Bluebeard

[juniperus]

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

Wet: vetiver, heavy violet, lavender receding some.
Dry: still no sign of the musk, almost all vetiver and violet at this point, and the vetiver is turning on me as it usually does. gah.
Later: The veitver has passed that odd and unpleasant 'dirt' stage, but it's still not happy on me. This is a very evocative blend - if I think about it I can pick out most of the notes - but with eyes closed a single sniff smells like..rage. This very much fits the wife-killer of the story, it's really disconcerting. And I had really hoped the other notes might tame the vetiver some for me, as I know it usually does untoward things on my skin (but I do love the other notes)...darn.

[DEMONDAHLIA]

This found its way to me as a frimp from the lab.. when I first opened the vial i was was intregued by the smell of rotting aged oak .. and yet repulsed as well . I put the imp away and thought it was defiantly a swapper. Well today ireopened bluebeard and was pleasantly surprised. I got more of a salty sea note ..and the rotting wood smell had softened into more of an aged wood smell rich and mossy.

 

 

 

while Bluebeard isnt something Id wear for perfume .. I think Beth has completely captured the essence of deviance in this oil. It reminds me of an old seafaring man that has may secrets to hide.. maybe a maiden or murder in every port? The salt of the sea and sweat of the brow .. a curious scent indeed..

[urbanruralferal]

(I wore this again, and I totally have to rewrite the review.)

 

I know that Bluebeard was a nasty wife-killer. I can't smell him in here.

I do declare this is some swashbuckling ship captain. I was thinking gentleman pirate, but I then I remembered Russell Crowe in Master & Commander, and oh! this is it!

It's bracing, you know? And sea-swept, and there is a large trunk on deck with leather hinges that has all kinds of mysteries inside. I can't quite spy them out, but I know they are in there, and there is Intrigue...

and there is the Captain, on the deck, salty hair blowing a bit.

Mmm, yes...this is a fun game to play!

 

But will I wear it? If the Captain of the ship o' my heart could tolerate scent, I would ask him to, but as for me, I think it may be a bit too butch. I'll keep it for a while and see if I can't build a suitable outfit around it. Summer is coming...

Edited May 25, 2006 by urbanruralferal

[themerrybaker]

Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of vetiver! Actually Blue Beard reminds me a lot of Saturnalia, but cleaner and lighter.

 

The dry-down is pretty nice, with the white musk and the purple flowers.

 

I liked this one much more than I expected to.

 

 

 

And it would be so cool to layer it with Brass Balls.

[ladymissspyder]

In imp: Lavender with a metallic undertone. I don't know how Beth made these notes smell metallic, but she did.

 

Wet: Light lavender with an underlying floral complexity.

 

Drydown: The metallic note returns as the oil dries. Stays a bit oily - had to be rubbed in.

 

Top notes: Ooooh. Smexy violet. I love violets in old-fashioned mens' fragrances, and this is no exception.

 

Middle notes: The metallic note returns, but seems to be more identifiable as vetiver + violet at this point.

 

Base notes: Mmmm vetiver and violets; no metallic note anymore.

 

Throw: medium-light.

[ancilla_morte]

The lavender hit me at once. Now I can smell those dreadful violets... and they are almost as strong as the lavender. despite my hatred for violets I must say how perfect they blend with lavender. I couldn't detect the vetiver, which I know is a pretty strong, bitter note. The scent didn't smell murdeous to me, but it is definitely masculine and reminds me of the sea.

[karengypsy]

In the vial: Sharp lavender. Vetiver. Musk.

 

On me: This is pretty true to the vial scent, but the vetiver really takes over everything and sours up the lavender on me.

 

Verdict: If only there wasn't so much vetiver, this'd be just wonderful. Oh well.

 

Rating: 2/5

[Victory]

I must amp vetiver like a mad amping thing, because that's all I'm getting. It's fading a little bit in the hour after I put it on, but it's too little too late. I was dying for that gorgeous white musk, but it wasn't to be.

 

Ah well, I'm going to pass this on to my mother, who enjoys vetiver so the imp will have a happy home.

