theredshoes

Just got this as an extremely generous sniffie (enough for at least a couple of trials in here!) from a forumite, and WOW. I love BPAL's apple note, and this is gorgeous. It really does smell exactly like wonderful apple cider. If I had a full bottle I might be tempted to do like Alice and drink it! (joke, joke) I'm not sure I'd wear it a lot, since I'm not that into food/drink smells, but I think it'd be a perfect room scent for a fall/winter holiday party. ETA because board code ≠ HTML code, sigh. Also, I think maybe this scent benefits a lot from aging. My 2011 bottle has a beautiful ripeness to it. Source: Autumn Cider

Just got this as an extremely generous sniffie (enough for at least a couple of trials in here!) from a forumite, and WOW. I love BPAL's apple note, and this is gorgeous. It really does smell exactly like wonderful apple cider. If I had a full bottle I might be tempted to do like Alice and drink it! (joke, joke) I'm not sure I'd wear it a lot, since I'm not that into food/drink smells, but I think it'd be a perfect room scent for a fall/winter holiday party. ETA because board code ≠ HTML code, sigh. Also, I think maybe this scent benefits a lot from aging. My 2011 bottle has a beautiful ripeness to it.

Persephone is my girl -- she's sitting on a shelf between her husband Hades and BFF Hecate. ;-) (Yes, I am a mythology geek.) In the imp: YIKES, that's a very sharp strong chemical scent -- it doesn't even smell like perfume! A little scared here. I don't remember it smelling this way when I first wore it, years ago. Wet: Thank goodness, as soon as I put it on the rose started coming up and softening the tang. Still kind of sharp and unpleasant. Drydown: Still tart and wet -- I guess that's what people are calling "juicy" -- but the rose is amping more. It's also fading a bit. This is a little more harsh and faint than I remember -- I'm not getting that really fruity richness. The rose comes out more and more as time goes on, like Persephone returning to Demeter in the springtime. Recently I've been trying some "concept" scents that seem designed to go through various stages -- Wilhelmina Murray, Poisoned Apple -- and I'm really impressed. It's as if this little story gets told on your skin. For me Persephone goes from sharp pomegranate softened by rose, to faint rose with pomegranate tang. Definitely sweet but there's almost something a little melancholy to it. Hours later: A sweet but tangy juicy delicious smell. It does fade more quickly than I'd like, but that's a good excuse to keep slathering it on. Persephone and I are reunited again! Source: Persephone

Beautiful, radiant daughter of Demeter... her loveliness was so exquisite that even Hell itself could not resist her. Pomegranate and rose. Persephone is my girl -- she's sitting on a shelf between her husband Hades and BFF Hecate. ;-) (Yes, I am a mythology geek.) In the imp: YIKES, that's a very sharp strong chemical scent -- it doesn't even smell like perfume! A little scared here. I don't remember it smelling this way when I first wore it, years ago. Wet: Thank goodness, as soon as I put it on the rose started coming up and softening the tang. Still kind of sharp and unpleasant. Drydown: Still tart and wet -- I guess that's what people are calling "juicy" -- but the rose is amping more. It's also fading a bit. This is a little more harsh and faint than I remember -- I'm not getting that really fruity richness. The rose comes out more and more as time goes on, like Persephone returning to Demeter in the springtime. Recently I've been trying some "concept" scents that seem designed to go through various stages -- Wilhelmina Murray, Poisoned Apple -- and I'm really impressed. It's as if this little story gets told on your skin. For me Persephone goes from sharp pomegranate softened by rose, to faint rose with pomegranate tang. Definitely sweet but there's almost something a little melancholy to it. Hours later: A sweet but tangy juicy delicious smell. It does fade more quickly than I'd like, but that's a good excuse to keep slathering it on. Persephone and I are reunited again! ETA, eight hours after I put it on: Actually Persephone has great staying power for a perfume this subtle, and pretty reasonable throw. It's now a very delicate, faint almost sad rose -- I think the pom keeps it from going powdery. Husband termed it "pretty, perfumey" (heh) and "haunting."

