The Carpathian Mountains

[couscous]

Beyond the green swelling hills of the Mittel Land rose mighty slopes of forest up to the lofty steeps of the Carpathians themselves. Right and left of us they towered, with the afternoon sun falling full upon them and bringing out all the glorious colours of this beautiful range, deep blue and purple in the shadows of the peaks, green and brown where grass and rock mingled, and an endless perspective of jagged rock and pointed crags, till these were themselves lost in the distance, where the snowy peaks rose grandly. Here and there seemed mighty rifts in the mountains, through which, as the sun began to sink, we saw now and again the white gleam of falling water. One of my companions touched my arm as we swept round the base of a hill and opened up the lofty, snow-covered peak of a mountain, which seemed, as we wound on our serpentine way, to be right before us.

Mountain air and the scent of crisp snow blanketing the mountain's flora: Scottish fir, beech, cembra and mugho pine, rhododendron, currant, honeysuckle, raspberry leaf, dwarf juniper, sedge, meadow grass, snowdrop, rose bay, lily of the valley, starwort, lichen and mosses.

"My friend.--Welcome to the Carpathians. I am anxiously expecting you. Sleep well tonight. At three tomorrow the diligence will start for Bukovina; a place on it is kept for you. At the Borgo Pass my carriage will await you and will bring you to me. I trust that your journey from London has been a happy one, and that you will enjoy your stay in my beautiful land. -- Your friend, Dracula."

Okay, fans of snow moon, snow bunny, and all those slushy-sloshy blends: you got your wish! The Carpathian Mountains defintely open up to me on a bracing wind of sweetened fir, pine, and/or wintergreen. In fact, this reminds me very much of what i remember as the openings of snow moon. Sweet mint ice.

As it dries- well, you didn't really expect me to be able to pick out and name all the native flora of the mountains, did you? I hope not, because I'm completely certain that I couldn't do it- everything here is too foreign to my nose and too well-blended, which is probably the point.

What I can pick out, once Beth named them: raspberry leaf (there is the slightest touch of bitter berry in here, much like the leaves of a berry plant), green grasses, a hint of juniper, and a bigger hint of ozone.

It's slightly medicinal in the way that all pine-y scents feel to my nose, but it's the most wearable pine I've ever come across- very female, very clean.

Unfortunately, it's also extremely faint, burning away to the smallest wash of wintergreen in just over an hour.

I don't know how I feel about this one, as I normally don't wear anything that even remotely suggests "christmas tree"- but I will say that, if I were forced to wear a BPAL from the ozone-y/snowy scent family, this is the one I'd go for. She's gentle, and untouched by human hands. Very nicely done.

[fairy]

I'm glad you had a different response to this than I did. On me, this was straight Vicks Vapor Rub About 25 minutes into wearing it it did get a little lighter and something was morphing but by that time it was very faint so I couldn't pick anything out.

 

I'm going to let this set for a few days, sometimes oils I initially dont care for turn out to be ones I fall in love with later on. I have a feeling this might be one of them.

 

ETA*** I am SO excited. Today I decided to try this one on again. Like I mentioned sometimes I think the oils need to just sit for a while before trying them out...to get the full beauty of this scent.

 

I was so disappointed after I tried this initially because I figured my body didnt like it, yet the description sounded absolutely lovely.

 

I put some on tonight, again, and let it sit there. Still got the menthol like yesterday...but after about 25 minutes this changed into one of the prettiest oils I've smelled. I SMELL RASPBERRY!!! Gorgeous raspberries covered in winter's first snow. LOVELY!!!!

 

So this is a morpher and one that needs to set for a day or two. I have a sneaking suspicion that this will become even lovelier after a few more days of quiet time in the bottle.

 

So to those who might not like this off the bat..you HAVE to give the carpa mountains another chance. I'm so glad I did

Edited September 29, 2006 by maddi

[opaleyes]

Boy, I wish I got what the first commentor got. Snow scents are my absolute favorite, so I was very excited about this one. Sadly, it's my least favorite out of everything I ordered. In the bottle I got nothing but pure wintergreen.

 

Wet, It's loads of wintergreen and moss.

