Fairy Market

[Footnotegirl]

Otherworldy golden incense, blooming wind-flowers, everlasting lavender, bluebell, a faint whiff of exotic sugared candies, and fae mist upon wet green grass.

Ordered this smell un-sniffed, and am so happy I did so. Upon opening the bottle, I was mighty afeared, as it smelled sort of like.. walking into Sephora, which isn't a bad smell, but not what I expect from BPAL. I should not have been scared. As soon as it hit my skin...


I feel like a citizen of Wall on that day of days. I've got my new basket. It's filled with ripe red delicious apples and some honeyed and cream tea (I'd almost say honey buns, but there's nothing 'baked' about this to me). My feet move over the dew-soaked grasses of the lands I know, crushing the blades slightly. I pass the wall, and spot the market in the field. The first thing that tells me that I'm in a different world is that it's warmer here, and the breeze carries the scent of flowers I have ever seen.

The breeze also carries the scent of fairy fruits, not innocent apples, oh no. Tiny strawberries and oversized plums and things in colors that should not be. But all of them, all of them so juicy that they would drip down one's chin, if one were fool enough (or brazen enough) to bite into fairy food, and leave your lips sticky and stained. They grow closer and stronger, and then are swept into the clamor of scents around me. People with leaves for hair, or skin the color of night with stars for eyes, talking in tongues made of crystal sounds, and smelling of far away. Incense, wishes, and dreams, two silver a dream.

Finally I arrive at the edge of the forest, and there's a little cart on wheels. Beeswax candles burn, air sweet with them. Crystalline flowers shimmer, lending that flower scent once again, though even more alien. A girl who is sometimes a bird opens the door, and we sit down to share honey cream tea and apples, just like we did nine years ago.

[eloiseattheplaza]

Fairy Market is so beautifully blended that I can't pick out any one note. On me it's floral and sweet--wonderful at every stage, never sickly, just a gorgeous blend of flowers and grasses and sweets. I wouldn't have picked incense, but that must be what's smudging some of the sweetness--it's absolutely beautiful.

 

It also lasted all day--thirteen hours later it's still wafting up at me, which is just right. I won't say no to a bottle of this one.

[The_Merf]

Let me add my praises here--this one's a good one. Having finally accepted that, no matter how odd it sounds, "sugared" works well on me, I put this on my w/l. It's a really gorgeous combination of florals, resins and the grass note (I think the grass note is as clear and beautiful in this blend as it is in any BPAL blend that I've tried), all dusted over with the sugared candy scent. There's a lot of complexity here and a lot of strength here--I tested this scent alongside some very, very strong blends and I can still detect it very easily. The sugared scent lasts the longest, and after an hour it's about all I can pick up on, but that's such a pleasant scent that I don't mind.

[topazphoenix]

I didn't like the imp I received of Fairy Market. It was too sharp and strong and headache inducing. But I recently bought a bottle and like it much better. It smells floral and rather grassy in the bottle, but not on my skin. I get soft, powdery incense, lavendar, and something vaguely sugary. I usually don't like incense but this blend was balanced enough by the other notes that it wasn't a problem. I wonder if aging it makes the incense more prominent. It's quite pretty and I will be keeping this bottle. Hopefully it doesn't change too much.

Edited July 27, 2009 by AmandaKay

[lookingglass]

I usually don't do grassy florals, but the candies and incense gave me hope that this Fairy scent would work for me. It is a little sharp, but reminds me a bit of violets, which makes it a more Victorian floral, which I do like. The candy and resins round out the florals nicely. A keeper, but not a top 10-er for me.

[porcelina]

bottle: warm, heady and sweet. a little soapy. like someone just took a very hot shower with expensive soap.

 

skin: wow, i genuinely don't know where to start. this smells magical! the golden incense is what first comes to mind as i sniff my wrist. underneath is a bit of an herby floral, slightly damp, lightly sweet. on subsequent sniffs i get chewy, sweet candy.

 

as fairy market dries it remains pretty strong. i expected this to be very light and ethereal but it definitely has substance- and it definitely lives up to its description. the lavender stays well-hidden, which is a very good thing because that particular note had me worried. it remains in the background, a faintly ticklish herbal note, if anything. the scent sort of "consolidates" at this point- the general scent is of sweet, golden warmth with an herbal undertone.

 

i love this! my overall impression is actually of stands and stalls set up in a grassy clearing in the woods just before sundown, with warm yellow lights illuminating the magical wares. it's just beautiful.

