Somnus

[romarin]

Named after the Roman God of Sleep. This blend helps bring on deep, restful, natural sleep.

Figured I'd try this to see if it would help the spouse get to sleep.

In the bottle it's a sort of muddled sweet/sharp floral. Doesn't do much for either of us.

On my skin... it comes up as a very sweet, almost cloying floral. I'd say maybe honeysuckle or jasmine with something odd on top. Over the top of it there does seem to be a bit of dusty lavender to take the curse off. However, it quickly fades to something the spouse describes as "Soap Gone Wrong" and which I think of as "toasted nuts and dishwasher detergent with bleach."

Not for us.

[Sateki]

A mix of love and hate.

 

It smells like kitty litter mixed with chinese herbal medicine (which smells gross, for those of you who have never had the pleasure of smelling it). Dried down it's less sharp, but still not very pleasant.

 

BUT

 

It works.

 

It's not that it necessary lulls me off to sleep right away, but it does SOMETHING that helps me fall asleep, even when stressed, or nervous, or restless. And, when I do wear it, I wake up feeling incredibly refreshed. Even if I wake up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, when I get up in the mornings, I feel surprisingly well-rested. I think it helps me have a nice, deep sleep.

 

I've taken to wearing it on the back of my hand 30-45 minutes before I go to bed, since I often keep that part of my hand close to my nose. Then I wear it on the side of my wrist when I go to bed, since that normally rests near my head when I'm drifting off. That's enough to have an amazing effect.

 

To soften the smell, sometimes I layer it with a bit of TKO on top, just to make it a bit more bearable. I can wear it alone, but it's a good combo =].

 

Definitely not something I'd wear out, but when in need of a good, deep sleep, then definitely yes!

[Dusk]

In the imp, it’s sharp, strong lavender, and an herbal medicinal feel.

 

First on, the medicinal stage goes away almost immediately – less than two minutes, I’d say. There’s hardly any lavender on my skin. At least, not until 4 or 5 hours after application. I can’t be more specific about its morphing, because I’m asleep for most of the time I’m wearing it. I have to base it on what I notice when I wake up in the middle of the night.

 

Mostly it’s floral. Jasmine, lily of the valley, and rose, as far as I can tell. Lavender blends in and is barely noticeable behind them, but when it appears, it’s not bitter at all. It’s rare I can detect herbs once it’s dry, but before then, I’d say it might have thyme and/or sage.

 

Most scents don’t evoke specific images for me, but this one did, maybe because I was half asleep the first time I wore it. A secluded garden with fragrant blooming flowers. Somewhat melancholic and magical. Very nice.

 

My biggest issue with it is that it has a tendency to get old lady-ish, but that might just be my associations with florals. Once in a while it goes powdery after a few hours, which mostly just makes it smell like a really expensive soap. With lots of lavender, because that note sometimes gets stronger later on. Not a bad thing, really.

 

As you might have noticed from my ability to comment on its state after several hours, it doesn’t keep me asleep, and it doesn’t quite knock me out – but even sleeping pills have a hard time doing that. I might get to sleep faster; it’s hard to tell. It does relax me quite a bit, so even if I’m not asleep, I’m quite comfortable and drifty. I also like that it’s evocative for me. Pleasant images will hopefully lead to fewer nightmares.

 

Overall, a good blend. It will probably work well for people who haven't been hardcore insomniacs since infancy, and for me, it's effective enough at relaxing me that it's worthwhile to keep it around.

[theseagrows]

this is definitely a white flower like jasmine or honeysuckle possibly mixed with lavender? but I'm really not sure if there is lavender here but it's mostly white florals. very light bright and sweet smelling and makes me think of sunshine. I can see how this is a relaxing, comforting scent. it helped me sleep very deeply and restfully.

 

 

ETA: last night i tried this again. i got ylang ylang and vanilla. i slept so deeply and peacefully, even after i had to get up once in the middle of the night. i think i may need a bottle of this stuff.

Edited August 7, 2014 by theseagrows

[tinyvulture]

It's taken me awhile to write a review because I only apply Somnus when I'm climbing into bed. And then I drift off to sleep. So yes, it works. I fall asleep, I have nice dreams which I remember. Best of all, because this is where I typically have sleep issues...if I wake up during the night, I quickly fall back asleep, instead of lying awake for ages. Scentwise, Somnus is lavender and herbal notes. It's comforting, yet medicinal, and very strong. You don't want to overdo it. If you've spent nights staring at the clock, trying to get back to sleep, you really ought to try this.

