Dita Von Teese Scandalwood

So this grew on me, over time. Initially, from a decant, I thought, this is very nice, if not exactly my scent: The blend is beautiful and weirdly linear, yet nicely blended at the same time. To me, and on me, it smells like a dry powdery rose scent but very sophisticated with mild dark notes in the background. Nicely done. I am very picky about rose scents, and I don't like them with too much punch or too sweet or synthetic. This is not like that at all. Some reviews note "creamy" but I don't get that on me, which is great. I kept using the decant. When I ran out, I kept trying to go back for it, and kept finding it was empty. Then I was sad. So just bought a full bottle, and it is on its way and I am counting down the days, because, for now at least, this is my new fall/winter signature scent. It's a mood. The only downside is that longevity and sillage could be better (but it is clean so that is the trade off) but I love it so much that I don't mind reapplying. It's that good. Note: Overpriced for the amount you receive given sillage/longevity so try to get a coupon or wait for a sale. That's what I did.

What a journey this scent takes. On my first sample, I thought it smelled like cooking meat. Like someone wearing perfume who sat in a restaurant for too long and the smell of the food was on their skin. I wrote it off as not for me and set the sample aside for a few weeks. When I revisited it, I changed my mind completely. It opens with an intriguing smoke, like an expensive heavily scented incense. It's not wood smoke, not cigarettes, not quite incense, just lovely. The smoke disappears in about 5 minutes and gives way to a white floral smell I didn't initially detect. This might be the scent the eventually breaks me into enjoying white florals. My brain says jasmine and smoke, a little sour, no soapy scents at all. But there is no jasmine in it, it's ylang-ylang, and bulgarian rose. A witchy date night scent. Dries down to a soft barely there sandalwood, nice. Revisit Edit: I have really come to love this scent, it lasts so much longer then I originally gave it credit for. It's intriguing, smokey, yet somehow clean like fresh laundry. It's so nice.

I'm not sure if this has been reformulated, but the current version has a clear bottle/juice (not red), and the notes (according to the Heretic site) have been pared down to atlas cedar, coriander, Bulgarian rose, labdanum, sandalwood, and white musk. On me, this is my HG sandalwood scent- not sharp nor dry and lacking the pencil shaving and pickle juice quality that many sandalwood scents have. This is smooth and creamy, a little rich without being cloying or heavy. I couldn't tell the rose was there at first until I looked for it, and it enhances the sandalwood moreso than standing on its own, if that makes sense. It makes it smell more velvety. Unfortunately, it disappears in a flash. I sprayed this a couple of times on my collarbone and shoulders before a wedding, and did not smell it at all after my initial spray. It is July, and though I would think hot weather would amplify the rich base notes, maybe it needs cool weather to really shine. I find this perfectly unisex. I would definitely buy a full bottle if it lasted longer.

I feel sexy and confident when I wear this. Such a sensual, sultry combo of deep woods, musk, and rose. The labdanum gives it just the barest hint of smoke, while I get a bit of vetiver and patchouli in the far background which impart an earthiness to the woody backbone. The rose is never dominant but always there, lending femininity to what would otherwise be a unisex scent. I see that several reviews mention ylang, which is interesting because I don't get ylang at all, nor is this note listed in the ingredients on Heretic's site. I think this perfume was recently reformulated, so maybe there was ylang in an earlier version? After about 6 hours, a spiciness becomes prominent - a mix of black pepper and coriander - that makes me realize it was there in the background all along. I find this to be extremely long lasting on skin, I can definitely still smell it the next morning after applying in the afternoon. When applied to clothing, I can still smell it after several months even after going through the laundry.

I'm reviewing the new iteration rather than the Dita Von Teese version. I've tried a lot of the gothic woody Heretics, and they haven't hit quite right like this one does. I tried it first in warm weather, and the woody notes hit wrong, but it's a stunner in cool weather. What I love most is the real sandalwood note, that smells lightly rosy in itself. But it's bolstered by a soothing damask rose. The wood note here smells antique and definitely goth. It's cedar that's mixed up with clove and patchouli. Plus, the cypriol you'll find in the full ingredient list gives it that lovely feeling of breathing in cold air on a snowy day. My only complaint is that, like many Heretic scents, this just doesn't last very long on my skin, even on clothing. It starts to fade in just 30 minutes, but I can get more time out of it with a bit of petroleum jelly on my wrists, but it fades all too fast. Still, you can't beat it for a gothy woody fragrance with a hint of rose. I'm not sure it's scandalous, but it's nice.