's the interaction between kudzu and gingergrass. It's like grape soda plus vetiver. I'm a little scared. It calms down on the drydown, and stays a pretty consistent grape-flavored ginger ale. I was hoping for creamy ginger goodness, but I'm apparently not going to find it here.

[Invidiana]

I've never smelled an actual kudzu vine before, but after being told by Izile it smelled something like grape candy, that was what I came into this expecting. However, the moment I put this on I get a rush of vetiver (or something that smells much like it) instead. As it dries down the vetiver calms to my relief, but just when I think the coast was clear for honey and ginger cream the rest of the way through, the gingergrass asserts itself much like lemongrass does on my skin, except more gingery. The honey and ginger cream fight for dominance but ultimately can't slay the gingergrass dragon. I think without the gingergrass it could have been a win on me. Sad.

[Mellifluous]

This has a very earthy helichrysm/chamomile smell. its nice.. kindof, but a bit too earthy/pungent for me. I think it might be the ginger cream that is making me think chamomile.. but yeah, its just too warm herbal.

[Siberia]

I agree with the previous reviewers who think this smells like Vetiver. There is definitely a strong earthy/vetiver smell at first. It calms down a bit and the ginger comes out, but it still has a bit of musty/earthiness. This comes across as a rather unisex herbal. I usually don't tolerate herbal scents very well, but this is not bad. It's definitely like nothing else in my collection.

[strahlend]

Sniffing the decant: mild ginger compared to what I expected, it seems...maybe like there's more vine and gingerGRASS than ginger in here.

 

testing ---- ohhhh this smells good. Oh, but wait, maybe not. Weird.

 

There is a green-ness to this that, while not unpleasant, is not something I'm really enjoying. The honey is distinct, but not a deal breaker in this incarnation at this point. I wish I could smell more ginger cream and less vine and gingergrass.

 

Suddenly when I sniffed it almost seemed like there's vetiver in here. It seems smokey all of a sudden. Must be the ginger kicking in. I like this much better than the green impression, but it's still not what I hoped it would be. It's like smelling ginger candy from a foot away. It's gingery and sweet … but faint. The honey is still hanging out, though the green has pretty much gone away. Sort of just seems like a slightly herbal light, fresh honey smell.

 

At this point I don't feel like I can tell how I feel about it.

 

It's weird how the vetiver wafts in and out of this scent.

 

This scent is first to disappear and leaves behind only a trace of honey.

 

Retesting: this wavers back and forth between sour greenness and smokey vetiver. A fascinating scent, but in the end probably not one I would wear because of the occasional sourish green parts.

 

When this dries it is lovely. The smokey part and the hint of sweet are really interesting.

I STILL don't know what to think about this scent.

Edited February 18, 2012 by strahlend

[boomtownrat]

I've always lived in a kudzu-heavy place (my hometown has kudzu growing near a parking deck on the edge of uptown), so when I saw that BPAL was releasing an oil with kudzu in it I had to try at least a decant.

 

Entangled is just about perfect for me. There's a sort of vetiver smell when it's wet on my skin, but I like vetiver. Anyway, that soon dries into a creamy, zingy, herbal scent unlike anything I've worn or smelled. It has a good throw and lasts for at least four hours.

 

This oil makes me feel energized, more attractive, just generally... better. Only a few scents have ever done that for me, all but one of them BPAL, so I'm going to buy at least one bottle. Entangled is love! 5/5

[thezander]

In the imp: Hm, gingery.

On wet: Oh dear god, vetiver-y. =( Get it away!

Drydown: Musty, sharp, impossible-to-ignore vetiver scent. Must be the gingergrass. What is it about my skin that does this? It's awful on me! This one's going in the swaps pile.

[Lethran]

In bottle: Wow! Turns out I don’t like kudzu. This sure has a lot of kudzu in it. Did I mention the kudzu? So chalky, charred, vine dominant. I’d call the honey a weak seconed, sweetening the vine a tad. There is a touch of grass, and you can barely pick up the ginger. Wet: Kudzu, kudzu, kudzu. The ginger cream is making it’s move into second though, growing more distinct as it warms, with the honey now supporting it. The grass is stronger too and actually does play nicely with the other notes, even the kudzu. It’s sort of like they are burning a kudzu tangle next to a pastry shop and started a grass fire by accident. Interesting, but not quite there, if you see what I mean. I think I would like this on someone else, but on me it’s unsettling and a little off. Dry: Sharply pleasant outdoorsy, with the gingergrass strongest. The kudzu calms down and blends well with the other notes. It’s quite pretty.

