Snow White

[LiberAmoris]

A chilly, bright perfume: flurries of virgin snow, crisp winter wind and the faintest breath of night-blooming flowers.

For me, trying to describe Snow White is like trying to describe a winter flower from a fairytale---there’s just nothing to compare it to. Like the reviewers above (who’ve done a lovely job putting its power into language), I pick up on the buttery floral, the gentle tropical vibe, and the pastry/almondy/coconutty edge.

And yet, it seems to me one of the most elusive BPAL blends I’ve tried, changing so many times on my skin that in the end I can only imagine an expansive field of untrammeled snow, broken only by pale yellow anemones. When fairies dance in the winter, this is the smell of the flower that springs up at their feet.

[Gin]

I had such high hopes for this. All I got from Snow White was an almondy-Lush Snowcake type scent with a hint of rosy-floral and a plasticky final stage. I just can't seem to get along with almond scents.

 

Edited:

I tried it again and I'm glad I did. I finally smell the florals, like the first pale green leaves poking out through the snow in the spring. They're still pretty well hidden under the creamy marizipan scent, but they add another dimension to Snow White that I hadn't seen (smelled) before.

[tempete]

For the first hour or so after I apply it, I simply adore Snow White. Against a creamy background, I can detect faint echoes of almond, pineapple and coconut. Normally, I'm not a fan of foody scents at all, but this is simply gorgeous.

 

Unfortunately, a sharp greenish note appears in the drydown that mars this lovely fragrance for me. It eventually recedes somewhat but never disappears completely. I'm willing to put up with this intrusive note, however, since I do love the initial wet phase of Snow White so much, but I wish that I could love her unequivocally.

[summer]

I really thought I would fall hopelessly in love with Snow White. Unfortunately, however, we just didn't hit it off.

 

On the bottle and on my skin, it smells like very creamy snow. Which I thought would be a good thing, but as it turns out, the scent of slightly coconut-almond tinged snow-cream gives me a headache. It's a very smooth, creamy scent, and is VERY evockative very bright, warm sunshine on snow. I just wish it didn't get plasticy and cloyingly powdery on me, because I love the concept.

 

I'm keeping my bottle, but fortunately, I was able to swap away the second bottle I ordered in anticipation of loving this fragrance. C'est la vie.

[feline.by.design]

So here is my experience while trying Snow White for the first time:

 

Application: Oooh! My word, it's clean and coconutty! I love coconut! It smells like a macaroon or a coconut pastie! Yummy!

 

Five minutes later: "If you like pina coladas..." Ahem, sorry, I dislike that song, but I love Snow White. It's gorgeous and yummy and yummy and gorgeous and.... yummy.... Oh it's just fab!

 

Seven minutes later: Eh? What's this? There appears to be some other note that is sneaking around under the coconut. Hmm... nevermind, it's gone again.

 

Twenty or so minutes later: Snow White smells as clean and strong as it was when I first put it on. This one is definitely a keeper. It's a sweet fragrance somewhere in-between coconut-velvet and a pina colada.

 

:::in heaven:::

 

-doreen

[Janice]

I'm keeping my bottle, but fortunately, I was able to swap away the second bottle I ordered in anticipation of loving this fragrance.  C'est la vie.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

This about sums up my experience with Snow White. I had such high hopes for this scent I purchased two bottles from lovely forumites.

 

Unfortuantly Snow White in the bottle and on my skin smelled acrid... like turpentine or burnt plastic? Why me? :sniff:

[tsarina]

I was surprised to find the first whiff so mysterious. It took quite some time to figure out what I was sniffing.

 

On my arm Snow White settled into a buttery, coconut sort of scent but cool. Like a coconut frosting. Almondy sweet note popped out.

 

Sadly within a few minutes it went to a sort of Playdough, salty scent. Damn that cursed body chemistry.

[girl-zone broker]

Snow White took my breath away. I don't know how something that smells very nearly like nothing can be so compelling that I can't stop inhaling at the spot where I've applied it, over and over again.

 

When I first put it on, my thoughts were of pristine, sterile, plastic-wrap packaging, which is a good thing, in my opinion. After about an hour, I've settled on clean water. It smells exactly like clean water to me, with a hint of forest. I don't want to say pine, because it doesn't have the strength of pine, but definitely some kind of winter-dwelling greenery. It's clean and light, but not weak. Definitely a keeper.

 

~Lily

[Cats]

In the bottle: I don't DISlike it, but I don't really like it either, and I can't much describe it. It's soft, and floral without hurting my head, and smells like ...em... faint floral play-doh?

 

A dab on me turned instantly to plasticy baby-powder.

