Ostara

[euterpe414]

Our springtime celebratory perfume is crafted with orris root, bergamot, frankincense, daffodil, orange pulp, attar of rose, jonquil, strawberry leaf, benzoin, violet leaf, copal, honey cakes, sweet cream, and the blossoms of springtime.

I had no idea what this would smell like since there are a gazillion notes in it...but it's flippin' great!
I'm getting a lot of copal and frankincense in particular (yay!!!), a bit of the honeycakes- similar to All Souls I suppose in that they aren't really sweet- and herbs/flowers (I can't distinguish these notes separately, they blend together really well). All of these lovely elements produce quite a unique scent, one that is indeed quite cheery and springy despite having a lot of resin in it. I haven't done well with sunny or cheery scents like Sol Invictus and Et Lux Fuit, so I am glad I have this to cheer me up when I need it. This is the most impressive blend to me out of my latest order, for sure.

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is lots of orange and incense...nice!!

once applied this remains fairly orangey but then the other floral

notes kick in along with a sweet swirl of an almost foodiness...cakey and

creamy...such a morphing and delightful blend...i like it very much

[hepkitten]

A cream-covered daffodil is trying to beat me to death. GAH!

 

I so hoped this one would work on me, but definitely not. Grrr.

[Little Bird]

Ostara is nothing like what I was expecting. I expected this to be a heavier, sweet scent, but it’s more on the watery, sharp side of things for me.

 

I don’t get any of the ‘honey cakes’ or ‘sweet cream’ once this hits my skin, though it does have a pleasant sweetness in the bottle. It comes off as a light, clean (soapy at times) floral on me. There’s some sharp citrus mixed in with the perfumey florals and the drydown smells of citrus powder and watery flowers.

 

So, yes, that’s my review. Citrus powder and watery florals. Light and clean. It’s very much a not-me scent. I’ve worn it several times now, but the foodie and resinous parts just don’t seem to bloom on my skin. I wish it had been creamy daffodils. Oh well. Sorry Ostara, my skin chemistry seems to dull you

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I am ecstatic that my bottle of Ostara has arrived! I hope to eventually have a full set of BPAL Sabbat oils (*cough* Imbolc? *cough*), and this lovely bottle now has a place of honor between Yule and Beltane in my bottle box. It also smells fantastic on me; I wore it yesterday and got tons of compliments. On me it's a sunny floral with cool green undertones...the basenotes remind me extremely much of Mabon, although I don't know what they are; I was thinking ivy but I don't see it listed. Something fresh and green though. I don't get incense or anything heavy, thank goodness, just fresh pale flowers and greenery. I love this so much more than Eos, which had the dreaded jasmine.

[supremegoddessofall]

Another very strange combination, but so well blended that I'm have a lot of trouble picking out individual notes. Pretty, a touch wintery, but not 100% sure it's for me.

[hipslike___cinderella]

Definitely orange pulp and orris in the beginning. Strawberry leaf and violet leaf come though, and then a hint of rose otto. This is very springy, floral, and feminine. Reminds me of expensive beauty soap. The two notes I most looked forward to, frankincense and honey cakes, never showed on me! I ended up passing this onto my mother, who absolutely loved it and called it "bottled spring".

[Eemia]

MMMmmmmm.....frankincense and florals. Heavy, rich, and full of throw. I don't think spring when I wear this. I think full on sexy. The florals are just too strong for me to associate this with a light, warm weather fragrance.

 

The sweet cakes and cream don't seem to show up as quickly as I thought they would. I figured this one would be tons of honey on me, which might not have worked since honey and I aren't always friends. There is a sweetness as it dries though, which is very enticing.

 

While I can pick out the attar of rose, most of the other florals are too well blended for me to notice individually. Slightly perfumey, which I adore. The frankincense offers a nice balance though, and a little bit of edge.

 

Have to add.....my boyfriend goes crazy over this one. Absolutely crazy.

[LiberAmoris]

Ostara is totally spring in a bottle!

 

It smells like strawberry cream with roses and armfuls and armfuls of wildflowers. And it's so fun and light-hearted, which I'm kind of enjoying as a foil to the heavier scents I normally wear. I can't wait until the weather warms up just a smidge---I'll put this one into heavy rotation.

