The Knave of Hearts

[Smokeybromage]

Crushed roses and blackcurrant tarts.

This was the first Bpal I ever smelled ,so my reaction upon first smelling it was probably just due to the fact I'm used to edt/edps, not pure oils: I was taken aback by how strong it smelled and found it cloyingly sweet,did not think much of it.
But I gave it another chance today and I've totally changed my mind: its gorgeous!All lovely jammy,buttery blackcurrants with red roses. If it is similar to Eat Me as other reviewers have mentioned then I need me some of that too!

[Yoginispirit]

Wow ok- I was completely wrong about the lab's rose note. After Metachuatl (or however it's spelled) I had an imediate nauseous reaction and stupidly thought all the rose notes would be the same so I avoided them like the plague. But after being frimped with both the Knave and a sniffie of Rose Red my world has changed

 

The knave starts VERY heavy cake which is apropriate with the rhyme, "The Queen of Hearts she made some tarts all on a summers day, the Knave of Hearts stole those tarts and took them right away".

 

So the buttery tart is dominant wet then the knave bi***slaps the queen and steals the tarts and heads off on his motorcycle leaving a buttery, blackberryish rose. Simply elegant, playful and beautiful. The rose is not nearly as heavy as I'd expected.

 

Before the unfortunate event with the other rose blend, the knave was the first BPAL perfume I had my eye on. But me in my newbieness thought, well the knave might be for a guy, so I never tried it But I'm so glad I was frimped with it!!!

[MCS4096]

In the Imp: Smells exactly like I Fell in Love with a Floating Brain! With the tiniest hint of roses.

 

Wet: Again, it's the almost citrusy white cake note from Floating Brain, but the currants here are definitely different, and yummy! The roses are almost spicy in the background. This is pretty much exactly as the description says.

 

Drying down: The throw is incredibly sweet. It's super sweet cake and spices, juicy plump currants and crushed wet red roses. It's fairly nice, and pretty interesting, but since I have two bottles of Floating Brain I probably don't need this one too

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I have a couple of Mad Tea imps that I need to review, as I want the full line on hand as wedding favors at my Mad Tea wedding. The Knave smells...both delicious and weird! I mean, I can smell a lovely buttery scent with currant, like Eat Me with less vanilla and more pastry. And I can smell rose, one of my favorite notes. I'm not sure how I feel about the combo! To me those are very different categories of scent, and I like Eat Me b/c it is all gourmand and rose scents like 2, 5, 7 because they are all floral. I wouldn't say this smells bad, but my nose is really confuzzled right now.

[windrose]

As a relative newbie to BPAL and the forum, despite an inheritance from a friends collection - I have been methodically trying to try all of the oils that include roses and have other notes that I think I may enjoy. I made only my second or third order this past month and ordered an imp pack plus to try as well as my two wee bottles of goodness.

 

When I first smelled this in the imp and then wet on my skin mostly I got a kind of homey generic bakery sort of scent, a bit dry with the roses and blackcurrants definitely taking a back seat. As this dries though the roses and currants blend together with the crumb of the tart to give something sweeter and richer than the description might imply. For me this is a close to the skin sort of fragrance but I keep smelling it and liking it more and more as it matures. This definitely goes on my list as one to purchase.

Edited April 21, 2009 by windrose

[unlaced]

I was worried about the rose in this since rose and I do not get along but I shouldn't have been... it's just yum all around.

 

In the bottle: tart currants and pastry... no hint of rose.

 

Wet on my skin: more of the same. a bit more fruity?

 

Drying/dry: yep... all fruity, tart pastry with no rose in sight. (uhh, smell?) It threatened to go powdery in the drying stage but nothing came of it. All in all I love it! I'm thinking this will become a new favorite.

[faerywolfe]

Hmmmm, this is good. When I first got this one, it was all strong sharp evil butter, but with some age on it...

 

Wet, this is a hot buttery pastry fresh from the oven. It smells almost spicy, even though none are listed. The blackcurrant is less full and juicy and more bubbling up out of the pastry. The rose at this point isn't saying much, but she's adding just a touch of depth and roundness, supporting very shyly from underneath.

 

As it dries, the buttery pastry, hot bubbly currant, and soft pretty rose begin to blend more evenly. The rose never does take over, nor is it that 'fake' rose that has a habit of going so very wrong. I can vaguely see the comparison to Eat Me, but where Eat Me is a bit more mature with cool vanilla cake and sweetened jam, Knave is her badass brother.

 

If you like foodie scents, definitely give this one a go. Don't be afraid to try it for fear of the rose - I really didn't get that much, and what I did smell was understated. All in all, this one is very unique. I may keep my imp around, but I have foodie scents that I prefer over this one, so I won't be needing a bottle.

[CynicalPink]

Imp: Butter-rum coffee?

