White Moon

[Pauline]

The chill winds and dark skies of November mark a time of reflection and release, and though the sting of grief is oft-times most painful during this portion of the year, the icy air brings clarity and eases the burden of suffering. These are the blossoms of loss and liberation, soothed by the calm, comforting scent of sandalwood : lilac, calla lily, wisteria, white sandalwood, moonflower, night musk, phlox, and violet.

Beautiful, quiet & understated white floral. Not the powdery kind of lilac like the SN. I joined a decant circle because someone said the description is very similar to Veil which is one of my faves. But upon receipt, not like Veil at all - that had a purple lilac and sandalwood was quite strong. This one is pure white with a strong throw of lilies.

To my surprise and utter delight, it smells almost dead on to my beloved Libra, which Beth discontinued before I was able to get a full sized bottle. So this will be my substitute.

[Faeried]

It's a very white floral when first applied, but sadly seems to go soapy on me during the dry down.

 

:-(

[Reedsong]

Oh, White Moon. Thy idea beauteous, thy shirt design exquisite, thy description perfect.

 

But I receivéd the bottle, sank to my knees, and cried, "Oh, my gods, why hast thou forsaken me?!?" For yea, verily, it smelleth familiar and soapy, and not the cleanliness of the angels but something more sinister...

 

But I did open my mind and heart, and applied the White to my wrists, radiant with hope that skin chemistry would purge the soapy revulsion from mine nostrils.

 

Then, a familiar fragrance did surround me, and I knew it at once for mine enemy:

 

Toilet Duck.

 

Out, foul fiend! Out of mine sanctuary! Thou shalt not join my imp box to pollute my other scents with thy washrooméd quackery!

 

Alas, White Moon hath failed me, or perhaps it was I who failéd the White.

[azhure]

In the bottle: Oh dear. At first whiff this one scares me - very overpowering florals. I seem to get something like jasmine from this - not sure which is the florals it actually is (or which combination of florals). I don't mind jasmine, I just have bad associations with the scent.

 

Wet: The almost-jasmine hangs around for a while. On the skin, this is nowhere near as overpowering as I had feared, for which I breathed a sigh of relief.

 

Drydown: This one gets gorgeous as it dries. The florals soften right down, becoming something that seems almost like the memory of flowers, and the sandalwood and musk come out a bit. It's a close skin scent, but I find myself catching whiffs of it from time to time. Very comforting to me somehow.

[impadua@aol.com]

Ahhh, This is the Moon for me,

Smells strong, sultry, drowsy, Gardenia-like in its richness.

Warms up on my skin...mmmmm...kind of like an evening in New Orleans Garden District pre-Katrina, sultry, feminine. Sandalwood just warms it up more.

Stays strong for hours, in a good way.

I keep catching a sniff as I move, or as a breeze passes.

Many compliments on this one.

Anyone who doesn't like their White Moon, send those orphans home to my Moon Box.......

[eviltemptressdq]

I smell the lily first... but the beauty of this scent is that the lily is so well blended

with the other notes that it isn't overpowering! Very lovely. It is nice to get to actually ENJOY a lily scent!

[noumenon]

This is a really beautiful white floral blend. I agree with the two reviewers in this thread who saw the similarity with Asphodel - I've got both on me right now, and the only difference is the saffron note in White Moon. Asphodel also has a little bit of green in it that White Moon doesn't have.

 

Without having both on my arm at the same time, however, I wouldn't really be able to tell the difference between them. Which is great, because Asphodel is always in the catalog even though White Moon has gone poof!

[theseagrows]

florals are hit and miss, some of the florals in here work well on me, others do not, but i should learn to stay away from calla lily, which my skin tends to amp. i like this one from far away, if i get a random whiff of it from my arm, but up close it makes me a bit nauseous. it smells too funereal on me and not in a good way. i think if the phlox and violet had come out more on me, i'd have liked it better.

[LiberAmoris]

White Moon is like a half-memory of lilacs, which happily is the most prominent note for me. I get muted lilacs, purple and true, with the other notes creating a white hum in the background, like the singing of a blurry, almost glassy bar of music. It's unabashedly floral but understated and restrained.

 

One of my bottles is going to be a gift for my mother, who also adores lilac. I hope she enjoys it as much as I do.

