The Sportive Sun

[gaai]

Mine are the night and morning,
The pits of air, the gulf of space,
The sportive sun, the gibbous moon,
The innumerable days.

I hid in the solar glory,
I am dumb in the pealing song,
I rest on the pitch of the torrent,
In slumber I am strong.

Heliotrope, amber, almond flower, frangipani, cedar, and calamus.

Okay, so this *definitely* smells warm and orange-y (like the color, not the fruit).
I was a little scared of the almond flower....afraid it would smell like almonds......it does, but only lightly so and I really need to sniff for it, so luckily it just blends into the whole.

Speaking of blending.......this is a very well blended perfume. I can pick out the different notes if I want to, but they're not that obvious......except for the amber.
It's not a floral scent by any means.....there's a touch of spice to it....don't exactly know where that comes from, but it's there.

And I love the way it pairs up with the Gibbous Moon.....being the scent-opposite of that one.
A wonderful set of perfumes!
(and I'm really glad it got to me in time to pick up some back up bottles if I need to)

[angharad]

I'm not sure what to think of this one. It's warm, dry, with a touch of floral. The amber hides beneath the florals, giving them a stable base to rest on. If I look for it, I can smell the cedar, but it is very faint. All the notes in this blend beautifully. The throw is limited on me, making this kind of a "come hither" scent -- someone may walk by and catch the faintest whiff, but they'll have to come closer to really capture the scent.

[wichapi]

I love all of Beth’s ambers, foody or not. This is a “not foody.” But it is so similar to so many, it’s hardly remarkable except for the almond flower – which I could have done without. It tends to overpower the calamus sweet-flag which was probably the finer counterpoint to the heliotrope. The latter does tend to dominate on the dry-down, but it’s not really worth the wait for a little time as the scent lasts.

[jewelbug]

A preface: no idea what calamus smells like....

 

Bottle: It brings to mind an amber-ific Luperci. I don't know why, since there are virtually no notes in common--I guess becuase I smell a lot of wood in this (cedar, yes?)? There's a hint of something citrus, too, but it isn’t juicy, it’s a dry scent.

 

Wet: Ah, I was so curious about almond flower, and there it is, floating over the top of this blend in the wet stage--almondy, but not the in-your-face of most almond blends (which is good since strong almond usually scares me off). Under the almond flower is a dry amber and a hefty dash of (also dry) cedar. This actually smells like something my husband would love, not that it’s masculine, really, but a sweet woodsy unisex (and that’s generally what he goes for).

 

Dry: The almond flower doesn't last on my skin, and I'm left with a sweet golden resin (almost incense) scent, dry woods, and a slight but almost vanillic creaminess (heliotrope?).

 

Overall: On me, this has great throw, I didn’t apply much, and I can smell it without getting close to my wrist at all. The scent is a lovely golden one, and I imagine it'll get even better with some age on it. I've only had this on for about 4 hrs, and from the smell of it, i'll probably get to a staying power of 6-8 which isn't bad at all.

 

Try if you like: Greed, Luperci, Jacob’s Ladder.

[savage_rose]

Not nearly as floral as I was expecting! It's a very warm scent...it smells slightly spicy, slightly floral. The almond flower powders out on me (sad but not unexpected). But mainly it smells like amber, and something like red musk (although it's not one of the notes). This isn't my favorite scent, but it's a really nice neutral kind of "skin scent"--the kind of perfume that doesn't overwhelm, but definitely adds a hint of sweet, spicy sexiness. It's different, but in a nice way.

[cuervosueno]

Cruel sun!

 

how I wanted this to smell like a longer lasting version of Tarot: The Sun. I'd convinced myself it would--after all, it has heliotrope in it, and I'm sure The Sun does as well. And almond blossom sounds lovely and I love cedar. Amber is cool, and franginpani is a floral I'm ok with.

 

So why, exactly, doesn't this work?

 

I have no idea, but it goes soapy on me immediately. In the bottle it is lovely: cedar and something sweet and slightly nutty which I deem the almond flower. But on me--instant soap with the slightest hint of cedar.

 

This was the one I most wanted from the last update, and I am not happy that it does not work on me.

 

Ah well. Off to swaps this sun goes.

