The Peacock Queen

[naeelah]

In dramatic contrast to the soft innocence of Snow White and the dew-kissed freshness of her sister, Rose Red, this is a blood red, voluptuous rose, velvet-petaled, at the height of bloom. Haughty and imperious, vain, yet incomparably lovely to the eye, but thick with thorns of jealousy, pride and hatred.

This is exactly what it promises to be: a straight, pure, rich, red rose petals. Unlike other rose blends, there is absolutely nothing else here. None of the greenery that's in Rose Red, none of the lemony quality that was in the Empress.

If a pure red rose scent is what you want, then this is one of the best. As I said in my Rose Red review, I've tried tons of straight rose scents, and none of them have been quite right. Not rich enough, powdery, soapy or otherwise weird drydowns, etc.

Not this. It's perfect, strong, and true. The rose here seems similar to the rose in Rose Red, so if you liked it, you should like this too. Compared to RR, PQ has a deeper, darker quality.

The throw is about average. I don't know yet about wear life, but RR lasts a long time, so I expect this to do the same. Edited December 29, 2007 by naeelah

[dluszcz]

Simply put, Rosewater. Concentrated.

 

This hangs around a while, without being overbearing. Clean, pure rose blossoms without the stems or leaves or dirt or any kinds of spices. A handfull of deep pink rosepetals, stolen from the garden.

 

I'm editting to add this note:

 

I've worn PQ several times since I got it. But for some reason today, after wearing it all day, with a touch up about 3 hours ago, I am getting that dusty, urea type smell of roses that you've preserved by hanging them stem side up to dry. Strange. Maybe the Queen is "allergic" to Work...

Edited January 15, 2008 by kittysdesire

[CrazyPretzel]

Of the winter roses, Peacock Queen and Rose Red, this is the one that I prefer. I think almost everyone else goes nuts for RR, but she was sooo sharp and chemical on me!

 

Peacock Queen, on the other hand, is a deep, rich rose scent. Sniffing it make me think of luxurious dark red roses with velvety-soft petals. I think of it as 'classic' and 'elegant' - if I were less kindly disposed to it I might call it 'old-ladyish' and 'powdery', but I love it, so I won't

 

There's a timelessness to pure rose perfume, and Peacock Queen captures it wonderfully.

[mothglitter]

Everyone else says this smells kind of dark, deep, haughty, but I picture mauve/pink roses when I smell this. To me, it has a crisp, cold quality that is perfect for its name, and its nature. Rose Red, to me, has a spicier, greener quality to it; almost like carnations or a spicier variety of rose. Snow White is like classic roses with powder and something confectionary, can't quite place it.

 

I love all three, but Peacock Queen is my pick of the trio. It's true rose with an underlying hint of something wet or frozen, something liquid. I love it.

[ravenfeathers]

2007 version

 

in the bottle dry red rose. eep. it smells a bit like cheap bath salts

wet on skin same

dry on skin same

 

 

wow. i think that's the shortest review ever. let me just say that the peacock queen is a fine, standard rose and it does seem mature and almost haughty next to the sweetness of rose red. it's an elegant red rose, all ready to bloom and, woof! does it have some throw! take it easy with the queen; a little dab'll do ya. it's just not to my taste at all. of the mirror, mirror pack, the only winner has been rose red and what a winner it is. i feel sad that i couldn't love the peacock queen and snow white as well.

[Silverstrike]

I didn't think I'd like this because I didn't like Rose Red (although I love Snow White), but I'm close to love with Peacock Queen. I didn't like the "greenness" of Rose Red; Peacock Queen seems to be roses without the green. I didn't think I'd like rose, but I like this one so I may try more BPAL rose scents in the future.

[Shannihilation]

(PQ 07)

I don't agree with this description at all. To me, Rose Red is the more voluptous and teasing sister. She runs away while winking at you over her shoulder and daring you to follow. Peacock Queen is the amused and more dignified mother watching her daughters play and bloom into mesmerizing women. This blend is much softer and more sophisticated. It's so pretty. Very light and cool. Kind of like walking past just as the florist closes the cooler door. The soft breeze of fresh cut roses. It's really lovely. It has a nice throw without being too much and seems to have a decent amount of wear time too. I think this is my favorite BPAL rose.

[erraticprophet]

Initial Impression: red rose

 

On Wet: the rose is very strong and there's the barest smidge of wax (almost like candle wax)

 

On Dry: rose

 

Final Impression: Between Rose Red and Peacock Queen I'd have to say I prefer Rose Red for the hint of green it brings.

 

Rating (on a scale from 1-5): 4

[Lunaliquid]

PEACOCK QUEEN 2007

 

In the bottle

Smells like a pure rose, sans stems, leaves and thorns.