[naeelah]

I wasn't entirely sure what to think of this one at first, but after wearing it all day I'm in love!

 

This one isn't a very "me" scent, and I was fully aware of that when I bought it. I had no idea what it would smell like, except for the description in reviews that it smells like bright, fresh, springtime. It was those reviews that convinced me to buy it. I don't usually spring for fresh scents, but I always look forward to the coming of spring as a time of optimism and potential, so I bought this fragrance hoping it would encapsulate that feeling.

 

It's difficult to pick out notes in describing this one, because it's a very rich and complex blend. In the bottle and on the initial dry down, bergamot is definitely the top note. It's a very bright, almost astringent quality over florals. After 15-30 minutes the bergamot calms down and the bouquet comes into full bloom. It continues to develop over time, but nothing ever stands out to my nose. It's just a perfect fresh, bright, springtime feeling. There really is no better way to describe it. The powdery orris and frankincense help to balance the bergamot, and these help to round out the floral notes. For me, it's the frankincense that prevents this from being a more standard floral blend, and it makes it very wearable. The notes that I never get, personally, are the sweet cakes or cream. (However, it turns out the Abhisarika is perfect for layering, to add that quality.) {EDIT:} I've found the cake! After about 4 hours of wear, the scent softens to a much sweeter and vanilla-y blend, but still with a distinct floral character. At last, a fragrance that doesn't turn into baby powder on me!

 

The bergamot was a little off-putting at first, before I knew it would calm down. So I left the house not sure of how I felt about it. As I drove through town with the windows down, from time to time I could catch the scent on the wind. Every time I saw spring flora and fauna and caught a whiff I thought, this is just perfect.

 

This is one of the best things I've sniffed from BPAL. There's no denying that this is a very skillful blend and beautifully realized. It wears very well, with good longevity and very little morphing. (As it wears, the only change I noticed was that the frankincense became slightly more noticeable.) The throw is moderate to strong, but it avoids being too sharp or too soft It's right in the middle. I'm glad I got this! I love it more the more I wear it.

Edited April 19, 2007 by naeelah

[Alchemy21599]

In the vial: yummy pulpy orange, frankincense, orris, and a mix of florals.

 

Wet: The florals become more prominant.

 

Dry: The springy flowers took over. Actually, this scent smells like my late spring garden! This is a pretty and girly scent.

[little_galaxie]

Sadly, Ostara was a disappointment. Resins + florals = blech on me, and in this frankinscence and orris completely take over. It's kind of a murky scent, and not as springy as I would have liked. Hopefully, this month's April Fish'll satisfy my springy-floral needs.

[Katinka]

I have rotten luck with LEs.

 

Ostara was very pretty for the first hour -- sweet and springy, with yummy hints of orange pulp. And then it developed a sharp, nose-tickling, perfumy edge. Woe.

[gwynhwyfar]

This is lovely in the bottle. Spicy and floral and sweet and I really wanted to love it.

 

For the first couple hours, I did. Especially that first hour. It was complex and rich and all the things that I could have hoped for.

 

But then it turned to dust. Sweet dust, with a hint of baby powder to it.

 

Off to the swap post it goes.

[kwelge]

Orange pulp in the bottle! I was so excited.

 

Alas, my skin chemistry hated this one. Sharp, perfumey floral, from application to drydown. It calmed down a little on drydown, and becomes more of a soft floral. No cakes, no cream, no fabulous resins, no lovely fruits.

 

Ostara is such a cool concept, though. It's worth one more try, but if nothing improves, then it's off to swaps.

[bibliophile]

Mmm! On me, this is sweet citrus and daffodil with a bit of the strawberry/violet leaves adding a subtle green note. I've been wearing this for the past few days and am really loving it... it's what I had been hoping for from Sol Invictus, which was all resin and no citrus on my skin. I have a new sunny springtime blend!

[BlueStarGirl]

This one smelled fruity and maybe a little creamy in the bottle but it barely touched my skin before it turned to dirt.

 

From dirt florals emerged, not my style, but not bad, and now it has turned salty and floral, reminding me strongly of bath salts.