[for_the_nonce]

This is, basically, a warm version of Stardust to me. Very floral and perfume-y, but not too heady. Its a beautiful scent, but it doesn't have much throw or staying power. I'm undecided on this, but I think it may be worth slathering on.

[Spastik_Kitty]

In the bottle: White, fresh and clean

 

First on: Soft lilac, with a fresh foliage undertone

 

After a bit: The lilac is still there, but it's dancing hand in hand with the sandalwood and calla lilly.

 

A bit more: This fades rather quickly, but remains as a faint soft skin scent, a slightly floral sweet musk.

[GypsyRoseRed]

My 5ml is less creamy and ever so slightly soapy compared to the tester I tried at will call, but White Moon is still lovely. I get violets and white florals, with moderate wear length and moderate throw. Very delicate, pretty and feminine.

Edited November 23, 2006 by GypsyRoseRed

[edenssixthday]

White Moon - The first time I ever tried White Moon, I accidentally "slathered" it, and was instantly hit with a strong, adverse physical reaction to it -- headache and nausea. I washed it off immediately, but could still smell the oil on my skin, but in it's now-diluted form, it was much more pleasant. It's a powerful blend -- one of the strongest of all the lunar blends, in my opinion. When first applied, the dominant notes are the purple flowers -- lilac, wisteria and more subtly, violet. It should have been called "Purple Moon"! Upon drydown, the headiness of the lilac and wisteria begins to calm down significantly and the beautiful, sweet, rounded scent of the calla lily becomes noticeable and blends gorgeously with the other blends. The sandalwood isn't strong, but works to ground the scent. Overall, it's a really gorgeous blend. I am surprised it is released in the Autumn, be cause it seems to me to be very much a springtime blend. The staying power is striking for a lunar blend, since most fade on me very quickly. I applied this one last night before bed (I find it a comforting bed-time scent) and I could still smell faint traces of it on my skin in the morning.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: a smooth, white, powdery scent. very pretty.

on: all sorts of lovely, white, gorgeous flowers. wonderful stuff.

3 hours later: a soft, white, powdery floral.

5.5 hours later: a bit biting.

overall: this is nice, but borders on soapy for me.

[copyshopclerk]

In the bottle: An entire flower - stem and all. Something very green here, and almost, but not quite, the sharpness of jasmine. (Jasmine & I are not buddies!)

 

Wet: That jasmine-ish quality thankfully never came into fruition on my skin! Something reminds me a bit of lavender but I don't think that's in here.

 

Dry: As it dries, it turns very lilac on me, reminding me of the lilac in Blood Countess which I like. Unfortunately, it wasn't one I could see myself using an entire bottle, so I passed it along!

[Meg]

In the bottle: Violet and wisteria, as well as sandalwood and musk.

 

Wet: Moonflower and very realistic lilac. I love this stage. It tends towards wisteria and violet as it dries.

 

Drydown: Still moonflower, and the lilac has taken a bit of a shrill edge. There's something very deep and soothing here, violet and wisteria, on a quiet base of sandalwood. Soon, violet dominates the blend completely. It's dusty from the moonflower that always gets powdery on me.

 

Overall: A quiet floral blend, certainly apt for the soothing release of grief. It's melancholic but subdued, somehow modest and very graceful. It makes me think of discreet nocturnal flowers, dark purple and white. I think it's a must to enjoy florals, particularly violet and moonflower, to enjoy this blend. This is a very calm and soothing blend, but not one that I would wear myself. I bought it for my mother, as she adores violet, and it was a huge success.

[ktesedale]

Huh, I'm not much of a floral fan (there are only a few that I really like), but I'm surprised at how much I like White Moon! It's a sweet and light floral, not heavy or heady like some of the others. There's a faint touch of greenery in there, too.

 

When it's wet, it smells powdery and a little bitter, but when it dries the sweetness comes out.

 

I'm not sure I'd ever wear this, at least day-to-day - but I could easily see wearing this to a posh play or a funeral - something you get dressed up for, but is serious. Since I don't go to those sorts of things often, I think White Moon will have to find another owner. I'm glad I got to try it, though, and I love the label (and matching t-shirt, which I got!) of it.

[emzebel]

Really beautiful flowers, none of which, other than the lily and the sandalwood (which is not a flower, but just looking at the notes), are quite my speed. Still, this is a beautiful, wearable blend, but not one I'm broken up over skipping.

