Ode on Melancholy

[Bellatrix]

No, no, go not to Lethe, neither twist
Wolf's-bane, tight-rooted, for its poisonous wine;
Nor suffer thy pale forehead to be kiss'd
By nightshade, ruby grape of Proserpine;
Make not your rosary of yew-berries,
Nor let the beetle, nor the death-moth be
Your mournful Psyche, nor the downy owl
A partner in your sorrow's mysteries;
For shade to shade will come too drowsily,
And drown the wakeful anguish of the soul.

But when the melancholy fit shall fall
Sudden from heaven like a weeping cloud,
That fosters the droop-headed flowers all,
And hides the green hill in an April shroud;
Then glut thy sorrow on a morning rose,
Or on the rainbow of the salt sand-wave,
Or on the wealth of globed peonies;
Or if thy mistress some rich anger shows,
Emprison her soft hand, and let her rave,
And feed deep, deep upon her peerless eyes.

She dwells with Beauty -- Beauty that must die;
And Joy, whose hand is ever at his lips
Bidding adieu; and aching Pleasure nigh,
Turning to poison while the bee-mouth sips:
Ay, in the very temple of Delight
Veil'd Melancholy has her sovran shrine,
Though seen of none save him whose strenuous tongue
Can burst Joy's grape against his palate fine;
His soul shalt taste the sadness of her might,
And be among her cloudy trophies hung.

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.

Sniff: Wisteria, rose, and white sandalwood right off the bat. Lavender is lurking in the background.

On wet: Lavender, sandalwood, and white musk. Chillingly beautiful. Comforting in it's sadness. A bit soapy, but more what you *wish* your soap could smell like. The lavender gives it a slightly spiciness that gives the rose and musk some spine. The wisteria is a lovely note that peeks its head out.

Drydown: Wisteria, rose, and white musk. I don't sense the sandalwood coming out all that strongly. If it wasn't in the description, I would never guess that it was in here.

Overall: Beautiful, light, airy, and sad scent. Just want to sit down, close my eyes, and wallow in it. Not strong, and definitely not something to get your sexpot on with. But this is a soothing, calming, and charming.

Throw: Not a lot. Would have to slather it on.

Rating (1-5, 5 being the highest): 4.5. I keep wanting to sniff my wrists.

P.S. First review is HARD! Edited September 17, 2007 by clover

[Imbrium]

First impression: I ... actually, I can't smell a darn thing in the imp.

 

Wet, on skin, this smells very light and clean, but not soapy. It smells predominately of wisteria, with a hint of something sweet, which I'd assume is the white musk. And, while I don't smell lavender per se, I can tell that it's there, hovering in the background.

 

Ode on Melancholy contains some of my favorite notes - I'm a sucker for rose, but lighter/white roses in particular, and white musk usually smell delicious on my skin. Unfortunately for me, this scent disappears when it's dry. What a shame, since this has the same heart-wrenching fragility that I get from Havisham - when it's wet, and I can smell it.

 

Overall - this really is pretty. I suppose I'll try slathering it on, and hopefully it will last longer.

[Little Bird]

I had to form an impression of this one pretty quickly, because it seriously disappears within about 5 minutes on my skin (I *really* slathered it on too). I carry around a notepad and take notes whenever I'm trying a new scent. Here are my notes:

 

'Ode on Melancholy is a very light scent, it clings close to my skin and smells very subtle. Subtle enough that it could just be the way that my skin smells out of the bath, if I didn't know better.

 

I can smell light, powdery lavender and some sort of pleasant, soft floral. It smells very clean, but not soapy. It smells like clean skin (perhaps the white musk?). I really like this one a lot, so I'm hoping that it gets stronger in the drydown.

 

It's gone.'

 

I wish that this would stick around a bit longer on me, because I was actually enjoying it. My skin just completely devours this one.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: The very first whiff reminded me of hard candy, but that quickly disappeared. Lavender is strongest, backed by white sandalwood and a reedy white musk. Rose flickers in the background with the other florals.

On skin: It's a weak lavender with hints of wisteria and the white sandalwood. Very tired. Depressed. Melancholy. This is a aptly named fragrance, I tell you what. It isn't pretty or nice, but it's true. It sets a mood, and matches a funk if you're already in one. Unfortunately, the idea of going around smelling like I would cry if I wasn't so damn unhappy isn't quite the mood I would like to have.

