Silk Road

[devilot]

A panoply of cultural treasures, spanning the herbs, flowers, oils and balms of the Romans, the Byzantines, the Mediterranean, the Levant, Northern China, Eastern Europe, Iran, the Bulgar-Kypchak, Mesopotamia, the Crimean Peninsula, Anatolia, Antioch, and North Africa.

Silk Road
Wow, I'm not having good BPAL-testing luck today. *pouts* The lab's notes are pretty vague ("herbs, flowers, oils, and balms")-- but this really does smell like spices to me. And, like a spicier Lunar Eclipse. So, this also reminds me of a Chinese herb/ medicine shop. Gross. Really not for me, at all.

Verdict: Glad this imp found a new home!

[Finch]

When I first put this on I immediately though of cinnamon gum. On the dry down the cinnamon is still prominent, but also I get a little ginger and clove with a warm sweetness that can I only describe as dried orange peel with a touch of vanilla. A very interesting blend - I like it!

 

 

[tawaen]

This smelled so lovely in the imp that I brought it with me to work so I could share the love. :-)

 

Silk Road is spicy, in a cinnamon and resin kind of way. The florals are definitely a stong undertone, but I can't tell what individual notes are in there. It's a bold scent, but it's not something that is overwhelming, in fact it's very smooth.

 

It got more resiny on me after a few hours, but still beautiful.

[obsidienne]

This starts off a heck of a lot like Bengal -- loads of skin musk and spices. Then as it dries down, the skin musk-like scent dries back and it gets unbearably dusty, and which may well be one of the ginger notes the Lab uses (I've noted this in Siren and in fresh Saw-Scaled Viper). Like choking on musty dust in the attic you just decided to clean. This note overpowers everything else in the blend for me; perhaps a faint hint of musk and spice hide behind this dust.

 

Oh well, I have a whole boxful of other imps to love.

[Saya]

This is spicy and a little bitter/sour. This imp will need to find a new, more loving home.

[bandobhran]

This is lovely-smelling, very spicy and sweet, and cinnamon-y...as I'm a big fan of Chimera and other sweet/spicy stuff, this was one of the first from my recent order that got tried. Unfortunately, my hand started itching and burning not five minutes after dabbing Silk Road on it, and a red, rash-like spot appeared. I'm guessing there's something in this that's similar to other brands I've tried of oils with a cinnamon scent to 'em, and I'm not sure what it is...I haven't gotten this reaction from any of the other cinnamon-y BPAL scents I've tried. May try using it as a room-scent, but it looks like I'm definitely allergic to this one.

[Venneh]

I get cinnamon and florals in the imp, somewhere; on my skin, it's cinnamon and something greenish. Not quite sure.

Edited May 29, 2010 by Venneh

[Vega]

In imp: Very cinnamon. I get hints of herbal-green and wood and other spices, but it's hard to tell.

 

On skin: Cinnamon takes centre stage and doesn't go away; I can't detect anything behind it. Perhaps there is something sweet, deeper, tempering it – incense? woods? My nose isn't savvy enough to detect anything but for all the cinnamon.

 

Verdict: I was hoping Silk Road would be more complex, but sadly this is one-note cinnamon without any nuance. Not a fan. For swaps.

[fairestrocza]

In the Imp: First impression - spicy… followed by public bathroom cleaner.

 

Wet on Skin: similar to imp

 

While Drying: A bit heavy and cloying. The bathroom cleaner smell is dying back, but still noticable. I've had similar problems with other mediterranean spice blends… I wish I could identify the specific note responsible for the doom.

 

After a Little While: Nicer after it dries. Lightly spicy with a hint of sweetness. A little bit potpurri-ish. The Boy says it smells like uncut grass.

 

Later: An uninspiring floral with a hint of spice. Not my style.

 

Final Thoughts: I tested this from the dregs of a very old imp - if I have the chance, I'll try it again with a new imp and see how it compares.

Silk Road earns a 2.5/5 on my skin.

