Okayaki

[Invidiana]

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

This was another one of the "meh" Shungas for me, a very tea-like floral in the same vein as Unveiled but "colder" with the snow note. I was crossing my fingers for the cardamom and amber to take over at some point, but nothing happened. It just remained pretty uneventful from vial to the drydown, and also very faint on my skin.

[CitizenBree]

Tea with cream and lemon. ew? Won't that cream curdle? Anyway, this is definitley creamy but there is a hint of citrus in the background. I'm surprised that's not a note in this list. It's actually fairly strong when it's wet on my skin. like a really fresh lemon wedge. Maybe it's sitting on the side of the teacup.

 

This is delicate and light but not really floral on me. Not any lily or snow notes in what I smell on my wrist.

 

Doesn't last too long on me. This wasn't originally on my Shunga want list, but I added it after hearing others rave about it. It just isn't working out for me. I find it very unique, but I'm not in love.

 

[lunaticana]

first impression from bottle: wow, not me at all.. more for the boy or something

fresh wet drops on skin: ever soooo soft, this must be that olive blossom

after one hour: super soft indeed and I like it, the cardemom is coming out and gives a very classy touch!

amber is really sexy, the lily and bergamot make the whole perfume a little fresh but also mysterious in a way

overall rating: good to wear for me after all and I will do it when sultry summer-evenings are here again

[ami226]

 

On the skin: Very sweet! I would have thought there was orange in this blend!! I like how the snowball note ever so slightly makes this blend pop! Very good! I think I can also smell the lily and the sweetness must be the cardamom. I am liking this one, but I will need to try it again just to make sure...

[angelicruin]

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

 

Must. Hoard.

 

If your's is broken, so is mine. I completely agree with your review.

 

[anomie]

Imp: Definitely getting the olive blossom and the bergamot. Possibly the cardamom pod. It's almost tangy.

 

Wet: Beautifully light and fresh, but not in the usual way I associate with those terms.

 

Dry: Still a really different floral blend. Will definitely have to try it again and determine if it's bottle-worthy.

Edited March 22, 2010 by Nomie

[fisharescary]

first impression was that this was a light foody blend with snow and amber. Like pretty much equal parts each, which is surprising for snow.

I guess the foody part would be cardamom, bergamot, and olive blossom (assuming that the blossoms smell vaguely like the fruit and oil; I've never actually smelled them)

Not sure what lily smells like so it could just be that I can't identify it, not that it's not there.

 

This is very, very light, but has some throw to it. It's oddly easier to smell while typing than with my nose right by my forearm, where I applied.

[Beatrice33]

Well, after reading that a couple other people smelled absinthe, I don't think I'm crazy anymore. I kept wondering if my decant was mislabeled and was actually Pink Mood. In any case, this is a creamy anise scent on my skin. Reminds me a bit of Serge Lutens Douce Amere, a favorite of mine, but this one is much lighter and airier. I'm really liking it so far....

[Schmoozy]

 

Cool, soft florals with amber infused cardamom. It's spicy, golden and very pretty. It doesn't last very long on my skin though, and after awhile this is all bergamot and cardamom.

[Venneh]

Getting an odd combination of what I'm sure is the olive blossom and the cardamom in the tester. Hrm. On my skin, I'm getting olive blossom, lily, cardamom, and the citrus note from the bergamont? We'll see where this goes. Ends up being pretty straight forward citrus-lily-olive blossom-cardamom on me, not quite what I was looking for in this.

Edited March 29, 2010 by Venneh

[loladae]

This reminds me of a more perfume-y version of Hanerot Halalu. Basically, Hanerot + The Girl. It's so amazing ahhh. I just wish the throw wasn't short I'll have to debate on getting a bottle. I want another imp or two for sure though.

[wrestlingentropy]

This is very subtle and well blended without being too mild or disappearing too quickly. The shared olive blossom and general creaminess definitely makes it a sister scent to Defututa, but, doing a wrist-to-wrist comparison, Okayaki is gentle and sly while Defututa is louder and lusty.

 

Okayaki is nice and neutral while still being unique and immediately identifiable as a BPAL blend. I like it a lot, and can see myself wearing it on days when I don't know what else to wear. The scent and the throw stayed remarkably consistent on my skin throughout a very loooong day, which is impressive in and of itself. A very lovely oil.

[zankoku_zen]

Snow, loads of olive and cardamom.

 

Odd. I really get lots of olive, and it reminds me to Olisbos. I think olive blossom tends to go 'chemical' on me.

[girasol]

This reminded me a lot of a commercial perfume, I'm thinking possibly because of the lily note or the olive blossom? That said, this is an incredibly pretty scent. I think I will definitely be needing a bottle. A light, feminine floral (whoever said it was unisex upthread must have a very different skin chemistry than me ) with good throw. It has a soft coolness to it, which is possibly where the snow note comes in. I personally did not get the citrus or the creaminess others have mentioned, it was all crisp floral on me.

[crebbsgirl]

Olive blossom is a standout on my skin. Warm and creamy. The cardamom adds a little bit of spice here. I'm not getting much snow here, nor is the bergamot really coming out on me. I like this, but it's a little bland on me. It stays pretty much just olive blossom and amber.

