Magdalene

[veronicafranco]

A stirring yet gentle perfume. The scent of love and devotion mingled with an undercurrent of heart-rending sorrow. A bouquet of white roses, labdanum, and wild orchid.

this was a frimp. i hadn't ordered it before, because i'm turning out not to be much of a rose/orchid girl, but i do love mary magdalene, so was happy to give it a try.

wow, this is extremely pretty. if sometime i'm in the mood for the rose or orchid family, i might just reach for this one. i consider it a sister scent to queen mab (rose/orchid/sandalwood) and skuld (ylang ylang/labdanum), but on me, this is nicer than either of those. all through my 20s i wore estee lauder's beautiful, and this is somehow akin to that, too (even though it's 2 flowers instead of "a thousand".)

which movie magdalene is this for me? (does it ruin it if i say this? heh) definitely monica bellucci in the passion of the christ, with her utterly perfect face and soft, melodious voice.

[Coldfire]

Frimp from a friend

 

 

Imp: Initially a sharpness and then a rose softness.

Wet On Me: Now powdery white roses

Drying Down: The sharpness is inthe background now

under the soft rose and powder

Dry: Went to powder on me very quickly. It's nice

but I'm not fond of smelling like powder most days.

Stay/Throw: not very long for either. I think this will

go in the re-homing pile.

[Andrea912]

Great if you like rose sachet, I suppose; I would throw this in my Granny's panty drawer...

[Rovylern]

In the imp: Sharp, strong florals.

 

Wet: Sharp floral, an undertone of something soft and powdery.

 

Drydown: The sharpness has faded, and only the soft florals remain. This is pretty and feminine; it 'feels' very gentle and spring-ish. It has decent throw but fades relatively quickly. I think it would be interesting to put it in a scent locket and my skin at the same time, so that the locket would retain the sharpness but it could take on the softer scent on my skin.

[lunaticana]

omg I just tryed my imp

and.. it s almost gone now

didn t even now that I like resiny scents

looked up what Labdanum is cause it seems all the imps I ve tryed with that in it I find truly gorgeous

Magdalene really is floral enough for me, I looooooooooooove orchids, especialy wild ones

so, in love & NEED BOTTLE

[lilirose]

In imp- sweet with a touch of bitterness.

 

On skin, wet: the “bitter” note becomes stronger. From looking at the description, I’d say the bitter note is orchid, as that one always smells bitter to me and sweet to everyone else.

 

On skin, dry: Roses and a still-bitter orchid..

 

Later: The orchid fades, leaving a soft, slightly musky, slightly soapy rose-based floral.

 

I'm normally a huge fan of anything rosy, but this one doesn't work with my skin chemistry.

[hkhm]

imp: light, almost sweet orchid.

 

wet: well, as with 99% of rose scents on me, this has instantly turned to soap.

 

dry: how odd. this smells like rose soap and, of all things, black olives.

[vegasblueblood]

This starts off slightly sharp and vaguely medicinal but don't be fooled--it quickly unveils itself as a very soft, gentle rose blend that is very feminine and a bit sweet. It comes off as very pure. I don't find this one overly floral and it does not go at all soapy on me, though it does go slightly powdery (not a bad thing). It is very delicate and simply pretty. I think I will be reaching for this one often.

[vikitty]

This was my first white rose blend and I really enjoy it. It's a very soft scent. I'm not in love with it, but I do like it. I hope the new Katrina Van Tassel LE will be a bit closer to what I'm looking for as far as white roses.

[charshark]

In the imp: Dark florals.

 

Wet: Wild orchid with a rose scent (but not an old lady rose).

 

Dry: The rose scent mostly takes over on me, but that's okay! It wasn't soapy on me.

 

Overall: Very feminine and lovely. It's good if you're a fan of rose.

[OhioSky]

I can imagine that this scent would be very nice for someone who likes florals, because it is a very complicated yet light scent. I got frimped with it so I gave it a try, but I don't do florals.

[sparkybish]

I don't know if it is because i am obsessed with Katrina Van Tassel right now, but this smells so much like it to me. Maybe just a touch less lush, and a touch more herbal. i love it.

 

Edited to add that it has faded fast to the herbal note i smelled before. I still like it, but it may be a scent locket scent due to lack of staying power.

Edited October 4, 2008 by sparkybish

[NeuroticaGirl]

I have yet to care for anything that had labdanum in it. This is no exception. In the bottle it does something to the rose and the effect is horribly bitter. I could not bring myself to try it on my skin.

