Kataniya, the Clockwork Woman

[Heretic]

The sound of metal smashing metal jars your ears, and you follow the cacophony to the next stage. The backdrop is painted with streaks of lightning, and you see that an iron sign hangs above it, now broken, pounded into pieces, possibly by a hammer or mallet. Despite the damage, you can still make out the words that have been burned into its face:

Property of Pygmalion Industries, LLC

A slender, willowy blonde is facing the sign, looking up at it thoughtfully. She reaches up, and with unbelievable strength, speed, and fury, pounds the sign with her fists until it is an unrecognizable mess, and it falls to the ground with a thunderous crash. She turns, and you realize that this is no creature born of woman: she is half human, half machine. Her exposed stomach shows brass and copper gears, and her joints are girded with steel. You see that her hands are covered in blood as she reaches towards a large burlap sack on the floor, picks it up, and tosses it at your feet. It lands with a sickening wet splat. She locks her gaze on yours, and her hollow, mechanical voice murmurs, “I am no man's property.”

Gentle flowers over hot metal, shocked to life with electricity.

In the bottle: Sharp and metallic, almost aquatic.
On my wrist, wet: Light soft floral, a little sharp. Is there a hint of mint in there?
After 20 minutes: This is so pretty. It's a cold, light floral, but very dainty.
After 40 minutes: There really is the tang of hot metal in this blend, I don't know how, but it's there almost overshadowing the pretty flowers. Katanya manages to be hot and cold at the same time, as well as hard and soft. This one will be great for spring and summer.

[baranoouji]

I bought this unsniffed because of my clockwork girl obsession. :tickticktick:

 

In the bottle:

Very sharp. Smells like the feeling you get when you lick a cold metal spoon.

 

Wet on skin:

It's Berenice's mechanical cousin -- but even Berenice had a little something to prove that she was human. Kataniya goes past cerebral and into inhuman -- no aloes or musk to keep the flowers from going on steadily. Almost sneeze-inducing in floral strength.

 

Dry down:

It's flowers and that metal-ozoney smell that Beth uses. (Also, for some reason it makes me think of Barbie dolls.)

 

Personal opinion:

My sister would probably like it on me -- she thinks I should wear more florals. My boyfriend would not like it on me -- he is used to me smelling like "green tea and bamboo, or incense, coffee, and old books."

 

I'm not sure that I personally think that I smell nice with it -- Kataniya doesn't strike me as something I'll wear to "smell nice." I'd wear it to feel a little less human, a little more mechanical.

Edited February 2, 2007 by baranoouji

[edenssixthday]

Kataniya, The Clockwork Woman - I don't generally like "metal" or "electricity" notes. They're too tangy and sharp on my skin. However, those notes are tempered by the scent of soft, pretty flowers. It's pretty. But still, it's not for me.

[Little Bird]

Kataniya is ozone and florals to my nose.

 

The ozone is almost a cold, static before the storm sort of scent. In the drydown it just gets more dryersheet soapy on my skin. The floral part of this is sharp and perfumey. I can't pick out any one flower, it just has that horribly unpleasant, almost musky sharpness that I hate in floral perfumes.

 

I wanted to love this, because I love the artwork for The Clockwork Woman, but this floralozone-esque blend is not for me.

[Em-]

Vwery much like the descriptio -metallic/aquatic/ozone with wet florals. There is definitely an electric tang to this, but this scent is very much not me. all it needs is asparagus.

[QueenFae]

A shockingly white ozone scent with undertones of white flowers. I'm not big on ozone scents, but the idea of Kataniya is beautifully personified in this blend. I'm having trouble identifying the florals in this, but they remind me of orchids and lilies.

 

This is a very soft blend, with not much throw. You have to be close to the skin to smell it. This is just nice on me, but not really my type of scent. These ones usually don't last very long on my skin.

[savage_rose]

This smells like a sweet, pale flower...idolized femininity, woman on a pedestal. But there's a dark undercurrent there. And the longer it stays on, the more it seems to meld to my skin, making me smell so sweet and clean and ever-so-slightly floral. Mmmm, this scent is so perfectly realized! Totally fits the concept, and is such a lovely scent.

[PilotKitten]

Sharp, bitter florals and a really soapy drydown. I normally like florals and aquatic/ozone scents but this is like the worst of both of those worlds combined.

Edited February 17, 2007 by PilotKitten

[wikkidraven]

my first thought on this was blue moon. crisp, and clean...without the cucumber note that i get from blue moon. kataniya's floral notes seem fresher and sweeter. this would probably benefit with a little age, and summer use.

[storme]

In the imp: metallic ozone and a hint of soapy florals.

 

On me, wet: soapy dryer sheets with florals. Mrf, want metals, not spring-fresh linen.

