Harimise

[hkhm]

Rice powder, osmanthus, rose geranium, magnolia, khus, and chestnut.

bottle: a light, sweet soft nut scent.

wet: i get no rose geranium or magnolia strangely. what i do get is a warm, sweet nut scent with a teesny touch of osmanthus.

dry: this fades to something soft and sweet, almost powdery sweet, and dry. not exactly nutty any longer, it is still warm and rich.

[edenssixthday]

Harimise - This is mostly a chestnut and rice scent on me with the barest hint of magnolia. Bummer I can't smell the rose geranium at all since that's my favorite BPAL note! This scent smells very sweet and almost vanilla-y in the bottle, but as soon as I put it on my skin, it's obvious the chestnut is the dominant note, and that is what is giving it it's warm, rich, almost buttery smoothness. The rice sweetens the scent up a bit. (I have not yet figured out what osmanthus and khus smell like, so I really don't know if I'm smelling them or not or how they play into the other notes.) This is a lovely scent that's on the foody side of things, but not overtly so. It's warm and sweet and rich. It's lovely and would make a nice home fragrance, too.

 

[reynardine]

In decant: rice powder

 

Wet: powder scent, a touch of chesnut and geranium

 

Drydown: This scent stays stable and doesn’t morph much. It’s a quiet scent, reminding me of very early spring days before it is warm enough to go outside (that’s probably the geranium). Not something I’d wear, however.

 

[musichappens]

Being still a relative newb to BPAL (started in Oct '09), I have to say that I've never come across something that smells like this. It's a fairly light scent, but the chestnuts and rice powder are clearly identifiable. Simple, but beautiful.

 

Ironically (seeing as the whole Shunga line is based on Japanese erotic art), this blend actually makes me think of Japan despite having ever been there. Actually, I think if Japan could be bottled up into a perfume ... this would be it!

[AliBabble]

for a fleeting second, this was reminiscent of an old favorite of mine - hearth from 05? i think - which also had chestnut - which i love. but the more i smell it, it is much lighter and feminine than hearth, more delicate. there's something a bit fresh and plant-like - think that is the geranium, and a touch of earthiness and floral - the magnolia? osmanthus? the khus?...it's well blended, and the other notes are a bit indistinct - the chestnut is strongest, tempered and refreshed by the other notes. - this does smell outdoorsy like springtime. pleasant.

 

(edited cause i was testing bottles in the dark, and accidentally applied a completely different bottle, whoops! )

Edited February 25, 2010 by AliBabble

[Myrrha]

Wet: Yum! I can smell the chestnut, a little bit foody but in a woody way. It smells sweet but refined and elegant at the same time.

 

As it dries: It is a clear, light scent but with the round note of chestnut. It doesn’t have the thick rich buttery-ness of Judith and Holofernes. It feels comforting but at the same time elegant.

 

Dry: (about 20 minutes) It is more perfumy now as the florals have come out. I think I can recognize the osmanthus and magnolia but the scent doesn’t scream “floral” at all. The chestnut doesn’t stand out as much but blends with everything else. There is a delicate powdery note, maybe the rice powder? It smells like a terrifically elegant expensive perfume- not from a department store but from some small boutique in Japan where they sell high-fashion clothing in neutral colors. The throw is light, definitely a scent that invites someone to come closer.

Edited February 25, 2010 by Myrrha

[CiaoBonefish]

Started off as amazing chestnut and rice power. The most promising Shunga of all!

 

On my skin that glorious chestnut rice power lasted for about a minute, and then I get straight up soap. Weird. I've never had a scent go so completely soapy on me before. So sad. On a second whiff of the decant, I notice that there is the slightest hint of soapiness in it. I guess my skin just amped it like crazy.

 

How upsetting. It smelled so good...

 

[megank4]

very light, powdery, nutty scent. Disappears quickly.

[greenranger]

Sweet and soft, with the chestnut and rice powder on top. The flowers are sort of there...far far in the background.

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, this smells creamy, sweet, and golden, with a clean edge.

 

On my skin, there's a sweet (almost honeyed), toasted warmth from the chestnut, with the other notes adding a creamy, clean feel that softens the sweetness. I usually find chestnut notes to be way too sweet and cloying, but the other notes in this blend are keeping the chestnut under control. As it dries down, it gets a little bit of a spicy, herbal edge to it and a hint of something lemony.

 

Out of all of my Lupercalia decants, I keep coming back to Harimise and it's really growing on me. The scent that wafts off of my skin is the sweet warmth of the chestnut mixed with clean magnolia and creamy rice powder. It's a really appealing, clean sweetness that I've already gotten a couple compliments on. It's like clean skin + sexy, comforting warmth and a touch of elegant perfume. And it feels like a casual, every-day sort of scent to me. It feels comfortable, and it actually has great staying power and throw on me.

 

ETA: I ordered two bottles of this and one smells as described above, and the second bottle smells sweeter (kinda maple syrupy) and more baby powdery. Serious lack of consistency...

Edited January 4, 2013 by Little Bird

[wl552]

Bleck!!!! This is absolutely horrible on my skin. It's bitter and biting and assaults my nose. I'm really not sure how much longer I can keep this on my hand. Absolutely not keeping this at all. One test is more than enough. Gack!

