The Blood Garden

[Lethran]

Blood accord, bitter clove, English ivy, Tempranillo grape, red currant, oak, leather, blackberry leaf, and ginger lily.

In bottle: Grape candy, ivy, something sharp. Wet: lots of grape, but the underlying complexity comes out with warming. Lots of berries, with blood accord and clove spicing it up. Slowly the other elements creep out. Dry: Much the same only softer.

[blu°]

This is a nice one.

 

At first it reminded me so strongly of Purple Phoenix, Blood Phoenix and possibly The Chilling Cellar, that I was a bit disappointed.

 

Now that it's dried down, I do get the differences, and I think I might like this better than Purple Phoenix which had been my favourite among those mentioned above. First of all, it doesn't have the plum, which is a definite advantage IMO. And it's not really overly fruity at all after drydown. The grapeyness that is there after application retreats and the other fruit notes come out, but they are muted and have a floral tinge which makes them feel rather elegant instead of sweet and fun.

 

The throw is exquisite, slightly floral, slightly spicey (after two hours I get a distinct clove scent), nice shade of dark red. It's not sour, as could have happened with the currant and grape, but rather dry and smooth. Yet, the colour is a vivid and deep blueish red leaning towards purple.

 

It kind of reminds me of Wanda as well.

 

Possible bottle purchase, but will have to wear it a couple of times more to be able to decide.

 

ETA: The longer I wear this, the more I like it. It's becoming more clovey, more of a warmer brown-red now. Warm and dry with just a touch of berries. A bit like Madrid, but I like this better than that one with its high pitched florals. Most definitely a bottle, or two.

Edited July 27, 2008 by blu°

[Blood onmy hands]

In the bottle, this smells like earthy, dark, red fruit.

 

On my skin, it's still red fruit, but with a perfuminess from the lily, a tangy sharpness from the blood, a spicy lift from the clove, and an earthy/smoky smackdown from the leather. I love the ivy and blackberry leaf notes, but they're nowhere to be found in this blend. As this dries down, Blood Garden is mostly a tangy blood, tart currant, and spicy clove on me.

 

This is like The Obsidian Widow, but Blood Garden isn't as good, dark, or complex as Obsidian Widow. Still, it has a similar 'red' feel, and I do like this blend. It's just that the Widow is so much better on me, and has that similar red feel, so I compare the two and this one comes up lacking quite a bit.

Edited March 12, 2009 by Little Bird

[Ravenclaw79]

Grapey. Very grapey. It's a muddled grape, though, like grape and dust, grape and old paper, with a hint of floral something trying to poke through. Odd. I can't decide how I feel about this one.

[twilighteyes]

I would like to start out by saying that almost every wine blend I've tried has not been good on me. I don't really like the smell of wine perfume for some reason.. which is odd, because I love wine of all sorts.

 

So I didn't think that I would like this one. But in the name of fairness, I give all of the perfumes a chance with skin testing...

 

and wow. This one is one of my favorites from this act!!

 

Not winey at all.

[mazaru]

This is fruity and leafy at the same time, a pleasant wet autumn garden after the rain. Not much blood for me, but a pretty scent without being girly.

[caffinatedangel]

This was a rather unexpected frimp I scored from the last decant circle I was in (crazyness ensued). Glee for something unexpected, right?

 

In the imp: Yum? ick? I can't decide. One wiff is fruit, the other something tangy and stirrs my gag-reflex. Not a good sign O.o

 

Wet on skin: o.o for a few seconds there I flailed and thought this would be putrid. That gag-reflex smell popped up (I wish I knew what it was. It was acidic, tart, bitter, sharp, bright, fruity. Fail on my part.). Ew.

Dry on skin: After just a few moments (maybe 2 minutes) the gag smell is completely gone. It must have dried down into something bareable, or my chemistry dislikes it (thank god?). The Oak, Leather, and Ivy (Which I don't actually know the scent of, but am assuming this moist green yummy smell is ivy) combine together to make a real earthy, slightly masculine thing. It's well grounded and some of my absolute favorite notes. But, it's also not manly at all. The grapes, current, I suppose blackberry are giving it a fruity overall tone which lightens it up. It's reminding me faintly of Crawdad dreams - because of the depth, the layers, the fruit and the deliciousness. Not girly, but very womanly in a light way. It's just perfect.

