Iole

[absinthetics]

A serious, studious scent: fig, night-blooming jasmine, red sandalwood, bourbon vanilla, oak bark, leather accord, and black amber.

This scent is soft and sweet. I'm a huge fig fan and it's a great note in this scent. The bourbon vanilla supports it sweetly, as does the black amber. The leather lies in the background for quite a while, but the jasmine is there, lingering during the entire duration of the scent. I'm not a jasmine fan, but this scent makes me want to give it a try and see what I am missing.

[liquidtrance]

I had hugely high hopes for this scent! Almost all win notes... except the dreaded jasmine, which I conveniently glossed over when ordering my decant due to my glee in seeing all the other notes.

 

Imp Sniff: Jasmine. All jasmine. All the other notes sound great! Where are they?!

Wet: Jasmine. A very pink, plush jasmine scent. There is nothing serious or studious about this at all.

Drying: The jasmine backs off just slightly, in the sense that it goes from jasmine at full volume, to just unnecessarily loud jasmine. It's still really the only perceptable note. The fig might be underneath the jasmine, but really it is still only a radiant pink scent.

1-2 hrs later: The leather/fig/maybe oak? finally peek out, but by now the scent is fading into non-existence on my skin. Sigh.

 

Maybe it's batch variation, but I smell NO other notes when sniffing this from the vial, and for nearly the entire duration of this scent on my skin. Maybe it just needs some time alone.

[whataboutprom]

I agree that this is a soft, pink jasmine. I can't smell much other than the jasmine, but it's not overpowering. I hope that the other notes come out more with a bit of aging, but this is nice as it is.

[zeldaZ4]

Decided to try this right away to see if the Jasmine would behave herself, since my disastrous trial of Ceanothus Silkmoth (yuck!) is so fresh in my mind.

 

Phew! There she is! Strong & sickly sweet. But I will brave this out and see if something else shows up. Almost immediately a hint of leather appears, like the guest room closet in my mother's house where she keeps her out of season clothes, suitcases, shoes, & belts. But why is there Jasmine in there??? Go away, Jasmine!

 

An hour later, Jasmine has stopped screaming at me, but I'm afraid Iole just isn't going to work for me. In another hour, the whole thing is very faded. What's left still doesn't mesh with my chemistry.

 

I'll sit it aside to age. Perhaps if Jasmine calms down, I can detect the other notes. But right now, I agree with the other reviewers above. This does not say "studious" to me.

[ReallyZeb]

I'm another one who conveniently ignored the mention of jasmine when ordering my decants

 

In the imp all is overpowering jasmine, but I decide to be brave and give it a proper skin test.

 

Wet, I get sour rancid sweat. I wouldn't want to smell me, let alone go near anyone else. I wonder if my eyes have started melting yet.

 

Eventually this has dried enough that I can find sweet fig peeking out from the corner that she was bullied into by jasmine but the other notes quite obviously ran home crying to mother.

[yakiguri]

I love jasmine, but not when it's drowning out the other notes. Unfortunately currently on my skin Iole is THE JASMINE SHOW with her way way WAAAAY in the back backup singers! >_< About an hour later I get whiffs of fig, oak, and vanilla, but sandalwood and leather have yet to come out. I'm wondering if night blooming jasmine might be a "bad" jasmine on me after all since Iole has the same funk in the background as Ceanothus Silkmoth had.

 

I'll put Iole in the marinating box and hope she gets more studious with age.

 

EDIT 9/30: After a month the jasmine has calmed down significantly, and more of the other notes have bloomed to the surface. Iole is sweet, sweeter than I expected. I still fail to see how this is serious and studious as it strikes me as more like a flirtatious social butterfly rather than a bookworm. There's not as much leather as I'd like, so while I'll keep my decant I'll refrain from a bottle.

Edited October 1, 2012 by thatbrownelf

[Little Bird]

Iole is a huge jasmine scent on me, bold and heavy, with a smoky, dark undertone from the sandalwood, amber and leather. It dries down to a dark, leather-clad sort of jasmine. I don't like the jasmine note here, though, as it has a sour, soapy edge to it. As it dries down, my hubby said it smells sort of like sour alcohol and cigarettes.

[stellamaris]

OMG this is GORGEOUS. Strong and deep, lush, just gorgeous. I was trying to hold out for Comic Con, but I must have this...now...

[angelamaria]

In bottle: fresh from the lab, it's rather sharp in the bottle, with oak, leather, and amber, with an almost smoky feel. The jasmine is giving it a slight floral sweetness overlayed with with a vanilla creaminess, but those last two notes are more of an afterthought. Seems to be well blended. One month on, however, this is very much a jasmine blend, with a hint of woods and vanilla.

