Urania

[Neely]

The Heavenly One is the Muse of Astrology and Astronomy, and guides all those who look to the stars for knowledge. She wears a flowing cloak embroidered with her beloved stars, holds a staff and a globe, and her eyes are skyward. Her scent is that of endless, star-clad space: glittering, cool, vast. Moonflower, Moroccan jasmine, benzoin, white musk, iris, moss and a flash of ozone.

I wasn't expecting to like this at all with the jasmine in it. Jasmine and I don't get along, she turns into a bully that I need a restraining order to stop.

In the bottle: creamy floral, no funky skunk smell. Jasmine seems to be taking a powder. I smell creamy moonflower, which reminds me of heliotrope for some reason.

Wet: creamy floral with a hing of sweetness. Maybe the benzoin? This is really lovely.

Dry down: light lovely floral. My restraining order for jasmine must be working. This isn't turning into a jasmine single note, nor powder. In some ways this is reminding me of Dormouse. This is very peony like to my nose.

30 minutes: I smell moonflowers, and the musk, an irish moss are laying on the grass amongst moonflowers, making out. The ozone has come out, and this becomes slightly aquatic., which I love, and Beth's aquatics love me. Not like jasmine's fatal attraction leave a rabbit cooking on your stove kinda way.

Conclusion: I like this. Very evocative of a dark starry night in Spring. Big bottle no, imps yes. I may use this for ritual.

Rating 1-5: 3.5-4

[AliBabble]

wow, this is a pretty scent. this was a frimp from the lab, and i didn't know what was in it...my first thought was some sort of delicate, fresh, filmy white floral. almost like an apple blossom. but i see now that it is the moonflower i'm smelling. delicate and feminine, if a bit soapy (moonflower does that on me). something a bit fruity - almost apple-y, as i said. the jasmine is pretty tame, but present. this floral might be a little too fresh, plain, and innocent for me, but i do find it pretty and pleasant.

[DifferentDances]

Imp: Moonflower and ozone. Beautiful and classic.

Wet: Iris jumps to the forefront, and a bit of something nose-crinkling --either the musk or the moss. The entire effect is very faint, though. Here's hoping the drydown gives it a boost back to the imp-smell.

Drydown: Very faint, very faded moonflower and probably the white musk.

Dry: Just the wisp of white musk left.

 

My rating: 1/5. It's lovely, and doubtedly suited better to other people's chemistry, but really not my thing.

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Very cool, floral, and clean-smelling.

 

Immediately on skin: Very cool floral with almost a touch of a pine note. It’s very crisp and clean smelling.

 

After a few minutes: I can smell the jasmine, though it’s mixed with other cooler florals. It’s very pretty and light, and definitely a “blue” scent, though not aquatic.

 

Later on: Very soft and light… and very pretty. This is a very well blended scent and I really can’t pick it apart.

[aquazoo]

They got the urine part right. It becomes a soapy cloying floral. It’s settling into a more subtle floral now, with hairspray, one which I shall pass along to someone who may love it more.

[Nimthiriel]

Initial impression:

In the vial, this is the gentlest whisper of jasmine – it's like a ghostly bouquet of white flowers.

 

First on:

Straight on my skin, the jasmine grows bolder, and there are other florals playing in the background as well.

 

Dry:

After about 10 mins, it's soft and cool – like a breezy summer night under the stars. How beautiful. The musk is warming the scent a little, too.

 

20-30 mins after application, it's a skin-close scent of light florals. It's very pleasant, but a tad too delicate for my taste. Beautiful, though!

 

Finally:

Swapping, but I was very glad to try it.

[metaldog32]

So…I bought this because this would be my favorite muse…I do love astronomy and astrology..although when most people hear the latter they cringe inwardly and snicker..thinking that one who finds horoscopes and personality divination to be akin to being flaky and spacey.

 

In ANY event..it’s the one that I was drawn to and here is how it played out:

 

Initial sniff from bottle: To be honest, I can’t smell much..I think it’s the white musk or something..because sniffing this from the bottle kind of reminds me of the “non-read” I got from Silence..and if I remember correctly, Silence has a type of musk too..blue musk I believe. It doesn’t shout any particular note..but the vibe I get is of silence, space, and a slight coolness.

 

Applied wet on skin: Interestingly..it’s more of the moonflower and iris..and they both aren’t really loud either. The ozone..is there on the tail end..but it’s muted..I don’t get any benzoin, or moss or surprisingly jasmine at this point.

