The First Soft Snow

[FandF]

Heavy drifts of snow blanketing winter's narcissus.

like some other bpal…almost pine or eucalyptus but not minty. Very familiar. I didn't realize that this was narcissus. There is a minty sweet undertone. As it dries something sharper and nasal clearing comes out. this is a wild scent!

[Lorelai1945]

Hmm..there seems to be a lot of different things going on here. At first, I smelled cold citrus- like iced grapefruit. Then it became sweeter and took on almost a pine-y scent- but with flowers. It reminds me a lot of Snow Bunny with the pine and sweet floral combination. I like it, but to me it's more of a room scent than something I'd wear on me. I'll test it again to see if it grows on me.

 

*Somebody wrote that it smells like toilet cleaner. I just figured out that it smells like a Glade Plug-in I've been around before. That may have ruined it for me now that I know that.

[ellebelle]

This is a surprising win for me. It has the BPAL snow note - not the snow white note, but the more "icy" note. It's a slightly minty note one me with a background of light, sweet flowers. I think this might be a bottle!

[sqwook]

On me, this smells much like The Snow Maiden - pine, perhaps cinnamon, floral, but better than all of that - as I said in my review of TSM, like Christmas & the first of spring all rolled into one. I don't mind the similarity - I think it'll "enable" me to get a bottle of each without feeling like I'm hoarding. I love this.

[voodoocatwoman]

This blend is an in-your-face floral, kissed by a whisper of RAID. It is about to choke me.

[FathomBelow]

This is the first 5 mL I've ever gotten, so it better be good...

 

In bottle: This is definitely the most unique scent I've ever smelled! I don't even know how to describe it. I can smell mint or pine, like the other reviews said - something cold and airy - with a wet fruityish smell, and something sour (but not unpleasantly so). I can't say I've ever smelled snow (although I've read it smells like the taste of tin...but I've never tasted tin!), but I like this scent. I can also smell a faint something similar to Pride, very "high" in my nose, that must be the narcissus. Not love at first sight, but I'm definitely surprised and intrigued. My brother sniffed the bottle and said that it smelled like posh hotel bathrooms! So I guess I can see where a cleaning fluid analogy could come in...but I think it smells better than that.

Wet on skin: I catch a glimpse of this delicious white floral smell - not narcissus - that goes wonderfully with all the other notes swirling around...but then it promptly disappears. Drat.

Dry on skin: My brother and my dad both said they could smell...cinnamon! I like cinnamon, but I definitely wasn't expecting it in this scent. They said I smelled like a Christmas candle; must be the cinnamon and pine. And they have a point - this smells a lot like a Christmas pine candle, but more cold and airy and less sweet.

 

Again, this is the most intriguing scent I've ever smelled. Despite all the domestic analogies (posh hotels, Christmas candles), the image it brings to mind is a cold wild forest, thick with snow, standing in the moonlight. Makes me feel like I'm in a fairy tale. Nice!

 

I am editing this to say that this also lasts SUPER long on me (relative to other BPAL scents I've tried) - I applied it at 7:30 this morning and eight hours later, I can still smell it! Granted, I need to huff deeply and shove my wrist right up to my nose to do so, but I have a cold, so it's really probably stronger than that.

Edited January 12, 2010 by AmberApple

[Coldfire]

 

 

 

Decant: I definitel get snow on first whiff

Wet on Me: Snow and the lovely scent of narcissus

Drying Down: This one has not morphed into anything else so far. Still a snowy narcissus.

Dry: nice. Glad I got the decant.

[fairnymph]

Light yellow oil. Clean, cold floral - surprisingly fresh and bright. The narcissus is so much nicer than it normally is - not nearly as sharp/harsh. The snow note is NOT piney hairspray or almond-coconutty.

 

Okay, so it is a bit of that piney-hairspray snow, but only a little bit - softly, appropriately. I agree that this smells far more like actual snow than any other BPAL blend. There is a softness, like very fluffy, slightly powdery, absolutely pristine first now - very, very evocative. The narcissus is a little sharper and greener on my skin, but tolerable.

 

This is going citrusy! Like white grapefruit zest, specifically. Very zesty, but also a little juicy-sweet-tart. It counteracts the harsh/chemical aspects of the snow note really well, somehow. The narcissus has gone greener, a sort of sappy/stemmy note - this is working with the fresh/zesty/aquatic feel. This is reminding me a bit of The Macabray now.

