Snowy Mountains and Kingfisher

[absalem]

Crisp ozone-tinged snow, muguet, white moss, sandalwood musk, white amber, honeysuckle, and white pear.

Alrighty, so: I will admit that a large part of me getting a bottle of this untested/unreviewed was that I adored the art. I do love all of the notes listed, but I had no idea what I actually wanted this to smell like. This review is mainly of my second test, done after roughly a week of bottle-settling.

Wet this is ozone, and a lot of it. But, the florals, and amber make it sweeter and warmer. The sandalwood makes it a little spicy/musky. It's fresh smelling, but not in-your-face bright.

After a bit of drying, the ozone fades a lot, although it is still present. It adds a "fizzy" quality to the blend. The scent is definitely cool, but it's not frosty in the way that I associate with "snow" scents. More like a brisk wind than a snow storm. I can smell the sweetness and floral aspect, but the musk and the amber keep it from being too ephemeral. It has a depth. I don't think any note really stands out once it's dry.

I've tried this a couple times now and my general impression is a very fresh, feminine scent with a hint of sophisticated sexiness. On my skin, it gets warmer/skin-musky after a while. In my hair, it has a very green tinge, like fresh-cut stems. It lasts about average, which is more than I can say for most ozone-scents. If you're afraid of the florals: I don't find them to be a huge component, but they are present. If you like the lab's ozone perfumes and are looking for an unusual take on that - or even one with more lasting power - I really suggest this blend. As far as it being a spring scent, it's very evocative of the beginning of spring when the ground isn't quite thawed yet, but the plants are starting to revive. Because of the sandalwood and amber, I think this will age into something really regal and sexy.

I wouldn't have sought this scent out on my own based on its notes, but I am very glad to have it. One of the reasons I love the Lab is that their descriptions/imagery for their perfumes get me to try things I never would have otherwise. 4/5 in for my tastes, and 5/5 for being exactly what it should be.

(Update: Feb 2015: Still adore this. One of my go-to scents when I wanna smell sweet, but not like a little girl. Probably like it even more now than I did then, heh.) Edited February 12, 2015 by absalem

[izile]

in the bottle: First and foremost I smell the labs not-mint snow note. This is the same snow note I remember from 2009's Snow Maiden and/or First Soft Snow. Otherwise, that and a little light floral, probably the honeysuckle.

 

Wet: BEAUTIFUL. I get more honeysuckle and pear than snow, but the snow is still there. No odd "ozone" scent that I had worried about.

 

Dry: it's starting to get a little powdery on me (was worried with the amber and musk, but it's not ALL powder, definitely mossy, soft, sandalwood-y. The snow and pear and floral of the wet type is almost completely gone and replaced by this very soft, kind of cuddly/fuzzy scent.

 

Liked it better wet.

[Invidiana]

This wasn't one of the Shungas I was expecting to be bottleworthy, mainly because of the honeysuckle, but it's beautiful. I think it's the type of honeysuckle here, maybe because of its combination with some other element, or maybe because of its own nature, that seems to come off like white honey rather than that detestable flower that reminds me of hornets and wasps. The pear lends a mellow fruitiness, not at all candylike, and may also be responsible for the "honeyed" feel of this. The sandalwood musk doesn't make it warm as sandalwood and musk often tend to do but complements the cool elements and gives them something of an ethereal sensuality. There is also a hint of pleasant floral powderiness that I personally enjoy. Yes, this is definitely turning into a bottle.

[Mellifluous]

Definitely full of ozone, and a touch of powdery amber. The honeysuckle is also very noticeable, but doesnt stand out... its very weird for me to try and explain what I get from it. This does remind me of one of the Frankenstein blends, but I cant remember which one atm. I think it was a torrent of light. I'v noticed theres a lot of similar blends following through into this update. I wonder if there was tons of ozones and snow notes left or something

[Gateau]

All I got from this was ozone-aquatic, and a brief touch of mint. Snow notes are just not for me.

[strahlend]

First impression - very much a snow scent, would fit in great with the Yules.

 

Testing – wow, the white pear is really lovely with the snow notes. It's a subtle fruitiness that I wasn't sure would work for me. At first glance it's similar to other bpal snow scents - but with a hint of floral and a subtle application of pear this really turns into its own thing.

 

After a little while it is more noticeably snow than anything else, but it's very soft and lightly sweet and very, very pretty. I think it's the honeysuckle in here that's really lifting the scent. I'm not getting sandalwood or amber – both of which often come across as powdery to me – and this doesn't seem powdery at all. Just snow and a gentle sweetness with just the tiniest little hint of that pear.

 

I'm surprised this isn't getting more rave reviews, it's a beautiful scent.

[surlygurl]

Like others have said, this is a snow blend. On my skin, there's snow and ozone. And ozone. And more ozone. I sniff around for the pear & honeysuckle. For anything else, really. But I do not find them.

 

This ends up being a very clean ozone boy cologne. I'll retest in a few days, but as it stands? Not for me.