[OctoberGwen]

OMG, this is fascinating.

 

Musty/weird dry grass smell initially, which then becomes something incredible as it warms to my skin. The hint of ginger is subtle and lovely, as is the raw honey (and honey is so, so iffy on me.)

 

It's sort of smoky, again it's a hint, not a blast. Nothing in this says "vetiver" to my nose. Slightly smoky, slightly gingery. I've never smelled anything like this. Definitely bottle worthy.

 

This is absolutely unique and another giant WIN for the Lupers this year.

 

ETA: I have to add that Entangled has aged really, really well. The ginger is much more apparent now and blends really beautifully with the smoky grass note. Wet, there's almost a lemony zing to the scent. I really love this and am so glad I have a bottle. This is so unique, I have nothing else like it in my collection.

Edited January 13, 2013 by OctoberGwen

[Incendiare]

Hmm, that kudzu smells like a dying weed to me. The ginger tries to remedy things but it's not helping. As soon as I apply this to my skin, the kudzu smells smoky, like it has been set on fire. Getting drier on me by the minute. After only five minutes, this is but a thick black cloud of smoke. The ginger is long gone and the cream never showed up in the first place. Forget about the honey too. That is too bad.

[lohengrin]

In the imp: Very green and a little musty. Sharp, too.

 

On skin, wet: That sharp green note with a ginger kick.

 

On skin, dry: The notes are more well-blended, and it's got a bit of smoothness now, from the cream.

 

After an hour: No more green, and a lot more cream. The ginger isn't distinct anymore, either. It actually reminds me a LOT of Love's Philosophy. I'll have to deathmatch them.

[zankoku_zen]

Smoky ginger, hint of mint (or kudzu. Is kudzu minty?), honey and cream. It's a very intriguing scent, very well blended, but perhaps a little too odd for me to wear.

 

That being said, it's one of the more original BPALs out there.

[pinkstardust420]

Blech. Creamy ginger (mint?) spice? And grass? Weird. Not for me!

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant circle

 

Initial Thoughts: Basically, I had to try and know what kudzu smelled like. I've grown up around kudzu, seeing it take over barns and telephone poles and anything else foolish enough to stand still, but never noticed a scent.

 

In the Vial: An initial blast of earthy green and then the ginger cream slides in.

 

Wet: Ginger is the dominant note, with the earthy green kudzu underneath. Then the honey creeps in to smooth things over.

 

Drydown: A very odd juxtaposition of foody with the ginger cream and honey against that greeny note with so much dirt in it.

 

Verdict: I think I would have liked this very much if the kudzu had been swapped for a floral that works for me. The earth note just seems wrong to me.

[Blood onmy hands]

I wanted to try this for the ginger cream, as I love vanilla and creamy scents, but this is like a smoky vetiver (earth and woodsmoke) with sharp green grass and a bit of sweet, golden honey that doesn't feel like it's fitting in with the rest of the scent. As it dries down, it kind of reminds me of the smell of burning sage, but more green, with a vein of sour honey. I'm not getting anything really fizzy or spicy, so I'm not sure where the ginger is. It's reminding me of some of the Rappaccini's Garden blends.

[DahliaHayashi]

After the reviews i was already worried and when i finally got my decant i just sniffed it and it smelled smoky and perfumy and I knew it will give me a headache.

It did and it smelled horrible on my skin. smokey and like a cheap perfume.

4 out of 4 shunga decants are misses

[milo]

I don't know what kudzu smells like, but I'm assuming it's all kinds of awful as the other notes I like in this blend. I'm getting a dark, gritty, aggressive vetiver-like sharp, herbal, 'you get the picture' note. NOT a fan.

[asciident]

Wet: Grassy. A little sour.

 

First on: No sweetness, no ginger. Not freshly-mown lawn, just a bit grassy.

 

Dry: Unchanged. An interesting scent, but not a perfume I want to wear.

 

 

[Gin]

In the bottle, Entangled smells like pickles to me. On the skin, pickles turn to vetiver turns to gingergrass. And then voila! Ginger /grass and honey with a dry edge that smells kind of incensy. I was so sure I'd hate this, I put it in the swaps box but within minutes, I took it back out. It's surprisingly pretty and sweet, especially considering it's pickley beginning.

