Claire-of-the-Valley
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Everything posted by Claire-of-the-Valley
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La Dame Aux Pamplemousses
Claire-of-the-Valley replied to doomsday_disco's topic in The Edward Gorey House
I can see why this one is popular! Citrus notes are a little hit-and-miss for me, same for marshmallow, but I wanted to give this a try all the same, and I'm glad I did. It's a light scent--the kind that I would label as perfect for the office--and stays close to the skin. It's also utterly magical for a perfume that only lists two notes. It has struck the perfect balance where it edges towards something a bit like candy, but is smooth enough to maintain sophistication. -
This is for the 2025 version. All of the different notes blend together really well, so it's a little hard to pick them out individually, but I'd say the dead leaves are the main note followed by saffron, clove, and chrysanthemum. It's very strong, so definitely not one I want to slather on. I wouldn't even use a typical amount of oil from this one; when I did, it made me feel a bit nauseous and had to be washed off. A small drop from the cap goes a long way, and prevents it from overwhelming the senses. It's a dry, musky scent, even though there's no musk listed but, provided a small amount is used, it's fantastic. It's dried flowers, fallen leaves, and the end of fall.
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This is for the 2025 version. This is a lot more sharply sour than I was expecting, and I'm not sure which note is causing it. Probably the leaf scent, but I usually like the leaf scent from BPAL. When I first opened the bottle, I really didn't like it, and it didn't get better when I was wearing it. That sour note just stuck around. It's kind of like rotting vegetation, but a sharp, pungent version. I tried it again a few days later, and it's better, some of that intensity faded for something closer to fallen leaves, but still not ideal. The description sounds so lovely, but the actual scent isn't for me.
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I really enjoy this one; it's actually fairly reminiscent of Mouse's Long and Sad Pumpkin, which I didn't anticipate, but that means it smells fantastic. It got some compliments as well; it truly is a joyful pumpkin scent.
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This is for the 2025 version. I never had the chance to try the original, so I'm especially glad it's made a return! This is such a happy scent; it makes me think of all the times I've made peppermint hot cocoa; it smells almost exactly like it. For me, that's more of a winter association than fall, but I could see having that on a particularly cold fall day as well. The coconut is more of a backdrop note that comes out more as it dries down. I can't really make out the rum or vanilla individually, but it all comes together in a truly fantastic--and only very mildly spooky--scent.
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This is pretty much exactly what I was hoping it would be! I can just make out the flapjacks in the bottle, but when I'm wearing it, it's primarily all the rest. Sweet, light, a touch minty without any actual menthol, and herbal without being overwhelmingly so. As it dries, there's a little more flapjack peeking through. It sticks close to the skin, so no real throw. I'm a big fan, and I'm sure I'll be wearing this a lot for the rest of the season.
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Such a fantastic scent. It does smell like tea, although I couldn't pinpoint what kind precisely. The amber and vetiver give it a nice backdrop. There are other, indistinct notes in there, probably the leaves and loam, but I can't identify them individually. It all comes together in a way that makes me think of those gray, fall mornings, but with an uplifting touch; it captures the art it was inspired by very nicely.
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When I first got this perfume in 2019 I wasn't sure I would wear it regularly, but as it's aged, I can definitively say I enjoy it. It captures the essence of "blue" so well; it's hard to explain. It's wispy, ethereal, with a touch of that rosewood to ground it. It's absolutely a Victorian parlor room where a seance is about to take place. When I first got it, the menthol was overwhelming, and while there's still a menthol quality, it's a lot subtler. Good in 2019 and good several years later!
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I can detect the gingerbread at the base of this scent; it adds a kind of fuzzy, bread note. Closer to the top is the rosewater (very subtle) and the berries (having a hard time distinguishing if this is red currant or gooseberry, which I'm not as familiar with). It all comes together in a perfectly subtle sweet, slightly tart bread, and was an instant favorite.
