Snow White

[Koumori]

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

 

After reading so many glowing reviews of the first Snow White release, I'd regretted not getting it when it came out, so I picked up a bottle in the '04 Yule release. It is a very light, crisp scent which put me in mind of clean sheets and white linen - unfortunately, the "fabric softener" quality of it seemed to develop the longer I wore it, and I never did get the foody notes that other reviewers did. While pleasant, this scent was ultimately not a keeper for me. It was a long-lasting scent, though, and stuck around all day.

[wickedgoddess]

I love Snow White, the story, and really, really wanted to like this scent. And I think I probably would, if I could smell it.

 

Wet..I don't smell anything at all! Well, maybe a teeny, tiny bit of indistinguishable sweetness, but that's it. I reapply strongly…still nothing.

 

Dry…ever so faintly I smell almonds, but I really have to work at it. As times goes on the almond gets stronger; after 2 hours...ah, now I can smell it, just barely, but it's there. This appears to be another of the milky scents that my skin eats.

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the best) 2.

[itsuki]

I didn't expect to fall in love with Snow White, nor for it to work so well with my skin -- what a pleasant surprise!

 

The scent seemed much lighter than most BPAL oils I've tried so far, but every now and then I catch a whiff of this beautiful, clean scent.

It's hard to pick out the notes, but it smells like a perfect, coy blush on apple-tinged cheeks in the snow, if that makes any sense.

 

I'm in love. (And I'm very likely to be broke because of this love.)

[mickey mouse]

This is my first LE and what a way to start collecting BPAL. This is gorgeous. A clean , coconutty crisp scent. The perfect reminder of a wintry snowy day . I want more of this wonderful scent.

[quimerula]

Wet: no almonds or mazipan, but a creamy coconut note (like the I Should Coco soap from Lush, I'm not kidding)... maybe maple syrup.

It's subtle and light, with a very soft green touch (peppermint?) and white musk (everything is maybe in this scent, so light and etereal). Even melancholic.

It's special and reconforting, but not warm.

If it was a stone, it would be opal.

[girlmadasbirds]

this is a breathtaking, beautiful scent... like snow on fresh flowers. on me, there's a rose and lily note with a layer of coconut and something kind of minty to give it a "cold" feel. it's very feminine and sexy and the scent lasts for hours.

[Femke]

It's a very complex blend. In the bottle it's sweet and green-ish at the same time. There's definitely coconut in there. When on it goes all sweet at first, vanilla mixed with coconut. Then a green note comes out and it goes weird on me, green notes and I don't really agree very well. But then after a few hours, it balances out and it's almost woody.

 

Can't figure out what notes are in it, apart from coconut and vanilla. I don't get the mint at all.

[Orodemniades]

Oo, it's just like Lush's Snow Cake!

 

It's a bit almondy, a touch sweet, a bit green...overall, it's lovely!

 

Oro

 

edited because I'm an idiot

Edited April 30, 2005 by Orodemniades

[Celogrl]

Count me among the many fans of Snow White. I get a predominantly almondy, pear-ish type of feel from this, but my only disappointment is that it does not feel like a "cold" smell to me. That was my original intent when I first heard of Snow White. That said, I think this is a lovely, lovely fragrance. On me, it has hints of sweetness, and it goes through a funny Play Doh transformation for about 5 minutes, then it settles in and becomes very rich. It reminds me of cookies baking. I will keep this one in my repertoire. I have now gotten my hands on some Ice Queen and maybe it will give me the chilliness I desire, but Snow White always has a friend in me!

 

ADDED June 10:

 

Dear Snow White~ it's 90 degrees here today, with 67% relative humidity and while driving along I-95 thinking how HOT I was, I remembered that I had 5 ml. of Snow White in my purse. In between traffic jams of beach-bound families with squalling youngsters, I slathered on a nice helping, cranked the AC up a bit, and within moments, I swear that I felt chillier and more comfortable! I kept sniffing my arm until I arrived home. Oh, I love my Snow White

[lixolux]

i can't believe that i havent written a review of Snow White yet! I love love love snow white but every time i wore it it reminded me of *someone* else. i dont know who, but it just never gelled with my skin to feel like it was something that i was wearing. soft and sweet, with a little coconut behind it, but like someone i know, something i know...so i never ever wore it, just sniffed from time to time.....

