Belle Époque

[jewelbug]

"The Pretty Era", France’s Golden Time: an age of beauty, innovation and peace in France that lasted from the 19th Century through the first World War and gave birth to the cabaret, the cancan, and the cinema as well as the Impressionist and Art Nouveau movements. Sweet opium, Lily of the Valley, vanilla, mandarin and red sandalwood.

In the Bottle: Very light, sweet floral with hint of tangy/tartness. Like a honeyed floral with a tart edge.

On the skin, Wet: sandalwood and lily, but still tart. I think it’s the lily of the valley that I smell most. Very pretty, but I'm not a big floral girl.

Drying: Very sweet (not foody sweet, but floral sweet) flowers.. When it's dry, it is mostly sweet lilies with some sandalwood in the distance to ground it. In about an hour, the sandalwood comes out a little more, which balances the sweet lilies better. After 3-5 hours it smells of sweet lilies and bergamot to me, but there isn't bergamot listed, so that's weird. Even later, though faint, I smell mostly sandalwood (mental note to try some more sandalwood based oils).

Overall: I like this, but I don't love it--not as unique as I'd hoped. It was mostly lilies on me (though thankfully didn't go powdery or soapy), and the sandalwood didn't get prominent til late in the game. My skin ate up the vanilla and mandarin, so they didn’t' join the party. It was pleasant and dynamic--a very nice blend, but just not me.

[malanna]

This is weird, but I kept on thinking I smelled lavender. Belle Epoque was had that humid heat I associate with lavender. I love vanilla, but I did not like this. I think the vanilla was drowned out by the sweet opium and lily of the valley (is lily of the valley a humid heat sort of scent?). The red sandalwood comes out a bit more later.

[olympia301]

I smell the lily of the valley in here but the whole reminds me of something I have smelled before and it's nice but not my kind of sniff. It's pretty enough but it has a similarity to a lot of other scents I have smelled and somehow ends up canceling itself out inside my nose before I get a chance to really grip it with my mind. Maddening. I guess I just don't have the receptors necessary to get the best out of Belle Epoque. It did inspire a good icon, though.

[brownbear]

hmmmm In the vial and while wet, this one is so pretty. It's sweet floral with a bit of buttery vanilla. Then after it dries on my skin, it goes weird. My skin doesn't always work well with vanilla. This isn't as bad as it could be, but my skin still is making it into a slightly burnt plastic type smell. oh well

[emisi]

On the wand: Mmmm, smells yummy. Delicately of lily of the valley, the sweetness of the opium (good thing I'm not a druggie, the two I've really liked so far have had opium in them), a hint of sandalwoof.

 

On me, wet: A little spicy, a little sandalwood, the lily has been submerged, but I have hope that it'll come back out. I can smell the mandarin very faintly, in the back of my throat. This is a gorgeous scent on me, so far.

 

Drydown: I love this scent. I wouldn't have thought I'd like sandalwood, since it usually makes my eyes water, but this is gorgeous. I want a big bottle of it. Something about it just smells so GOOD. What a lovely blend. Also, it seems to make me hungry, which is weird.

[pekeana]

Belle Epoque is very soft, subtle floral with a touch of sandalwood. It goes powdery on me, and that's all we wrote.

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

This arrived while my mom was here, and I tried it on her first--her sig. scent is White Linen, and she immediately said this was the closest in terms of "feel" of any BPAL I've given her. The only note they have in common is lily of the valley, so that must be what she was picking up on. I immediately said "sandalwood! with a white floral topnote." And then I read the notes--I'm getting good at this.

 

On me, the opium comes out and blends richly with the sandalwood; in fact, it reminds me of YSL's Opium--sexy oriental. The vanilla-floral does not come out nearly as strongly on me as on mom. In fact, the mandarin is a tad bitter on me, since for some reason my skin is ignoring the sweet notes. I think I will give it to mom--it seems like Belle Epoque really loves her!

