Bluebeard

[lizzieborden]

A scent swirling with dark rage, unbridled jealousy, and murderous intent. Violet, lavender, white musk, and vetiver.

When I first opened the bottle, all I thought was YUCK and put it back down, thinking maybe this was a room scent, or a ritual scent, because I couldn't imagine wanting to smell like that. Well, I'm sitting at home, and trying to sniff everything so I can decided which to send off to my boy and which to keep safe with me, and decided what the hell. I'm not sure what it is, but this stuff hits you between the eyes wet. So I put a bit on and wait... soon something starts smelling pretty good. I'm a lavender fan, so that's what stands out the most to me in the scent. But its not Johnson's Nighttime Lavender, or Aromatherapy lavender. This is lavender with a past. In the beginning, you can smell just a bit of the dark seas that inspired this scent, but as it dries down the lavender and violet stand out more and more, creating a very womanly scent (well, i'm assuming its the violet that creates this ripe floral at the top of the scent). It still does have a bit of a jealous, woman-scorned feel though. It's dark, but not in a woodsy or old sense, its vindictive. This just further proves, give everything a full try. Definitely something to put on early in the morning, so it mellows before you step out the door.

[antimony]

I love lavender, I love vetivert, but there's no hope for me, I'm never going to like the smell of violets.

 

This is a strong, angry scent. In fact, it leaves a metalic tang interneath the sides of the back of my tongue. Very piratey and briney, but a pirate captain, not a smelly sailor. Arrrr.

 

Also, very masculine. If I smelled this on a guy, I would be crossing my fingers for him to toss me over his shoulder and mercilessly haul me back to his cabin.

 

Mmmm... pirate fantasies... what was I talking about again? ;-)

Edited March 15, 2004 by antimony

[RosieP]

I couldn't smell anything of the sea in this one - not surprising as BLACKbeard was the pirate, Bluebeard was a serial wife-murderer in a not very pleasant Perrault fairy tale (see link to read the story ...)

 

http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/perrault03.html

 

 

It is a scent that fits the character of Bluebeard very well - the veneer of aristocratic elegance expressed by the violet and lavender hiding something malevolent and cruel beneath.

[jj_j]

From the bottle, violet. First on, lavender so sharp it's almost peppery; perhaps the vetivert's peeping through?

 

The combination, though, softens out and the vetivert starts to come through. It never takes over, and it's not the heavy, root-like smell you may read about in the single notes, though - it's earthen and weighted, and keeps the lavender and violet from spiking through the center of your forehead.

 

So interesting, and so adamant; I don't know a better way to explain the kind of presence this scent has. It would be easy to over-apply, as all of these scents are distinctive and fairly pungent on their own; you can imagine the possibilities for potency in their combination.

 

Probably not a re-purchase for me, but I think I'll keep the Imp, as this is definitely something I like smelling on myself.

[Lady_Ell]

I was totally expecting to hate this one. I usually do not like lavendar except when I'm eating it as an herb on chicken or something (herbs de provence and whatnot). That said, it starts VERY strongly lavendar, and hits you high in the nose like BLAM! and makes you a bit disoriented in a very lavendar-y bitterness.

 

Within 5 minutes it calms down a lot, and gives off a very clean, slightly soapy, somewhat herby smell. The lavendar is more in the background, but still noticeable. I can't exactly explain what the other notes are but they work very well to make a complex yet light scent. It floats off you, too - every now and then I'll turn my head quickly and think "Oh, that's me that smells so clean and bright!"

 

The above reviews have described this as angry and persistent and "lavendar with a past" - I don't get that at all for some reason. I feel capable and industrious and in control and ambitious; it's very no-nonsense. I am frequently described as a no-nonsense person, and I don't think this would be for everyone, because there's nothing warm or particularly friendly about it.

 

ETA: lately it's been giving me heartburn as soon as I smell it. WTF?

Edited January 18, 2005 by ladylatemar

[Vaniclion]

This one I tried simply because it was listed as 'masculine', in my search to make my way through them all. So I snagged it in swaps.

 

On opening the bottle, I was... somewhat shocked. What I smelled was... a flowery version of pickles.

 

My grandmother used to make Bread & Butter pickles, canning them at home. The vinegary-sweet smell of the brine is what comes through in this to me. I'm unsure what it is, perhaps a mixture of the violet, lavender and vetiver... but to me? Pickle.

 

I still tried it on, because as we all know these oils have more personalities on skin than a roomfull of Geminis It remained fairly close to the wet smell, before simply turning to moist baby powder.

 

I'll try this on my other guy friends, see ifthey like it, and if not I'll be swapping it on. It was a fine experiment.

[Shollin]

And I inherited Vanic's Bluebeard, so here's the next step on its journey:

 

First sniff: Lavender CarpetFresh. Sorry.

 

Wearing: Yeah, lavender CarpetFresh. It’s not unpleasant, for all that, but it’s not something I’d normally think to wear as a fragrance. And now it’s very powdery, about fifteen minutes in. Yeah, not great. Once the powdery overlay fades it’s replaced by something murky green and just plain funky… vetiver, I guess? I’m just not a fan of any of these variants. Off it goes.

