Black Orchid v3

[fairnymph]

Deep golden oil. Orchids galore! With an appropriately dark and murky base distantly below. Surprisingly complex - a blend of orchid(s) and other florals. Somewhat green-fresh-sappy. A little spicy like nasturtium or phlox. Definitely some of the same orchid notes from Blue Moon 07 and Lune Noir. The base seems to be light soil or maybe vetiver, as this is faintly cologney.

[zankoku_zen]

This one is definitely a dark, dark orchid. I get the same orchid note as in Lune Noire, but the base is definitely something murky/musty.

 

Dark dark dark.

 

I feel like those that are a fan of scents like Cabaret, Mystery and the other femme fatale blends should probably considering testing this. It has the same sort of 'vibe' to me. Dark, seductive, potentially deadly.

[crebbsgirl]

I have a bottle of the v5 from the previous trunk show, and in comparison v3 is much more floral. Where v5 is Orchids and Patchouli/Earth, v3 is a mix of Orchids and other flowers predominantly. Further into the drydown I can detect a bit of vetiver underneath it all, but it's very faint on me.

[ellebelle]

In the bottle, this is almost a pure orchid floral. On immediate application. this oil smells like something burning. But! As it dries down that burning scent fades into the background and the orchids take the center stage. As the orchids blossom, the burning (which is almost certainly vetiver) fades into the background and grounds this scent and takes it away from being too flowery. On first scent, I questioned why I bought it. The more I smell it, the more I like it.

[Invidiana]

This is one which you need to dab sparingly and wait for the drydown, because I'll confess that in the bottle is vile. In the bottle it's all heavy smoke and vetiver with an orchid background. However, there's another side to this story, and that shows itself after the drydown. Again, this is very strong so it's one to dab on very lightly at first and gradually build if you need more. However, from all that heavy smoky vetiver it turns into a downright sensual dark orchid with a woody, smoky and resinous background. There has to be some form of dark resin in here, maybe one, maybe a couple (I'm guessing more than one becuase this is a complex scent ot my nose), but whatever they are the proportion is enough that my skin (which amps sweeter notes) amps them right through the smoke and vetiver and also pushes the dark and sweet orchid through as well. It turns out to be a gorgeously evil floral, and besides the fac that it is dark the orchid still retains a tropical feel, which makes me think of the trouble in paradise going on in F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night. In fact I would have probably named it after that book myself because it really is very evocative of the era--speakeasies, rouged lips, film noir and a sordid underworld. Truly one of a kind.

Edited March 15, 2010 by Invidiana

[myth]

At a sniff: dark, heady floral, slightly damp.

 

On: more of the same. Very florist flower smelling, hothouse type. Not shifting much as it dries. Seems to become cheaper smelling and more cloying though, kind of gives me a headache.

[bheansidhe]

The floral notes read as orchid, lotus, mimosa, and lily. The lotus is dominant for a while, in its pink-bubblegummy kind of way. The base has something like tobacco or opopponax; smoky, acrid. Wet, I get the same whiff of burning cigarettes that I found in Giallo - in fact this blend has a very similar feel to Giallo overall; womanly, heady, slightly seedy.

 

Now it's got the warm spicy prickle of Black Lily over that murmur of lotus and ashtray. In fact, it's reminding me of a cross between Black Lily and Giallo at the moment.

 

A hint of hawaiian white florals in the drydown, like white ginger; something clean and low to the skin under the dirty, smoky orchid.

 

Very interesting.

[Little Bird]

I usually like the lab's orchid notes, but this proto just has that sharp, generic, chemical, perfumey floral smell to me. This blend is also a bit smoky, like woodsmoke + drugstore floral blend. It has a lot of throw and is really strong on me, but unfortunately just gives me a headache.

[VioletChaos]

In the Bottle: Yup, very orchid. I, too am seeing where the comparisons of this to Lune Noir are coming from- which is a scent I love, so I've got my fingers crossed!

 

Wet On Skin: The orchid is strong and sweet, but yes, it's "black". This is no sunny orchid, for sure. I'm also getting a hint of the phlox note someone mentioned. That's an iffy one for me, but so far it's adding just a little depth and spice to the mix and not going powdery, so it's looking good.

 

Dry Down: There's an edge of a green note, like a real sharp fresh herby green, like the dandelion sap from Strawberry Moon '09. but it's very subtle in here, not at the fore at all. Mostly it's the orchid being all sexy and pretty. This is indeed a very "perfumy" scent, reminding me some of the White Shoulders my aunt wore when I was a kid. but as much as I usually dislike scents that smell like Perfume, I really, really like this one.

 

In All: low to medium throw, a classy scent for an evening out in late spring, or perhaps mixed with Smut for a midnight seduction

 

A keeper!

[orata]

Rather soapy/perfumey floral when wet. It gets a prominent smoke and vetiver note as it dries down and settles into a lovely orchid scent, dark and sexy without being musky--a heady film noir type of perfume, like smoke floating over plumeria blossoms.

[Larinessa]

Heady is right....

 

This is a deep smokey orchid, rich and almost slightly cinnamon like in the depth of it. The orchid is outstanding, like being in a dark gypsy tent while the incense wafts around you and you gaze tranfixed as the fire light illuminates a lush bouquet of dark colored exotic orchids.

 

LOVE.

[ami226]

On the skin:

 

Wow, this is a bright, almost neon yellow colored oil. On my skin, it is orchid with a hint of aquatic greenness. It is pretty, but I think I am going to stick to the deeper orchid of my beloved Black Orchid v5. This one is a lot brighter still with a hint of sweet orchid.

 

After a bit, I actually can't really smell the aquatic part anymore. It just smells like a lovely, slightly sweet orchid.

 

I definitely prefer v5, so I think this one is going to need to find a new home!