Sunbird

[GoldenRubee]

... In Neil's words, "'Sunbird' smells like resin and deserts and the phoenix."

Smelling the bottle I didn't like Sunbird at first because it has such a strong, heaviness to it. I decided to throw caution to the wind and try it out.

At first it smells very earthy and mossy on me but not a dirt scent. I almost get a little bit of fresh cut branches with a sweetness too that reminds me of honeysuckle. After the initial dry down the second phase comes out with a beautiful soft musk and spices that mingle gorgeously with the earthy tones. I think I even detect amber in here too. This is really turning out to be a surprising hit for me.

The longer I wear Sunbird the better it gets. It is long lasting and would be great on my husband too.

[jewelbug]

So happy to have come home to this today!

 

Bottle: I get a cola-ish resin, and something almost leathery and smoky, too.

 

Wet: Same kinda syrupy resin and a good hit of spice that verges on medicinal--clove-ish, actually. Maybe its the cinnamon leaf?? Despite the syrupy note, it manages to smell hot and dry.

 

Dry: I get a lot of sandalwood out of this. LOTS of dusty red sandalwood (kinda smoky) a decent sized dash of the medicinal clove/clove-a-like note, with a little bit of oozy cola-syrup resin. Maybe a hint of reddish (or more feral/hunt type??) musk? But mostly hot-scorchy sandalwood.

 

Overall: This is fresh outta my mailbox on a HOT day, so I'm gonna give it time to settle and smooth up a bit (i'll edit this review as needed). As is, I'm not sure this one's for me--its nice, but unless settles into something less medicinal/woody, I'm not sure its something that will see a lot of wear in the jewelbug house.

 

eta: its the next morning (like 16 hrs later) and I can still smell this on my arm. Talk about staying power! Remnants of sandalwood, lightly spiced resins, maybe an amber?

Edited August 11, 2009 by jewelbug

[fairnymph]

Sniffed: Red musk, vanilla, sandalwood. Something a little cologney & soapy, some faint herbs. The base reminds me strongly of snake oil; that medicinal cola-ish red musk sweetened by vanilla, but this is sweeter, almost foody, almost like cream soda. It is in fact a bit creamy, and quite sweet.

 

Wet: Much harsher, much more herbal. More soapy. Where did all the creamy vanilla and sandalwood go? All the sweetness? Harsh and medicinal, like rubbing alcohol and Bitters (the liqueur) and echnicea-goldenseal syrup all mixed together with some red musk, too. And for some reason it also makes me think of embalmed dead things. Eeek.

 

Dry: More and more herbal. More and more medicinal. More and more soapy. Amping like crazy with crazy-strong throw and that dreadful red musk rearing up beneath it. Sniffing closely, I detect some of the sweetly creamy vanilla underneath, but it's vastly overwhelmed. Sink, and now. Of course, like all nasty perfumes, it won't wash off. Arghh!

 

[hellomoonglow]

Arrggghhh!!! ACK ACK ACK!!!!!

 

Initially it smelled like Palmolive soap and spice. Which is ok, as I like both. After about 1 min. it turned into Palmolive, spice and stale cigarette smoke and something very unpleasant!!

[Ondine]

Wow, this is *completely* different than the prototype I sniffed and didn't like (I smelled a lot more vetiver in that one). And I can tell you exactly what this smells like on me: LUSH's Icon fragrance. Which I love, and I'm kind of surprised I'm getting out of this, but it's exact.

 

The components of LUSH Icon are myrrh resinoid, orange blossom absolute, bergamot oil, sandalwood oil, mandarin oil, and a bunch of things I'm not familiar with (Citral, Geraniol, Benzyl Benzoate, Farnesol, Limonene).

 

I feel like I'm really picking up on potential myrrh and bergamot in Sunbird with the bits of citrus others are picking up on, too. This is a beautiful blend, glad I got it and (obvs.) it will be awesome to layer under my Icon fragrance

 

[isisonearth]

This is going to be very stream of consciousness.

 

Bottle: Warm amber, fragrant woods and roasting herbs.

 

Wet: The woods seem to be cedar and pine to me. The herbs must include rosemary they remind me of roasting potatoes. A fair bit of lavender as well. I think it is burning in the fire with the woods. It smells like something browning. There is a fire smell that seems like clove to me. Overall it puts me in mind of Thanksgiving.

 

Dry: More offertory than culinary...a golden brown sandalwood incense with lingering bit of herbal green.

