Aeaea

[Delirium1009]

AEAEA-

This is her island squared in cypress lines;

With cedar ranks about her alley walks

Set frequent, and the faces of the boles

Are crimson, deep as sunset stains of cloud.

The floor between them, rank and overgrown,

Is tangled with luxuriant heads of bloom,

All in a mat together, mixed with sedge.

There are bells of some wide wine-deep flowers,

Great apple fruits and tawny orange globes;

And bunchy cactus tipped in fire-bright buds.

Grey aloe spikes and heavy curling vines,

And speckled poison berries intertwined.

Her groves lead down upon the light free waves;

Her foam-heads dance and ripple into sound.

The laughter of many birds is in her elms

Jays, owls, sea-crows, larks, lapwings, nightingales,

As jumbled as the flowers beneath their notes.

The isle-grove ends abruptly on the sea,

A stranded star-fish neighbors by the sward,

Where the snail toils beneath his painted walls.

Small seaward gust irresolute breathe near;

And sweeter waftings, sent from the middle brine,

Stir the deep grasses at her perfect feet,

Where Circe, shining down the gaudy flowers,

Leans centre-light of all this paradise.

One ankle gleams against the margin turf,

Just beyond where the wave-teeth cease to bite.

And the sea-pinks grow less rosy at her feet.

 

But this enchantress, island-queen, herself

Bears on her head a bright tire marvelous,

And for a girdle one of many dyes

Woven and traced with curious pattern-spells.

Her face is not at first so beautiful,

That one should say 'Fear her, she will slay men

And draw them into deaths by her strange ways,

And some soft snare hid under all of her.'

We must consider well upon her face,

And the silent beauty of it all

Begins upon us, grows and greatens on,

Like sweet increasing music, chord on chord,

Till all our being falters overthrown;

And she lures out our soul into her hands,

As faint and helpless as a new-born babe,

To have her will and way with all of it.

 

O, she, this Circe mage, is strange and great,

And deadlier than those terrible bright forms,

That beam out on us with their grace.

Her love eats deeper to the core of men,

Scathing and killing, fierce and unappeased;

Until not only the divine in us,

But all the human also (which indeed

Are one, tho' this less perfect) fade and change,

And fall corrupted into alien forms.

Till we resemble those strange-headed things,

Herded away behind her island throne,

Chimaeras, tiger-apes, and wolfish swine.

 

A dark ocean breeze, electric with adrenaline, magic, and fear, clashing with the thick scent of poisoned berries and spiny aloe, against a backdrop of snowdrop, cedar, and cypress.

 

In bottle/imp: Very sharp and floral. A little aquatic, but very strong.

 

immediately on skin: I'm getting a bit of a strong perfume-y scent. It's very clean and almost soapy but in a very good way. The aloe is there (I think that's the clean scent) and is interacting nicely with the floral notes. This is definitely turning to a floral blend on me, but it's not heavy. I'm not very familiar with ozone notes, but there's definitely an electric-tinged-air type of feeling going on and the aquatic feeling to the blend has faded a little. Overall though this seems extremely well blended... no one note jumps out over another.

 

After a few minutes: This blend has mellowed out to a lighter and almost creamy scent. It reminds me a bit of Zarita, only without carnation... it's a lovely feminine floral with just a touch of something (cedar?) livening up the base. I do have to say though that this is a wonderfully blended scent; I can no longer pick out any of the notes and what I'm getting is just a wonderfully crisp, clean, and very wearable floral.

 

A little while later now I'm definitely getting a hint of wood notes. It's not smack-you-in-your-face cedar or cypress, but it's lurking gently in the background of the blend, turning a little less perfume-y. It still has a very nice feminine feel to it though.

 

ETA a few hours later: This faded pretty quickly (about 4 hours) but is definitely a lovely scent and I think it's well worth reapplying. I also have to say that the label art is absolutely adorable (a cartoon pig on a tropical island a la Odyssey) and I will be treasuring the bottles of this that I bought.

Edited December 10, 2007 by Shollin

[sarada]

Though the pig and the palm tree on the bottle will forever endear this to me, Aeaea is probably not a scent I would normally wear. I'm sure the perfect day will present itself: a day at the shore, perhaps, crisp and fresh and bright. Right now, it is in contrast to all of the Halloween and autumn scents that I'm swimming in, and it's hard to wrap my head around.

 

In the bottle, ocean and seaspray knock me over -- a perfumey ocean. It smells beachy. I am not really fond of that kind of aquatic, as it just makes me think of sunblock smells, sweat, and fish. Never fear though, none of those are present in this blend!