[bellumed]

This is my second BPAL sleep blend, after Nanshe. Full disclosure, I don't have any significant problem with insomnia.

 

The smell is wet, soapy, and herbal. With maybe some kind of sharpish citrus? The jasmine comes out on my skin, whoa, very jasmine. Well, I certainly won’t wear this as a perfume, but it works quite well as a sleep blend.

 

I did have very deep, restful sleep, but oh god did I NOT want to get up in the morning! This is best used on nights when you can stay in bed as long as you like.

[LisettaSoul]

Got this one as my second sleep oil to try. Tried Nanshe before, which was an utter failure.

 

In the imp:Strong lavender.

 

Wet on: The lavender settles down a bit. Its a soft lavender, not a sharp or woodlike version. The scent has now more creamyness to it ( like a dove soapbar)

 

Settling down: I can pick out hints of jasmine, neroli and a soft rose hiding underneath the lavender.

 

Effect: I did have a nice deep sleep, but need to test it more to make sure it is not just a coincidence.

[anaengel]

The Lab gave me this imp, so I figured what the heck. My bottle of baku is currently missing and that is my regular sleep helping scent. Somnus knocked me out like my meds and had me as groggy the next morning. Yes, that's a good thing.

This goes on with a nice medicinal lavender but quickly gets an addition of the infamous, on me, cat piss jasmine. The lavender keeps the cat pee smell from getting too bad, but it is a little noticeable. As it dries, a little rose tries to come out while I also get moments of lemon and I'm sure my nose was teasing me, eucalyptus. This is how it kept going until it dried and I finally fell asleep. When I woke up, it was gone.

Well, I got a solid five hours sleep using this. So, I can probably deal with some cat pee, unless the cat starts coming by and annoying me about it. No noticing of dreams from the first use, but may get some with repeated usage.

[DiesMali]

In the imp: Fresh, strong lavender with a hint of a sweeter flower.

 

Wet on my skin: Deep, dark lavender and what I'm fairly certain is night-blooming jasmine.

 

Dry: This is a perfect mix of primarily lavender and jasmine, with a hint of rose and something that smells green and ferny to me. I've noticed that BPAL's dark floral blends work beautifully on my skin, which is very welcome since store-brand florals and I don't get along at all. I can finally wear pretty florals! And this is a great one! It's dark and mellow and leaves me feeling relaxed and ...warm. I'm not sure if it is the power of suggestion or actually the perfume itself, but I really want to take a mid-afternoon nap right now.

[macabre_fae]

It will help you sleep restfully, but don't expect any cuddles because this stuff is strong.

 

Smells like citronella and lavender, maybe also chamomile. I forget the notes in it. I'm hoping Peace TAL will have a similar effect without the strong citronella/husband repellant effect.

[cvelis]

Unfortunately, all I got was diaper cream. If there's jasmine in this, then it would explain my reaction to it.

[lady_pandora]

Jasmine and lavender, yup. The combination comes out smelling kind of like dish soap to my nose, but darned if it doesn't work like a charm. Conks me right out. I'm probably going to get a big bottle of this; I think it works better for me than TKO.

 

ETA: Aaaand I think I'm allergic to something in this. There seems to be a ton of overlap between "nights I wear Somnus" and "mornings I wake up with my eyes puffy and watery as all hell." Dang it.

 

ETA II: Guess not, after all! I had the same reaction this morning while not using it, so I guess I'm reacting to something else.

Edited February 20, 2016 by lady_pandora

[freyasfae]

This is a very potent lavender on me. I couldn't test if it worked because the potency just overwhelmed me, and I ended up washing it off. Oh well, off to find some other BPAL bedtime scents!

[batsy]

In the vial: strong lavender, jasmine, herbal.

 

On the skin: Burning lavender. Which, I like lavender, but whatever else is in this doesn't like me. It made me cough. This is certainly potent in the lavender department, so if that's you, then you'll want to check this out.

[Teamama]

Rich, drowsy flowers. Lavender is on top, but there are sweeter, less aggressive flowers in this blend as well. I love it, and it reminds me of the feeling of being drowsy on a warm summer afternoon. I used up 2 imps, and then bought a bottle.

[achildoftime]

This is my perfect sleep blend. I'm not that crazy about lavender, but it works here. I think there's also some jasmine and a touch of lilac to it as well. I don't wear it out and about, though I think I could if it were a high stress day. It's very dreamy and does help put me right to sleep. I adore it.