This has always been one of my top favourite scents, and I got a bottle unsniffed after being away from the sweet, sweet crack BPAL for the past several years -- and it didn't disappoint. In the bottle, yes, this smells very sharp and wine-y, but on my skin, the wine keeps the honey from being too sweet, the honey tones down the sharpness and booziness of the wine, and the myrrh adds a great spice note. (Husband: "It smells kind of like spices....Christmas spices....and flowers?" Heh.) I don't get much floral, but that's okay. I don't so much smell individual notes as a great musky, almost dark but sweet, v complex scent. It's rich without being foodie. For me, this is a very comforting, relaxing perfume; not a go-out-and-party scent, or a go-out-to-work scent, but a stay-home-and-dream scent. I really slather it on, and it has good throw and lasts a long time -- and my skin EATS perfume. It's almost something more private that I wear mostly at home, just for me; it's intimate. Rocza's "end-of-a-cozy-candlelit-dinner-party-with-wine impression" (previous page) is just about perfect. Source: Athens

I already really wanted to try this, given the name and the concept, and then got a frimp from the Lab with my latest order. Yay! In the bottle: BAM the apple knocks you on the head, like Newton. No kidding, I couldn't smell anything but apple for a couple of minutes! This really does smell exactly like a crisp ripe juicy sweet apple. Wow. Seemed more red than green to me, but tart. It's absolutely Essence of Apple. That's impressive. Wet: On my skin this changes almost instantly into something else -- darker, more floral. It also gets a LOT fainter, even though I slathered it on. The apple note stays on top, but the other notes are getting stronger. Drydown: There was a sort of alternation from sweet apple to the darker, muskier scent. The apple note still smelled great, but I didn't like the "poison" notes, and on me the two didn't really blend -- separate halves of the apple indeed! Then the apple went away completely and I was left with this faint, complex, dark musky scent that weirdly had an undertone of powder. After an hour all I had was the faint powder, and even that faded away -- almost no staying power on me. Verdict: Loved smelling the APPLE! in the imp, and I liked the switching from apple to poison and back again, but I didn't like the musk or the powder (think that was the opium and oleander). Great idea, great execution, but the final scent is too faint and flowery and goes pouf. I saw a lot of people comparing this to Hesperides, which is one of my all-time faves -- to me that scent was a lot heavier and sweeter. I'll try this again and see if it lasts longer (and maybe skip sniffing the imp), but it burns out so fast on me I doubt I'll buy it. I might try putting it in a scent locket to see if I can get that great apple note to last (a girl needs an excuse for an $80 scent locket, right?). Source: Poisoned Apple

I grew up in Santa Fe and our neighbour had a huge gorgeous lilac bush -- more like a wall of greenery and flowers -- and there were lilacs all over the city, so they really mean spring and happiness to me. Seattle has lots of lilacs too -- it might be my favourite flower to smell. IN THE BOTTLE: Ohghod it was v green and sharp. I thought this was maybe another Two, Five, and Seven disaster where I just got blaring green and no florals at all! But, it was a bit more flowery than that (thank God). Even then, this scent had a certain something to it that drew me in. WET: Still pretty sharp and green, but it settled down right away to a floral. As other people said, this really smells like actual fresh flowers -- not "perfumy" or soapy. There's some delicious note in there -- wood? musk? -- that seemed to be calming the green down. Usually I don't like the sort of high white sharp smells, especially with lots of grass, but this is converting me. DRYDOWN: The lilac comes out more -- I was impatient for it! This has more staying power than I'd expect from such a light floral, and thankfully after a few hours the greens die way down and the musk comes out more. It's still pretty bright, but not in an unpleasant way. Nowhere near as sweet as actual lilacs, but that might be the green on my skin: for some reason it drowns out EVERYTHING else. VERDICT: This kind of pretty gentle feminine floral is usually so not my thing, but it's delicate without fading, gentle yet strong, and is really sort of enchanting. It's definitely a wet, green, fresh flowery scent, like taking a walk in the Unicorn's wood after a spring rain. I find it energizing and clean -- it'd be a good morning perfume. Doubt I'll buy a bottle, but my skin usually amps grass LIKE WHOAH, and the sharp-but-delicate floral scents tend to give me headaches, so I'm delighted to find a grassy floral I can actually wear. I agree that an aged bottle of this might be really beautiful -- one might be worth buying for that alone, to see what it turns into in a year or two. If it was just a bit more flowery/sweet I might get a bottle. Source: The Lilac Wood

