Dorian

[enantiomorph]

Inspired by and created for my beloved Tedwin: my eternal, beautiful, wicked Dorian Gray. Refined, elegant, and lovely, with a noble bearing and seemingly gentle air. This blend is an artful deception: a sweet gilded blossom lying over a twisted and corrupted core. A Victorian fougere with three pale musks and dark, sugared vanilla tea.

I am in lust with this scent.

from the bottle, I get a very clean, almost masculine smell - right away I see why this is gender neutral. but once its on my skin, it's sweet tea with a hint of lemon, just like the description. it is absolutely gorgeous. this is one of my favorite bpal scents, for sure. I want to gnaw off my hand.

if you aren't partial to sweet scents, you might want to stay away; if you have a serious sweet tooth (like myself), you'll want a vat of this.

[ivyandpeony]

In the bottle, Dorian is unbelievably gorgeous - sugary notes, vanilla, tea, something intangible that must be the musk... completely and utterly swoonworthy. Must get a hold of myself.

 

Slathering on Dorian... sniffing arms... Dorian, where are you? Slather more, slather neck, bosom, more on arms... ah, there you are.

 

An hour or two later... Dorian, oh Dorian? Where did you go? Am I such a saucy wench that I scared you away?

 

I am going to have to invite Dorian back when it's a little warmer - or maybe when my hormones aren't in this stage - or maybe both. Perhaps he recognized me for the insane, PMS-crazed bitch that I have been lately and took off for Andrabell's to sit the week out.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Ooh. This is prettier than I expected – very slightly sweet and very slightly lemony.

 

Wearing: There’s a masculine edge to this scent, no doubt, but a very refined and proper one. It’s decidedly charming. Very subtle, but the aura is fabulous – I feel like I’m surrounded by a faint mist of sugar, and the vanilla shows up in warm rich flashes every so often. Dorian’s scent reminds me very much of the scrub from Prairieland Herbs that has vanilla, wheatgerm and honey – it’s a rich warm vanilla, with just a hint of brown sugar.

 

Drying: Gawdamighty, it just keeps getting better – Dorian keeps sneaking up on me and surprising me with a teasing hint of warm vanilla, brushing by my nose and then disappearing again.

 

I cannot wait to smell this on my guy. Beth, sweetie, you might not want to let your own Dorian out of the house wearing this... he'd be swarmed by hordes of women who wanted to lick him!

[Penance]

Preconceived notions:

 

This sounds gorgeous, but I'm worried about the lemon people have been mentioning. Lemon as a fragrance isn't one of my favorite things in the world, so I'm hoping it doesn't pop up in Dorian.

 

First sniff:

 

Oh, my...beautiful is the only word to describe this. This is somewhat like what I expected from White Rabbit - strong, sweet tea, but with a slight musk to it that goes surprisingly well with the tea note. So far, I love this!

 

Wet on skin:

 

Mmm, pale, pale musk and vanilla with that soft tea note I was craving when I ordered White Rabbit. I'm also getting a bit of the lemon other people have mentioned but, strangely, it's not bothering me. This is gorgeous, no doubt about it. I can definitely see myself wearing this very often.

 

Dry down:

 

The lemon has all but disappeared, leaving a gorgeous vanilla and tea scent with a hint of the light musk I always end up loving. I had a feeling I'd like this, but I didn't think I'd like it this much.

 

The bottom line:

 

Even though I'm flat broke, I'm going to be requiring a bottle of this in short order, probably a 10mL. This is such a perfect scent for its namesake; absolutely dead-on in my book!

[misfitroxy]

From the imp, I couldn't exactly tell one note from another. I got the clean, fresh scent that others described but nothing popped out.

 

On my wrist - Woah. Let me repeat that with a tad more emphasis - WoAH! Starts off vanilla sweet but not the least bit artificial (I loathe artificial vanilla scents and they're nasty culprits for giving me sinus headaches). I can't say I'm detecting the tea necessarily, but the light musks come through.

 

I have to agree with everyone else that this is a truly gender neutral blend, though the sweetness keeps it on the proper side of feminine for me. ;}

 

Now that I've sat with it for a while, I believe the tea is starting to peek through. It reminds me of a white tea, though, which is rather unassuming scent-wise. And my skin is warming the musks and making them more prominent (which is a very normal reaction, but fortunately doesn't eliminate the other notes in the process as it's want to do with other blends).

 

I can't stop smelling my wrist. As many fellow reviewers have noted, this scent is sexy without being overpowering. Slightly naughty (even perverse) but innocent at the same time. Wilde is grinning and raising a suggestive eyebrow somewhere for certain.

