My Mom With the Sun in Her Hands

[OctoberGwen]

MY MOM WITH THE SUN IN HER HANDS
Crayon on copier paper, 2012
This is my mom with the sun in her hands. I put my name on it because it's my mom.
Champaca flower, cardamom, yellow sandalwood, Italian bergamot, magnolia, and lemon peel.

My Mom With the Sun in Her Hands

Just a side note here that I love the artwork and title for this one SO MUCH.

This smells beautiful and has a 'classic perfume' feel to it. It's very well blended and I'm not picking out any individual notes thus far, but if I close my eyes and concentrate I can smell the influence of the sandalwood, bergamot and magnolia for sure.

It smells (dare I say?) a bit magical, almost in a TAL-like way, which is fitting, I think, given the imagery.


ETA: This has smoothed out considerably and I am really loving it. I'm definitely getting bergamot now, as well as sandalwood and magnolia (I freaking love magnolia) with just a hint of lemon. I'm not sure about the champaca, though clearly it's adding something to the mix.

"classic" = yes, "old lady" = no, at least not to me. Edited April 28, 2013 by OctoberGwen

[PersephonesChild]

I kind of love this perfume, but I have to admit it has some pretty strong "old lady" associations for me-- it smells so much like my grandmother's perfume, but in a way that I personally really enjoy. In the imp, I got a good dose of lemon with some sandalwood underneath. On my skin, it's much more integrated-- it's hard to pick out a single note, although the sandalwood and champaca are fairly present. It smells classic and refined. But I suspect for some people the "old lady" association will be too much!

[skyelyric]

This is lovely. It's definitely got an old-fashioned perfume vibe going, I want to say the 4711 that my grandmother had, but it's been so long I'm not positive. On first application there's a bergamot/citrusy/soft powder scent predominantly, but as citrus does, that fades and it morphs into a soft, old-world perfume scent with the occasional hints of bergamot.

 

The closest Lab comparison I can make is The Butterfly, but My Mom with the Sun has less of a brown fuzzy feel and more of a soft sophistication to it. I don't get a whole lot of throw, it's more of a skin scent for me.

 

Oh, and my boyfriend told me I smelled like an incense shop, kind of like soapy incense but not as strong. I'm guessing he's sensitive to and not fond of sandalwood?

[stellamaris]

Zzzzzzzzzzpffffffffft pop, that was my brain exploding...love love love this one!!!!! It's that same warm incense, like Kujuraho, but more better!

I don't get the old lady/classic perfume vibe at all, this is some old timey California hippie girl stuff for me. Must have many bottles.

[ljaylh]

Thank you to the lovely Klepz for gifting me a decant of this

 

Yep... this is very 'sun' like - it's fresh and clean, and the colour association for me is definitely yellow. It smells like a fancy shampoo on me. I can't really pick up the individual notes... it's just... shampoo.

[Suffragette]

Whew! This one is an indolic, animalic floral on me.

[JazzieCazzie]

One of the six April Fools scents I purchased imps of in a decant circle.

 

IN THE IMP: Yes, this is SOOOOOOOO sunshine! A very golden scent.

 

Dabbed on wrist and in crook of arm.

 

WET: Absolutely liquid sunshine. The lemon peel is predominant on me but it's sharp fresh lemon and not furniture-cleaner lemon. The champaca and sandalwood combine with it in terrific style.

 

DRYDOWN: This is where it starts to lose me. It gets just a wee tad too floral, with the magnolia taking over, and then the bergamot sneaks in behind it. Those two notes drown out the champaca and sandalwood in the dry stages and I never got the cardamom at any point.

 

OVERALL: By the end of the wild ride, the scent on my body was just not where I wanted it to be. Too "perfume" and not enough "fragrance" if that makes sense. I knew that was a risk I took because of the last three notes listed but had hoped perhaps my body would surprise me and allow the FIRST three to dominate.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 3.

