Bearded Lady

[mandragora]

A seductive and flowing exaltation of femininity: Turkish rose, stargazer lily, violet, honeysuckle, amber, star jasmine and vanilla.

In the imp: Ooomphh! Strong and perfumey floral.
Wet on me: Doesn't change much from the imp. This is a decidedly strong smelling spicy floral blend.
Drydown: All flowers, I don't even smell the amber nor the vanilla. The scent however, stays true from imp to drydown for me, no morphing on this one. I can't say that this scent is pretty but it's commanding in it's strength.
Verdict: The Bearded Lady is too strong for me. I don't think I will be able to do justice to it. Edited April 13, 2006 by Shollin

[anomie]

In imp: Wet, fresh floral. Very green, like standing in a garden as opposed to a florist's shop.

 

Wet: Still very floral, and a whiff of detergent - but not in a bad way at all.

 

Dry: The vanilla comes out just enough to back up the rose and jasmine. I love it.

 

Verdict: Why are my two favorites so far ancient LEs? Alas. This isn't heavy on me at all, and perfect for the edge of spring as it bleeds into summer.

[jewelbug]

Origin: A present from Original Wacky!

Imp: A very feminine, sweet floral. I get the lily and honeysuckle the most in the imp.

 

Wet: On, the honeysuckle and rose dominate. It’s a very fumy floral at this point, with something gritty to it--I'm guessing the violet or jasmine (jasmine and I don't historically get along, but I'm hoping that STAR jasmine is different!)

 

Drying: Vanilla coming out, and the lily/jasmine combo is a hint spicy, kinda like the smell of the TAL White Light….spicy white floral. This is a sweet floral, but it maintains that "grittiness"--something sharp and attitudinal.

 

Dry: Despite the fact that his is a strong floral (so not really "me"), this is really pretty. The lilies go a little soapy, the amber goes a little powdery, the violet is grounding, the vanilla adds a roundness, and the rose doesn't amp ridiculously as it usually does on my skin. Everything is just so well balanced! The late drydown (about 3 hrs) is a soft amber/vanilla blend, supported by subdued florals. It makes me think of a slightly floral O.

 

Overall: I had severe doubts about this blend. Florals (especially rose) usually amp on me. Jasmine usually turns to cat pee (could it be that I've discovered a jasmine that works?!--I'll need to explore this star jasmine thing!). Violets are usually too bitter for me, lilies often go to soap. But you know, in this blend they all work. Masterfully. This is beautiful and powerful, but not something I would often reach for, so I'm passing it on. Lasts about 5 hrs, has good throw.

Edited April 10, 2006 by jewelbug

[Miyabi]

In the imp it was just floral floral floral--like getting shoved facefirst into heavily perfumed bouquets, but as soon as it got onto my skin it behaved pretty well. The vanilla and amber came out as strong notes; it's like O's girlier sister.

[Kittyflop]

I slathered this on the minute I picked it up from the post office. Back during the original Carnaval run, I *thought* I didn't like florals, so I skipped this one. I've since learned my lesson.

 

Sweet, creamy vanilla floral. No single flower note is overpowering (I always worry about jasmine upstaging the others), so it all blends beautifully, lazily, languidly together. This making me so happy today! It's strong and feminine, comforting and girly all at once.

 

It's got a good throw, and I haven't had it on long, but it's going strong so far - I have a feeling this one will be with me the rest of the day. Lovely!

[eviltemptressdq]

in the bottle... strong floral, but with something that keeps it from being "sharp". Turns out that is what the vanilla did to the floral, and it is AMAZING!

 

On me? About the same as sniffing the bottle... the flowers blend beautifully, and the jasmine doesn't attack me (like usual!). HOORAY! the vanilla really must "counteract" the strength of the florals... makes this even better!

[Chrysantza]

Resurrected 2006 version

 

This has become my favorite summer scent! It's such a soft, gentle, somewhat old-fashioned floral with vanilla undertones. I really pick up the violets and lily, and the amber and vanilla provide a really nice base for the flowers.

 

I wish I had ordered more than one bottle! I love this scent, even though the name sometimes gets a laugh from people when I tell them what I am wearing.

[Tess]

(Original '05 verision) I'm not much of a floral girl, so this'll be an interesting test: Can the vanilla make this a doable scent for me?

 

In the vial - Oh, she's a floral. I'm having a hard time placing the specific notes, but it's perfume-y. Something like my mother or grandmother would wear.

 

Wet - It burns... The heck?!

 

Drying - Oh, the jasmine is there, but the whole thing is very faint. The rose and the lily aren't letting the jasmine destroy me the way it normally does, but all in all, it's quite, quite a faint scent on me. And very floral and feminine.

