arcana bonfires at dusk

Woodsmoke, sweet beeswax, Oregon lavender, sandalwood, charred juniper, and the scent of swiftly appearing stars.

Bonfires at Dusk is one of those scents that I wanted as soon as I heard the name. Bonfires at Dusk. How lovely and evocative is that? And the description - beeswax, lavender, sandalwood, and swiftly appearing stars? Yes please. Give it. Give it now.

But the smoke. Smoke is always iffy on me. So instead of requesting a full bottle of it unsniffed, as I was originally tempted to do, I asked Julia for a sample instead.

In the imp, Bonfires at Dusk smells like herbal lavender and juniper. It's strong and just very, very slightly sweet. Once it's on skin, the smoke and beeswax become much more prominent, especially the smoke. The hint of sweetness is almost completely gone, but the herbal lavender and juniper persist under the smokiness.

Once it's fully dry, the lavender and sandalwood both get stronger, vying for second place after woodsmoke for the honor of Most Prominent Note. Lucky for me, the smoke in this doesn't go acrid on me at all - it's quite strong but I like it, because it really does evoke a bonfire in the woods, all crackling twigs, charred greenery, and little red embers floating through the air. It's really wonderful.

Would I buy it again? YES. Oh man, I love it when perfumes I want to like actually work out for me. This is a very rare find - a smoky scent that works with my skin chemistry - and I will absolutely be picking up a bottle in the near future. I believe this one was just made a part of Arcana's general catalog, too, and I couldn't be happier about it. If you like smoky, woody, herbal scents, I definitely recommend giving Bonfires at Dusk a try.

Available from: Wherever Arcana oils are sold - Magical Omaha and The Soap Box Co among other places, or you can order direct from Julia using the contact info at Arcana Soaps.