 

I have a feeling this will be my first 10ml purchase.

[babykitty]

Dorian is everything I wished White Rabbit was.

 

I wonder if I can get my hubby to try some on...

[magikfanfic]

In the bottle: Musk. With a little biy of sweet lurking in the background. I don't know what a fougere is, and I hope I'm not allergic to it now that I ponder this scent. I can't detect either the vanilla of the tea currently.

 

Wet: Musk. Not the shinning white musk I like, but also not the musks that make me run to the bathroom to wash it off right now. So...musky but not bad. There is still the hint of suagr in the background and maybe a slight whiff of vanilla.

 

Dry down: Mmmm. Vanilla rising to the top with the musk acting as a nice background note for it. This might prove not to be too masculine for me after all, which would be a good thing as it was bought for me. There's a little of the tea, but it's mostly a nice vanilla scented musk, which smells a lot better than it sounds. I might have found my vanilla scent.

 

Dry: The musk is starting to rise to the top again. Maybe my skin eats vanilla? Bad skin. Bring back the vanilla. The musk isn't bad, but it's not what I want to smell like when you come right down to it. Oh, wait, there's the vanilla again with the slight suggestion of the tea as well. Now it's pretty much all faint vanilla tea with just a suggestion of a musk to provide the background note for it. This is a lovely blend, but I'm not sure whether I like it on me or not yet. This will have to go through some more testing. Oh, I bet it would be a lovely room scent.

 

ETA: I think the musk is stinging my eyes a little. Shit. That will never do. This definitely needs more testing.

[surf-tormented]

This is a nice dark tea scent. It might be a touch too masculine for me, but you never know. It would be a good alternative to your regular green tea oil. The musk helps the tea scent IMHO.

 

Reminds me of an afternoon tea. Black tea and sugar cookies (but not SUGAR here, this is quite a refined soft sugar scent) in a Victorian parlor, served on a table with a large fruit bowl on it. It kinda burns my nose when I smell it and it isn't very strong on my skin.

 

I do like the black teaness of Dorian. Not great enough to make my top 20, but I might consider getting another imp of it for special events.

Edited February 23, 2005 by Madame Nyx

[ChupaChup]

I was very anxious to try Dorian based on the reviews and AlectoNox was kind enough to decant an imp of this for me . After all of the excitement, I ended up a tad disappointed. Fresh on my skin, Dorian smells very masculine, I get the musk and fougere (kind of herbal, citron and lavender) and it stays that way for a good hour. Then I get the sugary black tea scent but the black tea is a little too sharp. This lasts for another hour when finally the vanilla comes out to play. At this point I really like it but it's so faint I have to smush my nose right on my wrist to smell it. I'll be swapping this one.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Mmmm, vanilla. Almost like buttercream-frosted cookies sitting next to a tea – the tea isn't dominant but you can definitely smell it nearby. It's such an enticing, sexy scent. Hints of lemon complement the vanilla and contribtue to the buttercream flavor.

 

On me: This is so heavenly! Sweet and subtle, this is the lovely sort of fragrance that is equally beautiful on men and women. A man who wears this is a polished dandy, dressed to the 9's with a perfect manicure and a sparkling smile matched only by his electric wit. A women smelling of this is elegant, walking with perfect posture and holding her head perfectly level. Not a hair is out of place, and as she walks her skirts swish faintly.

Sophistication in a bottle.

[voodoobaby]

In the bottle: Ooh! White musk and tea! And why am I smelling a slight floral scent? Oh well. I really, really like this so far.

 

Wearing: I found that the longer I wear this, the cleaner it smells. Oh, and it's very sweet, almost cloyingly so. Still, I think this is very nice.

 

Later: Well, I have identified the note that turns to burnt rubber bands on me: vanilla. Darn it, and I like vanilla so much! Well, it's definitely not as bad as O was on me, this is more smokey than anything. Which, when it comes right down to it, isn't bad at all, as I love smokey scents. But yeah, this is all vanilla on me now. Sad to see the other notes go, especially the tea, but what can you do?

 

Overall: Very nice, although I like it better in the bottle. While I will wear it, I'd like to find other ways to use it that wouldn't require direct contact with my skin. I'm thinking I need to invest in a scent locket. When I do wear it, I think I will layer it with De Sade, as an addition of leather sounds absolutely divine.

 

Edit: I just need to say that the more I wear this the more I love it. And I mean LOVE it. This is in my top five now. In fact, I could bathe--nay, drown--in Dorian. Mmm.