[Alice Aforethought]

First on, it's just the lavender I smell. As it dries, the vetiver comes through with the faint powdery overlay of the violets. The vetiver is fairly strong in this one, so one to avoid if you don't like vetiver or the very similar myrrh.

 

There's a very definite...definiteness about this one..it has a very strong character. It is Bluebeard - I can smell the affluent, well-groomed husband-to-be in there, and the dark depths and fright of forbidden rooms and dread of the husband returning...

 

ETA No, it's not like that. It's the dark masculinity behind the tale - more Angela Carter than the original. It's not fright and morbidity, it's the expectancy of something that is forbidding at the moment, but won't be at a future point...it's an 'otherness' of sexuality, of depth, to someone not yet prepared for it.

Edited August 2, 2004 by Alice Aforethought

[serafina pekkala]

Yechh! was my response when I first smelled it wet. But I gave it a second chance.

 

Impressions: masculine lavender, blue, wood, the vetivert I recognize from Coolaulin conditioner from Lush. It remains lavender for a while, clearing up my sinuses, later on I notice the vetivert backdrop changing to violet.

 

This is a stiff or harsh, cold masculine lavender and vetivert scent. There is white musk at the base, and that always smells a little soapy to me. A very original men's scent, but not for me.

[Larila]

This scent to me is a yummy! i like violets anyway and lavender as well and white musk you can not go wrong, i'm not a vetiver person, i didn't like it wet it it had a strongness to it.

 

within 20 minutes it mellowed out a great deal smelling mostly the violets and white musk and the vetiver, those combinations together is fantastic, didn't smell the lavender at all though, i was still pleased with the results, you will have to reapply, i've gotten a bigger bottle unsniffed.

Edited October 13, 2004 by Larila

[alston78]

In the bottle: I was not pleased with the smell- it was way too sharp for me, and that's coming from someone who LOVES lavender, violet, and vetiver.

 

At first application: This is definitely a man's scent- it's not bad, but way too sharp and too masculine for me. The lavender is a bit medicinal in this phase, too.

 

Within 20 minutes: The oils always dry quickly on me, as I don't apply much. I am much more impressed now. The lavender has softened to a smooth and soft floral scent that mixes very well with the violet, and the vetiver is there but has definitely faded into the background. There's a faint hint of the musk, but it's not very noticeable. Lavender and violet are the strongest notes to me. I'm not sure that I would wear this myself again, because it's still a masculine scent to me, and I am usually a fan of very feminine scents- but I wouldn't object to smelling it on a guy at all , and I may keep my imp and see if I can make a linen spray out of it. It is a very clean scent, with somewhat dark and sexy elements underneath.

[Ishtar]

Bluebeard was an extra imp that the Lab generously threw in with my order.

 

I am a great fan of violet, lavender and white musk, so I hoped that Bluebeard would be somewhat like Chypre: masculine, admittedly, but elegant and crisp enough that a woman could wear it.

 

The first whiff was almost all lavender, with the pungent smell of vetiver underneath. Sharp and a little forbidding.

 

After a few minutes, it turned downright cold and metallic. To me this is not so much the smell of anger as that of cruelty. Cold-blooded cruelty. I guess it befits the tale that inspired it, but it is a little too bone-chilling for me to wear. Seriously, it scared me a little.

 

Off to the the swaps forum with you, Sir!

[omly]

In the bottle this had the same response from my bf and I: retreat. Honestly if I didn't know how amazing Beth's blends can be (even when I think they won't be) I might not have tried it. After a drying period it mellowed a little bit. As a scent it is actually not bad. The violet is not too strong. The lavendar is just that touch that I associate with english men. I find it oddly unsettling to wear though, so it will go up for swap. I kept getting goosebumps like someone was watching me, although there was no one there.

[malanna]

Eep! Vetiver (and civet?)! This is a very blue-green masculine scent. This has vetiver, and maybe civet (can’t remember what civet smells like), which really are not notes that I’m particularly fond of, and, baby, this is STRONG. I was afraid that this was going to be a not-so-mainstream scent, offending the people around me, so I just did one little poke with the imp wand, and this is wafting like crazy. I think that I could like it (well, at the very least, not dislike it), but it’s just so strong and hitting me over the head with its scent. I feel sort of screwed, because I needed to talk to someone about discontinuing this internship…I’m going to wait a few hours and see if Bluebeard decides to be less abusive. I think I could like this on a man—wait, no. I would definitely be intrigued, but it would still lose its appeal over time. It’s a bit more likeable when I sniff my skin, rather than when I sniff the air around me. The good thing about this is that it’s really nipped my chocolate cravings in the bud, so, maybe, this, with Sugar Skull, will help cure me of my sugar addiction. After an hour and a half, this has calmed down considerably. It no longer wafts, and is light (relatively speaking), on my skin. If I liked vetiver, I would love Bluebeard. Unfortunately, I don’t.

