Initiation Sentimentale

[Lycanthrope]

Wisteria and white sandalwood with lilac, white tea, champaca, black pepper, benzoin, and white clove.

I was most excited about this scent as I love wisteria, and lilac is also one of my favorite notes. I am a bit wary of benzoin, since it tends to turn into a sappy sour vanilla on my skin in general. But here goes!

Bottle: Whiff of wisteria, more than lilac, but certainly that type of airy glow that hovers around both spring flowers.

Wet: Whoa! That's definitely a strong wisteria, and you can detect the more sharp lilac underneath. I definitely am getting a stronger pepper vibe, too. It's not a sharp high pitched warmth but it's like crushed peppercorns between the fingers. Over time, the pepper stays pretty consistent. The sharper petals stay very light, airy, purple, light purple. It's spicy, warm. Yet also blushing light violet? It's a very interesting scent at this stage.

Over time, as it dries, it's staying a kind of overall neutrally warm scent, with the pepper staying stable, I think that I get a whiff of crushed incense, that's probably the champaca. The floral component of the champaca seems to be melding with the other two florals. It's veering towards wisteria as the dominant floral, as I'm getting a bit more sweetness and powdery purple. I'm not getting a straightforward 'clove,' and the benzoin is slightly souring the blend (not in a bad way, just adding a hint of chewy resin)...

As it dries, my overall impression is: fascinating spicy, neutral to warm purple floral, with gray incense smoke trailing upwards. Deep huffs bring forwards wisteria blossoms and occasional airier kisses of lilac.

Hmmm. Intriguing!

[kelpsoda]

In the decant, I get soapy florals. It's a bit too strong for my taste. I'm not sure I can wait until dry down - had to wash it off. The florals are giving me a headache. Too bad! I was excited for the pepper and clove, but it never appeared.

[Casablanca]

This was another last-minute decant for me. I like everything listed except black pepper. Maybe it will be slight enough for this to work.

 

On the wand: Black pepper dominates. Wuh wuh wuuuh. After that I get champaca, and then a wisteria-lilac mix. Nothing else yet.

 

On my skin: Black pepper! That’s almost all I get, but there’s the ghostly blue-purple wisteria-lilac mix behind it. That mix is pretty, but it’s like the flowers of this garden are hidden behind a fence of black pepper. As this begins drydown, the pepper eases up. Then I get primarily wisteria-lilac mingling with some smooth benzoin and hints of champaca and sandalwood. It’s a soft sent. Nice at this point, reminding me a little of Night Scene from last year’s Lupers. I’m not sure it’s nice enough for me to climb the pepper fence again, though.

 

ETA: I tried this again after a few weeks and the pepper had settled a lot. Really like this now.

Edited April 13, 2017 by Casablanca

[DiesMali]

In the bottle: All lilac and wisteria. Freshly-bloomed, damp flowers.

 

Wet on my skin: WISTERILILAC. I get a great big whiff of hot, heady, dewy June lilacs after a rainstorm, then it immediately begins to settle into something a little less LILAC and more wisteria.

 

Dry: Sweet, delicious, beautifully realistic lilac and wisteria, with wisteria definitely being the more dominant flower after the initial bloom of lilac burns off. Everything else is in the background, giving it a slightly spicy and "clean" kick so it's not too sweet or overpoweringly floral, but this is mostly a lovely cloud of blue flowers and I am in heaven. The lilac really does smell like freshly-bloomed June lilacs on the street and it's just so good when paired with the wisteria. This definitely scratches my "real lilac" itch. It almost verges on soapy from time to time, but never quite tips over that edge, probably thanks to the supporting notes. The white tea and benzoin do come out a little more after a while, but I don't get much pepper, clove, or sandalwood except as that faint bit of intriguing "oomph" in the background. At this point, it's similar to Night Scene from last year, but stronger and a little warmer in tone. If Night Scene was cool, resinous night-time wisteria, this is warm, slightly resinous/spiced day-time wistera + lilac.

