The Peacock Queen

[musichappens]

In dramatic contrast to the soft innocence of Snow White and the dew-kissed freshness of her sister, Rose Red, this is a blood red, voluptuous rose, velvet-petaled, at the height of bloom. Haughty and imperious, vain, yet incomparably lovely to the eye, but thick with thorns of jealousy, pride and hatred.

I'm not sure why, but I'm not normally fond of rose scents. But ... Oh.em.gee. This is so gorgeous!! It reminds me of something from my childhood that I cannot put my finger on and that just makes me want a bottle even more.

This scent has actually given me the courage to try other rose scents that I wouldn't have even looked at before!

[DeltaCat]

Oh hai..my name is ROSE. T. ROSE. It is gorgeous though. Not an old lady rose just a wonderful tea rose scent.

[reynardine]

In bottle: very floral

 

Wet: full blown rose—not bitter, but soft.

 

Drydown: soft lovely rose. Reminds me of the rosewater and glycerin my grandmother used to wear.

 

Later: This fades VERY quickly. I do like it, but since I already have a 10ml of London, I don’t think I need another rose scent. This is softer than London, but still too similar.

 

[Bunbun]

Peacock Queen: I'm dismayed..... This bottle smells like some horrible fake rose room freshener, one better off freshening the local dumpster, which is where it's going unless I can find another use for it and that won't be on my skin.

 

I did get this from e-bay so, maybe it IS FAKE. But,... blech!

 

Welcome

[Geminirubyshoes]

This is soft and lovely. It's comparable to The Rose in the Marchen series, but without the greenery of the leaves and stems. The word velvety definately applies to Peacock Queen. I love the label art too!

Edited December 26, 2009 by Duskinhereyes

[Lorelai1945]

'09

 

Peacock Queen smells like a Victorian woman's powder. It is a very old-fashioned rose. It starts out with a strong blast of ROSE, but does soften. It puts me in the mind of rose water linen spray my mom used to have or Smith's Rosebud Salve. It's nice, but I don't know if I'll wear it unless I feel like being extremely flowery and girly.

[LadyMedb]

2009:

 

I had an older version of this (think it may have been the '05) and stupidly sold it, and while this 2009 version seems a little lighter than the other one I had (which could be down to aging), it's still the same sophisticated, velvety, darkened rose that I love. As has been said ad nauseam, it's the same true-rose smell as Rose Red, minus the green stem and plus a whole lot of sexy. It's a bit like London, too, but darker and more well-blended. It is in no way soapy, scratch-and-sniff-smelling, or old-lady shrieking. This is just about the perfect rose and I adore it.

Edited January 5, 2010 by LadyMedb

[angelicruin]

Wet on my skin, this is a very bold rose. It softens as it dries, but fades quickly. Inside of a couple hours, it's gone completely from my skin.

[voodoocatwoman]

09 version

 

Starts out very soapy but quickly turns into a spicy rose scent.

[SpookyBunny]

This is, pure rose, I keep thinking "it's just roses" but there is something very very significantly dark about them. I have entirely no idea what makes them seem dark, but they come across as dark gothic foreboding roses. Not sweet at all, something maybe found on an evil queen - I don't even think I sense danger in the scent though - just pure darkness. Not even darkness blanketed over the roses, the roses themselves are dark - and not melancholy either. It's, roses that revel in their darkness, this darkness that is found to be blissful - an abyss of sheer dark that surrounds you and consumes you to such an extent that you can't fear - only be in the midst of it all. Velvety, overwhelming, gray-skies and an eerie softness. As this fades it is ghostly, I wouldn't dare call it light...it is a haunting and ethereal scent. I can't believe how perfect this is. I picked up a bottle of Gothic Horror recently and found it to have a distinct rose note in it, and that was dark - but in an ancient way. I expected Peacock Queen to be more royal, and prickly and arrogant... but that's not really what I get from this. This rose is dark too, but in a consuming way that forces you to embrace the beauty of the shadows, the beautiful aspects of darkness itself. It is soft but has a presence that you can't ignore. This is just beautiful, and perfectly unique.

[misscoldheart]

I'm not really a floral person, but rose is one of the 2 or 3 florals I like. Rose has been a longtime favorite of mine since I was a teenager. I really love this one. It's such a deep, pure scent. Although I don't wear rose often, I love how it smells and this one has staying power and only needs a little bit. So glad I got a bottle of this and I hope it comes back next year. It's beautiful!

[Saya]

It's a very realistic rose scent, finally one that doesn't go sour on my skin. Usually I get 'old lady' doom from rose, but this is okay, not excellent, but it's not too bad.

[bluerose]

The Peacock Queen 2009

 

In the bottle: It smells like real red roses at the height of bloom and beauty. A very strong rose smell. Afraid it might be overpowering on the skin.

 

On the skin: Surprisingly mild on the skin. It's still red rose, but delicate enough to be worn all day without inducing a headache.

