Anathema

[AEris]

A scent as heavy as thunder from the Vatican, with notes that inspire every sin and excess. Black opium, with vetivert and honeysuckle.

Well, this one started out as honeysuckle screaming over an old-ladyish perfume like a banshee. I could certainly pick out the honeysuckle, which is pretty, and underneath there was this english-gardenish "perfume" perfume, somehow generic and familiar. Interesting enough for me to wait and see what would happen.

After about an hour, it's just plain vetivert on me. The honeysuckle and opium and whatever other floral notes may exist in here have completely evaporated, and I just smell manly.

After this dries down, it is the most familiar thing.....I think my dad may have had a cologne or something that dried down on him in the same way that my chemistry turned this into straight-up spicy vetivert.

I don't think I could get it on my fiance, because it really does have a strong floral wet stage, and he'd be like "why the frick did you give me women's perfume?" I'd like to get the vetivert as a single note, either for him or for my dad.

Overall, I would like this on a guy after the drydown, but it's not a 'perfume' on my skin. My chemistry drives the florals away within a half hour or so, and now I just smell like men's soap or something. I mean, it's good, just not my thing.

[slave1]

ANATHEMA

 

In Bottle: Powdery incense

 

On Skin: This is very very strong. A most severe form of incense. Very thick and very smoky. It also has a very soapy note, almost like rose. The honeysuckle isn’t too sweet which is nice. The vetivert stays tame which is not normal for me. The black opium casts a very dark shadow and is the dominant note by far. This is a resinous and deep scent, not for the shy. Quite pretty but not really me. Super strong throw and long wearlength.

[laliloo]

A frimp from a lovely seller. It wasn't a scent I'd picked out for my wishlist and unfortunately it isn't one that takes my fancy. The description does fit it perfectly - a heavy, dark, thundery scent. Just not really for me and it makes me feel a little headachy and claustrophobic. It has amazing throw!

[hkhm]

imp: very sharply spicy with a thick waft of smoke.

 

wet: sharp spice with something terribly sweet all covered with a heavy layer of smoke. this has an almost regal feel to it.

 

dry: ths stays sharply spicy, terribly sweet and heavily smokey. it's not fading at all. this would make an interesting incense.

[alexandra]

I bought this as I love snogging during thunderstorms!

 

In the vial: Sweet and floral. Where's the thunder? The darkening skies?

 

Wet: Like walking into the bathroom after my glamorous aunties have been preening and getting a mouthful of hairspray, perfume and face powder. Not pleasant.

 

Dry: soap on a rope.

 

The Husband won't come any where near me. Best removed I think.

 

And?.... Not right on me. I'll have to work out if that's the black opium. No thundrous snogs for me.

 

ETA:

 

My nose has improved and the imp has aged and now I find Anathema to be splendid. The opium is heavy at first them the honeysuckle blooms, like at sunset when walking past a house clouded by honeysuckle and from inside comes the smell of opium smoke and something naughty. The vetiver adds a blood like tang to it. Vampiric, I'd say. Possible bottle.

Edited August 11, 2009 by labyrinthine

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: the sticky-muskiness of vetiver mixes heavily with opium poppy, straight up, like being hit over the head with it.

 

wet on skin: the vetiver recedes somewhat, leaving the opium in the forefront and the honeysuckle *just* peeking out.

 

dry down: it smells like suntan lotion- specifically the version of Bain de Soliel that was made in the mid-80's! random, i know, but that's what this smells like to me. it's not bad or anything, just unexpected.

 

in all: if you like the strange floral under currents of suntan lotion, you will sincerely love this. for me, it's taking me back to junior high (not sure if that's good or not...)

 

 

[Argentwolf]

In the imp: A very heavy, dark scent reminiscent of incense.

 

Wet: It honestly smells like a really, thick, resin-based incense to me, with a floral sweetness around the edges. I'm not familiar at all with opium, but perhaps this is what's producting that? Very interesting.

 

Dry: It softens down pretty drastically to a leftover sort of flower scent. I'm wanting to associate that with the honeysuckle.

 

Verdict: This scent intrigues me even more now because I could have sworn that this was an 'incense' scent...but no, it's florals. Which is amusing because I was comparing it to other incense scents I've worn, and thinking that I'd found my happy medium there. My only criticism of this scent is that it didn't have the throw that I desired. It tends to last a while, though, and it's just lovely all-around as far as I'm concerned, even if it doesn't quite justify a bottle.

[voodoocatwoman]

I am loving all the different interpretations of this scent and how it shifts to something a little different on every person.

 

For me, it is light and floral in the imp.

 

Wet: I smell incense now, with a hint of vetivert.

 

Dry: Powdery incense, pleasant but not terribly strong. I am not sure where the honeysuckle went but I don't think it was anywhere near my imp of Anathema.

 

Still, a winner.

[Jheya]

In the imp: Resinous, dark and brooding.