 

Wet on skin: fresh, this is fig, vanilla, black amber, hint of leather; I'm not sure if it's smoky or powdery on me. It's very well blended and so it's difficult to pick out specific notes, and is quite in the middle of being gender neutral. Aged for a month, however, all jasmine, all floral. When a bit of that jasmine's worn off, I'm left with leather and woods, slightly smoky, and a hint of vanilla creaminess. The jasmine never really disappears.

 

Dry: fresh, what's left is a very even mix of black amber, oak bark, sharp leather, and red sandalwood. One month on? Jasmine jasmine jasmine, amber, a hint of leather. And jasmine. And red sandalwood and jasmine. Oh, did I mention jasmine already?

 

Verdict: I'm quite sad at how this blend aged. I thought this had a good chance of aging into something wonderful on me, but with that jasmine? No, not going to happen.

[orata]

As you may have gathered from other reviews, this has a LOT of jasmine in it. It's a pretty strong floral, but sweet-- not as rank/stanky as Ceanothus Silkmoth, which was a sad surprise for me with its powerful jasmine punch. It has a kind of creamy, traditional feminine perfume feel to it, with a slight sweet powderiness, maybe from the vanilla and amber grounding the scent? After a bit, I can smell hints of the fruity fig and dark, smoky leather, but they never do more than dance around the edges of the jasmine. Unlike angelamaria, I don't find it sharp and I can't smell enough of the leather for my liking. I wouldn't think of this as a serious, studious scent... it's more of a sexy girly-girl scent to wear with a little black dress. Smooth, powdery, smoky jasmine.

[Monday]

Jasmine, leather and fig. The same jasmine as in Ceanothus Silkmoth. Actually I get almost all Ceanothus Silkmoth out of this, which I don't mind at all.

I like it but it's not what I would call a studious scent.

[theseagrows]

i'm not really feeling this one, because the jasmine is amping on me (which happens often) and it's turning a bit odd. i was very excited about ALL the other notes, but the jasmine is just too overpowering and i think the mix of vanilla and jasmine smells a little sickly sweet on me. there is a hint of leather in the back and the sandalwood and amber make a nice warm backdrop, without really making themselves too obvious.

[Sultaana]

The jasmine does what it loves to do and overpowered this whole scent for me. I loved the other notes and wish they could stand on their own in a blend someday!

[bheansidhe]

So, I'm no expert, but night-blooming jasmine (Cestrum nocturnum) is a shrub in Solanaceae (the potato family), as opposed to Jasminum officinale, which is in the olive family (Oleaceae). This may explain why Iole isn't a shrieking floral death-note, like every other jasmine-containing blend I've tested except Kanishta (which is jasmine sambac).

 

Though admittedly sharp, this blend also has a smoky, nutty warmth to it. If I huff hard, I can get the actual bourbon vanilla note, but mostly I smell the sandalwood, a lot of slightly astringent oak bark, and a faint whisper of leather. I smell the fig wet, but it vanishes on the skin except for a kind of rounded juiciness. This is cleavage juice. Overall heady stuff. And strong. Normally I find the lab's scent interpretations spot-on, but I wouldn't call this blend "studious" in the least. Unless you're studying the Kama Sutra. Sulty, feminine, womanly but not overpowering. Sadly, there's something in here that doesn't like me on far drydown.

 

If you like Gomorrah or Kanishta, try Iole. If you're terrified of "jasmine," try Iole. If you hate husky, sultry florals, give it a pass.

Edited September 28, 2012 by bheansidhe

[milo]

Lots of jasmine here, folks, so if you don't like jasmine in any form, I'd stay away. Personally, I like the night blooming variety when I'm in the mood for a heady floral, as it doesn't go sour on me like regular jasmine. This one is mostly the jasmine, but with a touch of vanilla. I like this, and will probably use it more in the spring.

[megank4]

oh god, jasmine blast!! It is pretty much all I smell. I was hoping for a lot more fig, but no.

 

This reminds me of something else, I think Melisande the puppet mistress with jasmine sambac?

 

Don't buy unless you are a big jasmine fan.

[Dovahkiin]

Yep, this is almost purely jasmine. No big surprise there. I don't LOVE jasmine, but I don't exactly dislike it, either.

 

I liked it a lot more when it was freshly applied. It was very a very sweet and heady jasmine scent. As it dries down, it turns a little sour, as others have mentioned. There's a bit of an powdery scent in the background and something just a little bit peppery, in the way that black pepper sort of tickles your nose when you smell it.

 

I don't smell any fig, vanilla, or oak, which is unfortunate considering those are the notes I was interested in. Ah, well.

