The Shadowy And The Sublime

[Lorna Brigid]

A sudden and shocking insight into the vast, ineffable, overwhelming power of Nature, stirred by a vision or experience of perfected beauty and perfected terror, that changes the soul irretrievably. An epiphany: Moroccan amber, wisteria, ambergris accord, white rose, magnolia, white mint, angelica, bergamot, and myrrh.

I love, love, love, love this scent!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :love!:
It is sooooo.... ahh, the wisteria and myrrh, and amber and mint and magnolia.... *sigh*
I think Beth has an interesting way of making a scent (or titling a scent) perfectly. The myrrh creates just enough smokiness for "shadowy" and the wisteria-magnolia-mint combo give the sublime smell/feel. The amber and rose are the bridges that gap and hold it all together.
This has fast tied with Hecate for my number one spot!

ETA Description Edited March 22, 2011 by Shollin

[Suu4LC]

In the imp, this is a pretty light floral mint, with a touch of amber. I fear this is going to go SUPER powdery on my skin. This is more of a winter scent than a fall scent to me.

 

On my skin-very pretty! Soft sweet white mint and white florals. Very very pretty-the white rose peeks out-so lovely and subdued-doesn't go strong or sour.

 

Overall, this is very pretty-did not ever end up going to powdery doom on me at all. Just a sweet minty floral. Probably don't need a bottle of this because I have other lovely bpal winter mints, but this is a gorgeous blend!

[plainjean]

You know, this one wasn't even on my radar until a certain Dark Alice ( ) sent me a sniffie. And it's absolutely stunning! It's powdery like a fancy, vintage dusting powder with just a touch of ambergris underneath. The various white flowers make it smell really smooth and creamy, and the white mint adds a pleasantly crisp and cool note. The resins help tone down all the floral, and it results in this scent that is so understated but so, so beautiful. The scent does have a slight sweetness to it, as well, though it's not overpowering at all. I agree with the reviewers who compare it to a chest of vintage dress-up clothes or white lace. Those are the images I get from this scent, and it's perfect.

 

ETA: I forgot to add that this reminds me very much of a scent that would be in the Salon collection. I don't know if that information means anything to anyone, but I always find the Salon blends to be extremely complex and sophisticated. This scent has that same complexity and sophistication, while still being soft and comforting.

Edited November 23, 2010 by plainjean

[KesHiro]

Shoot. I finally find a rose I can wear and the wisteria had go and mess it all up.

 

In the bottle, this is a lovely, light rose, with a touch of something sweet and creamy. On, it's the same . . . but then the wisteria kicks in and causes the whole blend to go funky. Actually, I can't be sure if it's the wisteria, as the note has worked for me in the past. But it seems like the most likely suspect. For lack of a better description, this ends up smelling like day old sweat and soft roses. Ick.

 

Thank heavens for scent lockets. In there, it stays pretty and mysterious.

[pandorasmuse]

In the decant: Altoids.

 

Wet: The mint is much less sharpish now, since it’s being softened by the other notes.

 

Drydown: The drier it gets, the less minty it is, and the more I like it.

 

Later: After wearing this for a full day, I can say I am in love. This is a wonderful mysterious blend—it really does uplift the way an epiphany would.

[crebbsgirl]

And to think I almost completely passed this one by!

 

This is awesome! So much awesome! It's sweet without being vanillic, soft without wearing too close. There a freshness to it, but it's not aquatic or ozoney in the slightest. The amber and myrrh ground this scent, and the rose doesn't amp to all hell on my skin. There's a softness to the florals that makes it wearable, and I find on my skin it's got the same vibe as Joyful Moon.

 

Cozy and mysterious. And a hint of vintage.

 

Love.

[ljaylh]

As others have said, The Shadowy and the Sublime has the air of an expensive perfume. It actually reminds me a bit of YSL's Opium, which may seem like an odd comparison but I think it's the lovely amber in TS&S that's making me think of Opium - possibly the white rose as well, which is quite dusky here and beautifully soft. It also reminds me slightly of The Girl in that it's another of those hauntingly pretty 'my skin but better' kind of blends.

 

Comparisons aside, TS&S is a very Victorian-esque fragrance.. soft and very feminine, and beautifully blended - and it sits on my skin in the way that a good dusting powder does.. it just seems to have melded with/over my skin perfectly,- I can smell it all the way up my arm even though I only applied a tiny dab to my inner wrist. It's quite subtle - I can smell the wisteria and magnolia, but neither is dominant or overly heady which is really quite remarkable given how pungent each of those florals can be. The myrrh adds a slightly resinous, smoky feel that makes this more than 'just' a perfume - it creates a mood that's slightly sensuous - and the ambergris adds a gorgeous smoothness. This is the kind of perfume you'd wear on a first date, and have your love tell you years later that he/she still remembers how good you smelled.

