Gifts of the Magi

I joined Fragrantica today because I learned that Gifts of the Magi has been archived. This is heartbreaking for me, as it is my favorite scent from my vast Alkemia collection-- and it wasn't when I first received it! I got into indie companies early last year, and found that Alkemia aligned with my preferences. The first thing I ordered from them was a sample pack, including Gifts of the Magi. At first, I found it a little too sweet for my liking, with very forward notes of amber. I ended up using Encircling Flame more often, and layered it with a knockoff of my beloved Viva La Juicy (the now discontinued Vida Vida from Five Below... lol) to achieve the scent I spent years hunting for. A few months later, I sniffed all my Alkemia scents again after letting them macerate. Some scents, like Dustsceawung, smelled even worse than when I had received them (off-topic, but it smelled like roadkill when I first got it, and now it smells like melted plastic), but oh my goodness. For the first time, Gifts of the Magi was intoxicating to me-- I immediately put it on, and even my dog found it to be irresistible, sniffing me incessantly. I went out with friends that night, and two of them kept leaning in to sniff me, remarking on how well this perfume suited me and how incredible it smelled. Hell, I kept sniffing my wrist between sips of my drink! This was the beginning of my love affair with Gifts of the Magi. I bought another small vial, since the oils cling to my skin so well and the first vial I snagged still has some perfume in it. I regret not buying the larger size since it has now been discontinued. After macerating for almost a year, it smells even more nuanced than before. The amber is very present upon application, but quickly melts into a symphony of scents. On my skin, the pink pepper, oud, and tonka bean are the most noticeable notes, before it gives way hours later to a soft blend of tobacco and cocoa. Having a blend of warm spicy scents and mature sweet scents makes this heaven to me. The sillage is quite good, even when dabbing it on, but it's not obnoxious. And, like I mentioned earlier, this lasts forever on my skin. I've noticed the subtle scents of the perfume the morning after a late afternoon or early evening application. Again, it's not obnoxious, especially because it's like a very gentle patchouli at that point for me. To me, this is a year-round, any-time-of-day fragrance, but I'm certainly biased. I've been told this perfume perfectly captures my essence several times over, lol. But I can definitely see this on someone during the cooler months of the year. Gifts of the Magi makes me feel sexy and mysterious in a way no other perfume has. The archiving of this heavenly fragrance pushed me to order my first true Middle Eastern oud. I hope to one day find something close to Gifts of the Magi, my most precious perfume.

This is so good. It’s a languid warm amber with a honeyed tobacco and warm chocolate vibe. It’s so cozy and so strong. I put a dot on each wrist and each elbow and I could smell it clearly throughout my evening. Any part of my arm that I sniffed smelled as if I had applied it there. It was clearly detectable the next morning, so it lasted at least 16 hours for me. And for most of that time it was projecting about an arm’s length. This is absolutely fantastic.

An oil-based fragrance, which features a panoply of tobacco, fruity and spicy notes, rather than the smoke and lemon/rose combination beloved of liturgical incense. The full-bodied tobacco note which comes to the fore 5-10 minutes in, teases out the extended meaning of the fragrance's title. Rather than the scene around the manger, this is about what the Magi got up to en route to Bethlehem. A highly aromatic Oriental tobacco note, sun-cured and bone dry, is combined with a range of spices gathered from the bazaar and presented on a bed of vanilla, musk and balsam. The result is an Oriental potpourri, scent-shifting as it dies down and rewarding frequent revisitation with new delights. The Magi are conventionally seen as Christmas visitors, but the gift of this fragrance extend well into the bleaker weeks of the northern winter.

is it supposed to have a sour smell to it? because thats what i smell first when i sniff it and then all the warm resins and amber shine through it but that smell puts me off so much to it. has a similar smell to the cherries of the night, and im just impartial about that. and im also neutral about this too honestly, i might just destash it honestly. nothing stand out to me besides the odd sour smell.

It's funny. I smell very distinct notes of honey and dried fruits in this despite no mention of either in the notes here or on Alkemia's website. What's even funnier is that I usually hate both of those things in a perfume, but they're absolutely intoxicating here. This perfume has a really decadent quality. Evoking a feeling of eating spiced fruitcakes and sipping on cognac in a dimly lit room filled with incense and pipe tobacco. It's a bit sweeter than I usually like, but there's a richness underneath from the various resins and woods that really balances it out. It has a gourmand quality, but it makes me feel full and satisfied rather than stimulating my appetite. I doubt I'll wear it frequently, but it's a really nice romantic fragrance for winter evenings.

I got this a year ago and found it harsh and too loud, too discordant. After 12 months in a drawer, it mellowed out nicely. Gifts of the Magi is like cinnamon incense; a lightly toasted note like breadcrumbs and butter; a hint of vanilla, hot cocoa and pine cones; a general woody/cedar chest note, not overpowering but overarching. Quite cozy. Moderate projection and on me in cold weather all-day longevity.

Pretty sure this is a slightly different blend each year. I have a small vial of 2018 vintage. Smells like real maple syrup and real cedar extract, both turned up to eleven, and/or the crèche (no animals) lined in hamster bedding with gold-leaf flecks, a censer burning myrrh in the corner.

sweet incense, it’s really cold here and this is nice, vanilla-esque amber at the bottom, almost like stewed dark fruit in the middle somewhere, tobacco comes up more as it dries - earthy