Temple of Dreams

[Flightless]

For use when working with the many Gods of Sleep, Dreams, and Nightmares.

In the bottle: A Strong, astringent, slightly mentholated lemony scent hits my nose first thing out of the imp. This really surprised me- The only other Sominium I've worn up to this point was Oneiroi and it wasn't nearly that shocking... I guess I expect a more calm scent to come wafting out on my initial sniff. Hmmmmm

Wet: The lemon and herbal sticks around, but it's intriguing to me.

Dry-down: This turned to clove on my skin. Very odd.
I was kind of worried that I wouldn't get a relaxing, calming effect, but I fell asleep very easily with this one.


Next morning: I had pretty cohesive dreams all night, more so than usual and as with Oneiroi, this scent is completely gone in the morning light. I definitely want to try this one again. Edited June 14, 2011 by Flightless

[KittyHawk]

Imp: Medicinal lavender, and lots of it. I don't plan on wearing this as a fragrance, but for sleep only.

 

Wet: Lots of lavender, and maybe a little citrus? It's a lot mellower on than in the imp, thank goodness!

 

Dry: This turned to a lovely lavender musk on me, and I don't even like lavender. I wouldn't say this made me sleepy, but it did relax me.

 

The next morning: I remembered my entire dream from the night before, which is rare. I usually remember bits and pieces, never one in its entirety. I'm glad I purchased this; it's the first of the Somnium series that I've tried, but certainly not the last. I will probably upgrade to a bottle once the imp is gone.

[Invidiana]

This starts out as a really sharp and medicinal lemony lavender but gradually mellows out to mostly lavender with a hint of lemon. It's not really something I wear but I think I'll keep my imp around with good reason; it seems to help calm nausea. The night I got this imp at the Meet the Lady show in Tribeca, I also got awfully sick from a restaurant we'd gone to earlier. Taking deep whiffs of this on my wrist actually helped me feel better and drift off to sleep eventually.

[Maleficium]

Imp: herby medicinal lavender. very sharp

 

wet on skin: OOOOOH! Spicy, nose tingling herbs. Lavender and rosemary. Slightly lemony. Reminds me of herbs tied in silk drawstring bags and tea.

 

dry down: calms down a lot and becomes much softer. Subtle and musky. It's quite relaxing!

 

I love this one! It's too early to start thinking about sleeping, but I'll put this on before I go to bed tonight and see if any magic happens.

[snowball]

Imp: Sharp and very herbal. Rosmary and basil?

 

Wet: Lots of herbs, lavender and clove.

 

Dry: Lots of clove, which unfortunately is a no go for me.

[hexnut]

A pale yellow oil, tested blind.

In Vitro Sharp, sweet-pungent. Citrus?

Wet Herbal throw during application. On skin it was sharp and pungent, almost mentholic, definitely herb-y; maybe eucalyptus? After eight minutes it was much less pungent and something like clove was peeking through. Nice.

Drying Definitely clove, which I love. The scent retreated close to my skin and faded, but otherwise remained clove dominant for at least an hour. Later in the day it was faint and vaguely vanillic with no clove.


Temple of Dreams was a pleasant surprise, and I'm grateful to the Lab for sending it along because I never would have picked this on my own. While testing this without knowing its identity I thought it would be refreshing for short-term daytime wear. Now seeing that it's a Somnium blend I'm curious enough to try it at bedtime.

[sunstone]

Decided to try this again last night, and put some on after I laid down.

 

In imp: A relaxing blend of pungent herbs. Rosemary, lavender and a few notes I couldn't identify...Maybe a touch of lemon or lemon verbena.

 

Wet: Exclusively ROSEMARY with the widest throw I have encountered on my own skin. My partner could smell it 3-4 feet away! Pretty overpowering, but I love rosemary, so it was all right.

 

After a half hour-ish: The rosemary quieted down, and let the other notes come out and play. There was something sweet and a tad spicy, like anise or fennel. Delicious. I couldn't stop sniffing my wrist. Definitely a keeper.

 

I did not have extraordinary dreams. In fact, I don't remember them at all. I did however sleep more soundly and continuously than I have for weeks. So, thanks Beth.

 

ETA: My partner Sunlitgarden did not remember her dreams either, but she slept well too.

Edited October 9, 2013 by sunstone

[fufu_berry]

I don't usually like to wear scents to bed, but I've been having really involved and crazy dreams, to the point where I'm not feeling rested when I wake up and bugged by them all day, so I put this on before bed last night.

 

Wet: Wow! This smells smoky and definitely has some clove - kind of like a less-intense Rumpelstilzchen. It feels cool on my wrist when I put it on, which is neat.

 

Drydown: Herbs coming through - like crushing basil and rosemary between your fingers. Really beautiful.

 

Dry: Some "fuzziness" that I associate with lavender and the rosemary and basil still. Really love this. It didn't help me get to sleep any faster, but I did feel more rested when I woke up despite sleeping fewer hours, and didn't have any labyrinthine dreams that I can recall. Will be trying this again.

[ferocissima]

In the imp: LAVENDER, all caps and in every direction.

 

Wet: lavender, crushed rosemary, a little bit of sweetness from a lemon. Bright, strong, astringent; citrus and herbs with an earthy undertone I can't place.

 

Drydown, 5 minutes: this is where things start to get interesting. My skin amps clove and basil, which were totally overwhelmed by the rosemary before. The spiciness increases as it warms on my skin, and I notice how volatile this scent is: on one wrist, an almost-medicinal pure rosemary and lavender, and on the other, a soft vanilla-like anise with lemon and clove. it gets a sharp, acidic smell at times.