[for_the_nonce]

On me, this was a perfumey floral with a base of almond to ground it. I'm hoping the perfumeyness will die down a little with aging, because the underlying almond-floral is really beautiful. It's dry and not too sweet, but not overwhelmingly nutty either. However, the perfumeyness is a little overwhelming for me. Here's hoping that aging helps. *crosses fingers*

[taramarie]

I can't pick out individual notes in Sportive Sun, but on me it smells like floral, incense, and musk. This is very much the early summer sun -- warm and relaxed, but not overwhelming. It's not a typical me scent, but I like it and I think I'll use it often before summer's gone.

[sarada]

I don't know what went wrong with me and this blend, since I like everything in it except possibly almond flower, but this is a rare instance where something disagreed with my skin chemistry to the point where I pretty much had to part with it immediately. Though it has a faint, slightly sweet, ambery scent in the bottle with a hint of dusty almond, it becomes a very strong baby powder/skin-so-soft/moistened baby-wipe smell on me instantly.

 

It is not disagreeable, but I don't really want to have that particular scent hovering around me, since I prefer to cultivate a smoky, woody incense cloud. It's just not me, alas. I've never had amber turn 'powdery' on me before, and I love cedar, heliotope, etc. but everything just conspires to turn into a vast baby-wipe when it hits my skin. This could just have something to do with the time of year or various chemistry issues that might change with time, but I don't have the patience to wait and see if it changes!

[arichan]

You know...I think it's amber that I just don't like very much. Most of the things that I am put off by too much of an incenseness to them have amber in them. I chose this over Leo in an attempt to find something that was "me," but alas, it is not. I really wanted something that was, well, sunny. Maybe like sitting out on a wood deck in the summer or something. It's not bad, just not what I hoped for. I think the almond flower and frangipani seduced me in the description. I do like the cedar note, but overall, it's probably going to have to find a new home. Sorry Sportive Sun!

[Eemia]

Spicy, woody, and musky. This is the kind of woods I can wear. The cedar isn't taking over the other notes, and it isn't masculine. It's just a nice background support. The amber is beautifully light and sensual.

 

There is a play between spicy and sweet as it dries. The sweet could be a result of the almond flower, and I'm happy that it isn't foody or cloying. Overall, it's like a musky sweet resin. It stays on my skin for hours.

 

This is a great sultry blend, one that doesn't wear me.

[Bagfish]

The Sportive Sun has lots of light, sweet, rounded amber - very like Arcana's Nepalese Amber single note. Rising above the amber basenote is heliotrope and a light almost floral almond, but it's not an almond like, say Bastet or Asp Viper. This is not a heavy scent, but it lingers. It is slightly resinous and when still quite fresh on, reminded me of a very light, sweet version of Schwarzer Moon. I can smell the cedar giving a high resinous overtone, but it certainly doesn't overwhelm the scent. The BPAL that this reminds me most of is Sudha Segara, but I think it has more to it than this.

 

This is a very grown-up scent, it has an almost classic "high end" perfume feel about it but I can't make up my mind about the Sportive Sun. I have a bottle coming (I ordered a bottle before it went down without having tried my decant) and I'm not sure if this is going to be a total love or a not really me.....

 

Edited to add 26/7/07: OMG I'm totally upping The Sportive Sun to my top ten BPALs ever. It is absolutely amazing. I have worn it every day since I got it, have got quite a few compliments. It just feels like such a "me" scent, I totally love its warm, rounded, spicy, nummy goodness, I love it on my skin, and I also love the slightly different smell on my clothes and my bra. This is a total and utter winner and I am just so SO pleased I got a bottle too.

Edited July 26, 2007 by Bagfish

[Jilara]

Finally, I'm getting around to reviewing this one! I originally tried it on one hand, with Leo on the other, to compare and contrast, since they seemed similar. They have some distinct similarities, but on me, Sportive Sun is a clear winner of the comparison contest. It's more rich and complex, and lasts much longer.

 

Wet, it's all amber, with a note I could have sworn was some sort of musk, but I don't see musk in the ingredients.

Drying down, the heliotrope comes out and mingles with the amber. The musky note vanishes.

