Penitence

[Ajila]

Smell sanctified! A blend of pure, pious frankincense and graceful myrrh.

 

In the bottle - Sweet frankincense

 

Wet on me - Warm and spicy resins, with a slightly 'dirty' undercurrent from the myrrh.

 

Dry on me - Sweet warm myrrh

 

Overall - Myrrh tends to dominate on my skin and it's not a scent I really enjoy, so not for me.

Edited December 11, 2006 by Ajila

[steffanina]

Penitence-

 

In Bottle: Woods and sweetness and something almost pine-like.

 

Wet: Wood and lemon and something like rose and resin.

 

Dry: Hmm. Resinous, yes...not bad, but nothing that really sends me. My descriptors seem to have dried up.

[slave1]

PENITENCE

 

In Bottle: Wood

 

On Skin: I smell cedar, like a sauna or fresh wood at a lumber yard. Very sweet… The myrrh is golden and absolutely royal. The frankincense is gorgeous as well, resinous and slightly smokey. It seems quite masculine to me. While it is a pretty scent, it isn’t really me. If you’re a fan of incense or scents like Midnight Mass, this one is for you. Very sweet and resinous and also quite strong, it’s not a subtle scent at all. Dark in feel with a golden center. I love how royal it feels, I think this scent stands on it’s own. Strong throw and long wearlength.

[Brianne]

I'm abandoning my usual review format for this one because there just isn't much to say. It's frankincense and myrrh.

 

Coming off very woody on me rather than incensey, but if you like either of those notes, I don't see why you wouldn't like this!

[Phaedra]

Wet this is frankincense and myrrh- incensey goodness! When first on it's the same- pure incense. This is very simliar to Midnight Mass and All Souls. This is what I had hoped Cathedral would be. I'm so glad there's a gc blend that smells like this!! Anyone who is a fan of Midnight Mass and All Souls should try this. This blend stays true from beginning to end. It's very long lasting and comforting. This is a must for any incense lover!

[Browneyes]

At first this is like sharp wood/smoke, then the incensy resins come out. Frankincense & myrrh There also seems to be an underlying "earth" note.

Reminiscent of Minotaur, but I do prefer the bull.

[Extispex]

This one has me confused. I love frankencense. I love myrrh. They both tend to smell glorious on me. So a combination of the two should be magnificent, right?

 

So why do I smell soap? I just don't understand.

 

And the longer I wear it, the soapier it goes.

 

To the swaps, then...mumblemumble...stupid skin chemistry....

[ClareN]

Damn. This is not the incense scent I've been dreaming of. I'm looking for the dark, deadly serious scent of walking into a Catholic church, but this smells more like incense you could buy from an Indian imports store. It's certainly incense, but it's almost harsh smelling, and a little sour, and something about it makes my throat feel scratchy - I think that might be the myrrh. I like myrrh, but perhaps not when it's a main player in the blend like this. I might try layering Penitence with a woodsy scent like Aureus to tone it down.

Edited August 25, 2007 by ClareN

[aquazoo]

This has some kid of zing to it! Kind of a weird spice. It’s strong, just not particularly pleasant. Trade.

[Tulliver]

Okay. I added this to my first order since its title is the same as something I'm cowriting with a friend and it's something we both have great hopes for.

 

ANYWAY!

 

In the Vial: Frankincense seems to dominate in the vial, but myrrh is in no way absent. I like incense smells... I like this.

 

On the skin: Wet - Pleasant. VERY slight hint of bitterness, but not badly so. It works well and the two main components are blending like they were born to it.

 

Dry: NICE blend. Very nice. The sweetness of the frankincense stays at the back of the nose for just a brief second but neither scent is really dominant over the other. This is just like a really delightful swirl where you get hits of one and then the other but they share the attention.

 

After 1 hour: Still very nice. Frankincense is now very much the main note, myrrh acting as the "support" as it were. It works extremely well. A little faded, but not much.

