The Antikythera Mechanism

[shadawyn]

Teakwood, oak, black vanilla, and tobacco.

Oooh. Oooh.

In the bottle, I get woodsy and sweet and dark. If it smells this way on my skin, I'm in love.

...

On me, dry-down, it's smells much the same. I never got to try Glowing Vulva (although reading through these, I want to), but this reminds me of why I like, but don't love, Intrigue (woody, but not sweet enough) and the crowning wood notes in Miskatonic University without the cloying sweetness, blended with heady the tobacco and dark vanilla spirit that makes me love Midnight Kiss and Red Lantern (neither of which have vanilla, if I recall correctly, but have some sweet note like cocoa and caramel absolute).

Well, that probably only made sense to me.

In conclusion: Warm, golden dark, woody, and sweet (but not overwhelmingly so), all wrapped into one heady, sexy scent. I see a bottle in my future. Edited May 10, 2008 by Shollin

[Iceblink]

Wow this is woody. REALLY woody. The vanilla and tobacco are mmm lovely in it but the woods are making it feel really...raw? This needs some aging; it's going to smell amazing given a little time. Manly, yes, but I like it too.

[inurbanus]

This is super manly out of the imp, but it settles down into a suave woody blend with just a hint of vanilla. The tobacco was a nice surprise -- it usually smells bad on me, but in this case it was tame. Surprisingly, my skin eats this, and since I'm not getting as much of the vanilla stage as I would like, I'm trying to decide how often I would wear this one. It's definitely in the same scent category as Black Lace, but they're cousins instead of siblings, if that makes any sense. I think this one deserves further investigation.

 

3.5/5

[phantasmmysteria]

Okay, I am not a big fan of tobacco notes at all, but I have been looking for a nice, woody (hehe, woody) scent to add to my repretoir for quite some time, and I think I just found it in The Antikythera Machanism.

 

The tobacco is instantly identifiable in the imp, but here is nicely balanced by the oak and teak rather than dominating. Wet to dry, this doesn't change very much; the tobacco actually recedes a bit, and the woods (particularly the lovely, rich teakwood) and vanilla create a very sophisicated and sexy perfume. I don't find this manly at all, thoughmy skin's tendency to amp vanilla may make it a sweeter blend on me than on others.

 

I can't wait to see how this ages, and it's definitely going to require a big bottle.

Edited May 10, 2008 by PhantasmMysteria

[alicia_stardust]

This is one of those scents that I knew for certain that I wanted to try, but it always slipped my mind when I thought of the ones I was most excited about in my order. It should have been the top of my list! The Antikythera Mechanism is the most AMAZING fragrance! It's red and sultry and the woods are woodsy and grounding without being too sharp or strong. The black vanilla is so hypnotizing and sexy, and the tobacco is the perfect addition: subtle and smooth. This is just so freaking sexy and it's one of those that is going to age beautifully. I am getting a backup bottle at the very least!

[Reaver]

My first thought was this is Crowley, but not so noxious and a HELL of a lot more vanilla-y. And seeing as Crowley was my second ever BPAL LOVE, this is going straight up to need-it status. It's simple and sweet and unassuming. I don't quite get what I was expecting - the power, the steam, the 'universes dancing within'? It's more the scent of the workshop. Hours planning, papers and diagrams fluttering in the breeze from the window, endless cigarettes rolled on well worn wooden desks. It smells grown up and old, not youthful and revolutionary like a lot of the others in this catagory.

 

It's established and suave and knows the ladies love it, but just doesn't have time, what with all his projects and research papers.

 

Conclusion - Glad we bought a bottle straight off, sad that boyfriend will probably like it and keep it for himself.

9/10. A popular blend that I LIKE?! Heavens.

[Eemia]

I got an imp of this and I already know I'll go through it in a day or two. I need a bottle. This is gorgeous and sultry and sexy. I love the sweet woods and the softness of the vanilla. Those are the strongest notes on my skin. But the tobacco prevents this from being too tame and predictable. It has a rich smoky quality that I'm swooning over.

