A Sudden Invitation

[joyfulgirl]

Sandalwood, plum, white mint, and agarwood.

oh god. it is SO GOOD.

this is SO GOOD.

in the bottle: nondescript sandalwood with...something behind it. the oudh? it didn't smell exciting in the bottle.

wet on my skin: MINT! with a backdrop of sandalwood. spicy and woodsy.

dry on my skin: just delicious. spicy and sophisticated with just a hint of sweetness. what an unexpected and beautiful mix of scents. i foresee several bottles of this in my future.

[Balame]

This is really beautiful. I was hopeful, but worried that the white mint would be a biting candy cane sort of spearmint. It's definitely not... smelling this reminds me of walking out into a forest after it rains. Extremely fresh, watery (in fact I'd say this is aquatic), sweet, with just the tiniest hint of woodsy spice from the agarwood.

 

I'm not picking out any fruity plum, but maybe it's just contributing to the light sweetness here. Awesome blend overall!

[boomtownrat]

A Sudden Invitation is very fresh and green smelling, thanks to the white mint. This is my first experience with that note and I find it delicate, not zingy. The agarwood and sandalwood are lovely grounding notes for the higher-pitched mint, and all I could really notice of the plum was a sweet undertone. Light, woody, and sweet all at once -- I consider it a brilliant blend.

 

There's something both ethereal and earthy about this scent, like a faerie that can fly but often chooses to walk and enjoy the feeling of the ground beneath her feet. It's unlike any other fragrance I've owned and I like its Asian feel. I think it will be a great scent for springtime.

 

ETA: Four months later, the agarwood has really started to come forward in this scent. It's still just as subtle and soft, but it smells less green.

Edited June 20, 2013 by boomtownrat

[rinster]

The prominent note for me is the sandalwood with a hint of oudh and mint in the background. I'm not getting any plumb at all, which is sad because that is what drew me to this blend. I'm happy it's working for other folks, but it's not happening for me this time. Off to a better home wit' ye.

Edited February 16, 2013 by rinster

[yakiguri]

Maybe the plum missing from the other reviewers' bottles went to mine, or I just amp it, as that's the primary note I get when A Sudden Invitation hits my skin. Plum doesn't dominate the blend entirely, but it's definitely there. This is a good thing, as plum is one of the few fruit notes my skin likes. Mint is a strong second, adding a freshness to the blend--I agree this could be categorized as an aquatic. The wood notes are there, but are so seamlessly blended in the background I know they're there but can't distinctly tell unless I specifically seek them out.

 

I think this will be a fantastic blend for when the dry summer heat returns and I need something juicy to wear.

[malibusunny]

I do not get any one scent over any others... Very well blended. If I didn't have a description I would not be able to pick out notes. This is sweet and light and fresh and a touchy fruity, but warm dark fruit, that contradicts the light and fresh. I do not get aquatic, but I do not like aquatics, so that may be my bias showing.

[GoldenRubee]

I was a little worried about the mint but loved all the other notes so purchased this unsniffed and am so glad I did. I love Beth's wood note blends and this is no exception. No one single note jumps out, they work together amazingly well and I get a smooth, light, woody, sweet scent with a slight spicy undertone. I think this can be worn any season.

[Dark Alice]

This is a subtle but gorgeous plum scent. It smells like a mild plum incense mixed with sandalwood to keep it grounded. There is little to no mint in this at all. I like I think this will do well with me in the warmer days of spring.

[surlygurl]

Hoooo! Wow!!! I agree with joyfulgirl - this blend is SOOO GOOD! When I first applied it, my mind went racing to a previous Shunga that I love and own a bottle of. It must be the agarwood/plum combo. Something about that just gets me going. Anyway. I don't get any outright mint or sandalwood, but that's ok. This is a lighter brighter Calligraphy Practice, but it also kinda reminds me of an Indian jasmine incense I used to burn - Savahn Mogra. There's no jasmine in here, I know....but there's something a little sharp like jasmine.

 

I love this, but I already have a bottle of her big sister from last year. I should do a side-by-side comparison before buying a bottle. Shouldn't I?

[megank4]

I can't decide if I like this or not.

 

Definite sandalwood that reminds me of cedar for some reason, and the plum note in Antonino I think. Very light. Can't detect any mint.

[zankoku_zen]

Plum incense + sandalwood. I get a hint of mint on wet, but its really a plum-tinged sandalwood. Very well blended. Very wearable.

 

It's not the type of blend I enjoy, but if you adore plum OR sandalwood, give this a whirl.

 

Plum, smooth, sandalwood.

[DJ Sin]

If I could just capture the wet stage of A Sudden Invitation, then it would be a clear winner for me.

 

I love plum, sandalwood, mint and agarwood. However the plum and mint gets overshadowed by the agarwood and sandalwood.

 

This is comparable to The Red Queen (without the plum and mint).

 

3.5/5 for me

 

its nice but doesn't give me the plum and mint nearly enough for me to love it.

