Black Lily

[aoiphe]

Breathtaking darkness, a vision of grace in shadow.

Wet, fresh-cut lily with green, wet stems. The greenness fades quickly as the scent dries down, adding a rounder, creamy note. I never got a sense of 'darkness' - only a very true-to-nature lily smell. About 4 hours wear, but not much throw. This is a scent for a mature woman, not a girl (heck, I'm in my mid-thirties and I'm not sure I can pull this off).

I understand that lilies resist distillation, enfleurage, and all the usual perfumers' techniques, so this is really a treat. A GC scent that shouldn't be missed by floral lovers.

[mazikeen]

I'm not usually a floral person, but with spring in the air I've found myself reaching for my Black Lily frimp day after day.

 

This smells like lilies, with a touch of creaminess underneath to ground it, and a very light almost-spicy scent to darken it and tame the floral.

 

Not a strong throw, but good enough even for someone like me who likes big heavy scents.

 

It's not too sweet or girly or matronly. It's sophisticated but not too fancy, making it appropriate for everyday. It's perfect for this rainy spring we're having. Flowers are blooming and the air feels warm, which always cheers people up... but with day.. after day.. after day.. of rain, the days are still dark and a little melancholy.

 

I doubt I'll buy a bottle, but I would like to replace my imp when it's gone. Eminently wearable.

[imaginepageant]

In the Vial: This is obviously very floral, but it's a heavy, wet, dark floral. And it's very green. And subtly sweet - I think there's a hint of vanilla in this. It's just slightly powdery and soapy.

 

Wet: Scratch that: it goes quite soapy on my skin. But still sweet and creamy.

 

Dry: The overt soapiness is fading, but it still smells very clean and fresh - like shampoo, or maybe scented laundry detergent. Still sweet and creamy, though the sweetness seems to be ebbing the more I sniff it. It makes me think of cool rain on a hot summer's day.

 

An Hour Later: It went through a strange bitter stage, but it's back to being sweet and creamy. But still soapy. And very faint - this doesn't last long.

 

Overall: Once again, a blend I loved in the imp morphed a little too much on my skin. Black Lily is sadly not for me.

[sparkleyturtle]

Definitely have the lily here with a touch of sweetness yet darkness (does that even make sense?). I usually amp lily, but not in this one. Instead it wears nicely, but I fear that it may fade quickly.

[patina]

Cool, pure floral scent, creamy and mild, with maybe a little dark musk mixed in.

 

It would be lovely for summer, except occasionally it turns into scented tissues. Darn.

[strahlend]

This smells really good. It seems like a very classic kind of scent. It's not as heady or powdery as I had expected, rather it's sweet and just a little tart and makes me think of elegant Noir movies.

 

Testing – I really, really like this. It's hard to describe. It seems both shadowy intense and lightly effortless. This almost smells like it has some musk, tobacco or a very light touch of warm brown leather in it. It could almost go into powdery territory, but I don't think it's going there. I'm testing Cobra Lily on my other arm right now for comparison and it's sharper and more pungent - Black Lily is smooth, creamy, musky.

 

Black Lily manages to feel both alluring and comfortable at the same time. I think this scent seems easily unisex, Black Lily isn't a typical flowery scent, it's like dusk in a bottle.

Edited August 21, 2011 by strahlend

[Floria]

I'm going to test this again to see if temporary fluctuations in body chemistry make a difference, but right now, I'm afraid I'm not impressed. It seems that the lab's lily note doesn't get along well with my skin chemistry, since both this and Sheol started off bitter and faded quickly. Let's hope I get along better with lily of the valley.

 

ETA: further experiments have suggested that this might be one of those blends that's location-sensitive - i.e., my skin in general might not hate it, it might just be my wrists.

Edited March 31, 2012 by Floria

[becca_s]

Black Lily definately fits its name!

 

It's a dark, sophisticated scent. Starts out a bit sharp but that goes away quickly. My guess is that this has lily and something quite green in it. It smells almost woody on my skin.

 

I like it, I think that it would be great for certain occasions, like at night or in a situation that calls for something sophisticated and classy. It's very grown up and a little perfumey.

[whitsunweddings]

I've been looking for a decent lily scent for aaages. In my family, we don't have a christmas tree, but we presents under a table with a big vase of lilies on top. So, to me, it's a very scent, reminding me of Christmas and the summer holidays.

In the imp: Lilies (duh), maybe something a bit green.

Wet: Mmmm, lovely creamy lilies. Very fresh and clean.

