Lacus Solitudinis

[HerbGirl]

The Lake of Solitude: a scent of introspection and introversion. Meditative white sandalwood with rosewood, Roman chamomile, white lavender, marjoram, Himalayan cedar, and oudh.

Cedar, lavender, oudh. Beautifully, seamlessly blended. Wow. The sandalwood and marjoram provide a soft/sharp contrast for the bottom. The chamomile is light and soft and beautiful. I opened this late last night after a long day of travel and after one sniff, i needed to wear it to sleep, and it let me sleep soundly. I adore this and will treasure my bottle. Sorry this first review isnt more descriptive...i just wanted to.share my impression. 🙂

Edited June 18, 2020 by HerbGirl

[Balame]

Ooh, Lacus. I had high hopes for you but I wasn’t sure what to expect. Would you have beautiful resins with glimmers of delicate herbs? Or would you be sharp and medicinal and overwhelming?

 

Thankfully… it’s the former! Sandalwood lovers rejoice because this is white sandalwood at its finest. Delicate, creamy woods with a smoothness only sandalwood can provide. The cedar is present but it “oversees” the rest of the notes. It’s just quietly standing in the back, herding all the other notes together.

 

Then come the herbs. So soft and lovely! There are hints of dainty rosewood, soothingly sweet lavender, a flash of brighter chamomile. Definitely makes a great sleep scent or for days when you need centering. Meditative is also right. I imagine this smells like the silver forest of my dreams. The bark of the trees is smooth and ethereal, the moonlight reflects off of everything to provide a pale glow. Then in the middle of a clearing, under the midnight black sky, is Lacus Solitudinis. Where its serene, reflective surface allows you to see into the depths of your soul. Lovely.

 

Also, my husband adores this one! Pretty amazing since he only has a few BPALs that he really likes… and he’s not liked any others to this extent.

 

This is one of the few Lunacies I’ve really loved. Must obtain back-up bottles!

[Atrous]

Balame's review is spot on!

I would add that the description is perfect. It is an introspective, quiet scent but holds its own quite nicely. After four hours of wear I can smell it like i just put it on.

Its non-offensive so it could be worn to work easily, especially on high stress days, as it has a calming effect. I can see myself wearing this for meditation or even sleep.

a gentle, creamy sandalwood is front and center with the rest of the notes playing supporting roles serving to deepen the sandalwood.

[zankoku_zen]

Lavender, cedar, oudh. This smells like smoky lavender scented pencil shavings. Kinda musky.

 

So sexy smoky lavender pencils?

[doublehelix]

Smoked herbs! This smells of herbs at a bonfire night. The cedar, lavender and chamomile are the most prominent notes in this for me. It actually reminds me of a smokey sleepy time blend. Once dry, the sandalwood comes out to play. Oh, this is just beautiful!

[nefta]

I get sweet sandalwood and a herb-y scent.

 

When wet on skin, I'm not sure why but the scent becomes cloyingly sweet (?!). Very prominent cedar, but more sweet than woodsy.

 

After 5 hours, the scent has dampened down quite a bit into a prominent cedar / sweet-wood kind of smell. I'm not sure how to put this.

 

Not my idea of a meditative scent, unfortunately.

[cameroncrazed]

In bottle: Sandalwood and cedar. Very masculine!

 

Wet on skin: The cedar's dying down some and the lavendar, chamomile, and marjoram are coming out to play. Still predominantly sandalwood.

 

Dry on skin: I'm a little bit confused by how much this blend has sweetened. Where's the sweet scent coming from? It's almost like a sugared slightly spiced pencil shaving. The sandalwood and cedar are really strong on me. The lavendar's almost completely disappeared, but I'm still getting the chamomile and marjoram with a bit of oudh.

 

I can see why people like this one, but it's just not for me – too woodsy for my taste. I think I'd like it a lot better on someone else's skin - I'm still reading it as really masculine for some reason.

[Jangzonrice]

Lavender sandalwood pencil shavings....pass! This is the first lunacy this year to not work on me...sad....

