Okayaki

[ellebelle]

Olive blossom, cardamom pod, amber, morning star lily, bergamot, and a well-aimed snowball.

Wow, I can't believe I'm the first to review.

in the bottle: A very light floral fragrance. I get the same gentle floral from Tabella (the olive blossom, I assume) a bit of bergamot, and a faint whiff of snow.

wet: VERY much like the bottle scent. Light floral, bergamot and (because I know what I'm looking for) the snow note. The snow is really manifested as an extremely light mint-ish note at the end. It is but a far distant cousin of Snow, Glass, Apples or the various Yule snow scents.

dry down: On the dry down, this becomes a more well rounded scent. There is a little powdery-ness, which I assume is the amber. The bergamot backs off a bit. Cardamom pod must be a different smell than cardamom, because I never get a particularly spicy scent from this. The lily is never particularly noticeable for me - I think it's blending in with the bergamot and snow rather than being a brighter stand out like it can be in some scents.

verdict?: We shall see. For now, it's a keeper. It's definitely in the same scent family as Aizen-Myoo. If you like that, this scent is probably worth a try.

eta: I am liking this more and more. It is different from the other scents in my collection in a good way. It doesn't feel like a duplicate of anything.

[Lucretia]

This smells almost like cake on me when first put it on. Not sure how all these come together to mean cake to me but they do.

 

I think I'm smelling mainly amber and bergamot. Maybe a hint of the snow note? It's definitely far from being the dominant note, so everyone who fears the snow notes should be good with this one I think. I couldn't pinpoint olive blossom to save my life but I'm assuming I'm getting that as well. It's a very muted, soft scent. I don't even know what to classify this as. It's really not a floral on me. If I had to compare it to anything it would be The Antikythera Mechanism, but maybe my nose it playing tricks on me since there are no notes in common.

 

Overall, I really like this one! It's very understated and I think this would make a great every day scent.

 

ETA: this is definitely moving into my top 5 scents. Gorgeous!

Edited February 10, 2010 by Lucretia

[opticnerd]

This starts out a delicate vanilla-ish musk (weird, I know...) with a light citrus undertone. Pleasant, and fresh.

 

As it dries down it becomes a stronger, fuzzy vanilla musk with a crisp silvery wood quality to it. It drove me nuts trying to remember what it reminded me so much of! Then it occurred to me- THE GIRL! Fans of the Girl, give this a try.

 

 

My only complaint is that I get a slight plastic tinge after a while of wear, but otherwise its stunning. I think it will age marvelously as well. Seriously, for those of you who loved the Girl and want a springtime version if it, look no further!

Edited February 21, 2010 by opticnerd

[Katherynne]

I got a delicate vanilla-like musky scent on first application, which immediately settled into a creamy floral. As it dries down, I'm getting powdery amber and the soft, silvery snow note. The bergamot and lily are blending really well here. Overall this is a soft, creamy, slightly chilly floral with a smooth citrus-y quality. I really love it.

 

It does remind me of Tabella, and since I lost my bottle of that, I may need a bottle of this.

[schackjj]

Is my nose broken?? I'm getting a snow note + Absinthe v7 - but it's faabulous

 

Must. Hoard.

[musichappens]

At first all I could smell was the bergamot and the snowball; which actually smelled pretty amazing. However, after a couple of minutes it began to develop into something a bit more spicy and musky. I actually think this is the first time that I liked a scent more so when it was wet rather then when it was dry.

Edited February 25, 2010 by musichappens

[edenssixthday]

Okayaki - I am soooo getting a bottle of this! It's absolutely my favorite of the Shungas. I can't believe it doesn't have vanilla or musk in it -- it's so vanilla-sweet and creamy. I think it's the combination of the olive blossom and the lily and snow. Once it dries down, the amber comes through, giving it a wood-like base for the lighter scents to rest upon. I seriously cannot put into words how gorgeous this is. I'm in some hardcore, serious love. This is one of those scents that makes me want to get rid of the rest of my collection and make this my one-and-only signature scent!

[spiresinthesnow]

My favorite of the shungas!! Very mysterious, subtle depth to this one. It isn't in your face at all. At least not until the dry down, when you start wondering what hit you.