 

After 3 hours: Given that a lot of the other blends I've tried so far have faded on me sometime between 2 and 3 hours, this is still surprisingly strong. Naturally it's not "freshly applied"-strong, but it's a GOOD scent after three hours and still clearly frankincense, although I think the myrrh's receded now. Never mind. I'm delighted that it's still so very "THERE".

 

Scores!

 

Scent: Wet - 2.5/5, Dry - 3/5

Durability: 4/5

Bottle? Very possibly

[Nimthiriel]

Initial impression:

It smells pure alright, but not like incense. Just... perfumy.

 

First on:

Wet, the generic perfume goes a little bit smokier, but not by much.

 

Dry:

After about 10 mins, it's a wonderful incense scent that has a slightly soapy base to it.

 

20-30 mins after application, the soapyness is gone and it's all wonderful incense smoke. Yum!

 

Finally:

Knew I'd love it. Keeper.

[madeleine]

Oh, I really do love this! At first I was extremely wary, because incense is not necessarily a good smell for me. But Penitence is just beautiful. Slightly bitter, but dry and really graceful. It's equal parts old and beautiful church (polished wood, smoke drifting up into the light from stained glass windows) and something a little older than Catholicism. There's a hint of a dancer in the scent, surrounded by burning candles and incense smoke...

 

I'm surprised that I like it so much!

[hypatia]

Penitence smells like incense, first and foremost. I could swear there's a bit of leather and a bit of cedar in there somewhere, but maybe frankincense turns into wood/leather on me. It has quite a bit of throw, and lasts for a good long while. I'm not really sold on it, but it's kind of nice in an incense-y way.

[chasethecat]

In the imp: it's a bit strong for me, sweet with a bitter note. I'm not familiar with Frankincense or Myrrh so I'm not sure which one doesn't agree with me.

 

Just applied: the sweetness starts to overtake the bitter smell, and the bitterness starts to fade. Still quite strong.

 

Drydown: apparently, my skin turns whichever scent I found bitter to powder, which actually improved this scent for me. Dry, it's turned into a sweet, powdery, smoky incense. Other people have commented that the smell is masculine or gender-neutral, but on me this is a feminine scent. I like it much better than I expected to when I first applied it.

 

A few hours later: the powder is starting to overtake the smoky scent, unfortunately, but it's still quite nice. And long-lasting, too.

 

 

Overall: I don't think I would wear this day-to-day, but every now and again I'm sure I'll pull it out. Not the sort of smell I expected to like (I prefer the foody scents, generally), but very nice. I don't think I'd buy a bottle, but I'll probably get another imp when this one runs out.

[alicia_stardust]

PENITENCE

 

This is a reverent blend of frankincense and myrrh. It seems a bit brighter than Midnight Mass but it still has that strong resinous quality. There is just a touch of sweetness and brightness to this otherwise golden dark incense blend. Lovely!

[nightchild80]

In the Imp (wet): This is a much softer incense than any of the others I've tried. Almost creamy in its approach. I'm thinking this one may have potential.

 

On facial cotton (dry): Mmmm... it is soothing warm scent, like a big warm fur rag you rub your cheek against. It gradually ebbs into a slightly sweet molasses scent.

 

On me: This is the first incense based BPAL scent that doesn't seem off-putting on my skin. It's still warm and sweet, but not overpoweringly so.

[hkhm]

imp: yep. frankincense and myrrh.

 

wet: i just love myrrh, that sweet, tangy, spicy goodness always makes me smile. i think it might be a bit stronger than the frankincense but the blend is absolutely beautiful.

 

dry: myrrh. this almost smells like a single note on my skin (which is fine by me). lovely.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

nine years of catholic school...these are scents i know very well.

frimpsniff: yup. smells like christmas. just needs some gold flakes swirling around in the oil à la Goldschläger or some such.

 

i've had quite a lot of fragrance-oil blends over the years that were either Leo themed or August-Birthday themed or in some way aimed at my birthstone or birthdate, and most of them smell like frankincense and myrrh - which i totally do not understand.

