Pulcinella & Teresina

[zillah37]

Your eyes are drawn to a gilded miniature stage whose sign reads: "All Praises to the Lord of Misrule!" Upon the platform, a sneering wooden jester waltzes with a hollow-eyed and bleeding wooden maiden, while a wooden devil floats above them.

Labdanum, cedar, teak and red rose.

In the bottle: I get the cedar and red rose but there's something sour behind it. I'm not sure what that is. There's definitely labdanum in there, but that doesn't smell sour to me.

On my skin: It's a very sharp wood scent with a hint of rose, not a heavy rose at all. It's barely there unless I stick my wrist against my nose. It's mostly woods with that sour scent still playing in the background.

Final verdict: This is a really pretty wood scent, but whatever it is that's turning it sour is turning me off. I might try it on the boy though. He does well with wood scents and I think the rose would add just enough softness to it to make it smell really amazing on him.

[portalkat]

The minute I saw the scent description, I knew that I had to order this. The strongest note is the resiny smell of the labdanum, then the wood notes. There is a sharp note and it might be the resins combined with the cedar. The rose is faintly in the background which is a pleasant surprise to me as my skin tends to amp up florals. The sweetness of the rose is actually combining nicely with the resins and just adds a sort of incense note to this blend.

 

This is so beautiful and I can see myself hoarding bottles and bottles of this

[sarada]

Teak, teak, teak!

 

That's me, the insane person running around the room screaming "Teak!" every time a scent comes up that includes it. I LOVE teak. I covet these expensive $25 teakwood candles every time I see them in a boutique shop but I never buy one because that's a lot of money for a candle. Um, although I spent $300 on perfume this month.

 

Aaaaaaanyway. I love teak. I love cedar. I love rose when it is combined with a wood, incense, resin or smoke scent. I guess I probably like labdanum. Though the slightly sour scent that starts off this blend might be labdanum -- it's rather strong and a little bitter, but quickly burns off on my skin.

 

This becomes a gorgeous, shining, polished teakwood on my skin, smouldering with darkest, resiny smoke and the blackened petals of a perfect, dried red rose.

 

A bit like Parlement of Foules in a way, but with dark smoky polished wood instead of sweet resin. Oh dear lord this is gorgeous. Smoky dark woody resiny rose. Oh yes. Bring hither the haunted bloody marionettes, this is just what I was hoping for.

[Diana]

In the bottle: sharp wood notes.

 

Wet: I guess this is mostly labdanum I'm getting right now; it's dark and bitter smelling. Just a touch of rose is in the background.

 

Drydown: bitter wood notes. The bitterness mellows out, and the woods soften. The rose is really just a supporting role, and it's a nice, fragrant red rose; nothing waxy or cloying. This is really pretty & elegant.

[shelldoo]

in the bottle: wood, more teak then cedar.

 

wet: labdanum, and woods. this is like fresh fallen trees, but not at all sharp, actually it is rather soft

 

as it dries, it is teak wood, and a soft rose, to me it is the same rose in black rose. soft, velvety, smooth, deep. like a rose preserved in an ornate teak box. simply gorgeous.

[LiberAmoris]

I'm not sure I'm in teak or cedar's prime demographic, because wood notes are not generally my favorite, but I really wanted to try Pulcinella & Teresina for the rose. I cannot resist a rose blend.

 

In the bottle and first applied to my skin, there's an acrid, bitter, almost pickley and briny note. I'm thinking it might be the labdanum, since I believe I recall smelling the same note in both Magdalene and Hymn. Whatever it is, it's strong. It merges with the cedar and teak to smell like tangy fresh-cut red wood. It does fade slightly as it dries, but it remains dominant. The red rose is in the background, and serves to kind of scallop the edges of the blend a bit in red.

 

Overall, this smells a bit like church incense to me. It's far too strong for me to wear on my skin, but would be incredible in my oil burner, so I think that's where I will happily use it.

[lorajc]

This one's another surprise winner in the series for me. I love this. It's nice and strong (just the way I like my BPAL). A little will go a long way. This is resinous and slightly rosey and sexy as hell!!! The rose is not dominating the scent which is a good thing (does come out a bit more on the drydown), as I usually can't wear rose blends. Again.......great job Beth. I'll be wearing this a lot.