 

Wet

Where Rose Red was all things rose (stems, leaves, and thorns), Peacock Queen is limited to the petals. I picture myself stomping in a big vat of rose petals as if I'm about to make rose wine.

 

Dry

This stays pure rose petal, no addition of greenery (as in Rose Red) or coconut/pine (as in Snow White). The scent stays pretty much the same from wet to dry phase.

 

Verdict

Delicious. I feel like I've just been tumbling about in a big vat of expensive roses. These are the petals of dark, almost black long stemmed roses. Peacock Queen should actually have been released as part of the Lupercalia catalog due to the wonderful romantic aspect of the scent. This is what my house would smell like if my husband would remember Valentine's Day. Le Sigh.......

[yeahbutnobut]

Peacock Queen 07

 

In the imp: a rich, voluptuous rose with a hint of thorny sharpness.

Wet on skin: huh? Where's the rose gone? Now I just get a trace of rose and a lot of sharpness.

Dry on skin: what on earth? Now I smell rose, but it's a faint rose. and it smells like rose petals floating in dishwater. No, really. There's something here, slightly lemony and green, which smells like washing up liquid mixed with scummy water. That, along with rose petals. There's a hint of waxy calla lily too. And to top it off, underneath it all I get something that's vaguely sulphurous. Like the faintest whiff of brimstone (and I don't mean that vetiver or lovely incense note that Beth uses in her brimstone blends) underneath the roses and scummy warm dishwater. What have I done to deserve such a skin reaction? Even the old PQ, even though she smelt a little too sharp a rose for me, didn't go so awry on me.

After a while: the scent stays as this 'rose gone wrong' for a while before that weird sulphur and dish soap scent retreats and the scent left behind is a sour rose. An improvement over what it smelt like before, but still not very nice.

Verdict: I didn’t mind the last version of PQ, I thought she smelt a little sharp and haughty, a little bit too tart on my skin but not unpleasant, definitely fitting the description. But the 07 version totally bombed on my skin. It reminded me of the harshest reviews of Imp of the Perverse (which incidentally was pleasant on me), in that it smelt of sulphur and vase water and washing up liquid and other unpleasantness with just a hint of rose. And it smelt so nice in the vial too…and I think I’m the only one who can’t stand this scent, I feel bad just writing this when the other reviews are so glowing. I don’t usually get this with pure rose scents, they tend to just turn to gorgeous pure rose, but this scent broke my heart. Oh well, at least Rose Red 07 is fantastic and more than makes up for it!

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? No!

If you like this, try: Rose Red, Pride, Lucy’s Kiss, Madeline, London, Rose Cross

[djsiberia]

the description for this scent is spot on. i honestly thought i would like it more than rose red, but sadly, i don't. it still has that powerful rose scent that i love, but rose red wins hands down fo rthe best rose scent.

 

 

ETA:

 

wet: lovely lovely roses.

dry: roses

after 30 minutes: roses

60 minutes later: faint small of roses

2 hours later: WHERE DID IT GO???? ouch that's sharp smelling whatever is left...

 

i slathered this - slathered every where...the scent pad in my locket was soaked. very soaked...the parts on my wrists, between the bewbies, and on my neck is GONE...

 

this has terrible staying power and i had to reapply 3 times during the day. i guess my skin eats this. i could barely smell the scent locket even though it was soaked....*sigh*

 

rose red seems to be vastly superior in staying power and throw.

Edited July 27, 2008 by djsiberia

[goth_huntress]

Without a doubt the best rose scent of all. It is just perfect.

[edenssixthday]

Peacock Queen 2007 – The 2005 version of this blend was a huge disappointment for me because it was so impotent on my skin – it really didn’t do anything but fade quickly and leave behind no trace. The 2007 is everything I originally wanted this blend to be. It’s a heavy, bold, and regal rose. It’s one of the prettiest rose fragrances I have ever encountered – and I’ve been a lover of rose for as long as I can remember. It doesn’t have very good staying power on my skin, but in a scent locket, it does last and last. It has the perfect level of sillage and smells beautiful and womanly without knocking out everyone around me. I really love it and will cherish it until it’s gone!

[fairnymph]

2007 version

 

In the bottle: Fresh, full bloom rose.

 

Wet: Same! Reminds me greatly of rose absoluts I've smelled. It's a very true, pure rose. It's not incredibly strong on me - not as rosy as say RR, or Libra. It's closer to the skin. It's definitely fresh; rosy without being green or incensey.

 

Dry: This never ceases to be pure, beautiful, luscious rose on me. I love it. I have too many rose scents but this one is just so pure; I can't resist it on that alone.

 

Summary: It's incredibly regal in its purity; blue-blooded, bold but not bullying. The ultimate rose scent, IMO. And of course, I am a haughty bitch, so it's fitting I'd love this.

 

This is one of my all time faves! Interestingly, I've sniffed the 2005 version and I found it incensey, significantly less fresh and pure and wonderful.

