The Norns' Farmhouse

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

Dusty, ancient wood, horehound, and sage, with viper's bugloss, mugwort, chamomile, nettle, apple blossom, chervil, and ashes.

i had to try this simply because i couldn't for the life of me figure out what it might smell like!
sniffed from the decant: smells like a jar of lollipops or candy
on skin, from wet to an hour later there's really no change - it smells like a box of Luden's cherry cough drops. the drops, the waxed paper, the cardboard box and the plastic outer wrap.
my nose kept trying to tell me there was more to it, that there were other scents in there, too, but i couldn't find them.

overall? very interesting, and kinda nice. very familiar and soothing.

[rayvn1]

Apple blossom and dusty wood! There are other wildflowers mixed in and this perfectly conjures up the feilds surrounding the Norns' house. Very evocative! Not my usual thing, but nice A keeper at least for the Gaiman-esque aspect.

[crebbsgirl]

I get a lot of woods and ash while this is wet. As it dries, a sweet herbal tone comes out and lightens this a bit. I can faintly detect the apple blossom in here, and the chamomile lends a soporific touch. Sweet and calming, this is a really beautiful blend.

[Aldercy]

Wet lettuce, sugar and cold cigarette ashes. Kind of like a dive restaurant-- complete with a whiff of the waitress' cheap perfume.

 

And, yes, a touch of ketchup. That would almost make me suspect this is actually a decant of Pruno, but someone up-thread mentioned ketchup, too. The Gaimans have not been as kind to me as I would have hoped.

 

You know, in a way-- while this does not speak to me of the Norns' farmhouse-- it does seem somewhat appropriate for American Gods... I seem to remember a lot of eating at greasy spoons and waking up in stale motel rooms in the novel.

 

Too bad. It hurts me to write a harsh review of this, but I think it's probably just a horrible skin chemistry clash on my part.

[Gin]

The Norns' Farmhouse goes on herby-green-bitter-sharp and dries down into pure comfort. It smells so familiar... kind of like a church my grandmother used to take me to. I know that doesn't mean anything to anybody but me, but it smelled so familiar, I nearly cried. Occasionally, I get wafts of apple, which I find odd since apple blossom usually does not translate to actual apple on me. I think this is an interesting scent, but I think it has to go off to swaps because it makes me so unbelievably sad.

[Seismogenic]

American Gods is a book I have read several times, and I've loved it each time. From the get-go, I was amused at the idea of the Norns' place being in Virginia, the state in which I grew up. I was therefore interested in this scent for the connection to the book, the connection to the state, and the fact that the notes just plain sounded awesome. I was lucky enough to get a decant of this in a swap, so here goes!

 

In the imp: Dry wood, apple, chamomile, and possibly sage.

 

Wet on skin: Still mostly dry wood and apple, though now I get something smoky/ashy as well. Sage is definitely there, chamomile is less distinct. Not sure if that's because it's fading, or it's melding into other plant notes.

 

Drydown: Freshly dry, the wood and smoky ash are the predominant scents, though there's still a considerable helping of apple and sage. There is a more nonspecific herbal smell lingering behind all of this. At one hour in, the herbal aspect is almost entirely gone, and the smoky ash has become even more prominent. I'd almost compare it to a recent burn in an apple orchard, with the wood, smoke, and apple notes.

 

Five hours later: Less apple now, but now that this note has faded somewhat, I realize that there is still other indistinct plantiness back there. Whatever those plants are, they're still absolutely secondary to the scent of recently-charred wood.

 

End of the day: Gone.

 

Overall: Interestingly, on my skin, The Norns' Farmhouse is in the same family of scents as Fearful Pleasure. They both feature apple and smoke prominently, with the support of herbs or spices. The difference is in the intensity and tone, however. The apple and smoke in Fearful Pleasure are sweet and comforting, while the ones in Norns' Farmhouse are thinner and harsher. If Fearful Pleasure is a comfortable evening of controlled creepiness, Norns' Farmhouse is definitely something that burned down in an actually terrifying way, though long enough ago to not be threatening any longer. I draw comparison to a scent I like, and that translates to me also liking The Norns' Farmhouse quite well. I'm very glad for the decant.

[hkhm]

imp: herbs and woods, somewhat sharp.

 

wet: lovely once applied, almost sweet. perhaps it's the apple blossom but it's sweetened everything in this blend.

 

dry: this dries to the most charming soft, sweet apple. i'm a bit surprised because it's apple blossom which is usually so delicate i can't pick it out. but this is pure and soft and gentle. this may require a bottle.