 

I'm not getting any white mint at all, nor any angelica or bergamot, but no complaints - I'm actually glad, because I think too much mint would spoil this and the greenery of angelica and/or bergamot would upset the balance of things.

 

Overall, this is really a beautiful perfume - something I'd wear when I don't want to smell like anything in particular.. I just want to smell nice.

[tziporra]

You know how everyone has their BPAL type? Someone is crazy for the fruity-woody scents, another loves the foodies, and still another can't get enough of those dirty dirty blends. Floral resins are my passion, all the way. And this one is all win.

 

I can repeat a lot of what's already been said: it's remarkably well blended. It also reminded ME of Opium, a comparison I thought was a little crazy when I made it. Relief that I'm not the only one. It's elegant and beautiful and grown-up and I want my sheets to smell like it whenever I crawl into bed.

 

The white rose note does not go all CRAZY SOUR ROSE on me like so many other roses, which is a pleasant surprise. It's a real pleasure to be able to wear rose. Of the other notes, I can pick out the amber and the mint, but only if I'm looking for them. Mostly this is just all warm and comforting and beautiful with a bit of repressed passion thrown in for good measure.

 

Although I love this, I'm too late for a back-up bottle (I just got my bottle last night after ordering months ago and failing to pick up my order. Bad Tzi!) -- and that's okay. I think I've come to terms with the ephemerality of these scents, and the knowledge that there will be another brilliant one right around the corner to replace this one. And there are some equally lovely floral resins in the GC (Sheol comes to mind....) in case of a dry spell. Thank you SO much for sharing your genius with me, oh Lab!

 

Tzi

[morganlise]

This is one of my top 10 of all time, I just love it. I love the beautiful floral-amber combo of wisteria, magnolia, angelica and resins. It reminds me of a very expensive niche perfume, which I mean as the greatest of compliments. Just gorgeous! (Sorry I can't be more specific, I find I'm sort of bad at analyzing the ones I really love because they tend to be very complex like this guy!)

[Honey]

Imp: Sour, stale, dusty and minty.

 

Wet: Delicious! Soft, feminine, powdery, sweet. I detect ambergris and soft florals.

 

Dry: Smells like a rosy perfumed facial cream or body lotion. Very faint and nice. The first rose scent that actually works on me! Maybe I should give white rose notes a try. I like the powderiness of this scent but it's still not quite my thing.

[Joan of Locks]

This scent has deepened with age. I tried it again recently and fell in love with it all over again. I might love it even more than before.

 

Here are my thoughts from 2010, when it was fresh:

 

I find it pleasingly intoxicating to wear. A very nice combination of notes that blend perfectly to create a nice light, mysterious and nicely musty scent. This is definitely a favourite scent.

 

And now in 2011, aged almost a year:

 

I find the Moroccan amber and ambergris accord come out much stronger than before, making a far more richer and robust scent. A friend detected orange blossom and mistook the scent for Vixen (the orange blossom comes out quite strong when I wear it).

[Girl with the Curious Nose]

Such an interesting scent! There is a wonderful dream-like haze about TS&TS; which fills the nostrils with an intoxicating warmth and sweetness. Although the above descriptions lists a lot of flower notes I don't find this to be overly floral at all. It's warm and smooth, much like the feeling of heat in your throat after a long, slow sip of liqueur.

 

I get a lot of amber on my skin and a light, powdery veil of flowers mixed in with the wonderful myrrh note. There's something almost primal about this scent, it's feels old without smelling old-fashioned. I love that there's a slight animalistic undertone, which surfaces every now and then but doesn't make the fragrance feel musty or 'skanky.'

 

For some reason I think of smoke when I smell this, not fire smoke but the curling tendril of smoke that burns from an incense stick. It's haze, romantic and conjures a state of drugged haziness. It's totally evocative and sexy in the most unusual way.

[fairestrocza]

The amber in this is gorgeous. It grounds what might otherwise be too ethereal with its powdery light florals. Very feminine.

At times I just adore this scent. At other times, it goes a bit sour on me (probably one of the floral notes and/or the myrrh being naughty).

[KakashiMorph]

This imp is old.

In the bottle: Oh my God. Mysterious alright. This reminds me of a perfume my mother had when I was little and I have no idea which ( or what notes do it).

On my skin: Moe of the same! What is this mysterious sweet madness? it might be the magnolia come to think of it? I have no idea what wisteria or angelica smells like ( or ambergris to be honest) and I am half confused about magnolia too, so I am guessing it is one ( or more) of those. It is sweet and mysterious white flowers so far for me. A few minutes later it shifts and I can tell the myrrh some more. Funnily enough, I think I can get a very faint whiff of a vanilla pod as well - or the bitterness of it. It is still very much like my old mother's perfume though. Is this magnolia or ambergris? I wish I could tell. >.<

Drydown: I think... this is ambergris. It still reminds me of my mother but I will keep it and wear it again.