Akuma

[VelvetSky]

Devilish temptation, as sweet as sin: blood orange, neroli, and raspberry.

Akuma is a sweet, fruit-juicy fragrance that is wonderful because it manages to avoid smelling like candy.

Fresh from the imp, it starts out strong and orangey, like orange peel not juice. As it dries down, the raspberry comes forward and is pretty much the potent dominant note thru the bottom of the fragrance. Raspberry is a hard note to translate into perfumery, methinks, but Beth does a great job with this one.

This is a nice, happy summertime fragrance. I'm so glad the Lab sent this to me as a gift, and grateful that I've had the chance to try it.

[quinctia]

In the bottle and wet, I get a really extreme bitterness that almost reminded me of pine. It surprised me quite a bit, I guess it's the neroli?

 

After it dries a bit, I get a nice fruity smell that's not too sweet, almost like a tart candy or tart fruit! I was disappointed, because the orange seems to come out strongest on me, and I can't quite pick out the raspberry. I love raspberry. It still smells very nice, though, and I'm glad my first imp was a success!

[allidavie]

One of the very few fruity bpal's that works on me. Smells like glaceed tangerines. I know those don't actually exist, but if they did, this is what they'd smell like. Very yummy, but not necessarily a smell I'd wear as a perfume - would be great as a soap (it is quite similar to villainess's indiscreet, actually) or in a body lotion (where it's similar to skindazzles satsuma guava, though it is much less orangey than the SD scent). Very nice, very youthful, but a tad to sweet for me.

[madelf]

My boyfriend and I had the exact same thought after smelling this in the bottle: Smarties!

 

On, it had a lot more depth to it. I can smell both the orange and the rasberry which gives me an over all yummy vibe. However, there is the lovely smell mingling with the fruit that must be the neroli. It reminds me of sitting outside on a sunny, early summer afternoon with an orange sucker. Really blue skies, grass that is amazingly lush and just about ready to be mowed, and the bright orange sucker that I am feasting on.

 

This is stronger than I expected for a citrus scent, and it lasted for quite a while on me with a good amount of throw. This is just an amazing summer sort of scent.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Raspberry mint.

 

On Skin: I smell something a bit minty in this scent. The raspberry is most obvious… and the blood orange is much more subtle and a little bitter. The neroli lends an exotic note in the background. It dries with a bit of a powdery scent. I like it, but the powderyness of it doesn’t agree with me, I was hoping it would be more vibrant and juicy.

[Cagedflame]

In the imp it smells like fruit and flowers, but on my skin, the neroli takes over and is powdery. Apparenly my skin has very different reactions to neroli and orange blossom. Ah, well.

[malanna]

Akuma's very citrus-y, but it's not sparkly, like the way a fresh-squeezed fruit is. In fact, on me, I smell something like soy sauce underneath the citrus. There's just something sour underneath all that grapefruit-iness. It smells like grapefruit to me, because it's sour, but there's something sour that's separate from the grapefruit. I know neroli and blood orange is citrus, so maybe it's the raspberry that's doing wonky stuff on my skin. In any case, that yeasty, salty undercurrent continues underneath the citrus. That soy sauce aspect definitely makes Akuma quite evil on my skin.

[Ajila]

Wet on me this is pure raspberries, strong, dark raspberries that you just pull straight off the plant and pop straight into your mouth, a little bit tart, but soooo juicy. This reminds me so vividly of the weeks spent during various summers staying with my grandparents and helping them in the garden. There are probably 2 months when some raspberries are ripe and 2 weeks around mid-July when I can pick raspberries all day long and still not have picked all the ripe ones. This oil reminds me of those days with the sun warm on my skin and my fingers (and mouth) red with the juice. I just know that as I write this the first raspberries are ripening and this year I wont be there to pick them. Anyway back to Akuma - when it dries the raspberries are still there, but now they must share my nose with the brightness of the citrus and a slight powder edge (as if they've been sprinkled with icing sugar ). This stage lasts and lasts fading slowly to leave gentle powdery oranges. On the whole this is a very pretty, very edible blend.

[slugbait]

RAZZLES! First it’s candy, then it’s gum! I loved these candies when I was a kid, so this blend is somewhat nostalgic to me.

