5 Blooddrop Scent Reviews--
Meh. Today is wearing me out, so I figure I should contribute something nice to the world instead of spending all my time growling.
You know, I posted this review to salonblooddrop and evil_enablers not too long after I got back from Florida, but I failed to post it here, in my own LJ. So I'm going to do that now, especially given that I have more scents in my possession to review in the near future (and, as of today, more on the way *cough*).
Just a little over a week ago [try about a month and a half ago now], I was fortunate enough to meet Astrid [the owner of Blooddrop Clothing and Fineries] during her excursion to Orlando, Florida, and had the opportunity to sniff and sample a number of Blooddrop's offered scents. I was tagging along with a friend, and assumed at most I'd come away with my wallet intact, having spent a small sliver of a pleasant evening simply chatting and sniffing perfume.
Instead, the expected twenty minutes turned into two+ hours, and I found myself eagerly parting with my money in exchange for five really lovely scent blends and in the rather strange position of having to stake firm and unbending claims on a few of the bottles I eventually ended up purchasing lest they be scooped up by a rapidly growing group of buyers.
Before reviewing the scents themselves, I should note that I am the sort of person who prefers her perfume to enhance rather than announce -- I don't care for (sometimes overwhelming) scents that travel far ahead of me; I'd much rather have my perfumes act as the olfactory equivalent of a second glance, with a subtle, but definite presence.
Additionally, I tend to balk at paying more in shipping and handling than a product is worth/priced; since I live outside of the US, this is a bit prohibitive for purchasing from most online perfumeries. I just can't justify paying for a product over again (essentially paying twice) when I'm only going to end up with one item, and especially not when I'm not entirely sure how much I'm going to like what I end up with. I had the chance to speak to Astrid about this sight unseen (since this was my first encounter with Blooddrop), and was thrilled to discover (and later confirm) that her international shipping and handling prices are competitive. My sense of her as a businesswoman was also really positive (she seems very invested in making sure her customers are happy), and that's sure to engender a certain amount of loyalty in me for a product.
So anyway...
***
The (un)Poisoned Tea Cup:
Fortunately for the drinker, this cup of pomegranate black tea was left unscathed.
This was one of the scents that I was just lucky I staked a claim on early enough, because as it was passed around, more and more people started enquiring after it.
In the bottle it smells strong and sweet -- but not cloying -- and I have this overwhelming desire to drink it. (Disclaimer: Don't drink the perfume.) On my skin, it starts out as a dry, sweet scent almost reminiscent of honeysuckle, but mellows quickly until I get more of a sense of the tea and pomegranate. It's the sort of distinct and original scent I'm looking for, and I got a lot of compliments at the meet 'n sniff on it. Given the chance, I'll be buying more.
I am deeply, deeply in love with this scent, and will cry gigantic tears if it doesn't make it off Limited Edition and end up on the regular roster.
***
Apparition:
A ghostly feminine presence. Chilling rustles of silk and petticoats wafting a faint breath of slightly sweetened florals of a well-traveled lady. Her scent is as mysterious as her veiled presence.
This was another bottle that I was very lucky to lay claim to early on, since again, it was very popular amongst the group. In the bottle it has a more traditional perfume scent than the rest I sampled: not sweet at all, but rather crisp and almost herbal in origin. On my skin it starts out very soft and comforting, with a hint of citrus way, way underneath. After it dries it becomes a very warm scent which is both refined and sophisticated (and I can't stop sniffing my wrists while I'm wearing it). The citrus I detected earlier fades a little more, and I get more of a soothing floral out of it. Another favourite that will be on my repeat purchase list. Love it.
***
Delicieuse:
Thick and sultry honey and vanilla with a sassy kiss of peppermint.
In the bottle it is distinctly peppermint, with a hint of the other ingredients teasing at the senses. On my skin it starts out like minty chocolate: the strong peppermint patty-type confections that are always more mint than chocolate. After it mellows it becomes a more powdery scent, almost musky, with a hint of candy underneath. It's a good, clear peppermint for connoisseurs of the scent, and it has a nice blend of other notes throughout that makes it more sophisticated than simple mint; it's a little too much for me, though, so while I think I'm happy using it up, I imagine I'll turn my attention to more of Astrid's tea-based blends, which so far seem to uniformly delight me. [ETA: On repeat application, I've realized that I'm also picking up a very strong sense of vanilla from this perfume, which is probably why I'm associating the full blend with minty, chocolate-covered vanilla ice cream patties.]
