Mourning Cloak

[Penance]

MOURNING CLOAK
Opoponax, kumaru, cocoa butter, Mysore sandalwood, verbena, almond milk, guiac wood, beeswax, and myrrh.

Origin:

5mL from the Lab. My bottle says "Mourning Shroud" rather than "Mourning Cloak."

Preconceived notions:

I wanted this one for the name, but the notes sound wonderful. Except for the almond milk and possibly the verbena (if it smells lemony). Almond scents make me horrendously nauseous if I can smell the almond in them, but I can wear them if the almond is "hidden" and I'm not a fan of lemon (or citrus in general). I'm not quite sure what to expect here since the mix of notes is pretty complex, but I'm thinking a resinous scent with a touch of cocoa butter.

First sniff:

Wow, I wasn't expecting that. The first thing I smell here is the verbena. Really, really strong verbena. It's lemony and sharp. There are other things going on underneath the verbena, but it's hard to really pick them out. I get an impression of dark woodsiness.

Wet on skin:

Still mainly verbena (which I'm not enjoying), but there are also some nice dark woods here, too. No resins yet, unfortunately, but I'm hoping they'll rally on the drydown.

Dry down:

Early in the drydown: Verbena, woods and the resins have come out now. I don't get any cocoa butter, which is a little disappointing. I was anticipating something darker than this, although the notes really do fit with the butterfly's coloration.

Later in the drydown: The verbena mostly disappears (hallelujah) and I'm left with just a touch of it, plus Schwarzer Mond-style resins and a touch of cocoa butter. It's dark and pretty, but it's not as nice as Atlas.

The bottom line:

I really wish the verbena wasn't in here or wasn't so strong, but it does mostly disappear on the later drydown. It's just a matter of whether I can wait it out since I despise lemon. This is going to be one of those scents that I like in the end, but don't wear very often because I can't stand the wet/early drydown stage.

I'm hoping that aging will help tone down the lemoniness, but I'll keep my bottle no matter what (although I wish it was labeled Mourning Cloak instead of Mourning Shroud; both are great names, but I prefer Cloak).

[toku]

The first thing that hits me from the bottle is the verbena. It reminds me of this gigantic lemon verbena plant that my parents have had forever, so it's not a bad association at all. I've been kind of iffy on lemony scents and have passed along other lemony LEs, but something about this one is really enveloping and comfortable - almost warm. This is probably the sandalwood or resins, although I can't actually pick them out at this point. The scent balances out once dry (30 min - 1 hour mark) with the other notes rounding it out more and more. I still get the lemon, but the woodsy and resiny notes are definitely more noticeable. Adequate staying power - scents don't usually stick around on me for very long, and when I tried this last night there were still whiffs noticeable around 5-6 hours later (which is good for me). I'm pleased with this one so far, but I'll have to test it again when I'm able to pay more attention to how it develops.

 

07/27: shortly after testing this for the first time, I forgot what I liked about it. Every time I thought about wearing it for a day I'd open the bottle, take a whiff, go "lemon?!?", and put it back, dejected. Yesterday I actually wore it, seriously, all day long. My impressions early yesterday were:

 

This isn't one of my 'loves' as it doesn't seem to be very complex on me, but I have such trouble wearing lemony scents that I decided to hang on to this one. This is definitely lemony, but fades to a very natural smell fairly quickly. There's just a faint hint of woody spicyness that really tempers the lemon. Ok, I think I just talked myself from "eh, I like it" to "oh yeah, I like this one!" Just have to give it an hour

 

And really, it just gets better as the day goes on. Originally I estimated about 5-6 hours of wear, yesterday I realized I could still smell it (if I got close to my wrist) after work, so that's about 9 hours. It changes considerably throughout that time for me, but it only improved. So if you are hesitating at the open bottle whiff, I think it's worth trying for at least a couple hours to see if it develops into this amazingly beautiful scent.

Edited July 27, 2011 by toku

[edenssixthday]

Mourning Shroud - The strongest note is the incredibly gorgeous opoponax, which is given a solid base by the woods, sweetened by the cocoa butter, almond milk and beeswax, and has a flash of herbal brightness from the verbena. This is a really gorgeous scent. It's a bit powdery in the way that resins can sometimes be, which gives the overall scent a very pretty sort-of-dusty finish. It's unique, pretty, and borders on sexy.

[Invidiana]

This one is a prime example of never judge a scent by its wet stage. Wet it was a little sharp, mostly from the verbena, which worried me, but I gave it the benefit of the doubt and let it dry down for a couple of minutes.

 

That was the best thing I could have done.

 

Dry the verbena is virtually nonexistant and gives way to a smoky,resinous scent sweetened by almond milk and honey-tinged beeswax, with a hint of something that hit me very much like raw cacao(I'm guessing this is from the cocoa butter). The further it dries down, the better it gets; the sandalwood and guiacwood emerge more and more and lend it a deep sexy warmth. The scent perfectly fit the butterfly and the thing for which it was named; it is reminiscent of a plush dark velvet cloak with an aura of allure about it. I think of the overall feel of this scent as less of a mourning shroud and more as a shroud of mystery.

