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| Arcana Soaps Ophiuchus |
Ophiuchus is one of Arcana's newer scents from their Summer Constellation line, and part of my impulse to purchase it was purely on the name alone. I love astrology and myth quite a bit, so a perfume based on the snake bearer drew me in, especially with promises of frankincense. I was expecting to probably like this, but I wasn't quite prepared for just how much. This is good to me, so so good. I've been unintentionally applying this nearly daily in the haze of my early morning shuffle to get presentable for class suomeksi.
Blackest vanilla, sweet cream, and patchouli wind around mandarin, tangerine, petitgrain, ginger, citron, and bright frankincense tears.
As this first opens I'm hit with the slightly medicinal edge of the patchouli, followed by the bright citrus. The citrus is bright but not too astringent, for me it has a fruity and slightly watery quality rather than a bitter one. On the skin as it dries the cream comes out, as does the frankincense, giving this a slightly spicy and cologne-like edge. Somehow I almost feel like combined with the citrus it feels like candied orange, but yet not? The cream floats in the back and rounds this out. The ginger may also be there, but it hides from me between the citrus and the frankincense. It's not a single note that I can detect alone, but if I try hard enough I can sense where it might be lurking. The patchouli lingers on top with the slight medicinal and sharp edge, but it's just enough to keep this from being too sweet or gourmand. It's spicy, creamy, fruity, a little sweet and a little sharp. This scent is glorious.
On the topic of the name, Ophiuchus, this scent does not make me immediately think 'snake bearer', but when I take time to ponder it, I understand. Green patchouli, bright orange and yellow citrus flesh and peelings, deep black-brown vanilla pods, frothy white cream, and beautifully translucent amber-colored frankincense. Together, they remind one of the colors of a hot jungle floor, lush with green plants, and the thick, slithering body of a python. I feel like it can't be anything but intentional that these scents not only blend well as perfume components but also as a color palette for the great snake Ophiuchus is eternally wrestling in the sky.
I get good wear from this, usually after a full day of about 7-8 hours it gets too faint to detect unless I jam my face into my wrist, but it's still detectably there. The sillage I find isn't too overly strong, it tends to stay pretty close to the skin, but I'm curious how that might change as it ages.
Overall, this is a killer scent. Amazingly well-blended and just overall delicious. Ophiuchus' snake wound its perfume around my heart and wrestled it to the ground. 3...2...1...! Round over! I'm more than happy to be entangled in its grasp.
Where to buy: Rhinestone Housewife or Pretty Indulgent, prices vary by stockist.
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