Languor

[lookingglass]

An opiate torpor, soporific, trancelike, and sublimely languid. A poet’s morphine dream, a listless journey into a gentle dream and the precipice of intoxicated madness. Paperwhite and black narcissus, three lilies, black poppy and tuberose and a hint of hypnotic opium den haze.

Initally is is smoky, dark, (opium? never smelled it in a BPAL blend before) and a bit like aldehyde...lily? Is that you?Awfully sharp, dearie...watch your tongue!

I ordered this one for the tuberose, and she definitely makes an appearance on the drydown. Sweet and creamy.

Mmmm... dry, this is a LOT like Hunger, one of my favorites. It must be the narcissus.

A very complex, lusty floriental. I love the white flowers being shadowed over. VERY potent potion here...a little goes a long way...heady, lush, amazing throw and staying power. Edited December 9, 2005 by Shollin

[QueenFae]

Beautiful, light lilies and tuberose. A lazy, sexy floral. I can just barely smell the opium den haze in the undertones; which is nice because it gives the floral feel of this scent a little boost. Very pretty, girly, and refreshing. Reminds me of spring.

[cantabile]

Okay, I'm way behind on reviewing all the scents I've tried, and now's the time to catch up, heehee.

 

 

 

Eh. I don't even really know what to say about Languor, it evokes the characteristics of its name so well.

 

in vial: My admittedly-untrained nose picks out predominantly narcissus (yay!), with the tuberose and something heavy around the edges that I assume is the opium.

 

first time I got a little on my finger whilst sniffing the imp: Turned into a dead-on Pez scent after a few minutes. wtf?

 

the real skin test: Uh, narcissus and other stuff. I don't know. I might just not be sophisticated enough with scent yet to appreciate it. As it is, Languor just doesn't strike me in any meaningful way, other than making me feel a little drowsy and apathetic. Apropos? Yes, but I don't need perfume to help me with that. >_>

 

verdict: I wish it'd stayed Pezzy on me, 'cause that would've been awesome. As it is, off to swaps. It sounded interesting, too. Le sigh.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I wanted to try Languor because I know I love narcissus, paperwhite, and all forms of rose. Lilies sometimes work on me and sometimes don't, so it will depend on which notes dominate.

 

On me: Weirdly enough, the answer is "none of the above"! I'm getting incense (opium) first, with just a hint of floral underneath. Sweet but a little bit biting. As the opium cloud fades, the lilies come out. They're ok but I don't love them like I love rose and narcissus--Pride is my perfect blend of both of those notes, so I'd best pass this one along.

[Rhowan]

~LANGUOR~

 

In the bottle: Wow! Florals and alcohol?

 

Wet: I am getting overpowering Narcissus and Lily, with just a hint of incensey smell in the background.

 

Dry Down: Most everything has faded on me after 20 minutes - which is a good thing. What is left is just a hint of something floral that I can't quite that I can't quite put my finger on.

 

Conclusion: I don't wear florals for the most part and if I do they have to be very light adn on the green side. I would enjoy getting a hint of this on someone as they passed by but it is way to floral for me. The throw for the 1st 3 minutes is HUGE as my hubby and son could smell it across the room - that is only with a light swipe of the wand. Luckily, like I said, it's now been 30 minutes and I can't smell a thing.

[Ancientgirl]

This was a freebie from the Lab---thank you! This is the odd example of a scent which shouldn't work on me, but somehow sort of does. It helps that it isn't very heavy on me, so any headache (smoke) or sneeze (floral) inducing qualities are mellowed down. My first impression is a smoky and spicey narcissus, and then the lily and tuberose come out (the latter in particular adds a delightfully creamy note). This may not be something I reach for all the time, but I think I'll hang onto it for awhile. ---Ancientgirl

[Aurelius]

This is a light opium/incense-y scent on my skin. I expected it to be "thick" for some reason but it's both fresh and lazy.

 

Languor is also making me giggle. My grandmother used to wear a scent similar to this and grandmas and opium dens aren't usually together in my mind!

 

Lovely, but not for me.

[blueroses]

I tried this having no idea what the scent description was and knew right away that there was narcissus in it. Because underneath the spicy opium scent I could detect a hint of plastic, sort of like the smell of band-aids. Narcissus always gives off a scent of plastic on my skin.

