Tisiphone

[surf-tormented]

Oleander with black patchouli, ylang ylang, and neroli.

This smells strangely comforting to me, though it is inspired by an avenger. But perhaps it is because the murder has been avenged and everything is right with the world once again.

It smells warm and fresh, but not like a woodsy or resin-y smell. I can't place it yet, but it's yummy. I can't smell single notes here, but I like the blend. Can't believe there is patchouli in this. I can hardly smell it. Which is good that it doesn't overpower.

[Aurelius]

I got this in a swap (thanks velvet!)

 

This is flowery without being overpowering. I smell just a hint of patchouli. It's very pretty and very feminine. The notes blend very well!

[UltraViolet]

I am asking my little girl to pick imps out of a basket so we can wear today.

So I've got Tisiphone

And as is usual when she or my son picks one out it's great.

Wet

I didn't expect this to be that good.

It says patchouli, neroli and ylang ylang are included and this excited me because I like all of the above individually, but there really isn't anything that sticks out to be able to identify. I think that's a good thing, it's well blended they all blend well together with my body chemistry it seems.

I think that folks who don't like florals probably won't like this, even though it's not definitvely floral at all. I'm one of those people but I like this, somehow it gets past my floral radar.

To my nose It's spicy, sweet, citrussy and floral all at once.

10 minutes

It hasn't changed or morphed into anything weird.

It's almost like a sweet fruity incense.

It doesn't have alot of throw, maybe a tad.

I'm trying to decide if I would wear this or would I purchase more or a bigger bottle and I'm actually having to think about it so I'd say this is a good sign in favor of this blend.

I'm going to have to do a 2nd wear and append this review as I am becoming quite enchanted with this and I don't trust it cuz I've had three winners in a row. It can't be this good, I can't be this lucky. so I will try it again in a week.

Edited March 5, 2005 by UltraViolet

[Tesseljoan]

I would never picked this one out from the description. Patchouli and ylang ylang are not always good things on my skin, so I'm glad I received this as a gift.

 

It goes a little powdery on me, but in a very good way. I presume the neroli keeps it a bit fresh. I hardly get any patchouli from this either. It is well blended and I can't really pick out any notes, but it is (strangely enough) a gentle, but not fragile scent.

[magikfanfic]

In the bottle: Look, more patchouli. Eeeee. I'm not really sure what all the notes in this smell like, but I can pick out the ylang ylang even though the patchouli is being quiet.

 

Wet: Here comes the patchouli as well as something else that makes my stomach turn just a little bit. It might be the neroli. I've had problems with scents that have it in them before. Whatever it is it makes this blend oddly powdery on me.

 

Dry down: This is unexpected. It's not that bad even though it's nothing I would ever really wear. It's a slighty powdery floral. I cannot really discern which note is which but I do know that the patchouli is being good and not getting to the front of this blend. Spoke too soon. There it is. And this is me sneezing. No, sorry, can't do it.

 

Dry: A powdery floral with a little patchouli but a little is still a little too much for me.

[nineveh]

This one is strange. I don't know what any of the flowers smell like, so I just get this sort of sharp sunscreen note, but then it dries into a creamy, buttery, powdery, peppery, sticky scent.

 

I just reapplied some over the same spot, and now I can smell the patchouli more.

 

I think I like this one.

[magdalene]

After reading the description of this one on the boards, I was very excited about receiving it. Got it in a LJ sale and finally had the chance to wear it today.

 

in the bottle: very sharp floral.

 

wet on skin: the oleander is powerful, struggling with the ylang-ylang for dominance. No hint of the black patchouli. Very sweet and still quite sharp.

 

dry a few hours later: doesn't waft hardly at all, still VERY sweet and floral. Every once in a while, I catch an almost fruity note that I can't identify. Still no black patchouli.

 

final determination: I like it, despite the lack of the patchouli and how powerful of a floral it is. I'm not entirely keen on florals, though. This will go in the swap pile, but only for something I'm really dying to try.

 

ADDED July 5:

 

in the bottle: oleander and ylang-ylang.

 

wet on skin: more of the above, unfortunately. I was really hoping the patchouli would calm down the oleander, but I'm not detecting it at all.