[taramarie]

On me, The Fairy Market is sugared florals and a little bit of grass. I love it and I think it'll be even better aged.

[dirtytrip]

I didn't think this was going to be that great on me, but wind flowers and wet grass really do it for me, apparently. Very happy with this! Soapy but not powdery. Great wafting powers too.

 

Edited to add that it does start out with a sharp herb green thing, but it mellows. The drydown is worth it, I think.

Edited January 2, 2008 by dirtytrip

[TheIceMaiden]

This is really an unusal scent, but lovely. It starts out sugared fruits, then I get florals (no lavender so I assume its the others) with a little grass, then the final stage is sugared floral incense. When I smell it I really do picture the fairy market of Stardust...so wonderful job Beth!

Edited December 31, 2007 by TheIceMaiden

[snapeophilex]

I get no grass notes at all from this--just lovely deep floral scents which are softened nicely by the incense and sugared candies. A fantastic scent for me--I just bought two bottles and am wondering just how many more I should hoard.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

Ok, I had to have a bottle, even sight unsniffed; it just sounds so gorgeous! My Love gave it to me for Yule with a funny note about going to the Fairy Market and paying full-price for his Fairy, as you can't trust the discount ones...er, maybe you had to be there. I'm slathering this on to go with my new fairy party dress for New Year's Eve tonight. In the bottle, I smell amber, I think, and other soft, warm notes. On me, it blooms into a beautiful light fruit/floral bouquet with a touch of grassy green to keep it from being too sweet, and notes of amber-ish incense; really well-blended and not overly strong--a soft, fae scent of great beauty. There are no "trouble" notes here; I imagine it would be gorgeous on most skin chemistries.

[MeiLin]

This is my least favorite of the Stardust scents I have gotten so far, and if that sounds like a bad review let's just say that so far I have adored all of them and Lady Una is my top-of-the-list squee-inducing perfume. (I still haven't tried Witch Queen, Yvaine and Victoria.) In the bottle I smell the candy first, followed by the incense and lavender. On my skin it dries sweeter, which I didn't expect, and then the grassy note pops up with the incense curling behind it. Love it.

[grashopper8]

Very pretty, soft, feminine, delicate, sweet....

 

It's almost a honeyed floral scent. Very well blended, the incense note is very faint and adds just a hint of warmth and roundness. The green/grassy note is also not too intense - it offers some balance for the sugared wildflowers but doesn't ever take over.

 

The wet stage is more complex than the dried-down fragrance. After wearing it for a bit, I just smell a light, powdery floral dusted with sugar.

 

I'm very glad I tried it! It's a little too sweet and innocent to be something I'd wear often, but it definitely makes me think of spring faeries.

 

4.3 out of 5

[joseybird]

A grassy field with scattered heather and wildflowers and an aquatic note that indeed smells like mist or dew!

 

If I had to name this scent, it would be called Avalon it really does capture that spirit.

[pinkstardust420]

Absolutely beautiful. Now, I'm normally not a floral fan, (Espically lavender...blech!) but this scent is an exception! I can smell the golden incense, sugared candies, a hint of "Green" and most likely the wind flowers as a finally chapter in this beautiful blend. "No lavender found here..."

[heartlilly]

When first applied I smell damp green grass with maybe a hint of fruit. Thankfully (since I really enjoy it) even after it dries that grassy quality remains, but is sweetened up.

I can't pick out anything specific since the whole just blends into a thing of beauty.

[binaryfaerie]

Delicate and ethereal. I can smell the grass and sugar and flowers. It balances on the edge of being too sweet, but luckily, it never crosses that line. I think it does a wonderful job of capturing essence of the Fairy Market.

[twilighteyes]

In the bottle: Incense-y green floral.

 

Dry on skin: Dry down becomes sugared candies with a fresh green floral background.

 

Huge throw, long lasting.

[suileach]

Pretty and clear, like sweet water. There are a couple of scents that register in my mind as 'clean running water', and this is one of them. Smelling it more, there's an apple-like hint, but it's unlike any of BPAL's apple scents. Exquisitely lovely and ethereal. It's the sort of fragrance I wanted but didn't get from Fae and Mag Mell.

 

It gets very bright and lavender-y as it wears, as more folk bustle into the market and the day gets hotter. Flowers are trampled underfoot, releasing their scents to the sky.

 

Wait... and now there are baked goods, too? Fascinating.

 

After a couple of hours, sadly, I mostly get the trampled flowers note from it.

[soonyi]

wet, bluebells and sugar are the most prominent. there is the bpal grass note in the background, more like the after smell.

