Cat Allingham

[The_Witching_Hour]

CAT ALLINGHAM
Catherine Allingham, the world's greatest detective, has been diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor and given six months to live. But she refuses to go quietly. She's determined to first unravel the greatest mystery of all--what happens to us when we die? Cat and her brawny assistant, James Doyle, chase the secret of the afterlife around the globe in this fast-paced graphic novel!

Distilled shadows, a bleak desert landscape at midnight: Myroswelia balsam, gaïac wood, obsidian musk, green cumin, patchouli, myrrh, Siamese benzoin, frankincense, champaca, and sand.

This really is a well blended oil to start off with. So much so I'm having difficulty picking out notes from the bottle and upon initial application.

I don't know why or where I get a feel of incense in this but it reminds me a lot of Capela Dos Ossos shortly after initial application. I think I’m picking up on the "sand" note from both blends and kind of jumbling them in my mind.

After about 20 minutes the cumin, patchouli and champaca really start to sing! This is one complex scent that keeps changing every 10-15 minutes. Given the scent description alone (above) about Cat Allingham, this is starting to make sense to me as this fragrance continues to morph.

After 3 hours of constant and beautiful change, I’m left with a combination of musk, light balsam (almost vanilla/creamy in "feel"), frankincense and a hint of "shifting sand". This is so evocative of a dark, changing desert landscape at night. It wears very close to the skin and it's quite a beauty!

I feel as if I've been transported on a journey to Egypt with this one! For its continually changing qualities when worn.....a perfect scent for a Gemini or anyone that wants to change fragrances every few hours because this one will change itself for you.

[cfrancesca]

This one is incredible for resin lovers. Very complex, and a little mysterious, I think a very suiting blend for the "world's greatest detective". I get almost all the notes listed; the frankincense, wood, and the cumin (which works surprisingly well on my skin adding a little mildly sweet warmth and spice), a little myrrh and the balsam. I'm also getting some dustiness which would probably be the sand. I'm not getting any patchouli or benzoin. It's slightly sweet on my skin and the combination of these notes create a kind of dusty, spicy and warm dark tea-like scent on my skin.

[CLFilm]

I don't usually like myrrh or frankincense, but I love this blend! But it definitely takes a few minutes to mellow out and settle down when you first put it on. I'm not sure how to describe it really. It's a warm, dry scent. The "sand" is more a feeling than a straight up smell. An incredibly well-blended scent that reminds me of a less in-your-face Luperci. This is like only the sweeter base notes of Luperci, but then again is so it's own thing. It's strong, but not overpowering, and I think works as an everyday scent for those who like something non-traditional, and as a special occasion scent for when one needs to feel especially badass. It's an asskicking, yet feminine perfume. How's that for a real information free review?

[ahoythere]

Wow, this is definitely a complex blend! As others have said, it's difficult to pick out individual notes because they all seem to come together very harmoniously. It's slightly spicy and a little sweet from the green cumin. The patchouli adds an absolutely lovely dimension to the blend, making it richer and deeper. I definitely get some wood notes and resin notes, and thankfully I can't pick up any musk. Overall, it's wonderfully soft and warm. In the bottle, the scent is a lot brighter and has almost like a...soda pop note to it?

[edenssixthday]

Cat Allingham - This is a really beautiful blend. It's highly resinous, dark yet classy, heavy yet sweet. The myrrh, champaca, black musk and benzoin are the strongest notes on me with the patchouli and frankincense creating a second level of depth. I'm delighted the cumin doesn't turn to b.o. as it has been known to do. The sand note is definitely present, but rather than give the scent a dry desert type feel, it balances out the sweetness of the benzoin and musk. There's a hint of woodiness to the blend, but it's not remotely masculine. This is a really well-blended scent, and each note obviously adds to the overall beauty of the blend, yet it's so well-blended that they harmonize perfectly. It's quite strong when first applied, but once it dries down, it's got a lower-than-average level of throw and doesn't last as long as I'd expect with all those dark and heavy notes in it. It's beautiful and I can't wait to see how this one ages!

[krissstephens]

It absorbed right into my skin too, Edens Sixth Day, after about half an hour. It's very faint.. and I am surprised too because in the bottle is does smell extremely resinie. I love the sweetness and I am not sure where it's coming from but I get a green note. I can barely smell the cumin. I wish this had more throw because it's such a beautiful scent.

[Gold Dust Kitten]

I have a hard time picking out all of the notes but it's generally resiny, woody, sweet, and spicy. I smell a faint ginger spiciness that reminds me of the same ginger in Flesh Eating Reindeer, champaca, benzoin, musk and myrrh. I also get a "dusty" feel from this. I live in the desert and whenever I wear perfume I could still smell it hours later under a dusty film. This smells like that..