Dry: Yup, pure fresh lilies. It's a lovely scent, though very mature. I won't be buying a bottle, but I'll keep my imp around for days when I need a pick-me-up.

[84trillion]

Hm. This disappeared fairly quickly on me... but I think I will keep it as a reference for what lily smells like. In the imp, it's a pretty floral that only slightly reminds me of funerals.

[Quillifer]

I love this - a beautiful sheer scent. Somehow it reminds me slightly of Incantation. But it disappeared incredibly quickly on me. I will try slathering and reapplying - often topping a scent up seems to make it sink in for me. But I fear it might not work. Gorgeous for as long as it lasts though.

[Ryokumuji]

Soapy, green, very pretty flower scent. I've seen people use the term soapy in a negative sort of context but I think it's actually very pretty in this scent. Sometimes, lily can be super grossly sweet on my skin, to the point that it makes me kinda feel sick. When I saw this imp I was thinking, "This probably won't work out too well!"

 

Nope, this scent is actually extremely nice! There is something sort of "darker" lurking beneath the surface. This is very feminine and nice. It goes ever so slightly powdery on my skin, but I'd rather that than the super sickly sweet I usually get from lily! I could imagine myself getting a bottle of this.

Edited October 9, 2013 by Ryokumuji

[darkeyedfran]

Call me crazy, but I swear I smell something along the veins of aged opium in here! There's something darker in the background of the lily floral! I love this because it's floral, doesn't go soapy on me, and still has a darkness to it. This reminds me of the good girl with a secret "dark" side. I might need to upgrade to a big bottle of this sometime in the near future, this also makes me want to try more rappaccini's garden scents. Very lovely and very well done, Beth!

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Tart green plant. I don't know if I could call it floral or herbal, just plant.

 

Wet on skin: Actually, it reminds me just a smidge of jasmine sambac, so maybe it tints a little towards floral.

 

Dried down: Still tart and green.

 

Throw: Not a whole lot, but I'm still getting the camphor scent from Belladonna on my other arm, so that might be the issue.

 

Verdict: *** Not bad at all, but not something I need on hand.

Edited February 23, 2014 by Magycmyste

[Veronica]

Dark, heady lily. Very lush, fresh, green and ever so slightly spicy.

[roseus]

In the imp: fresh, lily. Just a little sappy tartness.

 

On wet: A very clean, bright lily. Very pure.

 

Dry: Strong but soft. A shadow-y lily, less bright than it had been before. Womanly and creamy.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Lovely. Lily is iffy on me, at least in other blends I had thought it was, often smelling sort of like wet cardboard. This is really pretty at first, a bit peppery, a bit green, a bit sweet. Very nice. And then the cardboard comes out....

 

 

Dry: after the cardboard phase, this turns into a very faint, sweet, slightly dusty floral. A bit creamy. It's nice, but there are many other florals that are way better with my skin chemistry.

[Casablanca]

Wet on my skin, this smells like heavy lilies that just got a dusting from a shaker filled with darkness powder. It's a fine powder texture, like cocoa powder, but without any cocoa. Soon, though, the powdery sense dissipates, and the lilies smell smooth and satiny again -- just, now black. I'm reminded of the playing cards painting roses different colors in Alice in Wonderland.

Before much longer, the lilies settle down and give off a faint impression of vetiver. It's the sort of usual vetiver that I find pleasant, like that from black musk, rather than the ashtray vetiver I got from Azathoth. Actually, I think it might be part of black musk in this. I'm smelling that coming out now.

Lilies in black musk.

[VetchVesper]

This is glorious. Definately lily, but no sign of soap. I'm also smelling a deep vanilla undertone and something resinous. Myrrh maybe? I know bpal likes putting opoponax in some of their "black" blends. I'm surprised how much I love this. I might need a bottle if it stays like this through dry down.

[Lucchesa]

Black Lily is strongly lily with the hint of something darker - maybe a dark musk, which doesn't usually go well on me, but lilies are one of the flowers that work best with my skin chemistry, and this is beautiful. Low to medium throw, but I bet I'd get more if I slathered (I usually don't get much throw at all from most scents). Very elegant and worldly, a night at the opera or whirlwind weekend in Paris kind of scent. It is fading faster than I hoped but is still definitely a keeper.

[freyasfae]

Mmmm, this is dark and sexy. I like it! A classic floral, but with a dark, sexy twist. A great scent for spring - like a date night out when you want to feel sexy. A definite keeper for me.

[cinderfallen]

I fell in love with this in college, and it's been long a year since then and I still love it. Black Lily really does smell of lily, corrupted by a darkness.