Odalesque w/ La Femme Noire

[Beccah]

 

MAGICKAL MEANINGS OF INGREDIENTS:
VANILLA ~ Aphrodisiac, inspires happiness, playfulness, sexual arousal, lust, vitalizing.
COCOA BUTTER ~ Lightens emotions, evokes feelings of love.
MUSK ~ Self confidence and strength, sexual attractant, heightens passions and arousal.
ALMOND ~ Fertility, stamina, masculine energy, business success, money, prosperity, wisdom, intuition, insight, talisman for successful and fertile marriage.
HONEY ~ Enticing, seductive; use to bewitch a straying or hesitant lover. Happiness, fulfillment.
SANDALWOOD ~ Love, exotic, sensual atmospheric; aphrodisiac. Healing, spirituality, exorcism.
MILK/BUTTER/CREAM ~ Nurturing, soothing, eases troubled relationships. Goddess energy.
ORANGE & BLOSSOMS ~ Strong ‘magnet’ to attract men; eternal love, marriage, fruitfulness, thoughtfulness, happiness, tribute.

[johnsonlisa90012]

I tore into this today when the package arrived.  It seems very different than original after first 20 minutes.  Initially I get the blast of cocoa butter (my fave)and then the bright orange blossom (which I didn’t see would work, but it does)  but after a bit it settles into a perfectly blended melange of scents.  The almond scared me because that always goes cherry on me but it hasn’t happened yet after close to a half hour.  It does give it a lotion quality, however.  

 

This is sexy AF but seemingly a bit light at the moment.  So really, so many other scents...save the rest for me so I can buy all the FBs and slather all winter long.  

[Kayla]

This is really a beautiful perfume. I love Odalisque and I was expecting something with a similar feel. While equally as sexy, this is completely different on my skin. The Sandalwood, cocoa butter, and vanilla are the most prominent notes on me after the drydown, and there's just a hint of orange on top. It reminds be a little of Chakra:  Sacral, but much more creamy and vanillaey.  I am in love! 💗

[Eve]

Where are all the reviews for this?   It is such a masterpiece! (That’s okay though, don’t trouble yourselves to try it, I’ll just buy them all 😇.)
 

I too, was surprised at how little it resembles the previous version, but, whereas for some odd reason, the 2017(??) variant smelled like Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille on me, this newest release starts out with a blast of almonds. I’d love it if the almond note would stick around longer, but it backs off, then the sandalwood becomes prominent. In time in all comes together in a sweet musky vanilla. It’s very well balanced.  
 

It definitely went through changes from when it first arrived in the mail. I tried it that first day, wasn’t sure if I liked it, put it aside then came back to it the next day. 
 

Then, I put it to the “sleep on it test”. I applied generously to the crook of both arms before bed. I awoke before dawn—through no fault of this fragrance, I just fail in the sleeping category—like if we got graded on sleep, I’d be a solid D, leaning towards D-. Anyway, I awoke and smelled this wonderful aroma, then realized it was me! Or, more accurately the Odalesque. 
 

I wish there was a virgin version so I could spray with abandon, but I’ll content myself with the rollerball bottle (bottles!  Plural. Multiple bottles in my future I hope) and keep my hair and clothing out of the way when applying it. 

[luna65]

I plan to review it (because I review everything) but I wanted to wait to compare it to the original Odalisque.

[Eastwood22]

Only time will tell, but on me as well, very different than Odalisque. But it’s right there in the name, Odal-esque, meaning it’s like it, but different. The almond makes it very different for me as I tend to amp almond, but it works well here, unlike the OCCO Almond which went wonky on me. I’ve thought of Odalisque as having a similar vibe as OCCO White and Beth’s Blushing Milkmaid, this is it’s own thing. 
@halo0073I might be wrong since I used up all the sample you sent me, but maybe it’s a little like Alabaster Queen? 
I bought a FB unsniffed so currently working on the trial, I cannot wait to see how this evolves. It’s a great carrier for LFN or LFM, I’ll likely layer with some OCCO White on occasion. Love it! 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Eastwood22

[luna65]

32 minutes ago, Eastwood22 said:

@halo0073I might be wrong since I used up all the sample you sent me, but maybe it’s a little like Alabaster Queen? 

 

I'd agree with this, the main difference being that AQ has a lemon topnote.