Dry, it's very well blended. The amber and heliotrope is distinctly at the fore, giving a warm and golden feel, with a somewhat resinous background. I don't get cedar at all, unless in that resin note, but it's nothing like the cedar in Tombstone. The resin is more grounded than I expect from cedar. Knowing there is calamus in this, I went looking for it in sniffing, and I think I can detect it vaguely, but this whole scent is very well-blended, so that nothing is really distinct except the amber. It's a little like Jacob's Ladder on steroids.

 

It's subtle, but very nice, and lasts well. A good board-room perfume, where you want to be subtle about smelling good, but also make a statement that you're very together and self-assured.

[spanishviolet]

These ingredients all sounded great, especially the almond flower. But something went terribly wrong. I wish it resembled Jacob's Ladder or Luperci for me, because I love those scents. The cedar went sour on me, though, and I had to wash it off, which is very rare for me. The scent was actually making me angry ... Weird, because I love the smell of cedar boxes, & it's worked in certain other bpals. Something about the combination of cedar & spicy flower just struck me wrong, I guess ...

[edenssixthday]

The Sportive Sun - I love amber and heliotrope and was hoping this would be a gorgeous, bright, sweet floral-resin scent. It's pretty, but on my skin, I barely smell the heliotrope. The amber is quite strong, but it's extremely woody as a result of the cedar on the blend. In fact, it doesn't seem like a "sun" scent at all to me because it's so dry and woody. It's also a rare woody blend that actually disappears from my skin fairly quickly, with extremely short wear length. I guess this one's just not for me.

[JennyGardener]

The Sportive Sun is hot, dry, and rich. It reminds me of grasses drying in the sun. It's a little sweet, yet also earthy. It's a strong scent, very powerful. Quite delicious and heated.

 

Faerygirl's review - Laying down in the sun in a giant bucket of almonds! It is quite rich. done

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is cedar and vetiver...a touch of brightness

 

once applied vetiver and amber and floral...

 

decent throw but not something i can fall in love with

[euterpe414]

This is so smooth and golden, it just shines on my skin! This scent is so well blended that I am having a hard time picking out the notes- the only one I can smell for certain is the amber. Actually, without looking at the notes at all I would have thought that there was some sort of light musk in this b/c it has a very smooth and sensual feel to it.

 

It's hard for me to say much else about this scent since it's so blended, except for the fact that I really, really like it! Unlike other LE sunny scents, Sol Invictus or Et Lux Fuit, this one doesn't go soapy or sharp on me. Now I can finally have a sunny scent that can make me happy! It lasts a long time and stays close to the skin, which is perfect for this type of blend.

 

[ralenth]

This one is definitely tough. At first, it is a warm ambery floral. As it dries, a bit of sweetness pops out (almond, perhaps?). On me, The Sportive Sun clings really close to the skin, hardy any throw at all. It is a lovely blend, but I'm not sure if I would keep coming back to it.

 

It turns powdery after about fifteen minutes. Off to the swaps, it is!

[PurringPulsar]

The Sportive Sun

 

In the bottle: a soft almond flower, with amber, this reminds me strongly of the Penitent Magdalen.

Wet on skin: now the heliotrope and cedar come out.

Dry on skin: mmm, this is nice! It's strongly woodsy and gently powdery at this point, but it's not a very manly cedar. This is a very warm, strong scent, golden and soft, yet solid. The cedar is a powerful base over which the delicate floral notes play, warmed by the presence of amber. It's a very solar scent, glowing and bright, it feels confident, yet with a gentle feel of powder.

After a while: the cedar calms down a little and the amber and florals are a little stronger now. I like the powdery scent this has, it is like powdered sunlight, a bright gold-white scent. The heliotrope is delightful in here, it is the strongest note now, when usually this flower is very soft and retreats to the back of a scent, in here it is at the front, it's soft vanilla-like fragrance is so lovely. It is like the heliotrope-amber combination from Red Moon that I love. The almond flower adds a hint of something gently nutty, and I swear there's something almost spicy or incense like, a little smoky?

The powder does settle down into a more rounded floral scent, with a hint of tropical frangipani peeking through, and a little more of the amber. The scent is still golden and dry. I also smell something pale and papyrus like, probably the calamus?