 

On the drydown it's wintergreen and... well, I really couldn't tell you. One of those florals/plants I suppose. I was hoping the honeysuckle, raspberry leaf, lily of the valley, snowdrop... any of them really would come out. But everything is overwhelmed by the mint. There's a creamy sort of undertone that runs through all of the snow scents, and that's what I love about them. I get none of that in this one. Very sad.

 

If anyone is looking for a GC equivalent though, this smells exactly like Ulalume on me.

[Brianne]

In the bottle:

Spicey juniper!

 

On me:

This is very junipery on me at first, but after it hits my skin, a sort of minty/cold air smell starts creeping in. Then it becomes powerfully minty - but not in a sweet way or an herbal way, in a very dark and deep way. It's kind of icy-hot like in how powerful and deep the scent is. This is definitely not all mint though, there is a beautiful outdoorsy element to this - sort of clean air with snow and juniper. Just beautiful.

 

After wearing this for an hour the mint has settled down (still present though) but this still screams outdoors in winter to me. It's very cool and refreshing but has a sort of rugged feel to it. I think this scent is absolutely perfect for The Carpathian Mountains. I wasn't sure exactly what to expect, but I sure am glad this is what I got!

 

Final note:

Love love love love love love love. I am fairly sure this is a second bottle for me, because I would cry if I ran out of this beautiful scent.

[savage_rose]

In the bottle: Wintergreen!

 

Wet: Wintergreen!

 

Dry: Wintergreen lite, with a "green" herbal undercurrent, and a clean, floral undernote that smells slightly soapy and sweet. I am loving this scent!

[tindome]

I love pine and all it's variety but this smells like wintergreen gum on me.

In the bottle I was surprised by how sweet it was and it stayed pretty much the same through drydown. I guess it is the sweetened fir that I am smelling? Like a few other of the Halloween scents I don't hate the smell or even dislike it but I don't see myself really wearing this.

 

I'll probably give it another go in a few days before I make my final decision as it might be one of those scents that have to grow on you.

Edited October 2, 2006 by tindome

[sarada]

My first thought upon sniffing this: wintergreen. I'll be honest, it made me think of Ben-Gay, which I could actually use right now since my back hurts. But it's not something I typically want to smell like. Actually, there is a Chinese white flower oil my mom gave me to use on muscle aches and it also reminds me of that...very medicinal, wintergreen, menthol.

 

I immediately start thinking that this will not be a keeper, but I put some more on and let it dry for awhile. After all, I was testing four scents at once and I was IN the woods, so there were a lot of circumstances around my first sniff!

 

As it dries it reminds me more of cold flowers ... maybe like the flowers in Arkham Revisited, pale pink and blue, and a blast of minty forest air. The drydown reveals all of the color of this blend, all of the frosty flowers and lichen-encrusted stone. The Ben-Gay scent becomes almost unnoticeable after a short time. (eta: that was based on my in-the-woods test of this, but when I tried it at home the Ben-Gay scent did in fact dominate for much longer...maybe my in-the-woods experiment picked up on some natural outdoor scents as well).

 

I was hoping for something very woodsy and piney touched with flowers and though there's a hint of that, the wintergreen scent really turns me off. I'll try it a couple more times before deciding what to do with it though...it's not quite like anything else in my collection so I may want to keep it for the winter to see what it does.

Edited October 12, 2006 by sarada

[indicolite]

I want pines and snow, pines and snow, like Jersey Devil only with snow!

 

I am getting - no, not wintergreen like most people - tomato leaf. Lots and lots of tomato leaf, which makes me think of summer, but not winter in the Carpathians. I am wearing them in a locket, too!

 

Pine, come!

[ND¢]

On application I smell a lovely, natural pine that is quickly overtaken by Ben-Gay, which put me in mind of Vinland (also started out on me as Ben-Gay, and turned into a scented nail polish remover.) But this lightens up quickly and my fears were unfounded. Apart from the inital pine and a curranty drydown with a possible undertone of evergreen I can't detect separate notes in this-- it is very smooth and sweet, with no sharpness. A fruity, light scent. I thought this was a surefire 'no' for me, but Beth has proved me wrong and I am glad!

