Hamadryad

[gchris]

Nature spirits and protectors of the world's groves and forests that appear as breathtakingly beautiful women. Hamadryads are born into a tree that serves as both a home and an anchor for the creature's soul. They are sometimes tricksters, sometimes seducers, sometimes helpful and benign, but they are always fierce and furious protectors of the natural world. Seven dry woods with mossy lichen and a gentle breeze of forest flowers.

 

In Vial:Berries
Wet: Berries and something bitter and green
Later: This smells soapy and makes the inside of my nose burn

[thatpirategirl]

This is one of those scents I had to force myself to try. In the bottle it smelled disgusting, like cinnamon-flavored medicine. And indeed, when I put it on I experienced a five minute period of "AUUGH, get it off, get it off!"

 

But I'm so glad I toughed it out. Hamadryad is gorgeous. It soon softened into a light, woody cinnamon, and within the first hour it became what I can only describe as the exact scent of a sunlit forest. There was a warm woody smell, earthy spices, and just a hint of rose, which I liked even though I generally dislike rose. It's a light scent, but perfect for sitting around reading a book. Too bad it's discontinued. I'd better use my imp sparingly.

[tativa]

it hates me... doublemint bubble gum... and it never morphs.

[Heeroluva]

This is odd. In the bottle it's wintergreen with some sort of floral note. Wet it's cinnamon and clove with something spicy. When dry it's almost like a minty cinnamon with a floral note. Not sure if I like it or not.

[Mordath]

I don't understand this one. In the bottle, it's soft and subtle woods and herbs. On my skin? OHAI ROOT BEER. That can be smelled from approximately a mile away (scientific fact!). I've never had anything morph so completely on my skin before.

[poisondove]

First, I was reluctant to even open the frimp when it arrived...cinnamon + me = not pretty.

(doesn't help that I detest hot tamale candies & the boy hates cinnamon anything).

Needless to say, I would not have picked this scent in a million years.

 

 

In the imp: Uhm...no cinnamon at all. All minty & tingly to my nose...reminds me of something.

Wet: OMG its a wintergreen livesaver! Ok, now how cool is that!

Dry: Fading quick, still wintergreen. No peek of cinnamon, hope it stays that way

[zankoku_zen]

I got both a 'wintergreen' imp and an imp decant circa 2004.

 

The 2004 version is softer florals, but it has more throw. Misty, whispy forest flowers. Not too woody. It made me think of the image of clouds on treetops, right after a storm.

 

The 'wintergreen' version: the menthol is pronounced and the most dominant note on wet. It pretty much disappears though, and what is left is a drydown that is almost exactly the same as the 2004 version, but with less throw.

 

It was interesting to do the side by side comparison.

[Juushika]

I'm testing the original formulation, circa 2004.

 

In the vial: Sappy, piney woods and, dare I say it, a touch of wintergreen or eucalyptus.

 

On me: Whatever the methanol-like note is, it disappears in drydown (thank goodness), but so does the sap of the woods—this is a light and gaseous scent. It is a breeze floating through dry woods touched by moss, and the florals are only a bare touch of sweetness in the air. The note are all very light and indistinct, and I get nothing of the spices from other reviews. More than anything, this is the scent of air—thin, dry, still, cool. Color is a light mossy green, texture is as light as air, throw is very low.

 

Verdict: On my skin, to my nose, it's like Yggdrasil mixed with evaporating alcohol—the same dry herbal woods, lightened into air. I prefer the solidity of Yggdrasil, and even then I only use it to layer with other blends. This, by contrast, feels almost like an absence of scent, and it's not something I want to wear. I don't dislike Hamadryad, and it was nice to try, but I'm not sad to have missed this blend.

[aaskie]

My first review, sorry if it's crappy. I have no idea how you pick up different smells but, in the bottle this smelt like it had a lot of alcohol content, sorta like nail paint remover. After I applied it, it still smelt strongly of alcohol and I hated it. 5 minutes later however, it changed into this wonderful floral but not girly smell that I LOVE. I think I love this one the best amongst the ones I have tried so far.

[Schmoozy]

I realized I have never reviewed Hamadryad.

This is all soft florals mingled with dry woods and the presence of green moss and lichen smattered throughout.

It is lush, dewy, and extremely comforting. There really are no words to describe it. Simply breathtaking. It always feels like a Yule blend on me as I get Beth's snow note vibe from it.

[jizatt]

Have I reviewed this yet? This is my second time to try it. THe notes say this should be PERFECT for me. Woods, lichen, gentle floral? I was hoping for mostly woods, which with 7 woods should be a safe bet. But no. I get wintergreen (I guess) Its so strong, that on my first try, I labeled this licorice hehe. NOw I will say that if you can wait for that to burn off you get what this should be. Now on my hand, I smell a gently camphor-minted woody/licheny smell. I just can't handle that wintergreen stage.

 

 

[moon_lemming]

There are some BPALs I just DO NOT LIKE. Hamadryad, it turns out, is one of them. I don't want to pick the notes apart, I just want to note that I've tried it and move on. I will forge stubbornly ahead, though.

 

I totally get the wintergreen thing in the imp. On my skin, though, this blend turns to evil Band-Aids. When it's dry, it smells more like a perfume, but I still don't like it. I smell a kind of berry note and something sharp and maybe a soapy floral? It's making my skin itch, so there might be some spice in there, too. Honestly, this is a mess, and it probably has a lot to do with my chemistry. I do like BPAL's "woodsy" scents a lot of the time -- I freakin LOVE The Steeple -- but Hamadryad just isn't working.

Edited March 23, 2010 by karen

[twilighteyes]

I bought this bottle in January 2008 right before they were discontinued. I can't believe I haven't reviewed it yet!

 

In the bottle and wet, this is a subtle wintergreen.

 

As it drys down, the wintergreen recedes and I'm getting a beautiful woody floral with a bit of tang and a hint of snow note, yet it seems fuzzy and comforting. Very close to the skin.

[undream]

i was thoroughly expecting a similar experience with hamadryad that it seems early reviewers had (lucky minkies!), a beautiful cinnamony, woodsy floral that i could not wait to get my hands on. to my great sadness, however, i appear to have come into possession of the latter version of this oil, and it is ALL wintergreen/root beer on me, both wet and on drydown. granted, about an hour after i apply it, it settles into a kind of subtle powdery floral, which is quite nice, but i can not in any way stomach the initial scent. ugh.

 

definite swap pile.

[sqwook]

Oh, Hamadryad. The good version is so good, and the wintergreen version is so wintergreen. I'm doing a test to see how long it takes the wintergreen to burn off.

 

Applied at: 1:18 pm

Next check: 1:27 pm - still wintergreen

Check (including dh opinion): 1:50 pm - wintergreen is gone! yay!

 

So, half an hour or less. Maybe if I put it on just before brushing my teeth, then before anyone else smelled it on me, it would be fine?

Edited January 12, 2011 by sqwook

[feyofthefellwood]

I love dryads (one of my favorite songs is Erutan's "The Willow Maid" :D), so I've been wanting to try this scent for a while. I definitely got the wintergreen version, which is kind of a cute scent, in its way. I don't get much floral, but there is a woodsy spiciness beneath all the mint. I prefer this sweeter mint to the one in Yggdrasil. This probably won't be a scent I reach for much, but given it's discontinued, that's probably a good thing.