 

The grapefruit has amped, and this has 'melted' - it's less cold, though still cool, and more aquatic. The narcissus has further softened. At this point it reminds me a lot of Szeassapony, and has a slightly floral-cologne base to it like that scent.

 

Grapefruit & snow Szessapony. If this didn't have the slightly sharp narcissus and that snow note -which as said is much milder and softer than usual, but still has that harsh tinge - I'd definitely get a bottle. It's much, much nicer than I thought it would be.

[AlarmAgent]

In Bottle - Hm, snowy? Minty, but very fresh, definitely 'cold'. Hard to describe.

Wet on Skin, First Applied - Ozone, I think. Snow? I know it's snow, but I really have no idea how to describe it. Cold air, a little very fresh, herbal mint...it is nice. It's very soft and slightly sweet, as you might expect.

Dry, on Skin - It smells so clean, and very fresh, definitely chilly. Somehow, I get the feeling of cinnamon--but it is nowhere near a spicy or warm blend. Maybe like, cinnamon ice cream--if that exists--but it isn't sweet, either. A chilled cinnamon/mint drink? Sounds sort of gross. This does not smell gross at all, and it barely even smells like cinnamon upon resniff. I'm not making any sense, but the 'snow' note completely confounds me. It smells like very cold air, magnified. It's an awesome scent to experience, and yet it still works as a perfume. I think everyone should try at least one snow-based blend, because I think it's hard to imagine without actually smelling it. I had no idea what it was going to be like, but I dig it! The throw is quite subtle, and it's lasting decently for about 3-4 hours so far. Now that I know what the snow note is like, I'm interested in trying more of the water/'mineral'/aquatic lab blends--along with the other snowy ones.

[lunaticana]

yuk I smell cinnamon from the decant

no way I am gonna test this!

[fairestrocza]

In the Decant: warm, fresh floral - no snow or chilliness

 

Wet on Skin: fresh, slightly damp narcissus - as if it were lightly misted and sitting in a florist's cooler

 

While Drying: the narcissus is warming up and starting to develop a sugary note

 

After a Little While: sugary, in the High-Strung-Daisies way, though not quite as intense

 

Later: juicy floral with a touch of sugar

 

Final Thoughts: When the yules came up, I really wanted to try this one, but I was afraid it would be too floral. I finally tracked down a decant out of fear that I might be missing out on something amazing. I am definitely glad I got to try this, but I still feel that Snow-Flakes was what I was expecting this to smell like, and I will be happier with my bottles of Snow-Flakes.

The First Soft Snow earns a 3.5/5 on my skin.

 

ETA: Retested this imp today. It started with the ozone snow note (my nose is much better educated than when I first reviewed this). The narcissus is more bitter than I remember, and dried down to a scent that was more juicy/fruity than floral. This faded fairly quickly, leaving a bare hint of that High-Strung-Daisies scent that I noticed originally.

Edited November 19, 2012 by Rocza

[svelterose]

Omg. What is this? I think it's the narcissus. Looks like my skin's predilection for amping up florals is back. This makes me dizzy, it's so strong. Smells strong.

[Dormouse]

On first sniff this is very much like Snow Bunny. The 'snow' notes are high, airy and delicate. Very sweet light pine and not too much mint. On my skin the flowers are a lot warmer than Snow Bunny's. I'm not totally sure I would recognise narcissus and to my uneducated nose the flowers smell very similar to the honeyed lilies in Tiger Lily. The contrast between the warm flowers and cold snow is lovely and I keep getting wafts of it and it makes me smile. I know it's the First Soft Snow but it's making me think of the first days of Spring, cold and chilly but with a hopeful warmth to the sun.

 

This is such a pretty, happy scent and I'm really enjoying it.

 

 

[Miyabi]

a little strong at first, like Skadi was, without the tart berries to cut through. It dries down to a nice spicy, piny wonderfulness, though, not at all sharp.

 

This is like Skadi's more sophisticated sister.

[BuxomM]

Sharp aquatic, ozone. It softens as it dries. Doesn't smell like snow.

[gchris]

Sort of fruity with bpals unmistakable snow not which is difficult to describe. On skin it is more intense and fruity but not citrus, more like juicy, wonderful fruit. The snow note serves to balance the enitre blend which has a light hearted feel.

