Lovers in a Ricefield

[milo]

Plum blossom, vanilla sandalwood, nutmeg, and wild rice.

Is it just me, or is this reminiscent of Tiki Queen? The notes are not the same, but this really smells like gardenia and a bit of spice. Maybe my nose is broke. A cloying sickly sweet floral. Off to swaps with ya!

[Eemia]

This is the softest, most mellow vanilla. It's mildly sweet and almost papery light. Very sheer. I can barely smell the plum blossom, only enough so that it has a slight floral scent. I love plum in all its variations so I knew this would be a good pick for me. The sandalwood and nutmeg kinda blend into one another but I notice them more after awhile. Gives it a little kick on my skin.

 

This is a knockout (!) and one I'll wear all the time.

[BuxomM]

At first it's pure plum, after a minute it takes on a floral quality and after another minute the vanilla sandalwood and rice come and put the plum in the background.

[rayvn1]

This is a very cool, sweet scent. Lots of vanilla and something close to the sake note I get from some BPAL's. LIght throw, slightly spicy. Pretty!

[tartchef]

Finally got to try this, thanks to TwilightEyes' generosity!

 

As I imagined, Lovers opens very delicately & sweetly - cool blossoms brushed with a bit of vanilla. As it dries, though, the plum & rice push forward, and it's an odd combination - thick & heady & fruity, but with a brush of florals that threaten to go soapy... a goal that the sandalwood is only to happy to encourage. The end result, at least on my skin, is a decidedly weird & soapy-foodie mash-up that really isn't working. So sad I might put my decant in a bit of wax & see how it acts as a room scent - the opening volleys are so pretty...

