Sylvia

[GlowJob]

Snuggly brown musk, spicy carnation, leather balsam, bourbon vanilla, terebinth pine, yew berry, and a touch of clove.

 

In this bottle this is snuggly, musky goodness but something goes horribly wrong on my skin. First of all, I'm usually wary of scents with cinnamon because my skin is fairly sensitive. Although Sylvia doesn't have cinnamon or casia listed as a note, this caused a red, sore welt not five minutes after application. I wanted to pin it on the clove but I've never had that reaction with any other clove heavy oils. The welt subsided after fifteen minutes and I got a good sniff. There's musk and maybe a tiny hint of leather but the overall feeling is just unbearably medicinal. The carnations are soapy, not spicy. I'm not picking up any pine whatsoever. It reminds me way too strongly of the zinc eugenol base we use in cavity filling preps in dentistry. Sylvia is quite the heartbreaker for me.

[patina]

I get pine and leather, but they're both subdued and keeping one another in check. The third and equally powerful scent here is a smell like pink pastilles (kind of chalky pink candy.) That must be the carnation. Then some juniper comes out, but it's not the horrible scent ruiner that juniper usually is on me.

 

This is a pink and pretty wild forest scent.

 

Edit: I figured out some of the "candy" effect is actually a medium musk. Musk smells like candy to me, go figure.

Edited December 27, 2013 by patina

[Roogna]

a tang/bite that reminds me of Twisted Oak Tree (though created by different notes), snuggly brown and clove with a touch of spice

 

In the bottle, the tang is very prevalent; don't let it put you off from skin-testing

 

after wearing for a bit it settles into mostly musk, still warm and snuggly, brown and hints of warm spice and the tang

[Alethia]

Thoughts before testing: I had to wait to order Sylvia until recently (I was out of work all summer), but I would have ordered this one right away as the notes are absolutely perfect. I'm a little worried about the pine taking over, but my hopes are high for this lady!

 

Wet: HOLY SHIT THIS IS GOOD. Spicy, beautiful carnation and spicy clove with a fabulous warm brown musk (snuggly is the best word for it) and just a hint of pine. Seriously this is good.

 

Dry down: Still fabulously spicy carnation and clove with that warm musk. I get just a hint of leather, just a touch of pine. This is warm and spicy and phenomenal.

 

Dry: Carnation, clove, and musk finish it out. Spicy, warm, beautiful, and perfect for a werewolf!

 

Final thoughts: Beth and Ted knocked it out of the park with this one! Seriously, this is absolutely fantastic and I'm considering getting a second bottle before the Wenches come down.

 

Verdict: Hoarding.

[MCS4096]

Mmmmmmm this is fabulous. When wet I get the pine (but a well balanced and well behaved pine) with spicy carnation and a hint of leather and musk. Then the pine starts to leave and it's warm red carnation over a more obvious musk with a hint of leather. Then finally, after several hours, I'm left with only musk-- but the wonderfully snuggly animal musk of Ivanushka. Good throw for the duration of the wearing, even as the notes come and go.

 

I only ordered one bottle but I may have to find another, because this is a pretty flawless blend!

[tinyvulture]

This is an interesting one!

 

At first, pine and yew berries make me think of Christmas.

Then the spicy carnation shows up, and that's not very Christmasy.

Next, the leather balsam rears its head. I'm not sure how "leather balsam" differs from leather...is it just a vegan leather note? Anyway this is a strong, sharp, black leather.

Finally, clove and sweet vanilla show up to mellow out that leather. By now, the pine and berries have practically disappeared!

 

So I'm left with carnation, leather, clove, and vanilla. After enduring the really sharp pine and leather notes that first appear, what remains is a soft and homey blend. Not exactly foody, but the clove + vanilla reminds me of Pickled Imp. Complex and cool!

[Monster]

Sylvia is by far my favorite!

 

This starts out as an Illustrated Woman-reminiscent musky pine and eventually settles into the prettiest carnation-paired clove scent EVER. Uh! I wish I bought a back-up.

[LiberAmoris]

Last year I got both Sylvia and Callidora in a wenchy splurge. Callidora is dark and dangerous, a true nighttime perfume. Sylvia is fuzzy and sweet, perfect for wearing during the day with snuggly sweaters. I don't get as much pine as others have mentioned—it's there, but is definitely in the background, especially after the first few minutes. On me, Sylvia is mostly brown musk and carnation with clove and vanilla. I have two dogs who bring me a lot of comfort and happiness, and the smell reminds me a bit of their fur after a morning spent playing outside in the fall. It's like the ultimate comfort scent for me.

[porcelina]

the terebinth pine is the first thing i notice and it sort of punches me in the face. it is very strong, almost harsh. as it dries, the pine softens and i get a lot of musk and clove over a woodsy backdrop. it actually ends up being a very soft, cozy sort of scent, and i agree with zankoku_zen on the clove cigarette comparison. mmm.

[Little Bird]

I like Sylvia. It starts off with a blast of pine, but dries down more warm and spicy. The musk makes it warm and snuggly while the spicy clove and carnation combo are almost sweet and cinnamon-ish on my skin. I was worried about the spices and that the pine + spice would remind me of holiday potpourri, but my aged decant of this seems to be doing well. The musk is powdery and soft, but not baby powdery, all warm and snuggly, with a bit of soft leather backing it up. The vanilla and pine are pleasantly sweet and foresty. The spices are there, but not overwhelming or turning to a cinnamon disaster as the whole thing dries down. Powdery musk, sweet vanilla pine, soft leather, and warm spiciness from the carnation and clove. It reminds me of blends like The Illustrated Woman, Ivanushka, Golden Priapus...

[LizziesLuck]

Warm, sweet clove. I think the carnation adds to the spice, but isn't distinguishable as a note, to my nose. The brown musk is sugary to me, and quite nice. Very woody. Overall, a really warm, sweet scent, just this side of masculine. Unisex, really. There's a wood note in there that is going slightly sour and unpleasant on my skin. Aside from that, I like this a lot, but have other similar scents that are a bit more feminine, a bit more my style. Glad to have gotten to try this though! It kind of smells like Christmas, actually....very nostalgic.