Catherine

[sophia_helix]

Named for the ambitious, vengeful poisoner Catherine deMedici, who used perfumes to perform her dark deeds. A sinful blend of orange blossom, rosemary and rose... allegedly the exact perfume she utilzed in her work.

In the bottle:

Citrus, with a strong hit of rosemary and a faint sweetness.

Wet:

The rosemary amps right up, losing the citrus, mainly, and gaining a touch of rose.

Drydown:

Still rosemary, but now the rose comes into play, giving a strong, musky backnote that makes this very "perfume"-like. The orange blossom comes back too, adding another layer to the heavy base. The rosemary is just herbal and different enough to remind me I'm wearing BPAL, not eau de cologne, but it's a very pulled-together, forceful scent.

It gave my sister a headache while we were wearing it, so I'm going to guess it has a lot of throw. It lasted a good, long while on me, the three primary scents remaining fairly well-blended.

I can imagine wanting to wear this if I want to seem competent and grown-up; it's very diffferent from the girly-sweet honey scents and clean ozone scents I usually prefer. But it's good to have at least one sophisticated perfume to pull out if I need it!

[Lilithlefay]

Wet: why do I smell lemon? The lavender is also doing a good job in making its presence known. Also very green herbal. I must resist washing this off.

Drydown: The lemony scent is going down and the rose is coming out. Now it smells like lemon roses. I think I'm starting to smell the rosemary a bit too.

Final result: while this scent does calm down into something pretty, it is not something I can see myself wearing. The rose in this is very pretty though. The lemony scent does go away after a little while and this just smells like a herbal rose. Very light on me.

[Imbrium]

This is a different type of review from what I usually write, as I haven't yet tried this directly on my skin. Still, I had such a wonderful experience with this blend, that I had to review it.

 

The scent itself is very nice - mostly bright citrus, with strong herbal overtones. They don't smell like rosemary per se - it has such a distinctive scent - but but it adds a very fresh, green herbal scent. The rose is very much in the background, and I only get a whiff of it every now and then.

 

I've been having horrble headaches every night when it gets to be about time for me to go to bed. It was especially bad tonight, so I decided to take a warm bath, and pour a couple drops of something into the tub. Since rosemary is supposed to be good for promoting healing, I chose Catherine.

 

My reaction was immediate - as soon as the oils hit the water, I felt better, both physically and mentally. My headache was gone, and I felt instantly happy, and even somewhat nostalgic, though I'm not entirely sure why.

As a bonus, I smell awesome.

 

A 10 ml of this will be going on my next order - I have a feeling my head will be needing it.

Edited August 17, 2005 by Imbrium

[slugbait]

I got this in a swap with Gwen. Thank you!

 

I can smell the rosemary as soon as I open this; a bit medicinal/herbal. On my skin this turns citrusy, like lemons; it smells like a newly opened box of Fruit Loops. Drying down I can smell a little bit of rose and orange blossom mingling with the citrus notes. I keep getting whiffs of this throughout the day; it’s very uplifting. I didn’t expect to like this, but I am pleasantly surprised.

[Xiabelle]

I was really looking forward to trying this one when I ordered it. I have a fascination with perfumers/poisoners and the Medici. So why not try Catherine?

 

Little did I know....

 

In the imp: Screaming rosemary herbal! Wow, that's sharp and really bites. It makes my eyes water.

 

Fresh on, it's more screaming rosemary. Very very astringent. My eyes are watering every time I take a whiff of it, and it is so very green. Not something I'd really wear given a choice. But I'm pushing on....

 

As it starts the drydown, the orange blossom starts to come out. Not my favorite scent; I was really hoping for more rose or a softer orange. It's very soapy, and still has that astringent quality to it. And.. ack. ITCH.

 

This is making my palms itch, and I didn't even put it on there. It's on the back of one hand! My eyes water every time I sniff it too. I just couldn't take it. I really did try, but evidently I'm allergic to this one. The back of my hand was starting to get a red patch where I applied it too, so I scrubbed it off with soap. Spot went away.... My palms still itch, though.

 

Definitely off to swaps.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Very loudly herbal, and not in a good way. It smells medicinal.

 

Wearing: The aura is minty, and I can’t figure out why. It shifts into rose soap pretty quickly, and is Decidedly Not Me.

[PixieSkull]

In imp: Rosemary tinged with sweet orange blossom

Wet: Blessed rosemary! The orange blossom fades a little bit more, sadly, but the rose starts to come out.

 

Drydown: I can smell rosemary for hours, and I love it! The rose and rosemary mixture smells so fresh and clean.

Overall: I've been waiting for an amazing rosemary scent. I'd like to have a rosemary mint mixture sometime in the future but I think I can make that myself if the lab never comes out with one. I'll be using up the imp and getting more sometime, it's perfect for being naughty but feeling clean at the same time

[AlaskaSnows]

In the Bottle: Rosemary, and almost smells piney.