Edited September 7, 2006 by lorajc

[blueroses]

I ordered this one because I was surprised to be a fan of Parlement of Foules. I'm not usually into rose perfumes, and resins can overpower me, but I liked that one and this sounded similar.

 

In the bottle: Roses and wood. And something else that is not cedar, so I'm guessing it's the labdanum.

 

On: Similar to Parlement of Foules, but more woody. I don't get much cedar at all, but I am getting labdanum. This is the first perfume I've tried with that note, and I don't think I like it. It smells like musk or leather to me. But if you like that, and you liked Parlement of Foules, you'll love this.

[Tramp]

Cedar and resins with the barest hint of rose.

 

This is a warm, woody scent that is surprisingly addictive. Not something I would ever have thougth about as a perfume but it smells GOOD. This reminds me of the smell of my mothers hope chest - all cedar and and sweet herbs. I just keep huffing my arm.

[zenvodunista]

Reason #1056789 to always Trust the Lab:

 

Cedar. Cedar is my nemisis. You know how some people rant about civet, and others about jasmine? I rant about Cedar. Anything with Cedar turns - at best - to woodshavings on me, and at worst, old man Body Odor. And not the kind we love. The bad kind. I might not smell it in the bottle, but sure as heck, it's there on my skin - ruining everything. We hates the cedar, we does.

 

But, I ordered the whole shebang for the Carnival (though I won't be able to next time, likely -- stupid money ) and figured this would be my personal Shill -- the one scent I'd never be able to rid myself of and the one that would be worst on me.

 

I was wrong. Totally and utterly wrong.

 

P&T is the antique box that you found when you moved into the gothic mansion in your tiny hometown. When you opened it you found it contained roses made of resin.

 

That's P&T. At first I thought, "It works on my skin but I'll probably use it as room scent." Now, an hour later, I think I'll wear it too. It's really gorgeous. IT's the kind of scent I wish I could wear but never can. It's the kind of scent I never thought I'd like. I'm really blown over. And I keep wondering what it would be like layered with Melisande.

 

A real work of art. I am totally blown away and surprised.

 

 

n.

Edited September 6, 2006 by zenvodunista

[Kittyflop]

Antique, dry, dusty wood. The rose is not overpowering, it's very subtle, which is good for me. This is beautiful in a haunted, dark, forgotten way. Stays very close to the skin.

[GypsyRoseRed]

Hah. Hate woodsy notes. Hate roses. Love Pulcinella & Teresina. On me, these notes blend together until they smell like a dark, vaguely spicy rose incense.. It's really lovely.

[The_Merf]

In the bottle: Cedar and rose. I'm not sure if I have really done a lot of scents with red roses (I seem drawn more to the white roses and tea roses), but it's very bold and strong.

 

Wet: The wet stage is very similar to the scent in the bottle. I'm having a hard time coming up with words to describe the combination. It's a strange mixture of notes that are traditionally masculine (i.e., the resins) and the rose scent, which is frequently considered the classic feminine staple--though this is a strong rose, not at all "old lady" or "perfumey."

 

Drydown and wear: I see where people are getting the incense-y smell on drydown. I do suppose it smells like rosey incense (but this scent is nothing like Rose Cross, IMO). As the scent dries down, the rose is actually vanishing on my skin, which tends to amp resins. I wonder if the cedar note in this is similar to the one in Midnight Mass, since it is actually starting to smell more and more like that scent as it dries down. I wish the rose would remain stronger, as it added a real interesting twist to the blend. The rose is very, very faint at the end.

[Bagfish]

Pulcinella and Teresina is a bit of a "grower". The oil itself is dark and sticky in texture, after an hour my skin still feels tacky where I applied it. On wet, the labdanum shouts its bitter scent above everything else in the blend and I thought it wasn't for me, but this has dried down to a hot woody, almost church incense scent with a breath of rose hanging in the background.

 

I like it, but its probably a bit too heavy for me to wear often. I will definitely keep the decant, but probably won't go for a bottle, although this may very well be one of those that I keep reaching for and end up getting a bottle.

