The Passionate Shepherd To His Love

[MaeKitty]

Heather, clover, Irish moss, English ivy, tea rose, and carnation.

In the bottle: Moss and flowers
On me: The first note to really come out is rose. Normally, I'm not a fan of the rose scents as they tend to get very sharp and soapy on me, but this is perfect. It's cut flowers, grass and the warmth of petals against the skin. As it dries down, it stays summer florals, with clover taking the lead, with the moss and grasses sitting in the back. Beautiful

[empi girl]

Lots of clover and ivy, with a little carnation thrown into the mix. Very much a grassy scent, evocative of the poem. It's nice, though I was hoping for a little of the rose to come out to play, sweeten this up and round out the greeness. It doesn't, but that's ok. What isn't is that it hits my sinuses, so I think I'll pass this on to a better home.

[steelxrose]

The Passionate Shepard to His Love

 

I believe I got this decant on a whim thinking it would be a little more woodsy/earthy (I see moss!) than it actually is. In the vial it smells exactly like a field of clover, which gets my inner child going !

 

Upon application to the skin, the florals come out to play a little more over the clover. It's another soft, exquisite scent.

 

Shepard is made of win!

[kelpsoda]

This smells very fresh, and exactly like a field of clover. It reminds me a bit of the sharp green smell in Rose Red. It's slightly sweet, but I'm not sure I can pick out any carnation or rose. Overall, a very nice spring scent.

[soonyi]

wet, it's sweet and effervescent...very much the cut grasses and clover mentioned above. i smell a subtle note of carnation too.

 

dry, still green no doubt, but the ivy, rose and carnation notes are detectable within

 

very nice. i will enjoy the imp, as that is as much as i would need. i like the green-ness very much but couldnt see myself reaching for this one all that often.

[theseagrows]

this is a wet, lush, sweet, green and floral scent. very springlike. i defintely smell the ivy and tea rose the strongest...there also seems to be something slightly aquatic here? it's VERY strong when first applied, i think once it calms down a bit more i will enjoy it more.

Edited March 12, 2008 by theseagrows

[ravenfeathers]

in the bottle ha ha! it's grassiness! the rose and carnation are making me think of rose red, but it's much, much greener, like clover and fresh hay. i'm not sure but what a horse might eat me if i was wearing this.

wet on skin rose and grass. very sweet and green. uh, i think i like this better than rose red!

dry on skin the rose fades and the clover comes out. wow, is this evocative. slightly soapy, though, so as much potential as i'm smelling here, i'm going to need to retest it.

[laliloo]

What a gorgeous, grassy, green, fresh scent.

 

And I can't believe no one else has mentioned this already, as it struck me immediately - it's very similar to Selkie! I've got one on my left hand and one on my right and, they're not identical, but there's a very close resemblance. Selkie is a little less grassy and a little more floral with a slight sweetness that is less apparent in the Shepherd, but I'm amazed at how similar feeling they are.

 

My favourite of the Lupercalias that I've tested so far. Beautiful and fresh and very spring-like. I may well be getting a 5ml of this before it disappears.

[slave1]

THE PASSIONATE SHEPHERD TO HIS LOVE

 

In Bottle: The countryside

 

On Skin: This smells like a field… the flowers, the grains, the grasses and even the slight animalistic scent of a herd. It’s not really a scent I’d like to smell like, but I like that it’s like smelling a memory. It reminds me of being in England and playing in the fields around Stonehenge and other English country-sides. Very earthy and planty with the slightly sweet clover and spicy carnation. The rose is tart and innocent, the ivy is clean and green. The moss adds the perfect wet and earthy element to the scent. A very interesting blend. Light to medium throw and long wearlength.

[Dymphna]

Be prepared. This is a long, rambly, and ultimately squeeful review.

 

In the imp: Fresh, damp green grass on a late spring or early summer morning when the world is still enjoyably warm instead of sun-scorched and gasping for life. It's a very sweet green, almost juicy. Exactly like walking through dew-covered grass in the park, looking for a good place to set up a picnic blanket, and being surrounded by the scent of the grass.

 

Wet: Still very grassy and sweet, though a little less sweet as it dries. I can smell the florals, but nothing specific. Just a suggestion of tiny flowers dotting the grass. It's very pretty and young and innocent, though there is a perfumey quality to it. I think it's something sort of watery, it reminds me of cucumber, very refreshing.