 

On skin: Dark and resinous. The incense I caught whiffs of in the imp comes through more clearly on skin, but thankfully doesn't become heady and headache inducing the way incense often does on me. After a couple of minutes it loses the dark tone and becomes oddly clean and soap-like. Neither warm nor cool, it's a distant kind of scent that likes to keep itself at arms length from you.

 

~1 hour: The soapy tone has vanished, and now the dominant scent is that of earthy vetivert. There's a twirl of smoke winding its way through the scent, but slightly strange and sinister rather than the gentle warmth of woodsmoke. Inhaling deeply reveals a tobacco-y undertone that makes my head swim a little.

 

An interesting blend, but not to my tastes.

[Arcy]

Imp : Sickly sweet, slightly green and medicinal.

Skin, Wet : Nicely powderey green, hints of floral.

Skin, Drydown : Going very dark, I think perhaps it is the opium. Kind of headache inducing. Still has a tinge of "band-aid"ness.

Skin, Dry : More dark flowery and generally nice and pretty. But it just strikes the wrong chord with me.

Edited March 24, 2008 by Arcy

[butcherbaby]

yee GODS, this is DELICIOUS!!!!

 

three simple notes yet such a full and heady scent!

 

in the bottle, it is sweet and very green.....not grassy or woodsy but like a big lettuce-y salad....um, huh? is that the vetiver maybe? i don't really know what vetiver smells like on it's own, but it does work well on my skin in most of the blends i've tried (i even love czernobog), and it's the same here.

 

on my skin i get a huge BURST of sweet honeysuckle- one of my FAVORITE notes, and best when it's really strong like this. i am a slatherer, and this packs a real punch, i can tell you- go easy if you like your scents light!

the opium is a great backdrop for the floral scent, giving it a distinct deepness and richness that the SN honeysuckle oils i've tried don't have. and for some reason it reminds me of 'hypnotic poison' (which i love), even though they don't share any of the same notes. i might have to try layering them!

 

i don't know what the vetiver is doing back there but it seems to be getting along nicely with everything else.

throw on this is great, though haven't worn it long enough to guess at wear length, it smells so awesome i'm putting it on the big bottle wish list anyway.

Edited April 7, 2008 by Shollin
Removed Lab description --Shollin

[tziporra]

Okay..... this one is THISCLOSE to perfection. Here's the problem.

 

Vetiver?

 

 

Opium?

 

 

Honeysuckle? Where's the honeysuckle? WHY DON'T I SMELL HONEYSUCKLE????? WAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

I love all of these notes, but the scent without the Honeysuckle is pretty overwhelming on my skin. Very strong smoky resins with nothing to soften it up.

 

However, my imp was fresh from the lab, so I'm gonna let it sit a couple of weeks to see if the vetiver calms down enough to get a whiff of the floral. Will ETA as needed.

 

Best,

 

Tzi

[archaeopteryx]

I picked out this scent for my imp pack order based solely on the name, since Anathema is the name of one of my favorite bands. A risky move, for sure. I got another imp thrown in as a frimp with my order, so luckily I love it.

 

I initially found it to be too strong in the bottle.

 

First impressions on my skin: Strong honeysuckle and vetiver, very heavy scent. So far, so good, at least as far as I was concerned. I was unable to get my husband's thoughts, since he is currently wrapped up in installing a computer game. I'll get his opinion later.

 

As those scents died down, I could pick out the black opium, which was what won me over. I also pick out a faint powdery smell, but nothing too much. I'm putting this in my "to buy a bottle of" list.

[greenranger]

I've been frimped this twice, and I've only even gotten two orders, so maybe I need to try it.

 

In the imp, floral, but, I can't distinguish anything.

 

Wet, on me, strong floral. I smell honeysuckle, and I think I smell opium...I'm new and still learning the scents. Vetivert I don't know yet, so I have no clue. There is definitely some spicy resin anchoring the sweetness of the honeysuckle.

 

Drying, on me, the sweetness of the honeysuckle is most apparent, once again, on my elbow. =) My wrist and the back of my hand are both picking up more of the spicy resin scent. It's nice. I don't usually picture myself wearing florals, but, we will see.

 

~edit~I've worn this a few times now, and I must bless the wisdom of whoever it was that frimped this to me. It is definitely a keeper and I am considering a bottle, though with two imps of this even if I wear it often it will take a long time to run out. It lasts a looooong time on me, and merely changes from honeysuckle with a spicy base of Opium to Opium gone slightly smoother with time, sweetened by honeysuckle. I have been in the mood to wear it partly because the honeysuckle in my yard had been blooming like mad...and I wanted to smell that good and intoxicating too.

Edited April 29, 2008 by Aerinha

[alicia_stardust]

This is strong, heady opium at first, but then the vetiver deepens it and turns this more masculine. It has a vastness to this, and it's very nice even though it's too masculine for me. Opium and vetiver lovers, check this one out!

