50

[Lambent]

Just yesterday, Licinius, at leisure,
we played around for hours with my tablets
writing erotic verse as we’d agreed to,
each of us taking turns at improvising
line after line in meter after meter,
adjuncts to wine & witty conversation.
And when I left you, I was so on fire
with all your brilliant & ironic humor
that after dinner I was still excited,
and sleep refused to touch my eyes with quiet.
In bed & totally unstrung by passion,
tossing in agony, I prayed for sunrise,
when I could be with you in conversation.
But when my limbs, exhausted by their labor,
lay on the bed in nearly fatal stillness,
I made this poem for you, my beloved,
so you could take the measure of my sorrow.
I beg you to be kind to my petition,
darling, for if you aren’t, if you’re cruel,
then Nemesis will turn on you in outrage.
Don’t rile her up, please – she’s a bitch, that
goddess.
– Catullus, translated by Charles Martin

Olive leaf, osmanthus, bois de rose, and lemon verbena.

I get mostly lemon verbena from this (not much of a morpher) A very fresh, rejuvenating fragrance. I don't think I'll need a full bottle of this, but I will enjoy the decant I have while it lasts.

[Aviatrix]

This is rather heavy on the lemon verbena, especially while wet.

As it dries down, there is more of the rosewood and a floral quality from the osmanthus.

 

It's very springlike and pretty, but not really something I would normally wear.

[Blood onmy hands]

Herbal, sharp lemon verbena and a perfumey floral note from the osmanthus. Sour, bright, sharp, herbal, lemony-floral...

[sunlitgarden]

I was hoping the lemon verbena wouldn't be the dominant player here, like it so often is, since it was listed last in the notes... but it's still almost all I can smell in the decant (I think I smell a little osmanthus in there) and especially on my skin. I get a little bit of floral (osmanthus and rose) in the background.

Dry, I'm getting more rosewood (it smells like rose flower to me). Overall, this is okay, but I was hoping the osmanthus would be more noticeable.

[t_for_tau]

This was probably the strangest reaction I have ever had to a perfume.

 

I got it because I love Catullus 50, even though the only note in it that reliably works on me is the olive leaf. In the imp, it was a STRONG lemon verbena smell - a herbaceous lemon, rather than a cleaning fluid or candy one. I dabbed it on, and for a moment it smelled more like lemon balm, a warm summery lemon with a garden edge.

 

And then I turned deathly white and bolted for the bathroom, violently nauseated. I have no explanation, other than that it triggered some *really* horrible deep memory. I have PTSD so this shit happens sometimes, but I had no idea that a pleasant herbal lemon scent could make me feel like I was coming down with the most violent food poisoning of my life. O.O Left me very shaken and I scrubbed it off with hibiscrub to get rid of any lingering aroma.

 

So this could be really good on the right person, who wants a slightly sweet, fuzzy-herbal lemon scent for summer - but that person is very definitely not me. D:

[kscha2017]

Very lemony for me. I love it. Fresh and clean. Reminds me of the lemon body wash I enjoy all summer as well as my favorite lemon verbena hair conditioner. Guess I just love lemon.

[zankoku_zen]

Lemon verbena, rose and a touch of olive leaf. It's a very citrusy rose. Medium throw and wearlength.

[theredkilt]

This is so gorgeous. It's Lemon Verbena and faint osmanthus. Very refreshing and bright!

 

Later on, the olive leaf appears rendering an oily texture.

Edited May 20, 2016 by theredkilt

[Soupy Twist]

Lemon Lysol floor cleaner. Scrubber.