Snow White

[brownbear]

A chilly, bright perfume: flurries of virgin snow, crisp winter wind and the faintest breath of night-blooming flowers.

 

The first time i sniffed this was out of the bottle at a meet up at black broom. I thought it was beautiful. It smelled like gorgeous, cool, flowers. I just finally tried an imp of the 2004 (I believe) version after ordering the 2005 version. I really really really hope that they are different. It did the same thing on my skin that milk moon did. It went a bit minty, then it went to sour milk products. It's been hovering at the sour stage for a while with hints of plastic.

[sarada]

This is the '04 version.

 

Reviews describing this as having vanilla and/or coconut in it put me off of ever trying Snow White until now. But since it's available again and I've had some good luck with a couple of very crisp, cool vanilla blends in the past (Black Opal, Dorian) it's probably worth a try. I still hate coconut but since the actual description of this scent characterizes it as more of a crisp and refreshing snowy floral I'm going to hope that the coconut thing doesn't happen with me.

 

In the imp, this is a sparkling, crisp white scent with a thick, succulent body. I remember hearing there was a lily musk in this and I do get a very succulent sweet lily note in the background, completely unlike anything I've smelled in any other BPAL blend. It does have that slightly plasticky quality that I have seen people describe though. In wearing it that comes out stronger at first but then fades. It is not perfumey, which is a good thing -- most blends with too many floral notes in them are just an indistinguishable headachy mass for me. But this is pleasant and sweet and really sort of adheres to the skin in a warm and comforting way. It does smell a bit like a vanilla candle, which is something that doesn't entirely thrill me, but given my good track record with Black Opal and Dorian I think this is something I could wear.

 

The more I sniff this the more I think that lily forms the sweet smell -- I definitely smell some sort of lily in here. The plasticky smell is the same one that I get from the fresh white lilies my mom always gets around Easter. Crisp, sweet and watery. I think that overall this is something that I could wear. I've moved this onto my wish list for my second Yule order. I can see wearing this in the winter to mirror the feeling that I get from the crisp white snow, and I could wear this in the spring as the Easter lilies bloom and maybe even into the summer as a cooling blend. I hope people don't smell me and think I've got my pockets stuff with vanilla candles, but I think over all it gives the impression of something that is clean and comforting.

 

ETA: Okay I'm completely addicted to this now! I can't wait to get the bottle I ordered! It really defies description. It's nothing like I expected, nothing like anything else I've tried and resists categorization. You never know what you'll get though, since some people get floral, some get creamy, and some get plastic. Take a chance!

Edited December 10, 2005 by sarada

[PrettyPenny]

This is my new favorite scent! Perfectly creamy and cool. I get more compliments in one day of wearing Snow White than I've had my entire life wearing anything else. I hate that this is a limited edition.

[Avery]

*sigh*

I had majorly high hopes for Snow White, but now by the time I hooked up with a bottle, I realize that it is not the coconut toasted marshmallow cloud I had been hoping for, but really... lighly floral with a plastic/fake undertone. It is not me at all. I am hoping that maybe at a different time of the month it may smell better on my skin (early start) but I don't have high hopes... Snow White makes me sneeze.

 

Oh, and my boyfriend who has long told me about this mysterious smell that strippers have in his experience, said that it smells like strippers, which I guess is a good thing in the right context? But not on me, and he agreed that this was not a "me" smell. Oddly, Tombstone has much more of the warm marshmallow feel that I was looking for here. Will update if I change my mind. If not, it'll be a 2004 bottle off to swaps.

[ViolentKitten]

Everything about Snow White is pure, soft and beautiful; but it’s taken me almost a year to fully appreciate its exquisite beauty. When I first smelt it, I'd never before experienced anything similar; my fragrant adventures hadn't taken me down this trail of notes before. All I could see were pretty pale yellows and greens. As for actual notes, I was completely stumped. The reviews helped a little, I could smell a touch of very light almond and fresh cut green stems. The other notes though? Coconut? Maybe very light coconut shavings. Crisp green apples? Maybe!