[pseedie]

~~~lovers in a ricefield~~~

 

Well, i'm in trouble. I've just fallen in love with my first LE bpal... dang. $3.50 imps here i come. Lovers in a ricefield is beautiful on me. It's a soft plum with a rice background....so soft and wonderful...it doesn't stay too long, but I reckon I don't mind...it's like little gentle kisses from a new partner. Absolutely lovely. All those posting after me that find that this fragrance isn't for them.....send me a message!!!

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Oooh, sweet, but also sharp. I do get the plum blossom, but that's the only distinct note that I can identify

 

Wet on me - A surprisingly sweet, custardy scent, with just a slight hint of sharpness form the plum blossom

 

Dry on me - Still sweet and custardy, but with a dry woody undertone

 

Overall - Sweet, but sensual and quite grown up, a keeper I think

[spoilsofwar]

The plum is prominent on me, and it's LOVELY. The second strongest note on me is the vanilla sandalwood, and if there's two scents I love the most, it's vanilla and sandalwood. Combining the two is just heaven on earth. And still, the plum keeps it from going too dark, too foody (which isn't usually a problem for me; I love foody scents). All in all, this is absolutely GORGEOUS.

[bubblefish]

In the imp I get a lovely blossom scent, but on my skin the perfume just disappears. If I sniff really hard, I can pick up a little bit, but for the most part it's just... gone.

[Monster]

In the bottle: Sweet plum

 

Wet: On my skin this is a GORGEOUS milky plum scent with just a hint of spice from the nutmeg.

 

Dry: As this dries the sandalwood comes out a lot more adding a nice woodsy base to the sweet, milky plum scent. I haven't opened this bottle since I purchased it and I'm really glad I decided to keep it around.

 

Overall: Beautiful! Sweet, slightly fruity, comforting and delicate. I'm not too much a fan of the Shunga series, I usually only find one I really like each year. Lovers in a Ricefield is my Shunga love this year

[Apple]

I was hesitant to try this one. The description sounded perfect, which I've learned should send up a red flag for me and my finicky skin. But nutmeg is one of my all-time favorite notes and tragically under-used in perfume, and so I ignored my trepidation.

 

I'm so glad I did!

 

On my skin, Lovers in a Ricefield is the perfect plum scent - the one I've been searching for. The plum blossom gives it a subtle hint of sweet fruit, the nutmeg a teasing of spice, and the vanilla sandalwood and wild rice ground the scent in a rich creaminess that is positively sensual. The scent is rich and warm, sweet and subtle, with nothing overt about it. Sultry in a restrained way, young without being adolescent, and flirty but with the whispered promise that you can (and will) deliver the goods. It's a great sexy, nuzzle-able, "come hither" scent that isn't too heavy for hot summer nights.

 

On me, Lovers in a Ricefield is not:

Christmas-y or remotely like potpourri, which spiced plum scents often are

candy-ish

cinnamon-y

overly sweet

overly fruity

overly vanillic

powdery

buttery

plasticky

generic or perfume-y

 

Instead, it's rich and creamy and mildly sweet and gently spiced and a little plummy - very natural. It's perfect and I love it. I only wish I hadn't discovered it so late!

 

(And as I sit here drinking my tea, I realize Lovers in a Ricefield smells like it could be the refined cousin of Ashbys of London's cinnamon plum black tea... with milk. No, with half-n-half. Mmmn... decadent.)

[Gin]

I found Lovers in a Ricefield in my "to try" box, but I have no idea where it come from. On my skin, it was fruit blossoms (I guessed cherry, but I tend to mix up cherry and plum) and musky vanilla and rice-- not cooked rice, but vanilla rice milk. It's beautiful and I'm wondering why I didn't order any while it was available. I will cherish this little imp of plummy vanilla-sandalwoody goodness.

[voodoocatwoman]

In the imp, this is wonderful vanilla and sandalwood. On application and drydown, it turns sickeningly sweet.

 

I had such high hopes...

[biocarolyn]

Last year's Lupercalia blends can apparently do no wrong on me. Lovers in a Ricefield is mostly plum to me, with the rice in the background. I can't find the nutmeg, and there is a hint of vanilla making this smoother. Although it doesn't beat Giant Vulva for me, I still like this a lot.

[fisharescary]

Mmm. Not quite purely foody, this is a perfumey version of a creamy spiced rice pudding, with boozy grape set next to it (which I'm guessing is Plum Blossom, from other times I've gotten boozy fruit where it didn't belong). Nice, and unique. Average-to-slightly-weak throw and duration. Not much morphing once it hits skin, and hard for me to pin down in the bottle. Other than the fruit, this was actually kind of what I thought it would smell like, although lovelier.

[Violaine]

I wish I could have kept this on my skin long enough to maybe experience what everyone else is. Alas, my nose smelled nothing but sickly sweet plum blossom and something akin to... alcohol. I didn't get a bit of depth, nothing at all like vanilla or sandalwood or wonderful nutmeg or rice. Even completely dry, this was just... hairspray to me. I mourn.

[Stormslegacy]

In the imp: Berries.

 

Wet: a fruity mix, I swear I smell some pomegranate in there.

 

Drydown: As it begins to dry it becomes more and more perfumey. The plum blossom is a mix of fruity and floral. I think it may be the nutmeg giving it that quality. I'm not sure what rice smell like.

 