 

I can pick out Clove, actually. It's tingling my nose, and this "bitter" clove is the clove I always think of when someone mentions it. Clove that I cook with, grind, eat. The sharp side of it. Slightly spicey but not quite. Other blends have had clove, but it's the mellow, buttery kind. Not this.

 

I had thought perhaps I was mistaken (could still be lol) and the spice was the ginger lily. Because I don't know what that is, or if it smells gingery at all o.O. But... as time progressed that "lily" smell amped. Giving it that floral, pollen-y, flower smell I associate with lillies. It's not awful, but it's not really my fav note.

overall: I jabber a lot, but the blend is lovely. It's womanly, non-seasonal, and satisfyingly dark. Naturally, everything for me is sex. It's like someone just had a tumble in a grape vine. Leather of the man, giger lily/current of the girl, vines and grapes of the garden.

 

It's really lovely, but I'll have to test this imp out a few more times until I'm certain the lily is tolerable and pleasant. Just have to make up my mind before the carnival jumps town.

[grashopper8]

Blood Garden is okaaay on me, not a 5mL'er though. It's pleasant enough, with the grape/red currant and fresh lily and hint of leather....for some reason, it's just not captivating my attention.

 

Nice, just not memorable.

 

3.6 out of 5

[vampkat]

This is *MY* scent. I need 10-20 bottles. On me it's clove and dragon's blood and dark sexy sweetness. I don't know how it works out so nicely, but it's PERFECT. If anyone has any unloved bottles, feel free to shoot them my way!! lol

[Miss Lynx]

An interesting scent, and at first sniff, very likable. It initially reminded me of Tintagel -- it's got the same spicy-sweetness, with overtones of dragon's blood (I'm pretty sure that's what the blood accord is, or at least a significant part of it) and undertones of wood.

 

Looking at the list of notes, I can see why the resemblance -- there are a number of notes that are the same or at least somewhat similar between them. Leather -- check, wood -- check, (dragon's) blood -- check, berries -- check, mulled wine -- check (well, grape and clove). The main difference is that this one's got a strong floral note in it as well, so it comes across as basically a more feminine Tintagel.

 

It also bears a bit of resemblance to this year's Dragon Moon, though again, it's a bit sweeter. That one did have some florals in it, but it didn't have the almost syrupy sweetness of the grape and currant.

 

On the whole, I like it, but it does over time veer into being almost a little too sweet for me. Freshly applied, it's lovely, but over time the lily amps a bit and so do the grapes. If it had just one or the other of those two, I'd probably love it, but as it is, it's more of a case of just like.

 

Grade: B/B+

[theseagrows]

this is a very bloody scent, it really is reminiscent of blood or reminds me of it. i am thinking the blood accord is red wine or something similar? i am getting a definite wine note, along with the grape, and blackberry. i get a subtle leather background, and i can't really make out the floral, clove or ivy notes. this scent is ok on me, but the red wine scent is a bit strong and is giving me a headache, so i will probably swap it.

[anardana]

I thought I would like this one more- but it is too sticky sweet for me. Not very much clove.

[zankoku_zen]

This had a very strong blood accord at the beginning. And then, I get more of a blackberry wine from this. But it's all very sinister. It actually makes me a little uncomfortable.

 

Yup, not for me.

[angelicruin]

In the bottle and wet on the skin, The Blood Garden sort of hit me over the head with the powerful clove & bitter notes. Once applied to the skin and allowed to dry for a couple minutes, the harshness retreats and I'm left with a wonderful blood resin, musk, and deep red wine blend. Definitely a keeper!

[hkhm]

bottle: this smells just like prospero (grape!) with a bitter leather scent in the background.

 

wet: this is evil grapes and blood. it's like if prospero and tintagel has a very evil offspring.

