Goneril

[juniperus]

White geranium, calla lily, cedarwood and black orchid. A gentle floral bouquet masks a sinister and black-hearted core.

Bottle: all lily, mega lily.
Wet: lily very strong, a hint of orchid behind.
Dry: lily not amping, thankgods, the geranium is apparent, now, but not much of the cedar. a white floral, but not the white flowers headache affect I usually end up with - light and airy and a little sinister.
Later: Doh, faded fast, but really wonderful...almost soapy, but didn't cross the line - fresh, non-sweet, floral with a sinister flair...looove it.

[ladymissspyder]

In imp: light and soapy - like Irish Spring - with a tiny twist of cedar.

 

Wet: It's almost a non-scent. I get a vaguely "clean" smell, and that's about it.

 

Drydown: The Irish Spring scent is coming back.

 

Top notes: Mostly lily with the other floral notes backing it up - I can tell they're there since it's not a pure lily, but I can't pick the other notes out.

 

Middle notes: It's gone soapy. :/ Too bad - I don't adore Irish Spring.

 

Base notes: Irish Spring and Dial!

 

Throw: Medium-light.

 

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

[BrightRedScream]

In the imp: Why does this smell like laundry detergent? I smell geraniums - I know that much...but it smells a lot like a version of Tide that I sniffed this evening while at the store buying laundry stuff. This may not bode well. Goodie! Adventures of Bpal at their finest.

 

Wet on the skin: Alright skin, here we go. *slather, slather* *sniff, sniff* Um...flowers? Cedarwood. Honestly, I think I'm one of the few people who does not enjoy the smell of cedar - mainly because it honestly reminds me of petstores and hamsters...The shavings that they smell in the small animal section. So, on my skin - I have very floral small animal bedding. GREAT.

 

Dry down: Black orchid stands out the most to me now (I think?), and the calla lilly is a close second..I don't smell the geranium at all anymore. But that damn cedarwood...it's still there. I really cannot stand the smell of this....It's laundry detergent and soap..blech. I do NOT like smelling like a giant bar of soap.

It's so not for me.

 

Swap pile for this one!

Edited June 23, 2006 by BrightRedScream

[Eunice]

Goneril is strongly lily-scented. I get a little bit of geranium but not much else. This just smells of soap on my skin. It isn't a bad scent at all, just very soapy.

 

ADDED August 31:

 

Goneril is really nice! The cedar is there but isn't overpowering at all. The florals keep the cedar from smelling too strong. I love calla lilies and I love them as a perfume note. The play of the white flower and cedar is intriguing. This is neither too flowery nor too woody. Goneril is a very regal scent.

[RavenVelith]

In the bottle: ....I got stampeded by flowers again. Strong flowers. X_X Oh boy.

 

Wet: The floral blend is so strong. Ugh...oh my gods...but a bit of a woody smell is in it too. What the hell?

 

Dry: I'm gonna agree with BrightRedScream and say this:

HAMSTER SHAVINGS ARE ATTACKING ME! Little hamsters are mad at me and kicking their shavings all over me! ;_; This is making me sad.

[edenssixthday]

Goneril initially smells dank and rank – like wood that has been rotting in water. As the oil dries, the “rotting” smell goes away, but it simply smells of a very strong wood scent, and dirt. Not clean, damp soil, but dirty dirt – like dirt along the side of a busy freeway. It’s not pleasant in the least. At about the 20-30 minute point, it gains a soapy scent and the dirty wood scent fades while the soapiness moves into the forefront. Apparently, Goneril and I don’t have very good chemistry together, because I can’t imagine this is what the oil is intended to smell like on anyone. Into the swap pile she goes, and I hope she finds a home where she’s more loved than she would be with me.

[yeahbutnobut]

Goneril

 

In the imp: cedar and herbal geranium. It's not a bad scent so far…

Wet on skin: geranium! I really like the geranium in here-it's very prominent and that's something I don't usually get in other BPAL geranium scents (apart from Rage).

Dry on skin: lemony geranium and a hint of…hair dye? I smell a very pleasant geranium note, not the full, wonderful rose geranium or Bourbon geranium I love, but a lighter, more lemony variant. But there's a scent in the background that reminds me of hair dye or some kind of shampoo they use at hairdressers. It does remind me of being at the hairdresser's. I do get hints of cedar and lily, loads of geranium, but there's something here that smells like hair dye, sort of chemical and odd, which I'm not really digging.

