Euphrosyne

[dcmo]

Gardenia, tea rose, vanilla and jasmine.

Gardenia and jasmine well balanced, with a touch of vanilla to sweeten it. I don't really smell the tea rose at all. This is light but long lasting. Bubbly and playful. A really nice blend

[urraca]

Gardenia, jasmine, rose, and vanilla are all things I can wear happily but on me this was a weird combination. I get many of the strange things others have noticed.

 

The gardenia is strongest at first and I also get a citrus scent, maybe mock orange blossom rather than an actual fruit. I do not detect any jasmine or rose at all ever, but when the vanilla peeks out, it and the gardenia combine to give, as someone said, that scent of a plastic baby doll.

 

I love vanilla and I've never had it or anything else turn to plastic on me before. So sad.

[wickedgoddess]

Origins - This was already on my wish list, but the lab surprised me by sending this as a gift imp. I love when they do that!

 

Wet - very floral; primarily gardenia.

 

Dry - As it dries, jasmine and vanilla join the gardenia. I don't notice the tea rose at all though. This is a lovely floral scent, reminiscent of The Moon, but not as complex. Since I plan on ordering a bottle of The Moon the first chance I get, I don't need this as well, but it is very nice.

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being best, this rates a 3.

[Miss Lynx]

I got this one as an extra in a forum purchase - it's not one I would have sought out, because it's strongly floral, and I tend to only like florals if they're well-balanced by earthier notes. Still, I tried it anyway.

 

It's actually very pretty - the vanilla in it makes a nice base for the flowers - and it would be a great pick for someone who's more fond of sweet florals than I am, but it's really not me, at all. It's something I would like to smell in a flower garden I passed while walking down the street, but not carry along with me.

[feline.by.design]

In the imp I received of Euphrosyne, the fragrance seemed very well-blended. I could catch whiffs of the jasmine, which is one of the floral notes that tend to work well with my skin.

 

However, once I dabbed a bit of Euphrosyne on my wrist, the notes, including the mighty jasmine, are all beaten into submission by gardenia. Perhaps "beaten" is too gentle of a word, as all I can smell is the gardenia suffocating the rose, vanilla and jasmine.

 

After five minutes, I do notice some sort of resistance against the Greedy Gardenia, but unfortunately, the resistance organised by the notes trying to rebel comes in the form of the powdery trait of the rose, which is still being suppressed by the gardenia, so I get this gardenia powder scent. It's like gardenia powdered sugar. That may appeal to some, but not me. This floral is way too sweet for me, and the vanilla adds to the sugaryness when it manages to poke out from under the gardenia.

 

I really don't like gardenia. However, my skin chemistry combined with my nose ensures that all I smell is that damned flower. I don't mind gardenias as actual flowers, but the gardenia note is entirely too sweet for my tastes. Gardenia is the reason why I've fallen afoul of a number of Voodoo blends, and it's now the reason why Euphrosyne doesn't really work with me.

 

Although I enjoy florals, most of the florals I like are the lighter, more buoyant flowers, or floral blends with a bit of green. With Euphrosyne, there isn't any real lightness about it, just the suffocating gardenia, which then undulates under the vanilla note during the beginning of the drydown. Vanilla is a note that could go either way with me, but in the context of Euphrosyne, it's a little too sweet. It just doesn't flatter me in the least.

 

-doreen

[Ishtar]

I have had Euphrosyne for a little more than a month now and I probably tried it twice or thrice. To be honest, I had completely forgotten about its description until today and I must say that I am *very* surprised at the notes in it. That, and a little taken aback to see how far off I was.

 

When I ordered Euphrosyne, I was expecting a nice, light floral with the added warmth of vanilla. When I applied this morning, what I got was a bold fruity fragrance with a hint of spice that was quite a bit heavier and sweeter than I intended to wear today.

 

Now that I read what is in this blend, I realise that what I mistook for fruit and spice is actually the rose and the gardenia combined with the slight sharpness of jasmine. The sweet note must be the vanilla.

It does make sense, but I do not get along too well with gardenia and I am afraid this imp will have to be given to someone who will love it more than I do.

[ashlle]

Sniff: Augh! Where did the bathtub cleaner come from?

