Rose of Sharon

[sprout]

[No additional description provided.]

 

Okay, I hate going first, but in case anyone needs this review to make a purchase decision, here we go.

In the bottle, this smells of hibiscus tea. But on skin, it is undoubtedly rock rose, the resin.

 

If you aren't familiar with rock rose, it's a resin distilled from the sap of an evergreen bush that grows in Mediterranean areas. The sap is collected as tears from the shrubs, similar to harvesting frankincense.

 

Reading more about how it's made, I learned it can also be steam distilled from the leaves of the plant and the flowers. The sap is sticky and can be brushed from the wool of sheep after they rub against the sap during grazing.

 

As a resin, the odor is similar to frankincense or myrrh, but it is sweeter and less airy than frankincense and less powdery or sweet as myrrh. It did have a slightly floral, almost rosy hint initially but drying down, it's a sweet, slightly woody, musky and amber like resin. It isn't smoky or metallic like DBR.

 

Interestingly, this oil is used for calming the nerves during terror states and it's evidently present in Bach's flower remedy.

 

I love this and I am considering a backup.

 

The sillage is modest at this point but I expect that will improve with age. This is quite fresh from the mailbox, arriving yesterday and only giving it overnight to settle. I will report back later with how long it lasts.

 

ETA, lasted approximately 3.5 hours, fresh. I predict aging will improve the longevity. The throw/sillage was fairly mild, close to the skin.

 

Edited December 12, 2016 by sprout

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

A rare instance of buying a bottle "sight unsniffed" for me, because my beautiful mother is named Sharon, so this HAS to be a gift for her! It's a beautiful scent, nothing "rose" about it, more of a layered resin. It smells like a halo, if that makes any sense: golden, light, warm without being overly sweet. I think she will love it!

[patina]

Initially the green note before drydown is a little unsettling. Not entirely pleasant in a way I can't describe (stifling old lady cologne, plasticky?), but after a short time it becomes lovely. You know that deep cola note in myrrh? This has something similar, but in a lighter, golden way. Less sweet but still fairly sweet.

 

This scent does have a strong emotional effect on me, like a security blanket. I imagine this will improve with age too.

[VioletChaos]

I get what Patina was saying about the "old lady cologne" vibe. It definitely, upon initial sniff, reminds me of the heavy, cloying perfumes my grandmother's sisters would wear. Moreno, the smell that emanated from their 50 year old perfume bottles sitting on their vanities.

 

That said, I join the chorus that there's something singularly comforting about this scent. It's timeless for me, even as it's reminiscent of a by-gone era. We had Rose of Sharon bushes growing in my backyard as a kid, and perhaps that has something to do with it.

 

The name is a bit of a misnomer- do not expect anything even remotely "rose" about this scent- it's closer to a medicinal lavender/green scent.

 

I don't know that I'll wear this on it's own, it seems kind of intense. But I could see using it in a more medical manner, like for grounding, or to layer with some cologne-y scents, like Dorian, and having an incredible outcome.

[zankoku_zen]

Resinous rock rose. This one smells only a touch rosy, lots of resins, and myrrh. It's a very dark colored oil. Good throw and wear lenght.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Resinous, heady, a touch effervescent at first, and then a touch sour. Interesting. There's something in it that smells sort of like Myrrh. I'll tell ya, this does not smell like a single note to me, at all. Very complex. Not very floral.

 

This goes through several stages on my skin, most of which I don't really care for. There's a weird sour effervescence that I don't like. Then is starts to get more...well not floral, or green really, just..."planty".

 

Dry: Slightly resinous plants. That's as close as I can get to describing this. I don't dislike the dry stage at all, it's quite pleasant, but it took a while to get here. It still does not smell like a single note to me. It's interesting, but not something I can see myself wearing.

[fairybites]

Started out pretty dark and vinegar like, but after a couple of hours I'm getting a very green scent. Rose for sure, but there's some other plants in this as well that I can't quite place. It gets powdery near the end.

 

Not for me, but this was interesting to try.