Saint-Germain

[idoru]

... He is a Hermetic Magician's hero for the ages, and his scent is an elegant, timeless, truly refined cologne, bold yet classic: gilded amber, hypnotic lavender, brash carnation and deep mosses.

Hmm. When I swapped for this, the description sounded delicious; I was surprised at its masculine cant on my skin. And then my brain pieced together "cologne" and "lavender" to get "lavender fougere," and it all made sense.

On: though it wasn't overwhelmingly masculine, it had more of a 'men's cologne' scent than I like wearing. The longer I wore it, the more it softened, though the amber and mosses didn't come out as much as I'd like -- they felt more like underpinnings to a [surprise!] light, spicy men's lavender fougere.

I think Titus Andronicus will be staying my "man" scent for now [though that one's not manly on me at all!] -- this one's off to the swaps, as much as I wanted to love it.

[Pyrebi]

In the bottle: Whoa. Must be the lavender--always smells like pine to me. My actual words upon sniffing? "That's...interesting."

 

Wet: Oh, ugh, no no no...smells like chemicals and licorice. I'm not sure how that happened, but it's making me feel a bit nauseated.

 

Dry-ish: Still cleaning solution and anise--getting dizzy and headachey. I need to get this off my skin right now.

 

Overall: Amber doesn't like me normally, and neither does lavender. I guess when you mix the two with my wonky chemistry you get something horrible. This might smell really good on someone else, but not me. Ye gods, not me.

[petitekitsune]

In the Bottle: Oh, -purr-. I can smell lavender -- sort of bittersweet, spicy. I think I can smell something under it, too. Carnation? I'm not sure. The moss is waaay down there, I think... Very strong from the bottle, though.

 

Wet on skin: Oh, it's sharp, and slightly herbal -- though it's a flowery sort of herb. Lavender? Carnation? I'm not sure. But it sticks in my nose -- something I can almost feel there. It sweetens and mellows fast, though.

 

Semi-dry: It starts reminding me of Burberry's 'Brit' after a minute or two. Not sure what that says, other than that I like wearing men's cologne. I think I can smell the amber, too -- whatever it is, it's creamy-sweet, and tempers the sharpness to make it sort of golden. The images it evokes to me with my nose in my wrist is laying on a soft couch with my face buried against a rather classy, mild-mannered, studious boy's neck. Very laid-back but intelligent, at the same time; I can see where they got the 'refined' part. No powder whatsoever -- very clean and sweet without being powdery. Mmmmm.

 

Dry: Wow, it has some staying power -- I love this.

 

Verdict: PASSIONATE love. I adore this. It's not too male for me to wear, and I will be using my 5ml with eager glee. Saint-Germain is my hero

[Thursdae]

Saint-Germain surprised me with its suave charm. I like lavender but with SG my nose doesn't register lavender in particular. Usually a mossy fragrance will give me a masculine vibe, but SG doesn't fall into that category for me. It's not foody or incense-laden or flowery or woodsy. It has maybe a hint of savory herbs, but still has what I think of as a "high tone." It has a floral component on my skin, but an introspective one.

 

I am looking forward to wearing this out and discovering what reactions I get. I like it very much.

[theseagrows]

ewww this smells terrible with my skin chemistry, and i am not sure what the culprit is, perhaps the mosses? though moss usually works on me. maybe it's just the combination of all the notes. i love carnation and amber, which was my reason for trying this scent. this turns into a sour-soapy scent on me and i can't really pick out any of the notes.

[melrose]

Picture a car with leather interior sitting in the sun - the car door is opened and a fresh breeze floats atop the scent of warm leather - this is Saint-Germain on me and I frickin' love it. Unfortunately, it fades quickly, but I'm willing to buy a bottle and slather.

Edited January 9, 2008 by melrose

[tziporra]

I knew Saint Germain was a masculine scent. The description is pretty clear, and the reviews as well. But I love carnation and lavender, so I was hoping that it would magically work on me. And it almost does....

 

In the bottle this smells like a very sophisticated man's cologne. I can't pick out notes at all.

 

Wet I get a hint of carnation and a split second of strong lavender before the scent settles down to almost exactly what was it was in the bottle. Extremely well blended, suave and subtle, steely elegant.

 

I love it, but not only am I not going to be able to pull off this masculine scent, it doesn't suit any men I actually know. My husband like flamboyant smells, he's pretty happy to wear whatever I'm wearing. Saint Germain is for a man who applies his cologne before slipping into his custom made Italian leather driving gloves. Or the man for whom the scent of this will cling to his black satin sheets when you wake to find him gone back to his wife and family.

