Brusque Violet

[filigree_shadow]

Violet petal, violet leaf, osmanthus, orris, mint, and opoponax.

When I put this on, I immediately thought of Libertine, even though I haven't smelled that in about four years. I liked Libertine -- the smooth pretty plush violet -- and I like this for the same reason. It smells purple and bright and happy, while smelling soft at the same time.

My husband, however, did not like that sort of scent ("Smells like old-lady purple") and asked me not to wear it. So I don't think he'd appreciate me wearing this one either. He just doesn't like anything with violet.

[Ramen]

Well, it certainly has an attitude. In the imp, it's mostly mint fighting through something to taunt me with its presence, but the mint fades in favor of medicine when I put it on. Dry, I get an underwhelming combination of violet and orris like it decided I was no longer worth the effort.

 

I'll probably let this age a while to see if our relationship improves, but I don't see Brusque Violet being part of my collection long-term.

[Victory]

Hmm, the opening fanfare of Brusque Violet really is brusque! It's kind of a harsh "step back" sort of slap of I'm not sure what. I don't really wear perfumes with ANY of the listed notes, so I'm not sure what's creating that scent/impression. I do recall from trials of The Raven and Ultraviolet that when the perfume dries down that this IS violet I'm smelling, but the note isn't particularly distinctive on me. It sort of makes me think of some skin musks I've worn rather than a floral. There is a minty impression sometimes, but this is all violet, all the time.

[Missy_killer]

In the imp: violet and liquorice.

On me: Violet. nothing more, nothing less.

 

Yep, that's the shortest review I've ever written!

Brusque Violet doesn't change on me and I can't smell anything else than violets. My mother has a really old Violet-perfume that she bought while visiting Brighton as a teen - and this smells like that, but less harsh. If you like violets, you should love this one!

[lohengrin]

In the imp: Floral & minty.

 

On skin, wet: Floral, a little bit green, and a little bit minty.

 

On skin, dry: Greener, a little less floral, but still minty.

 

After an hour: It's kind of a watery, green & minty scent, nothing special.

[calivianya]

Wet on my skin: Cold, regal violet. It's definitely the mint giving me the cold aspect. I don't get any osmanthus, orris, or opoponax right away.

Drying: Ugh, I'm always hoping that I will one day find a blend where the violet will behave itself. Unfortunately, Brusque Violet is not this blend; it goes powdery almost right away. It smells a lot like baby powder, and the baby powder smell doesn't go away.

[lookingglass]

At first I think this is going to be all Parma violet candy: sweeeeeet, vivid violet! Drying out, though, this smells like such a grand nod to Après L'ondée I think I might cry. Violet and orris dry down, seem to crystalize, and smell like bubbles. Osmanthus and mint create light, spectrum colors, behaving...not at all garish, overt, or competitive with the violet. The oppoponax...oh, how I looooove oppoponax and her smoldering, sweet ways....is the shadow to the bubbles light in the drydown. Truly, I think this is my favorite BPAL violet.

[theseagrows]

i love violet scents! powdery ones too. this one is more green though, due to the violet leaf and mint. something in this is turning a bit strange on me, i think it must be the violet leaf but i am unsure-it reminds me of rotting flowers a bit, and is underlying the stronger violet on top. i get no mint or osmanthus, unless it's the osmanthus that's turning bad on me? at any rate, this is a violet scent that will not work for me, sadly.

Edited May 7, 2018 by theseagrows

[Alainn]

I actually love violet scents...but this one is all violet, all the the time. I was hoping for some of the minty and green notes that others are reporting, but all I get here is violet--perhaps I amp it? It's not something I've tested sufficiently as a note to know for sure, but I'm beginning to suspect that, like most strong florals, it simply takes over everything. Why do flowers hate me when I love them so?

 

On me this is pretty one-dimensional, and it gets sweeter the longer it sits on my skin, which I'm not loving. Probably not for me, but the search for a violet scent that works for me will continue.

[Teaker]

I don't usually wear anything too floral, but I was ordering a gazillion imps off the forum so I figured I'd give this one a try and I'm so glad I did!

