Encroaching Madness

[edenssixthday]

ENCROACHING MADNESS
It is the strangest yellow, that wall-paper! It makes me think of all the yellow things I ever saw—not beautiful ones like buttercups, but old foul, bad yellow things.

But there is something else about that paper—the smell! I noticed it the moment we came into the room, but with so much air and sun it was not bad. Now we have had a week of fog and rain, and whether the windows are open or not, the smell is here.

It creeps all over the house.

I find it hovering in the dining-room, skulking in the parlor, hiding in the hall, lying in wait for me on the stairs.

It gets into my hair.

Even when I go to ride, if I turn my head suddenly and surprise it—there is that smell!

Such a peculiar odor, too! I have spent hours in trying to analyze it, to find what it smelled like.

It is not bad—at first, and very gentle, but quite the subtlest, most enduring odor I ever met.

In this damp weather it is awful, I wake up in the night and find it hanging over me.

It used to disturb me at first. I thought seriously of burning the house—to reach the smell.

But now I am used to it. The only thing I can think of that it is like is the COLOR of the paper! A yellow smell.

There is a very funny mark on this wall, low down, near the mopboard. A streak that runs round the room. It goes behind every piece of furniture, except the bed, a long, straight, even SMOOCH, as if it had been rubbed over and over.

I wonder how it was done and who did it, and what they did it for. Round and round and round—round and round and round—it makes me dizzy!

I really have discovered something at last.

Through watching so much at night, when it changes so, I have finally found out.

The front pattern DOES move—and no wonder! The woman behind shakes it!

Sometimes I think there are a great many women behind, and sometimes only one, and she crawls around fast, and her crawling shakes it all over.

Then in the very bright spots she keeps still, and in the very shady spots she just takes hold of the bars and shakes them hard.

And she is all the time trying to climb through. But nobody could climb through that pattern—it strangles so; I think that is why it has so many heads.

They get through, and then the pattern strangles them off and turns them upside down, and makes their eyes white!

If those heads were covered or taken off it would not be half so bad.

I think that woman gets out in the daytime!

And I'll tell you why—privately—I've seen her!

I can see her out of every one of my windows!

It is the same woman, I know, for she is always creeping, and most women do not creep by daylight.

I see her on that long road under the trees, creeping along, and when a carriage comes she hides under the blackberry vines.

I don't blame her a bit. It must be very humiliating to be caught creeping by daylight!
—The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman

A yellow smell. Old foul, bad yellow things. Honeysuckle, chrysanthemum, balsam, hydrangea, and helichrysum.

Encroaching Madness - "Old foul, bad yellow things." You know what else is foul and yellow? Urine. That's exactly what this smells like when sniffing it in the bottle. It's so gross it's retch-inducing. I wasn't going to skin-test this one, but then someone in the Seattle Will Call thread mentioned how funny it would be if Beth made a scent that smelled horrible in the bottle but lovely on the skin, and I thought... hmmm... yeah, what if? So I hitched up my britches and jumped right in. And wouldn't you know... it actually smells gorgeous on my skin. I mean, so gorgeous that I couldn't stop huffing away at my skin, partly because I couldn't get over how something so god-awful could become so pretty, and partly because it was just so damn pretty. On my skin it's fairly light. I don't smell the honeysuckle at all (thankfully, since it's not a good note for me). I'm not sure what hydrangea or helichrysum smell like, so I don't know what was doing what on my skin, but it is a gentle floral that is very sweet and incredibly feminine, pretty, and soothing. It's such a gorgeous floral that I'm tempted to find a bottle, or at least a partial bottle of my own. And if I wouldn't have built up the courage to try it out, I'd have never known how pretty it would actually turn out to be. It may smell like urine in the bottle, but on my skin, it's really, really lovely.

[tamburlaine]

I got a decant of this because "The Yellow Wallpaper" is one of my favorite short stories ever. Really good gothic feminist stuff, if that's what you're into!

 

This does smell lovely on the skin, but very sad. The honeysuckle is clearly there but tempered into powdery, Victorian timidity by the balsam and , which also makes the blend a little stickier. Encroaching Madness is very floral, and has a faint scent of urine as is mentioned, but it's the same kind of urine-ish smell that accompanies a good jasmine, so never fear. I'm guessing that scent is from the chrysanthemums.

 

I really like this; it's my first BPAL in a while where I may purchase a bottle for poetic reasons. It's very pleasant, if tame and soapy (helichrysum/immortelle tends towards soapy on me). Honeysuckle is one of the only floral synthetics that I consistently appreciate, so I am very happy with this.

