Blood Countess

[Balame]

… Corrupted black plum, smoky opium and crumbling dead roses covered by a deceptive veil of Hungarian lilac, white gardenia and wild berry.

In the Imp: Just pulled this out of my "to test" section and got really nervous at first because of the "blood" part of things, but thank goodness this is just a title rather than a descriptor. No blood resins, whew! Smells candy-ish with notable lilac.

Wet: Blegh, this is so sweet. Smells strongly of gardenias and lilacs in a candy shop. Not very complex, I'm only getting those two notes.

Dry: It's smokier now, but still sickeningly sweet. The plum is coming out more but it feels like it got smeared in a pile of ashes. Ashy flowers and dripping plum. I do admit it's more interesting at this point, rather than only giving flower power.

Overall: Very indulgent and rich in both its sweetness and bitterness. Pass for me, but it's certainly a scent for someone with a defined, voluptuous character.

[yakiguri]

Blood Countess starts off strongly perfumey and floral, with the roses and especially the gardenia clamoring for attention. So much so that I forgot there was anything else in this blend and was about to wash it off. A few minutes later the plum, berries, and opium slowly creep out, and the blend goes into a rich mean dark floral phase definitely evocative of the name. I understand how some may get craft store out of this phase, but just enough of the fruit and berries slip out to keep the florals and smoke from being overbearing. I get no lilac in here, but since I can barely smell it in other blends I'm starting to wonder if I'm anosmic to it.

 

An hour later all I get is sweet fruit, nothing else. I'm pretty sure in another hour my skin will have completely eaten this. Too bad, I really loved the wet-to-drydown phase of Blood Countess, but its short staying power makes me iffy about buying a full bottle. A partial bottle would be nice though.

[Grimwitch]

In the bottle this was a deep, rich, fruity purple. Not the oil, but it smells purple. The plums are very present.

 

I put it on and the lilac came through. Almost no rose, which is good. It smelled comforting and familiar. Too familiar. My spouse remarked that he'd smelled something similar very recently, and I realized that it smelled exactly like my grandmother's favourite perfume. Bah. I washed it off and will be trying something else.

 

It's gorgeous, I just don't want to smell like my grandmother!

[Amaranthus]

I have had an imp of Blood Countess for several years now (approximately three).

 

When it was new, it smelled like bright purple candy. The plums and berries were prominent, with lilac and a little bit of gardenia. A very pretty scent.

 

I would not say this perfumed has aged so much as matured. Now it smells like spicy, resinous plums and dried roses. There is a breath of lilac in there. The perfume is still very pretty, but with more depth.

 

I like the fresh version, love the aged version.

[KittyHawk]

Blood Countess reminds me a great deal of Brides of Dracula, but I detect some mulberry here that isn't in BoD. I like it; it's a great cold weather scent. The berries are really lovely and sophisticated, while the opium keeps it dark and brooding. This won't go to the top of my bottle list, but I'll definitely get around to one sometime in the future.

[Incendiare]

Can't believe I haven't reviewed this one yet. This is one of the few blends with plum that actually works for me. In the imp, it is plum mixed with purple berries surrounded by opium. On me, the gardenia comes out a bit more, as does the lilac, but luckily it behaves. Lilac tends to go batshit crazy on my skin. I don't remember the lilac even being there a year ago, but it definitely adds a nice touch in this case. Blood Countess smells like a rich velvety burgundy, if that even makes sense. I really like this. The notes get along perfectly and together, create a sophisticated, yet dark blend.

[bibzerneth]

Blood Countess is fabulous! I can almost smell it just thinking about it. I got it as a frimp, I wouldn't have ordered it because of the gardenia, but on me it is mostly berry, plum,and opium with a sliver of rose,I don't really pick up the gardenia or lilac. If this scent had a color it would be a deep deep blood red. I agree with it being a great cold weather scent, it feels really warm and luxuriant. It doesn't morph too much on my skin either.

When I wear this scent I feel sexy, bold and powerful. It has decent staying power on me too and a little goes a long way, I've had my imp for months and still have half left. I will definitely order a bigger bottle.

[rdhdtwns]

After reading all the reviews (literally, I read all the pages) for Blood Countess, I decided it sounded right up my alley. I'm so glad I did.

 

In the Bottle - woah, floral. A little too strong on the gardenia, almost tacky like a badly scented candle. I was a little apprehensive at this stage.

 

Wet - Berries, where did they come from? The roses peek out a little, but I'm not getting any of the plum as I get with the scent Bordello.