 

On my skin, the seaspray is quickly replaced by something floral and sweet. A pale, quivering golden sweetness ...but still held up by a slightly effervescent seafoam.

 

After it dries for a bit the strongest association I have with this scent is shampoo. I'm not sure which kind, just a general scent of shampoo. Maybe something aloe and herbal, with a few crushed flower petals. I was hoping for cedar and cypress to make an appearance, but unless they come very late in the drydown I haven't come across them yet.

 

The weather and time of year right now are probably not conducive to bringing out the best in this one -- it mainly smells like ocean, and shampoo, but I am pretty devoted to keeping all of the Therianthropic blends so I think I will hang onto this one for now, even though I can't see myself wearing it more than once a year. I think the aloe sets it apart slightly, but it also imparts that "freshly-washed hair" quality.

[Roses Ablaze]

Usually I don't purchase LE's unless I really think I'm going to like it, but I've been looking for a nice ocean-y scent, so I bought Aeaea. Unfortunately, it's disappointing. It isn't ocean-y at all - the first adjective that comes to my mind when I sniff it in the bottle is medicinal. It's cool, too, but mostly medicinal. Then when it goes on my skin, it turns into sharp soap, but then quickly sweetens up to some potpourri-y, soapy stuff. So I guess I'm selling this one.

[QueenFae]

First impressions: Soft, aquatic, powdery floral, island breeze.

 

This is indeed an aquatic/ozone smelling scent, but there is a lovely, compelling sweetness of florals slathered over the top. The snowdrop note is very pretty, and quite a bit stronger than I would have imagined. There is a dark, evil smelling aspect to this blend as well, which makes it quite contradictory. I can pick out the aloe, as well as what must be the poisoned berry note. The berries are decidedly.....evil

 

After reading the description of this, I would not have thought that I would like it. But actually, this smells very nice on me. It's definitely a light scent, with not much throw, but that's pretty much par for the course for my skin and floral/ozones.

 

Try this, you'll like it!!

 

(Oh yeah, I LOVE the label!! Cute piggy!!)

[jessiesquash]

Hee wuv the piggy!

 

Oooh not really what I was expecting but VERY pleasant nonetheless! The aloe isn't overpowering as it tends to do on me. The cedar is really working hard to ground this and keep this lil piggy firmly on the ground. It's aquatic and softly floral but it's not SCREAMING FLORAL/AQUATIC CRAZINESSOMG!!!!! It's very subtle and slightly sweet

 

It does go through a headache inducing dry down period though where the aloe does amp a bit but it's over pretty quickly and then it becomes pretty and soft. It reminds me a tiny bit of Abhisarika in a weird way. I wonder if they share any notes.

 

I think I like it but maybe I'll test it again after it's settled a bit. I don't know if I can stand that drydown every time I put it on.

[taramarie]

On me, Aeaea is ocean breeze over berries. It's light and refreshing. I like it a lot and I'll definitely wear it often during the warm weather months.

[Astarte]

On me Aeaea never evolves, I dont get any magical berries or electric air or even cypress. I get a aquatic with a lot of aloe. Shame, Thalassa now remains my true ocean scent.

[Rhowan]

~*~ AEAEA ~*~

 

In the bottle: Ozone, aquatics and mens cologne

 

Wet on skin: The first note I smell is a kind of ozone and a beautiful aquatic combinned - it is actually quite beatiful! It smells very clean and clear (the aloe maybe?) Then, the barest scent of sweet wood and a touch of a floral. All swirling together it is beautiful!!

 

Complete dry down: Oh! This is absolutely gorgeous!! This end up smelling to me like berries over a light musk with a hint of clear sweet water. I don't any "electric" "fear" or "clashing" It smells to me like a beautiful spring day with a light scent of berries carried on the breeze.

 

Conclusion: I love this!! I was hoping for a darker, more fearful scent but the spring berries, clean water, and light breeze work really great! Unfortunately, this started to fade pretty rapidly. By 2 hours it was completely gone. It also has only a mediocre throw. It's a bummerm but maybe it will get stronger as it ages. It is definitely worth keeping, it smells so good. Maybe a scent locket would help it!

Edited September 20, 2007 by Rhowan

[funkmoppet]

This was a wild-card purchase. I like aquatics, love ozone, love aloe, all the notes sound like a lovely blend and it had good odds of me liking it.

 

Plus, it has a pig on the label.

 

But I'm not rewarded with an ozoney aquatic. Other reviews mention men's cologne, and I wanted that! How dearly, DEARLY I adore Thunder Moon and Lightening. I'm not rewarded with anything approaching dark ocean breezes, magic or fear.

