Desmonema

[nineveh]

White amber and mimosa with tendrils of Italian bergamot, myrrh, green tangerine and green patchouli, sheer coconut, quince, and vetiver.

Wet, this is quite vetiver-heavy. I like vetiver when it's green and grassy, like in Atlas, but unfortunately Desmonema's vetiver is the smoky kind.

Once it's try, it really transforms. The vetiver vanishes, revealing a soft, sweet amber (white amber is my favorite) and bergamot. It's nearly identical to Deep Steep's Grapefruit Bergamot body butter, if that comparison is useful. There are other elements in the background adding substance and grounding, but they're too well blended for me to pick them out.

I like this a lot even though the wet stage is somewhat overwhelming. A sweet, green citrus scent that's not high-pitched or vegetal.

[Deliciousness]

In the imp, this smells like a dirty vetiver. Yes this does smell strong, but many perfumes are quite overpowering in their little vial.

 

Wet on skin, this blend immediately warms up, as the coconut and white amber come forward. I get hints of the patchouli and quince, but the vetiver is strong with this one.

 

Dry, this is a wonderfully sweet, but not cloying, rich scent. The vetiver helps keep the sweetness of the coconut in check, while the coconut keeps the vetiver from being too dirty. This scent is like an amalgamation of a tropical rainforest and a deciduous forest. Weird analogy, I know, but that's what comes to mind when smelling this blend.

 

Desmonema wears very close to my skin - which is probably good, considering it's a summery scent.

[OctoberGwen]

Honest to God, I don't know if I really like this or really dislike it. I definitely can't stop smelling myself, so take that for what it's worth!

 

When this first goes on, I realize what green patchouli is. It is just like I've taken a young sapling, split its slender trunk open, and am inhaling all that sap-covered green wood. The vetiver lends its distinctive smokiness, like a grass fire, and I am getting some of the coconut (which really does have a 'sheer' quality here.) I don't pick out myrrh's super-sweetness, and I think I'm only getting a hint of the bergamot and I'm still waiting for the mimosa...

 

But at this phase I'm still all, "Do I frigging like this or don't I?"

 

The far drydown, though, is just gorgeous. I'm smelling what can only be the white amber and perhaps a bit of that mimosa, finally? With just a faint whisper of the former grittiness.

 

This scent is intriguing and unique, and the longer it's on, the more I like it.

Edited July 18, 2013 by OctoberGwen

[vthesiren]

This is like... a lighter version of some of my favorite vetiver/patchouli combo scents (Death Adder, Great He-Goat), but with a nice citrus kick that makes it stand out. It's very green and earthy, but not overwhelmingly filthy. The drydown is phenomenal.

 

I can't say for sure whether I'll get a bottle or not, but I'm glad I got a decant.

[stellamaris]

Oh my. When I first put this on I got a very heavy earthen note, like the one I loved/hated in Santa Muerte, but that fades very quickly and it turns into a delicious complex incense. I love this one.

It feels a little "fancy", but in a dark, glittering, Stevie Nicks way, not like in a Ralph Lauren way. This makes sense to me

It smells more hippie glamorous than Madison Avenue.

I know I will wear the heck out of this.

I can see from reading the reviews above that I am clearly having a totally different experience of this scent, but a great one none the less. After reading them I had to resniff my imp and hand to make sure I didn't review the wrong one but nope...

 

My husband (son of a perfumer btw) called this "The perfect summer scent, this smells just like summer." And, he smelled the coconut right off, something that is eluding me. Could it be because I have six other BPALs on my arms right now? hmmm....

Edited July 20, 2013 by stellamaris

[SophieCedar]

Wet: same as everyone..strong vetivert. Then white amber, quince, and tangerine take over with a bash-pow of bergamot. Mimosa is relatively strong and floral-y sweet with what smells like coconut water as well. The vetivert starts to take a backseat which is surprising! This reminds me of tropical room sprays or aromatic oils used as room fresheners with those little stick things reaching out of a jar.