[Dharklady]

In bottle: Something bitter and herbs

Wet: Bitter herbs and dust, a touch of apple and emerges more and more as it warms up, this strikes me as perfect for the concept.

Dry: Spiced, dry herbs and still just that hint of apple. The herbs are a really great complex blend. I didn’t think a scent could smell dry and dusty, but the lab has achieved exactly that with this one! It's baffling and intriguing all at once.

Notes: This is a great concept blend, and makes me want to go find more with apples in them...

 

[countessmouse]

Herbs, wood and ash. Mostly ashy for a few - kind of scared me since I can amp wood in a truly awful way -- but that toned down after a bit. There is a bit of cinnamon in there to me, and this is one of the oddest smelling scents I've tried so far. I smell like a combination of an old antiques store and a candle display. Not bad, just weird.

[the.train.fiend]

Surprising and completely different! This starts off very spicy, but it's an herby kind of spice completely different to any other I've smelled in a perfume before. It reminds me of very strong, fresh basil, crushed between fingers . . . perhaps the sage or chervil? There's a strong undercurrent (well, the whole thing is very strong) of freshly mown grass, and just the slightest bit of woodiness. Apple blossom peaks out for a moment, but it disappears quickly, which is okay with me. Actually, I'm surprised it fades so quickly because it usually amps like crazy on me and mows down everything in its path.

 

Once it dries down, the spicy herb mellows out and starts to make friends with the other notes instead of taking charge. Some unusual florals start showing up as well, and at this point, it smells almost exactly like a fcuk spray I have . . . but none of the notes in that match the notes in this. Could there secretly be some freesia or peony in here?

Edited March 31, 2012 by the.train.fiend

[catalyst]

I wanted to like this so much. I like herbs a lot, but this is green green green all the time up my nostrils. It softens into something more like dried herbs, but holy cow. It's too much. Off to the swaps.

[Lucchesa]

Wet, The Norns' Farmhouse is green grassy herbs, a backdrop of flowers and woods, and apple, apple which becomes more and more prominent as it dries. It reminds me a little bit of a lighter Samhain, and I second the previous reviewer's likening this to Fearful Pleasure. The sharp greenness softens as it dries, the woods and herbs get a little deeper and darker against the apple note, and the ash becomes apparent -- I like this stage a lot. Unfortunately, my skin eats this one up, and it's gone in a little over two hours. I think this imp was pulled last summer or fall, so I'm not sure further aging will help with wear length on me, though I may keep it around for a while and try again in a few more months.

[harmonyfb]

In the imp: fresh and green.

 

Wet: A complicated rush of green smells, very herbal, but with a soothing note that softens it.

 

Drydown: Suddenly becomes extremely masculine, an herbal blend where I can't detect any of the individual notes, but which smells very manly to my nose.

 

Verdict: Might try it on my husband, but it's not really for me.

[doomsday_disco]

I get a lot of apple blossom and chamomile at first from The Norns' Farmhouse, with the other herbs lingering in the background. Even though it is apple blossom listed, I get a decaying apple in a pile of herbs vibe from this at first. Over time, it gets more dusty and woodsy. I love mugwort, but I'm not getting it strongly in this, and I don't get as much of the ashes as I did from The Glass Eye. It ends up being an herbal, almost cologne-like woodsy scent (I think this is the sage combining with the wood?) with a light touch of apple from the apple blossom.

 

I'm glad I got to try this one, but I don't think it is something I would wear.

[Sunny the Wizard]

Out of the bottle and wet, this one just screams medicinal herbs. Slightly bitter, and my nose isn't sharp enough to pick out individual notes, but the woody scent comes through very strongly. I don't get so much of the florals here, but that's not a bad thing, I like the stronger woody notes. As it's been wearing, an ash-y incense-y note has been peeking out, along with a very mellow deep note I'm not sure I can identify beyond 'delicious'. I think I got some of that chervil note too as it dried, but nothing that made me feel like I was a garden salad. Definitely glad this one is a 5ml bottle.

 

[Llanval]

Perfect encapsulation of the label image, and a favourite in my collection. This doesn't morph much, but it's a blue scent, a little melancholy and bitter, but the apple blossom gives it enough sweetness to balance the bitter herbs. I love the gently bitter/ash-like herbs against old, dusty wood. I really love this one, and it's still going strong since I picked it up in 2019. Norn's Farmhouse is a really good atmospheric that lasts most of the work day on me, with medium throw and staying power.