 

Dry (30 minutes) - Eh, it's gone to powder on me, which is deffinately the rose doing it. I'm getting little to no honeysuckle, although lily is the more forefront scent. The amber is just an afterthought giving it a twinge. Still, very faint.

 

Overall - This just doesn't stand up to the test of my skin absorbing all throw. It's very pretty and feminine (two things I'm not), so I can see this being lovely for other ladies. The amber really DOES give it just the right amount of kick. Still, not for me.

Edited June 16, 2006 by Tess

[edenssixthday]

Bearded Lady - I absolutely loved it the first time I tried it. The dominant note was vanilla, and it gave the overall blend a creamy, golden glow. The florals hid underneath the vanilla until dry-down, at which point they stepped even further into the background as the golden glow of the vanilla matured and becomes even warmer. There was something slightly resinous about this scent that I guessed was the amber. It had a really comfortable level of throw and lasted and lasted, something which is very rare for me with a vanilla oil. I was just so happy to say that as someone who can't wear jasmine 95% of the time, this was one of those rare blends with jasmine where I couldn't detect the jasmine for the life of me.

 

I knew I would have to get myself a bottle of this somehow, so when Beth re-released Carnivale Noir, I picked up a bottle at Convergence. The bottle I got smelled very similar with the exception of the jasmine, which was much stronger in the 2006 Bearded Lady. I still have two imps of the 2005 Bearded Lady which I use and love, but I had to pass along the 2006 bottle due to the jasmine effect.

[mermaidrage]

I don't know what version I got as I bought from a fellow forumite -- all I know is that it's in an amber bottle.

 

I also know that I absolutely love this. I mean, love it in a one-true-scent, want to bathe in this, feel like this is my scent personified. I love it and it loves me back. I love it in a way which is going to make me stalk sales and trade posts just to find more because I NEED it.

 

It's a little bit spicy and incredibly creamy. For once, the rose, jasmine and violet notes stay nicely in the back ground (I love those notes but I was afraid they'd amp on me in this blend), providing a lush backdrop for the honeysuckle and lillies. I barely get any amber, but it is there in the sense that it warms everything and makes it glow.

 

There's something... different about it to. Like it's built on a men's fragrance blend. There's something in here that just barely reminds me of something my ex-boyfriend used to wear, a bit of citrus... and I think that really keeps the florals in line.

 

In summary, this is an amazing scent. It makes me feel so beautiful and SO happy.

[Bagfish]

I have a decanted imp of Bearded Lady, I sort of think its '05 rather than '06.

I was sort of hoping to pull off another Khajuraho - you know, floral hater finds floral to love. With the creamy vanilla and amber that everyone has been mentioning I had high hopes.

 

This is the first BPAL with violet I have tried. Unfortunately on me "Bearded Lady" turns into "Old Bearded Lady who has been sitting in her caravan eating Parma Violets all day". I really don't get very much else from this scent, no amber, no jasmine or rose, just powdery violets which is a real shame. To be fair, there is a creamy vanilla-ish base to this, but it really does remind me of grandma perfume.

 

Gutted

[BrightRedScream]

In the bottle: Roses...lots of flowers...uh oh, what was I thinking when I ordered this again?

 

Wet on the skin: Rose...some lily....amber...some jasmine...This is really floral, I don't know if I like this at all..

I'm finding it strongly floral...

 

Dry down: Violet and vanilla now..with a bit of that beautiful honeysuckle sweetness...the rose is still there, but it's not as prominant. I still don't think I like this a whole lot..I think it's too floral for me, and too old lady.

Oh well - I had high hopes for it because of the vanilla and honeysuckle...but I guess those hopes are smooshed

 

We'll see if the sister likes it - if not, I'll be selling or swapping it.

[Inanna9]

This is a decant, and I am not sure which version it is.

 

Wet, I get a hit of creamy vanilla and generic floral, but this quickly morphs into a powdery violet that felt very stuffy and old-ladyish. No rose, maybe a little jasmine, and the powder may be from the amber, which will do that on me sometimes. But the most discernable note was violet, and I'm not sure it's one I'm crazy about. I will have to test some other blends that have it, but Bearded Lady is sadly not a good floral for me.

[dnipbhsw]

I was first drawn to this because of the Turkish rose, and I'm just a rose kind of girl. At first, I have to say I was a little disappointed that the rose didn't stand out more. But then, ahhh, I fell in love.

 

This is complex and very well blended. I would say that it's a very feminine floral that's not too sweet and not too heady.