 

On me: ah. Flowers. Lots of them. Mnergh. It's pretty enough, but club-you-over-the-head flowers are just not something I want to smell like. Later on...Well, it's getting a lot less "omg, FLOWER GARDEN" and much more calm and deep. The influence of the vanilla, perhaps? Maybe I could like this.

 

However, after a second try, I've discovered that my first instinct (OMG FLOWERS AND BATHROOM CLEANER) was correct. This scent gave me the worst headache. My body chemistry and Euphrosyne do not mix. It's got to be the damn roses. And possibly the jasmine.

 

This one's off to find a more loving home!

[Blood onmy hands]

Euphrosyne was not at all what I was expecting from this. It was... not good on me, not good at all.

 

At first this smells like very sharp citrus (lemon bathroom cleanser?) and perhaps perfumey white musk. I'm not getting any florals. And for the first time in my life, I actually wish that the florals would come out. This is truly foul.

 

After about 10 minutes I am getting a slightly spicy floral scent and a very oily/plasticy vanilla coming on strong.

 

Something about this blend is just very off with my skin chemistry. I never smell the tea rose or jasmine, and they're usually pretty strong on me (especially the jasmine). I'm getting mostly bathroom cleanser and plastic out of Euphrosyne

-----------------

ETA.

I wonder if my skin chemistry was just having a really off day when I first reviewed this. Euphrosyne has become one of my full bottle purchase BPAL scents. In any case, I take back all of my earlier bad comments about this one.

 

This is a wonderfully creamy and pleasant scent. Very strong and has a lot of throw, so a little dab goes a long way on me. At first it is sort of perfumey, but it settles down considerably after about five minutes.

 

I think that the floral that I smell here is mostly gardenia. It smells very sweet and, again, creamy. And I adore the drydown of this one as well. The vanilla becomes strongest on me over an hour's time, and it is a deliciously sugared vanilla. It almost reminds me of what melted white chocolate and powdered sugar smells like.

 

8 hours later and I still smell like delicious, rich vanilla. This is more sweet and foodie on me than it is floral, and I am very fond of it. Definitely a playful, girlie fragrance.

Edited January 26, 2006 by Blood onmy hands

[gangstaknitta]

In bottle: Gardenia is the strongest scent. It is sweetened by the vanilla. Overall a very warm, sweet but light scent

 

Wet: the jasmine comes out more, tempering the sweetness of the vanilla and gardenia. The tea rose is just barely in the background, but still there.

 

Dry: the gardenia re-emerges as the most dominant note and it's almost too sweet for me. It has taken a kind of woody-powdery smell, which is typical of tea rose on me. I really like this, but I don't know if it'll make it into my bottle stash.

[puck_nc]

I picked this from the BPAL site because it has rose and vanilla, two notes I love. After falling in total love with Bearded Lady and its florals/jasmine/vanilla, I was hoping that this could be my poor-man's catalog version when my LE supply eventually dries up.

 

Origin: Bought an imp in an LJ sale.

 

In the Bottle: I get a sweetly rich floral with a sting of jasmine. (Doesn't jasmine sting?) This is promising.

 

Wet: Whoa, jasmine! The vanilla has disappeared behind the florals and I can barely smell it.

 

Drydown: Okay, the jasmine fades a lot while the gardenia blooms. Then it all settles down into a nice light floral combo.

 

Verdict: Well, it's not the poor man's Bearded Lady I was hoping for. The notes are too high and light and there's none of the rich complexity that I adore in Bearded Lady. It's a pretty nice floral on its own, but I already have many floral BPALs that I love. This is off to the swaps.

[Shollin]

First sniff: A very soft, pretty floral.

 

Wearing: Super-feminine. Gentle flowers that make me feel like I should be wearing a billowy dress. As I’m not a fan of billowy dresses, or of feminine florals, this Grace isn’t really me, though she’s lovely.

[Silverstrike]

I bought an imp of this because the description sounded so lovely, but I'm starting to believe that BPAL floral blends do not work on me. On me, Euphrosyne was an overwhelming artificial floral whose power continue to grow over time (at least, until the shower came to wash it away, heh), similar to Eos (which also didn't work for me).

