Bordello

[AnyseLawsBray]

A decadent, deep perfume, lusty and luxuriant. The scent evokes images of velvet-lined Old West cathouses, tightly laced corsets, rustling petticoats and coquettish snarls of pleasure. Bawdy plum with amaretto, burgundy wine and black currant.

In vial: Starburst! The red ones.
Wet: Starburst- juicy, tart, sweet n' sticky!
Dry: A mellower version of... Starburst.

Verdict: I'm afraid I just can't get anything more than the psycho Starburst association. Every time I've tested it, that is the only thing my brain understands this blend to be. Grr. Should be wonderful for those who like fruity scents! Edited July 17, 2011 by braybrigade

[yakiguri]

Plum and black currant are normally two good notes for me and tend to be the only fruit notes my skin doesn't turn sour/sickeningly sweet, but I think the burgundy wine ruined Bordello on me. From wet throughout the dry down I get cloying super-sweet fruit with a dustiness I suspect comes from the wine. Amaretto, another favorite note of mine, never deigns to make an appearance. Overall Bordello comes out (on me) like the kind of cheap fruity perfumes marketed to teenagers and preteen girls. Off to swaps.

[KittyHawk]

In the imp, this was sweet. Rot your teeth right out of your head sweet. I couldn't pick out the individual notes; it was just sweet candied fruit.

 

Wet, this got some dimension, thanks to the wine. I think this is the first boozy scent I've ever tried. I see the comparisons to Lady Macbeth. It has the same fruit note, but the wine in Bordello sets the two apart. I really like both scents, but I think Bordello is a lot easier to wear, whereas Lady Macbeth is a much more brash and loud fruit scent.

 

Dry, this becomes even more lovely--this almost smells like a sangria upon drydown. This was frimped to me by the lovely tuffins, and I'm so glad; I probably wouldn't have tried this otherwise. It won't be a bottle purchase for me, but I will certainly keep using the imp.

[Klolly]

Wet: This reminds me of that pink hand soap that is always in truck stop bathrooms. Very fruity with a creamy aspect as well. It smells like fake strawberry perfume. Like something that would scent a strawberry shortcake doll or something.

 

Dry: As it dries the smell doesn't change much. I guess it smells good, but I can't get the idea of it smelling like hand soap, or cheap strawberry incense, or some generic strawberry air freshener out of my head. This is probably an imp I'll swap eventually. I can't see myself wanting to wear this more.

 

About 30 minutes later: I had to wash it off. I scrubbed my arms twice and I could still smell it. On me this smelled exactly like a really strong strawberry car freshener with a generous dab of sleazy thrown in. This is the only bpal I haven't liked so far. At least I have seven more imps waiting to be tried. :-0

Edited August 6, 2011 by Klolly

[terriblethrills]

In the bottle this was ridiculously sweet - on me, it didn't change much at first. It smelled like candy, bubblegum, and some kind of alcoholic fruit (most strongly the amaretto and plum). Dry, however, it loses a lot of its punch and just sits at a comfortable old-ladyish sweetness. Almost like potpourri, but with just a hint of the sexy-candy smell from before. Not at all unpleasant - just probably not something I would wear a lot.

[Ghost of a Rose]

In the imp: In-your-face fruity and cloyingly sweet. Smells very much like maraschino cherries - on steroids. It's the amaretto that makes the fruits smell like cherries.

 

On me, wet: Same as above. I'm getting everything but the wine - in other words, all the sweet stuff.

 

On me, drydown: Fortunately some of the extreme sweetness has calmed down. Still very fruity and sweet, though, with just a faint hint of nuttiness.

 

On me, after a couple of hours: The fragrance remains remarkably consistent and has lost its aggressiveness, to become much more wearable.

 

The burgundy never does make an appearance on my skin.

It seems strange that this is a clear, colorless oil. It smells like it should be a deep purplish red!

 

Verdict: It's a pleasant scent, but too sweet and too fruity for me to wear very often as a perfume - and never ever for when I want to present a professional or elegant image. It might be fun as an occasional change of pace for casual times (note that it would likely attract wasps outdoors.) It is strong, so apply sparingly.

Where it would really shine would be as a kitchen air freshener, in an oil warmer or a candle - it would make the kitchen smell like you were baking a cherry pie.

My rating: 3 as a perfume, 4 as a room scent

[Gingerbird]

On me, this turned into very hot, spicy jellybeans. Not cloyingly sweet, but definitely very candy-like. The wine showed out a little more as it dried but I never got any amaretto. Not very surprising because my skin amps fruit like nobody's business.

