Day of the Skulls

[Tramp]

In Bolivia, many people hold to the tradition of keeping the skulls of their ancestors with them in their homes, caring for their remains. It is believed that each person has seven souls, and one of those souls stays with the skull after death, enabling a spirit to grant protection and prophetic dreams to their descendants, and to bless their families with good health and prosperity.

The Bolivian Fiesta de las Natitas, or Dia de los Natitas, is a day of honor for these ancestors. Their skulls are dressed with fragrant blossoms, and offerings of cocoa leaves, alcohol, and cigarettes are made.

White sandalwood, beeswax, and frankincense crowned by hydrangea, rose, and kantuta blossoms, dressed with tobacco, cocoa leaves and flowers from the sacred Cactus of the Four Winds.

This is Roses, covered by sweet roses, with a side of roses and then roses for dessert. I really can't smell anything else wet. On this is one of the rare rose bpals that doesn't turn to burnt rubber on my skin - Score! As it dries I can see the hydrangea peaking and doing a slow dance with the roses, just a lovely heady floral

[AliBabble]

this starts off as a dry, incense-y rose with a metallic resin-y element. it is not overly sweet or powerful. it blends nicely with my skin the longer it wears - softening, and revealing the slight chocolatiness of the cocoa flowers. it's got a slight floral sharpness from the blossoms, but very slight - it's mellowed by the beeswax. i'm not getting a ton of sandalwood, or tobacco. this scent is subtle - not too light, or too dark. it's well-rounded, it doesn't tickle my nose the way some incense-y blends do. i'd recommend this to people who want something that blends with their skin, and is not overly dramatic. but it still has an air of mystery and soft beauty to it, and the uplifting quality of incense smoke/flowers. it smells quiet and serene. thumbs up.

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is resinous rose...

the franincense is marvelous in this blend...

it softens the blend and makes this exquisite ...

very sexually inviting....

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Warm, glowing sandalwood with herbal florals in the background.

 

Immediately on skin: This is very warm with a touch of floral notes. The sandalwood and beeswax come out the most with a hint of cocoa and tobacco and then some light florals in the background. After a couple of minutes of sniffing, I’m getting more woody floral notes.

 

After a little while: Something in this just doesn’t behave on me. The beeswax has come out a lot more and overpowered the sandalwood. There’s some rich florals over it and a touch of spiciness.

 

Overall Impressions: This blend settles into a strong beeswax scent with thick floral overtones and something almost spicy. It’s very thick on me, and doesn’t quite agree with my chemistry. I was hopeful about this scent, but unfortunately it doesn’t smell good on me.

[surlygurl]

This was a standout when I was testing all my lovely decants, so I decided to wear it to work today.

 

Wet, it has a soft rose - almost rose water - smell, mixing in with white sandalwood. Other florals come out, but I can't identify them.

 

As it dries, I smell the florals (w/ rose mixed in). The beeswax and cocoa leaves ground the scent. At this point, I can't tell what it is supposed to be - floral? resin? Light? Dark? Ummm... I never get the tobacco or frankincense (which would have lightened this up a lot).

 

Dry, Something has gone wrong . The florals have turned on me. I don't know what it is, or if it's just the wrong mix of florals, but it's making the back of my throat itch. I'll keep the decant and continue to test, but I don't think there's a bottle in my future.

Edited September 15, 2008 by surlygurl

[savage_rose]

First sniff: Sugary chocolate covered roses!

 

On: Rose, rose, sugar, chocolate, rose. Did I mention rose? And then there's the rose...gah. I like rose, I do, but rose has taken over the blend on my skin, and it's screaming like a floral banshee. This might have to be a scent locket scent on me.

[femmefatale]

My wonky skin chemistry strikes again. This turns into a beautiful rose incense on me. It's rose, but not overwhelmingly and has a nice sweet resinous feel to it. It's very pretty and I think would make a wonderful fall scent. It does make my throat slightly itchy, but that could also be from trying too many scents lately. LOL

I can't wait to see how this smells in my locket. I might have to get a bottle of this.

[Dormouse]

This reminds me very strongly of No 93 Engine with roses. Must be the beeswax and frankincense giving that impression. I'm not getting any sandalwood, which is unusual, as I generally amp it strongly and no tobacco either, sadly. I'm not at all sure what cocoa leaves smell like but there is a richness to the scent that possibly hints at chocolate. I also have no idea how the other flowers smell but if this is anything to go by, they smell like roses. Lots and lots of roses.

