New Perfume Review: DSH Perfumes Become the Shaman for ÇaFleureBon Project Talisman (Dawn Spencer Hurwitz) 2017 + Find Some Comfort Here Draw

Become the Shaman, art by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz (you can see Dawn’s face just visible through the image) 1990s

"In an uncertain world we seek a place of safety, comfort, and peace … But what if the power (and protection) we seek comes from within?” asks Dawn Spencer Hurwitz. “What if we all had access to a safe place filled with magic? The invitation is to Become the Shaman. You possess the strength and power to cast all 'demons' aside. When you become the Shaman, you find that true balance and power come from within.”

Photo httpdesignspiration.net ©

Almost as old as humankind itself, shamanism is a practice of ritual magic that is said to open a gateway to the other world, capable of summoning shades either beneficent or hostile.  Become the Shaman,  DSH Perfumes  Dawn Spencer Hurwitz’s contribution to CaFleureBon 7th Anniversary commemoration, Project Talisman, invokes the gentlest of spirits, weaving a protective spell of indigenous woods, plants and resins from across the Americas into a woody cocoon of light incense, resins and sap.

Metamorphosis 003, art by optiknerve©

Comfort scents often possess facets of childhood smells such as cream, wool, cereals and a sense of warm skin. While some of these notes surface in Become the Shaman, its rich, soothing fragrance is based on woods, particularly Palo Santo, with which it weaves an olfactory security blanket of quiet resins. Palo Santo, or “holy wood,” was used by the Incas to purify and cleanse the spirit from negative energies.  Dawn added white sagebrush (used by Native Americans for purification) and copal resin “to imbue the design with richness and protection.” She also developed an accord of milkweed, a plant native to the New World, to symbolize transformation, as it is the sole food of migrating monarch butterflies.

Image from Vladimir Nikishin’s series of 20 artworks titled The Shamans of Siberia©

Palo Santo has a mild piney aroma, more like dried pinewood than the living tree. In the first few moments of Become the Shaman, this arid conifer mingles with the teenage incense aroma of burning joss sticks along with milky tonka bean. The fragrance this combination creates feels distantly familiar, like a catch of pleasant memory. But when a tobacco note creeps in, Become the Shaman turns smokier, more of the outdoors. An anisic note enters along withand the twiggy, dusty crackle of summer brush, the scent of dusk in open terrain.

Healing the Soul by Artist Grace Divine ©

While Become the Shaman has a fairly linear development, the copal resin and balsam come out more strongly with time, adding a sappy richness that melds with the delicate vanilla-tonka notes of the opening. The Palo Santo is complemented and underscored by the emergence of mild cedar. The notes all work in balance, without competition, giving Become the Shaman and feeling of harmoniousness. Coming back to the scent on my hand an hour later, Become the Shaman’s woody, milky incense envelopes is like a quiet hug, a soft flood of warmth like the childhood safety of blanket forts and flashlights. Its magic is not the demon fighting variety but as a kindly restorative for a day of too much news and tiny heartbreaks, a talisman for these uncertain times.

Notes: Amyris, Copal, Milkweed (accord), Palo Santo, White Sagebrush, Peru Balsam, Texas Cedarwood, Tobacco Absolute, Tonka Bean Absolute, Vanilla Absolute, Gaiac wood, Incense.

Disclaimer: samples provided by DSH perfumes – many thanks. My opinions are my own.

Lauryn Beer, Editor

 

Become the Shaman, artwork by Dawn Spencer-Hurwitz

Thanks to the generosity of DSH Perfumes, we have a 30 ml bottle of Become the Shaman Eau de Parfum  for 1 registered reader (register here) in the U.S. or for an International reader a one dram mini flask. There is only one winner. To be eligible, please leave a comment with what appeals to you Become the Shaman based on Lauryn’s review, what you turn to for comfort, where you live and your favorite DSH perfume. Draw closes 4/9/2017.

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS FEED… or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume

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20 comments

  • I definately feel that Dawn’s creations have a layer or perhaps layers of consiousness attached- those forming the final outcome. With the word Sharman in the title there’s an assumption of this from the outcome. Not many people can claim this when creating their fragrances.I guess there’s also the interpretation of what the word ‘Sharman’ means for each and every one of us. personally its about transformation, its a presence and knowlege of other worlds/dimensions, ritual magic and the capturing of that knowlege for the betterment of humankind. Its deeply spiritual and the rawest level of earth life. Organic springs to mind. I’m feeling all this when i read the process and elements Dawn has used in her fragrance. There’s warmth and nurturing, exploration, deep roots in nature and transformation. This feels amazing 🙂 I think because Dawn is an artist on many levels she can reach for something like this, she can understand where it will go. I find comfort with animals and I reach to them a lot. I believe my dog is my animal spirit guide and feel honored to have her come to me in this like.Living in NZ currently and I have a wonderful perfume by Dawn, Ruba’iyat which I eek out , drop by drop- it must never end . Great review & draw, thank you 🙂

  • The notes are quite inviting. I love incense, tobacco, tonka, and most types of resins. Can not wait to sniff this one. I should mention I have no idea about the smell of Palo Santo and Copal.
    Thank you for the informative review and nice pictures specially Metamorphosis 003. Thanks to the generosity of DSH and I live in the US.