 

Wet: A spicy pie with roses somewhere in the distance. Definitely foody

 

Drydown: Oh this is niiiice. Deep, rich buttery tart with a deep dark rose scent

 

Overall: Me likey. Not sure I want a big bottle of it, but this is a great scent for foodies that want a little twist on that dessert scent

[Champagne]

Knave of Hearts could make any floral hater like me love roses for sure. The buttered blueberry pastry is pure bliss and the roses are not overpowdering, they make the blend even elegant and feminine. I like it a lot!

[Marianevans]

I'm sorry, I wanted to like this, but all I smell is kitschy potpourri/candle store. There's a blast of fake smelling praline followed by what first might be a nice rose but turns out to be mish mash potpourri right out of an air freshener. Blech. Can't scrub off fast enough.

[Jupita]

Ok, this is my very first review... I'm slightly anxious.

Let's say, first of all, that I'm not a foody girl. I'm a floral girl, a citrus girl, that's sure... but foody scents, usually, are just too sweet for me.

 

I ordered Knave of Hearts because I thought, that I needed to try at least one foody scent from BPAL, and since, I love roses and like berries... this sounded just right.

 

I don't know why, but on oppening my order, this was the one that jumped to me in the first place... so I opened the imps, that splashed sligtly over my t-shirt... and I nearly gaged!

 

WHAT's IT ABOUT BURNED SUGAR?!

Gosh!

 

I closed it and almost thought of throwing it away, and burning the t-shirt that renched of burned sugar and gazoil. It was horrible.

Instead, I put it away, where it wouldn't contaminate anything, changed, took a shower, and came back to my imps...

 

Later on, I decided, that I was braver than that... and besides, scents morph on skin...

So I put a tiny bit on my wrist, and POOF it started bringing the tart scent of currant to the front... It was actually kind of nice, with a slight burn sugar scent on the back, but I could smell myself without gaging. I even smelled the roses, very far away on the background.

Then, in a moment, the currants died and the burnt sugary caramel, mixed with burned cookies of doom started comming to the front.

Don't get me wrong, I like the scent of cookies, seriously, I even have a body butter with that smell...

But this, this smelled like rancind, burned, cookies!

 

I decided to give it some time, hoping for the currants or roses to show back again... but they didn't, and an hour later, when I thought I might die, my bf told me to go wash my hands, because they stink. I did just that, but the burned scent kept stalking me, no matter how hard I washed my hands...

 

So sorry, but this is definitly not for me... it's, just, gross.

 

My bf discribed this scent, on me like this - 10 cm layer of bakery + thick layer of butter + thin layer of black currants + 20 cm of burned caramel sugar + butter + 10 cm of bakery, all thrown on a pile of roses and crushing them so hard, that they just burned and desapeared.

[Bluestocking]

In the imp: Foody paradise. Buttery sweet pastry, the kind you just know is going to be all golden and crisp when you dig in. It's very buttery and fragrant, almost too much, like it's hot from the oven. It's sort of like the cake note from Cockaigne, but I like it more here, and there's a hint of something deeper, almost spicy. Smells edible.

On, wet: Less overwhelmingly sweet, but still nice, buttery, crisp pastry. It really does smell like the perfect piecrust, with a hint of warm and fruity black currant. Maybe a hint of rose? If that's rose I'm smelling, it's very faint, but nice.

On, dry: Big, full roses and black currants blended together, with a nice accent from the crisp, buttery crust. Yum! The roses have a wonderful spicy quality, which blends with the black currants to make me think the tarts are spiced. It's a nice balancing act between foody and floral, and it makes me want to eat my own arm.

Later: Soft roses and black currents, with vanilla and just a hint of the pastry. Just sweet enough, a bit fruity—really lovely.

Overall: Really nice, unexpectedly so. This is pretty much my ideal combination of foody and floral. The roses, currants and pastry balance each other out, even if this does smell like maximum-strength PASTRY in the imp, and I like the way the crust note evolves on my skin. Great throw, and astonishing staying power—seriously, this one keeps going and going, and it never stops smelling like a fresh-baked black currant tart next to a rose bouquet. It's beautiful and yet somehow also comforting and warm. Delicious.

 

 

[fabricdragon]

Ok, this is my very first review... I'm slightly anxious.

Let's say, first of all, that I'm not a foody girl. I'm a floral girl, a citrus girl, that's sure... but foody scents, usually, are just too sweet for me.

 

I ordered Knave of Hearts because I thought, that I needed to try at least one foody scent from BPAL, and since, I love roses and like berries... this sounded just right.

 

 

I decided to give it some time, hoping for the currants or roses to show back again... but they didn't, and an hour later, when I thought I might die, my bf told me to go wash my hands, because they stink. I did just that, but the burned scent kept stalking me, no matter how hard I washed my hands...