 

Funny thing is..the two other times I wore this, I did get an overwhelming note of either ozone and jasmine..almost headache inducing in it’s intensity…but not this time.

 

Couple of minutes on skin:-Jasmine shows up but she isn’t loud or bossy..she’s playing nice with the other florals…with the ozone still rounding up the back. I can see how this could veer into soapy ozone floral..but it doesn’t quite go there. It does seem a bit chilly..but not in a bad way. Definitely evokes dark blue skies with a carpet of white stars…glittering coldly. I agree with some reviewers saying it has a very classic perfume-y vibe..but again..I find it pleasant.

 

Again..when I tried this before, I swore I got more of a wisp of the benzoin and a bit more iris..the former hasn’t really shown up yet..interesting. I do get almost a touch of powder though..very faint..but I suspect that just might be the iris peeking out a bit more.

 

Twenty five minutes later: Hovering floral..interspersed with the ozone making it feel very starry indeed. Moss is here..just as a a bit of an underpinning..keeping it from being too sweet a floral..I think it adds in giving it a very vast and spacious feeling actually.

 

45 minutes later: It’s the drydown..and it has gotten just a tad bit sweet..benzoin maybe??? Almost kind of vanilla-like..but it’s a wisp of powder, clean white floral..high and bright..now just softly illuminating the dark night sky with it’s cold light.

 

Throw is a bit strong in the wet phase but settles down to a more average waft. Lasting power clocked in at about 2-3 hours from start to finish.

 

Bottom Line: A very aptly named fragrance..and evocative indeed. I think I would like to wear this in the winter..especially at night..when it’s cold and clear and the skies are adorned with glittering stars..this blend I think would do well on such an evening. Not a holy grail..but interesting enough to keep around for now.

Edited September 26, 2007 by metaldog32

[MaidenGenevive]

Urania

 

In vial, bittersweet floral. On skin, freshly cleaned skin, soap. A cool refreshing floral that smells powdery when dry.

 

[3 - Like] I enjoy the scent, but, I like my perfume to smell more than shower fresh.

[KassiK]

This is such a gorgeous scent! In the imp it smells more floral than it is on for me. It's hard to describe because this is one of those scents that really smells like itself. It's a light, sweet but not too sweet scent and it REALLY captured the essence of what it was trying to capture. This scent IS the night sky; stars and all. This is definitely going to turn into a big bottle for me.

[ralenth]

Wet: Jasmine and iris dominate aggressively (as they tend to do on my skin).

 

Drydown: Urania is still all high notes, but mellows somewhat from the initial floral attack.

 

Dry: Florals, accented by white musk.

 

Overall: Sophisticated and elegant, Urania is a Muse that can move in higher circles. I think that I will love my imp dearly if not purchase a bottle.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

i hate jasmine.

that being said, i'm feeling brave.

 

sniff: ozone! iris and a sort of scented-detergent-and-fabric-softener smell. not in a bad way, but like the comforting hodgepodge of "clean clothes" smell.

 

on skin: a warmer, richer "clean clothes" smell, with some white musk and iris, and still with the occasional whiff of ozone. i can feel the moonflower threatening to turn into the scented-pantyliner thing it likes to do, and the jasmine is making itself known but isn't taking over.

 

overall, this is an amazing fresh-clean smell with some flowery overtones. feminine and gentle-soft. a mom sort of smell, comforting.

i really like this, it may be the first non-new-release GC bottle i've bought in ages.

[tinyvulture]

this is pretty, but not really “me.” it’s a super powdery floral. i don’t think i really care for moonflower, since i always seem “meh” about scents containing it. but i admit, i’m not really sure what it smells like, on its own. here, i mostly smell the jasmine, which is extremely powdery (i think i said that already) and soft. the white musk and benzoin add some sweetness and warmth, but this scent still feels very “distant” to me, white and quiet, like a far away star. maybe that’s due to the ozone. i’d like it if my clothes smelled like this after i washed them, but it’s not something i’d wear as a perfume. off to swaps.

[Indefatigable]

In the vial: flowers, herbs, musk. Funny, I usually can't smell musk until it hits my skin.

 

On me: the herbs pop right out initially, and then die back. I'm getting lots of musk and some heady flowers. None of the sweet floral (e.g. jasmine) that's supposed to be in here is really apparent. One of the floral notes is a bit soapy, but not unpleasantly so, especially with the musk behind it.

 

Drying down: yup, musk and flowers. (I really do love BPAL's white musk.) This is a good one -- a deeper, greener scent than my other favourite musk blend, Katharina.

 

The astronomy geek in me is going *squee* right now.