[StrawberryKitten]

This is GORGEOUS !!! Not at all what I expected, but better, even, & with Mara's perfumes, the bar is always heaven high, so that is saying a lot, lol. I never tried Odalisque ( still salty with myself for that one ) & expected this to be very gourmand, but it's not, which is very okay, because whatever this is, I looove. To me, the musk / cocoa butter / vanilla / almond is dominant. The smoothness of the cocoa butter with the sexiness of the musk is super unique & just beautiful. I agree with the poster who said that the almond gives this a lotion like quality. To me, this doesn't smell like a perfume, it reads as a very high end lotion or body oil. I couldn't wait until I could afford a full bottle ( yesterday, YAY ) ....this is up there with my favorite potions for sure.

[luna65]

I'm comparing this to the original Odalisque, for the sake of my own curiosity but also if anyone else is curious.

 

That almond note is a primary difference, it is right in the center of the construction, at least for me.  Whereas with Odalisque what you get is the cocoa butter-honey melding all the way through, a creamy-fluffy kind of vibe intensified by the amber and musk.  The almond makes this one very warm and then there's that creamy sweet musk right behind it.  The orange top note is like a brightness for me more than the specific impression.  Overall this comes off more perfume-y on me than any version of Odalisque (including halo's Angelique) ever has and I think it's the sandalwood doing that, adding another dimension of intricacy to it.

 

What the variant experience reminds me of - and I'm not trying to draw a direct parallel here, just an analogous situation - is the two versions of Bad Boy.  The original was rather direct and linear, very intense but also carrying the intensity of those specific notes all the way through wear.  The rebrew made it into a more sophisticated construction with lots of nuance and a more transformative experience.  To me, that's the difference between Odalisque and Odalesque - they're both intense and sexy and gorgeous, but they evolve in different ways and have distinctly different impressions even as you can recognize they are related.

 

ETA: in the long drydown this becomes much more of a take on vanilla-sandalwood to me.

[Eve]

I continue to love this. It’s in my all time top three LPMP fragrances. 
 

it seems like the most recent past brew of Odalisque had a stronger silage, but, I did not wear often, so my nose likely didn’t get a chance to grow accustomed to it. 
 

(PS, the organza bags for this release have a nice gothic Victorian noir vibe)🌔🎃🦉

[Usagi]

Can’t wait to try this! Almond and orange don’t usually grab me but neither did grapefruit and now I am a Cougar Potion devotee. Also super excited to try LFM.

Edited October 28, 2020 by Usagi

[greenappletart]

The previous incarnation (Odalisque) did not work at all on me, so I was reluctant to try this one. Probably wouldn't have even gotten a trial if it wasn't part of the sampler set. I half heartedly put it on to get it out of the way, and WOW. This is why you try things on. Odalesque is fantastic on me. I think the big difference is the amber. It completely took over the earlier one, so without that making a racket on my skin, the other notes are able to shine. It's amazing how small changes can make such a difference.

 

I get a dry, non-foody vanilla. It smells a bit dessert like, but not a thick, rich dessert, more of a dry, not too sweet one. Like biscotti, or something else you would dip in coffee. It's feminine, but without being overt about it. A subtle, but complex scent. I'm getting some smokiness, but I think that may just be because of how my skin reacts to the milk/butter/cream combo. Instead of turning to cigarettes like it sometimes does, it is lending a smokiness that is enhancing the scent. The creaminess is balancing out the dryness, so neither overpowers.

 

I'm not getting the notes as individual notes so much as I'm getting the qualities that they are contributing to the overall impression. For example, the dryness of the sandalwood and the creaminess of the cocoa butter. It doesn't morph much, but stays really consistent. The only changes are a bit more creaminess and a hint of soapiness in the crook of my elbows. 

 

Odalesque is really great, and I finally get why everyone was raving so much about the earlier versions. I couldn't stop sniffing my wrists. A full bottle for sure. 

[Usagi]

This does smell like lotion! I’m grateful for that because it means I can experiment with finding my sweet spot with LFN without the perfume smelling too strong. 

[Anonymous2F]

Close to skin this is a sultry vanilla musk and mostly cocoa butter forward on me, a beautiful skin scent..but when you're not close to the application spot it gives me a cloud of sour in a "sweaty unwashed woman" type of way 😆

 

That might be the honey note; this is still a new batch so I'll let this age for a minute, there's a reason LFN is in this and im determined to make this work

 

Edited November 16, 2020 by Anonymous2F