Swan Maiden

[mamoyer]

White gardenia, white iris, sandalwood, calla lily, French magnolia, muguet, jonquil, and orchid.

There are so many white floral notes in Swan Maiden, I can't pick out any individual ones. But it is a GORGEOUS perfume that makes me feel sophisticated, pretty, and feminine when I wear it. I couldn't bear to be parted from mine, so I got another bottle of it to give to my friend who is getting married next weekend (I'm a bridesmaid, so it was a bachelorette party present). She only has a few imps I've given her, but she already knows she likes white florals best, so I ordered the bottle praying that SM would be good for her. It's totally her favorite now, and she says it's the perfect scent to wear on her wedding day.

It's potent, so that a dot of it on my arm can still be smelled wafting about me hours later. This is good, b/c I have a feeling I'm going to want to wear this into my late 20's at least.

Definitely one of my new favorites!

EDIT: A few months later, the gardenia really sticks out the most for me. I still love this blend! It's so gorgeous. I had to get a backup bottle. Edited January 12, 2008 by paperbacknovel

[hellomoonglow]

I don't generally like gardenia, so I bought this for the muget and jonquil. I'm glad I did! Although it's a strong floral in the bottle, it calms down after a half an hour without going powdery! Yay! I definetly smell the gardenia. I wish I smelled more muget. Actually, ALL muget would be nice! This is more of a spring scent for me, and am hoping the gardenia will fade by March so I can slather up with it. A keeper, not a swapper.

[taramarie]

I know I've said this before, but Swan Maiden is a sister of Poisson d'Avril. She's soft, pretty, white flowers, with muguet the strongest on me. I love this scent, but I think it's more appropriate for spring and summer.

[grashopper8]

This is a lovely bouquet of white florals with a hint of green freshness. It's very fresh and pretty, and I like the scent. Personally, I like my florals to be a little rounder, creamier....this has a slight sharpness to it that keeps me from being totally in love. This is similar to my taste in wine, I tend to shy away from wines that are very dry or green. I would compare Swan Maiden to an Italian Pinot Grigio. It's very nice, but a little too fresh and crisp for me to go bonkers over.

I definitely would call this an early spring scent. It has a tangible lightness to it, but with decent throw. Nice!

[zankoku_zen]

This is a lovely white flowers smell with a hint of juicy fruitiness to it. I have no idea where the fruity smell is coming from but I do enjoy the sweetness it brings to it. Normally gardenia and I don't get along, which is why I originally shied away from this scent but here it is practically non-existant.

 

Very lovely.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

Thanks to the wonderful Crimescenecleanup, I now have Swan Maiden! I would have sworn, on first application, that it contained moonflower, as it reminds me of a sweeter version of my precioussss Evening Star. However, I think it's the combination of gardenia and lily producing that effect. This reminds me of Yankee Candle's Wedding Day scent and also Estee Lauder's Beautiful, even though I know that those both contain roses and Swan Maiden does not. I guess it's just the "mood" of all those scents--a big, fabulous bouquet of white flowers says "wedding" to me. I will have to share this with my sister who is getting married next June; she may very well want to wear it. It's heady and romantic and ultra-feminine. Bride perfume with BPAL style!

[Christine Daae]

This is a gorgeous, creamy white floral. It is summery and humid as opposed to springy and bright, though it does have a slight green freshness to it. It's round, and warm, and undeniably white and floral. This actually has throw on me, which is amazing - white florals tend to do that on me, though, when almost nothing else (well, nothing else that I like!) will. It's the pure, pristine version of Lucy Westenra to me (it's the gardenia, I believe) - moreso than Lucy's Kiss was. I agree with everyone who has said that it's very 'bridal.' If I thought I were going to get married anytime soon, I would save it for then...but I don't think I am, and it's too pretty not to wear!

 

I may have to track down more bottles of this...

Edited November 28, 2007 by Christine Daae

[yeahbutnobut]

Swan Maiden

 

In the imp: a beautiful, soft, rich white flower with sweet nectar.

Wet on skin: the gardenia isn't turning to 'flower of evilness' on me! This smells of sweet daffodils, gardenia and lilies.

Dry on skin: mmm, for now, this is gorgeous. Like a bouquet of white flowers, this is an elegant and feminine floral. I can smell the jonquil with its daffodil-like scent, the sweet gardenia and orchid, with rich magnolia and a hint of iris, even the lily notes are behaving. It's the perfect white floral scent, white as swan feathers, gentle and slightly melancholy. Now this is very pretty, but it could turn acrid like White Moon did on me. I'll wait and see.

