Black Dahlia

[lilirose]

Voluptuous magnolias strewn over orchid, star jasmine, black amber and smoky rose.

This was a frimp with my first order.

Wet: Floral like whoa, but not overly "pretty" floral- more like strong, sharp floral.

Dry: Somehow I've lost the rose in this one, even though my skin usually amplifies rose. I smell something dark and resinous, mostly, with a sweeter note that must be orchid- I say that because I have no idea what orchids smell like, but I know magnolia, rose, and jasmine, and the floral I smell is none of those.

Fairly decent throw, long-lasting.

Even so, it's not really my thing. 3/5. Edited October 5, 2008 by Shollin

[aquazoo]

Lush. Amazing. Hothouse full of exotic blooms. It’s a keeper!

[CrazyPretzel]

In the imp: jasmine and something dark, wet, and smoky.

 

Wet on me: Much the same, along with a slightly bitter, cloying note. I think my chemistry might be disagreeing with this one...

 

After a few minutes: Alright, this has settled down into a much nicer jasmine. Sadly I still can't smell any amber or rose. There is something heady and faintly toxic-smelling which might be orchid -- I'm not familiar with the scent and so I can't really say. It sort of sticks to the back of my sinuses in the same way that violets do.

 

Drydown: Feels to my nose like jasmine disguised as violets, if that makes any sense. Quite faint.

 

ETA: I should add that this one has actually grown on me over time. I'm farther along in the drydown now and find that I can't stop sniffing my wrist -- it's blossomed into a very soft jasmine with some powdery amber. I still can't quite discern most of the other notes, but it's a gentle, sultry floral that's ended up being surprisingly appealing.

Edited August 29, 2007 by Baitu

[FallDaze]

In the imp, absolutely gorgeous! Smoky magnolias with an undercurrent of black amber. Delicious!

 

On it's a gorgeous and smoky floral. The magnolia and jasmine totally dominate on my skin. We'll see how it goes...

 

Overall, maybe a bit too much magnolia for me..it turns into a kinda heavy floral... It would be perfect if it were just a little bit softer on me...

[hkhm]

imp: amber with (i think) orchid. the other florals are somewhat smoky.

 

wet: what happened?! everything just disappeared in a burst of smoke! it's like someone razed this garden to the ground.

 

dry: okay, much better. soft, smoky florals that remind me more of incense or resin. quite nice once i get through the wet phase.

[YoakeNoKami]

Imp: Magnolia and burnt amber. Uh...?

 

On/wet: Florals like "Wow!" at first.. then... musky something....

 

Drydown: Soggy, dying flowers and the kind of smoke you get from burning damp wood. Egh.

[naeelah]

Wet, a wave of magnolia washes over me. As it dries, the other florals, especially the orchid, come screaming through. This early phase is aaalll florals, with just a hint of smokiness.

 

It softens very quickly, minute by minute, as it dries. The balance of the florals shifts a bit, but I can't recall which was more prominent when. The jasmine doesn't take over, and the rose never seemed to take prominence. The florals are strong, but succulent. After an hour or two, though, they're very, very soft. Now, it's a light, dry, smoky amber, with hints of florals.

 

Early throw is strong, but it drops quickly. Life is below average.

[Northernskygal]

Black Dahlia.. I had high hopes.. I did.. and then.. ick. I know I am not normally a floral gal.. I get it, but.. I like amber, I am okay with rose so I thought there was hope.. but I think having the black amber.. and that kinda.. weird smokey rose.. makes it ick to my nose. I am familiar enough with jasmine, orchid and magnolias. I may not love the combo, but it would be ick.. it would be a pretty enough floral, just not for me.. so.. I blame primarily the black amber.. it's like the blend wants to be sweet and pretty but it just never exactly gets there and I end up with this weird amalgamation of.. sharpness, sourness and floralness.. ick

[Lyrical]

In vial: ew - there's that note again! I must work out what it is, because I don't like it! Amber and floral with something yucky! (I think it might be jasmine.)

 

Wet on skin: a pleasant but unremarkable smoky floral and amber.

 

Dry on skin: there's something slightly off here, but it's mostly a conventional, floral perfume - like cheap bubble bath. But the off note grows stronger and I really don't like this much. I gave it to my daughter.

[voodoocatwoman]

This is a pretty fragrance- it starts out a bit on the sharp side but quickly mellows with magnolia and jasmine. As beautiful as it is, it doesn't last very long. I would need to slather this one to keep it around for more than a few hours. I do like it though.

[suki]

in the imp: very floral. a bit cloying :meh:

 

wet on skin: the jasmine starts to peek through, but i still feels it's too sweet

 

dry down: the jasmine simmers down and a bare hint of neroli shows itself. normally i find neroli to be too strong, but this is nice in a tiny amount.

 

in all: i'm not big on the florals, but this is a lovely springtime scent that i could see making a LOT of people really happy.

 

 

[Verilita]

In the imp: VERY floral, the magnolia sticks out and I think the jasime lends this sticky sweet note to it

 

wet: the rose shows up, but it's pretty meek for rose, the magnolia's come out in full force now. It's almost like the perfume captures how magnolias smell when it's super humid out

 

drydown: no more rose, just a very sweet, kind of smoky number

 

dry: This perfume seems very vintage to me, don't ask what that means I doubt I could describe it. The scent is a deep, mellow floral with a bite of something (the amber?) balancing everything out.