 

On me, dry: the inside of my tumble dryer. Which I guess has a slight hot metal tang, under the floral dryer sheet smell, so.

 

Verdict: Oh, I wanted to love this so much. Alas, it's not quite evocative enough for me.

[Abbie]

In the bottle: I always dig on the "metallic" scents that Beth puts out, so just for giggles I'm going to compare this to my half-bot of "Bed of Nails" from Carnivale Noir. My mental pictures are identical, but sniffing directly, Kataniya has a more citrusy scent, whereas B.O.N is spicier, with an undertone of sweet.

 

First on: These become very difficult to distinguish upon application. Kataniya does have a more floral scent. And *Damn*, do I smell good right now, with one on each wrist.

 

Dry: Bed of Nails is the winner in this little game... Kataniya fades too quickly (although the fade isn't anything I'd kick out of bed for eating crackers). She goes to a softer scent, but never powdery. Very sensuous.

 

The girl is a winner.

[slave1]

KATANIYA THE CLOCKWORK WOMAN

 

In Bottle: Cologne

 

On Skin: This comes across as very masculine cologne to me at first. I was super excited about this scent because of my obsession in anything steampunk. It would fit the mood perfectly. As it develops it becomes prettier and not so masculine. It is sharp though and very clean. Aquatic and floral (rose I think?), which on me doesn’t work too well since it becomes sour and much too sharp. If you like aquatics and florals try this for sure. Clean and bright. Avergae throw and medium wearlength.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I fell for Kataniya's concept, moreso than almost any other 13-in-1 scent. A feminist cyberpunk narrative and a perfume? Squee! Love you, Beth. I want to read a whole novel about Kataniya, since her description sounds like the climax of a much longer story; wonderfully evocative. If nobody has done her fanfic yet...well, get to it! And now for the perfume itself. On me, Kataniya opens with that super-clean ozone scent that one usually finds in mens' cologne--although Beth is great about divorcing it from that association. The florals remind me of Szepassony, which I probably just misspelled; I love that one so much I bought a bottle--very clean, white, cool floral, not too sweet. The ozone stays sharp and nose-twitching. I'd have to say that Szepassony is more wearable on me, but I'm very glad to have tried Kataniya.

[zankoku_zen]

In the imp: Cologne

 

On Skin: Cologney-like. I get a very sharp ozone note and just the barest edge of white florals around it.

 

On Drydown: More sharp ozone, and a hot metallic tang with swirling white florals. The cologney feel is barely there.

 

Verdict: It's a little on the masculine side and the ozone note is slightly too much for me. At the same time, it's a very powerful scent. It definitely bespeaks 'I take no crap from anyone'. It's very clean and very white, and I have to agree with the impression that it is both hot and cold at the same time. And really, it does smell like flowers on hot metal. It's not too user-friendly for me but it's a brilliantly executed and imagined scent. Cheers to the Lab for this one!

[theseagrows]

this is an ozoney-aquatic floral. i think mostly white florals, but i can't really pick out notes. i think i sense jasmine or honeysuckle in the imp. on my skin the metallics really bloom though. this smells very perfumey on me, in the department store kind of way. i kind of like it but dont love it.

[supremegoddessofall]

I smell the metals, and it's a sharp scent, but not overpowering. I actually like this better than I thought I did.

[moon_lemming]

HELLO. Those flowers aren't "gentle" on my skin by any stretch of the imagination. Kataniya is a little cologne-y at first, but within minutes it becomes just a huge HUGE aquatic floral explosion. No metal.

 

Ten minutes later, yes, there's a hint of metal, but the flowers are devouring it as quickly as it can get to the front. It never really changes, no matter how much it teases me, it's just aquatic florals til the end.

[filigree_shadow]

As with most metallic BPAL blends, this one smells perfumey to me. However, it’s not that stinging metallic scent that’s in Bed of Nails, it’s much prettier. This one is definitely feminine. It’s sweet and lightly floral. I had thought that Bed of Nails and the Cracked Bell were my favorite metallic blends… however, I like this one better than Bed of Nails. It’s prettier. I think I will try to swap my Bed of Nails bottle and find a bottle of this one.

[presotm]

I've long been fascinated by the concept of Kataniya and I finally acquired an imp to try. At first sniff, I'm amazed at how well the oil fits the idea (maybe amazed is too strong a term, as I've come to expect amazing things from Beth's art). A warm, ozonic floral......who'd have thunk it?

 

A few swipes of the imp wand across my wrist........recap imp.........sniiiiiiiiiiffff! Flowers getting warmer.........and warmer..........and..............soapy-ish. The soap continues to take over, until it's 100% soap.

