Oisin

[ifinena]

A legendary warrior bard from Irish lore and a renowned member of the Fianna. His saga is detailed in two of the four great Cycles of Celtic legend: the Fenian and Ossianic Cycles. A lyric, wistful blend of summertime Irish blossoms and herbs, glistening with vibrant white musk.

I was very happy to get this on an Ebay auction.
It's a gentle blend, staying close to the skin.
I get mostly musk. Gentle musk. Also a soft herbal tone with the tiniest bit of spice.
I love this on me but I think it may be great on my SO, too. I'll have him test it.

[LupaWulf]

Oisin is a pleasant blend of herbs with a very light and clean smelling musk. It reminds me of fresh breezes on a clear spring day. Unfortunatly it doesn't last too long on my skin as such. After wearing it for most of the day I tend to get a floral sweetness tone which isn't there upon the initial applicaiton.

 

Overall it is a very nice soothing scent. I do wish it had a little bit more throw when applied to my skin. On that particular thought I did want to add that I had decent luck with it as a scent for my dresser. (I spilled a bit and wiped it up with a clean sock). It lasted very well, particularly the musk.

[suileach]

In the vial, I caught a sharpness that worried me - would the white musk be too masculine? Answer: No! This is a beautiful musk that smells like rain and green growing things. Really lovely. I see a great green field, dotted with small white flowers and shrouded in mist when I smell this. Just wonderful. I might have to track down more of this.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Very very light herbal floral.

 

Wet: The same. So faint though! I amp florals and I'm BARELY amping this. Ok, slathering some more. Now I am getting a sort of 'fresh' clean scent, herbal-cologne-y. A little bit of sweetness. Dismal throw - by far the weakest oil I've ever smelled, maybe it was diluted with another oil? it's still not dry after 10 min, even when I didn't slather, but I can barely smell it.

 

Dry: Okay, I'm getting a WEE bit of musk, but barely...and usually I can detect musk right away and usually I amp it too. I'm getting a nice herbal-woody smell too. Definitely a gender neutral scent, not strongly one way or the other.

 

Summary: The musk and the woods emerge much more fully over time, such that in the long term it's very woodsy (oakmossy) musk, and at this point it's STRONG, which is a little mind-boggling - how did it go from weak to strong throw? I end up quite liking it, but it's not really distinctly feminine enough for me for frequent wear.

 

 

SECOND REVIEW (first review was on May 3rd 2008 from a full lab imp, the following from July 13 2008 and a different testable sniffie/decant):

 

 

In the bottle: Extremely pale yellow. Sweet, fresh, crisp. Most notably herbal, but somewhat aquatic. A bit of sharp white musk, and maybe some fougere, as this has a cologne-y feel. Touch of lavender and faint white florals.

 

Wet: Sweetly herbal, quite musky, fresh and clean and verging on aquatic. Almost fruity. There's definitely fruit (currant? apple?) of some sort in this, which gives it a tart, juicy feel that verges on citrusy. Quite unisex. Soft florals (freesia, lily, apple blossom). Grassy and a bit mossy too. That same gorgeous bright, floral and softly herbal, blue-vibed lavender from Yvaine, that gives this a shining feel.

 

Dry: Dries slowly. I find this more springlike in feel, but it's probably geared towards summer wear because it's so light, brisk and refreshing. I think there is some truth to being a cologne version of Leanan Sidhe as sarada notes. Also (thanks L-z_Empress!), it does remind me a bit of RL's Romance - a favourite perfume of mine - though it's a bit sweeter and less floral, and less overtly feminine. A bit of a soapy edge has emerged, but it's quite pleasant and adds a clean, shower-fresh feel - making it more unisex.

 

Later: Still, the apple blossom remains strong and sweet, as does the red currant/blackberry/huckleberry (it's one of these, and bears a resemblance to all 3 - so either an unusual berry, or red currant). The musk has amped into a sexy, shining thing. A floral (lily?) has taken on a creamy feel. I think sweet, resiny benzoin adds to this creaminess while providing a bit of earthy depth.

 

Summary: In the final drydown the sexy white musk shines brilliantly, augmented by fresh white flowers along the lines of freesia and lily (amongst others I'm guessing), apple blossom that adds a gentle sweetness, and a sweetly earthy and softly vanillic benzoin and earthy oakmoss base. A hint of the lovely juicy-tart wild berry scent provides a crisp edge. Though rather distant, softly floral lavender and grass notes add an outdoorsy herbal feel. Unisex, but slightly feminine on my skin. Good throw and great lasting power.

