Talvikuu

[bristlecone]

Skeletal limbs of birch and fir coated in a thick, impenetrable blanket of snow. This is the death of the year personified.

This is deep, dark woods and aquatics. It makes me think of a lake in a forest at twilight, in the dead of winter. It's not quite cold enough for the lake to have frozen over, but it's almost there, and the water is still and achingly cold.

I got sort of the same feeling from this as I got from Frost Moon. But Frost Moon, as much as I love it, sometimes makes my nose itchy and clings to my clothes, clamoring for attention all day long (at least this is what happened the last time I wore it). Talvikuu remains aloof and distant.

I really enjoy this. Edited December 31, 2005 by Shollin

[Splendid Molerat]

I'm enjoying Talvikuu. Very sniff-able.

 

It's got the spicy aquatics of Cthulhu & Whippoorwill, in an expanse of frosty-birch-spruce.

 

"Cthulhu-Pops!", my ad-deranged brain volunteers.

 

Now there's a frozen treat I wouldn't go lick.

[QueenFae]

This one smells very much like a cross between Ice Queen and Skadi. It's not quite as spicy as Skadi and not quite as fruity as Ice Queen, but just as lovely as both. It's also very similar to Snow Bunny, the lab went crazy on this type of scent this year. This is a really good replacement for Ice Queen, and I probably wouldn't have just bought another bottle of Ice Queen off of ebay if I had sniffed Talvikuu first. I'm kind of curious why the lab didn't just bring back Skadi and Ice Queen instead of making such similar scents, but who am I to complain about the loveliness? This one is beautiful, frozen, snowy, piney; the essence of winter.

[yeahbutnobut]

Talvikuu

 

In the imp: oh goodness, this smells like Ice Queen! Maybe a bit sweeter, but it's that soft musk scent, the snowy musk from that scent.

Wet on skin: yup, still Ice Queen, I also get something a bit citrus like in this scent, almost like grapefruit. The scent is cool and fresh.

Dry on skin: I think another appropriate name for this scent would be Ice King, since this complements last year's Queen perfectly. It has that same icy cool musk to it, that soft snowy scent with hints of citrus or iced aquatics or ozone, but this one is a bit darker, a bit greener, and less feminine. I can smell the fir in here, possibly the birch too but I'm more familiar with the fir note. This fir is like a Christmas tree 'in the wild', uncut, snow covered, waiting to be chopped down, but you wouldn't dare chop this tree-it's perfect as it is, here in it's frozen forest, it is alive, and it stands strong against the chill. I adore the white musk note this scent has, too.

After a while: the scent gets darker and less soft now, I think the fir and birch notes come out more. there's an odd, slightly bitter note in here that I'm not sure about, it seems a bit strange. That might be the birch. But apart from that, the scent is cool, chilled, frosty and with bits of greenness encased in icy notes, with bits of icicle sharp citrus/aquatics/ozone and smooth snowy musk.

Verdict: this is the Ice King, Ice Queen's male counterpart, this is to my nose a much more gender-neutral version of last year's gorgeous icy scent. It shares those snowy, cool, white musk notes that I got in Ice Queen, but with fir and birch, darker and more woody and evergreen. It's a very atmospheric scent, very evocative of winter forests, trees covered by thick layers of snow, it smells cool and brisk, like a chilly wind. There's a slight bitter note I'm not so keen on, I may get used to it, and if I do, I might get a bottle. This is wonderful winter scent…but first I'm going to try my other snowy scents before I decide whether it's a favourite or not.

[zenvodunista]

Cold and outdoorsy. Reminds me of snow covered north eastern woods in the very early spring, when the tips of the trees are are the faintest green, but there is still snow on the ground and the crocus have not yet appeared. Pre-spring. I am not sure that I'll wear the bottle I ordered unsniffed. and yet, i don't think i want to swap or sell it either...

 

hrm. i am so undecided. perhaps rather than a perfume, this one will be used for a body scrub or lotion. it's... invigorating. like walking in the snow can be.

 

n.

[FireInCairo]

I agree with individuals suggesting that this fragrance is a mix between Ice Queen and Skadi. It seems a bit frostier to me though. It is softer than I expected too. It's a very clean, crisp scent.