Oh dear, I really don't know what happened. I love roses, but couldn't smell them at all in the bottle - just that very sharp wet green vinegary smell a few other unlucky people got. (Which didn't smell at all like grass to me - but a very strong chemical kind of scent, like fake pine.) Wet, still all I got was the sharp grass. Then that started fading out, and I got....soap. A very nice kind of fancy soap, but not really roses. Finally in drydown all I had was soap, but that disappeared very quickly! Especially considering the amount I'd put on. Really no sweetness at all, just sharp green and then sharp soap. I'm baffled. After several hours I did get a little more of a rose scent, but it was quite faint, and sort of light and astringent. It was still more like very nice soap, or very nice bath-powder, rather than flowers. I doubt I'll be buying this again, since those sort of very light sharp astringent scents tend to give me headaches. Source: Two, Five & Seven

This has always been one of my top favourite scents, and I got a bottle unsniffed after being away from the sweet, sweet crack BPAL for the past several years -- and it didn't disappoint. In the bottle, yes, this smells very sharp and wine-y, but on my skin, the wine keeps the honey from being too sweet, the honey tones down the sharpness and booziness of the wine, and the myrrh adds a great spice note. (Husband: "It smells kind of like spices....Christmas spices....and flowers?" Heh.) I don't get much floral, but that's okay. I don't so much smell individual notes as a great musky, almost dark but sweet, v complex scent. It's rich without being foodie. For me, this is a very comforting, relaxing perfume; not a go-out-and-party scent, or a go-out-to-work scent, but a stay-home-and-dream scent. I really slather it on, and it has good throw and lasts a long time -- and my skin EATS perfume. It's almost something more private that I wear mostly at home, just for me; it's intimate. Rocza's "end-of-a-cozy-candlelit-dinner-party-with-wine impression" (previous page) is just about perfect.

I already really wanted to try this, given the name and the concept, and then got a frimp from the Lab with my latest order. Yay! In the bottle: BAM the apple knocks you on the head, like Newton. No kidding, I couldn't smell anything but apple for a couple of minutes! This really does smell exactly like a crisp ripe juicy sweet apple. Wow. Seemed more red than green to me, but tart. It's absolutely Essence of Apple. That's impressive. Wet: On my skin this changes almost instantly into something else -- darker, more floral. It also gets a LOT fainter, even though I slathered it on. The apple note stays on top, but the other notes are getting stronger. Drydown: There was a sort of alternation from sweet apple to the darker, muskier scent. The apple note still smelled great, but I didn't like the "poison" notes, and on me the two didn't really blend -- separate halves of the apple indeed! Then the apple went away completely and I was left with this faint, complex, dark musky scent that weirdly had an undertone of powder. After an hour all I had was the faint powder, and even that faded away -- almost no staying power on me. Verdict: Loved smelling the APPLE! in the imp, and I liked the switching from apple to poison and back again, but I didn't like the musk or the powder (think that was the opium and oleander). Great idea, great execution, but the final scent is too faint and flowery and goes pouf. I saw a lot of people comparing this to Hesperides, which is one of my all-time faves -- to me that scent was a lot heavier and sweeter. I'll try this again and see if it lasts longer (and maybe skip sniffing the imp), but it burns out so fast on me I doubt I'll buy it. I might try putting it in a scent locket to see if I can get that great apple note to last (a girl needs an excuse for an $80 scent locket, right?).

