Tristran

[Tramp]

Tristran put down his wooden cup of tea, and stood up, offended.

"What," he asked, in what he was certain were lofty and scornful tones, "would possibly make you imagine that my lady-love would have sent me on some foolish errand?"

The little man stared up at him with eyes like beads of jet. "Because that's the only reason a lad like you would be stupid enough to cross the border into Faerie. The only ones who ever come here from your lands are the minstrels, and the lovers, and the mad. And you don't look like much of a minstrel, and you're - pardon me saying so, lad, but it's true - ordinary as cheese-crumbs. So it's love, if you ask me."

"Because," announces Tristran, "every lover is in his heart a madman, and in his head a minstrel."

Dust on your trousers, mud on your boots, and stars in your eyes: redwood, tonka bean, white sandalwood, lemon peel, patchouli, rosewood, coriander, and crushed mint.

When wet it is very much about the wood - rose more than red - but as it dries it gets smoother and creamier in what I imagine is the sandalwood and tonka working together. It creates an almost nutty caramel that is very warm and soothing. The woods are still there, like an old, well oiled desk. At times I think I get a hit of mint but the next sniff it isn't there. Very complex and well blended.

[savage_rose]

This is one of the most complex scents I ever smelled! In my first application, it smelled like polished desk wood of some sort and rose (the flower, not the wood). So I applied more. And I got a hint of the lemon, a sugary smelling hint of mint, and a whisper of tonka. Then it smelled like fireplace wood! This is one of those "Willy Wonka" scents where it keeps morphing on you, and every sniff completes the picture like a jigsaw puzzle. Lovely and delicious, and slightly academic-smelling. I think it would blend really well with Miskatonic University.

[funkmoppet]

I confess, I've not read Stardust - so this is all just purely purchased for the blend, in my ongoing search for perfect boy-blends.

 

Wet from the bottle and onto my skin, this is all heady woods. It's making me think this is a bit like Dee's younger brother - both bookworms. Both loitering around library desks.

 

It's masculine without screaming MANLY! As it dries, in comes the white sandalwood to lighten everything up and give the masculine woods a lovely soft edge. Wafts of other notes come in fleetingly, but they're all in the background. Not getting any patchouli or mint, which I was hoping for, but not overly disappointed by their absence.

 

This is very evocative and I rather adore it! It's a masculine blend that starts off with a bit of bluster, but betrays the softer boy at its core. Wonderful!

[Meg]

In the bottle: Woods including rosewood and fresh crushed herbs

 

Wet on skin: Rosewood and sweet herbs, maybe a hint of tonka and lemon.

 

Drydown: It's all woods, but something in there is rather sweet and a bit perfumy, possibly the tonka. It also makes the blend a little bit creamy, woods tend to smell pretty rough on me otherwise. I wonder if it's the coriander, but this really gets pretty sweet on me, like hay, nearly.

 

Overall: I can't discern each different wood, but the overall effect of this blend is the scent of a farm, perhaps a wooden barn full of hay, on which the sun has been shining and that's started to give off this woody, grassy scent. I don't get any mint from this, and everything just blends together seamlessly. A very nice boyish blend, fresh and simple. It's much too sweet on me, though.

[edenssixthday]

Tristran - This is most definitely a masculine scent on me. The patchouli is the strongest note, but all of the notes blend together to create a scent that’s almost leathery…but not quite. It’s very warm and woody and almost spicy…but not. It’s a scent that I would put in a similar category as Schwarzer Mond, Count Dracula, and Spanked. The scent has really amazing throw (a little goes a very long way) and the staying power is really spectacular. It’s a little too woody for me to choose to wear regularly, but it’s definitely something I will wear and something I really want my husband to wear. It’s very warm and outdoorsy and really wonderful.

[euterpe414]

My my this is wonderful!! I detect herbs, rosewood and the lemon peel most, with the other notes lying in the background. It is definitely a complex scent that can be worn by either sex. I really love the herbal touch that the coriander gives this one- it makes it feel very antique to me, like an old book or ornate, old piece of furniture. Tristran has great lasting power, too; It stays true for over 6 hours on my skin.

 

I'm glad I chose well in ordering this one first, it is definitely a winner!

[t_for_tau]

When I tried this yesterday, I was overjoyed: it's *exactly* what I hoped for from Dee, without the weird suncream scent that Dee developed on me. Smooth, masculine, warm, woody and with that old-books note that other people have remarked on: sophisticated, subtle and delicious.

