Sentimental Initiation

[Amaranthus]

 

SENTIMENTAL INITIATION

Sentimental Initiation, Félicien Rops.

Red and black musks with bamboo, myrrh, bitter clove, patchouli, vanilla orchid, and king mandarin.

 

In the bottle, Sentimental Initiation smells like dark musk and myrrh.

 

On the skin, the musk and myrrh combine with a woodsy patchouli note to smell like pipe tobacco. As the clove emerges, the scent reminds me of a clove cigarette, only there is a little bit of vanilla orchid to keep it from smelling like a goth's ashtray.

 

The mandarin comes out gradually and mixes with the clove for a warm, softly spicy scent.

 

A lovely autumnal perfume, I see this getting better and better with time.

[cfrancesca]

On me this is a very sensual, heady, smokey almost boozy red musk blend. I find the notes well-blended at first and they create a heady booze-like note I'm getting (I'm really not sure where it's coming from) I find it intoxicating, exotic, strong, and very sexy. As it dries it the booze-like note starts to remind me of a boozy, kind of foody caramel note, similar to Red Lantern. So on me this is a mix of dirty smokey (almost incense-like) caramel, booze, and then add some red musk with soft hints of dark musk. In the background I get stronger clove, soft myrrh and dirty patchouli, I also get occasional hints of fruit but I couldn't tell it's mandarin. This is really one of the sexiest bpal blends I've ever tried. I'm not getting the vanilla orchid but it's probably smoothing and rounding everything else out.

 

I'm confused by this scent, it wasn't what I expected but it's something pretty amazing, however...it might be a bit too much for me.

[miss_rynn]

This is unfortunately too heavy on the musks for me to enjoy. It's a bit like a sweeter version of The Soldier. I do get a little bit of the vanilla and mandarin peeking through, but it's mostly very dark, musky and patchouli based. It has a very similar base to Snake Oil, without as much sweetness or spiciness to lift it. I can see how this would work on the right person, but alas it is too heavy for me. If you love dark musks, though, it's certainly worth a look in!

[Invidiana]

Wow. Thick, positively evil musks burst out right away, followed by earthy, woody clove and patchouli. Thankfully I don't amp the clove to the point of it turning out like a jar of cloves and nothing else. The myrrh and vanilla orchid gradually arise more and more on the drydown with a balance of both resinous and creamy types of sweetness. I might be getting the vanilla orchid fairly well because I do tend to amp vanilla. I don't get much king mandarin but there is a bit of a juicy element in there that isn't distinctly citrus but melds right into everything else. Gorgeous.

Edited October 6, 2011 by Invidiana

[edenssixthday]

Sentimental Initiation - This is so close to being an amazing scent on me -- with so many notes that I adore...but it has the black musk in it that turns sour on me. Noooo!!! It's so close to being a perfect sweet-woody-resin-musky scent...but on me, it just stinks.

[HerbGirl]

Clove...I should have known better than to even try. Every other note would have been a win - clove played nice for about 5 minutes, and then it was game over.

[Finny]

Earthy and musky, with a hint of spice. Lovely on, it reminds me a bot of Mircalla, but sweeter.

[Ghost of a Rose]

In the imp (decant): Oil is clear and a dark, brownish orange. The scent is patchouli, mandarin, and clove. Surprisingly unsweet, and (thus also surprisingly) rather cloying.

 

On me, wet: Much better. A smoky, woody, clove. Unisex to masculine.

 

On me, just dried: The smokiness disappears and the clove becomes stronger. There's an understated whiff of mandarin in the background. It reminds me of those clove-studded oranges we used to make for scenting closets.

 

After 10 minutes: . . . but then some musk appears to remove that image. It's short-lived, however, and then the fragrance is pretty much all clove, but fairly mild - not too hot or in-your-face. There's a little patchouli and musk in the background that tones it down.

 

After 30 minutes: Clove, with a hint of wood and an even fainter hint of musk.