 

today i decided to wear it as i was baking anise lemon honey biscotti and oh geez, with this context i am suddenly *wearing* it! i dont know if its the ingredients or what but its such a perfect complement to the spicy cookies i made! i also dont get the cold sense from Snow White - on me is a warm dry coconut rum laced macaroon with a dry scent of wind along a sunny beach - baking cookies on the beach with enough something floral to keep it not foody.

 

yay! im so glad i kept this bottle!!!!!

[Alice Aforethought]

I really didn't think I'd get on with this.

 

I don't go for the sweetie, foody type smells. But this is a total exception.

 

First on, it's a gentle vanilla laced with almond - not a harsh, bitter almond, more like the aroma from a newly-opened packet of ground almonds for cakeage. It's exquisite, but just not me.

 

And then, as it calms down the cool note peeks through. It's like a small breath of icy air that immediately and instinctively makes your neck straighten and your posture improve.

 

It's a cool and collected scent masquerading behind the sweet and comforting pretence of of sweeties and happy-ever-after.

 

And I love it.

[iroj_e]

I'm very smitten with Snow White. I smell a slight similarity to Dana O'Shee. To me Snow White starts off green while Dana O'Shee begins as a sweet wet almond. Snow White has a flral and fruity background which is completely missing from Dana O'Shee and sets Snow White off on her own as an individual. The dry down of Snow White, on me, seems to be florals laced with a nice- not too sweet- vanilla. I swear that I detect waterlilly in the drydown, but it may be an accord that causes the same note. I love this scent. I need a big bottle of it.

[PurringPulsar]

Snow White

 

In the imp: a very fresh, cool, watery smell. Snow? It reminds me of a scented candle called 'Snow' or 'Winter Woods'. I smell hints of green, mint, pine and something sweet.

Wet on skin: there's a hint of pine in this, and something sweet, maybe a hint of white musk? There's also something that reminds me of cut grass-it's green. It's not very strong on me, but there's a slight note in there that makes me feel uncomfortable, it smells slightly rubbery…

Dry on skin: oh no, it's gone really quiet on me, I can hardly smell it! there's that dark pine note with a note on top like crushed green grass under snow, but so faint. But a minute or so later, this gets stronger, the smell becomes lovely again! It's fresh, it's crisp, and complex-I can smell mint, pine, grass, moss, coconut, night blooming flowers, white musk (no almonds for me though)-but they blend so nicely to form this wonderful fresh cool smell which is soft, cold and watery with a bit of green-it is like snow in a forest, because it's not just fluffy and fresh, there's a darker, greener, earthier undercurrent, like a shadowy winter forest on a dark winter night.

After a while: the mint/pine/moss/green note in this is really strong, I was hoping it would be more foody as others mentioned, yes, the coconut vanilla note is still there, but only slightly, but it's nice none the less-very crisp and clean, like freshly washed white sheets.

After a few hours, the creamy vanilla sweet note mentioned in other reviews comes to the fore, and reminds me of the wet stage of Chaste Moon, without the really soapy note I got. It's a gentle, creamy, innocent sweetness, really lovely.

Verdict: this was so nice in the imp, but I was worried this would turn horrible on me, as it was faint and slightly rubbery when wet. But after a minute it went wonderful and got stronger-fresh, cool, clean, and crisp, a hint of green, a hint of icy water, a huge combination of different notes melting into one. This would be perfect for Xmas-we never get white ones where I live, but with this, I can fantasise! This would also be nice for summer because it's fresh and cool. I was hoping I'd get the creamy sweet notes that others got. I might get a bottle of this if it's being released again this year, but I'm unsure.

Edited May 21, 2005 by yeahbutnobut

[Chirp]

In the bottle: Delicious heavy butter-cream and pina-coladas.