[whisperstilled]

Sharp floral with lavender. I can't say I find it very relaxing - I'd still lean toward a lavender/vanilla combo like Daybreak, TKO, or The Serpentine!

[sprout]

I am surprised I have not reviewed this yet as I'm on my 3rd bottle! Now, I try to score an imp with every other order or so to keep the supply steady. If you are picking up on any narcotic references in this review, it's because this essential oil blend is narcotic in the original sense of the word: sleep inducing. More on that point later.

 

For those haters complaining that this formula is too sharp or high pitched, age it a little. You don't have to cellar it, about 3 months is all it takes to take the edge off. Now, patience is a virtue as is said, and if you have the patience to age it 6 months or longer, it really mellows. I am not the best guesser when it comes to no notes named creations but I think there's consistency in the reviews that there's a healthy amount of jasmine and lavender in the bottle. I'd also wager a guess there's some rose and chamomile. Maybe some thyme or lilac or moonrose. On skin, jasmine and the floral constituents amplify over the lavender. Of course it stands to reason that my skin noms the lavender, it loves everything I want to project...

 

If I want to smell more of the lavender note as I drift off to sleep, I've found that dribbling some drops of the Somnus on a handkerchief (let's be real here, I'm not a fancy lady and I really mean an old singleton sock that lost it's twin) will let the lovely lavender note waft about and last for hours, nay days, and give it a chance to outshine the jasmine. If you prefer it on skin, layering with other oil blends with lavender will help concentrate that note of course. If you like the soporific effect of Somnus but prefer the lavender benzoin marshmallows smell of TKO, that's a winning pair. This is a fairly unidirectional fragrance as it stays it's jasmine lavender self until late in the wearing where I suspect the rose is the culprit in making it powdery. The middle phase is more jasmine rose and less lavender, unless you use the handkerchief (sock).

 

As to the soporific effect, this is potent! Until I tried TAL Ebon Night, I thought it was the most effective sleep oil from the Lab. As with most sleep remedies, I've found that it loses effectiveness if I use it too many nights in succession. Insomnia is difficult to overcome.

That being said, this is very effective and impable. And if jasmine isn't your thing but you like the soporific effect, give it a try on linens rather than skin. I think that circumvents the dreaded cat pee effect too. On the other hand, if you don't care for the smell of jasmine, steer clear of Somnus. TKO or Baku may be what you are searching for.

 

Now, with this being the most effective sleep oil and my preference of the scent after it's aged 9 months or more, you can see how I keep a few bottles aging on hand. Of the sleep blends I've tried, I actually like the smell of Baku the best, yes even more than TKO, which some will find heretical. But if TKO is a technical knock out metaphorically, Somnus is a straight to the jaw blow from Tyson that leaves you irrefutably unconscious.

[dementia_divine]

In the imp: Lavender accompanied by a sweet, white floral.

 

Wet: It ends up being the same on my skin. I believe it's lavender, jasmine, and possibly gardenia.

 

Dry: This is really strong on the jasmine, but unlike Oneiroi, it doesn't completely stomp all over the lavender.

 

Verdict: I've used this one several times and believe it is very effective for its sleep purpose, if you're not completely anti-jasmine. It's not my favorite of the Somnium scents (that award goes to Nanshe), but I'm glad to have my imp on hand whenever I need something that's strong, but different, than my usual sleep scents.

[Lucchesa]

I don't love the way Somnus smells on me (jasmine?), which means that it's not my first choice for a sleep blend, as there are plenty of BPAL options that smell marvelous. For my sole test, I did get to sleep quickly, but I had intense dreams. I am going to try sprout's sock trick, and if that's not effective, this one goes to swaps.

[SoundlessEchoes]

Another maybe-this'll-help-me-sleep try. I don't find this one a guaranteed sleep inducer at all, but I do find it to be relaxing and to at least make me less resentful that I can't get to sleep. Definitely not something I'd wear just for the scent though!

 

In the imp: Lavender and something soap-y floral. Jasmine, maybe? A hint of anise/fennel.

 

On the skin: Stayed pretty much the same, it's a soft, soap-y floral, based on lavender and something else. I find this a 'soft' lavender more than the astringent floral kind.

 

Long term: While the first time I wore this I panicked and washed it off, afraid there was chamomile, I never reacted to it, nor have the many times I've worn it since... so either it's not in here, or I've been wrong about what I'm allergic to. That said, I find this one to be quite fixed, it doesn't really change at all through dry down, just gradually fades out over the course of a few hours.