Lex Talionis

[grrrlennyl]

The law of retaliation and perfect reciprocity: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, an arm for an arm, a life for a life. The essence of blunt justice: dark myrrh, vetiver, cardamom, violet, black pepper, sage, cedarwood and black patchouli with a clarion note of sharp white grapefruit.

at first: vetiver, i think. blech.
on: tons of earthy, dark vetiver. not good.
half an hour later: tons of vetiver and some warm cardamom and pepper.
1 hour later: warm myrrh and patchouli, with a bit of vetiver.
1.5 hours later: all vetiver and cedar.
overall: cedar and vetiver are just awful on me. Edited February 4, 2006 by Shollin

[dreamingjune]

There are some similarities between this blend and Nephilim. This is much less herbal and fruity and more smoky and sharp.

 

In the bottle: I notice the wood notes, with cedar standing out the most. The pepper and grapefruit also stands out for me making this a bit sharp.

 

After it dries down: Much less sharp and much more smoky. This isn't like other blends with a citrus note. The grapefruit doesn't dominate or turn soapy/perfumey in the least. The later stages of this scent are quite similar to the later stages of Nephilim.

 

Overall this is wonderfully blended, and one of my all time favorites. You really have to be a fan of smoky/woodsy blends, though.

[jewelbug]

Imp: Cedar at the forefront, violet lending bitterness, and a bit of black patchouli. There is the slightest touch of citrus in the imp.

 

Wet: First on, its SPICE! The cardamom is most apparent when this hits my skin, supported and heated by the pepper. Underneath is a bitter violet and dark smoky wood.

 

Drying: Cedar comes back to the front, but this is almost like a burnt cedar. Its matures to a bitter violets/vetiver, pepper and cedar mix. This is acrid to me. It's dark and sinister, but slightly sweet. I think hubby put it best when he said it smelled like "burning fairies".

 

About an hour in there is a burnt rubber smell. No idea what's doing that, but clearly my skin chem is battling with one or more of the notes. After 2 more hours, the rubber loses, and this settles into a bitter violet/vetiver and cedar with accents of pepper and citrus. It’s a clean but earthy scent. At least it doesn’t smell like burnt rubber anymore. But this just isn't a scent for me.

Overall: Kinda weak throw, lasts about 5 hrs. The final stage is nice--clean yet earthy. But the burning fairies to burning rubber transitions over the first 3 hrs just aren't for me.

[sarada]

There are a lot of things that I like in this blend, a lot of favorite notes, so it's interesting to see what happens when you put them all together. Despite the prevalence of fairly heavy, dark and earthy ingredient I think of it as more of a light blend though. A lasting blend, but light.

 

The thing that I get the most of is a light, powdery wood (smells like sandal to me but I imagine this is cedar) and a brightness from the grapefruit. The blend doesn't smell citrusy but the grapefruit is a familiar (and much-missed) note that always makes things seem kind of sunny and airy.

 

The light wood gradually deepens to a gentle, sweet vetiver -- the kind of smooth, gentle earthy wood that lingers hours after you've applied it. There is a hint of green herbs as well, the sage I imagine.

 

I never smell myrrh, cardamom, pepper or violet though the violet could be adding to the powdery scent that I get from the wood. Still, those are all things that I sometimes like so they'd all be welcome. I'm glad that I mainly get the soft, bright wood and the lingering pale vetiver. Really nice blend though I can't imagine using it more that a few times a year, maybe in the early spring.

[yeahbutnobut]

Lex Talionis

 

In the imp: spicy cedar! I smell cedar wood, with a bit of pepper and fragrant cardamom, and herbal sage and a little hint of grapefruit.

Wet on skin: now I get black patchouli with cedar, a hint of vetiver, and still a lovely mix of warm spices.

Dry: mmm, I quite like this. It’s a complex mixture of many scent genres-there’s the woody dryness of cedar, the dark backdrop of patchouli, myrrh and vetiver, a very slight citrus tang of grapefruit, a bit of sage, spicy black pepper and cardamom (which I can pick out in this, and I love it!) and it’s all softened by a hint of violet. It’s a very nice scent, very unisex.

After a while: it isn’t long before the scents notes into an intriguing scent…it’s slightly green and woody and a little bit herbal-spicy but all at once. It’s a dry, warm, almost earthy scent, with a more prominent vetiver note coming out, but the soft, delicate, dusty note of violet lies on top, rounding out the scent very nicely. There’s even a point in the scent where I swear it smells like geranium (not sure where that comes from, it’s not listed) which I like, since I love the smell of geranium. And this ‘geranium’ note mingled with vetiver reminds me of my mum…those two scents are her favourites.