[ralenth]

Soft, creamy floral with hints of snow, but very muted. Bergamot and lilies are usually death-notes for me, but Okayaki remains balanced, delicate and sophisticated. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I think I am going to get quite a bit of mileage out of my bottle.

[tailoredshirt]

In the bottle: Orange cake. The bergamot and amber, presumably. It smells good, but it is very sweet.

 

Wet: Same as in the bottle, only a bit sweeter.

 

Dry: Sweet stuff seems to amp on me, so I still get orange cake in the dry down. I feel like maybe there are some light florals in there somewhere, but it's mostly soft orange cake. Normally I don't like foodie scents, and if I'd thought I would end up smelling like cake I wouldn't have even tried to get my hands on a decant, but this is surprisingly soft and nice. It does dry down into more of a subtle close-to-the-skin scent, which is nice. I think I would like it more if the florals came out more, or if there was something else in there to balance out the sweetness of the amber, but this is pretty.

Overall: It smelled like a pretty, subtle orange cake scent from start to finish. It didn't have a huge throw, but that was okay. I like it and I think I will get a bottle for days when I want something sweet and subtle.

[sunlitgarden]

Okayaki

I was going to pass on this one, but a last-minute decant made me change my mind.

 

Okayaki is light and fresh without being overly floral or fruity (which I usually associate with the "fresher" scents). It's soft and a little sweet, and to me, somehow feels both warm and cool, making it suitable for almost any weather. It reminds me faintly of olive oil, but in a good way, and it's not foody. (Maybe the olive blossom? I don't actually know what olive blossoms smell like.) I don't really have anything to compare it to, except to say that I really like it and ordered a bottle.

Edited April 30, 2010 by sunlitgarden

[milo]

Pretty, delicate, fresh, I really like this a lot! I'm having a hard time picking notes out here, but to me it's like a tropical forest after a rainfall, but without the heady tropical flowers, if that makes sense. The florals here are fresh and white. This would smell really good if you had a hangover or weren't feeling well. Not sure why that blurted out! Anyways, this is very well blended, everything comes together seamlessly and I may hunt down more depending on how the rest of the wear goes. I think the lily scared me from getting an earlier decant, and then I searched for one a bit later. I don't get any lilies at all, and if they're there, they are quite understated.

Edited May 5, 2010 by milo

[dreamcatcher]

Okay, for what it's worth, I truly love this and it smells so skin huggingly huffable. It kind of dries to a light cake, skin musk, and just the right amount of spice scent. (cardamom is listed but to my untrained nose, I get anisette (sp?).) Everytime I smell my wrist directly, I get a lighter, summer, sans leather version of Le Pere Fouettard. So pretty!! I will cherish what I have.

[mymymai]

In the Bottle: I'm getting lemon (I know it's not in there), and olive blossom. I get just a little bit of tea on the tail end. It reminds me of Lush's Olive Branch mixed with Snow Cake.

Wet: A bit more sweetness here. I think the amber is coming through, but a bit powdery, followed quickly by olive blossom and lemon again.

Dry: Olive Blossom and lots of powder with a hint of spiciness. I'm hoping the powder will die down after hours of well. As of right now, it is just alright.

Edited February 20, 2011 by Shollin
Removed Lab description

[Suusje]

Well, all I get from this one is the Lab's snow-note. Maybe it needs some more time to age or maybe this one just isn't meant for me

[Siberia]

My favorite of the Shungas. This is a very soft and pretty vanilla scent. The "softness" is accentuated because somehow this perfume is very fuzzy or velvety. The "snow" is most like the snowiness of Snow White, and not wet or slushy smelling at all. I did not get a lot of cardamom. It will probably sound strange, but more than anything else, this reminds of of Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener. Weird, I know.

[sarielswish]

In the vial, it's very clean and almost green smelling. Pretty appropriate, given the notes. Color, very light green.

 

Wet on my skin, I quite like this. It's feminine without being cloying and overly floral. Hubby actually asked what this one was before I had a chance to ask his opinion of it! Good sign. It has a nice citrus note to it that's not overpowering - enough to lift the whole thing up but not enough to bowl you over. I think I like the olive blossom, too.

 

10-15 minute drydown - Wow. Morning star lily and olive blossom have been added to the list of flowers that don't make me want to cringe in terror and I have confirmed that I <3 snow notes.

[tartchef]

Normally I'd run far from anything mentioning lily, but I am such a sucker for olive blossom, this had to be tried...

 

It took me a few days to realize what in my office was smelling so heavenly - my decants had arrived, & my Okiyaki had leaked ever so slightly. Even my DH was taken with it...

 

In the vial, there's a definite resemblance to L'Estate bath oil - that same kind of golden floral amber, sweet & glowing. On my skin, a coolness emerges, & I can detect a trace of bergamot that's cutting the thickness ever so slightly, but that sunny sweet floral is still the main attraction.

 

The longer this wears, alas, the more it thins out, until I'm left with little more than a faint bit of snow & perfumed amber. I'll be saving the rest of my decant for a linen spray, I'm thinking - it's a perfect scent for pillows & delicate underthings

Edited March 23, 2011 by Shollin
Removed Lab description