Eternal

[Christine Daae]

Stephanotis, cyclamen, heliotrope, white rose and gardenia.

In the imp, this is a white, gardenia-heavy floral. I looove gardenia. Smells like the creamy, almost fruity gardenia from Sacred Whore of Babylon.

Wet on my skin, it picks up a bright, powdery sweetness to compliment the creamy-white gardenia (the heliotrope?). This immediately has a ton more throw than I'm used to with BPAL - almost unwaveringly, I end up having to stick my nose into my skin to really get a good whiff. This is leaving a floaty gardenia halo around the general area where I applied this.

The gardenia is definitely the most prominent note, on me. I got this hoping for a bit more of the white rose, but this is so pretty that I can hardly complain. Definitely very white, and a very haunted-bride scent. The scent of Lucy Westenra's funeral/bridal flowers, and the flowers that adorned Christine Daae's Louis-Philippe room. This is definitely going to go on the short list for wedding-day scents, since the scent and the name are perfect for that. Edited April 3, 2008 by Christine Daae

[grashopper8]

I bought a tarted imp of this on ebay (you know, the old-style kind of imp that had the label tied on with silken cord), so I know it's aged at least a few years.

 

It's a beautiful, soft white floral that is right up my alley! Gardenia is one of my favorite notes, so I'm surprised I haven't tried this yet.

 

I can pick out the gardenia, but it's definitely a white bouquet, and I can't say that the gardenia is overly dominant.

 

It's delicate, ethereal, and a little soapy (which is good on me), and although it's a blend with several notes, it maintains simplicity by being floral and nothing more. I can wear this by itself, or maybe layer it with something else (I was thinking White Phoenix, to add some white musk and complexity to the range of notes).

 

After it's been on for a while, it loses a little bit of its fresh charm and a faint rose-ish scent hangs out, but since this is the farthest thing from a fresh decant, I can't judge it that way. And, at this stage, it still smells really nice, just different. As it is, I think I've been convinced to go for a 5mL, so I'll be able to try it with a more valid experience when it's new. I've heard that florals don't age quite as gracefully as, say, resins.

 

At the outset: 4.8 out of 5

After it's been on for a while: 4.3 out of 5 (but this may not happen with a newer aliquot).

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Fresh, delicate green-white florals which I do not recognize - I'm guessing cyclamen and stephanotis.

 

Wet: Headier, like lily of the valley, and the gardenia is definitely emerging. Still some fresh notes.

 

Dry: Gardenia. It's one of the nicer gardenias (almost citrusy), but it's totally taken over, as usual.

 

Summary: In the final drydown, it's sharp, strong, soapy, heady gardenia. Moderate throw, crazy lasting power - won't wash off! Gah! Never any rose or heliotrope, both of which I love.

Edited April 25, 2008 by fairnymph

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Frimp. Very floral. I'm scared

 

On Application

As above

 

Dry Down

Not unpleasant if florals are your bag. Would actually be not too bad if there was a strong earth note to this, like Jazz Funeral, but this isn't going near my skin again.

 

Rating (0-5)

1

[lunaticana]

not my style, too heavy.

love florals but just not like this

good thing is you can pick the type of flowers out fast and that s nice!

will go to my mama though

[Coldfire]

SW award frimp:

 

 

Imp: Gardenia & white flowers

Wet on Me: Heavy summer gardenia most of all.

Drying Down: More lovely, lovely, gardenia.

Dry: Gardenia, then white flowers and then the

barest hint of green behind it all. So tropical!

[Heeroluva]

In the bottle it's musk with a bit of sharpness in the background. Wet there is... nothing. I can't smell a thing. Dry there may be a tiny hint of floral. But it's barely noticeable if it's there.

[Ohmaude]

I could have sworn this had violet in it when I first dabbed it on. Then, oh crap, Gardenia soap. Plant-sap and soap. There is something sooo familiar in this scent. Oh! it smells like a bar of french soap my mom used to keep in her drawer. So odd. Well maybe she will like the smell fo this.

[melrose]

OMG, disgusting on me. I don't have a problem with rose, but haven't had enough exposure to the other ingredients to know for sure which one is the problem. I wonder what cyclamen smells like?

