Baba Yaga

[hkhm]

Spell-soaked herbs and flowers, cold iron, broom twigs, bundles of moss and patchouli root, and moth dust.

imp: a deep resinous patchouli with some herby green-ness.

wet: this is not the same strong type of patchouli i'm used to, but more of that rich, yet understated, patchouli root scent that my mom and her hippie friends have. actually, this blend reminds me a lot of my mom, herby patchouli.

dry: woodsy, herby patchouli root. might have to apply this to my husband to see how it works on him.

[Missy_killer]

In the imp: Afthershave and dishsoap. It's a very sharp and bright smell. After a while it smells like a plant.

 

On me: This is a cold scent. The aftershave is still there, and this one makes me feel dizzy and sick. After about five minutes I can smell the iron. It's weird! Ten minutes later I get dirt. I smell like iron and dirt, with a hint of aftershave. Euw.

 

After an hour: Hasn't changed a thing since. Still iron, dirt and aftershave.

 

The next day: I was getting ready to go out and take a walk with my dog when I thought to myself "something smells like mold here.. Need to look around when I come back in". Then I realized that it was Baba Yaga that had rubbed off on my shirt. NOOOO! I smell like mold, and something that reminds me of rotten fruit.

 

I do not like this one.

 

 

[Suu4LC]

In the imp this is an earthy herbal/floral with a generous smattering of warm spices. I am not usually huge on patchouli, but the herbs and spices really even it out.

 

Mmm, yes, on my skin this is a very nice herbal/spicy earthy floral blend. Sort of like the evil witch version of Clemence in a way. This dried down a bit powdery, but not overly so. A sort of herbal/metallic earthy spiced powder scent. This scent was lovely wet on my skin, but the drydown is a bit unexciting. This was nice and I imagine it is truly spectacular on people who have skin that isn't so prone to turning things to powder, but it was just ok on me.

[Gael]

Ok, so this was a frimp that I got along with my large Christmas order. I knew nothing of this oul hag, didn't seek her out, conjure her up or anything, but here she is and she's quite the gal. Yes, resinous patchouli is a good description and I like her much to my surprise as generally I am a major foodie. But she's got style, so she does, and she makes an impression that is memorable. So thanks for this one and I will be ordering a bottle.

[lilyliza]

This was a frimp from the Lab.

 

In the imp: Flowers, very pretty ones actually! I get a lot of almost medicinal-smelling herbs too, along with a strong metallic tang.

 

Wet, on my skin: The moss, patchouli, flowers, and herbs mix together to create a scent that smells eerily like the forest. The iron is also prominent. The flowers become the main part of the scent, and it's a very pretty bouquet. These aren't fancy flowers, these are the wildflowers you would pick in a meadow.

 

Drydown: The herbs and iron become more prominent, and now it's a thick, sweet, but not too sweet scent.

 

Dry: It's almost masculine now, with heavy iron and herbs and patchouli in the background. It's just a little spicy.

 

I like it. I seem to be partial to scents that make feel like I'm outdoors, and this one definitely fits that description.

[ami226]

On the skin: Dusty herbs and florals with a metallic hint. After a bit the florals fade slightly and it gets a little sweeter. The herbs get a bit stronger.

 

Too herby for me.

[KindKit]

I got Baba Yaga as a frimp from the lab and finally got around to trying it. It reminded me a little bit of Season of the Inundation--they have an earthiness in common--but while I like SotI a lot, Baba Yaga doesn't work for me. There's the earth/dirt note, and then some herbs, with a hint of floral sweetness and feral patchouli, but somehow to me it smells a bit flat and off. The different notes don't quite harmonize, at least not on me.

[WidgetAlley]

Imp: Roots, dust, cold metal, cinnamon, white florals, and an understated but still quite heady black patchouli. Gorgeous-- complex but natural, deep and dark and earthy but not oppressive.

 

Wet: Moss, dusty and dry and just a tiny bit salty as moss tends to go, and a laid-back patchouli. Then something gritty and pleasant, like sandalwood, and something else faintly bubbly, like sarsaparilla or mint or birch (I think birch? Birch brooms, after all.) And a gorgeous, dusty, dry, incense-y cinnamon! And lots of other unnamed herbs and flowers and something a little bit like pennies, or the smell of your hands after you've been warming up your fencing foils in the winter.

 

Dry: Dry wood, forest, roots, dust, iron and cinnamon, faintly washed with fruit and spice and small pale flowers. I do think this is amazing, but I'm not actually sure how much I want to smell like a witch's cellar. I'll keep it around and see how much I reach for it-- and I got no pineapple, or mango, or anything fruity at all!

