Thalassa, the Galapagos Mermaid

[Heretic]

A massive glass tank is positioned on the stage, decorated with a rough canvas painting of sand and sea. Within the tank, you see a swirl of ivory, coral, and russet. After a few rushed passes, the furiously moving creature slows and makes her way towards the glass. As she approaches, you see that her features are lovely and delicate, and though her pearl-adorned torso is that of a beautiful, slender woman, her bewitching face is crowned by lethal spikes and instead of legs she has a writhing serpentine tail. Upon spotting you, her dorsal spikes flare, and she sneers maliciously. She slaps the face of the tank with her powerful tail, and you hear the distinctive sound of the glass cracking under the strain.

Seaweed, kelp, salty ocean spray, bitter almond, night-blooming jasmine, frankincense, and benzoin.

In the bottle: Glorious aquatic.
On my wrist, wet: Aquatic, but with a very mellow edge.
After 20 minutes: A very subdued and salty aquatic. It sits on the skin like it wants to become a part of it. There is something vaguely resinous and sweet as a base note-- this must be the frankincense. The color association I have with this is not a light blue, but a lake green. Not a murky blend, but rich and substantial.
After 40 minutes: I was concerned about the jasmine and bitter almond, since both of these tend to amp and take over blends on me. Instead, Thelassa is a tranquil aquatic that is rich and mellow, due in no small part to the frankincense and benzoin. Those two ingredients keep this blend from becoming cloying or too much like a lily blend. The depth and richness of Thelassa makes this my absolute favorite of all Beth's aquatics. It's stunning.

[Ah Xia]

This is, hands down, the best aquatic I've encountered! It's definitely green and frothy like falling into a tangle of kelp in a salty crystalline sea, and being caught up in the strands, the spray...

 

No one note stands out to me. This a beautiful blend! If you love oceanic scents, you must pick this one up.

[jesvet]

This is a flat out gorgeous aquatic. I was a little worried based on the description that it would be too green, salty pungent, but it isn't that at all. It's light ocean breeze salt, not rotting kelp salt. Frankincense has a history of going to pencil shavings on me but it behaves quite nicely here. Beautifuly blended. Definitely a bottle purchase.

Edited January 30, 2007 by jesvet

[Blood onmy hands]

I was surprised to see the artwork for Thalassa, it reminded me of the lionfish mermaid (“Lions of the Sea” series) art by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law (very purdy if anyone wants to check it out ). I love the lionfish mermaid concept. We used to have a pair of lionfish and they were so beautiful. I digress.

 

Unfortunately for me, I have some trouble wearing aquatics and this one doesn’t work well on me either. I can’t pick out any of the actual notes, but the whole thing blends together into a soapy, dryer sheet sort of scent. A bit breezy and sharp at first. In the drydown, the scent becomes sweeter and not as soapy, but I can’t really explain what it reminds me of other than dryer sheets.

 

I want to get the trading card for this blend, but I don’t think I’ll keep my sample…

[Medici]

I'll be the second person to throw up a hand and declare that Thalassa is taking rank of top aquatics.

 

It's very clean, slightly floral, and especially fresh in the bottle.

 

On the skin it rolls right into cool saltwater, like getting slapped in the face with sea spray on a hot day when you're on a reallyreallyreally fast moving boat. It's sort of airy and light, but decidedly "wet" too.

 

Very glad I got a bottle at first go. Usually I'm not so lucky with aquatics, but Thalassa's a keeper.

 

4/5 on Medici's Scale o' Lurve

[edenssixthday]

Thalassa, The Galapagos Mermaid - This is a gorgeous aquatic scent. The ocean notes are the dominant notes and they smell lovely as they're boosted and deepened by the frankincense. There's a sense of "perfuminess" to this blend that I don't normally like, but it works with this blend to make it smell very ocean-like. The benzoin adds a very slight hint of sweetness, but it's faint and doesn't take over the ocean scent at all. This is beautiful and I imagine that people who love aquatics will really enjoy this blend. I really love this scent and hope that a lot of other people do, too.

[femmefatale]

This is so well blended that I can't really pick out the individual notes. It is just simply beautiful. It wasn't quite what I was expecting (I was actually expecting something a bit saltier), but I am not at all disappointed. I could see this becoming my everday scent. I really, really love it and will be buying multiple bottles to hoard.

 

 

ETA: I tried it in my Salome locket and I have to say, it is truely amazing. I got a bit more of the jasmine this time, which normally I'm iffy w/jasmine, but it's just the perfect amount. It lasts forever in the locket and has a great throw.

Now they just have to create a mermaid one to go w/my Thalassa and I would be in heaven. (hint, hint!)