The drydown is pure ‘geranium’ and vetiver, a scent which comforts me somewhat. This is the kind of vetiver I like-it’s strong, but the other scent on top complements it so nicely.

Verdict: I like this scent a lot more than I expected-I thought it would be too masculine for me but I find the scent to be very unisex. It starts off as a complex mixture of different notes such as cedar, patchouli, violet, myrrh, sage, pepper and cardamom, but over time, the scents merge together so nicely that you can’t tell them apart-apart from the vetiver. And then something strange but pleasant happens-a geranium note surfaces, I have no idea where it comes from but I like geranium a lot, and with vetiver, the overall scent reminds me of my mum! That’s because geranium and vetiver are her two favourite scents…so whilst I don’t need a bottle, I will definitely keep the imp for sentimental reasons, and just because it’s a lovely scent all round.

[zankoku_zen]

Again, another generous gift from jewelbug.

 

In the imp: smells like spices, and I think I detect cardamom.

 

On Skin: I get a weird mix of floral and pepper. It's not entirely unpleasant but it's very sharp and fierce.

 

After a few hours, the pepper calms down but it last for a good two hours at least. It gets softer and slightly more floral but I get no violets or grapefruit. I really would have liked that grapefruit...

 

Verdict: It was interesting. The one day I wore it I felt very powerful. It has a very strict, don't mess with me vibe. I'm not sure I would wear it for any other reason aside from "I need a boost to my invinciblility meter".

 

I'll revisit it another day and maybe I'll feel differently.

[yellowrose]

This is an older imp from a swap faerie package that somehow never got reviewed and why I have no idea. I'm in love.

 

This is a very masculine scent from the very outset. Wet and while drying, very much like a bold chai smell. More like the chai that my friend prepares using whole spices rather than the standard coffeehouse fare. It's bold with lots of cardamom and black pepper. Exceedingly masculine and peppery-spicy. WOW.

 

The cedar and sage notes assert themselves while drying. The cedar brings Tombstone to mind, but this is a rough hewn cedar plank with splinters by comparison. Not a bit of white grapefruit -- one of my favorite notes -- nor is there any violet on me. Lots of throw.

 

For those who can't wear a lot of spicy blends because of contact allergies associated with cinnamon and/or cassia, this is for you. My stars, but this is brilliant!

[edenssixthday]

Lex Talionis - A dark and husky scent, this is the villain you find lurking in the shadows in the black of night in 19th century novels -- it's Mr. Alec D'Urberville, Parson Dimmesdale, the Headless Horseman. Deep, black, and powerful, the patchouli, cedarwood, and pepper notes stand out above the rest. This is not a scent I would wear, as I prefer scents lighter and fruiter, but as with others that are too dark for me, I'm going to pass this on to my husband.

[themerrybaker]

The cardamom, vetiver & patchouli in Lex Talonis make it "Spanked Light (Fanny Pat?)" for me and hence a great favorite.

[scourgeotheseas]

Lex Talionis - from the DC imp swap circle.

 

In the imp: Pepper just reaches out and slaps ya in the face, don't it? Also cedarwood and grapefruit in the inital sniff.

 

On me/wet: Pepper replaced almost immediately with grapefruit. The rest of the spicies lurk in the background.

 

Drydown: Cedarwood has completely taken over - my, the skin loves wood. I never even got to smell many of the other notes. Poo!

Edited August 3, 2006 by scourgeotheseas

[dierne]

In the bottle - Woody with dark spices. Promising ...

 

Wet on skin - Gets lots more subtle just a hint of spicy wood.

 

Dry on skin - Still gentle spicy woods but there is a sharpness lifting it. Not at all what I expected but I'm liking it so far.

 

Later - I really did not expect this to be so subtle but it's died down to a woody with undertones of spice that I rather like. Not sure I like it so much as to make it a favourite though.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: Grapefuit with a bit of spice.

 

On me: A strange combination of sage and violet. There's some spiciness underneath as well that I believe is the myrrh and patchouli. Can't decide if I like it - I think I do.

[sofiaviolet]

It's a good thing I like Lex Talionis out of the imp, because I dropped the cap on my laptop. Oops. On my skin, it's too dark and musty for my tastes, and it's not strong enough.