[tinyvulture]

Powdery lavender with tons of sweet vanilla. It's almost "Antique Lace + lavender." In the background, soft woods (sandalwood, oudh). I'm not noticing the chamomile or marjoram; it's not herbal at all for me. Such a calm, gentle blend. As an introspective introvert, it does suit me perfectly.

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, this smells strangely sharp, white, and soapy. Like a crystalline, soapy white musk.

On my skin, an herbal, dry cedar immediately leaps to the front. It smells a lot like the cedar shavings used in animal bedding - dry, slightly spicy cedar - but it has a weird, funky undertone that reminds me of body odor. I also smell a hint of weird fruitiness that keeps making me think of bananas. As it dries down, that sharp, unpleasant soapiness creeps back in.

I don't like this scent at all. It's sharp, unpleasantly dry, soapy, and a little BO-ish. It's really discordant and off on me.

Starts off very strong, but fades quickly and has entirely disappeared after about 3 hours.

[milo]

Usually sandalwood smells cool and bracing to me. This one is warm, and is *biting* rather than bracing. Very woody, but kind of sweet. I like this, it kind of reminds me of UOH2, Banshee Beat proto. After a bit, it gets kind of cologney, but it's still nice. I'd like to smell it on a guy.

[mymymai]

• ITI: The scent strikes me as somewhat medicinal, which I think stems from the lavender, chamomile, and marjoram. I’m also picking up something that has a faint bubblegum quality, and I’m not sure which note it is.

Wet: Bubblegum, sandalwood, marjoram, oudh, cedar, chamomile, and lavender- still too medicinal and oddly sweet for me. I’m not too convinced that this is a keeper at all.

Dry: I like this one better now that it has dried. It’s sweeter, but more palatable. The sandalwood is more distinct, the rosewood has appeared and warmed nicely on the skin, while the oudh and lavender have mellowed their medicinal tones and instead settled into something more calming.

[Kristin Annis]

This is gorgeous. Settles into a beautifully balanced scent quickly and stays that way! Makes me think of a dried herbal bouquet tossed on the coals in a cedarwood sauna. Not going to wear it as a perfume, but will definitely find a way to use it as a room or meditative scent.

[Coldfire]

Decant: white. with 'white' herb and cedar notes if those could be considered white
Wet on me: rosewood, sandalwood and cedar now, kind of sweet wood-y
Drying Down: mostly the wood notes with the faintest traces of the lavender and chamomile and that sweetness that comes from sandalwood
Dry: less wood.....but that sweetness of the sandalwood wraps around the lavender note. so calming and soothing! Keep!

[biggnerd]

The two strongest notes are lavender sweetened by marjoram and grounded by cedar and sandalwood.  It's a sweet herbal with a foundation of wood.  It's soothing and comfortable. 

 

[doomsday_disco]

In the decant: I am getting the white sandalwood, cedar, and marjoram notes.

On my skin, the dusty white sandalwood and majoram stand out to me, followed by the cedar. Then, the rosewood joins in after a few minutes, mingling with the dry sandalwood note. The majoram has a cool, meditative aspect to it, like breathing in a breath of fresh air, without actually being mentholic or minty. Sadly, it becomes powdery on me over time, which I think is mostly due to the white sandalwood note. The chamomile is present, but light, and I can only detect lavender if I stick my nose to my hand and inhale really deeply. 

 

Those looking for a herbal sandalwood scent should be happy with this one. As for me, I was here for the lavender, and alas, I didn't get much of it. But I did enjoy the marjoram and would be curious to try more scents with that note, preferably not accompanied by such a dry sandalwood.  

[Rane.]

It smells faintly like "An Excerpt from Speculum Heroicum Principis Omnium Temporum Poëtarum Homeri". Has to be the cedar & oud recreating that scent. Has a powdery, woodsy finish. Something strong & masculine stands out, can't place the note. Oh wow, I get a little man musk from this, smells like a sexy armpit. Haha! Ooh la la

Edited August 8, 2021 by Rane.
*added smells like a sexy armpit