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This 100% matches the description. This smells precisely like the blackberry teas I've had in the past, with that same slightly sweet, slightly bitter combination they maintain. I can absolutely see a witch brewing this, whether to help or harm. Very much an herbal scent; perfect for reading, contemplation, or relaxing.
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This is for the 2024 edition. It's resinous, spicy, a bit sweet, and all-around warm. It makes me think of tea, specifically MarketSpice's Cinnamon-Orange, which always has a wonderful aroma. Makes me want to pour a cup and get some reading in. (^^)
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This hair gloss is just fantastic. Firstly, the BPAL formula for hair glosses is really effective; my hair becomes smooth and shiny and much easier to brush. But as for the scent, it's lovely, and has held up well as I've slowly used up my bottle. It's a bright, happy peach grounded by the amber, so it's a touch earthy while maintaining a certain lightness. It's mixed well with other BPAL scents too, so that's a plus. Like everyone else here, I wish I'd snagged more when I had the chance!
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Started out with a flash of pure, sweet almond, absolutely beautiful, but within seconds was superseded by the dark musk, which was vaguely earthy, a touch metallic, with just a hint of myrrh. At this point, I wasn’t sure the scent was for me; it was nice, but not quite what I was looking for. Eventually, the sweetness of the almond reemerged, but more fully blended with the other notes. This is an excellent combination and is genuinely enchanting. I don’t detect a buttery note, but it did become smoother at this stage. This is where it won me over. Final stage is a little more on the sweet, buttery side and stays close to the skin. This is wonderful as a perfume and as a tribute to Hekate. It settles into a realm of warmth and mystery with a touch of power, which reflects her well.
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Normally I like BPAL’s rose note, but this takes on a kind of sickly sweetness, sour even. I don’t think it’s mixing with the pomegranate note well at all. It eventually mellows a bit into a purer rose, which reminds me of Bésame’s original 1960 formula. Definitely better, but that first stage is rough to get through, and might not be worth it. I’d be curious to see how this one ages.
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Immediately, I can detect the red wine (sort of smells like grapes) with a touch of honey and floral. There’s also a wood note that reminds me of The Little Wooden Doll. The myrrh starts to peek through a little later with a lightly wooden scent. The wine note is more in the background. Settles into a sweet, wooden scent from there.
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Instant favorite! This is classy and nostalgic. It’s a light, delicate scent, sweet but not in a saccharine way, which must be the rose water. It’s cool with a touch of fuzziness to it; the white musk. I would agree with the description of “mineralic” and “crystalline.” There’s a backdrop of amber, but I can’t make out the oud exactly. This is a truly lovely scent and a unique one as well. I haven’t yet come across another like it on BPAL.
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This is my favorite of the 13 scents I've tried so far. In the bottle, it's spicy cacao, mellowed out by the nutmeg. When I first put it on, the cacao is very much in the background. It's a nutty scent with the nutmeg and saffron at the front with a touch of cardamom; there's a bit of spice still with a hint of pine in the background. As it settles, I can detect the cacao and pumpkin rounding things out, but the other scents still dominate. It's a comforting, warm scent, that absolutely makes me think of fall.
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Out of the three 13s I've tried, this one is the most like a chocolate bar, which initially left me disappointed. In the bottle, it smells like pure spicy chocolate or Mexican chocolate, which I've always been a fan of, but still very sweet. When I first put it on, it's pure, sweet chocolate, very gourmand. As it starts to dry, it returns to a spicier chocolate, which I like a lot more, though it still maintains a certain candy bar quality. I'd say the cloves stand out most out of the listed spices, with a touch of the chili. Eventually, the spices take over more completely. On the whole, I would say this is another winner in the 13 department, but it took a little longer to win me over.
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Got this as a frimp. When it's in the bottle, it smells astringent and herbal. When I first put it on, it's still astringent and kind of peppery. Makes my nose itch, and not in a good way. On dry down it smells like musky, slightly peppery honey, which is okay, but on the whole I'm not a fan of this one. I don't get anything related to chocolate at any point. Some reviewers have compared it to O, which I also didn't like, so I think there's something about the usual honey note BPAL uses that isn't for me.