 

Otherwise, this is a nice smoke, incense, and poppy blend, sort of purpley-black.

[Chrysantza]

This was a frimp from the Lab.

 

In the bottle: A sweet floral - I can pick out the narcissus and tuberose - with an almost papery undertone. Like a very sweet bouquet in a used bookstore.

 

On me: At first it goes plasticky and then that fades and I am left with an ultra-sweet floral. Very lily, narcissus and tuberose. And it lasts, too. Once the initial plastic note fades I really like this one.

 

Verdict: Keep and use imp, maybe get bottle when spring arrives, as the lilies and narcissus make this a lovely spring scent.

[Hawke]

Vial: Spice, maybe ginger, as it has that soapy after note. (I write these without reading notes or reviews first. It's always an education to see a) what's really in here and what the note is that breaks them, if there is one -- this time it must be lily.) I suspect honey and some sort of flower.

 

Wet: Yup, the floral leaps out right away on my skin. It's either carnation or rose, I think. I'm hoping for the former.

 

Drydown: Whoa. This is getting washed off. Waaaay too floral for me and getting stronger by the second. I get occasional sniffs of a pretty scent, but mostly, it's just too much SMELL THE FLOWERS NOW on me.

[sthenno]

This starts off sweet, heavy, and rich. Definitely languorous. I think I smell mostly narcissus and opium.

 

How odd. I could have sworn that the drydown was powdery and reminiscent of Lush's Silky Underwear, but I just retested it and, nope, it's just very sweet--almost cloying. I think I prefer the phantom version I misremembered.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: heady, slightly sweet flowers.

on: lots of flowers. soapy ones, fresh ones, and sweet ones.

1.5 hours later: soapy and floral.

3 hours later: a sort of general, soft floral.

overall: this is a really pretty floral once it dries, but i have others i like better.

[LittleGreyKitten]

This was a scent that as soon as I tried it I realized I HAD TO HAVE MORE. OMG NOW. It smells soooo fabulous. I'm not sure exactly what it is that creates that effect- there's nothing I can nail down as a single note in this. It just smells spicy, soft and amazing. Definitely getting a full size with my Sleepy Moon in a few days. Definitely!

 

It lasts a good long time, which is nice- my skin usually makes things go *poof*. It doesn't change much over the course of it's life on my wrist either- I guess it gets maybe a hair spicier but generally speaking it's just a well blended perfect BPAL scent. And I'm thrilled it's general catalogue.

 

5 out of 5, for sure.

[Diva Urd]

A very interesting blend, not like anything I've smelled before and yet entrancing. I think I can smell the poppy (I'd figure that's the slightly spicy note) and the opium, the flowers all blend into one and waft in the background.

 

The name of this fits perfectly - I made the mistake of wearing it to work and completely forgot half my chores (which I realized just in time to remedy my mistakes). Note to self: Do not wear "Languor" when you have to focus

 

But yeah, I love this. Don't know whether I fell for a psychosomatic reaction based on the name, but this makes me feel all relaxed and lazy - the perfect weekend scent! I see a bigger bottle of this in my future.

Edited February 14, 2006 by Diva Urd

[AlaskaSnows]

WOW the opium in this socks a punch! This is dark and smells of air... gorgeous smoky florals.

 

GIANT success!!!!!!!

[voodoobaby]

Languor is definitely along the lines of Anathema and Darkness to me, most likely due to the slight hairspray smell of the opium. However, it doesn't have the blown-out candle smell of Darkness (and isn't quite as hairspray-y), and doesn't have the drop-dead sexy deepness of Anathema. Instead, it's quite a bit sweeter, though still quite sharp, and more mellow. It's pretty and mostly pleasant, but not me.

 

Oddly, as far as mood goes, I wore this today and was actually alert, playful, and kind of hyper. Weird, considering it's supposed to be "soporific". Oh well.

[batsy]

Extreme lily. Lordy! And paperwhites. I can't make out any of the "opium den haze" or the poppy, but I can't escape the overpowering lilly and paperwhites. Dang.

