Xanthe, The Weeping Clown

[wintersmelody]

Guava, orange peel, white pepper, spun sugar and apple blossom.

I love this blend so much! At first sniff it's almost exclusively bubble gum, but then the pepper makes a quick cameo nothing more. It's very much the same when on, perhaps a bit more fruity than just in the bottle. I think my half bottle will not last long!

[rayvn1]

Finally, finally, finally! I've been trying to track down a decant of this forever! Lots of sugar and light fruitiness to this. It started going a bit synthetic/plastic on me after awhile. It was at its best a few hours after application where it was a light cloud of spun sugar and a hint of apple blossom (although I think that may be the note that made it go plastic to begin with...) I might try mixing this with Sugar Moon to see what happens. Pretty scent and I'm going to keep on trying to get it to work on my skin!

[Andrea912]

What the deuce? This is straight bubble gum on me; I can't tell if its juicy fruit or that pink shredded Big Chew, but its gross. It hates me!What the deuce? This is straight bubble gum on me; I can't tell if its juicy fruit or that pink shredded Big Chew, but its gross. It hates me!

[NoinHime]

In the bottle this smells exactly like... bubble gum?

 

Wet on me... more bubble gum...

 

Once it has dried I can smell more of the guava. Still kind of bubblegum but the individual fruity notes are starting to come out and the orange peel and white pepper give it a not so sweet quality. Still mostly smell like bubble gum though... not for me.

 

 

[Ravenclaw79]

Fruity and sweet, with a brief whiff of floral something that jumps out and then dissipates. It's an almost punch-y scent, like Spinning Multicolored Metallic Pinwheel if you took out the red/cherry-ish part and put in orange to make an orange punch. Nice. I have a feeling this will be one I don't think I need a bottle of now, but when the Carnival finally comes down, I'll order one.

[reynardine]

In bottle: Sort of a thick fruity scent

 

Wet: Very fruity (the guava, I think?), with a touch of orange and sugar

 

Drydown: The apple blossom is starting to come out now, giving this a lovely fruit/floral touch. All of this is really nicely blended.

 

Later: This is really a nice scent! Light and stays close to the skin, but a lovely blend. I have a partial bottle that I got in a swap, but may have to put this on the bottle list for later when it is running low!

 

[gingiemay]

In the bottle this is a really thick and sweet bubble gum... really Bubble Yumm-y. On my skin, however, it goes rather sour (I think this is the white pepper and apple blossom) and is just sort of like sour bubble gum in a bad way. Swaps!

[Ishianti]

This is a deliciously juicy scent, sweet yet has a bite from the pepper. I get mostly that zippy orange peel and apple blossom, not as much guava as I was hoping for though. There's a summery feel to it, something that would be great to wear in hot weather.

[kikithepirate]

Ooh, I would definitely love a bottle of this. It's a perfect girly blend of fruity and flowery and the tiniest bit of spice. Sugar and spice and everything nice! Perfectly feminine.

[fireweaver]

In bottle- juicy fruit gum

On skin- juicy fruit gum.

As it dries, I get a bit more spice and the sugary sweetness dies down to let the fruitiness come forward.

I really like this

[Lysi]

My first thought when I sniffed my decant was "Apple!" and then "something sweet!" I adore sweet-smelling stuff so I swiped some on. On my skin, this is a sweet citrus scent...not quite orange bubble gum, but almost. No apple at all. It seems like there's a flowery something that keeps trying to peek through, but then it goes back to that sweet orangeness. It is light and bright and has minimal throw, but that's okay because I can totally see myself slathering this one.

 

I have GOT to get a bottle of this!

[Deceitfuldescender]

Hrmmm. Upon dry down I seem to only get guava... maybe a hint of pepper. I'm trying to find sugar, orange or apple blossom but none of it appears on me :/. I think the orange may lend a slight bitterness because all I'm getting is a semi-powdery scent of something that SEEMS like it should be juicy and is just a little astringent and bitter. Alas.

[angelamaria]

In bottle: woo, sweet and sugary fruits! This is definitely sweet, but not cloying, or foody, or boozy. Very prettily fruity apples and oranges and guavas--the apples and guavas are very well blended, sometimes I think it's a guava and sometimes I think it's an apple.

 

Wet on skin: basically the same as the bottle smell, but a bit muskier, with a few touches of candy-sweetness. Sometimes it also feels like a slightly powdery, dusty version of the bottle smell--but it smells great. Sweet, fruity, and now a bit more on the foody side than before--probable the pepper is making it feel a bit like gum.

 

Dry: spicy-sweet apples. Musky, and it's both dark and light at the same time--well, what do you expect, it's a weeping clown. It's probably nearer to a summer scent than anything, but it's not too high on that spectrum, I can easily see wearing this whatever season.

 

Verdict: absolutely lovely scent, I'm glad that this worked for me! (After all, I bought a bottle...lol.) It's possible the fresh version may be different, but as it is, this is a beautiful blend.

[Honey]

This is really.. like guava candy. Very sweet and frizzy.

A cute scent by itself, but.. not really anything I'd want to wear as a perfume. Maybe as a uplifting shampoo.

[brilliantcat]

In the bottle: Sweet and bubble-gummy.

 

Immediately after application: The pepper is showing up a tad, but it's still sweet with a smidge of the bubblegum vibe. I can differentiate the guava, orange, and apple now though. It's lovely and I hope it stays so, this would be a great one to share with Rowan.

 

Warming up: The pepper popped up to say hi and it's more fruity and less bubblegum. This will definitely be a shareable one.

 

Fading: Sweetly fruity with a touch of spice from the pepper.

