Frumious Bandersnatch

[melange]

Bandersnatch musk, redolent of spicy carnations, wild plums and chrysanthemum.

 

In the imp, FM has the most gorgeous fresh plum fragrance. Wet on my skin, the carnations make themselves known and add spice to the blend. However, in the drydown, those lovely notes disappear beneath the dried chrysanthemum, which I would say is amping except that even that is faded. I'm grateful for the frimp, and may try making this into a room scent to see if I can keep the plumminess.

Edited March 18, 2007 by melange

[neuilly]

I have to concur with a couple of previous reviews that on me this ends up smelling like potpourri. At first it has a very juicy plum on top which is a note I love but in the end....pure potpourri. Somehow all the spicy plum scents have come off like this on me. I'm determined to find a plum I can wear!! Although for potpourri it's quite nice. If I used the oils as room scents I'm sure I'd keep this one.

[TheIceMaiden]

I love carnation and plum and I recall liking the chrysanthemum note in Harvest 2005...but all these notes together?

It works! This starts out juicy, spicy (from the carnation) plum. These notes then take a backseat to the lovely, golden mums. Frumious Bandersnatch is something I can see wearing in late summer into the fall. Its really nice and I'm happy to have an imp of it.

[gravedigger]

I'm just now starting to get into fruity scents, and I'm amazed at how dribbly and juicy some of these smell. Anyway, Frumious Bandersnatch is spicy, juicy, yummy, plum-flavored bubblegum. And yet, I love it.

[nannan45]

Frumious Bandersnatch

 

I first tried it on without reading the description so I would have no pre-judgments (I got this as a frimp from the lab - thank you !!!) I'm surprised this works for me now that I have read them because of the carnations. Alice didn't love me, neither did Zarita the Doll Girl, so I assumed it was the carnations. But FB is lovely! It's spicy and fruity, and I distinctly smell the mums. It is sort of light though, or my skin just drinks this one up. But it's a great spicy scent that I'd never have thought would work for me. Mmm!

[Muppetk]

Wet: Okay, now this is pretty! Lightly-spiced plums with the chrysanthemum blended in seamlessly. I don't smell much in the way of musk, but that may have something to do with witting next to two open boxes of bpal bottles.

 

But this is really nice. I may well go from merely testing this one to slathering it for the day! (I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. I love 'mum moon! But I had no clue that plums could be so pretty on me!) It's lighter on me than I usual care for, but given that it's hot and humid today, that may be a good thing.

 

Of course, I may well edit in a half hour to wail that it's turned funny on me, as fruits used to, but it looks dry and ... it's oooh, better! The spiciness is actually becomeing slightly deeper! Oooh!

 

VERDICT: YAY! If I'd ever finished an imp of anything, I'd immediately go out and get a bottle of this. As is, I'm going to savor my imp & get more if I run out.

[sedona]

In the imp - Oh lovely, spiced carnation!

 

Wet - Carnation with plum and something else, especially on my right wrist blinks

 

Drydown - A beautifully juicy, full bodied blend. On me it is swollen to bursting plum sprinkled with carnation spice and held together by the mystery note. It's very like Bathsheba, which I love, but more 'in your face'. This seems to throw for a couple of hours and then disappears. But it's well worth reapplying.

 

I may need to get a 5ml of this

[cassandrakfreaq]

I have an imp of this. I will be purchasing a bottle.

 

It's wonderfully spicy. I would not have guessed carnation though. when I think of carnation I think of

Lush' ruby red slippers BBS. FB on me is a cinnamony spice thats extremely warm smelling and enticing. The plum adds the perfect hint of sweetness to the fragrance.

[bookofblues]

In the imp: Mostly plum, almost grapey. A little spice, but not distinctly carnation.

On the skin: Waxy, cinnamon and very sweet plum. A hint of musk as an undertone. I'm also getting the craft store candle feel that others have mentioned. Granted, a very nice craft store candle. More like simmering potpourri.

I usually don't do well with sweet, fruity scents as they amp like crazy on me. A little to strong on the plum, but otherwise quite nice. Bandersnatch stays strong for several hours too. This imp is probably a keeper, but not one for heavy rotation.

[estherR]

very first review. I'm still very much learning how to distinquish smells but I'll have a go..

 

In the vial - nice but I found it hard to place the smell, sweet and fruity.

 

On me - plums, juicy with a hint of peppery spice

Dry - Big purple juicy plums with just a hint of spice. very nice warmed in the sun type fruit smell.

 

On my fella - huge hit of peppery spice, almost eye watering in intensity

dry - less extreme but still very peppery, pretty much no fruit in it at all on him..

[Jheya]

In the imp: Spicy floral with a hint of fruitiness underneath.

 

On skin: In my quest to try all the Mad Tea Party scents, I neglected to look up the notes before buying an imp of this, and so I've only just noticed the carnation. Do I really want to risk sneezing all night? But my nose doesn't tickle when sniffing the imp so maybe it'll be okay...

 

When applied I mainly get spicy florals. There's sweetness to this, but it's slightly tart, suggesting that perhaps the plum isn't quite fully ripened.

 

After it dries, it isn't doesn't really smell like fruit nor flowers, but instead it's almost incense like. There's still an edge of fruitiness to it, but it's more like a scented product/incense trying to smell like fruit than the actual fruit itself. I'm not terribly keen on this one, and I don't think I'll be keeping it.