Edited March 15, 2013 by DJ Sin

[Little Bird]

It's weird how mixed the reviews are for this one. I'm not getting any plum or mint from my decant. This is a very woodsy scent on my skin, with a dry, slightly powdery sandalwood and a darker, almost resinous smelling wood note that I think is the agarwood. It's a nice, gentle, slightly powdery, incense-woods scent on my skin. It's very light and doesn't have a lot of throw on me, but I think I'll keep my decant anyhow.

[ReallyZeb]

I so wanted to love this because the picture makes me laugh, but I just don't. No plum, a tiny hint of sandalwood, mint that vanishes once dry, and what I presume is the agarwood, which seems like a light version of cedar. It has good staying power, but I think I'd prefer it on a man. It's pleasant enough but my pennies are needed more urgently elsewhere.

[neuilly]

I'm not actually entirely sure why I added this to my decant list...it's very not my style, lol. I think I thought that since it was last, the wood would be the subtlest note. I'm really not a fan of wearing wood notes, and of course this is 98% agarwood on me. I get NO mint or plum. I amp wood like crazy so it's not terribly surprising. However it does make a lovely incense-wood scent if that's what you're into. It also somehow manages to pull off that combo without feeling musty which a lot of them do to my nose.

[OctoberGwen]

I really wish I'd had more time to evaluate my Lupercalia decants properly, because after wearing this a few times I would have gotten a bottle.

 

This is just a lovely, soft, well blended scent. The plum was worrisome for me, because I usually dislike smelling of it. In this case, though, I think "plum incense" is apt and it's actually working very nicely on me. (Note to self: try any plum scent that also has sandalwood!) The mint adds a wonderful freshness to the scent without being overpowering.

 

I like this very much. An awesome Spring or Summer blend: very feminine and pretty, without being floral OR too fruity. Nice.

[Atrous]

Scent is not what I expected but boy, does it smell terrific!

 

Smells like fresh honeysuckle which is nice because actual honeysuckle notes go rancid on my skin.

Under the honeysuckle...cool and woodsy. Spring is just around the corner and this will be perfect for that time of year.

[mistressfizz]

Wet on my skin, this smells like eastern incense, slightly spicy and powdery, very soft and gentle. It's a light incense, airy and fresh and herbal, not smoky or resinous. As this dries, I detect the plum, faint and slightly sweet, with just a tiny touch of mint. Overall, this is mostly sandalwood incense with the plum and mint making minor appearances. It's pleasant, but a tad too mild for me.

[milo]

Sandalwood overload for sure here. Not getting any mint or plum here. I'm not a huge sandalwood fan unless it's blended with something sweet, so this is not for me.

[fufu_berry]

On wet: PLUMMITY PLUM PLUM? Have I mentioned lately that I am plum?

 

Drydown: Still basically plum SN - this plum is super fruity and sweet too.

 

Dry: Just a hint of sandalwood. I was hoping the sandalwood would keep in the plum under control (I like plum, but I amp it waaay up), but not so far. Not a hint of mint anywhere.

 

+15 min: Whew, ok, the plum is getting under control and more woods are coming out. Still no sign of mint.

 

I'll have to see what this is like after a couple hours -- the plum blast opening was really intense and unpleasant, but if this keeps getting woodsier it might be a keeper.

[Eemia]

Strong, dry sandalwood with a faint tang of mint. It's very woody and robust, sort of masculine too. I gravitate to sandalwood and this is one of the most intense versions I can remember smelling in a bpal. It almost comes across as a single note. It has a smoky quality that's just stunning. No creaminess or sweet tone like in Tushnamatay (one of my all time favorite sandalwood blends) or Vasilissa. But sexy and stark and amazing. The plum doesn't really develop much on my skin but I get a little juiciness and a touch of a fruit note after awhile. I wouldn't have guessed it was plum if I didn't already know it was in here. Usually plum pulls super sweet and candy-like on me or it goes sharp and it doesn't do either in this one. It's more of a mellow wash underneath everything before it disappears. It all becomes bone dry light woods at the end.

 

The hyper-woodiness in this really won me over. Perfect for my frequent sandalwood cravings.

[Jangzonrice]

Got a sniffie bottle with a tiny bit of oil to test. Wet: strong sandalwood and plum (like the chinese red preserved kind). Dry: mint and sandalwood.

Nice to try, but I don't need more of it. However, if I knew something that had that preserved plum note in it, I would be very interested!.

 

Edit: a week later and I keep thinking of the preserved plum note in this....now I need to find more

Edited February 25, 2014 by Jangzonrice

[Teaker]

Kind of a dry scent, sandalwood with an undertone of plum. I can see why people might like this, it's delicate and smells quite calm and grounding. It's not for me though. I'm realizing that sandalwood and fruit scents don't do it for me.

 

This is very faint and fades away quickly.

[d0gbones]

In the imp: Sandalwood, but watery?

Wet: The mintiness is creeping in.

Dry: This is pretty much all sandalwood, sweetened by plum. I do wish the plum was more prominent. I don't get on with sandalwood (makes me feel sick!), so if my mother doesn't want it, it's one for the swap pile, unfortunately.

[alterosen]

I seem to have the plummy incense version - quite pretty! Not too fruity, not too woody, only the slightest whisper of mint: it's rather nice!