The Lowdown on Incense & Resin - The Best Recommendations

[Ms. MSGirl]

Since you guys are way more knowledgeable about scents and notes in perfume, I thought I'd ask for clarification of something. What does the note of "amber" smell like? And is it the same as the smell of "resin" or the smell of "incense" that people refer to in their reviews? I have a vanilla and amber perfume that I like a lot (coty's dulce vanilla), but I don't know if I'm smelling the amber in it after reading the reviews, such as of Aureus. And how, exactly, does the smell of patchouli differ from resin, incence, or amber? It is an incense, right? I also can't really imagine what frankincense or myrrh smell like.

 

In case you can't tell, I haven't been able to make my first order yet, but I think about what I'm GOING to order nonstop, and I was wondering if someone could explain the differences among all these things. Obviously I just need to get me some imp's ears and smell away for myself -- just trying to figure out how to do that from Britain.

 

Thanks for the mini-perfume lesson...

[shriekingviolet]

Resins are substances made from plant saps/gums, and are often used in incense and have been for millenia so there's going to be a lot over overlap between the two. Amber, Copal, Frankincense and Myrrh are all resins, though when describing things I tend to use the word "incense" more for myrrh and frankincense than I would for amber or copal (which I'm more likely to label as just resin-y). Amber is a rich, warm, and sweet smell. Much like you'd think from it's color really. Different varieties provide slightly different results, some more smoky than others, some with even something like a slight citrus tinge to it.

 

Patchouli is an earthy scent. I know the word "earthy" isn't exactly helpful, but that's what I think of when I think patchouli. That and warm sweaty bodies LOL. Think 60s hippies. It's very unisex and a bit musky. It's a pretty common scent for incense, but I don't think of it as an incense note and it's definitely not a resin (it comes from leaves of a certain shrub I think).

 

Hope I helped!

[RosieP]

Does anyone know what the stuff is that they actually swing around in church? That particular resin (or blend of resins) is particularly 'wow' and I'd dearly love to buy that in a bottle....

[allamanda]

Does anyone know what the stuff is that they actually swing around in church?  That particular resin (or blend of resins) is particularly 'wow'  and I'd dearly love to buy that in a bottle....

 

I've always thought it was Frankincense and Myrrh, but I stand to be corrected.

[shriekingviolet]

It isn't. I'm actually not sure what the blend is, but when I was in junior high I used to serve at funerals (good money by the way, and it got me out of class!) from time to time and spooned it into the censer. It's a pretty mixed blend. Had at least 5 different components. I'm sure there's some frankincense and myrrh in it, but I know there's some other stuff in it. I ought to go look through the spice aisle next time I'm in the grocer because I'm pretty sure I could recognize some of what was in there if I saw it. There was some kind of pepper I think. Little round balls. I'll have to think on that one.

[ipb]

some blends have cedar and/or sandalwood too.. i think my old church was mostly sandalwood/myrrh/frankincense.. it does vary by church though.

 

have you tried cathedral?

 

and if you're just wanting some incense like that, you can get it at a church supply store like this one (first one i found w/ google ).

[jj_j]

Following Quantum Spice's link, the Will and Baumer brand has "Pontifical - That traditional aroma we all grew up with." I'm not Catholic, so I can't attest to the veracity of that statement, but I may not be able to resist the French version with cedar that's listed just underneath it.

 

I grew up in central Oklahoma, where firewood, Christmas trees, and the siding on my parents' house is cedar (the smell of which, just as it started to rain, has never left me .... ahh). Most of the incense I do burn involves cedar in varying degrees.

[RosieP]

Thanks for the link, Quantum Spice. There's a large ecclesiastical suppliers in London quite near a theatre shop I visit quite often - next time I'm in town I'll pop in there for a look around.

 

I absolutely ADORE Cathedral - I'm ekeing out my Imp's Ear and I've got some more on order, but it made me think of a sandalwood pencil case filled with cedarwood pencils rather than church-y incense.

 

I'm not Catholic (C of E) but as I was in the church choir from age 7 to 11. As I was the smallest person in the choir whenever we processed around the church my place was immediately behind the verger who was swinging the censer, so I used to regularly get a good nose-full of that wonderful smoke - I'd love some to burn in my home!

[shriekingviolet]

I'm sure the incense in Anglican churches are similar to those in Catholic churches. I've been in both Catholic and Episcopalian (the US version of Anglicanism) churches here and the practices, sights are smells are very, very similar.

[ipb]

someone mentioned in the annie bonny review that it reminded them of scraping wax off of pews...

[Alice Aforethought]

someone mentioned in the annie bonny review that it reminded them of scraping wax off of pews...

 

That was me. :oops: It does have that incensey quality to it, but warmer, with the wood and polish of an old church as well as the incense. I grew up Catholic too so I know what you mean! I still love that scent. My best friend lived next door to a cathedral, in the priesthouse (the only priest left was a relative and the family lived there - it was massive! Room for ten or so priests) and we spent many happy hours in the cathedral - by that time it was derelict and we had free run of the place. Ooo nostalgia.

[Polexia]

Try Snake Oil. To me it smells like an old incense that Spencer Gifts used to carry called Perfume from Ancient Lands.

[chai_girl]

I think copal was the little round chunks/balls you saw. I've found a mix of myrrh, frankincense and copal comes pretty close but each church buys their blend from different sources.

 

Gum copal is usually a resinous chunk and I've always had difficulty getting them to burn evenly on my charcoal.

 

 

Lisa in Austin

[plumlicorice]

Try Snake Oil.  To me it smells like an old incense that Spencer Gifts used to carry called Perfume from Ancient Lands.

oh! i think you can still get that in certain places. was the brand called gonesh, in a gold package? they sell it at meijer (the wal-mart of the midwest).

[ipb]

>meijer (the wal-mart of the midwest)

 

believe it or not, i've never even heard of meijer before

...and aside from three summers spent elsewhere, i've lived in the midwest my entire life...

[velvet]

wal mart is the walmart of the mid west! lol it orginated in arkansas

[Heideleena]

I have a soft spot for incense and would love personal recommendations of the oils you've found to have a incense tone to it. Thank you in advance!

[any_old_actress]

the caterpillar!

[Dulci]

Old Cairo.

[lucytalk]

Cathedral!

[Ina Garten Davita]

Damnation, Cathedral, Anne Bonny and the World.

[paperdoll]

Definitely The Caterpillar, and Saturn to some extent.

[ViolentKitten]

For sweet ones, my man thought Hollywood Babylon smelt like strawberry incense. And Dragon's Milk too.

[minilux]

I tried on Allegory tonight and it was totally incensey on me, which confuses me, because none of the listed ingredients suggest incense. Maybe it's the civet, I'm not really sure.

[twistygirl]

Cathedral and French Creole