Edited February 8, 2007 by Femme_Fatale

[bibliophile]

Another CD stunner! This is the truest BPAL aquatic -- maybe the truest ocean scent -- that I have ever tried. It's all kelp and seaspray, and deliciously clean -- it reminds me of the smell of the beach on a cool morning. The benzoin gives it the barest hint of sweetness, and the salt is similarly subtle. I can't smell the jasmine at all and don't get anything resembling "floral" from this blend. It will be perfect come summer, but has enough body and throw to wear in the winter as well.

[sookster]

straight sniff from bottle is bitter and salty...

 

i applied the slightest dab from the cap as just by sniffing this it really

scared me

 

once applied this is all too bitter and soury...a touch of the night-blooming jasmine...not nice on me at all

 

sadly enuff i wanted this to work for me desperately as i loved the concept and

the notes sounded wonderful...

 

just not with this forumite's chemistry so off to a better home she goes

Edited February 9, 2007 by sookster

[QueenFae]

Ocean, ocean and more salty ocean!! This is as aquatic as aquatic blends get!! There is that lovely, salty sea note that the lab uses in its aquatic blends, but it is extra salty in this one. There is a light, cologney note wafting up from the deep underneath. This actually strikes me as something that would be really nice on a guy; I think I just like my men smelling watery and aquatic . Aquatic blends don't agree very well with me skin chemistry, but I actually like this one more than I thought I would. Not quite my thing, but utterly lovely on the right person, I am sure.

[Rackham's Vanity]

This is a bright, soft, almost 'gentle' aquatic on me. It's all smooth and girly...and slightly sweet. Could it be the jasmine that evens it out? I can't pick out the jasmine note particularly, but something's holding this scent back from taking on that fantastic sharp ozoney note I love in other aquatics. Thalassa reminds me of the ocean really early in the morning, with the sunlight sparkling on the tips of all the waves, the breeze calm, and everything bathed in a warm, white light.

 

Hmmm...in fact, this blend strikes me as the more feminine counterpart to Jolly Roger. I'm a sucker for aquatics, so it'll be Thalassa when I'm feeling delicate and refined, and Jolly Roger when I'm feeling like a scalliwag!

[hepkitten]

Wow...a very true, lovely aquatic that smells like the sea. It didn't morph on me at all, and it has great throw.

 

However, it brings back a vaguely-remembered sense memory that's not entirely comfortable, so I'll be passing her on.

[savage_rose]

Clearly Thalassa was at the last Carnaval at the Bed of Nails, because they are very similar. But Thalassa is lighter, more ephemeral...less throw than BoN, but with these lovely floral undertones that really flesh-out the aquatic notes. And the bitter almond does not powder like regular almond, and adds a whisper of nuttiness. Very lovely.

[brit_brat100]

My first review of my first BPAL scent!

 

Thalassa....what an intoxicating scent! Very nice. I don't want to get in over my head, but I really think I may go for a larger bottle of this.

 

In the bottle: POW! Pretty strong and pungent, but I get sense of "water". This wasn't as salty as I expected, but that turned out alright.

 

On the skin: Pretty much the same scent, a little more incense-y.

 

Later on the skin: Still very dark and murky - a complex scent for sure - but slightly sweetened! I think the frankincense really compliments the jasmine...a beautiful floral note in this mix. It seemed to stay in this glorious state for many hours.

 

Final thoughts: Wow. Very aquatic. Ocean, but diluted (as one would expect being in a tank exposed to open air...). The mermaid really shines through. This has some nice staying power too: 8 hours for sure. I'll test a few more times, but I think I'm sold.

 

Extra, for fun: Science Discovers how to capture the scent of the sea!

[TheIceMaiden]

This is beautiful. Wet, its crisp ocean air with a bit of green from the seaweed notes. As it dries, I get a hint of floral from the jasmine. On me, its a very light scent with not much throw, but I love it anyway.

 

Thalassa takes me back to memories of walking on the beaches of Cape Cod. I will be ordering a bottle of this soon.

[sofaking6]

The perfect sceent for a mermaid. Very fresh and ocean-wet. I can't smell the jasmine but sadly, have gotten a bit of a headache from it. As well as a really bad craving for fried clams.

 

Thalassa is a masterpiece of an ocean-aquatic scent. There isn't a single note out of place in this blend - it's intent is clear and absolutely accomplished.

[forspecial_plate]

This is a bracing sea scent that really captures the character it represents (or maybe...the painting and description really capture the scent?). It has a chilly quality...I can really imagine a mermaid's icy, contemptuous stare. The oceanic aspect is strong, and the other notes add depth and some sweetness to the scent. I can't pick out individual notes except maybe ozone.