 

At first, I'm enveloped by the sweet honeysuckle. Just lovely. Then the vanilla starts peeking through, warming it up just a bit and making it just scrumptious. Beautiful! It's soft and feminine, but has really good throw and lasts forever.

 

Yes! I have found my signature summer, girly scent!

[Elrianra]

OOOH! In the bottle, honeysuckle and amber with a touch of vanilla frosted roses. YUMMY. Wet? Oh, that's nice - roses and violet with a hint of jasmine and amber with honeysuckle - this is sweet nectar all over my skin. As it dries, the vanilla takes the mainstage, sweet and a bit dusty but pleasant and with a good solid floral bouquet base; the amber kinda melds nicely with both the vanilla and the florals as a good medium note for this. Absolutely yummy. It stays a little powdery (as I'm finding lily does on me) but the amber is thick and keeps this from getting icky. A tad bit strong but I did slather it on, I adore this and can definitely survive the typical "OMG PERFUME" moments when my hand is close to my face. After a while, the powdery effect fades out and leaves a crisp bed of sweet florals toned and flavored by amber and vanilla. This is a really really FEMALE scent, but not girly. It's not the heady robust red roses of a vixen like in Blood Rose or the arrogant red roses of Peacock Queen but it's feminine and sweet, with a slight shyness to it. It's a woman's scent and reminds me distinctly of late spring weddings. Hmm. It's really very nice.

[bicyclette]

This is very strong and floral. It says "sophisticated older woman" to me at first sniff, but unfortunately that's not a vibe I usually go for. The lily dominates right off the bat, and I can't really smell the other florals at all. I need to spend some more quality time with this blend and see how it morphs. It does dry down to a lovely warm vanilla, which is beautiful. I really want to like this, so I will test again and amend this review as necessary.

[Voleuse]

This is amazingly beautiful floral on first application, sweet and light and cool. I can smell jasmine, rose, lily, but everything is perfectly intertwined. I love it!

[Surely]

In the bottle it's an almost perfect blend of florals. Once on my skin it has a definite soapy quality that eventually gives way to something more vanilla infused yet still distinctly floral. After a few hours, I had an image of an adrogynous young woman with a gorgeous, elaborate rose tattooed on her well-defined bicep. It's so beautifully feminine, yet there's strength behind it.

 

I love Bearded Lady, and she loves me. Nice throw, and my boyfriend, sister, a waitress and a friend all commented on how great I smelled. I definitely wish I had more than just one bottle.

[nevermore]

I didn't order this when it was avaliable from the lab (either time), but reading reviews comparing it to Antique Lace made me want to try Bearded Lady. While florals are not something I normally do, this is lovely. The floral notes are very well blended, and the rose doesn't get amped up as it normally does on my skin. It's simply sweet vanilla-y florals without being too perfumey. I can see where the comparisons to Antique Lace come in - I find Bearded Lady to be Antique Lace with more floral notes and less vanilla. I don't know that I'd use it enough to justify a bottle, but I'll certainly use up my imp.

[sofiaviolet]

This is beautiful Womanly, graceful, floral. I smell none of the notes individually, but they create something wonderful when blended. This smells best on my cleavage, though most other BPAL doesn't change with scent location.

[sarahj]

Bearded Lady 2005

 

in bottle: sweet floral...violet, honeysuckle, and vanilla

 

wet: same as above plus a hint of rose

 

dry: a wonderful floral blend...finally a violet I can wear!!

 

verdict:

[tidesong]

In the Bottle: Rose and honeysuckle.

 

On Application: Rose and lily, with jasmine creeping in. After 5 minutes, wow. The amber and vanilla are warming up nicely, complimenting the florals quite well.

 

On Drydown: I think I may have found my perfect floral. Lovely blend of rose and lily, the ocassional whiff of jasmine, grounded by the lush richness of amber.

 

Comments: Why do I keep falling in love with LEs?

 

Verdict: I think I need to find a 5ml of this.

[nancybridget]

Beatutiful violet and vanilla blend!

 

There are other summery flowers woven throughout and this BPAL is a stunner...

[supremegoddessofall]

Tried this at a meet and sniff. I can barely smell anything. A light, indistinct floral that my skin completely ate.

[Elemcee]

The Bearded Lady is incredibly feminine, despite the obvious. Reassuringly feminine, in fact, as there is something comforting about this scent, yet it would still work at something quite formal.

It is a very immaculately groomed lady in a fashionable yet reserved dress in a pretty colour. I'm thinking lilac, for some reason.

 

Bearded Lady is, on me, mostly a floral, although there is a hint of amber and vanilla that keeps the flowers from being too cloying.