Chypre

[roesmoker]

A perennial favorite among gamblers! Brings financial success in all aspects, but especially for those who take risks. For gambling purposes, rub the oil onto the palms of your hands vigorously prior to gaming. Works best in games of chance in which you come into direct physical contact with the gaming implements, such as playing cards of dice.

I don't think this is the same as the discountinued perfume oil of the same name.

I won an imp of this on eBay from the lovely Brownbear, who bought it at the Black Broom last November. Her post describing it (not a review, but general provenance) is here.

Here is a picture of the bottle (from the eBay auction):



There is also some question about whether the name is spelled correctly. Brownbear says Forest told her when she bought it that one of the bottles was misspelled and this seems a likely candidate. (Can't find the post ATM.) Anyway, the reason I care so much is because I LOVE this blend. And the note description of the discontinued BB blend (violet, neroli, lavender and white musk) doesn't make sense with what I'm getting off of it. Violet does not work on me at all (for example, Numb), neroli is hit or miss depending on the other notes, I love lavender but it tends to overpower everything else and white musk definitely has been very bad on me (in Oisín, Whitechapel, Zephyr, Endymion, Juliet, Embalming Fluid, Grandmother of Ghosts, Bluebeard, Fae and Black Pearl).

Here's what I do get - a vaguely alcoholic wet/in the bottle phase, drying down to a gorgeous sweet, powdery finish with an incredible throw and longevity of up to 24 hours. The dry-down reminds me a lot of those of Black Forest (maybe it's ambergris?), CT 399, Van Van and even Shub. I need to find out what this mysterious note is that they have in common.

I have not tried this blend for its ritual/magickal purposes yet, but I definitely intend to as I have recently gotten into playing poker. Between this and Three Jacks, I'll be unbeatable!

EDIT: Beth has confirmed that this oil is spelled Chypre, and the current labels are misspelled. It's not the same as the Bewitching Brews scent that was discontinued in October 2004. If you're looking for that one, the reviews are here. --Shollin Edited September 12, 2007 by Shollin

[brownbear]

Well, I guess I'd better post a review as well.

 

I'm so glad you liked it, roesmoker. It didn't work out all that well on me and I don't need a whole bottle for TAL purposes.

 

Anyway... I got a herb scent from it at first. It starts out kind of sharp and then fades a bit. It goes a bit powdery once it fades. I think I got some lavender from it and the powder may have been from the white musk, but I never had any hint of violet or neroli like the original chypre has listed as notes. Though I'm not entirely sure that these are the same oil or have the same notes.

 

I haven't had a chance to try it for gambling, so I can't say if it worked for me in that area. I'd love to sneak some on my grandma before she hits the casino. It's one of her favorite pastimes. I'm not sure how she's react if I told her to use some for good luck. Perhaps she'd go for it. I'll update my review if I get the chance and my grandma wins big.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

well, now i guess it is my turn...

first, a pronunciation: (pronounced 'sheep-r')

 

now let me begin, if i may, (not a hijack, this is history!) by saying that i LOVE Chypre fragrances. Chypre de Coty being one of my most favourites of all time... i have several bottles, of varying fullness, from a 1917 original (long since empty. but i believe in the ghost of perfumes past.... so... i keep it. in sortof a shrine.) to one i bought myself in the early 80's that is still sealed in the box.

 

i also have several other oil blends that are true Chypre... as it is a distinct category (sometimes, i learned from shopping at Ulta and Sephora this category is called "Mossy Woods"). once upon a time i wrote a very impressive research paper on perfumes and their affect on memory and as such included lots of research about designers and some history...

 

blah, i'm babbling. but there's so much to be said about a scent with this much HISTORY.

 

on with the review:

Chypre is the French name for the island of Cyprus, birthplace of Venus, the goddess of love. Cyprus also being in the region where most oakmoss comes from.

 

according to Coty (who as far as anyone knows made the first commercial perfume to be put in a pretty bottle) a chypre blend should consist of oakmoss, labdanum/Vetiver, sandalwood, "fresh" notes (frequently fruits. commonly bergamot) and sometimes patchouli.

and every blend i've ever encountered that claimed provenance from the original has a definite woody-conifer (evergreen type tree things) scent..... that for me always turns into a dusty suede/leathery powder in the drydown.

 

including this one.

if Coty had made a masculine version of the perfume, it might smell something like this. vetiver and mosses and .... trees. not pine, not maple, not elm... nothing that instantly jumps out as being common to where i'm from. maybe it is a real cypress? or maybe the fir which would make sense....

as amber, the stone, is fossilized resin/sap from the fir tree but amber, in scent, is generally from the "rock rose"/cistus/labdanum (depending on who you ask), which does grows in Cyprus / the Mediterranean & "has a warm, leathery amber scent and is also an efficient fixitive for fragrance." (says my scent dictionary thingy)

 

is it wrong of me to love this just for the scent, with no real intention of ever using it for gambling? this isn't by any means something i could wear for everyday, but this is such a magical memory-smell. maybe a collective unconscious memory (says the always longwinded and melodramatic Empress o'the Trailerpark)

 

ETA..........sorry if this is too long or just too much. Mods, edit me and slap my wrists if you need to.

Edited July 5, 2006 by TrailerTrashPrincess