 

dry: as this dries the grape really sweetens up. the blood and clove and leather all sit in the background. this is a sexy, brooding scent.

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Initially sweet (I would have said Dragon’s Blood Resin, but I presume it’s the blood accord), but with a slightly chemical smelling floral in the background

 

Wet on me – Again with that chemical floral, only now it dominates. Having said that the entire blend appears to disappear on my skin so dominating isn’t hard

 

Dry on me – Sweet, slightly berryish musk that just sits off the skin

 

Overall – Oddly this seemed to get stronger as the day goes on (I presume that my nose just doesn’t pick up the top notes very well). On the whole I like it, it’s a nicely intimate, but still robust scent.

 

[donnatron]

Bottle: The type of sweet, juicy berry scent that kind of makes my tongue curl. I detect no other notes under this berry quality.

 

Wet: Oh right. Ivy. Ivy accord and me have a tempestuous relationship. It tends to smell... well, I guess it's the dirty diaper scent other people get from jasmine. This only happened recently (and I weep for my previously excellent relationship with Litha) and I am very iffy about it in my bottle of BG. So it's like... diapers and berries. Delicious.

 

Dry: The ivy either burns off or gets buried. The grape and currant are the top note with the blood accord supporting. Half the time I refuse to believe there is actual dragon's blood in blood accord and half the time I have no choice but to believe it. There is a trace of dragon's blood in this but for all I know it could just be a similar ingredient in one of the bouquets used. I get the faintest hint of the leather, clove and oak and I am okay with this. This is a sweet, luscious fruit scent with a dark edge. If Blood Countess is one kickass woman who will fell you just because she can this is a kickass woman with a couple body guards she gets to do her dirty work lest she break a nail in the process.

 

Throw: Intense.

 

Overall: I've been waffling on my bottle of Blood Garden. It has so many of the scents I dig (Currant! Blood accord! Blackberry leaf! Lily--although ginger lily sounds a wee bit iffy--!) but up until now it's been less than the sum of its parts. For my taste, at least, it is definitely one that needs a good long time to settle down and figure out what it wants to be. I don't think I'm going to be hankering after any more bottles but I will enjoy the one I have and I look forward to seeing any more changes it might undergo.

[magikalbrownies]

very sweet in the imp and its amazingly aweesssommmeee..

 

this reminds me of miller vs california but with a different spin.

 

smells like cherry flavored benadryl...at least that's what my daughter says...

 

overall: on the wishlist

[devilot]

In the bottle: Can smell the dark fruitiness (grape, red currant, blackberry leaf). But something earthy too, NOT patchouli, but if patchouli were to have an earthy sibling who didn't stink as much. Maybe it's the blood accord? Or the oak? At any rate, there's a dark earthy note that does NOT instantly translate to my nose as "wood" and adds a gorgeous depth to the blend.

 

Wet: Something turns a little tangy-- currant perhaps? And ah, a hint of floral which I assume is the ginger lily. But I'm a little sad that it's already lost the darkness it had while just sniffing the imp-n-a-bottle.

 

Drydown: And now something greenish starts to appear-- the English ivy? Or Is it the blackberry leaf?

 

Verdict: I'm wishing I got a smidgeon more clove and I never smelled any leather (I looove the leather notes in the lab's blends). And I never thought I'd say this-- but I almost wish there was the teensiest tiniest bit of patchouli as that tends to make blends feel darker and definitely last longer on my screwy skin chemistry. All in all, not a bad blend at all, but not one of my favoritest ever. Wouldn't mind another decant or two to put into my bottle, though.

 

 

ETA: Whoa! Something's gone wrong. It's sour and dusty now. Ick.

Edited May 17, 2009 by devilot

[ouch!]

The wet stage of this is really similar to Blood Phoenix on me but much darker. It's grape grape and dark red fruits. Like they've beel cloaked in black velvet. There's other stuff going on too...it's slightly incensey too and there's a sharp floral in there.

I really wasn't a fan of Blood Phoenix...and this I'm still on the fence..it's definately better than BP but still that overbearing grape note that's risking becoming headachey is turning me off!

