Sea of Glass

[siriusstar]

Upon the Sea of Glass, glowing with the perfection of spiritual union and the radiance of true wisdom, rests the throne of God. A scent of inimitable purity, crystalline grace, and limitless light.

This was one of the first scents I chose to order. It sounded perfect for invoking a very specific situation in the story I'm writing. I only hope that my choices will continue being as good as they've been so far!

The description says it better than I can. The essence of the Light. Spiritual purity and pristine waters. Just perfect!

[Lit Chick]

I've been putting off my review of this because I can't decide if I like it or not. Scratch that.... I like it. But is it a me scent? Not sure.

 

This is really gorgeous - It's sitting by a lake on a summer day, with the sun sparkling down on you. You're all alone, everything is quiet, you feel at one with everything around you. A perfect, transcendant moment.

 

However, it is not a winter scent. I cannot make up my mind if it's me, because it's too bright and cheery for the 2 feet of snow around me. It makes me crave summer, and feel the cold all the more harshly. I'll se how it is in a few months, when the temperature is more cooperative.

[Nepthys]

BPAL aquatic scents always smell so sad to me, like tears and nostalgia. On top Sea of Glass is light and appealing, but underneath there is a heavy connotation of loss and regret. It's quite pretty and I can see where people would really like it but apparently I just don't mix with aquatics.

[Gin]

I don't know what to say, really, since Sea of Glass is so aptly named. It makes me think of a beautiful crystal-clear blue-green sea. It's very rare that an aquatic scent bowls me over, but Sea of Glass did just that. It reminds me a bit of The Body Shop's Oceanus line, but is so much better. It makes me feel tranquil. I think this is one of Beth's finest creations.

[magikfanfic]

In the bottle: Salty kind of water smell with a faint citrus lurking under it somewhere. This smells like the salt sea ocean with the sun shining on it and the sand at your feet. But it's a little chilly. so maybe it's the Welsh sea and there are rocks rather than sand.

 

Wet: Salt water with a faint citrus tone. Maybe, hmmm, grapefruit. It's not sweet. It's a tart citrus but also very light. Like the water smell itself. Yet it still retains that vaguely salty edge to it as well.

 

Dry down: Slight ozone notes. not nearly as powerful as Storm, though, or Hurricane and that makes me happy. That salt water/citrus smell is still there as well along with something floral. a light, white floral. Jasmine maybe. Yeah, probably jasmine especially given the way it likes my skin so much.

 

Dry: Umm...slightly salty water, vague grapefruit note and a light jasmine undertone. This is pretty without being too feminine. some days you just want a light, clean, gende neutral scnet. This is very clean and fresh. It's a little heavy on the salt smell, though, so I'll give it a few more wears before deciding whether I want a bigger bottle or not. this seems to be one of the few aquatic scents that I may be able to wear.

[Pixie-elf]

In the Vial: It smells like the sea, oh, so yummy....

 

Wet: A bit of citrus pops out, but mostly it smells like the sea... They take turns taking control, first The Aquatics, then the Citrus, then back to Aquatics again.

 

Dry: There's a bit of a floral I think, not sure though... It's still got a bit of citrus in the background but the aquatic / sea smell is in the front, this smells nice. I think it smells like the sea with just a tiny bit of citrusy to add some depth to it.

 

Conclusion: I think it smells alot like the description. I'm not going to be buying a bottle or even keeping the imp because it's just not for me.

[Julilla Regina]

Blue-green. If blue-green had a smell, I think this would be it. Of course as everyone has said, an aquatic, but it's very smooth. Aquatics can very often be too sharp and make the inside of my nose hurt, but this is so muted and sedate, it could hardly offend anyone. It really is calm and lovely. I don't know if anyone else can smell this on me, it blends very well with the skin. This is an excellent multi purpose perfume, and I think it would be great for going out and doing activities-perhaps a picnic or running or going to the races. It's really pretty.

[olympia301]

 

If any scent convinced me that Beth and BPAL are geniuses, this one is it. Sea of Glass smells just like I would imagine a sea of glass would smell. That was not a non-sequitur (even though that was a double negative). How the hell you can capture a complete abstraction and present it in a bottle in a totally different medium is a preternatural act.

 

Beth is a great artist. I believe she is on the same footing as anyone you find in Art in America or on the walls of contemporary art museums anywhere on earth. That is a very big statement. I mean it. Beth's medium is scent, their media is paint and the like. Sea of Glass convinced me. Moreover, it's the perfect marriage between the work and the title.