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Rose with a musky base

On Application

Rose and orchid but there is something spicy to keep it from going sharp

 

Dry Down

This is not my favourite BPAL rose scent (rose and orchid are both pretty horrible on me) but this is quite soft and bearable. Not a winner for me but it is nice.

 

Rating (0-5)

3

[kerickson]

In the vial: Ohh - NOT good. Very sharp, and to me it is actually similar to the smell of opening a jar of pickled jalapenos. It smells like vinegar. Very odd.

 

On me (dry): Applied to wrists. Very powdery floral, firm and sweet. Roses and orchids. It is very nice! Strikingly different from how it smells in the vial. It's girly, it's feminine, and quite pleasant and uplifting. I feel awakened and alert now. I can't stop smelling my wrists, hahaha. Although light and floral, there is a heavy musk to it as well as a certain bitterness. However, this is by no means a bad thing in this case.

 

After a while: After approximately 2 hours, the scent is increasingly powdery. I'm picking up hints of what I want to say is jasmine, but not overwhelming jasmine... it's a perfect balance of powder and jasmine that calms and relaxes. It is gentle, sweet, fresh, and still altogether feminine and wonderful.

 

Verdict: 8/10. Smells very weird to begin with, but quickly redeems itself. Another determining factor is I think I'm in a mood today that makes me more tolerant of this type of smell. I'm feeling girly and happy However, even on an "off" day I'd probably give it no less than a 7. Will definitely add this to my next order of 5 ml's.

Edited October 14, 2008 by Babel

[plunderparlour]

on wet- spicy orchid, i get no roses

dry - very slight rose and powdery orchids.

This smells a little matronly for my taste.

[steffanina]

Magdalene-

 

In Bottle: Oh, dear, it's that very very sharp powdery floral that makes my eyes water.

 

Wet: Sharp powdery floral. Not so much as to make my eyes water but not anything I enjoy.

 

Dry: The powder is rising and chokes my throat. Acrid. I fear I won't be able to wear this long; I'm for a shower.

 

Overall: Not for me. Acrid floral.

[obsidienne]

This comes off as a very light, white rose with something a little purple, incense-like and dusky about it; "stirring and gentle" are perfect descriptors for Magdalene! Gorgeous, but delicate and faint with a short life.

[cymbeline]

Smell alike: nursing room (you know, the ones crowded with flowers?)

 

Color impression: weeping pale blue-green

 

On me: I don't really know labdanum but if it's the one that smells like a sick person's room, I don't want more of it =/ Associated with clear roses it's just awfully medical to my nose

 

Wearing: Brings back too painful memories. Not a keeper for me

 

[butcherbaby]

second try on this- first try wqas "this smells good, but i've tested too many today to be sure"

 

it is confirmed- it's very lovely! and big bottle worthy.

 

the notes in this blend very well together and i get one strong impression: creamy, honeyed roses. honey? don't know where that comes from, but that's what i get.

i slather, so it's not a light floral at all for me.

can't comment on staying power just yet, but it's so pretty i'll be happy to liberally re-apply.

[zankoku_zen]

Rose soap!

 

This rose is nice, soft, subtle. I get a hint of orchid here and there, but overall, it makes me think of rose soap.

[isisonearth]

Imp: Mostly white rose with a little something else. I'm guessing the labdanum. I'm really getting the somber feel. Not a joyful rose.

 

Wet: I get a bit of the orchid. Very wistful and rather faint. For some reason it is making me sneeze.

 

Drydown: The rose really blossoms and the orchid lends a touch of the exotic. A very creamy rose which I love. I really like it but the sneeziness is a deal breaker. Off to the swap bag. Pity, it is a very pretty scent once it gets going.

[theseagrows]

as usual, white rose tends to go sour on me. after this fades a bit, so does the sourness, and the orchid comes out more, and it smells a lot nicer. the labdanum adds a bit of resinyness to the background, grounding the florals. this is nice, but is not wowing me, so i think i'll swap it.

[TheLetterL]

I found Magdalene to be a less frilly cousin of my grandmother's signature scent, Estee Lauder's Beautiful. She passed away recently, so this one gets a pretty deep emotional response from me.

 

Associations aside, I don't think this will be a big bottle. Seems like a floral for a mature lady...maybe that's the resin talking?

[ami226]

Whoa! My first sniff of this from the imp revealed a sharp, herbal smell. Uh, oh....

 

On the skin: After putting a bit on, the sharp herbal smell is gone. Almost immediately. What I am left with smells a bit like burning flowers.

 

I don't think my skin loves this one at all...