Belle Vinu

[izile]

There was once a very rich merchant, who had six children, three boys and three girls. As he was himself a man of great sense, he spared no expense for their education. The three daughters were all handsome, but particularly the youngest; indeed, she was so very beautiful, that in her childhood every one called her the Little Beauty; and being equally lovely when she was grown up, nobody called her by any other name, which made her sisters very jealous of her. This youngest daughter was not only more handsome than her sisters, but also was better tempered. The two eldest were vain of their wealth and position. They gave themselves a thousand airs, and refused to visit other merchants' daughters; nor would they condescend to be seen except with persons of quality. They went every day to balls, plays, and public walks, and always made game of their youngest sister for spending her time in reading or other useful employments. As it was well known that these young ladies would have large fortunes, many great merchants wished to get them for wives; but the two eldest always answered, that, for their parts, they had no thoughts of marrying any one below a duke or an earl at least. Beauty had quite as many offers as her sisters, but she always answered, with the greatest civility, that though she was much obliged to her lovers, she would rather live some years longer with her father, as she thought herself too young to marry.

It happened that, by some unlucky accident, the merchant suddenly lost all his fortune, and had nothing left but a small cottage in the country. Upon this he said to his daughters, while the tears ran down his cheeks, "My children, we must now go and dwell in the cottage, and try to get a living by labour, for we have no other means of support." The two eldest replied that they did not know how to work, and would not leave town; for they had lovers enough who would be glad to marry them, though they had no longer any fortune. But in this they were mistaken; for when the lovers heard what had happened, they said, "The girls were so proud and ill-tempered, that all we wanted was their fortune: we are not sorry at all to see their pride brought down: let them show off their airs to their cows and sheep." But everybody pitied poor Beauty, because she was so sweet-tempered and kind to all, and several gentlemen offered to marry her, though she had not a penny; but Beauty still refused, and said she could not think of leaving her poor father in this trouble. At first Beauty could not help sometimes crying in secret for the hardships she was now obliged to suffer; but in a very short time she said to herself, "All the crying in the world will do me no good, so I will try to be happy without a fortune."

Red sandalwood, vanilla, rosewood, osmanthus, and white peach.

I just got my imp in today and I'm so excited! I just had to rush on-line and share!

In the bottle: It smells very powdery and light. I definitely smell the sandalwood and rosewood, and maybe a tiny hint of the osmanthus (light flowery), but no notice of fruit or vanilla.

Wet application: Almost instantly sweeter, but not cloying. The fruit is light, and not what I'd think of as a peach "scent" much more true to life, and like a real, fresh peach. Still not getting much hint of vanilla, the rosewood is still very prominent. The red sandalwood is much lighter than it was in the bottle (good news to me, red anything almost always hates my body chemistry).

3 minutes: now it's kinda a light rosewood with peach-vanilla notes. I'm liking this more the more it dries.

5 minutes: I'm actually starting to be able to smell it without sticking my wrist right up to my nose, it's drifting up on it's own now, I'm thinking more rosewood and the flowery osmanthus is coming out a bit more, red sandalwood is ??? and the peach and vanilla are only there when I get up close. Wait wait, just put my arm back down and THERE'S the vanilla, floating around like a little pixie!

OK, I think that's it for me.

SQUEE!

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

this blend has notes i love, a note i hate and one i'm "meh" about... so i'm very afraid of it. plus this imp is FULLFULLFULL so i know it'll get all over my thumb when i open it

 

sniffed from the imp: smells like a Lush UK box! i do large group orders and this is the combined smell of everything Lush.

 

on skin: baibai Lush. hello Peach-of-doom. like the one in Labyrinth, with the worm.

it is a *real* peach scent, though. not canned peaches or a peach-flavoured candy. and it blends with the sandalwood in a very interesting way that will be fantastic on some people. but not for me.

[Lucretia]

This smells nothing like I thought it would! In the imp it's light and a bit powdery I guess.

 

On it reminds me initially of Oneiroi which is really weird, I guess it's the sandalwood? I don't understand it!

