Ghost House

[angelicruin]

I dwell in a lonely house I know
That vanished many a summer ago,
And left no trace but the cellar walls,
And a cellar in which the daylight falls,
And the purple-stemmed wild raspberries grow.
O’er ruined fences the grape-vines shield
The woods come back to the mowing field;
The orchard tree has grown one copse
Of new wood and old where the woodpecker chops;
The footpath down to the well is healed.
I dwell with a strangely aching heart
In that vanished abode there far apart
On that disused and forgotten road
That has no dust-bath now for the toad.
Night comes; the black bats tumble and dart;
The whippoorwill is coming to shout
And hush and cluck and flutter about:
I hear him begin far enough away
Full many a time to say his say
Before he arrives to say it out.
It is under the small, dim, summer star.
I know not who these mute folk are
Who share the unlit place with me—
Those stones out under the low-limbed tree
Doubtless bear names that the mosses mar.
They are tireless folk, but slow and sad,
Though two, close-keeping, are lass and lad,–
With none among them that ever sings,
And yet, in view of how many things,
As sweet companions as might be had.

Purple-stemmed raspberries, twining grape vines, Spanish moss, and dusty pale woods.

 

This one was heavy moss & wood notes on my skin. Sadly, I got no raspberry or grape out of this one.

[Lucretia]

This smells exactly how I hoped it would smell! I can't wear grape and berries are not good on me, but this smells like gorgeous light woods and moss. It's very much in the same family as autumn coolness and the original hamadryad to me (maybe I'm crazy but those have always felt similar to me). I will wear this a lot!

[livingdead71]

Wet and in the bottle, it's very mossy. Then it goes through a candy-ish raspberry and grape phase, finally drying down to misty, pale woods. At least I thought "misty" at this stage, as opposed to "dusty." Later at work, my co-worker said I still smelled like candy, which I thought was long gone at that point. I find this scent beautifully evocative, and look forward to experimenting with it more this season.

[JasminDreams2010]

this one oddly didn't work because it fit the description. I wasn't sure what to expect exactly but it's supposed to be berry, moss and woods- and it's berry, moss, and woods. It has a prettiness to it, smells natural and wild. But it reminds me of doing yardwork or something.

[jolarocknrolla]

No berries, all greenery and woods. It has a slightly cologne sort of edge to it with a ton of "green" scent that reminds me of fresh-cut stems in a florist's shop. Not a terribly complicated scent but blended very nicely.

[Mechanical Death]

At first I wasn't impressed. I didn't get much. Maybe some wet moss and dust-- evocative in imagery, but scent wise rather lack luster. I ignored it thinking it to be a bust and placed it in my swap pile.

 

About an hour later I catch this beautiful scent wafting through the air, like damp misty overgrown flowers and vines. It smells like my childhood fall, climbing on the grape vine terrace that grew in my neighbors backyard. O.O grapey and flowery with this gorgeous bouquet that is sangria like and sexy. The woods are there too, as is the moss and vines-- very green. A slightly herbal twang that enfolds the scent together and keeps it complex and addictive.

[sitaw]

This was the first BPAL scent where I was able to pick out any of the notes listed in the description. In the bottle, I could smell moss and greens, perhaps with a little bit of something that smelled like fir trees. Immediately after dabbing some on my wrist, it was very green and a little bit too much like a pinecone. I was worried that it'd be too masculine for me.

 

After a few minutes, it warmed up considerably on my skin. The raspberry, dust, and moss really came out, and the result was an amazing blend that seemed perfect for fall. I couldn't stop sniffing my wrist, and I was ridiculously happy to have found what I thought would be my new signature fall/winter scent. Unfortunately, a few hours later, it was back to smelling mostly of pine.

 

I might try putting my decant in a roller ball with some carrier oil and reapplying through the day, because I really do love the initial drydown. Unfortunately, I think my search for the perfect cold-weather scent will have to continue.

 

Edit: I've only been at work for a few hours, but I find that I can't stop thinking about this scent and wishing that I had put some on or brought my decant with me. Maybe I'll purchase a full bottle.

Edited October 10, 2012 by sitaw

[Rshields]

Sadly Ghost House did not work for me at all, I feel like i'm going to have an allergy attack and start sneezing

and wheezing.I had to scrub it off, and it's still lingering. A previous reviewer mentioned it reminded them of doing yardwork. YES, the kind of yardwork where

you are chopping down hedges, bushes, and overgrown weeds, dust is flying everywhere and you can't breath.

The scent is fitting of a Ghost House as I can imagine all the overgrown poisonous hedges and prickly thorns.

Glad I got to test this imp, sadly it did'nt make the bottle list.

[OctoberGwen]

Whew - I am so happy that I decided to hold off on the unsniffed bottle and get an imp first! I guess this is where my BPAL experience is starting to pay off a little, for though I love the poem and the concept, the scent just doesn't work on me. I would have been regretful of a bottle purchase.

 

I get a lot of grape, some greenery, and quite a lot of mossiness from this one. Evocative for sure, but it really isn't my type of scent.

[sargeismydog]

This scent is damp and green in the bottle..On the skin, it is quite perfumey, sweet, female. It reminds me of something my super hip red-hat society grandma would love. Not bad, I would love to smell this on someone else though.

[Dark Alice]

Sadly...this is dark bitter greenery that I love but the raspberries break it for me. Just so bitter and gross it turns the greenery into something yucky. Not a fan. :9

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

i know spanish moss and oakmoss aren't the same. but this is more like oakmoss than spanish moss... it's oakmoss in a fuzzy purple sweater. but just not for me.

