Velvet Rope by Apothia, 2005

Velvet Rope is interesting. It's not unpleasant, but on me it becomes sickly sweet. At first it smells like a Gin & Tonic that somebody spiked with vanilla liqueur and topped off with a few mint springs. After about an hour it smells like a whiff of cold air when you're skiing while chewing peppermint gum, and wearing cherry chapstick on your lips. Then it smells Juicy-Fruit gummy and musky-sweet, and very slightly powdery. I don't get any tobacco, smoke, or sex from this one. It's a fruity-vanilla musk with an initial unusual note that smells minty. This fragrance is okay, but I get tired of it really quickly on my skin. It loses its initial spark in the way the gum loses its initial flavor, and then just tastes sweet.

Color me weird - I loved this mixed-up frag. Got a half-filled sample from Apothia and used it all up in one fell swoop. First I got a burst of grapefruit with a green rosiness that quickly segued into a creamy and sophisticated vanilla musk with a hint of - yes - tobacco, and that sweaty, "private parts" smell that turns some people off with the grapefruit still hanging in there.

top: grapefruit, juniper berry

mid: green rose, jasmine absolute, cypress leaves

base: vanilla absolute, white musk, patchouli, (one place also mentioned tobacco)

This fragrance strikes me as a choker and a scrubber. The grapefruit top clashes with the vanilla right away, like lemon juice curdles milk. The florals are not noticable. The evergreen notes continue after the grapefruit fades to clash with the base throughout the miserable drydown. I guess this is the effect they were after, how could it be an accident??
It is not sweet, not warm. But I can't say its dry and cool, either. Wet and sour, stale cigarette butt sums it up on my skin. Just the most horrible thing I've tested in the last year.
It's unisex, so I tried to cut it some slack and imagine it on a sexy, hip guy and it didn't help it. Eventually I tried to fantasize I was seated next to Johnny Depp, I still cringed. OMFG, my fantasy said, Johnny stinks bad.