 

Actually, no. I get the fear. It's fear of FUCKING FLORALS. This is not what I wanted, but it's what my skin is making of this blend that sounds so much like Funky-porn on paper.

 

Dry, it's a little better. The FLORAL ACK settles down a *bit* and I get just a hint of the salty ocean and those notes I WANT TO SMELL. It's a light and breezy dry, and a decent summer beach blend - but I don't know if I can sit through the BLOUSY, GIRLY wet phase for something that is ultimately a big let-down on my skin.

 

*Kicks things across the room*

 

*Frowns at the pig on the label*

[jade_starlight]

I was really hopeful about this one, but alas all I get from it is sharp cleaning fluid. Lots and lots of sharp, perfumey cleaning fluid.

[steelxrose]

Aeaea:

 

I was wary of this one because I don't wear ozone or aquatics very well.

 

In the bottle: Very slight aquatic scent, but mostly floral. Good sign thus far.

 

On my skin: I hate to do this comparison, but I smell like a Glade air freshener. And love it. It's a lovely tropical fruit-floral blend. Very soft and subtle.

Edited September 25, 2007 by steelxrose

[euterpe414]

Aeaea is a very soft aquatic on my skin- it reminds me a lot of shampoo, or the smell of pure, clean skin. I can smell the cypress lurking beneath the squatic notes and some lighter, sweet florals notes, too. The cypress seems to get stronger durin the drydown, and the aquatic notes become much more of a background to the woodiness. Once this is dry there is a very strong 'perfume-y' element to this one, so I would be wary of slathering. On me, 'perfume-y' blends when slathered = biiig headache that is hard to get rid of. Even though it turns into a stronger scent, the fresh and clean qualities about it seem to remain.

 

I am not sure that Aeaea is a type of scent that I would wear often, but it is certainly very lovely. I am going to hold on to it because I can see myself wearing it in my scent locket or as a room scent quite often (and you never know, I might start becoming obsessed with cypress sometime soon and wear it a lot, hehe).

 

ETA: Unfortunately when I actually tried to wear this (aka slather it) it gave me a horrible headache- I don't know what it is but I think it's some of the aquatic-ness in the blend. Sadly, Aeaea must be sent to a better home

Edited October 7, 2007 by euterpe414

[alicia_stardust]

AEAEA

 

Wet: In the bottle I smell something that reminds me of salt water and fresh green grass. There's definitely a fresh "green" quality in there.

 

Dry on Skin: I immediately smell aloe, sharp and strong. It sits above a dark wave of salt water and a high-pitched, electric ozone. I don't really detect the berries at any point, but I do get the cypress and cedar. I also think that the floral in there is really heightened by the aloe and both keep a strong dominant role in this blend. Overall this is a nice aquatic-floral-ozone with a smattering of dark woods and a dark breeze.

 

I really wish this stayed true to the way it smells in the bottle and in the first 15 minutes on my skin. After that my skin chemistry really does something weird with the aloe.

[Little Bird]

I opted for a decant of Aeaea (which I cannot pronounce at all, lol) because of my history of having trouble wearing ozone or aquatic blends, and my fear of snowdrop as a perfumey, sharp, white floral note. I loved the thought of the aloe and woods though.

 

On me, this is fruity dryer sheets. It reminds me of those tropical breeze laundry soap items. Aeaea goes softer and a bit more powdery for a bit, almost subtle enough to just be a clean skin scent, but then snowdrop rears its perfumey little head and the blend takes a sharp turn. Over time this takes on more of that musky, sharp, nondescript floral perfume scent that I hate. I might recommend this to someone who likes clean, white floral blends.

[Eemia]

A rich ocean scent...it's wet and salty but heavily laden with a jumble of beautiful notes. It's sharply perfumey overall, but the freshness of the earth notes keep it light and natural. The cedar is especially nice. It amps up on my skin right away so that it's the focal point of the whole fragrance. The aquatic notes are clean but they don't remind me of linen or similar clean-type scents.

 

The berries are not very aggressive here. There is a vague juiciness but I can't detect it much. The aloe is easier for me to smell and I love how green it is. The plants themselves smell wet apart from the ocean fragrance. Mostly this remains a perfume fragrance with ties to ocean life. I have worn this all day and I'm happy that it hasn't overpowered me considering that steadfast cedar note.

 

And yes, that pig is perfect.

[zankoku_zen]

I have to say that this was a sharp, green floral. Almost unisex... but not quite. Slightly ozoney at the beginning, but toward the end I got some of the woodsyness of the cypress and in general just a short of marshy like floral.