[benthic]

Eergh--this smells exactly like cheap cinnamon herbal tea stored in a musty wooden box. It's very evocative of that. I mean, I know I have smelled this somewhere before, and that's all I'm coming up with. It's definitely spicy herbal tea and dusty wood. Not my thing, not to mention the fact that I too developed a red rash where I'd swiped it. This isn't for me.

[Truelove]

Just too perfumey for me. I need to write down all the “notes” in the ones that turn perfumey on me and avoid them - or at least see if there is a trend!

 

 

[SueTigger]

I'm so thrilled with this fragrance. It's definitely on my "buy a bottle list."

 

What I like about it: cinnamon, ginger, orange peel, some sort of exotic floral that blends rather than overpowers, and a hint of vanilla. It also lasts a long time on my skin. This is a good thing.

[hkhm]

imp: vibrant spices.

 

wet: this smells like it has cassia but not cinnamon because i'm not getting burned pink by it. it's a very creamy spicy scent, nice for cold weather.

 

dry: this is a bit like a toasted cassia scent once dry, it's got an almost smoky feel against the creamy spices. very beautiful.

[angelamaria]

In imp: this is just like what the description says: it's a mix of scents, and quite a tickle to the nose. It's spicy and softly sweet, a very clean scent. I can't pick out specific notes, but after a while of sniffing, I realized what I was remembering from this scent: the gum Trident! I was quite pleased, because I have somewhat fond memories of Trident. I think it is the Original flavor.

 

Wet on skin: the Trident association is reinforced. Definitely Trident. I feel suddenly homesick and wanting one. It's spicy, sweet, and bittersweet, also a very refreshing green. Can I have my Trident pl0x?

 

Dry: well, it's still Trident! It stays true on my skin. My notes on this scent have"Trident" written a couple times, and on every repetition, it keeps growing larger. It's a very pleasant smell, the sort that I keep smelling to try and figure out what is so pleasing, when it's all quite pleasing.

 

Verdict: well, as much as I like this scent, I don't exactly want to smell like sugarfree gum so it will be a pass for me. But I'm definitely keeping the imp, and maybe someday I'll be able to pick out the notes.

[milo]

Very exotic, with an unidentifiable spice, or mixture of spices. It kind of reminds me of Bengal, but without the amber. Though this is spicy, it's not a 'warm' spice, but a coolish, refreshing one, quite unusual, but I like it! It also reminds me a bit of Shalimar, probably the Eastern influence. I like this, and very happy someone frimped me this in an e-bay win. Whoever you are on the forum, thanks so much, I've been wanting to try this for a long time.

[Incendiare]

In the vial, this reminds me of Bengal except take the honey out and replace it with a dry, herbal note. Wet, it's the exact same, although as Silk Road dries, the dry herbal notes grow stronger and stronger, as they normally do on me. I'm glad I was able to try this, but I prefer the smoother quality in Bengal.

[curlsandpearls]

Bottle: Spice, some florals. A blend so blended I can’t pick out notes.

 

Wet: A very “high” spice, if that makes sense. Not musky or dark or grainy, but a high, spicy floral. Smells like a cross between Hallmark, a really nice antique store, and an organic food co-op, if that makes sense. Not too interested in this one. Washing it off; swap pile.

[Maleficium]

despite my hatred for cinnamon I'm going to try this one anyway

 

imp: cinnamon and orange blossom

 

wet: lots of cinnamon and something musky. cool herbs and spices, but it's hard to pick out which ones!

 

drydown: still way too much cinnamon for my liking. It smells like a stick of big red mixed in with some sharp and pungent herbs.

 

Not for me!

[SophieCedar]

I've waited a long time to try this! It got discontinued right as I was about to order it..

 

Wet: ep.. cinnamon and myrrh and frankincense. My wrist is getting that burny feeling it did from Sacred Whore of Babylon... waiting for the redness.