 

To the swap pile it goes, at least I have The Oblation to fill my spring-y needs.

[bunnymcfoo]

in the bottle: I get a very strong, very sweet citrus with an overlay of florals.

 

wet: The floral is the immediate kick on me, but it's a bit more green than strictly flowery, if that makes any sense at all. After a minute, the citrus kicks in, and I can very strongly smell the orange, sneaking around behind everything else. I have to admit, my first thought was 'I am so screwed - I need bottles and bottles of this.'

 

dry: The scent goes very soft, very quickly on me, to a sort of sweet, almost sugared lemonade-ish smell, underlaid with floral and herbal notes. It's lovely, I just wish it were stronger, longer on me. I'm going to be re-applying often to get that heady still-wet citrus and flowers smell that makes me feel like the prettiest thing around.

 

 

So very much a perfect springtime scent! I'm head over heels in love with this, and I was right - I need to find bottles and bottles of it. *grin*

[lushlovely]

I knew when I ordered this that there was a big chance i wouldn't like it. I don't usually do wel with the 'sun' type blends, and sadly this one was no exception.

 

In the bottle: Uhoh....pine-sol cleaner with an extra burst of orange and flowers.

 

Wet on my skin: Even more pine-sol mixed with some very sharp citrusy-florals.

 

Dry: It stays the same but just softens up. I never got any of the creaminess and honeycakes I was so desperately hoping for, and which were the main reasons I took a chance and ordered this one. Oh well, off to the swap-piles.

[jade_starlight]

Hmm, this one starts out really nice; slightly floral but also sort of juicy. Then the florals put on their stompy boots and just take over, leaving nothing but a citrusy edge in their wake. Which sadly means that this is definitely not for me. Off to the swaps.

[hackess]

Imp: Very light and fresh, something almost powdery just at the surface.

Wet: Lots of daffodil with citrus tang.

Dry: Ooh, the honey comes out and it doesn't go sickeningly rancid on me! I get some of the fruitiness of the strawberry leaf and the benzoin adds a nice spice. Later, it goes back to powdery, and it disappears almost entirely after an hour.

 

This is pretty, especially for spring. It's not something I'd wear all the time, so I'll pass it on to someone who might love it more.

[Bagfish]

Ostara is very sharp and green on initial application, and on my skin dries down to almost a pure daffodil/jonquil note. No sweet or cake notes. I was hoping for a springtime Litha, but unfortunately this doesn't work on my skin

[labeth]

I got this as an extra freebie with an imp of Yuki-Onna I had bought from someone on the forum. I will preface this by saying that I am generally way turned off by floral smells, but since I had read several reviews describing it as a very light floral, I thought I would give it a try.

 

Unfortunately, floral is floral, I guess, and we still don't agree with each other. While it smelled nice in the bottle, as soon as it was on me, florals completely overpowered me. I washed it off quickly, because I felt like I was in a funeral home. Off to the swap pile, to make someone who actually likes florals very happy. I think this would be a nice scent for someone not as consistently repulsed by flowery smells.

[Miss Lynx]

I like this a lot more than I thought I would. I couldn't resist trying it because of the complexity of the notes, but I thought it would probably be too floral for me. But it's really not... There are certainly floral elements to it, but they're not overwhelming at all. The dominant feel of it is very light and fresh, and really quite perfect for the sabbat it's named for.

 

There's something a bit watery in it without it having the sort of synthetic edge to it that scents that are considered aquatic usually seem to have, and it's a bit airy as well, and there's a sort of woody undertone, and something that seems actually a bit like damp soil, but not the nauseous graveyard dirt note that you find in Zombi and its relatives. It's a little bit reminiscent of Ulalume, or maybe a less-overwhlemingly-floral Arkham.

 

Very appropriately springlike, and while not my usual sort of scent, probably quite good for any sort of spring festival, or even just days where I want to smell like spring.

 

Grade: B

[harmonyfb]

In the imp, this was sharp and clean, a really pleasant scent.

 

Wet on my skin, it was a fresh, clean springtime scent - almost like an after-rain smell.

 

Dry: Soap. ::sigh::