 

After 1 hour: Clove is foremost, with patchouli. I don't think this has really changed much since the first 10 minutes. It's more that I notice different notes at different times.

 

Exactly 12 hours later, I can still clearly smell this on my wrist. It is weak but identifiable. Clove is still the primary note, and in the background there is the same cloying scent that I noticed in the imp. I think it might be the combination of patchouli and orange. Each of those can be syrupy and cloying when they are too concentrated, so blending them together may perhaps not be the most amicable of matches.

I never did notice any vanilla in this. The flower might smell quite different from the vanilla bean. If it has a typical strong tropical orchid scent, that could be adding to the cloying characteristic of the patchouli-orange combo. However, I didn't notice any floral note in this, either.

 

Verdict: Fortunately the cloying note appears only in the bottle and upon extreme drydown (when it is very faint, and also likely to be showered away.) Otherwise this is a pleasant enough unisex-to-masculine spice fragrance. But I'm not sure I like this so much that I want to be smelling it for 12 hours straight. And since writing that first sentence of the verdict, I've noticed that this oil leaves a strong scent on my clothes as well, that lasts even longer and does retain the cloying aspect. After reading the other reviews, I wonder if it could be partly the dark musk that I find cloying. But the mandarin orange is definitely part of it - it's like cough syrup.

To give a male POV: my 17 year old son liked it very much, but suggested that it would be best used as a room scent in an oil warmer rather than a body scent. I tend to agree.

This is an okay fragrance, but I probably wouldn't mind giving it up if someone wanted to swap a no-longer-available or LE scent that I really want for it.

 

My rating: 3 stars

Edited October 18, 2011 by Ghost of a Rose

[cyberpuff]

! !

 

Some of you around here might be as old as me, and remember when Madonna's Like A Prayer record was released. The first release of it had patchouli scented sealer for the shrinkwrap. That's the first thing I thought of with my first whiff of Sentimental Initiation. And this scent goes way deeper than some patch scented plastic wrap.

 

I can't even review this in my usual way. This scent is earthy, dirty and bad good. In the first hour I had it on my skin I wanted to curse every time I smelled it- in an emphatic dirty talk kind of way. I have a hard time keeping at bay the primal urge to call up exes that I should never talk to ever ever again, and just recite a play by play action of our greatest hits, if ya know what I mean...

 

Sheesh, where was I? I get spicy, I get musky, I get earthy, I get a small amount of wood . While I normally amp clove, and it's ruined scents for me before, the clove stays balanced and now (2 hrs later) it's faded into the background. I'm left with a scent that embodies a little bit of guilt, with a good time had by all. It packs a wallop of a throw on me.

 

This one is a troublemaker. All the right kind of trouble, hopefully...

[angelicruin]

I too remember the patchouli scented Like A Prayer album and I agree with the comparison.

 

This one seems to be really working well with my skin. I get lots of black spicy musk, a little red musk, patchouli, clove, and the vanilla orchid softens the entire scent. Right now, I'm not really getting any of the mandarin, but that's not stopping this from being an amazing scent on me.

[lefthandmade]

This is a spicy blend on me and I was thinking ginger there for a second but it’s probably the clove/myrrh/patchouli combo. The clove is bitter and there is nothing sweet about this at all, actually if I have to compare it to anything, SUNBIRD comes to mind. I do get a little citrus though, and the musks are coming through loud and clear but not too much.

It’s a stayer though, after 24 hours it’s still detectable on my wrist, definitely a cousin of SUNBIRD now only sweeter.

[patina]

I've read that this could be compared to Smut with cloves, but I don't know because Smut immediately turned to plastic on me. What it does remind me of is Old Demons of the First Class. No black pepper, of course and the musk doesn't seem so shiny and black in this one. Also, Sentimental Initiation is less sharp and woody. The edges are rounded and sweetened a bit, but that doesn't mean it's any less powerful. If anything it may be more powerful than Old Demons.

