Peony Moon

[Ghost_Light]

Peony, plum blossom, water reeds and soft Asian woods.

I was blessed to get an imp of this from my first Switch Witch, Salixnoir

In the imp: I looooove me some Peony.

Wet: Richly peony, but the bamboo and plum blossom give it a really different tang. It's a very sophisticated scent.

Dry-down/long wear: Lovely. Pure lovely. The peony mellows out from being the dominate note without disappearing and the sophisticated feeling I got from when it was wet only grows.

For some reason, this is one that changes when I take a muscle relaxant. It is the only one that I've found that does. It gets an odd teak note that doesn't appear if I haven't taken a pill. I prefer it without the teak but it is lovely no matter what. Edited November 28, 2007 by Shollin

[Rat The Unloved]

Initial Impressions: Sweet, sugary, and floral. Simmilar to Budding Moon.

On the Skin: Soapy, "fresh" and lightly floral.

Dry: Same as initial scent. Simmilar to Budding Moon, but a bit more of a "fresh soapy" smell.

Mature:The same general scent, but it has lightened considerably and contains very faint notes that remind me of vanilla, or some other sweet food product.

Several hours later: FAST fade on this one.

Over all: Lovely, but a bit stronger than Budding Moon initially, though both are quite comparable.

Buyability: I believe this scent is discontinued, so buyability is kinda moot aside from swaps. This is not one I would, personally, swap for.

[stellans]

 

My initial reaction to Peony Moon was that it seemed somehow familiar and comforting. I couldn't quite place the reason why for quite a long time, until it suddenly hit me! Peony Moon smells just like Pond's Cold Cream! That's not a bad thing, believe me: this was what my grandmother put on her face every night for as long as I can remember. It just took a while to figure out why Peony Moon made me feel so comforted and loved, LOL! I wonder what Pond's puts in their cream that is like what is in Peony Moon?

 

In the imp: Sweet floral with a definite green tinge. Is that the bamboo? Lovely!

 

Wet on skin: True to smell in the imp, fresh application on my skin didn't change the green floral scent at all. This is a very light-smelling lunacy, very spring/summer-ish.

 

Dry: Softer floral notes on drydown, and the green note has dwindled quite a bit. There's mostly only sweet florals present now, but it has been all night since it was applied, so I'm a bit surprised I can smell anything at all. It was a nice accompaniment to sleep.

 

Verdict: I like this lunacy, but I think my one bottle will be all I want. Besides, I have a jar of Pond's cold cream in my bathroom, and that's fine with me. There are other floral lunacies I like just as much or more, not to mention what Beth will release this year.

Edited March 20, 2009 by stellans

[mspixieears]

Slightly fruity beginning but this is pretty much pure peony, all the way! Dries down to a creamy, powdery version – I’d like sharper and fruitier like at the beginning when it’s wet. I wish it didn’t fade so much as it’s really quite beautiful – it might cling onto dirtier skin better, I suspect – I had applied it immediately after showering. I did reapply several hours later to see how it fared on less clean skin but there was no real change to report.

[batsy]

In the vial: plum!

 

On the skin: strong, watery peony. It's lovely! The Asian woods pop as well as it starts to dry down. A summery, Asian-esque blend, truly. Very exotic.

[CiCi]

I was able to nab a bottle of this on Ebay-I am fortunate.

 

I read reviews where this is described as big, fluffy, pink flowers. To me, this is big, bold, fuschia flowers. This scent is rich and full bodied with the florals blending perfectly together. I can smell something spicy there too. After wearing it an hour or so, I get a vanilla note coming through-very alluring. This is a very rich, very sweet fragrance-I am very happy I was able to get it!

[porcelina]

bottle: oh em gee. big, beautiful, fresh, lush peonies.

wet: ahhhh. this is gorgeous. i LOVE PEONIES.

dry: ...oh dear. peony moon has gone and turned to plastic. still, i leave it on, hoping i will morph again.

 

well, the plastic went away eventually, but by this point the oil started making me feel so deeply, intensely queasy and headachey that had i not been in my car at the time, i would have rushed to take a shower. i still don't feel completely better. i'm so sad... i wanted to like this very badly; i love peonies! at least i didn't spring for the big bottle like i was about to!

[Mamacat]

Because of my inexperience when I first tried my little decant of Peony Moon (thanks Moonarana!) I thought that my skin was amping rose again. Yeah - I'm a dork.

