Bayou

[labeth]

A lazy, warm deep green scent with a thick aquatic undertone: Spanish moss, evergreen and cypress with watery blue-green notes and an eddy of hothouse flowers and swamp blooms.

I got Bayou as a frimp from the lab, and, in the gender debate here, I have to go with thinking it smelled pretty masculine. It's woodsy and just a little bit aquatic, and I barely get any florals at all. It's nice, but I don't think I'd keep it-- strikes me as too manly.

[daiconharuko]

This scent is slightly manly, but has a bit more of a floral note that keeps it more girly. This smells like what I imagine the bayou to smell like. It's a tiny bit swampy but not in a gross sort of way. I really love this! YAY FOR WATER SCENTS!!!!

[FallDaze]

So hailing from Louisiana, the Land o' Bayous, and having moved away and into Texas for the past several years, I was naturally quite eager to try this one!

 

Upon first sniff, the scent was pretty sharp, and the aquatic note combined with the other notes hit me as something stuffy and I got a sickly floral underlying the aquatic. Almost like overripe bayou flowers.

 

Well, since I've learned that usually what I don't like right off the bat from the imp usually turns out wonderful on my skin and vice versa, I decided not to be too discouraged. At first it went really floral on me. Still nice, but more something I would expect an aristocratic woman in Old New Orleans to be wearing rather than a bayou rat like myself

 

After a while, it started to soften out quite nicely, and I get the swamp flower blooms and earthy scents over the aquatic note, and it's really quite beautiful on me. A teasing whiff of sitting outside at dusk after a long day, just relaxing, with the scent of the earth, blooms, and a faint scent of a swamp a little ways off.

 

True to it's name and description, I've found that this scent makes me a little homesick , but then it also helps with my homesickness in bringing a little bit of it back. Scent is a very powerful sense, and this one brings back memories

[MaidenGenevive]

Bayou

 

In vial, a bright, aquatic, green floral. On skin, a thick mature floral that is gender neutral. This almost reminds me of a fragrant men's aftershave, sharply fresh and masculine.

 

[3 - Like] Too masculine for my wearing, perhaps my husband might like it.

[Styx]

Bayou (yellow oil)

 

gImp (Thank you!): Sour, a bit powdery and a touch of jasmine?

 

Skin: This will be an review of aged Bayou - because the label on my imp is different. First time I've seen the old version! I'm chuffed!

On skin Bayou is floral as can be. It is also powdery, but has a certain brightness to it - I am not getting any swamp or earth vibes out of it.

After leaving it to dry, it is very soft and womanly. When I suck in deeply, it does has a reminiscence of once being earthy - but only very, very gently.

I am interested to know how this is fresh.

[CrazyPretzel]

In the imp: Wow. Lovely deep florals and a touch of tartness. Smells like sunlight on water.

 

Wet on me: Guh! This is so gorgeous! I don't like a lot of aquatics but this one is so deep and lovely! It's not very woodsy on me at all.

 

After a few minutes: A tart but creamy lemon note comes to the forefront. At the same time there's a deep, dreamy blue aquatic like the note in Danube. There is a slight swampy smell like damp logs - don't be scared, it's warm and appealing.

 

Dry: Tart, creamy, warm, wet, with just a bit of mossy wood drifting by. Simply amazing.

[filigree_shadow]

The last time I tried Bayou I wrote down that I liked it fairly well but it was a little too swampy-smelling for me. I'm trying it again now to write this review, and it doesn't exactly smell swampy, it almost smells like... pepper? It has kind of a peppery kick. I'm not sure what that's from. But the rest of it is an intriguing mix of sweet scents from the flowers, dry woodiness, and a very, very dark aquatic scent. Just when I decide it's mostly aquatic, I sniff it again and think it's mostly woody. Then I try it again and think it smells kind of like jasmine. Maybe it changes a lot or maybe my nose is confused.

 

This is more my husband's kind of scent than mine. I'll see what he thinks of it. He might not like it due to the floral notes, but we'll see.

[Alchemy21599]

I was reading through the GC catalog and I was delighted to find a moss scent that I hadn't tried!

 

In the vial: yes, there is moss, an aquatic note, and a heaping helping of floral notes.

 

Wet: I was not expecting this to be so floral, but I tend to amp jasmine and honeysuckle, so I suspect that one, or both, are part of this blend.

 

Dry: Soapy doom. Not the scent of a languid Lousiana summer afternoon as I had hoped.

[MaeKitty]

In the bottle: Wet and floral.

On me: I think I'm starting to recognize the mossy scents that Beth uses. The scent smells blue/green, and is heavy with humidity and florals. Certainly suits the weather today (in January, when we're used to -30 celcius, it is 10 celcius and rainy). I can vaguely smell the evergreen. It's a little soapy on me, but unlike the other's that I've reviewed, it's not a girly floral soap. This is a man's soap. Almost like aftershave. As it dries, it gets more green. I don't know that this one is for me, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to try it.

[Galen]

On application: honeyed humid sweetness with the barest touch of almond

 

Floral? Yes. Big blooming exotic white blossoms with a touch of openness about them. But mostly sweet and deep and slightly spicy.

 

This is one of my favourites, and reminds me a lot of another favourite, Hell's Belle - also a sweet, exuberant, strong floral - I hadn't connected these two scents together before, but today the similarity feels unmistakable. I may have to try them side-by-side to confirm how similar or disparate they are.

 

* adds mental note to add Belle Epoque to the comparisons...

