Phoenix Steamworks

[hypatia]

Burnished gold and oiled bronze notes with Abramelin incense and sage.

Just on, this is all incense and sweetness. It's fairly strong, a bit cologne-y, and not really to my taste -- I like my incense a bit more restrained.

But after about half an hour, the sweetness dies down, and the warm metallic notes come out and blend with the incense. Now it's morphing back and forth between metal and incense, and it's gotten softer and lighter.

Verdict: I like! Not enough for a full bottle, but definitely enough to keep the imp on hand for when I want a "thinky" kind of scent.

[edited to add description] Edited August 30, 2008 by Shollin
fixed BPAL tags

[theseagrows]

this is very reminiscent of a commercial perfume i've smelled before, but i cannot place it (as usual!) it strikes me as both feminine and masculine at the same time. something is almost powdery about this- like a green powdery floral scent. it kind of turns my stomach. i guess it could be the incense? i'm not sure. there is definitely an ozone quality too. i just don't like this scent with my skin chemistry. it's very odd and difficult for me to describe too.

[zankoku_zen]

There is something in this blend that doesn't agree with me - and I'm not entirely sure what it is. This is a metally scent but it's got this sage/herbally overtone that I don't like, at all. It makes me think of smoking hot metal burning, scorching something.

 

That, or fuzzy green metal. Like if metal grew mold.

 

Yeah, we're not working out right now.

[modillian]

A mild yellow in the imp case, like many other BPAL oils. Smells high and grating in the bottle, a little like the thin zest of celery or dandelion juice. Holy moly, this is amazing. Metal, sweat, some kind of biting lubricant oil, a little spice. Bright, very bright and high in the nose. No musk.

 

This is so, so gorgeous. The incense or the metals is bringing up some utterly delicious sense-memory, but I can't for the life of me define what. Maybe it's like smelling the hot grease on my bike chain on a summer day, my grandparent's old rickety wooden garage housing their boat they'd take to Wisconsin but left mouldering otherwise, the strange cleaning-preservation-scent when I step into a different section of a museum (or Epcot) or a section of a planetarium. Guh guh guh. The best way ever to smell like Mal or Kaylee from Serenity. With Snake Oil on one hand and Phoenix Steamworks in the other, I can detect a similar spicy voluptuousness, very pleasurable. Mildly sneeze-provoking, but I can suffer that for luxurious sage.

 

Becomes brighter, almost lemony as it wears on. After two hours it softens and becomes slightly powdery in the best way. Eighteen hours later -yes, way overnight- it's close to the skin, no sage, and has morphed more to a dulled metallic musk. (Which, since there's no actual musk in here, works well and doesn't become oversweet with me.) Phenomenal.

[Hayet]

Odd, odd, odd...but irresistible on me. My favorite of the Steamworks blends, it makes me think of sun through green and yellow stained glass. Clear and bright and lovely.

[themerrybaker]

I don't know why I keep thinking "Sacrificial Raisins of Doom", but I like Steamworks even though I get nothing particularly metallic from it.

[mgrazulis]

In the imp: metallic sage and ozone

 

Wet: metal sweetens with a honeyed herbal edge, the balsamic incense soft.

 

Drydown: Very beautiful! It starts up a bit masculine, but once it hits skin, it becomes sweet with honeyed metallic zing that wanders about. I detect a bit of apple blossom wafting through the incense.

 

Verdict: How unique! I would never have picked a metallic note for myself. Thanks to the labbie for including this one! I will definitely try this again in my locket to see how it reacts to the metal notes...very cool in atmosphere.

[Suu4LC]

This is an interesting metallic/sage scent in the imp. It feels like it might be a tad too masculine for my tastes, but what worries me more is that sometimes I am sage. Not sure how this will be on my skin.

 

This isn't as sagey as I thought. It really does smell like an oiled bronze machine...very interesting! There's some kind of sweetness to this that I'm enjoying.

 

While I am not sure I would purchase this for myself (though I can maybe see making my boy try it), I think it is an excellent blend. Somehow Beth really captured the scent of a freshly oiled machine in a way that is totally wearable and a perfect representation of Steampunk in perfume form.