Edited August 26, 2005 by Laurel the Woodfairy

[Blood onmy hands]

Belle Epoque was not a winner at all on me. At first it smells like a bitter generic perfumey floral. Then it smells very soapy in the drydown. It smells like a bar of sandalwood soap. At times it shifts a bit and smells like something oddly burnt. It makes me feel sick to my stomach

[maewitch]

This came out as a well-rounded vanilla-sandalwood blend, and that's pretty much it. I can't really distinguish the floral notes, but I guess that's what is rounding out the blend and adding to the sweetness of the vanilla.

 

It's pretty and sort of old-fashioned feeling, like really expensive soap. This doesn't feel young or sexy to me, but makes me think of the time I stayed with an older female relative in France. There's something about this scent that comforts me, makes me think of quiet elegance and antiques and laundered linens.

 

I don't know that I would really wear this too much, but the scent has such pleasant associations that I can't see myself swapping the imp away.

Edited September 12, 2005 by maewitch

[~AmusedMuse~]

My Impression:

definite sandalwood & soap???? This went a bit odd on me. After drydown I stated to detect some of the floral notes thank goodness. Although I found it pleasant enough, I still believe something is missing My scale of 1-5.... 2.5

[Caltha]

Belle Époque

Got this in a swap with brownbear.

 

I'm afraid Belle Époque was pretty blah on me. At first it was a sharp, almost insect repellant sharp, citrus and then it mellowed and went quite generic perfumey, a little woody, a little spicy, a little floral. Not unpleasant but not very interesting either.

[Lori]

Sniffing the imp: Mmmmmm...Sandalwood! I have been surrounded by incense all day at work for 4 years, and I never get tired of Sandalwood. In fact, I wore a Sandalwood Mala around my neck, all day yesterday.

 

Wet on wrist: Out jumps the floral! Wow, that is strong Lily of the Valley. It got my nose stuffed up when I stuck it in there.

 

Dry-down: This is really fading fast on me. But even still, the floral is what is prominent. And still too strong for me, so off to swap it goes.

 

edited to add: I see there is also Opium in this. I generally find Opium too strong for my nostrils and it does stuff me up, so maybe it is that bothering me more than the Lily of the Valley. Either way, it is not for me.

Edited September 30, 2005 by Lori

[hangingfire]

In the imp: strong on the lilies and what I guess is the opium. The other elements not so much.

 

On, wet: Still lilies. A little harsh, but stately. The sandalwood starts to make itself known.

 

Drydown: Wow, the drydown on this is NICE. The sandalwood is much more prominent. The vanilla isn't really obvious, but it supports the other elements well, providing a sweet, earthy background.

 

A very elegant perfume, for dressing up and going to the opera. I like it a lot, and may end up getting a bottle.

[Celogrl]

Rich- I feel just a little wealthier when I put this on. It conjures up images of a French courtesan (in my mind's eye at least) kind of fragrance. It's ladylike, feminine and floral. The verdict is still out as to whether I'd buy a larger bottle, but it certainly is worth keeping in a rotation. From this I get the sandalwood, and the rest is such a subtle mix to my nose that I can't distinguish anything else. It was worth trying- the drydown is very clean, and almost soapy (which I like).

[Voleuse]

I have no idea what "sweet opium" is supposed to smell like, but the rest of it sounded pretty good. Out of the vial, and on first application, the lily comes out pretty strongly, and I think...a little of the sandalwood. A little generic to my nose, but then again, almost every floral scent I try starts out generic. I'm getting almost no vanilla or mandarin, though there's another note I suppose could be the opium.

 

It's very light, very fresh, but not specifically a clean scent. I never got any of the vanilla or mandarin, which is disappointing, as those were the notes in which I was most interested. As it is, it's kind of a breezy and faint and chattery. Pleasant, but not at all substantial. After a while, it turns to soap on me. Fancy soap, but soap nonetheless. Ah, well.

[diabolique]

Deleted.