 

Encroaching Madness is a kind blend, if unsettling, just like "The Yellow Wallpaper" -- it would smell soothing mixed into a bath oil, but I actually think it's a better nighttime blend than one for day. Something about it says, "I'm a crazy woman in 1899 who wants to party. Quietly." I suggested wearing this while drinking a box of white wine and see what happens.

[spiresinthesnow]

This one is really nice. It smells very acrid and stale in the bottle but once it hits the skin it really blooms.

I mostly get honeysuckle out of this, but its not not nauseatingly sweet floral, more like a candy sweet floral. Its like a big cloud of sweet yellow flowers. This one was third in my most favorites from this series. Think I may need a bottle.

[Ondine]

I made dandelion wine and while the dandelion petals are steeping in water, before anything else is added, they smell sort of dank and musty, but not bad. This reminds me of that in a way. Yellow, wet things that are herbaceous but not disgusting.

[Lycanthrope]

Looks (and smells) can be deceiving...

 

In the bottle, this is definitely sharp, urine snappy, and frightening, and on the skin, it does temper and become a slightly sweet, airy (and still somewhat biting) floral. Lots of interesting florals used here that don't make too many appearances in Beth's other scents. I think it's the helichrysum, balsam, and chrysanthemum that are giving this its slightly sappy urine-esque scent. Give it a shot... it doesn't stay the way it is in the vial for too long on me at least...

[reynardine]

I have no idea where people are getting that this stuff smells like urine. In the decant, it smelled like honeysuckle, straight up. When applied, I’m getting honeysuckle, chrysanthemum and hydrangea. It’s very, very pretty. Light floral, not sharp at all. Honeysuckle can go piercing on my skin, but this one is behaving nicely. I am so getting a bottle of this! (Note: this seems more like a springtime/early summer scent than autumn.)

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I love the story so much that I decided to get a decant, despite one of the most frightening descriptions in all of BPALandia! "Old foul, bad yellow things"...yikes. What I get, though, is a quick flash of sharpness that immediately settles into...old, bad baby powder. There are some florals in there, but something is just going flat-out powdery on me. It isn't an offensive scent, but it's not doing much for me. Oh well.

[Aevie]

This scent has me very, very confused! Like many mentioned above, it smelled downright vile in the bottle. On my skin, at first, I was wondering why I even bothered because now I stink. But once it dried, it just...blossomed. Very beautiful, light, airy, and sweet.

 

I'm on the fence as far as getting a big bottle goes on this one. It's hard to believe it's the same scent in the bottle and on the skin!

[SophieCedar]

Most amusing scent I've ever experienced.

In imp: smells like stale urine warmed against rotting foul clothing.. this is horrible!

Wet: I smell flowers.. but still having the shivers from that urine stench and can't shake it... Allowing this to mature on my skin is equivalent to letting a poisonous insect crawl on me because a zookeeper promises it's friendly and only bites when provoked....

Drydown: I can smell the honeysuckle, chrysanthemum, and hydrangea. I think the addition of balsam is what makes this magically urine-ous. Being that there's over 600 types of helichrysum, I can't really determine what part it's playing...strange strange strange. Smells fresher and more beautiful, but I have wet phase PTSD...

[Eemia]

In the bottle, this smells like flowers that have been sitting in stagnant water. Like when you've walked by your vase of fresh flowers one too many times and haven't tossed them yet, even though the water is now overpowering the actual bouquet. It's not quite putrid, just sort of overripe. A little sweet too.

 

It's more distinctly floral on my skin, though (thankfully) it still retains so much of that interesting stagnant quality. The first time I wore it, I kept smelling my arm and thinking: fermented flowers. Nothing else came to mind when I tried to associate it with something.

 

I like the softness of the flowers as it dries down. It's less boozy-fermented-stagnant and more like a jumble of light, bruised petals. Like they've been mashed somehow. It never turns musky or powdery, it just sort of dies out. It's here all day and then the next time I think about it, it's gone.

 

Very creepy and beautiful.

[angelicruin]

This really does smell like urine in the imp vial. On my skin, it's a little better---mostly florals, but still a bit acrid and reminds me of urine.

[Blood onmy hands]

I had to have this, because The Yellow Wallpaper is my very favorite short story. Then I read the 'urine' descriptions and was kinda worried. But I actually think that this smells really good, even in the bottle. It reminds me of sweet, honeyed, slightly herbal wildflowers warmed in the sunshine. It makes me think of picking flowers when I was little <3.