[thomasblackthorne]

GAH! This has been on my wishlist forever now...

 

I got this as a frimp from a lovely swapper.

 

I do enjoy the smell, but it's not near anything I was expecting, it just smells really clean and herbal on me, not metallic in the slightest, or incensy.

 

I will definitely keep the imp, it's a very clean cut, professional scent imo.

 

I feel like a well educated mad scientist when I wear it though, it's nice.

[Iceblink]

Metallic incense--kind of cologne-y and a teeny bit herbal. It's nearly impossible to describe what bronze and gold smell like, but this captures them well even if I can't put it into words. An unusual blend. I'd put this more into the masculine column.

[isisonearth]

Imp: To begin with I just smell incense and sage but when I inhale deeply suddenly the scent of metal comes into focus. It is the metallic smell of the inner workings of something too. There is a bit of oil and a bit of what seems to be friction to me. How amazingly complex is that?

 

Wet: Burning sage and incense. The tiniest touch of metal lurks in the back ground.

 

Dry: It gets fresher smelling. Almost a bit lemony. The sage is not reading as pure sage anymore...it has morphed to a sort of sun warmed metallic skin musk. Sexy girl robot or Kaylee from firefly.

 

Overall: Amazingly evocative. This is my first Steamworks scent and it makes me want to try them all.

[oldgentleman]

In the imp: Sage! with men's cologne.

 

Wet on skin: Fresh, crushed sagebrush. The metallic note comes out, and yes, it's golden. The colour could just be my subconscious agreement with the original description but it does have a metal aftertaste. Let's call it 'burnished brass' because calling it that brings the same picture to mind as if I had polished the brass and now have dirty fingers and can taste the metal on the air and through my skin: and that's pretty close to the hot-metal-aftertaste-in-your-mouth feeling I got.

 

Drydown: Dried sage and a hint of myrrh. Very classy and evocative!

[rayvn1]

Ye gods this is gorgeous! Absolutely gorgeous Sweet, deep and rich. Very golden smelling and just incredibly pleasant to have one. I can't wuit sniffing my arm!

[Izz35178]

The best I can describe the smell of this is sweet metal. For me its almost fruity, though in a similar way as how Fruit Loops has fruit in the title but doesn't smell like any real fruit I've ever smelled. I suppose I'm just using fruit in place of a more accurate, specific description I don't know.

 

It's rather intriguing. At first I smell this sweet scent that would almost be off putting to me if not for the metallic tang I get after it that makes my brain go "huh?", then I sniff again and it becomes an enjoyable loop. It's bronze with a rosy hue (is that possible?). Its not as warm as No. 93 Engine, but not cold metal, something in between. All and all very nice.

[mazikeen]

Without reading the description, I think golden and metallic. Ha. Yup, this is definitely bronzey. Nice. It's a little sharp, somehow. A machine you want to be careful around!

 

Good throw. Definitely wearable, but a little more masculine than I'd like. Seems a bit men's cologne-ish from a distance. After an hour or so the cologne-iness fades (along with the strong throw), leaving just the bronzey aspect.

 

A neat scent, but not one I need a bottle of, since there's a few other Steamworks that might suit me better. I bet this'll be great on my husband!

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Sage, and quite aggressively so

 

Wet on me – Predominantly incense but with an oiliness behind it that’s a little unpleasant

 

Dry on me – Oddly I smell like Brasso with just a hint of incense

 

Overall – I’m sure on the right skin this is a fantastic scent, but I just don’t want to smell like brass polish

 

[Koumori]

This one didn't quite seem to fit the description, at least on me. It is a light, masculine-edged cologne type of scent, and while I could detect the oil/metal notes in the bottle, they didn't come out on my skin. The sage amped a bit, but overall I ended up with a slightly sharp floral.