 

This reminds me quite a lot of Norma Kamali's "Incense" perfume

[dierne]

In the bottle - Lighly sweetened wood. A little bit sickly, like over sugared tea. Please say this is going to morph ...

 

Wet on skin - Getting, darker smokier scents now. Still wood but with burned sugar.

 

Dry on skin - Definitely woody but that disturbing sweetness is still there. I'm not at all sure I like this one

 

Later - Very disturbing undrtones of rotting wood here No fair I wanted to like this one!

[hangingfire]

In the bottle: ...yep, that's teak, cedar, rose, and labdanum, in more or less that order.

 

On, wet: The labdanum note is stronger, with the teak providing a spicy, sharp backdrop. The rose is present but not strong; it mellows out the sharper wood-resin notes nicely.

 

Drydown: Mostly it's about the labdanum now. The other elements fade or blend to add a bit of complexity to the overall labdanum-ness of the blend. Woody, smoky, a little sharp. It's like All Saints' evil sibling.

[yeahbutnobut]

Pulcinella and Teresina

 

In the imp: pickled wood! No, really. It's not bad though-smells like cedar and labdanum when I smell it again.

Wet on skin: the woody notes come out even more now, as does the red rose.

Dry on skin: what a fascinating scent. The impression I get is of polished wood. But the polish used is a fragrant, amber like resin, the labdanum. This smells like a wooden cedar box which is used to hold incense and resins, it's both a very exotic scent reminiscent of Middle Eastern or Indian amber-resin perfumes or loose incense, and also reminds me of church incense. Dark, alluring and intense.

After a while: what does this remind me of? I can't think but this really does remind me of something I've smelt before. I'm pretty sure it was a type of loose incense, all sticky and resinous and aromatic, or the smell of a shop that sells trinkets from around the world, or maybe it was something I smelt in Morocco or Tunisia? Either way, this scent is amazing, very evocative, full of mystery…it's a woody labdanum scent but I swear I get things like frankincense, amber, myrrh, sandalwood and spices popping up here and there. I'm also reminded of Covent Garden, but that could simply be due to the Punch and Judy associations (I remember seeing the puppets there as a child) but maybe also because it reminds me of something from the incense stall there, or a perfume I smelt there once?

The drydown after a few hours smells very much like a cross between an ancient cedar chest, church incense (it's very reminiscent of myrrh) and the darkest, deepest amber attar, with a scattering of dry rose petals.

Verdict: imagine puppets made from the most fragrant woods, painted with vivid colours, and polished with a varnish made from aromatic resins. That is what I get here-a deep, rich, powerful and also very exotic fragrance. It's intense and mysterious and bewitching, filled with memories of times long gone and distant places. The woods are perfect-they don't smell too masculine, the rose is lovely but not too showy, and the labdanum is amazing-it smells like aged amber, viscous and dark, incredibly resinous with a feel of incense to it. This scent is again like nothing I've smelt from BPAL and another example of a CD scent that has wowed me. Another one to get in bottle form-I like what Zenvodunista suggested about layering this with Melisande, I think pairing the puppets with their mistress seems like a very good idea…

Emoticon rating:

If you like this, try: Thanatos, Rose Cross, Magdalene, All Saints

Edited September 28, 2006 by yeahbutnobut

[Shannihilation]

In the bottle this is all smokey roses. It's very incensey. I wasn't too sure about this when I smelled it in the bottle.

 

I've had it on for about an hour now (I try to wait that long before I do a "dry" review) and it's still a smokey rose scent. It's nice. Not too strong but it has a nice throw I think. The rose is very pretty and I love the way it winds in and out of the woods and smoke. I think this one just might be a keeper. It's unusual but appealing.

[nineveh]

In the bottle, this reminds me of Rakshasa, which I used to really like until the rose got too fruity-smelling for me.

 

First on, this is a lot of dry wood with just a faint bit of rose in the background. The woods are a little sharp, and something's threatening to go pickly on me.

 

It doesn't change much as it dries. This is rich and dark, but also kind of harsh-smelling. This is like a much darker version of Parlement of Foules.