 

Dry, after awhile - Roses. Straight up roses. And for a long time, too, very lasting. Not like a freshly plucked green kind of smell, but the kind of rose scent you'd imagine coming from a Victorian lady's collection.

 

I'm very conflicted on how I love this scent - it smells pure, like the virgins that Bathory (supposedly) slaughtered. However, it also smells divinely wicked and strong, like Bathory herself. Perhaps it depends on the wearer's mood

[Kayah]

imp:

 

VERY ripe sweet fruits that have partially fermented, and a glass of blood red wine with a hint of roses behind all the fruit. GORGEOUS.

 

 

wet on skin:

 

Spicy boozy fruits, ripe and juicy, with a little bit of dry rose petals in the background.

 

 

drying:

 

The roses come out more, and it's not fresh roses, oh no. This is dried roses, not carefully preserved so that their colour stays, but faded ones, crumbling into dust at a touch. There is age here, and decay. The fruits have gone and all they have left behind are a mere memory, a hint that any richness may have been here.

 

dry and later:

 

This scent switches between dry roses, and spicy ripe fermented fruit. It's lovely when the fruit are out, powdery when the rose dominates. Later still.. omg. I can !FINALLY! smell the other flowers and it is getting a little smoky. I thought I would never get it out of this scent. Amazing!

 

 

 

I also remember wearing it at other times when it did not work so well, when it was more rose-dust and mostly powder.

My imp is almost two years old now, and I am happy with the fruits and hope the booziness develops even more.

 

Unfortunately, if I get a bottle it will likely need to be aged a few years before I can wear it and have the scent I have in my imp now. However, I might still do just that, because the spicy fruit/wine and hint of rose with the smoke and other florals is TOTALLY worth it.

[becca_s]

When first applied Blood Countess is all plums & berries on me - sweet plums with some gardenia and lilac in the background. It changes though, the sweetness subsides a little bit and I think that the opium comes out more. I can't smell any rose in this at all. On me this doesn't smell corrupted or smoky! It's actually pretty sweet and feminine. I would almost consider it an upbeat, spring scent. I really like the dry down of this scent, when I can detect the opium and lilac more, it smells more sophisticated than its burst of plum and berry sweetness when first applied. I would consider getting a bottle of this especially for when it settles and drys down. This is a scent that changes and smells alot better after 20 minutes or so.

[whitsunweddings]

In the imp: Plums and opium. Sounds like my kind of evening!

Wet: Hmmm, lovely opium with red fruit in the background.

Dry: Boo! The opium disappears completely and I'm left with slightly sour plums and berries.

[Innocuousmold]

At first I get something a little plastic and spice, but that fades really quickly. Afterwards I just get gardenia (which I do like) and lilac and a really really faint touch of rose. This scent has a bit of a wet, green smell to it. There're no discernable plums or berries, so if they are there, they're in the waaaaay back.

 

I got really excited by the name, but alas, no blood for Moldy here, lol.

 

ETA: If you like this you may like La Bella Donna Della Mia Mente.

Edited April 12, 2012 by Innocuousmold

[sunlitgarden]

I wanted to like Blood Countess because I have a strange fascination with Elizabeth Bathory, but I can't even bring myself to skin test this. In the imp it smells sickly sweet, kind of the compost, rotting type smell I got from Harvest Moon 2010. I don't like opium, and while I do like the other notes, together they're just too much. I think it might be the floral-plum combination that can cause an overly sweet, rotting edge to my nose in some blends. Gardenia is hit or miss for me, and this is another miss, unfortunately.

[ami226]

This one smells slightly bubble gumish. Must be the plum. I think I might need to try this one again. It is definitely sweetish with hints of florals. Pretty and sweet!

[VictorianVulgar]

In the imp, it's very fruity, a deep, dark, seductive plum. On me, the florals definitely come out more - lots of rose and gardenia with a background of warm, boozy opium. It's very lush without being too sweet. I adore it.

[mymymai]

In the Imp (ITI): Rose, opium, berries, lilac, and plum. It's yummy while still being complex enough to be worn by an adult.

 

Wet: Gardenia, crushed roses, plum, and artificial berries. It's now bad, actually.

 

Dry: Mmm, now it smells like berried fall potpourri The plum is evident while the berries smell dried rather than wet and artificial (thank you, BPAL!). The rose and opium meld wonderfully together to form a complicated and womanly scent that I would love to wear again.

