Egyptian Musk oils report card

Thanks FuFu- great report!

Used to wear a lovely roll on EM musk oil that I picked up off a street vender in NY ages ago. It too had that here again/gone again effect. I always thought it was just me, that I had a sort of olfactory overload with EM and couldn't smell it after a time. Perhaps it's not just me after all.

Thanks for the reviews, Fufu! Love the report card style! I've never sampled any Egyptian Musk, but it's on my list of things to do! [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

I've never considered myself a big fan of most musk-based scents, but it's amazing that I invariably
receive compliments whenever I wear them. I've also noticed that some of my favorite oils are the
ones I've picked up with very little fanfare at the local health-food store.

Fufu, loved your report card-style reviews! [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

Wow! What fantastic reviews (and reviewing style!...) [smiley=thumbsup.gif] But...


...Yikes! The secret is outta the bag...!

This one deserves a best-in-class award for just the plain ol' best smell on earth!!! It is sooo obscure and accordingly overlooked!

The amazing thing to me is that you found one even better than Auric Blends!!! You can bet I'm going to check out the common-scent.com EM.

Thanks, FufuLaRue!

I am digging thread graves for a very good reason. Egyptian Musk is an important scent and it's always good to be aware of the options. I have a few invaluable NYC street vendor varity EM oils and I'm afraid to use them up. However, oils eventually go rancid so I'll HAVE to use them. Now that I know common scent makes a good EM I might be okay. Only a trial will tell. Thanks Fufu

I am rather glad that you brought up that Sweetcakes musk and that someone else resurrected this thread, because it (and this in no way is an attempt to trespass on your thread) opens up a wider dialogue about an amusing, if troubling, phenomenon: the "lemming."

Sweetcakes musk, along with such things as Davies Gate Cloudcake and Molinard Fraise and umpteen permutations of musk courtesy of Nemat, became an object of hype and heightened discussion: Was it really that good?

Of course it wasn't. Sweetcakes musk, as you point out, is a disaster. It's so bad that you are tempted to utter that question forbidden on civilized forums: Who likes this stuff?

Well, someone did, and someone raved, as someone will do when someone legitimately finds joy, and then the rest fell in line and the "lemming" was born, following each other, one after another, rodent to the sea in pursuit of the Davies Gate Cloudcake that was and will always be little more than a cheap cologne sold at Bath and Body Works and for sixteen dollars at that. And you, the victim of the hype (because we believe, we believe!) is puzzled, or disgusted, or just plain old disappointed, but confused mostly, because what on earth was that buzz about?

We have seen the driest, flakiest mascaras heralded as that one that will deliver porn-star lashes (or Hollywood hooker lashes); we have seen desiccated described as silky and non-smudge destined for stain. We've tried really, really hard to like a niche scent that honestly is just about ordinary and maybe even a bit unfinished.

We have all purchased technological breakthroughs that broke.

But this discussion is about fragrance: How many times has one noticed an aside, let's say, about coconut (or incense or leather) in a scent, thereby followed by multiple remarks promoting that aside to a major statement: Yummy, creamy coconut! until some brave soul says, There is no coconut here. There is tobacco. And then the tides turn, the lemming is impaled on some rock that took far too long to reach. And this is the case with Sweetcakes (including some bastardization of a premium niche scent that is nothing short of crude) and most especially of that musk. It might make a dull soap, and that is what it was designed to do in the first place.

Auric Blends Egyptian Goddess is better than average, except that there is no average fair to its quality.

FufuLarue,
A friend of mine got me a beautiful musk oil from Cairo. It fits your description: "*Beautiful, and everything Egyptian Musk *should be. *It fades, then comes back, fades, then comes back in a mysterious pattern on and off all day. *Just when you get disgusted and think it’s gone, you pick up a whiff of it"

Although it doesn't smell much like anything else I've smelled over here that sells as Egyptian Musk. It is a bit powdery floral, and not too over-powering for a musk. I am out of vials right now. But I'd be more than happy to send you a sample.

Fufu, (or anyone else)

Have you ever tried the Egyptian Musk by Ava Luxe? I'm curious.

Thanks,
J

Auric Blends has lots of great scents--and so cheap.

I wanted to thank FufuLaRue for an insiteful evaluation of various egyptian musks. I bought some of the oil in a candle shop in LA (Olvera's Candle Shop) while vacation there, and I absolutely adore it. But alas, the bottle is empty, I'm back in NJ and the store is not returning my messages. So I just purchased some egyptian musk from www.common-scent.com based on assessment. I'll try it and let you know. Thanks for your help!

