The Silk Strings of the Shamisen

[Lycanthrope]

Wisteria and white clove, green tea leaf, and frankincense.

So... unexpected.

Wet, I get a bit of the clove, but only like the top part of it - medicinal, sharp. I also get a smell that reminds me of the inside of a dried ume plum, and also maybe... camphor? What? As this sits on my skin and dries down... It's still very clovey... oh, wait, what? White Necco wafer? This smells like a clove cigarette. There's maybe some kind of more non-sweet, crumbly and sticky frankincense, a little sharp-sweet smoke. I don't get much of the classic 'green tea' note. I'm also struggling to find any lush wisteria. The color I see is... browns/ochre, gray-white or even bone-white wisteria, thin, sharp, not like purple unfurled blossoms. If there is a bit of that note, it's only a faint accent over the clovey-resin nature of this scent.

I'm so very confused. But if you like clove...

[Lucchesa]

Like Lycanthrope, I'm kind of confused by Silk Strings. I tested Initiation Sentimentale yesterday, and THERE was some wisteria. That wisteria hit me over the head; here I have to sniff hard to find it. The clove is gentle on me, as is the frankincense, and the green tea note is what comes through most clearly on my skin, really lovely and grounding. But Silk Strings did not pass the yoga test. I applied about half an hour before my class and halfway through yoga it was already faint. So my skin devours yet another tea blend.

[AmyO'Shields]

I am not a fan of clove on my skin, but I barely smell any here. How different we all are! This is all about the wisteria and green tea on me and it is really nice. The frankincense never shows up. Very pretty blend and I will enjoy my decant.

[zankoku_zen]

Green tea, wisteria and a touch of clove. I'm surprised at how green tea this blend is. It's very fresh green floral. If you've ever had high quality green tea that has a touch of floral to it, this is how it smells. Fresh, green, crisp. Good throw and wear length.

[Aviatrix]

This smells soapy in the bottle, but on my skin it turns into a dreamy, ethereal wisteria and clove, if that makes sense. Wisteria stands out, along with a bit of spiciness from clove, but everything seems well blended in a way that transforms it into more than the sum of its parts.

This is my favourite among the shungas this year, which I was not expecting!

[mishi-bear]

This one was just a bizarre blend on me, it smelled oddly savory. I think it was the clove to be honest, it was making me think of like, basmati rice seasoned with clove. The green tea wasn't helping in this regard, lending a very unsweet leaf smell to the whole thing. The wisteria is there but honestly it just makes this scent even weirder. It does nothing to cut the strange savory aspect, and just feels very out of place. Occasional whiffs of a sweet purple floral. The frankincense never shows up for me. Medium throw but unsure of wear length, I ended up washing this off.

[Aveya]

Source: Forum Swap

Preconception: Excited. I'm a clover lover in all forms, and frankincense is growing on me. And I'm an avid tea lover but not sure how it works in scents yet. Interested!

 

Vial: Simple, clean. Floral and light.

Skin: YUM CLOVE. With tea. Fresh fresh green tea and clove.

Drydown: Gets more herbal/floral. The clove eases up and just adds a gentle bite to the green tea and wisteria.

 

Pretty well balanced in the end. Floral professional green tea (don't think matcha, think lose leaf chinese buds with flower blossoms), spiced with clove - it's not subtle but it's not overpowering. Then Frank is adding his sweet funk to the blend, plus wisteria's floral vibe.

 

Verdict; Spiced herbal flowers. Light, green, leans toward feminine. Lovely throw.