 

Drydown: this is the strangest sweet vetivert and patchouli blend ever. Mimosa, quince, bergamot, vetivert, patchouli..in that order. That's what's sticking around. I'm seriously scratching my head over this one. I love it and dislike it at the same time. Its as annoying & entrancing as watching Paris Hilton on TV.

Edited July 25, 2013 by SophieCedar

[Gateau]

For me this was not strong on vetiver at all once applied, though I could smell the smokiness in the decant, and was much stronger on the fruits, especially tangerine, and the sheer coconut. It's not a creamy coconut, more on the underripe side, and fits with the notion of the other green fruits and the green patchouli. Very summery and tropical but not in a beach drink sort of way.

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Sugared, earthy vetiver. Chocolatey almost.

 

Drydown: More vetiver, but the grassier kind now. The sweetness is becoming creamier and mixing with the patchouli and citrus notes. The vetiver dies down some and the coconut, amber, and patchouli amp up a bit. Warm and tropical with just a touch of grassiness.

 

Dry: This is a weird and complex one for sure, and it stays pretty consistent. It’s mainly a mix of grassy vetiver, creamy-cool coconut, smoky myrrh, and earthy patchouli. Plus a bit of sweetness, most likely from the quince. Essentially it smells like hiking in the tropics.

 

 

 

 

6.5 out of 10 bones

[zankoku_zen]

Patchouli, vetiver, and coconut. This reminds me to a softer, more floral version of the GC Goblin.

[ReallyZeb]

Wet and on first dry down I hate it - vetiver dominates, with a bit of myrrh and its hard to get anything else.

 

After about an hour though there is a gorgeous transformation and I can't stop sniffing my arm - mellow coconut, bergamot and a slightly powdery amber all blend beautifully, with a quite gentle resinous green peeking underneath. Now I need to work out if I can stand the first hour in order to get to the beauty afterwards.

[Monday]

I like this one a lot. It's mostly vetiver, tangerine and coconut with a hint of quince when it's wet. But it really takes off when it's dry. I get the patchouli, coconut, amber and myrrh with a backdrop of quince and tangerine the bergamot is indeed twining through it. The vetiver is only acting as a strengthener really once it's dry, giving it a lot of throw. Once it's dry for a few hours it really gets going and melds into something gorgeous and velvety. Give this one a bit of time and warmth to get the best out of it.

[Katlyntje]

In the imp this is spicy, smokey, with a touch of coconut and citrus. Wet on my skin the coconut really jumps to the forefront followed by smokey vetiver and a touch of citrus. Dry this is creamy and smokey and delicious with just a hint of quince and mimosa.

[Magycmyste]

I have to admit, after vetiver (under the name of khus) sort of screwed up my experience with Stentor yesterday, I'm a little more nervous about this one. Still, you never know!

 

In the imp: Coconut and patchouli. And something else. I think I can smell the vetiver a bit (though that might just be my growing prejudice of vetiver ::Sigh:)

 

Wet on skin: Coconut and patchouli. It's and interesting combination. I think I'm getting the quince in there, too, or maybe the green tangerine. For that matter, it might be the bergamot, or a combination of all three. It's something fruity. In general, coconut seems to work well on my skin, but I don't know about some of these other notes, and how well they'll play. I still need to figure out what myrrh smells like.

 

Dried down: Yep. there's the vetiver. But it's not horrible. It doesn't have the funky undertone I was getting from Stentor. It plays reasonably nicely with the coconut and fruity bits. I do like the dried down scent better than the wet. The patchouli's calmed down a bit, and all the notes are playing nicely together.

 

Throw: This one's got a strong throw. Yay for coconut!

 

Verdict: *** 1/* This wasn't really bad at all, so maybe I don't need to start fearing vetiver. Still, it didn't wow me either. The coconut's pretty, and I do like the final scent, but still not as much as I like some others. Oh well.

Edited August 6, 2013 by Magycmyste

[tacey]

Vetiver. Both in the locket and the whole time on my skin. Now, it's the good smoky-soft kind, and I really liked it, but I was expecting to find all those other notes. Will give this bottle some time to 'rest' and try again later...

