The Witch Queen

[Lyrical]

Wild plum, red musk, tuberose, calla lily, heliotrope, pimento, ylang ylang and beeswax beneath a dark haze of sinister purple-hued incense smoke.

In vial: warm, spicy, sophisticated.

Wet on skin: warm, spicy and smoky.

Dry on skin: as it dries, the bitter plum comes out, mingling with musk, creamy heliotrope and beeswax. It's a mysterious, earthy blend of fruit, flowers and musk, with a tiny bite of pimento, in the same family as Mme Moriarty but thankfully with no odious patchouli to spoil it for me!

In the final stages, this softens into a gentle, creamy blend of heliotrope and red musk. If you like Red Moon, you might well like this one.

[nekogrrl]

I'm not sure I like this scent. I tested during a stuffy-nose period, so for sure this will warrant another test.

 

For now, after I put it on, all I could smell was the calla lily. I'm not very fond of it, to say the least. I'll be looking to see if the floral component blends more nicely when I test this again.

 

For the drydown, I adored the purple incense. If the retest holds true to the first, I'm going to have to weigh the lilies against purple smoke. I'm not sure who would win.

[Miss Lynx]

Wow! I was originally kind of worried that this would turn into Screaming Floral Death on me, especially with my scent nemesis ylang ylang involved. In fact, I didn't order a decant of it at all when it was first introduced, but much later when someone was doing another decant circle for the Stardust scents I gave in, all the while telling myself it was probably pointless.

 

But I'm glad I did get it, because it's actually much nicer than I expected. It's not really my usual sort of scent, being more floral than my usual tastes, but it's nowhere near what I was expecting. I guess the musk and incense notes and what not are there in enough strength to counterbalance even the dread y-y.

 

It does capture the character pretty well, in that it's strongly feminine but also kind of dark and evil-smelling. And there's even something faintly dry and dusty and decay-like lurking somewhere under it all, like the witch's true age peeking through the veneer of youthful beauty. Very well crafted!

 

Not sure if in the long run I will keep the decant or not, as I have so much BPAL these days that I'm getting really picky, but I'm very glad I got to try it. I think this is the only scent other than Glasya in which ylang ylang has ever failed to turn into SFD on me!

 

Grade: B

[moon_lemming]

So this sounds really floral, right?

 

Did you think I was going to write "but it's really not, surprise!" next? Because I'm not. It is really floral.

 

So lilies turn to detergent on me, as do tuberose and ylang ylang. And red musk -- which sounds SO GOOD in theory -- turns to baby powder.

 

My sister said she smells florals that turned to fruit when she sniffed this, but yeah, all I'm getting is powdery detergent. But I'm curious since she smelled that ON ME when it is so not there to my nose: is the chemistry thing a skin weirdness or a brain-hardwiring weirdness?

 

Anyway, I wasn't really thinking this one would be great on me (although, again, yum in theory), so no big loss.

Edited June 18, 2008 by karen

[sprocket21]

In the imp: Very strange O_o. It smells like plastic.

 

I was expecting this to be somewhat sweet, but it's not sweet on me at all. There's a burst of incense smoke right at the beginning. That quickly fades, and it becomes more of a floral. I was hoping for a large dose of plum, but it's completely missing on my skin, and only the florals remain.

[gchris]

In Vial: Stronger than I expected.

 

Wet: A bit perfumey. Wow this is even stronger.

 

Dry: Has the essence of an authoritative, commanding woman. Fits perfectly with it's namesake.

[rayvn1]

I really liked this blend and was sad it doesn't seem to last long on my skin. Rich and warm, the smell of almost tropically voluptuous blossoms. The smoky incense was layered beneath that. Just beautiful!

[Pika]

Wow, I've been sitting on this oil for way too long. Finally got around to trying it, and I love it. I was scared of the heavy florals (especially ylang ylang) but it's really gorgeous on my skin. It's got a cool, fresh feeling to me, strangely enough. Very confident and elegant. The incense is lovely, and doesn't smell overly smoky and burnt. My skin really ate it up, though, so I think I'll have to find alternative ways to wear it so it lasts longer.

[angelicruin]

In the imp vial, it smells mostly floral to me.

 

Once applied to my skin, still mostly floral and smoky.

 

As it dries, I can smell a bit of the plum, but it's mostly a floral-incense scent.

 

Really quite lovely.

[MaidMirawyn]

This one is rather unusual on me. I get florals, but a touch of powder, too. I'm hoping the powder fades soon...