 

Very strong but as I usually like to be smelt five blocks away that was no problem.

[ziggystardust13]

I like Bordello but I don't love it. Its light and fruity. Two qualities I usually don't go for in a scent. If only there was a little more incense in there....

I will be keeping my imp though.

Edited October 10, 2011 by ziggystardust13

[TurpentineChai]

Figured I'd give this a try before going into work...Bordello just sounds right for bartending. I was confused on why it was on my bottle wishlist from years ago since I didn't remember testing it.

 

Really sweet and faux fruit in the bottle, could not figure out why I would've wanted this...its not my usual notes.

 

On wet, fruity still but with more dry floral.

 

Drys down really light on me with not much throw, the dry incense people mentioned with just a bit of fruit underneath. Every now and hen I catch a crazy scent of it suddenly strong though and love it. Its all at once sweet and fruity with a smokey grown up smell over it.

A bottle of this isn't on my list for ASAP but eventually it would be nice for behind the bar.

[angelmecha]

In Imp: The first whiff I took, I totally could smell amaretto, currant, and even plum, but ever since I glanced at one of the other reviews all I can smell now is.... Nerds. Yep. Dead-ringer for Nerds candies. I don't pick up any wine, nor did I before I got the Nerd association.

Wet: Sweet, sweet, sweet!! This is bright and fruity, with a bit of creaminess that must be lent from the amaretto. I still smell Nerds.

Drydown: Oh, yay. It's starting to mellow and get a bit more of a dusky fruit smell. I still don't get "wine," per se, but the booze of it seems to be what's bringing this scent back down to earth and giving it almost a musky quality. After 10 minutes or so, the musk starts to subside and leaves simply a slightly spiced sweet fruit.

Verdict: I'm gonna have to try this one again on a day that I'm wanting a sweet fix and see how it fares. Probably not a bottle buy, though. It's just too fruity for me.

[KatharinaNordh]

Firstly; No offense, but I am SO glad to never have encountered all these candies and stuff you people seem to mention all the time - like "Jolly Rogers" and "Nerds" and "Starbursts"and so on, as it seems to ruin so much of the impression for so many.

 

To me, this didn't smell like the description -

 

I get fresh, juicy plum, the black currant lies over it as an almost citrusy sparkle, the wine being a very base flow through the entire smell, and the Amaretto smells more like buttered nuts(if that makes sense) than booze.

 

Overall, if feels deeply velvety-purple with pale, pale gold borders, and black lace, but nothing tied up, no faked - or real - lust, or even decadence, as such. More...almost something I'd put on some Matriarchal-religions-Priestess in a fantasy-book. So maybe it's just my symbol-world not matching that of the creator (to match that description, I would require something a bit more incensy-and-almost-sweat-toned) - I still adore this smell and will be buying a Big bottle next time I make an order

[nome]

In the bottle, this is pleasantly sweet. On the skin, wet, it's edible sweet plum with a hint of syrup. After an hour, the syrup smell fades but the smooth, sweet fruit stay true. Sometime around hour two, though, the amaretto comes out and starts screaming at me -- I think I must amp it. Almost headache-inducing if I'm too close to it.

 

Very fruity, very smooth, very sweet, doesn't work on me.

[mxtine]

I'm surprised how delicious Bordello is on my skin! I received this frimp from the Lab, and I never would have tried it because of the "amaretto" note. I cannot stand the smell of almond, but combined with the burgundy wine, plum and one of my favorite dark fruit notes, black currant; the amaretto smells like a dark sugared cherry. The dry down is pure black currant and dark cherry and I'm in LOVE. The only other "cherry" scent I can wear is Gothabilly and I only wear that on special occasions. I can slather Bordello with abandon after I buy a couple bottles.

[Missy_killer]

In the imp: Sweet and sour fruits, with creamy undertones that I can imagine comes from the Amaretto.

On me: A really purple scent! I can smell the plums and the wine more than anything else.

 

15 minutes later: Plums and wine but now the currants have joined in to the party.

An hour later: A heady mix! I imagine in my head that I'm sitting in a fancy restaurant and the dessert is just being served. Plums and currants served with Amaretto cream and a sweet red wine to go along with it. Very good, almost edible! But I think Bordello will give me a headache from time to time :/

[Incendiare]

Wow, Bordello is so playful yet slightly mysterious in the vial. In one single sniff, it changes like three times. It goes from a solid plum wine, to an amaretto-laced wine to a sweet fruity wine in mere seconds. There are times when I don't even know what I'm smelling exactly but I all I know is that I like it. Actually, the sweetness in the vial reminds me of bubble gum, but it's very subtle. Wet, the plum goes a bit tart and sour and blends in with the amaretto, but this has really lost its initial boozy quality. Now, it's more like sugared purple fruits with a drop of amaretto. The wine ran away on me. Pretty but my favourite wine blend is still Fairy Wine.