 

It lasts and lasts on me too. I woke up this morning and could still smell it on my wrists. This is sooooo good!

[nappunkitty]

My bottle of Perversion has been somewhat neglected since the weather turned warmer, but it was the first thing I thought of when I opened up my imp of Antikythera Mechanism (well, after I finished going "Mmmm...."!). It has, both in the imp and on me, that same smoky sweetness that I love in Perversion; but dryer, lighter. Instead of being a smoky club room with leather chairs and lots of booze, Mechanism is more the Victorian drawing room mentioned by others. The drydown on this was wonderful--I was sniffing my smoky-woodsy-vanilla-y wrist for hours after application. Whereas Perversion I do not wear some places (like work--can't do Smut at work, either), I could wear Mechanism anywhere I wanted to--and I'm likely to want to wear it everywhere. I will have a 5mL in my next order.

 

It smelled good on the hubby too. And for those of us *sniff* spurned by Glowing Vulva, have hope! (try the Mechanism!)

[zomathesadist]

one of my most anticipated Steampunks!

 

in the imp: clean, fresh, slightly woody. kind of a generic, manly smell. The teak is quite distinctive, though.

 

wet on skin: whoa! my skin amps wood notes up like crazy! I noticed that with Glowing Vulva, too. This is very woodsy, very dark. Strong, too. and I slathered it. oops. Not getting much of anything besides WOOD.

 

after 5 minutes: The vanilla is peeping out, just a tad. It's sweetening up the sharpness of the teak and oak. not getting much tobacco yet. shame. BPAL's tobacco note is one of my favourite things EVAR.

 

after 15 minutes: Hullo, tobacco! Nice of you to join us. it's nice, sweet, pipe tobacco. this is lovely.

 

drydown: the least obvious note is the vanilla for me, but that's fine, because though I like vanilla FLAVORED things, vanilla scents often just smell fake to me. nah, it's staying in the background and chilling. This is really well blended, though, and very well balanced. I'd imagine this to be great in the fall/winter; soon it will be too hot for me to wear this.

 

WIN.

 

in a nutshell: dark sweet woods. This is very unisex. great throw, unsure about wearlength but I suspect it will be long.

[sparkybish]

In the imp: Vaguely metallic and woody

Wet: Oh dear, i don't think so. It's all wood. Well I smell some vanilla there, and that's nice, but wooooood. I don't get what all the fuss is about.

Drying down: Actually this is kind of nice, for a man. *sniff* Or maybe me.

Dry: If I could mate with my hand, I would. I will definitely dilute it a bit though, because it throws a lot on me.

[arsenicsauce]

I really wish I liked this more. In the imp it's unexpectedly sweet but kind of light and fresh smelling instead of being heavy and cloying, which is promising. On skin, I got a quick whiff of teak and then something musky and sour started to creep in to the sweet smell, possibly the tobacco. I haven't really had any issues with tobacco in other bpal scents so I'm not sure why it makes this one go so wrong on me.

 

After about ten minutes of this it settles down to something nice and complex, mostly vanilla and woods, but I am really not digging that first stage at all. I'll have to wait and see if this happens every time because I'm not sure if the drydown is worth it. It does have nice throw though.

[SeaLady]

At first, I was a little grumpy about darling Antikythera Mechanism. Why did I buy two bottles of Glowing Vulva when I could have had four of this, for almost the same price?! (Other than the obvious, which is that it makes me laugh and laugh to know that I'm wearing a perfume called Glowing Vulva - well worth the extra monies).

 

But the two are different scentwise as well, I found as it dried. This is woodier and more grounded, slightly less sweet, and brighter. More of a yellow brightness than the sultry gold of GV. The tobacco is dark and balances the warm teak wonderfully. An excellent introduction to the Steampunk scents.