 

Feck.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: flowers, metal, and lots of ozone.

on: mostly flowers and ozone.

2 hours later: this smells like a very ozone-heavy cologne.

5.5 hours later: a soapy floral scent.

overall: i'm not really surprised that this didn't work on me.

[Meg]

In the bottle: metal and shrill, green florals

 

Wet: metallic ozone, cold and fresh

 

Drydown: it doesn't really change much, still metallic ozone. Then florals start to emerge, but I can't tell which flower it is, it's eaten up too fast by the metal again.

 

Overall: Very true to its description, a cold, electric scent, great for ozone fans. I don't get many florals at all, it's vaguely sweet metal, rather. Not something I'd wear, but a good depiction of a clockwork woman.

[PurringPulsar]

Kataniya

 

In the imp: a floral scent with a sharp cologne like note to it, maybe citrus or orange blossom. It is a little metallic, but very perfumey.

Wet on skin: a slightly spicy clear ‘sporty perfume’ scent, this is like a feminine Bloody Sword.

Dry: interesting! This is a very unusual scent indeed, but also oddly familiar-it has a feel of those fresh perfumes, or sport deodorants, but this scent is a lot more complex. It has a peppery, crackling ozone scent to it very similar to Lightning or Tempest, but also reminds me strongly of the steel note in the Bloody Sword. There’s something very reminiscent of orange blossom in here-one of the floral notes perhaps? It also reminds me of the spicy metal of the Cracked Bell, but without the musk and incense and rich dark notes-this scent is light and fresh. And like other electric scents, it smells a little bit like dryer sheets, but the floral notes make this a little more acceptable.

After a while: ack! The ‘electricity’ note in here doesn’t like me much. Now this does the same thing as the thunderstorm scents-it smells like electrified drier sheets, or tumble-dried clean clothes, covered in static, next to a photocopier! That ‘office ozone’ scent that I dislike so much, it smells biting and sharp in ways I don’t like. It actually smells almost identical to Lightning now, with that same ‘sporty perfume’ scent I got from Lightning, although this is a little bit more like the Bloody Sword’s metal and Lightning’s ozone. It does get a little more floral on drydown though, a white floral scent with that gritty, crackling ozone bite to it. It smells like Tempest now, with a hint of Niflheim. There may be narcissus and orange blossom in here.

The drydown is strangely fascinating…it’s still floral and packed with ozone and metal, but it’s regaining the cologne/perfumey edge it had originally…but it’s also almost smoky as well, a bit salty, or a little musky/mossy? Do I even detect ambergris? It’s complex, that’s for sure.

Verdict: I really wanted to like this scent because the concept of the clockwork woman was so cool. but sadly, anything that even suggests electricity or lightning turns nasty on my skin (with the exception of the 'voltaic ozone' in Lurid) and this was no exception. And most metallic notes, evocative as they sound, turn to 'sporty cologne' on my skin. The floral notes were very pretty, but the electric ozone did like the thunderstorm scents and turned to the dreaded 'electrified tumble-dried clothes next to a bunch of electrical appliances' scent. I don't like that reaction at all-it's ozone, but a little too accurate for me. And with the metal doing the same thing as the Bloody Sword's steel note did-turning to generic perfume-this is definitely not my kind of scent. the flowery notes do something interesting at the end which make the scent a little more tolerable, but overall I just don't do the electric scents. the scent does fit with the harsh, metallic and cold character of the clockwork woman herself. I just wish it worked better on my skin, so I've passed the decant on to someone who'll appreciate her better.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? No.

If you like this, try: the Bloody Sword, Lightning, Tempest, Pool of Tears, Niflheim

[hackess]

Imp: Light ozone over musk. One my dad wears. It's his cologne with floral top notes. I'm suddenly wistful.

 

Wet: Gods, yes, this is my dad's scent. Clean Dial soap, a little bit of Old Spice, and white musk. I wish I remembered what cologne he wears.

 

Dry: I'm nearly crying. My dad's got MS and had an episode just before Christmas. It screwed with his memory capacity, among other

things, and my mom's taking the change pretty hard. This scent is my father, like he's right there and I'm hugging him. I don't know if I can wear this and I know I'm doing this review no justice by keeping it all to my personal emotional response. Your mileage WILL vary.

[alicia_stardust]

Cologne-like, nearly masculine: Pleasant flowers and a screeching, tangy metal. I love the execution of this but the metal scent makes my anxious for some reason. I can see this working really well for some people. It's the type of scent I'd take notice of as I passed by someone else, but not one that I could wear myself.

[underline2]

From the start, Kataniya is some kind of cleaning scent on me. Even after a while, when the florals come out, what I suppose was a metallic note on others turns into the smell of slightly warm Tide detergent. Ah well. Off to the swaps.