 

If you like this, try: The Oblation, Yvaine, The Unicorn, 51, The East, Kitsune-Tsuki

 

I tried another (full) imp of this many months ago and it literally smelled like NOTHING - it was incredibly weak and my review was not very complimentary. I am now utterly convinced that imp had been diluted and possibly also contaminated. THIS I absolutely adore and must acquire more of. It's so bright and shimmering and yet deep and rich.

Edited July 14, 2008 by fairnymph

[filigree_shadow]

At first this reminds me of Dorian, in that sweet way. It has a bit more of a citrus kick to it than Dorian does. But the drydown is heavy on the musk and light on the sweet. It does smell clean and fresh, and it's pretty light. I seem to recall this scent being more masculine a couple of years ago, but as it has aged it sweetened up. It smells more feminine now. I really like this scent, but it's a little too soft on me.

[zankoku_zen]

Oh man, this was ever so faint on my skin at the beginning. Very wispy, kind of Irish fog among the heathers green sort of scent. It's masculine in a cool green foresty way.

 

Unfortunately on me, it kinda goes a little Irish Spring.

 

Ah well.

[Victory]

I got to sniff Oisin from the bottle during a Meet and Sniff, so my impressions are based purely upon that. With that said, Oisin makes me think of a masculine Antique Lace. I have a bottle of AL that is very vanillic and an imp that's much lighter on the vanilla- Oisin is much more like the imp, although not identical, of course. I'm sorry I missed this when it was first out, since it's really lovely.

[mgrazulis]

Beth's sugary white skin-like musk shines gloriously through scented Irish flowers and misted herbs. My nose picks up some earthy Irish moss, too--wet and dewy. Just enough blossom here to prevent this from being too masculine. A few spicy meadow flowers that remind me of Leanan Sidhe, but the overall feel is unisex, light and green with just a touch of feral in the musk. Warm, inviting and I wouldn't mind a roll in an Irish meadow wearing this! Throw is light but longlasting. Incredibly fresh!

Edited November 25, 2008 by mineralfairy

[ElinaMakropulos]

Gorgeous soft musk; the color I picture in my head is a very soft light brown, like a deer. Which makes sense, given his story I don't really get any florals or herbs, just that light sweet musk which manages, somehow, to have very nice throw without being headache-inducing.

 

The magic really happens after I've had it on for awhile...it becomes the most lush, warm musk I have ever sniffed and I am SO delighted to have gotten my hands on a bottle of this. It is the scent that, more than any other, complements my skin perfectly, the olfactory equivalent of slipping your hand into a supple leather glove. I adore it.

[Cheri]

Thanks to Tess I get to try a scent that I never thought I would, and I am absolutely in love with it. The closest thing I've tried that it reminds me of is Chanel 19. I wore Chanel 19 for years and gave it up because I found a new love, BPAL (plus the price was out of hand, and it was hard to find). It's so close, but better, in my opinion. It has the same soft, but mesmerizing glow about it that Chanel has, but Chanel was never quite this perfect. This scent is perfection, and I'm so happy to have a bottle. If I would have been around when it this was available I would have bought so many bottles.

Edited May 17, 2010 by Cheri

[beachbabealways]

A beautiful soft Musk ... I love it.

[Ryan Hemphill]

Got lucky and acquired a decant and tried it out today. Oisin was unique for me in that it did the opposite of most other scents:

 

Oftentimes I put it on and it is great for the first 1/2 hour or so, then it quickly fades leaving me wishing for more.

 

Oisin went on making me wonder what all the fuss was about. It was so soft and barely there. But, after 30 min to an hour on the skin it really started to bloom.

 

It began as a pale white musk, edging towards powdery for me. But now it is a gorgeous blend of white musk, florals, and something a little sweet. I have bad luck with feminine smells, but this one totally works. Very rich and complex. Every once and I while I think "soap"- but that never lasts too long.

 

I only wish it had some throw--it sits very close to the skin. When I put my wrist to my nose and take a whiff I adore it, but I haven't gotten a single time where it wafted up to me.

But, I tend to wear scents just for me anyway, so this is OK.

 

I would love a bottle of this, but I know that's not very likely to happen. I'll just keep the decant and savor it for as long as it lasts, and maybe some day I'll have a stroke of good fortune!