 

I think I can detect the peach, but as someone said this is real peaches not the peach note found other peach scents I've tried. It's not very sweet on me at all, if anything it's sort of sharp. I get a hint of vanilla, but vanilla is definitely not predominant here. I don't know what to make of this one! I need to think about it more. I like it, it's just entirely different than I had imagined it!

[greenranger]

So far, a light fresh peach, and the woods. It is definitely a natural peach, and not a peach flavoring. I am not smelling anything flowery, nor is the vanilla in evidence yet. It is nice....I'm really hoping for the vanilla to show up soon, though.

 

I think the osmanthus is showing up instead. It is still nice...but not quite the thing yet.

 

I'm going to have to give it some time to see. It did get more blended, and it is a pretty scent, but, I am still hoping for just a little more...

[mayze]

Fresh peaches was the note most dominant for me. The other notes are present, but blended so well I couldn't tell what was what. This scent evokes sunshine for me - and not the blazing tropical sun we get here, but a softer, gentler warm sunshine. It's also a very homely sent in a good way. Not typically "perfume-y", but a comforting daytime scent. I like it.

[porcelina]

gah. the flowery osmanthus ruins belle vinu for me. i can smell the peach and sandalwood and vanilla, buried somewhere under all that screaming osmanthus. alas.

[Iceblink]

In the imp this is all fresh juicy peach. Wet on the skin I get the woods--strong rosewood in particular, with the peach still there but only just. As it dries the vanilla is coming out. The woods are a little strange blended with the peach and vanilla but I quite like the effect. I suspect with some aging this'll be less dominantly woody and more of a smooth vanilla peach. But it's nice now too!

[Leopard403]

All I could think when I first smelled this on my skin: Bandaids.

And even though the scent is still evolving a little, I can't get that concept out of my head.

 

Edit: So I came back to this so I could let my boyfriend smell it. He liked it, though he was very adamant in his opinion about this being "too men's cologne-y" for me, but not manly enough for him (though really, what "perfume oil" is? I can't break him into BPAL habits yet).

He did not smell Bandaids.

Edited November 29, 2008 by Leopard403

[windbourne]

This, on me, is very light, mellow, and golden with a HEFTY floral throw that I assume belongs to the osmanthus. The peach just hovers gently in the background, letting the sandalwood (which frequently amps on me) and vanilla simmer under a ridiculous haze of FLOWER.

 

The rosewood is very strong in the imp, but absolute nothing on my skin, which is kind of refreshing. ^-^ Woods often essay hostile takeovers, but this one is quite absent. I do wonder, however, if a different batch would say otherwise...

 

On the whole, the imp is pretty lovely, and I'll probably use it up, but I don't think I need a bottle.

[SurrealReality]

In the Bottle/Imp: a sharp, green note (assuming this is the osmanthus, even though that's not usually what it smells like on me), and a little sandalwood

 

Wet on Skin: about the same, but a little stronger

 

Dry: it takes about 20 minutes, but the osmanthus finally does morph into a flowery, slightly green note (a little fake and perfumy though), rosewood, white peach (sweet but not candied), and a little sandalwood. After about an hour, the osmanthus fades quite a bit. The vanilla does show up, but not for several hours (and even then, it's very much in the background)

 

In the Bottle/Imp: 2 out of 5 (far too green)

On my Skin: 3.5 out of 5 (the rosewood and white peach are lovely notes, but I was hoping for less osmanthus, and much more vanilla)

[blacklacestatic]

In the bottle: Fruity woods

 

Wet: I get a lot of peach with this one. Peach with an edge. This is a very girly, sparkly scent. Very vibrant and alive.

 

Drydown: Still peach, but I start to smell the vanilla saying hello, but hiding shyly in the background. I love it! Sweet, fruity but could still kick your butt. This keeps getting better as time passes.

 

Overall: Love it. I am so happy this worked for me because I had been looking forward to it so. Great for everyday. Refreshing and beautiful.

Edited November 23, 2008 by BlackLace

[lefthandmade]

I put her on and I'm thinking that I don't know what it is but even if she's not bad this is not where I am right now. She's a little sharp for me.