Edited November 4, 2005 by diabolique

[enderfem]

In the bottle: very classic perfume smell, but light, friendly

 

First applying: hmm, a bit sweeter and more dainty than I like

 

An hour later: Gone. Completely gone. I reapplied later, and the same thing happened.

 

 

A mixed blessing, since I thought it was a bit too dainty, but I would have liked to see how it played out. I may try it again, but I think I'll swap the imp.

[sophia_helix]

At first whiff, my thought is "yes, pretty!", because it's very sweet, light white florals, making me see the visual of lily-of-the-valley. As the scent wears on, I get much more sandalwood, which is a strangely earthy note in the midst of the flowery sweetness.

 

I think this one could do with a bit of a heavier sweetness, like lilac or hyacinth, and I might see what I could layer it with. Otherwise, I like it but it doesn't seem quite "complete" to me (probably because my skin amps sandalwood like mad).

 

A qualified keeper (and how funny for me, Ms. Sugar-Skin, to be complaining a scent isn't sweet enough!)

[dubh_ceol]

All I get is a bit of sandalwood and lilly. It fades on me in 10 minutes. *sniffles*

 

*pokes the imp until it moves off*

[aedes]

This is quickly rising as one of my favorites. I get the full range of opium, mandarin, lily (I'm surprised that it was Lily of the Valley - it smelled like Narcissus to me) and sandalwood, but it doesn't smell heady. A little earthy, vibrant, clever, and a little feminine. I think it makes a great autumnal scent as well. I love my big bottle of it!

[SnornL]

I'm no scholar of French history, but was the Belle Epoque known to be a time period in which people favoured particularly pungent shampoo? Because that's what I'm getting out of this imp. I wanna say Pantene, but that's not quite it; it smells like something cheaper, to be honest. Pert, maybe?

 

On my skin, it's clean and sharp to the point of irritating my nose. The mandarin and sandalwood are discernable, but even though I usually love red sandalwood it's not particularly charming me here, and the mandarin doesn't do much more than add a bit of zest to the sickening soapy-sweet topnote (I guess it's the lillies, but I'm not sure, I'm not that familiar with opium either).

 

It didn't improve upon drydown, and the whole thing disappeared in an hour or two. I'm all for "clean" scents, but this wasn't quite what I'm looking for.

[wingedcorset]

In the vial all I smelled was the opium. I almost didn't put it on, but I have a policy ot "try everything on my skin before deciding it's fate." Of course there are things that stay in the imp box a damn long time before I get the courage to pick them up. (Bluebeard, I'm talking to you!)

 

As it's drying the opium is mellowing an fading a bit, and the lily is coming through a bit more.

 

The vanilla is faint, but present. Same with the manderin. It even seems to be amping up a bit as time goes on.

 

The sandlwood is nowhere to be smelled.

 

An interesting scent, but ultimately, not one for me. Fortunately, I know just the friend to give this to.

[PrettyPenny]

Very pretty. It's sweet with something tangy in the background. I'm getting mostly florals, which is a shame as I was hoping to catch some of the vanilla and sandalwood as well.

[Orodemniades]

Orange? Light rose? Whatever the floral is, it's very faint. This is a lovely, sophisticated oil for a sophisticated woman who moves in the highest levels of society. Very feminine, but powerful, too. Don't mistake the woman who wears this for being a pushover, no no no...

 

I like it, but I doubt I'll wear it. Nice oil, though!

 

Oro

[stardreamer]

First impression: Oh-oh, this is awfully floral.

 

Fresh on: Um, yeah. VERY floral, probably too much so. Lily of the Valley is one of the few florals I can usually wear, but this is strong. There's some soapiness under there, too.

 

Drydown: Hmmm, it gets greener over time. The vanilla isn't putting in an appearance at all, nor is the mandarin. It is, however, quite evocative of late 19th-century France; there's the same sort of "preciousness" about it -- and I mean that in both the positive and negative senses of the word.

 

Bottom line: Too floral-soap and old-ladyish for my taste. Swap pile for this one.