I can't really pick out the honeysuckle or balsam. The scent just smells very sweet and very yellow in a way that I can't quite explain. It 's floral, but not perfumey or fake-floral like I get from most floral perfumes. It's natural florals, heavy sweetness, and sunshine in a bottle. I think that it fits the story very well too.

I love rereading the story and wearing this perfume... and this is something that I can actually see myself wearing a lot. Very sweet, very warm floral.

[bheansidhe]

"Old foul, bad yellow things." Well GEE, Beth, when you put it so temptingly, how can I resist?

 

Smelled from vial: foot funk. Bad foot funky. Funky funky foot funk.

 

Applied: complete 180 degree rotation into a lovely crisp green and floral scent. Perfect for those hot golden summer days when you stand at your upstairs window and look out at the cool green lawn shadows and the merry dandelions and the buttercups blooming, whilst behind you the wallpaper creeps closer and closer....

 

Really, a winner. Pinch your nose and slap it on and see how it works for you.

[puck_nc]

Origin: Straight from the Lab

 

Initial Thoughts: Honeysuckle, hydrangea, chrysanthemum...some of my favorite romantic flowers all in one blend. I had to try it in spite of the description.

 

In the Bottle: Wonderfully sweet honeysuckle next to a definite herbal note. I think the herbal note is winning here.

 

Wet: The herby and slightly woody balsam is taking charge to start with. It's rather sharp, but I can detect the florals underneath, biding their time...

 

Drydown: The florals are stronger, a less sweet blend than the honeysuckle was at first. But the herbal side just isn't willing to give up without a fight. It finally retreats enough to let the florals take control: a sweetish crush of summer and fall petals.

 

Verdict: I believe I have room to keep this in my box. Need to compare it to a couple other florals I have.

[hlinspjalda]

In the vial: Bitter, gummy floral.

 

Wet: Sticky gummy bitter floral. No detectable honeysuckle, possibly no chrysanthemum. I think that's mostly hydrangea I smell; it's evoking the sticky sap of some landscape shrub from my youth.

 

One hour: I get the helichrysum, I can tell because it smells like the note in Aquae. There's a sweetness too that might be the honeysuckle, but also a bitterness, more likely the hydrangea than the mum. The only thing holding this one together for me is the balsam.

 

Two hours: This got steadily softer and sweeter on me. Always able to smell the helichrysum, and the honeysuckle came along pretty nicely. The hydrangea eventually fell back leaving the sweeter notes in charge.

 

At three hours it was pretty nice, but light.

[lilyana]

There is something about this that reminds me of the paste we used in pre-school. You know that thick, sort of sweetly minty stuff that kids get in trouble for eating? That probably sounds strange but Encroaching Madness is really beautiful. I don't usually wear florals but I'm definitely ordering a bottle of this one. It's soft, sweet, and the honeysuckle is perfect.

[ami226]

On the skin: Ooooh, honeysuckle! A nice sweet floral scent. Veeery nice and pretty! There is a slightly.... sourish hint? After a bit it smells kinda minty.

 

Interesting, but not my thing.

[Schmoozy]

Old floral bouquets with snippets of wadded up minty bubble gum. Pass.

[ljaylh]

I'm kinda bummed that I only have a half-decant of this to try, because I sort of want to experience the nastiness of this in the bottle that everyone's describing!

 

I don't get anything foul or bad at first - the honeysuckle is sweet and clean, the balsam is adding a bit of waxy herby smell, and that's about it - yep.. slightly minty honeysuckle is what I'm getting.. perhaps a touch of chrysanthemum but it's barely there, everything's pretty sweet and fresh smelling.

 

After it's been on for about a half-hour, the smell has broken down quite a bit.. that initial sweet and fresh-in-the-garden feel that the florals had has turned and now they smell like they've been in a vase in a hot room with all the windows and doors shut.. the pretty flowers have drooped and lost the will to live. The balsam has gone a bit sour, and overall it smells a bit like squashed flowers that are starting to go a bit mouldy. Which sounds nasty, but it's not a bad smell.. it's just not as nice at the end as it was at the beginning. Which is actually completely perfect for the story behind this scent.

[SnappingTurtle]

In the Imp: Kind of nasty. See observations above

 

Wet: Floral and light. Sweet, without being cloying. Something unsettling lurking around the edges, though.