[zillah37]

Hellllo pine and eucalyptus! It's very pretty actually, a bit heavy and resinous behind the eucalyptus. I'm not quite sure it's something I want to wear, but it's really very pretty.

 

However it's making my skin itch so it's definitely not going to be something I wear. Erk. It'll make a great room scent though.

[Northernminx]

Deep green aquatic notes, that "slush" scent I sometimes get, and a nose-full of pine. This was a sort of darker, colder and more wet version of Snow Bunny. A very cool and piney scent.

[empi girl]

In the vial, this smells beautifully of berries and pine and clear cold air.

On, it is initially very soapy, and then morphs into the smell of lichen, with a faint hint of pine and berry underneath. It is very masculine, and the lichen is damp, wet, mossy. All in all, not a scent for me at all.

[elonweis]

In the Bottle: It does remind me of a men's aftershave though I can't quite put my finger on it. I'm a little bit leery since there's a strong aquatic note and that usually doesn't like me.

 

Wet: Minty? A little watery. Cucumbers? o.o

 

Dry Down: Sweat. Not horribly so, but it's lurking there in the background. That and I noticed that my skin's turned red and is getting slightly puffy. Hello handsoap, goodbye Talvikuu.

[Fefferbella]

Masculine version of Snow Bunny!

 

I love it. Very faint after only a few minutes, but very sexy.

[foxroses]

icy, almost minty. incredibly fresh, clear, and gorgeous. very green!

 

it stays very true on the skin, nice and crisp. this is definitely a room scent, i would never wear it, but if i ever needed it to smell like snow-covered forest, this would absolutely be it.

 

as usual, though, its turning much more pine-y on my skin as it dries.. me and fir/pine do NOT get along! it's alright though, as i won't be wearing this one.?

 

icy, almost minty. incredibly fresh, clear, and gorgeous. very green!

 

it stays very true on the skin, nice and crisp. this is definitely a room scent, i would never wear it, but if i ever needed it to smell like snow-covered forest, this would absolutely be it.

 

as usual, though, its turning much more pine-y on my skin as it dries.. me and fir/pine do NOT get along! it's alright though, as i won't be wearing this one.?

[harmonyfb]

Hmm. This isn't what I expected. When I first put it on, there was a pine smell, but not the green pine of Skadi. This was a bit darker, a bit more woodsy. When it cleared, there was left a cold scent that seemed very familiar, but that I couldn't identify.

 

To me, it isn't anything like Skadi - and it really isn't the scent for me. Off to swap.

[Eros]

In the bottle, spicy. On skin, starts out a bit on the masculine side...There's the feeling of being among of forest of pines on a cold, winter day. After a few minutes it starts to soften and there's a bit of a sweet, creamy cinnamon starting to emerge, very subtle. The masculine edge is also softening to a lovely, gender-neutral scent.

 

Beautiful!

[Koumori]

I love pine scents. Thanatopsis is still in my top 5, and it was one of the first bottles I ordered from BPAL years ago. Talvikuu is a soft, cool pine touched with aquatics and a bit of green beneath, gender-neutral and very appropriate for snowy mornings. I find it goes on me a bit strong, and there's something about it wet that seems not to work for me, but within minutes it settles down to something gorgeous. This is one of the few scents I just keep re-applying all day.

[kettu]

oh my... this is absolutely divine!

 

wet, there is an initial pine resin astringency. on drydown, a very subtle berry comes to the fore mingling with crushed coniferous needles. wet and cold with a distant inner warmth.

 

it's a beautiful scent and I'm definitely getting a 5 ml

[Miyabi]

I actually get a warm sense from Talvikuu; it's cold and cool and almost too manly and strong at first (for the first hour or so I kept thinking I'd like this on a guy), but after that it dries down into a sweet, warm balsam scent that I used to get from the Flex conditioner a few years back. It's almost foody 'cause I think I can smell just a bit of vanilla in it too.

 

I'll have to try out the imp more to see whether it warrants a 5 ml or not. I was expecting a less berryfied Skadi, and this one definitely wasn't it, but it's very intriguing.

[Penance]

Preconceived notions:

 

I want to love this so desperately. The description just drew me in like a magnet and I adore the imagery. Birch and fir sound wonderful and the snow doesn't sound bad...this sounds a bit like Skadi, which could be very, very good. I really, really hope this works for me.