 

dry down: the oleander has calmed a bit, but only to make way for the ylang-ylang. I don't particularly care for either of those notes on a good day, so this will have to go to my swap bin.

 

edit:

Weird, I'd reviewed this already and didn't realize it! I need to start keeping track.

[quimerula]

Wet it's neroli and ylang-ylang over a patchouli bottom line.

I can feel a dry touch too, maybe pepper?

It's an obscure and intense perfume, commanding and fascinating.

I love it!

[olympia301]

 

Named after the Fury who was the avenger of murder, this is a very sweet floral and that makes for an ironic statement. It is a blend which is right for most occasions and won't raise eyebrows, unless you try to explain whom it's named after of course. I would recommend it to anyone who isn't trying to make a hugely unique statement in scent or to go to the bleeding edge. Tisiphone is lovely, well blended, jasminelike in its overall demeanor and the kind of perfume which you might want to consider if you are wanting strictly pretty.

 

The icon represents a butterfly named the Brown Swordgrass Butterfly, Tisiphone abeona (Family Nymphalidae)

[Little Bird]

I love patchouli (and it usually works *very* well on my skin), so I was very excited to try this out. When first applied, this is a dream. Peppery patchouli and kind of reminding me of the scent I get from Lush's Tramp showergel. Then it dries a bit and loses everything that I hoped it would be.

 

It's smells like a very sweet baby powder in the drydown. Like baby powder mixed with sugar. I dislike it intensely... luckily, the staying power is poor. It only lasted about a half hour on my skin before I couldn't smell anything at all.

[JazzieCazzie]

This is a total unexpected OMFG scent for me ... in the bottle, it's megafloral with some ineffable kick. WET it is OMFGBBQ, remarkable lush and exotic floral with the comfort of patchouli at the same time. The two complement each other so well ... I can dual task as hot babe (well, as much as I can task as hot babe in any situation) AND comforting head shop earth mother ...

 

A Top 10 scent for sure. An easy 5 on a scale of 1-5 and happily I just got my 5 ML in my last order.

 

REVISITING AND RE-REVIEWING APRIL 2013:

 

Working my way through my collection of BPALs old and new, alphabetically, and almost seeing the light to be able to prepare a comprehensive swap lis and wish list. Although I have a somewhat aged bottle of my own of Tisiphone (not sure of year but it's a cobalt bottle), actually tested this from an imp I was lagniapped in a recent forum swap/purchase.

 

IN THE IMP: I really do adore the way the Lab can combine lush florals like ylang-ylang (one of my favorites) and oleander (always makes me think of Steely Dan) with resinous patchouli to create what can only be describe, I think, as a whole new category.

 

Dabbed on wrist and in crook of arm.

 

WET: While I had never gotten this reaction before, the immediate effect it had on me was that it smelled like Coppertone 4 (Sophia is the only other scent I've ever made that notation about, and yet as far as I can tell the two blends share NO notes). Lush florals, sun and fun, hot vacation, with enough patchouli to offset it and make it a truly powerful and seductive fragrance.

 

DRYDOWN: As this dries, the ylang ylang and oleander fade a bit while the patchouli and neroli get stronger, making it a little "perfumey" late in the mix, especially in the crook of my arm.

 

OVERALL: I still love love love this but think in the future I may keep it on the drier areas of my body where the neroli is not as likely to amp and throw.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 4.5

Edited April 15, 2013 by JazzieCazzie

[QueenFae]

I **love** Tsiphone. It's so much sweeter than I imagined it would be. The ylang ylang and the neroli have an almost creamy base to them. The patchouli is not really incensey or strong, but subtle and sweet and complimetary to the other two. This would be lovely on either of the sexes, it's quite alluring and intoxicating. Yum.

[Fyre_in_Winter]

Hmmm... Tisiphone is a quite nice dry and sweet floral. If you like that sort of thing. I'm not a tremendous fan of ylang ylang and something in this blend has completely turned it into sweet baby powder in 15 minutes.

 

Not precise4ly bad... just not my thing, and my skin chemistry is in complete agreement.

