Abduction of Proserpine on a Unicorn

[hammy]

White sandalwood, black currant, and pomegranate.

In the bottle - Berries and sandalwood. Heavy on the latter.

Wet - Sandalwood and I get along great, so it’s no surprise that it turns silky smooth the minute it hits my skin. Man, this is teetering on the edge of gourmand. The sandalwood grounds it juuuust enough … or does it? I don’t care; I love foody scents.

Drydown - The fruits are marinating in a gorgeously creamy bed of sandalwood. I feel like the blend is actually getting juicier as it wears on, and I’m even slightly reminded of winter cranberries. Not sure where that’s coming from. The sandalwood core emerges gradually as the hours wear on and the berries fade. Thankfully, the currants start acting a lot more like themselves: sweet and a bit spicy. (Actually, they’re authentic enough to trigger flashbacks to when Eat Me was in heavy rotation.)

Verdict - I can’t shake the Eat Me comparison now. Hah! I wish the pomegranate had come out to play a little bit more, but my skin chemistry tends to eat it up. Still, Prosperine is a solid blend that will get steady wear from me as we transition from fall to winter.

[macabre_fae]

Wow this is lovely! I know I say that about pretty much everything, but my husband even likes it and he has a super picky nose. That is saying a lot.

 

I imagine if Elf was mixed with berries and sandalwood, this is exactly what it would smell like. I wouldn't call it foody though. Despite the berry it's not overtly foody -the berry isn't cloying, the sandalwood gives it a nice smooth background, and there's something else going on that smells wintery (which is where I get Elf from). It's absolutely gorgeous and I am going to thoroughly enjoy wearing it, especially in the fall/winter months. It's has a cozy feel to it.

 

10/10 for me!

[whitewhale]

Quite honestly, I expected this to smell a whole lot fruitier than it actually does. In fact, I don't get fruity at all. Instead, in the bottle and on my skin, I once again get... Christmas. Only this isn't midnight mass, this is a fresh, live wreath, like a mix of holly, twigs and slightly spicy, slightly sugary currants (in their least fruity incarnation, if that makes sense). This is, without a doubt, a cold weather scent. About 10 minutes into drydown, the fruitiness does make an appearance, mellowing out that sharp herbaciousness and creating a really beautifully melded scent. Another closer to the skin scent - would love to have this as an atmo or fabric spray, particularly come fall/winter.

[TijuanaBible]

Immediately, I get the pomegranate from 7 Word Story: Lust. A very sweet, almost incense-y berry scent. In the drydown, the sandalwood comes out and STAYS... The next morning, I could still smell it on me, although it had sort of turned to dryer sheets. Overall, a beautiful, simple blend of berries with a heavy sandalwood base note. I can see getting a lot of use out of this.

[Little Bird]

I like this a lot more than I thought I would. White sandalwood almost always turns to baby powder and pomegranate to powdery sweet tarts candies on me. This is still a powdery sandalwood, but it smells deeper and darker than usual, maybe thanks to the black currant. There's something almost rich and caramelized to the wood part, and the black currant gives it a dark berry gleam and sweetness. The pomegranate takes over after about an hour and I like it less, because the pom is sour, tart and sharp, and things turn a little smoky.

 

I agree with TijuanaBible in that the pom stage reminds me of 7 Word Story: Lust, but that comes in the drydown for me rather than the start.

An interesting, fruity sandalwood, but probably not a keeper for me.

[LizziesLuck]

Love sandalwood. LOVE blackcurrant. Pomegranate is iffy, but I want to like it!! Giving this a go.

 

 

Wet: An interesting mix of dark and fruity and very woody. I like it a lot so far, but struggling to see myself wearing it. Boy would I ever like that as a room scent though!

 

 

Dry: Dry sandalwood and tangy fruits. This is really nice, but I just don't think it's me. I can't see wearing it, so don't think I'll need more. Bet it ages well though!

[Lambent]

Smells strangely festive in the bottle, reminding me of the winter seasons. I imagine burgundy velvet when smelling this. The sandalwood gives the fruits in this some structure. Unfortunately, the pomegranate and black currant were a bit too sweetly syrupy on my skin.

[Coldfire]

Black Currant and Pomegranate are must haves for me...so I just HAD to order this

 

Bottle: mostly sandalwood. Almost astringent-y

Wet On Me: okay now I'm getting the faintest whiff of fruit with the sandalwood

Drying Down: less sandalwood now. It's fading into the background to make a soft cushion for the berries to bloom

Dry: soft. a soft cloud of dark fruit gently whisped by the sandalwood. the astringent-y notes have gone way far away!

 

 

 

and I tipped the bottle over on my desk at work and just lost half of it

[zankoku_zen]

Black currant, sandalwood and a touch of pomegranate. This is definitely inky dark berries and sandalwood. If you like heavy berry blends, this one is definitely one to try. Good throw and wear length.