 

dry, golden incense is in the background, but it is strong, a very nice grounding. this scent stays sweet, and i thoroughly enjoy this one.

[dansemacabre]

Mmm in the imp, this smells very good, something I would definitely wear. I was a bit wary about the description though because certain lavender blends (even though I adore lavender) can be quite overwhelming but this wasn't the case. I was also uneasy about the wet green grass description but luckily I didn't get a whiff of this. On my skin, it's a bit sweet and musky. I can very faintly smell the lavender but it's coupled with a sweet sugary scent, not coma inducing or cloying at all. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I really like this. It's more feminine than anything and very 'perfumish', something that the average person may like.

[Lyrical]

In vial: sweet, herbal, flowery, a little sharp.

 

Wet on skin: very sweet, herbal and a little spicy.

 

Dry on skin: syrupy, light, fresh and slightly ethereal. Not quite my thing, but pleasant, and I'm glad I got to try it. I'll probably use up the imp.

 

As it fades I like this more and more! It's sweet, fresh and summery, and pretty without being old lady or little girl!

[tativa]

the gemini moon in my loves this scent.

Its sweet, and dry and musky all at the same time. I described it to a friend (who has not idea about scent notes) as being: Eating lavender cotton candy with bees buzzing all around, on a hot summer day (that kind of sweet hot musk).

And then it dries to a sweet, lavender on me.

Seriously, this is one of the only blends in my life where lavender works on me. I love the taste of lavender, but the scent normally drives me nuts.

This doesn't at all. I love it!

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Sugary sweet, but not foody at all; wildflowers and a hint of fresh lavender, the gentle floral sort, and wisps of smoky incense and grass. Airy and aquatic; amazingly unique, complex, and evocative. A wrist-sniffer immediately, and absolutely otherworldly. Ethereal, but earthy and complex.

 

Wet: Sweet, like sugared violets on cake, but not foody. More heavily floral, though all the notes are so well blended they are difficult to pick apart. The grass note is fresher, brighter, greener and also merges a bit with the herbal aspect of the lavender - the result is almost sharp, but just enough to balance the sweet and floral note. The smoky incense are like light breezes, not dark or strong at all.

 

Dry: The sweet note has softened into something honeylike on my skin, which is wonderful as I adore honey! It is quite sweet, but just this side of bearable. The flowers and grass are quite strong, as if one is outside immersed in a field in full bloom with sunlight streaming down; fresh, but sort of warm and bright as well. The astringency of the lavender and grass has faded to more general fresh greenery.

 

Later: Stays very sweet, but in a soft floral manner, not a sticky-foody way - the 'candied' note reminds me of the same one in Earth Rat - that same degree of sweetness. It's almost a little fruity, like wild plums or berries; rich, dark fruit that's herbal and a bit spicy. The incense notes remind me a bit of those in Les Bijoux or in Phoenix Steamworks, in that they provide a sort of earthy and exotic haze, without being dark, dusty, or cloying.

 

Summary: A huge armful of delicate but full-bloom wildflowers glows with a honeyed-sweet haze, blending with green herbs, sexy musk, hints of wild fruit, and lightly smoky resins and woods in perfect harmony; notes can be distinguished without breaking the unity of the blend as a whole. Utterly feminine and exotically fantastical. Good throw and lasting power.

 

Despite its significant sweetness, I must get a bottle! I see why this is so popular; it appeals to a broad range of tastes but is not overpowering in any one scent category. It does have a very faint touch of powder (some form of amber?) after a few hours, but it's completely bearable, and gives the blend a warm, soft, muted feel, like lying lazily in a sunny field during a late afternoon in August.

[inurbanus]

I'm not familiar with Stardust (book or movie), so my desire to try this came solely from the notes. I'm glad to say that I was not disappointed -- this is a gorgeous blend.

 

The first thing I get out of the decant is the wet grass, with a little bit of bluebell. While their combination was lovely to smell (very fresh and true to life smelling), I was hoping for more complexity, and luckily the lavender and sugar came to join the party. I adore the sugar note in this -- it adds just the right amount of sweetness without being cloying. The lavender also behaved -- I usually find it too herbal smelling, but it really brought the depth I was looking for. I'm afraid I can't smell the golden incense, but it's probably holding all the other notes together.

 

This is one of those blends where everything just syncs perfectly. I've noticed that I'm getting harder to please when it comes to blends, but I have no complaint with this. It's something anyone who loves florals must try. Intoxicating.

 

4.5/5