 

Strangely I get an ash note under the clove. Ashes and something that's almost a burning clove cigarette mixed with those orange circus peanut candies. Well, maybe not quite those, but the mandarin and the fruity red musk seem an odd contrast with the rest of the scent.

 

Later on the drydown, I think I can smell a darker musky version of a ginger-citrus bodywash I had once. That had clove in it too, so maybe that association's not so crazy.

This is wonderful to wear in chilly weather, but people who don't like cloves or patchouli should probably stay away.

[dawndie]

Wet: dark musks

 

Initially on skin: soapy red musk

 

Half-hour later: dirtied up nicely with some patch and clove

 

In conclusion: I love most red musk blends, but was leery of the patchouli and clove being overbearing and obnoxious. Luckily they stay in the background, a great dirty base to the musk. Unfortunately there's no hope for the vanilla orchid or mandarin -- they're smothered by all the musks and sludge. I should order a bottle of this one, it's pompous and disagreeable

[malibusunny]

so, this is great. Like, really great. I didn't expect to love it from the description, but thought I might like it. In the bottle it is SO SHARP and green that I shied away from testing it, even. On my skin, it goes through a muddy few minutes before the clove comes out all gross. But all that is over in a flash and it settles into something really nice, a dark, rich musk, dirty patchouli, and warm, sweet vanilla. K says this smells like a specific pipe tobacco, but in a good way.

Edited October 26, 2011 by malibusunny

[strahlend]

I've usually passed up strongly red musk scents because it seems like they show up in one form or another pretty often and I like to focus on the more unusual scents in an update.

That said, I do find myself in the mood lately for a red musk scent and I looked forward to trying this one.

 

In my decant it jumps out and says, "Hello! I'm Red Musk!"

 

On my skin while wet the red musk is still dominant with a mild hint of black musk and those musks are mixing nicely with the clove. Sometimes clove is too overwhelming for me, but in this case it lends a welcome counterpoint. I think I can smell patchouli in here, it seems to blend and unite the musks with the clove.

 

I don't notice bamboo, myrrh, vanilla orchid or the mandarin.

 

After some time drying down this scent has mellowed and softened up to a musky warm scent with a hint of spice. It's strong and has great lasting power.

 

I expect that like many other musk blends this one will change a bit as it ages, perhaps some of the other notes will show up. I'm glad to have a bottle on the way, it completely satisfies my red musk niche. I think this will be a treasure now and in years to come.

[Poenari]

√- Red and black musk

√- Clove

√-Patchouli

√- Vanilla

√- Sentimental Initiation- PRICELESS!

 

This decant is just fabulous straight out of the mailbox. I can only imagine how amazing it will be as it ages. Going to have to buy a bottle or three for sure.

[tkannon]

I really wanted to like this as I have enjoyed both red and black musks before. Ahh I should have known better, this has such potential wet, a generous musk blend with a sweetness hanging in the background. Unfortunately dry this is straight clove. Not even going to give this a full test, it hurts my eyes to have it on!

[Little Bird]

Sentimental Initiation is odd on my skin, and not sweet enough for me. I always prefer 'sweet clove' over the 'bitter clove' note.

First on, I get a blast of bamboo and mandarin, which is a pulpy, green, citrussy smell. But that quickly disappears and I'm left with MUSK and bitter clove. The musk really amps up on me, and the black musk smells cold, smoky, and sharp on my skin. The red musk tries to sweeten things up a bit, but after an hour I'm left with red musk, soap, and men's musky cologne smell.

Not good for me.

[bonny]

It's the Red Musk Show! reminds me of The Soldier, but less playful dr. pepper and more dirty, earthiness. right now it's got that slight chemical bite that new red musk blends tend to have on me- i can't really smell anything under it yet. gonna shelf this one for a few months.

