L'Estate

[sprocket21]

Nepalese amber, vanilla infused amber, golden musk, sandalwood, golden lily, sunflower, and honey myrtle.

It's here! It's here! I've been stalking the mail for days now .

I've never been a first reviewer before. I will probably not do it justice, but here goes.

In the bottle: Sweet, a little bit powdery (I assume from the amber), and very feminine. It's a very golden smell.

On me, it sweetens up a tad - I can smell the honey just a bit, but the amber is center stage. The powdery-ness that I smelled in the bottle goes away, and it's just a very soft, sweet amber. It almost smells like there's a smidge of citrus in here with it, too. To me, the scent evokes a lazy sun-drenched summer day, and is all orange and gold.

While I've sniffed and liked several amber blends, I didn't think it was really a note for me, but this is gorgeous. Most of the scents I like are very candy-like, and this seems like a more mature option. I'm going to be wearing this a lot this summer.

[Lunaratu]

first on this comes across already like a hazy afternoon in the sunlight which induces one to just be a bit lazier than usual.

 

There is a definite muskiness (obviously from the golden musk) that makes itself known on my skin with the sweetness of the honey myrtle, lily, and sunflower all swirling very subtly together in a vague golden haze.

 

There's something about this that is vaguely similar to Haloes actually. They're both sweet but more skin scents grounded just a bit by...something (I'm thinking the sandalwood). The amber just acts more like a middle note melding everything together rather than standing out on its own on my skin. However while Haloes is a glowing golden aura, L'Estate is glowing golden yet hazy sunlight.

 

This reminds me very strongly of how in the summer I'd sit in the one spot in the afternoon where the sun starts streaming into my apartment and lights it up, filling it with that type of golden honeyed light. I really loved to curl up into the couch and read a really good book at those moments.

 

Lovely and very evocative of warm summer afternoons.

Rating: 4.5/5

Try if you like: Haloes definitely

[HappyLoveJoy]

Oh, this is lovely! I predominately get the florals and they are sweet, fleshy and dripping with nectar. It really does evoke the essence of summer, smells like the color of honey and gives me the feel of being around fruity-scented flowers on a hot humid early morning when things are moist and dewy. The amber, musk and sandalwood lend the sexy note of sun-warmed skin so it feels like the florals are sinking in and floating all around me like an aura. Summer is the sultry, sexy season that has us wearing less and revealing more and L'Estate captures it so well. I'll bet L'Estate will morph wonderfully with the temperature and with the degree of body heat so that it's everchanging throughout its time on the skin.

[heathercaley]

Wet: Fabric softener

 

As it dries.. something in this oil reminds me of Anactoria. Must be the honey and amber blended together. It makes this specific (and unique) blend that once combined makes a new note I like to call Amboney Both Anactoria and L'Estate have this specific "note"

 

I definitely smell sunflower, and musk. It's very nice, but not me...

 

 

edited to add: It really lightens up and my skin absorbs it rather quickly. It is very clean, but I am a durty complex scent type of gurl. The throw is very soft and I have to really put my face to my arm to smell it. Damn you chemistry!! I love to eat honey so why doesn't it work on me??

Edited July 3, 2008 by Purrsnikety

[mandragora]

Used after I've taken a shower using the L'Estate Bath Oil.

 

Ooo, sunshine-y flowers. Pale golden yellow.

 

I can definitely smell the sunflower and hints of amber and a bit of honey. It also smells fresh and clean. Very pretty .

[Tramp]

Thought I would add a mini review in case it helps those trying to decide on ordering.

 

L'Estate goes on all golden amber with a tinge of musk. The amber quickly warms up on the skin and then it is all LILIES! At least on my lily amping skin. I can almost taste them that is how lily it goes on me. Musky lilies. After about half an hour the lilies start to tone down but this is definately a floral blend.

[abejita]

The comparisons with Haloes are very apt here. Where they differ is that Haloes is drier and woodier, while L'Estate has a more fuzzy, earthy kind of warmth. I've discovered that, while Egyptian Amber will always be my one true love, Nepalese amber is a close second.

 

The two ambers meld beautifully. The synesthesia is fun, I perceive the ambers as having a nubby texture, like raw silk. The sunflower reminds me of one of the top notes of Et Lux Fuit, which is absolutely fine by me. I am not the hugest fan of lily, but I'm finding that in blends like this I enjoy the note. The golden musk seems to make this scent heat up, melding it to my skin. This isn't just the pinnacle of summer, it's high noon at high summer, reveling in its glory.

[girlygirl]

Amber, musk, and lilies. Very floral. Very summery.

