BUY THIS NOW! Copper + Copper Blood of My Enemies

Sometimes the perfume world takes itself waaaay too seriously. If archaeologists of the future have nothing to draw on but the perfume advertisements of the 20th and early 21st century, they could easily come to the conclusion that the humans of this time period were all slender Europeans driven almost entirely by the accumulation of wealth and whose only other interests were sex and romance, in that order.

Thank goodness for the indie and artisan perfumers of the United States! Free from the restrictive parameters of classical perfume structure and the constantly changing IFRA regulations that do less to protect the end consumer and more to protect the interests of established multi-national corporations, American perfumers constantly push the boundaries of both the fragrance world and the business world by offering original brand concepts and unique aromas that shrug off the dominant 21st-century perfume aesthetic.

With a witchy/goth vibe (not JUST for Halloween), aromatherapy elements, and with some products even incorporating herbs and flowers grown by proprietor/perfumer Jenni G., Copper Cat Apothecary / Copper + Copper fragrances is a very 21st-century blend of American attitude, entrepreneurship and serious cosmetics knowledge. The names and packaging of the products offer a much-needed dose of humor to brighten these dark days. To wit: a candle scent called “Daily Covid Test: If You Can’t Smell this F*ccckkkk“; an essential-oil-based bug repellent spray called “Bitch Be Gone“; “Boo! You Whore” lip gloss and the amazing Blood of My Enemies solid perfume, which is the subject of today’s post.

COPPER + COPPER BLOOD OF MY ENEMIES
SOLID FRAGRANCE REVIEW

Size: 1 oz. (At just $10 as of this publication date, it’s an incredible bargain!)

Packaging: Packaged in a black metal tin, with tan paper labels on top and bottom. The tin arrived in a black satin bag. Tin and bag are reusable/zero waste.

Base: Shea butter, cocoa butter, beeswax, apricot oil, vegetable glycerin, polysorbate 80.

Vegan-friendly: No, due to the beeswax. This fragrance is available in other products from the brand which are suitable for vegans.

Color and texture: Copper + Copper solids are softer by design but are thoroughly solid at room temperature, somewhere between a hard beeswax-based solid and a thick skin cream. Blood of My Enemies is an off-white solid that melts instantly under a fingertip and is very creamy upon application, leaving a slight sheen on skin before it soaks in.

Natural perfume or mixed media: Mixed media. The ingredients listing on the tin indicates both “fragrance oils” and “essential oils.”

Fragrance description and notes: from the official product listing on Etsy: “Blood of My Enemies: one of our Non-Binary or Unisex Fragrances. A popular scent in our bath collection, we have taken it and added a few more notes to create a unique Fragrance for the wearer. It begins as a bright citrusy fragrance and ends with a warm indulgent note. A little mysterious and very addictive. Blood of My Enemies has notes: Saffron + Apples + Black Currant + Blackberries + Patchouli + Clary Sage + Orange + Amber + Anise”

Longevity: Excellent, lasting five+ hours with good throw and another hour or two as a skin scent.

Sillage: The fragrance is very loud upon application (or as I open the tin, even!), but settles in an hour or so to intimate sillage. I can smell it a couple inches above my wrist for most of its life, and it’s a skin scent for the last couple hours.

The experience: First off, look at that label. A plague doctor mask! Can you think of a more apropos image for a scented product in 2021?

I did a review of Copper + Copper’s Mr. Lucky solid perfume a few months ago, and the fragrance enjoys heavy rotation in my fragrance wardrobe. I follow Copper Cat Apothecary on Instagram, and when Jenni began dropping teasers for the new March product release, she sent me a DM about one I might want to check out: Blood of My Enemies solid perfume.

I looked at the notes of this one and had no expectations about what it might smell like. I know the scent of each individual note listed, but if I learned nothing else in my time at Fragrantica, it’s that you can’t tell what something will smell like by looking at a list of notes. The best fragrances will offer an unexpected but beautiful harmony of the elements in the list, and that’s definitely the case with Blood of My Enemies.

A pronounced saffron note and crisp apple compete for dominance in the scent’s opening. At this phase, it reminds me of Imaginary Authors’ very wonderful Slow Explosions (and if you’re a fan of that fragrance, you’ll want to check out Blood of My Enemies and it is a safe blind buy for you). Where the fragrance goes next, though, is completely different. Explosions skews rosy and woody, with a whiff of salty leather. Blood… instead takes a juicy, fruity turn in the heart, with berries and orange notes and a drop of anise that brings to mind Lolita Lempicka. The saffron and fruity notes fade gradually to a gently sweet aromatic-amber dry-down, yet the fragrance is never quite gourmand, with patchouli lending a grassy tone to the creamy base notes. It’s a remarkable evolution from spicy to fruity to herbal to amber, and I can’t stop sniffing my wrist whenever I wear this one.

Folks, if these notes look appealing to you, run, run, run! to Etsy and buy Blood of My Enemies now! It’s just $10 for an unbelievably gorgeous, complex, interesting, unisex fragrance that’s perfect for this crazy time we’re living in and will also be a delight to wear to the workplace when we can return there. (And when that happens, I can’t wait for someone to ask me what fragrance I am wearing!)

Where to buy: Blood of My Enemies and all Copper + Copper fragrances are available exclusively via the Copper Cat Apothecary shop on Etsy.

All photographs by me.