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In the bottle, and when I first put this on, it smells almost minty with a more general, sharp herbal tone. I think this might be the pine pitch. It quickly settles and becomes a little more obviously a pine and sap scent. I'm not sure if I can make out the oak, but there is something "spicy" about it, but a subdued spice that you might put in a drink. It's not a long-lasting scent on me, and softens into a kind of powdery version of what I already described. I like it, but it definitely doesn't smell like what I would typically expect of a bonfire. No smokey or ash-y scent here. It's very fresh. Not a lot of throw. It's unique, and does ultimately take me to some kind of outdoor forest.
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When I first got this, I did not like it. It's now had a few weeks to settle in and it's improved. When I first tried this it was really sharp, pungent, not very sweet, and incredibly long lasting. Just way too powerful all around. It is still a strong scent, but it's settled into something earthier and sweeter, which has helped a lot. The sandalwood is finally coming out mixed primarily with vetiver, I think? There is something that in the backdrop that might be oak. I'm not familiar with tonka bean, so I'm not sure if I'm smelling that or not. As the scent settles in I start to get a little beeswax. It eventually shifts into something a little too sweet but still earthy. As a scent, I feel like it really encapsulates the color brown and I can see how it's representative of the owl that inspired it. It still doesn't start out as the most mellow of scents but it's definitely eased up from where it's started and it's grown on me because of that.
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In the bottle this is just super sharp lavender. When I put it on it remains as basically pure lavender, which makes my nose itch a bit. As it starts to dry down, the lavender backs off and a very pleasant combo begins to emerge of something mellow yet sweet, which I imagine must be the rockrose, a faint whiff of lavender, and those pale woods, which I'll admit was the actual note that drew me to this in the first place (I was a big fan of it in Lilac & Pale Woods). At this stage I definitely envision more of a sun-dappled woodland environment where there's something sweet, but unidentifiable in the distance. So, for me, the dry down of this scent is where it really shines. I'm not a big fan of how overwhelmingly "lavender" it is in the bottle or when I first put it on, but that stage doesn't last too long and it ends up blending in quite nicely with the other two notes.
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In the bottle this is a super sweet scent, almost overwhelmingly so. On me it starts out as watery blackberries with a hint of rose. Still very sweet, but with actual notes as opposed to in the bottle where it's just pure sweetness. As it dries down it gets a little more muted and the backdrop of Snow White becomes more apparent. At this stage it's basically Snow White with watery blackberries. The rose is harder to detect, but lingers in the background. It's a good scent. I had expected it to be more like a pastry, but this really isn't that at all. It brings to mind a tea party in the snow where everything is just a little frozen over.
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I can make out the backdrop of Snow White's scent here, but it's faint. The spice stands out quite a bit followed by the linen and honey. I would say there's a general "milkiness" to the scent especially at first, but I couldn't say whether it smells like boba or not. It's quite sweet at this stage. As it dries down it's the spice and linen/cleanness of the scent that linger. Not a lot of throw and not super lasting in it's first stage, but a very lovely scent.
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This is the first of BPAL's 13 scents I've ever tried and this is absolutely phenomenal. In the bottle I get pure chocolate, but we're talking rich, deep chocolate. I can see what they mean by "smoked" cacao because it's not like a candy bar at all. Definitely the same chocolate note they're using in El Dia de los Reyes. When I first put it on I still have that backdrop of chocolate, but the rice milk, mint, and what I think is the ambrette seed really come through. There's the faintest hint of lavender. While I can't detect each individual scent, I have no doubt they're giving this a fuller aroma overall. It's a sweet, earthy, slightly fresh scent. After awhile it fades into a faint whiff of something soft that's faintly identifiable as chocolate. Very glad I got a few of these. Feels like a great scent to steel one's nerves. I know each 13 is different, but I would have no complaints if this one made a return.