[harmonyfb]

I have the most screwed up body chemistry. On me, this smelled vile. I couldn't detect any gardenia or jasmine, or even rose (which usually doesn't miss an opportunity to be too strong on me.)

 

I can't even describe what it smelled like - it was just awful. I think I might steer clear of the gardenias after this.

 

java script:emoticon('', 'smid_7')

smilie

[mercutia]

I got this as a freebie, and I wanted to try it anyway, so I'm pretty happy as far as that goes.

 

This smells like very strong baby powder on me, with strong dry vanilla overtones, but more like fake vanilla than real vanilla, if that makes any sense. You can catch a whiff of florals if you really try, but mostly it's baby powder and vanilla.

 

I also agree with the first poster, who said it reminded her of a plastic babydoll. In a weird way, it does to me, too. I don't think this will be more than an imp for me, but I'm glad a got a crack at it.

[Galen]

knowing that jasmine (and gardenia!) amp up strongly and smell a little sour with my skin chemistry, I shouldn't really have tried this on, but I thought I'd give my beloved vanilla note a chance to work its magic on a blend that shouldn't really work.

 

Sadly, the jasmine did amp up beyond the vanilla's ability to keep it in check, so I'm afraid I've swapped this out.

 

However, it is a sweet, effervescent blend that is heady and, well, mirthful at the same time. If jasmine likes your skin, and you like it back, I would recommend this highly

[sarada]

I tested this without looking up the notes, and my first impression was that it reminded me of how most floral and fruity blends struck me when I first started trying BPAL. I couldn't distinguish between most of them and in my notes would just write down "generic floral" or "kinda fruity."

 

I had a similar "floral, a little sweet" impression from this along with...a very faint impression of toasted rice. For some reason I thought there might have been a fruit in it, so my immediate impression was to think of a pale orange fruit wrapped in toasted pastry and lightly dusted with sugar...served on a sunlit breakfast table near an open window with a vase of white flowers.

 

Interestingly enough I don't like ANY of the ingredients in this blend yet together they blend into something unlike any of the components. I think the reason it doesn't strike me as the same kind of cloying, headache-inducing floral that, say, Bearded Lady was is that there is no lily in the mix.

 

I would probably not wear this except to test it, but I might keep it around as a reference...I'm trying to build a library of scents to refer to so this is a good example of floral notes blending together into something unlike any of the individual fragrances on their own.

[Chrysantza]

I ordered an imp of this from the lab because I like white florals, especially gardenia.

 

In the bottle: The strongest, sweetest floral I've ever smelled in my life. Sweety McSweeterson from Planet Sweet. Very very gardenia and jasmine plus a smell almost like orange marmalade or lemon curd or an extremely sweet fruit.

 

On me: Still extremely sweet - I get mostly the gardenia and jasmine. It reminds me almost of Fracas commercial perfume.

 

Dries down to a very pretty floral. Yes, it's sweet, but I like sweet florals; gardenia and jasmine combine well with my skin chemistry. A lot of the potence wears off after a half hour or so and I'm left with a pretty, tropical floral that reminds me of pikake and other lei flowers. This is a little like Pele but sweeter.

 

Verdict: Keep and wear, maybe get a bottle, but this is definitely a spring/summer warm weather scent.

Edited November 9, 2005 by Chrysantza

[LiberAmoris]

I love the idea of the graces in perfume! They remind me of a poem I love by Robert Hass called "Against Botticelli."

 

Euphrosyne is so strong on me, though, and the jasmine and gardenia (both notes that are often overpowering enough on their own) together here create a one-two knockout floral punch. I actually don't even smell tea rose or much vanilla---it's just gardenia and jasmine.

 

I might try this one in the oil burner. I think the combination of notes will be more nuanced when not applied to my skin.

[Wench457]

ITB: sweet and citrussy. Maybe the combination of the gardenia and jasmine?

 

On: Sharply herbal, almost minty. Like walking on thyme.

 

Dry: Ah, lovely vanillac sweetness. The florals really warm up a bit later. This is very pretty, but perhaps just a touch heavier on the florals than I prefer. Probably the gardenia, as I tend to find that an overpowering scent. This would work for more formal occassions, but I find it a bit too heavy for day wear.