 

Dry: Smells a lot like sugared pine to me, but too sharp for my nose.

[Lori]

Sniffing the Imp: Wow! That smells really medicinal! It kind of reminds me of this little hard, plastic tube thing that my mom had, that you could put up to your nostrils and take a deep whiff of, to clear your sinuses! It is definitely all Rosemary at first, but a very strong one! Almost close to a Eucalyptus smell.

 

Wet on wrist: Ok, now it is all Orange Blossom! Really, really strong, again.

 

Drier: The rose finally starts coming through and it is a lovely one. This might be ok, as it came in there pretty quick to tame the Orange Blossom.

 

Dry: Now we are back to the Rosemary, and the Orange Blossom is hanging around just enough to make this very strong and antiseptic and tart! The rose is barely hanging in there. How did Catherine seduce with this, in order to poison people? My nose thinks it smells sort of poisonous so off to swaps it goes.

[lohengrin]

In the imp: Orange blossom (neroli).

 

On, wet: Neroli.

 

Later: Neroli. Wow. Not even the rose shows up.

[LyndaM]

In the imp and wet, this was really green and astringent, almost medicinal. During drydown, I started getting the neroli and rose, and fully dry it was strong herbal green, with rose and just a touch of neroli in the backround.

 

I'm not very adventurous; and I wouldn't have thought I would like this blend much, but something about Catherine intrigues me. I could not stop sniffing my wrist the entire time I wore it. It's just so different from anything I would usually wear, and I might be in love.

 

I'm fascinated and it's growing on me quickly. Luckily I have two imps of this, I'll get to slather and fully test it out a few times. I have a feeling I will be needing a bottle; Catherine is both incredibly unique and wearable at the same time. The essence of BPAL, to me.

[hypatia]

The three notes in this one were very clear and distinct to my nose. In the imp, it smells most strongly of rosemary. On my skin, the notes came out one after the other: first the rosemary, then the orange blossom, then, after a little while, the rose. On drydown, the rose predominates, but there's a creamy orange tinge to it, and the rosemary is just barely there in the background. It's lovely, and I'm not even one who usually wears florals.

 

I find myself thinking of the interaction between the notes in terms of music -- you know how people compare really complex fragrances to symphonies? Well, Catherine is a trio. Each instrument enters one at a time, and then they all play together. Eventually the rose ends up soaring over the other two, but all three are very much a part of the whole.

[brownbear]

The only time I get any hint at all of the rosemary is when it is wet in the imp. When it's on my skin the orange blossom comes out really strong. Then as expected the rose comes out and takes over the whole thing. My skin tends to do this with most roses. Yup now it is 100% rose. It was really nice for a few minutes there. *shrug*

I already have plenty of rose ones, so I think it's going to the swaps.

[Voleuse]

On first application, this much more mild and green than I expected. It smells like a garden at sunrise, and the rosemary is dewy and evident. After a little while, I get a hint of rose.

 

For the most part, the scent is simply rose tempered with rosemary, or perhaps vice versa. I don't get any hint of orange blossom, which is disappointing, but it's still a lovely, herbal scent.

[Miss Lynx]

Tried this at the Toronto Meet'n'Sniff today. It wasn't bad - not as fearsomely rosy as I'd thought it might be. On me the orange blossom predominated, but with a sharp herbal undercurrent from the rosemary. The rose was more of a background presence, which is odd, since my skin usually amps up rose tremendously. And I usually like orange blossom - it's one of the few florals that's good on me.

 

But in this case, the different notes never really seemed to mesh together. It smelled OK, but not great. The notes seemed to clash a bit, and it seemed like the scent was lacking depth. Maybe a bit of something resinous or earthy would have balanced it out more, I don't know. As it was it didn't seem like a good fit for me.

 

Interestingly, though, of the three of us who tried it, one got mainly rose, one got mainly rosemary, and I got mainly orange blossom. So it seems to be different on everyone.

 

Grade: C+

[terrierhead]

In the imp, this is scary stuff - strong and medicinal. Wet, it gives a refreshing woosh of rosemary, followed 30 seconds later by rose and orange blossom. This stuff is like instant alertness in a vial. On dry down, the rosemary fades a bit and the roses come to the forefront; it seems like the rosemary keeps the roses from being too sweet. I really like this!

 

ETA: I put Catherine on this morning before work. The work day is now done, and I still get wafts of fresh, clean rose. The rosemary is in the background, making it seem like I'm smelling a rose on a cool day. I'm really impressed with this.

Edited December 15, 2005 by terrierhead

[LiberAmoris]

Wow, Catherine really reminds me of Bess. Must be the combo of orange blossom and rosemary, because otherwise they are very different. Catherine is a very straight-forward blend on me, and if I was a fan of orange blossom I think I would be jonesing for a bottle, because I love rose and rosemary. But the orange blossom just drowns out the other notes on me.