***
Killing Time in Taipei:
Not quite cold enough, but better than nothing iced tea with a plate of strange, other-worldy fruit.
This was another scent that was extremely popular at the meet 'n sniff, both as a scent in its own right, and on me. (It seems all of my favourites were.) I'm actually fairly surprised at how much I love Blooddrop's tea blends, but it stands to reason, since I'm not really a foodie scent person, and while I like fruits and florals, I like the sweetness in both tempered to something more subtle, cool or complex. Not one of the tea blends I had the fortune to sniff was anything less than impressive, and I think in future purchases from Blooddrop, I'll be naturally leaning towards the tea bases.
In the bottle you can definitely smell the tea. It's got that really nice cool, soothing scent I associate with iced tea, with a slight edge of crisp, fresh fruit. On my skin, it starts out as very sweet, fruity and floral with only a hint of the underlying tea, but as it dries it mellows into the tea with slivers of crisp fruit, and, in fact, returns to a scent very close to its in-the-bottle state. I will most definitely be buying this one again.
***
Mrs. Mary Picklelee's Uproarious Bottled Bouquet For the Bitter and Bored Widow
(Also equally suited for the bland and sullen old maid.):
Mrs. Picklee's bottled bouquet is an effervescent and bright blend of red currant, lemon verbena, pear and moonflower.
I must admit, I love Astrid's whimsical explanations for her scents. (It also helps that 99% of them are accompanied by a clear explanation of what the included notes are.) Mrs. Mary Picklelee's was attractive for the name and description alone (which I've unfortunately cut out here because it's so long, but it is worthwhile going to her site and reading it all).
In the bottle it is a beautiful blend of sweet fruits modulated by the faintest hint of the tang of lemon. Once it hits my skin it is strong, strong lemon, almost like the more pleasant cleansing products, which, while inoffensive, is not quite the sense-memory I want to conjure up. It takes a long time on me to mature into something else, but when it does, while I can still smell the lemon, it's a more subtle, complex note amongst the other fruits and florals. I haven't quite decided yet if it's my sort of scent, but it is a bit of a pick-me-up perfume. Good for those days when you need the extra motivation to get up and going.
***
Overall, I was extremely pleased with Blooddrop's scents. Astrid has provided a reason for me to wear perfume more often than for simple special occasions, and I was very impressed not only with her product, but with how she listens to her customer base. Not only was she interested in our real opinions about her products during the meetup, but she had an excellent nose for what scents we'd individually like, based on verbal descriptions/preferences as well as which samples we enjoyed most. In fact, I've taken her advice and have ordered, scent unsniffed (and among other things), a full bottle of another of her perfumes that she suggested would be something I'd like. I have every confidence that she's right.
Anyway, while I'm very impressed with her international shipping rates, today's also a good day for Blooddrops, since it is the last day for free shipping worldwide. I took advantage of her free shipping sale yesterday, and am already eagerly awaiting a whole bunch of new scents. [Offer has since expired.]
Crossposted to salonblooddrop, evil_enablers.
Of course, while the free shipping offer has expired, Astrid is holding a Blooddrop 2007 Limited Edition Leftover Sale starting today [yes, really, today ^_~], and presumably continuing until the leftovers are sold out. I can vouch for HG (Her Grace) as a delightful scent (I got a bottle in my most recent order, woo!), and I'm reliably informed that Catnip is a creamy-smooth, green earth scent with a touch of mint. (I had a really hard time not ordering it alongside everything else I've reserved from this sale.) I also hear that Solstice gets some really wonderful reviews, and it is one that's going fast. (Last time I checked, all that was left was a 1/32 oz. sample.)
And while there are some scents I like more than others (OMG, (un)Poisoned Tea Cup and Killing Time in Taipei), I have as of yet -- in trying out 18 perfumes and one scented Mousse de Bain -- to run across anything that I out-and-out dislike.