I was recently in the local greenhouse and stopped to smell the flowers - peonies. Well - then I knew that I could really smell the peonies in Peony Moon.

 

A little bit of soft woods anchor it to my skin but it's mostly just fresh peonies in the greenhouse to me! And this time I know I'm right! I love it and I may try and hunt down a bottle.

[metaldog32]

I love peonies; their big blossoms full of tight petals that seem to go on forever. They are visually striking to look at and their fragrance seems so fresh pretty. Again..not really much of a floral gal but I am a bit smitten with the peony so this was a must-have.

 

Initial sniff from bottle: Funny…but for some reason when I take sniffs of this, I am reminded specifically of a perfume and/or body cream my grandmother used to scent herself with. I had always assumed it was some sort of rose scent..pink roses..but now sniffing this I believe it was closer to the pretty peony.

 

By the way, my grandmother was strikingly beautiful; even in her 70’s people thought she was in her late 50’s or so..always looking very put together but still was the type of grandmother you could give and receive warm hugs and kisses. I do miss her and I am sure my mom, who is her daughter, misses her very much as well.

 

Applied wet on skin: Peonies..yes..there you are…and I get a bit of the plum blossom as well. Feminine floral to be sure.

 

Couple of minutes on skinStaying pretty linear on me; am not sure I am getting the water reeds or soft asian woods yet. The waft is soft but present.

 

Ten minutes later-Peony is still here…softened a bit with a bit of tender green peeking every once in a while..now I get more of the soft woods at the back end..rounding up the fragrance. Very nice!!!

 

The peony is touch heady/strong..but I still find it so very pretty and pink and feminine.

 

Twenty minutes later:Still here…and it does seem as if this has turned a bit creamy..while still retaining the soft floral and the even softer woods.

 

Half an hour later:Still present but softer…at least in throw and waft.

 

Drydown-Bare traces of the notes.

 

Bottom Line: Peony Moon is the embodiment of that beautiful bloom; creamy and pretty and a perfect way to enjoy spring in all it’s glory. Am glad I have my 5ml; it will suit me well when I want to embrace the peony side of me.

[luna65]

Thanks to lorajc for the decant.

 

Vial: Like stepping into a garden of peonies in full bloom.

 

Skin: I get the slight edge of green when I apply this, and a smooth quality from the woods.

 

Drydown: This remains fairly consistent, in that I'm left with the heartnotes of peony and plum. I'm not normally that much of a floral person but I like this; it's the kind of "lighter" floriental I can appreciate.

[DifferentDances]

Bottle: Grape juice-ish sour tang.

Wet: Powdery peonies.

Drydown: Tangy peonies with an undercurrent of...burnt plastic. Ouch.

Dry: Tangy peonies with a blanket of burnt plastic.

 

My rating: 2/5. Darnit, I had such high hopes for this one. I love peonies, and plums and all the stuff in here. But something is turning to plastic on my skin. Phooey.

[Browneyes]

(thanks delicate_fangs!)

 

Short review: vintage pretty

 

In depth: I'm not terribly familiar with peonies, but this is a lovely soft and feminine scent. It's quite sweet, and I feel like it could be a candy flavour, because somehow the floral translates as fruity to me. (probably just my nose/inexperience, or perhaps the plum blossom?) I did recognise a green-ness and a watery-ness even before I had read the notes, but they are more behind, adding a calm haze over the sugary floral aspects of the scent.

All in all very pretty. It makes me want to don a vintage flowery tea dress and a floppy straw hat, and go for a walk in a garden

[ouch!]

I've never actually smelled what Peony smells like on it's own, but I'm pretty sure that's the floral that kicks me in the face when I apply this.

It smells kind of like roses but nicer. It's like a much sweeter rose, much more like Turkish delight than rose. I much prefer Peony for sure because some roses just smell very old lady on me.

 

So, at first this is a whoosh of sweet flowers. I'm also not sure what plum blossom smells like but it's still lovely.

It definately smells a bit watery, like petals floating on water and only when it starts to dry do the woods appear.

They're not overpowering thank god because I think they might ruin this. They're very soft and subtle and change the blend slightly!

 

It's very nice but I wouldn't buy a bottle. It's very pretty and pink!

 

[bulletslc]

Got a frimp of this from a lovely person!

 

It smells like spicy roses! I'm not sure what peonies smell like, but this is like a soft rose with a spicy bite (which I think is the plum blossom) floating on the Asian woods which are a grounding note, but still soft enough not to distract from the floral beauty of the top notes...