This is some truly great craftmanship, for the record.

[Thaleia]

This is high up on my wish list, so I'm so overjoyed that the Lab decided to frimp me. And, I love this poem. In the immortal words of Hugh Grant as Daniel Cleaver, "F*** me, I love Keats."

 

In the vial: A pale floral scent, very sad, true to its name. I can pick out rose and wisteria (and knowing my skin, it'll amp up the rose, because that's what it does). Soft and airy-light without the depth of musk or sandalwood.

 

Wet: The first thing I can smell is lavender. It's very faint (I'm probably going to have to slather this one), but I keep sniffing my wrist. Very soft, gentle, feminine floral.

 

Drydown: The sharpness of lavender gives way to the sweetness of wisteria, and then at the end, a breath of rose. That's the trajectory the scent takes whenever I take a sniff. It's getting a bit heavier, with the musk and sandalwood notes coming out; it's truly a melancholy fragrance. Not to wear when you're having a bad day; I'd imagine you'd just end up crying. It's good for the days when you want to feel ultra-feminine.

 

Dry: Wisteria and rose with a slight musk in the background. It smells like soap, but the expensive kind that's scented with florals. This is gorgeous.

 

I'm going to need a 5ml of this when my imp is gone, and knowing me, it'll be gone soon.

 

Rating: 4.5

Edited December 23, 2005 by Shollin

[PurringPulsar]

Ode on Melancholy

 

In the imp: lavender and I think I get wisteria here. It's cool and slightly moist. Not tearful but it brings to mind windows streaked with raindrops.

Wet on skin: oooh, wisteria comes out even more now, with soft lavender. I think there's a cool white musk here, possibly sandalwood. No rose yet.

Dry on skin: this is a beautiful scent. To me, it brings to mind a greyish light lavender purple colour, and rain soaked lavender and wisteria, it's got this slight moist or fresh feel to it, with a soft downy coating of slightly salty (tear streaked, indeed) white musk and dry sandalwood, lightly dusty and nostalgic. An emotional scent. I'm surprised I'm not getting any rose yet, because I usually almost always detect the rose in any scent containing it.

After a while: still no rose, which is surprising, but I'm getting a lovely drydown here-a cool, slight airy, fresh white musk. it's a tad floral, but not as much, it's now more of a soft, slightly chilly white musk, light and pleasant.

Verdict: this is a lovely fragrance, quite emotional, definitely not a happy scent but not overly sad either…it's more like a contemplative sorrow, dwelling on life's more melancholy moments. It's a gentle floral scent, lavender and wisteria with a cool, airy white musk. the scent has a sense of moisture, makes me think of rain covered flowers on a cool day, it's quiet and serene and introverted. It keeps to itself, like the slight welling up of tears that cling to your eyes but don't fall from them, you keep them hidden from others. A pleasant, muted scent, not sure if I'd get a bottle of it but it's another example of poetry in scent, it conveys feeling through fragrance.

[Gothabillywench]

Not sure what Wisteria smells like, but on me this went really gorgeously Neroli-like. Light, sweet (but not cloyingly) slightly citussy & fresh. I love this one. It's a good Spring/Summer smell.

[Lycanthrope]

Let me begin by saying that this is one heckuva sad fragrance. I don't know how Beth does it, but how can she bottle emotions, to be released upon their striking your skin?

 

Wet, however, I wasn't thinking wistful florals... it reminded me of something I couldn't quite put my hand on. Very sweet, definitely fruity and quite familiar. I kept reapplying to see if I could figure out what it was... and it turns out that wet, Ode on Melancholy smells just like those bizarre rainbow unicorn lollipops taste. No joke! It's that fruitiness that is all but yet no specific fruit, with a definite hard candy sugar edge.

 

That dies down, however, and Ode takes a turn towards that familiar lavender sharpness, however reined back by a breath of lighter, airy flowers. I can pull the wisteria out of the blend on occasion, but I'm really searching for it. It's one of my favorite florals and glad to see I can get a feel for it in Ode! The rose, thankfully, doesn't amp on me and in the end I get a slightly dry, bittersweet lavender and wisteria fragrance that persists at the edge of my awareness, always gently reminding me of things gone by, or my mild apathy and sorrow over how life, like a fractured vase that hasn't quite fallen apart, is streaked with imperfection and marred beauty.