[brsis]

Initial thoughts: Oh. My. God. YES.

 

... and then I sit back and think about it properly, and I remember that even though I love honeysuckle vetiver amps on me, and out of the only opium scents I've tried one fades after half an hour and the other just didn't register at all. This may turn out to be a miserable dissapointment, despite my enthusiasm.

 

On the wrist, wet: Oh wow. This is black and bitter and evil and with a full-frontal, in-your-face, silk petalled floral. I can pick out the vetiver which is much better behaved on me than normal, but I think the opium might be starting to go soapy...

 

Twenty minutes later: Mmmm vetiver. Wait... there's meant to be other notes in this, isn't there?

 

Alas, as with most blends containing vetiver, it's coming to the forefront - not quite as overpowering as some, but it seems I have aquired another 'VETIVER! with hints of X, Y and Z'. I can just pick up on something OTHER than vetiver, but I think I'd have to wear it side by side with my others to be able to tell them apart. There's a sweet dribble of honeysuckle and the bitter, almost soapy scent of opium lingering underneath the vetiver, which does tend to hug the skin a little, but they're not very strong. It's very pleasant - it's just very similar to several other scents I own.

 

Verdict: Keeping the imp, but I'm not going to worry about a bottle for a long time yet.

 

Tl;Dr: Vetiver, with a dribble of sweet honeysuckle and thick, bitter opium.

[Pinnku]

I love reading how peoples body chemistry changes this scent, its very interesting.

 

I bought this on a whim as I love the name and description.

So for me anathema was:

 

In the imp: like strong old perfume, with that little honey tone wafting around at the back.

 

Wet on skin: I was transported to church as a child growing up. Old mahogany pews, strong perfume and shuttered cloisters during service.

 

Dry on skin: This just amplified, lost the old perfume scent and broke out into full on church inscense. Its like going up for holy communion and breathing in the smoke of burning blessed candles as the priest makes his rounds. Alter linen and wine and everything to do with it.

 

I have to say that I really love this one, it strikes all the right cords in my head and lives up to its name

Edited June 23, 2008 by Pinnku

[Iceblink]

Sweet opium! The honeysuckle smells just a little sour on me. Interesting to see that in the ongoing Battle of The Notes I Amp, opium trumps vetiver. Haha awesome. This reminds me a bit of Cathedral--that old, incensey smell.

[OhioSky]

This is one of few scents I've tried that I just plain don't like. I gave it a second chance, and a third, and it's still a no.

 

I can't pick up the honeysuckle or any of the other notes for that matter. This smells mostly like soap and/or old lady perfume. The kind that I associate with church and oncoming migraines.

Edited August 14, 2008 by OhioSky

[gchris]

In Vial: Strong, aged

 

Wet: Smells like old men's cologne

 

Dry: This is still strong. A typical dark blend from bpal.

[isisonearth]

Imp: Strong and manly.

 

Wet: The vetiver is very pronounced. Something smells like musk to me and there is just an intoxicating hint of the opium.

 

Dry: Sweetens a bit on the dry down. I get an almost peppery smell. I like it better on the Mr.

[Caerphilly]

In the imp: Sweet, dusty, old, incence.

 

After 5 minutes:THe honeysuckle comes out. But, as honeysuckle usually does, it doesn't smell dirty on me. But I am still not enjoying it. It is almost too incensy, like it's choking me.

 

After 30 minutes: I've lasted this long. Usually I would wash it off. But, it's interesting. The sweetness comes out barely. This scent is very layered on me, and I can't pick out the layers and I've been trying to figure them out. But, it is bothering me, so I have to wash it off now.

 

Overall:I tried this oil about a year ago. Just a drop. All I remember was that I loved it. So I ordered an imp of this recently, and I can't do it this time. It's very stong and smokey. Not my kind of scent.

[NeuroticaGirl]

I am afraid i was not very happy with this perfume. In the imp, smells a bit like very old man aftershave or that bottle of perfume you found way in the back of your grandmother's drawer. I like honeysuckle so i am thinking it is the vetivert or the opium that has that old musty smell to me.

[hellomoonglow]

It must be the vetivert. It smells so manly! Not for me. I think it would smell REALLy good on my husband, however!

[Sapphiremo0n]

Rich and Decadent comes to mind when I put this on, like fur and fine clothing, and an elaborate ritual.

 

First thing I smell is sweet followed by a rich darkness. WooHoo, One of my favorite scents is here... Opium, married with honeysuckle and kissed by vetivert. Thankfully the vetivert is minimal on my skin, other wise this could potentially be a disaster. Wow I smell good. Others have mentioned smellin like old man, but not me! I smell like a Grande Dame, in a mink stole with diamonds all a glitter.

 

3hours later, I get mostly opium, the honeysuckle is extremely faint, which is fine by me.

Definatly have to get a bottle of this stuff!