The Living Flame

[HennaFairy]

A luminescent red scent: breathless with passion, flickering with desire, and glowing with ardent and reverential love.

bottle:
dry, musky

wet:
musky floral

dry:
same, musky floral

overall:
too musky for me

rating: 5/10

[tidesong]

In the Bottle: Floral. Strong floral, wrapped in musk and spice.

 

On Application: Interesting. There's suddenly a frutiness to this, playing around the florals. Berry maybe? There is definitely spice to this, giving it a "red" scent without cinnamon. The florals are tickling my nose though.

 

On Drydown: Heady, dizzying florals, with a little musk.

 

Comments: I don't get anything 'flame' from this at all. I am, however, getting a headache.

 

Verdict: Swap.

[karengypsy]

In the vial: Soft florals

 

On me: This is not at all what I expected! This blend is of soft florals with a hint of some kind of spice behind them. Innnnteresting.

 

Verdict: This smells nice on me, but it's not really what I was looking for so I think I'll swap/sell it.

 

A bit later: Yep, now it's going soapy. Good thing I'd already decided to get rid of it!

 

Rating: 3/5

[juniperus]

Bottle: sweet floral, but barely floral and by sweet I mean almost candy-ish. Fruity, maybe, but I can't tell you what fruit.

Wet: very subtle, I need to practically press my nose to my skin to smell it. I'm not picking out any particular notes, but this has a light-reddish feel to it, if it were a color - but translucent like the sun through red-streaked stained-glass.

Dry: very much the same - but the sweet is burning off rapidly. I'm having a really hard time picking out notes. I'm leaning towards the possibility of orchid here, and the impression of spice without being spicy, per se, makes me wonder about forsythia. This has the same feel as the lunacy blends.

Later: a hint of musk but it's pale - white musk, I assume, as that's often rather pallid on me. this doesn't seem to contain any notes that usually amp on me, but I can't quite make this one out. it's rather too sweet for me, sadly enough, and really disappears quickly...

[fairy]

This one doesnt smell red to me. It smells like milky almonds with a touch of flowers. It's lovely

[sofiaviolet]

This is pretty faint on my skin. I can't discern a single note, it's just kind of powdery and faint. This seems neither warm nor red to me, both of which I had expected.

[QueenFae]

This is indeed a very red scent, and I had high hopes for it, but it just didn't agree with my chemistry. It turned straight clove on me, or if not clove a very similar note. I could smell the cinnamon and musks trying to come out, but this horrible cough syrup scent just overpowered everything. It was the same kind of note that disagreed with me in Samhain. Not my kind of thing, but a strong scent with pretty good sticking power.

[supremegoddessofall]

More delicate than I thought it would be. There's definitely a "spice" quality that I usually associate with "red" scents, but it's subtle. Mostly I get a gentle aquatic and some night flowers. Kind of reminds me of an upscale department store.

[boyofpapercranes]

I think I'm crazy, because I don't smell florals at all; I'm smelling Chinese starfruit. After a while, the starfruit smell disappears and it turns into a sort of powdery, expensive-smelling perfume. Not quite what I was looking for, alas.

[Naamah_Darling]

This is crisp and somewhere between lightly floral and lightly fruity, with a whiff of cinnamon and a trace of spice. It smells warm and wet in the bottle, very pleasant.

 

It goes on in a heady perfumey rush, gardenia or geranium and a hint of something crystalline and clear – an almost chemical overtone that is reminiscent of commercial perfumes. There's musk in here, too, I think, giving it that nasal lift. There's still an afterscent on drawing away from it of cinnamon and spice, but it's very subdued and is being sat on firmly by the great-grandmother of all perfume smells. It gets dusty as it dries, but not powdery or like makeup, so it's rather pleasant even on extreme weardown, which floral scents usually are not on me. As it dries, the spice note fades, and it's much more of a dry flower scent. I don't know if I get fire from it, but I certainly do get brightness.

 

This is grand and bright, but never oversteps its bounds. A mature, intelligent smell that hides nothing because it fears nothing. Beautiful.

[alicia_stardust]

The Living Flame is a sweet glowing floral with no single note that jumps out at me. It had a "red" scent to it that reminds me of the word amor; deep love; candle flickers.

 

This is almost a high-pitched scent but it stays just low enough that it's not too much for me to wear. This is so breathtakingly beautiful. I am keeping this one.

[filigree_shadow]

I can smell some spice in this right at first, but surprisingly all I can smell after about 10 minutes or so is a sweet fruity-floral scent. That's weird because generally I can smell the spice in a perfume long after the other notes have disappeared. It's not a bad scent; it's one of those ones that's neither offensive nor remarkable. It doesn't smell fiery at all to me. I guess it does smell like a red scent, but that's mostly because it smells like a red fruit.