 

I will layer with the bath oil and report back soon!

[inurbanus]

This is very pretty! I defitely understand the Haloes comparison, but Haloes smelled creamier to me, while this is golden and amber-y. It's a pretty, radiant smell, like being touched by the rays of the sun. It's a little more delicate than I was expecting -- I find a lot of BPAL amber blends to be ostentatious (which is a good thing, IMHO), but this demure, almost shy. I've been so excited to try this one, and I'm thrilled at how well it captures the feeling of Summer.

 

4.5/5

[suki]

in the bottle: lily, sunflower and musk

 

wet on skin: sunflower and musk duke it out for strongest note.

 

dry down: a bit more cloying and floral than i like, this is a rich, heady sunflower-fueled scent. i get none of the more delicate notes, this is almost exclusively sunflower, with a hint of musk behind it. nothing more.

 

in all: as with L'Autunno, I find that this oil, on it's own, is not something that i find all that impressive or would go out of my way to seek out. However, also as with L'Autunno, the brilliance of layering comes into play here, and i find that when L'Estate and it's counterpart bath oil are engaged together, something wonderful and compelling happens- the floral of the perfume and the sweet resinous aspects of the bath oil combine to make something softly glowing, warm, and yes- Summer-y.

total keeper, in it's full set!

 

 

[kikithepirate]

Holy crapnuggets, L'Estate is strong! Based on the fact that EVERYONE in the office noticed when I opened my inquest bottles to sniff, I played on my instincts and only used a tiny bit instead of my standard slathering amount, which was most definitely a good call on my part.

 

That said, this is most definitely the most "perfumey" BPAL that I've ever liked. It really does smell a lot like a brand-name perfume, but not in a bad way. I think it's due to the overwhelming nature of both the musk and the florals. I can catch both the lily and the sunflower, and in the bottle there's even something slightly fruity about it. I think this is going to be a really good date scent... I picture myself wearing it in a floral-print dress, eating out on a patio at a nice restaurant on a warm summer's day.

[dluszcz]

Peachy-warm lily musky skinness! No powderiness from the amber for me. This smells like an expensive commercial perfume- in a good way. I felt beautiful and summery on my walk to work. It is a golden summer morning, rather than the full on heat of the summer afternoon.

 

The bad thing is, this doesn't have much throw on me, and lasts for a very short while. Guess it really is a lot like summer...

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 4/5

Summarised in a few words/smilie: Golden flowers.

 

In the bottle: Sweet, musky amber and vanilla!

 

On skin, wet: Absolutely wonderful, musky amber! I absolutely agree that it's a golden scent -- bright, shiny, and golden. The lily and sunflower begin to emerge after a few moments, which may or may not be a good thing: I don't dig florals, but this is lovely so far.

 

On skin, dry: As it dries, L'Estate becomes a soft, musky floral. As much as I adore golden musk, as I said before: I don't usually like floral notes or scents. The vanilla and amber have faded, leaving a honey-coated bed of warm flowers.

 

Conclusion: For a floral, it's absolutely beautiful -- everything a floral-lover would want! I'm just not a floral fan. I adore it while wet, so I'll give it a try in a scent locket.

[savage_rose]

Very light and creamy, with a hint of flowers. Very unusual smelling though! I'm guessing it's the choice of those flowers. Nice, but it fades quickly.

 

Paired with the bath oil: creamy apple explosion! Like being in an orchard on a hot summer day. Very lovely and light, fruity and quite juicy. Very lovely!

[tamburlaine]

I'm a pretty consummate summer baby, but L'Estate didn't evoke summer imagery to me. It was much more of a heady floral than I expected. Heady floral blends don't remind me of summer, they remind me of autumn and winter and ladies who lunch. I saw sunshine in this blend, but it was obstructed by the vanilla and honey that made L'Estate cloying and too sweet. The lily added a dimension to the blend that didn't suit my skin either; I expected it and the sunflower to add a touch of refreshment to this , but they melted into the very strong ambers that I personally don't think are that great for a summer picnic in the park on a sunny day. I wouldn't want to sweat while wearing L'Estate. I'd probably knock someone out with its intense throw.

 

L'Estate was so strongly floral on my skin that it reminded me of my grandmother's Fracas (even though Fracas and L'Estate don't have listed notes in common.) What I think makes this blend a little similar to Fracas is the overwhelming "floralness" that can be mistaken for adulterated jasmine; jasmine is a big part of Fracas' appeal (which frankly I've never understood, but so be it.) There's a creamy, sort of tropical (but not fruity) part of L'Estate that probably comes from the mingling of the vanilla infused amber and the florals.