[Sheila]

When I first learned about BPAL, I kept hearing about this fabulous LE scent called Snow White. I was curious, and read the description, and thought it sounded kind of bland and...well, cold. The reviews scared me because almond kept coming up--not a scent I like. When it was rereleased at Yule, I didn't order it. But Ice Queen didn't agree with me, so I swapped for Snow White...and it's been love ever since. (The same thing happened to me with Samhain and Snake Oil. I guess the lesson here is if everyone seems to love a scent, chances are I will too--though I hate to admit it.)

 

Anyway, I see why people say this smells like coconut, or almond, or vanilla. However, this is another scent that is so well-blended that I can't pick out any individual notes. To me, this is creamy and slightly sweet. It's warm and comforting. (And strangely, not "snowy" at all.) It's faint, but wafts up at unexpected moments, reminding me of its presence. One of my top-ten scents.

[laochodia]

someone was lovely enough to sell me a decant of this....and as soon as i opened the bottle to sniff, i was so proud of myself for buying a second bottle of this, one with 2 imps worth in it.

 

in the bottle- at first, nothing. second sniff- i almost inhaled the bottle because my sniff just grew and grew and grew, trying to take it all in.

 

wet- pineapple, coconut and something i cant quite catch.....its dancing around the edges of the pineapple.

dry- vanilla, lily, pineapple, a cold flurry of snow across my wrist. i've had this on for a whole 10 minutes, and this is now firmly in place as number 2 on my all time fav. list.

 

overall- i love this. love love love. I saw it at yuletime, and didnt order it . I'm so glad that people sold me implings of this- this scent is a pure braingasm.

 

added after wearing for 4 hours- this may/may not be related to the perfume, but i all of a sudden have a lyrical tint to my voice...everything i say sounds like i'm singing....which my mother promptly dubbed 'the snow white effect'

Edited February 12, 2005 by laochodia

[Morgan]

In the bottle: The first 5 minutes of snowfall. It is very faint, even in the bottle.

 

On my skin: It reminds me of a fairy tale princess (Snow White, perhaps? ) and making snow angels.

I can't really pick out any individual notes.

 

After 1 hour: Buttery, Snowy, Floral. It is still very light, but light in a good way. I won't smell it for a while and than all of the sudden I catch a smell of it stronger than ever.

 

Fianl Verdict: Beautiful, it may not be something I reach for often but I do love this scent.

Edited February 12, 2005 by Morgan

[gdogs]

i can't believe how much i love this scent. . . .it is perfect. i was thinking today that if i could only wear ONE bpal scent for the next year, snow white would be it.

 

 

hell, maybe for the rest of my life.

 

it is such a calming, suede scent (not suede as in leather, but as in smmmmooooth). i can't decide if it is coconut or almond, if it is warm or cool, if it is complex or simple. i do catch just the bearest hint of flowers under the smoothness. someone described it as "frosting made out of snow" and that is right on.

 

i only wish it would last longer on me. . . within a few hours, i'm hunting to find it on my skin.

 

on the other hand. . .i spilled some (*sob!*) on my wooden desk a few weeks ago, and the entire room still smells like snow white. mayhaps i should create a wooden talisman for me to wear, and soak it in snow white.

 

because i could smell like this every. single. day.

[Lady Ravenglass]

Hmmm... Snowcake. And not, as I said in my Dana O'Shee review simply the scent of Snowcake, but the whole thing. There's a soapy edge to it. I'm surprised and a little disappointed by my reaction to Snow White as it's one of the darlings of the forum, and I wanted to cherish my little impling in the proper manner.

 

All I get is Snowcake, that slightly almondy, sweet vanilla hint plus soap. How strange I'll be patient a while though, and try her again in a month. Perhaps, as with a few scents now, my nose will change its mind.

[Summerpixy]

Soft and sweet and... strange? Lovely, but it doesn't feel right on me. For some reason it's just not my thing, I love the icy blends (Cold Moon is heaven) but I guess snow doesn't appeal to me.

 

This blend is a bit too creamy (must be the coconut note) for my tastes. I swapped for an imp here so I'm kind of glad that I didn't get a bottle, it just isn't up my alley. I'm glad that so many others enjoy it though, because it is lovely, in its own way.

[quinkel]

Yummie I like this scent, it's fresh and a bit fruity, great for the winter but I see myself wearing this in summer a well because it's light.

 

It is a tiny bit cloying but not something to be disturbed about On my skin It doesn't change at all, unlike most BPAL.

 

It has also an amazing lasting power!!

I was wearing a jacket about a month ago while wearing Snow White, when putting the jacket on today i stood in a cloud of Snow White again(therefor reminded about that i have snow white and therefor wearing it again today

[fragrantgrasse]

Like jj_j, Snow White is my all time favorite BPAL scent, hands down....and I have quoted the Lab's description on my review because I wanted to keep reminding myself of how they describe Snow White. In no way could I connect their description with my sensory experience of it - I was flummoxed.

