Sri Lanka

[Brianne]

Indian sandalwood and cedar, and the dry incense smoke of olibanum, gum mastic, patchouli and myrrh.

In the bottle:
Strong, pungent bathroom cleaner

On me:
I have to agree with some others that it's hard to pick out any specific notes in this one, other than to say it's a general warm/spicey thing going on. More earthy than I usually care for (I love sandalwood, but patchouli and cedar are definitely a little too earthy for me). I swear there must be frankincense in this though, because everytime I wear frankincense, which the exception of just ONE oil blend (Anne Bonny) it smells like bathroom cleaner to me (in this regard, this scent reminds me A LOT of Faustus). That generic kind they use in school bathrooms and hotels. It's just so overwhelming and sharp, yet oddly incensey at the same time. Luckily, that aspect of the oil dies down after about 15-20 minutes. Then it becomes more earthy and warm, and though I can't pick out anything in particular, I definitely get a very general warm incense smell from this.

Final note:
Not my thing, but those who are into the more heavy resinous blends will enjoy this

[coulrophobe]

In the imp/wet on skin: Arg... I'm a fan of dry wood smells, but this definitely isn't dry. There's a sharp green/sour pungent note that's making me ill.

 

Drydown: as the oil dries on my skin, the scent gets drier as well; I can definitely smell a big dose of patchouli and incense in here. A little spicy, but mostly incensy. Others compared this one to Silk Road, and I see a bit of similarity... but I think I'll have to stick with Silk Road, for more spices and no sharp/green initial stage.

[Little Bird]

Sri Lanka smells exactly like Whippoorwill when I first apply it. Green, wet, and sharp. So I put Whippoorwill on my other wrist to compare. They're strikingly similar for the first 15 minutes or so. Sri Lanka gets a bit more perfumey and soapy on me than Whippoorwill... but really, they're practically the same scent on my skin. Odd.

 

After an hour, Sri Lanka takes on more of an incensey quality. Still it's cool, green, and wet... this is Whippoorwill's fraternal twin (to my nose, at least).

[nineveh]

I love Sri Lanka so much.

 

It is similar to Silk Road, but without the floral/cinnamon notes that kept me from getting a bottle. Sri Lanka is cooler and greener than Silk Road, but still spicy.

 

From the notes, I expected something very dark and heavy, but instead this is quite light and refreshing. The woods are soft, sweet, and a bit powdery, but they're mixed in with a green, sappy note.

 

I've already ordered a 5mL of this.

[VelvetSky]

Sri Lanka is a perfume that I knew I was going to love from the second I read the description. There was simply no question about ordering a bottle.

 

The only thing green or sharp on my skin about this blend is the cedar in the topnote. After 15 or 20 minutes, this note melts further and further into the background until it is gone.

 

The middle accord and the base of Sri Lanka are what really makes me adore it. Earthy, spicy, warm, luscious patchouli and sandalwood with the incensey, mysterious aura of the olibanum and the mastic. Usually myrrh amps on my skin, but not here, in fact, I barely detect it until the scent is almost gone.

 

This has good lasting power, and is a true unisex blend, as it's neither masculine nor feminine in character.

 

I love it. Top Ten!

[Thorne]

So sad! I loved this blend in the imp - it was perfectly woody and delicious. But once on my skin it turned into a scent identical to something my dad used to wear. Great for a man, but a little too Freudian for me, so it's off to swaps.

[quimerula]

I am speechless.

This is one of the most beautiful perfumes I've ever smelt.

 

Warm and a bit masculine it's all I can say. I am sorry but I am overwhelmed.

 

Thank you Beth for doing this blend!

[~AmusedMuse~]

My impression:

This is SO totally masculine to me. I can detect all the notes listed in the description and it pretty well says it all, however, to me what makes all the difference in this one is the cedar note. I imagine this is what Hercules would wear on a hot date

My sclae of 1-5...4

[aessedai]

If you like sharp, green scents, get this now! Very true to greenness.

[aidenraine]

Sniffing the Imp: Mmmm musty. Smells like a stone-walled basement (I was in one recently, a clean, candlelit one and it smelled just like this.. devoid of any mildew or dankness.)

 

Wet: This reminds me a bit of Magus, of some of the woodsy scents. There's a tiny bit of sweetness offseting the musk. It's a good smell, actually. The hint of something "lemony" is, I think, the ceder, which is asserting itself nicely. It does smell like my ceder trunk, with old crumbled sandalwood incense in the bottom.

 

 

Drydown: I definitely smell the myrhh as well. This is like church incense meets ceder closet. Definitely a mystical scent. A great room scent, particularly.

 

A touch of sweetness is coming forward. Ah, and now there is the sandalwood again.

