Miaiphonos

[thekittenkat]

MIAIPHONOS
Blood-Stained
Clove, anise, mandarin, and cumin.

What this reminds me of is a cloved orange. It's a Yule tradition in some places. You basically core little holes into the fresh ripe orange in a spiral path, and then place whole cloves in those cuts. Then you wrap a pretty ribbon around the orange, along the path in-between the cloves, leaving a long loop at the top, and hang it on a hook. Lovely smell throughout the holidays. Seriously, I didn't pick up a lot of cumin or anise when this was wet. In the much later stage of the dry-down, they are more present, as though the cloved orange had been hanging in your kitchen for a while, and was starting to dry out, and had picked up some spices. It's a mild perfume oil, and could make a lovely Yuletide scent, especially in an oil burner. The mandarin orange is the dominant note, but it's not overwhelming as citrus can be sometimes. The clove and orange work together to make a lovely scent.

[surf-tormented]

In the bottle: Can you believe, those little valentine candy hearts? It took me a long time to remember that scent, but it really smells like those. Powdery licorice candies. NECCO® Wafers. or Sweethearts®.

 

On skin: The last reviewer has got it right...an orange pomander ball. I made those in Catholic school, just about every year, for Christmas. I used to hang them in my closet. It smells very natural too, no overly strong odor or candle-like scent, just cloves, anise and orange.

 

Later: The cumin makes the blend even more special. I've never sniffed a perfume quite like it from the Lab and I am happy I got it. It's really a mood lifter. I dab a bit on and it makes me joyful. Maybe Ares is happy to be blood smeared since he is joyful in war? I do get a sort of warrior type orange-red out of the notes. The dry down is really unusual, cumin and anise. Warm and heady. Spicy blood stains!

 

Verdict: I like this. I don't think it has a long life or the greatest throw, yet anise notes in BPAL oils usually amp up on me to the point of making me queasy, so it is most likely best it stays light on me. It's a satisfying scent, warm and passionate. It's a lot better than I thought, since anise didn't conquer all this time!

Edited February 6, 2010 by Madame Nyx

[scarletgenesis]

In the bottle at first, this smelled like conversation hearts...you know the ones with the powdery finish? Just like those.

 

But on.....oh my, on it's all orange and clove and a small bit of anise. Later, the orange fades a bit and the anise, clove and even cumin (but only slightly) come out to play their sinister, yet hauntingly sensual games.

 

This is a wonderful blend and combines some of my very favorite notes. This might require a second bottle while it's still available. Gorgeous.

 

My only complaint is that it doesn't have as much staying power as the other clove blends I've worn from bpal, but I'm willing to deal with it. I might try it in a locket to see how it fares, but either way I'll be loving this every time I wear it!

[Lycanthrope]

Oh no, no no no.

 

Citrus notes are not a go on my skin. Anise has only really worked on me when it's with ... well, gaufrette and leather like Pere Fouettard. Clove can be quite strong... and cumin, well...

 

This smells very foody on me, sort of like that tamarind salsa that is served at Himalayan/Indian restaurants, way too much herbiness, not a 'perfume' aroma on me at all. I amp that, and the sharpness of the mandarin, and the dirtyness of the clove, and it's just too much.

 

Oh ye Gods! It also has such tenacity!

[edenssixthday]

Miaiphonos - This is by far my favorite of the Ode to Mars blends. On me, it's predominantly anise, with a hint of clove and citrus. I don't smell the cumin at all. I do understand where a previous reviewer mentioned this is like the licorice NECCO wafers. I totally smell that...and that's a good thing, since NECCO licorice wafers are one of my favorite candies in the world. I wish I could put into words how awesome this is. I think it just surpassed Absinthe and The Last Squished Jellybean as my favorite licorice/anise blend. Mmmm! I love it!

[Xanon]

I was very hesitant at first when I opened the bottle, I got a huge whiff of cumin and anise with very little clove and mandarin.

But I skin tested it anyway. Wet it was very much the cumin and anise that I got from the bottle, but as it began to dry down the clove came out to the forefront. After about 5 minutes I got the mandarin mixed in. As thekittenkat said, I too am reminded of those orange clove balls, but they are a little more on the dark side. Dry this balances out nicely. I actually like it more then I thought I would after the initial bottle sniff.

 

My only complaint is this: a little dab will do ya on the initial application, but it does not last long. So I am at a loss of how much to apply with out making the people around me cringe. Frequent reapplications in small doses I guess.

Really well blended once everything settles down.

[angelicruin]

On my skin, I'm getting cumin and clove and really no anise or mandarin, which were the reason I bought the bottle. I'm quite sad about how this is reacting to my skin. I'm going to let it settle some and hope that maybe the cumin, at least, calms down. I like cumin in baking, but not so much on my skin.

[greenranger]

My first impression was of heat, rather than scent.

 

 

Actually, that's my second impression as well. It smells like heated air, rising off of something spicy and sort of orange scented.

[blktauna]

 

Boom cloved orange with... what's that underneath? mmmm anise seed. Yum.

 

Reminds me of Clod and Pebble in the clove dept but the orange sweetens it up. The orange and the anise shift back and forth a bit but that makes it nice to sniff. The clove is always there, sort of making the tip of my tongue seem numb.

 

Not much in the way of lasting or throw but I still think this will be a bottle.

[PeshaRocha]

Wet: Paregoric! Haven't smelt it in years but was immediately taken back to my childhood by that bitter, medicinal, anise scent.

 

Dry: Wonderful balance of anise, orange and clove, just slightly sweet (bitter medicinal smell completely gone). I don't smell the cumin at all, but that's okay. It's gorgeous just the way it is.