[circe_blue]

A frimp from the lab. Yay!

 

In the imp: Extremely strong lavender and vetiver. I didn't even have to put it up to my nose to sniff. Bluebeard just wafted towards me.

 

Wet on skin: Lavender, lavender, lavender.....also, more lavender.

 

Dry: Lovely violets, with something "dryer" underneath, vetiver? Oooh, and a hint of musk. Oddly, considering how strong this was in the imp, I'm smelling anything at all when my wrist isn't beneath my nose.

 

Verdict: Wow. An unexpected like. I love violets, but all that talk of lavender and vetiver scared me. I think this may actually be the most beautiful BPAL violet I've ever smelled. This is kind of masculine and I imagine it must be gorgeous on a guy (note to self: bring along the imp the next time I see the bf! ). I don't smell rage in here though, but then again I don't smell the decapitated heads either, which is a good thing .

 

Geez, I can't stop sniffing my wrist!

[neuilly]

It actually comes off as smelling a bit....dusty? Also has the metallic tinge others have mentioned. The vetiver was strongest in the beginning but fades a little bit. Otherwise it's mostly lavender. When I hold my arm close to my nose I can get the violet, but it doesn't waft like the other notes.

 

A very unique blend but not for me.

[Emma2403]

In the bottle: lavender... very strong, nearly raging.

 

On my skin: violet and lavender. After a while I can recognize a hint of vetiver. I'm normally not a great fan of lavender (although I'm an unconditional of violet), but this combination is fantastic.

 

After a couple of hours: violet. Nearly pure violet... I'm in love.

 

Verdict: Great! I've read many reviews describing Bluebeard as "very masculine" but on me (and last time I checked I was still a woman!), it's just strong and perfect.

[edenssixthday]

Bluebeard - When first applied, all I smell is lavender and vetiver – two notes I don’t usually like so much. However, upon dry-down, I keep getting whiffs of something wonderful wafting around me, and I realize it's Bluebeard. The lavender has softened and moved into the background just above the soft bed of white musk. The violet has moved into the foreground and is weaving in and out with the slightest touch of vetiver, and I can’t believe I never thought to blend violet with vetiver before – the dark, bitter vetiver compliments the deep, sweet tones of the violet so incredibly perfectly and I think I’m in love! This oil has a lovely level of throw, and I keep catching soft wafts of scent about me every time I move my arm. The staying power is really good at about 4-5 hours. I’m hanging on to it. Love it!

[Diana]

Wet: Violet, just a hint of vetiver and a tiny wisp of lavender

 

Drydown: surprisingly, the vetiver has been overpowered by the violet! I love violet so much, but it tends to not stand out so much against heavier notes, so this is a nice surprise! It's much softer & prettier than I thought it would be. It is much sweeter than you'd expect for a scent named after a mean jerkyface.

 

If you like Ultraviolet or The Raven, you'll really love this one too.

[columbus]

In the bottle this smells SO strongly of vetiver, which is probably why I didn’t try it for the longest time. Fortunately, this isn’t the strongest note when I wear it! When I first put it on I could smell the violet right away (huzzah!), and as it dried it became muskier and more subtle. Sadly, my skin eats it right up and the scent is all gone within half an hour.

 

Arrr, to the swaps with ye!

[Diva Urd]

As I opened the imp, the lavender ran rough-shod over me.

 

I tried it on, and I get lots of extremely strong lavender, with a bit of violet shining through.

 

I'm sad to report that for some reason, my scent memory associated Bluebeard with old ladies sitting in the bench with me during an enforced church session, and that it makes me sneeze violently. When the husband recoiled from my arm, I knew that Bluebeard and I wouldn't become friends anytime soon.

 

Off to the swap pile with you, ye scurvy dog!

[Dinerdulcinea]

imp: green, sour violets.

 

wet: same

 

dry: it is a bit more spicy now, but there is still the same sour note. I am afraid it may be the violet. I will have to try more violet scents to find out.