 

Grapefruit and lily of the valley. The more I sniff it, the more I like it. Real good for Spring and Summer (the aquatic nature of the musk she uses and how the florals skitter across the head note of it all). I am in awe of anyone who is so able to use such disparate philosophies of smell and pull them all off equally well. Just shows someone who really understands and can control her craft beautifully.

 

ETA-How I did a 180 about this fragrance. It's the grapefruit dancing with the Lily of the Valley. Yesssss.

Edited May 27, 2005 by olympia301

[requieminblack]

First sniff from the bottle- I am not sure what I am smelling, but it smells like dryer sheets to me.

 

After 10 minutes- This smells GREEN. Like limes and the blue green ocean and dryer sheets all rolled into one.

 

After 30 minutes- Aquatic scents all smell like clean laundry to me. Like 'Ocean! fresh! clean!'.

 

Summery- I like this but I don't love it. Off to swaps.

[anshara]

In the bottle: Crisp, clean aquatic grapefruit

 

On me swiped on wrist wet: Aquatic citrus underlined by clean flowers

 

drydown: Half hour: clean, crisp, whisper light....

 

I've found my meditation, anti-depressant blend. I feel content, at peace and grateful wearing this... It's strange a fragrance that makes you feel grateful... I love BPAL!!!

[helarctos]

Mine. Mine mine mine. I just got my 10 ml, I'm keeping the imp too, and no one can have any, I'm hoarding it all.

 

It's absolute bliss in the bottle, the quintessence of tranquility when worn. An aquatic to end all aquatics, with what seems like the faintest of citrus notes (and usually citrus becomes overpowering on me, whereas this doesn't) to keep things fresh and astringent. The aquatic lulls you to mellowness, the citrus cuts through everyday haze.

 

It doesn't seem to do much to combat my covetousness however

[misty]

Sea of Glass is both very calming and quite beautiful. It is a clean, fresh scent. Unfortunately, for some reason the scent made me feel very sad, and I've never had a scent do that before. I'll definately try the imp again though, just to give it another chance because it is just that beautiful.

[byrdie]

Vial ~ Lemon juice squirted into a pond!

 

Wet ~ Lemon with something sharp and floral beneath it. It's slowly starting to morph into an aquatic. I suspect that there's something about Beth's aquatics that start off with a citrus and then start to turn watery. Odd.

 

Drying ~ Aquatic plants -- water lilies? lotus? -- over rushing water. How does Beth do this? It smells a bit crystalline, which makes sense given the name. Does any body of water actually smell like this, or is this just all the pleasant memories of lakes and streams and rivers and oceans bottled up? Huh, actually -- that's a point. This is like coming upon a river on a warm day after leaving a flowering woods -- the scent of water is an amazing contrast.

 

Drydown ~ The floral is coming back with a vengeance. It's as if I stuck my face into the floating blooms: the wateriness has faded, but not completely left. Hmmm. Pretty and subtle.

 

Dry ~ The aquatic notes have surged back and the floral notes have toned down until they've blended pretty perfectly. Or maybe they haven't: my right wrist is more floral, while my left is more crystalline. Whatever -- the overall effect is wonderful.

 

Fade ~ The flowers and some greenery have been plucked out of the water and are drying in the sun. There's now a powdery, musty note that's rising above the crystalline aquatic, which makes me a little sad. It's almost as if I've finally found a stagnant pool close to shore.

 

Final thoughts ~ This is probably my third wearing of Sea of Glass and I love it to death. While it won't completely replace Tears for me, it's a beautiful enough aquatic, and subtle enough floral, that I'll somehow cope.

[antimony]

I'm going to be a dissenter here... to me Sea of Glass smells like a light yellowy-orange. maybe with some green accents, but definately no blue.

 

I'm getting lemon and maybe a litle tangerine mixed with lily of the valley. there's a salty note, but it's really, really overpowered by the lily. The citrus fades quickly, so after the first few minutes, this one is all lily.

[shelldoo]

crisp ozone, and aquatics, w/ a light breeze of white flowers and a tad of citrus, makes for one clean smelling scent. it isn't me but it is beautiful

[surf-tormented]

Could this be the pure ozone air smell I have been looking for?

 

It has no sign of citrus like Storm Moon and Thunderbird...just empty air before a rain.

 

It doesn't have any of that dryer sheet smell.

 

Hmmm...will have to try again...this one smells of pure clear nothingness...I love it!