 

Dry: It's drier and a bit less sweet after about ten minutes. The cucumber smell is still very apparent, at least to me, and once my husband pointed out the rose I could smell it (and it didn't turn to soap, YAY!), but all in all this is still a grassy blend more than anything else. It reminds me of Singing Moon a bit except that Singing Moon is a rainy summer day and this is a sunny one, but both are very green and somehow damp. And the cucumber makes me happy. I really like this. I'm not sure I need a bottle, though--I'll have to see how often I wear it before I decide. The only problem is that I'm really not in the mood for this type of scent now, when the weather is cool-to-cold, so it'll be difficult to make myself wear it often enough to decide...Ooooh! OMG! Another ten minutes or so and the carnation has decided to show its spicy little face, and I think maybe the heather, too. Oh, this makes it so much more interesting. It's ever so slightly bitter in a spicy, rich way. I'm imagining that same sunny summer picnic at just the moment when everyone realizes that clouds have moved in and covered the sun and the light breeze has grown up into a wind and it's going to pour any minute. The air smells impossibly *better* than it did before, and there's always going to be someone (yeah, usually it's me) who wants to stay and watch the storm and get soaked and has to be reminded of how not-good it is to be struck by lightning. Summer storms are among my favorite experiences in all of life, and the fact that ozones generally turn to cologne on me makes me very sad, so guess what? I AM SO GETTING A BOTTLE OF THIS! And after an hour, it turns into a beautiful, dry, sweet heather (I love heather!) with a hint of what may be creamy rose(!) and still faint traces of green grass. Wow, this is beautiful. I either like or love every stage of this blend.

[jade_starlight]

This is exactly what I was hoping for: sweet green clover, a hint of floral heather and everything good and wonderful about springtime. This one could quickly become my favorite of all time.

[Little Bird]

I thought that I would love The Passionate Shepherd, but he actually hasn't been a stand-out fragrance for me.

 

First on, it actually smells a bit sharp and weedy, like some of the dandelion blends that I've tried from BPAL, with a familiar sweetness from the heather. For a bit after it has dried down, this smells exactly like Garden Path with Chickens on me. My boy said it smells like flowery potpourri. It's sweet florals with some clean herbal notes.

 

After 15 minutes or so though, I start to hate this one. The florals take on an overly sweet smell on my skin after a while and the initial greenery completely disappears. It's sweet florals with a powdery edge that makes my eyes water a bit. I normally love tea rose, but the sweet tea rose plus the sweet heather is too much. The slight spiciness from the carnation and whatever is going powdery on my skin does make this seem a bit potpourri-esque, but it's so overly sweet and off that it also reminds me of rotting flowers.

 

This one definitely isn't a keeper for me.

[Pika]

The first thing I get when I put it on is "round", "hollow", green. I don't know how to explain it, but it seems so hollow. Not necessarily a bad thing, but not the sharper, weedy yellow-green I expected.

 

It seem "cooler" to me as well. Not the sunny clover I imagined, but a cool, deep shade next to a stream, very much the mosses. A shady scent. Very earthy. A bit of rose in there, I think I smell the ivy too.

 

Very interesting scent. I think it'd make a killer room scent, actually, but I'm not sure I like it as perfume. Perfect for a cool sunroom with lots of lush green houseplants.... oh drat, I don't have one of those yet. At least I can smell like I do!

[Czarina]

In the decant: lilac (I think actually that is heather, but it smelled like lilac to me)

Wet: crushed grass.

Drydown: heather and ivy. Much more grassy than floral, and kind of a wet grassy. Very pleasant and evocative of the poem. Subtle. Not overpowering.

[The_Merf]

Wow, this was not one of the decants I was expecting to be hot about, but I really like this. At first it's all green--ivy and clover...really beautiful. Very quickly, I start to smell both florals, but the carnation is stronger than the rose. This oil comes the closest to approximating fresh cut flowers as any BPAL that I have tried. I love, love, love the fact that the carnation is so prominent here--it's a lovely deep pink smelling oil, and the greenery surrounds it beautifully. It's very "English" in a romanticized way--I'd love to wear this to tea.

 

I'm pretty sure that I'll grab a bottle of this!

[PurringPulsar]

The Passionate Shepherd To His Love

 

In the imp: wonderful dewy greenery. It smells lovely but could turn to soap on me.

Wet on skin: green green grass, with a hint of carnation and something like lily.

Dry on skin: this is a lovely fresh green scent of crushed ivy and clover. It really does smell like clover, and green grass. It’s so evocative of the countryside, wildflowers and clover and fields. For now the green notes don’t seem to be turning too bitter, but it could change. There’s a touch of carnation to this which adds warmth.

After a while: it seems the green notes are turning against me, as expected. It smells less bitter than most green scents, but I still get a scent of bitter stems and soapy flowers in here, along with the clover and mushy grass clippings scent. I don’t smell rose or carnation now.

The scent doesn’t go too bad though, it stays bitter but isn’t screaming soapy death on me. It smells a little bit more pleasant at times, reminiscent of the grassiness of Garden Path with Chickens, but I prefer that scent.

The drydown is reminiscent of Green Phoenix, but a bit more bitter and almost soapy-floral. The clover still hangs around but the bitterness isn’t really my thing.

Verdict: at first, this smells like a meadow! A really lovely fresh green scent full of clover and grass with hints of flowers, such a pretty scent and so natural. Sadly, a lot of green grassy scents tend to turn bitter and soapy on me, as One to Tie taught me. And this one turns bad after an hour’s wear, when the grass note does indeed turn to unpleasant soap and waxy white flowers with wilted stems. Not nice. It’s not too bad though, as far as green-floral scents that turn soapy on me goes. But if I want grass and flowers and summer breezes, I’ll stick with Garden Path with Chickens.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? No…it’s sad when the green grass scents turn bitter on me.