 

This is very sharp and juicy in the imp, but dry on my skin it turns into the fruity and slightly powdery goodness of Razzles. Oh boy, I’m salivating! The raspberry and blood orange make this sweet, and the neroli keeps the blend from going too sweet and gives it a slight green bitter note. Can almost smell sour while wet. This lasts about 3-5 hours on me.

 

This is a definite big bottle for me.

[dcmo]

I wish I was getting the fruit that others are mentioning. To me I just smell something sharp and strong, and not really pleasant. Something here isn't working with my skin chemistry. I gave it to my mom who says it smells like gum. Yes I think my untrained nose is hereditary

[Abbie]

I just picked this one up yesterday at the Denver area Meet n'Sniff. Let's try it (and you all can sing along!).

 

In the bottle: Tangy! One of the few BPAL fruity fragrances that I have cared for so far. A subtle creamy sort of tangyness... maybe like a fruit tartelet than fresh fruit.

 

First on: My skin brings out the citrus (yay!) and I'm getting pretty much full-out neroli.

 

Dry: I like this one a lot more on than I would have thought. It stays well and is teh g00d citrus. Party.

[Northernminx]

Fruity, but not so sweet on me. The neroli in this really adds a greenish sharp tinge (at least I imagine it's the neroli) This starts as a green encased blood orange, very sharp and citrusy. The raspberry creeps in but it reminds me of unripened raspberries rather than sweet ones. Odd, a bit unsettling, this was still fun to try even if it's not quite me.

[komakino]

Initial Impression: Slighty venomous, like crushed poisonous herbs but with a sweet hint of raspberry. It’s sharp, and not entirely pleasant.

 

After Wearing It: The orange comes out, together with more of the raspberry. It’s no longer as sharp and poisonous, but a more well-composed sweet and dark scent. After a couple of hours, all the identifiable smells have faded, and a sweet smell of those perfumed erasers you used to have as a child is left. It turns simple and child-like, like a raspberry scented Barbie perfume or something.

 

Final Impression: For an evening out, I would consider wearing this. It is heavy, but not too heavy and the scent is very pleasant. Unfortunately, it fades to a generic sweet perfumey smell on my skin after a couple of hours.

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Hmmm, there's some sweet and some bite to this.

 

Just On: Some definite bite.

 

An hour or two later: This mellows down into a sweetish scent.

 

Around 6 hours: It's almost gone, and I can't really tell what is left.

 

12 hours: It's no longer there to smell.

 

Overall: This is certainly an interesting scent. Too bad it doesn't last longer on my skin.

 

After reading other reviews: Okay, so the sweet is fruit. Maybe the neroli is the bite? I didn't get that bite from the SN neroli, but that could be it. Apparently it wasn't as sweet on me as others.

[isyche]

Akuma was another lagniappe from the lab that I probably wouldn't have ordered because I don't do well with most fruity scents.

 

It's all sharp neroli at first, the same sharp almost pickle-like scent I got from Lolita. I can vaguely smell raspberry behind it. Then the raspberry comes out and it turns to a berry candy smell.

 

This isn't me -- I figured as much. Off to swap with you, Akuma!

[absinthe21]

smells sweet and tangy in the bottle. I can't quite pick out which fruit it smells like....it's more like a cacophany of ripe fruits to me. On dry down, it becomes a sexy skin scent to me and I love it. So have to get a big bottle of this!

[rellyjean]

IMP: Yum. Lots of citrus-y goodness, with a dry spicy woody tone under it. Sandalwood maybe?

 

On: ooooooooh. Orange but a bit darker, sharper. Being centered and grounded by the - woodier notes. I suck at notes, sorry.

 

Drydown: a bit of a "perfumey" edge starts peeping out. Just a tinge.

 

Five minutes in: Orange, with a bit of - I hate to say spiciness, it's not the spiciness of, say, ginger or patchouli. But there's a grounded note to it which is exquisite, and makes the orange that much sweeter by comparison. Num num yummy mmmmmmmmm.

 

Sweet and yet deep and I am so in love with this scent. Tangy and delicious.

 

An hour in: ... Damn. It's getting too sweet. Where did the grounding bits go? All of them seem to have taken off, and the orange is fading, too.

 

Shortly thereafter: a supersweet raspberry, almost candy-ish. I'm not a big fan of the raspberries by and of themselves.

 

I might give this another try some time. Sigh. The first half-hour of this was phenomenal. If only.