After a while: now the scent seems to turn a bit funny on me. Not acrid, or screaming flowers of death, but it now smells a little bit sickly sweet now, like oversweet flowers and a tone of overripe fruit. It reminds me of the slightly cloying scent I get from things like plum blossom and some champaca scents. There's something to it that reminds me of pear, a sweet fruit juice drizzled over the flowers. The calla lily is sharpening a little, but it's not a shrieking sharpness like it can be, this is a gentle lily like the one in Brides of Dracula. Considering this, it's not bad, it could have been a lot worse, it's a very tolerable scent, soft and sweet and exceedingly pretty.

The floral notes become a little bit dry and thin over time, delicate and feathery, and then the scent begins to fade fast from my skin. At times it gains a hint of a white linen scent, then I smell a little bit of sandalwood, and the scent then becomes very faint.

Verdict: I was expecting this to be a bane, what with all the floral notes that could either turn acrid or soapy on me. But I was surprised at how lovely this one was, especially at the start. This scent makes me think of ballerinas dancing to Swan Lake. It's a graceful, gentle floral, white and innocent and approachable. It's surprisingly nice, with it smelling gorgeously full and flowery for an hour or two. I'm not as keen on the drydown though…it doesn't go dry and wilted like these floral scents can do, but it does turn a little cloyingly sweet, like overripe fruit…and then it fades away really quickly, until the scent is feathery-light, hard to detect. It's not a favourite, but it's a lovely scent and certainly one of the nicest gardenia-lily-muguet scents I've come across.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? not really-but it is prettier and nicer than I expected.

If you like this, try: Eternal, Ecstasy of St Theresa, Brides of Dracula, White Moon, Kitsune Tsuki

[arabella]

First Impression: Soft Floral.

 

Dries down to: Doesn't change much except for becoming softer.

 

Additional Comments: This is a lovely floral blend. I tend to be leery of gardenia but here it's tempered beautifully by the other florals. The sandalwood gives it an edge and keeps it from becoming a "perfume-y" floral - if that makes sense. Unfortunately, it doesn't have much staying power on me.

 

Lasted: 2-3 hours.

 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

[edenssixthday]

Swan Maiden – This is a lovely white floral. It’s mostly gardenia on me, which I normally wouldn’t care for, but the other florals, particularly the calla lily, soften it and make it just a hint powdery. I can’t smell the sandalwood at all, but I can feel it there, tempering the potential headiness of this blend, and keeping it grounded. It’s beautiful, feminine, mysterious, and lovely.

[CrazyPretzel]

This seems to be quite a popular blend... not for me though!

 

I wish I got more of the muguet and sandalwood from this, but from the moment it touches my wrist it's scary GARDENIA of doom. I do enjoy the smell of gardenias, but like it better in Ecstacy of St Theresa. Here, with all the other florals singing backup, it's just terrifyingly strong.

 

My mom says I smell like a funeral home.

 

Someone will be happy to have this in a swap, I'm sure!

[SootAndStars]

Swan Maiden- This is my first review hurray!!

 

Gosh I wanted to love Swan Maiden, I love swans and gardenias, but I expected something different with this blend. On my skin I get sharp, sweet, white powder and I can hardly make out any other notes in it. It reminds me a bit of Lucy Westenra. It definitely is a good bridal scent but it's not for me. It deserves a more appreciative home!! To the swaps!!

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Lily of the valley, other white florals.

 

Wet: Crazy strong muguet, iris, and orchid - all potentially terrible florals on me. Which I had not yet learned when I decided to get this imp. Alas. I had to wash this one off right away.

[filigree_shadow]

Out of the list of floral notes in Swan Maiden, the gardenia one is the only one I usually avoid. This is startling because the list of floral notes I avoid is kind of long. A floral perfume with only one no-no flower in it? Almost unheard of, for me.

 

And this? Aaaaah. Lovely. Exactly the sort of floral I like. It smells white, clean, and soft. Not heady, not humid, not green... just gorgeous. I can smell the gardenia in it, but to be honest it sorta seems like the orchid is stronger. It gets even more lush and wonderful as it dries.

 

The florals I like that are a bit similar to this one (in feel, rather than strictly in scent) are Dreamland, The Ghost, Sepulcher, and White Moon. Those were all stand-outs for me, and this one goes on that list too.

[mgrazulis]

When I uncapped the imp, the gardenia was quite strong. I had a headful right off the bat! Magnolia and muget swirled through next. My nose tickled and fought the urge to sneeze. A little headache but that soon passed.

 

It dried down with just a hint of sandalwood, the flowers blended together softly into a nice wave. A very feminine white floral scent. Unfortunately, I think that the muguet and gardenia together are too much for my nose.

 

I soooooo wanted to love this one! I'll hold on to my imp and give another try in a few months!!

[lilirose]

In the bottle: sweet floral

 

On skin, wet: OMG intense gardenia. Overwhelming.

 

Drydown: A much more well-behaved gardenia-based floral. Sweet and fresh and summery and pure white floral. The sandalwood doesn’t pop up until very late in the game, which is fine by me. And also, orchid usually goes bitter on my skin, but this time all it does is damp down the sweetness just a tad.