[MCS4096]

My goal is to try the entire Steamworks line, and I've been lucky enough to get several frimps from the psychic labbies

 

In the imp: Hello sage! Yowza! Upon deeper sniffing I detect the "metal" notes and a background sweetness. Smells a bit like hair perm chemicals frankly

 

Wet: More of the same-- its got an almost minty quality to it. The throw is actually quite lovely; more sweet incense and hot metal.. the sage is more distinct up close

 

Drying down: Wow.. I wanted to try this one, but I was worried I'd hate a sage blend, but I love this! As another reviewer above said, it's not as warm as No 93 Engine, which is a top blend for me.. but it's definitely in the same vein. The sage gives a cooling sensation on top of these warm metallic/oily notes. And, I too detect a floral edge (unexpectedly). I'll probably get around to buying a bottle of this fine stuff

[Gwydion]

In bottle: Sage is strongest. The incense sweetens it slightly and the metallics give it an edge. It’s a bright brash cologne, masculine-androgynous. Wet: More androgynous on the skin. I’m really liking the way the sage and metallics wrestle with each other. It is brash, yet sweet, herbal, yet resiny. I’m really liking this. Dry: Fades to mostly resin with a hint of sage.

[Twitch]

Just trying this on and I have to say I'm disappointed. In the bottle it was much more complex and enticing, but on my skin it just smells like mediocre cologne with an herbal note which I'm now supposing is sage (sorry, I don't have a lot of experience with this stuff). I think I'll stick with my smokestack, now that fragrance has depth. This is not a bad scent, just not enticing enough to ever make me wear it over another, better one.

[sirensea]

In the bottle: I keep getting a hint of something after I've set the imp down. Like soap. It's not a bad smell, but it's not one that makes me go 'oh, wow, that's a great scent!' either.

 

On my skin: After letting this one soak in, I can detect the notes of gold (much like in The Obsidian Widow); the metallic smell seems to be at war with the sage, and it doesn't make for a nice combination, at least on me.

 

I'm indifferent about this one. I wouldn't say I dislike it, but I wouldn't invest in a bottle or another imp of it, either.

Edited April 9, 2009 by sirensea

[Alarine]

In the bottle: Golden, warm, earthy sage and spicy incense.

Just dabbed on: Same. Definitely cologney at first, but in a good way, not too ragingly-sexy-man to be wearable for me.

After several hours: Same. Comfy and comforting and golden. A metallic musk, somehow.

 

It's surprisingly good as a sleep scent and just damn relaxing and quietly confident in a fascinating way. I laughed at someone's description of feeling like a sexy mad scientist while wearing this, 'cause I get that impression too, but at the same time, it's so golden and warm that it's like getting a very long hug from a very dear friend who smells like the more golden, earthy, incensey side of this. I love this one so much, and I never expected to love it so, but it's hard to be eloquent about it.

 

[voodoocatwoman]

I have to agree with sirensea. I am picking up something soapy in this scent. I almost expect to hear the "squeaky clean" sound.

[Inventrix]

I dare say this is the first scent that smells like a "normal" perfume that I've actually liked, probably ever.

 

After trying both Robotic Scarab and Galvanic Goggles, the first sniff from the imp was surprisingly sweet. I mostly got the sage, with a subtle background of incense.

 

Wet, it was sort of cologney, with less sage. I think the cologne smell I got at this point was something about how the incense and the metallics interacted. The cologne stayed for a while, very elegant, with the incense gradually separating out and going more to a background kind of scent.

 

After a while, the cologne smell changed into an equally elegant perfume, very formal to my nose. I can feel the metallics - warm and glossy, instead of shiny. The sage is nearly undetectable and the sweet incense gives it a smoky backdrop. It's like sitting in in formal evening attire, in a room lit only by yellow candlelight that reflects warmly off of highly polished brass, while wisps of sweet smoky incense trail through the air.

 

This is definitely a formal occasion only scent for me, which means no bottle. I go to so few formal events that this one imp should last me at least a year.

[crebbsgirl]

So, I was a little worried to try this, as I have a real hate-on for ozone and metallics. I put it on and there was an initial WOOSH of metallicy ozoney badness but it wasn't in-your-face like I was expecting. Almost immediately, the sharpness went away and I was left with a sweetness, and a bit of an "organic" quality someone else mentioned. I liked it, surprisingly... until this little interaction occured:

 

Me: "Hey! Boy! Sniff me in all of my scentastic glory!"

Boy: Lowers nose to wrist... "Ungh!".... wrinkles nose... "Smells like bits."