The First of the Three Spirits

[Vega]

Shimmering white amber, voluminous vanilla, white musk, zdravetz, and summer flowers.

Sniffed: Fluffy and sugary-sweet, but also with the clarity of gentle white florals.

On skin: An odd scent that isn't entirely harmonious. On one hand, The First of the Three Spirits is fluffy-sweet, slightly "dusty" in the way vanilla and amber feel "grainy" to my nose. (No other way I can describe it.) On the other hand, it is also cloyingly sweet in the very smooth, almost liquid way that fruity blends are smooth. Perhaps this is the zdravetz/geranium, or the unnamed summer flowers? Unfortunately, while the vanilla and white amber are creamy and nice, the smooth, tooth-achy sweetness dominates, and this I really don't enjoy. These two parts of the blend stay in this juxtaposition and never really blend together, ever.
Colour impression is milky white with the texture of liquid sap.

Verdict: While The First of the Three Spirits is not unwearable, there's something about it that just clashes and doesn't please my nose. Sadly, it won't be staying.

[theseagrows]

this is a very shimmery, sweet floral on me. it's like a bubbly fruity-floral, but i cannot place the floral...unless it's the zdravetz, which i guess is some kind of geranium? the florals in this smell kind of tropical to me, with a hint of pineapple-coconut. it actually smells very similar to how this one drink i've had tastes...a chi chi. i think a chi chi is made with macadamia nut liqueur, pineapple, coconut and vodka. yeah, i am really curious to what the "summer flowers" are now. i like this scent in a way, but it is SO not me and far too sweet for my tastes. really really interesting though!

[Gin]

I love The First of the Three Spirits. In the bottle, I can't pick out any notes. It's sort of vanillay, and something smells kind of lush and green, maybe it's the zdravetz? As it dries, it goes vanilla-musky/ambery, but it's kind of cool, not warm like I would normally expect vanilla, musk, and amber to be. The vanilla isn't butter or foody like usual, and the amber isn't powdery. I don't smell any summer flowers, unless they were contributing to the leafy smell I got at the beginning. This is a surprise hit for me! It's a great alternative to the loud, foody oils I tend to favor.

[KittyHawk]

The vanilla in TFOTS is incredibly light and ethereal; it's not foody, spicy or heady as like it is in many vanilla-centric BPALs (which I love, btw). It's not aquatic, either; it's dry, yet icy. It's a perfect winter vanilla.

 

As it dries, the flowers take bloom beneath the frost of the vanilla. It's a distant scent, yet it still beckons you. It's an enigma, this spirit. I doubt I'll have much opportunity to wear this for quite some time, but it will be lovely in the winter.

[edenssixthday]

When I first tried this scent in 2010, I didn't care for it. Something about it really turned me off. So I kept a couple of drops in a vial so I could test and do a full review later, and the bottle went off to swaps. Now, I'm finally catching up on reviews, and tested it again. It's been at least 9-10 months since I first tested this, and I don't remotely understand why I didn't like it. It's so pretty! The amber and vanilla blend beautifully together along with the geranium (one of my favorite notes!) and the other bright florals. The florals are bright, but not bitter or cloying or heady. Everything is in such perfect balance, with the non-foody vanilla really pulling it together and the amber providing a really nice, warm base. It definitely seems more of a summertime scent, and so I find it odd that it's a Yule blend, but I do like it and I'm so glad I re-tested it and had a much more positive result this time. I still don't think I need to chase down a bottle because I'm trying really hard to reign in the BPAL spending a bit, but if a low-level partial bottle ever passes in front of me, I probably won't be able to resist it.

[angelamaria]

In bottle: oh, this is quite nice. I'm getting vanilla and amber and musk, well blended together and providing a beautiful, rich backdrop for the light florals and a spicy geranium. The tone is quite "present" but not cloying.

 

Wet on skin: there is an almost citrusy note here, brightening up the whole blend. Well blended, it's a pleasant, "present" floral but curiously one I would still categorize as "light". Throw is low, but when I'm near, I can't stop sniffing this. Aside from the emergence of the citrus (which I tend to amp as a whole), this smells largely the same as in the bottle.

 

Dry: lovely amber/vanilla/musk (would that be musky amber vanilla? or vanilla-ey amber musk? or...), slightly sweet--almost honeyed--with a hint of flowers. The latter smooths out even more, and gives this a pleasant, light sweetness though the blend is predominantly an amber/vanilla/musk scent. Over an hour later, sadly the white musk has gone oily/grandmothery (as some white musks do), but aside from that it's a very lovely scent, which a touch of soft powder from the amber (but not overpowering), and the florals being a shade more assertive.

 

Verdict: well, my skin chemistry strikes again! This is a pass, though it is very lovely if you don't have my finicky skin.

[ami226]

Strangely, I am getting a musky orange creamsicle vibe from this one. Was not expecting that at all. Definitely smells musky, light orange, and vanilla on me. Huh.

 

This is really good! Kind of a light scent, but I really like the feel of this one. Kind of summery.

[SophieCedar]

I didn't review this? I dug it up out of a pile of Yules from 2010..

 

This is amazing and I need a bottle. Its the brighter, happier, cleaner version of Blossoms in Springtime.

[Erinofhere]

This reminds me very much of Mouses Long and Sad Tale.

 

I know sweat pea is not listed in the notes but I think I am picking it up.

 

On my skin I get Amber and Vanilla mainly with a floral note circling the scent, and a very sweet pea note too. I'm not picking up much musk. It's there, only it's not hording the spotlight.

 

mmmmmmmm...I really do like this.

 

After a few hours the vanilla and amber are still going strong. The throw is okay...not terribly

strong and this lasts about 5 hours on my skin.

 

This is a pretty enough scent to wear any time of year but I think it would be perfect for summer.

 

While it is similar to Mouses Long and Sad Tale, I prefer this one to it. This is more complex and deep.

 

Its really very very pretty and girlie.

 

It's a keeper and I think I need to find a back up bottle. http://www.bpal.org/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/wub2.gif

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: So pretty! Reminds me a little of Snow White, somehow. Cold, pale flowers, creamy sweetness, airy musk. Lovely!

 

 

Dry: The florals in this are most prominent, and still remind me of the florals in Snow White. Which I adore, but already have. I think because of the similarities, I don't need to track down more of this, but I am so glad I got to try it! Based on those notes I never would have suspected this is what it would smell like.