[Caltha]

Akuma

 

At first, Akuma smells bitter, a "herbal" sort of bitterness rather than a chemical one. It reminds me of an old-fashioned spicy, citrusy ladies perfume that's far too old. Then the bitterness fades completely and it smells just like an ice-cream-shaped perfumed erasor I had when I was a kid, perhaps just a tad fresher but not much. Not something I'd like to smell like, except perhaps if I was going to a kid's birthday party in a really cute animal costume...

Edited September 6, 2005 by Caltha

[jewelbug]

Bottle: Pink and fruity with a citrus/earthy edge. Sweet and interesting, can't wait to try it.

 

Wet: Sweet and fruity, very berry. Something biting in the background, don't know what--orange, maybe?

Dry: The biting tone dies out as it dries. Now its berryish bubblegum. Fake berryish. Hubby insists he can get a hint of orange. I swear its all "eau de Raspberry Tart", Strawberry Shortcake's plastic childhood friend.

For the next few hours its just berry berry berry 'til it fades.

 

Overall: Damn my skin and its refusal to accept the orange and neroli notes. This is too sweet, childish and berry on me. Shame. To the swap pile.

Edited February 4, 2006 by jewelbug

[HoneyHoneyNY]

This scent was on my wishlist. The blood orange and raspberry attracted me, but the neroli gave me reservations.

 

In the imp the first smells sharply citrus, almost like grapefruit. In the second sniff, a candy sweetness overlays the sharpness.

 

On my skin, the sweetness rises up strongly, but the underlying sharpness is still there. It's really candy-ish, but with something dark underneath.

 

As it dries it morphs from grapefruitiness to the oily eco-cleanser smell I associate with scents heavy on neroli. It's like a candy with a bitter aftertaste. I hope it doesn't linger.

 

The fruits in this blend are very dry. They're sweet, but not juicy at all. The neroli gives it a sharpness and darkness that's...evil. Like something sweet and poisonous. It's not horrible, but it's also not me, I'm going to pass it on.

[Stumbeline]

In the imp this smelled much more herbal than I had expected. Based on reviews I really thought I'd have candy in a bottle. But there was a sweetness that urged me forward, and it's a good thing.

 

On me, it's all sweet raspberries and orange. It's a very juicy, sweet fruit scent that continues to stay true to its initial smell long after it dries. As another plus, it definitely lasts long on me.

 

At the very end it smells similar to a few of the voodoo oils, specifically High John the Conqueror. This leads me to how it makes me feel, which is similar to High John. Whenever I sniff Akuma, I feel very content and warm.

[AliBabble]

this was a lab gift (thank you!!). reminds me a bit of succubus (orange!) - maybe a bit brighter, and fresher. i am very glad to have it because i gave my succubus to a friend (she loves neroli..) and this is a good substitute, when i am craving fresh, juicy, orange-ness. it is quite a "sunny" scent. not "evil" at all, although it is in the "diabolis" category. it's pretty straightforward - fresh, happy, juicy...to me it has a very "positive" energy.

[arabella]

First Impression: Sweet orange.

 

Dries down to: It doesn't. This one disappeared almost immediately.

 

Additional Comments: I'm almost happy I didn't get the raspberry note. I love raspberry and I would have been really disappointed if it was there along with the orange as they raced past me and jumped off the cliff.

 

Lasted: About 5 minutes.

 

Rating: 2 out of 5

[Elemcee]

Akuma is a very bright yellow smell. So bright, it glows. It's a very happy scent, but not happy in that sweet, contented way, but vibrantly happy in almost a chemical way.

It's the perfume that Delirium wears.

 

It does smell like sweets, but I know that I could only have a bit, otherwise, I'd feel very ill.

 

I'm feeling sort of nervous and stressed at the moment, so I'll save this and take it out when I'm feeling more free and more likely to wear bright pink.

Edited November 3, 2006 by Elemcee

[sophia_helix]

In the bottle:

 

Oranges with a little resinous spice.

 

Wet:

 

Nuthin' but orange -- and it smelled, actually, like those vitamin C tablets you can get. My mouth was actually puckering up like I was sucking on something sour.

 

Drydown:

 

The extreme sourness passed eventually, thank goodness, but it still smelled more like artificial orange than actual fruit. The sweet raspberry came in and the scent softened down (maybe the neroli's influence too).

 

A pretty scent, but it was still a little too sour for me. Throw and lasting power weren't great either. I think citrus and me are not much of a match.