I grew up in Santa Fe and our neighbour had a huge gorgeous lilac bush -- more like a wall of greenery and flowers -- and there were lilacs all over the city, so they really mean spring and happiness to me. Seattle has lots of lilacs too -- it might be my favourite flower to smell. IN THE BOTTLE: Ohghod it was v green and sharp. I thought this was maybe another Two, Five, and Seven disaster where I just got blaring green and no florals at all! But, it was a bit more flowery than that (thank God). Even then, this scent had a certain something to it that drew me in. WET: Still pretty sharp and green, but it settled down right away to a floral. As other people said, this really smells like actual fresh flowers -- not "perfumy" or soapy. There's some delicious note in there -- wood? musk? -- that seemed to be calming the green down. Usually I don't like the sort of high white sharp smells, especially with lots of grass, but this is converting me. DRYDOWN: The lilac comes out more -- I was impatient for it! This has more staying power than I'd expect from such a light floral, and thankfully after a few hours the greens die way down and the musk comes out more. It's still pretty bright, but not in an unpleasant way. Nowhere near as sweet as actual lilacs, but that might be the green on my skin: for some reason it drowns out EVERYTHING else. VERDICT: This kind of pretty gentle feminine floral is usually so not my thing, but it's delicate without fading, gentle yet strong, and is really sort of enchanting. It's definitely a wet, green, fresh flowery scent, like taking a walk in the Unicorn's wood after a spring rain. I find it energizing and clean -- it'd be a good morning perfume. Doubt I'll buy a bottle, but my skin usually amps grass LIKE WHOAH, and the sharp-but-delicate floral scents tend to give me headaches, so I'm delighted to find a grassy floral I can actually wear. I agree that an aged bottle of this might be really beautiful -- one might be worth buying for that alone, to see what it turns into in a year or two. If it was just a bit more flowery/sweet I might get a bottle.

10/12/2012 -- I got to test this at the Seattle store! :-) In the bottle, it's definitely quite pink. On me this turned into a very light, sweet, pretty floral; I didn't get much of the musk, dust, wormwood &c. Got faint after a couple of hours, but it's v pretty, so I ordered a bottle. It was lighter and less cold and sharp than I expected from the description -- maybe like Stoker's Lucy "looking sweeter and lovelier than ever." :-) ETA 2/24/2013 -- revisiting this after it's been settling a bit. At first it was a little disappointing, because it is indeed a very light almost faint scent with very little throw, but after slathering more on (like I need an excuse to do that -- heh) I was happier with it. In the bottle, and on wet, this is for me a sweetish citrus, not that sharp, without much musk or tea (surprising, usually I amp tea). As it dries down, it goes through a very pretty flowery-spicy stage, which I wish lasted longer, and then fades out into a very light sweet musk. As other people said, it would be a nice daytime or everyday scent; it's pretty cheerful! I still really like it, and was trying to figure out why since I usually don't like very pretty sweet vanishing florals. I think it's probably because most of those scents give me a nasty headache, but this one doesn't. The sad thing is it's more like a ghost than a vampire bride.

What about The Hanging Gardens? It doesn't list amber, but it seems in that family to me. Also discontinued AUGH. Not Hanging Gardens! I love that so much. I've just gotten back into BPAL after an absence of years, and am missing a lot of old favourites!

Oh dear, I really don't know what happened. I love roses, but couldn't smell them at all in the bottle - just that very sharp wet green vinegary smell a few other unlucky people got. (Which didn't smell at all like grass to me - but a very strong chemical kind of scent, like fake pine.) Wet, still all I got was the sharp grass. Then that started fading out, and I got....soap. A very nice kind of fancy soap, but not really roses. Finally in drydown all I had was soap, but that disappeared very quickly! Especially considering the amount I'd put on. Really no sweetness at all, just sharp green and then sharp soap. I'm baffled. After several hours I did get a little more of a rose scent, but it was quite faint, and sort of light and astringent. It was still more like very nice soap, or very nice bath-powder, rather than flowers. I doubt I'll be buying this again, since those sort of very light sharp astringent scents tend to give me headaches.