In the imp it was a very fresh violet, not too exciting.

On my skin it became WHITE MUSK. I kid you not, the exact same white musk I get from Black Pearl and Katharina totally dominates this scent. I have no idea why or how this smells like white musk, but I am loving it! Under the musk there is a lovely fresh floral with a hint of pepperiness. This is fresh and sweet and musky, so delightful.

I'm going to re-test this in a few days, just in case there is some kind of weird hormonal thing going on with my skin. But this is looking like it could be my first big bottle purchase!

Edited October 16, 2013 by Teaker

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Violet and mint and something almost applelike

 

Wet on me - The violet gets more dominant and sweeter

 

Dry on me - Soft sweet violet with a bitter green underneath

 

Overall - I like violet, but I guess not the brusque

[JuliskaMarie]

In the imp:This smells exactly like a big, green, leafy violet patch after the rain! Gorgeous & fresh!

Wet on skin: Uh-oh, someone's picked all the violets! Wet grass, wet violet leaves, something earthy & a few budding or dead violets. Kind of pretty, but a big let down after how it smelled in the imp! There's also some slightly-sweet smoky smell that I can't quite put my finger on. Getting less pretty by the moment.

Dry on skin: Oh yay, the violets have come back! And they brought a little bit of mint with them! The violet leaves, earthiness & mystery smoke smell are still quite prominent though. Not as beautiful as it smelled in the imp, but still nice - & definitely FAR nicer than when wet on me!

After a few hours: It's faded to slightly-smoky violet-ish scent. It's not straight violet, but that's the only note I can pick out - the others have all mixed together quietly in the background.

Verdict: I was hoping that this one would be a super-bright & fresh violet scent &, while it's not that (on me, at least), it's still a really pretty perfume that I think I'll get a fair bit of use out of. If I ever get my hands on a scent locket though, I think I'd need to buy a bottle of this!

[loubric]

In the bottle it smells sweet & thick, with purple, grape, violet and plum hints. It smells so lovely and juicy!

On me it's darker and more sensual. It's still very violety but with a very clean and green scent mixed in. As it dries it goes from smokey to sweet violet again.

 

Not as wet and sweet as in the bottle but still very pretty. Violet, leaves and cleanliness.

 

Love

Edited September 12, 2014 by Lilly

[puck_nc]

Origin: Frimp from the Lab

 

Initial Thoughts: I love the scent of violet. However, I discovered early on that the BPAL violet has this nasty tendency to go ugly on my skin, so I never looked twice at this. I expect this will not work on me, but we've all learned to never look a gift frimp in the notes...

 

In the vial: Chilly and sharp mint with sweet violet. Bracing enough to warrant the "brusque".

 

Wet: Airy and a bit ozone-y, but gentled by a soft floral undertone. It's rather nice and early-spring.

 

Drydown: Hmph. And the pretty goes away. It's not quite the icky acrid skank that violet tends to produce on me. It's more like tomato leaf and grass and all a bit muddy. I suppose this could be the violet leaf? Eventually some of the florals showed up again, but they're not really sitting pretty next to this green mucky note.

 

Verdict: Well, now I know. In the past I've automatically nixed anything with violet leaf because I assumed it would go acrid like violet. Perhaps if the other notes are robust enough, I can deal. But it won't be with this blend - it needs someone whose skin works with violet.

[Veronica]

One of those squishy, sugary melt-on-your-tongue after dinner mints--sugar and mint--with a hint of floral in the background.

[mystery213]

From preconceived notion, I thought this would be too 'dark' compared to the violet note I usually like in BPAL's (Faith, White Chocolate and Sugared Violets...etc.). And it is truly much darker and sinister, but still just brimming with beauty. It goes on lush and rich, and is a brooding violet, unlike the usual sweet and candied ones found in most blends. The mint is (thankfully) pretty much non-existent. It goes a bit soapy on the drydown though, and loses a lot of the dark 'purple' feel that it has when first applied. This will likely end up on the frimp pile....

[DiesMali]

Disclaimer: Violet is not my thing. It almost always ends up smelling like overly-sweet kids' bubble bath on me.

