Himalaya

I had long been on a quest for a fragrance that employs a fair amount of spikenard oil, and a few years ago, I tried out Himalaya on the Lush store at my local mall. I was so pleased, but wasn't ready to drop cash on it, so I had a sample made and went on my merry way. The sample was eventually depleted, and Himalaya haunted me—I wanted more. By time I had convinced myself that a bottle belonged in my collection, I learned it had just been discontinued, and was able to snatch up one before the prices surged. Glory be, this stuff is such a deliciously murky incense orbiting around a centerpiece spikenard (jatamansi) oil—the holy oil used to anoint the feet of Jesus. The oil itself smells like damp earth blended into damp wood, bittersweet, somewhat pungent, a bit spicy. There is a certain musty quality that is an acquired taste, but if you spent as much time as I have communing with nature and getting up close and personal with decaying logs and vegetation, you develop an affinity for this sort of mustiness. Here, it is tempered with ylang ylang oil and what I discern as tonka, which is especially evident as Himalaya settles into the base. What I also notice is something in the opening that could be best describe as a medicinal orange rind sort of scent, which is perhaps the Hercules Club (Pepperwood) accord, native to the Southeast US. This tree, Zanthoxylum hirsutum, has leaves that are said to smell reminiscent of orange peel when crushed, and they have an analgesic quality, similar to Szechuan pepper (also in the Zanthoxylum genus). They would be used by indigenous people for toothaches, similar to toothache drops. The way this merges with the ylang and spikenard in the heart is nothing short of rapturous to my nose. The feeling as a whole is quaggy, miry and mystical—as if stepping into the cellar of a sorcerer who works with esoteric potions to invoke spirits from long, long ago, longer than we can fathom in our mind. Wearing this makes me feel so small in the great expanse, and I love it for that. I found it to especially bloom on my skin while taking a walk on a frosty night, with my breath visible and my ears feeling the slightest nip from the bite of the cold.

I'm sure I remember this one from back when my sister used to work for Lush? Anyway Himalaya has been released in the exclusive line once more and to me it's an absolute triumph. Himalaya smells like a Lush fragrance, heavy, Indy-like, challenging and super high impact in the opening. I'm not sure if the notes listed on Fragrantica quite reflect what's happening in this perfume but it's certainly a woody, sweet oriental with a hefty floral opening. That waxy floral is apparently Ylang....it's like no YY I've ever tried but I can go along with that because it's in the category of unusual/exotic/heady floral. Heavy woody notes are enmeshed with a sweet vanilla/tonka quality, drying down sweet but a little hippy like. It's not a soft vanilla or a creamy one, it's pretty dirty, I like it though, a bold fragrance full of interest.

Ok this is heavenly ... Incense, ylang, sweet, spicy. The opening has a rather strong medicinal-woody which disappears after 30 min to let the intoxicating amber-floral-exotic phase shine. I have no idea what spikenard smells like but it might be responsible for the special "factor" in that perfume that makes it so different despite those simple notes. It actually reminds me vintage oriental scents from the 80's but it is definitely more wearable (in my opinion) and modern. It's less invasive and aggressive. More contemplative. It has the typical old school Lush perfumes DNA : a bit hippie and not too sophisticated while being utterly beautiful. This is my non-tropical/non-summer version of Sikkim Girls (one of my favourite perfume ever). I'll be wearing this one a lot next Fall/Winter. I got a big bottle and I will never let it go.

I'm surprised there's so few reviews for this perfume, despite it being discontinued. Himalaya is a sweet, powdery incense scent with a touch of gourmand that makes it incredibly addictive. Is there a cocoa butter note, perhaps? I can see the similarities between this and the Silky Underwear powder, but amped up with incense and an extra dose of sweetness. It gives off dark academia vibes, like you're sat in a library in autumn and there's flowers fading in a vase on the desk. The fireplace is crackling as you reach for a milky, spiced tea. I love scents which tell a story like this one does! I'd say this is absolutely an autumn/winter scent, I think it might have the potential to be cloying in spring or summer.

Lovely fragrance. I have the impression that it reminds me of two other fragrances combo. I`m Home plus Yog Nog :) With the addition of wood and a lot of vanilla, and a carnation :) On my skin, it's a beautiful combination of all the best notes from both. I'm glad I have it :)

Anyone know where to find this. It was on the Lush website as coming soon for about 6 weeks but has been gone for several weeks now.