There are times when a bitter scent pokes through, almost like dragon's blood, but not quite. It's not unpleasant at all and doesn't last. This then becomes a bitter almond scent, before turning to a lovely golden heliotrope, reminding me of Eclipse with amber instead of vanilla. The almond flower returns at drydown, amplified by the cherry-like quality that heliotrope has, followed by the amber which finally shows itself in full at the very end.

Verdict: another gorgeous interpretation of liquid sunshine. Different to the sparkling citrus of Sol Invictus and Et Lux Fuit, and with less spice than Sol and Leo, this is a sophisticated solar scent. it's a warm powdery woodsy floral with a golden amber sheen. At first the cedar is dominant, and it's a lovely warm wooden scent which feels nice and strong, a grounded sunshine scent. I like the cedar that is in recent BPALs, it isn't overly masculine, it's more an exotic fragrant wood scent. The fragrance then moves towards a delightful powdered bright floral mix where the gorgeous heliotrope takes centre stage, very much like Eclipse but not as gourmand, and with a lovely amber glow behind it all. The scent brings to mind depictions of Apollo, radiant and surrounded by sunbeams, almost marble-white, yet lyrical and poetic, a classical fragrance. Almost sophisticated at times, but with a shining aloofness to it. Even though Sol Invictus and Ra will always be my favourite of the sunny scents, this one is definitely worth keeping two bottles of-I have a feeling the amber and cedar will make it age nicely.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? yes! Both bottles!

If you like this, try: Eclipse, Sol Invictus, Ra, The Sun, Sol, Red Moon 07, Ahathoor, Penitent Magdalen, Et Lux Fuit

[QueenFae]

Wow!! Very, very strong sweet blend, smells mainly of amber and frangipani. This has tons of throw on me, and is long lasting. There is something very warm and bright about this scent, although it is much sweeter than I expected it to be. It does conjours images of a bright sun.

 

This goes a little powdery on my skin, but is a very pretty scent just the same. This one will go alllll night

[DifferentDances]

Bottle: Men's warm cologne.

Wet: For all of two seconds, it retains that warm sexiness, burnished ever so slightly. Then it goes directly to soiled baby diaper, and never returns.

 

Not even going to bother rating this. I had to scrub it off because there was no change after 20 mins.

[dronzeka]

In the vial: cedar note of doom!

Wet: cedar note of doom! (by which I mean something pungent and sharp and nasty)

As it dries: okay, this becomes almost really nice! As it dries the cedar backs WAY off, and I start to get the amber and almond flower, as well as some indistinguishable sweet and warm florals (must be the frangipani and heliotrope). I really like these notes (they're the reason I even tried this), but they're really faint - granted, that might be because I applied very sparingly (what with the cedar note of doom). I think that the occasional whiffs of cedar I get mean that this isn't for me, even though it's a much kinder, gentler cedar than initially. If you don't have problems with cedar, though, this is a lovely, warm, gentle blend - definitely warm and sunny, recalling a golden haze in a soft humid sky rather than any kind of crisp clear white light.

[Megara]

If Supportive Sun were a party, it would go a little something like this...

Heliotrope, Amber, Almond Flower, Fragapani, Cedar, and Calamus were all present at a proper party in some nice setting, an upscale manor perhaps. It's a beautiful sunny afternoon, mid of summer. Everyone says their how-do-you do's, and start conversing among themselves, and proper adults do.

 

Amber will not use her indoor voice. At all.

 

Now, Cedar, Heliotrope and Fragapani are trying to speak amongst themselves, but are drowned out mainly by Amber's refusal to give up being the center of attention. Calamus and Almond Flower have given up speaking all together, and are sitting in chairs in the corner of the room with their hands over their ears. Finally they completly abandon the party, with Cedar, Heliotrope, and Fragapani not far behind them.

 

All that's left is Amber. In a lovely entertaining room in a manor, all by herself. Chattering loudly.

 

I don't dislike it, but amber amps up something fierce on my skin. I'll have to try this again, but it's not one of my favorites. Amber is too noisy.

[SeaLady]

Wuh!

 

This starts out warm and woody and ambery, yum.

 

But after about twenty minutes, it's sinus-pinchingly pointy in a way I can't identify. I might try it again, but something in it makes me nose remember sinus infections, and we don't seem to get along well. I am very glad I only got a decant of this one.