[Heavenlyrabbit]

The very first impression I get is Rhodedendron. I do love BPAL's Danube, so this is good.

 

Then very quickly, something like a Wintergreen (?) comes rushing out on a gust of mountain air. This note dominates... this might momentarily be worrisome as it's real strong and not necessarily desirable in a perfume. However, please perservere cause this phase does not last.

 

Along comes a beautiful touch of sweetness with an underlying floral/fruity-ness.

 

Thanks goodness I waited for that "wintergreen' scent to burn off

Edited October 6, 2006 by Heavenlyrabbit

[Faeried]

I was really excited about this scent.

 

In the bottle it smelled very wintery and yummy, but like All Saints, it did some funky stuff on my skin, so I had to let it go as well.

 

Beginning to notice that green scents are not my friends. :-(

[themerrybaker]

So sad. My relatives came from the Carpathians, but these mountains are not for me. Carpathians reminds me a lot of Vinland, so if wintergreen fading to berry is your thing - go for it!! But I'm going to take a Borgo Pass.

Edited October 7, 2006 by themerrybaker

[spring heel]

AFter reading the reviews I was kind of worried since I already ordered it. But I'm very glad I did. I was even more worried when I first opened up the bottle. Wintergreen, wintergreen, wintergreen, juniper? The wintergreen at first was unbearable then then juniper was unbearable. It only took a few seconds to settle down though. Then it was much softer. Wintergreen and juniper are still there, but I'm getting a lot of raspberry leaf. Something mossy too. After reading the description again, maybe I'm getting a little bit of honeysuckle and currant, just a little but its there. Its a tiny bit sweet on my but I really love this blend. Its a sweet minty-mossy blend with the tiniest of florals in there for me and I loooove it.

[wolfie13]

I have to agree most exactly with the post above!

 

At first: Wintergreen, no doubt about it. And it is quite strong and bracing! I like all "mint" scents but this is striking more as a room scent than a wearer at this early stage (it smells a lot like a mint and woods room spray I had at one point)

 

But have no fear - you do have to wait a bit, but only about 20 minutes, the wintergreen softens quite a bit and becomes more just a breath of cool air and the blend as a whole sweetens up a bit. As Springheel said "a sweet-minty-mossy blend with the tiniest of florals"

 

Post-wintergreen blast, the drydown is very reminiscent of Snow Bunny on me.

And Snow Moon as well. So if you missed out on those two, you might try this.

[cuervosueno]

Whoa!

 

How could this smell so much like wintergreen when wintergreen doesn't appear in the notes?

 

But damn, this is sharp, sharp, and yes, Sarada, I know what you mean by comparing it to the White Flower Chinese remedy stuff (which is sharp methol, and I use it for sinus headaches--clears the sinuses right out, let me tell you!)

 

When I first put it on, it even tingled like that (like Ben-gay, for those who haven't tried White Flower Oil).

 

I did get a hint of pine after that menthol burned off, but not a lot. Then after awhile, a bit of berry, but alas, on me, BPAL berry notes often go wrong, and this one is a bit like a candle on me. Mixed with menthol.

 

I adore Snow Bunny, Snow Moon, Skadi, etc, but I'm afraid this one didn't smell like those at all on me.

 

Luckily I just had a sniffy to try out. I won't be purchasing more.

[sofiaviolet]

In this imp, this is dominated by fir and some sort of menthol. On my skin, the menthol begins to take on a cat piss sort of tinge. I have no idea where this overpowering menthol is coming from, and I can't smell any other notes at all. So confused.

[mandragora]

I don't know about mountain air and snow, but wet, Carpathian Mountains starts off with a strong blast of wintergreen. Almost like Bengay but a bit sweeter *is getting worried*.

 

As it dries, I can detect pine and fir, that seems to be covered in snow. Further drydown, the wintergreen note mellows as the ice-cold green-smelling florals evolve. I can picture a majestic, snow-covered yet bleak mountain top with very sparse vegetation when wearing this scent. Great job, Beth!