 

However, my skin chemistry's obviously having one of its whacked-out moments again, because today it's all turned to baby power. Alas. Another one to try again another time.

[Bagfish]

A complex woody male scent with something light and airy about it too. It is not all dark and woody, but tempered with a lighter more cologne-y sort of feeling. I think the lemon peel and mint raise it above the murky woodiness and give it an almost fougere sort of smell (even though it is definitely not a fougere).

 

This also smells nice on Mr Bagfish too

 

Having just read Stardust, I have to say that this doesn't make me think of Tristran, it is too ethereal, but maybe it is his underlying parentage rather than his actions in the book that is mirrored in this scent.

[minilux]

I tend to like a masculine scent more than the next girl, so out of all the new Gaiman scents, I was most psyched to try Tristran. Unfortunately, I'm getting a manly soap smell, perhaps a high end Claus Porto sort of manly soap smell, but a manly soap smell nevertheless. This is one of the handful of BPALs that I actually consider too masculine for me. I think it must be the mint+wood combination. Stupid mint!

 

ETA: The drydown of this is absolutely gorgeous, for lack of being able to pin down the notes, I would say it's chypre or fougere-like and I would love more BPALs like this that are free of sweet things like vanilla. Unfortunately, because of the soapy initial stage, I really can't see myself wearing this on a regular basis, maybe if I was going to work out in the yard or something, but I wouldn't want to subject the rest of the world to the soapy smell.

Edited July 27, 2007 by minilux

[cuervosueno]

I like to review things right away, before I forget what they smell like, esp. if I may end up swapping them away.

 

So Tristan: wood and something slightly herbaly and clean. It doesn't smell like rosewood (as a single note) per se, but it is a soft wood, if that makes sense. I'm not getting a lot of redwood either (which is sad, because that is one of the reasons I bought it. If anything, the sandalwod dominates, though it still softer than most sandalwood). I think the herbal scent is the mix of mint and coriander--it doesn't smell like either one particularly, but adds a nice soft green herbal note to this (whew! that was a lot of adjectives!). The lemon peel peeks out....adding to the clean scent. I don't get any tonka bean, but perhaps it is softening the wood some. I get no patchouli at all, sadly. There is also a hint of mint as it develops.

 

I can see the chyphre comparisons--it does strike me a bit that way. And it would make a lovely scent on a man, esp. for summer--clean with enough woodiness to keep it grounded and not smelling like soap. All that said, I'm not sure it is for me. I prefer woody/earthy/resiny scents.

 

I'll report back after it has been on more than 15 mins, but so far, I'm leaning towards not keeping this.

[tindome]

This starts out woody, mostly rosewood,. Patchouli quickly comes to the fore and fights for dominance. As it dries the patchouli and wood mellow out and perhaps a hint of tonka in the smoothness. No lemon or mint ever came to play.

 

It smells like a wooden chest that someone spilled patchouli in years ago. Everything faded together into a nice comforting smell. Not my normal thing but not bad.

[gwynethr]

This one is very interesting to me -- the exact flip-flop response from Witch Queen. That one started out nice, and turned bad; this one starts out unpleasantly pungent to me, then mellows as it goes along, just getting lovelier. I think I have a crush on Tristran.

[LadyBug]

As I was just smelling this one for my review I think I changed my mind of what I was going to say. At first when I smelled it it smelled like a dirty boy...not bad, but not me. When I read the discription and smelled it at the same time...trying to pick out scents I first smell the rosewood which I think was the boy scent. I then smell the crushed mint and this is what changed my mind and made me go Ooooh! I really like this scent and I think it is very complicated. Complicated because there are many different smells that jump out at you but it is also easy to piece them all apart.

[alicia_stardust]

Tristran is a very nice gentleman's scent. There is a youth to it. The woods are soft and gentle and I think they are tempered by the lemon peel, and grounded by the patchouli. The patchouli is there but it isn't the heavy, swarthy patchouli that I expected; I think that this lighter version is perfect for Tristran.

 

I have no idea if it's the power of suggestion or if the patchouli combines with another note to create a "dirt and mud" scent, but it's perfect. I love the duality of the gentleman's scent combined with the "dirt and mud". Those two aspects both pull at each other, and complement each other.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: Strange mishmash of stuff that's conflicting with each other...lemon, wood scents, mint...weird.

 

On me: The overall effect is almost aquatic. I think the woods are on top if you pressed me, but it's hard to pick out anything distinct - very well-blended.

