Cheshire Cat

[JazzieCazzie]

Grapefruit, red currant, dark musk, Roman chamomile, delphinium, and lavender.

In the bottle I get more of an iced tea scent than grapefruit. How strange. It's nice enough, light and citrusy but a little too sweet for me on drydown. Like Baobhan, it dries down to high quality soap on me.

I will offer it to my daughter, who is addicted to Baobhan Sith and all things grapefruit, otherwise into the swap bin.

On a scale of 1-5, I give it a solid 3.

[malanna]

I expected this to be more grapefruit-y and sparkling citrus. I did get a bit of grapefruit at first, but it's a sweet grapefruit, not a sour one.

 

After a while, the grapefruit isn't very apparent, and I think it's the delphinium and dark musk trying to take over, turning the Cat into a sweet, yet subtle floral. I can smell the lavender, but it's not the usual humid hothouse lavender, because of the delphinium and musk. I was really surprised by how subtle this was. The end scent actually makes me think of a type of soap by SoftSoap. I'm not sure which one, though.

Edited June 27, 2005 by malanna

[magdalene]

in the bottle: lots of grapefruit, with a sly hint of lavender.

 

wet on skin: the grapefruit hovers in the background, with the red currant deciding to make a power play. This is nice. The lavender doesn't browbeat everything else into submission, like it normally does when mixed with anything.

 

dry: no more grapefruit, which isn't a bad thing as I don't really like very many citrusy scents. Mostly red currant and lavender. Quite nice, but is sadly discontinued and my imp is almost empty.

[ashtonrose]

I was so happy when SRN parted with this one. Much love to her . I am adoring CC. The lavendar and grapefruit are the dominant scents for me. The red currant comes in and then fades to the back. I fell asleep reviewing this scent on paper. I'm going to try to use it with my next meditation and see if it brings me deeper.

[minaloush]

Hmm. this is my holy grail, i think.

 

sweet grapefruit....the sort my grandmother used to eat every morning. smidgen of lavendar.

 

sweet and cold.

[sookster]

holy cows!! i LOVE cheshire cat!!

but why oh why does this have to be a discontinued scent.....

 

this is positively so alluring, so beautiful.....my knee smells like heaven on earth

 

upon application it is soft grapefruity citrus....with a hint of green....a touch of white floral.....maybe even lilac..

i tell you i can't quite put my finger on what they all are but a total winning combo if i ever smelled one!!!!!

 

if cheshire cat ever goes returns from the discontinued graveyard, you better believe i will buy a 10 ml of this baby.......

 

**hint**hint** to beth

[malanna]

I was confused by the Cat, because I remembered that it'd been discontinued because of the grapefruit component, so I expected a lot more grapefruit from this.

 

This'll be hard for me to describe the Cat, because everything melds together so well. I also don't know what chamomile and delphinium smells like. Cheshire Cat seems to be like one of those scents that a sophisticated, older woman would wear with her black suit. It's a bit more commercial perfume (or high-end lotion, like Chanel or Lancome) smelling than most BPAL scents. As for how it actually smells, it's a bit sweet, with something smooth, I'm assuming the Roman chamomile and delphinium are at the forefront, with the grapefruit and red currant lurking in the background, with the tiniest bit of lavender.

[aidenraine]

At first I was sad that this is discontinued!

It's yummy grapefruit but so much more as well- it's just a sweet, sugary undertone that I am enjoying- grapefruit and sugar and ...

 

oh hm, I just caught a wiff of what smelled like citronella.

 

Oh sad, now the citronella is getting stronger. I may have found my BPAL bug repellent.

Oh it was so good wet.

 

More citronella.

 

It's fighting a losing battle with the sweetness underneath.

[delicate_fangs]

Man oh man, I am in trouble, because I have fallen completely in love with this discontinued scent.

 

It starts with grapefruit, sweetened a little, very strong. There's something else in there, a little fruity, a little flowery, but I couldn't sort it out from the grapefruit. (It's probably the currants and lavender.) Lilac comes up as the grapefruit fades. Eventually the whole thing goes to a soft creamy powdery-in-a-GOOD-way scent.

 

I want 10ml. Now. Wah!

 

Edite to add: And then the oddest thing happened. A couple of weeks later, I tried it again, and it went to bubble-bath on me. My skin chemistry changed its mind, or something. Wah. Oh, well. Swapped it out, and may someone else find joy with it.

Edited September 15, 2005 by delicate_fangs

[rellyjean]

I got this at the same time as Baobhan Sith (thanks, misfitroxy!!) and I expected to LOVE BS and like CC, but less. I got them reversed.