Edited June 29, 2011 by Invidiana

[GoldenRubee]

Mourning Shroud-this is a beautifully sweet, woodsy scent with a light citrus undertone. The citrus burns off pretty quickly on me and leaves the gorgeous light sandalwood mingles nicely with the almond milk to make this a very smooth and likeable oil. It is very heady with the deep resins staying all day even after eight hours.

[filigree_shadow]

I expected a smooth, possibly syrupy resin scent from this, and that's pretty much what it smells like. It's a sweet resin with some smoothness to it, but it also smells just a little bit sticky. The verbena isn't very strong on me, luckily, because that's not my favorite note.

 

Resin fans, give this one a try!

[coldandsleepy]

In the vial, I can smell almost all the notes listed. (No verbena though-- you guys must have gotten all of mine, heh.). It's lovely.

 

On my skin, it instantly burns down to sweet myrrh and beeswax. Reminds me of Midnight Mass. It's quite pretty but has none of the complexity of the scent in the vial. I'm disappointed but bet this would be nice in a scent locket.

[ami226]

Mourning Cloak? Mourning Shroud? Well, either way I really like the name!

 

On me this scent is very subtle. It smells a lot like black/dark musk to me. Subtle with a powdery sweetness. It's hard for me to pick out any one note.

 

Reminds me a lot of Black Temple Burlesque Troupe minus the cocoa.

[JLH]

This starts out mostly as a very tart, fresh lemon. There's a rich sweetness underneath but wet this is a lot of lemon verbena. As it dries, that sweetness comes out much more as the lemon fades away. It's very dark and rich and a bit dusty, which I think comes from the sandalwood. I don't really get any cocoa butter or almond from this. It's an interesting scent, but not really my thing.

 

ETA: After an hour or so the resins really come out. I'm sure this would be lovely with age, but right now the lemon is just too much for me. And I'm a fan of lemon.

Edited July 14, 2011 by JLH

[Little Bird]

First on, this doesn't really smell like much. It's a light, sour lemon verbena. As it dries down, it turns into a bright, sweet, creamy sort of lemon, but there's still not much going on.

 

I expected this to be heavy and resinous with the opoponax, myrrh, and beeswax, but it's just a light, creamy lemon scent that doesn't have much throw at all on me. I'm interested to see if the other notes come out with some aging.

[saralaughs]

A verbena blend that actually works on me. O_O The beeswax actually makes it creamy while the other notes calm it down so it doesn't scream and become something sharp. This is actually very nice considering a lot of notes in here shouldn't work on me. Still, I don't think it is something I'd wear.

[strahlend]

In my decant it's pretty faint, I don't smell much at all.

Skin testing - it's a lightly musky, sort of creamy, gentle lemon scent. I can picture a lot of people really enjoying this blend, it has a classic feel to it.

[Diva Urd]

In the vial: I'm getting a mixture of something lemony (likely the verbena) and almond. The other notes aren't all that noticeable while in the vial.

 

On: Strong lemon verbena with a bit of a creamy-almondy background. This smells like candy to my nose. Sticky lemon candy and something creamy.

 

Later: Well, this changed quite a bit! There is only a tiny bit of lemony smell left in the background, overlaid by a creaminess (almond milk & cocoa butter? It smells more of the latter at this stage). There might also be some resiny notes, although those stay in the background. It stays the strongest of all the butterflies and moths I've tried and it ends up pretty decent, but the initial, VERY lemony stage was not my case, I'm afraid.

[calivianya]

I got a decant of this instead of a bottle because I was afraid of the verbena.

 

Wet on my skin, the verbena is all I get. As it dries down, I get a hint of the sandalwood and beeswax. The verbena is still drowning everything else out. On the far drydown, I still get mainly verbena. I'm a little sad that this didn't work out for me; all of the other notes were perfect.

[halation]

In vial: Definitely smelling the verbena, along with the cocoa butter and maybe a hint of sandalwood.

 

Applying: Strongly verbena, with a bit of the almond -- but definitely almond *milk*. It's far creamier than other almond scents, but not foody, just musky and soft and very slightly sweet. The throw seemed awfully faint, however, so I ended up slathering.

 

Wet: VERBENA VERBENA VERBENA. I feel like I've just bathed in a vat of lemon curd. It's so strongly lemony that I have a slight acid sensation in the pit of my stomach, like I've had a bit too much lemonade a bit too quickly. The verbena has utterly vanquished every other note.

 

The verbena is primary for perhaps an hour, but gradually it lets up a bit and the beeswax and myrrh come out. At this stage it reminded me of No. 93 Engine, but without the greenness of the mastic. The resins are still mostly drowned out, but as the verbena lets up a bit more the almond milk comes back. The cocoa butter is kept very much in check, adding smoothness and richness to the almond milk without a hint of chocolateyness. About two hours in, the sandalwood comes out and blooms very warmly. In this stage, it's a bit like Bastet layered over No. 93.