[beakerwill]

Umm. Jean Nate. And it laasstttss. For the first 10 mins after application I could pick out the sandalwood, but after that point all the notes blended together and became Jean Nate. Nothing wrong with that, if you like it - but I don't. After about seven hours, it was a delicate, haunting waft of amazing; but so not worth the 6hrs and 45 mins of Jean Nate. Not for me

 

*edited cuz my phone decided to post w/out me*

Edited May 13, 2013 by pervs-toy

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics

 

Initial Thoughts: There are so few magnolia scents out there that work on me, I'll try almost any of them. While there are no death notes in this for me, there are scents that I tend to avoid, like the bergamot and lemon.

 

In the Vial: Very heavy on the sandalwood and cardamon, almost to the point of smelling like an old-fashioned men's cologne.

 

Wet: On my skin the magnolia comes surging out briefly, which makes me happy. Then very quickly the sandalwood does its amping thing on me; I was hoping yellow would be a pale enough sandalwood not to misbehave so.

 

Drydown: The bergamot develops, though the lemon peel never really comes out like I was expecting. I do understand the classic-perfume feel others have described, though it stays on the masculine side to my nose.

 

Verdict: I would have no objection to a classic-perfume scent if it had a lot of magnolia. Unfortunately this one doesn't on my skin.

[Monday]

Oh gods no it's the same champaca that did horrible things on my skin in Sleeping Husband-.

 

On my skin wet: Okay the champaca is there but it's fainter thankfully. There's a hint of bergamot and some magnolia but it's mainly champaca.

On my skin dry: Well dry-ish, the bergamot is coming forward now, the mothball-champaca has toned down. It's actually very nice now, warm and inviting but I don't think I want to go through that wet phase again.

[Blood onmy hands]

The champaca and sandalwood turn to baby powder with a headshoppy incense edge on my skin. The magnolia is perfumey, sharp white floral with a bit of soapiness. And the lemon/bergamot come off almost like a sharp lemon cologne. All together, it's like perfumey white floral with lemon dish soap and powdery, incensey sandalwood. Smells both clean and dry on me, and is too sharp for my tastes.

[zankoku_zen]

Lemon, white florals, clean..... and HOLY CRAP, it's Jean Nate!

 

Clean, citrusy, with a hint of spice/sandalwood at the very base....

 

And definitely smells like a better version of Jean Nate. Decent throw, decent staying power.

[milo]

This blend is a bit sour and incensey on me. It kind of reminds me of Chrysanthemum Moon, just a little bit. It smells bright and sunny, but not really my thing.

 

eta: I did get this one and My Mommy In a Boat Mixed Up.

Edited May 24, 2013 by milo

[tziporra]

Package arrived from the lab, I immediately opened the bottle and slathered.

 

I opened and sniffed and was instantly transported to endless hours at the perfume counter, sampling different scents. This is definitely a BIG perfume.

 

But it was sooooooooo familiar! Like an old friend! Like something I'd worn before, but I couldn't place it. It wasn't one of those scents I'd worn with a really LOUD note, easy to pick out of a crowd, this one is so beautifully blended, it just reads as lovely perfume...

 

When my husband got home, he sniffed the air and smiled. "It smells like perfume. It smells like when we were dating!"

 

And there! He hit on it! The perfume I wore when we were dating (14 years ago!) was Chanel Allure, and Mom with the Sun is very similar to that on me. Unsurprisingly, they share a ton of notes, including the bergamot - which I can smell early - and the magnolia - which this dries down to in a lovely fashion. Allure doesn't have lemon, but the rose always read very lemony on my skin. I don't get much Champaca, this does not smell like incense on me.

 

It is gorgeous. It's ridiculously sophisticated stuff, and worth keeping for the reaction it got out of my husband alone.

 

[girasol]

Wet: Very much getting the 'perfume counter' fragrance other reviewers have spoken of. I could definitely believe this was a commercial perfume, but for the absence of alcohol overtones.