[Delirium1009]

In bottle: The redwood and sandalwood is very strong. The patchouli smells a little “dirty” to me.

 

immediately on skin: It smells pine-y and slightly sweet. The tonka seems to be making the blend a little sweet, but it doesn’t come out that much.

 

After a few minutes: I can smell pine and the lemon peel now. It’s a very unisex to masculine scent.

 

Later on: This lingers on my skin as a soft, sweet piney wood scent. It’s become very light after a couple of hours, so I’m not sure about the staying power. But this scent just isn’t for me even if it did stick around.

[aClearInferno]

Tristran.

 

.First Impression

Woodsy, dusty, and green, with a nice rose touch. This is how Arkham should've been. Rose sticks to the skin with something a little sharp (possibly the mint).

.Laters

Rose hangs in there, supported by a very green, somewhat mossy, foresty scent.

.Last

Very fresh, uplifting, almost innocent. Tristran to a T. Best for cool, rainy days and crisp, late autumn.

[goddessrobyn]

this turns from a nice woodsy smelling scent to soap almost the instant that it hits my skin

[Blood onmy hands]

Tristran goes all strange and wonky on my skin. I normally love woods and patchouli (and oh how I love tonka), so I was super excited about this one. At first I get a soured smelling rosewood and something sharp and herbal-like. Over time the woods notes get dryer and more dusty. I can see the book/library comparisons. Unfortunately, on me this mellows down into a baby powdery sandalwood with soapy lemons.

 

I thought I'd slather this on my boy since it doesn't work on me, but he sniffed it in the vial and didn't like it and thus is refusing to wear it. When pressed he just said this smells like cheap cologne to him. Ah well.

[aine]

Wow - I can't believe there is not more love for Tristran. It's a gorgeous fragrance - so smooth, gently masculine and yet so complex. I love that it is such an unusual take on 'masculine' when it's wet. Mostly rounded woods and tonka with peeping lemon and mint. In some small way it is reminiscent of Dracul, it doesn't necessarily smell like Dracul it just behaves similarly.

 

As it dried though I started to wonder whether this is very different on me than others. The one word that sang out at me is not even mentioned above. For me Tristran is the most delightful wax fragrance. It smells waxy, like warm pools of candle wax, without being honeyed in the slightest. I love the warm waxiness, and Tristran will be in regular rotation.

[jade_starlight]

At first sniff the wood comes barreling out with its boots on, running roughshod over absolutely everything. After stomping around for a few minutes it calms down a bit and goes smoother, though still predominantly woody. Eventually, something slightly herbal peeks its head out and it and the woods sit down and have a friendly drink in the parlor.

[JennyGardener]

OMG this is the ultimate adventure hero scent! It smells young and virile and naively adventurous. It would be perfect for a teenage boy or other young male. I must confess it smell fantastic on my husband!

[Keslynn]

In the imp, Tristran is all a piney woodsy smell.

 

On my skin, still woodsy with a pine edge. I was confused at how pine-like it smelled until I looked up redwood and discovered it's a conifer. I'm not really getting any of the other notes at all. I think if I try really hard I can detect the tonka smoothing out the edges of the redwood, but it could also be me trying too hard.

 

Verdict: All evergreen, all the time channel. Nice for those who like the woodsy scents, but not for me.

[storme]

In the imp: Spicy and clean and.. hmm, almost oakmossy. Weird. Maybe the patchouli and the woods together are doing that.

 

On me, wet: it's a very clean and slightly smoky-spicy scent, and sort of musky and woodsy and rather nice.

 

On me, dry: This doesn't morph very much on me. It stays very appealing, in a pure-hearted clean-cut uncomplicated hero way.

 

Verdict: A little too boyish for me. This smells pretty good on the SO, though not so awesome as other BPAL scents I have around. I'll keep the imp, anyway.

[filigree_shadow]

Wow, I would love for my husband to try this. I wish I could pick out which note in here reminds me of the type of scents he likes, but I'm not sure what it is. I think it's the rosewood and white sandalwood combination -- it's dry, but not in a stark dry way. More like a spiced dry way. It's hard to describe. For people who like wood scents in which the wood is subtle and not in-your-face (I generally think of cedar and pine as being in-your-face, for example), this is a good one. Soft, a bit dusty, a bit woody, and slightly rugged. It's not strongly any one thing... just a pleasant, comforting scent. It's a great combination.

 

This one is definitely my favorite of the Stardust scents.