After a while: hair dye, or one of those salon-brand shampoos, or hairspray. Chemical and soapy. I still smell lemony geranium but this seems to be sucked into the hair dye/spray scent that I dislike.

Verdict: I was hoping to give Goneril some love. But it turns out she doesn't want my love. There's a very pretty geranium note here-very much a leading note at first, a rarity for BPAL geranium scents where this note always stays at the back, but not here. unfortunately this smells like hair dye or one of those salon shampoos. And it's not a nice shampoo scent but a harsh, chemical scent. it smells so much like some kind of hair product, it's uncanny. But I don't like it as perfume. So it's off to swaps.

Emoticon rating:

[fairy]

I dont read reviews or descriptions before I do the sniff/wear test just so I dont taint my initial thoughts with what it *should* smell like. Usually I can pick a few notes out...this one was hard to pinpoint. It smelled kind of orange and bright in the bottle...maybe magnolia? On my wrist it got very lemony and smelled like really expensive soap. Overall I liked it. After reading the reviews/description I can smell the lily...I guess I missed it or couldn't identify it at first.

Edited July 27, 2006 by maddi

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is bright, white mint with some wood

 

once applied the florals amp un hugely with the mint...there is little to no

detection of wood at this point

 

then something reminds me of the home done "toni" perms i got as a kid

 

then fades completely away

[mirutai]

In the imp, I smell white florals, and also something woody and faintly bitter than must be the cedar.

 

Wet, florals dominate - I can pick out the lily. However, as the scent dries it morphs into a strong sandalwood soap. Er, no. Not for me!

[sofiaviolet]

The cedarwood is the strongest note. There's also something sharp in there. It smells kind of off. I don't think it likes me.

[forspecial_plate]

I don't know my florals much, really. At first I thought it smelled like roses, but I know there is no rose in it. Anyway...it's mostly floral, kind of sharp, fresh and clean, smells really good actually. The cedar is in there just a little bit, then comes out more as it dries down. First time I tested it, it had probably the most abrupt shift of any bpal oil I've tried...from mostly floral to mostly dusty cedar. Tried it again today and it started out the same, a pretty fresh flower scent that I like. This time as it dries I can't pick out the cedar at all...it's just turning sort of dusty. I don't think I like this enough to keep. And that in itself is weird because cedar is one of my favorite notes. In this particular blend my skin just turns it into weirdness.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

Query: is it any wonder King Lear's daughters weren't too fond of him, considering he gave them names that sound like venereal diseases? Anyway, Goneril is a sharp shrew of a scent, just as one would expect. I'm not overly fond of lily, but I hardly notice it here due to the astringent black orchid and dark, heavy woods. The scent evokes a cold, imperious woman dressed in black velvet. Great interpretation of the theme, but this lady isn't my type!

[Toby]

This is a very strong 'fresh' scent; I was expecting more florals, but it just smells green and sharp at first. That's slowly fading into the background and being replaced by a subtle sweetness which reminds me of something, but I'm not quite sure what. It's extremely feminine and would make a great springtime scent -- I'm thinking hair flowing, sundress blown gently by the wind, Gone with the Wind-type spring.

 

Weird, as that's not at all malicious. Clearly, the image association part of my brain is broken.

[jarvenpa]

A frimp from the labbies. I don't think I would ever have thought to order it on my own.

 

Goneril confuses me. I think I expected something...evil. But how can lovely scent be evil? I get totally puzzled.

 

The first impression, as I slash it on my wrists, is of something I want to inhale deeply, something sweet and herbal, something I vaguely think I must know. It reminds me of gardens and sunlight...(and, when I cheat and read the scent notes in puzzlement, I think...must be the geranium). It is very lovely.

 

Soon thereafter there is a waft of soft flowers, a sort of inward and gentle bloom, and a very faint touch of spice or resin or something (perhaps the cedar? I have a very strange nose indeed).

 

It gentles into a fragrance that stays about a half inch from my wrists, very soft, sweet without being cloying, quite womanly.

 

I like it a great deal, but it fades within the hour--or so I think, until hours later I get a whiff of what seems to be amber, renewed, coming up again (and there's no amber in this blend...at least not stated). It will take trying a few times more.

 

This sounds odd even as I think it, but Goneril is an intellectual scent. A puzzle.

[supremegoddessofall]

This went on *really* strong and smelled nothing like florals. It's more like the opposite of the description - a sinister and black-hearted front masks a gental floral core. After it settled down, I get geranium planted in cedar chips. Not really my thing, which is surprising given how much I like cedar.