 

Best,

 

Tzi

[megank4]

Hmm. This is quite wicked. I feel like during my lunchtime I went and did something naughty with my Porsche-driving, Armani-wearing boss. Not that I am wearing a men’s perfume, but that I have a man’s scent on me and I am gonna go home and my husband will look at me suspiciously and ask “What did you do today?” This isn’t something I can imagine my jeans and t-shirt wearing, PhD researcher husband wearing.

[donnatron]

Imp: Wet and wicked. This smells like a man who is a gentleman right now but is thinking about doing very bad things to you later.

 

Wet: Sharp and masculine. Like Megank4, I kind of feel like this is a scent that has rubbed onto my skin from someone else. Maybe it's just because I decided to try this experiment at 1:30 in the morning after a night of drinking, but I think that's HOT.

 

Dry: It smells like Nomad by Crabtree and Evelyn without the harsh fixative scent. This is very manly, but it's the equivalent of wearing your guy's shirt to breakfast after a steamy night. On my skin, I think it's really sexy.

 

Throw: Very good. No one else is home yet, but I left the room, came back, and then got slightly paranoid that someone with nice cologne had broken into my window with the intent to kill me. Then I realized it was me. Then I realized that I was crazy.

 

Overall: Very, very nice. I was intending on saving for a trip to Europe post-grad. I might wind up living in my crappy place and just smelling all the wonderful 5 mls I've invested in.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Dry, sharp and planty - a little spicy too.

 

Wet: Citrusy, fresher. The lavender in this is floral, not astringent. The mosses are deliciously earthy. Carnation is faint, but sexy. The amber isn't amping, keeping this balanced.

 

Dry: Drier, more woody - the mosses and amber now dominate. Definitely quite masculine. Could be too dry-warm for my tastes.

 

Summary: Sweet, warm amber over earthy moss and deep sexy musk. Hints of carnation and lavender. As I suspected, not my thing, but it settles very nicely.

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Surprisingly sweet, I presume it’s the carnation. There is also a slight soapiness from the lavender present

 

Wet on me – An earthy almost smoky scent that I can’t quite place

 

Dry on me – For the most part it retains a dry muskiness reminiscent of my favourite ‘normal’ perfume (Joop Pour Homme). The very final dry down becomes sweeter and softer

 

Overall – Another winning blend that I would never have sought out intentionally

[CrazyPretzel]

Fresh, I can smell lavender and musk - though there's no musk listed! Quite fresh though.

 

As it dries, the lavender softens and I get a bit of spice from the carnation. There's a slight fruity note hovering around in the background of this one and I have no idea where it's coming from! (Maybe it's something else I'm wearing ) The mosses are deep, soft, and earthy, but fresher-smelling than, say, patchouli.

[Honeygirl]

Bottle: Masculine carnation

 

Wet: Very Zestfully clean, cute guy getting out of the shower, type of scent. I'd die to smell this on DH.

 

Drydown: Earthy, soapy and sexy. Three words I'd never thought to use together before, but it works.

3.0 outta 5

[gchris]

In Vial: Sweet and fresh

 

Wet: Interesting. Sweet, something a little strong and piercing. Smells like lemon pledge but nicer. I like but not love this

 

Later: This smells kind of masculine now. Reminds me of an aftershave my grandfather use to wear.

[goth_huntress]

I did not like this one at all. Out of the imp it seemed good. But on it smells like some kind of cleaning fluid. Yucka.

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: industrial cleaner or de-greaser

 

wet on skin: heavy-handed lavender and something that is giving me a headache. very unpleasant.

 

dry down: well, it calmed down a bit, but the combination of the heavy lavender and the cloying carnation make this still less-than-good

 

in all: i don't usually say this but: pass on this. seriously.

[sparkybish]

In the vial: A slight sharpness, but I really can't smell anything

Wet: Soapy

Oddity: for about 5 minutes after I put it on, I couldn't smell it at all. Then it came on like gangbusters and has serious throw.

Drying down: Totally NOT masculine on me. Well I guess a guy could wear it, but on me it just smells clean, but warm.

Dry: Nice warm, I guess it kind of reminds me of Obsession for men, but i never would have thought masculine until I read the reviews. Maybe my imp is an old one and it something mellows as it ages.

[mybrainhurts]

First, second, and third impressions: Men's cologne. And flowers.