 

A no-go.

Edited August 13, 2008 by melrose

[suki]

in the imp: gardenia, straight up.

 

wet on skin: same.

 

dry down: same!

 

in all: a solid gardenia to be sure. it read as a single note on me- i seriously didn't get so much as a trace of anything else. so if gardenia is your holy grail, stock up on this one for sure.

 

 

 

[innocent]

Nothing in Eternal goes funny on my skin.

 

But it contains That Note.

 

That Note is the one that takes a perfectly nice floral (and I like florals) and makes it too sweet? powdery? sad? I can't really describe what it does, but it makes me unable to where the scent. I'm not sure what the florals in eternal smell like alone, but maybe I can compare it to the other florals with That Note and figure out what it is (looking at the other reviews makes me suspect the gardenia).

 

Otherwise, Eternal is a nice white floral, a bit too sweet in a nose-itching kind of way.

[Seismogenic]

Another Lab frimp! I have never heard of stephanotis or cyclamen before, and I have no idea what heliotrope smells like, so this may be more amateurish of a review than my others, even, but this just shows how frimps can be learning experiences. Yay new smells!

 

In the imp: Lots and lots of soft fresh flowers, maybe with a little moisture. I know I can't smell rose yet, but the others are indistinct.

 

Wet on skin: This is pretty strong! Like, bouquet of flowers shoved in your face strong. I'm recognizing gardenia now, and there is something indistinct in there that's explaining to me why some people used the word "soapy" in their reviews.

 

Drydown: Freshly dry, this is still getting smacked upside the head with a lush bouquet of fresh flowers. I am starting to notice a little bit of the rose now. I am also kind of wondering what the x-ray tech is going to think of this when he takes a look at the hand I closed in the car door. Oops. After an hour or so, the flowers have dried out; the same fragrance as before mixes with something dusty rather than something dewy. (And it turns out that, if the x-ray guy noticed anything, he didn't mention it. Eternal had faded a lot by then.)

 

Five hours later: Faint and dusty with a slight edge of indistinct floweriness. Still can't tell you what the individual flowers involved are.

 

End of the day: Gone.

 

Overall: Gotta say, smelling like I have been bludgeoned by flowers is not my goal in life. That said, I love how this actually smells like real flowers, rather than something extracted from them. When the oil is wet, the flowers might as well still be alive and growing. I also think it's evocative of the funereal aspect of the scent that the flowers start out fresh and dewy, then dry out to something dusty, as if they have been laying out on a grave for a long time after the funeral is over. Very pretty, kind of sad, but not for me.

[vikitty]

Received as a lovely frimp from a swap.

 

Wet in bottle: Real, fresh flowers. Anything other than rose tends to go powdery on me, so fingers crossed...

 

Wet on skin: I'm not sure what heliotrope is, but I can smell the gardenia. No rose yet

 

Dry on skin: Powdery gardenia, and a hint of rose, but it actually smells like a GOOD kind of powder.

 

I like it more wet, so I will try this in a scent locket next time.

[sqwook]

Wet: light white floral

 

Dry: White floral.

 

Pretty but not me.

[ankhfangirl72]

I'm having a hard time distinguishing many of the notes in this one. I'm not very good at recognising florals anyway but the only note in this that I'd definitely be able to recognise is the rose Anyway... on to my extremely unhelpful review.

I was really surprised by how sweet Eternal is. It's like someone upeded a box of candy necklaces onto a flower bed. It feels very pure and innocent. If we're associating bpal with colours this one would be spotlessly white. It's very pretty and light, if a little sad seeming.

[Halloqueen2]

I got this as a frimp from the lab. Thanks Lab!

 

First impression is GARDENIA...and lots of it. Then...when I least expected it...the dreaded "Pickle Juice" note. Gah. Must mean roses are doing the rose thing in this blend. Rose is usually a deal breaker note with me. There are a few blends where it's far enough in the background that I don't smell it, and that's ok, but there is a particular Lab rose note (in this blend) that smells, to me, like pickle juice, of all things. It's a high, sour note that overwhealms everything else. In this blend, the gardenia was almost strong enough to cover it, but the rose note is so very strong, they just end up in a shouting match.