 

I love this one. I haven't smelled Perversion (a fact I am by no means proud of), but the comparisons make me even more determined to try it.

[maribouquet]

Oh my goodness, this smells like mounds and mounds of fluffy, white men's shaving cream! My skin's crazy femme interpretation of what sounds like a to-die-for masculine scent on others. And something in here - maybe the oak? - starts to go a little green after half an hour.

[mawaridi]

Mmm. I bought this as a last minute extra to my Tiki order, to make the postage seem less ridiculous for just one bottle. This is *so* uncharacteristic of me, buying a bottle without smelling it first, but I couldn't be happier with the result. I tested Antikythera Mechanism on the back of my hand yesterday morning and I can *still* smell it more than 24 hours later! It's a warm, dusty, sophisticated scent, just like a cabinet of curiosities in some Victorian gentleman's library. The wood is dry, comforting and just lovely, especially rounded out with the smokey tobacco and just a hint of vanilla to keep it warm and smooth. I agree with the person who smelled a hint of polished brass, too - there's definitely something at least *evocative* of metal in the wet stage, even though it isn't a listed note.

 

I hope I can convince my SO to put some of this on him. It's a unisex scent, and I can wear it quite happily myself, but I think it would smell super sexy on him!

[LadyLuckDoubt]

I bought a bottle unsniffed, in with my Mother's Day present order. Just the concept, and the artwork, and the combination... sounded, as I said at the time-- heartbreakingly beautiful.

 

In the Bottle

Extremely medicinal tang, smells like Dettol antiseptic mixed with vertiver and a touch of Beth's lovely metallic blend. Already I've got high hopes.

 

On Me

Wow: it gets even better. The Dettol smell (which I thought was cool) has faded down, teakwood dominates, with a soft dark hue-- the black vanilla and tobacco coming through. This is lovely-- very unisex, very classy, and a natural woody smell, but sweetened slightly with the vanilla.

 

It reminds me of a more red-toned wood Tiki King. If you missed out on the King, grab yourself some of this lovely invention-- it's utterly divine.

 

I've been sniffing my wrists for the past hour. It's seriously very close to magic, and has instantly snagged a place as one of my happy-making comforty BPAL scents.

[cranberry]

Tobacco and woods. A slight sweetness.

 

As it dries, this becomes sweeter and vanilla emerges. The wood becomes stronger yet it is a mild wood. The tobacco is gorgeous here.

 

This is so reminiscent of Glowing Vulva but without the thickness that scent has. This is a more fluid scent, and I think of it as the masculine counterpart to GV. The wood smells fresh and raw to my nose and it combined with the tobacco, makes an almost green note that adds to the masculine feel of this oil. That note is what offsets the thick sweetness of GV that is present in the background.

 

The sum combination is absolutely gorgeous and I should have bought a bottle straight away, as I adore all of the notes listed. Bottleworthy for sure!!! This shot straight up into my GC top 10 list.

 

LOVE IT!!!!!

[greenranger]

In the imp, vanilla and wood.

 

Wet, on me, Oak and Teak, but, there's a slight sweetness hanging around that might be the vanilla.

 

Drying on me, vanilla, woods, and tobacco. I can almost tell the difference between the oak and the teak. Hopefully the woods won't overpower the vanilla or tobacco when it dries completely. Ah, there went the vanilla, darn.

 

The vanilla is playing hide and go seek or something. It's coming forward and then hiding. It doesn't have a great deal of throw on me, and I think I can wear it for me without worrying about slapping other people in the face with my scent. I do like this, and I suspect to like it more over time.

 

This is likely to be completely different on cotton than on me.

 

Wet, on cotton, ...nothing is poking it's head out of the mix...the gears are too busy turning inside the box. It smells smooth and polished...well oiled.

 

Drying, on cotton, there's still no note popping up above the others.

