Bien Loin D'Ici

[doomsday_disco]

The Scarlet Woman, aglow with sensual indolence: red musk, benzoin, caramel accord, golden honey, and spiced Moroccan unguents.

 

In the imp: I must be getting the spiced Moroccan unguents, because I'm familiar with the other notes, and they're not what I'm smelling in the imp.

 

Wet: Yep, the spiced unguents note is the most prominent on my skin, but the red musk note is gaining strength.

 

Dry: I'm getting some of the benzoin and honey now, and the scent isn't as sharp as it was in the previous phase, but I'm still getting a fair amount of the spiced unguents note, along with the red musk (and I'm not a red musk fan). I'm getting a bit of caramel now, but not much. It's mostly spices and red musk.

 

Verdict: Not for me.

[roseus]

On me this is a a lot of red musk and a little spice. It reminds me a lot of Scherezade, but less incense-y. This is definitely sweeter but doesn't scream honey or caramel at me. This feels earthy and sexy, but not earthy in a dirty way. Just a deep, musky warmth.

Edited July 15, 2016 by roseus

[lizabelle]

Ooh, this one's strong. It's a good deal more perfumey than I expected, in a sort of dirty but classic way reminiscent of Shalimar and others in the same vein. It's dark and spicy but definitely sweet and has a huge amount of throw (and I'm pretty sure this is a relatively fresh imp, too--I can't imagine how potent this would be aged!). On me it's heavily resinous, and while I don't have anything quite like it I do have multiple bottles that are similar. I can't justify a bottle now, but maybe in the future!

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: A thick, spicy, syrupy-sweet scent. I'm reminded both of fairly well-aged Snake Oil and Red Lantern (or at least the 2015 version, which is my favorite). I can't pick out any particular notes; it all blends together into a red-gold sweetness.

 

Wet: The individual notes are a little more discernible now, especially the honey, musk, and kind of the spices. I can't say anything like "oh! There's saffron and cinnamon in here," but the "spiced Moroccan unguents" feel very much like the "exotic Indonesian oils" of Snake Oil. The base remains omnidirectional sweet, golden resins.

 

Dry: Aromatic rather than spicy, but otherwise still very honey/benzoin/red musk-forward (more or less in that order). TBH, I'm surprised the caramel isn't putting itself forward more, since I tend to amp sweet scents like caramel. Hmm, maybe it's just melding with the honey, or I'm mistaking it for a facet of the honey.

 

Overall, this feels like a cool-weather, date-night kind of perfume. It's sexy, slinky, sultry, and all those other fun s-words.

[Nikki Scarlet]

A frimp originally claimed by my friend, but given to me after a couple of tests left her underwhelmed.


In the imp:
Sweet with a little spice. Kind of reminds me of O, but stronger and spicier.

On me, wet:
The same as in the imp, but a little warmer.

On me, dry:
Loses all its sweetness pretty quickly, and the spice that remains is on the savoury-but-bland side.

Verdict:
I think my skin eats honey, and the honey in this one dragged everything else into oblivion with it. o.O The scent left behind is just kind of boring to me. Wondering if this is similar to what made my friend pass this one on. I think I'll swap this to someone it wants to be with more.

[Lucchesa]

Red musk-o-rama!

Caramel, honey and spice

are quite far from here.

[ianastar]

Wet this is very green or pine like to me. Super strong and not like most musks I tend to like. I'm not feeling this right away. Maybe that is the unguents?

 

Dry down the green/pine note goes away and I get more of the caramel. It is not as sweet on me as others have said. In fact I don't really get much sweet at all. On a final dry down this is very reminiscent of a men's cologne but I can't place which one.

 

Over all still not a fan of this one. I really thought I would like it by the description but its just not for me.

Edited October 29, 2017 by ianastar

[LunaGoth]

A nice warm, sultry, musky blend well suited for the Ars Amatoria line. Strong but not offensively so. At first I detect some of the more assertive unguent or old urine note peeking out from the wings but it's not pushy or distasteful enough to ruin my day, and it fades with time. I'm not sure this will be a blend I will reach for very often but I don't mind it and find it well suited for my current run down of Ars Amatoria/Luper scents for February.

[cassiejaynebunk]

I weep. I had such high hopes for this one, and on me it's just all stinky florals. there's no florals in here. how the F@#k does that happen???

[donkehpoo]

Wet: HOO spicey! Nose full of those Moroccan spices.