[diamondstars]

I had a bottle of this from 2007.

 

I went for a drive in the country yesterday; yesterday being the first gorgeous Summer-y day of the year, and all I could smell (apart from manure) was flowers! At the time I was wearing Jack, and it just didn't feel right.. it was then that I decided I needed to dig out my Peacock Queen (the only floral really that I own). I needed to start wearing something floral to start feeling Summer-y again.

 

Anyhoo, low and behold I couldn't find it. Then I remembered I'd sold it on EvilBay a few months back! Noo.

 

This story has a happy ending.. I'd ordered a batch of 3 different 5mls from Ebay and they arrived today. One of these was....Peacock Queen 2005!! Yay!

 

So now I can smell floral and Summer-y again. I am a very happy bunny I am.

 

[quigza]

2007 version

 

In the bottle: crushed rose petals

 

Wet: more crushed rose petals

 

Dry down: rose absolute

 

After a day of wear: rosewater

 

Sorry, I can't get any more descriptive. This is classic rose absolute. No extra sweetness, greenery, musk, etc. More importantly, this is greenhouse rose scent- the kind of rose that's at the florist. There is no wildness to this. I like this best layered with a straight vanilla or an aquatic like Moana.

[Lamia]

There's something in here besides roses. Both in the bottle and fresh on skin, this was incomparable roses - the PERFECT lush rose scent. Almost immediately, it soured, turned into something biting and sharp and sour. That faded, fortunately very quickly, into something that smelled merely grumpy, and then everything faded. However, I keep smelling swirls of rose around me, even though the scent is so light on my wrist as to be negligible. I keep getting wafts of dowager perfume. Argh.

[zankoku_zen]

This is the 2005 version.

 

This is a haughty rose. I like this one because it's not overpowering, although it does end up in the rose soap land at the end.

 

I agree with the comments that call this 'classic rose absolute' because that's all I get.

[hlinspjalda]

First impression: this smells just like the "Loyalist Rose" perfume I wore to my senior prom! A moment to linger over a wonderful, bittersweet memory.... But alas, "Peacock Queen" fades very quickly and goes flat on me.

[LadyLuckDoubt]

In the Bottle

Dewy, lean, fresh-cut red roses. Yum!

 

On Me

Yep, pretty much stays the same here, too. I'm not detecting anything forceful or loud about Peacock-- she's actually quite subtle, but still lovely. This isn't a sweet sugary rose, but a clean, crisp type of beautiful rose-- I'm now wondering how RR smelt in comparison.

 

I'm extremely fond of rose, and the idea of a pure rose scent (I'm sure there is something else there, but it goes all rose-- and a much more subtle rose than most BPAL rose blends) appeals to me greatly. So yeah, I'm loving this.

[innocent]

2005 version

 

I'm a giant rose fan, so I was expecting to love the Peacock Queen. Unfortunately there must be something other than roses in here, because I'm getting a sour note along with the rosy goodness. The sour smell seems to fade along with the roses, leaving a sweet musk scent behind. The Peacock Queen isn't bad... but I much prefer some of my other BPAL roses to her.

[isisonearth]

Imp: Rosewater. Very faint scent.

 

Wet: Pure, red hot-house roses.

 

Dry: It remains a true hot-house rose but is already fading. Just like expensive roses it doesn't seem to last as long as it should.

[femmefatale]

'07 version

 

mmmm.....beautiful, lush real roses. This is just gorgeous. I love it because it isn't a complex rose scent, it's perfect in it's simplicity. I am thrilled that I won this in a lot on ebay, otherwise I may never have tried it.

Edited October 14, 2008 by Femme_Fatale

[lothien]

Deep burgundy velvet roses. I am in love with this one.

 

I got a partial cobalt bottle of this ('05, yes?). I loved an imp of Black Rose that I got and this sounded like a similar deep rose scent, and it's everything I hoped it would be. As much as I like BR, it has a sweetness from the musk and amber, and I wanted to find a lush, dark rose scent, gothic if you will, the kind with no traces of green or dirt or sunlight. This is it.

It seems silly to go through "stages" because it really didn't morph much on me. Intense, heady red rose, except to exhibit a shadow of something dry after about an hour.

 

I have Rose Red coming from this year's Yules to compare it to for a more sunny rose, but I think this I will still like this best - it is a most gorgeous unadulterated rose. Fortunately a little goes a long way, but I will have to be careful with my little half-bottle, and keep an eye out for more. ^^

[gchris]

In Vial: Rose, strong rose.

 

Wet: Since I don't like rose, I tried this on my mom. She said it smells like "Joy" perfume. "Marvelous" was the word she used. She held out her hand and wanted me to give her the imp. She has never done that and I have tried many bpal scents on her. I guess this would be recommended for rose lovrs.