 

dry later (about 1 hour): this eventually becomes "pale, spicy violet soap." It eventually loses the sour note, but that is replaced by "soap"---which I also don't want. Nah.

 

 

When it got to the stage where I could barely smell it at all, a co-worker said "MMMMMM!" ---but I think it is too many icky stages on me to wait for that one.

[Trish]

This was a frimp from the lab.

 

In the imp: Nearly all lavender which I don't like. Reminds me of soap actually.

 

Wet: Violet mixed with lavender.

 

Drydown: As above except the lavender is a little more subdued. There's also a bit of vetivert creeping in. Gah, I think I'd like this if it wasn't for the lavender.

 

Dry: The lavender has really died down now, but it still smells like lavender and violet room deoderiser to me. An angry, cold room deoderiser mind you.

 

Straight to swaps. I like musk, vetivert and violet (although the latter doesn't always like me), but more than the merest hint of lavender nearly always wrecks a scent for me. This is no exception.

[spark]

I am never sure what to make of violet. It seems like something I "should" like but I'm not sure whether I actually do. And I know I have a relationship with vetiver, so Bluebeard was an interesting experiment.

 

Bluebeard is pretty clearly violet and a little vetiver; it's not one of those scents where you catch whiffs of something but can't figure out what it is. It's violet and vetiver! While it was wet the first time I tried it, I also picked up a dab of bitter lavendar. Trying it again -- much later; the imp is probably 2 years old at this point -- I didn't get lavendar, but the violet and vetiver were as I remember them. I never did pick up any white musk, but then I still haven't figured out what that smells like.

 

I can't really picture this scent on a man because of the prominence of the violet. Chemistry can do interesting things, though!

[sofiaviolet]

This smells like steamed broccoli.

 

I wish I was joking. I like lavender, violet, and white musk, and even vetiver in small enough doses. I had hoped to like this.

 

But it smells like steamed broccoli.

[supremegoddessofall]

The vetiver is the most prominent, and that has a leather-like effect on me. I think I would probably like this on Lee better than I do on me. The floral components are just barely there.

[vacpl]

This was fairly strong in the imp, and I wasn't wowed.

 

On - Lavender, quite a bit with other florals in the background.

 

After about 15 min. and beyond - Baby Powder. Totally, exactly baby powder - not powdery, but the real thing. Weird! It reminded me of my Gram - not a bad scent, but not really me.

 

Hopefully, it will suit someone else more.

[steffanina]

Bluebeard-

 

In Bottle: Lavender, and I can smell the white musk underneath.

 

Wet: It smells like stale cigarettes! On the first whiff, anyway! Then that goes away. Wild. I think I smell the vetiver underneath all this. So far it's interesting but I'm not sure if I like it.

 

Dry: Oh, dear, no, I don't think I can continue with this one. There's a cloying rot/reek undernote here, and if it weren't there then, yes, this'd be a nice scent. But that rot/reek is just too unpleasant to me. Off to wash.

 

Overall: Not for me.

[QueenFae]

This has two of my mortal enemies in it; vetiver and violet. Unfortunately, this one goes all vetiver on me. I can smell a tiny bit of the white musk in the background, but violet is the dominant undertone. It's a very masculine smell, and it has a ton of throw and I have a feeling it will last on my wrist all night. Nice for the boys, but not quite my thing.

[Voleuse]

This is dusky lavender on first application--so dark, in fact, that I didn't recognize it. After a moment, however, it clarifies. There's an open, almost-aquatic note behind it, round but not salty. This isn't masculine to my nose, but it's heavy. The heaviness mellows a bit over time, but mostly, this blend stays the same for the duration.

[Koumori]

I'm starting to think that maybe the scent I thought was lavender isn't. I've always thought of lavender as a soft floral, and the BPAL blends I've tried that have strong lavender notes all smell *very* strong and sharp on me. It could be the vetiver at work, too; I'm not sure, but this scent went right up my nose and hung out in my sinuses until I washed it off. Similar to Wilde, I think, and just as powerfully strong on me.

 

1/5