 

[greenranger]

Olive blossom and amber smell a bit like olive oil to me, or at least the olive oil from the Lab. I can smell just a little cardamom and bergamot, and maybe the lily. The snowball seems to be just a hint of coolness.

[thekittenkat]

The expected sharpness of the lily and the bergamot never materialized all evening. I'm rather pleased by that. Instead, this is an elegant and lovely blend of the olive blossom and the amber (not going to powder, and that's amazing!), with just a hint of the cardamom to spice it up in a very mild fashion, and a breath of cold mint (the snowball) drifting away. Don't be fooled into thinking that this is a wintery snow scent, as the snow note is very, very delicate and mild.

 

ETA: On another testing, the lily and bergamot are sharp to start with. Otherwise, things are rather much the same as before, just with the added sharpness of the lily and bergamot. This is certainly unisex.

Edited March 27, 2010 by thekittenkat

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: A bit of creaminess, ending with a bit of citrus and snow.

 

Immediately on skin: This is a touch creamy and very smooth, with just a little bit of florals and a bite of citrus and light snow.

 

After a little while: This gets a bit sweeter as I wear it. It’s a soft, pretty scent. It smells of vanilla musk or amber, a bit of perfume-y florals, and a touch of citrus and snow. It’s warm and sweet with a touch of cold.

 

Overall Impressions: This is so pretty. The olive blossom is smooth and floral, and blends with an almost vanilla-y musk. The lily comes out slightly, as this has a touch of perfumeyness blanketing the whole scent, and it ends with a kiss of the citrus and snow. Very pretty, and my favorite thus far of the Luper scents.

 

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, this smells like creamy, sweet citrus and warm, slightly powdery amber.

 

On my skin, this smells almost exactly like Possets' Naples Yellow scent. The only difference is that Okayaki is a lot lighter on me. It's creamy, sweet citrus and warm, rich, resinous amber. After an hour, I think that I can smell a bit of clean, cool snow note creeping in, but the entire scent has almost faded away at that point.

 

I like this, but it smells so similar to Naples Yellow on me that I probably won't keep my decant (as I already own and love Naples Yellow).

[Leopard403]

This remains a mystery to me because it has NO staying power on my skin. None. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

 

It smells intriguing in the imp, like something I should like, sort of soft and beeswax-y, but then I put it on my skin and POOF, gone. It's the damndest thing you ever did see.

[fiddledragon]

On me, Okayaki is as light, creamy floral-vanilla with a hint of bergamot and a very green cardamom. Fellow mint-haters, relax: this is the vanilla-coconut-creamy sort of snow, not the chilly mint kind. It's surprisingly warm and sweet for the notes listed. This would be a great all-seasons scent...it's not too heavy for summer, but not to fresh and light for winter. Both the cardamom and lily go very green and stem-y, but not the grassy green scent that tends to go fake on me. It's like snowballs made of squished-up lilies! I may need a bottle of this one.

[theseagrows]

ooh i like this-very subtle, warm and soft. i think i am mostly getting olive blossom and cardamom, and some kind of musk. it doesn't seem to have florals at all, or if so, they are very subtle and not what i think of as typical of florals. i don't smell anything remotely aquatic as the snowball suggests, but do get a similar vanilla-y scent that seems to be in other scents with "snowballs." this is lovely, i may have to get more of this...

 

 

Edited April 6, 2010 by theseagrows

[saralaughs]

Oh my, I love a well done bergamot blend. And oh geez, this is.

 

First one, I get the olive blossom (very smooth and not in your face floral...just light and a bit sweet), amber, and bergamot.

 

It is very soft and fuzzy (as in cuddly-like), almost vanilla musk-ish like. I believe it is the amber, olive blossom, and bergamot making it smell like that. It brings to mind a beefed-up female version of Lush's Olive Branch shower gel. Yum. Will probably be getting a bottle.

[veronicafranco]

oh my goodness. this is nice. in the very beginning, the snow (which on me is a touch eucalyptus-y) is a little much. but as it dries, this is quite beautiful! the amber and lily make it rich and creamy, as others have said; the bergamot and cardamom lend it a high-end herbal fragrance. i can't say why, since they share zero notes, but this reminds me a lot of quicksilver phoenix (which i also really like). rich, sweet (this one more so than quicksilver), fancy-spa-stuff herbal. very much like something wonderful you might spend a lot more money on at an aveda salon.