If you like this, try: One to Tie Two to Win, Glasgow, Garden Path with Chickens, Her Voice, Green Phoenix

[Limelight]

This came off as a generic floral on first app, and then as it dried it turned spicy with a bitter edge, which, altho interesting, was not appealing. Buh-bye!

 

Edited to add that I tried it again recently. It had the heady rose thing at first, which died down (thankfully) and gave way to some clover and heather with the ivy poking its head out at last. Still not a fabulous, must-have kind of scent, but pleasant enough.

Edited December 28, 2008 by dirtytrip

[fiddlehead]

Another win for me Very spring-like, as I'd hoped. Green clover and grass with beautiful carnation and rose. I think it's very well balanced. Someone mentioned a similarity to "Spring Rain" from Crabtree & Evelyn and that's very true. If you like that scent you will love this. I'm on my last bottle of Spring Rain lotion so I am VERY happy with The Passionate Shepherd To His Love! Clean and fresh and like walking through a damp meadow. Another possible 2nd bottle for me.

[AEris]

You know, as springy and happy and dewy and fresh-floral as this is, all I can think of is Elizabeth Arden's Sunflowers. I bet I'd love it otherwise, but I already have the scent association (and a mini bottle, for nostalgia purposes), so I'm not ultra-psyched here.

 

3.2 out of 5 (it's still nice, just a bit common)

[furygrrl]

In the bottle: Clean, fresh, grassy...with just a *hint* of something sweet-tart underneath.

 

On wet: Pale, pale green aquatic, with the vaguest touch of watery fruit around the edges.

 

Drydown: Mmm...the sharp aquatic-ness has died away. Now it's insanely fresh smelling - like a garden, comprised of nothing but carnation and big, green, leafy plants, all dappled with cool water after a good rain. The heather is sweet, the carnation is lightly spiced cream, the green things stay green - really, really lovely.

 

Overall: I had to have this scent purely because of the poem - it's been a favourite of mine since childhood. I was incredibly fortunate that none of the notes were dealbreakers (though moss and ivy *can* be troublesome), and doubly lucky that they all decided to play nice on my skin - I would have been heartbroken if this hadn't worked. But here I am, smelling deliciously fresh and spicy and green all at the same time, anxiously waiting for warmer weather to arrive, as this is definitely going to be one of my go-to spring scents. A delightful blend - 4.5/5.

[inurbanus]

The first thing I smelled when I put The Passionate Shepherd on was dewy rose. After about fifteen minutes, the scent broadened into a whole field of wet greenery. The rose never goes away, and mingles with the other notes beautifully to produce a fresh blend that's perfect for Spring. This reminds me a lot of Her Voice, and I have to admit that I like Her Voice better, but I know I'm still going to enjoy wearing The Passionate Shepherd. It is the embodiment of Spring for me.

 

4/5

[alianthe]

In the imp: high and light and pretty, with a quite floral overtone.

 

On my skin: FLORAL! AHHH, here comes the ravening flower monster!!!

 

Conclusions: I was hoping that wouldn't happen. Occasionally, the florals can be overcome... this time, nope, my skin did its normal thing and took that nectar and AMPED it. Loudly. Le sigh.

[zankoku_zen]

Oh man, this is wet lush floral grasses on wet. However, the grass smell starts to recede and I get more of a smell like... Tempest.

 

And yes, Tempest and the Passionate Shepherd must share a few common notes, because I can smell this even when I hold my wrist far far away from my nose (which is what Tempest is like on me).

 

Pretty, but instead of grass I get the ozone from Tempest. *sigh*

[hypatia]

So. Lovely.

 

The Passionate Shepherd is mostly green on me, which is exactly what I was hoping for: a warm grassy clover-y green. It goes through a very short almost-bitter stage (maybe the ivy, but I don't know) as it starts to dry down, and the flowers peek out a little at the beginning, but once it's dry it lightens up and turns into this beautiful "fresh growing plants" scent, with just a hint of floral sweetness underneath. The comparison with Selkie is dead on, only this one isn't as aquatic as Selkie.

 

It fits the poem it's named for beautifully: it's an idealized version of the countryside, without any bad weather or dirt. It's my new "spring is here! Yay spring!" scent. It makes a nice, somewhat floral room scent, and I suspect it would be both relaxing and energizing mixed into a bath. And it's subtle and pleasant enough for me to wear to work, which is an added plus.

 

I'm so glad I ordered a whole bottle of this!

[loverstreet]

Sooooo! THIS is what Spring smells like when one isn't suffering from hay fever! I inhaled deeply from the bottle, and expected to start sneezing and watering immediately - but no! What gorgeous clover and grasses, a hint of carnation as it dries. No rose on me, thank heavens. This one is long lasting on me, and I snatched up 2 bottles.