 

In the imp: grapefruit, but with a darker tang. It's a little too sharp, and off-putting. I need to remember that those scents often end up gorgeous on me...

 

On: OMG. OMG. OMG. This is so exquisite. It's got a lot of the same grapefruity-ness that Baobhan Sith had, but there's a darker spicier edge to it, which I adore. It's a bit warmer and deeper. Baobhan Sith had a touch of sweetness, and this is more sour, and richer.

 

Wow. This is - sexy. Smoky, intriguing, and luring you in. There's a bit of smoke and edge to it. The name fits - it's enigmatic and mysterious.

 

It's - is there pepper in this? I'm getting a similar sharpness to Kuang Shi and Grandmother of Ghosts, but - I suck at notes. *checks notes* Wow, am I awful at this. Sorry.

 

The dark musk is probably what I'm smelling that anchors it so well. I'm not getting floral from this at all - or if I am, it's a dark, enticing floral, and not what I normally think of as floral. (I typically loathe florals.) I knew white musk loved my skin - it looks like dark musk does as well.

 

Red currant!? I had thought red currant was a bad note for me, but - huh. Maybe it's not. This is the first blend I've had where the red currant didn't go high and too sharp and fakey, and where it didn't try to take over.

 

I am so in love. The scent fades out quicker than I'd like, which in normal cases means "OK, I'll just slather it," but with the scent being discontinued and damn near impossible to find - not so much.

 

As it fades, it leaves just the musk, with a hint of fruits, a hint of something almost floral. NUM.

 

Still in love. And also amused by the fact that a lot of the scents I seem to love the most are usually marked as "too masculine" by other forumites. Heh.

 

Anyone want a kidney for a 5 ml?

[Ishtar]

I got to try Cheshire Cat thanks to my wonderful friend Chin who knew it was on my wishlist and gave me her imp. Thank you!

 

Well, I really, really like grapefruit and this particular one did not disappoint! It is a sweet pink grapefruit we are talking about here, rather than an acidic yellow one.

On my skin, there is nothing sharp about Cheshire Cat at all. The grapefruit is nicely balanced by the red current and I can also catch a whiff of usk every now and then.

I had to wait until complete drydown to be able to recognise the lavender and the chamomile, both of which impart a mellow character to the blend.

 

This is quite lovely and, while I may have not bought a whole bottle of it had it not been discontinued, it is definitely one of the nicest citrus blends I tried, with the added bonus of decent staying power.

[joseybird]

Cheshire Cat is a disconcerting fragrance reminiscent of the not-so-dearly departed Deimos. Why? Because the dark musk in this blend is extremely animalistic--like civet but furrier and not as intense. It's a note that seems to clash horribly with the citrus in this blend (which is sad, because the citrus is delightful and I was enjoying this fragrance before the musk reared it's ugly head).

[lohengrin]

In the vial: Uh oh. Love at first sniff. Grapefruit like woah, but with oomph.

 

On, wet: I love it more every second. The musk gives it wafting power, unlike other citrus blends.

 

Later: I knew this would happen. I am head over heels for a discontinued scent. ;_; It's just such an incredible mix of citrus and currant and POW. Never got any lavender or delphinium, but there was a nice hint of chamomile in there, too. Pity it's already going for insane prices on eBay. *clings to her imp*

[wingedcorset]

This was very citrus and creamy in the imp. I was excited.

 

Then I put it on and a random green tea note leaped out at me. I cannot wear tea smells at all.

 

I was sad.

[polydactyl]

To start with, a huge blast of zesty grapefruit oil as striking as a (ahem) huge, toothy grin. As this fades away, I'm hit with a combination of sharp lavender and animal musk. Not the civet type of musk, but definitely strong. This is a pungent mix that doesn't clash but comes off as sweet and effervescent, like a citrus cola. As time passes, the oil reveals a tinge of jam made with red fruits, and I end up with a sweet, musky scent that lasts through the day.

[lookingglass]

The grapefruit and the dark musk are doing the kitty pee dance all over me, like Czernobog did...

Edited November 14, 2005 by lookingglass

[Little Bird]

I don't know why grapefruit smells so rancid on me. It just smells really sharp and dirty. By dirty I mean that it actually smells sweaty on me... like someone with bad body odor just ran a mile.

 

Anyhow, after that pleasant thought... Grapefruit. Very strong and making me sick. I wanted to wash it off so badly, but I was determined to wait this out. After about an hour this does get pretty pleasant, but I'm not sure that I could stand the first hour again. The drydown is sweet red fruits with a smooth twist of chamomile and lavender. 'Smooth' is the best way that I could describe it. I like it a lot after an hour. Too bad the grapefruit is so overpowering at first.