[milo]

This is the second Stardust scent that is not working for me, Fairy Market was the other one. I love most of the notes in TWQ, so I'm a little puzzled why this is a miss. In the bottle, I get a sister of Mme Moriarty, plummy, perhaps a bit more spice. On, the florals take the center stage and amp the hell on me, along with some strong incense. The result is a blend that is just too perfumey for me. The plum shows up, and this is the first time that it has smelled fake on me. Arrgh, off to swaps with ya.

[suki]

i love most of the notes in this and so was really bewildered and disappointed when none of them seemed to be present

 

incense? plum? musk? nay all around.

 

what i got, in fact, was very similar to the composition of Hanami, which, unfortunately, became total cloying, perfume-y soap on me. this oil, on the other hand, became cloying perfume-y shampoo on me. when will i learn? the only florals i have any real luck with are violet, rose and sometimes verbena.

 

i need to just leave it at that, and make way for floral lovers to get their hands on stuff like this.

 

sigh.

[ouch!]

This changes a hell of alot on my skin from wet to dry.

 

The wet stage is deep rich red fruits and lots of flowers (I'm terrible with picking out florals). With an undetone of incense. I can't really detect the red musk and that was the note (together with the plum) that drew me to this scent in the first place. I can just about smell the beeswax underneath too. But it's mainly a rich incensey floral with a bit of plum.

It does remind me of another BPAL scent...what is it now....Ah...The haunted Palace. The wet stage of this is kinda like the dry stage of The Haunted Palace on my skin. But less floral! It's just that kinda smell that is very deep and red (As I said before hehe).

 

Ok so the dry stage is a hell of alot different, it's much softer...much sweeter and it feels like there's just the tiniest drop of vanilla in there. I think this is where the beeswax is starting to shine a bit. The mad florals are still there but they have calmed down alot. It still holds on to it's richness but it's more rounded.

One of the florals has come forward too and it's gorgeous! It's the same as one of the florals that's in The Unicorn...*Goes to check*...damn..they're not listed. But there is one floral in here that's lovely and soft and sweet!!

As it dries further it becomes more and more soft, the incense is dissapearing and it's turning into a gentle scent that's very very nice!!!

 

 

 

There's alot going on in here! I much prefer the dry stage of this oil, it's yummy!

 

 

[caitilarkin]

In the imp: Plum and lots of musk

 

Wet on skin: The incense is taking over my lovely musky plum and making it too sharp and sweet.

 

Dry on skin: Luckily, the incense calms down as the oil dries, allowing the plum and red musk to shine while florals add a touch of sweetness. I never detect the beeswax at all in this blend.

 

The Witch Queen reminds me a lot of Prunella (due to the plum, no doubt). I'll have to test them side by side to determine which is more bottleworthy, but they're both lovely when dry.

[topazphoenix]

I can't identify most of the individual notes in this one but the Lab did a perfect job of capturing The Witch Queen. There's an initial sweetness to it that sort of pulls you in..but there's something really menacing lurking in the background....it comes out...and sure enough, she's holding the knife, about to lop out Yvaine's heart. I've been annoyed by some of the so called "evil" scents I've tried because they're just pathetic rosey incense pushovers masquerading as evil queens..but wow, this one is incredibly sinister.

[Babette]

I just received this yesterday from a swap and this has rocketed up my list of favourite scents to wear! I get a lot of incense (my skin tends to amp that a lot, right next to vanilla), which is very comforting because it reminds me of this woman I knew who would burn incense in her home with the exact same scent. And I get a sourish-like, perfumey scent that I can't pinpoint exactly from the notes listed above -- the sour part probably comes from the wild plum since I get the same from Midwinter's Eve and the perfumey bit from the lily and ylang ylang, I think -- which lends a somewhat sinister effect to the perfume. Yes, I definitely agree that this scent does capture the character completely -- beautiful, matured, and evil to the core.

 

ETA: Throw and wear-length is somewhat minimal. I have to press my nose close to my skin to smell but oh my, it smells so good! The incense is still present but there's a certain creamy and sweet quality to it. Gorgeous!

Edited September 27, 2009 by Babette

[pinkstardust420]

Wow. This is beautiful! Very PURPLE! I'm getting a sweet, candy like plum from this perfume. It's not very floral on me, just sweet and fruity with a touch of incense/musk. Gorgeous!!

[devilot]

The Witch Queen

In the Vial: Weird, it smells green somehow. I think I smell the plum, but it's a super green, super fresh, kind of plum. Not sweet at all. Very tart.

 

Wet: Sharp floral. I'm going to blame the tuberose for this one. But it could be calla lily-- I'm not very familiar with either flower. Still has a green vibe to it all.

 

Drydown: Still that greenness, but it's finally sweetening a bit. Where's the red musk? The beeswax?