Edited May 8, 2005 by voodoobaby

[cuervosueno]

Well, Andrabell's review was so perfect...really who can add to that? Made me want to order it just from that!

But I''ll throw in my two cents:

It is absolutely lovely. Very like snake oil for me, but with the addition of lemons. The lemon scent tempers some of the sweetness of the vanilla, however, for those who aren't so taken with sweet vanilla scents (I love them myself, and oddly, before becoming a BPAL addict, I would have said I didn't particularly like sweet scents).

Neither Snake Oil nor Dorian last that long on me. They're both sort of medium range scents--I need to reapply after a few hours, but they don't disappear immediately like some floral blends.

I was torn--I really adore Dorian. But I just bought a 5 ml of Snake Oil, and for me they are very similiar, and I do like Dorian more as the lemon topnote fades. And the soft musks linger a bit more than in Snake Oil.

so now I'm saying I won't buy a bottle....though my mind may change

[paperdoll]

Initial Sniff: Lavender and sweet tea!

Wearing: This sugary sweet tea is lightly spiked with lavender. If this is a gentleman, he is wearing a pastel suit and a frilly shirt. He is Fancy.

Final Impression: This is so nice! Beth continues to surprise me with notes I think I don't like (in this case, lavender). I'm not sure it's a big bottle puchase, but I'm not giving up my imp!

[OdetteOdile]

This is...this is AMAZING.

It starts out creamsicle vanilla sweet - a very desserty perfume, much more feminine than I expected. And then after 15 min. a bright, sharp citrus starts coming out...a very tart, white, slightly sour grapefruit.

For some reason it's strongly evoking browsing in antique stores on Columbus Avenue with my dad when I was a kid. Something about lemon oil on the old wood furniture, sweet, faint rich old potpourris smells...and I'm remembering now that a lot of the old dresses smelled like sweet vanilla powder.

This is not remotely what I expected Dorian to smell like but I love it. And it does transport me to the past really strongly, maybe not quite to Oscar Wilde's time, but far back enough that it feels magical.

 

I strongly recommend this to anyone who likes Dragon's Milk - it's not the same scent, but has the same wonderful desserty sweetness with complex counterpoint notes blended in that keep it from being saccharine.

[ianastar]

To me I picked up more of the musk and the vanilla....I didnt really get a tea scent...might have to try again.

 

However I loved it!! Its gorgeous......reminds me of Lolita Lempickas fragrance for men.

 

I will most likely be gettting a bigger bottle of this.

[lixolux]

Dorian dries and lasts for hours as Honey Lemon Iced Tea. This is going to be my summertime 2005 scent!!!!!

[fallow deer]

Crikey O Riley! This is simply gorgeous, in a 'grrr, how come I'm getting turned on by smelling my wrist' kind of way.

 

I don't think I can describe it since every time I go to sniff I forget everything else.

 

Mainly strong vanilla, but its on my wrist so the vanilla will stand out more. Then cream, tea and musk musk musk.

 

There's something kind of dangerous here. I don't agree with the fur trade, and hate to see or touch real fur, but I admit there's something kind of sexy about it. Dorian reminds me of that mixed feeling.

 

I don't think I'd wear this during the day, its too too sexy - I'm going to wait by the door with the imp for my boyfriend to come home and slather him with it!

 

[norman74]

 

First Impression:  Sweet tea.

 

Second Impression:  Oh. My. God.  This is like having a cup of strong but sweet tea laced with a hint of lemon in a posh Victorian parlor whilst sitting opposite a very civilised Victoran gentleman.  And as soon as the maid serving the tea is gone, this proper Victoran gentleman fucks you six ways from Sunday.

 

Final Analysis:  Very sexy and sexual but at first sniff, oh so proper.  This blend is gorgeous, a must try.  Not too masculine that a woman couldn't pull off.  Wear this and you will feel sexy. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Oh. My. God. Dorian makes me want to die. This is the best thing I have ever smelled. It smells like the best boy that ever was...with a little something extra. I think Andra says it perfectly.

[Belladonnastrap]

Initially I had held off on buying Dorian because the fact it seemed male-centric bothered me but Diana said "No you must try it!" and I bought a bottle of it unsniffed. I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO glad I did.

 

In the bottle at first it smells like a very strong lemon tea but after about 5 mintues it mselts into this lovely warm vanilla sugar tea scent with a tinge of something darker. It's absolutely incrediable. It's a lot like Snake Oil's older, more sexual and delicious brother. After hour 3 the scent mellowed and the tea came back stronger then before but that wonderfully warm vanilla was still there, beckoning one to come closer.

