Looking Glass, Looking Glass Bath Oil

[GypsyRoseRed]

LOOKING GLASS, LOOKING GLASS BATH OIL

She was a beautiful woman, but proud and haughty, and she could not bear that any one else should surpass her in beauty. She had a wonderful looking-glass, and when she stood in front of it and looked at herself in it, and said—

“Looking-glass, Looking-glass, on the wall,
Who in this land is the fairest of all?”

The looking-glass answered—

“Thou, O Queen, art the fairest of all!”

Then she was satisfied, for she knew that the looking-glass spoke the truth.

An incomparably exquisite bath experience: velvety red roses, luxurious sandalwood, opulent mandarin, blood-red daemonorops-infused vegetal musk, dark candied berries, crimson spot rockrose, and jacaranda with tuberose, caraway, champa attar, and benzoin resinoid.

Shea oil, apricot oil, apricot kernel oil, sunflower oil, fractionated coconut oil, rosehip seed, evening primrose oil, vitamin E, Rosa damascena, Vanilla planifolia, Styrax benzoin, Michelia champaca, Cistus ladaniferus, natural vanilla infusion, and Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab perfume.

This bath oil was created for Yule 2010, but never went live because we were unable to bring it into full production due to the extremely high cost of the components. The sale of this product is extremely limited; once it's gone, it's gone.

When it comes to rose scents, Looking Glass, Looking Glass is the fairest of them all, without a doubt. I have an odd relationship with rose scents, in that I love the smell of roses but generally, most rose scents don't live up to expectations and tend to smell dreadful on me, even when they don't smell fake, dusty or dry in the bottle. This is a rose scent created with different types of rose and softened by vanilla musk and given depth with resin. It is so perfectly blended that I don't notice the tuberose, mandarin or dark berries mentioned in the description as separate notes. Also because the rose notes pretty much command the spotlight. It isn't any ordinary rose - I imagine this as a sprawling rose garden, the bushes filled with huge, heavy blooms, the air redolent with their perfume.

My husband generally isn't a fan of some of the scents I prefer, but he was on the computer on the other side of our condo while I bathed in this, and when I was drying off, he came into the bathroom and said, "Whatever perfume you're wearing, it smells amazing." Maybe because this is a bath oil instead of perfume oil, but the scent stays true in the bathwater and on my skin, which has never happened to me with any scent that contained rose before. Maybe it's because there's so much of it in this!

My 7 year old says she thinks it smells like a fairytale princess, but I'd say it's more like a Queen.

Thank you so much to Lab and Trading Post, for creating this and allowing us to have some of it. I'll treasure what I have, for sure. Edited June 20, 2011 by GypsyRoseRed

[mooncityminx]

Mmmm! This stuff is amazing! I definitely get rose from this, very fresh red rose, but it's so much more than that too. The berries and resins and florals all blend together almost seamlessly. I think it would pair really well with Red Lace, Snake Charmer, or Madame Moriarty, as it has the same sensual vibe. It's very seductive.

[ltrittipoe]

This is stunning and beautiful. I get mostly rich velvety red rose, with some sandalwood and mandarin softening it. And it is just the rose, no stems or greenery that I can tell. I really don't get any other notes, only the sandalwood and mandarin - which somehow just enhance the rose instead of standing out as notes.

 

Lovely and subtle, not an overwhelming fragrance, but potent. Very elegant and feminine.

 

I love Looking Glass, Looking Glass, and I am so happy that I have some! It is the best rose scent I have ever tried on my skin, and I am sad that there won't be more ....... I understand why, but it still makes me sad!

[Melenass]

I have used it after the shower as a moisturizing body oil. It exudes a red rose, woody, intimate. No child rose, a rose that is mature without being old. Sandalwood is what may be giving this velvety scent that note, and tuberous depth. It comes to my mind a red rose with red wine, which must be the dark berries.
I have to try this in the bathtub, however, should be a sublime experience in aromatherapy. Excellent and elegant bath oil.

[saralaughs]

A very grown up, musky rose. This is slightly resious but really, really smoooooth. Glorious red roses that are not powdery or overly in your face either. Juicy, vibrant, and sweet but not too sugary. The other components are noticable but do not over take the rose. Really, I'm not one for red roses in anything I put on my body but GAH this is beautiful!

[Invidiana]

I was lucky enough to find a bottle of this even after my wretched luck with Etsy timing. Rose can be iffy with me but this is damn incredible.

 

In the bottle, it smells like deep red roses--obviously. Since there is no way something this rare is going in my bathwater and down the drain, I rubbed a dab on my skin since that's how I intend to use it. It was still predominantly rose wet so I waited about a minute for it to dry down.

 

 

If this isn't the most beautiful rose blend I've ever smelled in my life. True to what others have said, it is indeed a rich, velvety red rose backed by soft vanilla musk, and it only keeps developing as it continues drying down. The rose gets more body from the other "red" notes of dragon's blood and sugared berries (which lend it a bit of sugary sweetness but don't overpower it) which meld with it to create the impression of an otherwordly rose. I don't really get much citrusy mandarin but it might be responsible for a little tartness. The sandalwood emerges in the background, lending a certain sensual warmth to the blend along with the musk. Later on the tuberose and champa become evident too, giving the blend something of an exotic feel. So many rose blends have gone wrong on me but I cannot stop huffing this one.