 

Verdict: It's really not bad at all. But it's NOTHING like what I expected (red musk? beeswax?) and feels a little generic, and since the Gaimans aren't cheap, I'd rather make use of this decant by swappin' it away for a blend that I "must have."

[Venneh]

In the imp, The Witch Queen is very purple, almost like an umeboshi; pickled plum, and, I think the florals. On my skin, she's a sharply fruity floral, similar to... Bathsheba, I'm thinking, only with a sharper note. On me, this is really similar to Bathsheba, which, while it's a nice scent, won't need any more than the decant.

Edited October 19, 2009 by Venneh

[lookingglass]

Oh, yeah, baby. This is good smellin' stuff! Wet it reminds me instantly of a combination of Smut, Skuld, and All Souls, without the ovet sweetness of the first 2, and minus the grapeyness I get from Skuld sometimes that keeps me from wearing her very often. The florals and musk combine beautifully, seamlessly, to give a fresh lift to the incense and dark fruits, and mellow into a complex accord that is all at once her own woman. The drydown is soft, slightly powdery, musky, creamy, honeyed floral. I was worried about the pimento note, as my only experience with them is in olives, but there is no issue with that here. It fades quickly but don't worry, I can slather! If it were a color it would be "plum stained antique white". I am so happy to have a tuberrose/lily scent that I can finally wear! Big bottle worthy for SURE! This feels light enough for warmer months but still has a lot of body and doesn't go sour like many florals or "light" blends go.

Edited January 11, 2010 by lookingglass

[misscoldheart]

I got this as a frimp in a swap, it has been on my list and I am so happy to be able to finally try it!!

It's pretty floral, but I can still smell the musk and incense smoke and a wee bit of plum to make it a little sweet, but not cloying. I really like that this isn't going powdery on me at all and it's such a light scent which was surprising because of some of the components. I think I really like this one!!

[fairnymph]

Rich amber coloured oil. Sweet, heady, fruity, slightly spicy and smoky rich floral. I get a lot of plum, heliotrope, calla lily and ylang ylang, a fair bit of honeyed beeswax and incense smoke and a spicy kick of pimento, but only light red musk and tuberose. Definitely a dark, sophisticated, complex womanly scent - which means it's totally not up my alley.

 

Suddenly oddly sour, in a weird way - the pimento, maybe? It reminds me of a lot of the old heavy and sour floral/incense type DCed blends, blech. Lots of incense, lots of smoke - very much hazy. The plum and beeswax are much fainter on my skin. The pimento takes on a vegetal, slightly sharp bell-pepper tinge, and the tuberose is going very soapy, while the calla lilla has gone a bit powdery, and ylang ylang is heady and just too much. I also get a bit more red musk, which really makes the blend almost unbearable on top of everything else.

 

Better; less sour, more cohesive, though still totally not my sort of scent. The plum and beeswax (which has become much more waxy in a really realistic way) have returned, especially the plum which is a little tart - it's definitely wild plum, and not the lab's standard plum note. The heliotrope gives this a golden glow. The red musk has amped a bit, going sort of mentholic as it does on me. Still loads of incense smoke and heady floral powder-soap.

 

Sweet-tart wild plum, heavy smoky incense and heady, old lady florals and powder-soap with a little vegetal, mildly spicy pimento and sort of old dusty beeswax - this scent is very heady and smothering and dusty and powdery and I SWEAR there must be amber here, and the red musk doesn't blend at all - time for the sink, I've withstood this unpleasantry long enough. Good throw, alas.

 

 

[reynardine]

At first application, the musk really comes out. I don’t care for that, but it settles pretty quickly. Then I pick up wild plum and beeswax and incense. It dries down pretty, but with so much musk, it’s not really my thing. This is in the same class, scent-wise, with Mme. Moriarty. If the good Madame seemed a bit much for you with the patchouli note, give the Witch Queen a try.

[heywilma]

This is not very florally on me at all – I get a lot of musk (starting to think maybe it's me amping that note, will have to test others to confirm), and it dries down to a nondescript, but fairly pretty scent. Actually, I find that on me, this is fairly close to Croquet, if a little bit sweeter. The partial bottle is a keeper, I think, but after it's gone I'll stick to Croquet for my musky/sweet pretty needs.

[Dharklady]

In bottle: A gorgeous blend, very reminiscent of Mme Moriarty with subtle soft incense, smoke, and plummy florals.

Wet: The parallels continue. Soft and subtle rather then intense but truly a lovely blend.

Dry: My skin loves to nom plum and make it non-existent, and somehow grabs the rest of this one with the plum. A very low throw and it’s rapidly disappearing.

Notes: A gorgeous blend but soft where I expected intense from how I’ve always thought of the Witch Queen…