[kjirstiben]

On me, this scent was smoky clove. Since that's par for the course with clove on my skin chemistry, I was not surprised.

 

Interestingly, as I tested it yesterday, one of the bosses in a meeting said, "Does anyone smell incense? Or have you guys been smoking a hookah?" Since he was sitting next to me, I'm pretty sure it was Sentimental Initiation he was referring to. So: to the uninitiated, this smells like incense / scented tobacco.

[sunshinedaisybliss]

I just can't quite decide what to think about this one

 

There's something here that's just not quite working for me. But it's not as simple as that.. because somehow it keeps drawing me back to take another huff, and I want to like it, I really do. I think there's just too much going on with the notes here, it's like they're all fighting for attention. The red musk is very dominant, but it's held back by the black musk and clove - those two are keeping the red musk from completely taking over so that's a good thing. But red musk + black musk + clove don't seem to work all that well together, and the myrrh isn't helping out at all. Then we've got bamboo and vanilla orchid - both of those are quite syrupy sweet on me usually, so I think they're just at odds with the musks on my skin. I really can't pick up any of the mandarin at all, which is a shame because it's a fave note.

 

In the end, this does a similar thing to The Elephantine Colossus for me - it develops a slightly sickly cloying aspect.. almost honey-ish. Like red musk and honey. I'm beginning to think that red musk is not my friend

 

My best moment with Sentimental Initiation came after I'd had it on for almost an hour.. I had another huff, and the red musk had died down significantly. The clove had sweetened up, and a lovely smokiness had developed. But I can't be wearing something that only smells good after an hour, so this one is not a keeper for me.

[angelmecha]

In Imp: Vivid, deep musks with the surrounding sweetness of mandarin, vanilla orchid, and the green moisture of bamboo.

Wet: Sweet musks; they almost remind me of a drier, less cloying version of Smut's musks. Patchouli is actually amping in this; usually it's a little incense-y peep in the background. It's a warm, sweet, yummy patch. I feel like the bamboo keeps all the wild notes here from trashing the place; it's kind of a wet, freshly-green-watery scent. Like freshly snapped, live bamboo. Myrrh is here too and actually distinct from the patchouli. Have I suddenly been blessed with the gift of differentiating between incense-y notes?? Hallelujah!

Drydown: This blend really isn't sharp, dusty, or overwhelming like you'd (I'd?) think. It's a perfect blend of the feistiness of musk and complexities of myrrh and patchouli, and the other ingredients in it serve perfectly to warm, moisten, and calm it. I actually don't detect any of the dustiness that usually comes with clove; so apparently the bamboo and mandarin are working wonders on that, as well. :: ETA a few minutes into drying, clove DOES make an appearance and say, "Ha ha! I might get powdery! I might not, but I also might!" Then it goes away and goes back to being nummy creamy muskiness.

Verdict: I loved this at Will Call, doubted it when I saw the notes, and love it again now that I'm skin testing. I don't know how often I'll wear this, but I will get a bottle.

[zankoku_zen]

Red musk and clove. Clove clove. In some ways, it reminds me to deep, sultry scents like Madame Moriarty or Smut (neither of which I can really wear). It's a heavy perfume, and I can see this being worn only on cold nights/winter time.

 

Spicy, sultry, deep.

[milo]

I love black musk, and this one does not disappoint. Wet, it's very faint, but all the scent grows stronger as it dries. I'm mostly getting black musk and a touch of clove. This reminds me of Panther Moon, somewhat, but with the added clove.

[stellans]

When I first tried a dab of this, it was sweet, so very sweet, that it almost made my teeth hurt. However, whatever upset my personal chemistry has evidently worked its way out, because today this blend is amazing. The musks work as well as always with patchouli, and for once the clove doesn't overpower everything else. I don't really get much of the other notes, except at the very last when a touch of bamboo and sweet vanilla peek through. I really, really like this, and plan on a bottle purchase for sure. I give this one 3 of 5 stars.