[Nadirah]

Bluebeard smells to me like sea water and the soggy wood of a ship. Its not really something I like, in fact it brings to mind going fishing in the sea and getting sick. I have no idea where this comes from. Then it gets musky, hmm this one is a bit odd.It really does capture Bluebeard though.

[TheDarkMother]

In the Bottle: Violets and Lavender, very dark and sinister.

 

On Me: Very herbal and dark, a scent of mystery and evil. Of unspeakable acts done under the cover of night deep in the forest's protective veil. Acts done by the elite, the privledged, a charming man prone to murder.

 

*chills up spine*

 

OoOoooh! Oh how I am in love with this one! Its beautiful! I'll get a big bottle of this one when the imp is up, and I'll try to elaborate on the story unfolding in my head later!

[Lit Chick]

Wow.

 

This smells like cold-hearted murder at first. Shockingly brutal, heartless.

And then... something softens. It becomes a lovely, inviting scent. There is a touch of darkness there, but all the evil has gone away. It's... charming.

If I think too much about that, it may put me off the oil. So, I'll leave it at that. Love it, prefer not to ponder it's complexity...

[Falathwen]

This was a gift imp from the lab. I held off trying it for a while because the story of Bluebeard was the very first scary story I ever heard and still holds a very primal shiver if I think about it too much. Still, I finally decided to go with the theory "a rose by any other name..." and gave this a try. It was definitely worth it.

When wet, the lavender jumped out first, strong and deepened by the other notes in the backround.

The other notes came forward as it dried and this blend became very well-balanced between light and dark notes. Violet is becoming a favorite of mine. It softened the lavender beautifully while the vetiver added a resiny tang and the musk warmed the whole blend. It reminded me a bit of "Old Spice" at this stage and thus seemed quite masculine, but I think I would wear it anyway. As was the case for a few others, there was no negative feeling to this blend on me at all. It was actually rather soft and clean.

In the end, it dried down to a faint but lasting vetiver, which is very woodsy and comforting on my skin.

[closedacct]

I was hoping that the vetiver wouldn't go all lemony-weird on me( like it always does), but it did. I love violets and lavender and musk, but damn it! Every time. Vetiver killed it for me.

[Northernminx]

I'm not really certain how something can be aquatic and earthy at the same time, but this one managed to me. Lots of violet and lavender made this almost an aquatic floral but the vertiver and musk add a definite earthiness. This is fairly masculine but not one of my favorites and for some reason made my mother very sneezy. off to swaps.

[shelldoo]

Ths was a very clean, masculine scent, yet i can see me wearing it. I am not familiar w/ the story of Bluebeard so it has no negative impact on my relations w/ this one. I loved it in the bottle loved it on. Want the dh to try it. I can't really separate the notes it is just nice, but then again i have abt 15 different scents on right now so I could be cornfused abt the notes, but i do like it.

[tempete]

Bluebeard is very sharp and cruel at first, which seems to be due to the predominance of the lavender note in the wet phase. Even before it dries down completely, however, Bluebeard almost completely disappears on my skin. I can only detect a faint whiff of something that's vaguely minty. Since it vanishes so quickly on my skin, I'll have to swap this one away.

[harlequin]

in the vial.. uh. vetiver. yup. I think there's a trace of lavender too..

 

I'm very reluctant to even put this one on my skin. I couldn't really stand Seprent's kiss in the slightest and never even tried it on. i might be brave and put some of this on because it's got that other stuff in it, but i'm not really looking forward to it. vetiver smells like dill pickles to me.. and i don't like dill pickles.

 

Okay.. here goes. *takes deep breath*

 

Well, it mellows down pretty quick, at least. wow. it's so different than it smells in the imp. Probably not something I'd actually wear, but I could tolerate doing so if I had too. There's no way I can describe what the Vetiver turns into, but it's a big surprise, that's for sure.

 

 

yeah. probably not a helpful review at all, but if it says anything.. it says "don't be afraid to at least put some on!"

[Aurelius]

Bluebeard is another example of how crazy body chemistry can be. I've read the reviews and I kept thinking "masculine? Really?" On me Bluebeard was nothing but flowers. Flowers in a hot closed room. *sigh* My body just doesn't work well with violet and lavender.

[Pixie-elf]

At first, Bluebeard was Grassy, and Lavendarish.

 

Then, after a minute or two of being on my skin it turns like grassy, but sweet, like, say if I picked up a piece of grass, and chewed on it, this is how it would taste, sweet grass. I knwo that makes no sense but hey...

 

It was masculine, DEF. masculine on me, while it was a little floral, it was still so much better suited for a man. So I'm going to be sending it to a man who can use it... LOL.

 

This is really nice, I can see it's masculiune but a woman could wear it if she wanted to! I think on a man it might be a little less floral. Like with a man's chemestry I mean....

 

It's very light, and nice, lavendary, but the violet makes the lavendar tolerable for me, but it's just not something I'd wear.