[mspixieears]

Beautiful, sensual floral – not too heady but excellent throw, and nice and strong when wet. Ylang ylang, possibly a hint of jasmine? Loving being surrounded by this scent – perfect for spring or summer. Reminds me of rained-on florals and how heady a garden can get when it’s all lush from the rain. Unfortunately the drydown is not really very remarkable, it’s very perfumey. I still think this is worth keeping.

[Violaine]

Wow. I've found my absolute favorite lunar oil thus far.

 

White Moon is everything a lilac scent should be and nothing it shouldn't. It's real, it's crisp, and it's positively luminous. I can close my eyes when I sniff it and I see sharp blades of grass and huge stems of perfect white lilacs wavering in the spring breeze. There's never been another BPAL scent that has conjured up such a clear image in my mind and transported me into it. I love this scent SO MUCH.

 

That being said... if you do not like the smell of lilacs, do not even bother with this scent. Yes, it has other things in it, but on me at least, this is nearly 100% pure lilac. I don't know how much of a review this really was, but hey, I wanted to babble.

 

...I think I need another bottle.

[stellans]

Tonight's Lunacy is the lovely floral, White Moon. In fact, this is the 'whitest' scent I believe I've tried from BPAL so far. And it is a lovely one, sweet and gentle but not cold; no snowy winter lunar oil, but the scent of an cool night in late summer -maybe early fall- before the the frost kills all blooms.

 

In the imp: oooo, lovely lilac! There's other white flowers too, lily especially, but the lilac jumps up first.

 

Wet on skin: Lily is coming on strong now, but lilac still holds pride-of-place. I do get some green now on my skin, and the wisteria is also coming forward. The sandalwood and other notes aren't quite as obvious to my still-untrained nose, but I'm sure they're there.

 

Dry: Some have mentioned a 'creamy' note; I don't get any sense of cream at all -- this blend is all floral, and is somewhat sharp -- sweet, but sharp. I do love the green note underlying all the florals!

 

Verdict: I'm very happy with this blend, and I'm glad it was so easily obtained since I wasn't aware of BPAL when it was released. I managed to score 2 bottles at reasonable prices - Yay!

Edited March 20, 2009 by stellans

[TheIceMaiden]

The name is White Moon, but this smells purple to me. It starts off a beautiful lilac that reminds me of lilacs in bloom in May. The lilac recedes and I get violet and wisteria with a touch of sandalwood and musk. White Moon is such a soft, lovely scent but it has good staying power. The label is also one of my favourites.

[Narya]

White moon = a blast of pure white radiance

 

This scent is like a merry-go-round of white flowers, after you apply it they slowly sing in unison until a single note starts to rise, then it subsides back into the ring and another takes it's place

 

A beautiful floral, pure and clean, and one of bpal's most morphing scents (in my experience atleast).

 

It is also very strong, meaning be careful how much you apply, because a little goes trully a long long way

 

and don't be surprised if people start to flock behind you on your path

 

 

i am very sensitive to florals, and one wrong note can ruin the whole composition for me, but White Moon is so well balanced that i am going to give it 5/5

[Naamah_Darling]

What do you call it when you try something knowing it will not work on you?

 

This is lilac, lily, sandalwood, and musk in the bottle, sweet, floral, and pale. A nighttime scent.

 

On, the smell thickens. It has a subtlety to it; the fleshiness of the purple wisteria and lilac and the slightly earthy sandalwood offset the ethereal and cool moonflower and lily. The musk is soft, greyish, and dominant, slightly more animal-smelling than usual, too. I can see it being a mournful scent. It's got all the paleness of night represented by the white flowers, with all the heavy, sodden melancholia of grief brought to mind by the terribly real and solid purple florals. The sandalwood gives a hint of ceremony to the whole.

 

This doesn't go as powdery or as gross as I was afraid. It stays pretty, very pretty, if a bit soapy right toward the end. Doesn't hang around long, though, and is a bit too floral and girly for me.

[hackess]

Imp: Straight up Lily of the Valley.

Wet: The only white flower that doesn't go soapy on me?! INCONCEIVABLE! The lilac is tempering it. I hunt down lilac bushes come early summer, just to breathe them in for the week they bloom.

Dry: It's very pretty. I wish I got some of the sandalwood and musk, because this might make it worth keeping. As it is, it's just too floral.