 

I'm a huge rose fan and No 93 Engine rates high in my top 10 so this is heaven to me.

[marared]

There's rose in this? Huh. I can't smell it at all, which is a first for any blend with rose in it. All I can smell is a light floral and the sandalwood - no tobacco, no chocolate, no resin, no rose, maybe a bit of frankincense. Yeah, the frankincense starts ripening after a bit. Sweet and pretty.

 

Oops - THERE'S the rose. Took a few minutes for that to come out. The other notes hold it down and keep it from becoming overwhelming on my skin, though, as rose is wont to do.

Edited September 18, 2008 by marared

[Little Bird]

When I read the description for this, all I could see was 'cocoa leaves.' I love chocolate scents. Unfortunately, this isn't really a chocolate or cocoa scent, lol.

 

In the bottle, I'm not really sure what this smells like... something like exotic florals dressed up in tobacco and cocoa leaves, grounded with honeyed beeswax and slightly powdery sandalwood. It has a nice sweetness to it, and I'm pretty sure that I smell cocoa, but it might just be wishful thinking on my part.

 

On my skin, this is very floral. A dry, warm, perfumey sort of floral. It has that musky sharpness to it that makes me think of cheap drugstore perfumes and gives me a headache. In the drydown, a bit of sweetness creeps in under the florals (and smells a little bit like suntan lotion on me for some reason, like honeyed coconut, though it morphs into honeyed baby powder after a while).

 

Day of the Skulls is mostly just an overwhelming, heavy, sharp floral on me. It's the sort of floral that I can't wear without getting a headache, so I had to wash this one off and add it to my swap pile.

[greenranger]

I was worried about the roses. Everything else sounded fantastic, though, and occasionally when the stars align properly and there are enough other notes present a rose works on me.

 

I love the dry down. Eventually the scent becomes a creamy, leafy, sweet scent, with a just a hint of floral. I think the creamyness might be the cocoa leaves, maybe, and the sweetness might be the beeswax...but really it is too well blended at the end to be certain where anything begins or ends.

 

Getting there requires me to put up with quite a bit of roses and floral for about an hour. The roses never end up being the screechy amped roses, though, so I think I can put up with it for the end result.

[IronMollyBlack]

Wet--ROSES, hello! As it drys down, the spices and resins come out, and thankfully, the rose calms down--some. I can get whiffs of the cocoa. Still, too much rose and florals for me, I think.

[Schmoozy]

First Sniff: Sandalwood and roses, with a hint of beeswax.

 

On Skin: Roses, glorious roses. After you get past all the rose, there is a stunning combination of florals mixed with sandalwood and frankincense. It is spicy, warm and delicious.

 

Drydown: This only gets better with wear. The florals along with rose give way to sandalwood, and it settles so beautifully on my skin.

 

Final thoughts: I am going to have to pick up a bottle of this. My decant simply will not be enough.

[Cereus]

In the bottle beeswax and cactus flower with a hint of cocoa leaf.

 

Wet I get a very light, green scent with a little hydrangea. The tobacco creeps out, followed by the qantuta [and maybe a little rose], then the frankincense. As it dries I start to get beeswax and cactus flower again, spiced by incense and tobacco. The hydrangea, qantuta, and rose blend well together and lighten the entire scent.

 

Dry I finally get the sandalwood and a soft powder over the other notes. I loved the drying scent and will be keeping this for the scent locket.

[lysithea]

This turned sweet rose on my skin. It wasn't a true one note simply because the tobacco grounds it and keeps the rose from turning overly harsh or sour on my skin. Rose blends sometimes go wonky with my chemistry. Never quite sure which way the pendulum will swing. Overall, it was quite lovely. Certainly another fine rose based blend to add to the collection. The beeswax lends a bit of sweetness and the cocoa leaf a dusty overlay on the floral components.

[trollgirl]

This was a sweet light incensy-rose in the bottle. On me I immediately got a huge blast of beeswax, which calmed down quite quickly and became a beautifully sweet floral scent (mostly roses to me) that was nicely complemented by the beeswax and frankincense. It was lovely with a bit of a funereal feel to it, like a hall full of beautiful white candles and flowers. For a while there it looked like Day of the Skulls was going to become one of my favourites.

