Hanami

[snapeophilex]

A scent of peace, reflection, and renewal of the spirit: sakura, ume blossoms, and wisteria.

Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. And long lasting, too--I can still smell Hanami (though faintly) after a sparing first-ever application 19 hours ago!

Not familiar enough with ume or sakura to be able to pick them out--but I sure do know and love wisteria! When I sniffed the bottle, I was disheartened--it smelled so light and delicate that I expected it to have no throw at all. Wet, the ume and sakura scents were dominant and lovely; as it dried, however, I amped the wisteria a bit which is not a bad thing at all.

A light, airy, fresh, non-cloying floral. Absolutely divine and a masterwork of blending!

[strangemodegirl]

I am very happy that I only got a decant and not a bottle. This just smells like generic cherry/floral bodywash on me. Doesn't morph, totally not me. Off to the swaps...

[littlegoat]

Hanami is a beautiful floral. On me it is a bit sharp, and almost a little soapy, but in a pretty way.

 

My mom is visiting right now, and she loves it, so she'll be taking it home with her. I'm glad it's finding a good home!

[twilighteyes]

In the bottle it's a delicate cherry blossom floral.

 

Doesn't morph much on my skin -- still very delicate and feminine. Well blended. Beautiful and floaty.

[hkhm]

bottle: wisteria.

 

wet: wisteria and sakura.

 

dry: this dries to pure sakura, i never get a hint of the ume.

[Suu4LC]

Ahhh. I audibly sighed with pleasure when I took a big sniff of this out of the bottle. Lovely. Gorgeous. Soft pink fluttery floral. It makes me so nostalgic for the time I spent in Japan...you don't even want to get me started.

 

It smells equally as beautiful on my skin. I mostly get the wisteria and sakura, not much of the ume.

 

This is perfect. Love. LOVELOVELOVE.

Edited March 25, 2008 by Suu4LC

[AliBabble]

my first thought from sniffing the bottle is that this is like budding moon, which had plum blossom, but it is more fresh and tart.

i think it's amazing actually, very pretty, feminine and young. perhaps more innocent than what i like to smell like, a little dainty perhaps for me. still, it's s real mood lifter - you definitley get the mental image of cherry blossoms in the spring. this one is perfect for work, and errands around the neighborhood. it fades quickly. i see it as a cheery daytime scent, and i will definitely use it.

[alicia_stardust]

Hanami is gorgeous! It is the embodiment of early springtime with a light, fresh, lilting floral quality. The wisteria lends an almost watery quality, and the ume blossom adds a touch of depth and sweetness to the dominant sakura. This will forever remind me of Portland's waterfront park, which is lined entirely with blooming sakura each springtime.

[Little Bird]

I wish that I had passed on buying a full bottle of Hanami. The label is gorgeous and I love the concept, but the oil isn't kind to me. In the bottle, I sniffed it and was hopeful. It has a weak, sweet, floral-fruity, girly smell that does remind me of some sort of clean, sweet shampoo. On my skin at first, it's watery, soft petals with a hint of sweetness. Unfortunately, this morphs into something strange rather quickly. It reminds me of the way recently cleaned rest area bathrooms smell (clean-ish and disinfected, but still dirty and off). There's also a very strange dryness to this on my skin, as though flowers were so parched that they just crumbled into dust.

 

Hanami is light, subtle, watery florals, leaning towards going soapy without ever being full-out soap. It goes a little funky on me. My boy liked this on me at first, but hated it after it sat on my skin for five minutes. He sniffed me and went, "Wow. That did something strange." My bottle is dancing over to my swap pile, unfortunately.

[neversatisfied]

I've always had a thing for cherry blossom. I used to religiously put on B&BW's Japanese Cherry Blossom or White Cherry Blossom (still do if I feel inclined), so when I saw Hanami on the BPAL update I had to have it.

 

In the bottle: Pure cherry blossom love. No wisteria or ume...yet.

 

Wet on skin: Still cherry blossoms then it slowly turns dark. Could be my cycle causing it to morph. It isn't bad though, very delicious in fact.

 

Dry on skin: Dark sakura with some wisteria and/or ume. I haven't smelled wisteria or ume separately so I'm not sure which one is coming out alongside the sakura. Either way it's lovely.