 

Dry: no redness! yayyy!! I smell olive leaf, predominantly. Olive leaf & olive oil tends to amp on me big-time. I also smell beeswax... warm and glowing. The cinnamon has backed waaaayy down to a tolerable level. Honestly this reminds me of LUSH's Olive Branch. Wondering if there's some citrus too...hmm. It's actually really nice. Calming, joyful, vibrant. I would recommend it for the upcoming holiday season and as a great dead-of-winter pick-me-up.

[brilliantcat]

I have absolutely no idea what's in this It's herbal and dusty. I get the feeling of being in a huge multicultural market with incenses and herbs and oils of all kinds... so I guess the inspiration was captured accurately! It gets a little soapy and I can pick out olive leaf/oil and cinnamon but not much else. It's a well-blended melange of scents. I find it sticks very close to the skin with little to no throw. I like it a lot but it's not something I would have wanted more than my imp, not that I could get it now anyway

[Velvet Lilly]

Zomg……this is incredible. It smells just like my full wooden box of all my BPAL oils…..

I've heard several people sigh wistfully, "I wish there was a scent that smelled like my BPAL cabinet"

Well….this is it! <3

My body PH amps cinnamon on a nuclear level, so I can't wear it on skin…..but I'm so glad i have an imp!

 

Gorgeous.

 

 

[Alaeidrel]

In the bottle this is all warm spice, but it disappears off my skin so fast I can't get an impression. Weird.

[Sarah Morehouse]

Here is where I come to weep that I have only half a bottle of Silk Road. I bought it years ago and forgot about it. Rediscovered it, started using it up, and thought, "Hmm. I should get another bottle before I use this one up." Wait, it's discontinued?! The good news is that that started me in on my BPAL obsession for real. The bad news is that as much as I adore Morocco and Scherezade, neither of them is Silk Road. The first and only perfume so far that my husband has actively liked.

 

On me, Silk Road blossoms from a kind of 2 dimensional dusty spice rack (not very exciting, right? but that phase only lasts a few minutes) to a round, warm bliss of frankincense, cinnamon, nutmeg, saffron. It's like a hot summer wind blowing across the Indian lady's spice kiosk at the farmer's market, carrying with it a hint of her own perfume and whatever she puts in the cedar chest with her sari in to keep it smelling sweet.

 

Winter? It's welcomely warm. Summer? It turns warmth from a curse to a blessing. Sick? I can still smell it. Sweaty? Smells great. Hour 1? Delicious. Hour 8? STILL DELICIOUS. Work? Female coworkers keep making nice comments. Date night? It seems to work like catnip.

 

I am really curious if it was retired because an ingredient became unavailable or for some reason that might admit the possibility of its someday being brought back...?

[Missy_killer]

In the imp: Dusty dry woods and cinnamon

 

On me: Cinnamon! Is this a cinnamon single note? It smells lovely! I think I got this as a freebie in a swap some time ago, but when I read "flowers" in the description it scared me off.

 

Usually BPALs with "flower/floral" in their description gets pulled back from my other BPAL. Since I just moved into a new house I found that I have way more BPAL than I thought and I haven't even tested a third of my stash!

 

After Silk Road has been sitting on me for a few minutes it developed a peppery bite. It's not unpleasant at all, it is always fun to see how many variations of cinnamon there can be. It's not a creamy vanilla-cinnamon like Pickled Imp, or a grounded cinnamon like Sin. This is peppery cinnamon! So far I like it

 

But then, I don't know what happened but after an hour the cinnamon gave up, and out came some sour floral. Instantly disappointed. Nothing changed after that, the sour floral stayed until the scent faded, which took about 3 hours. I'm not a fan and will probably not keep this one.

[Erinofhere]

Uhg, when did this become discontinued? I just tried it and its lovely. My luck. Basically it starts like a herbal/floral chai tea. So pretty at this stage. Later it takes on a heavy vanilla, floral spice feel with cinnamon and ginger coming to the for front. In the last few stages it's hard to pick any notes out for sure. There is a wood....something fluttering around. It doesn't last very long 4 hours tops maybe.