Zombie thread!

That being said, Egyptian musks here do have a very distinct scent, or rather two main styles: clean-rosy-spicy ''white'' musks and heady-floral-ambery ( sometimes fruity ) ''dark'' musks, neither of which smell very much like the ''Egyptian'' musks I've smelled back home.

well suga, are there any "egyptian" musks in egypt?

Which stores sell Auric blend?

So far yet to see any labelled as such. Among the local perfumes there is a focus on religious symbolism and associations with Mecca, though often doubtfully authentic ones ( not that it matters to me, personally, but offering musk ''from the ka'ba itself'' seems an unlikely proposition, despite the fact that I see that and similar labels everywhere ).

There are things with Egyptian themes but these have been in my experience cheap knock offs sold to tourists. The better quality Egyptian goods seem mostly focused abroad - perhaps it's the way of perfumery always to advertise with the exotic?

Maybe they contain Amber, the trade in Amber was a specialty of Mecca.

"Egyptian" musk, to me, evokes cleanliness, as in the pristine white linens and cottons used for clothing. As for Mecca... it is in Saudi Arabia, not Egypt. But one a custom of many Islamic countries of north Africa and the Middle East was to mix musk in the mortar used to build mosques. When the sun beat down on the building, the heat would bring out the scent, causing spirituality and olfactory sensations to intermingle.

I read this thread when it was new, and after all these years I'm finally posting a comment!

Body Time's oil does have a fragrance, and a very nice one at that. In fact, it's my favorite take on Egyptian musk. It's warm and rounded, providing occasional glimpses of a subtle, creamy peach. And although it wears close to the skin, the scent stays potent for about 24 hours. My guess is that the "fraud" comment comes from being largely anosmic to the fragrance. (And I acknowledge that it's nothing more than a guess.)

Arab perfumery often centers around Hegazi associations the way western perfumery often centers around French ones. If you spend some time in Egypt you'll see quite a lot of the local musks have names based on the Muslim holy city.

The style of most Egyptian musks in Egypt is, to my nose, split between the strongly rosy, often peppery "white musks" and the warmer, more ambery "dark musks". The idea of a bright, clean laundry Egyptian musk really doesn't exist there, though they do exist in laundry detergents there as they do worldwide. Even for home and functional perfumery, there was a distinct national preference for thicker, headier scents.

I bought Egyptian Musk oil based on it had A+ rating. I am very disappointed with the product. I have used Egyptian Musk oils from Auric Blends and wholefoods (kuumba made) and now I know the difference. I went for it because of the price and it is a waste of money. I don't know if I got a different oil than I ordered. The shipping and handling charges are too much for return and exchange. I would go with Auric Blends for the quality and pricing.

This is my first post ever!

I've been wearing Egyptian Musk as my "everyday scent" for 14 years! I did the NYC Street Vendor-style in the beginning, then the Hippie-Witch shop versions (like Auric Blends - pretty nice for the price, I guess), and now I buy my Egyptian Musk from Aroma Sanctum Perfumes. In my opinion, it is the *best* Egyptian Musk perfume oil I have tried. Now - heads up: it's a very light musk - it can also be faint. Personally, I like that because it is never overpowering like a musk can get. And it doesn't smell "earthy" with those patchouli notes I don't like. Also, I can wear it alone, or I can layer it. So, I like that.

All in all - it is not a "heavy/heady" version of the scent, its the bright, clean and fresh version - with only a hint of that dark sexxxy-mystery-whatever that Egyptian Musk tends to have (I'm new here, so I apologize for not having the right vocab for reviewing scents, yet!). But, if you are an Egyptian Musk fan I urge you to try it out. http://www.aromasanctum.com/houseblends.html

I, for one, might try Ava Luxe or Common Scent, too... I mean, I feel like I found *my* Egyptian Musk - but I can't say I'm not curious about this one! ;-)

Welcome, superkid268!

I've been enjoying some Ava Luxe Pearl Musk that a BNer sent me. It is a creamy/skin-scenty white musk (not Egyptian). I love it.

Please try Valerie's Uncommon Scents on ebay and on the web. She has a delicious Egyptian Musk Dry Oil Spray that I wear daily and receive compliments daily as an RN - it's not heavy but very classic musk!