Antique Lace

[theseagrows]

Nostalgia encapsulated. A soft, wistful blend of dry flowers, aged linens, and the faint breath of long-faded perfumes.

this smells like soft florals, vanilla and 80s musk. i think that's the aged linens, i'm not sure. though i like this scent, i'm not sure it's really "me". will have to try again.

 

 

2017 version: this is very vanilla-y. i can't remember if original antique lace smelled like this because i tested it so long ago, but i do get mostly vanilla and the aged linens. the vanilla in this turns a bit plasticky on me. i don't seem to get any florals. i think there may be a soft musk in this as well.

Edited August 14, 2017 by theseagrows

[Thaleia]

I was so glad when the Lab brought Antique Lace back - unfortunately, I put in my first order ever a day too early, so I had to wait until my next order before I could pick one up. Well worth the wait, though, and seeing all of the praise it's received and the excitement at its return, I'm quite happy to have the opportunity to try it now.

 

In the bottle, Antique Lace is a soft rosy vanilla, and smells like something I used to wear in college. It reminds me of when I studied abroad in England - my dormitory room smelled like this, actually. It's nostalgic, as befits its name and description, even on a personal level for me.

 

How lovely! On me, it's a creamy soft vanilla with a hint of linen, roses, dried flowers, and a very small touch of wood - like what the inside of an old chest of drawers would smell like. An old sachet sits on top of long-unworn clothes, and you have to wonder what the story was of the girl who wore these dresses, who's probably dead now.

 

It's vintage elegant, which is very different from anything I've smelled by the Lab, and I love vintage anything, so this is definitely a keeper, and I'm glad I picked up my 5ml.

 

I give this one a 5, because of the thoughts it evokes. I feel like I've been giving out a lot of 5's in the past few reviews, but they all deserve it.

[PrettyPenny]

I get mostly vanilla from this, which I think is very nice, but my boyfriend says it makes him naseous. So it may be too sweet for some people. Anyway, I think this is a very pretty scent, and it's something that can definitely be worn every day.

[Bagfish]

This smells quite similar to me to the Body Shop's White Musk, which was a favourite of mine when I first started wearing perfume as a teenager.

 

It is more vanilla-y than White Musk and is not overly strong smelling, but has a good throw. I have been getting really pleasant wafts of Antique Lace whilst wearing it, and in fact the wafts smell better than when I press my nose against my wrists.

 

What is great about AL is that it is not a super sweet vanilla - any sweeter than it is would mean that I wouldn't be able to wear it. As it is, the dry, powdery vanilla smell suits quite well.

 

I can't see myself getting a big bottle of this, as i prefer more spicey scents, but I really can see what all the fuss was about!

 

B

[Thursdae]

So me and Antique Lace are going down the road, and I'm saying, "Hey, Antique Lace, how you doing?" and Antique Lace is saying, "I am like so mysterious."

 

I'm like, "Mysterious? You're like that time I took my littlest doll and played hide'n'seek with her and found the best place ever to hide her: on top of the light bulb in the tall floor lamp in the living room."

 

Antique Lace turns her face away from me and shrugs one shoulder haughtily.

 

"I mean in the best way," I say, talking fast. "I loved her, even after the fire. She had no hair and her skull was melted in the back but she had a special smell forever."

 

A breeze swirls Antique Lace's organza skirt. "Others think I'm mature and enticing. Lots and lots of people," and she leans close to whisper in my ear, "say I'm sexy."

 

"Nup," I say. "Nuppers. Baby doll."

 

So that's it about Antique Lace, but let me tell you about the time me and Hell's Belle were hanging by the fire on a cold winter's night . . .

[amyw]

I can smell the flowers in the imp, but it's very vanilla going on and my skin amps that up and drowns out the florals. I can smell the linen in it more than I can with White Rabbit. Definitely brings to mind an old country cottage with flowers nearby, vanilla in the background, and clean sheets. Subtle and soothing, like pleasant memories of smells that bring back certain places and times rather than some of the more in your face smells. Like it lots.

[amrita]

I don't get flowers or linens from Antique Lace. (In the same sense that White Rabbit (one of my favs) smells like linens, that is.) Antique Lace is a very simple vanilla/white musk blend on me, and I don't like it so much. White musk and I generally don't do well together. This blend is so very not me.

[LittleGreyKitten]

Antique Lace is a delicate, ethereal scent on me. It's softly sweet with a vanilla like base, no florals, and some powderiness. I truly am enamoured of it. I will probably make it a priority to order a full size when I do another order. It doesn't change at all on me from bottle to skin, though unfortunately it is a quick fader on me. Oh well. I don't get linen either, which from other linen based BPAL blends, is a good thing- White Rabbit and I hated each other.