 

It's absolutely DIVINE and definitely not gender-specific. I must get a 10ml of this, much like Nosferatu (and I suspect Persephone) I can't be without.

[UltraViolet]

Wet

Very nice. It's tea with lemon just as everyone says it is.

It's very fresh. There's sugar in the tea and maybe even a wee wee bit of mint?

This is a scent that has more depth than most in my opinion.

10 minutes

Ooh nice, now it's taken on more of a musky note. The spiciness or minty lemon tea is still there though, they just let the musk through.

This is lovely. It's a soft scent but that the same time the ingredients and the combination of them make this scent so alive to my nose.

I see the male gender quality of it at this stage also. It's lovely. Like the perfect scent for a man to wear. A light clean bit of vanilla lemony spice cake or something.

Fab. Totally Fab.

 

Edited to add: I would most certainly get a 5ml of this and perhaps even a 10ml.

Edited March 9, 2005 by UltraViolet

[shadow]

Wow. Generally when people rave about a scent, I like it but don't love it. This is one that transcends that pattern. It's wonderful. You're probably thinking there's no way it can really be that good. It can!

 

On application it's very strong black tea with lemon and just a touch of sugary vanilla. Slowly it softens out and blends into a delicious vanilla-y drink, almost chai but without the spices. It is somehow gender neutral. A male or female could wear this with ease, though any man who wore it might get bitten. On the street. In the middle of the day.

[tempete]

The lavender fougere predominates when Dorian is wet, but recedes as the scent dries down. Dorian then morphs into a dark sugared vanilla whose sweetness is tempered by the three pale musks. Yay, no lemon for me!

 

I regard Dorian as Snake Oil Lite: it contains the same vanilla-y goodness without the spices, patchouli and bold musk to sex it up. So while Snake Oil seduced me and those around me without compunction, Dorian is more distant and reserved and seems more... well, metrosexual, for lack of a better term. That's not to say that I don't like Dorian, because I do like it a lot and will get a 5 ml bottle - but I would wear Dorian when I simply wanted to smell gorgeous and not when I wanted to ensure that my date would end up in the bedroom.

[inbigtrouble]

I had such high hopes for Dorian! I was *sure* that I would love it from reading the other reviews (especially Andra's). It was the first scent I rushed to try in the order I received today.

 

Alas, on me it turns really powdery. I get a slight whiff of vanilla in the backgound, but no tea. The overwhelming scent, though, is pure, old lady powder. It is kind of like a Nilla Wafer dipped in old lady dusting powder on me.

 

Oh, well. I won't give up yet. I'll try it again in a few days and see if it is a chemistry thing. If it doesn't get better, up fo swap it'll go!

 

Edited to add:

 

OK, now that it's been a while and I have tried it again, it is one of my favorites! It smells very different on me now, much less powdery and more complex. I am flying through this imp and I love layering it with Snake Oil.

Edited April 20, 2005 by inbigtrouble

[SoapyRN]

Like those before me, I had thought THIS is what White Rabbit was going to be like, creamy, tea-y, musky and spicy...with some vanilla to smooth it all out. Instead, I have to saw that is what I WANT a Dorian to smell like. So GD yummy that you want and need more.

 

Wet on the skin, I got the musk but that soon dried to a creamy chai almost. I did not care for Snake Oil or O, but this blend is the right amount of vanilla and spices.

 

Love it

[Lady Ravenglass]

Ack! I've been looking forward to this with much *bounce*, but as with any BPAL even a little bit masculine, Dorian has turned into Pure Man on me. *sulk* It smells strangely like A*Men for some reason - must be the vanilla! I'll need to re-sniff the sample I got yesterday, but that's what it appears to match!

 

I am smelling a little vanilla, but the tea is overwhelming, as it did with The Dormouse, which is a pity as I am the archetypal Vanilla Whore. However, like Antique Lace, the vanilla is getting elbowed out of the way by another note. Perhaps my skin un-amplifies vanilla *gloom*

 

I shall ambush my boy with this later on and get some on him somehow Nasty feeling that it'll turn into Saint Germaine or Wilde and the other light, sweet male scents though He's an Othello/Iago/Jack kinda man.

 

This is very masculine, despite the vanilla note. If your man is into Tierry Mugler's A*Men, then try this on them.

 

ETA: Getting a really odd scent memory jiggle from this. Can't place it, but it feels like school. Erk. I think this is Impulse Vanilla body spray! Oh, pants!!

Edited March 15, 2005 by Lady Ravenglass