Intercourse Through Folding Screen

[yakiguri]

Orris root, rice paper, red chypre, Siamese benzoin, Moroccan jasmine.

Wet, Intercourse Through Folding Screen starts with a creamy vanilla from the Siamese benzoin (yum!), but this is short-lived as the dry chypre notes push through. Orris is non-existent, which is fine since it has dominated other blends I've tried (I'm looking at you, Roses Pearls and Diamonds). As it dries the rice paper wraps itself around the blend with a soft-and-subtle powdery dryness that I often find in asian scents, accentuated the whole time with jasmine. Eventually the chypre fades into the background and I'm left with soft vanilla-tinged jasmine powder. Overall it's a clean powdery scent, but not baby powdery in the least bit...more like some expensive body powder you'd pick up in Kyoto made of crushed pearls.

Since I know a lot of forumites are jasmine-averse, I'd categorize the jasmine in this as the sharper, greener, "cleaner" type--I recognize this note from Salome. Unfortunately it's not my favorite type of jasmine, as I like my jasmine borderline poopy ( ). We'll see what the blend's like in a couple of months, but as of now it's a scent I'd rather dust on me as a powder than wear as a skin oil.

EDIT: After a few more weeks of aging the powdery elements have softened and deepened significantly. There's still powder, as Intercourse Through Folding Screen has the dry elements coming from the chypre and rice paper, but it the benzoin is much more prominent now and gives the blend a creamier feel. It's definitely more like a high-end body powder that just melts against your body heat, and the crushed pearls description I gave before is much more apt. I get hints of jasmine here and there but all sharpness is GONE. It's so well blended with the rest of the elements now that it doesn't particularly stand out but you know it's there. The blend stays pretty true wet through (long now!) drydown, and I even got a "mmm, you smell nice" from Mr. Elf. I'll be keeping my bottle, and definitely recommend at least trying this even if you're jasmine-averse.

[surlygurl]

When I sniffed this in the decant, it smelled clean & pretty, so it went into my "try soon" pile. Looking at the notes, I didn't know what to expect....

 

On my skin, it opens with a powdery orris and rice paper. White, Clean, powdery. I expect the red chyphre and bands of yellow smelling jasmine to snake out, any minute now. And the benzoin should ground it, shouldn't it? But the elements of the scent blend and settle and give me Baby Powder. Wet, dry, and in between - always baby powder clean!!!

[tailoredshirt]

This is definitely clean and powdery, I think from the chypre and the rice paper, but the jasmine dominates the blend for me right from the beginning. I love chypre and was hoping it would make this one a winner, but unfortunately the jasmine is just too strong for me. It's a pretty blend though, very soft. I'm just not a big fan of jasmine.

 

...and as soon as I say that, the benzoin makes a stronger appearance, tempering the jasmine a bit. I might need to retest this a few times.

[mermaidsdream]

In the imp I get a bit woodsy with a hint of sweet. Applied, it just turns sweet -- ridiculously sweet, almost sticky sweet. Dry down turns it powdery, sickly sweet. I wish I had more descriptions to it, but ... ugh. This one will be going into the "Trade Me" pile.

[hlinspjalda]

I've had varying luck with different types of chypres; between that and the orris, I wasn't expecting to like this one at all.

 

In the vial: Orris and something fruity-tangy with a touch of floral. This smells nice.

 

Wet: Yep, that fruity-tangy impression remains. But there's a warmth too, I think maybe the benzoin.

 

One hour: This is pretty. There's a pronounced floral, an almost peppery soft jasmine, but it's kept in place by the benzoin which seems like the dominant note on me. The overall read is a bit tart and herbal, probably from the chypre, but not in a bad way.

 

Seven hours: This stayed pleasant and the orris never bothered me. Now only a tiny bit of something like patchouli is left.

 

So far this is the surprise of the season for me. There's always one Luper that works on me even though it shouldn't, and this may be it.

[zankoku_zen]

Orris, jasmine, and benzoin overlayed over a citrusy chypre. It's soft, slightly sharp, and resinous base with tinges of smokiness.

 

Pleasant, slightly masculine, and more wearable than expected.

[Little Bird]

First on, this was like perfumey jasmine, smoky incense, and just an overall dry, sultry, exotic feel. Unfortunately, within five minutes on my skin, it turns into soapy jasmine, harsh smoke and baby powder

[milo]

Lots of jasmine from wet to dry. Slightly heady and sweet. Not for me.

[Teamama]

An aged decant crimped by a forumite. I wasn't expecting Intercourse to work for me, but WOW! Benzoin and orris magic, with just a hint of jasmine. Delicious! Not long-lasting, alas, but that's probably a good thing. Otherwise I'd spend all my time trying to get more...

[theseagrows]

in the beginning i smell orris, rice paper and a hint of jasmine. after about 5 minutes, i get hints of benzoin, which is vanilla-like. i think the red chypre comes out later. this is a subtle scent, but very pretty in an understated sort of way. an understated jasmine is nice, especially since it can be so in your face at times. i think the orris/rice paper add a nice powdery balance to the jasmine. a satisfying melange of opposites.