 

Now, wearing again almost a year later, the notes are still quite elusive to me - is that mystery Lily musk tiptoeing about in there? - I sometimes get a very light creamy lemon and a whisper of flowers, and sometimes in the sillage I get vanilla beans, but not close up. And having smelt quite a few more scents this year, though none of these are really like Snow White, I'm reminded of the delicate almond flower note in Gabriele Strehle Strenesse and L'Occitane's Almond Blossom Dew, and I'm wondering if there's some heliotrope in there (which is also in Strenesse and Boucheron Jaipur Saphir). In fact, the drydown of Jaipur Saphir is a little similar to Snow White.

 

Deciphering of notes aside, this is an absolutely gorgeous scent. It's wonderful in the warmer months as it really does have that chilly feel and a unique freshness, but it’s also soft and comforting.

 

~ Edited to say, this is for the 2004 edition.

Edited November 20, 2005 by ViolentKitten

[Voleuse]

2004 Version:

This is cool and sweet on first application, and I get an nutty cookie note as well. After a while, however, it turns to plastic on me. Not strong plastic, but just reminiscent enough to make my nose wrinkle.

 

2005 Version:

On first application, this is lightly sugared almonds and plastic on me. And sadly, over time, it's the plastic that wins out. It's not unpleasant, but it's still not something I'd wear. Sigh.

Edited December 27, 2005 by Voleuse

[dagger_garnet]

OH MY GOD! I am in love!!!!! Snow White is fresh, heavenly and divine! I can't find words to describe this, but it is the most beautiful scent I have ever smelled. The fairest of them all!! I can smell freshness all around and the flowers. I don't smell roses or lilies or anything too familar. It's very unique and special. This is by far my favorite scent!!

[slave1]

SNOW WHITE 05

 

In Bottle: Berries and ice.

 

On Skin: I love this scent and it’s almost identical to last years version (or at least the imps I have, I’m not sure if they’re 03 or 04). So beautiful… one of Beth’s prettiest scents by far. It is so unique, there is nothing like it. There is a faint berry scent, a little of that almond cherry note, and a soft floral. A cold scent, but with warmness blanketed underneathe. I think of holly berries that have fallen into the snow, or still hanging from the tree with ice forming on them. I ADORE this scent.

[PixieSkull]

A bottle of 2004 Snow White that I tried in December of 2005.

 

In the bottle: Plastic, a slightly sweet plastic scent somewhat like playdoh.

 

On me: Softens out to a plasticy coconut and super-soft floral immediately on my skin, much more pleasant than straight from the bottle. People say there's something fruity, and I can only slightly smell this a while later, right underneath what I sense is white musk.

 

Overall: I like this scent, it's very soft and slightly chilly, not to forget I absolutely LOVE coconut scents. I think this is a very pleasant scent, I may keep the 5ml bottle I got off eBay.

[sfsassy]

This is the 2005 version. OH MAN! This is probably my favorite scent to date. On me it smells of creamy white snow. Very pretty and I will get another bottle for sure!

[Xiabelle]

Oh, I was so excited to try this one.

 

In the bottle it's kind of odd to me. I can't quite define it. There's lily musk in this, right? I can smell lilies... it's got that watery bulb flower scent to it.

 

Now, I ADORE the smell of bulb flowers. Tulips and irises and most lilies? Mmmmm.

 

Fresh on me, I smell lilies. It's that easter lily smell, very white and waxy and pure. For a moment at least.

 

As it dries down, it turns. It's no longer fresh and pure. It starts to get creamy, and creamier and.... is that coconut? It smells like someone put lilies in cream and left them out in the sun for a few hours on me. Sort of curdled and icky.

 

I'm coming to learn that coconut just does not like me. Now that I've seen the coconut comments, I'm recognizing the same scent in here that I didn't like in blood pearl, to my chagrin.