 

I'd give a 4.5 out of 5, for lack of lasting power.

[Celogrl]

Antique Lace is not what I expected at all. I expected perhaps a 'fusty' slightly older lady perfume, but this is romantic, sweet and has sensuality to it. The florals are soft, and I am telling you, I believe there's honey or fig in here! It has a sweet undercurrent that is just lovely. What a pleasant surprise!

[Julilla Regina]

So suddenly I'm all about vanilla, I guess. I had to try this one. I am glad to report that the "powdery" part of this isn't amber. Huzzah! On me, it's a gentle musky vanilla. It stays very true from the bottle to my skin and during wear. There does seem to be some tiny bit of floral, but it's really negligible to my nose. It is very pretty on its own, but I think the layering possibilities with this one are pretty damned infinite. Hurray!

[jarvenpa]

I ordered an imp of Antique Lace with my first order (ah, that first order--driven to it by a friend's gift of Belle Epoque, a scent she hated but which she somehow intuited I love. And need. And I did)...but, back to that imp. I used up the imp of Antique Lace incredibly quickly, and knew I'd need a bigger bottle (which now I have, lucky me). Why? Because whatever this lovely smell is it is beyond fragrance. It is comfort, and love, and being gently tucked in by a perhaps slightly naughty lover. It is "okay, everything in this complicated world is really okay, somehow, somewhere".

It clings to my skin, and I put it in my hair, and if I put it on before I go to bed it is still there, sweet, reassuring, and seductive in the morning.

It's an addictive and wonderful scent. Vanilla, yes, but a very grown up vanilla, and far more than that. Bouquets of little flowers in a warm room where someone you love is brushing out your long, long, beautiful hair. (and I wear my hair pixie style. Doesn't matter.)

[DeliberateAngel]

This has to be one of my favorite BPAL scents! It's a beautiful, unique vanilla scent. I have always loved vanilla scents and this is one of the best.

First whiff from the vial: A lovely fragile vanilla combined with some old perfume from times past.

1 Hour: This oil has alot waft power. It is pretty intense at first.

2+ Hours: The perfume calms down a bit and becomes a bit warmer smelling.

4+ hours:It eventually fades to a sweet almost marshmellow smell and lingers until the next morning.

I bought a big bottle and couldn't be happier.

[arabella]

First Impression: Creamy vanilla.

 

Dries down to: Vanilla pudding.

 

Additional Comments: I was so glad to see this back in the G.C. as it was discontinued when I first stumbled upon the Lab. This feels too soft to be dry flowers and, if it's linen, then it's old, well-worn, beautifully embroidered linen. If you could touch it, it would be a cashmere quilt. I would put this in the same category as Snake Oil and Alice - all comfort scents for me.

 

Lasted: This one lasted a very long time on me, too. Anything over 2-3 hours is rare and this one was still going strong after 12 hours.

 

Rating: 5 out of 5

[madelf]

Antique Lace was not my cup of tea. It is a very soft, light floral with just a hint of sweetness. It lasted for a long time, and would have been a perfectly lovely oil if it wasn't for one off note. I have no idea what it is, but it is the same dusty note that's in Miskatonic University - and both of them make me sneeze my head off.

[MissMorbus]

Antique Lace

 

Received as a frimp from the Lab

 

In bottle: Sweet, soft, vanilla. I can smell something else under the vanilla, but I'm not quite sure what.

 

On Skin: I still smell the soft vanilla. Now the linen and florals are coming out. This reminds me of something, I just can't place what. It dries into a sweet, clean scent. It is a very lovely blend, it just isn't my type of scent.

 

Throw: I don't think this has a very strong throw. It is probably something you could slather.

 

Rating: 2 of 5

[elspeth]

In the bottle this scent is warm and inviting. It smells like vanilla and just a hint of floral. Once on the skin it is stronger and I can almost smell the cloud around me. I love vanilla and even when the floral hints got stronger it stayed warm and yummy. The florals remind me of old doilies and Victorian days. I really like the comfort this seems to offer. Perfect for a rainy day or by the fire.

[storme]

In the imp: hmm, florals and vanilla.

 

On me, wet: vanilla over slightly soapy florals. There's a touch of something sugary-sweet in this, too. Mrm, all the individual notes in this are fine, but I'm not sure I like it as a whole.

 

On me, dry: hmm, now this is a warm vanilla, not too sweet or heavy, but not really what I expected from the description. It's soft and delicate, and most of the florals have vanished.