Edited February 22, 2010 by Pesha Rocha

[fiddledragon]

These four notes are almost perfectly balanced on my skin. Sweet, juicy orange, pungent clove, anise, and cumin. It's a very mulled-cider effect. The cumin adds a savory note that makes it smell sort of...North African, maybe? It's a more grown-up version of March Hare or Al-Shairan. This is just too foody for me, though, especially with that cumin. I feel like I should be stewing my wrist with chicken!

[Little Bird]

In the bottle and on my skin at first, this is definitely an orange pomander smell. It's dry, slightly powdery orange and tons of clove spice. As this dries down, the spice morphs into something funky & bitter that reminds me of taco seasoning :/. I don't get any of the black licorice/anise.

 

Miaiphonos is all dry, powdery orange and not-so-pleasant spices on me. This isn't working on my skin, and I won't be keeping my decant...

[milo]

This is a rather sweet clove blend. With the mandarin, it seems almost like a Yule blend rather than a luper. Reminds me of a clove studded sweet orange. Nice, but I'll probably keep my decant for Christmas next year.

eta: Oh, I defininitely get a touch of anise, more so when wet.

Edited March 5, 2010 by milo

[Invidiana]

If I could describe this in three words: fierce red licorice. Seriously! More like a really dark red licorice bordering on black but not quite. It's the clove and anise that make up the smoky, sinister art and the mandarin that seems to "stain" them wtih "blood". There is a certain tang to this, presumably from the mandarin, that makes it evocative of something bloodstained without literally smelling like blood. I've never smelled cumin in a jar before, but I'm guessing it adds the final dash of fierceness to the already ferociously sensual scent. I was right to order a bottle unsniffed; right up my alley.

[fairnymph]

Sweet, spicy, exotic! Sweet juicy mandarin and licoricey, also-sweet anise jump out, with slightly curry-ish clove and cumin behind these two. Definitely unique!

 

Spicier, and very foody in a savoury way. Curry all the way. The cumin explodes on my skin, thought the mandarin is still going strong, as is the anise. It smells like Mexican meets Indian. Or maybe just fajitas marinade, with the now-tarter and still very juicy mandarin standing in for the lime. Also, the mandarin-clove combo makes me think of pomanders. Lots of associations with this scent.

 

As usual, my skin is amping the hell out of these spices. Anise is in the forefront, but cumin is just behind and clove a very close 3rd. The mandarin is still there, but it's definitely a background note. The anise amping this up has turned this into licorice curry, which is even grosser than it sounds. And the throw on this blend (i.e. - powerful) is NOT good. Time for the sink.

 

Edited March 12, 2010 by fairnymph

[musichappens]

When I first applied this blend, the clove and anis were fighting as to which would get to be the one to amp on me. It was quite interesting because I could smell both of them so distinctly without a hint of anything else. Ultimately it seemed that they had declared a truce because they were the only notes that ever came out on my skin.

[sunshinedaisybliss]

 

I've been sooooooooo looking forward to my decant of Miaiphonos arriving, ever since Dark Alice said "This sounds like a licorice and orange flavored taco" when the update was first announced.

 

Well.. turns out she was kinda right! The anise is very licorice-y, and in combination with the clove it's quite pungent. The mandarin is doing its very best to be seen - "hey, I'm here! Let me out!" - but the big bad clove and anise won't let it - "HA! Take that, you pussy mandarin. You're not even a proper orange, get back where you belong!".

 

This actually reminds me very much of The Last Squished Jelly Bean. Something's messing things up though, and I suspect it's the cumin. Hey - cumin? Go away, you smell kinda funky.

 

I really don't know whether I like this or not, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't wear it so a bottle purchase can be resisted. It is, however, a very interesting smell and it gets nicer as it dries down - the initial blast of anise/clove mellows out a bit and the cumin fades away. I'm a bit sad that the mandarin isn't a bigger player here though - that's the note I was most interested in but sadly it just never really comes out to play enough here.

 

[ami226]

Mmmmmm! Clove and orange! Mostly orange at first. Quite like this one! Pretty good throw as well!

 

Eeeeeep! After a bit, I start to smell the cumin. *sigh* Never liked the smell of cumin all that much. Icky.

 

-EDIT- Whoa! Complete change and now it is all licorice! Eeewwwww!

Edited March 12, 2010 by Catseyes

[wl552]

Did I even get the same oil as everyone else?

 

All I get from start to finish is spicy Indian food... like curry or something. I really like to eat it, but I don't want to smell like it. Where is the anise? The clove? The mandarin? I'm not sure what to do with this. Can my skin chemistry really be that much off or did I get a really off blended version of it? I had really high hopes for this one, especially after reading the reviews. I guess I'll hold on to it for a little while, but I really don't know if aging will help the spicy curry smell or not.

[Poenari]

I love clove, and I love annis. All I can say about this is that it is clove and annis, but not in a good way. Glad I only got a decant. Big disappointment.

[surlygurl]

This is a strange one. It starts out Black Jellybeans with an interweaving of something masculine & burnt green-brown smelling (cumin?). Strong at first, the cumin fades some & there's a good stretch of pure black jellybean . The cumin returns & they both fade somewhat. There's no sweetness to this scent at all. It's bitter & musty. Thank goodness I only have a decant.

[sirensea]

I agree with SurlyGirl. This smells like black jelly beans. There's a strong hint of clove, but that's about it. It's a nice scent, it just doesn't amp on my skin.

[Schmoozy]

 

Cloved mandarin with black licorice. No cumin at all. Will keep my decant and thrown this in the tart burner during the holidays.

[ralenth]

Anise and clove with a pinch of cumin. I don't get any mandarin. A bit too holiday spice for my tastes.

[zankoku_zen]

I really was hoping for a clove/orange blend - and its there, but totally dominated by the cumin. Which is very Indian curry style on me.

 

Yeah, loads of loads of cumin.

 

Pass.