 

as far as capturing the shunga image, i will say that besides the snow note, the olive-green/golden "color" of this scent is exactly true to the picture. beth, for reals, hats off on this one.

[jizatt]

While I really liked this one, I had to double check to see if I hadn't accidentally applied Harimise instead. What I got was an almost nutty, slightly cool fragrance. I'm guessing this is the amber and cardamom combination playing tricks on me. Its pretty, but not what I expected, since I love love olive blossom.

[hlemonds]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

 

Yes! Yes! Yes!

 

 

Some of my favorite BPAL scents may now have competition. This is the creamy, almost vanilla-musk like base i associate with The Girl, made brighter with a dose of sunny bergamot and spring blossoms. The flowers are velvety, like petals warmed against soft, clean skin. The creaminess may be from the snow note, which i don't necessarily pick out on it's own (this isn't just some Snow White variant, no it is not!). The snow is likely where i am getting the vanilla scent-sation as well. This is gorgeously blended....and quite "traditional" to my nose. For the record, traditional, to my mind, is not a bad thing. I think this is the sort of BPAL fragrance that is quite friendly to the non-BPAL "informed", if you will. I definitely get what the other reviewer said about this having a "spa-like" feel. It is clean, soft, and very inviting.

[hkhm]

bottle: vibrant florals.

 

wet: this almost smells like it has vanilla in it! it's so creamy and sweet, the florals are tame, nothing cloying here. perhaps it's the snowball giving it such a watery "clean" scent, something puts me in mind of softly glistening blooms and boughs.

 

dry: i can smell the bergamot a bit as this dries, very faint but distinctive. it's a soft, creamy wet floral that makes me understand how people can love floral scents.

[windbourne]

Yes, please. :9 I'll be keeping this one, though its similarities in tone to both Defututa and Lilith vs. The Giant Crab mean I probably won't buy a bottle.

 

This is a somewhat sweet scent, with a mild and fuzzy throw. It lasts all day with sufficient application. It starts with that golden olive-y scent that Defututa has, but instead of going spicy and RAWR, develops a beautiful bergamot-citrussy flair, following it up with a subtle greenish tinge of cardamom pods. It all blends beautifully, with some of the sweet citrus-almost-cakey aspect of Lilith vs. The Giant Crab, but less aquatic. There's a little hint of snow note, just a little, a single snowball-worth, if you will.

 

I slathered this on yesterday and wore it around and loved it.

[mimosa]

I tested a number of decants together, this one found a space on my shoulder as arms and knees were taken.

A quick first test, fairly pleasant creamy orangish scent nothing outstanding. Off to bed time, lay there thinking what is that amazing smell, tracked it down to the Okayaki shoulder, wow this is , great throw and staying power. I shall be needing a bottle of this one, definite favourite of this years lupers so far

[fairnymph]

Extremely pale nearly colourless yellow oil. Soft, gentle, sweet and delicate - and oddly both sort of warm, in a flushed skin sense, but also slightly cool, from the light snow note (which strikes me as being faintly piney and faintly minty, but either way too faintly to be sure). Sniffing more deeply, I get a bit of citrusy bergamot and a hint of spice. The florals are very delicate.

 

An odd sort of rotten floral note emerges - the same thing I get from Ides of March, and more recently Penis Admiration - I usually attribute it to iris, so I have no idea what the true cause is here, but maybe it's bergamot bc this really does remind me QUITE a bit of Ides, albeit more feminine and without the greenery. Or maybe it's the olive blossom, which I can't identify here and it's usually a distinct note on my skin. The snow note strikes me as the same delicate minty one from Ded Moroz and Winter Mums, which is the one snow note I like and can wear. The amber is definitely white amber, furthering the DM similarity. I love the lily here - it's subtly sweet, fresh, and clean - quite like stargazer.

 

As this dries some musk, a delicious sweet vanilla musk - the same from Victoria - begins to amp on my skin. The mysterious rotten floral aspect is fading (and I think it might either BE the bergamot or else it's merging with the bergamot), and I'm getting a more distinct greenish, bright yet warm edge that I think is due the cardamom - yet this is nothing like the intense spice and heat of the note in Lamia. If I didn't know it, I definitely wouldn't guess there were snow in this blend at this point, and I doubt I would have earlier either - it's very faint, and this blend definitely trends more towards warmth.