  • RoseMacaroon says:

    As someone who uses perfume ritualistically / for magical ends, this has a very deep appeal for me. I’ve fallen hard for several DSH ‘s, and particularly love, love, LOOOOOOVE her way with smoke/smoldering notes. Anything she does feels really potent to me in terms of vibe-enhancing, so I fully believe if there’s a perfumer out there who could create something of shamanistic scope, IT’S HER.
    thank you for the draw, I’ll be working hard at breathing diaphragmatically til the winner is announced.

  • Oh heavens this sounds magical! I love woody notes, tobacco, Tonka and have been dying to try DSH perfumes. I’m in Canada and really am hoping to try this.

  • the transition from dry pine to tobacco sounds wonderful.:) I turn to my core beliefs and optimism for comfort. I haven’t tried enough DSH to have a favorite but would love to try this:) Im in the USA

  • Hmmm, A smoked wooded pine with resins and vanillic tonka bean… This sounds intriguing! Always looking for an interesting pine based scent! Become the Shaman seems to be based on woods and how we can look into our past and how many images or wood affect the life around us. THANK YOU for the draw offered!

  • Hikmat Sher Afridi says:

    Amazing! Great invitation for transition to Become a Shaman. The notes Palo Santo, Copal, Milkweed, White Sagebrush are appealing and the blend seems pure magic. My DSH favorite perfume is PRINCE.
    Thanks to the generosity of DSH Perfumes and Cafleurebon for the opportunity.
    Peshawar, Pakistan

  • ntabassum92 says:

    I like the idea of a security blanket of resins, sounds so comforting and like it would lull you to sleep. I turn to my bed for comfort, it never fails to make me feel relaxed and comfortable. I’m in the US. I have never tried a DSH perfume, but would love to!

  • cardinalmind says:

    Out of all the Project Talisman scents, this was the one that captured my attention. (you can search the initial annoucement and my reaction there.) I feel attracted to it not just on the name but also on the notes on it, where I’m curious to particularly smell that Palo Santo note. With perfumes, I am usually comforted by amber and vanilla based scents, as I feel someone is embracing me. No DSH perfumes that I’ve smelled yet. I live in California.

  • NiceVULady says:

    I like that this is a comfort talisman. I turn to heat and tea for comfort along with amber and incense. I love Pomander by DSH. I live in the USA. Thanks for the draw.

  • fazalcheema says:

    It has Palo Santo and Copal Resins, the two notes I discovered through Aedes de Venustas and which I both love. Even though it is linear, it is full of surprises. Thanks for the draw. I am in US.

  • MichelleU says:

    I enjoyed the whole review but I loves this part “weaves an olfactory security blanket of quiet resins”. I turn to fragrances for comfort.

    I hope I am lucky enough to try this creation.

    I am a reader from the EU.Wish you all the best!

  • Lauryn makes this fragrance sound meditative and tranquil which reminds me of Prophecy and Indus, also two wonderful creations by Dawn, I reach for those often as they are calming and soothing and smell delicious on my skin. I would expect Become the Shaman to be equally beautiful. Resins and vanilla always speak to me and call my name. I am in the US and would love to be entered into this extremely generous draw.

  • Lellabelle says:

    “In an uncertain world we seek a place of safety, comfort, and peace … But what if the power (and protection) we seek comes from within?”

    What a beautiful quote from Dawn! I love this – it will be my inspiration for the day. This sounds like a wonderfully thought provoking and spiritually cleaning perfume. Please include me in the generous draw. US please and thank you

  • Greysilver says:

    DSH perfumes are so amazing!! I’d really love to try this one with its shamanic energy. I live in the US

  • Great set of notes in this one. Really like the green and woody elements of it. Sounds like a very warm and seducing scent. I’m in Canada and thanks for the draw!

  • doveskylark says:

    i burn palo santo to feel comfort. I also feel comforted by the smell of tobacco. I think it’s because I remember my dad smoking a pipe in the evening. I turn to my grandfather’s rosary and I pray when I am scared and out of sorts.
    I have never tried anything from DSH, but I have heard so much about many of her fragrances.
    I live in the USA.

  • Iphigenia says:

    What I find really appealing is the notes which sound very promising. I love the mixing of incense with tobacco, tonka, and resins.
    Thank you for this review and the information provided. Thank you for the opportunity to experience a perfume creation from DSH house, which up till now I have not experienced any!
    I am a registered reader living in the EU.

  • Iphigenia says:

    What I find really appealing is the notes which sound very promising. I love the mixing of incense with tobacco, tonka, and resins.
    Thank you for the opportunity to experience a perfume creation from DSH house, which up till now I have not experienced any!
    I am a registered reader living in the EU.