[Dark Alice]

Dry Red musk, warm amber (that I can actually wear) and spices plus something woody. (WET)

 

Drydown: Red musk, amber, spices, and funky pencial shavings. It also has hints of cinnamon red hots through some of the phases of the drydown and actually makes my skin freakin itch.

 

Whew! No need to track down a bottle or imp....I am just really glad I got a chance to try it.

[greenranger]

Oooooh.

 

At first, it smelled a lot like all the things listed in the book, cinnamon, sage, lavender twigs...the entire list. I'm pretty sure there were raisins in it as well. Possibly there was beer as well. Probably there is charcoal.

 

 

 

My skin loves resins, and what this dries down to is an amazing woody spicy resin scent, with a touch of sweetness and smoke. I love it.

 

 

 

[Eros]

As Aerinha mentions above, everything listed in the book seems to be in this. So many lovely things going on at once. Subtle cinnamon and clove, sandalwood...lavender, rosemary. A hint of smoke without being smoky. A perfect touch of sweetness. It's spicy, resiny. Stays close to the skin and lasts for hours.

Imagine Sin, Lucifer and French Creole rolling around together over smoldering embers and you'll have a pretty good idea of what this blend smells like.

 

Beautiful!! The artwork for the book, also beautiful

[Coldfire]

 

 

 

 

 

Bottle: hmmm medicinal…almost like that scent you get when you open a fresh jar of noxema AND some resin swirling around.

Wet on Me: spicy resin and sandalwood. Touches of clove.

Drying down: resin for sure. Reminds me of hot summer…but not humid summer. Dry, warm and yellow. Getting some amber in there now too but not enough to turn it to baby powder

Dry: this is simply a breathtaking scent. Warm, dry, resin’y, woody, faint ghostly touches of something sweet. This is all around love!

 

[ladyhyacinthe]

Oh em gee. I think I just found my one true BPAL love.

 

In the bottle: I was expecting it to smell similar to Priala, since I'd heard other people mention similarities...but I wasn't expecting it to smell like a deeper, warmer, sweeter (and less smoky) Priala! Very light hints of vanilla hiding behind all the spice and herbs.

 

Wet: Again, very similar to Priala but sweeter! It's like Priala's big sister, all grown up and mellowed out. Hints of herbs and...evergreen? Something minty hanging out in the background, too.

 

Drydown: TIGER BALM. Um. It's a good thing I've got years of good memories that the scent of Tiger Balm brings up, or this could be the one problem with this lovely scent, because while it's drying, Sunbird smells EXACTLY like Tiger Balm on me.

 

Dry: Ahhh...there it is. My skin loves to amp sweetness and resins...and that's pretty much all I get from this now: the hint of vanilla that stuck its head out of the bottle, the myrrh of Priala keeping the vanilla from being too sweet, and something else very creamy-smoky swirling around like sunshine above it all.

 

Love, love, love this. Considering that Sunbird is one of my all-time favorite Gaiman short stories, this makes me incredibly happy. Now to get my greedy mitts on another bottle or two...

[angelicruin]

Sniffing the bottle, this is very resinous. There's a slightly scorched quality to the scent.

 

On my skin, I'm picking up red musk, wood, sage, and clove. Good throw to it and lasts several hours on my skin.

 

I think this one will only get better with age.

[Cheri]

I am enjoying Sunbird, but like it best in the first hour its on. It's resinous and I smell clove, vanilla, and sandalwood. After a few hours and even the next morning, its more pine. I agree that it's going to be better with some aging, and I hope the way it smells in the beginning will come out more. Overall, its a nice scent.

[samarablackcat]

Thanks to my Sunbird partner for a chance to try this

 

The first thing I smell is ohhai! red musk with bitter clove strewn in for good measure. Something about this wet reminds me of Mme Moriarty (?).

 

As it dries, there are some warm ingredients under the surface that never come to fruition...if I place my nose close to my arm, I get the myrrh and a tad of sharpness, which I'm guessing is the cinnamon leaf. But there is a gentle waft arising as I type which is warm and not too sweet. Reminds me of an exotic pastry, not too sweet, baking in the oven.

 

Very evocative of a warm, sunny day. The oil color is perfect for this representation also...not-too-dark brown with a red glow! And yes, it will age beautifully!

[heavywhitewove]

Hmmm. I've smelled this before.