[500ml]

This is gorgeous. I initially passed by this oil because of the plums, but I was persuaded to try it out because of the carnation (I adore carnation) and boy, am I ever so glad that I gave it a second chance. Fruity plum in the vial and wet which dries down to a fruity spicy blend. I also think it smells of a candle shop, an expensive and high quality candle shop. I love this, I really do!

[L-z_Empress]

Surprisingly (given my love of BPAL's plum and carnation notes), this does not do it for me. It smells like overpowering apple pie or cheap potpourri. I even had 5 coworkers sniff my wrist just to be sure and they all said "apple pie" as soon as the smelt it.

[Tramp]

Wet it smells like plums and gunpowder. That metallic tang that smells like it could explode at any minute. But that is only when wet. As it dries down the spicyiness of the carnations come out so that it is a delicious combo of plums and spice. yummy

[harmonyfb]

In the imp: Juicy plums

 

Wet: Sense memory. I'm in high school, and I'm standing backstage at a forensics meet, waiting to go on. It was so vivid a recollection, I felt like I could reach out and touch the past. Wow. Why would this evoke that memory? I don't know.

 

Dry: Like a pleasant, berryish candle scent. It's like the impression you get when you use scented candles to scent your dresser drawers - just a faint, sweet smell.

 

Verdict: I kinda like it.

[Mimicake]

Spicy licorice plums! It smells like jelly beans, but in a more delicate way. I am really glad I got to try this one, the fruit and spice is cheerful and bright, like a children's party outside. Once dry, the carnation comes out more fully on my skin and I love it.

[steelfaerie]

You know... my overwhelming adoration this is almost peculiar, given that I really, really hate plums.

 

Notwithstanding, I think I am in love. As others have noted, it does quite smell like a country store - and I'll be damned if it's really not a bad thing. Spicy, autumnal and delicious. And among the Mad Tea Party scents I've tried so far, Bandersnatch alone has a great deal of throw on me. I am pleasantly aware of it without having to do the delightful wrist-huffing motion we all know so well.

 

Win.

Edited July 23, 2007 by steelfaerie

[fiddlefox]

*sigh* loved the name but first thought putting it on... cherry cough syrup? with some red hots... ok the cough syrupy smell is going away but it smell like potpourri... not that potpurri is bad,and I like spicy but this just isn't for me. Off to swaps.

[Delirium1009]

In bottle: This smells of fruity carnations… the plum really comes out.

 

immediately on skin: This scent is strong in the carnations! The plum is coming out as well and lending a sweet note to the spiciness of the carnations.

 

After a few minutes: Gorgeous! Sweet, spicy carnations.

 

Later on: This has become very very sweet on me… almost sickly so. The plum has really amped up a bit, and there’s a slight spiciness from the carnations. It’s way too sweet for me after wearing for about half an hour or so unfortunately.

[funkmoppet]

Oh, this is lovely from the imp! Yummy plum!

 

The carnation is spicy and wonderful, the plum keeping it from getting too floral. The musk is delightful.

 

As it dries, the carnation gets stronger, staying peppery with the plum adding its sweetness. I was ready to add this one to my bottle list - but unfortunately after this has been on for a while, the carnation has gotten powdery. The plum's lost it juicy edge, the musk has gone and it's all turned to potpourri.

 

Dang. This was almost awesome.

[Torrain]

Please don't laugh, because I'm going to have to resort to a very un-perfumey analogy to describe part of this scent.

 

On my skin, it starts off sweet, with a kind of dry sidenote that's faintly tart and faintly dusty and smells like nothing so much as the artificial flowers aisles at your local Michaels' crafts store.

 

Anyway, the plums and the chrysanthemums hook up to produce something sweet and flowery, but there's just too much life and depth and pepper and spice for me to really call it "floral". It is an absolutely lovely scent, even though it fades on me in a couple of hours.

 

L&c,

F

[DifferentDances]

Imp: Cooked plums.

Wet: Spicy carnations thrown in to stir fry with the plums.

Drydown: Spicy carnations with a hint of fruit.

Dry: Spicy carnations through and through.

 

My rating: 1/5. I just don't like carnations enough to enjoy the almost single-note scent this becomes on my skin.

[Catmint]

I seem to be having far more luck with the Tea Party scents than any other category, and this is one of the best.

 

IMP: grape bubblegum and, um, some other stuff

 

WET: the fruit instantly goes poof, and it's a spicy floral. After looking at the lab notes, I can see it's carnation and that's pretty much all I'm getting: sweet cinnamony clovey flowers.

 

DRY: Stays the same as when wet for an hour or so, then the recognizably floral aspect of the carnation disappears and leaves the spice behind. There's a slight fruitiness to it, but not any recognizable fruit, and I totally get the Yankee Candle generic-spiced-fruit associations, but this still smells really nice on me after the flowers leave.

 

I sure wish the plum stuck around for more than 3 seconds, but this still dries down to a lovely warm sweet, spicy scent on me that I can definitely see myself slathering in autumn & winter. Will be including a bottle of this in the next order!

[jolarocknrolla]

Smells like Dentine/redhots/Big Red chewing gum. Wet, it's all spicy hot cinnamon candy. The drydown is a bit more floral with this really interesting sort of spicyness (mmmm carnation!). More of the pepperyness comes out later and the plummyness is there throught but not strong at all (or the spicyness just takes over so you don't notice it as much).

[KassiK]

Without knowing the notes, me and my husband both were WAY off on this one. I thought ginger all the way and he smelled peppermint. Either way, regardless of the notes this is a very Christmasy scent on me - perfect for winter. I like the smell and it's a keeper.