[whisperstilled]

In imp: Bright and white, with florals beneath, this is definitely snowy. I haven't tried many of the Yule snow scents, so I find the 'snow' note intriguing. Cold and bright.

 

Wet: The snow fades back and I get more narcissus, sweet, pale, and subtle.

 

Dry: Delicate, and without the oomph I look for in my BPAL, but nice enough even if it's not my thing. Into the swaps, I'm afraid, 2/5

[Flightless]

In the imp: Cold, but I found hints of cinnamon first thing this morning, which surprised me a little- I normally really dislike cinnamon, but this is just muted enough I wanted to give it a try.

 

Wet: Still Cinnamon but that takes a backseat and the flowers are much more pronounced now. It's cold, but not nearly as cold as Snow Maiden and Hypothermia. I can't find the typical mint/pine notes that I'm used to picking out in snow scents... so it's more of an Autumn feel than winter time.

 

Dry: More floral now with just a hint of the cinamon-type spice in the background... I can't place if it is actually Cinnamon or not but it's not pronounced at all, in fact it adds just a bit of definition to a scent that might be pretty vague otherwise. Still no pine or mint, but you don't really miss them here: the Narcissus is a new scent for me and its very very nice.

 

Not a terribly long-lasting BPAL, but my favorites usually aren't. Also, not my favorite snow scent, but definitely a strong 4 out of 5 stars. This one is very nice on me.

Edited June 6, 2011 by Flightless

[cherrycherry]

2009 version : A calming floral snow note with some aquatic edge. Crisp and pretty.

 

2013 version : The same as the other version only brighter and with more ozone, I think.

 

I love any and all snow perfumes and this is one of the really good ones. Glad to have plenty as I like to slather!

[dementia_divine]

2013 version.

 

In the decant: A snowy white floral. This reminds me of something.

 

Wet: This is oddly familiar. It's the snow note from Snow Bunny! This actually reminds me of Snow Bunny a lot. It's like Snow Bunny with a stronger floral. In other words, I am rather enjoying it, but the boy will hate it!

 

Dry: The narcissus is more prominent than the snow. This is still a lot like Snow Bunny... perhaps sweeter.

 

Verdict: I really like this one! I will definitely keep my decant, but I'm not quite sure if I need a bottle.

[lavenderfrost]

In The Imp: Very Sharp - almost like greenery. Must be the narcissus.

 

Immediate Application: Still sharp, but some of the sweetness starts poking through. It actually smells very masculine to me. Like mens' aftershave. ^^;;

 

Dry-Down: The sharpness and iciness gives way to sweetness, and it's still pretty unisex.

 

Verdict: I keep going back and forth about getting a bottle.

[zankoku_zen]

2013 version

 

Spicy snow. This one is piney snow and a touch of cinnamon. I think I find it more wearable than the original released version, but it was pretty!

[Thimbleviolet]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who got fruit notes in this! Was starting to think I'd mixed up my decants.

 

To start with I get pine, with a bit of conifer, this quickly mellows out into the BPAL 'snow' note, familiar from Snow White. Then I get something fruity, the closest thing I can think of is the redcurrant from The East, with maybe a touch of floral, not at all what I was expecting.

 

Fortunately, the lab's snow loves my skin and has decent throw and staying power, while softening into a creamy delicious scent. The berry/redcurrant seems to fade after a while and it ends up more like Snow White but less sweet.

 

Alas, I can not smell true narcissus in this. This is my second attempt at finding a blend that smells like fresh daffodils (the other being Crowned with calm leaves she stands) I will live in hope!

 

I really like this, whether I get a bottle will depend on the other Yules I like this year.

[milo]

Fruited ice and a touch of floral. Nice, I quite like this, the floral comes out after a bit, but at first, it's more fruity than florally. Nice, but I have other snow notes that I like better than this.

[IronMollyBlack]

2016 Version:

 

Starts out with a slightly piney sweet snow note, maybe with a touch of berries. Which is then clubbed to death by narcissus. Very heavy on the flowers. It does smell realistically like paperwhites. It calms down a bit after a few minutes, and the snow note begins to peek out again. I'm hoping age will balance it out. It is already much better than it was cold from the mailbox. Strong throw, long wear length. I think I prefer The Snow Maiden, which is similar, but more snow less narcissus.