[Incendiare]

Fortunately, the snow note isn't as loud in this one as it generally can be in others. In the vial, it's about 1/3 snow and 2/3 of ozone to my nose. Wet, the snow note strengthens up and I can detect a bit of earthiness most likely coming from the moss and sandalwood musk. The snow is even stronger about five minutes in, so looks like I spoke too soon. No thanks.

[zankoku_zen]

Ozone, snow, musk and hints of honeysuckle and pear. It's like a soft vanilla (except no vanilla) cuddle warmth. But made of SNOW. And OZONE. Which can be such harsh notes. Instead, this is like a snowflake making love to another snowflake on honeysuckle petals.

 

HOT DAMN. I think I'm in love.

[Evilynn]

In the bottle: All ozone, all the time

Wet on the skin: mostly ozone, but a hint of something that my nose almost reads as green tea (I'm guessing sandalwood musk + white pear, maybe?)

Drydown: This is mostly ozone on me, but after an hour it warms up a little and I get some sandalwood musk, honeysuckle and a hint of pear as well.

 

This is a really beautiful scent, and I'm glad i got a bottle. I've been looking for a clean ozone scent for a while, and had pretty much settled on Szepazzony (sp?) before it was discontinued. If you like Torture Queen, Szepazzony, Sea of Glass or similar scents, this is definitely one to look up!

[Ghost of a Rose]

My imp is a decant from the lovely spiresinthesnow.

 

In the imp: Clear, bright yellow oil. Mmm, beautiful! Honeysuckle, pear, and lily-of-the-valley with a mild bit of the ozone.

 

On me, wet: Just the same as in the imp. After a couple of minutes, it's already less floral and more pine, sandalwood, and moss, with the pear adding sweetness.

 

After 10 minutes: Mostly pine. A nice unisex, snowy, scent, but I'm pining (heehee) for those gorgeous flowers. The pear has gone as well.

 

After 20 minutes: Same as above.

 

After 30 minutes: Same as above.

 

After 1 hour: Still mostly pine and ozone, but softer now. And with nuances of sandalwood, musk, and amber.

 

After 2 hours: Quite faded, but now that the pine is gone, the floral and pear notes are faintly discernible again; along with the musk and amber.

 

Verdict: I like this, but I really loved it in those few initial moments when the florals were dominating. I'm thinking it might stay like that for a while if I wear it in the scent locket. It would rate 5 stars and a bottle if it does.

 

Later ETA -

In the scent locket: It does stay as beautiful - for about 18 hours now - in the scent locket as it was in the first couple of minutes on my skin. The honeysuckle and pear are still there, the pine is behaving itself discreetly, and I can detect all of the other notes. It's heavenly!

After reading the other reviews, I'm thinking that what my nose interprets as "pine" is the snow note.

 

My rating: 4 stars on my skin, 5 stars in the perfume locket

Edited July 24, 2012 by Ghost of a Rose

[puck_nc]

Origin: Decant circle

 

Initial Thoughts: Honeysuckle will always grab my attention. The fact that the amber is white and the musk is sandalwood take it out of instant death-note territory and into the realm of possibility.

 

In the Vial: I'm picking up musk and a chilly edge, but what strikes me is that this is tripping my scent memory like crazy. I'm immediately overcome of memories of playing at my mom's makeup table as a little girl (1970s) because this smells exactly like one of the cheap Avon-style light musk perfumes she would use for daily wear (she kept the Chanel No. 5 for special occasions). As I keep sniffing, the pear is showing up and moving the scent away from my memory.

 

Wet: A sweet and musky floral with the barest hint of the snow note. At this point the honeysuckle is doing me proud.

 

Drydown: Other than amping as musk does on me, there's very little morph overall. The musk isn't defeating the honeysuckle, but I'm not getting a clear sniff of most of the other notes. And unfortunately, something is making my skin itch.

 

Verdict: A very interesting experience with the first sniff, but I have other blends that let the honeysuckle shine.

[milo]

I'm not getting much but a 'green' tinged snow note here. It's still very pretty, and I like this but own other blends that are very similar. I'm not getting floral or sandalwood, though I wish they would come out...

[Blood onmy hands]

This smells very pretty, but it gives me a headache after a while (the ozone and flower is a bit too much for me, sadly). The ozone and snow smell very clean and remind me of soapy laundry, but the honeysuckle gives it a warm, sunny, yellow edge rather than the typical, cold snow feel. I think that the pear might be giving it some extra sweetness, though I can't pick out the pear exactly. Pretty, clean, floral laundry soap. I asked my hubby what he thought of it and he said 'soap, but nice enough.'

[The Planet Queen]

I got this as a decant.In the bottle it has a very good smell, sorta citrusy and something else.Wet: at first it's amping a lemon scent like crazy! After about ten minutes it starts to calm and other scents start to appear.Dry: I cannot put my finger on it but it smells sorta like fizzy powder with just a hint of citrus. I really like it. I kept smelling my wrists. It stays close to the skin but has some staying power.I'm considering buying a bottle before its discontinued.