 

Um. Yeah, that's the kind of mood Ode puts me in, which attests to its remarkable power. Although it is frankly beautiful, I don't think I'd be wearing it much, so I'll keep the imp and boggle at its emotive power from time to time, but no bottle for me.

[maewitch]

Beautiful.

 

Lavender isn't always great on me, but this is just a whisper of lavender that fades without a word into the most delicate and serene blend of pale rose and silvery-violet florals, and the most gentle sandalwood I have ever smelled.

 

This is an utterly calming and lovely scent, discreet and feminine. Beautiful like a portrait of the Madonna is beautiful - pure lines, sad eyes. A thing of grace.

Edited December 19, 2005 by maewitch

[harmonyfb]

This is gorgeous. I'm not a big fan of florals, and probably wouldn't have tried this, except it was a frimp in my last order.

 

In the bottle: Soft lavender.

 

Wet: Lavender, with a touch of some other flower that I can't identify (maybe that's the Wisteria?)

 

Dry: The sandalwood and rose mingle with the lavender to make a nicely balanced, and yes, very sad and somber fragrance.

 

Dry, 20 min later: White musk has overwhelmed everything but the rose, but it is still a lovely scent.

 

I may not order a bottle (florals, not my thing), but I will use the imp - it smells lovely on my skin.

[hypatia]

Keats's odes were one of my first literary loves, so I'd have tried this even if I'd been dubious about the notes. Luckily, I wasn't and it all goes together beautifully.

 

It's a light, barely-there floral. Amazingly (given my chemistry, which seems to play up rose scents and makes some florals sickly-sweet) it's not heavy or cloying at all. It's kind of aquatic, actually. The rose doesn't take over (yay) and I can't really pick out the lavender or the wisteria -- or the sandalwood, for that matter. The musk is there in the final drydown. And on me it's lasted all day without being overwhelming.

 

I wouldn't call it sad, exactly, but it's certainly not a bright bubbly cheerful fragrance. It does have an aura of salt-sand waves and beauty that must die, now that I think of it. This Keats fan is impressed. (Will Ode to a Nightingale be next? Please, please, please!)

 

I'll definitely keep Ode On Melancholy in mind if I'm in the mood for something floral or Romantic-poet-esque!

[AlaskaSnows]

Wet: Green herbs and flowers.

 

Dry: Dryness. Sandalwood and some muted flowers, and a lot of that salty tear smell. Definitely bitter and sad. Not my style, but exactly what it claims to be!

[ladynoah74]

Ode on Melancholy

 

In the Bottle: Soft and shy, with gentle florals and, for me, a strong scent of sandalwood.

 

Wet: Beautiful! Still soft and shy, with the white musk coming to the front and drawing out the wisteria. I am loving this floral!

 

Dry: Oh, my. My beautiful rose has made it's appearance. Still soft and shy, and just incredibly ladylike. This is a keeper!

[aedes]

Hm, another light, girly floral on me. I wish my nose is better so I could tell them apart. But I think if you're a fan of Arachne, Maiden, and a lot of the female Illyria scents, you'll like this one. It's just too light and whimpering for me.

[dreago]

Newbie here with my first ever post on the BPAL forums about my first ever imp purchase! Naturally, I have way too much to say. I expect as I become more adept at this thing, I will be less chatty.

 

In the vial: You know, I don't know that these ingredients are necessarily depressing. I'm a bit skeptical. Unlike Saint-Germain's "brash" carnation (which really was a strong, bright carnation) I fail to understand how one can make a rose "heart-wrenching." But we will see, oh me of little faith. I smell the closed bottle and I have to say that I like the soft pale colored scent. When I open the vial, the lavendar and wisteria come rushing out, but it is the sandalwood on the heel of the scent that makes a more lasting impression. It makes me think of a girl who is wearing traces of her boyfriend's cologne on her skin.

On the wrist: This is quite a commercial scent. Interestingly enough, this scent does not have much of a sillage except that I keep thinking I am catching a trail of rose, but when I lean in to investigate, it dissapears and all I smell is lavendar and sandalwood (this combo always makes me think of male cologne). Tricksy.

 

Dry down: As usual, my skin chemistry kicks in and the scent becomes sweeter as my body amplifies the florals. Mmmm, I really like the stronger appearance of the sweet wisteria! Still, there is not too much change from my initial splash on the wrist test. Definately no rose.

