Cape Heartache
Imaginary Authors (2013)

I can see why some people don't detect strawberry here. The sweetness of balsam fir and vanilla is bound to alter the perception of strawberries. That said, perfumers can say whatever they want about what notes are in a fragrance so strawberry may not be there after all.

To me this is sweet cedar with a fruity twist. Suitable for evening wear or to a gathering. Has "cold weather" written all over it. Leans quite masculine to me without being confrontational or intimidating at all. Longevity is good but projection is not very strong, which is good for me because I can't understand why anyone cares about strong projection in a fragrance.

A pleasant woody and powdery fragrance for me that triggered a memory somewhere in my brain. Only if it's lighter with the synthetic sweet strawberry note that is more well blended it'd be perfect because it can be cloying after a while. Not the most common and wearable scent but perfect to wear it in a winter snowy day and just stay indoor, sipping a cup earl grey tea and enjoying the atmosphere that this fragrance brings. Overall, albeit not perfect, it's a great personal mood booster for me.

I love the smoky woods and pine that open this composition, which really light up a cold, winter day. But unfortunately, the strawberry emerges too strongly. The vanilla sweetens and intensifies this accord, and it ultimately overtakes the composition for me. Great in small doses, and possibly better as a candle (though I am yet to try the candle version).

I'll never understand the hype behind this house. I've tried nearly half the line and found nothing memorable with maybe the exception of Saint Julep.

I got a sample of Cape Heartache free when I ordered a bottle of A Whiff of Wafflecone (a fragrance yet to be added to the directory at time of this review). I wasn't expecting on trying this, but I'm glad to check it off the list.

There isn't much to say here. If you're expecting a fir/green/coniferous scent, you might as well turn right around. This more or less smells like strawberries n' cream, but not until the middle/end. The opening just smells like a strawberry car air freshener. When i was younger, my dad had this spray strawberry air freshener for his van. Of course, this was before the days of amazon, and air fresheners, or anything that we take for granted now, were harder to come by, not money wise really, just being harder to find. However, I digress. The strawberry air freshener for me ties to that memory, which is what I think of when I smell this. It's just such a weak and "novelty" sort of scent, like most of the others from this house. Not so much weak in projection, although not great, it's just weak overall as a fragrance..like just lackluster.

So.. here I am again finding myself reading all these rave reviews, and I wonder, are they real? Am I smelling something different? Maybe I am just a much more critical reviewer? Maybe they all got samples/bottles for free? I do see a pattern in many of these reviews giving praise to all fragrances from this house, which certainly makes me scratch my head. Whatever it may be, I will always give my honest opinion on a fragrance. I don't think this is worth anyone's time. If you must try it, please sample it first; it may come out to more per ml, but it's better than having a fragrance that was an impulse buy that you'll never wear.

It does smell similar to some of their other aquatics. That salty, Bvlgari Aqua aquatic smell, but this one has a huge dollop of incense. It really comes forward in the heart, in that this ceases to be an aquatic and turns into an herbal/incense frag with aquatic echos. I like this one. It has really drastic development, which can be good and bad.

Very smooth natural smell evocative of forests. Fir balsam and certainly pine needle absolute do have a fruity aspect, which has been skilfully brought out in this perfume.

Slumberhouse has done the same thing with Sadanne, with a pronounced strawberry nuance, but compared to Cape Heartache, Sadanne is a heavy handed composition.

There is an earthiness suggestive of forest floor which accentuates the naturalness.

Regarding the declared ingredients, mountain fog is a great one, I wonder if they distil it on the spot?

But vanilla leaf, which I looked up, could have some basis. it seems to be in a similar category to woodruff, melilot and deertongue, where natural extracts are occasionally available, so we'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

One of my top favourites in the Imaginary Authors lineup.