 

ETA: There is something almost red-winey about this.

Edited August 24, 2016 by zankoku_zen

[Miss Landau]

The fruit elements are only strong for me sniffing straight out of the bottle, and on my skin for the first 20 minutes or so. Then it becomes mild sandalwood with something vaguely juicy and delicious in the background. Only one person who sniffed it on me identified the pomegranate without prompting, but I reckon it's pretty identifiable. It only lasts about an hour on my skin as its identifiable elements, then about an hour more as a general good subtle scent before fading out.

[Casablanca]

Proserpine brings abundant sandalwood out right alongside her black currants. In the wet phase, I get enough pomegranate to add a dark red, fruity tartness, but it doesn't overwhelm. This isn't a complex blend, but it's dark red and smooth and sophisticated. This is the late-night adult conversation that the one child in the room doesn't quite understand -- not because it's sexy, but because it's matured and a little philosophical.

The sandalwood has some throw when I first apply this, but the blend stays very close to the skin after that. Once this dries, this becomes a soft, creamy sandalwood skin scent edged with tart red from the pomegranate. After the second hour, I can barely smell it.

This is lovely, and not much like anything else I have.

[sqwook]

Sandalwood and fruitiness. The fruits here do remind me of those in Hymn to Proserpine - which makes sense. Very nice.

[reynardine]

Got a decant on a whim. I like sandalwood but it makes me sneeze, so I usually avoid that note, but the rest sounded so promising.

 

WOW, sandalwood. Slaps you in the face and takes your name, damn! There's a touch of fruit, but mostly SANDALWOOD. The fruit note came out more as it dried down, but I must amp sandalwood because it just boomed! Finally had to wash it off, as I started sneezing. Not for me, alas.

[bunnyechoes]

In the decant: basically all three notes, melded together. I can't tell which note is blackcurrant or pomegranate but sandalwood acts like a nice woody but also incensy base. It's a bright and playful scent but not in your face and not "young". I imagine an elegant grown-up wearing it.

 

Wet on skin: sandalwood is in the front but it mingles with blackcurrant quite nicely. Pomegranate is the shiest of the bunch, just occasionally peeking through. At this point it reminds me of coffee for some reason. It's as if this grown-up person decided to chill out a bit and have a cup of coffee. With perhaps a slice of a blackcurrant and pomegranate cake that actually avoids being foody. Sandalwood is kind of sharp, though.

 

Dry on skin: Hello there, pomegranate! Now it's in full bloom and it smells so lovely. The perfume still doesn't smell foody, although it's sweet. The other two notes are hidden somewhere, letting pomegranate shine through. Later, I can detect sandalwood again. I think it smells slightly like pencil shavings on me.

 

Longevity and throw: The throw isn’t something to write home about but it’s potent enough. I can smell it around me for a while but then it transforms into a skin scent. I reapplied it during the day but I can safely say it lasts for more than 6/8 hours. Awesome.

[joopjoop]

I'm kind of in love with this one, TBH. It is a very simple scent really - sandalwood and slightly tart fruit - but the sandalwood in this one is absolutely drop-dead gorgeous. I never really consider myself a huge sandalwood fan, but this one may have changed my mind.

 

It starts off strong, the sandalwood is all I can smell at first, and then quickly the black currant and the pomegranate come up to balance it out. Really beautiful.

Edited November 22, 2016 by joopjoop

[Lucchesa]

Abduction of Proserpine starts out being all about the sandalwood and ends up being all about the fruit. It's the blackcurrant from this year's sufganiyot, yum, and a little bit of pom. I think they smell sort of similar, sweet-tart and blood red, anyway, so it's hard for me to pick them apart. Woody but fruity with just a little tartness keeping it from being overly sweet. It lasts quite a long time but is a skin scent on me (which is normal for my skin).

[InaraRedCloak]

Date: April 2018

In the vial: It's that dusty almost candy smelling pomegranate. (I prefer the juicy version in Persephone and 7WS Lust) There's sweetness from the black currant. I'm not really getting any sandalwood yet.

Wet on Skin: Mostly dusty pomegranate. Starting to get a little sandalwood/resin. This is a fairly faint but fresh scent. It's almost totally feminine. It's nice, but there are other pomegranate scents I prefer.

Dry 30+ mins: Pomegranate is turning more into the type I like. The sandalwood is coming out more like a resin wood, but still light and gentle.

Worn 3+ hours: This scent stays true to form, it doesn't morph very much. As it fades, the sandalwood comes out more.

[LavenderCoffee]

I’ve recently learned pom is a tricky note for me, and I’ve been on tricky terms with white sandalwood for a minute, but black currant is brokering some kind of unlikely peace here and this blend is really nice on me somehow? A deep, rich fruit note befitting of Proserpine.