 

First sniff:

 

Ooh, pretty...it is a bit like Skadi and a bit like Mistletoe. Slushy snow and fir needles with a touch of wood. It's not as close to Skadi as I'd like, but it's very pretty!

 

Wet on skin:

 

Very similar to Mistletoe on me. A sort of slushy snow and true pine scent with just a hint of something that could be winter berries. There's nothing artificial about this at all...it's so...wintery.

 

Dry down:

 

Sharper than both Mistletoe and Skadi, almost like Yuletide in some respects...not red like Yuletide, but sharp like it. This one's a hard one to explain for some reason, but I really like this. This is winter in a bottle, pure and simple.

 

The bottom line:

 

I really like this! It combines aspects of two of my BPAL winter loves, Mistletoe and Skadi, with something unique to itself to create a lovely, slushy, crisp winter scent. I really like this!

[gingersnapp]

Upon first applying this blend, my immediate reaction was, "Oh no! Another one that smells exactly like Snow Bunny and Snow Moon! I don't need three oils!"

 

But as it dried, the juniper and berry and snow scent faded into the background and let the crisp dryness of the woods come into the forefront. This is really beautiful, and a perfect winter blend.

[undergroundwoman]

In the bottle this has a distinct ozone-aquatic note that I don't get from Skadi/Snow Bunny/Snow Moon. It reminds me of Storm Moon a bit... which had me worried.

 

On however it loses much of that aquatic edge and is a lovely piney winter tree snow etc smell. I would have considered swapping it, since Snow Bunny and Moon are so similar, but the drydown is very unique... it's like sweet birch syrup. Birch beer!--which my first impression of on trying was "maple Certs." Luckily this isn't minty because I don't do mint well... but a very neat scent and I'll be enjoying it all winter.

 

And of course I currently live among the birch and fir in a pretty darn cold area of the continental US, so I'm quite pleased that it goes very well thematically with my surroundings.

Edited January 11, 2006 by undergroundwoman

[turbojenn]

I just got my bottle in a swap, and I am *so* glad I did! This one takes me right back to my childhood, growing up on an overgrown xmas tree farm.

 

I get a watery frostiness, backed strongly by aromatic firs. Its like one of those perfect 34 degree days in the forest, there's snow on the ground, and a crispness to the air...but with sunshine streaming through, starting to melt the snow on the boughs and releasing that wonderful fir smell.

 

I'm in love with this one perhaps more than any other of the Yule scents. Its just so evocative of my childhood years spent with the trees.

[slave1]

On Bottle: Icy mint

 

On Skin: Now this is what I wanted Numb to smell like. This scent is a pure chill. How does Beth do this? There is the obvious fir and birch notes, but they are completely covered in snow and ice. This scent is so cold and desolate… it’s kind of creepy. But I also think it is beautiful, because it sparkles. Another amazing creation. I like this as a “tree” scent because it isn’t too sharp… there is something in there softening it… that must be the “snow” note. It is similar to Skadi, but not as sweet or feminine.

[wickedgoddess]

A forest covered in snow and ice. Beautiful. Of all the snow scents I have tried this Yule, this is the loveliest.

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being best, this rates a 4 .

[grrrlennyl]

at first: pine and something sweet.

on: pine and something almost spicy. possibly something minty, too.

half an hour later: cool pine.

2 hours later: softer and warmer.

3 hours later: powdery and soft. very pretty.

overall: this is a pretty scent on me, but i don't think i'd wear it often.

[LittleGreyKitten]

Ha, I'm using the very same imp as grrrlennyl, the last reviewer (thanks for the swap!) and I have to say I do love me some Talvikuu. The only thing is, it's sooooo amazingly like Nuclear Winter on me, I doubt I'll need both. There is the very same base scent (Beth's idea of death 'n' destruction in a bottle I'll bet ) which I like very much. Talvikuu has fir or pine needles atop the cold, snowy, desolate base note. Nuclear Winter has mint instead. I prefer the mint I think; Snow Moon has done me well for piney goodness. Anyway, who knows. These scents can be awfully seductive and I may have to break down and get a full one anyway... we'll see!

 

EDIT: Damn. I do need a bottle. The boy sniffed Talvikuu and practically ripped it out of my hands- he loves Nuclear Winter but Talvikuu's pine totally seduced him.

Edited January 21, 2006 by LittleGreyKitten