 

I bought this from a forumite because I got the idea that it might smell like TAL White Light without the ritual intent. (Not sure why I thought that- I don’t see it mentioned on the recommendations thread.) For the record, it smells nothing at all like White Light to me.

 

Still, it has more throw than anything I’ve tried in months, and I love BPALs with tons of throw. And it’s a BPAL that smells far more like a flower garden than it does a perfume, which adds more bonus points in my opinion, so I think this one’s a keeper.

Edited August 25, 2008 by lilirose

[hlinspjalda]

I bought this despite the fact that I was pretty sure it wouldn't work on me. But the name drew me, and the gardenia and sandalwood enticed me, so I gave it a shot.

 

In the vial: Cold, watery, woodsy. Not nearly as floral as I expected from the description; this smells like gliding past the flowery white banks of a shady river.

 

Wet: Sharp, woody florals, still cold and watery. I can't place this at all beyond something that might be the muguet. It smells blue-white to me, almost icy.

 

Hour and a half: Got distracted by making breakfast and couldn't track this closely. For the first hour it was unpleasant, all high piercing notes like the worst elements of magnolia, gardenia, and muguet. I've always had trouble with that class of flowers; they usually don't smell good on me at all. But slowly as the shrieking died off the sandalwood began to glow. It's very subtle now, a sandalwood base with some ethereal florals over top of it. Still very blue-white, not a warm white at all. I can tolerate this, but going through that first hour of harsh headachy notes makes it unlikely that I'll want to do so regularly.

 

Three hours: Mostly a gentle sandalwood now, but with a tinge of gardenia on top. This one performed just about as I expected, sadly; but it was worth the shot. I'll keep the bottle (which is lovely) and wear it from time to time perhaps, but I'll definitely decant as many imps of it as possible to trade or sell.

 

Four hours: Now it smells wonderful, although very light.

[isisonearth]

Bottle: Lily, a powdery sandalwood and the delicate sweetness of gardenia.

 

Wet: Stronger gardenia with a supporting cast of floral whiteness still with that touch of sandalwood to keep wearable.

 

Dry: Soft and white, a whisper of florals on my skin. The magnolia and orchid are more distinguishable but gardenia remains the star. Truly evocative of white feathers.

 

I always love gardenia because it was my mother's favorite flower. Most times I find it too sweet to be wearable for me. This is just right...not at all over powering.

[Lucretia]

Lots and lots of gardenia, and just a sensation of being covered in an assortment of white flowers. I'm bad at naming my florals, but it smells like spring to me. I absolutely love this. It's hauty and innocent at the same time. It's also "normal" enough to be able to wear to formal work occasions without getting any curious looks. This lasts for a few hours on me. At the 8 hour mark this is a lingering sweet smell on my wrists, but nothing discernable anymore. So glad I got a bottle of this one.

[GalaxyLei]

Such a nice, light floral...not overpowering at all, like some can be...I must get more imps to fill up my bottle!

[asciident]

Wet: Musky! Which is strange, since I don't see musk listed, unless that's what muguet would smell like.

 

First on: Creamy and musky.

 

Dry: Sweet skin musk. Not at all floral, weird.

[ShadowsDance]

Flowers so very rarely work out on my skin, thye generally turn to powder, but anything with gardenia always temps me. Luckily I broke down and decided on a bottle of this when it was live - it is pure, wonderful gardenia on my skin. Nothing else, it's like having a single note. I love it.

[ami226]

I am really starting to get the hang of identifying gardenia.... There is some smooth lily in here as well. Very very floral.

 

I loved this one when I first started getting into BPAL, but now my tastes have shifted away from the pure florals. I just don't like it quite as much as I used to.

[undream]

lush & humid, like walking along the edge of a flowering pond in the cool moonlight of early spring. &the throw is amazing; just an unbelievably gorgeous floral that i couldn't begin to describe. (some things are just so beautiful for any such words!)

 

oddly, for the first few moments after putting it on - and eventually, after i have been wearing it for some time - a strange, kind of unpleasant note comes out which reminds me of the lab's jasmine oils; BPAL's jasmine always always always turns into hairspray on me (sob), &while this one does not do so to the extent that jasmine does, it is too close for me to not be unhappy about it. however, i refuse to give up TWO florals i absolutely adore (ohgod, gardenia, heart heart heart), AND the throw in this / mid-point wet floral phase is just so lovely that i am all about giving it a second - and third - and possibly ninth - chance.

 

highly recommended for floral/gardenia lovers!!

[countessmouse]

A lovely, lovely white floral scent! The gardenia, iris and lily play well together, so much so that I'm not getting any sandalwood out of this, but I don't care. The downside? It's fading fast and I probably won't be able to smell it on me in about an hour.