 

Drydown, 15 minutes: much softer now. Basil and clove with a touch of rosemary, which is an unexpected and welcome combination. I've been very into vegetable scents (basil, wild lettuce) recently and I find this combination grounding and relaxing. I bought this oil as a sleep aid and meditation tool and I think it will be perfect.

[calivianya]

Definitely herbal - a lot of lavender, maybe some sage? Rosemary? I'm not sure, but this is pretty delicious. Unfortunately, it is really short-lived on my skin.

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Sharp but sort of minty herbal. Definitely some rosemary in there.

 

Wet on skin: Very minty, like Vicks Vaporub minty. I could see this being a little mind-clearing.

 

Dried down: Ok, starting to smell a bit more like herbs again instead of just Vicks.

 

Throw: This has a bit of throw, but it's definitely sinus-clearing when I sniff it.

 

Verdict: None yet. Honestly, I might not go for this based on scent, but I'm about to go to sleep, and I'm curious to see if it will have any effect on my dreams. Well, really, on what I remember in the morning from them, since if I don't remember anything, I can't really judge on anything more than that. But I've gotten some great story ideas from the rare vivid dream that I remember well, and I love having that "Ooh!" moment in the morning where I realize I'm going over the details of my dream and adding on to them even more. I'll try to remember to update in the morning if I have anything worth updating about.

 

Update: Well, I didn't notice anything special about my dreams last night. I think I dreamtt of trying on perfume. Still, I'd like to do a little more work with this one. I did notice my mind kind of clearing a little bit when I tried it on last night, like it was open and receptive to more things.

Edited February 25, 2014 by Magycmyste

[mymymai]

• ITI: It's a nice, subtle lavender, rosemary, with a creaminess underneath, like an oatmeal.

Wet: That's very much rosemary there. The woodsiness comes out on my skin, but now it seems like there may be juniper in addition to the lavender and creamy wheat note. Perhaps there is also a touch of eucalyptus because I'm picking up on some menthol as well.

Dry: After 15 hours, the scent is soft and soothing, like a bath before bedtime with a hint of lavender and a sprig of rosemary in it, just for relaxation.

[KakashiMorph]

In the bottle: Lavender, pure and strong.
On my skin: Smells like lavender and maybe something cool ( mint?). It its relaxing as a scent and quite mellow.
Drydown: Lavender, soft and mellow.

[Cali]

Not what I was expecting - a bitter in-your-face lavender. Goes herbal when wet. The drydown is mostly a bit soapy, not bad though.

[Kmye Chan]

In the imp: lavender and eucalyptus.

 

Wet: a sharp lavender at first, and green herbal smells: basil, rosemary. Something spicy, either clove or cinnamon.

 

Dry: the basil takes over on my skin, until this is all basil with just a touch of clove. After a couple of hours this dies down to a spicy incense.

 

Throw: potent.

 

Urgh. I smell like pasta rolled in pesto then in clove. Not attractive! Not for me - although I did have some very vivid dreams that I remembered clearly after waking up. Coincidence? Who knows!

[Lambent]

Temple of Dreams smells of potent, sharp lavender. The lavender note reminds me of Serge Lutens' Encens et Lavande. I can't comment on the effectiveness of this blend, yet (will edit if anything out of the ordinary happens during sleep). But it did make me feel more relaxed and open to sleep.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Eucalyptus. Lavender. Super herbal and medicinal. Smells a bit like Buckley's.

 

 

Dry: Very piney. Not in a great way. I don't think this one is for me.

[spikyfairy]

I have always had trouble with sleep, so was keen to try some of the Somnium Blends. This was my first.

Something in this goes completely ballistic on my skin, and it's driven me nuts trying to figure out what. Whatever it is, it's in #20 Love Oil too. My best guess was clove, but I have other blends containing clove that don't have this reaction.. After reading the reviews again, I am suspecting basil or rosemary. It turns out-of-control peppery and so strong on me, I wondered if it actually was peppercorn. I still kind of like it, oddly enough, but it is certainly not sleep-inducing, & I don't think that's what it's meant to smell like!

It is mainly lavender in the imp but strongly herbal and peppery on me. My guesses at other things in the mix include: almost definitely poppy, maybe some sage, possibly some eucalyptus. And that basil or rosemary or whatever is having a tantrum.. After a half-hour or so it mellows out into something I would actually wear as a perfume - a mildly peppery-poppy & very subtle plant-sweetness that may be thyme & clove (and lavender).

I did seem to sleep more solidly and have less dreams when I used this. Quite appropriately, I ended up spilling most of the imp on my bed by accident! My whole room smelled like peppery lavender for days, which was rather nice.. I think I will try a few more of the sleep blends before I commit to a bottle of anything.

[dementia_divine]

In the imp: Herbal lavender, maybe some citrus and herbs.

 

Wet: Herbal lavender, but more like a lavender sachet than a sharp lavender note, and an herb that may be rosemary? It seems to be getting herbier over time. I'm also getting some citrus, which could be a bit of lemon, but not straight-up lemon, if that makes sense.

 

Dry: Now I'm getting something like an herb or spice, that's like clove, but not, in addition to the lavender and could-be-rosemary herb mentioned earlier. The citrus note has calmed down a lot, and the like-clove, but-not is now the strongest note present.

 

Verdict: I like this, but not as much as my beloved Nanshe.