The School-House

[Katherynne]

His school-house was a low building of one large room, rudely constructed of logs; the windows partly glazed, and partly patched with leaves of old copy-books. It was most ingeniously secured at vacant hours, by a withe twisted in the handle of the door, and stakes set against the window shutters; so that, though a thief might get in with perfect ease, he would find some embarrassment in getting out; an idea most probably borrowed by the architect, Yost Van Houton, from the mystery of an eel-pot. The school-house stood in a rather lonely but pleasant situation just at the foot of a woody hill, with a brook running close by, and a formidable birch tree growing at one end of it. From hence the low murmur of his pupils' voices, conning over their lessons, might be heard in a drowsy summer's day, like the hum of a bee-hive; interrupted now and then by the authoritative voice of the master, in the tone of menace or command; or, peradventure, by the appalling sound of the birch, as he urged some tardy loiterer along the flowery path of knowledge.

Dandelion, white clover, balsam fir logs, and birchwood switches.

Am I first here too? ........

Review:
I pictured this scent, in my mind, as very "green". Well, it's definitely green! But it's a light, white-veined green. I'm definitely getting a mental image of birch trees. Label is also light greens and a cute little school house.

In the Bottle: Very green and planty; it smells of cut grass.
Wet: Is that the dandelion note? This is lightening up, and a floral is coming through that's almost... buttery? It's a very pretty scent, much cleaner and prettier than I thought it would be. There's the clover under everything, barely peeping out.
Drydown: Clover comes up top, hopping over the dandelion, which is in the background now. I still don't get much fir or birch from this, and I'm disappointed about that. I wanted more wood in here. It seems like a bare peep of wood as the lowest bottom note. eta: about two and a half hours later, the only scent left on my wrist is the softness of dandelion, backed by whispers of birch next to my skin.
Throw: I can just smell it from my wrist when I'm typing, like an afterthought. I think this one is going to be a pretty "personal" scent, one that keeps close.
Overall: This is not what I was expecting. I like it, I really like it a lot -- but I'm not certain if I should've sprung for a bottle before getting a decant. It's much more a green floral than a wood scent, and I think I was hoping for more wood. C'est la vie!
Keep or Swap?: I think I should've stuck with a decant on this one. I like it, but I don't LOVE it. A little more wear and I'll be sure about it.

[sarada]

I will never miss out on a blend with dandelion in it. One of the most stunning notes in the BPAL repertoire, it adds an incredible freshness and life to any blend -- a soft, bright glow, a tangy greenness, with crushed stems and pungent sap. Sunny but cooling, not quite floral but not quite herbal -- and a fairy bit grassy to boot.

 

Dandelion is very strong in this blend, lifted up by fragrant, fresh, sweet clover and grounded by faintest hints of wood. It is very much like 2007's incredible Sagittarius, one of my favorites of the astrological blends but without the hint of fig in that. Still, it does have a sweetness to it. Both the natural golden sweetness of dandelion (perfectly balanced with that bitter pulpy greenness) and the giddy nectar of clover.

 

On my skin it fades very quickly and it's as if I crushed dandelions on my arm and rubbed some fresh-cut wood on my flesh after a good roll around in the grass. But in the locket -- oh in the locket!! It it summertime forever in a little silver box. Glowing golden, warming against my skin, a little magical amulet of daylight, warmth and youth simmering near the heart. I might pass out from joy as I keep lifting it up to sniff.

 

Sweeter than "One to Tie, Two to Win" but not quite as sweet as Sagittarius, The Schoolhouse is indispensible for dandelion lovers or anyone who might need a splash of sunshine as we head into the darker months.

[greenranger]

Way back in grade school, I was the kid in the field making clover chain necklaces during recess, either with a good friend or all by myself. When I saw this scent, I had to have it.

 

This isn't the scent of the clover necklace, but, it is the scent of a fresh school field with patches of clover and scattered dandelions. Really lovely, and to me it smells like the essence of wanting to be outdoors, rather than inside.

 

 

I can't find the wood yet, but, since wood likes my skin I expect it to be the last note standing after I get called in from recess.

[scotchgrrl]

In the bottle: very green but with that buttery dandelion scent.

 

Wet: It's all clovers and dandelions to me. I'm not getting much from the birch unless that is the green. There is a hint at the fir tree, just the slightest tinge of evergreen.

 

Dry: Very floral. Still all clovers and dandelions and I like it.

 

Don't think I'll need a second bottle of this, but I'm glad I picked up the one I did. This will be one to wear a lot next summer or if I need a summer day pick me up in the middle of February.

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is dandelion and clover...

 

once applied soapy dandelion...hmmm...

after a few minutes balsam logs and a touch smoky...

quite lovely and a perfect scent for the cool autumn months ahead

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant from eviltemptressdq's circle

 

Initial Thoughts: I like dandelion and I have grown to love clover. I like some woodsy scents.

 

In the Vial: Very clover and dandelion. I can barely pick out the fir or birch notes.

 

Wet: Not much morph yet. Initially it's a very green, slightly sweet scent as the clover and dandelion play. Summery more than autumn-y.

 

Drydown: The clover intensifies some, but it remains a very light summery floral. The woods never develop overtly on me.