 

Comparison time: my first thought when I wore this was "Kingsport Light!!". Right now I'm doing a side-by-side comparison, and the two scents do have some similarities. With Kingsport you are standing on a beach in the fog, but with Thalassa you're standing on the prow with the spray in your face, and the sun is shining.

 

A few minutes later (say, within an hour), some of the ozone falls back and the sweeter notes come forward a bit. I think I can smell the resins. It's reminding me of one of the Salon scents at this point (Cloister Graveyard or Death of the Grave Digger). Anyway, enough comparisons....it's a great scent! Aquatic and deep, bright and refreshing.

[maijasu]

Thalassa is a gorgeous, complex aquatic. It starts out very fresh and sweet, and after it dries it becomes smoother and slightly more floral. I didn't think I'd ever find an aquatic that could compete with Olokun for my attention, but this can. It's different enough, and beautiful enough, that I definitely need to have both.

 

My favorite of Act III so far!

[Electra]

Whoa.

 

Thalassa is amazing. It is my perfect BPAL aquatic -- finally! Hooray! I can't believe that it has both Evil Jasmine and Evil Almond in it, and I can't smell either one. It's a pure, perfect salty ocean scent, and I'm in love with it. This is what I wanted Kingsport to be, but that one was far too sweet and citrusy to smell like the ocean to me. This is fantastic.

 

Thalassa lasts forever, and stays true on my skin. There's no morphing, for which I am profoundly grateful.

 

This scent has my favorite art of all the CDIIIs, too .

Edited February 27, 2007 by Electra

[emzebel]

In the bottle (which is oh so lovely), this is a sweet aquatic, and smells oh so lovely. On my skin...it is aquatics of doom, like so many aquatics that amp into masculine cologne, with the added fun of jasmine. Oh poo.

[empi girl]

In the imp, this is pure soap to me. I tried it on, though, because you just never know. On, it remained soap, with a hint of flowers far under the white sharp soap. It stays strongly soapy for 30 minutes, and then the soap fades and a salty-sweet aquatic, very light, comes out to play. And then after that might be frankincense. It is very light overall, and a morpher. I hate the soap stage, and I like the brief salty-sweet, and where it is now. I'm not sure what I'll do with this imp yet, but I know I won't be getting a bottle.

[copyshopclerk]

I don't like jasmine at all, and bitter almond can be iffy on me, but the ocean spray was tempting, so this is from a decant circle.

 

In the imp: Very aquatic! Well, yeah, obviously, but it does remind me of the sea.

 

Wet: No jasmine noticeable (yay!) Very salty and oceanic - brings to mind both Sea of Glass and Tempest.

 

Dry: Just a gorgeous ocean scent - I don't notice the jasmine or almond at all, and even the frankincense is well blended - it doesn't make me think "oh there's frankincense in here", but rather it gives the scent depth.

 

Super long lasting - 12 hours later I could still easily smell it on the back of my hand!

[grrrlennyl]

at first: a wet, green scent.

on: lush, wet flowers. very nice.

2.5 hours later: a creamy floral with nice, green aquatic undertones.

4,5 hours later: a pretty, bright, green aquatic with some flowers.

overall: this is really pretty, but i don't think i'd wear it much.

[gwynhwyfar]

I love aquatics and jasmine is one of my top five favorite florals. I fully expected to love this and, in fact, both my SO and I read the description and said 'That's Gwyn' and that was that.

 

So a bottle had to come live with me.

 

That bottle will need friends and I shall be hoping that it ages well, because I'll definitely weep when it's no longer available.

 

This is the best aquatic perfume that I've gotten my greedy little ocean-loving hands on. It's light and salty and rich and very feminine and ... soothing and comforting. I can't even begin to describe the scent that I get from it beyond to say that it's the ocean ... not the ocean where there's a boardwalk. This is the ocean where there's wildness and dunes and you never know what you might find washed up on the beach. This is the ocean in the early spring or late fall, when it's chilly and no one sane really wants to go into the water, but I'm still walking with my shoes off and the chilly bite of the water on my feet and the even more chilly, but clean, scent all around me.

 

I am, indeed, madly in love with this scent.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

Aquatics are hit or miss on me. Sometimes, as with City in the Sea, I adore them; other times they register as very masculine and sharp on my skin. But, as a double-Pisces, there was no way I was going to miss out on the mermaid scent!!

 

In the vial, I get something delicate and green but it's hard to distinguish notes. On me, Thalassa goes straight to jasmine. Dammit. The base notes are soft and pretty, but the vile jasmine amps like all hell on me and drowns everything else under a sharp soapiness.