[sookster]

upon initial application this reminds me of a much more powerful version of the lab's

"love me" minus the spicy cinnamon note...... what's different is it almost smells like a fruity kool pop i used to eat

as a kid...the blue one.....mmmmm......brings back some wonderful childhood memories...

then this morphs into an extremely seduction fragrance....the gardenia and jasmine

are in perfect coordination with each other....making this another jasmine blend that

i actually can wear and love

not sure if i need a big bottle of this yet but i will cherish this tiny imp for a few more

beautiful wearings.....

[Voleuse]

Sweet, floral, clean, feminine. The gardenia and the vanilla are the strongest notes on me, but they all blend together very well. This is a warm and bright floral, strong but not overpowering.

[oceangirl]

In the imp: Gardenia everywhere. This could spell disaster, as I dislike strong gardenia scents.

 

Wet: Gardenia and . . . rose? Maybe? Hints of vanilla peeking out, but still mostly floral. The gardenia has mellowed, thankfully. However, still really floral all around.

 

Dry: Vanilla and gardenia. And that's it. Very warm and soothing, but nothing too spectacular.

 

Oh well. It was interesting to try, but it's just not for me. Someone who loves gardenia would simply adore this.

Edited November 29, 2005 by oceangirl

[QueenFae]

Lovely, light gardenia with a smooth vanilla undertone. A beautiful floral, nicely complimented by the caress of rose and jasmine. Ultra girly, feminine...we're talking red satin corset, lipstick and high heels. The longer I wear it the stronger the jasmine becomes, which is fine by me. This is like Bearded Lady's little teenage sister. A wonderful floral, I'll certainly enjoy my imp.

[Thaleia]

In the bottle: Sort of a creamy, neutral vanilla/floral scent, the type used to scent lotions labelled 'unscented'.

 

Wet: A rush of gardenia/vanilla. It's a warm scent, but with some sharpness to it from the gardenia. I can't really smell the rose or jasmine, which is a shame, because I love those notes very much.

 

Drydown: Still gardenia and vanilla. Now getting a sort of air-freshener, candle scent that I'd imagine a gardenia-scented candle would smell like. Not a bad thing, but I don't know if I feel like smelling like that.

 

Dry: Oh, hallelujah, I was wondering when the rose would show up. My skin likes rose, so I was surprised it didn't show up earlier than it did. It balances things out nicely, less candle-y, more true floral, and softer. And then! The jasmine makes an appearance. It's now a gentle, but heady scent.

 

Throw: I can definitely smell it without leaning up close to smell my arm. I'm surrounded by an aura of mirth. I just have to be careful that I don't come too close to sniff, because I still get that strong gardenia smell if/when I do.

 

Euphrosyne didn't 'sparkle' on me initially like I'd have liked a scent named for the Goddess of Mirth to sparkle. It smelled like industrial soap (of the better kind, but still that kind of soap you get in bathrooms), but then when the rose and jasmine came out and balanced out the gardenia and vanilla, I got a soft, powdery, yet heady fragrance that smells like the inside of a Lush shop, which is positively yummy because I used to work there and would come home smelling like it and just loving it.

 

I was thinking I might give this as a gift to one of my cousins when I go and visit them this New Year. I didn't know when I made that decision (before I opened the package) that it'd be similar to B Never's Two Hearts, which is what I've been looking for, but sadly it's not close enough. The gardenia overpowers the rose and jasmine notes I'm looking for, and I keep getting that candle/room spray scent. It might grow on me, and I might reorder in the future, but I think for now I'll give it to one of my cousins who'll just love it right away.

 

ETA, 1/18/06: What a difference a month can make! It's aged very well, and the gardenia's not so overpowering now. The florals are blended well, with the added warmth of vanilla. I can pick out the different notes, now that I've got more experience, and it's lovely. I tried it as a room scent, and that's how it began to grow on me ... the drydown is amazing ... it dries down to a soft, warm vanilla floral. Yay. I'm glad I didn't give it away.

 

Rating: 3.25 4

Edited January 19, 2006 by rabid hauteur

[Ypres Eep]

This smelled awfully sharp in the bottle, but smoothed down into something beautiful on the skin. The drydown is a slightly floral vanilla, long lasting and subtle. I'd recommend this one to people who–like me–don't always care for florals.