[furygrrl]

In the imp: Strong and soapy - like good shampoo. Definitely picking up on the jasmine.

 

On wet: Sweet soap, jasmine, the sharpness of the ozone.

 

Drydown: Reminds me of a very traditional, department store perfume - though I tend to get that impression from most jasmine-heavy, shampoo-esque scents. The jasmine totally dominates on me, but I think I'm picking up on a higher-pitched sweetness, could be the moonflower. Moss and benzoin don't typically play nice on my skin, and the longer I have this on, it becomes apparent that this trend is going to continue. The benzoin is the more obvious of the two, and it almost *always* smells like burned/sour amber to my nose - not good. My two favourite notes in the blend - the iris and white musk - haven't appeared at all.

 

Overall: FYI, this imp is over two years old. When I first tried it, it smelled a lot lighter, a lot fresher, and the white musk was very prominent on the drydown - that's the only reason why I kept it, actually - I'm a white musk fiend! With the new round of discontinueds on its way, I figured I'd better give this one another go. With the absence of musk, and the heaviness of the jasmine, I'm glad I did - if only to rediscover that this scent isn't for me. It *is* a very high-end, classy kind of fragrance, though - something I could see wearing to a fancy dinner or the theatre. A 2.5/5 on my skin, though.

[taramarie]

In the imp and wet on my skin, Urania is iris and moss, very green. Wet on my skin, a hint of benzoin shows through. Dry, the iris and moss fade a bit while the white musk starts show. Urania is light, feminine, and very lovely.

[savage_rose]

A sweet, very cool floral. Moroccan jasmine smells very different than the jasmine I'm used to, and mainly I just smell moonflower. This is really nice, and I'm sorry it has been discontinued!

[Brianne]

The jasmine in this is unlike the jasmine I am used to smelling in BPAL scents (the jasmine that totally does not work on me). It's softer here and much more subdued. The moonflower is soft and almost powdery and this scent gives the overall impression of the color white. It's very clean and soft and makes me think of baby wash or something

[heysunshine]

A bright, glowing white scent; definitely of the stars and "glittery, cool, vast." The embodiment of Urania. White flowers with a slight of musk. The ozone makes it extra cool and space sky-like. Slightly soapy when wet but fades on the drydown.

[Kitrona]

Oh boy, this does not sound terribly promising, what with the jasmine.

 

In imp: Deep, dark, and warm is what I'm getting.

 

Wet: O.O Immediately morphed into a generic "men's cologne" scent. Dear gods I hope this gets better as it dries.

 

Dry: Ugh. No, just no. Does not like my skin. Swap pile.

[Argentwolf]

This is a wonderfully light and delicate floral. I can smell iris and, I think, moonflower; I don't pick up the super-sweet tone that I normally do from jasmine, but that's fine, as it seems to be working its magic in other ways. This scent is fresh and clean, and highly evocative; imagine standing among reeds and fragrant, dew-covered flowers at the edge of a pool, while the moon and stars shine above. It's beautiful. This is the one Muse that I really liked!

[themerrybaker]

A bright, white floral! In general I love the moonflower note, and the moroccan jasmine is present in just the right amount.

 

Yes, it is more of a traditional perfume, but so what? Considering that 5ml goes for less than $20, Urania is wonderfully versatile, work friendly, has no alcohol smell, and should get love on a regular basis.

[Usagi]

Finally getting around to reviewing some of my hoarded imps!

So, Urania:

 

In the imp: White floral with some aquatic and/or citrus notes. There is also something smooth underlying, musk, and when I stir the little imp wand, perhaps the vaguest hint of almond.

 

On, wet: warm, complex white floral with a little tangy 'kick'.

 

Dry down: Straight white floral aquatic. Very complex and feminine.

 

On my skin, this scent kind of reminds me of White Moon '06. Urania is slightly sharper, but still very bright and light. Overall, a very classic, feminine scent.

[voodoocatwoman]

Pretty pretty. I pick up jasmine and musk, beautifully balanced. Urania does glitter and sparkle. I like it muchly.

[Zeljana]

this is so wonderful I don't even care what's inside. It's so airy and mellow but still there. There is ozone in there, but the soft kind which doesn't irritate my nose as I inhale it deeply. The only problem is that it doesn't last a long time.

 

Very evocative, very dark blue scent.

[rayvn1]

Hey what do you know, a jasmine blend that works on me This is a light and airy scent with a sweet, simple floral given an ozone kick. I like it, but probably not enough to track more down. Glad I tried it, though!