[grashopper8]

I love jasmine, but I'm also pretty picky about it, and I'm not wild about the jasmine note in this blend. Overall, it's a powdery floral without much of a backbone, and it doesn't have any personality on me.

 

Not my fave - it's very plain, to me.

 

2 out of 5

[LadyLuckDoubt]

In the Bottle

Jasmine and rose with a sexiness that reminds me of Follow Me Boy but a lot more straighforward if that makes sense.

 

On Me

Pretty much the same: don't get me wrong, it's pretty, but it doesn't really do anything on my skin, nor does it stand out as a particularly memorable BPAL experience for me. After awhile it fades down to a rosey finish: it's nice, but that's all it really is for me. Has a decent life on my skin, though, and a pretty good throw.

[kizery]

Smells like flowers and cough syrup in the imp. Upon application, the scent is a dark floral. I can’t distinguish the flowers. On dry-down, the scent is still floral, smoky, slightly spicy, maybe a little powdery? An hour after applying, there is mostly a smoky/powdery smell remaining. I assume this is the amber and my chemistry not helping much. The florals don’t last long at all. Also, it seems to have slightly irritated my nose . On the whole, a “heavy” scent, quite lovely at first, but it doesn’t work for me.

[Dracoo9]

This is going to sound kind of odd but....this scent reminds me of my Grandma, but not in a bad way or anything. She just loved Gardenias and would keep them in her refrigerator to make the flower last longer and make her frige smell nice ^^' While I'm not a big floral person I do have to love just how realistically it all smells. The Gardenia and the jasmine go back and forth on me for dominance so it provides a nice variation. I dont think I'll get a bottle but I will hold on to this beautiful imp.

[DarkClarissa]

In Imp: Heady rose scent, like over blown roses that are wilting and loosing their petals.

 

Wet: Very heavy floral, magnolias are cloying all over me now and fighting with the opressive rose smell.

 

Dry: OMG, I've realised exactly what it smells like. Its like stale water that roses have been sitting in for too long and some of the petals have fallen into.

 

Verdict: I usually like floral fragrances, but this is funking out on me. I think its the orchids, even though I can't actually smell them, they seem to be weirding out all the other notes. I'm really, really NOT good with orchids. I was hoping that they wouldn't do this to me again, but they have.

 

Marks out of 10: 2

[fairnymph]

Sniffed in imp: Magnolia, orchid, dark amber, smoke. Heady and deeply floral.

[ladyver]

i think this is a beautiful scent as it is very true to the scents of the gorgeous flowers in this! in bottle: this smells like the real flowers!!!! wet on skin there was a polished wood stage - but it lasts only for a short moment - then we're back to the real flowers. initially the magnolia and jasmine are more dominant and much later the rose assumes the dominant spot (but only just) with the amber sitting nicely underneath the whole time.

 

to me this would be perfect on someone strong, glamorous and mysterious - i am not sure i can do this one justice

[goblinshark]

Man, Black Dahlia bummed me out! I lovvve gardenia, it's my second-favorite floral scent after honeysuckle, but something about this scent smelled kind of...rotten. Like rotting flowers. A little dank. Not for me, unfortunately.

[mgrazulis]

In the imp: magnolia and amber

 

Wet: magnolia mingled with jasmine. The amber recedes.

Drydown: beautiful magnolias and jasmine tinged by dark amber.

 

A warm, smooth floral. The magnolia and jasmine are primary notes. Little change on the drydown. The rose and orchid peek through enough to ground the sweeter flowers. Warm amber background with lasting throw. Very romantic floral scent, sultry with sophistication.

[carolinachiquita]

When I sniffed this in the imp I didn't have high hopes as it was just jasmine and magnolia and it wasn't a scent that jumps out at me. On my skin though it dries down to a really nice amber and rose fragrance but it's just so weak on my skin which is a shame. If this had a bit more oomph on me I would really like it!

[melrose]

In imp, and on skin, wet: Super sweet. Not my thing at all.

 

Near drydown: How can a scent be so sweet and so fresh at the same time? Beth is truly amazing.

 

Middle drydown: Uh-oh. There's an aquatic note that's making me a leetle sick. Now it's getting worse - there's an undercurrent of rancid mop water.

 

Far drydown: softly sweet. It's okay but nothing special.

 

Gross with my skin chemistry.

[maika]

In the imp...orchid, rose and amber. Divine!

 

Wet on me...Amber and magnolia. This is beautiful. My fingers are crossed that this doesn't morph weirdly on me, because right now, this is beautiful!

 

Drydown...This is beautiful, it's really a magnolia perfume. While the roses and the jasmine and the amber give it a twist, none of them are overpowering the magnolia - which is wonderful, because my skin generally amps jasmine to the point I can't smell anything else. This is devestatingly sexy...I feel an overwhelming need to go play the vamp with someone...am going to need this one in a big bottle for big events!

[crebbsgirl]

Honestly, this is the only scent that confuses me. One day I wear it and it's a lush wondrous experience of jasmine and magnolia and amber. One day I wear it and it turns all room-deodorizer-floral on me. This is the only scent I've had such passionate reactions to. I wore it to a dinner at an Indian restaurant and a guy I was chatting with told me it was intoxicating and exotic. That same night someone else asked if I had been cleaning the carpets? So weird. I'll keep this around, but it's always a guessing game when I wear it.