[Koumori]

When I applied this, my first thought was honeysuckle. As the morning has gone on, it's become strongly reminiscent of lilies, a scent I don't care for. I get a little bit of the ylang-ylang and neroli coming through at times, but nothing that cuts or tames the overall strong and very sweet white floral. This would be a great scent for a very cool, feminine person to wear; alas, I am warm and sporty, and it doesn't seem to be a good fit with me.

 

ETA: I'm afraid Tisiphone may have aggravated a headache, as well. Sweet florals just don't like me!

Edited August 29, 2005 by Koumori

[Julilla Regina]

This turned odd on me. I wouldn't have picked this out for myself, since it's oleander and I'm allergic to oleander, but I'm not rashing out, so it's all good.

 

It almost seemed like an aquatic when I first put it on, hardly any patchouli at all is coming out. After five hours it's damped down to a light, waxy white floral. It's faint and pleasant enough. I never got the neroli at all. My skin is so weird...

[diabolique]

I'm not quite sure what I think of this blend. Ylang ylang is pretty headache-inducing with its powderiness, but I think it lends something very lovely to this blend.

 

Like everyone else said, Tisiphone is creamy and very dark.

 

Immediately on my skin, I get the neroli, which is bogged down by the patchouli within 5 seconds. One thing I've noticed is that Beth is pretty good at blending patchouli into something I don't hate TOO much, so I don't really mind this stage.

 

The oleander comes out to play, and man, do I love oleander. It's just creamy and delicious.

 

I like this one a lot, but I'm not sure how "me" it is. I think I'll stick with Hell's Belle for a dark, spicy Southern Belle scent.

[quikslvr]

Absolutely ylang ylang at first. Sneeze-inducing for me, unfortunately. It's sweet with a bit of an edge once the patchouli darkens it a bit. It goes progressively darker for awhile due to the patchouli. When it all balances out, it's lovely. Really hard to describe, but perfectly balanced dark and light, sweet and bite. I'm surprised at how much I like this, considering how it started (floral, and florals aren't my thing, generally). Occasionally one whiff will bring a tone that's too patchouli or too floral, but generally, this works very well.

[cupide430]

I'm having one of those weeks where I keep trying things I never thought I'd like and find I'm pleasantly surprised. This is another one of those blends. Black patchouli is almost never my thing and I don't always fare well with Ylang Ylang or Neroli but when I smelled this in the imp I was very eager to put it on. There was just something a bit intoxicating about this. Just an amazing and unusual floral on me. After a while the Ylang Ylang starts to come out strong which throws the whole blend a bit off for me. Definitely a candidate for further testing as I'm surprisingly enamored of this right now.

[metaldog32]

I bought a bottle of Tisiphone unsniffed on the description alone. I couldn't resist the concept of "avenging murder"..it SO appeals to my sense of justice..of righting the wrong in the world. Oleander has always fascinated me.so it was just a no-brainer...had to have it.

 

Now mind you...I have had this little 5ml in my possession for hmmm...6 months. Six months you say??? Yep... ..been waiting patiently to try her out...and well..this week it was her turn on the dance floor.

 

What I neglected to notice with all of this "avenging" going on was that this contains....voice dropped to whisper....patchouli....(wincing) . This is not something I usually gravitate towards..but let's address this later...start reviewing here!!!! Sheesh

 

Initial Sniff from bottle: Dark floral...definitely "atypical"..whomever described it as such hit it on the nose. I don't get any patchouli from the outset..at least I don't think I do.but what I am registering is some deep,dark, sobering floral..must be the oleander and the neroli.

 

Applied wet on skin: Creamy dark...with a bit of a "bite" I don't know if this is due to the neroli or ylang ylang or what..but it definitely has a serious tone. The patchouli gives this a bit of an "earthy" slant..but not so much "dirt" like as a touch "loam" like??? I don't know if I am using the right phrasing..but inhaling this..I definitely get the oleander...and then at the tail end..I am registering some earth like note with a touch of nuttiness..this has got to be the patchouli. It's actually very well blended..as I have said before patchouli is not my favorite...at all.

 

Couple of minutes drying on skin: Not sure what I am registering..but it now smells a bit "plant-like"...must be the oleander...with the patchouli and every now and then I get a trace of whisper sweetness...floral sweetness I think...the whole effect on my skin is best summed up as " dark sobering floral with bite.Best way I can put it. I am not familiar with any of these notes..so this is again the best that I can do...