 

Conclusion: I wish I had brought 2 bottles of this stuff because I love it. It's not overpowering unless I shove my nose against my wrist but I have that problem with any cherry blossom scent. This is a very beautiful scent; delicate and the lasting power is good, too.

[Eemia]

Incredibly girly. I want to wear a frilly dress and heels (even though I can't walk in them) when I put this on. It's feminine and innocent. It feels classic somehow. Not to say it's predictable or uninteresting in any way. It just seems timeless, like I would always find it to be pretty. It's light and airy and very fresh. A little perfumey, which I adore. The sakura is stunning--it smells like actual petals. Not that synthetic, common sakura that other companies try and push as sakura. I really can't pick this apart because the notes are just seamless. It's the perfect, cohesive fragrance. As distant as that description sounds, that's accurate in my mind. Without a this is incredibly beautiful.

 

It has a lot of throw and lasts an amazingly long time considering how mysteriously light it is. I can't imagine a more perfect feminine fragrance. I am over the top in love with this!

[tinyvulture]

this scent just screams “spring!” i’m not sure what cherry blossom, ume blossom or wisteria smell like on their own, but Hanami is fresh, clean florals. it could be a commercial perfume or shampoo; it's got that broad appeal. it’s light, cheery and feminine, but not sweet or powdery.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Clean, almost soapy pink blossoms. Girly.

 

Wet: Cherry and plum blossoms! Slightly sweet in a fruity way, but also lighter and fresher. A faint hint of powdery wisteria.

 

Dry: Heady, powdery-soapy wisteria amps majorly. Something sharp and almost anise-like has emerged. I can still smell the fruity blossoms, but they're overwhelmed by the former notes.

 

Summary:It calms down a bit to mild fruity blossom and powder-soap. Wisteria is the devil.

[savage_rose]

Sweet cherry blossom, floral powder. It smells like a vanity covered in Asian perfumes and cosmetics. Pretty, ultra-feminine, but not something I would like to smell everyday.

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is light and airy florals...a touch of something almost fruity...

 

once applied this reminds me exactly of "gee your hair smells terrific" from my

younger days...

 

this has a lot of throw and is quite lovely especially for springtime

[tasty]

I wore this one today when I wanted to feel pretty and girly. After having it on for almost 5 hours, it's definitely doing the trick!

 

This is a scent that screams pink. It's ultra-feminine and sweet without being juvenile or boring.

 

The cherry blossoms come out for me right away and behind it a melody of sweet, floral perfume. It's slightly powder-y, which I actually don't mind, and it's the perfect spring scent.

 

Gorgeous.

[Brianne]

I don't usually write reviews, but given the scarcity of Hanami reviews I just want to say here that Hanami smells like the best shampoo ever. A tad disappointing if you were, like I was, hoping for the fresh, pure scent of Japanese flowers. But still, I will enjoy wearing this in my hair.

 

 

That is TOTALLY what I thought hah! It smells like my shampoo - not a bad thing at all, it's very fresh and clean and sure would make an awesome hair scent. I mostly get the cherry blossom, but after wearing it a while, the ume is definitely there. It does have a similar vibe as Dragon Moon, but with a clean edge.

[tartchef]

Oh goodness... Hanami is super pretty, all frilly pink blossoms & eyelet lace. It does start a bit soapy clean, not objectionably so - remeniscient of a line of very expensive Japanese skin care lotions & serums. The soapy edge fades quickly, leaving a faintly sweet halo of cherry blossom & wisteria. Alas, there is something hiding in here that is just too close to commercial floral perfumes for my liking - it's starting to amp on my skin, leaving an odd taste in my mouth. Glad I just got a decant - Dragon Moon & Spell of Amorous Love are infinitely better with my chemistry.

[widdershins]

Hanami is the first BPAL I've tried that is "perfumey". It's not a bad thing, just surprising! It's a really beautiful, delicate and clean floral. I love wisteria and sakura, so this is the perfect springy scent. It's true to the bottle--doesn't morph or change like some of the trickier blends. I wear it when I'm feeling sunny and uncomplicated. The throw is really decent, too. I got whiffs of pink blossoms throughout the whole day. Very pretty.

[QueenFae]

This is so different! It does very much remind me of the spring breeze with cherry blossom petals. It's clean and floral, but with a wafting undertone that smells a bit like tea. There is a fresh, "windy" note like spring air in the mountains. The floral notes becomes a bit more prominent on the dry down, and it goes a bit soapy as well. This is insanely girly, yet sexy and innocent at the same time. Very pretty!