 

Ok, I really don't care for 99% of the floral scents I've run across so this one will have to go. After a day spent wearing it, I just don't like it.

[Archaic Smile]

Saint-Germain is exactly why I never get rid of imps that I initially don't like. I set it aside several months ago because the lavender was way too strong, but when I tried it again last night I found that I have a real fondness for it.

 

With a little age the lavender has calmed down while the amber & mosses have become more pronounced. It still has some of the the sharpness of a floral colonge, but it's fresh, not cloying, and is simple enough to layer well with other scents.

 

As for throw and longevity on me it hangs around only two or three hours before I lose the scent of it completely, but most perfumes with floral top notes don't last very long on my skin anyway. Dispite that I think I may end up getting a bottle.

[CordeliaSeduced]

I had really wanted to try this on my SO, but something made me dab this on this morning instead.

 

In the imp, this was the classic, sophisticated cologne the description promises: it's musky amber with a taunting undercurrent of lavender and some deep greens springing up every now and again. On my skin, this was the scent of a refined, sexy...man. I simply could not shake the smell of man. It's probably a good thing I wasn't home, because this would have gotten scrubbed off right then. Not that it was bad, it was just very masculine.

Once it dried down, it became the same musky lavender that Dragon Moon becomes on me. It became very herbal and very indigo-and-green. This phase lasted for several hours, and had a decent throw.

 

I'll definitely be trying this on my SO, though he liked it on me so he may all ready consider it too 'girly' by association. It is a lovely smell, just not my cup of tea. On a man? It would be fabulous.

[Greensleeves]

In the bottle: Definite amber and noticeable lavender, peppery citrus, hints of carnation, green notes

 

Wet, on me: Lavender, citrus, peppery green, faint spicy carnation

 

Dry, on me: Intense green and carnation, peppery, powdery floral, citrusy amber notes

 

Dry, half an hour later: Peppery, powdery, citrusy floral and amber

 

Another keeper. Has a similar feeling to Villain, which I also tried.

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Lavender, pretty much straight up.

 

On Application

Lavender amd moss. A little disturbing

 

Dry Down

This dries down beautifully. It has morphed from the lavender with the herby mossiness to a sweet and spicy, almost non-floral scent (courtesy of the carnation and amber).

 

Rating (0-5)

4.5

[clawsight]

Dear BPAL,

 

First of all, I'd like to thank you for this frimp. Second of all, I'd like to thank you for bottling Sexy Man Scent. Really. I never thought I'd open a little vial, take a deep whiff, and then melt into my chair wibbling.

 

In the imp: It's nom nom nom. I can pick out the lavender, and what must be mosses, and...other things. But it's tough. It all just blends together and every time I sniff to pick out the scents my brain goes to its Happy Place with the smell of distilled Sexy Intelligent Man.

 

I had to try it on myself. Just to see how it would smell on a human being.

 

Wet: It's like the imp. Just a bit earthier. Mmmm...

 

Dry: It lightens up a bit, but still has me nuzzling my wrist...

 

 

The only problem I have with this is that I'm in a long distance relationship! So while I can mail this to my man for him to try, it will be many moons before I get to huff it off of his neck. D:

 

5 out of 5 VERY sexy men

 

Love, your adoring fan, Aubin.

[filigree_shadow]

I should be able to write a review of this scent without putting any oil on my skin to try it because my husband wears this fairly regularly. I can't do it, though. All I would be able to say is that I like it when my husband wears it.

 

So! I have a little test patch on my arm to remind me of what it smells like. Oh right -- this is the one that smells like baby wipes on me. It smells much better on my husband. It's mossy, and the lavender isn't that sharp herbal kind, it's the cologney kind. Also, the amber doesn't go powdery on him.

 

My husband just sniffed the Saint-Germain area on my arm and wrinkled his nose. He then announced that from now on he is the only one in our house who will be wearing it. That's fine with me! It really does smell great on him.

[Coldfire]

Lab Frimp

 

 

Imp: Ozone and wood. Or is that the amber?

Wet On me: YUM! Tiny hints of spicy carnation and

lavender over wood and ozone?

Drying Down: Wrist is trying to attach itself to

my nose. Still smells like ozone woods with spicy lavender.

Dry: Nose attached to wrist now. Masculine.

Yummy Masculine. Sean Connery yummy masculine. I must

test this on my man tonight! Yum and nom. I love masucline

scents. Wearing and smelling them