[voodoobaby]

When I first sniff it I get a really nice patchouli and musky floral scent. It reminds me of a more unruly Medea, which is one of my favorites. But there's also this kind of sharp, almost ammonia smell behind it that reminds me of urine. o_O

 

Baba Yaga is very much redolent of witchcraft and all things wild. Urine is not out of place in that description; it smells like the witch is simultaneously brewing a healing potion and creating a witch bottle. I can't make up my mind on this one.

[kaberett]

In the imp: crushed herbs and, yes, the cold tang of iron.

 

Wet: delightful similarities to Glasgow, with the crushed herbs and the berries/flowers - and again, yes, the iron.

 

Dry: The patchouli isn't amping to the point of drowning out everything else! Iron edges and moss and wood and stone slabs and herbs and yesss. Basically. Given time, the patchouli does start to come out a little more - but the herbs and iron and heathery florals hold their own, and I decree myself Happy With This One.

[tharsei-thanate]

Spell-soaked herbs and flowers, cold iron, broom twigs, bundles of moss and patchouli root, and moth dust.

 

In the imp: Flowers and a hint of cold iron. Not bad.

 

Wet: Gorgeous, sweet flowers! I think they're white flowers, though I can't pin down anything specific. Ohh, this is nice.

 

Drydown: There's something wafting in the background adding depth to the sweet flowers. I honestly can't place it, it's too subtle, but it miiight be a sweet herb of some sort? Some sort of wood from the twigs? Musk??? All I know is that there's nothing bitter or metallic in here and I don't think the patch is making an appearance.

 

Dry: That mystery something in the background is so so soooo lovely. It's just making the sweet florals smell even better. Also, I swear I caught a berry of some sort just now. Oh wow, yes, it's amping now, there's berries! They're behaving nicely on me. So berries, sweet flowers, and a rich, subtle something.

 

Wow, this was a surprise winner! It's not a me sort of blend so no bottle, but this imp will certainly get some use!

[Ajila]

In the bottle - A green herbal floral with a dirty undertone

 

Wet on me - Dark green herbs with a sharp earthy backdrop and a touch of metal

 

Dry on me - It disappeared almost immediately

 

Overall - I thought it was going to develop into something interesting but it just vanished in no time at all

[Zii]

Wet: This is definitely the patchouli that is strange, and it's almost rancid. I'm getting oakmoss, patchouli and a really gross metal... I think the notes are combining with the white florals and just doing something awful. Nope...

[Magycmyste]

Sweet, almost fruity? In the imp, I smell more jasmine than pineapple, but there's a hint of pineapple there. I'm fairly certain the only reason I'm getting that is from the reviews I glanced at on my way to the bottom of the page.

 

On my wrist, I definitely get the concept of spell-soaked herbs. This smells like dried herbs, a little sharp and green, a little light and magical.

 

But, I don't think this scent is for me. Oh well.

[DiesMali]

In the imp: I had no idea what I was supposed to smell here, but I smell dust, earth, and herbs.

 

Wet on my skin: I'm not entirely sure how they managed to get the scent of broom twigs in here, but they did it. Along with moss, dust, herbs, and something sparkly like magic.

 

Dry: This is primarily the broom twigs, moss, and herbs on me, coated in a thin layer o dust and that sparkly-magic scent. I am not getting any pineapple at all, like other reviewers have said, nor much fruitiness at all. It's actually quite nice, not really what I was expecting from a scent named after a hag. The moss and herbs are very nice on my skin, along with the...magic. Go go Celtic Druid blood?

[Veronica]

Name is spot-on. This dries down to powdery, herbal florals. Something reminiscent of old ladies, yes, but also abandoned cottages in the midst of dark woods.

[DoktorDandy]

Wet: Hum, very odd. When I smell it, I have an impression of a dark golden color. Murky overall so far. Weirdest of all, when I breathe out after smelling it, I get the very distinct smell of puffed grain cereal- something I haven't had in many many years, but it brought the memory back. But I have no idea why in the world I am smelling that. I will have to look at reviews after I post this to see if anyone else says that....I think I'm getting the patchouli note, and something like an incense note, but there's this sweet, almost piquant tang that is really not agreeing with me, and I can't identify it.

 

Dry: Classic sort of incense-y notes with a weird low sweetness. A sweet metallic tinge like blood or iron that puts me in mind of Baba Yaga's iron teeth. Won't be keeping the imp.

Edited June 3, 2015 by DoktorDandy

[Soupy Twist]

Herbs and patchouli in the bottle, although it's hard to pin down. Goes on as the moss, maybe, and I can definitely smell the cold iron. There's some dusty dry flowers in the background, and the patchouli resurfaces. There's a woody notes — the broom twigs? — and then it turns, quite to my surprise, into a generic perfume counter floral with a little patchouli. Not for me.

[Malaena]

I really dislike this one. It smells like generic perfume and soap. Wash it offfffffffffff!

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: Not as dry as I imagined. There is a dry, woody note that I imagine is either the broom twigs or the moss, but mostly I get slightly...woozy(?) herbs. I'm in week 2 of fighting off a cold/the flu, so maybe that's just me, but I do get an unsettling, hard-to-put-my-finger-on-it feeling.

