Reliquary

[luna65]

 

Scent: sweetened burnt apple.

 

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MAGICKAL MEANINGS OF INGREDIENTS:

APPLE ~ Love, healing, fertility, good luck , happiness, immortality, foretelling spells.
BURNT SUGAR & BUTTERSCOTCH~ Attracts love, luck, sweetness and riches. Lust inducing, wishes granted.
VANILLA ~ Aphrodisiac, inspires happiness, playfulness, sexual arousal, lust, is vitalizing.
SMOKED SANDALWOOD ATTAR ~ Love, exotic, sensual atmospheric; aphrodisiac. Healing, spirituality, exorcism.

[LyndaH]

Fresh on the skin I got Green Apple but as it settles it turned into a yummy buttered apple. Then the smokiness came out and reminded me of fall leaves and bonfires. It’s a very nice fall experience in a scent. After the smokiness arrives I catch wiffs of the sweet buttery apple but it was mostly smoky on me. And the apple isn’t too sweet. I would say this wasn’t a dessert scent but more of a fall time scent. 

[luna65]

My high concept impression of this one is "haunted caramel apple."

[LyndaH]

4 hours ago, luna65 said:

My high concept impression of this one is "haunted caramel apple."

Ooooh I love that concept! I say that’s a great expression of this scent! 

[Kayla]

On 10/19/2023 at 12:38 PM, luna65 said:

My high concept impression of this one is "haunted caramel apple."

 

I completely agree with this! Reliquary starts out as a sweet, woody vanilla apple on my skin. As it evolves, I get more of the burnt sugar and smoky sandalwood, which overtakes the apple and vanilla. I love this smoky, sweet scent for the fall!

[Onyx]

I'm not sure what's with my skin, but the fresh, green apple scent in this lasted loooong for me during the first few days! 🍏🍏🍏🍏🍏

 

This was my Day 0 impression of Reliquary. It was one of the Day 0 'Weenies 2023 standouts for me: 

  

On 10/16/2023 at 3:56 PM, Onyx said:

Reliquary: Smelled fresh in the bottle and smelled like fresh apple upon application. I don't smell the burnt sugar. It has a very nice, fresh scent. When it started drying down though, I smelled the burnt sugar! Wow! It truly smells burnt! I'm sniffing it again as I type this and I'm no longer getting the apple. Just the smoke. Very interesting. It's as if the apple got burnt and eventually just... disappeared. I don't know yet if I like this enough to get a full bottle, but this is very interesting and somewhat magical.

 

I've had this for 9-10 days now so it should have gotten some rest, but I also went travelling with my samples so there's a chance it may have travel shock again lol. I put this on again now and it's still very fresh, green apples when wet. 🍏🍏🍏 After around 10 minutes, I started smelling smoke behind the green apple. 🍏🍏💨 The transition from fresh apple to burnt apple has become more gradual now. Before, it took perhaps close to an hour of fresh, green apples before it went to the burnt part for me! Around 40 or 50 minutes later, the apple is gone, leaving behind a sweet, smoked wood scent. 🔥🪵💨

 

Now that I have a more rounded sample, this is not a full bottle for me. I still think that it's very interesting due to its nice layers, but I don't want to smell like a burnt apple. Mr. Onyx said after sniffing my arm with this on while it was still wet, "Smells nice. Like teakwood and vanilla." Point to Mr. Onyx since he was quite close! He was happy when I showed him that this has sandalwood and vanilla. I asked him to sniff this again after it dried down, and he said it smelled similar to him and he still thinks it smells nice. To be honest, that makes me reconsider getting a full bottle lol. But, I think I'll just stick to the sample for now. 

 

However, I am considering putting this on one of my cozy pullovers later. I have a feeling this is one of those scents that I want to smell but don't want to smell like. This scent makes me think of staying in an elegant and cozy winter lodge with sandalwood fixtures. I can imagine relaxing there on a chilly winter night. I would be staring at the fireplace in the living room while my loved ones would be doing various wind-down activities. If I put this on a pullover, I think it might give me the vibe that I'm reminiscing about that nice time we had in the lodge. 💗

 

PS: This is intended for Women based on its tag in the Shoppe and colour coding in the Cheat Sheet, but I think this could actually be Unisex. I asked Mr. Onyx and he thinks it's Neutral, but if he had to choose, he thinks it leans more Masculine.

Edited October 26, 2023 by Onyx
Added PS :)

[Onyx]

On 10/26/2023 at 12:56 AM, Onyx said:

Now that I have a more rounded sample, this is not a full bottle for me. I still think that it's very interesting due to its nice layers, but I don't want to smell like a burnt apple. 

 

However, I am considering putting this on one of my cozy pullovers later. I have a feeling this is one of those scents that I want to smell but don't want to smell like.

 

Guess who now has a full bottle of this? 😏

 

That cozy pullover application certainly worked for me. Sometime last month, I applied this inside my pullover close to my neck and Vessel was somewhere directly on my arm. Though they were not swiped close to each other, the scent of Vessel trailing up my sleeve and combining with the scent closer to my neck highlighted the butterscotch aspect of Reliquary that I could now pick up its butterscotch apple scent more easily. I wear this on my skin now and since I can pick up the butterscotch apple more, I can now see how that part leans more Feminine. 🧈🍏💖

 

I've actually been using the Reliquary+Vessel combo a lot recently, especially when going to bed. I've found myself craving Reliquary when I could smell traces of it somewhere on our sheets or my pillow from the night before. I also tend to look for this especially when it's cooler. Reliquary lasts much longer but I find that I can refresh it with Vessel. I like how I can soften the apple's greenness and the sandalwood's spice with a swipe of Vessel's buttery goodness. I can almost smell cold, biting winds when I sniff Reliquary. Very appropriate for a winter scent! Adding Vessel gives it warmth. If you have both, I suggest trying this combo! 🍏🪵🧈

 

From my elegant and cozy winter lodge visualization of this, I can now add another one which can also be set in that lodge or in a different place altogether: sitting beside a Christmas tree. I think it might be the greenness and the sandalwood which give me that vibe. 🎄🔥🪵

 

Another take I have for this that leans more towards fantasy is Snow White and the Huntsman in a bottle. 🍏🍎🏹🪵

[Eastwood22]

@Onyx I really enjoy your reviews, I might go read them all! Totally got the “cozy pullover” and the “this is one of those scents that I want to smell but don't want to smell like.” 
I have a few of those. If they don’t go on my man, they can go into the wax warmer. Sometimes that can feel wasteful, I don’t wash my cashmere sweaters everytime I wear them, and inside my down jacket might be another place that would work. I have bought scent lockets and not used them because I’m lazy about jewelry, but you might want to look into them. 

[Onyx]

I appreciate your compliment, @Eastwood22! 😊 I've also looked into scent lockets but decided against it for now since I don't wear jewellery nowadays aside from a ring. I've actually started using this directly on my skin though! I've stopped recently because I've been having some skin issues due to the weather, but I'm hoping the new creams I am ordering will help with that.

[luna65]

Mara always creates amazing caramel apple scents!  I think this reminds me somewhat of Curiosities, but it's also it's own thing.  The combination of the burnt sugar and smoked sandalwood is amazing (and makes me think back to one of my beloveds, Fade to Black).  I think this is what I wanted Sweet! to be, way back when.  But also, it has a sophistication beyond the usual gourmand.

[Mila]

The Apple is very much like in Ruby Goo (I like the Ruby Goo a lot). But the burnt caramel definitely puts a different spin on it