 

Uh oh wait.

 

She may have been sharp wet but on dry down she turns into this wonderful stuff. I was gonna wash her off when I started sniffing the air, wondering what that gorgeous smell was. And it came from my arm. Oh my. And to think I almost put her away for aging. Or worse, throwing her in the swap/gifting pile.

[kelpsoda]

Wet: rosewood. and sandalwood. not what I was hoping for. a bit dusty smelling.

 

Dry: after 15 min, I do get a whiff of peach. but it's pretty much overpowered by the rosewood/sandalwood combo.

[Schmoozy]

Wow. This is really beautiful. At first application it is wispy & sweet with an emphasis on rosewood and osmanthus. You can detect the red sandalwood, but it is not prevalent until drydown. Osmanthus & Rosewood lend a sweet woodsy feel. After this has time to settle on my skin, the sandalwood, vanilla and white peach start to appear and I am left with a gentle vanilla peach and sandalwood, with sweet woods. The throw is very mild though and to I really have my nose pressed against my skin to detect it.

[lysithea]

This smells so much like the Four Seasons Inquisition L'Estate Bath Oil that I had to take a double take. This is a great general catalog replacement. Only it's dialed down a few notches and has become a more accessible and less complicated scent.

 

It's so lovely and warm. The peach and vanilla come through the most strongly. I think that there will be lots of fans for this little beauty.

[hellomoonglow]

Interesting that a lot of people get peach from this. While I do get a ripe, juicy fruit (ahem - peach?) I also smell strawberry! Where's that coming from? Has great staying power, I could smell it a full day after initial application. This is what I think Strawberry Moon should smell like.

[FeatherQwill]

Wet: I got a very department-store scent when I first put it on. Bleh.

 

Dry: MUCH better. Sweet, fruity, and slightly herbal. Really awesome.

 

 

Overall: Definitely a favourite, and probably a bottle-purchase, but not something to put on right before going out. It needed a good 45 minute of skin-time to be palatable.

[EdenIris]

In imp: sandalwood, mostly.

 

Wet: confusing, but good. Floral, woody, fruity.

 

Drydown: velvety peach. At first I thought it was apricot, probably the rosewood or sandalwood having a say.

 

Later, the vanilla smooths everything out and I get true peach. Very nice. Not a lot of rosewood, but that's usual for me. A lovely daytime scent, comforting and playful; it sort of creeps up on you. Mild throw. I get almost no floral.

 

ETA: This gets better and better as the day goes on. The vanilla is not really present, so it doesn't come across as a foody scent. This goes on the bottle list.

 

4/5

 

ADDED Oct. 23:

 

I keep forgetting how gorgeously perfect this scent is. The osmanthus keeps the peach from being overly sweet and cloying during drydown. The woods give the fruit depth, and, when the peach and osmanthus back down, there's mellow rosewood and sandalwood and a waft of vanilla to make the whole thing more feminine, graceful.

 

This is a scent to wear out anywhere: work, a first date. It is sweet without being girlish or foody, and the underlying woods give it sophistication.

 

My imp is a year old, by the way, and appears to be getting better all the time.

Edited December 7, 2009 by Shollin

[innocent]

Mostly dry sandalwood while wet, Belle Vinu dried into a lovely mix of peach, floral, and wood notes. It's lighter and woodier than I expected, with an understated peach. While sandalwood and I do not get along well enough to warrent a large bottle of this, but it has passed the initial sniff test to become today's Perfume of the Day.

Edited December 1, 2008 by innocent

[gwynethr]

Oh, reading this has been very informative. I couldn't figure out why this wasn't what I expected -- it's not at all pleasant to me, very store perfumey/powdery, but the comments about osmanthus (which I could not remember what it was for the life of me) make total sense. I can catch vaguely the other notes, but they're overpowered by the one I don't like. I think this is a more... traditional scent, I guess, than I was expecting.

[jencallisto]

In the imp: Sweet, fruity in a mellow, creamy way, blended with lovely dry, delicate, slightly spicy woods.