[Pika]

A lovely, sweet, and slightly sparkly floral. It's actually better than I'd hoped. I don't get the same "girly" impression off it others have, although it's definitely feminine. It's got an edge to it that's almost spicy or fruity. I agree it shares similarities with "shampoo" scents, but so do many other BPALs I've tried, and I think you've just got to be in the right mood for them.

 

It has faded quickly, however. This might be a good scent locket choice for me on easy-breezy-feminine days. I might look for another imp, although I don't think I need a whole bottle.

[gchris]

In Vial: Kind of strong, clean perfumey, a bit salty

 

Wet: Lightly sweet, clean, mild and fresh. To me this smells incredible at this stage. Unfortunately it does not stay there.

 

Drydown:This smells like an soapy commercial perfume. It is a bit strong for my tast and burns my nose. I don't hate it, but I don't love it either. I prefer non-commerical smelling scents. I will definately keep my imp though..

[PurringPulsar]

Hanami

 

In the bottle: a light, crisp and perfumey floral.

Wet on skin: this smells lovely and fresh and cool, and also different to the other Japanese scents.

Dry on skin: oh my. I really like this! I was expecting doom-blossom and wisteria to ruin this, but for now this is a wonderful crisp springtime floral. It does have a perfumey feel to it but I really like that in this scent, it reminds me of the nicer perfumes I would have chosen in the days before BPAL. It smells totally different to the other Japanese cherry/plum blossom scents, and yet there’s something that reminds me of Tamamo No Mae. I do smell the cherry blossom too…not as sweet as Cheshire Moon, this is like the blossoms wafting in the breeze (maybe a hint of ozone suggesting the breeze? It explains the tangy perfume-ish scent). The dominant scent though is wisteria. And that’s a good thing because this wisteria note that Beth has been using in recent scents smells really wonderful on me, not like bitter wilted flowers but like the scent of wisteria covered in dew on a spring day.

After a while: it may be that the ‘ume’ note is different to the usual plum blossom, or this blend is being miraculous on me, because the plum blossom isn’t turning bad on my skin at all! I can smell it, but it’s not the cloying funk it usually is on me. It smells like what plum blossom should be. In fact, now this smell reminds me of peaches or nectarines, like peach blossom perhaps? Something about it now reminds me of Ebisu, but much more pleasant than that scent was on me.

The drydown is just as lovely as the other stages-a a very classy springtime floral scent. it does remind me very slightly of either the Body Shop or L’Occitane’s cherry blossom scents now.

Verdict: I wasn’t expecting to love this at all, but this is my new springtime favourite. It falls into the ‘more perfumey’ scent category, as it has a fresh and modern feel to it reminiscent of the more mainstream scents, but it doesn’t smell banal or bland, and doesn’t have that high-pitched alcoholic tone to it. It’s a fresh, youthful springtime floral with a breezy lightness. It does remind me of some of the Japanese scents-mainly Tamamo and Ebisu-but it also smells very different to other Asian scents with cherry and plum blossom. It smells crisp, clean and a little bit tart, not a sweet pink cherry blossom but more like a sophisticated floral perfume with hints of fruit and aquatic/airy notes to it. And it’s the only plum blossom scent so far that doesn’t turn cloying, soapy and overripe on me. And the wisteria in here is also very good. This is just perfect for warm spring days and for everyday-it’s approachable and uplifting. I’ve been wearing this a lot recently and every time I wear it, I love it even more. A surprise hit!

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Yes! I’m surprised at how lovely this is. It’s perfect for spring.

If you like this, try: Tamamo No Mae, Cheshire Moon, Aquarius 08, The Spell of Amorous Love, Ebisu Making Love, Spirit of the Komachi Cherry Tree

[Lamia]

I very much appreciate that Beth used the japanese names for these ingredients

 

In the bottle, this was a delicate floral. On my skin, it turned into a perfume that reminds me of my grandmother, who died a year and a week ago. I shall wear this and think of my grandmother and thank Beth for it.

 

[SarahScent44]

In the bottle, this is very subtle - almost like what I would expect from a traditional perfume.

 

On my skin, there's something almost sharp - but very light and sheer.

 

When it dries, it's very light, very subtle, very beautiful - but not a WOW for me. I'll pass this along.