 

Love rose-type scents and this is definitly a keeper!

[persephanise]

Whoever said this reminds her of Dirty's older sister got it exactly right. This definitely shares notes in common with Dirty, which for me is wonderful since Dirty was one of my first BPAL loves.

 

This is somewhat more perfumey and feminine than Dirty, but also lighter. It's pink, pink peony with a slight twist of bamboo. It's really, really pretty and fresh, and will be really lovely to wear in the spring.

 

I don't really get powder from this (which would be okay since I like powder) nor do I get aquatic. I just get flowers and light bamboo. It's a fiarly simple scent, and doesn't change much.

 

Thumbs up. Glad I bought a bottle.

[zankoku_zen]

Okay, so the peony was a highly intense and aggressive note on me when I first applied. As it dried, it turned soapy.

 

An hour later, it's ALL gone.

 

...

 

Yeah, this so didn't work out between us. It was like the guy that leaves you hanging --- comes on so strong it's almost a turn off, does a quick change on you and before you know, he's gone.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Peonies, fresh green things, with a hint of fruit and soap.

 

Wet: Sweeter, much more distinctly fruity - maybe strawberry? Gah, why does my skin amp sweetness usually when it's not so much my thing? Fortunately the floral is amped too, peony and something else. I can barely smell any green notes. Why do things nearly always smell better in the bottle?

 

Dry: Strawberry still there. Something spicy-woodsy has come out, it's maybe even a bit smoky, and it's taking over. Everything else has faded away virtually completely.

 

Summary: Spicy-woodsy-smoky strawberry. Not my thing.

[Clover01]

Wet: I loved it in the bottle and on my skin. Fresh wet peonies and light greenery. For me it hit as a very different and unique smelling-floral scent.

 

Dry: Once it dried, the peony turned into a heavy "perfume-y" scent. It reminded me of an expensive generic perfume.

 

Summary: Just too much like a generic perfume after drydown. Wish it smelled as it did in bottle...

[serafina pekkala]

Peonies are one of my favourite flowers; I love the way they look and smell. So this scent does not disappoint: gorgeous peonies at first breath! When I apply it, it morphs into something I can't quite put my finger on. It reminds me of the loose, resin incense they used to burn in a store where I worked upstairs. I've never gotten this in BPAL scent before. I think this would make a very nice room scent.

[TheOneTheyCallLuna]

In the beginnings it's all pretty pink powdery florals over aquatics, before the bright fruity juice note comes out. What is that juicy note? Plum blossom, perhaps? Or some other tangy fruit note? The tangy fruit note makes this just almost too sweet...I'm not sure. I've been excessively sensitive to sweet notes lately. I'll have to bond with this blend a bit more before I make my final verdict. I do love the watery peony blossoms, though, and I'm leaning towards adoring this!

[countessmouse]

So, so, so disappointed in this one. Smells great in the bottle but has a very decidedly bitter undertone on my skin. Meh.

[Dark Alice]

Soft sweet peony, with hints of water. No wood note here. Gorgeous floral...but not something I would wear.

[Venneh]

In the bottle, I'm getting peony, plum blossom, and the water reeds; an aquatic floral sort of thing. On my skin, this is peony and the water reeds with the woods starting to come out. Hrm. We'll see what this does. Ends up being too watery with the water reeds, and a funky plastic note ends up coming out. Not quite for me, sadly, though it was nice for the few seconds it did work.

Edited July 25, 2010 by Venneh

[Aleah]

Just got my bottle from a forumite here. It is a beautiful, pink floral that smells absolutely awesome!! Fresh peonies! Now I can have this fragrance all year long!

[Gateau]

In the bottle -- strong whiff of peony in all its clean rosiness. This is the first Lab peony I've really been able to smell at all.

 

Wet -- the peony is really there as a sort of wafting overlay, but up close wet it smells just like Weeping Branches Moon.

 

Dry -- with my nose to my wrist I think I wouldn't be able to tell it from Weeping Branches Moon, with that plum blossom note and the undercurrent of woods, but I keep getting wafts of true peony in the throw. Yum.

 

Very dry -- the soft woods come out and the plum blossom recedes.

 

This is more of a summer day than Weeping Branches Moon, which gives me spring evening, and was just perfect to wear on the first day of summer. It's many shades of pink, just like peonies. A keeper, and I see myself snatching up bottles wherever I can find them.