[Iceblink]

Mmm, swampy. Thick, overgrown trees standing in deep, cool water. And it's not giving me a headache like most aquatics do. It is a little too manly for me but what a lovely image this inspires.

[bibzerneth]

I got this as a freebie after I was disappointed by Danube. Its everything I thought Danube would be after reading the forums. This is an ideal summer scent. It's sweet and also clean, it's the perfect combination of aquatic and green scents but softened by beautiful gentle florals. I can see myself wearing all July.

[LadyLuckDoubt]

In the Bottle

Floral and astringent and green. Not sure how this is going to smell on me.

 

On Me

Get it off, get it off, get it OFF! Goes to something smelling like a combination of fake floral airfreshener, toilet cleaner and cheap white wine initially. Thankfully, it's not really strong, but I can smell it and I'm not a fan.

 

On drydown, it goes a lot less floral, and turns into a dry version of Jazz Funeral (which I love)-- that same smokiness, the booziness, and the subtlety. It's a LOT nicer than what it did initially, but overall, it's failed to win me over.

[bryghtrose]

Sweet, dusty, mossy aquatic.

[ladyver]

wow - this one is really doing different things on different people! i found it to be a very pretty scent - which was a big surprise with the cyprus and evergreen notes.

 

it either made me think summer dresses or walking through a glasshouse full of beautiful tropical plants and delicate, lightly scented flowers.

 

in bottle: moss and evergreen more dominant

 

wet on skin: very pretty light flowers grounded by water notes and subtle cyprus.

 

as it dries: i spot the evergreen

 

later: the moss appears at the very bottom

 

definitely a keeper which i will try to save for spring/summer (going into winter here) or winter days when i want to be reminded of warmer weather

[Coldfire]

Got this from a Newbie imp pack I got from Mary here.

 

Imp: heavy dark floral with a sharpness - Astringent?

Wet on Me: White ginger to wet tropical flowers.

a floral swamp.

Drying Down: heavy Floral white ginger/gardenia

type of scent.

Dry: heavy almost but not quite overpowering.

Spicy floral now with a dark lush wet tropical feel.

Good stay. Almost now reminds me of Estee Lauder's

Cinnabar. A winter floral for me. Bottle worthy down

the road

[savage_rose]

Really beautiful! Heavy aquatics and light florals...it's like it smells blue-green with a bit of pink. Very evocative.

[diamondstars]

Oh dear. This one smells just like cat poo on me..

 

[Argentwolf]

This blend is very floral and very wet -- like being near a pond laden with blooming water lilies. It strikes me as very feminine. I would recommend it to those who like aquatic notes and/or florals -- it succeeds really nicely on both of those levels.

[Indigo78]

First impression - i.e. sniffing the wand - is greeeen green green. The blue is right beneath it, and a second inhalation gives me some heady, almost Carribean florals.

 

Wet on the skin, the notes appear in pretty much the same order, at the same strength as in the imp. There is something verrry faintly whispering that there's a sweet, caramel note somewhere in here. For a second I want to say Coconut...but I don't know. I mean, if these scents are a performance - there must be some "extras" on the metaphorical set, right?! Whatever that note it is, it can't steal the spotlight from the heavy aquatics and lush greenery right now.

 

Ten minutes: As it dries down on my skin, the florals become sweeter and more prominent, for which I am grateful. This scent really does inspire the Bayou. The Spanish Moss might be what does it, I am not sure. I rarely find aquatic blends believable, but this one really has my imagination reeling. Seaspray, the fallen petals of night-blooming gardens, and that mysterious, creamy, luxurious note all suggest the blend's namesake perfectly.

 

The ending to this is a little sad, because it goes right to soap on me.

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: wet and floral. the aquatic note isn't too bad.

 

wet on skin: same.

 

dry down: light, sweet floral with a mild water note.

 

in all: BPAL aqua notes usually go very wrong on my skin. this didn't do that, which is nice. however, a light floral like this isn't really for me, though i can imagine during this hot summer that many will enjoy it immensely.

 

 

[stillalive]

reminds me a lot of this scent spray I had as a little girl called Ocean Mist... it's a citrusy but not scent. I can't think of how to describe it.... I never would have chosen this but Delirium1009 had the right idea! I think it brings back memories of my childhood, spritzing on Ocean Mist and feeling so grown up, but then going outside and playing with dolls and my swingset... our family vacation to New Orleans... wow, it's definitely one of my top 10 so far, maybe a top 5. Not sure if I'll buy a bottle, but this imp is a keeper for sure.

[alicia_stardust]

This isn't murky or as aquatic as I had expected it to be. It's very, very beautiful in the way that the hothouse blooms mingle with the mosses. It's blue-green and damp and just full of greenery and nature and wildness. I love this!

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Lemony cypress. Quite soft and crisp

 

On Application

A quick blast of cypress and then the flowers amp up.

 

Dry Down

Initially, the combination of cypress and the flowers is unsettling, but then the moss starts to tone everything down and ground the blend. 5 minutes or so into the drydown, this becomes a bit more aquatic in feel and the flowers become sharper and sweeter. This is going in my "not sure" pile for the moment and I will try again. Could benefit from aging.

 

Rating (0-5)

2.5

[zankoku_zen]

I have to say, this does kind of remind me to Parthenope (or Parthenope reminds me to Bayou). I get that blue-green vibe off of it - it's hot, and sultry. Aquatic hothouse flowers, and one of them must be jasmine. It's less aggressive than in Parthenope though.

 

But really, I think Bayou might be the GC equivalent of Parthenope.