Ode on Melancholy

[Ghost of a Rose]

Beauty, joy, pleasure and delight: devastated. This is the scent of the hopelessness, torment and despair of love. Lavender and wisteria, heart-wrenching pale rose, desolate white sandalwood and thin, tear-streaked white musk.

In the imp: A clear, almost colorless oil, with just the palest tint of yellow. Wisteria and lavender vie for the starring role. I don't get any rose at all. (And wouldn't expect to pick up the bottom notes of sandalwood and musk yet.)

On me, wet: Still wisteria and lavender, now maybe with a faint undertone of rose. It's a bit soapy, but I don't consider that a bad thing. It reminds me of a mild jasmine. I'm getting a bit of a burning sensation (I'm allergic to lavender oil, to my great grief), but it isn't enough to be painful and my skin isn't turning red, so I can live with that.

On me, just dried: The rose comes out a little stronger, but it's still very much in the background. If I didn't know it was in this oil, I might not even notice it. If I try really hard, I can get the "old rose" note that others have mentioned. But on me it's really more of a floral dryer sheets scent. I'm beginning to realize that my skin loves rose as much as my nose does, and quickly gobbles it up. Unless the rose note is very strong, I smell very little or none of it.

After 30 minutes: Now the sandalwood, and especially the white musk bottom notes have begun to appear, making this smell less like dryer sheets and more like a light, bright, classic perfume. On me, there is none of the melancholy from the description. Quite the contrary: I'm daydreaming of taking tea in a garden on a sunny but mild spring day.

After 45 minutes: The sandalwood has completely taken over, and this is now a pleasant pure sandalwood incense smell. Now it is indeed dark and deep, but still not in a sad way, but rather in a spiritual and mystical way. Now I'm daydreaming of Buddhist temples dimly lit by candlelight, and my favorite headshop where I used to go for Tarot readings and black light posters, dimmed by the smoky haze of incense and marijuana.

Verdict: This blend is a real morpher, and quite lovely in all of its incarnations. On my skin, it's not a rose scent. That disappoints me, since the rose note was what I was particularly interested in. It might be perfect if I layered on just a smidgeon of The Rose, Rose Absolute, or Rose Otto to make this a true rose blend. But otherwise I really like this a lot. I want to try it it my scent locket, too, to retain the top notes longer. I'd also put some on my skin at the same time in order to enjoy the sandalwood bottom note as well. I think if I smelled both the florals and the sandalwood at the same time (instead of them taking turns one at a time like they do on my skin), I would indeed get the impression of old dried flowers and melancholy.

My rating: 4 stars

[Eliyetres]

Though I don't smell that much rose from the bottle, rose is a note I DON'T like. Dont know if i will ever try this on for a longer moment, I dont like smelling like an old womans flowergarden. I think it's the lavender that gives me the hint of being a fragrance old people wear

[venusinfurs]

Free imp from the lab.

 

In bottle: Soapy floral. Every light floral smells the same to me, really. There is something sharp in this one though, could be the lavender or sandalwood.

 

Wet on skin: Soapy floral overload! Lavender and I'm assuming wisteria are the most prominent. I love BPAL's rose note, but I'm not getting any of it. No hint of sandalwood or musk, either.

 

Dry on skin: I smell a bit of sweetness, which must be a hint of the musk coming out. I love white musk and was kind of hoping that soapy lavender smell would go away and reveal sandalwood and musk with a hint of floral. Actually, if anyone has smelled Robert Piguet Fracas, this has a similar flower garden but a little more smell. Just looked up the notes because it smells so similar, and it's actually floral (lillies, jasmine, orange blossom) with sandalwood and musk. I might wear this for a limited time in spring, but I doubt it will warrant a full bottle. It's not really me, especially how soapy lavender gets on me. For some reason I'm getting a sad but bright vibe from this, which would be perfect for a holiday like Easter.

[alyelle]

An older freebie I've tried a few times now, usually in the winter.

 

In the imp: mainly lavender and wisteria, with a hint of some dark, wet greenery.

 

Wet: very floral and very sweet. The wisteria and lavender are struggling to out-do one another, killing off any other scent except for the barest hint of rose.

 

Dry (1-2 hrs): the lavender is still very dominant, and it's starting to give off a smell that suggests it might turn soapy. This is quite common for anything that has rose in it, but I really hope it doesn't.