 

Since I'm not much of a floral person, I think I can carry on without it, but for those who like lush, tropical, white florals, this might be the blend for you.

[waternight]

In the imp: A soft floral with a gentle bite.

Wet: Mmmm... gardenia! Lovely and soft and lush. No rose to speak of. I have to admit, I don't really know what stephanotis, cyclamen, or heliotrope smell like, so I can't really speak to the presense of those notes. However, there's definitely something there besides the gardenia, so it's gotta be one of 'em... The bite I smelled in the imp goes away and this becomes a very smooth floral, simple and lovely. Not a complex blend, but beautiful.

Dry: A lovely soft white floral, lush blossoms, very classic. Reminds me a bit of Asphodel, strangely enough. A good, subtle scent to wear to a wedding, or any other occasion when you want to feel classicly feminine.

[maika]

In the imp, Sweet white floral...very heavy on the gardenia. Very pretty, but I'm scared this might wind up too floral? Here goes...

 

Wet, nothing to be afraid of. Still sweet and floral but beautifully blended.

 

Dry, gorgeous florals. Nothing too over the top, and one that can fit almost any occasion. I'm definitely keep this imp, and am contemplating more...if only as a backup scent for the "what on earth do I want to wear today?" moments.

[WidgetAlley]

Frimp from the Lab.

 

Imp: A sweet, airy and light floral, primarily gardenia, rose, and that honey-sweet heliotrope. I know what cyclamen and stephanotis look like but I've never smelled them on their own, so I guess that's why I can't detect them. This is very pretty. I would like my laundry to smell like this.

 

Wet: Sweet white florals with a touch of spice. Reminds me a good deal of Dirty, but sweeter and rounder. It almost smells like there's some pear in here, but I think that's just because pear and gardenia go together in so many body products.

 

Dry: This is a nice sweet white floral, pretty and feminine and summery. Nevertheless, not my thing.

[LizzyLies]

So ah, for a very brief second, I had gardenias. Now? Er, let's see, I'm probably getting the florals that I don't know the scents of by memory and thus, my poor nose is rather confused. If I concentrate then yes, I get very faint gardenias; however, they're relatively buried and this isn't my usual floral cup of tea. If I worked with flowers all day, I imagine I'd come home smelling like Eternal. It's not bad mind you, it's just not for me.

[riflmom]

Eternal was a frimp from the lab -- it's very flowery; not bright-spring-like, but flower arrangements at a funeral flowery (which is appropriate).

Very strong gardenia.... Pretty for those that like this type of scent, and I could picture my aunt wearing this, but it's just not me.

Off to the swap pile, I'm afraid.

[Suu4LC]

Pretty florals-I'm a fan of gardenia-so I am really enjoying this in the imp.

 

As other reviews have stated, this is a very gardenia heavy blend-heavy and a bit spicy/bitter. Elegant-like an expensive fancy soap-not "soapy" persay, but very much like fancy soap. Probably a bit "old" for my tastes.

 

Overall, this is a very nice gardenia scent. Mature and refined, with a somber depth. Rose haters, don't worry, the rose is barely there. Gardenia lovers must give this a shot.

[voodoocatwoman]

This fragrance starts out as INYOURFACE hyperactive gardenia-turned-Tigger. I can almost hear the "woo hoo!!" Fortunately, I love both Milne and gardenia. Otherwise I would have run from the room screaming something about evil bouncy tiger flowers sucking my breath away. The super-headiness quickly fades, however. What is left is a sweet but calm mix of florals. I think I like this a lot.

[anna1850]

Generic soapy floral reminiscent of Has No Hanna and Delight. Plus the rose has gone weird on me (like most of BPAL's rose notes do). Not for me.

 

2/5 Average floral.

[Monster]

Yup, very soapy. I could only test this on my finger (I know this is just the type of scent to give me a headache).

 

This reminds me of Crabtree and Evelyn soaps. Soft, clean rose with a bunch of other floral notes to compliment it.

Very femenine floral, it smells "pink" to my nose. I can appreciate this but it's just not for me.