[The_Merf]

Note: I do not know if this decant is an original or Resurrection run of the oil.

 

In the decant: Vetiver!

 

Wet: The vetiver in this blend is overwhelming at first. I did not think I was going to like this; I certainly was prepped to swap it, but...

 

Drydown and wear: Pepper! I may have tried one or two other blends with pepper before, but none of them were as pronounced as the pepper in Lex Talionis. I almost sneezed as the oil was going through its last change and drydown. After the oil has settled down, the pepper keeps it very interesting for a long time. Certainly this is unique enough to hold onto.

[The_Witching_Hour]

In the bottle: pepper (or something with a sharp edge), patchouli and maybe a hint of some citrus.

 

On my skin: WHOA....spicy! Pepper is still the most apparent note as this hits my skin with a support group of cardamom and smoky woods (cedar?).

 

Drydown: cedar really starts leading the group but it has a smoky edge, not like your keepsake cedar chest type cedar. Vetiver/citrus on one hand and then smoky cedar on the other. This blend is so symbolic of light vs. dark, sinister vs. good, merry vs. morose, etc and a tough scent to pull off but a Gemini, like myself or any of the dual signs will get more entertainment out of smelling this scent flip-flop all day long! Great fun or a beautiful disaster.

[LadyCrow]

In the imp: Resins and... flowers?

 

Wet: Incense and violets. I never would have thought that would have worked, but it does.

 

Drydown: Gradually becomes more herbal. What fascinates me about this blend, apart from "watching" each note contribute to the mix, is how the violet -- a fairly delicate flower, after all -- stands up against the other notes and really hangs in there throughout the drydown. There's a personal tie-in between that as a metaphor and the scent concept for me, so that's especially pleasing.

 

Verdict: Like Torture King, this is one of the spicy ones that I might just have to keep around.

[Extispex]

This is one that I've been coveting for a while. All the notes are just... me. They call me. Then one day a frimpie of it arrives with a forum purchase (thank you, oh evil enabler who bestowed this upon me).

 

This is definitely covet-worthy. Why oh why was it discontinued?

 

In the imp, its not very strong on the vetiver at all. Its more of a spiced violet with a hint of citrus.

 

Wet, the vetiver makes an appearance, but not overwhelmingly so. I often describe vetiver as a 'twisted' scent, and in this, it does sort of twist the aroma slightly. I tend to amp citrus, so I get a good foundation of grapefruit, gently layered with herbs and spices. It really isn't a very dark scent on me at this stage, but it is unusual and quite beautiful.

 

As it dries, the violet wants to go soapy, but then it fades into the background without causing any problems. I also get more myrrh as it dries, and it becomes a bit sweeter and darker.

 

Every stage of Lex Talionis is just lovely on me. I guess I'm going to have to seek out a bottle, but until then, I'll definitely be enjoying this imp.

[pickman's model]

My partner and I were lucky enough to get two imps of this from winning one of the Lab's ebay auctions.

 

Wet: I'm getting none of the grapefruit. Odd, I usually pick it up if there's any. Mostly patchouli and cedarwood, actually. I was worried about the violet, too, but I can't even find a trace of that either.

 

Dry: Oh my. This is GORGEOUS! A very assertive, but really wearable woody-spicy blend. The pepper comes out and is all warm and gorgeous, and the vetiver, cedarwood and patchouli back it up beautifully. It's actually similar to a less aggressively masculine Umbra, but with pepper.

 

Thank you Lab!

[aquazoo]

I think the cedar is coming up next. Yes, I smell like a closet! It's very heavy on the throw, and not as nice as similar things I've tried.

[Salsa Shark]

This is all dark, spicy violets on me. The vetiver wafts in and out at various stages of the drydown, but it never really muscles its way to the front like it can do in some blends, and the cedarwood and patchouli are almost completely indistinguishable as notes in and of themselves, but they're there stopping the violet from going overly powdery and sweet. The pepper is strong in this one as well, backed by the cardamom. I never really pick up the myrrh or grapefruit though.

 

This is a wonderfully blended and interesting mix of notes. Unfortunately, the violet amps up that bit too much for me to find it wearable.

[Monday]

This has been discontinued for a while now, it had time to age and it aged beautifully. Looking at the notes I don't think I would have liked it much fresh.

Lex Talionis aged to a really smooth blend, the vetiver is only apparent in the wet stages. On dry down this becomes a balmy resinous cedar blend with the violet giving it a purple feel.

Why do I have this on my swap page?