 

And then over the course of the day something went a bit wonky. The flowers mostly faded off and the beeswax started to become really thick and waxen and cloying. The funereal feel I got became really, really creepy. There's something in that waxy smell that I find hugely unsettling. It smells like old, old candles in a long forgotten crypt. Every so often I'll catch a whiff of the fresh florals again and go "Awww. Pretty." But then I sniff my wrist and the wax is all creepy and making ghostly "woo-woo" noises at me.

[isisonearth]

Bottle: Beeswax and frankincense with a tiny breath of floral. I'm feeling giddy. I had been hoping for the beeswax to make a strong showing.

 

Wet: So mellow and gorgeous. The beeswax, sandalwood and tobacco are so complimentary. But then there is also a bit of sparkle from the florals. The rose is minor and the hydrangea is light and fresh. There is a quality to the florals I don;t quite recognize that must be the cactus and kantuta blossoms. There is something almost wet about them.

 

Dry: A large amount of beeswax still glowing through with an enduring frankincense and a dusting of cocoa finally making an appearance.

 

Everything I could have imagined and more.

[lizardqueen]

Wet, this reminds me a LOT of Diwali (maybe it's the sandalwood?). As it dries, the florals come out more... and more... and then a little bit more. Rose is up front, with the other flowers behind it, and at the base is the beeswax and sandalwood. I don't get any of the tobacco until it's completely dry, and even then it's still pretty light. I'm not getting the frankincense at all. As time goes on, the rose gets even stronger.

 

It's an interesting scent, but a little too floral/rosey for my tastes.

[Leopard403]

This is lovely, reminiscent of Clemence with extra dollops of fresh roses on top. A musky, sexy floral that isn't quickly identifiable as ZOMGRose; the rose blends well with the beeswax and the resins, so this scent has complex layers.

[heathercaley]

Lovely yummy beezwaxy incensy rose. I actually have two spots on my arm.. one is an hour old.. the other is wet.

 

Wet: Rose on top, with the beeswax and incense. The rose doesn't feel like a red rose. This is like a white or yellow rose... very mellow.

 

Dry: Beeswax and incense with the powdery scent of dried rose petals underneath.

 

 

Very prettty and I will have to buy a bottle....

[Saya]

In the Bottle

Sandalwood and rose. My chemistry tends to amp rose, so I’m a little worried about this blend keeping balanced once I apply it.

 

On My Skin

Now I can smell the cocoa leaves and other florals. The rose isn’t super strong so that’s good for me. I’m also getting just a hint of the frankincense. So far I’m really enjoying this, hopefully it stays complex and doesn’t turn into a single note rose on me.

 

After a Bit

Thankfully the rose didn’t take over the blend, it just evolved into a sweet floral fragrance.

 

Rating 1-5

Scent - 3 Throw - 2 Longevity – 3

Overall (not an average) – 2.8

 

Final thoughts

I like this blend enough to keep the imp, but I don’t see a bottle in my future. Instead of buying all the bottles I like (and winding up poor) I’m only buying bottles I love. This is good, but it’s not a wow scent for me.

[aquazoo]

Ooooh, flowers! Those are some beautiful, lush, tropical smelling flowers to start. The leaves are hanging out and being subtle. This is a keeper!


[Moryssa]

This smells just like Penthus to me... and I was surprised when one of my friends walked into the room after I'd put on Penthus and asked why I was wearing a rose scent, since rose is a death-scent for me... so it doesn't surprise me that there's rose in here, even though I couldn't have named it as rose if I hadn't read the notes.

 

I think it's because it's more of an incensy, resinous rose instead of a truly floral rose.

 

It does remind me VERY much of Penthus, though. So if you like Penthus, I recommend this one.

 

--M

[theseagrows]

ooh, this reminds me of a candle i had once. i am getting the beautiful florals mostly, and the beeswax, tobacco and cocoa add ad nice backdrop. this smells like a subtler dia de los muertos to me- less boozy and floral, but similar in a way. there's a bit of dustiness here, maybe that's the white sandalwood, i'm not sure. anyway, this is a very pretty scent and my favorite so far of the halloweenies i've tried.

[livingdead71]

This is all roses on me, but sweet roses, not soapy. I've had better luck than usual with rosey scents lately. I think it's the cocoa note, which is what initially attracted me to this scent, that's making the rose so sweet and pretty. I definitely recommend this to rose lovers. My only complaint is it fades quickly on me.