 

Dry (5-6 hrs): a very light musky floral. The rose, thankfully, never makes it to the surface. Sadly, the sandalwood doesn't either - there might have been a bit more staying power if it had. Most of the oomph dies off around the 3 hour mark.

 

Overall 4/5. I'd have liked the scent to last a bit longer, but it's a beautiful blend nonetheless, and would be perfect for date nights or any occasion where you want to smell sweet and feminine, but not necessarily for a long period of time.

[Mechanical Death]

Got this in an imp... and wasn't sure what to think of it. I was a little on the fence about it. Florals go either way for me. Some are Fantastic! with a capital F and I just want to shove my arm up my nose...

 

It had a beautiful scent description, and I love wisteria and am a lavender lover like some. It works quite well on my skin-- it doesn't turn soapy, it actually becomes a deep sultry flowery scent.

 

Wet-- sharp on skin, not soapy, white musk amping. Turning green and herbal. Not liking it so far...

 

Drying-- becoming a little more powdery, lavender coming out more, but still herbal, BAD herbal over powering.

 

For a moment it was starting to turn into something I liked, but then it turned outright sour, actually with a hint of soured milk.

 

For the moment that it blended nicely, it would have been a beautiful scent-- soft bitter (not bad bitter) florals, lovaly slightly creamy musk-- very pretty, and like the description very sad. A haunting scent. Not for me, but for someone else.

[AnnetheCatDetective]

In Imp: Didn't get a super-strong smell as I was getting the cap off, but what I got made me eager for more-- just floral and lovely. (of course, being me, what's the first thing I do when I get my hands on imps? That's right, spill some on myself! Luckily it was just a couple drops this time, so I merely re-capped and rubbed my wrist over my hand to catch it, wasn't more than I would ordinarily have dabbed on)

 

Wet on Skin: SO delicious. I'm really getting the wisteria, but the lavender is there-- I just seem to be amping wisteria like crazy. I didn't ask the rest of the room, but to ME it seems like I'm getting a lot of throw-- I don't need to hold my wrist up anywhere near my nose to REALLY get a good smell.

 

Drying Down: More lavender coming out around the edges, I think... as well as that musk. It smells like a luxury soap at this point-- definitely not soapy in a bad way, it gives me an 'Ahhh!' sort of feeling, like this is what I'd be smelling if I was soaking in my dream bathtub. My nose whisks me away on a little mental vacation to someplace very relaxing and soft purple. At this point, one of the cats wakes up from a ways away and begins sniffing the air with keen interest.

 

Now: It's dry, definitely, and it's putting out less of that super-amped super-strong throw than it was when it was only beginning to dry, though it's not yet been TOO long so it has time to continue mellowing. Now when I bring my wrist up to my nose I do pick out more notes. If I try, I THINK I can find the sandalwood, but it's definitely not overpowering on me (which I like-- light sandalwood is all good, but I prefer it to be a supporting player). Even though it's floral rather than foodie, the first word I can think of for it is 'delicious'. It's dried down into something sweetly melancholy, definitely-- something I wouldn't call 'sad', but something I would want to wear on a rainy day, to enjoy the greyness and the quiet muffled sort of way the world goes. I'm getting more musk, and I really like it-- not overpowering the floral, and I do believe wisteria remains the strongest note, but I love the way the rest of the notes shift over time, and I do love the reflectiveness.

 

I am listening to a very 'melancholy' playlist as I test this, by the way (purely by coincidence-- started up my music where I left it and grabbed one of the imps that just came in the mail), and as I'm typing, Elvis Costello's 'The Birds Will Still Be Singing' came on, and it really feels RIGHT to listen to Elvis Costello sounding mournful while I wear this perfume. I had been wanting to try this and got it from a lovely forumite, and every time I catch a whiff, it just seems to rise higher and higher up my favourites list! Definitely high marks from me on this one.

 

EDIT: I applied this late in the evening, and when I woke up, I smelled FANTASTIC! It was very faint, but it was there. This one lasts a very long time on me, and I could get little whiffs of it up until I showered the following evening. I REALLY like the way it changes on me-- every scent it morphs to is just beautiful.

Edited November 10, 2012 by AnnetheCatDetective

[JazzieCazzie]

I remember having a bottle of this awhile back, purchased strictly on the notes, and I no longer have it ... I can't recall if I sold it in a destash or included it in my Katrina auction (not sure of release date). Either way, re-reading the notes of all GCs I didn't have and wanted, I put this on my list of imps to buy in a recent big buy. So glad I did.