Dry: Perfumey, purple-pink floral. Stronger than I expected.

 

Conclusion: honestly, not what I expected. I normally like berries and I like florals but this one is a tad perfumey for me, I think it's the effect of the nutmeg on the blend.

[heathercaley]

What a beautiful scent!

 

Once applied, a gorgeous creamy plum note immediately wafts up. It gives an impression of a delicate plum blossom floating down towards the ground, and landing on the top of a bowl of sweet vanilla cream. It also has a soft smokey background, making it a bit more sensual with it's down to earth appeal. Simply gorgeous, and it has aged with grace. I hope that time will strengthen it even more!

[HappyLoveJoy]

This scent treats me soooo good! For having just a handful of notes in it, Lovers in a Ricefield, is very rewarding in that I can smell everything listed. Anytime there's a fruit blossom in an oil I always think it will smell more like the fruit and less like a flower and usually that is the case. This is no exception: it's plummy but not like a deep, dark plum that may have a grape-y quality. More like a tart, red plum with a black cherry quality. Even though I can't smell floral I know it's there because the fruit is strong yet airy. As Pursniketty said, I get the impression of a delicate, floating blossom and that blossom is surrounded by soft, still air. All the other ingredients make me think of rice pudding that is perfectly creamy with subtle notes of nutmeg that you can catch very easily if you don't think about it too much. Like those 3-D optical illusions you can see if you relax and don't try so hard. Eventually the image floats to the top. I am so fortunate to be able to smell the plum, the milky nutmeg, the vanilla sandalwood so light and beautiful, and the essence of steamed rice. I know it's wild rice, which really isn't a rice but I smell white basmati or jasmine rice. Maybe the vanilla sandalwood blends with it to smell that way. Whatever it is, it's just purely lovely on me. I want another bottle.

[edenssixthday]

Lovers in a Ricefield - I love this scent when first applied. It's a burst of slightly spicy, juicy sweetness. The plum is rich and ripe and soooo sweet and juicy! Right behind it is the soft, almost-powdery scent of wild rice. The fruitiness fades almost as fast as its juiciness bursts out upon my skin initially, but as it fades, the vanilla sandalwood becomes the dominant note, with a hint of the plummy goodness in the background. It's gorgeous, but within 5 minutes of application, it has become a skin scent that I cannot smell at all unless I practically press my nose to my skin. An hour later, I can barely detect it, and by two hours after application, there's not the faintest trace of it to be found. I think this would smell much better if I used it in an oil burner to keep the scent bright, bold, and true from beginning to end.

[TulaMontage]

At first sniff, I get a simple concoction of plum sandalwood. It's spiked plum punch with a bit of earthy goodness.

 

Wet on my skin, this is a bizarre sandalwood blend. Plum is still the top note, firmy rooted by the sandlewood. Oh and whats this? A little sneaky creamy vanilla?! It's sweet and sensual, but the sandalwood does pinch my nose slightly.

 

Lovers in a ricefield has finally dried down to a pleasant blend. It's creamy and fruity and still slightly spiced by the sandalwood. I have no idea what wild rice smells like in the form of an oil, but I don't smell any of it. What happened to my lovers in their ricefield?!. It's pretty, but I am not in love with this as I have been with some of the other shungas. It certainly can't compare to the creamy and ethereal Lovers with rutting cats.

Edited April 29, 2010 by TulaMontage

[laslibres]

Very plummy plum blossom at first, very fruity. On me, the rice smell sorta comes out more...it smells grainy, nutty, a little savory but sweet too. That with the nutmeg really help back up the floral, make it more interesting than a straight up florals-and-fruits blend.

 

However, the interesting rice/nutmeg/grains undertones don't throw very much. So, to a casual observer, i.e. someone who is not me, I would smell pretty much the same wearing this as I would if I had on Kitsune-Tsuki or Daiyu or some other plum/plum blossom scent. Really, only I can smell the rice, and that's if I huff really hard. It's a very pretty plum scent, though, and as a plum lover I like it, but I wish for more rice!

[Venneh]

Got a decant of this thanks to skyleric - thanks again! In the decant, I'm getting the plum blossom and the vanilla sandalwood. On my skin, this is all plum blossom with a hint of vanilla sandalwood and what might be the wild rice? Really nice. Giving it a second skin test, not quite sure what I think of it just yet. The vanilla sandalwood and the rice make it go a bit funky on me, so this isn't quite for me, sadly. Gonna pass this on to someone else.

Edited June 24, 2010 by Venneh

[Roogna]

oooooh that plum blossom!!!! it reminds me of Kitsune-Tsuki, but not as layered.

after several hours I might be picking up some of the rice, but it stays a strong plum!

[lejlkwiet]

On me this was a very lovely combination of plum and vanilla sandalwood, with the vanilla overtaking the other two by the end (my skin chemistry always amps vanilla like crazy) but the other two were still there in the background, making a really nice blend of notes. Not what I'd expected at all and I was really pleased with the end result. My only complaint is that the scent hardly lasts any time at all.