Black Lily

[fairnymph]

Breathtaking darkness, a vision of grace in shadow.

In the bottle: Flowers and greenery. Definitely a lily note, but a very pure one. This is surprisingly fresh and clean light. Heavily floral, but not in dark manner.

Wet: There's a weird plasticky note, leather maybe? Otherwise it's quite true to the bottle, perhaps a tad less green, but still very fresh and almost aquatic. Wet crushed stems and leaves sort of greenery.There's not that much complexity here, but the lily note shines strongly, like bright moonlight.

Dry: While not drastically different, somehow, this is even better. Perhaps the lily has amped, or some musk has amped...there is a lovely light sweetness now. I still feel this is a very luminous blend, not dark or black, at all, but perhaps nocturnal, evoking that sort of peaceful quiet and solitude of the wee hours of the morning.

Later: It sweetens, slightly, becoming a little less fresh, and little green. Still, hold wonderfully true and does not become powdery as so many lilies do. Definitely musk, probably black, which would explain the name.

Summary: Sweet, clean, feminine lily and sexy musk. It seems to glow with a peaceful, pure white light; it evokes youthful virginity, on the verge of ripeness. While very unique and simple, it shares a general drydown and alluring yet innocent feel with Juliet. Though it suggest delicacy, it has good throw and great lasting power.

Big bottle. Maybe two. Edited May 28, 2008 by Shollin

[theauth]

This smells like Pumpkin Queen or Eat Me (minus the pumpkin from Pumpkin Queen, and less foody than Eat Me) with lily to me. It's yummy

[hipslike___cinderella]

As some reveiwers here, I am a real lover of BPAL's lilies. Voodoo Lily, Cobra Lily, Hairy Toad Lily... Mmmm! Black Lily is the last of the Rappacinni's Garden lilies for me to try, and I'm disappointed.

 

Given the description, I'm surprised to believe this is a deeper Tiger Lily. Creamy, dark vanilla and amber with just a hiiiiiint of lily. I was hoping for something bold, perhaps smoky, perhaps sharp. This is creamy and mild, and reminds me GREATLY of a department store perfume my mother once had.

 

Aaaw. I much perfer the soapiness of Queen of Hearts or sweet sour of Hairy Toad Lily. Can't win 'em all!

[Diva Urd]

With so many awesome reviews for this, as a lily lover, I had to try this!

 

In the vial: Sweetened lily, I think vanilla and honey may be present.

 

On me: A very soft and understated scent, pretty much the same combination as in the vial. The scent stays very close to my skin, if I don't put my nose to it, I barely know it's there.

 

Shortly after drydown, the scent pretty much vanishes on me.

 

My verdict: While I love lilies, this one doesn't have nearly enough oomph for me and is also a little to sweet for me. Might hold on to the imp and experiment a bit more with it, but I don't think I'll reorder.

[Suu4LC]

Hm. I like lily, but the "black" part kinda scares me. Black usually means really dark and smokey, and those darker notes sometimes go yuck on my skin.

 

Luckily, in the imp, I don't get anything dark about this. Lovely sweet lily and a hint of something sweet and creamy-vanilla-ish maybe?

 

Guhh, ok, there is something in this blend that kind of smells like burning rubber on me.

 

Guh, yeah I think the black in this was tire rubber. Fail on my skin! To the swaps!

[Indigo78]

In the bottle, Black Lily falls into line with the other Lily blends: Herbal and slightly sweet. Tiger Lily was one of my first BPAL's and I guess I developed certain expectations of what Lily should be based on her. Wet on the skin the Lilies are bursting and lush, but not green. There is pratically no "stemminess" to the blend. In fact, as it dries down there is a sweetness that calls Snake Oil to mind. Cloves & Honey? Not sure, but the "black" in Black Lily is making itself apparent that way, at least on me. This a "clean-sweet" blend I will reach for often.

 

ETA: Short wearlength average throw - a true fleeting beauty.

Edited July 12, 2008 by Indig0

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Lilies and honey

 

On Application

Ah. The lilies come to the front, all spicey and fresh

 

Dry Down

Something in this blend holds the lily back from becoming too strong leaving a nice, not too sweet, spicey scent. I get a coolness from this rather than heat, which fits the concept. Probably the nicest lily blend that I have experienced to date. Unlike Tiger Lily, which to me was bright and sunny, this one is cool and darker.

 

Rating (0-5)

3.5

[Heeroluva]

In the bottle it actually smells like vanilla which I found odd. But wet the smell of lilies came out. As it dries it get's a slight spiciness to it. I'm normally not a fan of floral but this one works well on me.

[Zeljana]

this one's not your usual lily. it's almost aquatic, rather deep and *sparkling*. I'm not a floral fan, but this one's interesting. it develops beautifully, but I prefer the wet stage when it's green and voluptuous.

Not much throw, however.

[maika]

In the imp, obviously this is lily...but this is a totally different lily than that in something like Tiger Lily...this truly lives up to it's name.

 

Wet, this is deep and rich. It is quite cold, which suggests shadow to me...it's more complex than just the lily flower though, I'm getting a sense of leaves, and even a hint of earth.

 

As it's drying, I'm losing the greenery and earth, but the floral note is deepening. This? Is stunning. I usually associate lilies with funerals, but this is not at all funereal...and yet, it seems almost melancholy...but mine is not to question these things, it is, instead to adore them, and order me a whole lot more pronto!

