Regan

[Shollin]

Regan, from Illyria:

A deceptively sweet orchid vanille with a faint trace of stephanotis.

 

First sniff: This one, I like. It’s a fresh, warm-breezy fruity-floral that feels like a young woman’s breathless laughter.

 

Wearing: Oh! There’s the vanilla. (And yes, it really is an “Oh!” moment – I didn’t smell vanilla in the vial at all, then it touched my skin and exploded.) Mmmmm. Tiny but powerful flecks of vanilla seeds sprinkled into the centre of a sweet purple flower. It stuck around throughout work and by the end of the night was a quiet, golden vanilla scent, warm rather than sweet. I LOVE IT.

[jj_j]

Regan comes out of the vial and onto my skin with a sweet, faintly powdery, and almost spiced vanilla that's vaguely familiar and completely enchanting.

 

The vanilla isn't the same vanilla that's in Snake Oil and some of the other blends; this is a more tropical scent with less of the edible sweetness. I'm not familiar with the scent of stephanotis, although I'd guess it's what's providing the faint powdery crispness underneath it all; the orchid is an arching stem absolutely burdened with purple blooms, sweetening the brown velvet of a fistful of vanilla beans with delicate strength and a juicy tone that's not fruity.

 

Regan's beautiful in the manner of a woman who's intriguing, attractive, and just different enough from the usual crowd to stand out a bit, but doesn't realize it - which makes her even more attractive.

 

It'll be a big bottle of this one for me.

[Nadirah]

This is Beautiful, out of the imps I've tried so far this one is my favorite. It has a gentle strength to it. I thought it had gardenia in it, that must be the stephanotis, I love the smell of orchid and this oil is just brilliant. Definatly worth a try.

[Astarte]

This is one half vanilla (not cloying or sugar vanilla) and one half orchid I presume. On me Regan isnt so much spicy as powdery/floral vanilla sweetness. As it dries, the vanilla warms the flower gently. Its wonderful to find a vanilla which isnt tipping towards the gourment side, as the majority seem to be.

 

To me this is sweetness personified with a gentle core, quietly watching, swirling a brandy glass, half smiling over events going her way.

[minilux]

Wow, this one really took me by surprise. I am not a fan of sweet scents, but I got this as an extra imp and I always try every imp because with BPAL you just never know. Anyway, I tried it and immediately thought it was too sweet, but then as time went on I found myself unable to stop sniffing my arm. It's not too sweet at all, it's really quite amazing.

[summer]

I find this to be a very baby-like, powdery vanilla scent. It reminds me of Stila's Creme Bouquet or B Never's Keep It Fluffy.

 

I normally enjoy sweet scents, but this one is so powdery and so very young smelling that I just don't think it's for me. It would be a beautiful scent for a baby shampoo, but it seems wrong for a grown woman.

 

(Thanks, however, to JazzieCazzie for sending it my way! )

 

. . . . . . . . . .

 

Edited to add: Ok. I've finally found the right mood for this -- vulnerable, weepy, and a little bit nervous. Regan was the PERFECT ANTIDOTE (or perhaps compliment??) to this feeling. It's not overpowering or intimidating. Rather, it's light, sweet, and comforting. (A very light, dry fruity/floral scent that becomes sweeter and more powdery with wear.) I'm so glad I didn't get rid of this one or swap it away after only one wear. It just goes to show that something may not suit you when you're feeling strong and brassy, but it may be just the thing you want when you're feeling a bit more fragile. I may have to get another imp of this, as wouldn't you know that now that I've decided I like it, I managed to spill 3/4 of it all over my dresser.

Edited July 25, 2004 by summer

[RogueFeenix]

I got this as an extra imp.

A deceptively sweet orchid vanilla with a faint trace of stephanotis

 

 

In the bottle: Spiced Sweetness, with a very faint hint of vanilla.

 

First on, Wet: Smells almost smoky. Something I know, very familiar.

 

Dry: the Smokiness is in the background and it almost smells like Queen mab to my nose, but sweeter.