 

I am so sad more of this cannot be made. I would gladly pay whatever price would recoup the cost of the ingredients for the Lab if they were to make it available as an LE, but in the meantime I will treasure every drop of my bottle.

Edited June 30, 2011 by Invidiana

[yeahbutnobut]

In bottle: this smells absolutely SUMPTUOUS. It’s roses and vanilla. The note list may not mention vanilla, but the list of ingredients mentions it twice (vanilla planifolia and vanilla infusion) and I certainly smell it here, along with a rich velvety rose note.
On skin: oh my, this is so beautiful! It’s a rich, voluptuous, divinely opulent rose and vanilla scent. There’s nothing sharp or haughty about the roses, and the vanilla isn’t foody. The roses smell smooth and velvety, dark red petals with a full, deep scent. The vanilla is sweet and almost intoxicating, without smelling like dessert. The ingredients also mention cistus, which is labdanum, and I smell resins here, I think the labdanum and benzoin add extra depth to the vanilla. The musk note here seems to be akin to a red or dark musk, but it’s not overly musky but it does make the vanilla rose scent even more sensual. I don’t smell anything remotely like champaca or dragon’s blood, and no mandarin either, but I think I smell a bit of tuberose and some berries (they add a hint of subtle juicy fruitiness to the overall deep red scent). This smells like pure unadulterated luxury in a bottle and I don’t want to use it in the bath because I’d feel like I’m wasting something precious once I pull the plug…I’m going to use this as moisturiser or even perfume. I’m so glad I got a bottle of this.

[porcelina]

this smells so FANCY.

 

i am not a huge fan of rose scents, to be honest. i am testing this as a moisturizer, because that is how i use bath oils (especially in this dry desert climate- as an after-shower moisturizer, bptp bath oils do amazing things for my skin!), but i am not sure if i would in the future because it is such a heady, voluptuous rose scent that it would overpower anything else i wanted to wear with its crazy, deep red rosiness.

 

that said- it's really a lovely scent.

 

there is mostly deep, dark red rose. there is a sweetness from the candied berries, and maybe the benzoin, with a touch of sandalwood. it's resinous, sweet, deep and rich. it smells very elegant and very expensive. this is like a fairy tale queen type of scent. it's like a magical potion- she would pour this into her elegant, claw-footed bathtub to give herself beauty and power. it's very opulent.

 

i know it may seem horribly wasteful but i think i would like to use this in the bath! with lots of candles and bubbles (unscented, to let the scent of looking glass, looking glass shine!).

[mxtine]

I have a love-hate relationship with rose. I love the smell of real roses, but BPAL rose is always sharp and sneeze-inducing unless it's blended with musks and resins. I wanted this bath oil forever since the notes sounded perfect for me.

 

The rose here is very lush. Like moist, dark red, velvety rose petals. There is an initial whiff of mandarin in the bottle, as well as some sugared berries. On my skin, the sugared-berry rose is joined by a soft sandalwood, vanillic red musk, and a dash of sensual tuberose and champaca. This stage reminds me a little of The Unheavenly City, but with rose instead of gardenia or whatever lush white flower is in that blend. It makes me feel beautiful and sensual.

 

This oil is the most magnificent rose Beth has created, and it makes me tear up a bit knowing how lucky I am to have a small bottle of this.

[AmyO'Shields]

Super Sultry Rose. This is glorious...I love it. I think it works better in the bath than as a moisturizer (goes a bit plasticky on my skin but not enough to prevent me from wearing it!) It borders on spicy, but it isn't. I don't know how to describe what I smell, but it makes me feel powerful, sensual and calm. Love this.

[zankoku_zen]

Ah, I can see why GRR's review is the way it is. This is a very grown up, sophisticated red rose blend. I get musk, a touch of berries, and a fair bit of sandalwood and attar and a breath of tuberose which sort of brings a freshness and airiness to this. This is rich, sultry and sophisticated. It's very regal, powerfully feminine with a good dollop of DO NOT FUCK WITH ME attitude.

 

I don't typically like rose blends and I think this is absolutely gorgeous. I would definitely buy some of this bath oil.

[d0gbones]

In the imp: Oily, warm, yellow flowers.

Wet: Same. It's not unpleasant but it does smell like something I should be cooking with rather than wearing.

Dry: The roses have peeped out more, but the oiliness is still there (I used it as a body oil rather than dump the whole imp in the bath and I'm not sure how old it is, so perhaps that's why). Shame, I adore roses.

[RavenintheWind]

This is one of my favorite BPAL rose blends, and I would love to have it as a perfume even if it cost more. I was lucky enough to get a bottle (which I paid a pretty penny for!) but I have treasured this one as a body oil ever since, and also added it to an unscented lotion to stretch it even further. It's held up nicely over the years.