 

Overall a great ambient scent. Not a body scent for me, but I'll use it as a room oil.

[Freyja Lux]

Wow, like liquid wood this one is. I'd say this is more of a masculine scent, but I wouldn't want to put it on my partner. It is just pure wood to me. Reminds me of a high-end furniture store. Cedar dressers open and heated under lights. Slightly-Lysol smelling to me. Can't say I'm a big fan.

[PurringPulsar]

Sri Lanka

 

In the imp: a very green woody-patchouli scent.

Wet on skin: mmm, this is like a woodier, greener Anne Bonny now.

Dry on skin: I'm wondering if it's the sandalwood or cedar that's making this smell green? Either way, I really like this. This is like a dark green woody incense scent. I've never been to Sri Lanka but I remember watching this documentary about an ancient Buddhist temple there, it's in the depths of the jungle. This scent brings to mind trekking the green depths of that jungle, then emerging into a large clearing to see this huge temple and you smell the incense burning there. Amazing stuff.

After a while: now the green scent isn't as prominent. It's all about the incense at this stage…sandalwood, myrrh, and other resins creating a gorgeous smoky and quite dry scent, the heady scent of smouldering resins and wood embers. This is like finally arriving at the temple and now the scent of the incense is much stronger. It's a meditative scent, it has a sacred and profound feel to it.

Verdict: this is another one of those fascinating scent-journeys that the Wanderlust scents seem to capture so well. This scent brings to mind images of a Buddhist temple in Sri Lanka that I saw on TV. The green scents of freshly cut sandalwood and cedar wood evoke the thick jungles surrounding such a temple. As time passes, the scent progresses…you get closer to the temple and the incense scent becomes stronger-a lovely blend of resins and woods smouldering and releasing clouds of smoke into the contemplative and peaceful atmosphere. It's incredible how such things are encapsulated in perfume but hey, that's the beauty of BPAL. I'm unsure if I'll buy a bottle but I'll keep the imp because this is such an intriguing and unique fragrance.

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Hmmm, possibly some yummy incense.

 

Just On: Yes, incense, and myrrh.

 

An hour or two later: Settles down to some quiet scent of cedar.

 

Around 6 hours: Probably the myrrh is all I'm smelling now.

 

12 hours: It's gone now.

 

Overall: I rather like this one, although it's probably not something I'm going to rush out and buy. Might be good for The Mate.

 

After reading other reviews: Heh, the patchouli never really came out in this one on me. I didn't get much in the way of sweetness either.

[pekeana]

Sri Lanka = blah blah blah wood wood blah patchouli blah blah blah wood blah blah more wood blah patchouli blah blah... with an odd floral note that my skin seems to be projecting on top of everything. I say floral because I smell the pollen off the stamens of the flowers but -- but -- there's not supposed to be florals! Just blah blah wood blah blah patchouli! What's wrong with my skin, omg?

[Orodemniades]

Ah, I thought it was vetiver at first, but from the list I see that it's the sandalwood/cedar that I'm sniffing. Anyhoo, it's quite...it reminds me of heat and stale water. Um, and that's how it remained! It is unusual but not for me.

 

Oro

[brownbear]

At first it's very woody. A little too woody for me. But then as it dries and fades it softens up a lot. There are some light notes in there that keep the wood from getting too heavy. It's pretty green too. Not sure how much I'd wear this one, but it isn't bad. It just isn't really my style.

[Bagfish]

A frimp from the Lab, thanks labbies!

 

This is definitely one of the best BPAL oils I have tried. It doesn't have the really sharp patchouli head-shop scent that a lot of other blends with patchouli have. It is smooth. One odd thing is that it really reminds me of the 1970's mens favourite aftershave Old Spice, but its slightly sweeter and I feel that I can wear it! What is best of all for me is that it dries down to a beautiful benzoin scent after an hour or so - the spices fade leaving me smelling like I'm covered in benzoin, one of my most favourite essential oils.

 

On a scale of 1-5, this definitely rates a 5!

 

B

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 2/5

Summarised in a word or two: Incense!

 

In the imp/bottle: Sandalwood and patchouli.

 

On skin, wet: Much softer and sweeter than I was expecting! It has an interesting earthy quality to it, grounded by sweet incense and sandalwood.

 

On skin, dry: While wet, I liked it. Dry? Not so much. Dry, heady, thick incense.

 

Conclusion: In a scent locket -- where I could avoid the incensey result of the drydown -- this might be wonderful. I doubt I'd ever wear this on my skin, for the aforementioned reason.

[Meg]

In the bottle: this smells very fresh, resinous and green... perhaps the cedar. I have no idea what gum mastic smells like, might be that, too.