[Iceblink]

So sweet! A womanly, powdery, almost candylike floral. It's got an old-fashioned perfume quality to it that I love. Stays pretty much the same from the wet stage to the drydown. Gorgeous.

[batsy]

In the vial: Lily, but not the standard, overpowering one. Also smells "dark".

 

On the skin: Okay now it's the standard Easter lily. Still not as overpowering as lily usually is on my skin. Also smells like spice; probably the lotus? I think I could actually wear this one. It's quite exotic.

[dzurlady]

This is a sweet, rounded scent. It's a deep sort of sweetness. I might be getting a bit of vanilla as well, or at least something that reminds me of vanilla. I'm not terribly familar with the smell of lillies to comment on that aspect, but it's nice. Unfortunately, like most florals, it doesn't suit my perfume wearing tastes. Otherwise it is quite nice and plays well on my skin.

[blacklacestatic]

This is another new favorite of mine. Lilies are probably my favorite of all the flowers, and this has such great depth. It's kind of spicy, woodsy, but still so essentially Lily. I could not stop sniffing my wrist from the moment I put it on. It just put me in a great mood all day. It kind of represents a light and dark side together, an innocent lily with a dark side. This warrants a big bottle.

 

5 out of 5. I'm in love with this Lily.

[Lyrical]

In imp: I sniff and sniff and smell ... smooth, floral darkness? It's kind of neutral, but I get something similar to lily of the valley - only smoother and darker.

 

Wet on skin: reminds me very strongly of ... what? ... ah - Belle Époque! A little darker, but this smooth, woody lily of the valley scent with something slightly bitter behind it is very similar.

 

Dry on skin: still like Belle Époque, but richer and darker. I think this could work well on a man. It also reminds me a little of Debauchery. This makes me pretty certain it has opium in it! Not half bad, although I don't see it becoming a favourite!

[Christine Daae]

This is one for the The Lab Is Psychic files - I've wanted to try Black Lily for ages, and I got it as a frimp in my latest order.

 

First impression: pretty!

 

In the imp and on my skin, this is a quiet, sweet lily. It has a darker, duskier quality to it, but it is still recognisably lily.

 

I generally don't have an issue with lily notes turning to soap, but I can see how this would work on people whose chemistry does generally turn lilies to soap. The darker, creamier notes turn this velvety instead of soapy - it's practically candied. Reminds me a little bit of Tiger Lily - I think this is the same lily, only instead of it being bright, sunny, and honeyed, this is dark, warm and velvety.

 

In the drydown, I catch a whiff of what I think is amber, which might be where the darker tones are coming from. It's a similar amber to the extreme drydown in Bastet. This may be one of my new favorites. So pretty and warm, velvety without being powdery, and elegant without being matronly. Lovely.

[Argentwolf]

Oh God, this is gorgeous. Beautiful, sweet lily, smooth and velvety. It has a cool darkness without being damp, more an essence of the shaded light that surrounds the flower, rather than the earth it springs from.

 

If only it projected. It hugs my skin and really does not throw much, and this is disappointing.

 

If you like lily, this is a must-have for you. Try it.

[msbcozad]

Black Lily

 

This is truly lily in perfume form. Wow. It reminds me of the jonquils and daffodills and lilies in the front yard of my childhood home. Very little throw so it needs a bit of slathering. This won't be my everyday scent, but it's a nice palate cleanser from my usual tea and resin loves.

[Coldfire]

Imp: LILY!

Wet on Me: Supermarket heavy Easter Lily

Drying Down: spicy lily now. the easter lily scent is gone!

Dry: Spicy lily which makes this okay to me.

Edited February 28, 2009 by Coldfire

[amanderinorange]

In the imp: lily, but not as light as I am use to smelling it.

 

On me: Yup, this is definitely a darker, heavier lily. Normally lily turns to baby powder on me, but this stays a true lily, which is a beautiful scent.

 

Overall: I would get a bottle of this, but it's not at the top of my list.

[savage_rose]

Normally lily loves my skin (and I love lily!), but the "black" in this scent is a bit bitter at first. It's not vetiver bitter, it's more of a "cologne-type" bitterness. It's off-putting and doesn't seem to pair with the lily well. But well into the dry down, it fades enough that I can smell light lily underneath the darkness. It actually smells pretty good, but not like something I would need a bottle of.

[reina]

The lily has a quality that kind of singes my nose, in any blend, but whereas some notes seem to tame it, others do not. Black Lily had that thing that singed my nose in a very unpleasant manner.

Sorry BL, but it's off to swaps for you..

[catattack]

Imp: Lots of flowers

Wet: Dark and sweet flowers

Drydown: This is a dark, sweet floral. It's sweet and somehow resiny.

Overall: I'm not fond of many floral blends, but this is really nice. It's sweet and creamy. Not at all sharp and headachy like many florals can be. This is bottle worthy. This is a great floral for non-floral people.

[isis33]

Not a review in over a year! A bit strange, because this is such a lovely scent. I had an idea that I didn't like the lillies, but at least when it comes to Black Lilly I'm completely wrong. It's soft, but not at all tame. There is an idea of vanilla floating around somewhere in the background, which is more than fine with me. :-)

[angelicruin]

Sniffing the imp, it's lily.

 

On the skin, it's a creamy lily blend.

 

Very lovely, but isn't really grabbing my attention enough to want a bottle of it.