[Wolfie79]

This is my favorite shunga!

 

I get the chesnut and rice immediately. On my skin, a honeyed, creamy sort of note comes out, too. It's like a creamy nutty musk.

 

The slightest hint of geranium is lurking around in the background, but I do not think 'floral' when I smell this one. I just bought a bottle!

[windbourne]

I wasn't sure about the chestnut, since I don't like the smell/taste of them to begin with, and really, on me, that's what this smells like -- that sweet-musky-nut scent that slips up the back of my nose and kind of chokes me. There's a little bit of powdery magnolia back there somewhere, and some golden osmanthus as it dries, but mostly, chestnut.

 

Very interesting, as I can't recall ever smelling another BPAL frangrance quite like it, but not one I either want to keep or will wear again. If you like chestnut, though, have at! It'll probably be great for you.

[Dark Alice]

Foody graham cracker crust. Must be the khus plus the chestnut.....and minty rose geranium. This combination is odd and scary on my skin. Minty graham cracker crust. This has gotta go.

[jizatt]

I love Judith Victorious, so I try all things with chestnut in them. Chestnut plus rice and magnolia? Sounded like pure win. But on my skin, its like oil and water., The warm soft chestnut and rice and the cold clean mix of everything else. Im not swapping it off yet, because Im convinced this should be gorgeous. Im a little sick still, so maybe its my chemistry.

 

eta my dry impressions:

dry this fragrance finally comes together. THere are still momens when the chestnut is all FOODY, but the fragrance is mostly cool magnolia and im guessing geranium, with a warm base underneath it all. YAY I do like, and may consider a bottle after further testing and a Judith side by side.

Edited March 12, 2010 by CaudaPavonis

[surlygurl]

Wow. I wish I got what other people are smelling. I love chestnut scents & rice powder. On my skin, this is all Super Rose Geranium!!! from start to finish. Sure, there's chestnut in the background, maybe some clean fresh ground rice powder. When it dries down, the rose geranium goes away and takes everything else with it.

 

I was so hoping to love this!

[Invidiana]

Oh look, who is it but my friend rose geranium again, which my skin so loves to amp. This smelled so promising in the vial, really promising--like a really rich buttercream, so I stupidly held out hope until within a couple seconds the rose geranium burst out and strangled everything else to death, so the end result was all rose geranium swiped with a bit of buttercream. Not something I'd want to eat--or smell.

[ami226]

On the skin: Florals. These are not friendly florals on my skin. These are harsh headachey florals with a sour undernote. This just does not smell good at all on me.

[angelicruin]

Chestnut note dominates on my skin. Floral notes emerge as it begins to dry. Dries down to a sweetened nutty scent.

[fairestrocza]

In the Bottle: slightly sweet, slightly nutty, slightly soapy

 

Wet on Skin: A bit soapy. I can smell something floral (I think it is the magnolia). Rice powder is present and lovely. The khus is (miraculously) behaving itself so far. Not picking out chestnut, but I may just not recognize it (or is that what is going soapy?)

 

While Drying: Soapy, but not overwhelming. Something is giving a restaurant-y impression. The rose geranium is poking its head out periodically.

 

After a Little While: Significant throw. Oddly foody - like a bizarre dessert combo at a Thai restaurant (I'm thinking Chestnut Sticky Rice)…. And spicy soap.

 

Later: The soapy aspect eventually dies down, but this still strikes me as a very odd scent, though I prefer this stage to the earlier stages. I think that whatever is causing the soapy response is also responsible for the initial throw, because by the time the soap dies off, the throw is minimal.

Final Thoughts: I keep wanting to like this one more than I do, but it just is not happening.

Harmise earns a 2.5/5 on my skin.

[zankoku_zen]

Chestnut and rice flower! It actually would complement the Castitas bath oil pretty well (with some chestnut thrown in). Overall, it ends up smelling faintly reminiscent to caramel. Definitely sweet.

[lunaticana]

Harimise

 

a little rice powder and a lot of chestnut. nothing else for now

[ralenth]

Sweet, creamy nutty scent, with a tinge of linen. harimise is far foodier than I was expecting. It's lovely and seems perfect for spring (even if it isn't my thing).

[Schmoozy]

 

Rose, nuts and rice powder. Hmm. Creamy, slightly floral, but overall it doesn't really do much for me.

[thekittenkat]

I love chestnut notes, such as was in a certain 'weenie last year, Cristina from the Literary Vampire.

 

 

In the imp: Chestnut, but tempered by the other notes.

 

Wet: Still very nutty (in a good way), but the sharpness of the geranium is present. And some sweetness from the magnolia and also maybe the rice powder?

 

Dry: This is a sweet chestnut scent, with only a hint of the vetiver and the geranium, thank goodness. A cool scent, perfect for spring. It's also light and delicate, which is a surprise because of the chestnut. If you wanted to like Cristina, but found "her" too loud, this may be a good scent to try. Very much a skin scent, btw.

Edited March 28, 2010 by thekittenkat