Iron and Opoponax

The cold metal of a playground swing set, the scent of a just-snuffed wax candle, clean wet stone after rain, and a hint of dry liturgical incense. My partner says this perfume smells like a public pool changing room, and I honestly see where they're coming from. Sometimes, when I’m wearing another fragrance, I find myself craving this one. It’ll pop into my head at random pretty frequently. There’s a very addictive quality about this scent. This is not an inviting fragrance. I wear it like armor when I want to be left alone. Absolutely beautiful.

Really surprised by this in a good way-- I tend to dislike sharp and metallic scents, but wanted to give this a go anyway. Glad I did! It starts out smelling like a blown out candle (melted wax & smoke) + hot iron and incense, then warms up on the skin so nicely. I get a ton of musk, almost like a classic type of white musk, with sweet tobacco and myrrh. The general vibe is smoky, vanillic, and musky. It's so good and interesting!

visceral reaction upon skin application. instantly brought me to the catholic church i attended in childhood. waxy wooden pews, smoke, iron gates. the metal is barely citrusy and temporarily mellows into orthodontic office until that myrrh and candlewax come back with distant spiced tobacco to retain softness.

This is more of an art piece than a wearable fragrance, to me. Smells like hot air coming out of an old computer; a little sweet and plasticky with some hot metal. While there are some similarities to With the Candlestick and Warm Bulb, it's different enough.

this is my favorite perfume in my entire collection (i’m a perfumer and have a vast collection of niche perfumes). metallic notes have always been my favorite to smell in fragrances, and this captures an iron note better than i’ve ever smelled...nothing else has even come close. it kind of reminds me of doctors office smells (or memories of that), backrooms (cold static lighting in an eery empty setting), and candle wax. the candle wax is cheap, scent free (white wax) candles from the dollar tree. the kind you never smell, yet the burnt wax almost has a “plastic” smell to it. the perfumer told me this was inspired by 80’s goth - which i have gotten compliments from folks reminiscing on that scent; appreciating this on me for that. this is sad, cold, unique, atmospheric, creepy, strange - but if any of those are your style.. you may fall in love with this. i could honestly write so much about this because it’s so special to me and such a beautiful and special and perfect perfume. i also LOVE that siela (olo sister brand in Portland, OR) offers oil rollers of their scents. with me loving this so much - i often will layer the oil and spray to “make the most” of its scent and profile. however using the oil as a base to layer with other perfumes IS SO GOOD. i love to layer this with Sanctuaria by La Botica (lovely vanilla) and the wet metallic from the oil blends with this and makes the most amazing wet, metallic, almost salted vanilla scent; so unique and beautiful. if you are ever in Portland, OR i urge you to go smell this at Olo in Southeast Portland. Their hours are limited (thurs - sun i believe) but 100000% worth the trip. such kind owners and i have loved every (!!) single (!!) perfume (!!) they have come out with!!! they truly have something for everyone. i’m so grateful for this perfume and hope that it never gets discontinued. the smell of this will now forever hold so many memories for me and this is such a special and beautiful reminder of how unique, special and fun perfume can be. the longevity and projection is also just perfect honestly. about 6+ hours longevity on skin, even more on hair/clothes. projection isn’t CRAZY, but still definitely is strong and makes a lovely presence. just enough to get compliments and gain intrigue from those around you. last thing i will say is that this was one of the first perfumes that i ever purchased - and now a couple years later after studying perfumery and vastly (!!) growing my collection, this has always remained my #1 favorite perfume. there is truly nothing else like it. every time i come back to this after not wearing it for a bit, i am always again blown away by its beauty and perfection. if you like or are interested in metallic scents - GET THIS. i think this should be a staple for anyone who loves niche perfume in general. this smells more “niche” than many other brands ive smelled or tried (toskovat, zoologist, nassomato, etc). there is also a prominent “industrial” vibe that i was hesitant to mention - but definitely holds true to this perfumes character. most “industrial” perfumes have a somewhat smoky (?), drier texture that tends to lean warm. this is like its own breed of industrial. it is wet but has such a special eery unique warmth - warmth that comes from the light/flame of the candle melting. it’s a weird cold waxy warmth. this gets me up in the morning and puts me in the perfect mood when wearing it to bed. i think this is perfect for portland (or any damp, cold, wet, rain heavy city), spring/winter time especially - but this is also perfectly acceptable year round, day & night and is PERFECTLY unisex. unisex done to absolute perfection. i want this as a candle, lotion, body wash, room spray; any way to further incorporate this scent into my life. i’m honestly surprised to see that i hadn’t written something about this sooner too!