 

This is heartbreaking. I can smell that there's something lovely under here, but on me, it's plastic and artificial and curdled, and it's making me nauseous besides. I might have to go scrub it off.

 

I might try this again in a couple of weeks, but I don't hold much hope.

 

Why do these classics not work on me?

Edited December 9, 2005 by Xiabelle

[tinyvulture]

i wavered on ordering this because of the floral aspect, but i'm so glad i got a bottle. it is now my favorite of the yule blends. on me it's creamy, buttery, coconut and vanilla. it reminds me of snake charmer but without the spiciness. or spooky without the mint. no florals at all. and, it has great throw and lasts a long time.

[paperdoll]

2005 smells exactly like 2004.

 

*shudder*

 

Cold, unfeeling, antisocial plastic.

With flowers.

[Silverstrike]

Snow White 2005

 

Really, there isn't anything I can add to Snow White's reviews about how it smells--I've only tried about 60 BPAL scents so far, and I don't know all of the notes, etc. but I guess this might have coconut and flowers. . . although it's not like it's solely or mainly coconut or flowers. I haven't tried Dana O'Shee (although it's currently on order) so I can't compare in terms of that either.

 

But what I can say is that I love this fragrance. Absolutely, positively love love. I truly have no idea what is in this, but it smells fabulous in the bottle as well as on my skin, and it doesn't turn into something disagreeable (which for me, is absolutely amazing). Even when I can discern a plasticky smell, it works. And I can still smell a bit of it overnight. So far, my top catalog scents would be March Hare, Embalming Fluid and Dorian, and my top LE scents would be this, Midway and Numb (for comparison's sake, I've also tried Mi-Go-Brain Cannister, Milk Moon, Flower Moon, Samhain, Devil's Night, Sugar Skull, Jacob's Ladder, Stardust, Rose Red, Mistletoe and Lick It). But I haven't found anything else, in the GC or LEs, that I love nearly as much as Snow White. And when I say love, I mean would buy again in a heart beat. If Snow White were in the GC, I'd probably make it my "signature" fragrance (it's just so friggin' amazing), but it's not, so I'll just hope it's available next year. Oh, I love this one. I really, really love her.

Edited December 11, 2005 by Silverstrike

[DarcyPennell]

I am sooo glad I read the reviews, because I would never have ordered this based on the lab description. I don't like florals and I don't like coconut. But I love this. LOVE. No floral, no coconut, no plastic; just a soft, creamy vanilla, very light, but long-lasting. It's like my own skin just smells better.

[lovelyza]

2005 blend!

 

I must be a freak or something because I dont' get coconut or vanilla or flowers like most people have described. To me, Snow White is clean, green juniper and pine with soft, powdery snow (similar to the powdery note that I love in Black Opal). Its very light and soft but it clings for a long time and it doesn't morph at all, it just stays green and powdery. I love it, but I don't see how people would find this floral or foody, its pure green on me.

[malanna]

This smells slightly of plastic to me. A pleasant sort of plastic, if there's such a thing. Snow White is a bit watery and there's a hint of coconut. Not a tropical coconut, but a coconut dressed up to go to the poshest fundraising gala. I can almost find myself liking this, but I just can't get over the plastic overtone.

[Julilla Regina]

I don't think this smells plastic-y at all, but I can see why some would. I think it smells more waxy, like a waxy white flower. This is very creamy on me, like a vanilla and milk spritzed lily with a touch of musk. It's slightly cool, but I wouldn't say it's cold. I'm not getting the coconut that others have, but a sliver of almond (though I might be crazy).

 

This is not a morpher on me. The scent is very true from the bottle to my skin. BTW, this is absolutely purely gorgeous. I really love this and am so glad to have a bottle!

[LdyKnight]

I don't think this smells anything like what I was expecting. It is a lovely blend that is very hard to pin down. I think I smell coconut, maybe some vanilla, and a whole bunch of...something. Something in the wet stage of this one makes my nose run, but after it dries I am fine. After reading the reviews talking about lily I think I can smell that a bit. I like it, but I think one bottle will last me for a very long time.