You know, I posted this review to salonblooddrop and evil_enablers not too long after I got back from Florida, but I failed to post it here, in my own LJ. So I'm going to do that now, especially given that I have more scents in my possession to review in the near future (and, as of today, more on the way *cough*).
Just a little over a week ago [try about a month and a half ago now], I was fortunate enough to meet Astrid [the owner of Blooddrop Clothing and Fineries] during her excursion to Orlando, Florida, and had the opportunity to sniff and sample a number of Blooddrop's offered scents. I was tagging along with a friend, and assumed at most I'd come away with my wallet intact, having spent a small sliver of a pleasant evening simply chatting and sniffing perfume.
Instead, the expected twenty minutes turned into two+ hours, and I found myself eagerly parting with my money in exchange for five really lovely scent blends and in the rather strange position of having to stake firm and unbending claims on a few of the bottles I eventually ended up purchasing lest they be scooped up by a rapidly growing group of buyers.
Before reviewing the scents themselves, I should note that I am the sort of person who prefers her perfume to enhance rather than announce -- I don't care for (sometimes overwhelming) scents that travel far ahead of me; I'd much rather have my perfumes act as the olfactory equivalent of a second glance, with a subtle, but definite presence.
Additionally, I tend to balk at paying more in shipping and handling than a product is worth/priced; since I live outside of the US, this is a bit prohibitive for purchasing from most online perfumeries. I just can't justify paying for a product over again (essentially paying twice) when I'm only going to end up with one item, and especially not when I'm not entirely sure how much I'm going to like what I end up with. I had the chance to speak to Astrid about this sight unseen (since this was my first encounter with Blooddrop), and was thrilled to discover (and later confirm) that her international shipping and handling prices are competitive. My sense of her as a businesswoman was also really positive (she seems very invested in making sure her customers are happy), and that's sure to engender a certain amount of loyalty in me for a product.
So anyway...
***
The (un)Poisoned Tea Cup:
Fortunately for the drinker, this cup of pomegranate black tea was left unscathed.
This was one of the scents that I was just lucky I staked a claim on early enough, because as it was passed around, more and more people started enquiring after it.
In the bottle it smells strong and sweet -- but not cloying -- and I have this overwhelming desire to drink it. (Disclaimer: Don't drink the perfume.) On my skin, it starts out as a dry, sweet scent almost reminiscent of honeysuckle, but mellows quickly until I get more of a sense of the tea and pomegranate. It's the sort of distinct and original scent I'm looking for, and I got a lot of compliments at the meet 'n sniff on it. Given the chance, I'll be buying more.
I am deeply, deeply in love with this scent, and will cry gigantic tears if it doesn't make it off Limited Edition and end up on the regular roster.
***
Apparition:
A ghostly feminine presence. Chilling rustles of silk and petticoats wafting a faint breath of slightly sweetened florals of a well-traveled lady. Her scent is as mysterious as her veiled presence.
This was another bottle that I was very lucky to lay claim to early on, since again, it was very popular amongst the group. In the bottle it has a more traditional perfume scent than the rest I sampled: not sweet at all, but rather crisp and almost herbal in origin. On my skin it starts out very soft and comforting, with a hint of citrus way, way underneath. After it dries it becomes a very warm scent which is both refined and sophisticated (and I can't stop sniffing my wrists while I'm wearing it). The citrus I detected earlier fades a little more, and I get more of a soothing floral out of it. Another favourite that will be on my repeat purchase list. Love it.
***
Delicieuse:
Thick and sultry honey and vanilla with a sassy kiss of peppermint.
In the bottle it is distinctly peppermint, with a hint of the other ingredients teasing at the senses. On my skin it starts out like minty chocolate: the strong peppermint patty-type confections that are always more mint than chocolate. After it mellows it becomes a more powdery scent, almost musky, with a hint of candy underneath. It's a good, clear peppermint for connoisseurs of the scent, and it has a nice blend of other notes throughout that makes it more sophisticated than simple mint; it's a little too much for me, though, so while I think I'm happy using it up, I imagine I'll turn my attention to more of Astrid's tea-based blends, which so far seem to uniformly delight me. [ETA: On repeat application, I've realized that I'm also picking up a very strong sense of vanilla from this perfume, which is probably why I'm associating the full blend with minty, chocolate-covered vanilla ice cream patties.]