 

Let's see how the dry down goes..

 

Hmmm ok so the grape scariness is going a bit, it's more floral with some fruit. but it's not the grape.

It's more pleasant in this stage and still a deep dark red scent.

 

Not going crazy for this one though..

 

 

[crebbsgirl]

This went a little juicy on me - which can happen with grapes/red fruits. The longer it sat, a very smoky tone came out. I'm not sure where the smoke is coming from to be honest. The leather and clove stayed mild here, neither overpowered the blend which has been known to happen on my skin. It was nice enough, but it didn't jump out at me.

[yeahbutnobut]

The Blood Garden

 

In the bottle: there’s that same pungent note from Mort de Cesar, only this time with more wine.

Wet on skin: mmm, now I smell something almost like saffron, as well as more of the blood note.

Dry on skin: this is actually really nice! The dominant note is the wine grape, sweet and red, followed by the blood, which is that lovely blood accord with it’s nuances of red fruit, red musk, spices and a bit of iron. There’s a hint of pungent spice, almost savoury, like cumin. Maybe it’s the ginger. I also smell currants and the blackberry here is not turning to cat pee. I don’t smell leather, oak or ivy yet. This reminds me of the clove wine from Madrid meets the currant wine from Lady Macbeth with a dash of blood.

After a while: now this reminds me of Crypt Queen, only without the floral notes and the strong patchouli. This scent really shows off the blood accord and it’s complexity, all it’s facets. The blood smells drier now, and a bit earthy. The scent is crimson-toned and the grape has now become a dark red wine, the currant is tart yet also dry, I now smell what could be the oak and the blackberry underneath. The clove is smoky and accentuates the slightly metallic spice of the blood note. There’s something here almost like saffron, or the spices from Scherezade.

Verdict: this is a really intriguing one. It works surprisingly well on me, despite containing blackberry and leather notes, I hardly smell them in here. I’m not crazy about the start, when it smells pungent and a little funky, but after five minutes this turns really lovely-a deep bloody wine with a smattering of metal, with warm exotic spices, deep fruit notes and something almost musky. It’s a little bit like Crypt Queen but with hints of Madrid and Mort de Cesar, and the blood accord is strong, but quite pleasant. Not an everyday scent, but certainly one to keep the bottle of.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? yes.

If you like this, try: The Chapel, Mort de Cesar, Madrid, Lady Macbeth, Blood, Chilling Cellar

[reynardine]

In bottle: mess of florals, hard to pick out individual notes. Pretty, though.

 

Wet: Almost an incense note here (although there’s not incense in this blend). VERY floral at first.

 

Drydown: the grape/berry texture starts coming out now, but still with the heavy floral

 

Later: Moderate to Heavy throw, morphed into lovely grape/berry scent with floral undertones. Beautiful once it settles down.

 

[claudia6913]

Oh. My. God.

 

This is love in a bottle. This is sexy, sweet, musky love. I can't even begin to explain just how wonderful this scent is as it wafts around me. I literally moaned after I put it on, and have not stopped sniffing my wrists since. It's been a little over an hour since application and the scent is still going strong.

 

This somewhat reminds me of Hymn to Proserpine, but the GC has a bit of a bitter note to it, where as Blood Garden does not. A co-worker said it reminded her of an old perfume called Tweed.

 

The Blood Garden does have a very ... refined quality to the scent - I get images of the Talamasca, or even David Talbot, after Lestat had him turned. Yes, very much David Talbot - refined English Vampire.

 

No one scent seems to be vying for attetion, but instead they mingle and dance together, drunk on blood and wine, twisting like the roots of an old oak. Yet I can smell each scent, almost individually. I don't know why this was not one of my first orders, or why it took so long to get into my warm little hands, but I'm not letting go!

[Venneh]

In the decant, I'm getting... cologne? Huh? We'll see how that goes. On my skin, I'm definitely getting that sense of cologne, spicy cologne and maybe sweetness in there somewhere. Bwa? Mostly cologne, defintely not for me.

Edited April 16, 2010 by Venneh