 

This isn't what I was expecting for this scent. I was sort of hoping for sensual but I got cute out of it. Ah well. There are plenty of others.

[Limelight]

I think this is a red scent, though a gentle, washed-out red, like that sweater that's been in the dryer too many times. It starts out like a musky floral, then quickly quickly goes into some kind of fruitiness, and ends up smelling powdery pleasant, if a little dusty. I'll have to wear it all over one day to make my final judgment.

[evanescence]

This scent loves me and I love it back! I need it in a gallon container with a pump dispenser.

 

I get that warm wrapped in cashmere feeling just like I do from Khajuraho - just soft candlelight and flowers. It has a lot of throw and I was still sniffing it at the end of the day.

 

Breathtakingly lovely and I want more. Anyone posting who doesn't like theirs... just lmk. LOL

[ouch!]

This is fruity and musky for a split second then it's floral and musky!

 

It's a very strong musk in here, with some flowers I'm gonna say maybe theres some Ylang Ylang in here, because this reminds me ever so slightly of Skuld.

EXCEPT..The whole thing feels like it's been dusted with a very light caramel or Brown Sugar. It has a foody edge that is not too much but noticable nonetheless..

The musk in this is gorgeous, it's very heavy. It might be..african or indian musk. mmm. Have you smelled Sed Non Satiata? It THIS kind of musky sexiness that The Living Flame is all about.

 

I'm not getting anything flamey, or..red at all. This is more of a brown, sensual...scent. More like a temptress dancing in flames...

 

It's yum though, and really really comes to life once it's warmed up on the skin. Deffo a sexy sexy scent.

If you like heavy musks then...this is for you.

Edited October 16, 2008 by ouch!

[themerrybaker]

The Living Flame was one of my Holy Grail scents for ages and I'm glad to have gotten to try a bit of it especially after having misplaced my internal thermostat and turning into the Human Blowtorch of random sweating doom. This smells to me like a precursor of Khajuraho sans honey, and with maybe an undertone of benzoin. Whatever is in there, I will be happily tending my Flame.

[zankoku_zen]

Definitely a warm, musky scent with a 'brown' connotation. I get musk, something sweet like benzoin, and something slightly incensey. It's got spices in it, and the musk is definitely a 'skin' scent.

 

I'm not for this kind of blend, but I'm sure on the right gal it would be dynamo.

[Reedsong]

This ranks in my top 5 BPAL scents of all time, and I'd probably save my bottle from a burning building. It's luminous, sweet, warm, "red" in feel and so elegantly romantic. I can't pick out a single note from this perfume; I read the other reviews and think, "Well, yes, there is likely vanilla in here," or, "Clove, I could see that," or, "Sandalwood, that's an interesting notion," but all I smell from this scent is loving, bright passion. One insightful reviewer likened this to a softer version of Dior's Poison, and I find that comparison apt, but really, there's no summary of The Living Flame that does it justice. This fragrance is so unique and brilliant, and I'm strangely more content in my ignorance of its ingredients than I would be with a list of notes.

 

I watch the Lupercalia update eagerly every year to see if this one will make a return...well, a Baudelaire-loving lady can hope, yes?

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Light, fruity, green-white floral. Gardenia? Maybe some ozone? Also something citrusy.

 

Wet: Fresh, clean, airy, and almost aquatic - this reminds me a great deal of rain. White grapefruit or maybe geranium, and slightly soapy florals. A touch cologney.

 

Dry: The florals are a bit heady. Magnolia, slightly powdery lily, possibly sweet pea. The fruit here is very light, but sort of exotic and juicy - in addition to the grapefruit. Very complex and difficult to pinpoint on the whole.

 

Later: Galbanum gives this green, almost resiny force. The fruit sweetens...maybe red currant? And something darker, like wild plum. I don't get anything spicy, other than maybe a floral sharpness from lily. Musk. Reminds me a bit of Kitsune Tsuki. There's a dryness here though that makes me think rosewood.

 

Summary: Final drydown is a very musky, slightly sweet-fruity, bright floral scent, though it's more complex than that. Very feminine, sexy, and sophisticated. I don't get a red feel from this, at all. Good throw and excellent lasting power.

 

I'm not sure I need to seek out a bottle of this, but I'll use the little bit I have for sure.

 

[Ishtar]

Wow, yet another blend that I've had forever, yet never got around to reviewing (bad Ishtar, bad!)

 

Trying it tonight for the first time in a long while, I guess that it has mellowed quite a bit with age, as I remembered it as being spicier and more fiery.