[Gwydion]

In bottle: The blonde woods are strongest and quite lovely with the Spanish Moss and grape vines. Think pale wood and dark green plants. The raspberry is understated and mostly serving to sweeten. Wet: More raspberry on the skin, now almost balancing the dark green with the wood providing the ubiquitous canvass on which they play. They all go beautifully together and this is subtle and exquisite. Dry: Mostly wood with the ghosts of the other elements. It’s lovely

[Leopard403]

Sadly, I reacted to Ghost House with a sneezing fit. When that settled I could actually smell it, and though there was something ever-so-slightly green buried underneath, it smelled very high-pitched (screaming the way white sandalwood does on me). Actually, it literally hurts inside my forehead if I sniff too hard.

 

eta: Okay, this settles down a teeny bit with time, and if I sniff gently and from far away I actually get a hint of raspberries. And yet, there is something still there that doesn't agree with me. It doesn't give me a headache anymore, but it hits me right in the throat. It's kind of uncanny, and like a masochist I keep sniffing myself to see if it will keep happening, and so far it does: That high part in the back of my throat, the place where tiny food bits or pills easily get hung up or post-nasal drip just hangs out in the in-between space because when you swallow your tounge doesn't *quite* reach up that high (you guys know that place, right, or have I totally lost my mind? )... anyway, that place feels clogged and watery and tight. Maybe this is what anaphylaxis feels like.

 

(eta again: I finally put my finger on it:

Spoiler

It's the spot that gets active when you are about to yak.

Eww. That's what this scent makes me feel like. Sorry for the TMI.) Edited October 16, 2012 by Leopard403

[Little Bird]

I was hoping that the grape meant that this would be kind of a spooky wine scent, as I often like bpal's wine blends. But I'm one of the people who aren't getting much fruit from this at all. It doesn't really remind me of the sour, aquatic quality of Spanish Moss either. Somehow this smells kinda pine-like on my skin, with a dry, sharp, dusty quality that I really don't like. Makes me think of dying plants and trees. It has a bitterness on my skin and isn't sweet enough for me at all. A bit powdery and bitter, dark green on me in the drydown. I'm not sure that this would be a keeper for me even if the raspberry and grape were stronger, but it's definitely not working for me as it is :/

[milo]

Rather high pitched at first, then changes to a watery green fresh blend. The aquatic note reminds me of the one in Great Vampire Bat. It does shift in and out of the woods and aquatic being more dominant. This really is quite lovely, though it's not really something I would wear often, like GVB. Add the incense, and it would be quite close to GVB, methinks.

[flyby]

Wet, I get moss with something quite fresh hovering in the foreground.

Wet on skin, it's mossy and green with a little woody grounding; if there's raspberry it's very far in the background and overall it's almost herbal.

Drying down, it's turning into pretty much a single-note moss with a lot of throw. Not for me.

[Heavenlyrabbit]

Woody, green scent that approaches the feel of ozone with only brief flashes of the fruit.

[Drae]

After first applying Ghost House, my initial reaction was to scrub it off. Very green, very sharp, with no fruit or redeeming notes. After 10 minutes of settling in, the raspberry came into play and mellowed out the sharpness.

 

I'm impressed that the fruit elements play nicely and don't go into 'Yankee Candle' territory like most of BPAL's berry notes do, and this is a very intriguing and skillfully blended scent, I don't know how often I'd reach for it.

[zankoku_zen]

Grave leaves, moss and wine.

 

This to me smells like a creepy old house. No joke. There's no dust, rot, dirt or anything like that. But its more like the foliage has taken over the house.

 

... Spooky!

[karihan]

Nooooo, no no no NO, Ghost House. On my skin you are the All Moss All the Time Show. If I wanted that, I'd have bought the Spanish Moss SN. Time to wash you off and find you someone whose skin chemistry will treat you better!

[a_llb]

In bottle: Bitingly sharp woods and greenery.

 

Wet: It begins with prominent foliage, viney and prickly. Moss drapes overhead, dusty and light. This phase settles down soon enough not to be too off-putting. The berries emerge, subtly tart.

 

Dry: A wild raspberry patch! Not quite ripe, mouth-puckering fruits scattered among a neglected garden, with a few bleached boards laying about. Intriguing and pretty.

 

Verdict: The notes appealed to me, but I don't think this is a scent I'd really wear. It seems like a deep, shady summer kind of blend, too 'cool' for my taste.

[Alaeidrel]

I'm really loving this.

 

On first sniff I could pick up on the green vines and almost nothing else, maybe a little berries. It smelled like freshly hewn vines during fall pruning.

 

It deepens on my skin to a dusty raspberry, but not a sweet one. It's extremely light - I have to basically stick my nose on my wrist to catch it - but it's amazing. I don't tend like berry scents but this absolutely perfect. I wish I'd bought a bottle, now.

[bellumed]

In Ghost House, I get grapevines and for some reason those dried fruit assortments that come covered in chocolate and candy coating. Not bad, but I'm not in love with it either.

[Missy_killer]

To my nose: This is mostly moss and some woods. I think there's a small smidge of berries hiding here, but it's so faint that it might well be my imagination.

 

On: It smells sweet on my skin, but not berries per say. Just..Sweet moss and woods. After it has been sitting on my skin for a while I sense something that actually smell like berries. Finally! Just what I was looking for. But not the raspberries that I was waiting for, these are... grapes. *sigh*

 

After an hour: The awful dusty smell that has ruined a few scents for me (Autumn Cider among others) is here. It's covering the berries and the woods in a grey fuzzy blanket of dust.