 

Wet: The heavy cream smell fades and I am left with pineapple, coconut, and a bizarre burned vanilla-playdoh scent (when I first got Snow White there was a distinct plastic tinge to the blend... perhaps the plastic note has aged). I can catch a faint whiff of delicate jasmine attempting to peek through the strange scorched vanilla ice cream scent. I can also smell a lighter, brighter floral in the throw (rather than on the skin) that might be pear blossom. Snow White is mainly a warm scent at the moment, with just a titch of coolness hanging around the edges. Overall, it strikes me as fairly feminine, and even a bit subdued.

 

Dry: There's been a nuclear pina-colada/jasmine explosion, and a hypersweet fruity floral mushroom cloud is swirling around me with radioactive intensity. Snow White is no longer subtle or delicate in the slightest, instead the little princess has jetted off to the tropics and had a few too many girly drinks. The vanilla ice cream/playdoh scent has taken on a powdery tone... which is good, since it's tempered the scorched smell.

 

 

Far from evoking feelings of snow and winter, Snow White screams "beach party" and makes me crave drinks that come in coconut shells with little colored umbrellas on the rim.

 

However, Snow White does evoke the color white for me... or at least, off-white. White gummy bears, pineapple life savers, pina-coladas, coconut shavings, jasmine, pear blossom, vanilla icecream, and old playdoh... all can be found in this blend.

[ismene]

I loved Snow White '03. It was perfect. However, after I'd had the bottle nearly a year, it had started to go off a bit and had a faint plastic smell that was really unpleasant on my skin. Needless to say, I was looking forward to receiving my new bottle.

 

Snow White '04 is a lot greener than the previous year and, unfortunately, had that plasticy note right from the beginning. Someone said it might be narcissus. Whatever it is, it's most unpleasant on me. I've tried it repeatedly, under different circumstances, but it's always the same. I'm so disappointed

 

I know the ingredients in LEs vary a bit each year, so I'm hoping next year's version of SW will be as lovely on me as the first year.

[reina]

Yes, narcissus. I'm identifying this smoky-ish note that appeared in "Pride".

It's there from the start. I just applied it, and it's coming out strongly. Shame about that, in the bottle is was so cool, sweet, clean... gorgeous! Now the narcissus is blooming on my skin, and it tarnishes the snow.

 

I'll keep going with this scent, other than the narcissus it's extremely pleasant and totally within my comfort zone. if the narcissus fades with time, I'll wear it.

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): I'm getting faint flowers and that's about it on this one.

 

Just On: Flowers and something sweet. I'm thinking a bit of coconut? It's not cloyingly floral, but I can smell them.

 

An hour or two later: Hmmm, coconuts, flowers, and plastic. Darn it.

 

Around 6 hours: It's pretty faded, but I can still smell plastic coconuts and flowers.

 

12 hours: I'm left with the barest hint of plastic.

 

Overall: Well, I got that plastic thing again, which I get with a few notes. At least it wasn't cat pee. I doubt I'll hang on to this one.

 

After reading other reviews: Boy, I certainly wish I'd gotten what some of the more enthusiastic Snow White lovers got out of this! Since I got mostly plastic, it got swapped away.

[zankoku_zen]

On Bottle: Smells clean and like winter. Faint floral smell. I'm excited!

 

On Application: COCONUTS! The smell is almost overwhelming. Like suntan lotion. Where did the winter go?

 

After an hour: I still have faint whiffs of coconut but its not overwhelming. I'm catching a wift of pine and a hint of vanilla. I smell something else, reminds me of warmth, so I'm guessing it may be the almond? It's smelling a bit more green, which makes an interesting contrast. This isn't exactly reminding me of winter or snow.

 

Overall: I so wanted to like this scent. I guess my body chemistry brings out the coconut and vanilla and all the other warm scents to the forefront. I have to say its an interesting smell. But not what I was expecting. I was expecting something cooler and more wintry. To the swap pile. *sigh*

 

 

ETA:

I have now tried the 2007 incarnation. Doesn't work for me. Not coconut, but still tropical and it has that weird plastic smell to it. This blend, in whatever incarnation just doesn't work on me.