[theseagrows]

hrrm i dont know if it's the opium or the poppy, but ive noticed scents with these 2 tend to turn into a typical hippie perfume incense scent on me. which i guess is fine for some people, but it's just not my kind of thing. i suspect it is the opium, as i recall having opium scented incense in high school that reminded me of this.

[blu°]

I'm surprised by how much I like this, as I had thought, I'd have come off the narcissus scents. Maybe it's the influence of spring/early summer that makes me appreciate them again.

 

Languor isn't mainly about the narcissus, but I'm having difficulties with identifying its components. I'm not sure what paperwhite smells like, for example.

 

The overall effect is of a softly spiced, warm, lush floral oriental. It's a bit incensey, a bit creamy, a bit sweet. I like the way the tuberose interacts with the other florals in here. I usually don't like tuberose/gardenia, but the little bit that I can smell in Languor fits really well with the rest of the scent and doesn't overpower at all.

I do get some kind of candle wax smell, too. Besides that, I think it is mainly about the opium for me. It makes me want to do a side-by-side comparative test with Darkness.

 

I'm sorry, I can't seem to give a good description of this, maybe it's just still too early in the morning to do proper reviews.

[Nekomata]

Smells like its name while wet and smells like musky pee on my skin. Blech.

[gwyllgi]

Once this hits my skin, this becomes poppy and paperwhite, with a hint of black narcissus. This is just fine with me, as I absolutely love these notes. It doesn't change much as it dries, only softening a little bit so the tuberose comes out. It stays strong but not overwhelming, and lasts for hours; I put this on in the morning before work, and I was still getting whiffs of it long after I'd gotten home.

 

Strangely, it also reminds me of an old perfume I never knew the name of, scavenged from my great-aunt's house years after it had gone off. Whatever it smelled like originally, this is what it smelled like by the time I got it, and it makes me want to hunt up that old bottle again.

 

It's also quite evocative of its name. It puts to my mind the hedonism of Hollywood's Golden Age, with a leading lady in an evening dress posed on a chaise longue, a cigarette holder held against red lips by one perfectly-manicured hand. This isn't a scent to use when you want to accomplish something, but it's marvelous for setting a mood.

[juniperus]

Bottle: paperwhite, lily, and tuberose note all ringing clear. pale.

Wet: oh, the lily is taking the lead.

Dry: hinting narcissus can't make it past the lily. poppy is nodding its head beneath the towering lily amping to high heaven.

Later: a sweet and pale..anemic florals and heady, sticky smoke. I would like this a lot if I didn't amp lily so, I am certain.

[kourika]

I received this as a lab frimp from my 4/1 order, and I was initially a little concerned since the description includes tuberose. Roses and I are not good friends, so I had low expectations for this blend.

 

Initially, it was so spicy/sharp that Languor made me sneeze, which I'm sure was not the intent of a languid, sleepy blend. Now that it's dried down, it's a softer, creamy smell that I enjoy quite a bit, but my sinuses are still flaring up some.

 

Final verdict: A lovely scent on drydown, and I'll enjoy the remainder of my imp. However, I'll skip on the big bottle because my allergies are bad enough as it is!

[bifemmefatale]

Oh how strange. I'd seen others saying they got band-aids off a scent, but it never happened to me before this one. The top note is definitely that medicinal vinyl smell of new band-aids. This fades back fairly quickly and the lilies and tuberose emerge, but there's still something vaguely antiseptic about this one. Not loving it. Wonder if it's the paperwhites and narcissus.

[edenssixthday]

Languor - Despite the list of floral notes used to create Languor absolutely no florals show up on my skin. While wearing Languor, my skin smells like the inside of a New Age Spiritualist shop. The first time I wore it was one evening after very little sleep for the past three nights. I was already feeling very tired, but when I put on Languor, my entire existence slowed down and the world around me became cloudy and garbled, and my responses were slow and late -- if there was any response at all. This oil had an incredible psychosomatic effect on me (although much of it was due to the fact that I was already very, very tired). It's not a bad scent, but it's not what I'd call a pretty scent. It smells kind of incensey on me and like there may be a bit of wood in it. The opium is subtle, but the loveliest note of them all. I doubt I'll even finish this imp up, much less buy any more. Off to the swap pile it goes.