 

--------

ETA: I ended up swapping away my old decant of this one and managed to get a newly released imp in a swap. And I love it for some reason. First on, the grapefruit is kind of sharp, but then it dries down to a very sugary sweet grapefruit with light, sweet lavender and calming chamomile. I love chamomile. Not at all strong or the usual dirty grapefruit smell that I get. Light, sweet lavender and chamomile with a hint of sweet, candied grapefruit.

 

Nice and soothing... definitely 10 ml material.

Edited July 1, 2006 by Blood onmy hands

[rinoastar]

I've only an empty to smell, but it's lovely. I want more of this so badly...it's all sharp, sharp grapefruit, and then it slides easily into a floral with dark, almost musk notes at the base. It's just gorgeous--definitely shooting to the top of my wishlist!

[LiberAmoris]

I went through my imps today and yeah, found an imp of Cheshire Cat that I forgot about.

 

There's a note in this that is definitely acrid on me at first, even though it smooths out eventually. Grapefruit is always so effervescent on me, and sparkling, even though as a citrus oil it evaporates so quickly from the skin. The lavender and red currant stretch the blend in other dimensions, making it deeper and darker. The chamomile adds an herbal twist that I always find surprising. It's a tough blend to describe because it's really just so unique.

 

Hopefully the grapefruit season will be better next year and this one can come back!

[Wench457]

ITB: Sweetened grapefruit - like digging my spoon into a half a grapefruit I've just sprinkled sugar over. Yum!

 

On: Richer and warmer. Literally warmer, as I can feel mild heat where I applied the oil. No redness or rash though. I can smell the musk, lavender and delphinium warming up. And the slightest hint of diaper.

 

Dry: Talcum powder, with just a hint of citrus. Mostly gone after 10 minutes, but I decide to wait and see whether it will warm up later on. And my patience is rewarded, as it does indeed bloom within 15 minutes. A lovely, crisp floral, perfect for when you want to smell nice, but don't want to smell "perfumey." Oh, how I wish this had not been discontinued before I discovered BPAL!

[coulrophobe]

I got Cheshire Cat back before it was discontinued, but put the imp aside because it had a weird kind of funk to it... I liked the smell on the surface, but their was something a little stanky lurking underneath.

 

I revisited it today, and again find I have similar chemistry to Joseybird - it smells civety to me. Dark musks are usually good on me, but I'm catching the tiniest waft of something civet-like - which unfortunately equates to poo on my skin. It's not enough that it destroys the scent, but it does give it an odd tone to my nose.

 

Otherwise? I like the grapefruit and currant, and though I'm not a fan of lavender, that part is almost gone within 5 minutes.

 

It's a strange blend, and one I find wholly appropriate for the character of the Cheshire Cat.

[Voleuse]

On first application, this is sweet grapefruit, with an odd note of musk. I say odd because the combination, sadly, reminds me of the way my high school locker room smelled. The sweet note is what I first detect, but every time, it's closely followed by bleach and gym socks. Something about my body chemistry turns this blend into citrus and bleach and BO. :glare:

[icemoca]

Grapefruit!

 

The Cheshire Cat is very citrus in the bottle, and I smelled lavender in dry. This turned very lovely on my skin!

 

One of my favorites scent is grapefruit, and most of grapefruit oils were discounted when I discovered BPAL. I hope once the grapefruit harvest returns, Cheshire Cat will be returning!

[LittleGreyKitten]

I have an ancient imp of this, which (before I knew it was discontinued) I got around to re-testing recently. Indeed, I didn't love it. I found it too sharp, too lavender-y, and just not as wonderful as plenty of other BPAL scents. I lost probably 2/3 of this in the bottom of a tackle box over the two years it was hiding in it, oh well. At least it wasn't my true love! Though my tackle box now smells potently of Cheshire Cat.

[zenvodunista]

i can't believe i didn't review this! if i did, i can't find the review...

 

at any rate, this is one of my top 10. it was still available when i first started collecting BPAL, but i had no idea what i liked or didn't. it became unavailable while i waited for my first order, and later on i snagged an imp and promptly fell in love. i only have two imps, and i've been hoarding them for a special occasion.

 

but what kind of occasion? Cheshire Cat is playful and silly, bright and cheerful. not a scent for a romantic night or even for anyone else. for me, this is a personal scent -- one that sort of embodies how i see myself: sweet, tart, pretty goofy, and slightly elegant. funky, but in the George Clinton way, not the garbage can way

 

today it's raining out, and i've been sick since January 17th, and it's now February.

 

today i busted out the Cat.

 

when he comes around again (whenever that may be) i'll be purchasing 10 ml stat. i want all my mornings to start out this way!

 

n.