Edited December 14, 2007 by zankoku_zen

[slave1]

In Bottle: Light sweet floral.

 

On Skin: So this is a winter scent as well, but far prettier and less extreme than Skadi. No pine, but beautiful soft florals and the light, crisp scent of snow. Very feminine and sparkly… entergetic… I love it! I wish snow really smelled this way. I think I smell a berry in there as well, or something sweet and fruity. Again, this is beautiful. I want a bottle of it.

[QueenFae]

This smells just like Lush's Smitten hand lotion. It's so distinct, yet so hard for me to describe. It has a milky, almondy feel to it, but there's something else there, a bit of a bite of something else glorious. It's without doubt as white as a scent can get. Beautiful, foody, highly addictive.

[blaqpearl]

This one is so hard to describe. It is a very bright, and crystal like to me. It last forever on my skin. I absolutely adore this. I have one bottle that I have to make last.

[Kittychat]

This scent is just so gorgeous! It's something I could wear every day or for special occasions too! I thought maybe it would be too floral for my tastes but I was so wrong! It only has a very small hint of floral that I love! I have two 5ml bottles of Snow white but I wish I had more that's how good it is! If it ever came out again as a LE I think I would get a zillion bottles and just be in Snow white heaven!

[Legerdermain]

(My first BPAL scent EVER! Goodness!)

 

In the bottle, and when I put it on wet, the slightly bitter narcissus note a couple of people already mentioned is much more present. The bitter note fades away pretty quickly for me and for the duration of its "throw" the scent is sweet vanilla coconut with creamy florals lingering at the edge. The only real criticism I'd have to offer is that it's not nearly strong on me as I'd like, requiring me to put on more and more to compensate. This is growing on me every day, which is distressing as I only have half an imp of this stuff left, and it's Limited Edition. *cries*

[modesty_blaise]

First: I´m so happy I was able to get this from the lovely Moonpuff! I´ve been wanting to try it since I joined the world of BPAL, but since the LE was long gone, I thought it would be next to impossible to get an imp.

 

When I opened the imp, I thought "Oh no!", cause I realized that this isn´t available anymore and I only have this one little imp... It smells sooo good! So unlike the other scents I´ve tried (which, of course, is a limited amount, as I´m new to this...).

 

It changed a little on my skin, but not that much. It´s veeery sweet. I´m no good at detecting notes, but I think I can smell a lot of the ones mentioned in previous posts. Everything sweet, I´d say; marzipan (this was my first impression), almonds, vanilla, coconut... It´s actually on the verge of being too sweet...

 

I don´t think this is a chilly or cold scent at all, but I figure that it´s gonna be perfect for winter. The sweetness and warmth (like staying inside by the fireplace at christmas, wearing wooden socks and snuggling under a warm blanket, stuffing cookies down your throat like there´s no tomorrow, feeling all safe and comfy with family and friends) is too much when it´s hot&humid-as-hell outside, but I think it will go well with the coldness and crispness of snow. Hopefully I will be able to have a few drops left for when winter sets in!

 

 

ETA: After 6 hrs or so (what can I say, my skin adores smelly stuff as much as my nose ), I think I sense some musk in the background, very light and subtle and delicious

Edited July 7, 2005 by modesty_blaise

[roesmoker]

I was not expecting to like Snow White at all - florals and I don't get along, and I haven't had much success with the "frosty" notes like the traditional lunar oils - so when I won it in an auction as part of an LE imp lot I was all, 'ho hum, guess I'll have to try it, then'. Imagine my surprise when instead of the icy blast of flowers I was expecting, I got warm sweet cookies! I don't smell any flowers or almond at all - and thank god because I hate almonds with a passion bordering on prejudice - but just a lovely sweet, creamy, lightly foody scent that I can almost TASTE. It reminds me of coconut milk, gently warmed as in coconut milk soup. It's not cold on me at all.

 

Love, love, LOVE!!! Hope it comes back this winter because I would be all over that.