 

ah, we have similar body chemistry then....

i LOVE florals, and like berry scents , so i was very happy to get an imp of Knave of Hearts.....GAG. on me it smelled like the waste bin after someone burned the pie.. my husband gagged. i gagged.....sigh,

and i had such high hopes for it.

try Rose Red from the Yule collections, you will probably like the spicy peppery scents of Frumious Bandersnatch, and if you liek a light floral you want Madame Tracy from the Good Omens? collection . you MAY like some of the leather and roses, you may not.

if you like, email me and i can send you my personal test page (its a word document) its not current but it has my reviews for my skin of many imps....

kirsten at fabricdragon dot com

i have an evil spam filter, if i dont get back to you, try again

[sylvanusurban]

In bottle: Richly buttery pastry!

 

On me, wet: Richly, cloyingly buttery pastry with a hint of nuttiness and a hint of bitterness. The tart crusts seem not to have any filling.

 

On me, drying: The blackberry/rose is starting (very faintly) to arrive, but the bitterness is still bothering me.

 

Verdict: I liked the concept, but this one wasn’t agreeing with me and I washed it off. I hope this doesn’t bode ill for all of the other “foody” blends I have coming in the mail.

 

 

[Suusje]

Like some of the reviewers above, I smell some spice as well. Definitely not what I was expecting. I does fade after a little while and the scent turns sweeter but also a little fake on me. And there's no rose at all and I love roses. So sadly, this isn't a keeper.

[Coldfire]

 

 

 

Imp: food. Black Currant tarts. and sugar

Wet On Me: very foodie. Spices and black currants.

Drying Down: oh the rose is starting to come out now….it’s

food and air freshener rose. Man I wish I did not amp rose so badly.

Dry: oh this did not blend well on me. Sending this to

the re-home pile

 

[Veronica]

Wet, this was a rich, buttery warm scent similar to Blockbuster. Drying, the roses came out more, tempering the buttery notes. This scent smells so warm and pleasant and good, like walking into a gingerbread house and discovering that it's yours to eat. I keep sniffing my wrists and moaning, it's just that good.

[EdenIris]

Wet, this was butterscotch and slightly rancid butter. As it dried, it became more pastry, but with only the ghost of berries, and no roses at all.

 

I may try this as a room scent, but it definitely doesn't work on my skin.

[hkhm]

imp: i don't get roses at all, just a yummy baking pastry scent.

 

wet: whoops, nope, it's got rose in it. it's a battle between the yummy pastry scent and the soapy rose scent. alas.

 

dry: well, this all faded pretty quickly. i'm still getting the light pastry scent but it's outmatched by the rose. might make a nice room scent though.

[JenM]

in the imp: delightfully foody. Sweet, sweet, with a touch of buttery pastry. Warm buttery pastry.

 

on the wrist: smells like candied hearts to start with, though the throw is more that of the imps. It's a very vague scent, though--don't know if this will last at all.

 

on drydown, the roses come through. They're old, overblown roses. A slight tang to them which I hope in time will gel with the slight tartness of blackcurrant. Not sure idf that will differentiate, either.

 

After 45 minutes: This is lovely, and not at all soapy like most roses go on my skin, but it's so very subtle I have to inhale my wrist to get a whiff. Alas. I shall keep it on and see about last, but I'm thinking really this is a scent for intimacy rather than general use.

 

Nope. That's my final verdict.

[Lamia]

Pralines, yes. This was extremely foody, a brown sugar molasses cake. There was a brief behind-the-eyeballs stab of some sort of berry, but that lasted mere seconds. A brown sugar Yankee Candle. Trade bag.

[rayvn1]

I'm always leery of foody bpals that have a creamy or buttery sound to them after the unmitigated disaster that was Butter Rum Cookie. Here though, I get a strong opening blast of warm, buttered pastry with a strong dash of juicy berry. Once it starts to dry though, I start getting the sweet rose thrown in - like eating a freshly out of the oven summer treat with a big bouquet on the table. Interesting mix of sensory pleasures

[sirensea]

Wet, this one doesn't seem to have much of a throw. But once it dries? Wow! It smells of roses, and faintly of warm, black coffee. Not sure where that note comes from, but it's yummy!

[Monster]

*cough* This is a sharp, syrupy, almost sickning rose and cake smell on me. It's just...not working for me at ALL I'm not so sure these notes belong together, it just smells...weird and off.

 

This scent is confusing to me. It feels disjointed and makes me feel sligthly ill. Gah! And it gets more cloying as it dries, I need to wash it off

[tajana]

In the imp this smells really good, but on the skin, it's very dessert like: buttery, rich baked pastry, filled with sweet blackcurrant jam. It's intense: thick and aggressive, with incredible throw. This might be good to eat, but its a smell that I can't tolerate wearing... I'm not much of a foody. When it dries down and the rose starts to kick in, I get even more nauseous. Rose is usually a bad note on me, it goes sour and powdery and off, but the butter is probably worse... the dessert-like aspect of this definitely crushes the hint of floral underneath. This is a relative of Eat Me, only more "pastry" and less "spicy cake", and with "bluer"/blacker fruit. Not my cup of tea. It was so cloying I had to wash it off.