 

I'm so glad I bought a bottle of this, it's a very alluring and complex blend. Too bad it doesn't have better throw and lasting power.

[angelicruin]

A very heavy resinous scent on my skin. Just enough sweetness to really smell wonderful on me. Frankincense, myrrh, benzoin, and musk are notes I can pick out. No cumin on me.

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, I could imagine this being in the same family as Sunbird (that desert-resins feel). It gives off an impression of sweet, dark resins and earthy, hot sand, and it smells like there's a mix of heated red musk and cologney black musk in the background.

 

On my skin, this instantly blooms into something spicier and sexier. I don't see any clove or red musk listed, but it smells a lot like sweet clove with the warmth of red musk & sand and a hint of a sharper, perfumey black musk. As it dries down, there's a dry woods feel under those notes that reminds me of creamy sandalwood.

Over time that creamy, dry woods smell takes over and softens the blend into incense smoke, dry woods, and hints of musk. It fades away entirely after about 3 hours on me, which is a surprise, since it's such a strong and heavy scent for the first hour.

 

I really like this and am happy to have a bottle. The muskiness is sexy and I love the mix of sweet resins/incense and dry woods. It's like a sexy and well put together perfume for a woman who is more comfortable adventuring through the desert on her own and being badass and outdoorsy. I could see her wearing this to a formal event that bores her and is beneath her, lol.

[zankoku_zen]

Definitely sand, (reminds me to Sunbird and Capella de Ossos), cumin, patchouli, woods and musk. It's a very very dry, spicy, resinous blend.

 

Makes me think of Tomb Raider, except perhaps less sexually overt and more in the kickass, I tramp through sand dunes and excavate forgotten treasures sort of way.

[Penance]

Origin:

 

5mL bought on LiveJournal.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I'm expecting something resinous and warm, like dry sand. Maybe with some spice and a bit of musk?

 

First sniff:

 

Citrus? What am I smelling that's citrusy? It's almost lemon-like, but a little orangey, too. I definitely smell resins here, underneath that odd citrus note, and they're lovely. I was expecting something drier and spicier. This citrus vibe is throwing me.

 

Wet on skin:

 

Even stronger lemonish smell than in the bottle. I'm not sure what the "offender" (I say that because I don't like citrus in perfumes) is here, but I wish it would step back so I could smell the lovely, warm resins and spices that are hiding underneath it.

 

Dry down:

 

The citrus fades somewhat as this dries, and I end up with something that has the same liquid resin/amber-colored water vibe I get from King Cobra and Heavenly Love & Earthly Love but with an overlay of almost-lemon. It could be ginger, I suppose, since I get a similar note from White Rabbit, but there's no ginger listed in Cat's notes, so I'm not sure that that's it. This isn't the dark, dry, desert-like scent I was anticipating. Instead it's a bright, golden-yellow scent. It reminds me of some of the Tarot blends, actually.

 

The bottom line:

 

I like the drydown on this and I'll be keeping my bottle, but I'd love this so much more if the mystery citrus note wasn't included.

[ellebelle]

I really love this! On me, it is incense-y/dark musky blend. There is a bit of sharpness if I put it close to my nose, but i love the scent of it as it wafts around me. I found the dry down to be exceptionally like - mostly wood with a touch of spice. Low throw on the dry down, I think I'd have to bring a touch with me to spread on myself throughout the day.

[dawndie]

In bottle: citrussy floral

 

On skin: it's close to Litha '06, orangey fizz

 

Half-hour later: this has deepened nicely with some dusty resins

 

In conclusion: a blend that starts out fresh and perky, then gets richer with the incensey resins like a less-spicy Sunbird. I'm so glad this didn't end up too "woody" on me. Not very long-lasting, but worth reapplying throughout the day as I like the beginning through the end.

[filigree_shadow]

Deep, sweet resin, a wood background, and a dry, smoky quality. The frankincense, thank goodness, is not making this too high-pitched for me. I was worried about that. And it's not too dark, either. It smells mysterious and swirly.

 

I didn't like it the first 3-4 minutes it was on my skin, but after 20 minutes I liked it a lot.

 

And this bottle is going straight into the BPAL box to age, because I bet it will be glorious in about 2 years.

[SophieCedar]

Wet: I can smell the balsam (sweet mellow and deep), gaiac wood, champaca, and musk, plus myrrh, frankincense and the siamese benzoin. This blends so well that nothing stands out too much. You'd have to have the list in front of you to identify more than myrrh, musk, and benzoin.