 

After about 10 mins This smells like a smoky vanllia version of Queen Mab to my nose. I like it, I will mostly use the imp up but not really me.

[allamanda]

Wonderful sweet fragrance as soon as this is applied. A gorgeous combination of Vanilla and Stephanotis.

 

This barely changes from wet to dry-down, heady and stunning from start to finish.

 

I’m in love

[Emu Nymph]

Moonmouse lent me this sent to try and I'm not sure if I want to give it back. (But I wll)

 

In the bottel: it's floral sweet. It smells familiar but I can't places it. But very lovely.

 

Wet: On it smells just like in the bottel but a lot stronger.

 

As is drys the vanille takes the front seat and the flowers take a back seat. It's so lovely. I will have to get a 5ml because it's sp strong on me I'll only need a little bit. But it's so good.

[Ina Garten Davita]

First Impression: Joy of joys! Another fresh golden honey sweet floral.

 

Second Impression: I'm in love. It's warm and sweet and fresh at the same time. Think Tiger Lily and Pele. I actually think I like this better than Tiger Lily. How a scent can be bold and delicate at the same time, I don't know. But this is. It has fantastic staying power in my hair. I applied nearly 8 hours ago and it still wafting around my head like a sweet floral halo.

 

Final Analysis: Another exquisite scent from our Lab Goddess. It's sweet, playful, girlie and just a touch sexy.

[Lorencita]

I wore this to work the other day... I got soooo many compliments, everyone was asking me where they could get it. Even husbands wanted their wives to smell like this. It's a nice soft blend of sandlewood, I also smell vanilla in there, with some other spices that I have no idea of! All in all, this is great... I will order a bottle when my imp runs out! (which will probably be soon!)

[Lady_Ell]

Now, I don't know what orchids or stephanotis smell like, but I do know that this is beautiful. Let me just state for the record that aside from carnation, florals seem to DESPISE me and turn chemical and nasty. This is the only floral that didn't do so. It is a light powdery floral and vanilla mix that just seems so... pretty.

 

I'm not usually a femmy girl but this makes me feel like wearing skirts with lace on them or something.

 

Delightful!

[Donnababe]

First Sniff

 

Pure sugar.

 

Drydown

 

Rich vanilla with an occasional powdery floral. At the moment this is far too sweet for me.

 

After a While

 

After two hours or so this warms up a lot on my skin. It's not quite so sweet yet I can still catch a wisp of the heady orchid. Much better.

 

Final Verdict

 

Once this has mellowed this is beautiful. I need to try again before I decide on a 5ml. Fingers crossed.....

[TygherRayn]

In the bottle: Sweet, bright, and almost a little too cloying. I don't relly note the vanilla, but it might just be that well blended. It's smooth, and bright, and cheerful. It's unlike what I tend to look for in a scent and yet .. I like it all the more for that cheerfulness.

 

Wet: Somewhat powdery, but not like 'Ick, where's tne baby powder' powdery. This is a soft powder-puff sitting on a young-woman's vanity table. Mmm. Warm vanilla candles are burning there, lighting the room as she gets ready for a dinner date with a suitor.

 

Wearing: Beautiful. Simply and amazingly beautiful. I'll for certain keep an imp around .. and may go for a bottle when spring rolls around again .. this would be fabulous for the spring.

[nevermore]

I trade for this one, solely based on all the other lovely reviews, and I’m very please I did. Regan is really not my usual taste in perfume (which generally runs to spicy or incense-y), but I’m really enjoying it as a lighter summer perfume. It’s floral in the vial, but rather. Once it hits my skin though, the vanilla comes out some, but the orchid stays prominent. It’s gorgeous.

 

It seems that orchids are one of the few florals that actually work on me (violets are nice too, but many florals just turn to nondescript department store perfumes). The orchid in Regan, Queen Mab, and Goneril really agrees with my body chemistry. I shall have to try some more of the orchid blends, since they seem to work so well on me.

[autumn24]

The gorgeous exotic waxiness of an orchid, blended perfectly with warm vanilla sugar. Sweet and creamy.