 

Ultimately, I like it, and I imagine that it will become better with age.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

Did someone say the magic words "red rose"? Sign me up for this Carnaval ride! Although this one has the most cumbersome name of the lot, I must say; quite the mouthful there. I may just refer to it as "The Deranged Poppets", which sounds way creepier anyway. Said poppets' oil is a rich red-brown color in the vial, rather like Vamp nail polish (love!). Although I can see the resemblance to Parlement of Foules, I do believe this is unique among BPALs--sort of like Rose Red crossed with Cathedral, though the resin and wood undertones create a warmth and depth reminiscent of Hearth. It evokes a rich, dark mahogany antique table with a vase of fresh roses sitting on it. This would not be at all too feminine for a guy. In fact, despite the rose, I think it's not quite feminine *enough* for me. With a zillion rose scents already, I can pass on this, but I'm glad to have tried it.

[Nycorson]

In the bottle: strong woodsy tones, I was hopeful, I like cedar.

 

Wet: different, woody, but something else.

 

Dry: there is something here that is making me pull back. I get the hints of cedar that are delicous, but there is something here that is almost chemically overpowering.. maybe it is my nemesis rose, but something...

 

Overall: I might have to wash this off, of course theone I like the least is the one with the best staying power so far, but I wish I knew what is giving this almost ferment smell to this..

 

~sighs~ away it goes, this will be the only time I wear it.

 

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

we loveses the Teak.

we hateses the Cedar.

we go either way with Roses and Labdanum.

 

even just from sniffing the outside of this bottle, i knew it was gonna be AWFUL...

 

cedar mixed with cedar with a little cedar and a bit of Labdanum, a rose petal (one, yes) and a few Teak shavings.

and some cedar oil, and the dust from a hamster.

 

i got some on my fingers, accidentally, from handling the bottle and it stayed and stayed and stayed for at least eight hours, and i smelled like rotting wood.

 

puppets are scary anyway.

[Blood onmy hands]

Pulcinella and Teresina was the Carnaval scent that I was most excited about. Which figures, because it appears to be the most unpopular one . I am always the odd one out. I heaved a sigh of relief when I realized that it was not the leaky bottle in my order.

 

I love puppets. My dad used to put on the most brilliant puppet shows for me when I was little (he passed away when I was 12), and he made them seem so lifelike and funny. They always make me smile and, no matter how creepy they are, I find them adorable. The artwork for Pulcinella and Teresina is my favorite BPAL label ever. What wonderfully evil little marionettes

 

In the bottle, this reminds me so strongly of one of my favorite rose blends ever: Parlement of Foules. But this is much more intense than Parlement. Deeper and richer. The notes in this have me really worried though. BPAL's cedar goes insanely funky and smoky on my skin, and labdanum tends to smell like baby powder on me. I *so* want this to work on me though. I want to love this more than I've ever wanted to love a BPAL blend...

 

On me... this is another wonderful BPAL rose blend and unique enough to stand out from the others as well.

 

This is a perfect blend of peppered woods, goldeny sweet resins, and full red rose on me. No one note is overpowering the other, but it has awesome throw and keeps wafting around me in the most sensual sort of way. I'm not getting any funky cedar or baby powder.

 

After an hour or so, the woods have calmed and headed to the background (but are still very much present and lovely). Now it's mostly soft rose and a sweet, almost syrupy resin.

 

I love everything about Pulcinella and Teresina. It's going on my top 10 list for LE blends, and I'll definitely snag a few more bottles before it disappears

[maijasu]

I almost didn't even order a decant of Pulcinella and Teresina, so scared am I of cedar and rose. But this is a beautiful scent! The deep woods and resins keep the rose from turning powdery or soapy, and the rose adds a delicacy to the woods, keeping them from turning too masculine. This is why I'm on a mission to try so many BPAL scents--occasionally they are really pleasantly surprising! I don't know if I'll be getting a bottle or not, but will definitely consider it after some more testing.

[midnight_aeval]

Ok, I'm not kidding when I say that this blend smells like dill pickles on me

 

Comforting...pickles. My older sister and I were dill pickle fanatics and this reminds me very much of my younger days. It's not a blend I see myself wearing.. my nose somehow interprets these scents so strangely.. or maybe it's just my chemistry!

 

I did notice that the pickle scent went away on the drydown and it was more of the wood/rose scent that others have described. Quite beautiful actually! I might contemplate ordering this one