 

When I first opened the vial I was thunderstruck! This was it! The Holy Grail of scents, IMO. I almost wanted to eat it although to my nose there is nothing foody about it. I do believe I can pick out coconut, but nothing else specifically, certainly not the night blooming flowers although they are also some of my all time favorite scents.

 

What I do believe is that this scent is so spectacularly crafted by Beth that it transcends description!

 

So I will leave my review at that....I am sputtering with delight!

 

I, too, am casting my vote for a repeat this holiday season!

 

----------

eta....months later: my husband and I are out walking early this may morning and i am wearing snow white (as usual) and he asks me what scent was i wearing....because i smelled...white! how's that for a sort of synesthesia-scent-color-association?

Edited May 21, 2005 by fragrantgrasse

[requieminblack]

First sniff from the bottle- Vanilla baby powder

 

After 10 minutes- Vanilla, vanilla, baby powder.

 

After 30 minutes- Baby powder.

 

Summery- Hmm..this one didn't really do anything for me. It is pretty, but too powdery for my taste.

[cuervosueno]

Uh oh....got a bit in a swap, and it so didn't work....glad I didn't go for a whole bottle.

In the bottle....creamy, slightly coconut as others have noted. I like creamy smells, not so wild about coconut, but it was pleasant enough.

Put it on me? Immediate play-dough! Why did this happen? It didn't smell like that in the imp!

I was hoping for some of the almond notes...which I adore....but I didn't get that.

Oh well!

[Mayfair]

I wasn't very impressed with my first Snow White experience. It was a milky almond scent at first, similar to Dana O'Shee and Snowcake. But it wasn't a pleasant, creamy smell on my skin, more sharp and artificial. It really made my tummy queasy, as it is a really strong scent as well. I could also smell coconuts, which I found odd in a winter scent.

 

I wanted to love this so much and even bought a second bottle off someone else, but it just doesn't agree with me. I'll give it another try in a few days just to be sure, but I have already swapped one of the bottles for another one of Egg Nog, which was so much nicer.

[Digital_Hypoxia]

The most appropriate word I can summon up for Snow White is beautiful.

 

It has the same soft, almost milky vibe as Dana O’ Shee…but with more substance.

There’s a complexity I can’t pin down, like honeyed fresh air, snow, soft florals, and milk…but more.

 

It’s almost indescribable.

[Jasminepearls]

This is one of my favorite blends thus far.

 

In the bottle it smells like coconut and sweet flowers, very ethereal.

On my skin, wet, it is coconut amplified, but still retains that sweetness, and there is a note that I cannot describe, but seems to meld it all together and keep it beautiful! It has the element of soft winter blooms, not chilly at all, but inviting and intriguing!

 

It is the longest lasting scent I have tried so far, I could even smell it on my pillow 2 days later! Snow White, how I love thee..

[joseybird]

When first applied to my skin, Snow White smells like my beloved BBW Apple Martini candle--like a glass of sparkling water with a twist of apple. I can definately smell the "chilliness" here...it must be the closest thing to a "snow" scent I've ever smelled. As it mellows, the coconut pops out nicely, as well as the delicate white flowers. This is one of the lab's beautifully complex "semi-gourmand" fragrances, like Samhain. I love it! (It also layers beautifully with Rose Red)

[sheepzeit]

I absolutely hated this scent at first! I smelled coconut and decided I simply could not stand to smell like sunscreen all year when it's bad enough during the summer.

 

But I always try scents at least twice before giving them up for swaps, and I fell in love the second time.

 

It's nutty, yes, but not so much coconut now that I think about it. It's almondy and very faint. That's what I love about this... it's faint but very long-lasting. And it's a light vanilla-almond which is strange to me because there is supposed to be floral in this. I don't get any florals unless I really concentrate on it.

 

I can understand how this scent evokes the color white, however this is not at all the image I had gotten from the name "Snow White." It's white, yes, but a warm, soft white, perhaps so warm because it's snowing outside and you're in the kitchen baking angel food cake and filling the house with a comforting, delicious scent.

 

Some years ago I baked an angel food cake and sugared my own flowers to decorate the top. This is exactly what I think about when I smell Snow White: the understated almond and vanilla with a hint of orange zest, and the crystiline sugar sparkling on the purple flower petals.

[anmorata]

Snow White:

 

Wet: ... oil? Hints of floral.

Drydown: *baffled* nothing? hints of something sweet? Gabe says foody. I don't smell it at all.

Longterm wear: Try again at a future date. I rolled the imp to make sure it was properly mixed, but I'm getting next to nothing.