 

My girlfriend said it smells like drain cleaner.

 

Swap!

[PilotKitten]

Heavy on the geranium here. This one smells very dark and slightly sinister... but in a light floral scent. It's one of the strangest things ever. The calla lily and black orchid lend a heady sweet overtone to the entire blend. Too much floral for me though.

[The_Merf]

In the imp: I smell mostly white florals, and I'm interested in this blend for the orchid (I want to see if there is something that is better than Shadow Witch Orchid before I buy a bottle of that!).

 

Wet: This is surprising. Cedar, a never-goes-wrong note, has gone wrong. This smells really off on my skin; I've never had a cedar blend do this. How odd. The odd cedar smell is combined with a sharp white floral, probably the geranium.

 

Drydown and wear: The funky cedar and the geranium continue to dominate, and the orchid only comes out very softly before the scent fades away. I'm afraid I'm going to have to swap this one.

[Alchemy21599]

I swapped for this scent because I was feeling adventurous. I would never have ordered it on my own because of, well, the name

 

In the vial: cedar, and a fresh herbal scent.

 

Wet: this scent morphed into a lovely, lush floral that I can wear. Not too cloying or sweet.

 

Dry: I get a lovely dark floral note that must be grounded by the cedar to prevent it from becoming too sharp. This is really lovely! I will enjoy my imp and I may consider a big bottle

[ilona]

At first this is a super sharp floral that makes me wince. Then it becomes soapy. Now it's pencil shavings. But clean and soapy pencil shavings.

 

Never got any orchid, which is a note I can usually pick out. And there is something murky about Goneril - a darkness and deepness that is interesting, but overall this is a no go for me.

[Eemia]

Out of all of my 5mL bottles, I probably wear this one the least. I have to be in the right mood to enjoy it. I have a severe aversion to woody scents, especially pine and cedar but for whatever reason this entices me once in awhile.

 

Wet this is very woody, mostly all cedar. Wet cedar with a slight bit of greenery. The lily seems to peek through a bit as well. I think it must be the lily because it is slightly soapy and pungent. But I can't be sure.

 

Dry this is much less wet/moist smelling and the greenery isn't as ripe. This becomes a very fresh, very clean smelling floral nestled in cedar. I'm surprised that it is so clean and light. That cedar though....it reminds me of a nice old grandpa sometimes.

 

I wouldn't buy this one again...once my bottle is finished (if ever) it will be the last time I think about it.

[QueenFae]

This is a dark, twisted take on a white floral blend. The lily note and the geranium notes are on top, but the geranium is a more bitter floral and keeps the floral notes from being sweet at all. I do love black orchid, but I can't smell it at all in this blend. The cedarwood lends a sharpness to the blend that doesn't quite agree with me. I like all these notes individually, but together they don't work on my skin. This is a very strong blend for a floral, and has quite a bit of throw. Nice, but not for me.

[lapillus]

In bottle: roses

 

Wet: A nice rose-bouquet with a bit of greenery

 

Dry: the boquet above with some flowers added for interest. It’s bringing up scent memories of childhood trips (not the two more recent ones) to the UK.

 

Later: It stays pretty true to the drydown and there is still a faint whiff 12 hours later.

 

Summary: Very nice but doesn’t knock me over and not different enough to make me crave a bottle.

[destructivedelight]

Wet: In the vial, there is no sweetness at all, just lots of green. I had to check the product description to make sure it was even a floral! It smelled like a vegetable (probably the geranium)—fresh, strong, warm vibrant and clean.

 

Dry: As the perfume dries, geranium remains at the fore. Lily appears in the background, sweetening the scent slightly. The clean vibrancy remains.

 

I love that this is a warm scent with only a hint of sweetness. I usually wear cold scents. Aside from violets, which are cold and sharp on my skin, most floral scents are just too sweet for me. Goneril is warm, vibrant and soft, but there is no sickly sweetness.

 

This may just make it into permanent rotation!

[Trish]

I'm not too good at identifying individual floral notes, so to me Goneril is just floral. The cedar is quite subtle at first, gradually emerging over time but never overtaking the flowers. Instead it just gives it added depth and interest.

 

I'm so not a floral person but this is rather lovely, although after 3 hours it's barely there and after 4 it's gone. Not a bottle scent, but the imp will be enjoyed.