[Wildwoodflower]

Bordello is one of my all-time favorites. It's very sweet in the bottle and on my skin, but not candy sweet, thank goodness. I get a true fruity sweetness that is tempered by the smooth (but not milky) creaminess of the amaretto. It's a little boozy on my skin, but just barely. Sweet, spicy, creamy, purple.

[becca_s]

Bordello is so much better than I expected it to be. First of all, wine and foody scents don't normally work on me. But, this is so good. I don't get any wine, just creamy plums - that aren't too sweet. For some reason I get vanilla from this ... I guess that's from the amaretto. This has quickly made its way to the top of my bottle list!

[Rho]

I have to agree with the other reviews that mention candy; my nose smells Gobstoppers in the Bordello imp, and on my skin. It must just be some people though, because my husband doesn't smell candy; he gets rich wine and fruits.

 

Even though my primary impression is colorful candies, Bordello is good enough to wear. It's sweet, but round and amiable. I'm happy to have an imp!

[whitsunweddings]

In the imp: Alcoholic red gummy lollies.

Wet: Amaretto and sweet red candy.

Dry: Pretty much the same. Meh.

[mymymai]

In the Imp (ITI): It’s really sweet right from the bottle. I smell sweet currants steeped in faint red wine enhanced by the lush fullness of the plum. Very decadent.

 

Wet: Wow, it smells like those candies that are purposely designed to imitate wine, but are too sweet to actually mirror that flavor. There certainly is the sweetness of the currant and the almost heady aspect of the plum that makes the scent a bit more unusual.

 

Dry: Slightly soapy and powdery with splashes of wine and dashes of amaretto. It’s luxurious but almost cloying.

[Gateau]

I ordered this in my first imp pack many years ago, back when I really didn't know what I liked, and it didn't work for me, so eventually I tossed it out and forgot about BPAL. Having made my way back, I was curious to try it again.

 

Nope, still not a good one for me. In the imp it's got a dry wine cooler kind of smell, but wet on my skin I get that sweet chemical soapy scent others have mentioned. As it dries, that astringency goes away, but it gets unrelentingly sweet in a fruity, winey way, sort of like leftover sangria the day after. I can pick out the plum, currant, wine, and amaretto notes, so if that's your bag, you will probably like this. It's rich.

[AmethystDahlia]

In Bottle: Didn't really get a chance to smell it in the imp because I accidentally spilled some upon opening it and had to scramble to rub as much of it on my arms as possible. Luckily it mostly landed on my fingers, but some got on the label. )=

 

On Skin: Oh my god. This is hands down already one of my favorites, if not my favorite. I mostly get the plum and a hint of what I think is the amaretto, but it's a subtle scent that's sweet without being too sweet.

 

Dry-Down: I'm pretty much smelling my wrist constantly. I'm not sure if I really smell the wine note, but the perfume does seem to age well like wine would.

 

Final verdict: I'm going to get a bottle of this in the future for sure. I absolutely love this scent.

[undream]

whew! very sweet!! it at first smells like some type of candy i can't quite recall, a very sugary, fruity candy (or type of sugary drink!). it remains pretty much so even after application & drydown, although a lovely spiciness & a subtle creaminess does come out. waking the next day, it's taken on a sweet powdery scent, and really, the entirety of this perfume oil is quite beautiful. still, although i love each of the notes in this scent individually, together - in this blend - they are just far too sweet for me. off to swaps.

[Hi_May]

I just tried this, and while I'm no where near as good with all the scent describing, where is what I smell...

 

After wearing it for 2 hours I smell cupcakes with vanilla frosting...

 

I'm not sure what makes it smell like that since none of the oils listed would seem to push it in that direction, but on me, with my chemistry, that's totally what I smell, and I love it.

 

I can't stop sniffing my wrists!!

[Poenari]

This is full of notes that typically work out well for me- plum and wine are especially good on my skin. The only note I was worried about was the amaretto: I love to drink it, but wasn't sure how it would react on my skin. I am very happy that Bordello is a "hit"! It is fruity, sexy but fresh all at the same time. I think it is a lovely scent and I would wear it in the summer when I am in the rare mood for something different. It's not an overpowering scent and I think I could wear this to work without worry. Will even consider a bottle of this.