 

Verdict: This is the best vanilla scent I've tried from BPAL. A keeper, even if it's a bit more delicately feminine than I would normally wear.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Intialy a hit of vanilla sugar followed by a clean linen smell.

Wet on me - Candy floss - specifically the bit of candy floss that end up stuck to the stick, because it has gotten damp and sticky. But still with that clean linen in the background.

Dry on me - It fades quickly leaving just a hint of that warm sweet cleaness. However, I'd quite happily reapply and regain that initial sugar hit. I think I may need a bottle.

[Spring Snow]

This smells like my favorite Strawberry Shortcake doll... the Angel Food one. She had a pet skunk, white hair, and this exact light vanilla powdery smell. This really takes me back to when I was four, and the only two things worth living for were 1. gumdrops from the Easter gumdrop tree on the table and 2. more Strawberry Shortcake dolls. And possibly white hair, but my mom told me I would have plenty of time to enjoy white hair when I was old.

Back from the nostalgia trip, though, this is the only vanilla scent that went powdery on me from the get-go. To be honest, I actually like harkening back to my innocent 4-year-old ways, but this isn't something I'd wear every day.

[Nekomata]

Wet this is floral, it dries powdery with strong tones of vanilla and linen. Very nice and girly. I find it to be very fresh and not cloying at all. It's very nice, considering I don't normally like the lighter, girlier scents. Definately getting a larger bottle.

[nevermore]

Like nearly everyone else, on me, Antique Lace is vanilla, musk, and maybe some light floral. I don't know how else to describe it, but Antique Lace smells like me, only better. It's light enough that I can wear it anywhere, but has a fairly good waft, so that I can smell it for the entire day.

 

I originally bought an imp just prior to it being discontinued, and I didn't get it in time to try it before the discontinuation. I tried it and loved it, and was crushed that I couldn't get more. But now, I'm so buying a bigger bottle so I can slather to my heart's content.

[Brianne]

In the imp:

A very pale floral backed by a softly sweet vanilla

 

On me:

I can understand now why this was so popular. I don't necessarily think it's an "OMG THE BEST!" scent, but it IS extremely comforting and I think has the potential to be a good perfume for any occasion. I find the vanilla to be soft and warm but my Mom found it to be too sweet for her, so I will agree with the comments that I think it will be very hit and miss with the vanilla. The floral comes across to me more like a very faded jasmine - it's not in your face and you can't really tell except for a soft wisp of the floral smell.

 

Honestly, what it smells like to me is if you found a very old lace shawl that was worn frequently by a woman who liked to wear vanilla perfume and then stored this in a drawer with an old floral sachet. All the scents blend together very well as if they've been "sitting around" each other for a long time, and nothing really overwhelms this scent.

 

Final note:

Very soft and pretty and feminine, not in my top 10 but definitely one I will need a bottle of eventually!

[VenusFlyTrap]

I adore this scent!

 

It's a soft floral with a vanilla component and a hint of powder.

 

Very lovely, feminine. An excellent first fragrance for a young girl as well as part of an initial set of BPAL imps.

 

Definitely a big bottle!

[abberlaine]

Have any of you guys had the pleasure of trying Dulce de Leche (a milk candy)? ... because Antique Lace's got a thick, creamy spoonful of it dolloped into its magic. It's got a rich, smooth vanilla cream; mild honey dusting powder; melted white chocolate; a little bit of talcum powder towards the drydown, and a touch of unscented deodorant cream (the only minus in the set).

 

Someone on the LiveJournal community alchemylab compared it to Hanae Mori's ButterflyPerfume -- one of my favorites -- and I can tell you that the two are indeed similar in tone.

 

I layered it with LUSH's Skinny Dip, and my grandmother made a kissy sound and went, "Each one is better than the other." This marks the third BPAL scent that my mother had something very nice to say about (the other two being Snow White and Scherezade).

 

Thumbs up!

Edited April 14, 2006 by Abberlaine Arrol

[BrightRedScream]

When I smelled this in the bottle I got vanilla, a very sweet vanilla..with a SLIGHT hint of floral to it. It was sweet - and when I compared what I read about it in the description to what I was smelling in the imp - it was very different...

But I LOVED what I was smelling in the bottle, so I really hoped that this would go well on my skin.

 

When I first applied it - it was still this vanilla smell, sweet but kinda warm...but light if that makes any sense. Wow...very light and pretty and sweet and...it's strange, but I can picture billowing lace curtains in an old ladies parlour.

I can picture a very elegant and Victorian styled room just sniffing this.

 

It's so delicate and pretty and feminine smelling..

It smells classic, but young.

 

What a gorgeous scent Beth!

 

I think this one will be a 5ml for me