Ephemera

[Ghost of a Rose]

The scent of loss, love and the echo of time without end: sorrowful violet and chamomile with muguet, white geranium, calla lily and tea rose with a hint of autumn leaves.

 

In the imp: Oil is clear and a light bright yellow. Beautiful! Lots of flowers, especially rose, lilies, and violet.

On me, wet: The rose is no longer evident as a specific note, and there's something almost spicy here - probably the geranium, which also gives it a touch of a herbal greenness. But mainly, a mixed bouquet of gorgeous flowers - especially violet and muguet - just like in the imp.

After 30 minutes: Same as above. This has a lovely, ultra-feminine, and dressy feel. It would be perfect for tea parties or church. It would also be suitable for formal occasions if you don't care for designer-style aldehydic perfumes, as it is a bit more sophisticated than many floral perfumes. Too girly for the office, though.

After 1 hour: The spiciness has increased, but just a little. This blend is quite consistent.

After 2 hours: The spiciness has continued to increase slightly, and it is a little more like a classic perfume, but overall it is still consistent, although considerably faded now.


Verdict: Longevity on me is slightly shorter than average, but acceptable. I don't get any autumn leaves from this. To me it is more of a fresh green spring-and-summer scent, although from the 1-hour mark on, the increasing spiciness does make it feel more autumnal in mood. But there's no dry, papery note that I would associate with leaves in the fall. No problem. I always adore floral perfumes, so this is right down my alley! I'd love to get a full bottle of it, if only it were still available. Sigh.

Verdict: 5 stars

[aphrodite]

This is really, really lovely. In the imp I could hardly smell a thing, but I was in a hurry and everything else I'd sniffed today smelled like soap, so I just went with it. Wet it remained so faint on my skin, I was thinking it lived up to its name too well. But then the violets started to come out, and everything else sort of blended together so that violet was the only thing I could distinguish clearly yet reading the list of notes I could see how it was all there. Sadly, I seem to be wildly allergic to something in here. I'm hesitant to part with an imp of a discontinued scent that I don't hate, so I'll probably keep it and may wear it again. I may even try it as a room scent, though my reaction has been sneezy rather than rashy, so that might not be any better.

[sunlitgarden]

(Without looking at notes): Violet, violet, violet. Borderline soapy floral.

 

It's a pleasant enough scent on my skin, which is odd because violet usually goes bad on me. It's borderline soapy, but definitely a higher quality scent than would be found in soap. It kind of reminds me of an older-lady smell, but not in a bad way. More of just a nostalgia-evoking way, sweet, soft floral. Still mostly violet, but there's definitely rose in here too. It's kinda like being hugged by a grandmother or other older relative.

 

It's too bad this is discontinued, because it's a nice scent, though a little more overtly feminine than I prefer to wear.

[madscientistdh]

Upon application, I have violet, calla lily and geranium at the forefront. Strange, almost medicinal sweetness, definitely perfumey and softly powdery to my nose, reminds me of what an old woman's purse might smell like. A tad vanillic, too, perhaps even starchy.

In the crook of my arm versus my wrist, the tea rose is more prominent and makes it prettier, rounds it out more nicely. I like the smell of it everywhere but my wrists Must just be where my blood flow warms my skin more, that allows the scent to morph in that regard, whereas my wrists are a tad cooler. My chest is quite lovely clean soapy florals.

Personally not really digging the medicinal factor, but I'm not sure quite where it's coming from. Muguet?

I can definitely sense the sweet wistfulness in this scent though, my impression of an old woman's purse might not be too far off.

[freyasfae]

Flowers pressed in old books - pretty much exactly what you would expect of ephemera. Interesting, but not something I would wear regularly.

[ramblingrambler]

I would imagine a forest elf would smell like this. At first, wet, it was pencil shavings which didn't make sense because I don't see any notes to indicate it would go that way, but after drying, it became a fragrant mix of florals. Everything you would expect from a fragrance called Ephemera is here.

[achildoftime]

This one really is violet-heavy. I was hoping for a more even balance after reading the notes, but it's a strong violet with an undercurrent of chamomile. When it dries I get a bit of tanginess from the dead leaves. It's not unpleasant, just a bit of a departure from the sweetness of the flowers. I wish the lily was punched up. It's a fine, fresh scent that's kind of middle-of-the-road for me.

[VetchVesper]

Strong on the violet, but there's a sharpness that made me thing lavender, and I would have thought white rose rather than tea. The chamomile makes this feel gentle and somber. It's fitting for the poem, but a bit too perfumey and mellow for my tastes, though I do enjoy violet. I enjoyed getting to test this one out though.