[thekittenkat]

In the descent: So well-blended that it's a little difficult to pick out the individual notes. A creamy green scent.

 

Wet: Now the vetiver comes forward!

 

The dry-down: The vetiver is slowly melting into the other notes. Not quite the creamy green scent of the decant. I do like this, and will debate on a bottle.

 

Would really like a Mimosa SN; it was the mimosa note that convinced to try this.

[BlueberryPie]

I wore this to an Orchestra concert. On the way there, in the car, this smelled very, VERY herbal and green, almost medicinal, with a subtle bitter edge. It wasn't unpleasant at all, don't get me wrong. Very unique and interesting. This is precisely the sort of scent I signed up to BPAL for, I thought. The kind you can't get from anywhere else.

 

As I settled down to listen, I noticed the scent VEEEERY subtly growing sweeter and sweeter on me as the night went on. There's no definite stages to it. The sweetness of...I don't know, coconut? Just gently swelled up from beneath all the greens and herbs. And accompanied with swelling music? It was an experience that was absolutely heavenly. But even when it's at the highest point of sweetness, it doesn't turn heady or cloying. The green notes are still there, grounding the perfume. It's an absolutely gorgeous summer scent. Very, very unique. I am very pleased.

 

Though I can't begin to judge the staying power. The concert lasted for 2 hours, and I came home and went straight to bed.

 

Score: 9/10

 

 

[Eemia]

In the bottle this smells like straight up, dank and murky vetiver. It scared me. Not that I dislike vetiver but the sheer overwhelming force of it really put me off and I set the bottle aside for a few weeks. But the reviews intrigued me and my bottle is now loved and adored. This is such a stand out and it really feels different.

 

Wet on my skin the vetiver filters out and brown coconut with a sweet underlying earthiness come through. Not an artificially sweet or chemical coconut, like in sunscreen, but a sun-warmed natural coconut. It's a little tropical and seems to just mesh together so smoothly. No sharp edges or harsh notes. There's a rawness that must be coming from the patchouli, it makes everything feel grounded and new. As it sits for awhile I start to notice the bergamot and amber, adding more depth and a golden touch of resinous sweetness. It's still strongly coconut but there's so much else rounding it out that it doesn't feel simple.

 

The dry down is gently smoky, laced in sweetness and borderline creamy. The vetiver is finally more identifiable, adding a woodiness and touch of masculinity that's sensual and sexy. Very long lasting and with a good amount of throw but not overly strong. This is so complex and I would never have picked this as something that would be so incredibly beautiful on me. I want to roll around in this one.

[mymymai]

ITI: It's sweetly resinous with touches of dried fruit underneath. I'm just worried about the quince on my skin, but so far, so good.

 

Wet: It smells like warm fruit cake, although I can detected the patchouli and bergamot. Surprisingly nice and warm.

 

Dry: As it was drying, I remember having a favorable response. It becomes less fruit cake and more alluringly warm and resinous form the amber, coconut, and myrrh. There is a slight sweetness to it from the mimosa, but it just adds to make this a gorgeous, feminine scent that would be a great winter, fall, or spring scent.

[Lucchesa]

Desmonema is not a willful misspelling of Desdemona but a jellyfish species, if anyone's interested.  With the exception of quince, which usually doesn't show up in large enough quantities for me to really judge what it smells like on me, and mimosa, which is iffy, all these notes tend to be reliably good on me.  Wet, I get black vetiver and patchouli.  It's dark and earthy, rough around the edges.  It softens considerably on drydown, though I would not call this floral.  Nor do I get much citrus.  It's mainly vetiver-patch-coconut-myrrh, with some sweetness that's probably due to the fruit.  (Again, I can't make out quince specifically; I need a quince SN.)  I agree with zanzoku_zen that this is reminiscent of Goblin.  But even with the coconut, it doesn't feel summery to me.  Maybe a nighttime scent for summer, a daytime one for fall/winter.  I'm going to test this again but I rather like it!