[fufu_berry]

I don't get anything smoky from this, but my skin tends to eat smoky notes so that's not a big surprise. This was very bright and spicy; the honey gave it some sweetness, but fortunately honey (especially raw honey like in this) doesn't get cloying or foody on me. After a few hours, it was mostly raw honey - almost musky and rather animalic. I like that, but for those who find honey goes "funky" on them, this is probably not the honey note you want. Overall, I really liked it - it's very different from anything else I have, even though I love and have a bunch of ginger scents. I can see really wanting to wear this in the spring and summer.

[White_rabbit334]

I received this in the "Love is a Mixed Bag" PiF giveaway from emilynicole, and goodness gracious I have *never* been so in love with a scent!

Let me start this out with saying that I tend to *hate* lemongrass, or anything too lemony without any cake/vanilla notes. However, I am currently growing ginger not even 5 feet away from me in the next room. Just yesterday when I went to water it, I was met with this amazingly fresh, peppery-sweet, gingery aroma; I realized the fragrance was from the leaves! Spellbound, I wondered to myself if I would ever find an oil blend that could use this note. Thank you Universe, you did NOT hesitate to answer that question! (And more importantly, thank you emilynicole!!! )

 

In the bottle: I can *definitely* see why people are thinking vetiver; it must be the kudzu that is giving this that smokey, dirty tone. Ginger being my favorite, it isn't hard to capture it in the first whiff, but the kudzu is *quite* demanding. I see kudzu akin to the bouncer to a very lively club; if you can get past him, you're in for a spectacular time! Clearly the creamy notes and honey are in the VIP club, because they certainly aren't out front like the kudzu and ginger grass.

 

Wet: For a second I am seriously worried---anyone who likes lemongrass will definitely like this. It's not *lemony* per se, but it has that same bright and herbal tone. It's almost peppery! I imagine that's the ginger tones starting to come up. There are faint moments where this almost smells medicinal, but suddenly it morphs into this sweet, bright scent reminiscent of ginger ale. This isn't the ginger ale you buy at Walmart though; this is strong, vivid, artisan ginger ale. I keep feeling like it almost---ALMOST---has citrus tones. As much as I hate citrus tones, it's actually very attractive in this. Apparently Kudzu has relatives, and they're all working security for the club as well; I keep catching glimpses of them, but then they fade into the crowds of happy ginger-grass dancers.

 

20 minutes in: THERE'S the honey! And some of the creaminess too. The ginger-cream comes into play like 50 stunning women suddenly flooding the dance floor. You can't pay attention to anything else! But there in the center is honey; beautiful and sweet, but nowhere near as flashy as her ginger-cream entourage, she is subtle and inviting, utterly captivating. The honey is what rounds out the ginger beer vibe, but the ginger-cream and ginger grass are stage hogs. I was expecting more smoke from this, considering I usually amp the hell out of smokey notes.

 

1 hour in: Holy ginger. I didn't realize it but someone trampled Honey during the second act. I don't think anyone realized it. She's been stomped and mashed to the point I can't even recognize her anymore, and the ginger cream and ginger grass dancers are still dancing with wild, reckless abandon! Shit, I'm pretty sure even the kudzu bouncers got trampled to death in the ensuing madness...!! The only thing entangled about this is how honey's and kudzu's body parts got entangled in the Gozilla-sized-ginger-dancers' legs and feet (and they'd curbstomp Godzilla to boot)!

 

However, this keeps morphing.... I don't know what the #@$^! happened to this night club, but I'm pretty sure it's delicious pandemonium. As the Ginger Godzilla twins rampaged on, something happened to the Ginger-Cream sister; it split into two separate entities! Suddenly, it was Ginger and Ginger Grass vs Cream and Honey, and literally one hour it's Revenge of the Gingers, and then the next it's ginger-ale float (thank you Cream and Honey!!!), tripped up by kudzu's haggard herbal limbs.

This could VERY easily be unisex, because it's gone from masculine to feminine to androgynous at least 6 times during the day alone. I should also add that the throw is ENORMOUS (a little bit'll do ya, but I'm a slatherer), and for being comprised mostly of what I consider top-notes, this lasts a *considerably* long time. =D As much as I hate lemongrassy like things, I think this one is a serious winner, and one I can't wait to wear during the spring and summer months!