 

In the imp: Purple kids' shampoo.

 

Wet on my skin: I get a strong blast of purple flowery kids' bubble bath, and then it disappears almost entirely.

 

Dry: POOF. I can smell a hint of powdery purple violet and a bit of chilly mint, and just a tad of something earthy and green, but the scent almost just disappears on my skin within 10-15 minutes. I can only smell it if I put my nose right up next to my wrist. It's the least offensive violet scent I've tried so far, but probably not something I'd wear even if it hadn't gone poof. To the giveaway pile!

[freyasfae]

Soapy in the bottle, but once it dries down it becomes mostly sweet violet on me with a touch of mint. S'alright.

[LizziesLuck]

I'm essentially just trying this to confirm I still can't do violet, and since the Lab saw fit to frimp it to me.

 

Wet: Really sour on me.

 

 

Dry: Violet and orris, still really sour. Not for me!

[Coldfire]

Imp: Hello Violet!
Wet on me: Definitely violet nothing harsh, gentle and sweet violet
Drying Down: sweet genteel violet. Something dainty and off another era
Dry: pretty lil violet. nothing offensive, oh so feminine and dainty. Happy I got to try it.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: Fresh, candy-sweet, springtime violets.

 

Wet: Yep, still violets. I think it's the mint adding that particularly fresh, outdoorsy, breath-of-fresh-air element, but it quickly burns off, leaving the sweeter aspect of the violet to dominate.

 

Dry: Violets all the way down. Luckily, these ones don't go too too overly-sweet - the fresh, springtime element even re-emerges after a little while.

 

This is probably my new favorite violet scent - not crazy sugary or complicated by any other notes. When I want to feel like an Edwardian lady, this is what I'll reach for.

[djnevermore]

From what I've read, I most concur with Caerphilly's review. Sweet, watery and fresh. GC scents so rarely work on me, but I'm thinking this is a winner, out of maybe 5 wearable GCs. To me, nothing plasticy or cloying, nor overwhelming. I also agree that it's less true violet than it is the specter of a violet. There is something old-fashioned and almost proper, except its watery/green/fresh quality keeps it far from being dowdy.

As it dries, it loses some of the fresh greenness, and rarely I get a sense of a medicinal note (maybe the mint, which I don't actually smell--it just makes my sinuses feel a bit more clear: allergies), but it's a rare enough occurrence that it's not a problem.

This is a lovely sunny-weather perfume and I think would well suit a young girl.

Had to review this GC winner-on-me!

Edited to add: this is what I'd hoped The Lilac Wood would have been for me--a sunny patch of rain-soaked flowers peeking out from a clearing in deciduous woods.

Edited August 15, 2017 by djnevermore

[dementia_divine]

In the imp: I'm mostly getting violet and orris, with a hint of mint and opoponax in the background.

 

Wet: Violet and orris reign. The mint is present, adding a touch of coolness to the scent, but it isn't as strong as the floral notes.

 

Dry: This is really strong on the violet and orris (which have a ton of throw!), with just a bit of mint. I didn't really get any of the opoponax, which I was hoping would help tame the violet.

 

Verdict: Violet and orris are not notes I enjoy, but I decided to try this anyway because I'm reviewing all of the Mad Tea Party scents. If either of those notes appeal to you, you'll probably end up loving this. It's just not my cup of tea.

[Convallaria]

The opening is surprisingly green. Flowery notes, primarily violets, gradually rise to the front, sweet and a little powdery (orris?). The drydown is sweet (more subdued than middle stage), powdery in that classical perfume way and lasts relatively long. Full bottle candidate for me - this is the kind of sweetness that works for me and it's well-blended without being too blended.

Edited February 3, 2018 by Convallaria

[Lucchesa]

I don't do violet. Or orris or mint, generally, for that matter. But I love opoponax. And Brusque Violet has been described as violet for people who don't do violet, and it's Mad Tea Party, and I was curious. What can I say? It's violet. Dusty maiden-aunt violet, with a bit of mint in the background. I'm not really sure what role the opoponax is playing here; I can't ferret it out. This may be for some people who can't do violet, but it's not for all people who can't do violet.