 

IN THE IMP: Clean, lovely, perfect lavender.

 

Applied what would generally be a "normal" amount on wrist and in crook of arm.

 

WET: Very, very, very lavender with a tiny bit of wisteria softening it. Since these are two of my very favorite scents, the early returns are excellent. Especially since the rose does not amp on me at all.

 

DRYDOWN: The good news is that the scent is divine. Just a happy marriage of lavender and wisteria. The not-as-good news is that, like many have said, it fades quickly ...

 

OVERALL: I think the obvious solution is MORE COWBELL. I mean more Ode on Melancholy. I just need to try to scoop up as many imps and/or bottles of this to allow me to apply it more generously and lavishly and frequently.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 5 for potential.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: A light floral with heavy undertones, if that makes sense. I believe I'm mostly getting wisteria complicated by rose, but I haven't smelled wisteria in situ for years, so my sense-memory may not be the most reliable thing here. It's definitely a girlish scent - floral-sweet and even a little candy-like.

 

Wet: A more omnidirectional sweet floral with, inexplicably, a hint of baby powder. Seriously, where did that come from? The candy-like sweetness dies down over time, but the baby powder stays.

 

Dry: Still dominantly baby powder, but now with about as much sandalwood as florals.

[Veronica]

I get mostly lavender from this--unfortunate because the smell of lavender makes my stomach turn. After drydown, the sandalwood and musk come out, drying and warming up this scent. It's still primarily lavender, but a more bearable, dried pretty potpourri kind of lavendar instead of the herbal, fresh green type.

[Edreaiar]

Wet, the white musk is really strong and almost a little soapy. Though the lavender is right behind it, it's an oddly airy lavender, with all the herb removed. It's like the idea of lavender.

Some rose comes out after about an hour, along with what I'm guessing is wisteria, but it's very faint. The white musk is really the star of this scent, and that doesn't change at any point.

[lady_pandora]

This is one of those old-school BPAL florals that does just what it says on the tin. I get rose first, then lavender, then it settles down to mostly what I think is wisteria, and it's really lush and pretty, kind of orchidy maybe? The white musk makes it a little soapy. I don't get any of the white sandalwood, which is fine by me. It suits the concept well, and I'll probably keep it because of the poem, plus I need a few melancholy scents (I'm still bummed I gave away Penthus).

[roseus]

I got this little beauty as a frimp, and thank goodness or I might have never experienced it.

 

In the imp I wasn't too stoked, the main scent I was grabbing was lavender with a little sandalwood and musk. It was lovely, but it's hard to get me really excited about lavender. The concept was great though, it smelled very hollow, and sad.

 

On wet the lavender took a step back, but was still fairly prominent.

 

As it dries Ode is absolutely lovely. The musk and sandalwood warmed everything up just a touch, while the rose and wisteria came out too. Everything was so well blended that I can hardly pin point any one thing. It is quite delicate but those who are near to me have commented on it.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Mostly lavender and soapy florals. There's something underneath that's really...gross......though. Like, onions or something. Blah. I wonder if that's the wisteria? It's the only note I'm not very familiar with, I like all the others and they usually work for me.

 

Dry: All of the ick is gone, just clean soapy lavender. This will be nice for bedtime, but not something I would wear during the day.

[freyasfae]

A lovely floral, definitely get the sense of sadness, but once it dries down it gets significantly sweeter on me and smells more generic floral.

[maudlinrose]

With these notes, I would have expected it to be a powedery, headache-y mess.

But its a beautiful, light floral. Understated. Definitely a come closer kind of perfume. Barely there, and so pretty

[torikitty]

So light and clean. I think the lavender and rose appear the most, but are balanced by the wisteria and musk. Definitely not overpowering, a fragrance that just hangs out in the back, like lightly smelling someone's laundry on them.

[galahad]

In the Vial:

Faint floral. Almost like violet

On the Skin:

The wisteria and lavender combo is quite nice with the powdery nature of the wisteria toning down the camphorous lavender. The sandalwood emerges as a soft note and the rose is very soft and pretty.

On the Drydown:

The musk and sandalwood have a tendency to dominate this blend on the drydown. It becomes a bit too potpourri for me

[DiesMali]

In the imp: Slightly bitter, powerful floral.

 

Wet on my skin: Lots of lavender, softened by a bit of wisteria. There's something strangely candy-like, too. Grape candy, maybe?