[Nadirah]

I can definatly smell the White Flower , but its not all white flower oil (which smells like camphor) Its like a walk through eucalyptus trees while you crush berries underfoot. The camphor smell goes away on me in less than 5 minutes, then it turns into berries and leaves. I am always amazed at what works on some people and what doesnt. I thought after reading the reviews for this I thought I would want to swap this, but its actually very comforting. I'm also curious if this has any of the qualities that the white flower oil has, which is something I always have on hand for my asthma, sinuses, aches and pains. Hmm, I might just stick to the white flower for that, but Carpathian Mts is actually very beautiful when the camphor(or whatever it is) settles down.

[hologhost]

WINTERGREEN screams out at me from the bottle. Bracing and icy. I look forward to using this during my next cold with Hemlock. I'm waiting for flowers, but the all must be under the snow.

[AliBabble]

out of the bottle i do smell the wintergreen everyone's been going on about, but i equally smell something darker and mellower beneath it. as i continue to sniff, it reminds me of old fashioned birch beer, which i love.

on my skin, it's a bit medicinal at first, a cross between a hall's mentholyptus cough drop, and an old fashioned root beer hard candy. not very "perfume-like", but not unpleasant either. it is fresh and snowy, with the feel of cold mountain air. somehow, i don't smell much of the flowers or berries - maybe just the faintest touch, far off in the background. overall, i kind of enjoy this scent - it's invigorating in an outdoorsy way, and i really like the way it smells like birch beer. an unusual fragrance! would be good to rub on your chest when you have a cold!

[Orodemniades]

Very rarey have I sniffed or worn an oil and thought, No.

 

Alas, The Carpathian Mountains are one of the rarities. Sniffing, using as a room scent, and wearing (aka spilled on my fingers) all came up with the same initial scent: wintergreen with a hint of berry and very strong fresh plastic (like how some electronic goods smell straight out of the box, but far stronger).

 

On me, the wintergren sorta eventually faded and the berries came through very strongly. Eventually I had to get rid of it as a room scent, and wash my hands as the combined plastic and wintergreen was making my stomach upset.

 

Which is unfortunate, as I quite liked the berries and the scent of mountain air.

 

Oro

[PrettyPenny]

Cold scents and pine usually smell pretty fantastic on me, so I was excited to try this one.

 

It smelled great in the imp. Piney with just a hint of flowers and sweet coolness. Unfortunately, when I put it on my skin, all I get is mint toothpaste. Sometimes, you have to wait a few minutes for the scent to calm down when it's on. Nope, an hour later and it's still nothing but pure toothpaste. Too bad. I only wish the gorgeous smell in the imp would continue on my skin.

[jessiesquash]

In the bottle, this smelled exactly like what I imagined; cold wind, bracing pine and wild flowers. I was so excited! This was perfect for my winter scent this year.

 

On me though.......wintergreen toothpaste! NOOOOOOOOOOO!

 

Ugh. This batch of LE's are not liking me at all.

[euterpe414]

I, too, smelled wintergreen out of the bottle. I wonder what is doing that to my nose?

 

When this oil hit my skin, it literally felt chilly and icy. Weird, but I like it! This was very, very much a juniper and pine scent from the get go. All of the wintergreen illusion disappeared once it hit my skin. I don't get any florals from this at all. Just mossy forest with a tiny bit of slushiness.

 

On me this has some strrooonngg throw! I was simply testing this with a little dab on my elbow, but I can smell it over the giant slather of Sugar Skull that I put on also. (actually right now it's a combination of the two, which I am not sure that I like! ) I don't know if this what i would consider a perfume scent for me, but it is nto unpleasant.

 

When this dries down a bit (over an hour) I can smell a faint berryish smell as well. That is nice.

 

I think this might need time to grow on me. I also am going to out a few drops in my oil burner later today, as I think that might be a good way to experience this scent. Not a bad scent at all, just not what I want in a personal fragrance. If you like cool green scents as a perfume, though, this is definitely up your alley.

Edited October 28, 2006 by euterpe414

[m13]

Mega-medicinal on me, and evokes only treatments for cold congestion or sore muscles. One of the rare blends that I actively dislike.