 

Dry: The same spices from the wet stage, with an added sweetness(the honey?), and a splash of red musk.

 

It's not bad, but it's not for me.

[torischroeder9]

In the imp: Sweet and heady, but not as sharp as I normally perceive BPAL honey or caramel notes to be. I'm not getting any red musk. My skin tends to amp all 3 of these notes, however (honey and red musk in a good way, caramel to my detriment), so this should be a fun experiment.

 

On my skin:

 

On the initial drydown, it's a mix of honey and slightly spicy resin. I still don't get the red musk, but something is working to temper the honey note from being too cloying or sharp and to keep the caramel from going all warped and burny on me. Applied to my inner elbow, it has a medium throw; I suspect a fuller application (including applied to my torso) would increase that at least a little.

 

The more it dries, the more the resin and incense smell comes out, making the honey/caramel mixture a sort of background element. And there's nothing wrong with this, but it fails to attain the awesomemess that a honey + red musk scent on my skin could be. (It does manage to avoid the Kiss of Burning Plastic that is my skin + caramel, though, so it has that going for it.)

 

I'm interested to see how this wears over longer amounts of time. Honey especially usually has some staying power on my skin, so this could be an entirely viable -- same or different -- scent tomorrow.

 

Edit, next morning: The scent keeps its same honey/resin combination overnight; some of the throw fades, but the scent profile remains basically unchanged.

Edited October 14, 2018 by Tori

[monocainsheresy]

Can't pick out any specific notes on this - I get a smooth powdery blanket of nag champa + oudh, with a bright edge of red musk.

Not going to buy a full bottle but will probably seek out an empty to house my 3 imps of it.

[tmichele]

On the dry down I was worried. Something about it smelled quite floral to me. Dry, and I don't know where this is coming from, but this smells like a red Romanti.Goth on me. I know they don't share any notes from what I can tell, but that is what I'm smelling. It is red musk and resins. An intense scent. I wouldn't wear it often but it is quite sexy.

[spookyumbrella]

Very well blended, that's for sure. I'm having a hard time picking notes out, aside from honey.  It's sweet, but not sugary, and lightly herbal. It shares that "herbal honey" vibe with Anubis, but this is more feminine.

[hhelix]

I normally don't wear the same scent twice in a row, which is why I have so many imps. But since first trying Bien Loin D'ici, I have worn it everyday for at least a week. I love it that much. It's the perfect Oriental perfume. The honey and caramel are not too sweet, but lend a caramelized brown sugar note to the dry down. I have no idea what Moroccan unguents are, but I'm getting incense and spices that would be at home in a Moroccan bazaar or temple. The benzoin and musk are chewy and earthy, grounding the whole thing in sensual warmth. It has perfect throw, long-ass longevity. I will be upgrading to a bottle in my next order. 

[Vaporeon]

This one for sure is nothing like i expected. With honey and caramel listed i was prepared for it be be sweet. I don't find it sweet at all. Its quite reserved and cold to me. A sharp musk with piney resin. I like it once it dries down and smoothes out a bit.

[wordortwo]

I never would have thought I would wear a perfume with a caramel note, but this is one of my favorite fragrances. A sweet, warm incense-honey musk that lingers on my skin all day. This is languorous, sultry, and a bit sly. I find it relaxing, but it is powerful stuff - it has quite a throw.

[sorciere du marais]

I like this one but I'm not compelled to buy a full bottle. It dried into a soft, powdery scent that is very comforting and sensual, but something is missing for me. I can't really detect the amber but that could just be my nose. Nice but not a knock out for me. 

[ittybitty]

This is interesting. It starts off very green and slightly musky. But then it dries down to soap and musk. I left it on for about 45 minutes before I scrubbed it. The soap became so overpowering that I could taste it 

[MolyH]

This is a resinous benzoin that is just a touch sweet and just a touch spice-y and just a touch musky. Honestly, it's a pretty generic BPAL-y scent and I don't see myself reaching for it that often.

[Billie]

I got a frimp of this in my order today and was SO excited because I've wanted to try it for ages based on the notes! Imagine my disappointment when this turned out to be a high, light, sweet, baby powder kind of smell on me. There's also a slight "itchy" quality to the scent -- not on my skin, but somewhere in my sinuses, I guess. Good thing I didn't pay to try this after all. Ah well -- no harm, no foul.