Nikephoros

[childoftime]

Bringer of victory
Black currant, patchouli, blood orange, oakmoss, galbanum, benzoin, and white mint.

When I first opened the bottle I was a bit worried about this scent, as the oakmoss was VERY strong. When I put it on, however, Nikephoros became an instant love. This is exactly the scent I'd been digging through my collection looking for and not finding. The oakmoss and patchouli ground the scent, and they are very well balanced by the orange and blackcurrant. The balance keeps this from being too sweet or too earthy/dry. The white mint isn't really detectable, but makes this scent is cold like the end of winter meeting early spring. This is a complex scent that is mostly cool and dry with a hint of warm and juicy.

[Venneh]

In the bottle, this is WHY HELO THAR OAKMOSS AND GALBANUM. Very dark, with maybe a hint of fruit trying to break free underneath. On my skin, much the same, though the orange is punching its way through. Oh, and the mint. Which is an... interesting scent, to say the least.

Edited February 14, 2011 by Venneh

[lahdeedah]

It was a nice coincidence that as I was thinking to myself that one of the things missing from my collection was a blood orange scent, out come the Lupers. Nikephoros was one of the first I got to try and I placed an order for it right away. The combination of notes grounds the juicy orange and keeps it out of super sweet territory.

 

On my skin, it's pretty much the same wet through drydown. Lots of juicy blood orange, backed by a leafiness that I think is the galbanum, a dirtiness I attribute to patchouli, and a slight sharpness from the oakmoss. Oakmoss is usually a death note for me, and has killed many a blend on my skin, but here it seems to be like a sentinel, just making sure the scent stays grounded. I don't notice the benzoin or mint.

 

Conceptually, what the scent evokes for me is the bright orange sun of sunset, setting over a field of dry grasses. I like it a lot.

[cfrancesca]

This is a mainly oakmoss, blood orange and dark patchouli on me.

[surf-tormented]

In the bottle: Most amusing. A mix of things. Very pretty fruit mint that isn't too sweet coupled with mossy resins. Promising, since I tried three Ode to Aphrodites from 2009 and two of them went craft store candle fruit on me, sweet and overbearing. This is not that.

 

On skin, wet: The orange comes out on top, followed by a strange smell, almost chemical, but in a good way. After the chemical bit goes away rather quick, I am left with a lovely galbanum, which smells lush and green. Along with this is the benzoin and mint. The fruit is there, but it fresh and not-sweet and stays to the back.

 

Drying: It gets really earthy. Like plants growing in earth, with a bit of citrus at the end of each sniff. It's the patchouli kicking in, but with the other heavier notes in this, it only adds to the party and doesn't overwhelm it. I have to agree with lahdeedah's comment of it being an orange sun setting over grass, but to me the grass is more thick forest glen. It feels very orange and dark green at the same time.

 

Overall: I would say it is in the family of perfumes which include Mircalla and Mme. Moriarty, Misfortune Teller because they go from fruity to this earthy state on me in the same way. It does also invoke a scent of victory when I wear it, like a small smelly coat of strength. True to its namesake.

Edited February 23, 2011 by Madame Nyx

[Iceblink]

I'm shocked at how much I like this and how it smells nothing like I thought it would--I am not picking up blood orange or mint here but instead a strong, STRONG oakmoss that's earthy and deep. The patchouli is present but not obnoxious and the resins are gorgeous here--it's a dry, dark blend and has lots of throw. Really different for me but unexpectedly great! I'll definitely try this again before the Lupers go down because it may be a winner.

[SophieCedar]

Wet: I didn't expect the blood orange to be kicking so much ass in this one. When 1st applied I smelled black currant, blood orange, patchouli, and an itty bitty sliver of white mint. You'd think by reading that impression that it's an uplifting & invigorating scent with promises of something primal..but no. My brain perceives this actually as doleful, somber. The galbanum and oakmoss pulls all the levity down to a psychologically basal and mournful feel. It truly emulates the image's sepia tone and prone position.

 

drydown: still blood orange based but dryer. The black currant comes out more. The galbanum and oakmoss continue to shine with a slight meaty warmth from the benzoin. Overall a great impactful scent. Would be a good choice for fall.