 

Drydown: Catching the occasional whiff from my wrist, pleasant but still strange. Perfect for an unsettled mood.

 

Dry: Almost gone, but still smells good on my wrist when sniffed closely.

 

Liked it enough to put it right back on again once it faded. Don't need a bottle, but my imp is staying around...

[yeahbutnobut]

Encroaching Madness

 

In the imp: I don’t smell urine, but I do smell old vase water. It’s not very pleasant.

Wet on skin: now I smell flowers, but they smell old and wilted.

Dry on skin: I think what I smell here is mainly helichrysum (which to me smells like camomile on steroids) and chrysanthemum. The ‘mum note is not the fresh, light, dewy type, it’s the kind that smells bitter, greenish, and a bit rancid. The helichrysum has that golden, hay-like camomile-ish scent with a hint of pollen and honey, but this also smells a bit musty and dusty. The balsam is the same one as in Anubis, a greenish-golden sharp resin. The only honeysuckles I smell here are probably incredibly wilted because I don’t smell any fresh glorious honeysuckle here. The cologne-ish floral over it all is probably hydrangea.

After a while: hmm, yeah, after a while the chrysanthemum turns bad on me and it smells of urine and unwashed morning funk. Ew. That and also the rotting flowers and damp and dry rot and dusty bouquets from before. Eventually it turns to a rotting dusty chrysanthemum scent and dusty dry blooms on a mouldy tablecloth, flowers in a vase that hasn’t had its water changed for ages.

Verdict: overall, this brings to mind the image of a room in a very, very old house, that hasn’t been touched for decades, if not centuries. In this dust caked, dark, musty room, the walls are covered in damp and rot (which makes them very yellow indeed), and there’s a bouquet of dead flowers. The room has been left like this…who knows why? Sentimental reasons maybe, or the opposite? It is a room with memories but they are not pleasant, they are uncomfortable and menacing memories. The scent of dust and rot and dead flowers and mustiness are oppressive, sour and rather rank. This scent feels unsettling and not pleasant. The atmosphere it evokes is quite incredible, it’s a scent that tells a story, but I don’t think I’ll wear this as perfume.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Nope.

If you like this, try: Chrysanthemum Moon, Ephemera, Anubis, Resurrection of the Flesh, Succubus, Tisiphone

[zankoku_zen]

Yellow flowers. I get a touch of honeysuckle, mums and something that smells like soap. It sort of reminds me to pressed flowers.

 

Yellow, floral, pressed.

[milo]

I don't really find this scent offensive at all, though it admittedly, it is not my style. I get a strong, heady floral, kind of yellow smelling. This reminds me of a young girl's room, barely out of toddler hood painted soft yellow, with a pretty canary yellow quilt. There is just a childlike innocence to this blend, and further on the dry-down, reminds me of the smell of a baby or young child. This blend is very evoking, and though I personally wouldn't wear it, if I had small children I'd probably use it as a room scent.

[Ceisdein]

In Bottle: 3 week old vase water and sour bread mold. The mint green kind. For the first time ever with a bpal work, I'm very hesitant to try this.

Wet: Um, yep. Same.

Dry: Okay, the flowers have come out a bit. It's still awful. Now it's just sweet flowers put into a vase of old water, next to a loaf of moldy bread. I'm not sure if the throw is super big or I'm just so horrified by this that I'm super attuned to it. It's also clinging to everything.

 

Overall: I really, really was hoping that this would mellow and bloom on me like it did for others. There's just enough sweet floral in there that I can imagine how it could smell lovely with the right chemistry. While there was no such luck on that count, it does paint a picture and it fits the Gilman piece perfectly. I get very vivid imagery off of it and will keep my decant for the uniqueness of it. That all said if it never touches my skin again it will be quite fine with me. Old foul, bad yellow things indeed. I'll also note that it to forever to wash off.

[ravenscanary]

Source: Fresh decant

 

In the imp: Musty, stale water and overripe greenery.

 

Wet: Sharp, sweet floral. Chrysanthemum and balsam, mostly. It's...interesting. Sweet-sour and almost sickly-compelling.\

 

Dry: Gets a slightly powdery undertone on the drydown, but remains primarily an unsettling floral. Very evocative and even pretty, for the right person. Not my thing. Though I don't think it's minty, there is a kind of cool/tingly undertone that I'm sure is the source of the comparisons by others to mint, gum, or paste. It's very unusual.