[Nachtwulf]

In the bottle, this is very much a vanilla scent. I know it's supposed to be floral, but mostly, all I get is vanilla, and maybe a bit of white musk.

 

On me, it stays largely a vanilla musk. There's something ever so vaguely floral going on, but it's utterly stomped upon by the more forward notes. This isn't 'icy snow and flowers', it's more 'melted marshmallows' with something weird going on.

 

I also find that it seems a bit plasticky, on first impression, and I'm not sure what's causing it. It's inoffensive, I suppose, but there are other vanilla-type scents I prefer (Snake Oil springs to mind), so I think I'll probably swap it for something I like better. At least it's popular? ;

[eleventhousand]

coconut milk, pale vanilla, sugar musk, cold lilies, ozone, marzipan, ice, moonlight...

 

...and it lasts and lasts.

 

Anyone suffering from plastic-itis would do well to sell their bottles to me.

 

[Wench457]

Oh. Oh my. This is just amazing! I smell like clouds of coconut cotton candy on an icy day. I am in totally and utterly love with this one, and definitely need to stockpile more before she goes away!

[LushNatty]

In the bottle: this is one of those strange scents where I absolutely cannot smell anything in the imp. At all.

Applied: This one has me totally confused. Sometimes I love it, sometimes I don’t, and it changes with every test. The biggest source of confusion, however, is that I am having trouble smelling it unless I slather, and even after slathering I don’t notice the smell unless I get my nose right up against my skin or flap my shirt so I can get a whiff of cleavage.

Also, I get totally different notes every time I take it on a test run. It reminds me of Mary Poppins’s magical medicine that changes flavor every time she pours a new spoonful. The first time I tested it, I got snow and faint white roses. The next time, I got vanilla, sugar and snow. The next time, I smelled snow and wildflowers—like I would have expected from the description. Then I read the reviews, and now (on the fourth test, and after really slathering) ALL I can smell is plastic and some sort of sickly, pungent floral.

My take on this is that I can relate to almost every review of this scent, positive and negative, except for what people have said about this scent having a medium to strong throw. On me, regardless of whether I get good or bad notes dominating, they are uniformly weak and, if I don’t slather, totally undetectable. On the other hand, if I were to get a bottle of this, this would be a bottle that I would probably use up within about a month or so (unlike my other scents.)

I probably won’t get a bottle, due to the unpredictability of the applications. Of the snowy, innocent scents of the season, I will be going for Snow Bunny.

On a scale of 1 to 5: 2.5.

 

ETA: Ever since I wrote this review, I have totally fallen in love with this scent and I cannot stop craving it. It’s fresh and slightly sweet and completely unlike any other scent I have ever smelled. This is the only scent for which I ordered two bottles for my own use—normally, I am strictly a one-bottle person even on LE’s.

This is definitely in my top 5 favorite scents, if not number one. Goes to show once again how initial impressions can be misleading—lots of times, the stuff I love right away ends up not making it into regular rotation, and the stuff I was so-so on at first ends up being a winner. This is a perfect example.

On a scale of 1 to 5: 5. Maybe even 6.

Edited February 3, 2006 by LushNatty

[lookingglass]

This is GORGEOUS!!!!! I usually like scents on the thick side, but I will be wearing this OFTEN. Snow White is replacing O as my comfort scent right now. The floral is so soft, crisp and creamy at the same time. Like the freshest lily with vanilla cream...an enchanted faerie offering. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Clean and sweet. I LOVE it.

Edited December 15, 2005 by lookingglass

[aedes]

Yup, almost entirely warm, soft coconut for me, with a little bit of pineapple. Good insofar as I was worried this would be a cold scent. Bad insofar as this just... doesn't smell like me. My boyfriend smelled it and agreed. "A woman with black hair" I think he described. I agree. This would absolutely be the signature scent for Disney's Snow White. Despite that, I think I want to hang on to her for a little while.