 

on skin: i still smell like christmas. if i add in a little gold glitter, i'll be all set.

Edited December 6, 2008 by TrailerTrashPrincess

[Honeygirl]

Bottle: Frankincense and myrrh

 

Wet: I feel like 2 of the 3 Wisemen! Frankincense and myrrh really don't do anything for me. I'm just not a dark, resiny, herbally person.

 

Drydown: Far too complex for me, and there's only two notes. Just not for me.

 

2.5 outta 5

[Juushika]

I had high hopes for this scent based on the notes and description, but I wasn't eagerly adding it to my shopping list. When a frimp arrived from a seller, it was a good chance to try this scent without consequences. That turned out to be quite lucky, because despite my hopes, I found Penitence to be a little lackluster.

 

On Me: This goes on very strong, almost smoky, and takes about half an hour to calm down to a wearable level. While it's not the worst drydown that I've experienced (that would be Casanova), it had me worried for a while. After the drydown, the heady and loud smoke dissipates and the true nature of the oil emerges. On me, Penitence is paired incense and resin: the incense hovers over the skin around me, rich, earthy, a little dusty, and fairly smoky; the resin sits just at the skin but is still strong and quite sweet.

 

Over Time: This scent doesn't morph, but it gently recedes. The incense top layer fades at a faster rate; the sweet resin sinks deeper into the skin, but becomes the dominant note. All told, the scent lasted about five/six hours on me.

 

Verdict: While this scent isn't offensive by any means (at least not after the drydown), I'm not particularity drawn to it. The smoky and sweet notes are so simple and distinct that they almost feel unblended. As a result, the two notes are too smoky and too sweet, and I can't quite catch both of them at once. If it were a bit more delicate, I think I'd like this scent more, but as it is Penitence was nice enough but nothing amazing. I don't see myself reaching for the imp, and so I'll probably send it off to someone else to try.

[SarahScent44]

In imp, this smells like the inside of a beautiful old cathedral - it's very frankincense-heavy.

 

On my skin, it's definitely frankicense - not getting much myrrh at all.

 

This is too strong for me - all frankincense, with no balance or relief.

[erraticprophet]

I was so excited to get this frimp because I used to wear a frankincense and myrrh oil back in my college days and I miss that wonderful smell.

 

Initial Impression: frankincense and myrrh

 

On Wet: frankincense and myrrh

 

On Dry: more blended together and mellow

 

Final Impression: This is even better than that old perfume oil I used to wear. It's heavenly!

 

Rating (on a scale from 1-5): 5

[Bamels]

My second round of imps. As I open the bottle I can smell a deep resin/herbal scent, my mouth waters as I am reminded of bitter chocolate. As I dab it on my arm I can't smell any myrrh so presume I am smelling the frankincense. Now that is has dried it has mellowed out a bit, but still smells mainly of frankincense. This is my first try of greener smells, I am finding it quite masculine and am surprised at how much I like this! I have a feeling the OH may try and steal this one, good luck!

[inurbanus]

Penitence is like Cathedral's younger sister. While they both smell like smoky resin, Penitence is lighter and more alluring. I've tried this one before and wasn't very impressed, but after wearing it a second time, I really like it and am considering getting a bottle. It's very perfume-y, but sometimes a little opulence is nice. I will say that this one seems like it can go to powder at any moment, so if you have a chemistry problem with resins, you might want to avoid this one. This is also very similar to Dance of Death, so if you like that one, you should check Penitence out.

 

4/5

[CreamyJade]

My first review!

 

In the imp: Ooo, myrrh and frankincense!

Wet on skin: Sweeter than in the bottle.

Dry on skin: The resin smell gets stronger, though it mellows with time.

Final thoughts: I got this as a freebie through a transaction with someone on the board and I'm quite happy since I wouldn't necessarely have bought it by myself. Not for everyday wear, but I like it!