 

30 minutes later: Wisteria and then Rose, Rose, Rose, Rose. Okay, while the rose may not be heartwrenching, it is pale in that the rose is watery and translucent. It sits delicately at the top of this scent. Lean in too close and you smell right past it. But at the proper distance, this note colors every other ingredient in this perfume like rose-colored glasses.

 

50 minutes: Rose, rose, rose, rose...wisteria. Huh. I wonder if Beth meant one note to top the other or if they are supposed to go hand in hand. The wisteria keeps coming and going on me. The rose is a nice compliment to the sandalwood which has quickly taken a distant back seat. Don't ask me where the lavendar went, because I don't know.

 

Final verdict: A woman's cologne that quickly morphs into an old fashioned, feminine, fragile, close to the skin, Sweet Rose scent. I don't think there is anything particularly sad about it nor do I feel sad when I wear it. I feel vaguely antique. Like I belong in another era. When I reread the adjetives I used, I can see a picture of a Victorian lady fingering a lost beau's scented hankercheif that she has taken to wearing in her own scented bodice, close to her heart. She only thinks she perceives the scent of her long lost lover, but what she smells is her recollection of how he used to smell. Is that sad enough for y'all? Power of suggestion or power of BPAL? Hmmm....

Edited January 21, 2006 by dreago

[Malista]

Ode on Melancholy

 

I think white musk may be in what others on this forum have taken to calling an “olfactory blind-spot” for me. More often than not any of Beth’s blends that contain it just sort of implode on my skin – I can almost hear the foop as they swallow themselves up.

 

White rose, wisteria, lavender and sandalwood are all good on me. Lavender smells a little soapy, but in a good way. Wisteria is sweet and wistful, white rose doesn’t go bitter but stays gentle and rosy, and sandalwood was my sole fragrance of choice for most of the late ‘60s. This should have been one of the best light florals I’ve ever tried, and for about a minute and a half it was. I get all the notes, superbly blended albeit faint as though struggling through a thick veil, with that clean skin underlay which is my only olfactory hint that white musk is present, then – foop! A faint lingering aura of white rose about four inches from my skin seems to have escaped the implosion, but that goes, too, within 15 minutes. I smell freshly bathed and completely neutral, which I suppose means I reek of white musk. Himself says he can smell the barest whiff of sandalwood if he presses his nose right against my wrist, but no more, and actually much less, scent than would be left if I had showered and scrubbed with one of my sandalwood soaps.

 

I might make a linen/body spray from this, as it’s effectively a “clean” scent on me, and in the summer there are days when that would be about all the perfume I could stand. But I will probably give the bottle to my boss, who can wear white musk., and loves light florals.

[mmcfa2]

this one is sheer genius!

 

In the bottle: I can't really smell much, a faint whiff of soft herbs perhaps.

 

Wet: soft lavender, a tiny touch of something lemony

 

Dry: it's blooming! Wisteria and rose are stepping forward and it's the soft almost watery rose that I so love in Despair!

 

30 minutes, It's continued to grow, adding a soft musk in the background and a drift of sandalwood. It is barely there with nose to wrist contact but it had a presence above the wrist and I got complimented ALL night at work.

 

& hours, still there but soft and faint. Now I can smell it with my nose on my wrist, but not otherwise. My only beef? I wouldn't call this melancholy Poignant, yes.

 

Truly a fabulous scent, soft, inviting, ladylike but not at all stiff. This is high praise from someone who generally favors spicy and resinous scents!! twice now I have fallen for herbal florals, OH MY!!!

 

5/5!!

[grrrlennyl]

at first: lots of pale flowers.

on: i'm getting lavender and flowers. i'm not sure i like this, though.

half an hour later: many pale flowers. a bit soapy, and slightly powdery.

1.5 hours later: sweeter. powdery flowers. very, very pretty.

2 hours later: sweet and powdery.

overall: this is very pretty on me, but i don't think i'll wear it often.

[WidgetAlley]

Frimp from ze Lab.

 

In the Imp: A soft smell, very yielding, but also sharp, if that makes any sense at all. Definitely lavender, some kind of floral (wisteria?), something dry and grainy (I see now it that it's the sandalwood), and the velvety backing of white musk. I didn't expect to be drawn to this at all, but it's surprisingly nice. Clean and soft and sweetly herbal.