 

Wet: Wow, this one's a morpher! Now I'm getting sort of light, omnidirectional florals, with maaaaybe just a hint of patchouli at the base. But it still feels dry and chilly, and constantly threatens to veer into soap territory.

 

Dry: It settles down into an inoffensive, barely-there generic perfume - the kind that could be mistaken for "I just washed my hands with nice soap." I was all ready to give up on it, when I got a random whiff of myself ~4-6 hours in, and was surprised to find that it had morphed into this fascinating mossy-woodsy scent, with the florals as a faint accent, nothing more. Hmm!

 

Instead of consigning this one to the swaps box, I think I'll age it for a while, see if I can bring forward that fascinating forest scent (which I really haven't found anywhere else, even in supposedly foresty blends such as Druid or Arkham).

[Hystrixia]

In the Frimp: Baba Yaga is a bright yellow oil with the scent of cold iron and sweet herbs and flowers. It has an almost citrusy, indolic quality like you would find in white flowers when sniffed in large concentrations, which is something I love.

Top Notes: Immediately after application, the cold, metallic scent of iron and bright green herbs soaked in patchouli makes itself very apparent. There is a slight hint of dust in the background that peeks through the entire time. The whole thing is very refreshing and sweet in an herbal way and it holds an almost magical quality, like the smell of fresh herbs being ground up with incense in order to concoct a magical potion.

Middle Notes: About an hour has passed and it has become heavy on the moth dust and wood notes with the herbs and flowers becoming secondary. Something almost catty is in the background and the iron is still present, but only barely coming through. At this stage it does a very good job of evoking the imagery of a decrepit wooden hut in the forest with a mossy thatched roof and dusty cobwebbed walls filled with both freshly cut and dried herbs and flowers on the inside. Sniffing it kind of gets in me the mood for Halloween.

Base Notes: After a few hours, the metallic iron note has turned the blend into a generic soapy floral-wood scent reminiscent of Dial Gold Antibacterial soap. It reminds me a LOT of my Grandma’s kitchen as that was the soap she used. Occasionally the patchouli amps or a nice hint of green moss pops up… but in a flash, it’s gone and the soapy florals return. Bummer.

Overall Impression: I initially really liked Baba Yaga as it had a very wild, decayed, and witchy quality to it in the beginning. But when the base notes came out, Baba Yaga went from being the classic mystical crone in living the woods to becoming a traditional suburban grandmother. It’s a shame for me. I really enjoyed the top and central notes in this blend, especially the indolic moth dust, sweet green herbs, and mossy-wood notes. If it had remained more on the dirty, sweet, or green side while wearing it, I probably would have liked it a lot better. Baba Yaga’s scent colors are a bright mossy green, bistre (blackened brown), and straw yellow.

The sillage on this one was fair but the longevity is pretty short, so you’ll probably have to reapply if you plan on wearing it for more than six to eight hours.

Final Verdict: I will not be keeping this frimp as I do not like scents that go soapy on me. Baba Yaga had potential, but ultimately was not what I was hoping for.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: This reminds me a LOT of Antikythera Mechanism, which is odd, because that's what I was wearing earlier, but I showered, so this is not left-overs. As it dries, whatever note in common (I am guessing the 'broom twigs' are either oak or teak) it has with Antikythera fades away and this gets very herbal and green. I get hints of the Lab's "decay" note, which I adore.

 

Dry: ? It fades so fast! I have reapplied three times now, and each time it's gone in moments. I guess it's not meant for my skin chemistry. It was interesting though!

[freyasfae]

Oh, this is what I would imagine Baba Yaga to smell like, there's an old-fashioned perfume element, but in the midst of herbs, patchouli, and this element of decay that I think may be the moss and moth dust. Liked trying it, but won't be needing a bottle.

[agirlnamedfury]

Bitter green floral. I don't get any patchouli, which is a bummer for me. The notes here don't really do anything for me, unfortunately -- this somehow manages to smell both musty and like dishsoap at the same time. :/

[Kmye Chan]

In the imp: herbs and a bit of patchouli.

 

Wet: Oh hello patchouli, why don't you make yourself at home and overwhelm everything? Patchouli, patchouli and more patchouli. Not as acrid as in Imp, but still very earthy.

 

Dry: after a while the patchouli recedes a bit and a herbal/white floral smell comes out and mingles. I can't identify it exactly, but it brings sweet soapy undertones to the scent. I don't get any wood or metal from this, although I sometimes get a dusty whiff that catches in my thorat and makes me cough.

 

This wasn't for me. It's not exactly unpleasant but, while it's not exactly masculine, it did remind me of musty aftershave. Also there's definitely something in this blend that makes me cough, so... off to the swap pile.