[Nepthys]

In the bottle this smelled too sweet and childish for me. But on it began with the floral note dominating, and then dried down to a vanilla baby powder smell - yet there was a lift of sophistication that saved it from being too cloying. This is a very pretty scent and though I sometimes don't feel comfortable in ultra-feminine perfumes, this is a great light summer scent.

[tart]

Regan is, unfortunately, not all that I hoped and dreamed it would be.

 

When I first apply it -- orchid! Thank goodness, my favorite scent shines through. As it dries, however, the stephanotis comes through stronger, balancing the orchid and vanilla. (Or at least I assume it's the stephanotis...) It's not bad. Quite a nice blend actually for someone looking for a slightly sweetened floral. But for someone like me who wanted a super sweet floral, my body chemistry just won't have it.

 

Maybe I'm crazy, but this smells to me like if Queen Mab and Ophelia had a love child.

 

I'll keep trying this one before I make a final decision as orchid and vanilla is theoretically the be-all, end-all of fragrances for me.

[Dolly Dimple]

Ah, now this is gorgeous. A real surprise, too, because when it first went on, it smelled very similar to Queen Mab, which was just too overwhelmingly FLOWERS!!! for me. But after half an hour, the vanilla started to creep out from underneath and warm the flowers a little. It's much sweeter and stronger than I would normally wear, but there's something delicious that keeps drawing my nose to wrist. If any scent can convince me that these heady florals can work for me, it's this one.

[Spanglemaker]

Regan:

 

Oooh..I really like this! Sweet vanilla with a little bit of a heady floral mingled together perfectly. Very feminine.

[sarahj]

Regan

 

in vial: sugary sweet orchids

 

wet: orchids and sugary vanilla

 

dry: the vanilla mellows as this dries and creates a wonderful combination of not-too-sweet vanilla and orchids

 

2 hours later: unfortunately this has morphed into a plastic-y vanilla scent...not pleasant at all.

 

I will give Regan one more try sometime in the future before I decide to swap it away.

 

ETA: Unfortunately, I tried this again and it still morphed into a plastic-y scent. I think I will have to swap this one away.

Edited December 14, 2004 by sarahj

[Eris]

I was hesitant to try this one since I loathe Regan in _King Lear_so much, but the promise of vanilla was too strong.

 

This definitely lives up to the description about being deceptively sweet with a harsh core. The vanilla is a real dry, almost cold vanilla with no warmth, and it does indeed envelope a dark, almost bitter floral. The vanilla is thick--like it has the consistency of cotton candy but little of that sugariness. I can pick out the orchid, but it's deepened a bit by what must be the stephanotis. There is some sweetness to this scent but not a whole lot.

 

All in all, it is a very intriguing scent. It's not one I'd wear to feel calm or to feel sexy, but if you're ever in an odd, introspective kind of mood, then this is right on.

[kimberlygem]

Oh my! This is lovely. I can't stop sniffing my wrist. This is a soft floral with a not too sweet vanilla undertone that is simply gorgeous. This scent isn't overtly sexy at all but seductive in the sheer divine way it will make you smell. I think I may need a big bottle of this. Definately a keeper.

 

 

 

Kimberly

[malanna]

I bought this, because I love the orchids in Queen Mab. Upon application. the orchids in Queen Mab, YES! In less than half an hour, the vanilla comes out. After the vanilla is fully out, it gets a bit...funky. I can tell it's vanilla, but the vanilla seems rather grainy to me, and not rich and creamy. The funky vanilla blended with the floral doesn't seem to melded together very well. It may just be that the vanilla seems that way because of the way it blends with the floral. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike the scent, and I think I like it, in a weird way, but the "funkiness" makes me only like it just a tiny bit.

[Surreal]

This smells very flowery in the bottle to me with a tad of sharpness behind it.

 

When I first applied it, it smelled like a huge bouquet of smoky orchids.

 

After an hour, the vanilla swirled up to blend with the orchids into a sultry scent.

 

I love this one and it smells so good on me.