 

All the same, I can see how this would be a gorgeous oil on someone with amenable skin chemistry. I might try this one in the bath, because I'm not quite ready to give up on it yet!

[sarada]

First thoughts: rosemary and eucalyptus. Whoops, then I realize -- rosemary always smells a little like eucalyptus to me. Similarly sharp, medicinal and herbal. This is one strong rosemary.

 

I don't really get anything else from it, but.....the beach? It makes me think of the beach. I don't know if I can explain, but it's got a kind of scorched, salt-watery smell to me. I think my mom must have used some kind of perfumed sunblock that smelled like this.

 

None of that makes sense but all I can think of when I smell it is a beachbag, scented with that perfumed sunblock.

 

I'm waiting to see if rose and orange blossom come out, and several hours later there's just the faintest trace of a floral in the remains of the rosemary. It mellows out somewhat. Kind of a harshly perfumed herbal tonic.

 

However I think this would be perfect in the bath...and I think I will use it for that. I'd love to soak in hot water scented with this. Once again I wish I had some unscented products lying around for experimentation.

[hangingfire]

In the imp: The rosemary is pretty strong -- it's the dominant first impression, with just a little rose. The orangeblossom adds some sweetness to it, but it's mostly the green, herbal scent of the rosemary.

 

On, wet: Rose and orangeblossom. The rosemary is a lot less forceful.

 

Drydown: The rosemary retreats further, providing a green backdrop to the florals. The rose ends up being the dominant note in the end./

 

A very old-fashioned (by which I mean really old-fashioned, like before the 20th century) kind of perfume. It's straightforward and very clear about what it is. I like it a lot.

[Abbie]

In the imp: This is mostly orange blossom, with undertones of rosemary and very little rose at all. It's kinda interesting and herbal.

 

First on: Whoa, that got strong all of a sudden. And soapy. Dang, I am having no luck with these herbal things lately.

 

Dry: This went back to orange blossom and rosewater. Not bad but not great either.

 

Overall: Swap pile!

[grrrlennyl]

at first: all orange blossom and rosemary. i don't think i'll like this.

on: lots and lots of fresh rosemary.

1 hour later: mostly rose, with a hint of rosemary. very pretty.

2 hours later: soapy, with some rosemary.

3 hours later: a powdery mix of rose and rosemary.

overall: this is defnitely interesting, but i don't like it enough to keep it.

[angharad]

Oh, wow -- rosemary. And bitter orange blossom. I never smell the rose in this. If the rosemary weren't so strong, I think I'd like it a bit better, but...it's just too strong, too herbal for me. The orange blossom does nothing to sweeten up the scent. Catherine has a very strong throw. After a while (1-2 hours), it turns powdery and starts to fade.

[judas_kiss]

Normally, my body rejects any BPALs with rose in them like a babboon heart. That said...

 

In the imp: Mmm, sharp (and I mean razor sharp) Orange blossoms.

 

On, wet: This is a very sharp scent. The orange blossom, usually verging on soapy (good thing) on me is sharpened by the rosemary. It is a bit cloying at first. I can see the correllation made to Estee Lauder in this initial phase.

 

On, dry: Oh, this stuff is bad. I really do get a "evil, vile woman" vibe from this. It's not at all abashed at its wicked self, it proclaims it. It does calm down quite a bit and the orange blossom stays forward, while the rose sweetens things up a bit. This is great stuff, man.

 

Overall: Don't know if I'll buy a bottle as I don't know where I'd wear such a wicked perfume. If I were a business woman, I think this would work great for boardroom politics and the like. It's clean, it's not overtly sexy and it says, I am ruthless and I will do what it takes to get what I want. Love it! Just don't think it will work too well for tot lot or parent teacher meetings, ha!

[Thaleia]

In the vial, this is very strongly herbal and very similar to Bess. The rosemary is very prominent in both, but even more so in Catherine; once on my skin, Catherine sweetens almost immediately and allows the rose to come out sooner. The rosemary lingers over everything and doesn't really let the rose or the orange blossom come out and do anything much for this blend. This does kind of remind me of this soap I used to use when I was younger. The rosemary is definitely interesting, but combined with orange blossom and rose, it smells like random soap marked as 'rose-scented'.

 

... you know, I think I like Bess better. 5/10.

[k8tey]

Catherine and I have a strange relationship.

 

I love the smell of rosemary, but it goes sour on me. And I don't particularly like the smell of orange blossom.

 

Wet, Catherine smells like nothing but strong rosemary and orange blossom. Sometimes I can make it through this stage, and sometimes the rosemary smells like B.O. and I have to wash it off, I suppose it depends on my skin chemistry that day.

 

Dry, Catherine is a clean, astringent, wonderful rose.

 

The reason why I keep wearing this scent even though it doesn't always work is that when it does work it makes me feel strong and intimidating. I tend to let people walk on me and this scent gives a "back off" vibe that makes me feel safe.

 

I'm grateful to have recieved this frimp and will keep it in my arsenal!