 

Drydown: I got a bit of green cumin the last time but not now? Hmm.. Just musk, benzoin, and myrrh. The dryness of a sand note is present but I can't say I smell it. Much softer and sweeter than last try.

[dreamingjune]

In the bottle: Slightly clovey sweet resins with champaca goodness?

 

Wet: Extremely well blended. Not a very dark or heavy scent with some subtle sweetness. The balsam, benzoin, and wood act as a background to the green cumin. At first I thought I was smelling clove and then realized it was the green cumin. This gives it an unusual herbal sort of spice quality. The obsidian musk is subtle and gives the sexy powdery feel of the black musk the lab uses.

 

Dry: Soft, powdery resins with the cumin still giving a touch of spice. I don't get a ton of balsam but it is definitely there making this slightly sweet and understated version of sexy. Cat Allingham is reminding me of the scent of shea butter somehow.

 

Overall: Not a very "stand out among the crowd" sort of scent, but definitely a good one. This is the sort of blend that would be fabulous worn all over in a moisturizer since it is subtle enough to not interfere with another blend. Also, it blends beautifully with the natural nutty sweet scent of shea butter.

[calivianya]

Oh wow, this is amazing.

 

I don't know exactly what I was expecting, but I definitely wasn't expecting this amazingness. I definitely smell woods and musk, but they are sweetened by the champaca and made spicy by the myrrh and frankincense. I just found a new favorite!

[Wwindy]

Not a particularly original observation at this point, but...

 

Holy cow is this stuff good. Seriously! *Gorgeous* deep, dark, swirly, rich resinous goodness. Very elegant, very sexy in a bad-ass heroine kind of way. In some aspects it reminds me a little bit of Helios, in others Oblivion, but overall it's entirely its own thing. As others have noted, it's surprisingly close-to-the-skin for such a complex, resonant blend, but that's ok -- it means you can slather with abandon and revel in the scent without blowing anyone else away!

 

It does shift a bit from application to application -- I've now dabbed twice and thoroughly applied once, and out of those three tries I got the fascinating cumin note only once. That note really *is* fascinating, and it definitely works -- not foody, just nose-grabbingly interesting, and difficult to place if you haven't been reading the note list.

 

Absolutely haunting. It actually also reminds me a tiny bit of Caliph's Beloved, which... uh... yeah. Mmmm. I'll be hanging on to my bottle, and possibly attempting to hoard more!

[Gwydion]

In bottle: Balsam dominant. I am not a balsam fan, but this version is quite lovely with the wood, cumin, and incense. The cumin is really clever here, giving a real sense of place. The musk is darkly sexy. There is a sense about this of mysterious rites and solitude. Wet: Musk and balsam dominant with a strong cumin presence. The wood supports the balsam and musk. The incense twines with the cumin. This really does suit it’s concept. It shouldn’t work on me, but it does. Lots of throw. Dry: Mostly balsam and musk. I’m heart broken as I loved it onfirst ablication, buut it’s not good on me in the later stages. Odds are it’s skin chemistry as the blending was brilliant and I amp musk and don’t usually do well with balsam, so I’m betting it’d be glorious on someone else.

[mymymai]

ITB: It's green and resinous from the green cumin, benzoin, frankincense and gaiac wood. I also get something that reads as sand just underneath the champaca. It's intriguing, that's for sure.

 

Wet: I get olibanum, champaca,frankincense, woodsy tones, and a greened patchouli. I like it.

 

Dry: After several hours, the scent takes on the pleasant powderiness of recently burned incense (frankincense and myrrh) with the lovely tones of champaca, balsam, musk, and benzoin. I'm thoroughly enjoying this one.

[bellumed]

Hmm, what event was this from?

 

Firsts sniffs: Dark, resinous. Benzoin. Some dry woods in there too.

 

The sand note comes through loud and clear on my skin. All that sensual resinous perfume went wandering through the desert. Super dry now. Oh, then it morphs a little and a honeylike sweetness comes out. This is sexy as hell and totally charming. This woman can get whoever she wants, and she knows it.

[Teamama]

Benzoin, resins & musk. The notes have melded with age, so it's difficult to pick out an individual resin, except for my good friend, benzoin. Happily, I really like the result.

This blend needs to be applied in advance, because WOW it has BIG throw when wet! 

This was a fabulous surprise from a 2021 blind bottle swap. 

[MamaMoth]

black musk can go kind of flat and oily on me, and that's happening big time here.  the sand reminds me of an almost buttery almond type note, which i'm also not fond of.  this one is a scrubber.