 

Okay, I have pinned it down - I believe the 'rotten floral' effect I get has something to do with the minty note here meant to convey snow, and I was wrong - it is NOT the same note as in DM and WM, though it is more like those snow notes than any other. But I think the actual mentholic/cool note here may be my nemesis PENNYROYAL. In any case this is much cooler and 'mintier' than it was earlier, and the white amber has also amped greatly. I finally get a little olive blossom, I think, which adds a rich edge to the creaminess of the vanilla musk. And I'm getting much more of the stunning lily note, which is sweet, luminous, bright and clean and yet not at all soapy or powdery. It reminds me of the Casablanca lily note from Sweet Life. The cardamom adds a touch of bright warmth and in tandem with the vanilla musk gives me a vague Lamia feel, but otherwise I'd never guess it were here.

 

This would be AMAZING without the rotten floral note. What's even more upsetting is I'm not sure what exactly is the source of said horror, because in all the blends that share this note, I can't find a common note that's actually listed. Frustrating!

 

[KesHiro]

I figured it was a good sign when A-- the notes caught my attention and made me immediately think of my favorite incense and B-- the picture made me laugh out loud. After much "hmmmm"ing and "haaaaaw"ing, I finally tossed a bottle into my shopping cart and that has proven to be a wise decision.

 

In the bottle, I get a light musky vanilla. Wet, it's the same but with the addition of the bergamot. During the drydown, the scent becomes a soft lemony vanilla musk. Once dry, the amber begins to bloom and it's an ambery vanilla musk with a faint touch of citrus and maybe some lily. There is something floral there, but it is very faint. I don't know if the cardamom pod every shows up, but it might be mixing with the amber.

 

This is very similar to The Girl, so if you love that scent but missed out on it, or couldn't wear it because of the jasmine, you might want to consider giving Okayaki a try. To me, it's a great alternative.

 

My one complaint is that it fades much quicker than most of my other oils. It never fully vanishes but after four hours this is a true skin scent and I have to put my nose up to my wrist to get anything. I don't mind, though, as I don't always want tons of throw and this means Okayaki can go in my work safe group.

 

I love this and am glad I have a bottle.

 

Edit: whoa, where did that emoticon come from?!

 

Edit #2: 3/18/10 I'm taking back what I said about this fading quickly. It still becomes a skin scent after four hours of wear but after wearing this on 3/17, it didn't fade as much as the first time. I might have been having bizarre skin issues the day I did the initial test.

 

Edit#3: 5/27/10 -- I bought a backup bottle of this scent and it's a wee bit different than my first one. The final result of the scent is a very cool floral with a touch of cardamom and the snow note is more slushy than creamy. It's quite similar but still different. I much prefer the snowy version to this more slushy floral one but it's nice too.

Edited May 27, 2010 by Kejiaron

[ObsidianSwirl71]

In the Bottle ♦ Warm froth of the sheerest golden silk whispering through silvered woods. But whole ... like thronging sound thrown from the bells of ethereal horns. Bright daydreams of far away sugary blossoms meeting gracefully with cool cascading vanilla air above.

 

Initial Application ♦ Olive blossom, lily, and bergamot are stunningly tangled together, both smooth and sparkling. White amber entwined innocently like the memory of electric glances of first love. Snow and Cardamon ... Cool powdered sugar dusting warm sunblushed limbs. Light tasted like gleaming white petals resting in fallen angles. Sensations fused into the finely chalked texture of seashells moving across fingertips.

 

Dry Down ♦ Secret, radiant beings, hair spread wild against Lothlorien branches, hard and fizzy thrummings caught softly through veils of confectionery powder ... watched by owls from fair silver trees ... lightening into halos of lasting silken sweetness.

 

So very good. Experienced innocence. Sweet Dreams ...

 

 

 

 

I get no mint in this for anyone wondering; only a powdery white coolness. Powder in the sense of texture not scent (which I find very impressive).

Edited March 15, 2010 by ObsidianSwirl71