[sisi33]

In the Bottle: Plum, lilac, gardenia! So nice!

Wet: Plum, lilac, rose and opium. Already deeply toned.

Drydown: Plum and opium, mainly. Rose in the background, hanging out with gardenia. Dry and slightly dusty. Medium throw on me. The depth to her is much more than I expected to find- a very complicated scent on my skin. Although floral-y, I wouldn't count this as a floral- the plum make that impossible to say. This is defiantly something I could see as being "vain". But vain- in this instance- is a very good thing!

 

5/5

[MiasmaResonance]

Slightly smoky, plummy gardenia and berry. Oh, why do I have to like this? It's yummy and sensual. And impossible to find. WAAAAAAH-

[ramblingrambler]

I received this as an obviously very aged frimp from a lovely member who did not like this fragrance. She gave it to me because I have been a fan of spicy berry scents recently. This did not disappoint. It's too bad it's DC'd, otherwise I would probably get a bottle, and I don't think many people are willing to give up theirs.

This is very feminine: floral, spicy, and fruity. It's simply gorgeous!

 

Wet, it's predominantly gardenia with some... carnation, maybe? There's a hint of spice and something sweet.

 

As it dries, gardenia anchors everything together, but the plums and berries swell with the spice, and they mingle together creating a juicy, dripping... something. I keep thinking of---and this is going to sound crazy, but bear with me---the Disney World "Snow White" ride, at the point where the rider's outside and bursts through the door painted with the witch holding the apple... and then you're plunged into darkness. I have NO IDEA why this image keeps hitting me, but it definitely captures the "feel" of this fragrance.

 

It only gets better with the hours. As it fades away, it's a spicy gardenia. Fruit has left us.

 

I can see this love affair ending very badly for me. I will be left wanting more when my imp is gone. DISO list!

[sarandipitee]

Oh my god this is beautiful. It's like a softer sister to Hellion, just lacking the spice.

 

I'm so sad I just discovered this one.

 

I'll treasure my imp and hopefully we'll get a reformulation.

[roseus]

On my skin this is a dark, indistinct fruity-floral. I could pick out the gardenia and rose, and upon reading the notes the plum. They meld together for a sweet and not too heady scent. Reminds me of a sweet, light wine.

[dementia_divine]

In the imp: The plum and opium notes stand out to me the most, followed by the rose and wild berry. I can also smell some of the lilac behind those notes.

 

Wet: It's actually the lilac and gardenia notes that first emerge on my skin, followed by the opium, and then, the plum. Then, the rose note appears, and after that, the wild berry. The scent is a smoky, fruity floral, with the opium, plum, rose, lilac, and berry being main players on my skin. But then the opium calms down, and it is the fruits and the floral notes that reign. The opium seems to be wafting through the other notes, sometimes rising to the front of the blend, and sometimes lingering in the background.

 

Dry: Sweet gardenia and plum notes are the most prominent, followed by the rose and wild berry, and a wisp of opium in the background. This is the proud, regal scent of a woman that always gets what she wants.

 

Verdict: Let it be known that I generally dislike plum in perfumes, but this scent is one with a prominent plum note that I actually don't dislike. Since this is discontinued and not a scent I've fallen completely in love with, I'll probably let go of my imp. I do think it is nice, though, and I'm glad to have gotten to try it!

[Aveya]

Imp: Floral. Rose most prominent to me. Then a mashing of what I'll call white floral. I'm bad at my floral scents.

Skin Initial: Brief vanishing act then pops back to a gentle floral.

Skin longer: Dark and musky. It's trying to act like blueberry does on me, where it gets all... warm and slathered and ripe. But it's having a battle with that. I think my nose is blurring Plum going ripe and dark and the "wild berries" staying a bit tarter. I'm also pretty sure gardenia smells like a rancid-butter-floral to me, so I probably should have just passed on this imp instead of trying it out.

 

Gave myself a headache huffing my arm on this one trying to understand it. I'll pass this on to those who like it and miss it.

 

Verdict; Odd buttery floral-fruit, fractured between being dark and light. Nice throw, staying power.

[Lucchesa]

Blood Countess was sweeter and fruitier than I expected from the name. In the imp the plum is almost sour, but on my skin it's overwhelmed by sweet opium and berry and flowers. Over time the opium and plum did get more prominent, but not as dark and smoky as I would have enjoyed. And then I got busy and forgot to pay attention to the later drydown, so I'm going to have to retest this one at some point. But I'm not certain I should keep it when so many people crave this one.