 

Pretty. But not for me.

[neuilly]

Right of the bat this was a strong and sharp cedar/cypress scent. But after a few moments the ozone started to infiltrate leading this into a soft, waterey (but suprisingly not very ozoney) floral/herb. Very unique!

[edenssixthday]

Aeaea - Oh my, this is the scent of summertime at the beach. It's incredibly beachy without being remotely tropical or reminiscent of suntan lotion. It's fresh, clean, breezy, and really pretty. The aloe is most definitely the dominant note. I don't smell the berries at all, and I'm surprised the cedar doesn't turn to pencil shavings on me. I really don't smell the cedar or cypress except to say that something is giving a sense of "body" to the aloe, and I'm certain it's these woods. I really love this blend and even though it fades quickly, I'm so glad I have some. This is going to be worn a lot next summer.

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is cedary; slight trace of an oceany note...

 

once applied this turns rather floral...this has a strong throw...

 

after a few minutes a slight note of aloe but mainly, this is a pretty and aquatic floral

[Lunaratu]

Ok, this is extremely clean herbal, grassy scent when this first goes on me which has me worried. It warms up a bit as it’s on however which does give me some hope for the drydown. This definitely smells the closest to salt air that I have smelled thusfar from the lab. Interesting but not my usual thing.

Rating: 2/5

[laliloo]

Today is the first day that I've properly worn Aeaea without having a zillion other scents dotted around my hands/arms at the same time. And it's lovely. It does smell of the ocean, but slightly floral and I think the berries are holding everything together on my skin to make it a light, bright, slightly salty, cooling scent.

 

The only similarity it has to Selkie (which is the other ocean-aquatic that I own) is the temperature of the scent - it's cool in the same way. But where Selkie felt like strands of green seaweed wafting in a slightly murky green sea, Aeaea is more blue, with some pale purple flashes and sparkles. Truly lovely. I'm so glad I took a chance and ordered this bottle. yum.

 

ETA: I forgot to mention - this does fade quickly and I find that I'm reapplying every few hours.

Edited October 8, 2007 by laliloo

[Nimthiriel]

Initial impression:

A soft, not-quite-floral scent... It's difficult to define.

 

First on:

Gentle, fresh aloe, with the occasional flash of something more aquatic.

 

Dry:

After about 10 mins, it's aloe and – yay, snowdrop! It's definately snowdrops, one of my favourite flowers. No berries, cedar or cypress, however.

 

20-30 mins after application, it's still a very soft and lovely aloe/snowdrop blend – cool and fresh, without being off-putting or in-your-face.

 

Finally:

I really didn't think I'd like this one this much – but oh, I do! Keeping, as a scent for summer days by the sea.

[303marlena]

This purchase was based on a love affair with the poem and the myth of Circe, rather than the notes listed--I was not sure how they would play out.

 

I am glad I took a chance on this. The imagery of the piggie on the bottle went over my head at first, but when I finally clued in--I had to chuckle. (Circe turned all of those double-crossing Greeks into pigs to punish them)

 

It does smell oceany (read--slight ozone, delicious saltiness) to me, like the damp spray on a tropical island. In the background I get a whiff of lush, greenery, more leaves than florals, but they are there too. I agree with the previous reviewer who characterized the florals as "green." Ater a few minutes, I get a hint of berries, like there is a patch of them over the hill and the breeze is wafting their scent to me.

 

I really enjoyed this, and I am keeping the bottle. I probably won't get many more chances to wear this until next summer, but it will be worth the wait!

Edited October 16, 2007 by marlena

[PurringPulsar]

Aeaea

 

In the imp: a fruity yet fresh and very blue watery scent. Different to other aquatics.

Wet on skin: now I smell woodsy notes and a little sweetness.

Dry: mmm, this is surprisingly good! I’m not getting anything soapy or detergent like so far. What I am getting is a wonderful scent evoking the deepest sea blue. I smell woods, dry cedar and cypress, like driftwood or a wooden ship, with sweet berries and white flowers, maybe a hint of aloe as well, with a wonderful deep blue oceanic note which is so different to the other sea notes in BPAL. It smells watery, clean, blue and a little salty but not soapy so far. Something about this smell reminds me of summer holidays, actually. Makes me think of the Mediterranean sea, with it’s rich blue colour, I think it reminds me of holidays on the Greek islands. I think it reminds me of a sun lotion or aftersun cream or something? I don’t know, but I do like it.