 

Wet: Lavender, musk, round and sugary wisteria, and the clean rose. Watery and cathartic and languid. Really surprisingly sweet, too... I can only assume it's the wisteria, floating around on top. I believe Miss Bellatrix described it as "charming", which seems accurate. It's delicate, too, and lady-like, and ever-so polite, so much so that it almost seems a little deceptive. The scent of a simpering rival in a Jane Austen novel, perhaps. Crocodile tears and feigned weakness. Eyes made wide and moist by tincture of belladonna, not genuine sorrow.

 

Dry: The same. Candylike wistera, watery rose, gentle white musk and spicy lavender on a bed of understated sandalwood. This blend is everything I'm not: sweet, fragile, finely bred, coy, girly and a touch sneaky. While this is very evocative, it just isn't for me.... too fainting and quiet. I'll stick to my Santa Eularia des Riu for a womanly, but strong and joyous, floral.

 

There's an emoticon somewhere that sums up Ode on Melancholy perfectly...... ah, yes, there it is.

 

[edit] Wow, I have to say, this is one helluva sleep-inducing blend! I was fine half an hour ago, perfectly coherent, and now I'm nodding off at my desk, and literally can't stay awake. Ode on Melancholy is the only thing that's changed-- I might have to keep this around, just for insomnia!

Edited February 2, 2006 by WidgetAlley

[slave1]

In Bottle: Lavender and rose

 

On Skin: Icy and metallic at first. This is pure angst and sorrow. I take one whiff and actually feel alone and sad. Wow, I didn’t think a scent could depress me. This is like sifting through a box of old photos and love letters from a lost love. Somehow haunting but sweet memories at the same time. This is one of those scents of Beths where I am so in awe of how complex and thought out it is. There is nothing simple about it, there are so many levels. I like that it is so interesting, if somebody smells this on you, they are going to ask you about it. It catches attention like that. After about 10 minutes, it warms up a little more and doesn’t depress me as much. It’s more like a glimmer of hope. A beautiful and clean herbal/floral everyone should at least sample. Sadly the throw is light and it fades quickly.

[rainbow]

First whiff- strong lavender and herbs. Somewhat biting.

 

First on me- Ooh, this definitely smells much like tears (both real tears and the oil, Tears). It has that salty-acquatic vulnerable and sad feeling to it. Tears are the strongest note on me, but it's mixed with a very cold bouquet of flowers (I can't pick out individual notes). It's beautiful and poignant.

 

As I'm wearing the florals amp up and the tears fade away. It turns into a lovely floral perfume, one that's extremely well-blended and nearly impossible to pick out individual notes.

[isyche]

This reminds me somewhat of Tears as well, which makes me very happy because I have a much-loved hoarded bottle of Tears, and I think Ode on Melancholy might make a good non-discontinued alternative.

 

On me, it's a light, clean, unsweet, pale lavender-floral over saltwater...the rose in this must be very light because I can't distinguish it. It does feel melancholy or wistful, like a pale figure at a window looking out over the sea for someone who will never come.

 

Love it, adding it to my bottle list.

Edited February 25, 2006 by isyche

[themerrybaker]

I find it difficult to distinguish several of the floral scents. They may have jasmine listed, or lavender, or orchid but sometimes I get “vaguely lilac”. This scent smelled “floral” rather than any lavender, wisteria, rose and reminded me of other florals –vaguely lilac – like Moscow, Shadow Witch Orchid, and Queen Mab. Ode is lighter however, and dries down to a light flowery musky smell that I prefer to the heavier scents. Nice, but although it may blast delight and joy, my socks are still intact.

[ashtonrose]

I am so bummed. I loved the description and have been dying to try it. I now have three imps.

 

In the imp: smelled like soap

 

First on me: still soap

 

Drying: It took about 15 min to dry down and I could smell a touch of lavendar and whisteria.

 

Dry: No smell at all on my skin. It stuck to my clothes for about 2-3 hrs.

 

It's a bedtime scent for me. I'm gonna add it to a spritzer and put it on my sheets. The lavendar will be nice at night.

[The_Merf]

**Repost of deleted review**

 

In the imp: This smells very light, but not soapy. I can detect the rose, but not the musk, which is good, as white musk turns on my skin.

 

Wet: This remains light and pale, and I'm surprised at the quiet sandalwood.

 

Drydown and wear: This perfume does a very good job at being melancholy (so much so that I would almost hesitate to wear it because it might affect my mood). It has more depth on me than a lot of light scents, and the different notes balance themselves well.