 

Verdict: I like it, but I'm not sure how often I'd wear it. I'll see how much I reach for the decant.

[neuilly]

Light green.

 

Light, fresh, and a tad soapy.

[Gwydion]

In bottle: Surprisingly light. It really does smell like clover, dandelion, and wood. Wet: This really does have a personality of it’s own that makes it hard to describe. Smelling it, I think of grass stains and sitting outside on a day in late summer playing with dandelion heads. The wood is softer on my skin and the whole effect is more floral. Dry: smells like balsam mostly, but the sharpness of the birchwood and the lighter elements remain. It smells dry, like sun baked wood.

[Wwindy]

I can smell this trying very, very hard to be dandelion and birch on my skin, but something here just isn't working -- the end result is a rather artificial, perfume-y pale greenish-white scent. Not for me, I think.

[Little Bird]

I agree with previous reviewers that describe this as a green-white scent. It does smell very much of a pale green to me. I like bpal's dandelion note, but I don't get a ton of dandelion from this. In the bottle, it's soft greenery, a hint of dandelion, and a touch of smoke.

 

On my skin, this is like clover single note at first. It's a sweet, clean, pale sort of smell. I thought that it would go soapy at first, but it doesn't. After about fifteen minutes, that woodsmoke smell returns and I'm not crazy about this. The School-House is like pale clover and the scent of pine logs being burned while they're still green. Over time, I can definitely smell the fir.

 

I'm not sure if this is a blend that I'll want more of. I like the clover and the fir, but I'm not sure I'd go through a whole bottle of this. I'll definitely keep my decant, though.

[IronMollyBlack]

This scent reminds me of being outside in late summer, perhaps Indian Summer is a better description. It's very evocative as a scent memory, and I like smelling it, but it's one of those where I'm not sure I want to smell like it. The imp may be enough, we'll see.

[porcelina]

starts out with the wonderful dandelion note i love so much and a bit of deeper pine but finishes with a floral note i am not happy with

[dawndie]

Wet: woods & grass

 

On skin: green green fields, amazing!

 

Half-hour later: the fir is trying to bully its way in, but the field-greenery ain't havin' it

 

In conclusion: this blend is just so fresh and perky. I want my house to smell like this all the time!

[Pottersville]

I don't get dandelion at all .... this is far too sweet for that, I think. In my mind I see a row of incredibly tall sunflowers standing against a sunny wooden wall (I smell a hint of warm wood in there). Those aren't terribly sweet either, though, so I'm not sure what I'm smelling. Ultimately, The School House dries down into something that smells quite commercial to me. Pleasant, but not a stand out.

[Finny]

My first thought, too, is Indian Summer. Warm, leafy, green. Crushed flower stems from children playing outside at lunchtime, a hint of wood, and trampled clover.

 

 

Lovely.

Edited September 27, 2008 by Finny

[Iceblink]

A light, green dandelion, with the clover note only coming out long after it's dried. Lovely if you like dandelion!

[Phaedra]

Wet this is clean white woods, fresh and a bit soapy. When first on this is light and fresh dandelion. This feels like white and pale yellow. After a few minutes this sweetens up. It still has a soapy smell which I like. After a couple of hours, this has a nice white wood smell- this must be the birch. There's also a hint of sap. This is really nice! It's fresh and clean but a little woodsy too. It's a soft scent and not very long lasting but I still like it a lot.

[Ravenclaw79]

This starts out nice, as a light, fresh, floraly thing, but it fades into soapy, which makes me sad. I like the smell of soap, but not when I really wanted dandelions.

[AEris]

Pine and dandelion. Accurate, but not as evocative as I expected.

 

Maybe I'm just not in the mood for this?

 

3.5 out of 5

[tartchef]

Woo! Hey, that's green! Fresh grassy sweet clover, slightly bitter dandelion leaves, and a gentle undercurrent of bracing evergreen & birch. Just delightful - it stays very true, not morphing much at all. This would make a gorgeous room scent. Or a body lotion. Or a salt scrub. Or a linen spray... I'll certainly wear this again, and would love my whole house to smell like this - fresh & outdoorsy, a grassy meadow in the middle of the woods on a mild, rainy day.

[LauraB]

Pretty, grassy, green and very very faint. I have to really sniff it even when it's fresh and it fades to utter nothing in about 2 hours. This is a shame because it's exactly the smell of a green grassy lawn.

[Dark Alice]

This is green grass mixed with a little bamboo and birchwood. Very refreshing. Not something I will wear all the time, But I am so glad I got decants to fill my bottle.

[gwynhwyfar]

I want to like this scent. In fact, I DO like this scent. The problem is, the scent doesn't like me.

 

Very woody and a little bit bitter, this would be a long-lasting perfume. I couldn't skin-test it, though, because of the overwhelming fir. It has the curse that almost all fir has -- I'm horribly allergic. I was hoping for an exception, but didn't get one.

[rayvn1]

This is sharp and green just like the dandelion and clover listed. Also sweet and very invigorating. Strangely it turns into something almost aquatic after a few hours. Might be the soapiness I've seen in a few reviews. I think I need a bottle

[innocent]

Wet this was very soapy. Dry it was less so, I could make out the dandelion, clover, and birch. Quite faint, and I don't think I'll wear it - I'm not fond of anything that reminds me of soap.