[Invidiana]

This is another one that should have worked by all accounts but completely flopped with my chemistry. Despite my penchant for amping resins I hardly got any benzoin or galbanum for some reason and ended up with predominant oakmoss and a bit of mint and something faintly citrusy and tart from the blood orange and blackcurrant. There is a hint of patchouli in there somewhere, but very faint. Nikephoros should have been a win on me much like its name, but sadly it wasn't. I don't understand my skin.

[edenssixthday]

Nikephoros - This opens up as a strong patchouli and orange blend. The oakmoss and galbanum are pretty heavy, as well. The black currant gives it a bit of dark berry juiciness, but since black currant always turns to cat pee on me, I know this will go horribly awry when it dries down. Interestingly, it doesn't do what I think it will. Upon drydown, the black currant disappears instead of going all cat pee on me, the orange lightens up significantly, and in fact, the whole blend becomes a lot more subtle. The patchouli is still the strong note, sweetened up by the orange and benzoin. I love most of the notes in this blend (except for black currant) and the end effect is nice, but I don't love it. It's a great gender-neutral scent that would smell good on both men and women who like this "dirty" type of patchouli that's cleaned up/sweetened up by the bright, crisp orange.

[zankoku_zen]

Nikephoros, you are an utter fail to me. You are dark patchouli and resiny benzoin. Actually, I think I would have been happy with invidiana's experience. This is a warm, resinous scent, and definitely not the kind that I'm attracted to.

 

PASS.

[Dark Alice]

This is truly a morpher:

Wet: Blood orange and patchouli

Dry: galbanum and patchouli

Final drydown: Galbanum, patchouli, barest hint of mint and benzoin. Nothing spectacular. Going to pass on this one.

[Gin]

I rarely remember the notes listed, so when Nikephoros arrived, I was like, WTF? Why would I have ordered this? In the vial, it's patchouli, orange, OAKMOSS, and mint. On my skin, it's patchouli, orange, galbanam, and OAKMOSS. After looking at the notes, I realize the one reason I wanted this--black currant--is nowhere to be found. Instead, I get a dry, resinous scent that isn't unpleasant (it reminds me of Tarot: Death, and I liked that one quite a bit), but it's not at all what I had imagined. The decant will almost certainly be used, but no need for a bottle.

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Orange, orange, and more orange!

 

Wet: Orange with mint.

 

The dry-down: The currant, patch, and benzoin finally appear to tame and soften the blood orange. Blood oranges in RL are a fave, but whereas I used to be able to wear citrus scents, now it seems that they don't work on me as well as in the past. I took a chance on this because I thought that the other notes would serve to check the orange note in check. They do to some extent. It's still mostly orange and mint, and nothing more than this decant is needed.

[midnight_aeval]

This blend is really heavy on the blood orange. I was hoping for more patchouli & currant... as it dries down I am getting blood orange, galbanum, and oakmoss. The blend has shifted to a green scent with the balancing orange. WOW, a blend that has patchouli that I can't even smell?? Impossible.

[Little Bird]

I love or like every note listed in this blend, so I had high hopes for this scent. I expected a sweet, juicy mix of currant and orange, and a resinous-earthy base from the other notes. There's nothing really juicy about this scent, though. It's dark and dry, and makes me think of pine needles crunching underneath my feet in a forest that hasn't seen nearly enough rain lately. The oakmoss and patchouli blend together in a way that's masculine and wonderfully reminiscent of pine forests on my skin, and the blood orange adds this dark citrus kick that's like a blood red sunset setting over the trees. Sexy, dry and dark forest. Over time, the citrus is a little too sharp on me and the scent overall isn't quite sweet enough for me to pull off. I do like this, but I'll be giving the bottle to my hubby instead of keeping it for myself.

[milo]

Wet, strong woody, resinous patchouli. Dry, there is a teeny bit of black currant coming through, but this blend is mainly about the patch. This smells like an evergreen forest in the middle of summer, dry, with earthy tones with a bit of dried out berries under the thick, dry brush. I don't get any mint or orange. This would probably be great on a guy, but this is just a teeny bit too masculine for me, though I do like it, I'd never wear it.

Edited April 17, 2011 by milo

[LadyMedb]

I got so much orange upon opening this that I really feared a cleaning-fluid scent. However, once this got on my skin, it became apparent that it really wanted to be oakmoss and patchouli. That's fine! I like those notes!

 

In the end, it's a very earthy and dry scent, with some sweetness to it, but the notes just don't hang together well enough on me to make this anything special.