[Ardisian]

Sea of Glass is amazing. Such a unique, quietyly strong scent, though I can't seem to make heads or tails of what I'm smelling.

 

This is aquatic, but not a sharp seabreeze aquatic. More recollections of a seaside summer, rather than standing by the ocean if that makes any sense

 

Also getting something like an incredibly pure white floral (but not - white florals always go sharp on headachey on me) - maybe a fresh white carnation?

 

If the waters of Lethe (laden with lost memories) smelled of anything, they would smell like this. A perfect summer scent.

[shadowsong]

well, i'm not very good at picking out notes, and especially not florals, so i could be completely off.

 

but this smells *exactly* like my mother's lily of the valley perfume.

 

i don't know if she wears perfume any more... might send it on to her anyway. it's pretty, but definitely not my thing.

[empi girl]

Very bright, clean, ozone scent, crisp and with a slightly hard edge to it. Very much lives up to it's name. It is a beautiful scent, and I can see why so many people like it, but it is a little too hard-edged/bright for me...I would like it more if it were tempered with just a hint of sweetness (but then I suppose it would be named something else!) .

Edited April 30, 2005 by empi girl

[tarantulove]

This is one of the few BPAL scents that doesn't seem to morph on me at all, so there's no need to review its stages.

 

In the vial, it's salt water.

 

On me, it's salt water, with a fresh splash of something light, fresh, and citrusy - I can't pin it down to any specific fruit, it's a little lemony. It definitely reminds me of the beach - it's not something I particularly want to smell like, but I can imagine that someone who had positive associations with water would just love this.

[Finny]

Aquatics hate me.

 

I try them anyway, because the next one mught be the one that loves me. This one is not that one.

 

At first it is a fresh and lively floral, then the "aquatic" note takes over and turns into an evil ocean, who only wants to drown me with salty goodness.

 

off to swaps with this, and I'm going off to sulk...

[fathom]

On me this scent is nicely clear smelling. A green floral, with a definite lily-of-the-valley note to it. A very refined scent, it reminds me of croquet on a stately lawn, a sunny summer day, with gin-and-tonics in hand. It’s a light scent that isn’t too girly or immature.

[Diviana]

Aquatics and florals. I can't pick out any specific flowers, but it's very, very nice. Clean, crisp, and cool. I'm also getting sort of a citrussy "feel," but I can't smell any actual citrus. After a while, I get a hint of saltiness.

 

Because this is a light scent, it's fading pretty quickly on me. I think I need to start putting more on.

Edited May 15, 2005 by Diviana

[Muppetk]

First impression: Oooooh, lily of the valley!!! I love those flowers!

 

Later: Lily of the valley with something else light overlaying it. A hint of ozone maybe? This is nice. More floral on me than I expected, (and actually a relatively strong floral for the first few minutes) but very nice. The first perfume I ever owned (age 12 or so) was a lily of the valley perfume. I have no idea what it was called. So it's very nice and kind of nostalgic.... but I'm not sure how me it is though. It's the first BPAL perfume that smells "old lady" on me. I suspect the imp is for trade.

 

EDIT: No grapefruit/citrus on me at all. I need to learn to stop trying scents with a fruit note. My skin eats it, leaving an incomplete perfume. Sigh.

 

Much later (like about 2 hours): Okay, this has settled/faded to a scent that actually sounds like the lab description. Nice, light, tranquil, not overly floral, nice blend. If it started out this way I'd love it. Not sure I want to *wait* to get there.

Edited May 17, 2005 by Muppetk

[pensive]

I don't know what to say, really, since Sea of Glass is so aptly named.  It makes me think of a beautiful crystal-clear blue-green sea.  It's very rare that an aquatic scent bowls me over, but Sea of Glass did just that.  It reminds me a bit of The Body Shop's Oceanus line, but is so much better.  It makes me feel tranquil.  I think this is one of Beth's finest creations.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

YES! That's what I'm smelling. I think oceanus is tangier, isn't it?

 

Thank you tarantulove for the imp!

Imp: I've smelled something like this before - but it was less pure, less sparkling, and definitely less white.

Wet: Crisp, cool, immediately citrusy - then salty, then a bit citrusy again. I think the scents are having a showdown on my skin.

Drydown: Still waiting to see what part of the wheel this scent wants to stop on.

Impression: pale blue.

Cat's verdict: Completely middle of the road.

Verdict: Also completely middle of the road. Up for swaps.

Edited October 1, 2005 by Shollin