 

Drydown: Yup, still getting that mishmash of commercial scents that you encounter while cruising through the cosmetics floor of a department store. Can't pick out particular notes, but I'm rubbish at that anyway. I assume its the magnolia and bergamot that are front and centre, because it reads very florally on me.

 

It's inoffensive, but nothing that I'm excited enough about to need a bottle.

[Alethia]

Thoughts before testing: I have such high hopes for this one! All the notes listed are in my favorites list, so I'm expecting good things

 

Wet: Whoo. This is some STRONG classic-smelling perfume. It kinda smells like the amalgamation of perfumes at Nordstrom's when you walk through their perfume counter. It's not bad, but not what I was expecting.

 

Dry down: As it dries, the champaca and sandalwood elbow the other notes out of the race. It's much heavier and the throw is much stronger than I had expected. It's nice, but not very me at this point.

 

Dry: Once it dries all the way, it smells a lot like my favorite aunt's perfume, actually. It's strong and in your face with a throw that's too much for me. I think this might need some aging, but at this point I'm not very hopeful that I'll like it on the next test.

 

Verdict: To be determined at next testing!

[yewberry]

I agree with the Jean Nate. Soapy '70s perfume. Sad. The notes sounded pretty ideal.

[BoneBone24]

Wet: A robust and golden flora. Very sunshine-y. It smells exactly like something from my childhood, but I can’t figure out what. (a fancy soap or bubble bath maybe?) It’s a good memory, yet I can’t pinpoint what it’s of, which is really frustrating!

 

Drydown/Dry: Gently spiced florals and lemon over sandalwood. It seems old-fashioned, but not in a bad way. Heady, golden, and slightly soapy.

 

 

 

5.5 out of 10 bones

Edited October 16, 2013 by BoneBone24

[bellumed]

Lots of magnolia and sharp lemon peel in the vial, but on me the sandalwood does its same old mean thing. Pass.

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Lemon, lemon, lemon.

 

Wet on skin: A sharp lemon and sandalwood, as others have been saying, a bit more of a classic perfume scent. For some reason, that's not really turning me off to this.

 

Dried down: A slightly sweeter sandalwood, along with (I think) the champaca flower. This is actually rather beautiful on me, and while it's close to the classic perfume smell people have mentioned, on drydown, it shies away from that a little - it's nice.

 

Throw: I'm not getting much of a throw off of this right now, which kind of surprises me. Still, that's good.

 

Verdict: **** Surprisingly, this is my second-favorite of the Pickman's Gallery (I thought it would have been [Redacted] Dragon, but I think that one had a touch too much vetiver in it for me). I'm still not entirely sure if I will get a bottle, but I'm definitely tempted. Somehow, I think this one might be even better after aging.

[Invidiana]

I remember when I initially read the note list for this one, I got very nervous, which was why I had to try a decant first. And then I got completely blown away. Cardamom and bergamot can be iffy on me, but they barely show up! Instead I get all the lovely champaca and magnolia taking center stage, with a ray of brightness from the lemon peel, and backed by a sheer but sensual sandalwood. I love heady white florals so needless to say, a scent that makes me think of these flowers soaked in afternoon sunlight is heavenly . Needless to say I now have a bottle.

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Like a classic perfume of yore, well-blended and elegant in a very dry fashion.

 

Wet: The bergamot and lemon peel make their presence known.

 

The dry-down: Something, not sure what, has come forward to make this a dry peppery scent--it's probably a combination of notes. I ordered this for the magnolia, but never detected a hint of the lovely creaminess that I'm so familiar with, living in the Deep South.

[Ondine]

Unfortunately too classic perfumey/mishmash of everything at the perfume counter on me. It's yellow-y and sunny, for sure, but too floral. I do like some florals, but something in here is just making this a "not me" blend.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Salted sea water with a touch of hay

 

Wet on me - The dry hay really comes out with just a hint of sea water and an even smaller hint of Snake Oil

 

Dry on me - It sort of settles into salty water

 

Overall - The wet stages were intriguing but the dry down not so much