Fresh on the skin: Spicy woods pop out right away, with everything else taking a backseat except to add a nice dose of light sweetness. I actually really like this, more than I like most wood-dominated blends.

5 minutes later: Oh, oh, this is sweetening and deepening as it warms on my skin, and the peach-vanilla-osmanthus in the sillage is divine. Holy crap, I'm so in love with this. It actually strikes me as quite Asian, with the spicy dark exotic wood base and the fruity osmanthus top note. The scent of osmanthus always makes me think of ambrosia, and with peaches as one of the main Chinese symbols of immortality, I really don't think it's a stretch to call this heavenly.

15 minutes later: It's taken on a little powdery with its sweet and spicy. This is so gorgeous, beautiful and rich without being even a little bit headache-inducing.

45 minutes later: This is still gorgeous, mostly in a light, unusual, sweet-spicy-powdery floral way -- the woods have toned way down into a lovely subtle spicy dry base -- and then when I get close enough to my wrist, there's creamy vanilla at the center of the scent.

1.5 hours later: The vanilla's becoming more prominent, but the essential flavor remains true. I'm starting to think I need a bottle of this.

3 hours later: Still lovely, but quite faded.

4 hours later: I thought it had disappeared for a little while there, but there's actually still a hint hanging around, but it's almost gone.

 

Verdict: God, this is gorgeous, I just wish it stuck around longer.

 

One word: heavenly

[Christine Daae]

So I got a full bottle of this one unsniffed, hoping it would be beautiful on me, since Beauty & the Beast is my favorite fairytale ever (and movie - the Disney version, though I love the Cocteau version too). I tried this last night when it was still cold from the outside, and I wasn't totally in love with it. But I am nothing if not stubborn when it comes to liking things for their names, so here's my formal review!

 

First impression: Woody! A lot woodier than I expected.

 

Wet on my skin, this is mainly woods, very faintly sweetened with a tiny bit of fruit/floral. I'm not terribly wowed by this at this stage, I think I expected more peach and less woods. The osmanthus is pretty, though, I can pick that out. It's sort of...dusty.

 

The throw is a lot peachier than it is up close, but I don't get a ton of throw from any BPAL and this is no exception. It is quite pretty, but it needs a little while to mellow on the skin - it becomes less dusty/dry and more peachy and floral (which is what I was hoping for). She's a keeper

[CynicalPink]

Imp: Ooo! That's some sandalwood.

 

Wet: Much more woody than I would have though. Still feminine, though. Not like a macho woodsy scent

 

Drydown: It powders out a bit but in a nice way. It's a very soft scent in general, but I'm not quite getting the peach I was expecting, which is odd since fruity smells love my skin

1 Hour later: Well there's still no peach, but it's a very pretty, powdery sandalwood still

 

Overall: I'm having a hard time with this one. I like it well enough and I'm not in a rush to scrub it off or anything, but these incense type smells usually aren't my thing. This one's light and fluffy enough to not make me feel like a dirty hippie, but I'm not exactly craving a big bottle. I'll hang on to the imp for now, but not sure if I'll keep it long term.

[zankoku_zen]

I get a woodsy rosy blend with a hint of peach. This one is a pretty delectable peach blend, if you ask me. It's pretty, and vibrant and very alive. The rose is but a touch, it's mainly a woodsy peach.

 

This is no wilting flower.

 

And even though it is missing the 'sexual' edge of Ebisu, once my Ebisu runs out, I think I might spring for a bottle of Belle Vinu.

Edited December 8, 2008 by zankoku_zen

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I'm delighted to try this, as B&B is a favorite fairy tale of mine, and I have to admit that I'm a huge fan of Belle from the Disney version (she reads!) and this makes me think of her. Hm, this is very soft on me, but pretty--like a wearable version of Fae (which went bad bad UGH bad on me, to my chagrin). Softly woody and clean--maybe just a breath of rose, but if so then it's the "clean" rose of Rose Red rather than the full, rich blooming roses I tend to love. Peach comes out on the drydown, but still very subtle. This is not nearly as sweet as vanilla-peach would suggest--it's delicate, pretty, and greener than I would have thought.