 

Drydown: Creamy dark....not so much the "plant-like" note I was registering in the initial drying stage...it's the floral but now more of the neroli and ylang ylang is poking out over the base of what has to be that patchouli and oleander?? Goodness..I never thought patchouli would work on me...in any amount.

 

The throw is pretty good with the scent kind of staying close to the skin. Lasting power is pretty good...re-applied at the 5 hour mark.

 

Bottom Line: This is again..definitely an "atypical" floral. It has company...I put Magdalene along with Tisiphone as very moody florals. Not girly or overly light hearted at all. Tisiphone is a brooding floral..definitely work appropriate and evocative. I am not much of a floral gal..and although this isn't a " holy grail" fragrance for me..I don't regret buying a 5ml of this outright. I never, NEVER thought patchouli would ever work on me..and Tisiphone has proved me wrong. Not something I will reach for frequently..but definitely a scent for me to wear when I want a serious floral.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Powdery patchouli and fruity neroli. None of these notes smell the way I normally associate them.

 

On me: Very, very little throw - my nose has to be right close to my skin to catch even the tinest whiff! Delicate white floral fragrance, reminds me somewhat of Gardenia, but with a slight powdery base built up on ylang ylang and patchouli. I agree with the 'rather floral soap' thoughts, but it is prettier than your average floral soap..

[coulrophobe]

In the imp: A bit sharp, but not offensively so - I can definitely smell the neroli, but it's made more complex by the other notes.

 

On: This one goes very powdery on me (neroli and patchouli both have a tendency to do that on my skin, in some blends). But powdery is not necessarily a bad thing for me. Tisiphone smells like soft, dark, mildly sweet powder - a clean, comforting, peaceful scent. Very different than what I expected.

 

It doesn't really stand out too much on my skin, but pleasant nonetheless.

[Buttercup]

I got this one as a frimp in my Snow Moon order. Since my skin normally gobbles florals, I don't normally order them.

 

In the imp : A baby-powder sweet white floral. A hint of creaminess which reminds me a bit of Alice.

 

Wet: A touch of citrus. This is very, very light. I'm thinking it might layer nicely.

 

Dry: There is a rich white floral scent. I have no idea what oleander smells like, but this is somewhere between jasmine and honeysuckle, as others have mentioned. Plus something that reminds me of baby-wash. The scent is still light, but it hasn't morphed into the nose-itchy "powdery" scent that florals usually become on me.

 

Later: I'm in the grocery store and I begin to notice a whiff of -- patchouli following me. I like this...the patchouli seems to help the staying power of the scent without going all "dirty hippy" on me.

 

Final words: I think I found a floral that actually hangs out on my skin for more than ten minutes without evaporating or turning to baby powder. I might actually add this to my unscented body oil for a subtle hint of fragrance. Worst of all, I'm beginning to really like these patchouli blends. Damn you, BPAL!

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Sweet and herby, with the spice of the patchouli sat in the background.

Wet on me - Soapy green floral with something herby and something smoky in the background.

Dry on me - Fenjal. Green but spicy. As time goes on it seems to become darker and more savage. I'm not generally a fan of florals, but if I had to wear one Tisiphone is my favourite so far.

[AlaskaSnows]

Wet: Caustic cleaning fluid.

 

Dry: A gorgeous light airy incensy floral, a night scent, with a more "perfume" type of scent. The patchouli blends well with the flowers making a sweet dusky aroma. Incensy and utterly gorgeous.

[Hanyaan]

I got this as a frimp a long time ago and for some reason never tested it, probably because it has patchouli.

 

Imp - Sharp and sweet, with darker undertones.

 

Wet - Creamy and bitter at once. Beautiful.

 

Dry - For Christmas, my grandparents gave me some beautiful old Japanese silk brocade that my grandfather had brought back with him from serving in the Occupation forces. It'd been stored in a wooden chest for fifty years. I haven't yet made anything from it, but I keep burying my face in it because it has the wonderful old silk smell with a trace of smoke and wood and stuff. Put that in a perfume, and it's Tisiphone.

 

 

Overall - Patchouli that works on me?! And not only that, but it smells like something whose scent I can't get enough of. I love this one. I might have to get a bottle.