 

L'Estate doesn't smell like "summer" as much as it smells like a sweltering greenhouse for those tropical blooms with overwhelmingly strong perfumes kicked into overdrive. Unfortunately, the L'Estate perfume oil is a swapper.

[gaai]

Starts out as sweet yellow flowers and dries down to the most gloriously golden amber.......

 

I love every stage of this oil and I can't wait to pair it with the bath-oil!

 

[midnight_aeval]

The best part of this scent is when it has been on my skin for 2+ hours - it's sweet amber and musk. All the in-between stages are too dry and floral for me.

 

In the bottle and wet on my skin there is a sharp sourness to the scent, a little while later it becomes almost like dryer sheets

 

Not my dream scent, still nice as I am a summer baby and will keep the bottle I have.

[alicia_stardust]

This starts out highly floral to me; it's a bit dry and musky floral. As it settles on my skin, though, it softens into more of a glowing amber-vanilla with a slight sweetness of lily and a smooth little base of sandalwood. This is much more floral than I anticipated but I have a feeling that the amber and vanilla are going to age really well and, aging aside, I think this has yet to settle.

 

I'm really happy with L'Estate despite how floral it starts out. What is truly magical is pairing this with the matching bath oil. Mmm. =)

[noumenon]

This bottle of mine has literally NO throw at all - I have to press my arm right into my nose to smell it. But the scent is amazing - candy, sugary amber, prettier than any other amber scent from BPAL that I own. No powder, no chemical, no flowers. Just nom nom nom.

 

If ONLY it had some throw!!!

[eanewsom]

In the bottle: very faint sunflowers

On me: if I press my nose into my arm and inhale really deeply, I can get a tiny whiff of floral. I can't even smell it enough to say what kind of flower.

[ophidiae]

In the bottle: Fresh cut flowers

 

Wet on skin: Lilies with an undercurrent of soap; my skin does not always love the heady florals.

 

Drydown: Honeyed amber, and a hint of musk. Beneath it all is the soft, sweet scent of fresh flowers.

 

Dry: Warm, spicy amber and musk. Really quite lovely, but has almost no throw to it.

[phantasmmysteria]

In the bottle: Oh, hai lily! I'm glad you could make it...

 

Wet: This does start out quite floral with a quick burst of musk, with the lily playing up front and the honey myrtle in the back -- I'm sure the sunflower is around somewhere, but I'm not able to pick it out of the crowd. It's not a sharp floral at all, though -- in fact, overall the scent is very subtle. Still, it's floral, which isn't usually my thing.

 

Dry: While it's not the same syrupy-sweet nepalese amber which I adore, in the drydown I can certainly catch hints of it in the drydown. It's very soft, vanillic amber.

 

Verdict: This is pretty, and does indeed invoke the feeling of summer. But this has no throw on me whatsoever! Still, in the dog days of August perhaps this would be a good thing... no one likes to make other people choke on their perfume when it's stupidly hot outside, right?

[greenranger]

Wet, on me, lily and myrtle.

 

Drying, it has blended into a sweet golden haze of a scent. The floral has faded into the scent (yay! I'm so very rarely a floral fan.) and I think the musk, vanilla, and amber are more apparent now.

 

I'm going to have to try this again another day to be certain, because my nose is a little overloaded with the Vivaldi Special this afternoon, but, I think I like this one.

--------

Just a bit later, the scent has had time to work on my skin, and mmmmmmmmmmmm!

 

I can tell there's lily in this, but, mostly on me it is a sweet golden amber/musk scent with a touch of vanilla and sandalwood. This is looooove. I hope it lasts!

Edited July 24, 2008 by Aerinha

[etienne]

On me L'Estate is a beautiful, warm amber scent with a subtle hint of florals and musk in the background. Very golden and warm, really a good representation of a summer day. As others have commented, this doesn't have much throw and instead stays very close to skin. It has fairly good staying power on me. We have had some of the hottest days of the summer here this week and L'Estate has been just the scent to wear!

[terrenity]

Vanilla, amber, and lilies are some of my very favorite notes, so this one is a pretty obvious win for me.

 

In the bottle: I can't pick much of anything out, oddly. Maybe a little sunflower?

 

Wet: Mmhm, there's the sunflower, with amber close behind. It's still fairly subtle.

 

Dry: Oh my god. This is EXACTLY what I hoped it would be - all golden amber and vanilla and sun-soaked lilies. While the L'Estate bath oil is the complete summer picture, the perfume oil is pure bottled sunshine. I want to curl up in this and take a nap.

 

Overall: WIN. That is all.

 

Color association: Golden, of course.