After a while: the strong woods have now calmed down, and now I smell more of the deep juicy currant-like berries and that lovely blue aquatic note with a little hint of floral to it. Still no soap or washing powder, a rarity with marine scents. Could this be the BPAL sea scent I’ve been looking for?

I soon get a hint of crisp ozone, but it’s a very nice ozone, no ‘tumble dryers and photocopiers’ like I usually get with ozones that are described as electric. This is anything but…it’s a smooth warm sapphire-coloured sea and a refreshing breeze with hints of fragrant wood and fruits and flowers. It smells like a perfect summer holiday.

A soft aquatic floral is all that remains, and the scent hasn’t turned soapy on me at all throughout it’s duration. Now it is just a warm, smooth, slightly salty flowery scent. It is so different to all the other sea-themed BPALs, I can’t compare this to anything because it is unique.

Verdict: probably the biggest and most unexpected BPAL surprise of the year, I think. I thought I would hate this. I thought it would be death by ozone on me. But this isn’t at all…in fact, this is the BPAL sea scent I’ve been looking for, the one sea scent that actually works on me! No soap, no washing powder, no dryer sheets, no static electricity. Instead, I get a gorgeous watery-salty scent accented with floral, fruity and woodsy notes which evokes the clearest, most vivid, bluest blue sea. Deep and alluring, azure waves that tempt you to dive in, with sea breezes scented with gentle flowers, balmy woods and a hint of sweet fruit. It smells like the perfect summer holiday, it reminds me of wonderful summer memories, it makes me think of the Mediterranean without smelling of herbs and citrus fruits, there’s nothing electric or poisonous or sinister here, just the scent of water so blue and inviting, like something from a wonderful dream. I’m so glad I claimed a bottle of this from the forum sales. I think this is my favourite BPAL marine-aquatic scent now.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Yes! One of the few sea-themed scents which works beautifully, I’m getting a bottle from the forum sales.

If you like this, try: Roux Ga Roux, Selkie, Sea of Glass, Thalassa, City in the Sea, the Phoenix

[metaldog32]

I think the reason why I bought this was because of the words “adrenaline”, “magic” and “fear”. Sounded too alluring to pass up…even if it could end up being an aggressive aquatic…I wouldn’t mind.

 

So…imagine my surprise when the bottle did come and well…it had a happy pink pig hanging out under a palm tree looking at a pretty calm ocean. WTF??? Some kind of joke???

 

In any event…it’s was really warm in the NY/NJ area when I contemplated wearing this and I figured what the f*ck..let’s try this cheery pink pig.

 

I do like aloe. I like cedar. I have grown to respect cypress a bit. Why not???

 

Initial sniff from bottle: Clean but not ozone like aquatic..with that smoothness and coolness that reminds me of the aloe..and on the tail end I get a wisp of the cypress..just a tinge…nothing like the frontal assault that is in Nemesis..no..the cypress here is pretty darned restrained. Somebody likened Aeaea to Silence..and I have to agree..there is that coolness that they both share.

 

Applied wet on skin:Oh…it’s the cypress again..a wee bit more present..and it’s still that coolness of the aloe and yes..some sort of berry…not overt though..just lending a translucent wash of sweetness that is there and then…poof…gone. I get a faint floral..I wonder if that’s the snowdrop??? Not really getting the cedar yet.

 

Couple of minutes on skin:Holy cow..it’s happening again..the “Silence” phenomenon….I can barely smell anything on my wrist.Crap.

If I wave my wrists in front of my face, I get whiffs..faint whiffs..but whiffs nonetheless of the elusive aloe and the touch of cypress/snowdrop. This blend is perfect for the office..but I wish it would just come out a bit more on my skin..I seem to absorb it. Darn.

 

Ten minutes later:Still very soft on me..but I can register the waft of aloe and snowdrop…no berries..no cedar but the cypress is softened to the background now.

 

This continues on me for a good 4+ hours..but it’s maddening. One moment I think it’s gone..and then I get a tease of a brief trail of fragrance. It’s not invisible..but it certainly doesn’t announce itself either.

 

The throw on this is soft.

 

Bottom Line: Aeaea is one fragrance that kind of befuddled me…along the same lines as Silence. This time around though..I was able to formulate my mind around this fragrance a bit more. I think it worked nicely for the warmer weather we are enjoying right now..but I still think that this would work well in the cooler months. I like the idea of aloe and snowdrop in the cold; perhaps I can get the darker vibe of this fragrance to bloom a bit more on me when the weather is a bit more conducive to my imagination allowing me to possibly hear the wind whisper and wail while darkening skies beckon fall…such a cute pink pig though… hmph..I’m baffled..I admit it…