 

Right after applying, the wet stage is a little reminiscent of an alcohol-based perfume - there is a "cologne" feel to it, but fear not: this is crazy good cologne! As the spices come out to play, this opening note soon gives way to a stunningly beautiful stage that, to me, is the olfactory embodiment of warmth. Not the warmth of the sun, not the warmth of flushed skin... just warmth as a concept, if that makes any sense.

 

The next stage takes us on a funny little roller-coaster ride: first, The Living Flame becomes increasingly luminous and airy, almost high-pitched, then all of a sudden it morphs into a warm, sweet, comforting fruity/floral that is so well blended that I still cannot pick out individual notes.

 

After complete drydown, The Living Flame feels very grown-up, mature and sedate. It is surprisingly light for such a complex, morphing scent, and I suspect that it's not going to last too long on my skin. Who cares, it is beautiful from beginning to end, so I certainly don't mind reapplying often!

Edited October 22, 2009 by Shollin

[ami226]

On the skin: Quite musky with some floral. I am also getting a fruity something that reminds me slightly of Midwinter's Eve/plum... Quite sweet!

 

This one can get quite strong, so only a tiny bit is needed for the musky floral plum goodness. I used to love this scent, but for some odd reason, I don't like it quite as much anymore. I am afraid that this is going to go off to sales...

 

-ETA-

I just couldn't help reacquiring this one for some reason. Definitely still musky with plum and floral notes. It just isn't a scent for me. Very pretty and yummy, but it just isn't me.

Edited August 26, 2012 by Catseyes

[Deceitfuldescender]

This has become one of my most coveted scents.

It is almost impossible for me to describe, but wet it is a string of indiscernable florals that are sweetened by some kind of faint sugary syrup.

 

As it dries down on me it starts being a little sweet-tart candy-ish but then ends up as a warm, red and very intimate musk that has just a flicker of sweetness and femininity.

 

This blend makes me feel warm and confident and a little like I have a secret.

 

The throw seems pretty minimal and the staying power is a handful of hours.

[jizatt]

what a difficult scent to review! Partially because of the age of it I imagine, but I gather from the reviews that its been hard to pin down from the beginning.

 

Ok, so -- definitely some florals, but nothing specific. These are heavy florals too, nothing sharp. I get a vague fruitiness as well, but again -- I just can't tell what it is. I don't get the normal bpal red musk from this either, its heavier than that and more... murky? I do get a ghost of spices in here too, almost a bit dusty, so I'm guessing cinnamon.

 

I'm thrilled to have gotten the chance to try it, but I don't think its me. Maybe someone else will be just as thrilled?

[Gin]

I put off reviewing The Living Flame for years because I really had no words to describe it. To me it's sort of hot and dry, and high, if that makes any sense. Musky and floral, maybe some dragon's blood? Not my style, but an interesting blend.

Edited May 21, 2012 by Gin

[DiZZysTARdust]

i am loving the challenge of id-ing the notes in this. and what a beautiful scent to play this game with ❤️

 

in the bottle, this is sweet. almost fruity. i sort of agree with the berry comparisons but not a specific berry. ALMOST the scent of cherries but not quite that either. a little powdery, a little soapy. sort of like berry shampoo? but not in a bad way. this could be red musk as red musk sometimes goes cherry almond on me.

 

wet on this is a slap of wet, vanillic, musky goodness. still sweet enough that i can see where some might get honey out of this, although to me this is not a "honey" or even beeswaxy scent. the vanilla is like a vanilla edge but without being foody or grainy, maybe more like tonka or possibly benzoin than actual vanilla. i still get a musk vibe but red musk on me does two things, either dry herbal or sweet cherries, and this does neither. it becomes a little bit powdery. black musk tends to do that,  but also amber. maybe there is some kind of amber rather than out and out musk? i def get the floral vibe. something else that does the powdery thing. orris or maybe violet?  i could see a bit of jasmine maybe. honestly there is even a bit of a rosy vibe to me, but very held in check by the powdery musk. more like a soapy floral.

 

as it dries the scent itself literally dries. the sweetness fades. i would say agree some saffron could be blooming now, giving it a dry redness. i could even see a tiny bit of other spices in this, possibly some ginger or maybe even a dash of cinnamon (i have cinnamon on the brain tho). the florals fade out and become, to my nose, a bit greener. i could very much believe there are lilies in here. or maybe, the sweetness and greenness and fruitiness were the same all along. could it be- osmanthus? that's all i've got. beautiful. i would def use this as a musky/ambery under scent for layering purposes.

Edited March 6, 2020 by DiZZysTARdust