 

Sunbird: THE ANTIKYTHERA MECHANISM + a hint of warm, maybe St. John's Eve (yes I have both)

 

Let's try this out. On Rt wrist Sunbird, on Lt wrist the combo

 

Yup - it is official. Sunbird is the lovechild of AM + St. John's Eve.

 

If I didn't own Sunbird and wanted to experience it - I would purchase AM and call it a day. Sunbird also reminds me of the Bow and the Crown of Conquest. This is a masculine, warm and dry scent.

 

Edited note: AM + BCC also mimics Sunbird perfectly

Edited August 15, 2009 by boggy

[lilirose]

Wow. Oh wow.

 

In the bottle it smelled like very faint sandalwood and I wasn’t sure I was impressed, but I decided to try it on anyway.

 

So very evocative. I don't even want to try to break down the notes because it's just too perfectly blended. On skin it’s…exactly as Neil Gaiman described it. It smells like a dry, hot, sandy, spicy desert. Not “hot” as in cinnamon or pepper (though I think I do detect a touch of cinnamon) but “hot” as in “115 degrees Fahrenheit and climbing”. And the sandy bit is not like dirt or earth but like pure, clean sand.

 

I felt guilty as soon as I bought it, and thought “oh well, if nothing else it’ll be good for a swap one day”…but no, I shall keep this, and treasure it, and probably hoard it as well, since I’m unlikely to ever find a second bottle, no matter how much I want one.

[mamoyer]

This is a wonderful, hot, dry scent. I can smell sandalwood, resins, and cinnamon at first, and then the cinnamon fades during the drydown and a smoky wood smell comes out.

 

I'm going to cherish my imp, but can't afford the set right now. For others who can't afford it, a close GC scent is Sin.

[Wwindy]

In the bottle this definitely has a very strong hot, sandy, desert vibe to it. On my skin, it's gentler and less strident. I get raisins (but not grapes -- there's no overt fruitiness), sandalwood, lavender, and patchouli... with maybe a tiny bit of red musk. Sort of a strange combination, but it really works!

[Eimeria]

OMG love love love.

So I was convinced that this would smell horrid on me, but bought it anyway because I could not resist. But to my suprise, it smells amazing! It really does smell like desert and the resin really pops on my skin. I'm in love!

[topazphoenix]

I don't how to describe this, or pick out the individual notes. But it's evocative of an endless, scorched desert..acres of sand..and a wisp of cinnamon incense. That's what Sunbird smells like to me.

[Mousesong]

Removed my old review. Sunbird is distinctly less spicy and hot aged and distinctly more Dragon's Blood-y. It's got a sort of cloying note under it. I am less in love with it aged than I was with it fresh, but I still quite like it and wear it often as the weather cools down. It's pretty strong though!

Edited November 24, 2011 by Mousesong

[tartchef]

Huge, HUGE thanks to TrailerTrashPrincess for sending me a very generous sniffie

 

I waffled so hard on even wanting to try this, and it turns out I had a reason to be wary

 

On my skin, Sunbird is Smut & Red Phoenix... and neither of those ended up being winners. There's that really unctuous, nearly latex red musk from Smut, overlaid by the plasticky cassia of Red Phoenix. There's sandalwood in here, too, and it's going soapy.

 

Well phooey.

[unlaced]

In the imp: herbs and spices

 

Wet on my skin: more of the same. Getting a bit spicier. There's an impression of heat in this scent.

 

Drying/dry: It's very hard to make out individual notes in this blend. I can smell clove and maybe cinnamon. (It's not burning my skin though! Hurray!) It's mostly very spicy and herbaly smelling with a little bit of dry green smell. (Wow, could I be any less helpful?)

 

Hmmm, it's nice but not omgamazing! Herbal and spicy scents just aren't really my thing.

[slave1]

SUNBIRD

 

In Bottle: Smoky and metallic

 

On Skin: I expected this to be a lot stronger, but it's actually quite light. The resins are warm and soft, and the smoke note is more of a grey than a black. It's amazing clean as well, which is a very nice contrast for a smoke scent. I get a very orange/bronze/golden feeling from this scent. It fits a Sunbird perfectly... I normally do not like firey or smokey scents, but this one is so tame, it works on me. Especially since I'm a fire sign. The scent is also unisex, I could imagine this on a man as well as a woman. Light to moderate throw and medium wearlength.

Edited August 22, 2009 by slave1

[Gin]

Sunbird is gorrrrgeous. At first, it has an almost medicinal smell (the lavender, I realize later), but it smoothes out to a resiny cinnamon-smoke scent.