 

Wet: Still very fresh and green, but myrrh is coming through quickly. As it dries, the greenness subsides a bit, and then patchouli forcefully comes through.

 

Drydown: Ooh, lemony and fresh, that's the gum mastic (looked it up). I also get some cedar, sandalwood and myrrh, but I think the mastic has decided to go into center stage. I don't mind at all, I find it very uplifting. The incense also comes out quite strongly. Yes, this reminds me of Indian spices, curry preparations, incense sticks... I'd swear there's cardamom in here, too.

 

Overall: It's clean and fresh, which I really wasn't expecting. It's mostly cedar, sandalwood and some incenses, it smells quite lemony and resinous. A very enjoyable clean blend, not overly spicy, with lots of incense and woods. It's not invasive or heady, nor is it too dry. Not really my style, but nice.

[Ancientgirl]

This was a freebie thrown in with my last order---thanks! This is one of those scents that, not only would I not have ordered for myself, I probably would not have chosen it based upon my initial sniff (there seems to be something syntactically wrong with that sentence, but, oh well). The cedar comes on very strong at first---ironically, not like a cedar chest, but rather adding a sharpness to the sandalwood and spice. Luckily, it does mellow a bit with wear. It really does remind me of curry, though not unpleasantly so. It starts out spicy, but then it gradually gets greener, softer, and some how sweet. This isn't a big bottle for me, but the imp is a keeper---something to have around when I'm in a "spicy" mood! Ancientgirl

[darkitysnark]

Sri Lanka

 

Wow. I don't think I've gone from to so drastically over the lifespan of any oil before.

 

This was a wonderful gift from my Autumn Switch Witch, kmasden!

 

In the bottle:

strong, bracing men's cologne (a better quality one), lots of green, resinous woods and then OMG YIKES! Toilet cleaner! Huh?

 

Wet:

The really antiseptic edge softens and thankfully fades away, but what remains is a slightly alarming aquatic slathered over the usual warmth of cedarwood/cedar/myrrh.

 

Drydown:

This has incredible throw and pack a huge punch at this stage. The patchouli is present, but not so much as a scent as it is an action. For me patchouli = forceful hippy head shop. I'm getting bullied around by this blend.

 

The aquatic edge is also still hovering over everything. Like icy water threatening a smoldering incense stick.

 

I'm not really liking it at this point.

 

Later:

Seven+ hours later and I'm in luuurve. The aquatic/bathroom cleaner/whatever it was has finally faded and all that's left is a warm, resinous, incensy skin scent. Very, very nice. This is very close to the skin now, but still strong when I sniff my wrist. The woods are blended together to a nice rosy sweet smell, and the myrrh keeps it from becoming cloyingly sweet.

 

I've also got Silk Road in the queue for comparison. I'm not sure if I can go through all the initial stages to get here, when I have other incense/resin/woody blends that don't cause panic upon application. But this last stage is vera vera nice.

[Celogrl]

Mmmmmmmm...wood, spices, smoke, and LUST! This is one sexy scent. It reminds me of lounging in a casbah or something (not that I've ever done that- I'd like to, though!) This is a masterfully evocative scent of hot climates and sultry nights. It's a keeper.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: this reminds me of some sort of flower.

on: a dirty floral scent.

half an hour later: tons of incense.

1 hour later: strong cedar and incense, with a bit of patchouli.

1.5 hours later: tons of cedar.

overall: i just don't get along with cedar.

[empi girl]

I didn't think I'd like this, I expected it to be heavy and almost didn't try it. That would have been a mistake!

 

This is very similar to Silk Road on me, but where Silk Road was light to the point of non-existence (and spices? There were spices in Silk Road? Not on me!), this has a little throw and is stronger. The waft is lovely. It is light, slightly aquatic, hints of wood and spice and incense underneath (not cinnamon though). Doesn't seem like a man's cologne. Seems like a cool brook in the mountains-fresh, soothing, calming, lovely.

 

Oh, and just noticed, the scent that wafts is cool, the scent up close is a little smoky and stronger. I like them both!

 

Definitly a big bottle candidate. I could see me wearing this a lot.

 

edited to add:

Um, in case you didn't catch the word I used often above, it was "lovely". Let me repeat it for you...

Edited February 14, 2006 by empi girl

[Babylon]

Weirdly, this smells floral at first. Kind of like powdery jasmine.

 

After 15 or so minutes, it becomes cedar and sandalwood and incense.

 

Sri Lanka stays that way for a few hours, and then I'm left with just cedar hanging out, until he too fades.

 

Pretty nice incense/wood blend that actually wasn't as dry on me as I was led to believe by the description.