[zankoku_zen]

Jasmine, leather and a teensy amount of fig. The jasmine is overwhelming, sharp... and the leather is very present.

 

*sigh* PASS.


2021 Review of the Iole I prototype:
So the prototype version is a huge hit of jasmine, with a whiff of fig. Thankfully, in this version I get no leather. The jasmine is still there, but this smells much more appropriate for a young girl. Just a BOAT LOAD of jasmine and then some.

Edited April 7, 2021 by zankoku_zen

[AngryRabbit]

Like others have mentioned, the jasmine overpowered all the other notes. I can pick one more note out, maybe the red sandalwood, however it's barely detectable. I can't smell the others at all.

 

Unfortunately I'm not crazy about it. I do think I'd like it much more if the jasmine wasn't so strong.

[MissMercurial]

I mostly get jasmine accompanied by leather and vanilla in the background from this. The drydown brings out some oak, kind of old-paper-esque; the fig, red sandalwood, and black amber add a powdery, barely noticeable fruitiness to the edges of that latter stage. I agree with angelamaria that it's almost smoky.

[mymymai]

ITI: Very strong night-blooming jasmine with a sweet sandalwood in the background.

 

Wet: More jasmine, but I now get some of that vanilla bourbon paired with red sandalwood and some thick leather. It's a rather intriguing scent.

 

Dry: Jasmine, leather, sandalwood, and bourbon. It ends up being similar to a jasmine plug-in, but a little sweeter.

[bellumed]

I got this decant as a frimp, and I would've never ordered this for myself. Jasmine! Sandalwood! Booze! Leather! Amber! It’s a parade of things that make me a bit nervous… particularly as all the reviews say this is Jasmine City. But hey, we’re experimenting, so it’s cool.

 

Opened the vial and holy sweet baby jesus that is some stanky floral! Leather and wood support it noticeably but really jasmine stands on top and screams. Well I’m going to put some on anyway, so here goes.

 

Thankfully it isn't as glaringly loud on me. I think the amber here is helping tamp down the jasmine. Actually, I’d say it improves significantly on my skin, a nice soft leather coming out more.

 

Unlike other reviewers, I can certainly see why this would be considered a studious blend. It dries down to something surprisingly soft, the jasmine cooling down and allowing amber and leather and wood to help carry the day. I could see Hermione Granger smelling like this, is basically what I’m trying to say. I wouldn't call it particularly sexy or flirty.

 

After a while, even fig starts to poke its head out a little. But much as Iole has improved from its dubious beginning, this is still not my sort of perfume. Add my voice to the Greek chorus of “no”s I think.

Edited April 14, 2013 by bellumed

[littlesparrow]

I love this scent. It starts off very much juicy fig with just a hint of floral (it seems I'm luckier than some where jasmine is concerned) but I think the leather and musk must make quite an appearance on the drydown because my boyfriend asked me what bar I'd been hanging out in - apparently I smelled like whiskey and smoke! Nonetheless, when he realised it was my perfume he said he liked it and asked for the name - go figure

[elka_knits]

purchased for decant circle. Starts out jasmine stinky but quickly morphs into rich semi sweet scent due to I suspect the fig and amber. Unfortunately I get headaches a couple of hours after putting on any leather BPAL scent no matter how lovely. I would otherwise plan on wearing this all fall-- it has a nice depth to it. Very lush and it smells monied to me. Like tweeds and pearls old money monied that doesn't have to put on airs--down to earth. Also the fig is sexy. Just under TOL {on my swaps page due to headache}

 

PS I like jasmine but it almost always starts out stinky. If you do not like jasmine this is the jasmine of selbsterliebt or the jasmine SN not the gentler night blooming jasmine. I find this particular jasmine rich and sugared. I love it

 

scentwise I would give it a 4/5 because it does need a half hour to blend and bloom on my skin {a scent has to rock through all phases to earn a 5 in my book} Or maybe I am cutting it down a grade due to headache ;-(

Edited August 24, 2015 by elka

[sunnyrain]

I purchased a bottle of Iole, without so much as a sniff of it. However, I'm a big fan of jasmine, and all the other notes sounded intriguing.

 

Bottle: sticky sweet fig, heaps of jasmine, and the faintest breath of everything else

 

Wet on skin: jasmine first, fig second, sandalwood pops out a bit

 

Dry on skin: the amber comes out slightly, vanilla is just barely there

 

Hour later: there's the oak and leather! Jasmine has calmed down, fig and sandalwood are the star now

 

Overall: a lovely scent, sensual and interesting.

Edited April 1, 2017 by sunnyrain