[DifferentDances]

Bottle: Really strong rose water. Definitely different than the sweet crisp rose of Rose Red.

Wet: Just the bloom of a rose. I didn't think I'd not like this, but I'm finding myself missing the green and chill of Rose Red. Hoping that I get some of the secondary scents people have mentioned.

Drydown: Definitely a mature bloom of a rose. A little powdery.

Dry: This doesn't last long. Definitely a mature rose, though.

 

Would I ever wear this? To be honest, my rose bases are pretty well covered by Rose Red and Persephone. I don't *need* this.

 

My rating: 4/5

[countessmouse]

I'm always cautious with scents where rose is the leading tone because, most of the time, they tend to go soapy on me. That is not the case with this scent! Wow! The rose is lush, dark and velvety with almost a linen undertone. And the throw? I think I'll be smelling this one ALL DAY.

[Veronica]

I honestly can't believe I haven't reviewed this scent--I just spent the past five minutes searching and researching the forums for my review. ^^;;

 

I love this scent--its possibly my favorite BPAL ever. The rose is unlike any other I've experienced. It's very fresh, and not at all typically "floral", I almost wouldn't even call it a floral at all. There's something almost deep and liquid-y about it, with just the slightest floral backnote. I just adore this scent, I don't know how to describe it.

[lahdeedah]

I probably didn't need this scent, but I realized that in all my BPAL, I don't have a simple rose scent. So here it is! I sniffed Rose Red and found the greenery not to my taste, but Peacock Queen is a haughty, deep red rose in full bloom. It reminds me greatly of a tea rose perfume I wore incessantly as a teenager, which is fun and nostalgic. It's quite strong on me, but I amp rose greatly, so YMMV.

[Incendiare]

Peacock Queen smells like a pure red rose. In my decant, it is both heady and fresh. Wet, the rose opens up. After a couple minutes, it smells almost acidic for a lack of better word, but in a positive way. If I had to choose between this and Rose Red, I'd choose the latter because it's more realistic. While I can picture myself smelling roses in a florist's or garden when I smell Rose Red, I can't when I smell Peacock Queen. Peacock Queen isn't fake at all, just that it's a more traditional rose blend. More Victorian. Still very special and elegant. I would wear this at a more formal event. Coming from a rose fan, I love both and suggest other rose fans to try both Peacock Queen and Rose Red.

[cupcakegernade]

'09 version:

 

This is the soft velvety petals of a fresh rose with maybe just a touch of pollen. No stem and leaves here. The Peacock Queen just blooms on my skin, it is so gorgeous and feminine. I have been searching for the perfect rose scent, and so far this has been the only winner for me.

[cherrycherry]

Pure, vibrant red roses. Nothing more and nothing less.

[patina]

I was confused about whether to try Rose Red, The Peacock Queen, or The Rose for the smell of a real rose off the bush, so I smelled them all. I had to compare scents from different years, so keep in mind that aging might be a factor.

 

The Peacock Queen (2007) smells like wine. Fresh from the bottle it smells fermented and acetone-like, but it soon settles down. Rather than the fruity true-red rose from Rose Red (2005), this reminds me of a dark maroon or burgandy. It is velvety. Unlike both The Rose and Rose Red, Peacock Queen doesn't seem to have greenery. I think I can smell some bare wood in there, but it doesn't smell like leaves.

 

I don't amp roses and Peacock Queen is a fairly light scent for me. It does have good throw, though. With my hands at my sides I catch whiffs of a faint rose scent sometimes.

 

Peacock Queen is darker (in tone) and more enduring than The Rose and lighter (in intensity of smell) than Rose Red.

[reconditarmonia]

(2010)

 

Oooooooh. I thought nothing could top London for rose scents (okay admittedly there are loads of plain rose scents I haven't tried but hush) but when I wear them at the same time for comparison, Peacock Queen just knocks it out of the water. It's more full, more sweet - ohgosh.

[coralprincess]

2010 - I adore rose, and I adore this scent. It's definately haughty, it's a booming, in your face

"LOOK AT ME" rose. I envisage a single, huge velvety red rose that's almost got a black tinge to it with thick, sharp thorns. Glad I got a decant & would buy a partial bottle if I had some spare $$ and one came available.

[blktauna]

Just as an aside,

 

2007, 2009 and 2010 seem to be consistent across the years.

[pandorasmuse]

2010 version.

 

This is a clear oil, which surprises me somewhat.

 

In the decant: Rosy rosy rose-rose. No greenery like in The Rose, just straight up blossom, right before it starts to wilt.

 

Wet: Wow. Extremely rosy—more so than The Rose. I like that.

 

Drydown: See above.

 

Later: The Peacock Queen just hangs out with a bit of a sneer on her face. This is awesome: aggressive but not off-putting, floral without being girly or retiring. Winner!