 

I really like this! It's more floral than most everything else in my collection, but it works well on my skin, and it'll be a great non-threatening sort of spring/summer scent.

[Jenjin]

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I went for this one. Wisteria, Lilac and Black Pepper? Just after application, it's a little jarring. All those perfumey flowers trying to get along with each other? and then WOMP here comes Pepper! I'm not sure about this one. And then WHOA! I had totally forgot about how Champaca can go completely corny on me. It's super risky and I didn't even notice it was in this blend. Sure enough, it's like flowers on a blue cornchip on me with a splash of white tea on a big ole mountain of NOPE. It also drifts a little bit bitter and sour so hard pass. I can totally see this getting an sexy, floral incense vibe on some, so worth a try.

Edited March 20, 2017 by Jenjin

[lizabelle]

So this is what wisteria smells like! Sniffing it without looking at a description, I could have sworn it was a slightly indolic jasmine, although after some settling it also has a fruity quality. This is really interesting, because it seems like a standard floral scent at first but has a bit of an afterbite (for lack of a better word). I'm guessing it's the spices that are giving it a kick. It suits the artwork very well, and strikes me as a black widow kind of scent--a beautiful flower hiding poison. I love it.

[Diva Urd]

This is a gorgeous spring floral with a hint of spice in the backdrop. Initially on, this and "Consoling Pussy" smell quite similar due to the first wisteria waft, but where "Consoling Pussy" gets deeper and a little smoky from the incense, this one turns lighter and zippier. This is beautiful! I ordered myself a bottle. If you like florals that aren't all about rose, lily, or jasmine, give this one a try!

[ramblingrambler]

Oh, this is flower and flowers and more flowers! There's a peppery undertone, but I see that as soil under the fragrant, blooming petals. Wow!

I'm not a floral girl, so I wont be keeping this, but it absolutely smells like one of my favorite gardens to walk through because the flowers are so succulent and bright. There's a green note in there, too. The champaca and white tea give this a slight haziness... as though there are fluffy white clouds dotting the sky, but you know in your heart the stratocumulus clouds in the distance can come by and release those spring showers at any moment.

 

Love this as an idea, but it isn't for me as a fragrance. Someone will be SO INCREDIBLY HAPPY with this though. <3

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Gorgeous florals (mostly lilac) with a hint of spice. Really pretty! Very fresh and sort of 'zingy'.

 

 

 

Dry: I really like this. Mostly lilac, on me, but with a sharp freshness that I enjoy. I do currently have a lot of lilac scents, so I likely don't need another, but it's so pretty!

[achildoftime]

Wisteria and lilac are having the most passive-aggressive fight I've ever smelled. They both keep going "Pardon me, I believe I was here first. No, I'm fairly certain is was me..." etc. It's polite, but they keep vying for top billing while the tea and pepper quietly slip in front of them both. I know that kind of makes it sound like a restless scent, but it works pretty well overall. There just happens to be a chance you'll alternately smell wisteria and lilac. Like I said, the tea and pepper do come out to add some stability. They work very well together even though it might not be the intuitive choice. I'm quite fond of it.

[zankoku_zen]

Wisteria, lilac, and clove. This one is a very wisteria-lilac blossom in your face. The clove/champaca/black pepper make a very dark background after you get through the floral assault. Good throw and wear length.

[Lucchesa]

I love lilac, sandalwood, benzoin and clove. Champaca can amp weirdly on me, white tea disappears, and I rarely smell the lab's pepper note. And I wasn't sure if I liked wisteria or not. So this was an experiment.

 

It turns out that wisteria is kind of overpowering on me, and it's the main player in this scent. Wet I get strong spring florals, sandalwood and an almost citrusy white tea, and my hopes are high. For me to enjoy this scent, the non-floral components would need to hold their own with the flowers. But they don't; the sandalwood and tea fade quickly in drydown, and I'm left with armloads of purple flowers. I never make out either the pepper or the clove, and I don't get much benzoin, either. Some lilac, a little champaca, and lots and lots of wisteria. If you adore wisteria and lilac, this is a glorious combination of the two. But it's too floral on me.