 

I am glad that I tried this on cotton as well as on me. The odd thing is that on me I can find the scent notes listed in the description, but, on cotton I am getting more of the object...I'm smelling a smoothly polished, well oiled mechanism. So...I suppose if I want to smell like wood and vanilla, I'll apply it on me, and if I want to evoke the image of the machine, I'll put the scent in a locket or on clothes instead.

 

Unless I am going to a metalworking class, I think I'll usually prefer the vanilla and wood. =) I'm very impressed with the scent, though.

[gchris]

In Vial: Wet wood

 

Wet: Now I'm beginning to smell the vanilla and tobacco mixed in with the wet wood. While I like the vanilla and tobacco in this I do not like the teak and oak with it. This smells a lot like toilet cleaner and vanilla.

 

Dry: Now we are back to wood and vanilla.

[tereshkova2001]

This one is mostly teak. It's a nice mellow comfortable wood smell. I got the tobacco and the vanilla briefly at first, but they seem to have vanished after a while.

[Ajila]

In the bottle – A hard polished wood sort of scent

 

Wet on me – Sharp wood, vanilla and something mouldy :bleh:

 

Dry on me – It warms to what I would call an aftershave type scent

 

Overall – On the whole this is too sharp and too masculine for me

[Sushi-n-Sake]

I had to buy a bottle unsniffed because I have an inexplicable obsession with ancient cultures and technology, and also because the notes of The Antikythera Mechanism are made of win!

In bottle: Heavy, dark tobacco. Reminds me of Black Lace.

Wet: Black vanilla rises up to battle with the woods for dominance, with the headiness of the tobacco not far behind. It's very intense. The vanilla is definitely dark and not sweet-n-creamy like mainstream vanilla.

Dry: Faintly sweet dark woods.

 

Verdict: I knew I would like this from the start and it does not disappoint, though I wish it lasted longer - I can barely smell it 3 hours after application.

[Eros]

First let me say, the color of this oil is gorgeous! Not quite deep enough to look like a small vial of blood, but close

 

Starts out a sweetish, woodsy vanilla. As it warms on the skin the tobacco emerges and blends beautifully with the other notes. Is it just me or does anyone else get a hint of something that smells like vetiver waaaaay in the background? Whatever it is, it stays way back there, which is just fine with me. Wears for hours and has nice throw. Not overpowering by any means, just a nice whiff when you least expect it.

Beautiful blend! To my nose it's Dorian meets Lucifer meets Black Lace. Just lovely!

[Indigo78]

On a plastic toothpick: Rosewood and something almost like machine oil, beautifully blended. Now its up to my skin to work the magic.

 

Wet, on the skin: Wood, mechanical oil, shiny glass. I visualize an old bank - you know, the mason-built ones with high celiengs that have been around since 18whatever. High-gloss, distant...a little cold. Frankly, something smells like money...

 

Dry Down: DRASTICALLY different from the wet stage. Vanilla, Teak and Tobacco emerge and stay true until the eventual fade, which is about six hours on my skin. Top ten material, and I am utterly in love with this one.

 

ETA: A must try on your guy - - *swwwwwwwooooooooon* then *rowr*. Yes. In that order.

Edited June 20, 2008 by Indig0

[lilacea]

For all the dark notes listed, this comes out quite perfume-y on my skin. There's lots of tobacco here, and the woody notes have a soft sweetness, but not as dry as I had hoped they would be. High pitched and sharp to start with (the tobacco really amps on me), the vanilla peers out a little in the dry down, then.... bam, oakmoss. Rounds it out to a soft golden brown sort of smell. I think aging might do this oil a little more justice and help to soften up the tobacco a bit.

Edited May 29, 2008 by lilacea

[Pottersville]

Oh, lovely!! The Antikythera Mechanism does have a very Glowing Vulva vibe -probably the teak- but it's considerably less sweet and I don't pick up nearly as much vanilla. The teak, oak, and tobacco are all very dry and spicy in a light, almost summery way. I don't pick up any smoke, so the tobacco hasn't been smoked yet!

Edited June 30, 2008 by Shollin