***
Killing Time in Taipei:
Not quite cold enough, but better than nothing iced tea with a plate of strange, other-worldy fruit.
This was another scent that was extremely popular at the meet 'n sniff, both as a scent in its own right, and on me. (It seems all of my favourites were.) I'm actually fairly surprised at how much I love Blooddrop's tea blends, but it stands to reason, since I'm not really a foodie scent person, and while I like fruits and florals, I like the sweetness in both tempered to something more subtle, cool or complex. Not one of the tea blends I had the fortune to sniff was anything less than impressive, and I think in future purchases from Blooddrop, I'll be naturally leaning towards the tea bases.
In the bottle you can definitely smell the tea. It's got that really nice cool, soothing scent I associate with iced tea, with a slight edge of crisp, fresh fruit. On my skin, it starts out as very sweet, fruity and floral with only a hint of the underlying tea, but as it dries it mellows into the tea with slivers of crisp fruit, and, in fact, returns to a scent very close to its in-the-bottle state. I will most definitely be buying this one again.
***
Mrs. Mary Picklelee's Uproarious Bottled Bouquet For the Bitter and Bored Widow
(Also equally suited for the bland and sullen old maid.):
Mrs. Picklee's bottled bouquet is an effervescent and bright blend of red currant, lemon verbena, pear and moonflower.
I must admit, I love Astrid's whimsical explanations for her scents. (It also helps that 99% of them are accompanied by a clear explanation of what the included notes are.) Mrs. Mary Picklelee's was attractive for the name and description alone (which I've unfortunately cut out here because it's so long, but it is worthwhile going to her site and reading it all).
In the bottle it is a beautiful blend of sweet fruits modulated by the faintest hint of the tang of lemon. Once it hits my skin it is strong, strong lemon, almost like the more pleasant cleansing products, which, while inoffensive, is not quite the sense-memory I want to conjure up. It takes a long time on me to mature into something else, but when it does, while I can still smell the lemon, it's a more subtle, complex note amongst the other fruits and florals. I haven't quite decided yet if it's my sort of scent, but it is a bit of a pick-me-up perfume. Good for those days when you need the extra motivation to get up and going.
***
Overall, I was extremely pleased with Blooddrop's scents. Astrid has provided a reason for me to wear perfume more often than for simple special occasions, and I was very impressed not only with her product, but with how she listens to her customer base. Not only was she interested in our real opinions about her products during the meetup, but she had an excellent nose for what scents we'd individually like, based on verbal descriptions/preferences as well as which samples we enjoyed most. In fact, I've taken her advice and have ordered, scent unsniffed (and among other things), a full bottle of another of her perfumes that she suggested would be something I'd like. I have every confidence that she's right.
Anyway, while I'm very impressed with her international shipping rates, today's also a good day for Blooddrops, since it is the last day for free shipping worldwide. I took advantage of her free shipping sale yesterday, and am already eagerly awaiting a whole bunch of new scents. [Offer has since expired.]
Crossposted to salonblooddrop, evil_enablers.
Of course, while the free shipping offer has expired, Astrid is holding a Blooddrop 2007 Limited Edition Leftover Sale starting today [yes, really, today ^_~], and presumably continuing until the leftovers are sold out. I can vouch for HG (Her Grace) as a delightful scent (I got a bottle in my most recent order, woo!), and I'm reliably informed that Catnip is a creamy-smooth, green earth scent with a touch of mint. (I had a really hard time not ordering it alongside everything else I've reserved from this sale.) I also hear that Solstice gets some really wonderful reviews, and it is one that's going fast. (Last time I checked, all that was left was a 1/32 oz. sample.)
And while there are some scents I like more than others (OMG, (un)Poisoned Tea Cup and Killing Time in Taipei), I have as of yet -- in trying out 18 perfumes and one scented Mousse de Bain -- to run across anything that I out-and-out dislike.