 

Dry: The throw of this scent is nicer than what's closer to the skin. The throw is a herbal lavender with soft wisteria and a bit of slightly bitter musky sandalwood. Closer in, it is a bit soapy, and further out it's a pleasant of purple-mauve-grey cloud of flowers with a little bit of musk and sandalwood toning them down. It's not quite my thing, despite being pretty and having wisteria (one of my favourite floral notes), so I'll likely either put it in a diffuser or frimp it to someone who would wear it more than I would.

[Lucchesa]

Wet, this is a rather high-pitched floral, not at all sweet or candy-like. As it dries down it becomes mostly lavender with a hint of rose and wisteria and the musk and sandalwood grounding it, with an overall cool feel on me. It's lovely but not the most distinctive BPAL floral; I will definitely keep it because I love the poem.

[doomsday_disco]

This is one that I've tried before, but neglected to review. Time to retest and review!

 

In the imp: The floral notes are the most prominent in the imp, with the wisteria being the star of the show. I'm also getting a lot of white musk, and I can smell the white sandalwood in the background.

 

Wet: The high-pitched wisteria reigns, and the white musk is really strong as well. After a minute, the lavender emerges, followed by the white sandalwood. The pale rose in this shows up after a few minutes of wear, which is a bit sour on my skin.

 

Dry: The high-pitched wisteria has calmed down and has lost its high-pitched quality. It's still the note I get the most from this. The pale rose is no longer sour, and the herbal lavender is present, but soft. The tear-streaked white musk is still playing a major role, and I think it is serving it's purpose, but alas, it takes the scent into dryer sheet territory on me. I'm not getting any of the white sandalwood from this anymore.

 

Verdict: I love Keats' poem, so I wanted to love this. Alas, this one just doesn't jive with my skin chemistry. After holding on to this imp for a few years, I suppose it is time to pass it on. I'm glad I got to try it, though!

[Spaztic]

This one dries down into a nice pretty, airy floral.

It started off threatening to go into soapy territory, which is where Rose tends to go for me, but by some miracle it went perfume floral to airy floral.

it quite pretty, I can't pick out the individual notes on this one

[torischroeder9]

In the vial: Predominantly lavender, with traces of a sweeter floral (could be the wisteria or the rose; it's not distinct enough at this point for me to determine), something sharper to my nose (that I'm guessing is the white musk), and just a bit of the sandalwood.

 

This has the potential to go a lot of ways for me, as my skin usually likes sandalwood and white musk but tends not to play too nicely with rose.

 

On my skin:

 

At first, there's a competing sharp-and-sweet floral as both lavender and wisteria (the sweet floral that's definitely not rose) strive to be the dominant note. The rose itself peeks through in fits and starts. I'll be honest: this phase is not the blend's finest moment.

 

At some point, however, what I can only describe as a certain... spiciness... starts to emerge. It reminds me of a similar note in Fledgling Raptor Moon, so I'm guessing it must be the sandalwood. When it first emerges, I only get it if I smell the scent indirectly: What I mean is, if I put my nose to the inside of my elbow (where I've applied the oil), I still get the clashing and competing florals. But if I put my arm down and go about my business, the wafted scent of the perfume (it does have pretty good throw) is where the spiciness comes in.

 

Also, somewhere along this phase, I sense the white musk. I don't smell it directly, but I do get that "tickling my nostrils" feeling that white musk induces in me.

 

Now that it's been on for a couple of hours, I get a sweet -- but not overly sweet -- floral scent blended with a soft sandalwood. I still sense the white musk rather than smell it directly, but it's brightening the scent and acting as a nice tie-in between the sandalwood and the florals.

 

I never do get a sense of "melancholy," but it is a nice, deep, contemplative floral blend. With a balanced overall profile and good staying power, it would make a good everyday perfume. I'll definitely revisit this imp and am contemplating whether I need a bottle.

 

Edit 10/26: Wore it all day to work. Just came back to say that it has significant staying power on me -- which is a great point in its favor.

Edited October 27, 2018 by Tori

[RedPersimmon]

Mostly lavender and wisteria on me.

[monocainsheresy]

I stand by this is a GC dupe for Fuck This Heat. It's very hard for me to tell the difference between the two, beyond FTH being slightly harsher.

Metallic, cold lavender, a little bit of powdered sandalwood and an undertone of white musk.

[Rane.]

Received as an imp. I figured the ingredients would make this a floral, feminine smell. But it actually smells like a men's cologne. It has a clean green smell to it that is fresh & airy.