 

Three hours in, the verbena fades way down, and Mourning Cloak a becomes fuzzy, comforting skin scent. I wore this on an incredibly hot and sticky evening, and though I loved this stage I found it a bit too warm and snuggly for such a close night. The verbena made me think it would be a good summer scent, but I think it'd be better for spring, or maybe just for cooler weather. Despite its being so hot, this lasted a long time -- even the next morning I still had a bit on my wrists. Quite nice.

 

Don't let the verbena intimidate you! If you like beeswax and lemon, this one is lovely once it calms down a bit. Just maybe don't take a bath in the stuff like I did... the throw might surprise you.

[zankoku_zen]

Lemon verbena, cocoa butter and almond. It's citrusy and light because of the lemon verbena, but the cocoa butter/almond ground it alot. It's kinda tropical and musky at the same time.

[milo]

I get a lot of fresh, lemony verbena when wet. Dry, the other notes come out, and it's kind of resiny citrus now, with a bit of creaminess to it. I like the freshness of this blend, but have other citrussy scents that I enjoy more. Nice to try though!

[taoeizzm]

I was undecided about this, as it's a little too much lemon verbena for me, but today I was wearing it and stupidly knocked over my precious bottle of Womb Furie 2010, and in an effort to waste as little as I could, I finished the clean up with my wrist ...and the combo of those two smells is really fantastic! Not something I would have thought to try together, but oddly it works for me! Mmmm...

[Heavenlyrabbit]

I really love this. I'm an Incense & Resin girl. This is all that and more. It's got a creamy vibe (Cocoa Butter/Almond Milk/Beeswax) and just enough Verbena to float through the Summer heat without being dark and dense the way scents like this is often are.

 

A big bonus for me is this lasts a long time. And BPAL's rarely do on my skin.

Edited July 28, 2011 by Heavenlyrabbit

[angelamaria]

In decant: uh...dark spices. Very resiny, but with verbena to add a bright (almost too bright) note to it.

 

Wet on skin: surprisingly creamy; I wasn't expecting that. I suppose that's the beeswax? The strongest notes are verbena and vague woody resins. I can also get a faint whiff of that cocoa, I think. It's interesting, and at this stage I like it. The verbena is not nearly as strong here as it was in the decant, but it's still very present and is the most noticeable note. Drying, a dustiness is coming out, I'm not sure where it's coming from.

 

Dry: well, oddly, for such a strong, almost discordant note in this blend--the verbena seems to have all but disappeared. It's left behind...I don't know. Beeswax, with a ghost of resins, not quite there. Dry, this is neither light nor dark to me, kind of hovering in between and being somewhat wishy-washy about it. I'm having a lot of difficulty catching any of the notes dry. It's also gone powdery on me, versus the somewhat-in-control dustiness of the wet stage.

 

Verdict: nope, definitely not for me.

[Pyewacket]

origin: bottle purchase, unsniffed

 

in bottle: mostly verbena, a bit unpleasantly cologny

 

on wet: lots of verbena with a bit of spice

 

drying down: the verbena fades down within about ten minutes and the scent mellows down to be soft, slightly creamy, dusty with a hint of lemon still

 

verdict: to me this is a gentle, shadowy scent which evokes late summer. It's the kind of thing I would want to put on after a day at the beach when I'm cooling down in a shady place for the afternoon and trying to forget my sunburn (if i still lived by the ocean that is). I'm looking forward to wearing it in summer and I'm happy I got a bottle unsniffed.

[theseagrows]

this is pretty much cocoa-butter on me, and not much else. maybe almond milk? it's very buttery, and that's all. i like it, but it's not really my kind of scent, so i will swap it. i like the scent of cocoa butter, but not as a perfume, for some reason.

 

 

 

[a_llb]

In vial: Fresh, milky in a green way.

Wet: A burst of verbena & opoponax, myrrh warming from beneath.

Dry: Creamy, oh so creamy. Pale, delicate yet satisfyingly rich. A touch of almond milk & cocoa butter with sweet, sheer beeswax and a soft touch of woods.

 

Verdict: By far my favorite blend from Metamorphosis 2011! It has the creaminess I adore in blends like Alice & Green Tree Viper, but has an extra kick of spice from the resins. It actually brings to mind a childhood memory featuring a brass box full of powdery lemon drops, kept on a Brazilian Teak shelf in a wood-paneled library. Wonderfully evocative for me personally, I don't think I can resist a 5ml!

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Lovely myrrh and kumaru, backed by beeswax.

 

Wet: The sandalwood has powered on, but the myrrhs are hanging in there. The beeswax and almond milk make a nice base for the spices. Kumaru's "fragrance is reminiscent of vanilla, almonds, cinnamon, and cloves".

 

The dry-down: The kumaru is now the overall note, just lovely. This is going to be a good scent for the changing of summer into autumn; if dried fields could yield a sweet note, this would be it.

[porcelina]

ahhhh the almond is too strong. i can smell the clean, sweet cocoa butter, the resins, the woods, the beeswax… but it's all drowned out by lemony almond milk. :( :( this could've been lovely, but... sigh. DAMN YOU ALMOND