 

Faded: Average throw, shortish wear.

 

Overall: A lovely blend, fruity, sugary, spicy, surprisingly complex. Nice for me and nice for Rowan as well. Double score!

 

Rating: 4/5.

[neuilly]

Definitely pepper! Otherwise there's sort of a swirl of different notes. It's warm, a bit fruity, and quite yummy. I don't think it's for me but I think it could make an excellent room scent. There's something about it that feels almost like a fall note but it has more juicy fruit elements. Very interesting!

[KawaiiKai]

In the bottle this is strong, sweet fruit. Bubble gum that goes straight to the back of the throat like the initial burst of flavor from Hubba Bubba or Bazooka Joe.

Wet on skin: the same as above. So much so that I thought I'd use this mixed in lotion for my kids. Yet after a few minutes, the bubble gum scent backed off a wee bit and seemed bubble gum-cotton candy. This stayed for the next couple of hours. Then I could detect apple blossom and eventually guava. Interestingly, the guava came more as an after thought on the inhale, just hitting the back of my nose.

Several hours later, I smelled soft, clean floral. This was, not unpleasantly, like a Kleenex tissue. Perhaps for the weeping clown to clean her face?

I think the bubble gum scent is the spicy orange peel mixed with spun sugar and apple blossom. I know from making candied orange peels they have a strong, spicy, yummy scent.

I like this one very much.

[welcometothefamily]

In the Bottle: Fruity bubblegum. Smells nice, but hints at becoming dangerously sweet.

 

Wet: Wow, juicy fruits bubble gum! Very much fruity bubblegum.

 

10 mins: Fruity with bubblegum lurking in the background.

 

Drydown: The pepper has come out and made the fruits a little spicy. Still the bubblegum hint in the background, and I'm getting a twist of...pineapple?

 

Verdict: I like it. Not too sure how often I'll wear it, but I like it.

 

3.5/5

[Aviatrix]

On me, the apple blossom is the strongest note, with a heavy undercurrent of sugar - yum! I get a little bit of a citrusy feel from it (orange peel, probably?), and I'm not sure what guava smells like, so I can't comment on that. It probably blends in with the apple blossom to give the scent a sweet, fruity vibe.

 

It isn't terribly powerful on my skin, and after a while I have to sniff really close to the skin to detect it at all, which is a shame, because it's a pretty little scent.

 

I enjoy sweet, sugary and fruity scents, and Xanthe is just that! Not a very complicated scent, but very fun and festive - perfect for a carnival! I would probably have gone for a bottle of it were it not for the fact that it fades so quickly on me.

[GoddesShel]

In the imp: Whoa!! Something very sharp and sour....

 

So I close the imp, and come read reviews and can't figure out where the sharp and sour came from, so time for a skin test....

 

On me - YUM! Whew, what a relief. Fruity with a hint of bite from the pepper, but only a hint (which is good, pepper notes scare me...) which keeps it from going over the top sweet.

 

As it dries, I get almost a fizzy feeling from it - maybe the guava? I do like this and probably will be getting a bottle when CD comes back.

[LizziesLuck]

This is the 2015 version

 

Wet: Super fruity, sweet and citrus.

 

Dry: This actually reminds me a lot of Jiggery Pokery, which I just tested as well. Fruity and whimsical and fun. However, this eventually goes a bit sharp, then powdery, then disappears, whereas J.P. stay beautiful and true, so I think I'll be passing on a bottle of Xanthe and getting one of J.P.

[izile]

2015:

 

In vial: super fruity and sweet, mostly guava and orange peel, and sugar sweetness

 

Wet: reminds me of a few of the butterfly blends, fruity and sweet, there's developing a little softness, guessing the apple blossom - not really getting the white pepper - but it isn't giving me a headache, which is a great win for something with a sugar note. It's not that super sugary, but very fruity/sweet

 

dry: candy, but not in a bad way. I think the guava is dominant, still not getting any white pepper, and the apple blossom has receded almost completely. Like orange candied guava. Won't need 5ml but will keep my decant!

[agirlnamedfury]

testing location: right inner wrist

 

in imp: Yum! Super fruity and bright. The other reviewers who say "bubblegum" are spot on, though it also seems very pineapple-y to me.

 

wet on skin: Very similar, it's like a tropical cocktail and I love it. Just a hint of pepper in the background adds complexity.

 

dry: This becomes a little bit more subtle but it's still just as delicious. I think this has the potential to be a new fave actually, as I don't have any full bottles that are really similar.

[dementia_divine]

In the decant: Lots of guava, some orange peel, and sugar... but mostly guava.

 

Wet: Sweet, juicy guava and spun sugar. Then, the orange peel note starts coming out more.

 

Dry: The spun sugar note comes out a lot more during the dry phase. I'm still getting a lot of guava from this, but it isn't as strong as it was previously. I can smell the white pepper and apple blossom, but they aren't main players. I have to inhale really deeply to smell those notes.

 

Verdict: I like this (especially the dry phase of the scent), so I'm going to hang onto my decant. However, I don't think that I will need a bottle of this, unless I end up going through it really quickly or it ages well.

[astarinel]

I love fruity drink scents, so this one is fairly up my alley.

 

I agree with the "tropical drink" vibe, but there's a little airy-quirkyness to this that I'm guessing comes from the spun sugar and apple blossom (a note I LOVE). Sweet, juicy, and fun. As it dries, the pepper comes out a bit more adding a little bit of bite to the scent. I'll definitely have to give this one more of a skin test to see how quickly I go through the decant; since we're moving into fall I may be less interested in smelling tropical drinks.