Ii No Hayata Kills the Nue at the Imperial Palace

[Gold Dust Kitten]

 

II NO HAYATA KILLS THE NUE AT THE IMPERIAL PALACE

Brown musk, antiqued amber, black pepper, tolu balsam, and West Indian Bay.

 

Interesting, this is my first time being the first reviewer!

 

This is very masculine and intense upon first application. I can tell there is black pepper, brown musk and bay. Several minutes later, it fades into a very faint and dry amber with a hint of balsam. It would make a lovely "skin scent" for a man.

[edenssixthday]

Ii No Hayata Kills the Nue at the Imperial Palace - This is an amazing scent! It reminds me of a less heavy and sweet version of Marquis de Carabas (must be the bay in the scent). It's full of musk and amber, the bay gives it a really nice, smoothness that renders it a fairly gender-neutral scent. The black pepper is really light and doesn't make the scent too spicy at all, and the balsam gives it a bit of woodiness. Overall, this is a really remarkable scent, and one that I would love to smell on my husband as much as I enjoy the scent on myself.

[cfrancesca]

When first applied, I got mostly resins with a backdrop of soft bay, black pepper and a really nice amber. As it dried, the brown musk emerged, but it's not as strong as I'd hoped. I find all notes in here are well-blended, soft and pleasant and a bit masculine, the overall scent is softly spicy, musky and a bit smokey on my skin.

[Gin]

This is aggressive when wet--very sharp. Dries down to soft, powdery musk and amber and bay.

[Wwindy]

Whew, I get mostly *very* sharp peppery balsam from this when it's wet! As it dries down, it gets mellower and mellower, and the musk and amber warm up; the bay does stay a touch on the masculine side, but it's manageable. The end result reminds me a lot of Fledgling Raptor Moon.

[Little Bird]

I love this blend. It reminds me of a lot of my other favorite blends (Voodoo, Doc Buzzard, King of Clubs - with a drydown that reminds me a bit of Port Royal). It's dark and foresty, but has a sweet edge to it. It's masculine in a way that's both sexy and cozy, like cuddling up to a good, strong man that you feel safe around <3. I love it and would love this on a guy, but it's sweet enough that I'm going to be wearing it myself.

 

If I had to guess at the notes in this, I would have guessed that it's sweet pine, dry wood, spicy, masculine bay rum, and a touch of lime.

 

It's complex, dark, woodsy, sweet, and spicy. I worried that the amber would go powdery on me, but it doesn't at all. I'm happy to have a bottle of this .

[filigree_shadow]

I thought this one might be a good one for my husband -- I thought it would smell like a peppery wood scent. He usually likes stuff like that. And it does smell like that... kinda. Sadly it's also a bit astringent. It's quite bold, and smells more brisk than I imagined it would. I gave it to my husband to try, and he said he thinks it smells like cleaning products. Hmm. I don't think this one is a winner for either of us.

[milo]

Wet, very medicinal and astringent. As it dries, it is less astringent, but has a more sour vibe to it. This is kind of a masculine blend, a bit musky, fresh, and that odd sour note, which does fade more and more as time goes on. This is nice to try, but it is just a bit too masculine for me. I do like the brown musk in here though!

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Lots of bay and balsam.

 

Wet: Bay, balsam, and brown musk.

 

The dry-down: This scent stays true to itself and does not change much throughout. The balsam does slowly soften the bay and this allows all the notes to blend together. This is nice but too masculine for me. It might be lovely on the bf, so I will have him try it. What I did find interesting about this oil was that the amber did not go too powdery and the brown musk didn't become too sharp.

[surlygurl]

Wow. Fresh on, this smells exactly like the TAL Hymn to Pan - it's that slightly effervescent herbal cola smell that I love so much. Joy!! Within minutes, the fresh juicy effervescence fades and the herbal elements (bay?) come out stronger, but the whole thing gets a little dusty. It's like going into an old herbal apothecary shop, or going into a (great)grandparents attic and opening a chest of men's clothes. Slightly musty, bay rummy/ herbal, very faint.

 

This needs to be tested side by side with my other bay rum blends, but I *think* it doesn't measure up. If the opening notes remained strong on me, I'd get a bottle. We'll see.

[zankoku_zen]

Delicious bay and musky amber. It's a little aggressive on wet, but it dries to a soft, delicious manly bay rum and amber.

 

Smooth. So smooth.

 

This is the smell of a debonair, sophisticated man. Who is dangerous enough for you to stay away from, but smooth enough that you're willing to throw caution to the wind.

[angelamaria]

In decant: musky and woody, lots of spices in here as well. It's very masculine--I'm not entirely sure what notes I'm smelling here, to be honest. They're either very new to my nose, or blended so well together I can't make them out.

 

Wet on skin: generally the same as the decant smell: woody, masculine. I might be getting a bit of the balsam. It makes me think of men's cologne.

 

Dry: it's gone slightly powdery--so that's how I know it's amber this stays pretty true to the decant smell on my skin, actually, not a lot of morphing or amping or disappearances. It's a very interesting scent for men--very wearable, not too light or too intense and too cologne-y. It's musky and woody, and I might prefer other blends on a man but if he likes this, I don't think I'd complain at all.

 

Verdict: not for me, but great on a guy. This is another one that will likely be good for aging, and I'll have to revisit my imp to check on how it goes.

[theseagrows]

hrrm, at first i was getting the pencil-shaving scent that i often get from the lab's frankincense and sandalwood notes, but i searched the notes and saw none of that, so i think it must be the bay note. i must amp bay? and it's a note that i don't really like. i can sense the other notes, but bay stands at the forefront. this smells very much like an old-school masculine cologne from the 50s to me. not really my thing, personally, but i am glad i got frimped with it so i could try it.

[crebbsgirl]

Bay, pepper and musk feature prominently on my skin. This reads as a little masculine on my skin, but I like it. It's warm and cozy-sexy. Very smooth.

[mymymai]

In the Imp (ITI): What a lovely, woodsy scent. I smell the tolu balsam infused with the astringent and clamming properties of bay. There are hints of sweetness, either from the amber or the musk. It’s lovely so far.

 

Wet: The balsam is now warmed by the amber, and the astringent quality of the bay prevents the sweetness from becoming cloying. There is just a hint of pepper in the background, but it’s a lovely scent that reminds me of the ryokan in Japan.

 

Dry: Sweet amber-infused wood with a slight hint of bay when dry. It’s a lovely warm wood scent.