Baku

[Lucchesa]

Our Nightmarebane. Named after the Baku, benevolent Japanese spirits that eat nightmares. In Japanese tradition, nightmares are gifts from malevolent spirits; when you wake up from one, you may call, "Baku, please eat my dreams!", and if you are virtuous and merciful in spirit, the Baku will devour the evil, transforming it into a blessing of good fortune.

 

I didn't try Baku for its nightmare-devouring properties; I wore it in daytime. Baku on me goes on with a strong, sinus-clearing blast of medicinal lavender. That initial burst of lavender never lasts long on me, and within 20 minutes it had faded and the anise note was overtaking it. Within another 20 minutes or so, my skin had eaten Baku almost completely. I guess a strong opening would be good for inducing sleep, and if it worked, I wouldn't need it to last very long...

[cyborgutena]

Lavender and....eucalyptus? It's very sharp but calming. It's not really something I wear as a scent out but rather something I like to apply at home to relax.

 

Unfortunately, it doesn't have great throw and it fades super quick. I'm kind of surprised because I don't think lavender normally does that on me. If it was stronger and stuck around longer, I would use it when going to bed. As it is, I mostly just keep the imp around and sniff it occasionally.

[RobberBaroness]

Baku is eucalyptus and licorice on me.  Not at all something I would wear out of the house, but I may try it in a pre-bedtime bath.

[lady_pandora]

It took me a long time to get around to trying Baku, but recently it seemed I was getting anosmic to all my usual sleep scents so I figured I'd test something else. And I'd had a couple of disturbing nightmares too, so if it worked in that sense too, so much the better.

 

Scentwise it's almost straight-up lavender, but I think maybe I smell a little citrus, just a hint? It's soothing and works as a sleep scent. And, small sample statistics, but I haven't yet had a nightmare when using it. In fact, last night I had a dream scenario that's usually a nightmare for me (witnessing a plane crash) and the dream-plane freaking bounced like a rubber ball. It's like something blunted the nightmare so nothing bad actually happened. It might be a coincidence, but it seemed interesting enough to note here.

[puellacaerulea]

In the imp: Lots of lavender, with a slight undertone of something else green. I can't quite tell if it's eucalyptus because it fades extremely fast. Still, if you're looking for something primarily lavender, this would be a good choice. I'll probably hang onto my imp for a sleep scent.

[Teaotter]

My previous bottle of Baku was very much soft lavender and anise. Fairly long-lasting, but it kept close to the skin.

 

My new bottle is medicinal lavender and eucalyptus, with better throw and about the same longevity.  I honestly don't know if this is an issue of aging, skin chemistry, or formula changes, but it's a significant difference.

[Rane.]

Smells like a different kind of lavender, maybe French Lavender, with some kind of Chamomile possibly. Works well at helping me relax.

[a_bear]

I have not asked Baku to eat my dreams, but Baku has definitely helped me when I have a headache. It's relaxing without making me sleepy and is one of like two scents I can tolerate when I my head hurts. It has a pretty short life on me, but again, since I mostly reach for it when my head hurts or I just need to take a few deep relaxing breaths, I don't see that as a problem.

 

The scent is a slightly anise-y Lavender. I don't get eucalyptus or any other notes really.

[Claire-of-the-Valley]

This is overt lavender and eucalyptus  with just a touch of anise and it's great. In the bottle it smells way too strong, I'll admit, but on the skin it's perfect. Lavender and eucalyptus is a combo I've liked for ages and I've always found it relaxing. The anise comes out more on the dry down. All in all, I can absolutely see how this would be good for meditation or clearing one's mind and I'll likely be using it for just that.

[spaghettysburg]

All lavender in the bottle, all anise on my skin. Might be the combo of the eucalyptus + lavender reading this way to my nose, but at the end of the day smelling like a licorice jellybean is not my jam.

[asoursweetsixteen]

~~frimp review~~

 

on wet, it is a lovely lovely combo of lavender, chamomile and fennel. a slightly licorice-y smell with soothing lavender. so simple but so lovely. finocchio is one of my favorite veggies so i'm very biased.

 

20 mins later now dry, it's almost completely faded. I seriously ate this the hell up. I can only smell a trace of fennel. seems like i'll need to reapply if I want this to last, but it lasts long enough to smell as you fall asleep.

 

this is a really really lovely scent. very unique and herbally and refreshing. total win, I love it.

[twilighteyes]

On 3/20/2008 at 5:09 PM, twilighteyes said:

All I get from this is lavender lavender lavender. Maybe a slightly sweet finish.

 

I loved it. This was the first imp that I've used completely. I wore it every night to bed and sprinkled some on my pillows.

 

A bottle is in my future!!

 

(And I'm sooo happy I just got frimped with another Sonmium today -- Somnus -- since I ran out of Baku!)

 

I have gone through maybe two bottles of Baku? 

 

Just purchased a new bottle and still lavender.  Maybe a hint of anise.  I stick a reducer cap on and sprinkle on my pillow at night.

[wordortwo]

I don't have much to say about Baku, but that doesn't mean I don't like it. It is, as others have said, anise-tinged herbal lavender. Sometimes has a sinus-clearing quality. It is an excellent sleep scent. I keep an imp by my bed. Strong, don't over-apply if you actually want to sleep. I don't know much about the longevity, other than that it is gone by the time I wake up.

Edited November 23, 2023 by wordortwo

[Assimbya]

This is a gentle, relaxing scent. On me it's a pretty evenly balanced blend of eucalyptus and lavender, with just a hint of anise in the background. It seems to have very little if any throw, and fades quite quickly, so I don't know how useful it would be as a perfume to wear out, but I would be happy to use it for it's intended purpose.